Week 2 of Project Leap of Faith

Walking home from a visit with the Allison's, and God's amazing workmanship just NEEDED to be photographed!

Two weeks have already flown by, and I cannot say how much God is working in my life, and opening my eyes and ears to His love and teaching. In things as little as the way I view myself, all the way up to my planning out my future, God has been showing me-whether through my "second mom" Serene Allison and her precious wisdom in mothering and being a woman after God's heart, or through songs that He allows me to listen to at just the right time-that He IS there, that He DOES listen, and that most of all, He loves me with an unfailing love despite the choices I've made in the past.

It reminds me of the other day, (Thursday, July 16th to be exact) actually. The Allison family had brought me to the creek for the first time, and all of the other children were jumping 15+ feet from the bridge into the cold, deep water below. I longed to jump, I wanted to, I was going to!

the bridge that we jumped from (: Turning cant's into can's!

.....Until I sat on the edge of the bridge. I literally COULD NOT jump. I couldn't push off of the ledge, even though I wanted to SOOOO badly. 15 year old Chalice sat next to me for a total of about 45 minutes as I battled myself, trying to jump. I watched 8 year old Shepherd jump in 4 or 5 times, each time begging myself to jump in after him. I couldn't do it. I even tried shoving off the edge, but it was like I was glued to the cement! Chalice kept telling me it was fine, many of the Rubies girls never even tried jumping. But I knew I wanted to. Finally, Sheppy came up behind me and told me "I can shove you if you want." As soon as I heard his feet pattering across the bridge, I flung myself into the water. And it felt amazing!

Sometimes I feel this way in my walk with God. I WANT to throw myself into His plans, just let go and give it all to Him. But as hard as I try, the lies of Satan creep into my mind and take root, 'gluing' me to his chair of fear and doubt. In Matthew 8, verse 26, Jesus asks "Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith?" He was talking to His disciples as their boat was tossing in the waves. The disciples had just seen Jesus perform miracles all afternoon. Why on earth would they doubt Him now?? Satan can take the smallest worries, the slightest of fears, and make them into a terrible battle in our mind, just like me facing the bridge. It's our choice whether we will face our fears, conquer Satan, and claim victory in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Now, will you make a stand, and claim your victory in Christ?

#takethe stand #dohardthings

The Hidden Man-Today's Soul Moment

Photo found on Pinterest

But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price. (1 Peter 3:4)

Who is the hidden man of the heart? Why is he important enough for God to inspire the apostle Peter to write about him?

To be able to fully understand who ‘the hidden man’ is, we must first read the verses in the chapter leading up to the mention of this guy.

1Likewise, ye wives, be in subjection to your own husbands; that if any obey not the word, they also may without the Word, they also may without the Word be won by the conversation (behaior) of the wives;

Whoa, hold up. Let’s stop here and really think about this ladies. Peter (per God’s wisdom), is telling us as women to be in subjection to our husbands. This can go for us single, unmarried women as well; until the man God created to be our head and protection comes into our lives, our fathers are our covering. He is our designated teacher, protector. He should be the model of what our future husbands should be.

The reason why Peter is instructing this is because women are a HUGE witness to their husbands through their lifestyles. So if a wife acts like a non Christian, or someone living in the world, her husband will be affected by it, and could easily be lured into temptations simply by the wife’s actions. Christian wives should carry themselves as Sarah, the wife of Abraham, did.

2While they behold your chaste conversation coupled with fear(spiritual reverence) 3Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting(braiding) hair, and of wearing gold, or of putting on apparel;

Here Peter is reminding us that we shouldn’t be concerned with what we look like on the outside, because:

4...Let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible(perishable), even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of GREAT PRICE.

A meek, humble, quiet spirit is priceless in God’s eyes. It is like a fine jewel, just like you are to Him. Ladies, we don’t have to wear jewelry or lots of makeup, or have the latest and most expensive clothes. It’s a vain thing, a fleshly longing that, rather than turning to material things, we should be turning to God to fulfill. So the hidden man is the ‘new man’, the person you become when you ask Christ to live in your heart and save you from your sins. He is who are souls long to be, what we want to do but don’t do.

And I’m not saying that You shouldn’t look nice: that’s not the point. The thing is, you should be focusing on God rather than how your hair looks today, or how nice your clothes are, or whether or not this necklace goes with that outfit. Rather than focus on those things, why not focus on your attitude towards your dad today? If you’re married, why not focus on the way you treat your husband? Either way, do you treat the protector and provider in your life with respect?

Sometimes the best way to achieve a meek spirit and humble attitude is to do a job or project that you really don’t like to do.

At all.

Period.

Why don’t you offer to take the trash out tonight? Or wash your dad’s car? Maybe not complain if your dad/spouse asks you something? It’s really not hard at all, if you purpose yourself to have a good attitude.

Dear Heavenly Father, I come before You today begging Your mercy and grace over the readers of this post. Father I ask that You be with every need these readers have in their lives, great or small, important or not, because in Your Eyes, every need is important. God I ask that You help us apply everything we have learned and everything You laid on our hearts as we studied this topic. Thank You for being our Provider and Comforter, and our Protection in times of need. In Your Heavenly Name, I pray, Amen.

ANOUNCEMENT

I am curently working on providing a Prayer Wall to this blog, where anyone can post their prayers, praises, and encouragement/need for encouragement. Hopefully, if it all works out (and my signal/connesction works with me...), I'd like to have it done by this weekend. I'd love for everyone to be a part of it, and would be blessed and encouraged and strengthened by joining with fellow believers and brothers and sisters in Christ, creating a beautiful atmosphere full of reminders of His love.

The Substance of Things Hoped For-Today's Soul Moment

As Mrs. Nancy Campbell and I were working in the office today, she was having me do the numbers so that she could figure up the bills. We were met with a HUGE number that we're short, and she sank down in her chair, very beaten for a moment. Then she popped right back up and said, "Oh well, God will provide a miracle." and went about her work as if nothing had ever bothered her.

Hebrews 11:1 tells us that Faith is the substance of things hoped for, and the evidence of things not seen.See, Mrs. Campbell has something that is not easily attained: Faith in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. She can trust her unknown future to Him without a worry or doubt, because time and again He has proved His power. All we need to do is believe.

When you were a small child, maybe 3 or 4, did your parents have to prove to you that they'd feed you every meal? Or did you just believe they would? What happened to the child like faith we had when we were small? Even after God has proved Himself time and time again throughout our lives, sometimes in things as small as just a rainbow during a thunderstorm or a dollar on the sidewalk, we still doubt His amazing power and grace. We doubt His love and provision. We need to be the generation of faith, and believe. We need to be the ones to step out on the waves like Peter, but we need to keep our eyes fixed on Christ rather than the storm around us.

A Negative Thought-Today's Soul Moment

No matter how hard we try, by about 10 am we've probably had a negative thought. If you've looked at the news, and started worrying over the Chinese cyber attacks, you've had a negative thought. If you've broken a dish and gotten frustrated with yourself, you've had a negative thought. If you realize you forgot to pick up coffee when you went to the store the other day and want to cry because you're out, that is a negative thought. (I didn't learn that last one from experience, I promise)

Philippians 4:8 says

Finally brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of a good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

See, instead of finding all of the dark places, looking for the pressure and pain, and crying over the rainstorms, try finding the stars, remembering the diamonds that come from the pressure, and counting your rainbows. You can put all of your energy into finding the bad, or you can use it to look for the good. It's all a matter of perspectives.

Week 1 of Project Leap of Faith

As you all may have read in my last post, my adventures into the 'wilderness' of Primm Springs, Tennessee (you may want to google earth it-may be a little easier to see than an atlas) were a complete leap of faith. If you have the time and would like, you can go read the full story in my last post.
Anyway, I've so enjoyed my time here! I've met so many amazing people, made so many cool friends, found my tiny 'shadow' (her name is Ember Breeze, or 'Breezy' for short, and she's 5), went to a movie with an aspiring singer and amazing role model, and fallen in love with the scenery. There are trees, as far as you can see, and sunsets like you wouldn't believe, and beautiful flowers and creeks and streams.
I'd almost move here.
Almost.

I love the adventures God has been giving me too. My very first day, I was given a four wheeler ride home by one of the older boys. There is nothing much more fun than sitting on the back of a four wheeler goin 45 mph with a skinny little 10 year old in front of you and a fearless country boy driving! Even the more quiet, 'boring' times at home with the younger children have been so much fun! Learning to dance with Cherish and Chalice, 15 year old twins by adoption, playing card games for hours, singing as loud as we can, talking with Jurassic Park in the backgroud (hey, that was entirely the boys haha!), it's always so blessed and fun. I'm excited to see what He has in store for me this week!

Yesterday morning, our stand-in preacher, Jack, spoke about doing everything unto the Lord. He said 'We can even praise the Lord and glorify Him while drinking coffee! As long as you are thanking Him and keeping Him at the forefront of your mind in all that you do, you will be glorifying God, because you will be focusing on that which is Holy and Pure.' Glorifying God in all that I do has been something of a struggle for me for a long time, due to the fact that I have never really known how (or so was my excuse). I am now making it a point to live solely for my King, and to give Him the love, devotion, and respect that He ultimately deserves.

As you may be able to tell, I'm REALLY enjoying being able to focus so strongly on Christ and His will in my life. So much that I've taken quite a few things, such as my longing to be a wife one day and my dream of going to college, and given them all over to God for safe keeping. He will show and make known to me all that He desires to have in my life. I don't want to be in control of my life. I want Him to be.

Sadly this post will be short, but I'm going to include part of the song that I've written. Here ya go:

God, You're showing me

That sometimes all it takes
Is just one leap of faith
You're holding my hand,
God I'm learning Your plan
Can be, can be
So much more for me
So very much more for me.

May blessings and peace be poured over you all!

The Beginning of Project Leap of Faith

My goodness gracious life can be so crazy! If you had told me 3 months ago that I would be sitting on the couch in the home of Above Rubies editress Mrs. Nancy Campbell, I would have called you a liar and gone back to my planning out my future. Which had a lot of college plans. Aaaaaand dreams of maybe being married next year. Instead, God has been taking me on a journey of faith, excitement, new friends, and stepping outside my comfort zone. Being of a more introverted personality, I never DREAMED that I'd be going to live with a family I didn't know for 2 months with zero cell phone service, doing office work with a wonderful, Godly woman who is always losing her glasses, answering phones and... making phone calls?!?!?!?!? Unheard of for this introvert! Another thing was being so tired that I have fallen asleep by 10:30 every single night. Rare for me.

But I know that God has something amazing in store for me. I can see the ways He has moved in my life so far. By the way He has turned my can'ts into cans. He has made my dreams His plans.

I was looking at a song that I had written earlier this year when a dear friend's son died after he was born prematurely.
God I'm crying out to You now
It's times like these I don't understand
But I know I've got to have faith
And believe You have a greater plan
May be days, May be weeks
Until at last I will see
All the little fears I have, they are
In Your hands
I'm not going to lie, when I was invited to do this internship, I was terrified. I didn't want to go. I would be leaving the comfort of my home. And you know what? I still have a hard time believing that I really signed up for this. I'll wake up in the morning and hear people talking, and it takes a bit to realize that it's not my family.

But then... Then I'll run into Cedar, or Vision, or Arrow or Saber, or one of the many other young boys and I'll feel so at home. I'm constantly thanking God for everything He has blessed me with, from the incredible view to the friends I've already started making. I'll be happy to be home, but for now, I'm happy with my current home.