taken to pieces

dis·man·tle
/disˈmantl/
Verb
Take to pieces.
Synonyms
strip - disassemble - take apart - dismount

I have had the absolute JOY of meeting with my pastor's wife(we'll call her R.O.) once a month, in a mentoring and relationship building capacity. She mentors me, but mostly we sit and chat about life, important subjects currently working us over, relationships, struggles, how to lead and relate with people, managing a home and children…life! We are reading through a book together but we barely get to that between the other nuggets, it is however, a very good book and I recommend reading it.

Girls with Swords How to Carry Your Cross Like a Hero
~ Lisa Bevere&John Bevere

R.O. is so wise and tempered yet, bubbly and full of joy, she is bright eyed and always encouraging, just a gift to me and someone I desire relationship with. In one of our meetings while talking about the barrage of fiery darts aimed at me, those little stings that come one right after the next, R.O. observed that when one is about to receive a new mantle there is a season of dismantling. We have to be stripped of our "old" to receive the "new". Perhaps the "new" is so radically different that it can't fit over the "old" they are incompatible and we must be restructured to receive the gift and the calling.

She said the word "dismantle" and it cut to my heart and has been an ever-present thought since. I wondered, what is a mantle, and with that, what does it entail to be "dismantled"? It sounds unpleasant, does it not?

The mantle represented a man’s gift, the call of God, and the purpose for which God had called him.~Bible.org


man‧tle
1 take on/assume/wear the mantle of something
formal to accept or have an important duty or job:
It is up to Europe to take on the mantle of leadership in environmental issues. ~http://www.ldoceonline.com

I'm in discovery mode, prayerfully approaching my Creator and Mantle Administrator. Who knows better what I am created for than Him? I am excited for this season, for the ministry that Bing and I enjoy, while seemingly unconventional; who ever said God was conventional? :) More to come on this, as I discover, and as new things are unveiled. I'll say this, I have never had such a focused regard for prayer, but it is constantly in my sphere, in my thoughts, the books I am reading and in everyday conversation and encounters.

Goofy girly

Here is a short(ish) video to hold you over and whet your appetite until I can get my words out. I have been thinking about blogging a lot lately, however finding the time to sit down and put them together is a feat. I am exploring the depths of who I am these days, and a mentor of mine keenly observed that I tend to withhold the things that I really enjoy or that fill up my tank until I have "fulfilled my duties" which are endless, let me tell you. My house is far from tidy or perfect and I spend most every spare moment cleaning up, doing laundry, doing the dishes or trying to shower and put myself together while one baby is sleeping and the other two are distracted by the t.v.. So, while I am in the middle of getting myself figured out, please forgive me for my long absence.