trust

Tired, weary and full of joy!

/ Kelly Bea / Leave a comment

“God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble.” Psalm 46:1 NLT

“…Don’t be dejected and sad, for the joy of the Lord is your strength!” Nehemiah 8:10 NLT

What started 31 months ago was about to end. We were just 18 short days away. I was sitting on the back row with my sweet daddy, listening intently. I felt the shift and knew the ending wasn’t coming in 18 days after all.

Six months just got added to our wait. Surprisingly, I was not as torn up as I thought I would be. Really, what is six more months when you have been waiting for thirty one. That my friends is what God can do when you give it all to Him.

When the bottom fell out 31 months ago I was a dejected human. I let the enemy take hold of me for a bit. BUT GOD! He was there waiting for me and when I took hold of Him my zest for life came back. I have total faith in Him. He is bigger than the mess, bigger than the enemy and He is taking all this and turning it for His good.

That verse in Nehemiah says the joy of the Lord is my strength. I let God’s joy be my source of strength, not my circumstances. That is what that verse means! When you are down let God fill you up. Depend on Him not the circumstances of life. Put your full faith and trust in God alone.

God is our refuge and strength at all times, but especially in times of trouble. Through this trial He has been a refuge for me. He has given me strength when I didn’t think I could handle another hit. He has made me strong and fierce. Every single time I have had to do something for this trial I have felt Him. He has given me so much strength.

Yes, I have grown tired and some days I am weary, but nothing can steal my joy! It comes from the Lord ALONE, not my circumstances. God’s power is omnipotent (ALL POWERFUL). The enemy’s power is limited and he can’t steal what he hasn’t given you!

There is a saying that says your day will go the way the corners of your mouth are turned. Are you smiling or frowning through life? Are you going through life with a positive attitude or a negative one? Where is your focus?

I wake up and can’t wait to walk out of my bedroom and see the sun rising through my front door. I grab a cup of coffee, my Bible and go watch it rise the rest of the way. It brings me joy! My little 9 mile drive to work can take over 20 minutes somedays, because I creep along my country road watching wildlife and being mesmerized.

Try going through a day with wonder and awe of all that is around you. Look up and tell God “thank you I love it”. Go to park, leave your phone in your car and go sit in the grass. Listen to the birds sing. Gaze at the clouds. Soak up the sun. Dance in the rain. Soak up God’s creation with childlike wonder. It will perk you right up.

I can now say that I am grateful for this trial because through it I have grown so close to God! He is my number 1 always and forever. I start my day with Him. I go to Him during my day. I end my day with Him. I do everything with Him in mind.

As a young teen I always looked up to my Mema and Mother Russell. They were such amazing Godly women. It was always one of them that would pray at family gatherings. They could quote scripture and turn right to what they were looking for in their Bibles. They were kind to everyone. They were forgiving and compassionate. I wanted to be them when I grew up. For the first time in my life I can proudly say I am making progress at being like them.

Mother Russell and I at church
Me helping Mema get to the house
Always loved Mother Russell’s red carpet
Four Generations
1996
Mema & Pepa with the first 7 grands

“He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.” Isaiah 40:29 NIV

He gives strength to the weary. When we become exhausted from the battles of life God gives us strength. When we are at our weakest, God can sustain us! God has compassion for us and He wants us to lean on Him. He wants to be our source of strength.

He increases the power of the weak. God does not leave us vulnerable, He instead empowers us and give us divine strength to face our battles. He wants us to trust in Him during the difficulties of life. God’s power is limitless! He wants us to trust in Him at ALL times.

“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” Galatians 6:9 NIV

This verse reminds me to focus on doing good. Through this difficult trial I have felt God redirect me from worrying over all the “what ifs” to focusing on the reason He brought us back to Kentucky. He did not bring me here to get lost in worry, anxiousness, depression and sadness. He brought me here to do good for our community, bring others to know him and live life to the fullest.

I find joy in serving my community! Today we served 341 meals to our community. It brings me delight to prepare and serve lunch to our community. Today I also dropped off a bag full of Period Packs for one of our teachers at the high school. Tomorrow our Food Pantry will be open all day. I will bring fresh eggs and watermelon from the farm and add them to the boxes.

First deliver of Period Packs!
One last harvest!
Watermelons everywhere!

Those things bring the JOY and those things are where God wants me to focus. He is working on the trial and He will let me know if He needs something from me.

We reap a harvest when we do not give up! Always focus on God and His will for your life. Focus on doing good and loving others well. Strive to make a positive impact on those you encounter. Be persistent in focusing on God and telling the enemy to get away from you! Our reward will be will be awesome!

My goal is to get to the end of fully lived life and have God say to me: “My joyful warrior you did good! You lived big, you served well and you left nothing in your tank”!

Built on the Rock

/ Kelly Bea / 2 Comments

Why do we ever doubt how amazingly spectacular our God is? Just why?

I think its so not much that I doubt him, but I have questioned: Why? How much longer? Do you hear my cries? Is there an end in site? Are you there God? We humans are such an impatient bunch of people.

I have to remind myself: 2 Peter 3:8-9 “But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness.”

I started a new Bible Study this week on the book of Habakkuk. Who knew 3 little chapters could pack such a punch. Habakkuk is crying out to God asking why he is silent? He is questioning how good can God be if he is allowing so much evil and hate in the world. One of the main points of Habakkuk is that we must exercise faith in the face of chaos. Let the darkness in your world be an invitation to put even more faith in our awesome God and trust His timing.

This morning as I was heading out to the porch to spend some time with Him he gave me a little wink. I looked up as I was opening the backdoor. That’s when I magically saw through the paint, trim and sheetrock and remembered the verse written on stud above that door I was about to walk out: “His mercies are new every morning”, Lamentations 3:23

His mercies are new every morning!
That door I walk out each morning to spend time with him.

A smile came to my face as I thanked God for reminding me my home is literally covered in His word! Family and friends stopped by and took the time to write His word on our house. Friends that couldn’t come text me specific verses to write on our home. I even saw a few verses written by the guys that were part of building our home.

Nadya
Lori and Sadie
Jason
Emmy
Joy
Mom
Faye
Renea
Linda
Betty

I felt this little wink from God was not only a reminder, but God saying “I see you”. I see you going out this door every morning and soaking up my word. I see you talking to me throughout your day. I see you not letting this trail consume you because you know I have you. He is so sweet to assure me again and again that He is with me.

His Word!
The Music Room
Kev fills this house with worship!

After my time with him this morning I grabbed my phone and started looking at those verses covering our house. I zoomed in to read some of them. I laughed because some of the verses appropriately matched the room they were written in.

My Aunt Jean wrote “The Lord will fight for you; you need only be still”.
He is the builder!
In one bathroom
In the other bathroom
Our front door.
We trust you Lord.
Our bedroom door.
The boys room

This morning I thanked God that our house was built on the rock! In 2021 we took a leap with Him. We left what we thought was our forever home in Alabama, our boys, our secure jobs and 18 years of friendships to follow His promptings and come back to our farm in Kentucky. We prayed and listened to him with each step we have taken on this journey. We have let Him be our guide and we will continue to trust Him on this journey.

 Matthew 7:24-27 “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock.  And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock.  And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.”

This home is built on the rock!

Suck it satan! You can bring on the rains, the floods, the winds and try to beat us down. IT WON’T HAPPEN! I am built on the rock! My husband is built on the rock! Our home is built on the rock and our farm is built on the rock! My trust is in the Lord!

He says I can…

/ Kelly Bea / Leave a comment

Picture it: Marion Baptist Church, 2025. A group of friends scattered along the back rows of our church listening to Bible Study. It had been a long, but amazing day. As Brother Aaron is saying the Wednesday Night Announcements I am thinking about going home, putting on my comfy clothes and chilling out.

My beautiful church

He begins to tell the parable of the master and his three servants. I tune in. This is one I know. The master is going away for a long time. He gives one servant 5 bags of silver, another 2 bags of silver and the third 1 bag of silver. My Bible says he gave according to their abilities. Meaning the master knew his servants and what they are capable of.

The one with 5 began investing and doubled his. The one with 2 did the same. The one with one was scared of what his master would do if he lost the silver so he buried it in the dirt.

The master comes back and he is pleased with the two who doubled their silver. He was angry with the one who did nothing. He took his bag of silver and gave it to the one with 10.

What I learned is the master was Jesus and we are the servants. He has given us gifts and if want to be good stewards we need to take those gifts and use them for good. Help multiple the kingdom. I also learned that the first two servants probably knew their master. They knew he would be forgiving if they tried and failed over doing nothing.

During this interactive Bible Study someone brought up a scripture that is often misunderstand. One I even misunderstood until now. They said, “God doesn’t give us more than we can handle”. Brother Aaron was quick to say that’s another verse everyone gets wrong. This caught my attention!

Brother Aaron went on to say God does give us more than we think we can handle. We all will face times of testing/temptation/trouble–whatever you want to call it. BUT God will be faithful to us. He will make a way! With Him you make it through!

Lightbulb Moment! Aren’t they the best. I sat there and my eyes filled with tears. Its been a hard couple of weeks. To be honest its been a hard two years, but this past week and half have felt a bit overwhelming. I was beginning to question how much more I could handle. How much longer can I stay strong?

I ended up going home and diving into this scripture that is so often misquoted or misunderstood. 1 Corinthians 10:13, “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it”.

That section in yellow is important. God knows what we are capable of. He knows our abilities, strengths and weakness. If you are going through something He knows you can handle it. So stay strong and handle it! He is there with you always.

And let’s not skip that last part- “he will provide a way of escape, that you may be able to endure it”. Obviously, He knows I can handle it since He hasn’t given me a way of escape. So, I will carry on knowing He is in this with me!

I feel Him there protecting me.

Just look in the Bible. God was with Moses and look what he did for the Israelites. Little shepherd boy David took down Goliath. God with was them and they knew it. He knew their abilities and they trusted in Him. The Bible is full of people who didn’t think they were capable, but trusted God. He showed them how strong they can be when they walk with Him and have faith in Him.

The Passion translation of 1 Corinthians 10:13 says “We all experience times of testing, which is normal for every human being. But God will be faithful to you. He will screen and filter the severity, nature and timing of every test or trail you face, so that you can bear it. And each test is an opportunity to trust him more, for along with every trail God has provided for you a way of escape that will bring you out victoriously”.

What should stick out is that Paul says YOU CAN BEAR IT and its an OPPORTUNITY TO TRUST HIM MORE. It doesn’t say more than YOU can handle. Its what GOD knows you can handle.

This morning I woke up with a renewed strength! I am going through it and its hard and it really sucks, but I can handle it. I trust God! I know He is walking with me. I will continue to be His joyful warrior. With Him I will keep fighting each battle and be in prayer that He is working to end this war.

Living in the Storm

/ Kelly Bea / Leave a comment

In the most difficult times you can find opportunity. An opportunity is defined as “a set of circumstances that make it possible to do something”. In 2023 we learned to live in the middle of the storm.

I read that Toby Keith and Clint Eastwood were in a golf tournament together and Clint told Toby, “I just get up every morning and go out. And I don’t let the old man in”. What a way to live! It inspired me! I don’t let the enemy in!

Sunshine and nature are two of the most amazing things you can do for yourself when you are in a dark place. I took advantage our farm, got out and explored as much as could. Even on the coldest day the sunshine warms the soul. It’s also a time for me to talk to God and listen to God.

Porch Sitting is my fav
Let’s fly a kite
Dance in the rain

One of my close friends got engaged and married in 2023. Being there for the engagement, bachelorette dinner, wedding and reception were highlights of my year.

Visiting our boys and friends for a weekend in Alabama was so good for us. When we felt God calling us back to Kentucky one of the hardest things was knowing our boys would stay in Alabama. It had been home to them since they were 4 and 6. Leaving behind friends you have known for years wasn’t easy either, so the visit was good for us.

We invested in our farm. We grew another amazing garden. Built a nice chicken coop and got more chickens. Spending time in the garden is like therapy for me. I think it was good for Kevin, too. Nothing like getting a little dirt under your nails.

I went on a couple Big Life Retreats. Spending time with Pamela, Catherine and my Big Life Sisters fills my cup to overflowing. When we are together we live big and love hard. I know these girls pray circles around me, too.

I got to go Paragould and watch my friends girls dance recital and spend some quality time with some amazing friends. I took my nieces to St. Louis for a fun weekend and we met up with my friend, Stacey who took us on a river paddle.

I celebrated my 50th Birthday with a mermazing birthday party! Woohoo to 50 years of life! I plan to live even bigger this next 50 years. Yes, at least 50 more years! I have a goal of living to a healthy and active 100+!

We started attending Marion Baptist Church summer 2023. Its the first time since 2019 that we regularly attended in person church. We had been doing online church for so long we forgot what it was like to have a real church family.

In October I left my job at Chapel Hill to work at Marion Baptist Church. An opportunity came along and I jumped on it. I was able to start helping in the Food Pantry that we had been donating fresh veggies and eggs to since we moved to Marion. God was reminding me why we were here and where my focus needed to be.

Kevin and I took a quick trip to the beach in the fall. We did a lot of relaxing and napping on that trip. I spent a lot of time on the balcony with my Bible. I believe that was where our outlook started to shift. We prayed and asked God to show us if we were wrong and He only reinforced that we were not and to remain steadfast in Him and His timing.

There was a shift in perspective that fall. During this very difficult set of circumstances we learned to live with joy and accept the peace that can only come from God when you put total trust in Him.

When you truly put your faith in God and accept that He is in control you can live your life in peace. You can be full of joy knowing that its all going to work out in His timing. We got the opportunity to be grateful for this storm.