Ashley Farrell: Blog

Well, as you've probably noticed, I'm not blogging every week! I'm so thankful for this life that is growing inside of me, but pregnancy (especially the 1st trimester) is exhausting! I pray that you are spending time in God's word regularly and that when I do get the chance to blog, you're encouraged!
I just wanted to point out 2 scriptures from the past week's reading that really stood out to me.
Isaiah 43:18-21 "The Lord says, "Forget what happened before,        and do not think about the past. Look at the new thing I am going to do.        It is already happening. Don't you see it?     I will make a road in the desert        and rivers in the dry land. Even the wild animals will be thankful to me—        the wild dogs and owls.     They will honor me when I put water in the desert        and [...]

Hey everyone!
Welcome to February! I hope you had an awesome January and that February will be even better!
I finished Joshua this week. So instead of recapping this week's readings, I thought I'd do something different and recap Joshua. I think it's neat to go through a book of the Bible and see what God is trying to say to us. :)
Here it goes:
Joshua 1 starts out with a key point: The Lord is with us. He will never forget us. He is with us wherever we go. (vs. 5,9)
In Joshua 2, we're introduced to Rahab. She didn't have a relationship with God. She saw these men that were coming to take over the land she lived in, and knew that their God was powerful. She helps the men, trusting them and having faith that God will save her family. Which, when the time came, Rahab and her family were spared from destruction. Her faith in God changed her life. In fact, the lineage of Jesus is traced back through her life. Pretty awesome!
Through out the next chapters, we see miracles occur. The walls of [...]

Congratulations! You've made it 3 weeks through God's word! Are you enjoying it? I hope everyone is being encouraged by this blog (including those who aren't following the reading plan!)
This week has been challenging for me. Pregnancy symptoms are in full swing, including fatigue, forgetfulness, mood swings and most recently, nausea. But I'm so thankful that the Lord intrigues me with His word and makes my time with Him so wonderful. It's a nice way to start off the day. (Although, to be honest, I sometimes wait until later in the day to do my devo-time.) So, let's recap, shall we?
Isaiah 12 My theme verses for this week:
"At that time you will say:     "I praise you, Lord!        You were angry with me,     but you are not angry with me now!        You have comforted me. God is the one who saves me;        I will trust him and not be afraid.     [...]

Well ladies and gents. Week 2 of 2010 has come and gone. I hope it was blessed week for you! This week brought some very interesting news my way. Last Saturday (1/9) I found out that Steve & I will be expecting our first child in September! We have been trying for a year. It was such a blessed surprise to get that positive pregnancy test (actually 3 positive tests!) and we can't stop praising God for His faithfulness to give us the desires of our hearts. :)
This week also brought some bad news, however, as my husband lost his job just days after finding out we were expecting. :( But, Steve said he had a peace about him when he was let go and we know that God is faithful to provide for us. We've seen evidence of His provision and exerienced His outpouring of blessings many times in our marriage. We know 100% that God will take care of us and the baby He is creating inside of me.
OK, so let's review some of the scriptures we read this week. Here's what stood out to me during my reading...what [...]

This week has been great for me. I know that God wants me to be healthy physically, mentally, and spiritually. I want to take care of all of those areas in my life. So, I joined a gym this week (for super cheap!) and that has made me feel better physically. It's been challenging, but in an awesome way. I even got to share my testimony with my personal trainer. It was such a "God moment" and I'm so blessed to have been a part of it. (And I made a new friend!)
 I really believe that when you're in the Word, you tend to have a better attitude about things. Not always, but often. So there were things that I think I handled better this week because I was resting in Him and His Word. Other things God actually changed the circumstance, to relieve stress. I have received some awesome answers to prayer this week. For example, we got a big fat check in the mail from an over payment we had made. This check enabled us to pay off one of the loans we had to take out when my husband [...]