memorial box monday...

I don't remember exactly how I found this blog, but I have been following this beautiful family at A Place Called Simplicity for a few months now....well since early in the summer.  I love to read their newest stories.  This amazing family has a heart for adoption; and has many beautiful children because of it!  They rest in God and His promises to provide for their needs and He faithfully does.  I don't know the full story, but she started "Memorial Box Monday" as a special type of blog post dedicated solely to telling a story of how God fulfilled His promises!  The above photo is their's which they use to represent their MBM posts...I don't know that I can be as good at posting every Monday, but today I was reminded of God and wanted to share!  So here's my first (of hopefully many!) MBM posts....

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD,
"plans to prosper you and not to harm you; plans to give you a hope and a future."
Jeremiah 29:11

My passion is teaching.  I feel alive (most days) when I have a group of students and I am teaching them something new!  I am a certified Elementary and Special Education teacher.  I love both sides equally!  I defend my students no matter what label the education system has given to them.  I truly believe God created me with this little heart filled with the desire to be a teacher!  I've wanted to be a teacher since I was in first grade and never really wavered from that.  Of course some day I'd love to be a Mama, but right now I know His plan is for me to teach.  When I graduated in May, the outlook of a job in my state was slim to none.  I forged on believing that He would provide a full time job for me because He knew how much I wanted to teach....He created me to do it, of course He knew!  Well, numerous applications with no responses came and went, and I didn't have a full time job.  I fell back on applying to AmeriCorp simply so I could be in the same school everyday.  It wouldn't be a "teaching" job, but it'd be as close (as I thought) as I could get to teaching this year.

Silly me, gave up on God well before He had given up on me!  How grateful I am that He knew much better! My AC application landed on a desk of a principal at a local school who called immediately saying "I'd really like to interview you for our AC position."  This was my third AC interview, and I assumed I probably would be working at the first school I interviewed at, but I agreed to meet said principal.

Within twenty minutes of meeting this new principal, God began to show me His real plan :)  The principal had two long term substitute positions available for this school year.  He asked if I would be willing to put my AC application aside and consider taking the long term.  ABSOLUTELY!!!!!!!!  You mean, I would get to be a TEACHER!

God blesses me beyond what I deserve, or ask for.  He is good!  I taught for the first five weeks of school as a 5th and 6th grade Learning Support teacher (yay Special Education!) and starting January 3, 2012, I will get to teach the remainder of the school year as a 5th grade teacher (yay Elementary Education!)!!!  I am the luckiest girl!!!  I have been blessed with many days of subbing in between these two positions.  I am not guaranteed anything for next year, but God has shown me that He knows (and remembers!) the desires of my heart, that He created.  He will provide the classroom of students that He wants me to love and teach each day for the length of time I need to be there!

My heart is so excited to meet these 18 fifth graders that I will get to call "my first 5th grade class!"

Dear Linny,  Thank you for starting MBM...someday I hope to have a physical box (much like yours) that I can go through with my children to teach them how faithful our great God is! You and your family are a huge encouragement to me.  I pray someday I will be able to share an adoption story with you as I have read yours!
Much Love,
M

For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus
to do good works, which God prepared in advance
for us to do.
Ephesians 2:10