I recently watched a great sermon that you can find here on our significance in the body of Christ and how we experience his presence in times of need: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=nBSafyCXuGI

Facing opposition can be tough sometimes, especially in the body of Christ. 

I think that some of us are under the impression that we’re suppose to be living these picture perfect lives with everything that we’ve ever wanted simply because of the God that we serve.

As bearers of Christ’s name, we are not promised a perfect life, but the assurance of being taken care of by a perfect God in this life and the next.

I know there have been times where I’ve experienced something that I consider to be a trying time and my immediate thought was “God did I miss you?” In the moment I just thought to myself that there is no way God would have allowed me to come here to be treated this way.

 It’s in these trying times that God is allowing us to be refined and made new! He’s building up great godly character and integrity in us during these times where we feel lost, confused and sometimes hurt.

I’m learning all over again not to run from the process, but to run to it. There will be days where we are tired, days where we don’t understand and days where we just don’t want to put up with the things that are happening in our lives.

I want to encourage you guys to unplug and seek God. I truly believe it is that easy to seek Him. To unplug every distraction that we have going on in our lives and focus on the one who can truly give us direction concerning the perfect will that he has for our lives. 

So if this means adjusting the settings of your social media notifications, cutting down on the amount of time that we spend watching TV, or hanging out with ungodly influences we have to take action. We are as close to Christ as we want to be and if we’re intentional about abiding in him he will also abide in us!

So let’s show God how important he is to us, seeking him in prayer, worshiping him in our free time and studying the Bible to connect with his Holy Spirit, daily!

Love you!

Amber

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When you’ve matured in Christ and see what the Lord is doing at your local church, it’s hard not to want to get involved. Your pastor mentions a few ministries that need a little TLC and you find yourself signed up for any and everything hoping that the Lord will be proud of your service, you’ll make new friends and have the opportunity to grow and learn.

I remember having the opportunity to serve at the bookstore as a volunteer. I could hide behind a counter of snacks and giggle and high-five with the babies that came in to visit. I didn’t have to stand in front of the congregation and be seen and  I got to interact with members and first time guests every week. I enjoyed it. On days that someone forgot to open the store, I would make sure to open it. It was the perfect ministry for me. Low-key and easy.

Before long, the bookstore director had gotten married and decided that she didn’t want to head up the store anyone. She recognized that I had been a good volunteer and asked me to be the new director. I didn’t know how to say “no” so I said “yes.” A few days later I had a flurry of e-mails and volunteer phone numbers and new responsibilities. I had also found myself signed up for the Intercessory team, Accounting team, and I had the opportunity to look over my pastors little one’s with a few other young ladies as well.

There were some Sunday’s where I would show up at 8:00AM and I wouldn’t leave church until 3:00PM. I would join service late, since the store was open during the beginning of praise and worship and I would leave early to open the store again before dismissal. Some Sunday’s I had the opportunity to stay for praise and worship but would leave when the message began. I was all over the place. Every single Sunday.

So if I could encourage you in anything at all, it’s to:

• Choose a maximum of 2 OR 3 ministries (depending on which ones you choose. Some don’t require as much as others)
• Make time to study your bible and spend time with God DAILY. I couldn’t always depend on hearing the word or attending praise and worship in its entirety, so I learned that I needed to worship and study the word outside of Sunday’s and Wednesday’s at church.
• Learn to say “no”, sometimes. It’s ultra flattering when people want you to spearhead different things or lead certain groups, but if you don’t think that you’ll be able to serve effectively, then I wouldn’t consider taking on any additional responsibilities.
• HAVE FUN! Join a ministry that you can enjoy being a part of. In turn you’ll serve the Lord cheerfully and those whom you’re serving and serving with will see how much you enjoy doing what you’re doing and it may inspire others to serve in the house of the Lord too!

Comment down below your favorite ministries to be a part of!

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King David’s story is one of great adventure, passion and God’s infinite grace. Reading through first and second Samuel are probably some of my greatest past times. I love reviewing his life from beginning to end, seeing how every step of the way the Lord was preparing him for the things to come.

This can be said about pretty much any man or woman in the Bible, but today’s focus will be on King David and how his life’s story correlates with the rest of our lives.

The most memorable victory in David’s life has got to be when he faces off with a Philistine giant named Goliath. 1 Samuel 17 depicts the battle in its entirety. The portion of the story that stands out to me is David’s confidence in the Lord giving him victory over Goliath.

David reminisces on times during his shepherding that the Lord had allowed for him to protect his father’s flock of sheep saying, “When a lion or a bear comes to steal a lamb from the flock, I go after it with a club and rescue the lamb from his mouth. If the animal turns on me, I catch it by the jaw and club it to death.”

I can’t even imagine my teenage self slaying monstrous animals in the wild, let alone chasing after them to take back what is mine.

But I can attest to having to deal with an extremely difficult boss on the job at the age of seventeen. It was my very first job (at a fast food restaurant) and my boss had made it clear that she did not like me. Every time I saw her car parked outside of the establishment before a shift, this feeling of dread would fill the pit of my stomach and I immediately wanted to go home. Even after we had spoken and settled our differences, I always associated seeing her car parked outside with negativity and would have to remind myself that things had gotten better.

Later in life I would find myself working for much more difficult people who were rude, unkind and unfair toward me, but I was able to serve them confidently. Having experienced difficulty on the job before, interacting with people who seemed 10X’s worst than my entry level job was easier. The Lord had given me confidence to serve those who seemed unservable, promoting me in the process and showing me how valued I was by him.

I imagine that David felt the same confidence that you and I experience when the Lord allows for us to go through certain things to prepare us for something much bigger in the future.

Though I must say that in the process, it rarely feels like you’ve got it all together and sometimes you even find yourself questioning why you’re experiencing hardship. I’ll bet David’s adrenaline was off the charts as he went up against the first lion who crossed his path. I can imagine him running home to tell his father what had happened and praying that it never happened again.

It was in those very moments that God was preparing David to face Goliath.

What are some areas in your life where you feel as though you’re being tested and tried? How can you positively assess the situation to see what the Lord is trying to strengthen in you? I know it’s not easy, and sometimes you can’t even fathom how some things are working out for your good. In those moments I encourage you to continue to stand on the word of God and your integrity. Lean into the Holy Spirit and once you’ve past through the storm you can look back and see the fruit of the spirit and the character that the Lord has built within you.

Love always,

Amber

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Me to Me:“Don’t be a Bible snob all your life.”

And when I say “Bible snob”, I’m not talking about using the word to reprimand people, I’m talking about using the Bible to distance ourselves from others.

When I first got saved I was on FIRE for the Lord! He was waking me up at all hours of the morning, showing me such amazing and great things in the word! Holy Spirit would teach me about any and everything that I asked him about. There were days where I would have to sit at his feet for awhile waiting to hear his voice and other days, I could hear his responses so clearly and immediately.

I grew accustomed to waking up early and spending time with Holy Spirit. I actually understood the messages at church and sometimes the Pastor would even preach on something that Holy Spirit and I had already talked about!

Needless to say, I also felt spoiled. I turned my noise up at study plans and daily devotionals. Holy Spirit was all I needed. I felt like reading studies or the footnotes in my Bible was “cheating.” I wanted Holy Spirit to teach me, not someone else.

I want to encourage you not to make the same mistake that I did. Think of study plans and daily devotionals as a supplement. The Bible will always be our main source of documentation for connecting with Christ. Everything else is there to help guide us through life.

I’m currently prepping for my second body building competition. I’m taking vitamins and protein supplements, but these things are not meant to take the place of my meals. They are there to help aid my body in staying strong and healthy. I like to think of study plans and daily devotionals the same way.

Gone are the days that I turn my noise up at things that can supplement my spiritual walk with God. Holy Spirit has even inspired me to write “Biblically Me” small group study’s and these blogs. It’s humbled me, knowing that the content that myself and so many others in the body of Christ put out is for His Kingdom. Like the Bible, our studies and devotionals were created to point you to Christ.

I also think of it as another form of fellowship. Jesus said that we would do greater works that Him and He was right. He didn’t have access to the World Wide Web, or social media or any of that! So take advantage of every study, small group, daily devotional, podcast, YouTube sermon, but most importantly every quiet moment you can have with God!

It will ALWAYS be worth it!

Amber

I’ve traveled my entire life, living a highly nomadic lifestyle because of my daddy’s s career in the military. Looking back traveling was probably my favorite thing about his career and I think that it allowed me to experience a great amount of diversity at a young age.

Living in a foreign country and learning bits and pieces of different languages was amazing. Lord willing, my babies will be able to experience the same diversity that I got to experience while growing up.

Even though I’ve traveled a lot, last year was the first time that l traveled  to a new state all by myself. One of my best friends and I had fallen out of touch with one another, and grew a part. It was probably one of the toughest things for me to get past. As a “NAVY brat” having friends for years at a time wasn’t really a possibility for me. As we traveled, keeping up with friends was impossible until social media became popular and even then, so much time had transpired between me and all of my childhood classmates.

As time progressed work kind of took over my life here in Texas and all of my “friends” were people that I worked with. I have a few people from back home in Orlando that I could call but nothing felt the same.

When I would slip and fall, I felt so alone and that I didn’t have anyone to talk to. The enemy (satan) would make me feel like I had no one to turn to, and that I would forever be clothed in shame.

If you’re feeling this way, I want you to know that you’re never alone. The enemy will try to isolate us into thinking that God is upset with us and that we have nowhere and no one to turn to. You may even be feeling too ashamed to tell a friend what’s going on with you, but I encouraged you to share anyways! The Bible says in James 5:16, “Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.” NLT

I recently had the opportunity to call a beautiful sister in Christ who really helped me in a time of extreme anxiety and fear. Another tip for trying to navigate your true feelings from the enemy is to really gage how you would truly react. By nature I have never been an anxious or fearful person. So to feel such overwhelming feelings of anxiety, stress and fear to the point of tears I knew it had to be the enemy. I also knew that I needed some spiritual help and accountability.

After you’ve confessed your sins to God and commited yourself to repentance, also tell a friend who you can trust with your heart. Having someone to pray with and hold you accountable to your repentance is amazing.

I believe that when God said that man should not be alone while looking over Adam in the garden,  it wasn’t just in reference to romantic relationships, but ALL relationships.

Don’t be afraid to reach out when you’re struggling. We all need to be able to walk with Jesus and the brothers and sisters in Christ that he has given us.

Love you!

Amber

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