DESIRE

If I delight myself in Him, He will give me the desires of my heart. When I commit my ways to Him, trust Him, He will act!

Psalms 37:4

Last night, I had the privilege and honor of being a speaker (on finance) at the EWOF 100 Women in White three-night conference. As a natural writer, I have a talent for scribbling words on a page, but speaking to people requires other skills I don’t use as much. I need to, but I really don’t talk in public that often. 

God pulled me out of my comfort zone and gave me peace about participating. It was a great experience and I am glad I did. As a member of the audience on Wednesday night, the night the conference began, I received many takeaways from the other speakers. Had I not been on the dais for Friday, I would have returned anyway.

With any new experience there is an opportunity to learn. As I prepared to present, I learned a lot about being flexible, editing, and the need to put the audience first. When I showed up to speak last night, I really wanted to leave it all on the table (by offering access to an e-book I have been writing simultaneously while preparing my speech). Unfortunately, that did not come to fruition. I missed our Motivation Monday, too. Overall, I was too busy pouring into this presentation and being distracted by community engagements to which I had obligated myself. 

Humbly, I ask for your forgiveness for missing our Monday. Despite my moderately sedentary lifestyle, wearing several hats is still challenging. However, I hope to make it up to you as a reader and any new readers from last night by completing that financial e-book. 

Over the years, I have conducted financial talks or led workshops, with huge gaps of time in between. And each time, I prepare a ton of material and only use a tiny portion. Sometimes, the audience is family-oriented, sometimes seniors in high school, and like last night, sometimes it is women. Well, this time, I will finish giving you all the wisdom God has placed on my heart to take us from where we are today (and we all are at different starting points) to where God desires us to be. Like my presentation last night, the book is Desire: Giving what you need to get what you desire.

My goal is to complete the project by the end of this month, my birthday month, as it represents the start of a new year in my life. I hope that sounds good to you. I will share the chapters in another blog so you will know what to expect and if this could benefit you. My premise is that if we all were using this tool called money in the way God designed us to use it, we could be the problem solvers the world so desperately needs, starting where we are (buying someone’s groceries, giving a mom a new dress for an interview, paying for a college student’s books, building homes for veterans, saving women and children from sexual trafficking, funding medical research, etc.). We are the chosen people for such a time as this. I believe God wants to get money to us so He can get it through us, and that we would not be selfish hoarders, only in it for ourselves. God’s kids want to glorify Him, which means doing what Jesus did. And when Jesus saw a need, He planted a seed. 

Again, the book will be available in a few weeks. I hope you will read it, take your notes–which is how information retains best in our brains, and put into practice the parts that apply to you. Readers can also enjoy listening to the book as you go about your day. Yes, the text has audible capabilities, and if you don’t know how to do that, you can email me, and I will help you access that feature, or I may post a FAQ on the subject.

In the meantime, be fruitful and multiply the seeds God has given you with a new level of generosity. And enjoy this video clip from one of my mentors, Dave Ramsey. It will excite you about what we can do together to change the world when we master money and don’t allow it to master us.

Have a prosperous weekend. Really,

Leah