When I think about my life, I think about the countless number of obstacles I've had to face. I'm no different than everyone else, as the Bible is clear that in this life we will all have trouble and trials. These trials can be stumbling blocks in our lives or be like hurricanes that leave little left to salvage. What do you do when life's storms seem to never let up or there never seems to be a light at the end of the tunnel?

As women, we can find it difficult to get past life-altering situations and circumstances. I can remember when I experienced this in my own personal life. The 2007 year was a year of tremendous ups and downs for me. Although prospering in many ways both professionally and financially, my relationships with family and friends seemed to be on the decline. After my parents' marriage ended after 26 years, I thought my marriage would soon follow. My world had been completely shaken, and, although I had said often that God was the God of the impossible, I had completely abandoned that belief in my own situation. It was a flat mess! It left me wounded and broken in more ways than I could even articulate for several years.

A dear friend called me one evening and said, "Winter, God has set you free from all of the drama you've experienced in your life, but you have to want to be set free." I was literally like a caged bird that had been set free, yet unable to leave its cage. The truth was that I had found comfort and safety within that cage. Life wasn't so uncertain because I knew what to expect, regardless of how miserable I was. My health had suffered tremendously as a result of that funk. After almost losing my life due to hypertension with my last pregnancy,

it seemed like the issues would not stop coming. I had an intestinal disease that lowered my iron and drained my energy. I was doing just enough to stay awake and function most days. All of this was topped off by massive migraines and periodic shortness of breath that came so frequently that the doctors believed I had a heart condition. I remember researching all of the causes of the various conditions I was experiencing, and I found they were all related to stress and unresolved issues.

I remember praying one night and telling God that I didn't want to die and that I needed to be restored in every area of my life. I couldn't understand what was standing in the way of my complete healing. When I went to bed that night, I began to see that the only common denominator was ME. I saw that I was a grudge holder, slow to forgive if I ever decided to forgive, self-righteous, and low on mercy. It amazed me so much that I began writing down all of the areas that I had issues and where they outweighed the issues I had with everyone else. It was amazing what that did for me. It force me to take the focus off of all of the people that had wronged me and focus on how I could have helped the situation or could have extended the hand of mercy and forgave and I didn't.

Restoration is more like a personal operation that takes place. Operations take time, but yield a result that is often more beneficial to the person than when they first laid on the table. Fortunately God's restoration is complete and there are no risks associated with it. God's love is patient and perfect. He loves us through the injury, surgery and rehab, and is so proud when we can, in turn, give a testimonial about His great power and love.

I am proud to say that although my parents never reconciled, I have no unforgiveness in my heart towards them or the situation. I am more in love today with my husband than I have ever been, and I am weaning off of all my medications. The cardiologist confirmed that I do not have a heart problem, and I am on my way to being the healthiest I have ever been through diet and exercise. My business is also growing and expanding. God is able to restore any and every situation, if we are willing to allow Him to perform the necessary operations. You may need one or several. Your recovery may be months or years. No matter the amount of time it takes, I pray that my experience will give you the courage to book your own appointment.

Biography

Winter McKinney-Harris was born and raised in Jonesboro, Arkansas. Winter's passion is for more women to experience all the joys that come from establishing a Christian household. She believes that Christian women need support in order to excel in their homes and set the standard for Godly homes, marriages, and child rearing in today's world. She is the owner of Christ Centered Home Magazine, LLC. She holds a B.S. in Communications and a Small Business Management certification. She is a member of the Professional Wives Association for the NFL and an active member in her church and community. She is the proud wife of Steven Harris and mother to 4 beautiful children, Kayla, CJ, Eric, and Autumn. She currently resides in Northern Virginia with her family.

For more information about CCHM or to contact Winter, please visit www.christcenteredhomemag.com or email her at christcenteredhome@gmail.com.

Ladies, I would like to offer to you a new  way of thinking about restoration and the idea of being restored. As I was reflecting upon my life pre and post-God, pre and post- Jesus, and pre and post-Holy Spirit, all three occurring at three different times, I began to realize that the impact that this has caused in my life has been that my life has not only been restored, but also restoried. The story of my life has been dramatically shifted, past, present and future.

Let's first start with the past. I do not look at what has happened in the past as a list of failures and successes, although I have both caused and experienced the most extreme of both good and bad. The Lord has taught me that there was a purpose in everything, and these experiences have been used to prepare me. I have shifted the way that I think about the past from that of defeat or triumph to it all being used to prepare me for something. That something could have been my next assignment or something that will take place years from now. It is not up to me to know, but to reflect and take hold of everything that I am to learn from what has happened. Sometimes it was to gain an understanding of the depth of His love, sometimes it was to show me areas where I have built up pride that must be dealt with. I encourage you to reflect upon the past through the eyes of a learner. My past has been restoried from that of mistakes and accomplishments, to that of an intertwining mix of lessons skillfully crafted to make me better in every way.

Now let's look at the future. Since coming to know and understand my Jesus, the future looks tremendously different. Although still full of success, the kind of success that I envision does not come at the expense of mental, physical, and emotional instability. Unbeknownst to me (in my past, pre-God days), the success that I was seeking would come at a price far beyond what I would want to give. And the painful truth is that most of us are probably in a position today where we are unintentionally or intentionally paying a price far beyond what we want to pay. We are paying by not taking care of our bodies the way that we should, not getting the downtime and balance that we should (for hormonal restoration), and investing in a daily walk and relationship with the Lord as we should. I am thankful that my future has been restoried by a new definition of success that includes, and is not at the cost of, the above things.

Ultimately, the impact of being restoried can be seen in the present. Although not full of challenges, my perspective and attitude towards the day is one of great adventure. What does the Lord have in store for me today? It is not another day of survival or what can I achieve today? Rather, it is a journey that will have many ups and downs, places where I am trusting the Lord second by second and places where I can see the path clearly, and times when I will be personally fulfilled and times where I am meeting the needs of or bringing joy to others. By allowing the Lord to restory my life, I have not only been restored, but am moving forward with great joy and peace. I encourage every lady reading this newsletter to let the Lord not only restore their life, but also restory it by changing the way that we think of our past and future and approach the present.

Biography

Dionna Moses is a Cybersecurity Risk Manager for Walmart Stores, Inc. and currently resides in Fayetteville, Arkansas with her husband, Samuel, and daughter, Lauren. Dionna is passionate about her involvement within the local community and serves within numerous organizations and sits on the Board of Directors for CASA of Northwest Arkansas.

For global impact, Dionna and Samuel started Kings International, a non-profit that assists with humanitarian and missionary efforts globally. Last year, Dionna and Samuel dedicated a tenant of their organization, Brilliant Leaders, in memory of their son, Xavier, who passed away due to an unknown heart condition. Dionna serves faithfully in her church, Restoration, and enjoys interior decorating and making all things beautiful.

Dionna believes, "My balance is not your balance. Determine what you need to be the best you and take care of yourself as you take care of others."

htt
aaww.christcenteredhomemag.com.

Biography

Dr. Dexter L. Howard is Founder and Senior Pastor of Restoration (formerly Life Harvester Church) in Fayetteville, Arkansas. Dr. Howard is building a winning team of believers committed to restoring broken lives and reaping the harvest of souls for the body of Christ. His trailblazing leadership and successful efforts at reaching and serving those in need have gained him recognition as one of Northwest Arkansas' top 40 leaders under the age of 40 and several other community service awards. In addition to leading a rapidly growing church, Dr. Howard has also served on several boards, including the University of Arkansas Alumni Association and the United Way; and as a chaplain for the Arkansas Razorback football team.

Dr. Howard is a native of Little Rock, AR, and after the death of his father and several major failures, Dr. Howard fully surrendered his life to Christ in 1991. He began preaching the Gospel shortly thereafter. He met and married his wife, the former Genette Seawood, in 1994. They are now the happy and proud parents of six daughters: Alexa, Bethany, Celeste, identical twins-Destiny and Eden, and Faith.