Letting go, emptying yourself, surrendering all…
These are not natural responses but with a God so good, when you act on the convictions of the Holy Spirit, you will be blessed, filled with hope, and fueled by faith to press on.
(more…)Author: livywade
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This Old Rocking Chair
A message to my almost 2 month old son…
I sit in this old rocking chair with you, my son, bundled up in a blanket on my lap with my arm wrapped around you.
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Becoming A Mother: A Testimony of God’s Faithfulness, Provision, and Love
I would like to share examples of God’s faithfulness and provision to women throughout Holy Scripture before sharing my own testimony. Sarah, Rebekah, Rachel, Hannah, and Elizabeth are some women in The Bible who were considered barren. In ancient times, barrenness was often seen as a punishment from God for disobedience, but he had other plans for them. God used one other woman’s story of motherhood to change everything….the Virgin Mary. See Scriptures in the images below:
God showed up for these women and their families which impacted generations upon generations. With the exception of Mary, the mother of Jesus, these women had lost all hope for them to grow their family, but God knew his plan and was faithful in providing the gift of children. Mary is THE one and only unique example of God using the Holy Spirit to conceive a child, the Son of God and Son of Man, who in turn became the Savior of the world. God is the ultimate miracle worker! God blessed each of them and in turn, blessed so many others, including me. Now that you have a better understanding about the hope I was able to hold onto through the Living Word when it came to God’s plan for my family, it is time for my story:
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Mirror, Mirror
I used to write poetry on a regular basis. It has been a while since poetry has flowed naturally. I was at a work conference this past weekend. The last night, before I headed home, I went to God to reflect on the blessings from the weekend that were a result from blessings over the past year. In my hotel room, there was an interesting wall decoration of multiple mirrors. While I was praying, I looked at the mirrors hanging on the wall. The thought came to me how we look in the mirror, and often don’t think positive things about ourselves. I have often asked God to help me see myself the way he sees me and have prayed that over my loved ones as well. I felt the overwhelming urge to write. So, I did.
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AT LAST!
Marriage has been the intention for man and woman from the beginning. God created Adam, and for the first time, said that something was NOT good.
“Then the Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper who is just right for him.” So the Lord God formed from the ground all the wild animals and all the birds of the sky. He brought them to the man to see what he would call them, and the man chose a name for each one. He gave names to all the livestock, all the birds of the sky, and all the wild animals. But still there was no helper just right for him. So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep. While the man slept, the Lord God took out one of the man’s ribs and closed up the opening. Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib, and he brought her to the man. “At last!” the man exclaimed. “This one is bone from my bone, and flesh from my flesh! She will be called ‘woman,’ because she was taken from ‘man.’” This explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one.”
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-Genesis 2:18-24 NLT -
2023 Lessons Overview
2023: The word of the year was REST. Did I follow through with this well? Absolutely not… I feel like I did better than I did in 2022, but overall the word “NO” needs to enter my vocabulary more often than it has been. I’m a people pleaser and FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) is definitely real.
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Don’t Worry God’s Got You!
“That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn’t life more than food, and your body more than clothing?
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Compelled By Compassion
The Sunday before a special weekend full of students (6th-12th grade) serving the community called, MyNeighbor Mission Weekend, the second message in the Lent: The Life of Surrender series entitled, Stay Compassionate, was given as the students and leaders were commissioned for the following weekend.
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Build My Life on God’s Love
The third message in the Lent: The Life of Surrender message series was about building your life on the firm foundation of God’s Word. When we are filled with the Word, we are able to build up not only the Body of Christ but share the love of God to those who are far from him due to not knowing or no longer wanting to know the Truth of who he is and how he loves us.
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Pray More Worry Less
Many times we grow weary, tired, and doubtful when we pray for something repeatedly with what seems to be no response from God, so we worry about the outcome and spiral into worst case scenarios rather than hoping for the best knowing God is in control.
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I Once Was Lost But Now…
We are CALLED to spend time with our Father doing what he loves. Our Father loves to seek and save the lost. Those who don’t know the love of the Father, the sacrifice of Jesus, and the hope that comes from the Holy Spirit are lost. BUT there is HOPE for them!
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But FIRST…
We all have a choice to make in this life, “Which path will I take? Growing up, I heard the phrase, we can do this the easy way or the hard way…you choose.” Usually, that was the moment I needed to decide whether I was going to get my attitude in check or suffer the consequences. Following Jesus is the opposite though, the “easy” way may be more of the path that the world has shaped your human desires to want to go down because there won’t really be any judgments coming your way from going with the status quo. Whereas the “hard” way would bring some troubles along the path, but Jesus is your guide and already knows what’s up ahead and has won over the worst of them all, death. The destination of the “easy” way ends up being one of eternal suffering, whereas, the “hard” way leads you to your home in Heaven with Christ with no pain, sorrow or suffering whatsoever. Ultimately, it’s up to you, but let me share more about why I will choose the path to the Cross every time!
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Lent: The Life of Surrender
Lent is a period of 40 days leading up to Easter Sunday in the Christian Calendar. Each week a different concept was taught and the following are reflections from those messages through Good Friday.
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Introduction to the Blog
In 2023, I was determined to make some changes in my faith journey. Starting around October of 2022, I started realizing how overbooked my schedule that year had been, especially that Fall. I kept saying “Yes” and making plans that were not always necessary but sounded like a good idea at the time. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed all the activities I was a part of, but I felt something was missing…REST! I felt like I was constantly on the move and didn’t give myself time to breathe. God commanded His people to take a Sabbath day, including us, and I was failing miserably. So, like a said, something HAD to change!
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LivLoveLight 