need some feedback - journal

I went to the park today for my usual run (as of 2 weeks now :-). Normally I meet a girlfriend, but today I was alone. As I ran I focused my heart on Jesus.
I ran past a woman walking a dog. For a quick second, I had a picture in my mind of myself talking to her.
Now here is my question. Is it possible that this spontaneous thought was the Holy Spirit?
I continued running feeling a little stressed that I may have missed an opportunity to share Jesus with someone....so...out came the fleece :-)
"God, if that was you putting that thought in my head, please keep her on my path and allow me to pass her again. I promise this time I will talk to her."
Sure enough, half a mile later, here comes the woman with the dog. I stopped and asked her if we could walk together. She said she couldn't stay long but we talked for a minute...another thought came to my head, "You will see her again." I quickly said, "I try to run here every day," hoping that I could help God along in creating another meeting.
So here is my God-sized question: When I think I hear God say, "You will see her again," can that be God if it doesn't happen? He didn't say you may see her or you should pray you run into her...He said "you WILL."
Another idea hit me. Discipline.
Maybe God orders divine opportunities based on disciplines in our lives. I am running every day, trying to create a discipline in my life. As I create discipline God is able to count on me, "Heather Marshall will be running in the park every morning from 8:40-9:10 and she will be meditating on who I am."
Have you ever tried to meet a friend and just found that they were always late or cancelling last minute, or just never had enough of a plan to be dependable. I wonder if that is how we are in our walks with God when we lack discipline. Maybe God is trying to order our steps, but we keep not showing up.
Back to my question. I would really love to have your opinion, so here it is again. When I think I hear God say, "You will see her again," can that be God if it doesn't happen?
I am leaning toward if it doesn't happen, it wasn't God.

Journal

Lord, how would you have me show more love and respect in my life.

Honor your husband. Give him praise. Tell him often what he means to you. Pray for him.

Journal from 9-12-09

I was at a women's conference when I began to feel a heaviness in my heart. I was starting to think about different women in my life and the issues they were dealing with. I started to feel pressure, "What if I've said the wrong thing, what if I don't know what to say next time...what if...I can't fix them."

Ahem...prideful...I know.

I quieted my spirit and this is what the Lord spoke to me:

I am the Wonderful Counselor, you are My vessel. Only My guidance can heal. Pursue Me, know My heart, live My message.

Journal from 9-10-09

Thank you, Jesus. Thank you for pursuing me and loving me. Your faithfulness is overwhelming. Thank you for giving Yourself to me and for accepting me as your own. Restore to me the joy of my salvation.

You are My child, whom I love. I have called you back to Myself and have given you hope. I desire to be your Lord and I call you chosen. Delight yourself in Me.

Praise You, Lord, for Your never ending mercy that is new every morning. Breathe life to my spirit.

Journal from 9-9-09

My mind wants me to believe, just as the Israelites did, that hearing from You is for someone else - that I am not qualified. The Israelites chose Moses to hear for them and I have chosen men and women in my life to hear for me. But the Lord confides in those who fear Him. I want to know You in such a deep way that You would confide in me. I will stop depending on my own mind, and I will know the mind of the Lord that He may instruct me.

Fighting for Righteousness

Matthew 5:6
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.”

Our battle in becoming righteous cannot be won without a fight. Are we fighting or are we relying on past prayers and confessions to get us through?

Shacking up with Sin and Regret

Proverbs 29:6 (NIV)
“An evil man is snared by his own sin, but a righteous one can sing and be glad.”

One of the greatest ways to combat sin is to simply cease to give it the opportunity to happen. If we knew a recovered drug addict that kept cocaine in their cabinet, we would call them foolish, yet this is how many of us live with our struggles. We choose to co-exist with sin…hoping that we are strong enough to resist the temptations that surround us.

Making it Stick

Proverbs 11:14 (NASU)
“Where there is no guidance the people fall, but in the abundance of counselors there is victory.”

Our past mistakes have a way of slowly creeping back into our lives when we’re not looking. They live in the back of our minds and in the dark shadows of our hearts. They remind us of our weaknesses and try to convince us that we aren’t really free. Part of overcoming a struggle is getting rid of the dark shadows where it takes cover. If we are going to make these changes stick we need to be open. Find people to share past struggles with, find people to confide in when you are being tempted, and find people to walk in accountability with. We were not created to fight this battle alone…every time you choose to make yourself accountable to someone, you add a warrior to your battle line.

the stands still

I was standing at the sink this morning, giving attention to some very neglected dishes, when I heard my girls start giggling. They were sitting at the dining room table transferring cheerios in and out of different containers.

Do you ever have moments where time just slows down, almost to a stop, and everything just seems right with the world?

As I stood there watching two of the greatest loves I have ever known play with their cheerios, these lyrics played on my ipod, "You are worthy, You are worthy of my child like faith, and of my honest praise, and of my unashamed love."

For that moment, all the stress of my day was lifted. I raised my hands in worship. It's amazing how perspective can change so suddenly. My kitchen sink...now my altar, the unswept floor...suddenly holy ground. 

I realized again what I've known all along, God doesn't just want me on Sunday mornings. He wants me all the time...when the dishes are dirty, when the laundry needs folding, when the kids are screaming, when dinner is burning...when life is happening. 

Life is not about life...Life is about Jesus. 

I guess I just needed to be reminded of that today.