LIFE Within THE WORD

(Matthew 4:4 NIV- Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every Word that comes from the mouth of God.’”)

Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every Word that comes from the mouth of God. … Those were the very words that completely changed my life spiritually. As believers, I think we’ve all had moments or experiences that really solidified in our hearts “Ok, this whole God thing is for real”. I’ve had several things that have happened in my life where I knew that it was only God, but my very first “spiritual aha moment” happened about 5 years ago when I read Matthew 4:4.

I had been attending church my whole life, but it wasn’t until I read that particular verse for myself that I realized that it was The Word that was the missing piece to my puzzle of life. And it was The Word that would complete me and make me whole. Reading that one verse led to me reading The Bible in It’s entirety and from there my whole life changed because that’s where I found true intimacy with God. My heart longed for greater because I belonged to The Greatest. (1 Corinthians 3:23 NLT- You belong to Christ, and Christ belongs to God.)

So, what was Jesus really saying when He said, “Man can not live on bread alone.”?

Here’s what I believe. We merely exist without the consumption of The Word of God. And so, to truly live and thrive in all that He’s purposed us to be one must feast on His Word daily. Meaning just as our bodies long for food to function and operate at their best, our spirits hunger and long for the peace, strength, and Life that is God’s Word. (Luke 6:47-48 MSG- These words I speak to you are not mere additions to your life, homeowner improvements to your standard of living. They are foundation words, words to build a life on. If you work the words into your life, you are like a smart carpenter who dug deep and laid the foundation of his house on bedrock. When the river burst its banks and crashed against the house, nothing could shake it; it was built to last.)

I don’t know about you, but I’m completely in love with the phenomenal thought and beautiful truth that through God’s Word— I am built to last. And I pray that you would never lose sight of the fact that through His Word— you too are built to last. … Take a moment to truly allow your spirit to imbibe that truth. Everything we need is found in The Word. Christ is The Word and the more we consume It the more He becomes alive in us.

So today, I just want to remind you that there is Life within His Word and It has the power to love, calm, comfort, strengthen, encourage, inspire, empower, heal, renew, transform, and restore. The greatest gift that we can give to ourselves is to make the choice to partake of The Word and cling to The Life that lies within IT. (Psalm 119:114 MSG- You’re my place of quiet retreat; I wait for Your Word to renew me.)

Abba, today and everyday, increase the hunger of our hearts to seek and embrace the wisdom and truth that lies within Your Word. Give us a greater understanding of the value that It holds in and through our lives. Lord, help us to surrender to the freedom that is found in seeking You and obeying Your Word and Father, in seeking You may we find ourselves and all that You’ve purposed us to be. I pray that we would hide Your Word in our hearts that we would never sin against You. Abba, may our lives always be a reflection of Your Life within us. In the name of Jesus Christ, Your precious Son, and our Lord and Savior— I pray, Amen and so be it.

“Shift from your mind conquering The Bible, down into surrender to The Spirit of God Who will whisper to you what He meant by what He wrote.” ~ Martha Kilpatrick

I love you guys!

Believe, Be Beautiful, Be Brilliant, and Be Blessed! 🙂

You can send me your prayer requests by simply clicking here.

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LORD, Not My Will, But YOUR Will Be Done

(Number 14:17 NJKV- I pray, let the power of my Lord be great, just as You have spoken.)

My prayers at times have often mirrored the exact words of today’s focal verse because planted and deeply rooted in my heart is this beautiful and powerful truth— no word spoken forth by my Abba Father will ever fail. (Isaiah 55:11 NET- The Promise that I make does not return to Me, having accomplished nothing. No, It is realized as I desire and is fulfilled as I intend.) (Luke 1:37 NIV- For no Word from God will ever fail.)

I fully trust in His Word with my whole heart and soul. However, what today’s focal verse truly made me realize is, I often pray like that when my heart is consumed with worry and not when it’s filled with the faith and confidence in The Lord that it should be spoken forth in. It’s like I’m asking God to let His promises come to fruition by my will and in my timing instead of trusting Him to do it by His Will and in His timing.

And in reflecting upon that, I was reminded of these precious and Life-giving words from Christ … (Luke 12:27-28,31-32 VOICE- “Think about those beautiful wild lilies growing over there. They don’t work up a sweat toiling for needs or wants—they don’t worry about clothing. Yet the great King Solomon never had an outfit that was half as glorious as theirs! Look at the grass growing over there. One day it’s thriving in the fields. The next day it’s being used as fuel. If God takes such good care of such transient things, how much more you can depend on God to care for you, weak in faith as you are. Since you don’t need to worry—about security and safety, about food and clothing—then pursue God’s kingdom first and foremost, and these other things will come to you as well. My little flock, don’t be afraid. God is your Father, and your Father’s great joy is to give you His kingdom.”)

I know that The Word, Will, and timing of our Heavenly Father is flawless; complete and absolute perfection and I desire to know Him so intimately that I never ask for anything to be done by my own will. I desire to know Him so wholly and personally that like Jesus, I simply enter His Presence and say, “Abba Father, not by my will, but by Yours.”. (Luke 22:41-43 NIV- He withdrew about a stone’s throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed, “Father, if You are willing, take this cup from Me; yet not My Will, but Yours be done.”. An angel from heaven appeared to Him and strengthened Him.)

Jesus said that if we will just seek His kingdom and put Him first, then The Father would give and bestow upon us all things including the kingdom of heaven. What an incredibly beautiful promise for our hearts to embrace and behold. My heart’s greatest prayer for you is that your heart would never lose sight of that powerful, life-changing, Life-giving truth.

Abba Father, today and everyday, help us to seek you first. Help us to stay Christ-focused and Holy Spirit-guided that we would come to know you greater and trust you wholly and completely. Help us as mere human beings to understand Your profound wisdom that we would wholeheartedly know and believe that Your Will and Your timing is immaculate and flawless. Help to us never doubt You in any way, but to put our faith and hope in You always. In the name of Jesus Christ, Your precious Son, and our Lord and Savior— I pray, Amen and so be it.

“I am what no one else is, and in the hands of God I can do what no one else does. And if I dare set such a truth in motion I will change my world.” ~ Craig D. Lounsbrough

I love you guys!

Believe, Be Beautiful, Be Brilliant, and Be Blessed! 🙂

You can send me your prayer requests by simply clicking here.

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Will You Say “Yes” To HIS Call?

(Psalm 51:17 NIV- My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart You, God, will not despise.)

As I read today’s focal verse, my heart began to beat with this sonorous and rhythmic sense of admiration, love, esteem, and gratitude for God. I instantly felt this deepened, euphoric, and renewed sense of affection for Him and His Presence in my life because resonating in my thoughts and dancing with beauty and grace in my heart and mind, were these words: “My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart You, God, will not despise.”. I was filled with complete and utter joy because sometimes that’s simply all I have to offer to Him.

By definition the word contrite means: penitent or filled with a sense of guilt and the desire for atonement. I think most of us may perceive today’s focal verse as a welcoming path that directs us to enter God’s Presence laying our sins, flaws, and brokenness before Him in return for His love, forgiveness, and grace. And I must say, I believe and utilize it in that aspect in my own life as well.

However, sometimes my heart beats with a sense of contrition that is not necessarily directly due to sin or my mistakes or my shortcomings. Sometimes, I feel the most penitent when I think about the cross and the incomparable sacrifice that Jesus made just for me to have life. He knew me and foresaw all of the mistakes that I would make and in Him being acutely aware of all of that, He still made the to choice to give His Life for me and to send His own Spirit to live within me; to love me unconditionally, to comfort me through my every hurt and heartache, to lead me to my greatness, and to give me a heart that deeply desires to carry on His legacy and purpose in a world that so desperately and vitally needs His Presence, but is so incognizant of it’s brokenness and despair.

I contemplate and wonder— how will I ever be able to repay Him for it all? I desperately long for His sense approval in my life because in my humanness and in spite of my fallibility He took and accepted me just as I was allowing me to find beauty and purpose within my imperfections. His precious and perfect Holy Spirit literally breathed Life into my existence.

How do you repay someone who has given their life for you?! That’s what I’ve pondered… But God spoke to my heart and said, “Don’t feel guilty about the sacrifice My Son made for you because He will forever live on; sitting on the throne beside Me in heaven and within you and my people on the earth. You long to know what you can do to repay such a gift, but repayment is not a requirement.”.

As I thought about what His words meant, this verse came to mind. (John 14:15 NIV- “If you love Me, keep My Commands.) The words that God had spoken to me and the verse that He placed upon my heart simply reminded me that it’s not a requirement, it’s a choice. We choose if we will love Him or not. We choose whether to follow His Will or our own. We make the choice whether we will honor Him with our lives or not.

I’ve said all of that to say this: my greatest and deepest prayer for you today is that you would choose Him, that you would make Christ the center of your life, and that the ears of your heart would always be keen to the small still whispers of the voice of His Holy Spirit breathing and speaking Life within you.

Will life always be sunshine, rainbows, smiles, and giggles? Absolutely not. But in those moments choose to seek Him first. (Psalm 27:8 NKJV- When You said, “Seek My face,” My heart said to You, “Your face, Lord, I will seek.”) I wholeheartedly know that a heart that sincerely loves and earnestly seeks The Lord and longs to do and honor His Will is a heart that is destined to be preeminently rewarded. (1 Corinthians 2:9 NLT- No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love Him.)

We serve a loving and faithful God. It’s not always about sacrifice sometimes it’s simply saying, “Yes” to His call. (Isaiah 6:8 NIV- Then I heard the voice of The Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?”. And I said, “Here am I. Send me!”) So, I pray that when He calls, your answer will always be, “Yes, Lord! Here I am. Send me!”. 

I love you guys!

Believe, Be Beautiful, Be Brilliant, and Be Blessed! 🙂

You can send me your prayer requests by simply clicking here.

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Trade Your Ashes For HIS Crown

(Isaiah 61:3 NIV- Bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of The Lord for the display of His splendor.)

One of my favorite songs to listen to as I’m praying in the mornings is a song called “Glorious Ruins” by Hillsong. More so than music itself, I am a lover of lyrics. I listen to every single word of a song. And so as I’m praying, I like to listen to songs that will relay the worship and the cry of my heart to the heart of God because sometimes I’m in such awe of Him and so amazed that I have the honor and privilege of being in His Presence that I simply can’t find the words to speak forth on my own. If you’ve followed my blog then you know that I am a crier and my deepest and most intimate form of worship is displayed through my tears.

This morning as “Glorious Ruins” began to play and I began to sing, I felt those words truly take root it my spirit. I was filled with The Presence of The Lord and I just wept. Part of the song says: “When the mountains fall and the tempest roar You are with me. When creation folds still my soul will soar on Your mercy. I’ll walk through the fire with my head lifted high and my spirit revived in Your story. And I’ll look to the cross as my failure is lost in the light of Your glorious grace. Let the ruins come to Life in the beauty of Your name. Rising up from the ashes God forever You reign. And my soul will find refuge in the shadow of Your wings. I will love You forever and forever I’ll sing”.

Those words truly translate my gratitude for all that God is and has brought to my life. They reminded me that at the cross our failure is lost and replaced with the honor and privilege to stand, walk, live, and breathe in His incredible purpose for our lives. They reminded me of the truth that lies within today’s focal passage and the beauty that it relays from God’s heart to ours. We get to trade in our ashes to behold the beauty of His crown!

God wants to take all of the ruin, ash, and despair that burdens us and replace it with His crown of beauty, His oil of joy, and His garment of praise. He created us in His glorious image. His splendor rests upon and within us and we should never be ashamed or afraid to embrace that and look, live, and love as such. Through Jesus our ruins radiantly come to Life in such magnificent form. Where we see ruins within ourselves, God sees treasure because He knows the beauty that He created within us.

So today, I want to encourage you to not focus on your ruins, but to focus on Jesus and allow Him to show you the beauty and Life that lies within you through His Holy Spirit. Today, I want you to make the choice to trade your ashes for His crown! Live in the light, love, and Life that He provides! He’s worth it and so are you! (John 8:12 NLT- Jesus spoke to the people once more and said, “I Am The Light of the world. If you follow Me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have The Light that leads to Life.”)

I love you guys!

Believe, Be Beautiful, Be Brilliant, and Be Blessed! 🙂

You can send me your prayer requests by simply clicking here.

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Armed And Ready For War!

(2 Samuel 22:31-33 NIRV- God’s way is perfect. The Word of The Lord doesn’t have any flaws. He Is like a shield to all who go to Him for safety. Who is God except The Lord? Who is The Rock except our God? God gives me strength for the battle. He makes my way perfect.)

As I began to meditate on the focal passage above, I was genuinely in awe of the beauty and power of our God and how phenomenal He is. Through His Word we have the ability and privilege of experiencing how in-depth His promises to us truly are. There was one incredible promise in particular that my heart grasped immensely and just wouldn’t let go of… He makes my way perfect. How amazing is that?!

By definition the word perfect means: flawless or as good as it is possible to be. Now, take a moment to reflect upon the fact that in us choosing to trust God and follow His lead, not only does He make our way better, but through Him our way is made perfect! No matter where our circumstances say we should be, God is saying, “The way that I have prepared for you is flawless!”.

It’s extremely important for us to always remember that God had a plan of perfection for us long before we ever even had the capacity to contrive a plan for ourselves. (Jeremiah 1:5 MSG- “Before I shaped you in the womb, I knew all about you. Before you saw the light of day, I had holy plans for you.”) He chose you and set you apart because He knew that He had incredible plans for your life.

We need learn to trust God and look to Him with the same eyes and heart as the Prophet Isaiah did. (Isaiah 25:1 GNT- Lord, You Are my God; I will honor You and praise Your name. You have done amazing things; You have faithfully carried out the plans You made long ago.) In other words, God will fulfill His purpose for our lives. We just have to trust and praise Him through our storms because at the end of every storm, the sun is destined to shine again.

In the 29 precious years that God has allotted to me thus far, I have come to not only realize, but to understand that I can’t do this thing we call life without Him, but the beauty in that is, He never intended for me to. (2 Samuel 22:36 NOG- You have given me the shield of Your salvation. Your help makes me great.) Without God, I am nothing. All that I am, I owe to Him. It is His Presence in my life that strengthens me, gives me peace, and makes me great.

(Psalm 144:1-2 NLV- Praise and thanks be to The Lord, my Rock. He makes my hands ready for war, and my fingers for battle. He Is my Loving-Kindness and my Walls Of Strength, my Strong Place and The One Who sets me free, my Safe-Covering and The One in Whom I trust.) There is nothing that we will ever face that the power of God can’t conquer. Who is God except The Lord?! Who is The Rock except our God?! God gives us strength for the battle and the war. He makes our way perfect! He has equipped us with everything we’ll never need for His purpose in us to prevail. The Truth of His Word is our shield, our strength, and our protection, so we are armed and ready for war! And our God has promised us victory!

I love you guys!

Believe, Be Beautiful, Be Brilliant, and Be Blessed! 🙂

You can send me your prayer requests by simply clicking here.

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Just A Little Pencil Empowered To Leave Exceptional Marks

(2 Corinthians 3:2-5 GNT- You yourselves are the letter we have, written on our hearts for everyone to know and read. It is clear that Christ Himself wrote this letter and sent it by us. It is written, not with ink but with The Spirit of The Living God, and not on stone tablets but on human hearts. We say this because we have confidence in God through Christ. There is nothing in us that allows us to claim that we are capable of doing this work. The capacity we have comes from God.)

Every single part of our existence is a gift from God. The very next breath that we take is a privilege administered by His power. That very next life-giving beat of our hearts is only because He made the decision to let it be so. My point is, we naturally try to control our own lives when they’re truly not ours to control. (1 Corinthians 6:19-20 MSG- Didn’t you realize that your body is a sacred place, the place of The Holy Spirit? Don’t you see that you can’t live however you please, squandering what God paid such a high price for? The physical part of you is not some piece of property belonging to the spiritual part of you. God owns the whole works. So let people see God in and through your body.)

If we were to truly come to the realization that we are not our own, but that this body in which our souls indwell is simply a borrowed gift from God, would we sincerely make the choice to live our lives according to that gift? Would we choose to allow God to take the reins of what genuinely already belongs to Him? Or would we choose to keep believing the lie of the enemy that it is ours to do with it whatever we please?

Today, I’ve been in deep thought about life and what it truly means. The first thing that came to mind is, if God literally controls my existence; whether I take my next breath or not, whether my heart will receive it’s next beat, or whether I’ll have the liberty, benefit, and privilege of waking up to see a new day, why would I not allow Him to control my everyday concerns and worries? The things that worry us on a day to day basis are so insignificant compared to the gift of life itself. We hinder ourselves in life by trying to control what God says is His to manage, nurture, and take care of.

The focal passage of Scripture for today says, “It is clear that Christ Himself wrote this letter and sent it by us. It is written, not with ink but with The Spirit of The Living God, and not on stone tablets but on human hearts. We say this because we have confidence in God through Christ. There is nothing in us that allows us to claim that we are capable of doing this work. The capacity we have comes from God.”. I believe that is a reminder to us that just as much as we expect this exceptional, all-consuming greatness from God, He also expects that same greatness from us because everything that He is, He has gifted to us by and through the power of The Holy Spirit. All we have to do is open our hearts to Him and trust Him to work within us.

God doesn’t require perfection from us. All He’s asking of us is to allow the willingness of our hearts to believe in Him and to let Him take the lead. If God expects exceptionalism from me, then I know that He has equipped and instilled within me everything that I need to be just that. I desire to do so much more with my life because of the dreams that He has planted in my heart. It is only through Him that I have become greater. “I’m just a little pencil in the hand of a writing God, Who is sending a love letter to the world.” – Mother Teresa

What will you do with this borrowed treasure known as life that God has so graciously gifted to you? My prayer for you is, whatever He has inscribed within your heart, you will wholeheartedly believe in that and use it to leave exceptional marks in this world for His glory.

I love you guys!

Believe, Be Beautiful, Be Brilliant, and Be Blessed! 🙂

You can send me your prayer requests by simply clicking here.

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Just Keep Playing! The Black Keys Make Music Too!

(Isaiah 43:18-19 MSG- Forget about what’s happened; don’t keep going over old history. Be alert, be present. I’m about to do something brand-new. It’s bursting out! Don’t you see it? There it is! I’m making a road through the desert, rivers in the badlands.)

Everything that we go through in life whether it’s good or bad is meant to add substance and value to the essence and heart of who we are or will become as an individual. The Bible says that God created us in His image which means that we were literally made to thrive and flourish through His power at work within us. Through Him we have the ability to not just overcome, but to fearlessly conquer. (Psalm 23 NIV- The Lord Is my Shepherd, I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside quiet waters, He refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for His name’s sake. Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for You Are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely Your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of The Lord forever.)

So often we get caught up in the heart of our circumstances, instead of positioning ourselves to reach towards the heart of God. Faith allows us to envision what God has already prepared for us though we have yet to physically see it. I smiled as I read today’s focal passage because it reminded me of when Jesus said that if we believe in Him, not only will we do the work that He accomplished, but that we would achieve even greater than what He has done. (John 14:12 NIRV- What I’m about to tell you is true. Anyone who has faith in Me will do what I have been doing. In fact, he will do even greater things. That is because I Am going to The Father.) Take a moment to reflect upon how incredibly profound that is!

Why worry about the past or about things, situations, circumstances, or even people who have tried to defeat us when Jesus is saying to us that we are so much greater than all of those things?! Essentially what He was saying to us is, ” As I go to be with My Father on your behalf, I leave My Spirit with you to carry on My legacy.”. As I began to truly think about what that means, all of a sudden all of the things that I have ever worried about or stressed over seemed so mediocre and insignificant compared to the exceptionalism that He expects of me and unequivocally created me for.

Our trials don’t break us! They position us to become triumphant! Our shortcomings don’t define us! They make us greater! With each breath we take and for every beat of our hearts there lies the incredible purpose of God’s Will for our lives! We have the legacy of The Most High to carry out! “Life is like a piano: the white keys represent happiness, the blacks show sadness. But as you go through life’s journey, remember that the black keys make music too.”. Whether you’re in a season of trial or triumph, just keep playing! The beauty that you’ll create will always victoriously prevail! (John 7:38 NIV- “Whoever believes in Me, as Scripture has said, rivers of Living Water will flow from within them”.)

I love you guys!

Believe, Be Beautiful, Be Brilliant, and Be Blessed! 🙂

You can send me your prayer requests by simply clicking here.

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Faith Says Failure Is Not An Option

(Hebrews 11:1 VOICE- Faith is the assurance of things you have hoped for, the absolute conviction that there are realities you’ve never seen.)

I think all of us can appreciate the beauty of this verse and the truth that it holds for our lives because so often we get cemented in the here and now unable to envision the promises that God has predestined for our future. Whenever we feel defeated we have the tendency to only focus on what we have the power to see in that moment, but faith is knowing that we serve a God Who’s conquered everything that has the power to harm or defeat us and believing that He has incredible, unbelievable, unseen blessings awaiting the arrival of our believing hearts to give them life.

It’s so much easier for us to focus on the negatives of life than it is for us to believe for the positives because the negatives surround us and to see the positives we have to be able to conceptualize a view or a path above and beyond where our earthly circumstances or situations say we should be. Our lives are not defined by what we can see, but determined by what we believe. (1 Corinthians 2:5 NLV- In this way, you do not have faith in Christ because of the wisdom of men. You have faith in Christ because of the power of God.) God’s wisdom and power will always surpass our ability and understanding, but the benefit and beauty of that for us is He always welcomes us into His Presence with open arms and through that intimacy with Him we have infinite access to that extraordinary wisdom which allows His exceptional power to come to fruition within our lives.

Don’t allow trials, tribulations, or a moment of weakness to define or determine what God has the power and ability to do in your life. (Mark 9:23 NLT- “What do you mean, ‘If I can’?” Jesus asked. “Anything is possible if a person believes.”) Live expecting God to do exactly what He’s promised in His Word that He would accomplish in your life. Fear puts limitations on God’s power and says focus on defeat, but faith says failure is not an option because my God can do all things.

I love you guys!

Believe, Be Beautiful, Be Brilliant, and Be Blessed! 🙂

You can send me your prayer requests by simply clicking here.

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My Desire Is _______.

(Psalm 119:33-40 GNT- Teach me, Lord, the meaning of Your Laws, and I will obey Them at all times. Explain Your Law to me, and I will obey It; I will keep It with all my heart. Keep me obedient to your Commandments, because in Them I find happiness. Give me the desire to obey your Laws rather than to get rich. Keep me from paying attention to what is worthless; be good to me, as You have promised. Keep Your promise to me, your servant— the promise you make to those who obey you. Save me from the insults I fear; how wonderful are Your judgments! I want to obey Your Commands; give me new Life, for You are righteous.)

This morning before prayer service actually started, I sat down and I started to pray the passage above over my own life because I desperately want every promise that God has whispered to my heart and told me was mine to manifest in my life. And I know that in order for that to happen, I have to stay focused on Him and what His heart desires from me and expects of me. The moment that you feel that God has called you to do something changes your whole outlook on life and what truly matters to you. You have this vision that is so much greater than the one that you had for yourself. It’s like looking at your life, but through God’s eyes. So now what I desire for my life is so unbelievably eminent I know that I can’t do it without Him.

Last month, my friend Ellie invited me to her women’s conference. The name of it was “Abundantly Loved” and that’s exactly what the experience poured into our hearts. That day set a fire in my heart that has yet to extinguish. … If you know me at all, you know that unless you had come to church with me you probably wouldn’t even know that I was there because even in a church full of people, my heart still requires intimacy with God. I usually sit quietly somewhere off to myself and I spent most of the conference doing exactly what I normally do, but little did I know that my presence there hadn’t gone unnoticed.

A couple hours before the conference was over, all of the women got together to eat and fellowship. And since I was visiting I didn’t know anyone there except for Ellie and bless her heart she was busy serving and taking care of everyone the whole day. She’s one of those people that you have to admire because she lives, breathes, and embodies the essence of what a woman of God should be. Anyways, since I didn’t know anyone, I just sat at the first table that I saw had an empty seat. When I sat down a lady smile at me, introduced herself, and said, “I’ve been wanting to tell you all day long that the glow of Jesus is all over you, especially in your face.”. That was the best compliment that I have ever received. And in that moment, I also saw the God in her because she wasn’t afraid to say what she felt God had put in her heart to tell me even though she didn’t know me. And from that moment on we just laughed and talked as if we were old friends. (Thank you so much, Holly!)

The reason her telling me that meant so much to me is because I’ve truly been striving to give God my all and she saw that in me before she even knew my name. I personally believe that you can’t truly serve God or minister to someone else’s heart until you’ve been broken yourself because pain brings about a humble and grateful heart towards God that nothing else in life can give you. The most beautiful heart is one that has been broken and then mended by God because there’s a sincerity in that truth when you’re trying to minister to another broken heart that is undeniable. There’s a saying that goes, “Thank God I don’t look like what I’ve been through.”, and I’m sure that we can all relate to that in some way. But for me, instead of looking like what I’ve been through, I prefer to look like the wisdom, healing, and strength that I’ve gained from it. And being at that conference that day was confirmation for me that God had already allowed me to do that.

I shared this with you guys to say this: even though we don’t always understand what God is doing in our lives, the beauty in our pain is that the God in us can use that same pain that left us broken to be someone else’s healing. (John 13:7 NIRV- Jesus replied, “You don’t realize now what I am doing. But later you will understand.”) God has a vision to use our lives to be a blessing to someone else’s and to be a part of something so much greater than the hurt that He’s healed us from. I’m sure you’ve noticed that my title for this was, “My Desire Is _______.”. Fill in that blank with, “Whatever God Desires Of Me”. Allow God’s vision for your life to become your vision for your life because your greater lies in Him and only He can bring it to life within you.

I love you guys!

Believe, Be Beautiful, Be Brilliant, and Be Blessed! 🙂

You can send me your prayer requests by simply clicking here.

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