Journal the Journey

In every season of life, through the mountains and valleys, God has always been faithful… and He always will be.

New.

“Do not remember the past events, pay no attention to things of old. Look, I am about to do something new; even now it is coming. Do you not see it? Indeed, I will make a way in the wilderness, rivers in the desert.” – Isaiah 43:18-19 (HCSB)

This is a portion of a chapter in my Bible that God, by the power of the Holy Spirit in me, led me to on one dark, hopeless night of my life last summer. The words were so alive, jumping off the pages and permeating into the depths of my heart and soul. I was on my knees in my bedroom, tears dripping off my cheeks onto these beautiful words that God was using to heal me, instill hope into me, and set me ablaze for His will and His will alone for my life.

I am so intimidated by only allowing myself 15 minutes per blog post. I know I could talk to you for hours about what God has done in my life, and how good and kind and loving He is no matter who you are, what you’ve done, what circumstances you face. One day I will share my whole story, God willing, of how He has been there for me and rescued me from childhood to now.

Ever since that night last summer, this scripture has continually been placed in my path. It will be in a book I’m reading, or brought up in a sermon I am listening to, or I will just hear it resonating within my own heart when I am needing to refocus on God’s plan amidst distractions and chaos on any given day. I thought of it again just yesterday when I saw a soaked, flattened ant bed that for some reason reminded me of a desert with the cracked pattern across it.

I knew I wanted to share this scripture in my first blog post, because it means so much to me. I serve a mighty God that makes a way where there seems to be no way. He makes refreshing rivers in lands that look barren, forsaken, bone-dry. If you find yourself panting for just a drop of hope, I want to encourage you to turn to Him. He is faithful, and He will respond to your longing. He will refresh you to overflowing, and the joy you will receive is truly incomparable to anything else that can bring us joy in this world.

To my surprise, I still have a little over 4 minutes left, so I want to leave you with this:

“The faithful love of the Lord never ends! His mercies never cease. Great is His faithfulness; His mercies begin afresh each morning.” -Lamentations 3:22-23 (NLT)

Your slate can be wiped clean today. Turn to Him with a sincere heart, ask Him for forgiveness and for help. He promises not to leave you in your misery; He cannot and will not forsake you. He’s got good, good plans for you. His Word tells me all these things are true, and I need you to know that He cannot lie for He is God. He is perfect, just, sovereign, good through and through… and He loves you madly. I ask Him now to open your eyes to the truths that He has created you for His glory, He loves you, and He is worthy to be trusted with your entire life.

It’s a new day. It can be a new chapter in your life. Pay no attention to the former writings in your book, especially if they are laced with guilt and shame. He is up to something, but He needs you to surrender.

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dezmellish

I’m glad you’re here. I’ve been calling Birmingham, Alabama home since 2013. I’m happily married to the sweetest, most selfless man I’ve ever known. Prior to meeting and marrying him in 2021, I was a divorced mom to three daughters for 4 1/2 years. When I remarried, I gained a fourth daughter. On January 26, 2024, we lost my Dad. He had just turned 92 on January 6. He moved in with us the week after Joseph and I got married in October of 2021, and we had the honor of being his caregivers for the last 2 years and 3 months of his life. I currently work full-time as a Fitness Director at the most wonderful country club, where I also have a full load of personal training clients. This is a job I have enjoyed since 2019. Prior to entering the fitness industry, I was an elementary/middle school tutor. I have been a follower of Jesus Christ since I was a child. God showed me that He was real and that He loved me in powerful, unmistakeable ways during some very dark and difficult childhood years. As an adult, my theology has changed quite a bit. As life circumstances crushed me, I began holding all of the things I had been taught as a child, teenager, and young adult up to the light of scripture. As a result, I deconstructed my faith before deconstruction was really a thing, but never abandoned my faith in the process. After living through harmful teachings that were founded on misuse of scripture, I am passionate about the integrity of God’s Word. Nothing boils my blood quite like seeing scriptures used for selfish gain, abused, and taught out of their intended context. I have been journaling for 25 years. This is my space of the internet to share the ways God has been faithful to me as evidenced in my journals, as well as anything else that is placed on my heart to share. I hope you find something here that positively impacts you in some way. All are welcome here.

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