Worry about your own Commitment...

     It's exciting when you know what God is calling you to do isn't it? it's exciting when you know you are right in the middle of God's will for your life. you make a commitment to God, to serve Him, to give your very best, your everything to do what He's called you to do. Time goes by and you have been completely invested in the work God has called you to do. There's been some blood, there's probably been a lot of tears, and at least a few sleepless nights, but you've hung in there, you've sought God's direction and favor over your calling, and you have come so far...

                                      and then...

     You look over and there's someone else doing the exact same thing as you, maybe. even. better. OR maybe they're completely new at it and they don't have a clue what they are doing but... they're getting the same recognition as you, or maybe. even. more. Maybe you love the Lord and you do your best to spend time with Him daily and please Him with your life and your goal is to walk in the joy of the Lord. You pray that He blesses your commitment and your life as you strive to serve Him, but...you've hit a hard time in your life, you struggle to keep moving, keep reading, keep praying, keep serving but you still love Him with your whole heart... you look over and see joy on someone else's face, you see the excitement in their face that you are struggling to get back and you feel discouraged as to why you have to face this trial and see others being joyous in where God is taking them.

                                                     How do you deal with this?

                          It's actually really simple: Worry about your own Commitment.

   It doesn't "feel" simple I know...because we are made of flesh and full of emotions, but this is where the rubber meets the road in our obedience to the One who calls us. It is so easy for us to get distracted in this life isn't it? We not only live in a world that is consumed by "comparison" but unfortunately we are seeing this same consumption within our churches and the Christian world,  and we have to be so careful to not become entangled in the Enemy's game.
   
    The Body of Christ is such a beautiful testimony of who God is. He created us all uniquely with our own giftings, talents, callings, and specifically laid out path... that ALL makes up ONE Thing...HIS GLORY.  That's why this becomes easier, when we get to the place that we understand that our lives, and everything we are made up of, is for Him and Him alone. He loves us so much. He created each one of us with a purpose. Doesn't that make you feel so important to God and so loved? I know it does for me.
 
    So many times I have felt inadequate, unimportant, used, not strong enough, and yes, even "burnt out"... but, that's because I was looking around me, comparing myself to others, wondering why they were more popular with the people than me, wondering why leaders liked them better than me, ect. Oh how much joy in serving my Savior I missed out on while focusing on things I didn't understand.  Instead of looking around, we need to remember to look up. Fix our eyes on Jesus, the Author and Perfecter of our faith, We often use the phrase "I Do it for the Audience of ONE"... but do we really?

     I went through a really hard time a few years back, see I grew up in the church. I've always been involved in church, as a child, as a teen, and as an adult. I started participating in ministry teams when I was 9 years old, I was leading and teaching those younger than me at the age of 12 and it continued ever since. I loved church, I loved serving in my church. I've done a lot of things within the church. I was always at church, serving in ministry. I've served in several different churches. But then a few years ago, I realized I just couldn't do it anymore. Through all the ups and downs, through all the successes and failures, through all the lessons learned up till now... have led me to ONE thing:

     I have learned how to really know and love my God. I have learned through His Word and by sitting at His feet, what His character is and what His heart is for His people. I love Him so much and though there is still so much for me to learn about Him, and ministry, and life... I know Him well.  I am so very thankful for the opportunities I have had to watch and learn from godly men and women leaders, who not only invested in my life but showed me what it really looks like to love Jesus and to live for Him daily. Solid, Sound minded, Bold, Faithful Servants, Unwavering Character, Committed to Truth Leaders.  I am also thankful that I have been able to witness what poor leadership looks like and those who pretend to love the Lord with EVERYTHING and how God is still faithful and always takes care of those who love and seek Him despite these people.  BUT...

    My biggest lesson in ministry, in my personal relationship with Jesus came a few years ago, when I could no longer force myself to simply "participate" in "church" because ya know..."THAT'S WHAT WE'RE SUPPOSED TO DO..."

    I've learned that God wants our hearts before He wants our ministry.

    He wants our commitment to Him, before He wants our commitment to a church.

                                              The same goes for our churches....

    God wants people's hearts before He wants their talents.

    God wants His Church to be a true reflection of who He is and who He calls us to be.

Unfortunately, we are living in a different day than we were 20 years ago. It's not just that things are "changing", change is a part of life and a crucial part of growth... but we are experiencing a different kind of "change" in our churches. It's not a surprise, God told us it would happen, but it's heartbreaking just the same.  I pray and long for the revival of God's people. For the day when the "church" turns back to caring only about the "Audience of ONE again". When those who are sick, can be healed.. when those who are lost, can be found... when those who are caught in bondage, can be set free... and when those who choose to follow Jesus, can be transformed as His Children.

      Today I am sure that in parts of this world, there are those churches who hold fast to the Truth of Jesus. I am sure that the Body of Christ is stronger than ever, full of Children of God who love Him wholeheartedly, who strive to be holy, who are quick to repent and turn from sin they have stumbled into. I believe there are pastors and teachers and leaders and workers who take their walk with God seriously and I am sure He is using them mightily. I believe this!

    But... in my own walk, as a strong leader and solid Believer, and someone who does her very best to love and please her Lord daily (no, I'm not perfect...but I aim for it! 2 Cor. 13:11)… I had to choose whether or not to link arms with fellow Believers... who openly lived in sin, with no remorse or repentance, and whether or not I could link arms with other leaders who, instead of preaching freedom from sin, did their very best to "make room" for those sins. (I am not talking about one set of people or pastors or churches here either...a bunch) What a confusing example to all those watching. What a heartbreaking thing to witness that rather than sharing the Truth of who God is and the power He has to set us all free, only half truths would be shared all while elevating our need to be able to sin instead of our need for a Savior.

    The conclusion to my decision to step away from the "church" (not the Body of Christ...but the church, at least from the local ones we have access to, at least for now...(there's always hope)) I had to make a choice to either link arms with leadership pretending to do things God's way, or break away and be true to the leader God calls me (all of us) to be. For me, it takes more than a church full of nice people and nice pastors...it's about the leadership and the example set for Believers. We must be very careful who we submit to that influence our lives. (that's Biblical!)

   The heartbreaking side for me is that I really do miss church. I miss the hands on ministry with people, I miss the feel of a "church family" not people to potluck with but people who you actually knew things about their lives, you invested in each other, I haven't seen that kind of unity or family in a church in a long time... lots of activity, but very little real fellowship. I miss that. But...oh the things God has showed me during this time of seeking Him and His will for my life...without a church.

  See,  I cried out to God a few years ago, I said "What am I supposed to do if I don't have a church? How am I supposed to serve if I have no ministry? What about all my gifts and talents?"   … And in the quiet, through the tears, I heard my Master's voice.. "It doesn't matter what you do, it matters how you serve Me everyday." and with that, came the clarity I needed. In order to use our gifts and our talents for God...we have to in fact, USE THEM FOR HIS GLORY.   What good does it do me, to use the gifts and talents God gave me within a church that does not honor Him, obey Him, or lead people to Him?  We cannot lead people astray from God and be glorifying Him at the same time.

   Yes, I have many gifts and talents, but if God chooses for me to not be busy using those gifts and talents right now... because that honors Him.... then, I'm okay with that. Is it hard to watch other individuals doing ministry? Sure at times, but I've decided in my heart that I would rather be faithful to God than use my talents "just because".  This might sound "harsh" to some, and that's okay. (Trust me, I didn't want to write and share all of this either but God has told me to do it and I am trusting Him through this that there is a reason I am sharing these very personal decisions with you) My heart is not to bash churches, that is not my desire. I know that there are churches out there glorifying God and shining a light in this dark world. But.. I am also aware of the day and age we are living in, it is evident to see Satan moving into not only our culture but into our churches and deceiving people...easily.

    So here's the deal, whether you have found a church home that really loves the Lord and preaches His heart and you are actively serving within that ministry, or if you are like me at the moment that does not have a church home to actively serve in, I encourage you to seek Him first.

    Let Him lead you daily in how to please Him with your life. Sometimes that may involve other people, we live in a hurting world with people all around us that need Jesus. Pray that God opens your eyes and helps you to see them. Sometimes it may just be how you live out your day at home, how you steward your time, your money, your priorities, how you love your family... just love God with your whole heart and walk in obedience to Him.

   God is calling His Children to be committed... not to ourselves, not to the world, not to our churches, not to our own talents, not to other people, not to our own ideas of "Christianity", but to Himself. "Well done, good and faithful servant."

  Live for an audience of ONE. It's not easy, it will be hard but I promise you, if we fix our eyes on Jesus, and worry about our own commitment to our Creator... everything will be just fine. <3

A Beautiful Way to be Broken...

     

There is one fight in this life that I always hope to lose... Pride vs. Repentance.

         We all struggle with pride, it's part of our human selves. We fight for control over everything. This deep stubbornness can penetrate every area if we allow it to. Why am I talking about this? Because, this ONE thing right here, that we all have wrapped up inside our human nature, can single handedly DESTROY everything that God has for us.
         Did you know that the entirety of God's message to us in His Word, is how WE must be willing to let Him be the Lord and Master of our lives? We often think and are even taught that the entire gospel message is about us telling other people about Jesus...but it's actually not. Telling other people about Jesus IS a vital part of our lives as a Believer, but the ENTIRE Bible focuses really on one thing only...our PERSONAL RELATIONSHIP with God and whether or not we OBEY Him with our lives.
       Crazy huh?....Not really. Our Creator loves His Creation deeply and His one desire is that we CHOOSE to love Him back. (Pretty Simple Message) Unfortunately since sin entered the world, simply obeying our Creator is not easy, BUT it most definitely IS possible! His GRACE is sufficient for us to want to live according to His will and to deeply desire to do what pleases Him.
      We don't hear too much about repentance anymore. Such a beautiful and powerful thing in the life of a Believer and we don't ever talk about it do we? When was the last time someone you know or someone in your church...or yourself... shared about the sin they were caught up in but Jesus set them free? I mean we hear a lot about trials someone might be going through and maybe how hard life has been and they made it through but...what about repentance? Why?
      I believe that it is a total work of the Enemy to get God's Children distracted and to forget about the work of REPENTANCE in our lives. We see the "Church" today making room for sinful behaviors in the lives of Believers. We've bought into the misguided line that God loves us no matter what we do therefore it doesn't matter how we live. This is such a twisting of God's beautiful truth that He DOES love us no matter who we are or what we've done, and because of THAT, He offers all of us a chance of Redemption and to be His Children.
       Repentance and Redemption go hand in hand, and both are an amazing picture of God's love for His Creation. Look at how much we are missing out on when don't understand or make these a part of our relationship with our Creator? Both of these acts in a Believers life, keep us not only humble before our God, it will continually remind us of who we are and who He is...He is God and we are not. A healthy fear of God is what keeps us on the right track, understanding that our lives are not our own and it really does matter how we live before our God.
       I've come to realize that there is a huge difference between someone pretending to really love their Creator and someone who really wholeheartedly DOES love their Creator.  One wants God's stamp of approval on their lives, however, they will continue to live how they choose, banking on God's love for them as an excuse to not have to be holy. (not Biblical by the way!) OR...One who cares more about what pleases God and what breaks His heart over what their flesh prefers to do.
      If we truly love our Creator...then we understand. through getting to know Him better and reading His Word to us, that our lives were made to worship and please Him. It's not our will but His will for our lives. Not our desires to be fulfilled but His.
      Living for Jesus... is a life of sacrifice on our part. It's death to our fleshly desires. Period. As a Believer and Follower of Jesus... Repentance is a key factor in a heart that remains humble before our God. Redemption is what we get to experience when Jesus picks up our brokenness before Him and makes us clean and whole, completely pleasing to our Creator. Isn't that AMAZING?
      I pray that we all have a heart of repentance before our God. I pray that He continues to fill us with His GRACE so that we can continue to walk daily in righteousness, pleasing Him. BUT...IF we should stumble on this journey, I pray our hearts are quick to be broken before our God and quick to make things right again.

Repentance and Redemption... what a beautiful way to be broken.

Throwback Post August 2016: Learning To Be Fearless

        So this past month in my journey with the Lord, I have discovered that even though I am very bold in my Faith and don't normally ever cringe when I have an opportunity to share what I believe on any topic...I am not "fearless" in all things. And I sincerely believe that this is something that needs to change.

I specifically hang out and rub shoulders with people that I admire and want to be like. The statement is true that we become like those we surround ourselves with. Influence is powerful. Standing alone is hard, but if you can find like minded people who really want to please God with their lives and who strive to be everything He's called them to be... it strengthens you in ways you can't even imagine.

As I sit in our Ladies Bible Study, called JOY4Women, my Faith is strengthened and encouraged as we dig in deep and discover who God really is and what He really is saying to us through Scripture. We serve an Awesome, All Powerful God who has ALREADY defeated ANY darkness we could possibly EVER face...and yet the question looms..."why are we so afraid?"

Why are we so afraid to speak up when we see darkness in this world, or in our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ?

Why are we so afraid to join in with others who are speaking truth? We might think to ourselves, "well good for them" "that's right"...and yet WE don't want to tie our name to something that other people might disagree with EVEN though we KNOW it's Truth?

Why are we so afraid to Speak out Loud about Who God is? Why do we just assume that someone else will tell them?

Why are we so afraid to LIVE EVERY DAY for Jesus? Is it just too hard to do so? Is His grace really NOT enough to help us live a life that is pleasing to Him so we just give up?

Maybe the first question is...Why are we so afraid to REALLY KNOW HIM. Does it scare us because we Know that there are things about ourselves that we like...that will have to change if we really allow ourselves to Know God Well?

There's a lady who is my friend, that attends our Bible Study, and she is fearless in witnessing to people. Her example has caused me to have some deep reflection time with God about how I can better share Him with others. Some would say, "well now, we all do things differently, some people are just quiet and shy and share with their example, and others share more verbally and are more outgoing...we don't have to all share the Gospel the same way"...and that makes sense, until we start looking at God's heart and read what He says to us in the Bible. Then that excuse of  "just do it how you feel you're supposed to", doesn't quite cut it anymore. 

       We have different personalities and there's always the prompting of the Holy Spirit (don't confuse this with your comfort zone) but God doesn't call us to be mice. He is not happy when we shy away and don't share the Gospel because we are scared. He tells us to speak the Truth boldly. And we can't just Live it...we have to Speak it also. Can you imagine if Jesus never talked to anyone? He just went around healing people and doing miracles but never told anyone what He was doing, why He was doing it, and Who He was....would we even know or understand the Gospel today? If we are to be like Him, then it is NOT ENOUGH to be silent and nice. 

This challenge is HUGE...because it requires pretty much "living" outside of my comfort zone. It means that first and foremost I will continue to seek God in all things: all circumstances, all my beliefs will line up with His truth, all opinions that I form will be a reflection of His heart and not my head or fleshly desires...this requires lots of discipline on my part, an intentional act to know Him more daily. To not allow myself to be satisfied with "basic Christianity" but to know Him well.

      It requires me to intentionally LOOK for those opportunities to share Jesus and that means to people everywhere. Not just the easy ones who come to me or an activity that I'm involved in but to the person standing at a checkout line, or to that one who is sitting on a street corner, or anyone else that could be in my path. This means that I need to be more aware of my surroundings and who is needing to hear about God's love. One thing I have learned, is that if we are living and walking with the Lord, we do not have to beg Him for opportunities to share Him with lost people(anyone) ...we just have to simply open our eyes...because those opportunities are all around us.

I want to be fearless. What do we really have to lose? Oh but what do we have to gain?!! I am on this journey and I am scared of what it requires to be fearless lol...but I know that it IS what God requires from His Children. This world will hate us...but SOMEONE just might change their choice of eternity...because one of us...became fearless...and shared LIFE. 

I pray you'll take this journey with me...and for those of you who already live fearless... thank you and...I'm catching up! ;) 

Throwback Post November 2016: A Worship Reality

        Worship is such an important and CRUCIAL part of a Christian's walk with the Lord. You cannot live for God, follow His commands, be who He's called you to be and ignore this very basic part of your relationship with Him. This is the part where you recognize exactly Who He Is. Without this acknowledgement, we are left to our own way of thinking, our own way of doing, our own way of living, our own way of witnessing...and ultimately, we are left to our own demise.

      Worship is so much more than the songs that we sing...it is the very WAY we LIVE. Worship isn't about doing...it's about being. Constantly aware of our Creator. Constantly walking in His grace to be righteous. Constantly CHOOSING to be obedient to Him because we are fully aware of Who He Is.

    I'm afraid that we as a whole, have lost sight of the depth of the meaning of the word "worship". I'm afraid that we have strayed away from the very lifeline of worship. We have turned worship into something that revolves more around what we are getting out of it than what God is receiving from us. I mean when was the last time you sat (or stood) before God in worship and focused the entire time not on what He can do for you but rather just on who He is? 

    I am a worship leader and that is a task I do not take lightly. Helping people step into the presence of God and making sure that everything that is done is completely pointing to Jesus, is not always easy. BUT... I have noticed such a shift in our worship services... some "worship" songs that are ever so popular in most churches... lack so much  and yet we sing them because they're fun. Same with lots of hymns... lack so much and yet we sing them because we like them. Both of these elements have the same reasoning...they make us feel good. Now don't get me wrong, there are LOTS of great worship songs and hymns out there that take us straight to the heart of God. But does that make the ones that we spend time focusing on during worship...that don't....okay?  

  

    When worship is really supposed to be (based on what I read in Scripture)...all about us praising God for who He is....then why do we spend so much time on songs that reflect more on the things we are going through and less on how amazing and how in awe we are of Him? Now I don't think that there is anything wrong with songs of reflection... It's good to recognize our need for God and ask Him to help us through difficult times...BUT are we maybe getting away from what we NEED to be focusing on in our acts of worship? Does it really hurt us when we spend so little time making Him increase and us decrease? Could there be a reason why we should be focusing more on the God that we serve instead of the many ways He serves us?

   Again, I'm not knocking the songs we sing that bring about reflection but what I am saying is that I really think we are confusing the issue of the real meaning of worship. And we are undoubtedly confusing the meaning to others around us.  

Throwback Post July 2017: Where is the REAL CHURCH?

        So I kinda went off the grid for a little while... it wasn't that I had "writer's block" or anything, actually I have TONS of things I've been thinking about blogging... but it was more like I took a "writer's break"..is that even a thing? I don't know but I had to take one. I guess what caused my blogging and social media absence was based on deep discouragement and frustration over things that I was reading coming from the "Christian Community", not just people all over the world but people I have known forever, people who I have looked up to and admired, and frankly a whole lot of people that should know better. Truth is Truth and when people decide to change who God is or who He calls us to be in order to become super popular with ya know..."all the lost people out there who need Jesus"..... I get irritated. I get frustrated. I get sad. And even though I had a lot of things on my mind and heart to write about, I didn't want to write them out of frustration or anger.

       

       I'm not saying there is anything wrong with being angry or frustrated with the twisting of the Truth, God wants us to be grieved over the same things that grieve His heart. There is a place for anger within a Child of God...a holy anger against the things that mock God and lead people astray.

      This is not a "fun" or "feel good" post, but since I have no real genre to my writing, you basically get whatever is on my heart at the time, and I have a feeling that I am not the only Child of God that is dealing with these frustrations and discouragements within the "Christian Community".  I am not trying to demean "all Christians" or seem to be "against" Church in general....BUT, There IS the Beautiful Body of Christ that is moving and functioning as one vessel completely in love with their Creator and this BODY is unified in Christ all over the world. AND THEN there is a whole lot of people claiming to be the Body of Christ but are nothing more than hopefuls for the Kingdom but unwilling to lay down their lives to get it. God calls this: Sheep and the Goats. Righteous and Unrighteous. And there is a steep price for both...One will pay now, and One will pay later.

          A new friend of mine made a comment about how frustrating it is to see more and more churches going "Hollywood" and I couldn't agree with her more. Why do we feel the need to "sell" Jesus to people? He IS already everything they need, why do we have to make Him Bigger and Better and more Fun and Popular... does He really need that much help to appeal to the broken, the captives, the hopeless, the lost? And yes here's a rant....WHAT IS WITH ALL THE SMOKE AND LIGHTS?????

       I believe God wants us to be relevant to the World around us but I do not believe God is okay with us going to "whatever" length we need to "give people what they want....so they'll come to Jesus and give Him a chance"...hey, people need Jesus period. It's our job to show people Jesus and it's His job to give them an experience. I think we've gotten confused along the way and the "church" is looking more and more like the world everyday and less and less like the real Jesus.

      There are a lot of sheep out there, and there are a lot of wolves. And it IS our responsibility to not blindly follow anyone who claims to know something about God. It IS our responsibility to KNOW God and His Truth for ourselves. We must recognize the flat out lies and all the MANY half-truths being taught and lived out in our "Christian" world today. Start holding each other accountable and most of all, start holding yourself accountable for the things you believe, you practice, and you share with others. Being a Child of God is a very serious thing. I'm talking to the Believer that "gets it" right now and wants to really understand what it means to "live for Christ". It's not easy, it's the hardest thing you will ever do...because it is so much bigger than you. But it is sooooo worth it. So even though this is not a "fun" topic or a very "uplifting" post... be encouraged my Brothers and Sisters in Christ... there are others that are grieving along with you over the state of the "church" today and know that the real BODY OF CHRIST is everywhere, strong, and functioning as it was designed.... Loving the Creator and DAILY striving to be the Child of God He's calling us all to be.

        So what are we supposed to do? What am I supposed to do in the face of this chaotic and clearly misguided time within our "Christian Community around the World"? .... I have been praying and pondering over this looming question for several weeks now, and the answer is the same one I had moments after I asked the first time.... the answer: keep speaking Truth.

        We are only as close to God as we choose to be, we are only as knowledgeable about His Word and His Character as we choose to be, we are only as clueless or wise about what His desires are for His Children as we choose to be. He has ALREADY given us everything we need to know and He has already told us to seek Him in ALL things and to know Him well. It's OUR choice what we do with that. It's OUR choice what we allow ourselves to believe. And it's OUR choice whether we will walk obediently or disobediently. SO... all I can do is daily strive to know Him more (this is not some cute saying but a lot of determination to make Him the MOST important part of my day, everyday). I MUST rightly divide the TRUTH in scripture and in EVERYTHING I hear and allow myself to believe. I MUST make sure that as I pass on TRUTH to those around me, that it IS actual Godly, Biblical TRUTH. I have a responsibility First as a Child of God to LIVE out what I believe, trust what I believe in, and know 100% that what I believe is absolute Truth. Secondly as a leader in the Body of Christ, in worship, in my women's ministry, in all of the people that I have the opportunity to speak into their life and any amount of influence that I may have... I must make sure that I am at ALL times...not sharing Darby's opinion but sharing God's opinion....because His opinion is all that matters in this life.   BIG RESPONSIBILITY we have as Believers, to make sure WE aren't getting in the way of someone finding Jesus and truly understanding what it means to FOLLOW HIM.

       I am still saddened by the things I read and see and hear, coming from fellow "Christians"....and that's okay because I know that it grieves my Heavenly Father's heart so much more. But I am determined now more than ever that I must continue to hold myself accountable to always SEEK the Truth, always SPEAK the Truth, and NEVER be intimidated or afraid to SHARE the Truth with whomever or wherever it is needed. This means that yes I will disagree with other leaders, pastors, teachers, brothers and sisters... oh well. God's Truth should always be our number one priority in the Body of Christ... and if it isn't...God tells us what to do in those circumstances as well... some people would be surprised to see what God says about that. But please, don't just take my word for it...look it up for yourselves! How about we all start doing a little more seeking God for ourselves and a little less using christian facebook quotes as our foundation of faith?

It's not easy....but you are not alone. Stay strong sweet friends, we are in this journey together!

Throwback Post December 2016: THAT is NOT MY SNOWMAN: Finding Peace in the Busy.

I'm not gonna lie, this month has been a little trying for my heart. Of course it has nothing to do with the actual month of December or the days within it, it has nothing to do with Christmas and all the hustle and bustle included in the season's events, It has nothing to do with the people around me ... it has to do with me. Plain and simple, just me.

    I've had a very heavy heart this month, A lot of "life" has happened this past month, a lot of choices, plans, dreams, hopes, realities, options, ... maybe a couple little regrets, and maybe just a few broken pieces lay in the mix.

     It's hard to find the happy when your heart is heavy isn't it? I would venture to say that MOST of us at one time or another has felt all these things, battled these things, lost or won at these things. That's life right?

    The thing about it is, I don't like being in a place with a heavy heart and looking for joy. Why? Because I know the Author of Joy, and I know that He holds it in His hand for me... so if I'm not finding the Joy that He freely gives, then I must not be holding His hand on this journey. This troubles me more than any "life issue"... because I know that God is my ONLY Lifeline in this Life. If I let go of His hand, even for a second, I risk the chance of life on my own. And even though Parents tell their children eventually that it's time to "let go" and step out on their own... this is not the message God sends to His Children.

     The minute we take ahold of Jesus' hand, we are to hold that hand for life.

There is no storm, He can't walk us through. There's no obstacle, He can't help us get over. There's no darkness that He can't overcome with Light. We NEED Him. Life is too big to try and handle on our own. I don't care who you are or what you believe... without Jesus, there is no hope. there is no peace.

      So I would say that lately... my snowman has been looking a little more like this:

        Ya know, it's so important that we remain transparent with each other in our journeys of faith. It's how we stay real and vulnerable to truth. But it is equally important that we share God's truth in the midst of our struggles as well. It is so easy to believe, and often said, that our struggles are a part of God's plan for our lives and God understands when we let go of His hand and have to do things our way. And He just patiently and lovingly waits for us to come back and grab ahold of His hand again.   Even though these things have truth in them, This is NOT what God desires in our relationship with Him. What He tells us over and over again throughout His Word is that we need to seek Him in all things, draw near to Him, follow Him, obey Him, trust Him, ect.  He never promises us a life without struggles, but it does not mean that every struggle we face is actually a part of His plan. Just because we choose to do things our own way doesn't mean that God is simply okay with it just because He understands us. And just because He is patient and loving towards us, doesn't mean that His heart isn't broken when we choose to ignore His presence in our lives.

       We don't have to go off the deep end and dive into a life of sin in order to break God's heart, we can hurt Him simply by brushing Him aside and allowing anything else to take His place.

As I have gone through the last few weeks, feeling heavy hearted and lacking in joy. I allowed myself to be overwhelmed and distracted by life. But I know that my peace and my joy can only come from my Creator. And I must choose to bring Him back into my center focus and let everything else revolve around that.   Life will always have surprises, some I'll like and some I'll hate... but it doesn't matter because the most important thing I have is my relationship with Christ. And the most important job and responsibility that I have is choosing to daily place my hand in His, because THAT is where I will find my peace, my joy, my happy. :)

Throwback Post December 2016: Just Stay Strong...

I had a good conversation with God today... well I guess it was more like I just crawled up in His lap and just let everything I know about Who He is and what He promises just resonate in my heart for a while. Very little was actually said, but the conversation was deep nonetheless. That's one thing I love about the Holy Spirit... definitely a "Comforter". Sometimes life can be so overwhelming and unfair. God allows life to happen to us and in the really trying times we have to fight against the urge to get mad and question why.

       Yes it is natural to get mad and question why BUT... that's our flesh isn't it? It's in moments like this and a lot of past moments like this one that I have realized that it's about my Faith not my flesh. My Spirit being stronger than my flesh. Realizing and remembering that God is Sovereign, that He Is Who He says He Is, and everything that THAT means will always equal HOPE. His Strength is made perfect in our Weakness. We CAN do ALL things through Christ. He is Faithful. He will Never Leave us or Forsake us. God's plan is bigger. He knows more than we do. My FAITH, your Faith depend on these things.

I've said it before but Faith is not a moment, it's a lifestyle. We don't just "wake up" one day and boom...we all of a sudden have Faith. Faith is a process, we often hear about one's "journey of Faith" and that's exactly what it is. It doesn't mean that we can't instantly "believe" something...that's belief isn't it? Belief and Faith are not the same thing. They might require each other but they are really 2 separate things and both are essential to the life of a Child of God. The process of Faith inevitably starts out with a Belief in something, and then Trust comes in to play, and then Faith is achieved. I mean let's break it down right? You can't really have faith in something you don't believe in, you're not going to believe in something that you don't trust, and you are definitely not going to be confident and unwavering in something you neither fully believe in or trust.

For me, this is where the rubber meets the road. When it comes to my personal faith journey, it begins with these simple yet life changing questions, "do I really believe God is who He says He is? do I really believe that He will actually do what He tells me in His Word? do I really believe that His Word is the complete Truth?"

If my answer is yes, (which it is) then this changes everything about me, not just at the moment I believe in Him and accept what He did for me on the cross, but it continues to change me everyday for the rest of my life. why? Because Faith isn't simply about believing.. it's about knowing and deciding what I really believe is Truth (not what I hear...it's what I know) then trusting that truth with everything in me (this takes work folks for all of us) and then LIVING (this is an action word...lots of action words actually) out these truths daily in my walk with Christ. Faith, the process, doesn't just happen once... it's a lifetime thing because we will face it daily no matter what, not just in the trials but in the daily decisions we make in how we choose to live.

 It's learning to live the process daily that makes us move the mountains later. We have to be faithful (hello...longer version of the word...kinda helps make my point right ;) ) in the little things... we need to continually be practicing our faith, because when the big storms hit... we are ready. we are steady. and we become unmovable. unshakable. solid.  

This was a sweet reminder today of my faith journey. As I sat in my Father's lap, I wasn't throwing out questions of why? I wasn't in panic mode. I wasn't confused. My heart ached and the burden felt heavy... but I was still. I was quiet. I let the tears fall before my God already knowing that He understood. I allowed Him to comfort me like only He can. And I allowed His peace to flood my soul and take the heaviness of the burden from me because I KNOW Who He Is. Because I Believe He is Who He says He Is, and I Trust Him with all of my heart.

My Faith in God is my most prized possession... because it was not obtained in just one single moment of my life... but over and over and over again daily as He has and continues to prove to me that He Is exactly Who He claims to be. This has and continues to change me daily because everything that I am...every decision that I make...every action that bears witness to my being...reflects my Belief that I have accepted God (and everything that means and requires of me (not always easy, lots of repentance on my part more often than I'm proud of)) not only as my Savior in times of trouble, but as the Lord of my whole life. This is my faith journey, and it's days like this, when I can take my weak human self, and crawl up in my Father's lap and know for certain, that everything, no matter what, is going to be alright.

much love my sweet blog friends, I pray that each of you surrender your hearts to really Know Him on your faith journey, that you be found faithful, and strong. we can do this! :)

Cupcake Christianity

So I heard a sermon on tv the other day that stated... "there are no cookie cutter Christians", and I thought about it for a while and decided that... I somewhat disagree! ;)  

Now first off, I'm going to change it from cookie cutter Christians to cupcake Christians because ... well, I like cupcakes way more that's why.   

          I totally believe that God did not make a bunch of mindless drones when He made us. He gives us different physical features and a free will which totally makes us individuals. He places us in different parts of the planet with different cultures and languages and that makes us different.

BUT... when it comes to REAL CHRISTIANITY... we should really all be made up of the same stuff! Everything that we are, our foundation, our recipe so to speak, should be everything God calls His children to be. We really should not be diverse in this part, we might be in different stages of the baking process but that doesn't change the ingredients in the mix! God doesn't throw a little bit of flour in this one and little bit of sugar in that one... if HE is the cook of our Christianity, (as He should be), then the whole batch of us will be made the same. 

How can I say this tasteless thing that we, as Christians, are all supposed to be the same??? Well...because it's all over in the BIBLE of what it looks like to be a "child of God", and nowhere does it state that God says, "one child of God can be made up of this but another child of God is made up of that." He tells us ALL what we need to be made up of. (I could give you a list of scriptures and passages about this but I encourage you to go look it up, if you can't find them, then message me and I will be happy to send you some! :)  

So it makes me wonder, what do we really mean when we say, "there are no cookie cutter Christians"? Part of me thinks that it's more about maybe making an excuse for when we mess up in our walks with God? We might push the whole excuse that "no one is perfect therefore don't look at me when I mess up too!" or "We all have gone through different life situations so unless you've walked in my shoes, don't tell me how to be a Christian", or maybe we use it as an excuse to not really examine what we are made of and just accept that we are perfectly fine in where we stand in our Christianity. 

          I know that those statements seem kind of harsh and very blunt and frankly... they are. BUT> It is the TRUTH isn't it?  The truth really is that, it frankly doesn't matter what has happened to us in our lives...God is still the same and still requires the same things out of His children. It doesn't matter that no one is perfect but Jesus, God still requires us to strive to live righteous and holy lives regardless of how anyone else chooses to live. And it doesn't matter whether or not we are content with the way we live for God, it only matters if He is content in the way we live, is it not?  I guess I just see a real danger in possibly making this statement a foundation of our belief system. It really does matter what we are made of and according to God's Word, we are to be MADE of the same foundation. Just something to think about. :)

BUT NOW FOR THE FUN TRUTH OF THAT STATEMENT...

Even though we all have the same foundation in Christ, full of all the good stuff we get to be made of, He does make each one of us glorify Him with the unique traits and abilities He has given us! So BRING ON THE FROSTING!  It is AMAZING to me how many awesome things God gives us to make us each different in the Body of Christ!  I am constantly blown away by the people I get to know or simply rub shoulders with on occasion that have such unique and beautiful attributes to share with the world around them.

God must have so much fun watching His children simply be His children. Watching all those gifts and talents he placed on top of His cupcakes shining for His glory because the foundation of those cupcakes are solid and good. Knowing that the world around them are being made better because they are tasting that the Lord is good.  Everything that we are as His children, should be showing the world who God is. Are we showing them just how good He is by the foundation and ingredients of who we are and how we live?

So don't let anyone else start mixing your batch, you don't want to be made up of anything else but what God is putting in the mix! It's really easy to do, sometimes we think something looks like it will make it taste better but once it's done, we regret it. Stick to the things that make you a child of God. We can all have great frosting and decoration on top of a nasty tasting cupcake, it may look good to the world, but the world's not going to eat it, and I'm pretty sure God isn't going to want to eat it either. (also in scripture!) So trust in the God who loves you most, that what HE has for your ingredients will make you better than you could ever make yourself! Open up your Bible, sit at His feet and ask Him what those ingredients are and make sure that you start putting them in your foundation and whatever you find in your mix that someone else put in there, get it out!

So listen up CUPCAKE! You and I ARE from the EXACT SAME MOLD! We are the Bride and the Body of Christ Together. We all have different toppings but we're all from the same Batch! Live it up Cupcake, cuz' life is GOOD! ;)