God's heart is near to us and he knows just what we need. When we enter into his divine love for us it makes it much easier to love others. Even when life is challenging and loving others is challenging his abundant GRACE is right there to help us in our time of need; He is not far he is NEAR. Always PRESENT. Always with us in every season of our lives. Psalm 34:18 says the Lord is close to the...
What has been on my heart lately? Enjoying life Slowing down Hearing God in the stillness Quiet Currently I am at the park and it is so close to silent the amount of joy it is bringing me cannot fully be explained. God is found in stillness. When we take the time to slow down we can hear him more clearly. REST is one of the Ten Commandments for a reason. LIFE can be so noisy - full of emotional ups and downs and when we constantly ride this...
Last week at Kickback Monday we had a really great discussion about what it means to have courage and why it is important. We defined courage as being willing to put our vulnerability on the line. One of the things we talked about was expectations that we function under that hinder our ability to be vulnerable with others. There are times where we live and function in an façade because others see us as being a certain person who acts a certain...
Isaiah 40:29-31 (MSG) Have you ever felt like God has lost track of you? Like he has so many kids to keep up with and just doesn't have time for you? Well that is just not the case. God is very aware of what you are currently experiencing and is there to help you and give you strength. Many times in my life I have realized after the fact that God was in fact speaking to me and trying to prepare me but it was...
So last night we had kickback and Minister Ty talked about being vulnerable. That vulnerability is courageous. So in an effort to do my spiritual homework I am going to try and be vulnerable with you. This past weekend I was tired DRAINED! And it was the easiest thing in the world to go into a deep negative hole. I was being bombarded by negative thoughts and emotions and it seemed like I couldn't come up for air. When you are at your weakest...
One place you will see tons of people conquering their fears and things they never dreamed they could complete is at a Spartan Race. People of all races, ages, and sizes run several miles and complete a ton of obstacles in order to receive a medal and prove to themselves that they are in fact mentally, and physically strong enough to complete the challenge. My favorite part of being a part of the Spartan race family is seeing total strangers be...
Isaiah 43:1-4 msg But now, God’s Message, the God who made you in the first place, Jacob, the One who got you started, Israel: “Don’t be afraid, I’ve redeemed you. I’ve called your name. You’re mine. When you’re in over your head, I’ll be there with you. When you’re in rough waters, you will not go down. When you’re between a rock and a hard place, it won’t be a dead end— Because I am God, your personal God, The Holy of Israel, your Savior. I paid a huge price for you: all of Egypt,...
What do you think we need more than anything in this generation? Looking around at the brokenness and confusion in our world today I believe we need a revolution of restoration. The anxiety statistics in 20 somethings is astounding - what more proof do we need than to realize we need a revolution of peace. People's souls are shaken - hurt by those closest to them and threatened by opposing nations - the lack of security we feel is understandable....
Isaiah 31:1-3 msg 1-3 Doom to those who go off to Egypt thinking that horses can help them, Impressed by military mathematics, awed by sheer numbers of chariots and riders— And to The Holy of Israel, not even a glance, not so much as a prayer to God. Still, he must be reckoned with, a most wise God who knows what he’s doing. He can call down catastrophe. He’s a God who does what he says. He intervenes in the work of those who do wrong, stands up against interfering evildoers. Egyptians are mortal, not...
I love the vivid imagery in this passage. God spells it right out for us - he says I am not angry, I care. He is merciless in defeating the enemy while carefully tending to his vine. According to John 15:5 he is the vine and we are the branches. God didn't care if he was hurt in the process - he sent his sons to DIE and brutal death because he loves us. He came to die to give...