Day 108

Today was Day 108 of  The Red Shoe Project. With my RED shoes snug upon
my feet, I walked out, shut the door behind me, locked it, and threw away the key.  I won't be going back!  I have no regrets, no bad feelings, no anxiety. While I was there, it all seemed okay.  For a long time it seemed right. That's how everybody operated.  That's what I grew up in.  That's what I was taught.  I never knew there was another way.  But now, it's time to go.

I've left behind my old mindset regarding money.  

Have you ever felt that something just didn't fit anymore? And even though you like the color or how it feels or the special memories it holds for you, it's still not happening.  Surely if you try it on one more time, maybe it will fit!   But no...  it doesn't fit.  It looks ridiculous!  Not to mention that you've already done this step of  "trying again," several times.  Deep down inside,  you know the truth.  Not only doesn't it fit, it never will fit you again, ever.  It's gotta go!  But even still, you put it back on the hanger or fold it and put it away in a drawer. 

Only when you are really serious,  

will you package it up  

in a green trash bag 

and drop it at the Goodwill.

I'm starting to package many things up.  

It's called  TRANSITIONING. 

That's what happens when change takes place.  There's a passage you have to move through.  

It's a time of...

• Saying goodbye to the old and hello to the new.  
• Walking out of where you were, and walking into where you are going. 
• Letting go of the old, and embracing the new.

There's a segue,  a shift,  a jump,  a switch.  You were going that way, but now you are going this way.

I'm not considering any more.  I'm done thinking about it.  There's no more wondering which way to go.  It's done,  settled,  decided.  In fact, it's all been arranged,  appointed,  determined and agreed upon.  It's established. The ground has been broken. I 've made my selection. I've made up my mind.  

"Whether you turn to the right or to the left, 

your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying,

"This is the way; walk in it."

Isaiah 30:21

 I've struggled for a long, long time with an erroneous money mindset.  I thought that I had finally figured it all out when I worked the big corporate job and had lots of money. I didn't have to depend on anyone.  I could just work hard and take care of myself.  And I did that really well.  But that only masked things for awhile.  The gnawing at my soul, that something still wasn't quite right, returned to haunt me.  After going full circle and coming back to my passion of ministry... Yikes!  There it was again, that "money thing!"  You see... I can't do what God is calling me to do if I operate in the money mindset I've always known. It doesn't work.  I've been seriously wrestling with God about this for some time now... well over a year.  I've fasted. I've prayed.  And I've set myself at His feet for divine revelation and direction. And finally, He has delivered.

I'm not saying I've got it all figured out... certainly not well enough to present it to you at this time.  But, I now know enough about the "Kingdom Mindset" to say...  

"YES!  this is the missing piece.

This is what I've been searching for.

This will work!

This is the way that I must go!"

Philippians 3:12-14 says...

Not that I have already obtained all this, 

or have already arrived at my goal, 

but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.

Brothers and sisters, 

I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it.  But one thing I do:  

Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on 

toward the goal to win the prize 

for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. 

I'm not going there.  I am there.  I have arrived.  I may be at the beginning of this new Yellow Brick Road,  but I'm on it...  Red Shoes and all,  and moving forward, one step at a time, into a "Kingdom Mindset." 

Gail

Day 107

This 107th Day of  The Red Shoe Project was a continual 

confirmation and reinforcement of what God  spoke to me yesterday. 

A confirmation is when something is repeated, from different sources, to strengthen one's belief in something.

When the same thing is being delivered 

to you over and over again... Take notice!  

For example,  I may sense that God is speaking something specific to me, at the morning, women's Bible study.  Later in the day, a very similar thought, or idea is presented to me, when an old friend unexpectedly calls me, out of the blue, to tell me something.  I find myself thinking... "Isn't that funny, God just spoke that to me this morning!"  Even later, that same day, I turn on the car radio, and there it is again... the same scripture verse, only in a song,  and it's as if it's playing on the loud speaker of my mind!  I think to myself, "Ok this is weird, it must just be a coincidence."  But then I wake up the next day, open my morning devotional, and low and behold there it is again!  The same message.  The same scripture. I can't get away from it. Yes... God's speaking to me!

Same message --  Different methods of delivery --

Different messengers --  All in a short period of time.  

A reinforcement strengthens something that's already in place. It puts a grip on something so that it can't be moved or broken under pressure.  When a word from God is planted in my heart, it's strengthened over and over again with each unique delivery of the same message. As I hear the message repeated , it makes it more and more difficult for it to be taken away from me.


It's as if my heart recognizes the importance of that message being delivered, and protects it by putting a firmer hold on it. The seed is pushed deeper and deeper into the soil of my heart, where it's safe to grow.

Just like the day before , I threw those RED high heels on this morning and  headed out the door for appointments.  Today, however, my routine was quite different.  Where I went, what I did, who I met with -- it was all unique... except for God's message to me. There it was again:

"God is rolling out the plan of my life

and we are moving right along now." 

Yesterday, God spoke that to my heart early in the morning.  In the afternoon, He confirmed it in the little card I received from a friend.  Unknowingly, she penned the most beautiful prophetic words that God had spoken to me earlier.  She didn't know God had spoken that to me.  She just felt prompted to write me some words of encouragement.  Although, God does use her that way, so she may have known that God was speaking through her.  Later that night,  a series of events took place, and I felt as if what had been spoken to me, and written to me,  was now actually taking place right in front of me.  Surely this was God "rolling out" His plan!

When God confirms something He has spoken in my life, He always repeats it at least 3 times.  It's as if He...

1.  Delivers it. 
2.  Says it a second time to make sure I heard it. 
3.  Repeats it one more time so that I have no doubts, whatsoever, that He's speaking to me. 

Some people think that it's easy to miss God's voice, but that's not my experience.  When God wants me to know something,  He goes out of His way to make sure I "get it."   And, He purposely puts  "His Unique Thumbprint" on things so that I'll know that it's Him and that He's speaking to me.  He doesn't want me wondering,
"Is this really God?"  And He doesn't want me guessing as to whether or not I totally understand what exactly He is trying to say to me.

He wants me  Confident and Assured so that I can receive what He's saying and walk in it, by faith!

Several times throughout my life, God has spoken to me through a vision.  The vision is always the same scene. My vantage point or perspective in that scene, however, is alway different.  Many, many years separate the occurrences of the visions. This is an example of  "God's Unique Thumbprint."  When that scene, in all it's unique detail, is portrayed in my mind, I have no doubts that God is speaking to me because only He and I are privy to the specifics of that scene.  Sometimes God will use specific words or phases that He knows that I identify with His voice.  Now don't be confused, I'm not talking about King James english.  LOL.  He never really speaks that way to me.  He's much more casual, down to earth and uncomplicated.  But just like I am able to identify a family member or close friend's voice by their tone, sound and phrasiology... well it's the same thing with God.  I hope you get that because it's so important!  God doesn't want us guessing! He wants us to know His voice personally and be able to pick His voice out of the crowd -- especially in important matters.


So today, clad in my RED shoes, God continued to "roll out" the plan He's been telling me about for months.  There has definitely been a SHIFT.  We are moving from the development of the blueprint to the specific action items involved to bring about the manifestation of His plan. I have no doubts that in the days and weeks and months ahead, I will begin to see things "take shape."  This will require me to be obedient to God's direction and walk things out.  Whewww! I am fortunate in knowing that people are praying for me to do just that!

"One foot in front of the other,
One step at a time, one day at a time.
It might be rough at times, 
but that's how I'll make it !
The days will turn into weeks 
and  the weeks into months. 
And before I know it,  
I will see God's plan coming into existence."


With each step,
my RED shoes remind me that
I'm not walking this out alone...

Gail

Day 106

Before I had a chance to even think about it, Day 106 of  The Red Shoe Project arrived.  After a few whispers to God, I jumped out of bed, got dressed, popped on my RED sandals, and headed out the door to get about the Lord's business.  Today was the ladies' Bible study and my ride was waiting for me.
Our study is never "normal"-- "the same old, same old" -- or even "what you'd expect"  because God keeps showing up per our request!  Today, a mom brought her teenage son with her.  If the angels of God were watching, they had to be laughing.  We are a diverse group of Christian women, to say the least, with many bold personalities... and here's this young man amongst us for two whole hours.

 But God has a plan

for that young man's life.  

In the last fifteen minutes, one of our gals said that she wanted to share a vision God had given her prior to coming.  Apparently, it included this young man, whom she'd never seen before.  She asked him to sit down in a chair in the center of the room, and  WOW!  she began to prophesy over him a word, that reminded me of Samuel the Prophet anointing the boy, David, to be King.  What a glorious event to have witnessed! Time will tell how God manifests in this boy's life.  Hmmmm. We'll have to keep our eyes him.


What is also quite astonishing is that God continues to raise up different women in the group week after week.  This woman who was prophesying is usually meek and mild... a lovely woman... a good listener, very sincere, and contributes her two cents worth here and there.  But today... well, today was different.  Like Gideon, The Holy Spirit came upon her, and moved through her in a powerfully, prophetic way. This is starting to become quite common in our group.  As we are yielding to Him, our little group of women are becoming vessels for God to move through! --sometimes prophetically, sometimes prayerfully, other times with a song,  or divine revelation, even with gifts of teaching, healing and wisdom, the list goes on and on.  I'm liking this group a lot!

God has a plan to use each 

 and every one of those women!

As I headed back to my office, I remembered what the rest of the day had in store for me.  I had a business meeting later in the afternoon, in which I needed to bring my pledged offering.  I also had no gas in my car to get there. And no money in my account for either.

But there in my purse was a bunch of bills that a couple of the Bible study ladies had insisted upon giving me. Another gal had dropped a little "card" in my bag as well.

Between all of them, there was exactly enough to pay a tithe to my church, get gas, pay the pledge and purchase a ticket for our annual business luncheon that I'm expected to attend. Another gal had brought me a beautiful RED print blouse that she wanted me to have.  It fit perfectly and  matched my RED shoes to a "T"... so I wore it to the meeting and got several compliments!

THANK YOU LORD! and THANK YOU LADIES!  
Today's manna had arrived!  I was really glad that I hadn't had time to even think about it, or worry about it for that matter.  I was too busy with what God was doing right in front of me.

God had a plan

and I didn't even know it!

I read that little "card" in my bag.  The prophetic words penned on the paper, blessed my soul!  Already, I was seeing the words come to pass as God gave me liberty this evening to speak about my faith.  People I didn't expect, told me that they are following The Red Shoe Project, and a business associate even asked me if God could guide her in her everyday life.  I feel like...

God is rolling out the plan of my life 

and we are moving right along now.

Yes... it was evident today that God is the Master Planner!  I wish I could say that I'm totally comfortable not knowing the details of God's plan.  LOL.  But I know why He doesn't tell me.
Anytime in the past, when He's shared the details with me, I always immediately jump out in front and try to accomplish the plan, on His behalf.  Yeh... and I end up falling flat on my face, because I'm not capable of miraculously working the plan... only He can do that -- THE MASTER!  So I will say this... At least I know that now.  And I don't really want to know the details.


 I'm content at just 
putting on my RED shoes,
and taking one step at a time, 
one day at a time, with Him.
That's all the plan I need to know!

Until tomorrow,
Gail

Day 105

Today is Day 105 of  The Red Shoe Project.
All afternoon, I could be found wearing my
RED high heals, joyfully bopping around town to several important meetings.  BUT I didn't start off all happy-go-lucky.  I woke up this morning tired, a little under the weather, and dragging.  I wasn't looking forward to getting out of bed.  It just happens to be a Monday, but Mondays don't usually have that kind of effect on me. I headed straight for the shower in hope that a blasting stream of hot water would cure my grumpies.  NOT!

After getting dressed, I sat down at my desk to take care of a few emails.  Just then, I received a message via text from a friend who was obviously having a dreadful day herself.  With every word on the screen, I could feel myself sinking further and further downward.   This was not good!  I knew she wanted a phone call, but  I was in no place to lift her up.  I was sinking myself!
So I texted her back...

"Have you spent your quiet time with God yet today?  
If not,  find a quiet place -- 
take a walk in the neighborhood,
 go to the park and sit under a shady tree, 
breathe in the salty air at the beach -- you choose.  
For now, put all your concerns aside -- shelf them!  
Start off by singing a couple songs, 
then read a little Bible and thank God 
for all the things that are going right! -- No negativity!  
Then ask God what He wants you to do today.  
That's what I'm about to do.  I'll catch up with you later."

It may sound harsh, but at that moment, I had nothing for anyone.  I hadn't had my quiet time yet.  I immediately shut my phone off, and turned up the Christian worship on my computer.  I was determined to follow my own advice!

An hour later, I was heading out the door in my RUBY REDS, ready for anything.  The day wasn't so bad -- now that I was sporting a new perspective.  I'm not going to kid you... I had to push through at first, but at some point, I'm not exactly sure when, things took a turn for the better.  God led me to meetings I hadn't even planned for.  And they all turned out to be quite profitable.

One meeting in particular gained me a new "RUBY"-- That's what I'm now calling my Red Shoe Project followers...

"Rubies"

Surely you know how precious you are to me.  Your faithfulness in following me on this journey, (some of you actually traveling The Yellow Brick Road in your own RED shoes),  along with your wonderful comments, prayers and encouraging words is a major blessing to me!  THANK YOU!

Yes...  so as I was driving down the street, I had a strong prompting in my spirit to stop in at a local organization for some information. I could have just called in or checked their website, but I thought it would be better to actually meet someone in person. That's when I met Kaci -- What a wonderful gal!  I noticed that she has some "Wizard of Oz" pics by her desk, (which of course opened the door to all sorts of magical conversation), and next thing I know, she's showing me a picture of her wedding day, and guess what?

She's wearing RED sparkly shoes under that beautiful wedding dress!  How awesome is that? We became instant friends, and she'll be checking out the daily blog!  I love it!

That's two new RUBIES in two weeks that God divinely set me up with. Time will tell what God has in store for them.  I'm already blessed in just having talked with them.

I love when God sets me up like that!

It's a divine little kiss on the cheek from The One who loves me most!

It's one of the little ways He says... 

"I want you to know that 

I'm thinking about you, 

and I know you love it when I do this!"  

And He's right.  He's the only one who can do that -- set me up with that kind of surprise!  It just makes my heart dance in my chest.  Even now... my feet, (still clad in RED shoes), are tapping up and down with excitement, just thinking about His love for me!  You might think, "What's the big deal?"  And that's just it... It is a BIG deal!  It would be nothing if it were just once or twice.  But He does little things like this to me all the time --  when I least expect it.  I can almost hear Him saying... "Got ya!" LOL.

Gail