I’m very excited again this week to join a talented group of women bloggers in an online, unedited flash mob free write. This week, the word-prompt given to us by our fearless leader Kate Motaung (whose wonderful blog can be found at katemotaung.com) is “turn”. My timer is set for 5 minutes; ready, set, 

 

Prepare. What a perfect word for this time in my life, this week, today!

For over a year, I’ve been meandering through the process of redesigning my life. I’ve dreamed and imagined. Pored over books and magazines and websites. Dreamed and imagined some more.

I’ve slowly worked through the process of determining the life I want for this next stage of my life.

Finally — hallelujah! — I have a very clear  (albeit somewhat flexible in terms of where) vision of what I want.

In the past month, I’ve been taking more distinct steps to prepare for that new life. More and more things have departed my home, and my debt-free home fund has grown just a tad with some of those departures. Additionally, I’ve been applying for jobs in areas of the country I prefer to live in.

I’ve also been praying. But in all honesty, my requests for guidance and a new job have lacked focus; “direction” and “an open door” — 2 items that I have prayed for so often that my request has become almost automatic — the footnotes to a list that includes safety for a friend’s son in harm’s way, healing and strength for another friend battling cancer, and so many other urgent, heart-felt petitions. And my prayer life in general has been inconsistent.

But just last night, I made the decision to prepare more seriously for change by committing to more focused, more intentional prayer and Bible study.

To that end, I’m taking a 40-day fast from Facebook (other than what I call my “writer page”). For some, that may not be a huge change, but for me, it is. Between the lack of interaction with friends there and with coworkers (the semester ended yesterday), my social life is going to be pretty nonexistent.

But that, I believe, is the point. To cut away the distracting chatter so I can communicate with the One whose voice I really need to hear.

To prepare for what He has in store for me now.