I've had the privilege over the years to get to know some delightful young women and watch them transition through various stages.  My guest blogger today, Jessica A. is one of those special ladies.  Her love of the Lord has always been an encouragement to me and I trust she will encourage you as you consider how you spend your free time each day.

"My new husband and I were blessed with the opportunity for him to move into our new apartment a few weeks before the wedding. So by the time we got married, everything, or almost everything was in its new place ready for a fresh start. My husband and I were beyond blessed as our family and friends circled around us to provide us with everything we needed: and I mean EVERYTHING. I was truly humbled by the generosity of so many in helping get us on our feet, to the point that I feel just absolutely spoiled.

Because we had all the things we needed, it looked ready to be lived in, but it was still a really difficult transition for me to actually move out of my parent’s house and call this new place home. We got to our new little place around midnight after returning from our honeymoon to Mexico. It was very difficult for me to sleep because I knew this place was supposed to be my "home", but this was a place that was totally strange to me.

The next couple of days were a tough transition. I was beyond thrilled to be married and I loved every aspect of the marriage itself, but my surroundings were so strange and new. I don't work until the afternoon, so it was difficult to have my husband leave for work and be sitting in our apartment by myself with not a thing to do. I had been accustomed to waking up and spending time with my mom before work, so having the morning to myself was an unwelcomed change.

While we were on our honeymoon, my work office had completed a move. When I returned to work that Monday, I was in a completely new place. The amount of change in scenery was overwhelming to me.

I just recently made the decision to cancel my plans to attend seminary in the fall. I felt my first priority needed to be my new marriage, and I didn't consider adding a full time master's program as a wise decision. I have had an abundance of time, which is an amazing blessing.  However, coming straight from college, "free time" a bit of a foreign word. All of this newness may seem a little depressing, but what God did with it is what is so amazing to me. The Lord has been so gracious to me. For so long I have strived to make the Lord my treasure, but I have always neglected to devote more than a thirty or forty minute "quiet time". We so often do this as Christians. We cry out, "Change me! Shape me! Let my mind be transformed," and as soon as we have finished crying out, we forget. Well in this time, God has blessed me.

By the encouragement of my husband, I have strived to stop wasting time in the morning just waiting for work to come and I have spent serious time in the Word. Not out of obligation or duty, but because I earnestly desire to promote the Lord to the highest place in my life. This is such a difficult thing to do in the beginning of marriage since being married is so fun and threatens to consume your entire thought process. But by the grace of God, He is quieting my spirit so I can spend time meditating and dwelling on His Word.

It's just amazing what the Spirit will do through you when you recognize not only your own human powerlessness but also your need for Him to fill and transform that complete lacking. It would be easy for me to spend my time in the morning finishing up some decorations, hemming the curtains that hide our washer and dryer, or figuring out what to make for dinner... but right now God has blessed me with free time, which I know is a commodity I will not always have an abundance of. He has SO blessed both my husband and I through this time that I've been able to spend with the True lover of My Soul."