Remember Who He Is

Written by: Kyla McCormick

There was a day this winter when I wasn’t feeling well. I was lying in bed, when I heard my youngest daughter sneaking into my room. She set something on my pillow and snuck back out. I turned over to see what it was and she had left a little remembrance poppy, the ones that you get from veterans. Such a sweet gift from her when I was sick, however the Lord also used this poppy to remind me to stop focusing on my current situation and to remember Him. That He was there with me and that this situation would soon pass. 

All of this got me thinking about how often I allow my emotions and circumstances to take over. I begin to focus on the situation before me and how I’m feeling instead of focusing on Jesus. This wrong focus steals my joy and takes over my thoughts. It puts me on a path of destruction, not of promise. How easily I begin to forget about God’s many promises and His faithfulness when I’m not looking at Him. 

 I then wondered what it really looks like to remember the Lord. To remember means to keep in mind or to be mindful of. I know that the more time I spend with someone or doing a task, the more often I think of them or that activity. The same applies to the Lord. Matthew 6:33 tells us, “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” The more we come before Him, spend time with Him and in His presence the more we will seek Him and recognize Him in our daily lives. This time with the Lord truly changes our hearts and produces an intimate relationship with Him. A relationship that fulfills our every need and desire. When we experience Him in this way, we will turn to Him for our every need instead of Him being our last resort. 

Another way of remembering Him is to spend time in the Word. The Bible is filled with testimony after testimony of who God is and His love for us. Hebrews 4:12 says, for the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. God is promising that His word is alive and working! The more time we spend with the Lord in His word, the more often we will recall His promises, His truths and apply them to our lives. We will be changed by reading His word and live our lives differently than before. Continually being mindful of the Lord! 

We also have our own testimony. We can look back and recall all of the times the Lord has been there and how we’ve experienced Him personally. When you begin to focus on all He’s done for you, it’s much easier to face the situation at hand. You know He’s there, that He’s shown up before and that He will be faithful to do it again. You and I are His beloved children. He wants us to rely on Him, call out to Him and remember How much He loves us. We may not be able to do it on our own, but we don’t have to! We are more than conquers through Him who loves us (Romans 8:37)! As we recall His goodness, faithfulness and love our focus will again shift from our circumstances to Him. 

So once I finally realize that I’m on the wrong path and where it has taken me, I again turn to Him. As always, He’s right there waiting for me with open arms. He promises that He will never leave or forsake any of us (Deuteronomy 31:8) and He doesn’t! Time and time again He comes, leaving the 99 to bring us back (Matthew 18:12-14). I don’t know about you but the thought of Him always being there and that He is willing to come for me, brings me so much comfort and peace. It’s His unconditional love and faithfulness to each one of us that never changes. He remains the same yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews 13:8)! Remember, no matter the circumstances or situation, you can choose to bring your focus back to Him by spending time with Him, reading His word and recalling all that He’s done for you! 

1.) Take some time to make a list of all the ways God has shown up in your life. A list can be helpful when we’re in a tough place and need reminding. Be sure to continue adding to it as time goes on or when things are brought to mind. 

2.) Pray and ask the Lord to show you a situation where you are trying to do it on your own, instead of coming to Him first. Asking that He will help you in this area and to walk with you through it. 

Prayer: Lord we thank you for your many promises. That you never leave us or forsake us and that you’re always with us. Thank you for making the way and that we are able to have a relationship with you. We are so thankful that your love for us is unconditional. Thank you for your Word, that is alive and working within us. You Lord, never change and we are so thankful for that! We ask that you help us to remember who you are and who we are in you, no matter our situation or circumstances. We pray this in your name Jesus, Amen.

God is Love

By Kate Belford

1 John 4:16

I remember the first time I read the scripture “God is love”. The words jumped off the page and settled into my heart. Years of longing to be loved no earthly relationship could ever satisfy. I was loved by my parents, family and friends but always felt a lack, like something was missing. It was when I met God, that I found out that the lack was an emptiness in my heart that only He could fill. I will never forget that day I got on my knees and asked God to come into my life. His love poured over me and I felt my heart burn in my chest. The yearning I had was for God all along! His love saved me! His love brought me to life! I was relying on man to give me only what God could give me. Reunited with my first love! The One who formed and knit me together in my mother’s womb (Psalm 139:13-14). The One who quiets me with His love and rejoices over me with singing! (Zephaniah 3:17)

God sets eternity in our hearts (Ecclesiastes 3:11) that only His eternal love can quench. He meets each of us right where we need to be met. We do not need to check off a set of rules or standards or have it all together for God to show us His love because He is love. He wants your heart and wants you to know His. For His love has no bounds (Psalm 103:6-18) and we can come to Him just as we are, with our hearts open to receive His abundant love and grace. A love that is gentle, a love that is truth, a love that disciplines, a love that is everlasting, a love that heals, His love endures forever (Psalm 136). In Romans 8:38-39 the author Paul says “For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord” and I am also convinced! He loves us that much! When I look back on my life, I can see how He has been with me from the beginning! God has been with you from your beginning and sings over you too, my friend. Sometimes our beliefs hold us back from really seeing and experiencing all that He is. I want to share with you a poem that I wrote during a time of reflection in my journey with the Lord:

You were there from the beginning

Covered by Your precious blood and love

Who am I to believe I can do my own healing

It comes from You above

Your rod and Your staff they comforted me

When heartache in life came over me

I did not know…

Your heart beats with mine

On a path that is completely divine

All along you were with me

A love I chased, I longed for, a passionate pursuit

Only brought heartache and tears

Tears that were shed and sown for You

I cried out to You, surrendered my life

You poured Your love over me

Love that never fails 

I feel it now…

Your heart beats with mine

On a path that is completely divine

All along you were with me

Here we are today

True love restored

Abiding together, I’m forever Yours

Burning for you

Until we meet face to face

Your abundant grace covers me

I see it now…

Your heart beats with mine

On a path that is completely divine

All along You are with me

God is with you (Isaiah 41:10). He has chosen you and sees you as His treasured possession (1 Peter 2:9). How do I know this? It is in His beautiful word. Everything written in the Bible is truth and an expression of His love for us. Quite like a love letter. In reading His word and through prayer we can cultivate an intimate relationship with our Heavenly Father through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior. By being rooted and established in love (Ephesians 3:17) we can love because He first loved us (1 John 4:19).

 Do you believe that’s God’s love has no bounds? Why or why not?

Find a verse about God’s love. Write it down and share it with a friend.

Reflect on your journey. Through prayer and praise I invite you to share with God how He has met you right where you needed to be met and how His love covered you.

Heavenly Father, I thank you that You are love. I thank you that we see such an outpouring of Your love through Your word and the gift of Your presence. I pray that I can open my heart to receive and accept Your love and pour it out to others. To become rooted and established in Your love, allowing Christ to dwell in my heart. Let me be filled to the measure of all the fullness You Lord have for me. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.

Navigation System

HOLY SPIRIT: OUR BUILT IN NAVIGATION SYSTEM

Written by: Kyla McCormick

I don’t know about you, but when I am planning to go somewhere I have not been, I look up the directions, see how long it will take and become familiar with the route ahead. I like to be prepared and have an idea of where I am headed. Even still, I always plug the address into my GPS so I can have the step by step directions as I go. This ensures that I’m heading in the right direction even if I get distracted or off course. Trusting that it is guiding me, no matter what the trip may throw at me. 

The Lord has impressed upon me multiple times in the last few years that when we receive Jesus as our Lord and Savior, we receive our own built in navigation system, the Holy Spirit. Holy Spirit is our helper, our counselor, our teacher and our comforter (John 14:27) We do not have to go about this life trying to figure it out on our own and we are never alone. Praise God for this gift! We are so fortunate to have the Holy Spirit, but are we using this gift as God intended? 

 I recall driving to a photo session and I was using my car’s navigation system to get there. Half way into the trip I took a left turn and felt the Lord connecting this idea. In taking that turn, I chose to trust the navigation system and follow where it was directing me. However, I could have just as easily chosen not to take the turn and go my own way. How often do we choose our own way over the Holy Spirit’s guiding? How often do we ignore His prompting or choose not to “plug” into Him for guidance? Thankfully we serve an all knowing, ever present Father who knows the beginning from the end (Isaiah 46:10). Just like our vehicle’s navigation system, the Holy Spirit gives us the route and even reroutes us to keep us headed in the right direction. He is there to guide us every step of the way. He has also given us His Word as a lamp for our feet and light for our path (Psalm 119:105). He provides us with all that we need!

While we may know that He is there and providing for us, are we truly putting our trust in Him? Trust can be hard living in a broken world, however Proverbs 3:5-6 tells us to “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.” He wants to and can be trusted with our lives, each and every part of it! The more we get to know Him and experience His love and faithfulness, the more we will trust Him to direct our paths. We belong to Him! We can know Him and hear His voice (John 10:27b) as our good and faithful Shepard! 

This all leads back to asking whether we are allowing the Holy Spirit to guide us or if we are trying to do it on our own? Honestly, there are many days where I wake up and go about my day, choosing to not “plug” into my Helper. I know that I need the Lord and His help but in order to receive it I need to spend time with Him and be open to what He has for me. The great news is that His hand is always outstretched, ready to receive us. We just have to continually choose to come before Him. 

 As this new year begins, I invite you to bring this before the Lord. To a take look at how you spend your time and if you are spending it in a way that honors the Lord. Let the Holy Spirit convict you of any areas you may need to adjust. Knowing and trusting that His plans and purposes are so much greater than our own. No matter what we face during our time here on earth, we can rest knowing we have a loving and faithful Father who will guide us through it all! 

Prayer: Lord we thank you for the gift of your Holy Spirit. We thank you that we are never alone and have you as our Helper, our Comforter, our Counselor and our Teacher. We ask that you would show us the areas where we are trying to do things on our own. Lord, help us to trust you with all our heart, in every area of our lives and to lean into you and not our own understanding. Open our ears and our hearts to hear and receive what it is you have for us. We pray this in your name Jesus, Amen!

Love Came Down

So we will begin by exploring a room in my house. It is a nice - sized room in the middle of my home, painted a deep red.  I would say it resembles the sanctuary of my heart where I have spent many hours with the Lord.  It is filled with peaceful and quiet times, I have always kept this room neat and tidy.  Peaking inside you would find my piano,  my cello hanging from the wall, a grandfather clock ticking , a comfy gray couch,  two small reading chairs and an old black table with a vintage sewing machine inside that speaks to me of the work that God has done within me, from the inside out.

The Lord has built in me a solid foundation through the sanctifying work of Jesus Christ.  Many of the man-made walls in my heart have been torn down and rebuilt by the power of the Holy Spirit. However, I noticed that this didn’t always translate well to the world around me.  Yes, the walls were rebuilt but the windows and doors were still closed and locked. I had a hard time letting people in and sharing my heart.

During this time I also began to notice that many of the doors in my home were coming off the hinges. The doors and doorknobs were literally falling apart. Our outdoor gate hinges were tearing off the frame, my son's bedroom door came off the track, my back entrance door lost its handle and the glass door to my “perfect” little sanctuary room literally fell off completely. Little did I know I would soon find out what this all meant, but  I knew God was doing something! 

Many things began to become unraveled this summer, with six sons things are bound to get a bit tricky at times.  But this summer in particular everything seemed upside down. I remember being quite upset and I now also see a little bit self–righteous.  You see, I thought that in my Christian household, everyone should obey and do what they were told, listen to the music I taught them to, and make wise, healthy, Godly choices. I was not seeing this at this time in my older children or in their choices.

As I cried out to the Lord “with all that I have done to raise my children in the ways that they should go”,  I felt helpless and said, “This cannot be my house!”  Immediately and quite clearly, I heard the Lord say, “No, it is mine, and then I heard “It is not the healthy that need a doctor but the sick. (Matthew 9:12) Next, the Lord said, “I sent my son to be their Savior and yours.”

To say the least I was humbled and repentant and with confession of this I began to put God back on the throne of my heart and home, more fully giving it all back to Him, my children, my home, and my heart.

It is not my kingdom come but His. 

So, just weeks later I got the call every mom dreads. My son had a motorcycle accident.  He suffered devasting breaks to both of His feet and they were not sure how things would go from here. One of the hardest things I had to do was to meet him in the emergency room not knowing how I would find him.  I never really thought I could do hard things, but when you have to, the Lord carries you through the hardest of times. 

There were so many emotions, so much heartache, at times I could barely breathe and had to just keep going. I was literally the hands and feet of Jesus to my son and it was an honor to be like Jesus would be to him and so eye opening to God’s Love for us.

There was a moment during all of this, between two of his many surgeries when my heart was torn in pieces, nights were sleepless, and days were endless. I was physically, emotionally, and mentally drained.   When I finally realized I could not escape the pain that I have tried so long to avoid. It was then that I surrendered to the pain and began to praise…..and in that moment acceptance set in, things had to start looking different.  I needed more reliance, more dependence, less worry, and a BIGGER FAITH!!!  God is so present in our pain because our hearts are vulnerable and open to Him and in our weakness He is strong.  I called out to God and asked Him  to be my everything, my very life and breathe.  I wasn’t the one who sustained the physical injuries but seeing my son going through this, broke so much of my heart.

This time in our lives included so many hard and beautiful moments. My  “sanctuary room “, the room in the center of my home and heart, became my son's bedroom. It was no longer neat and tidy, but it was so beautiful!! And when He learned to play the piano, God touched my heart so deeply, just listening to him play. 

I see now that it is not my children's choices or how well they listen to me that matters the most …but as they grow into their story, it is seeing the beauty of God transforming their hearts that matters above all. 

Do you know that whatever you are going through right now is a Holy moment – a sacred experience?   

Because Christ, The Holy One is with you. 

It is a divine moment where you can invite the Father to speak into your circumstance and allow His words to shape your perspective and meet your every need. 

The beauty of every hardship, and every painful circumstance is that He is there, so close. In all things, God is still God and God is still good. 

We often spend so much focus and energy trying to get out of the pain or trial because let’s face it, no one likes pain, but we were not promised a pain-free life, but trials and suffering. 

John 16:33 I have said these things to you that in me you may have peace. In the world, you will have tribulation.  But take heart; I have overcome the world. 

Often while we are trying so hard, even in prayer to get out of the situation, that if God doesn’t remove it from us, we may feel He is gone or doesn’t care or even see us – we are often disappointed with the outcome and dare I say disappointed in God.  

The truth is He is there. He does care.  He sees you and He weeps with you just as He wept over Lazarus.  In all things, God is still God and God is still good. 

I invite you, in these moments to be present, even if brokenhearted, in your pain and suffering (instead of trying to escape) and be aware of His presence.  I would like to repeat that invitation, so you do not miss it.  

Be present in your pain and suffering and be aware of His presence.    

If you still can not sense Him, ask Him to renew your perception of His presence and invite Him into your circumstance so that you may grow closer to Him in the trial.  Lift your gaze and see His face, allow yourself to feel the pain and you will also feel His comfort, His covering, and His peace will settle in. John16:33 states: In me, you may have peace – get into the presence of the Lord!  In the trials, He will be with you.  

Isaiah 43:1-2 “But now, this is what the Lord says- He who created you, Jacob, He who formed you, Israel: 'Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you.  

Allow the truth of God’s word to be your anchor, your steadfast in every trial.  Settle into your circumstance, accept that it is happening, and allow the love of God to meet you in every single ounce of your heartache. 

So how do we get from our perspective of trying to “avoid or get out of our pain and trials to viewing it as holy ground? 

I’d say, in the moment the easiest way is Remembrance. Remembering who He is and remembering what He has done – Take time in the middle of your circumstance to set your gaze on Jesus.  I often tell myself out loud that “this is a sacred moment” and it will then settle into my heart that He is there.  Also whispering His name, “Jesus”, aligns our body, soul, and spirit and invites Him in.   

Worship Him through it all! 

Our moments are fleeting and recognizing them as such helps anchor us in the present.   Choose to seek first His kingdom above all else, give thanks and praise that He is still God, and He is still good. 

So, let's make a shift here to Isaiah 9:6 where we see.   Love came down. 

For unto us a child is born to us a son is given and the government shall be upon his shoulder and His name shall be called Wonderful Counselor,  Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. 

Love Came Down to Earth as a baby, to die for us and to forgive our sins, yes, But why? 

To reconcile us to Himself, so we could be called children of God, in relationship with our Creator, our heavenly Father, so we could get close to Him, go directly to Him, to be with Him in the heavenlies. 

Now, if that's not the Good News of the season I don't know what is! 

That is the Holy Ground that we are called to walk on with the King.  

Because Love Came Down, we are called holy as He is holy.  1 Peter 2:9 reads:

 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness Into His Marvelous Light. 

We were created, to proclaim his excellency. We were made for excellence (not perfection) but for Majesty.  We were made for Him and even the darkness is not dark to God, the darkness is light to Him. During our dark and hard times, He calls us into His Marvelous Light to be warmed and comforted by the light of His Son. 

As His children, we are Holy, dedicated, consecrated to God; devoted to his sacred service and spiritual excellence. We get to participate and see His Holiness in our lives because…   Love Came Down. How do we do this? 

1 Peter 1:3 - 4 Says we do this by His divine power (not our own.) 

His divine power has given us everything we need for a Godly life through our knowledge of Him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these, He has given us His very great and precious promises so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desire. 

Through His promises, which are found in His Word, we get to participate with Him in loving the people in the world around us. 

 Go back for a moment to our trials that we talked about earlier, where we invited Jesus into our pain and got to know him more deeply and He comforted us and met our needs. Now when another is going through something similar, we get to Proclaim His excellency by being His hands and feet, being there for them in their trial and their pain and suffering….  Love Came Down. 

2 Corinthians 1:3-5 states:  

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and God of all comfort, who comforts us in our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble, with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. For just as we share (get this) abundantly in the sufferings of Christ so also our comfort abounds through Christ. 

So, these moments these trials, the pain is a holy moment where heaven touches down to earth and meets our needs, brings light to our eyes so we may see the Beauty of God through the face of Christ  

For God who said “Let the light shine out of darkness; has shone in our hearts to give light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. 2 Corin. 4:6

Love Came Down. 

We all have a story that has includes some pain and heartache but when God’s love intersects our pain the beauty is undeniable! 

My son’s life is going to look a little different for him and it also looks different for me. I am going to live and love with my whole heart, my entire being, with all that I am and all that I have – because Love Came Down to Earth as a babe, His name is Jesus, to rescue us, to save us, to be our friend, to be our everything! In this world, we will have trouble, but take heart, be of good cheer, be brave and confident, and walk wholeheartedly because He has overcome the world! 

I encourage you to spend some time with the Lord and allow Him to fill those hurting places in your heart. His desire is to be with you in the hard times! Recognize His Love during this season of your life and what that looks like to you. 

Prayer:   Father, we invite you in today and in this holiday season to be our everything, to give us a heightened awareness of your presence in difficult circumstances, to open our eyes to see our circumstances through the Father’s eyes, and to change our perspective of You. May our lives be lived out of thankfulness. May You remind us to rejoice always, pray continually, and give thanks in all circumstances; for this is your will for us in Christ Jesus.

In Jesus' precious and holy name, Amen

King of Glory

By: Kate Belford

In the beginning the Spirit of God hovered over the waters (Genesis 1:2) and He spoke creation into existence with His very breath. He is our Sovereign Lord who reigns over all. Over everything He created.

We look up to the Lord and as our gaze is on Him our journey goes upward. Leviticus 11:44 says “I am the Lord your God; consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am holy”. The process of being sanctified, becoming holy; set apart and being transformed from glory to glory (2 Corinthians 3:18) is our journey up the mountain of the Lord. But without the blood of the Lamb, without this justification, we would never be worthy enough to stand in the presence of our God. Only through Jesus Christ can we be a spotless bride with clean hands and a pure heart. Seeking Him with all our heart (Jeremiah 29:13) and beholding our Lord God, our Creator instead of what He created. David declares (Psalm 24:5) those who pursue this life of holiness shall receive blessing from the Lord and righteousness from the God of his salvation. In this declaration we should sing praises to our God of Jacob! That He reigns over heaven and earth and also wants to bless His relationships with each one of us! How amazing is He?!

Our Majesty is a holy God that longs for you to have a personal relationship with Him and so here is the clarion call that we should lift our heads and open the doors of our hearts to make room for the King of Glory! Make room for Him to be our God! He is our Protector and Provider who is strong and mighty if you let Him. For nothing is impossible with Him (Luke 1:37). During this journey of sanctification, becoming set apart, we can grow weary living in this world but the Lord will fight for you (Exodus 14:14)! Shifting our gaze to Jesus allows us to give Him space to move and work in our lives and in our hearts. 

Psalm 24:9 there is a call again to lift your heads and open the gates of your hearts.  Usually when something is important, we repeat it so the point will not be missed! The King of Glory is calling you to let Him in. The Lord Almighty who sits upon His throne of grace is waiting for you to let Him reign in your heart. Waiting for you to be the vessel that glorifies Him (2 Corinthians 4:6-7). Waiting for His spotless bride! The King of Glory is coming soon! Selah!!

Heavenly Father, I thank you for your plan and for the gift of your Son Jesus. He paid it all. I thank you for your holy word and the guidance you so freely give through it. Allow me to make room for you in my life and in my heart. Help me look up to you; to not only profess with my lips but it may be the meditation of my heart. In the gracious name of Jesus I pray, Amen.

Who is the King of Glory to you? Make a list of some of His attributes to support this.

Meditate on Psalm 24:3-4. Pray and ask the Lord to show you what is hindering you from having clean hands and a pure heart. Do you have idols? Here is an invitation to repent if necessary.

Do you allow Jesus to reign in your heart? How can you actively make room for Him in this season of life?

Our God Reigns

A Testimony of God’s Healing Love…. Dawn Waldeis

Come to me, all who are weary and heavy burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.    Matthew 11:28-30

This invitation, like none other, began ringing through my ears over and over again until it finally settled into my heart.  There was a place I could go with all my pain and heartache – and His name was Jesus.  Of course, I had known this idea my whole life, but I hadn’t truly known Jesus.

So begins my healing journey, all my past mistakes and regrets, pain, and disappointments, I brought them to Jesus, day by day and he began to show me “great unsearchable things” (Jeremiah 33:3) that I did not even know were hidden in my heart and they were holding captive my body and soul.

My past was one that I thought was typical of a believer.  I went to church and was taught of a God that was big and scary and I was taught - or I perceived - that you do no cross God, or you will be punished.  He was to be obeyed and there was no room for mistakes.

Now, I know of course that this perspective that had formed within me had left no room for Jesus or the grace and forgiveness that He alone can offer through His death and resurrection.  But, as a child, a teen, and a young adult, I believed that the more mistakes I made the further away I was from God, so I gave up trying to “do good” to be right with God.  I believed that this God that I had loved so much certainly had to be so disappointed in me.  Our perspective of God shapes everything within us and in turn what comes out of us.

Back to my healing journey with the Lord.  My pain was intense, radiating through my entire body, chronic, fatiguing and affecting my every movement, my vision and my thoughts, my head aching to a point where I could no longer lift my head.  I was laid prostrate before the Lord and realize now that is exactly where I needed to be, at His feet.

The doctors that were seen and the testing that was completed showed no reason or cause for this debilitating pain, yet it was occurring and worsening as each day went by.  A local pastor whom I did not know well called me and said that the Lord brought my name to his mind and that he would like to come pray for me.  I was quite receptive to this offer, so he and his wife came and prayed with me and anointed me with oil as James 5:14 states we are to do and then they left.  Through their prayer, the Lord had spoken two very distinct things to my heart. 

The first was that this “dis-ease” that I was suffering with was “emotional”.

 The second was that I needed to learn a new way to live. 

At that time, the verse Matthew 11:28-30 came upon my heart and came into focus.  He  says in this verse – learn from me for I am  gentle and humble in heart – those attributes of God were not ones that I believed of Him, so I began crying out in repentance and deep pain asking God to please forgive me for not knowing Him well and for walking on my own for so long – I confessed to Him that I needed Him and asked him to heal me, from all of this pain and despair. So, He began to teach me a new way to live, dependent on a God who loves me deeply and cares about where I have been and where I am going.  This new way began with meeting with Jesus every morning, afternoon and evening, day after day after day, probably for close to a year.  Each time He revealed an old wound from my past that I had never processed. I was holding/ repressing pain and emotions with each one.  Gently He began to cleanse these hurts in my heart.  These hurts had caused so much physical pain in my body.  As He revealed, He healed with His words of loving kindness.

As stated in Romans 2:4, the kindness of the Lord is meant to lead us to repentance, so as He gently healed, I also saw many things that I had done that were not keeping with His ways or plans for me.  With this new realization I began a practice of confession and repentance in my time with Him and every time I was met with grace, love and forgiveness.  Together as we began to unravel all the false beliefs I had about God and all the emotions that I had locked up within, He taught me a new way to live, vulnerable and open with my heart in my times with the Lord, allowing His words and His truth to wash over me and begin to bring beauty back into focus in my life.  The emotional “build up” of unprocessed pain, childhood trauma, grief, anger, disappointment and so many other emotions had caused depression, anxiety and extreme distress on my body and nervous system.  Years of carrying shame and blaming myself for things that were done to me in my past left quite a mark and was a heavy weight to bear.  This shame took much more time to carefully process.  Past sexual abuse touched deeply into every layer of my being and could only be healed fully by the love of God, washed by the blood of Jesus, and sealed by the power of the Holy Spirit, and then consecrated for His glory.  God brings purpose to our pain if we surrender it to him.  He transforms our pain and invites us to minister to people who have gone through similar circumstances if we allow Him.  Many circumstances in my past were not good, but our Sovereign God is good.  He is loving and kind and oh so gentle with our heart.  God transforms our pain and brings Beauty from Ashes. Isaiah 61 states this beautiful work of Jesus – He bestows a crown of beauty instead of ashes, he rebuilds our ancient ruins and restores the places long devasted, He sets captives free, and He binds up the broken hearted.  This is what Jesus offers, salvation and everlasting life - Yes and Amen.  He also offers healing, freedom, and restoration now here on earth as it is in heaven, and He gives us a new heart and a new spirit as found in Ez. 36:26-27.  I encourage anyone who is reading this testimony of His love and light, to take it to Jesus- All that you have been holding unto, let it fall at His feet and may He bring beauty from ashes, In Jesus name!

Thank you for taking the time to read this and I pray that it brought some light into your heart.  I want to share the heart journaling process that the Lord taught me through my healing journey. Out of this healing process: Beauty from Ashes: An Expressive Heart Journal was created. The Lord blessed me with this gift of holding time and space for Him to speak into and heal my heart.   He has enabled me to meet with women through ministry and biblical counseling to share His gospel truths and invite them into a new hope and healing through Jesus Christ.  I pray that this journal blesses you and brings you into a sacred space with the Lord for healing and a whole heart. I invite you to order your copy today at this link or feel free to email me at dawn@dwell-ministries.com

May His word go forth and not return void, may it accomplish what He desires and achieve the purpose for which it was sent, In Jesus name, Amen. Be blessed!!