What Are You Waiting For?

“Let patience have its perfect work in you, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.” James 1:4 (NKJV)

Enduring a situation patiently doesn’t seem to come naturally to us, but it is the way that the Lord works on us and molds us into who He wants us to be. Waiting on the Lord is not about sitting in one place, doing nothing. Waiting is active because while you are waiting, God wants you to remain in faith. And we know faith without works is dead. Our faith, even while we are waiting for direction or clarity, must be put into action. If we are in a situation where it seems as if there is absolutely nothing we can do or we have done everything we know to do, we can always declare God’s Word. Faith comes by hearing the Word of God and our faith is active when we are speaking forth God’s powerful Word.

Just as God spoke the universe into existence, we can speak our desires into existence. Of course, our desires must line up with God’s will. We must speak what God says, which is the highest and purest truth. When the enemy comes at us with lies, we can combat those lies with God’s truth and cut those lies to pieces with the sword of the Word.

So are you in a season of waiting?

Are you believing for transition, promotion, abundance, financial freedom, a spouse, a child?

What are you waiting for?! Speak what God says about your situation! Find a promise in God’s Word and stand on it and declare it until you see your situation turn around!

I will leave you with some lyrics the Lord gave me last week during a worship service at church:

Open your mouth
Let Him fill it
Open your mouth
Speak His Word/
Open your mouth
Let Him fill it
Oh, speak Him forth!

Be blessed!

The Call.

As Christians, we are called to walk on this earth as Jesus walked on this earth, and in an even greater way (see John 14:12). He came down from heaven, wrapped Himself in humanity, and left His thrown to bring His glory down so that all men may learn to walk as He did and help bring more people into His Kingdom. He died on the cross, took the keys to death, hell, and the grave, rose again, and ascended into heaven back to His thrown where is making constant intercession for us as our High Priest. But He didn’t leave us alone; He made sure that we had the same power that conquered the grave within us and gave us the Holy Spirit to help us walk as He did. In addition to being the Son of God, Jesus walked this earth as a Healer, as a Deliverer, as a Teacher, as a Servant King, as a Priest, as a Shepherd, and as a great Friend to all.

When we become born-again believers, we begin to feel a stirring within us to love Jesus and love people like He did. We are able to love because He first loved us, as 1 John 4:19 tells us in the Bible. In Him, everything is possible because He is love and love never fails.

Although I called upon the Lord Jesus as my personal Savior, acknowledging that He died on the cross to wash away my sins, when I was 16, I have really only been a serious and active born-again believer for the last five years of my life. I have been through a tremendous transformation over the course of those five years (you can learn more about that in my book The Vessel: From Marred to Honorable, which will hopefully be available in Winter 2014), and it was just within the last year that I truly started to understand my purpose and calling and how the Lord wanted me to walk out that purpose in the earth.

As believers, we all have the same calling, but many different talents and gifts that we can use to walk out that calling. We are all called to love the Lord God with all of our heart, mind, soul, and strength and love others as we want to be loved, not so that they can feel all warm and fuzzy inside, but so that they can meet the Man, Love Himself, face to face and come into a relationship with the Father through Him. When we acknowledge what Jesus did for us on the cross, He gives us the right to be called children of God. That means you are a son or a daughter of the Most High God! God loves family because He is the One who created it; He wants us all to be a part of His family not only here on earth but in heaven for eternity. Our job as Christians is to tell others about this awesome truth, even other Christians who may not know! The earth is longing for the sons and daughters of God to be revealed, meaning, we receive the revelation that we are God’s children and we begin to take dominion and authority that the devil has tried so desperately to completely steal from us! But He has already been defeated! Praise God!
Now back to what I had mentioned before, we all have different talents and gifts that God has given us to reach and draw people into His Kingdom. That is where the creativity of the Creator comes into play. All of us are completely unique in our personality, character, behavior, abilities, finances, influence, etc. To try to copy and imitate anyone else is cheating yourself of God’s awesome creativity to be activated in your life. Be who God has created you to be and don’t try to put yourself in a box!

With that said, I believe there are three ways we can fulfill our calling and purpose to love God with our heart, mind, soul, and strength and love others how we want to be loved:

1.      Worship God

2.      Edify the Body

3.      Reach the Lost

Within those three ways that we fulfill our calling, we use our unique personality, character, behavior, abilities, finances, influence, etc exactly how God is asking us to. None of those three ways are more important than the other. In other words, if God is asking you to fulfill the call as a Pastor/Teacher, it doesn’t mean that He views how you grow the Kingdom by edifying the Body more important than how a born-again business man reaches the lost by telling his unsaved co-workers about how Jesus changed his life and how Jesus will do the same for them. Or that God views a teenager reaching the lost by leading a fellow student through the prayer of salvation more important than a young couple edifying the Body by leading a Bible study at their college and career discipleship group at their church. Whether saved or unsaved, you are reaching people and drawing people closer (by Jesus being lifted up in our own lives) into the Kingdom of God.

Yet, we can’t reach anyone or draw anyone if we are not worshipping God with all of our heart, mind, soul, and strength. Worship isn’t confined to music and singing, or dancing, or painting, or the first 30 minutes of our church services. Worship is a lifestyle of loving God by choosing to say “yes” to God and “no” to our own selfish desires daily. Through acts of constant obedience, we are giving God worth and valuing His will over our own. When we worship God, He pours into us and then asks us to in turn pour out to others around us, again, saved and unsaved alike. Every single soul is important to Father God and He always desires more of us, whether we know Him and have been a Christian for 50 years, 5 minutes, or do not know Him at all and still need to acknowledge Jesus as our Lord and Savior.

Jesus didn’t tell us to go and make converts; He told us to go and make disciples. If you are a Christian, and want to reach the lost, don’t just stop at leading them through the prayer of salvation, continue ministering until they are a part of the Body of Christ, in which they will continue to grow closer into the Kingdom by being edified by possibly someone else who is supposed to use their gift of teaching and encouragement to disciple and watch them mature and grow into who God has created them to be in His family. And please, don’t forget to live a life of constant worship through obedience to the Father. He will pour into you, as you pour out. Live, move, and have your being in that overflow.

Amen.

Long time no blog...

I have been up since 3 am because I have trained my body over the last few days to only live on about 5 hours of sleep (against my will of course). So instead of just wrestling with trying to fall back asleep, I just gave in and decided to arise early and do a little reflecting, since I never seem to have enough hours in the day to do that anymore.

Well, much has occurred since my last post in February.

I have stood firm in regards to a lot of things that I had been believing for and really hadn't began to see anything manifest until April. Like a speaker I heard yesterday at a prayer conference said, "God takes a really long time to do something really fast."

BUT, God is forever faithful to the end and desires for us to be as well. Jesus tells Peter in Luke 22:32 that he " [had] prayed for [him] that [his] faith may not fail..." And I believe that is a prayer that Jesus still to this day is declaring over all of us.

All things are possible for those who believe, the Word tells us.

 

Things have accelerated so quickly over these last few weeks and my faith has been activated in a way that it never had before. And all this time, as I have waited to see my promises come to fruition, God has taught me the value of trusting Him even when I don't understand everything and even when I don't feel like my prayers are being effective at all. 

But every step of obedience has its rewards. For God IS a re-warder of those who DILIGENTLY seek Him.   

DILIGENTLY in Hebrew is ekzētéō (from 1537 /ek, "out from and to" and 2212 /zētéō, "seek") – properly, seek out, emphasizing the personal intent of the seeker, i.e. the outcome intensely and personally desired by the seeker. This seeking is only as valuable (viable) as the motive which drives it.  to seek out for oneself, beg, crave

So as I look back and see all that God has done for me over these last few months and even more so over these last few weeks, I am in utter amazement. I have been praying and believing that every area of my life would experience the new life that Spring brings because I had faced a very long winter season that had left me feeling so weighed down and utterly discouraged at times. But God is breathing upon that prayer and breathing upon those areas. I am seeing, with my own two eyes, the faithfulness of God unfold in my life: pre-approval for our first home loan (we didn't even think this would be financially possible for us for another year, but has made a way), the permission from the Lord and Paul to join a team at GHOP (Gateway House of Prayer) as a singer there and being asked on a team right away (something I had been desiring to do for an entire year), leadership opportunities at our home church where we are operating in our gifts at new levels we never thought we possible, and finally, the biggest test of faith that I had been standing and believing to happen for about 2 1/2 years-a new job with better pay and health insurance benefits- and believing for about 5 years to one day happen- a job working at Joyce Meyer Ministries. And God has came through on all of them over the last month!!!

And all I can do is praise Him! All I can do is shout for joy because I know that my God is for me! 

And I know that although some of my promises may be unfolding before me, that does not mean the enemy does not want to continue to attack my faith even in the midst of my victory. In fact, he has tried even harder to steal my joy and peace since I received breakthrough. He did not want me to enjoy this victory whatsoever. But guess what devil, I STILL GOT THE VICTORY! And even when I was waiting for the promises to manifest, I STILL HAD THE VICTORY! HA!

I believe that is why Paul urges us in Ephesians 6 to stand firm no matter what. That is the way we defend ourselves from the attacks of the enemy: we stand firm and guard ourselves from his fiery arrows with our mighty shield of faith in the knowledge that Jesus Christ conquered death, hell, and the grave for us! No matter what, we win if we don't quit! Praise the Lord!

So as I walk out these next few months ahead of me, I will continue to praise God for all that He has done for me and all that I know He will do for me in the future. That is real faith: "speaking what you are expecting, not what you are experiencing" (PDW).

Walking by faith and not by sight.

I am so, so, SO thankful for this new season! Ready for the winds of refreshing to continue to blow over me and continue to encouragement my heart that new life has arrived. 

And I end with this: know that God is no respecter of persons and if He has done all of this for me, He WILL do it for you. Just believe!

Peace&Love,

Emily 

Salt and Light

Do You Know WHO'S You Are?

Here are my notes to the message I taught on 1/13/2013 at CORE...

The world seeks to find a label for you from the moment you are born. Society wants to categorize you and put you into a box with everyone else like you. But God has created you with His own hands and has called you to NOT be like everyone else.

He told Jeremiah:

"Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you; before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations." (Jeremiah  1:5, NIV)

SCHOOL:

Growing up, you are labeled as a daughter, a son, a brother or a sister, the youngest child, the oldest child, the only child, or the baby. All centered around being a part of a family, which is how God sees us, being a part of His family. But once you are in school, for many of us, this is where we step foot into the world’s system and the world’s categories. You are labeled as your grade, or you are smart, advanced, dumb, slow or if you didn’t go to public school, you have an entirely different category…home-schooled. And everyone in public school thinks you’re weird. Once in high school, you are then put into more categories regarding your personality and what you do: athlete/jock, cheerleader, math-geek, drama geeks, band nerds, stoners, partiers, rich kids, poor kids, etc.

YOUR CAREER:

And on top of all of that, your entire time spent in the education institution you are trying to figure out who you will be when you grow up. Your whole life existence from that point is founded on one thing, your career. And as we know, we are NOT our job position.

  

Those who try to find their identity in what they do will always be searching for their ultimate purpose and will never find fulfillment in life.

WHY?

Because there is only one position that will ever give you a sense of purpose.

You are a child of God! You are His!

When you receive Christ as your personal Lord and Savior, you are then ADOPTED into the family of God. But many of us continue to look for purpose on our walk with God, working to achieve His love, instead of just trusting in it.

  

John 1:12-13 (NKJV) says:

Speaking of Jesus, “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”

READ GALATIANS 3:26-4:1-7

WE ARE HEIRS OF GOD!!!!! WE ARE ROYALTY!!!!

Our God is King of Kings and Lord of Lords and we are called sons of God because of our FAITH IN CHRIST!

ADOPTION in Greek “huiothesia”=adoption as sons, sonship; in NT culture a son received greater inheritance and honor, but in Christ men and women inherit equally.

We must walk in the Spirit (which means praying, listening, and remaining fully obedient to the Father at all times) to use our faith and denounce any kind of worldly mentality which will only bring bondage (ROMANS 8:1-9;12-17).

When we make a decision based upon our flesh, it is going to eventually end in death because our flesh eventually dies. But if we make a decision based upon God’s Spirit and in Jesus, it will be eternal because in Jesus, there’s life eternally and NO CONDEMNATION.

“…our acceptance with God has to do with nothing but faith in Christ. God is very unimpressed with your performance, but He is deeply impressed with Christ’s performance. When you put childlike faith in Christ, Christ’s performance record is credited to you. Faith in Christ unlocks the Father’s heart to you. When you believe on His beloved Son, the Father’s heart explodes in affirmation and acceptance and delight-totally independently of your diligence or lack thereof” (The Secrets of the Secret Place, Bob Sorge).

READ MARK 1:9-11 (The Father was pleased with Him even before He did one miracle or went to the cross. He sees our heart and sees the end from the beginning).

You find such freedom when you finally realize you can rest in knowing that Jesus paid for your performance (AND YOU HAVE BEEN FORGIVEN) and by accepting that, God sees you as His daughter or son. You are so loved by the Father. Nothing will be able to change that. (ROMANS 8:38-39) He will always love you, but He doesn’t always agree with the decisions you have made in your life outside of His best (His will). That’s why we must seek Him for direction, so we remain in His will.

When we fully understand God’s love for us and that we BELONG to Him as a daughter or a son, everything in us wants to love Him back with all that we have. Suddenly we find ourselves longing to be with Him all the time and be obedient to all that He asks of us. We long to sit at His feet and gaze into His eyes and hear His voice. Our prayer life is not seen as a chore but as a privilege. We are privileged to be a child of God in the earth and do His will every day wherever He sends us. The earth is longing for us to reveal Him. (ROMANS 8:18-19)

THE SUFFERING CAN’T BE COMPARED

TO THE GLORY THAT’LL BE REVEALED

CREATION EAGERLY AWAITS AND GROANS

FOR THE SONS OF GOD TO BE REVEALED

ARISE, ARISE!

MAY THE SONS OF GOD ARISE!

ARISE, ARISE!

MAY GOD’S GLORY BE REVEALED

HABAKKUK 2:14 For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea. (NIV)

We will reveal God’s glory by standing up as an army of the sons and daughters of the Living God proclaiming His love for the whole world and explaining how He sent Jesus to die for them-the gospel! How will they know if we don’t fully grasp that we have been given the RIGHT to become the sons and daughters of God? The harvest is great, but the laborers are few because many don’t know that they don’t have to strive or work for their position as a son or daughter of God. They just have to believe and walk in it. Father God, through Jesus, would never give us a command to “go into all the world and preach the gospel” and not give us help. HE DID! We have the Holy Spirit…another amazing gift from above! (Luke 11:9-13)

So what are you believing for? What are you asking for? Are you coming to the Father boldly as a son or daughter? Or do you still see God as a dog-trainer somewhere up in heaven just waiting to punish you for your wrong? Remember, there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Step into your position NOW as a daughter or son of the Most High God. He’s waiting for you with open arms ready to tell you how much He loves you and how proud He is of you for running this race for Him. Running without time alone with God is the work of a slave and we aren’t slaves, we are His children! Knowing this will fuel you to go out and tell the world about Jesus! You are His beloved child in whom He is well pleased. Trust in that. Trust in Jesus. Trust in His love. 

Peace&Love.

Emily

Just not now...

Those three words seem to be the words I have had to say quite a lot over these last several months. And I am not a fan of having to turn down opportunities, especially when they seem so right, so perfect.

But the timing may not be...

Sunday morning before church, I was reading Psalm 37 and I think the Lord was trying to prepare me for a decision I was going to have to make later that night...

Psalm 37:4 (NKJV) tells us to:

"Delight yourself also in the Lord,
And He shall give you the desires of your heart."
[The Hebrew word translated “delight” (עָנַג, pronounced aw-nag) literally means to be delicate or feminine (Strong’s, עָנַג.)  It carries the idea of being pliable or sensitive.  In this particular context, it means to be dependent upon God and to derive one’s pleasure from Him. ]

When we read this verse, we usually picture the word delight meaning to enjoy God, which in a way it does. But as I went deeper researching the Hebrew meaning of the word, I realized the verse almost seemed to be a command to us.

The Lord is trying to tell us that He will give us the desires of our heart once we FULLY DEPEND ON HIM AND HIS WAYS. When we have a full revelation of who God is and what His ways are like, we can take genuine pleasure in Him. Not because of what He can do for us, but just because of who He is.

We see in Isaiah 55:8-9 (NKJV):

“For My thoughts are not your thoughts,
Nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord.
⁹ “For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
So are My ways higher than your ways,
And My thoughts than your thoughts."

When we understand this, or at least ATTEMPT to understand this statement from the Lord, we see that God's plans may be difficult to comprehend for us humans because they will always be higher than our's.

So how do we walk through life when we have to be the ones making the decisions?

TRUST IN THE LORD. WAIT UPON THE LORD.

"But those who trust in the LORD will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint." Isaiah 40:31 (NLT)
"But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint." Isaiah 40:31 (KJV)

And of course...

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
And lean not on your own understanding;
⁶ In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He shall direct your paths." 
(Proverbs 3:5-6; NKJV)

Then the Lord really hit me with this one in Habakkuk:

"For the vision is yet for an appointed time;
But at the end it will speak, and it will not lie.
Though it tarries, wait for it;
Because it will surely come,
It will not tarry." (2:3 NKJV)

There are opportunities in your life that have yet to completely unfold and there are promises that the Lord has spoken to you that have yet to manifest, but before you give up or take matters into your own hands, trust and wait. The Bible says that God's promises are YES and AMEN (so be it). If whatever you're believing for, praying for, hoping for is supposed to happen. It will. In GOD'S TIMING. 

You may find yourself saying, "just not now..." but know that the Lord has not forgotten about you. He knows exactly what He's doing. He holds your precious life in the palm of His hand and He won't let you fall. If you lean on Him and depend on His ways, You won't be able to help yourself finding delight in Him and the desires that He placed in your heart will unfold right before your very eyes. 

He is ready to give them to you. All you gotta do is....WAIT. :)

Peace&Love.

Emily Rose

Created to Worship

Did you know that everyone was created to worship?

YEP.

Worship is giving something or someone worth. It is what you devote your time, your devotion, your affection, your finances, your heart to. If you allow yourself to really reflect on this, you will know in your heart where all of those things in your life are going to.

If you worship anyone or anything besides God Almighty, the Bible calls those people or those things idols. And when it comes to God, He doesn't want you to give yourself away to anything or anyone but Him. He's not egotistical or prideful, He just loves us SO MUCH and wants us to see the world and people like He does. Worshiping God creates an atmosphere in our hearts that is conducive to letting God mold us into His image. It becomes a breeding ground for selfless love to be produced in us.

2 Samuel 16:7 says:
"The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart." (NIV)

When we allow the Lord to mold us and change our hearts, we will be able to love others with the Father's love.

In prayer one day, the Lord dropped this song down into my heart:

Cultivate the ground of my heart

Til it yields a harvest of lasting fruit

For Your purpose

For Your plan...

How does God cultivate the ground of your heart?

By worship.

By worshipping God Almighty and surrendering your life completely to Him. And worship is not just singing to the Lord (although that's important). It is denying yourself and saying "yes" to Him every single day of your life. From seeking Him in prayer or telling a stranger that God loves them by praying with them or giving them a hug, every "yes" to God is worship. When we love God with all that we are, our hearts can't help but overflow with His love for others. 

So it is true. Worship IS a lifestyle. It is constantly telling God "More of You and less of me." EVERY DAY. And every time we obey God and say "yes" to Him, we give Him glory. We give Him worth because He sees us growing up and maturing. Every Father wants to see their children mature and succeed their love walk.

So who or what do you worship? Yourself? Your plans? Your job? Money? Nice clothes? Everything in this world will pass away, except for Love. Let God speak to your heart today and see if there are areas in your life that you are holding back from Him. The more we say "yes" to God, the more He can molds our hearts and they will overflow with His perfect Love. 

Give God worth today. Even in the little things. :)

Peace&Love.

Emily

The Blood Speaks

I thoroughly enjoy reading in the book of Hebrews. Tonight these few verses captivated my attention:

"But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are registered in heaven, to God the Judge of all, to the spirits of just men made perfect, to Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than that of Abel. See that you do not refuse Him who speaks." ~Hebrews 12:22-25 (NKJV)

Then my attention was brought to this verse in Genesis:
"The LORD said, "What have you done? Listen! Your brother's blood cries out to me from the ground." ~Genesis 4:10 (NIV)

Then these lyrics popped into my head:

NOTHING BUT THE BLOOD 

BY: MATT REDMAN

Your blood speaks a better word

Than all the empty claims I've heard upon this earth

Speaks righteousness for me

And stands in my defense

Jesus it's Your blood

I'm just saying, something went off in me when I read that scripture in Hebrews. I have read that passage many times before, but tonight verse 24 just gripped me and I couldn't stop meditating on it.

Jesus' blood speaks... 

just as in Genesis 4 tells us that Abel's blood was heard crying out to God from the ground after Cain murdered him. 

Jesus' blood speaks on our behalf. It stands in our defense. The Father not only SEES us covered in the blood of His Son, but He HEARS us in the blood of His Son. When we are covered in His blood, God hears the voice of our "Mediator" (vs 24). Our prayers and our cries are filtered through Christ's blood. God responds because of the powerful sound that Jesus' blood makes. When we are in Christ, the Father hears our every word and it is righteous to God because Jesus is our righteousness. 

I will leave you with this tonight:

"Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."~John 14:6 (ESV)

When we enter through Christ, God sees us and hears us every time and He is faithful to answer our prayer. Let Christ speak for you and do not refuse Him who speaks.

Refiner's Fire

Refine me like gold.
Purify me until I shine like the Son.
Purge my heart of all that does not belong...all that doesn't look like You.
Take me through the fire and consume me with Your love.
Refine me like gold.
Gold is a symbol of Your divine character.
When I am refined like gold,
I am shining with Your divine nature, Your glory.
Pure and spotless
without blemish
Like Your Church
Like Your Bride.
You will return soon
coming on clouds with fire
Your Bride will meet You
And we will reign with You forever.
We must be refined individually
as members of Your Body,
Your Church, Your Bride first
before we shine as a whole.
So stir up a desire in all of us
to be pure
and spotless
and holy
like You.
Refine us like gold.
Cleanse us with Your Blood
until we shine like You.

(written on 8/6/2012)

Here I stand, Lord.

It's been an intense 2 months. A lot of transitions. A lot of pruning. A lot of growing.

When Paul and I decided to to step down at Wrecked and become more involved at Church in Action, we didn't know that the Lord would need us to dive in so quickly. But what I have been hearing consistently lately is "the harvest is great, but the laborers are few." God needs us to get serious and not waste a moment of time.

I could move whenever a door opens, but that would not be wise at all. So I have been waiting on the Lord and trusting that He will position me exactly where He needs me. There can be no room for comparison or questioning God's timing or ways. Who am I to question the Creator the Universe? I can read Job to see the rebuke he got from God when he did. No, I must stand firm and boldly say, "Here I am, Lord. I will go, Lord. Lead me and I will follow."

 

I am starting to understand the body of Christ more and more each day. As Jesus reveals more to me about His body and His bride, I begin to see my purpose more clearly as a member of it. I may not confidently know if I am a hand or a mouth, but I do know I am called to love and make disciples wherever I am, even if it doesn't look like I can in a medical office answering phone calls and verifying insurance benefits. He has me EXACTLY where He needs me. I don't need to know why. He's God (I am not), and He says so, that's why! Until He tells me to go, I must stay put and "work at it with all of my heart for the Lord" (Colossians 3:23). If God wanted me to move or to constantly travel from country to country, then He would tell me this and make a way for that to happen. I would know without a shadow of a doubt that I have been chosen to proclaim Christ to the nations as a traveling missionary. But He has not told me to. I have recently realized that my husband and I have been called to be a a part of the wallet for the body and this season is focusing on it now more than ever as we get closer to being out of debt. Praise God! We have jobs in the secular world to help propagate the gospel and send missionaries to places outside of St. Louis.

 

Although it doesn't seem as exciting, I know that I am doing MY PART to help fulfill the mission of advancing the Kingdom of God. I cannot wait for the day when I get to write checks to missionaries to take care of their financial pressures. I get even more excited when I think about meeting others' needs by feeding them, clothing them, and helping them get out of debt (my heart is for the student who has bought the lie that you HAVE TO GO TO COLLEGE EVEN WHEN YOU DON'T HAVE THE MONEY FOR IT TO STUDY SOMETHING YOU MAY NOT EVEN FIND A JOB DOING WHAT YOU STUDIED and is strapped with thousands of dollars of debt before they are even 25). How can we advance the Kingdom if we are all in horrible debt? This is an epidemic in America and we are so blinded! This will be a part of our ministry, I know it.

 

Another part of our ministry that God has been revealing to us has to do with justice. I know that when you take a stand for something that is wrong, there will be 10 other people who want to tell you to shut up and sit down. Now when you bring God's name into it, sadly, there will be thousands more people who do not want you to speak up at all and will attack you. This is because the devil wants to silent us and take our authority by deceiving us into thinking we have none. He doesn't like it when light is shed upon the dark things he has worked so hard to create in our world. But we must shine bright!

 

"Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven." Matthew 5:16

 

I will shine bright for you God!

 

3 more days until JUSTICE PRAYER GATHERING and I can't wait to gather with a group of radical Christ followers to pray for our city, nation, and world. And as we speak, people are attacking it and me. But we must stand firm and be BOLD. In the end, it will all be worth it!!!

 

Peace&Love.

Emily

Unity and Love.

The Lord really has been hitting me over the head with one topic that He has had me studying for the last few months. LOVE. Every sermon I hear (most times unexpectedly) and every scripture passage that I feel led to read has had something to do with love. Walking in love. Enduring difficult situations and transitions and remaining in love. The definition of love. I can't seem to study anything else. And I really don't want to.

I can't tell you how many times I have read 1 Corinthians 13, "The Love Chapter." And every time I read it, I see love and God, who is Love, in a deeper way. Last night I received a greater revelation to this love walk that we Christians must endure.

"[Love] bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, ENDURES all things..." 1 Corinthians 13:7 NKJV

So if we are truly walking in love, we ENDURE through it. What if relationships begin to fall apart? What if people are spreading lies about you? What if the ones you care about disappoint you? What if those you care about hurt you? It doesn't matter. Love endures. Love stands firm through it all.

And guess what? We must love ALL PEOPLE. No matter wh

at!

"But if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them." Luke 7:32 NKJV

What if fellow believers are not living a righteous life? Is it our job to point out their flaws? NO!

"[Love] is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs." 1 Corinthians 13:5 NIV

So here is my ultimate question...why are we keeping a record of wrongs against The Church? I am so tired of hearing sermons and remarks about how screwed up The Church is from other believers. The Church is Christ's bride. He loves her unconditionally. He loves Her so much He died for Her and for others who He wants so badly to believe on Him and become a part of Her. If I was caught up in sin, my husband would be concerned, but would never stop loving me. And if he heard another bad-mouthing me, it would hurt his heart to hear it, but He would stand up for me. I can only imagine how Jesus feels about us bad-mouthing The Church, His bride and His body.

"And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; or if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it. Now you are the body of Christ, and members individually." 1 Corinithians 12:26-27 NKJV

"For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as the Lord does the church. For we are members of His body, of His flesh and of His bones." Ephesians 5:29-30 NKJV

When we speak ill of the body of Christ, we are speaking ill of Christ. He is the head and we are the body. He is a part of us and we are a part of Him. If we are members of the Church then why do we constantly point fingers and poke holes in the Church's behavior? I am not saying that there aren't flaws, I just choose to cover them in love and build up and not tear down because the Bible says to.

"Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins." 1 Peter 4:8 NIV

Last night at CIA, Pastor Rochelle brought a powerful message about the Lord's Supper and Pastor Darnell highlighted something that I never thought of before regarding this

verse:

"Take eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me." 1 Corinthians 11:24b

We can take the words "remembrance" or "to remember" and break it a part into RE-MEMBER=to put something back together. To re-assemble. Pastor Rochelle and Darnell made it a point to let us know that every time we partake in the Lord's Supper, each member of the body of Christ is coming together in unity to form the body of Christ. We are "re-membering"

ourselves. In unity. In love.

I am reminded of this:

"I see your Church, all rising up in power

Laying down their lives in unity and love

I hear the sound of every tribe and nation

Giving glory to Jesus Christ the Son.."

(lyrics from the song "Do It Lord")

Are we going to lay down our lives for one another (there is no greater love) or are we going to point fingers just as the Accuser wants us to as he dismembers us? We know together we are stronger! Are we going to choose to build up or tear down? Let us re-member and remember what the Lord did for us as He laid down His life for us so that we may have everlasting life forever with Him in heaven together.

Be blessed.

Peace&Love.

Emily

Standing in AGREEMENT.

These last few weeks can only be described in one word: battlefield.

I have been pulled in so many directions emotionally, spiritually, and mentally. It seemed like everywhere I turned, something or someone was demanding more of me. I found myself disagreeing on more topics than agreeing. It seemed like I was ready to fight at the drop of a hat. In complete defense-mode, really. All I could see was chaos around me.

I always thought I was a peace-maker. I never realized how passionate I can become if something I love is messed with. Whether a person I care deeply about or even the truth I stand for is attacked or tested...I get territorial. I begin to search for the truth to stand against the deception and lies. Whatever it takes, the truth will shine forth!

I realized very recently how much more I can accomplish when I begin to agree instead of disagree. Instead of pointing out what is wrong, I need to speak life over the situation to see how it can change for the better. If I am continuously looking at what is wrong with something instead of what it could look like if it was right, I would probably live without a lot less stress and frustrations and my relationships would remain strong.

This kind of mind-set is really centered in faith. Cutting through all of the mess with words of hope that begin to change things.

"God, who gives life to the dead and calls those things which do not exist as though they did..." -Romans 4:17

When life throws you a curve-ball, sometimes you swing, miss, or you get hit in the head. Instead of screaming at life or even the "curve-ball" for hurting us, why don't we pick up our bat, stand firm, and take another swing at the next pitch? We could stand firm and believe the next pitch will be different.

The beautiful thing is, God gives us new "pitches" every day.

"Through the Lord's mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They [His mercies] are new every morning. Great is Your faithfulness." -Lamentations 3:22-23

I want to stand firm on God's word and be in agreement with what it promises. As believers, we could stand in our similarities instead of looking at our differences. We could stand in agreement of the scriptures instead of dispute and disagree. Even if we do not fully understand everything God is doing, we can all agree and know that God is good and God is faithful.

I'm learning to read the scripture to find truth for myself and not to point out another brother or sister's flaws.

I must "work out my OWN salvation with fear and trembling" as Paul says in Philippians.

It really is about speaking life or death. Building up one another instead of tearing down.

I choose to agree from now on.

And I hope you can stand and agree with me that GREAT IS GOD'S FAITHFULNESS!!!

Peace&Love.

Emily

In the blink of an eye...

Things can change so quickly sometimes. One day you are perfectly content with the direction your life is headed, and then you catch a glimpse of something you though you understood, and then BAM...your life takes a sudden turn.

Decisions...changes...moving forward...

Seems to be a constant variable in my life...especially over the last few years. You'd think I would be used to it by now, but change is always uncomfortable no matter how often it happens to you.

Paul and I have been involved at Wrecked Ministries since September 2010, only 1 short month after we left Faith Church. We lost a lot of friends in that transition, but God is always faithful and helped us through it by bringing a different group of friends into our life. We found genuine friendships and family during a time of such change and transition for both of us. During our involvement at Wrecked, we searched for our new church home month after month, until a year had passed. We would stay for a few months at one then question if it was really where we were supposed to be. From September 2010 to September 2011, we had tried 3 different churches. So we always felt in transition as far as that area of our life was concerned, but we never lost sight of who we were in Christ or who Christ was to us. We pursued God intensely in the midst of limbo. I found my place as a prophetic worship leader and re-discovered my gift as a songwriter. I read through the entire Bible and fasted and prayed more than I ever had in my whole life. I had a new-found boldness at work to pray with co-workers and patients and even ministered to some homeless people here in South County. We were greatly impacting families when we traveled as a ministry and when people would come to our gatherings in Arnold at our building.

Even though we had a difficult time finding our church home, we never felt like we were totally lacking in our walk with God. Actually, it felt stronger than ever before!

But in August 2011, something shifted in the ministry. We felt burnt out and upset that no one had been coming for 3 or 4 months. We weren't traveling as much anymore and ultimately, we were just ministering to ourselves. After a team meeting, it seemed as if everyone was throwing in the towel. The foundation was crumbling, but after a weekend at The Ramp it seemed as if we were able to pull ourselves together. We came back refreshed. It looked like we got a second wind! We were faithfully there at every gathering even though only a few people were showing up. We were just keeping our eyes fixed on the Lord. But then some people from the team stopped coming regularly and then left the ministry altogether. Discouragement started to kick in, then judgement, then accusation, then a little bit of self-righteousness. We ignored the fact that there wasn't much love anymore. So month after month went by and we began to ultimately go through the motions. To get over the fact that no one was coming anymore, we focused on prayer. We were going to become a prayer culture. Sounds awesome, but in reality, we became a holy huddle not reaching out to the lost. Paul and I had been feeling uncomfortable about everything for a few months but couldn't find it in us to leave just yet. We had invested so much time and energy in this place! And on top of that, we had no church home at all. We felt trapped with very little hope of ever finding a place to raise our kids. Was this it? Were we even affecting the Kingdom for God? Were we even growing spiritually anymore? We were involved in a ministry that wasn't ministering to anyone. It just felt like we kept going around the same mountain with little progress.

But a month ago, things began to brighten up. We started attending a church in Arnold that a few friends went to. And after the first service, we knew this was it. We had found our church home! FINALLY! We were just so excited to be getting fed regularly and meeting new people. And this church has an amazing outreach ministry. They better because they are called CHURCH IN ACTION!

But what about Wrecked? It was starting to feel like an obligation to go at this point. Over the last few months, Paul and I have tried to stick it out, but this past week we decided to step down. It has been a long week.

I am just so glad that God is faithful to the end. Man's love will always disappoint, but God's love remains. It never fails. I am taking one step at a time with this new season, but I am excited to see what God is getting ready to do through us. Sometimes making a move in a new direction can scare the crap out of you, but if you just keep your eyes fixed on Jesus, He will help you walk out into the unknown.

Lord, help me walk out on the water with You. I want to be where You are. I want to be where You need me. Thank you for Your mercy and grace. Thank You for Your amazing love. I couldn't get through all of this change without You God.

"And I'm fixing my eyes on the One who's unchanging, cuz the One who's unchanging is forever changing me." ~Amber Brooks