A thought has been in my mind for quite some time. A thought that seems to judge, but I am just as guilty. A thought about parenting, about the past, about what my spirit is teaching, and about what I am learning… a thought about truth. You see I look around and see. I see more deeply than before. I see what my past has done to me; the thoughts, the inescapable connections in my brain that have been hard wired because of a choice or a thought, whichever it may be, that occurred a long time ago. Sometimes I …
Trust and Obey
The year 2015 came with a personal triumph in the areas of trust and obedience. I learned the real meaning of depending on God. Up until 2015, I had always heard testimonies from great men and women of God telling of how they stepped out on faith and obeyed God. They told of how God provided for them or how God gave them resources for different projects that they knew were from Him. God told me it was my time to learn this lesson for myself. In October, I left my government job that I had been so comfortable with for the …
The Lord Showed Me
A 2016 Repost from My Journey of Faith Magazine by Katie Clifton This past year, the Lord showed me that I don’t need to make plans. He showed me His ways are best and that I am strongest and most pliable when I am on my face before Him. I spent most of 2014 fighting God on church planting. I ran from it. I cried over it. I begged God to call someone else. Then, I surrendered with excitement and joy. In 2015, we launched Renew Church. It is wonderful. It is a gift. It is refreshing and reviving and …
Hopeless to Whole
A Repost from My Journey of Faith Magazine by Brittany Glaze. Brittany today is living proof that God has the power to change the lives of people for His purpose. Thank you, Brittany for your words of hope to those who feel hopeless. On January 17, 2014, life was jolted into a warp speed spiral out of control. Things had been bad before, but not like this. After years of exhausting relationships and funds there was no where left to turn. The friend I was staying with could no longer give me a place to stay so I was homeless. …
Skipping Thanksgiving
One of my biggest pet peeves is decorating for Christmas before Thanksgiving. I did it once back in college when my friend Tiffany and I roomed together. Since we just couldn’t wait for Christmas, our decorations were up in early November. All I remember was enjoying the decorations…for the first few weeks. By the time Christmas got here, the novelty had ended. Of course, I don’t even remember Thanksgiving that year. Ever since then I made an unwritten rule that I’d never decorate for Christmas before Thanksgiving. More important than when we choose to decorate for Christmas, many of us …
Hearts of Gratitude
In looking up the word “gratitude” from various sources, most of the definitions were very similar and what one might expect: thankfulness, the quality of being thankful; readiness to show appreciation for and to return kindness; a natural expression of thanks in response to blessings, protection, or love, etc… One definition, however, significantly stuck out to me: gratitude is a joyful commitment of one’s personality to God. In researching gratitude chronologically in the Bible, it took me a while to find it, which was surprising to me! Although we don’t see a “thank you” in the first few chapters of …
Passion for Jesus
As I sat in this very large arena surrounded by thousands of women, I was mesmerized by the words that slapped me in the face. Words so powerful I could not move… words that formed a question that I must answer. I had come to Beth Moore’s Living Proof conference with a group of my church women. We had already attended many of her conferences to hear what the Lord would teach us through Beth’s words. God uses women who are willing and obedient to His leading and Beth is one such woman. He uses her to speak His words …
Who is Your Neighbor?
Christ rarely answered a question simply. When he was asked he would answer with a question or a story. Often questions were asked to discover the minimum requirement or to look good in the eyes of those who heard. Jesus never let the asker slide. He’s answers pushed the boundaries, left hearers speechless, and infuriated leaders by putting the burden on them. One day he was asked a simple question by a religious leader, “who is my neighbor.” A simple question, a simple response. Right? Looking at Luke 10: 25, we see the question that preceded “who is my neighbor” …
My Shipwrecked Life
Among the many definitions of wrecked, included are: any building structure or thing reduced to a state of ruin and the ruins or destruction of a vessel or anything. Its definition describes my life was two years ago. My life was so broken that it wrecked “my plans” I had for my life. To make a long story short my husband is a soldier and was deployed twice with the Operation Iraqi Freedom. When he returned home it took almost two years to get a job. Even though he is a considered a veteran he went unnoticed for many opportunities. …
To Fear or Not?…
This morning started like most others, by getting up begrudgingly and taking on the task of exercising. Or should I say attempting to run again after an injury to my knee….which failed, so I walked instead. Little did I know what was to come. I read a blog post of a friend who titled it “time to quit fighting God”. While I read it, I was in tears. It was an amazing reminder of how often I have fought to keep the easy in my life without regard to what steps I should be taking, probably due to fear. Fear …
When You Feel That Jesus Has Forgotten You
My husband and I sat across the table at a steakhouse from one of my best friends and her husband. She was barely able to make it through the meal due to morning sickness. I was barely able to make it through the meal due to despair. My heart ached for what she had growing inside of her. Although my husband and I hadn’t been trying for a baby for all that long, it seemed like forever. My greatest fear was that my mom’s seven-year struggle to conceive would be my heartache as well. I tried to be happy …
I Was Made To Worship by April McCullough
It was at the end of the training season for the Little Rock half-marathon that I remember going to a pre-race dinner. I was pulling up to the hotel to pick up college friends who were in town for the race. As one friend proceeds to get into the car, she noticed the radio station on the Christian station and commented “April-you still listening to your church music!” I chuckled, not having realized that I indeed was still listening to the same type of music that I listened to while in college. Yes, even in all my mess I still …