Shine Your Light

Recently I read 1 Corinthians 13:4-7. This is a pretty familiar passage of scripture for many people, often read at weddings because it talks about and helps define love. As I read it this time, it hit my heart. It brought some tears to my eyes as I felt conviction- the sweet correction of Lord to come back to this perfect standard. That this is the way to live free, and to live in Him. I slowly took a look over the verses and wrote a declarative version to help myself unpack what the Lord was inviting me into- this way of Love. This is meant to be a "declaration" meaning the reader is meant to speak aloud- to hear themselves say the words and agree with themselves. Our words hold power, and faith comes through hearing. I invite you to read and agree with these words for yourselves, if you dare 😉

Open hands To freely give      but Lord, what if they take too much? I will provide. I will supply. Open hands To freely receive      but Lord, what if it's too much to carry? I will be your help. I will tell you when to let go of things. Every good gift is from Above.      What a treasure that it often moves through our hands.

  You invite us to the table to come and dine with You We accept Your offer we love to be with You Oh the bread,  Your body broken Oh the wine,  Your blood poured out Oh Jesus, You're the Savior We sing together now You took my sin you took my shame nailed to a cross there they remain You died for us but rose again Now and forever the great I Am Now by Your power and Holy Spirit  I rise to say you're Lord of all Death is defeated You've overcome We'll sing forever Hallelujah  Hallelujah! We sing together now

  we give you our praise but truly everything we have to offer came from you to begin with like a child picking flowers for their parent as a gift-  is it theirs to give? yet it is received with gladness it is an expression of seeing, of honor of love, of  giving to the Giver

Such beauty In the stillness, in waiting There is rest. We've made it too hard Our striving There is beauty  There is rest. Your voice- You're so secure that You don't need to shout or wave Your arms You're so patient. You wait You're speaking-  Even through silence. you don't need only human language to convey Your word ...a torch igniting ...a light illuminating ...a sword piercing Your Word creating life. You draw us in Will we trust you enough To slow down To listen?

  sparrows & lilies we are taken care of, we can rest, we can grow, we can trust. live in the beauty

  there's no battle between dark and light, light chases the dark out every time who lights a fire only to cover it     let the flame grow brighter you say that i am the light of the world a city on a hill for all to see i can't do it without you first shining your light in me so i'll be a lighthouse for those lost at sea a single star to light up the sky, the moon to reflect and illuminate night together we shine so bright     let the flame grow brighter you say that i am the light of the world a city on a hill for all to see i can't do it without you first shining your light in me so i'll be a lighthouse for those lost at sea i cannot be hidden so i will stop trying and be who you made me to be i surrender to your plan for your ways are higher i'll be who you made me to be ...a lighthouse for all to see

  every morning new beginning fresh portion of love you light the dark sky with the sunrise a new day has begun you make      all things     new every moment that i need you you're faithful to come when i call you will answer you're steadfast with your love you make     all things     new even when i cannot see it even when i don't believe it new life is starting beneath the surface

Psalm 119:37 "Turn my eyes from worthless things, and give me life through Your word... Renew my life with Your goodness"

Hello Family & Friends! As many of you know, I recently returned from my missions trip to Krivoy Rog, Ukraine! It was a very blessed trip, in every way. Thank you all for your support: financial, prayer, donations, thoughts, help with my family, etc! It’s incredible to me how well God provided for every single thing! There were amazing things happening almost every single moment, but here is my attempt to summarize and share an overview. Our team! (not pictured: Jen) Our trip was 12 days long, and we had a team of 8 people. It was a good group, we worked well together. I learned a lot from our leaders, Kristi & Gary Graner, and also enjoyed being around Max Fetisov and his team at True Hope Ukraine & Church of Truth. (He never intended to start a church- but since he ministers to orphans, and orphans tend to be rejected- even in CHURCHES- he saw that he needed to start a church. 70% of his church population are orphans.)  We had a few interpreters that we...

What are your resolutions... or goals? Maybe you are overwhelmed by having too many, or on the flip side, are avoiding making any goals all together! That’s okay! You're okay! ...Actually you're more than okay, you're amazing & have so much potential for greatness! Maybe you just need a bit of motivation. The word  motivation  can both describe action, and also a driving force behind our actions. Our actual behaviors from day to day tend to reflect a bigger purpose/belief that we have, whether we realize it or not. Spending time thinking about the "big picture" helps to frame where we want to go. Do you want to eat healthier? Have better relationships? Start or improve at a hobby? You don't end up at these destinations overnight; it takes small, purposeful steps towards these big-picture goals. Let's talk about momentum .  Imagine pushing a car that is in neutral. It's very heavy and you (and a friend or two) push with all your strength. Once y...

I've learned a lot about humans from raising young ones. I find myself coming up with simple ways to describe profound concepts. For example, while trying to instill gratefulness into my young kids, I discovered this phrase as it blurted out of my mouth: “You can either be thankful or spoiled , not both!” They probably were not acting very thankful at the time. I'll admit I might have been challenged by this statement, as it applies to my own circumstances, more than the kids were! When do we want children to be thankful? Always. When do we want them to act spoiled?...um, never! This sheds some light onto this very important bible verse: "Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God's will for those who belong to Christ Jesus." 1 Thessalonians 5:18 Be thankful in all circumstances Whatever, whenever, wherever we are to find a way to be thankful. For this is God’s will Did you catch that? THIS IS GOD’S WILL. How often do we question what God...

As Your peace falls over me I am anchored in love As Your peace falls over me I am steadfast, not shaken I humble myself before Your throne I bow my heart before You Lord I lay all my worries at Your feet And receive Your grace ... And Your strength rises up in me I am stronger now As Your strength rises up in me I am steadfast, not shaken I come boldly before Your throne I exalt You with the highest praise I give all of my affection to You And receive Your grace ... Hallelujah, Hallelu, Hallelujah! Peace on itunes Peace on spotify

based on Matthew chapter 11 Have you noticed that that there will always be people who disagree with you and your choices? Have you noticed that if you try to please people, you will end up exhausted and depressed? John the baptist stood out for the pure, holy, and very different way he lived. Jesus talked about him this way: “of all who have ever lived, none is greater than John”. Jesus calls him more than a prophet. Haters call him: demon possessed. Jesus also had a pretty interesting lifestyle. He didn’t live the most pure- looking life, though he remained perfectly sinless. He spent time with the sick and lame, the tax collectors and “sinners”. At a couple points, God the Father audibly said about Jesus: “This is my dearly loved Son.” Haters call him: glutton and drunkard. …”But wisdom is shown to be right by it’s results.” What were the results of these two men’s lives? Come ON! Their very lives were a bunch of fulfilled prophecies and the things ...

Some advice my husband, Kyle, and I were given before we got married, that has become one of our many mantras is: "What you do today, you do tomorrow. What you don't do today, you won't do tomorrow." Its almost silly because it's such a simple statement. But it's true! What is so magical about tomorrow?? Why not start today on what you want out of yourself and this life? Now, if your goal is to run a marathon, you need to start jogging a little today. But you won't be ready to run that marathon for a while. If you want to lose weight, there aren't really any short cuts if you want it to last. It takes making good decisions today, and deciding to do that the next day, and the next day... This principle works for pretty much every goal I can think of. Even small steps in the right direction eventually get you there! And by the way, everyone gets off course a bit at some point, even with the best intentions. But fail fast! Move on and t...

Psalm 37:4, a verse many people have come to memorize, or at least are familiar with. A precious promise, with layers of truth, as with many bible verses. “Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you your heart’s desires.” Delight. Some things are very easy to take delight in. I know how to take delight in chocolate. Or in giggles with my kids. Or in my new favorite song blasting in my car as I jam out on the way to work. But how do we take delight in the Lord? Here are a few ideas: Get to know Him (or get reacquainted)   A great place to start is by finding a few people who know Him and can help you grow in your own faith, and also open up that bible of yours and dig around until something speaks to you. Thank Him for the little things. I guarantee you will notice how involved He is if you start thanking Him… good parking spots, extra money, a kind compliment given to you at the right time, etc. Talk to Him regularly, instead of long drawn out prayers, try start...

For the ones who feel “stuck”: in a harmful situation or living with a label over your life you didn't ask for or not feeling like you’re living your purpose or complacent to what you might be worth, and is it worth it? He pulled me out of a slimy pit and set my feet upon a Rock He gave me Beauty for ashes Joy for mourning and Praise for heaviness A new Song in my heart and a Crown upon my head He. gave. me. LIFE The lie is that you’re stuck. There is One who came and died for you to be Free It is for freedom that Christ has set you free. Your part is simple believe and receive what He is offering. It’s your choice to accept or deny-- but a gift freely given, why not try? Why not step into a life of true Love and Peace I’m not saying it’ll all be easy but it worked for me. I needed a savior, I was stuck-- you see I was covered by darkness, hopeless. Until a glimmer, a shimmer of light appeared, and suddenly made me able to see things m...