Prior Hiatus

   Ariel is awesome, but I bet you guys already knew that. Awesome Ariel - that's how I like to think of her. One reason she's so awesome is that she's been the sole poster here for the past month and with nothing but love and grace for me throughout. That's why she's my best friend. Are you jealous? You should be.

   I'm sorry. I hate breaking commitments, and if nothing else I had committed to posting about the Old Testament each week. I'm afraid I'm terribly behind on that. The last piece I wrote was about Exodus and here we are this week on Joshua and Judges. I'm sorry. I'll have the next Old Testament post up next week because I haven't actually started this week's reading yet (whoops!). And here is something else in the meantime.

   Our friend Meaghan went to a conference in Austin back at the beginning of March. After talking with her, these have been some of my thoughts:

Being missional doesn't come from wanting to make non-believers a project. It doesn't come even from wanting to follow the Biblical mandate to "go to the nations". It comes from a love for people. It comes from having your life changed and wanting others to experience the same thing. It comes from being so filled with love that you're overflowing with it and want to share it. It comes from seeing broken people and wanting to walk alongside them.

That's what Jesus did.

When we love and serve them genuinely because we want to, not because we're wanting to check off some religious boxes, that's when people want to know how and why. That's when they see who God is and want to find that in their own lives.

That's how Jesus did it.

He loved and served and healed and spent quality time with people. He didn't drop a bunch of church-y words and make people uncomfortable by telling them how much they needed him before they even knew who he was and what he was all about. Jesus isn't physically here anymore to do miracles and stuff for people. He reveals himself through us. Through our actions and relationships. Through the love that we have for other people.

Happy Easter everyone!
Courtney

Eternally Minded

"Set your mind on things above, not on earthly things"

Colossians 3:2

I cannot even begin to explain the transformations God has been doing in my life. I just read over an old post from January, BEST METAPHOR YET, and realized just how ridiculously far the Father has taken me in such a short time. Things happening in my life at that time that I once considered “concerns” no longer even take up a single second of my time. There is a very real and distinct reason why: PRAYER. God. Is. Faithful, friends.

"If we are faithless, He will remain faithful"

2 Timothy 2:13

The prayer that Daddy has answered the strongest is this: “Father, help me to be more eternally minded. Turn my eyes to the Kingdom and off of this fleeting and flesh-satisfying world.” O booooooy has he answered it! Where do I begin.......

This is what Jesus has revealed to me, and if nothing else, this is what I wish to be revealed to ALL of His children: this place, this world, is not our home. STOP. Don’t read anymore. Well, finish this paragraph and then stop reading. Step away, and let that sink in. I mean really sink in. This. Is. Not. Our. Home.

I once heard a pastor put it like this: “For believers, Earth is the worst it’s going to get.” Do you understand what that means?? We are on a journey, with a very finite and fantastic goal waiting at the end, and that goal will last for eternity. Forever. We. Will. Not. Die! We will be with Daddy forever! We will be with our Saviour and Lord FOREVER! So why does it matter to us when our car isn’t as nice as we would like it?! Why does it matter that we don’t have that particular scarf we’ve been eyeing, or that cute boyfriend, or that well-paying job?? It doesn't! It doesn’t matter!! Earth is wonderful. It’s truly a gift. Don’t get me wrong. To enjoy the beauty and joys that our o so sweet Father has put here for us is beyond understandable, albeit a must! BUT, we must realize that “wanting” stuff here to the point where it distracts us from the goal is a waste of our time and journey.

"You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes."

James 4:14

"But one thing I do [consider]: forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus"

Philippians 3:13-14

"Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith"

Hebrews 12:2

Allow me to help a bit. A few months ago, my main worries (mind you, worry is sin friends) were “What the heck am I doing with my life?”, “I can’t wait until God sends me a great guy”, “How can I feel prettier?” (side note: God made EVERYONE beautiful. Accept it. Move on. Do not obsess over it.) and a bunch of other garbage that was focused on “success” in this world. But God has shown me, because I asked Him and He is faithful and NOT because of anything I did on my own, that the cares of this world are going to become so miniscule and irrelevant when I am standing in the throne-room of my beloved King. Does this make sense?? I will die! I will leave this planet! BUT I will never leave our Lord. So why do I care if I have those things and junk and stuff that only distract me from what really matters:  pursuing the Father, loving His children, and spreading His word and light. I get it folks. I finally get it. And I am OBSESSED with Him!!!! He has literally transformed, renewed, washed, and sculpted me. And He is DYING to do it to you! Heck He DID die so He could do it to you!!! So I ask that you would pray for this revelation today. Because when He opens up those eyes of yours and shows you the tiniest fragment of a glimpse of what He’s got in store after this short pilgrimage of yours, you’ll become obsessed too!!

"All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance"

Hebrews 11:13

"Flee the evil desires of youth, and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace."

2 Timothy 2:22

"People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction"

1 Timothy 6:9

"You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds, and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness"

Ephesians 4:22

"Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind"

Romans 12:2

I love you always!

Ariel

An Encountering

This is what I think. I think so many “Christians”, so many who claim the title but not the shame and suffering that comes with it, do so because they haven’t had something. They haven’t encountered Christ. They haven’t encountered His love. And I think without that, without encountering Christ and His unfathomable, unrelenting, awe-inspiring, head-tilting and jaw-dropping love, we are just swimming around in a pool without water, on the verge of drowning to death.

I know so, so many people who tell me they are Christians. And what they, and the rest of our society, (and at one point I) have done is watered down the name. The title of “Christian” is an all out honor. It is an HONOR to say that I follow Him.    
"How GREAT is the love the Father has LAVISHED on us, that we should be called children of God!" 1John 3:1


         But so many of us don’t get it!! We don’t GRASP what it is that the Gospel IS! It is a love story guys!! It’s the story of a man, who created children that turned around and spat on and denied Him. But He yearned to spend time with them so badly that He became one of them and let them KILL Him!!! JUST to be able to be with us guys!!! But we’re not getting it!! America isn’t getting it!! So these “Christians” walk around, and they tell people what (when it should be who) they are. They proclaim the self-righteous title of “Christian” so that others will think that they are a “good person”. They act like it’s cool, like it’s easy, like “God will never give you more than you can handle” and “It’s ok. God’s in control” and “Let me tell you other cliche loads of bologna that I don’t even understand so that IIII can make you feel better. By the way, did I mention I’m a Christian?” It’s not easy guys! Time and again we are promised trials and tribulations. We are not promised that He won’t “give us more than we can handle”. We are promised that when that comes, and it will, we will not be alone. If we can’t handle it, and there will be times when we can’t, then God, our Great Redeemer, our sweet and loving Father, our Alpha and Omega, our Good Shepard, then He will sweep us up in His never-weary arms and carry us the rest of the way. I want so badly for everyone to grasp this. To ENCOUNTER Him!!!! He is REAL guys!!!! God is REAL!!! Don’t water down His name. Don’t throw around the name of His followers as though it’s a merit-badge that will gain you credit just as long as you leave it at surface level. Allow Him to invade the darkest depths of your soul. He’s already there, but He actually wants your permission to explore, transform, mold, and love. And once you encounter Him. Once you allow and receive and invite Him in entirely, you will never, ever, be the same again. That’s one of my favorite of His promises.
I love you, but not near as much as God does.
Ariel

Come Near to God and He Will Come Near to You

    Sometimes I’m overwhelmed with what Daddy’s teaching me. But among it all, almost every day I feel Him whisper “Come near to me, Ariel, and I will come near to you.” And He has. God has actually come near to me. I feel Him guys. I want so badly for you to know this. I want you to know it so you can feel Him too. He’s standing there, holding out His arms that never tire, waiting. He’s not impatient. He’s not angry. He’s not disappointed. He’s just. waiting. But the first part of His sentence says “Come near to me.” We have to walk into Him, into His presence, into His embrace, in order to experience Him and His power and love. Reading His word, talking to Him (some may refer to this as prayer), living as He desires, pursuing Him and not the fleeting crap that this world has to offer.... all of this is a gift He has given us so that we can know the Creator that hand-sculpted us into this beautiful creature that we are. He literally yearns for us. GOD. YEARNS. FOR. US. Sometimes I almost can’t take it in! He wants me? He wants to spend time with a foolish girl who’s ignored and denied Him for so long and lived solely for herself? YES! YES HE DOES! And it’s not just me guys!! This is how God feels about every single one of His children. Do you hear me? Do you hear Him? He wants you! He doesn’t want you to clean up your act. He’ll take care of that. He just wants to hear your voice turn it’s tune to His waiting ears. He want’s you to turn those beautiful piercing eyes on His unfading beauty. He wants to show you that YOU are beautiful! HE WANTS YOU! He doesn’t care what you’ve done or said or thought. God wants you. Sooo badly that He wrapped himself up in flesh, came down to this mad-house, nursed as a baby, bled like a man, and was murdered in one of the most horrific ways man has ever designed, just so that you would notice Him and come to Him. Do you understand how much you are loved? Do you understand how precious and beautiful and wonderful you are to Him? To the Father who dyed your hair, painted your eyes, fit your fingers and toes, and stitched up every loose seam. He’s in love. He’s in love with you. He’ll forgive you. He’ll make you promises and never, ever, ever break them. He’ll hold you every single time you ask Him to. He’ll swipe those tears away. He’ll kiss you and love you the way you’ve always yearned for. But you have to walk to Him. He gave us this will, because He didn’t want robots walking around His planet chanting insincere “I love you’s” without a burning raging fire within their deepest pits. He wants us to understand His depth and His love, so that we may reciprocate it. So reciprocate it. You won’t be perfect. You’ll mess up. I promise you’ll make mistakes. But the thing about God is, He’s standing all around you so that no matter what direction you fall towards, He’s going to catch you and kiss you and encourage you so your fall will be shorter next time. God is crazy for loving me this much, but He does, and it’s the best part of everything. The best part of my day, the best part of breathing, the best part of everything: No matter what I do, where I go, how far I fall, He loves me. He wants me. I am wanted. I am loved. I am forgiven. And so are you. Run into Him! RUN!!!

James 4:8

Faith Alive: Episode #2

   Well, this was actually from January (though to be fair it was the very end of January, and it's now the very beginning of March) and we're just now getting it posted.

   Enjoy!

(sorry for that unflattering little still frame)