Last night, as I drove home from a ladies Bible study, reflecting on the discussions of seasoned female warriors who have stood firm on solid principles, I flipped through radio stations.  I landed on a talk program as it was ending.  Sadly, no name and identification were given to attribute these wise word:  "Jesus developed the habit of prayer."

Prayer was a habit.

Hmm.  If prayer was a habit, thought I in the dark as I drove, then not all habits are bad.  The English word for habit has lots of meanings:

• A recurrent, often unconscious pattern of behavior that is acquired through frequent repetition. (noun).
• An established disposition of the mind or character. (noun)
• Customary manner or practice: a person of ascetic habits. (noun)
• An addiction, especially to a narcotic drug. (noun)
• Physical constitution. (noun)
• A tendency or disposition to act in a particular way. (noun)

• 
  

When someone tells me to "be quiet", "be myself", "be assertive" or "be respectful" ... I kinda raise my back feathers and want to rebel.  Just being honest.  What I first conclude is that they think I am not exuding the qualities they are asking me to display.  If they (and who in the sam hill is "they"?) tell me to be quiet, apparently I am not being ... or acting ... quiet.  Again, laying all Sunday school answers at the door and being brutally honest, I want to clear my throat loudly, stomp my foot, and whisper loud at their request to be quiet.  Quiet, in fact, becomes the last thing on my mind.  Loud.  Loud is what I want to be ... and act out ... and develop.

So when I read in 1 Thessalonians 4 what Paul writes to his friends, I cringe.  Yikes.  Paul is someone I admire, respect and consider worthy of taking advice from.  He says to them ... "be holy".  I gotta ponder that a moment, for I, the keeper of a rebellious heart, have some questions.

I am a Mom.  I love my three, precious, beautiful, smart, witty, brilliant, strong, soft, assertive, justice-seeking, single-minded, merciful daughters.  When I look at them, I don't see what's wrong with them ... for could there be any fault in such beauties?  Yes.  Yes there are faults, but not ones I want to rub in their faces and mock.  Their faults are things (characteristics/tendencies) that I see I have struggled with and want to bring into the light and encourage them to develop to make strong.  I don't want them to keep these faults hidden and neglect them and wish them to disappear.  Hiding only highlights the defect.  Exposing brings into a place of sweet revelation and healing.

So when Paul tells his friends to "be holy", I have to suppose he desires for them to take into account their current behavior in light of an alternate behavior that will bring them good, make them healthy, lead to a better way of living.

But is it behavior he is after?  As a Mom, I want a certain behavior, but not at the expense of my girls leaving their heart at the door and only feigning actions without strong conviction behind those actions.

When they say they love their friends, I don't want them to merely act like they love their friends.  I want them to love them from a heart level.  I want them to care for, pray for, devote themselves to, invest in, cry with, laugh with, stay awake for and be deeply committed to their friend.

I want their heart first.  Actions leap from the deep places in the heart.

And therefore I've answered my own questions about what Paul was saying to his friends:  be holy.  Don't act holy.  Don't put on a show.  Don't give lip service to.  Don't attend certain gatherings because.  Don't abstain from things or engage in things because.  Just be holy.  At a heart level, making a commitment to be holy, will ooze out into all areas of my life.  I will act holy if in my core and in the beating of my heart is the decision to be holy.

And then, kind of as a "kicker" to the whole equation, Paul says this after his request.  First, he tells them to be holy.  Then, he says that because God is so faithful, He will make it happen.  It isn't enough that we make a commitment to be holy.  No, God comes in and then says "I will do this for you, you sweet girl, because I see your heart and I am the One who will transform you."

Wow.

In a recent conversation with a dear friend who is a young Mother, I made this statement:  "Are you after behavior modification of a heart change?"  The same principle applies here ... be holy.  It's a statement about the condition of our core being.  The behavior springs from this place.  And if there's a good core, there will be good actions.

Being holy,
Christina

P.S.  Holy doesn't mean perfect ... and that's another story ...

I am undone.

In my youth, I worked hard - for God.  I ticked off the boxes that meant I was a good girl.

No drinking - tick
No cussing - tick
No sex - tick
No smoking - tick
No dressing provocatively - tick
No having fun that would lead to drinking, cussing, sex, smoking, dressing provocatively - tick.

These were the "biggies".  These were the things that my religious community held in high esteem and waved on banners that declared "good" girls good and "bad" girls bad.

As I climbed out of youth and entered into adulthood, I remained good.  Now, I had other boxes to tick.

Be a good wife - tick
Be a good mom - tick
Be involved in church - tick
Be active in church and say yes to whatever the church asks of you - tick

At some point, I realized that being good was a lot of hard work.  Being good often meant that I worked really hard for other people and spent little time with God.  The time I did spend with God was whittled away by asking forgiveness for not being all the things I thought I needed to tick off my list.

Because God is not a fan of lies, He helped set me straight.  Just like the religious leaders in Jesus' times, I had bought into a religious way of life that had very little to do with God and more to do with my behavior.  It was time to put that way of life to bed.

Grace is a curious thing.  Once you are exposed to Grace, there is a permissiveness that scares you.  You mean I could curse and God would love me?  Yep.  You mean I could not be so involved in church and God would love me?  Yep.  Now before hairs get raised on backs of necks, I'm not painting a picture of free love, sex and rock and roll.  I'm just making a point that Grace - upon first glance to a religious follower - can be scary.  Really scary.

So much of my early religious upbringing focused on behavior.  Don't do this, do this ... and God will love you.  Now nobody said it.  Nobody said "the more you work for God the more He loves you" but it was implied.

"Oh look at Mrs. Here-every-Sunday.  She is such a martyr.  Her back went out, her dog died, her dishwasher backed up, and her children are sick ... but she's here this Sunday to worship God."  

No she's not!  She's here to tick off boxes!!

Eventually, Grace became a wonderful teacher and I began to come out from under the spell of working and into a beautiful place that was meant for me all along.  No works.  No being this or that. No ticking off boxes.  Instead, it was a place where time spent with God was way more important than doing things for God.  It has taken time.  It has required a new way of looking at God ... and myself.  It has taken me to His Word to discover what He REALLY says is important.

So ... this undone"ness" this morning comes from a story that hits that nail on the head (Luke 15):  Two sons based their value and their identity on their works.  One son, the "bad" one", took his inheritance money and lived like a wild man.  After partying too hard and living too close to the edge, he returned home, settled to be reduced to a servant in his fathers' household based on his actions.  The other son, the "good" one, stayed at home and ticked off boxes.  He did the right things.  He did what was expected.  He stayed and worked with the father being faithful while at the same time disconnected at a heart level.  He based his value to the father on his actions.

Both sons got it wrong.  The father never considered the "bad" son as lost.  He waited for his return ... every day.  His actions were separate from his identity.  The father never considered the "good" son as more valuable.  He never intended the "good" son to work to keep his favor; he already had given him his favor.

Both sons worked themselves to try to earn what they already had!

I try hard not to work for God.  When I do, I feel disconnected, frazzled, propelled to pick up a pencil to tick off  boxes and get frustrated.  I've learned that time spent reading in God's Word, talking to Him (in my head) as I go throughout my day, and trusting Him when I struggle to believe lies are the things that change my behavior.  Why?  Because the way to my heart is ... through my heart.  When my heart is linked into God's my behavior becomes like His!

Trusting in Grace and living like a Son,
Christina

I heard of an author, Sarah Young, who went on a quest to discover what it meant to enter into a place few dared to tread and even fewer dare to live.  The place - the Presence of God.  Out of her quest she decided she would write.  She would write of her tales on living in the Presence.  Her books have shaped thousands - maybe more.  Why?  She discovered the secret of living in a place that was deeply personal and so intoxicating it left spiritual taste buds longing for more.

This morning, I know of what Sarah Young speaks.  I came to the table (literally) a little hungry for something deeply personal.  Randomly I was directed to read Matthew 7:7 that tells the reader to keep on asking because you will receive what you ask for, keep on seeking because you will find, and to keep on knocking and the door will be opened to you.

If I'm honest, I've read this over and over again too many times to count.  It has spoken to my spirit on some levels.  However, this morning, these words were a cool washcloth on my fevered forehead (so-to-speak).  You see, I've been asking for something for a long time.  So long that I often have wondered if God is big enough to answer or good enough to care.  I know - deep down - that those are lies - but they have crept in.  The creeping tells me my focus has dimmed and my patience is tired.  Yet, on a lazy Tuesday morning, I experienced the Presence of the One who loves me and knows me - and the lies that try to creep in to distract me from truth - and I have been refreshed, reborn, rewired anew in courage and Spirit.  I know the Keeper of Truth.  Today He and I spent time at my table.

And - lest you think my asking is for the trivial  (not that I care but just had to address the obvious) - the asking has been for a miracle that WHEN granted can only be credited to a Mighty Savior and Wonder-working God.  I'm continuing to ask for the too-high-to-reach for - because that's the way of this Father of mine.  He's good.  The unreachable is everyday for him.

Asking again,
Christina

And then there are days when one verse is enough to bring so much inspiration not another written word is necessary!

Enough,
Christina

Citizenship defined:

A citizen is a participatory member of a political community. Citizenship is gained by meeting the legal requirements of a national, state, or local government. A nation grants certain rights and privileges to its citizens. In return, citizens are expected to obey their country's laws and defend it against its enemies. Grolier's New Book of Knowledge.Copyright © 2016 Grolier Incorporated. All Rights Reserved.

Be strong.

So compelled am I by God's truth, I have to camp out a little more on this Ephesians bit on the "in between".  After all the things promised through the empowerment of the Holy Spirit ...

• Christs' home address being your heart (Eph. 3:17)
• Deep roots into God's love and strength (Eph. 3:17)
• Power to understand how high, wide, long and deep God's love is for you (Eph. 3:18)
• Made complete with all fullness of life and power from God (Eph. 3:19)

Now, all glory to God, who is able through His mighty power at work in you, to accomplish infinitely more than you might ask or think.

Here we go again kids - this Trinity in action!  God gets the glory because He is able, through the power of the Holy Spirit that resides in me, because of what Christ did on the cross, to accomplish MORE ... INFINITELY MORE than I ask or imagine.

Did you get that?  HE does the accomplishing through the Holy Spirit.  Therein lies the disconnect.  I fear the Church has forgotten this part.  Strategy, planning, working, marketing, blogging, book selling - all those things may have gotten us fruit.  But, when we risk taking God at His Word and surrender to the work of the Holy Spirit in us, that's where Ephesians 3:20 things start happening ...on a regular basis!  That's when we see the Spirit work and we follow.  Best part:  we accomplish more ... INFINITELY MORE than we can ask or imagine.

And, it's all to God's glory.  When the Holy Spirit does his power work in our lives, it's God that gets the glory.  The church has worked hard to earn God's favor but they've missed releasing their rights and surrending to the Holy Spirit.  How do I know?  If the Chruch had fully surrendered to the Holy Spirit and taken their hands off the stirring wheel of religion, the world would be so in love with Jesus, so committed to following and glorifying God, and so full of power.

The Church is awakening.  There are brave souls throwing aside religion and embracing God's Word for what it is - TRUTH and POWER.

Dare to be a Power Ranger,
Christina

I am not ...let me repeat ... I am NOT an artist.  I am, however, a visual learner and therefore, I draw visuals that help my brain get stuff.  The above picture is not artwork lest you mistaken my "visuals" for ... Art.

Digging around in Ephesians.  The main gist here:  because of Jesus and His work on the cross, through the Holy Spirit, I can come to the Father (Ephesians 3:11).

I am not ...let me repeat ... I am NOT a theologian.  I am, however, an advid learner of the Bible.  I'm a literalist and therefore take what God says to be true.  When He says it's through the Holy Spirit I can come to Him - because of what Jesus has so mercifully sacrificed on the cross - I believe it.

For most of my adult life, I was never taught the power of the Holy Spirit.  You accept Jesus.  You live to please God.  The in between part - the Holy Spirit - was missing.  Friends, if we forget the in between part we are missing indeed!  It's like eating an Oreo cookie with no stuffing!  Yuck!

Ephesians 3:14 - 21 gives some more yummy goodness to this in between part.  Paul prays to God, asking that his friends would be empowered THROUGH the power of the Holy Spirit.  And - he doesn't say it here because he already said it in Eph. 3:11 and my artwork can prove it - all because of what Jesus did on the cross!  It's not playing favorites here! It's seeing the trinity of God at work!  They each play a role.  And the Holy Spirits' role is to empower.  Empower us to do great things!  These great things are later explained by Paul.  When we allow the Holy Spirit to empower:

• Christ will make his home in our hearts
• Roots will grow down deep into God's love and keep you strong
• You have the power to understand how wide, long, high and deep God's love is for us
• You will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God

I've been asking the Holy Spirit to give me a hobby.  Before the words floated out into air I already knew what His answer was:  you have one.  Writing.  As an exercise of obedience ... And pure, raw, lovely creative expression, I believe I am to write everyday out of the impressions I have been given in my gut, soul, inner workings of me.  I've been doing that for the past few days.  Today it becomes a declaration.

With violin music in the background, today I had such a personal experience with the Father, I feel I need to share.  After reading John 17: 19 to the end of the chapter, I then knew the Holy Spirit wanted me to personalize what Jesus wrote.  In sharing this experience with you, there is person for whom I know specifically this is for ... And write the following in prayerful reference that these WORDS will bring her life.  But, I feel the need for all of us to receive this as from Jesus Himself.  So, read and insert your name where I've left a blank.

A prayer to God from Jesus:

I [ Jesus] am praying for _________.  I pray that she will be one with others who are in me - who remain in me - just like you [God] and I are one.

And - may she be so in us (remain so closely and consistently) that the world (her corner of the world) would believe her when she says she knows me.  Her WORDS would so back up her actions no one could deny that I am real.

I have given her the glory you have give me - so she may be one - as we are one.  I am in her - and yo are in me.

May she experience such perfect unity that the world will know that you sent me and that you love her as much as you love me.  In fact, Father, I want her to be with me where I am; I want her to see all the love you gave me cause you loved me before the world began.

She knows you sent me.  I have revealed it to her - through the Holy Spirit who I will now send to be with her ... To rest on her - will continue to do so.

Then, your love for me will be in her and I will be in her.

Amen.

So after having my out-of-the-routine kind of morning ... I sit down to read my Bible and SHAZAM!  I always pray before I read God's Word.  I pray the Holy Spirit would be my teacher.  I'm weird (it's what I do) but I pretend He is there, sitting next to me, as a professor, pointing out things He wants to me know ... truth.  It happened in a very SHAZAM-like moment just after reading three verses!

Joshua 18:3 says ... "How long are you going to wait before taking possession of the remaining land the Lord God has given you?"  Back story ... Joshua is the head honcho to Israel.  They've been wandering the dessert for 40 years, their main guy, Moses, dies.  Joshua takes over and leads them into the land God only gave them by His words.  Once they got there, they had to defeat those who were occupying the land.  But, because God is a good God and keeps His promises ... they only had to obey and God gave them the land.  Now, the land was under Israelite control.  But there were 7 tribes (out of 12) that were being a little ... sheepish about their new found freedom.

In my personal and humble opinion, 7 out of 12 is about normal.  I believe 7 out of every 12 people who say they are "Christian" live in freedom and actually "occupy the land" so to speak.  So what about the others?  When Moses arrived at the land God was giving them (notice I say "was going to give them"?  It was a promise spoken.  It was reality.  It just had to physically take place.),  he sent out 12 spies.  Only 2 came back after seeing the occupants saying "We can do this because God said He was giving us the land."  Here the stats differ:  2 out of 12.

Why don't we all "occupy the land"?  This could be a great series, couldn't it?  Why don't we all experience freedom, peace, enlarged faith, blessing etc.?  I once heard a friend - who can I say really gets the "occupying the land" thing - say that most Christians have this kind of mentality:  "I know God loves me.  I accept that Jesus died on the cross for my sins.  But ... I suck.  I gotta do all these things to make God really like me."

Occupying the land?  I don't think so ...

unpacking bags in the land I'm occupying,
christina

This morning, as I sat near my open window, listening to the cars rumble into the city for another work day, I read the following:

"Hidden among you, O Israel, are things set apart for the Lord.  You will never defeat your enemies until you remove these things from among you. (Joshua 7:13)"

Because I've gotten used to and have asked for the volume of the Holy Spirit's voice to be turned up in my life, I've come to recognize a "moment".  Usually there is a stirring deep within me that tells me to pay attention.  This was one of those "moments".

I let the words sink in and then picked up my pen and wrote:

"Hidden among you, Church, are things set apart for the Lord:  money, buildings, talents, sins of idolatry, lusts, materialism, power, lack of knowledge of the Holy Spirit, who you are in Christ, God's word, accountability, legalism, systems, passiveness, lack of purpose, the need to fit in.  You will never defeat the enemy or be attractive to anybody until you remove these things from among you."

I believe these words to be thoughts the Holy Spirit has toward us - those who are followers of Christ - those who are "the Church".  The people driving their cars to work outside my window need to see that following Christ makes a difference in your life.  Having an encounter - daily encounters - with the living God of the Universe makes life attractive.

Yet, the Church seems ineffective.  Why?  I think I'll let Joshua answer that ... we've never removed "these things" from among ourselves.  Somehow its OK to not be holy, spend a lot of money on buildings, hold up a standard that is impossible to reach, look down our noses, condemn one another, judge, criticize, spend so much time in a bubble that we forget our purpose.  If we could "remove" the hidden things ... starting first with ourselves ... could we see "the Church" becoming an attractive component to society?

Don't get me started on what that would look like!  I will say it wouldn't be a building that gets filled up on Sundays and stays empty all week.

Forgive the rant ... I was having a "moment"!  But in my ranting, I hope we all stop to inquire of the "hidden things" in our own life's that if exposed would bring a whole lot of victory!

Doing my own inventory,
christina

I love feet.  I especially love summer feet.  Summer feet make great pictures.

Let your favor shine on your servant.  How great is your goodness you have stored up for those who fear you.  You lavish it on those who come to your for protection - blessing them before a watching world.

These words settled like drops of rain on a desert in my heart this morning.  They are verses 16 and 19 of Psalm 31.  So, before a "watching world" ... or in my case ... a reading blogging community ... I shout in dramatic tones and CAPITAL letters that GOD is doing a new thing - a new, beautiful thing - in my heart!

For far toooooooooooooooooo (yes, I know that's a lot of "o"s but I'm trying to communicate a point here!) long I have not believed everything in scripture!  Gasp!  I, one who has given my heart and trusted my future - my eternity - to God find it hard to believe the goodness He has for me on planet earth.  My childhood, my good ol' fashioned denominational upbringing, my own baggage has led me to believe that somehow the promise of heaven is good enough.  I know where my soul will rest when my body breathes the last of oxygen here on this planet.  But, I still find myself lacking, wanting ... more!

The "MORE" is simply taking God at His word - HIS WORD - and choosing to believe the truth that He has been trying to communicate to me ... to the world ... that His goodness is waiting to be lavished on His kids!  I'm not ashamed to say that this morning I am thanking God and asking Him to lavish me ... to overwhelm me ... because of who HE is ... His goodness.  If I can trust Him to save me from my sins, why can't I trust Him to lavish on me goodness?!

My Chris and I have noticed that we have settled into some sort of "crumb" mentality.  We have been satisfied with getting crumbs from our Father's table.  He don't want to be flashy or radical - we have been OK with asking for just enough to squeak by.  Just enough faith, just enough dinero, just enough patience ... just enough.  Oh my word!  Scripture says just the opposite!

Let the "crumb" days be over and let the lavish days begin!!

Dramatic in the waiting -
christina

I love words.  When reading a book (a real one with real pages) I love to underline certain words or phrases that cause electric-like tingles in my being that deeply resonate feelings inside me.  Words.  They have power.

When I read words, I often remember where I was, what I was doing and the circumstances surrounding their impact on me.  This morning, as I unwrapped my hands from my coffee cup and opened my Bible, I found these precious words:

Show me your unfailing love in wonderful ways.
I am praying to you because I know you will answer, O God.

These words happen to be found in Psalm 17.  Sometimes, on the weekends, when I want to change up my life and hear from God in a different way from what I normally read, I read the corresponding day found in the Psalm.  For example, today is May 17 ... so I read Psalm 17.  Make sense?

Psalm 17 has been read on the 17th day of any given month for a very long time.  One "17th" day of one month, I remember sitting in Starbucks, in Vienna, with a grande vanilla latte and being pricked to my soul with these words.  At the time, I remember fighting back tears.

The tears were a result of feeling overwhelmed that God would speak to me - through alphabet letters that formed words - and emote that He desired to show me the "wonderful ways" in which He loved me.  His demonstration of wonderful started by the place I found myself:  a cozy cafe with a warm cup of my beverage of choice.  Perfect moment.  Perfect way to show me.  At that moment in time, I needed to feel loved.  I know I am loved - He demonstrated that over 2,000 years ago by allowing His Son to hang on a tree.  However, because I am girl and girl means operating out of emotion - most of the time - I need to "feel" loved.

A cafe, a cup of Java and words = feeling loved.

Discovering more wonderful ways,
christina

However, if you, too, find yourself intrigued and believing what I will unashamedly call the TRUTH … then have I got a story for you! 

I love reading.  Lately, I’m stuck (in the most positive sense of the word) in a chapter of a book in the Bible called Nehemiah.  I really like this guy.  I like Him because he seems to have a good head on his shoulders.  I like Him because I see in him something I can learn from.

Nehemiah seems to know who he is and who God is … both in the proper perspective.  Right off the bat, the first thing I see in Nehemiah is what he says about God:  “God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and obey his commands.” Now, that’s the kind of thing I say when God does really cool things in my life.  But, then I notice the context in which Nehemiah says this.    He’s heard bad news, awful news about Jerusalem.  He’s so overwhelmed by the news, he sits down and weeps.  Then, in his next breath … it’s then that he defines who He knows God to be.  Beautiful.  It’s just beautiful.

If you’ll allow me to piggy-back on the “unfair” theme from my last blog, I tend to default to self-pity when hit with bad news.  As I’m (hopefully) growing, I don’t stay there for very long but … it’s the default none-the –less.  Where, oh where, is my inner Nehemiah?

My goal:  to have God reset my default to knowing … knowing without a doubt who HE is … right smack in the middle of trouble … whether it’s in River City or in my heart … trouble with a capital “T” robs me of joy … and of truth … the truth of knowing and seeing this God of mine as He truly is.  Beautiful.

When I was the age of Addison and Parker, words that were “cool” were: bad (meaning good), totally, awesome (best when used together with totally … as in totally awesome), bogus, spaz, chill, and to the max.


The one word I hear my girls use … and misuse … and reuse … and use again … and again … is the word “amazing”. This word is used to describe anything from a great cupcake to an experience to a person. I, trying to be above using modern catch phrases, try never to use this word in my vocabulary. However, more and more I am seeing this word in my reading of the Bible. So, I’m paying attention.

This morning as I was sipping on my totally awesome cup of coffee and having some chill time with God making use of the quiet in my house to the max, I began writing down every time the word “amazing” or any form thereof appeared in the text. It happened so often I wrote down the following:

Amazement Connection: every time ordinary people witnessed the extraordinary in normal life

To further illustrate this totally awesome concept, let me give you some examples straight out of Luke, in the new testament of the Bible, so you won’t think I’m being totally bogus.

“All who heard him (Jesus) were amazed at his understanding and his answers.” Luke 2:47

“Jesus’ parents were amazed at what was being said about him.” Luke 2:33

Then, I thought about why these experiences were so amazing. The answer is found in my definition I gave above. These were everyday people who witnessed something extraordinary in ordinary life.

I think it’s easy to read the Bible and presume that it is a historical account of things that have transpired in the past and will most likely never be repeated. However, the longer I walk with Jesus, and He shows me modern day relevance in his Word, I see pictures of how I can take what was written and apply them to my life.

What those who heard Jesus in Luke 2:47 and what Jesus’ parents in Luke 2:33 were seeing … and being amazed at … was the tangible evidence of the Holy Spirit. Now, don’t spaz out on me. I think the Holy Spirit gets a bad rap. In my upbringing, I was seldom taught about the amazing power of the Holy Spirit. Just the mention of the Holy Spirit sent chills down my spine and misty images of something very surreal came into my rather imaginative head.

It’s quite simple. The Holy Spirit made the ordinary and everyday … extraordinary … and the result was … amazing.

Recently, Addison went on a trip to Bosnia. I don’t want to say much because I’ve invited her to be a quest contributor on my blog. However, I will say … it was … in her own words ... amazing!

I’m homeschooling Libby. Two days have passed. What seemed to be a major chore has been … amazing. God has given me ability. But, the Holy Spirit has shown up in the middle of our experience and transformed this into an extraordinary experience. It didn’t happen by osmosis. I have been praying as well as many others that I would be energized and seek wisdom from the One who holds all wisdom. God has been faithful with my tiny bit of effort.

I don’t know what your corner of the world holds for you. Normal life seems to hold more mundane than extraordinary. However, if you call yourself a follower of Christ, you have a secret weapon. Here’s the deal and what I’m seeing more and more of is this: when we invite the Holy Spirit to show up in our midst … amazing things happen!