2011 - A year in pictures!!!

January: Phoenix, Arizona

BCS National Championship game

War Eagle!!!! My husband looks so handsome :)

February: Tuscaloosa, Alabama

My mom, mother in law, and I..... I don't have many pictures from February. It was a rough month for me, if you look closely I have my back brace on in this picture:( This picture was from my bridal tea hosted by my mom's wonderful friends

March: Elba, Al

Josh and I with our parents at the Lawford Cabin! This weekend we were showers with much love and gifts at the basket shower

April: Birmingham, Al

April 9, 2011 we got MARRIED!!!

Ceremony- Canterbury United Methodist Church

Reception- Old Overton Club

Most joyous day of our lives!!!!!

May: Orange Beach, Al

Memorial Day weekend 2011- Donnie Canaan's house

June: Chattanooga, Tn

I turned the BIG 30!!!A wonderful and relaxing weekend with my husband

July: Panama City, Fl

Thanks Uncle Donald for letting us stay at your house!! It was a rainy beach weekend with the Allen and Andrea Maness

August: Asheville, NC

I won this trip at the Junior League silent auction. We had a blast and got to visit the Biltmore Mansion & stayed at the beautiful Grove Park Inn

September: Auburn, Al

My mom turned the BIG 60!!! We surprised her at the tailgate with some of her close friends from Tuscaloosa.... the look on her face was priceless!

October: Auburn, Al

Another fun weekend at the plains tailgating with friends and family!

November: Atlanta, Ga

My sister and I took my mom to go see Mamma Mia at the Fox Theater as a late birthday celebration.

December: Parent's house

Our first Christmas as The Lawford's! Such a wonderful holiday spent with those that mean the most to us! We are very blessed!

This time last year....

This time last year...... I was picking up my wedding dress!!!!

It's hard to believe that 2011 is almost over with. This entire year has definitely been a memorable one and one of the best yet!!! This time last year my wedding dress was in and I went to go try it on and take care of alterations!!! Hard to believe Josh and I have now been married for 8.5 months. Time flies when your having fun..... And those who know Josh know that he definitely puts a smile on people's faces :) I am truly blessed!

Proverbs 4:20-22

"Dear friend, listen well to my words; tune your ears to my voice.

Keep my message in plain view at all times. Concentrate! Learn it by heart! Those who discover these words live, really live; body and soul, they're bursting with health." Proverbs 4:20-22 (MSG)

Many of you know that I have struggled with chromic back pain since March 2006..... Almost 6 years! There have been some good "years" during this time but this year my back has been a challenge to say the least. I realized that somewhere in these 6 years I feel that I had lost hope of ever being pain free FOREVER. Yes, I have great days of no pain but to me it wasn't good enough.... I no longer wanted to have tears of pain, excruciating pain. But this year my heart and spirit have been enlighten. By having any loss of hope means that I am NOT trusting in God's word.

I have been dwelling on His truths and it has softened my heart and renewed my Spirit with HOPE and JOY!

"Before I shaped you in the womb, I knew all about you. Before you saw the light of day, I had holy plans for you: A prophet to the nations— that's what I had in mind for you." Jeremiah 1:5 (MSG)

How great is it that before we were even born God knew us and had a holy plan for us. The living God loves us so much that as we were forming inside the womb he was planning out our life so that we may prosper as we cling to His truths.

"I am the Door. Anyone who goes in through Me will be saved from the punishment of sin, and goes in and out and finds pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly" John 10:9-10

His desire is for us to know Him and have a real and everlasting relationship with Him. As we walk through the door and accept His love, mercy, & grace we are forever free from the punishment of sin & find rest and freedom. But in this world there is a kingdom of darkness that tries to blind us from these truths & only mission is to STEAL the joy and freedom that comes from knowing Jesus. Do not be fooled by the enemy because the truth of God's words states..... "I came that they (YOU) may have life, and have it abundantly", some versions say to the FULLEST! How amazing is it that we have a loving God who loved us SO much that he came to earth and died a gruesome death for us ALL so we may have ABUNDANT life free from the burden and shame of sin! He paid it on the cross!

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33 (NIV)

It is TRUE that God does want us to have a full and abundant life but His word also warns us that in the fallen world we WILL have troubles. Everyone's challenges and troubles may be different..... Finances, health, family, employment, relationships, etc. but is all of these circumstances God's word tells us to find peace in knowing Him and knowing that He has overcome the WORLD.

"Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death?...... No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us. And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love." Romans 8:35, 37-38

His word claims that DESPITE any troubles or trials that we are more than CONQUERS through Christ who loves us. The power of God's love and the truth is His word gives us with the ability to conquer the things of this world. It is not by our own abilities but the Spirit of God inside of us.

So referring back to the first verse I posted/ the "title" of this post: Proverbs 4:20-22

In order to be able to conquer your trials you must CLING to his word. This comes with knowing him, having personal relationship with Him, and falling in Love with Him! His word is not only the truth for your life it is the MEDICINE for your body/soul.

I have been enlightened by this truth:

I cannot just say "I believe in healing" without taking the medicine which is the word of God. I have studied some truths on healing and one description I found was the paralleling of God' medicine and natural medicine. I loved this example because since I am in the medical field and give medicines to patients daily, it was an easy but profound illustration for me to GRASP!

3 parallels:

1. Both are healing agents (God's word and natural meds)- Just as taking an antibiotic can heal you from your infection, God's word has the same capacity, energy, and ability to heal your body.

2. Just as natural medicines has directions (ex. take 1 tablet two times a day for one week) so does God' word.... Proverbs 4:20-22 states in another version let them penetrate deep within your heart. (Living Bible)

You must study, hear, listen, mutter the word of God until it penetrates to your spirit.... Not just every now and then or at your convenience. Power is ministered first through your spirit then to your body. So dwelling on his truths & memorizing His word so that they are written on your heart will first bring healing to your soul which empowers healing to your BODY!

3. This one was the most PROFOUND to me: Give the medicine TIME to work. Many people give natural medicine a lot of time to work. They are patient for the full effects of these medicines even getting refill after refill. But when it comes to God's word we just take one dose and expect a miracle. Keep taking God's medicine, give it time to work, recite scripture daily & believe the truth and power behind those words. His words are ALIVE and TRUE!!!

"As for God, His way is perfect. The Word of the Lord is proven true. He is a covering to all who go to Him to be safe." 2 Samuel 22:31

Back to the beginning: I have been restored with Hope and Joy through His truths. And I choose daily to trust in God's word. Do I still have pain, yes. But I will not let this temporary suffering steal my Joy in Him and in the life he has blessed me with..... because by loosing that joy I have given the enemy what he wants (to steal & destroy the life God has set before me). It doesn't mean each day is easy by any means but I am learning daily that in my trials I have found myself trusting Him & His word more, and in that I have peace. In His word and through His death on the cross He has proclaimed that I am healed.

"But He was hurt for our wrong-doing. He was crushed for our sins. He was punished so we would have peace. He was beaten so we would be healed." Isaiah 53:5

As I meditate on His word and allow it to dwell deep upon my heart I feel as if I am walking out my path to healing. Because power comes first from the spirit and then distributed to the body. I went through a period where my spirit was weakened by my chronic pain.... I allowed my sufferings to loose sight of the life- giving truth behind God's word. That His word does declare healing for my body in His perfect timing.

"Those who trust their own insight are foolish, but anyone who walks in wisdom is safe." Proverbs 28:26

To Have and To Hold....

Well it's official, Josh & I are MARRIED!!!! It has been a wonderful 2 weeks and we are back from St. Lucia settling into life. It has been fun to have Josh around and not leave at night! Today is his first full day back at work and I genuinely miss him.... it's just been the two of us for the last 10 days and now we are back to reality. Work, laundry, groceries, etc. We have been blown away at the generosity from everyone as we were overwhelmed by the gifts when we arrived home. Thank you to all for your love, support, and kindness. We fell extremely blessed...... To have Josh as my husband is more than enough but to also have such wonderful people in life to share this time with is so special! I am looking forward to the days ahead and just enjoying day to day life with Josh. Life is good.... our GOD is GREAT!

Blessed!

Its hard to believe that Thanksgiving is just around the corner, and I realize that at times I fail to embrace how abundantly blessed I am. In todays society its easy to get trapped into the thoughts of all that is wrong but actually we have SO much that is right and good.....I can give thanks & all the glory to God, our ultimate provider. And in just a few months I get one of the greatest blessings of my life: to marry the most wonderful man and my best friend. And through our marriage I also receive great "in-laws" and a new family.....What a blessing!!! I also have a wonderful family myself which I am thankful live so close. I love each of you very much! I pray that we can all accept our blessings from God and in return be an even greater blessing to others! I hope each of you have a Blessed November!

Happy Fall!!!

New Job

So today I started my new job at Shelby Baptist Hospital. This "set hours" job is truly an answer to prayer. I have been wanting and needing better hours for my health and I feel extremely blessed to finally have a set shift!

Well, today was good but definitely an adjustment. I went from knowing everyone and knowing where everything was located to being completely lost. I know its part of it but its definitely NOT a fun feeling. But I could not of asked for a warmer welcome!

When I got to my house and it was 3:08 pm I was in awe of all the time I had during the afternoon. I actually took at 2.5 hour nap because I definitely did not sleep good last night in anticipation of my first day!

Other than my new job we are just busy with wedding plans and I am also "de-cluttering" my house to make room for Josh come April! Less than 6 months before the big day!!! I hope everyone is having a great fall so far! Many Blessing :)

"For the word of the LORD is right and true;
he is faithful in all he does.

The LORD loves righteousness and justice;
the earth is full of his unfailing love."

Psalm 33:4-5