What I learned about remembering - Ecuador, Part 4

Our two weeks in Ecuador were divided equally into 2 separate, beautiful cities. Our itinerary was different for each city, as the churches in each city had different needs.

The Ibarra church was new, only a few months old, and had a significant need to get people informed about its existence. We were able to be part of several smaller-scale events like “free manicure” stations at the park, a soccer tournament, wearing crazy wigs and hats while holding “Jesus Te Ama” signs in the middle of an intersection… Things like that.

At each city, we also had a “big event” that we focused on. In Ibarra that was a breakdancing competition. So cool! In the middle of a enormous and beautiful park, a stage was set up, complete with microphones and music, and people came. We each had our own jobs to do while we were there. My job was to invite 
people to come. So we looked for people walking and said things that I hope meant, “You’re invited to come to watch a breakdance competition! It’s free! And there are activities for children!” Shawn and Noah had cleanup duty, keeping the park free of litter during the competition.

Noah and me at the
breakdancing competition
in Ibarra 

Shawn and Noah at the
breakdancing competition
in Ibarra

I had my doubts that people would come. At the beginning, the crowd was small and I worried that after all the time and money they had spent preparing for the event, it would be a disappointment to all those at the church who had worked so hard.

But they did come.  More than 800 of them. People came, watched the competition, met church people, saw the church’s name, the church made some contacts, and many heard the message of Jesus before the evening was over, with people making eternal commitments to Him.

Noah and the drama team
performing during the
breakdancing competition

In Ambato, the “big event” was the main focus of the week. Here, the event was called “Gran Noche de 
Esparanza,” translated as “Great Night of Hope.”  An evening of music, entertainment, prizes, and Pastor Ferney.

Just some of the
entertainment for the
Gran Noche de Esparanza

Pastor Ferney sharing his story

Pastor Ferney leads a church in Cali, Colombia, and he came to share his story with the 400 people who came out that evening. He shared with them how Jesus can change the life of a man deeply involved in the drug cartel, freeing him of the life he had and giving him a new one full of hope in Jesus. We watched and prayed as 76 people came forward to dedicate their lives to Christ.

The next morning we were privileged to hear Pastor Ferney at the church in Ambato, with a translator, as he spoke to us about the importance of family. We watched as he got on his knees, with tears in his eyes, asking the North American section of the crowd for forgiveness for the pain his life’s work has caused our country. So humbling and such an example of the redemption of God. We are never too bad for the forgiveness of Jesus.

Pastor Fernay sharing his story
at the church in Amato

Pastor Fernay with
David Morrison translating

The last day we were in Ambato, before we headed for the airport, our trip leaders, Chris and Anndee Stringer, led us in a time of reflection. We were able to answer some pretty deep questions for ourselves about the ways we were changed from the trip, the ways we had seen God work, the things we needed to remember. Anndee said it is too easy for us to go back home and answer the question, “How was the trip?” with telling them about the chicken feet in our soup.

How is it so easy to forget the undeniable work of God in the 2 weeks we were there, and focus only on the chicken foot soup or the toilet paper we weren’t allowed to flush?

But she was right. Even after my time of reflection and knowing how I was changed from this trip, the first couple of times I was asked about the trip – chicken feet and toilet paper.

I kind of reminded myself of the Israelites. In Exodus 16, we see them after God had miraculously convinced Pharaoh to let the Israelites leave Egypt where they were oppressed as slaves, then let them cross the Red Sea, then destroy the Egyptian army chasing after them, they began to complain about being hungry.

“If only we had died by the Lord’s hand in Egypt!.. you have brought us out into this desert to starve this entire assembly to death.” Then God sends manna, a kind of bread, from heaven to feed them daily.

Then in Numbers 11, in verses 4 and 5, “If only we had meat to eat! We remember the fish we ate in Egypt at no cost – also the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions and garlic. But now we have lost our appetite; we never see anything but this manna!”

Why in the world can’t they stay focused on the miracles God just did to save them?

While I wasn’t complaining about the chicken feet or the toilet paper- it was simply an interesting tidbit- how in the world could I let that trump the miracles we saw take place while in Ecuador?

God provides. God heals. God redeems. I saw all of this happen in South America. And I have seen His provision, healing and redemption in my own city, in my own life. Yet still I find myself complaining, or focusing on things that don’t matter.

I think a prayer journal of sorts could help here. Take a few minutes and think of ways God has provided for you.  Think of ways He has healed you or someone you love. Think of how God has redeemed you from what you once were. Write it down. Thank God for it. Remember it.

And, if you would, share some of these things here so we can thank God for it together.

"Let all I am praise the Lord; may I never forget the good things he does for me." (NLT)
 Psalm 103:2

I couldn't leave you without a picture -
chicken feet soup

What I learned about ordinary jobs - Ecuador, Part 3

Noah's mime career start

I’m not gonna lie – sometimes I get jealous. There are some skills and talents that just seem more awesome /helpful /needed /appreciated than others. And while I know in my heart that God sees things differently than we do, sometimes I forget.

So, as we prepared for this mission trip to Ecuador, I had already kind of questioned how useful I would be. Some people have awesome medical skills and training, which always come in handy. Some actually speak the language of the country we would be visiting – you can probably imagine how helpful that is.

I’ll start out by saying that I do believe God has given me gifts. He gives them to all of us. It’s just sometimes hard to see where they can make a difference in some situations.

There were times I had some ordinary, seemingly small jobs during this trip.

Shawn, rocking the soccer field

During the soccer tournament in Ibarra, Shawn played soccer, Noah performed with the drama team – I was mostly the keeper of the backpacks.

I also did A LOT of passing out flyers in Ambato – flyers about the church, flyers about the medical clinic, flyers about the “big event” with the Colombian pastor who used to live a life of drug crimes, but now speaks the love of Jesus to the largest church there. There is certainly nothing fancy about passing out flyers.

One of the many, many
many flyers we passed out :)

In addition to these things, I prayed a lot. There are plenty of opportunities to talk to Jesus while being keeper-of-the-backpacks. And it was needed. As I shared in the second blog post (found here) of this trip, prayer is a big deal.

In 1 Samuel 30, David shares how we should view the keepers-of-the-backpacks.

David and his men had gone off to fight, and when he made it back to his town he saw the Amalekites had taken everyone from his town, including his two wives, and burned the town down. David heard from the Lord that he would assist them in rescuing the people. Six hundred people started out, but two hundred of them stayed behind because they were exhausted.

The four hundred remaining men were successful with God’s help and were able to bring back their people and valuables. When returning to the town, some of the four hundred decided it wasn’t fair for the two hundred who stayed behind to get any of the “plunder.”

David disagreed. In verse 23, “David replied, ‘No my brothers, you must not do that with what the Lord has given us. He has protected us and handed over to us the forces that came against us. Who will listen to what you say? The share of the man who stayed with the supplies is to be the same as that of him who went down to the battle. All will share alike.’”

Every victory that happens is because of God, not us. Because of that, there are no small jobs, and the obedient keepers-of-the-backpacks can hold their heads up just as high as the warriors can.

All of the jobs we are given are important, both in Ecuador and at home. Nothing we do for God is wasted. (Thank you, Lord, for that!)

The Sunday morning after the soccer tournament, we heard news that 75 people from Ibarra attended church that morning at Puerta Abierta, a record for this young church. Many of those individuals came because of the activities that happened on Saturday, like the soccer tournament. Out of that 75, many came forward to pray, with 8 of those accepting Christ for the first time!

In Ambato, more than 400 showed up to learn about the redeeming grace of God, with 76 accepting Christ that evening! And others came to know Jesus the next morning in the Ambato church service.

Like the kid who gave his lunch to Jesus in John 6, where Jesus took what the boy offered and multiplied it to fill the need and fill the bellies, Jesus took what we had to offer, and did something big with it.

A song we used to sing in church said, "Little is much, when God is in it."

We each gave our little- playing soccer, praying, giving candy to a child, joining them in a hula hoop game, taking a temperature, and passing out flyers.

But God turned it into much, as more than 100 people were blessed with a new relationship with Christ and the promise of Heaven. Thank you, Lord.

As we gathered for our own worship that Sunday afternoon, our speaker, Chris Stringer, gave us a message about obedience. He said, "Complete and immediate obedience is your greatest calling as a Christian."

It's not which job we have that matters, but whether we choose to obey.

Whatever your job is- whether you are on a mission trip right now, or reading this from your home in your pajamas, be obedient. If He is asking you to move to South America, to the inner city of the area where you already live, or to offer to babysit for someone who needs a break, do it.

He will do much more with it than you can imagine.

"Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it."

The Chicos Blancos, with Shawn proudly displaying
his penalty card :)

I Corinthians 12:27

Shawn beginning his soccer career :

Shawn and his soccer team :)

Shawn, showing his soccer skills :)

Noah and Hannah in the drama skit 

Beautiful! Volcano in Ibarra

Noah and me :)

Me with Pastor Ferney :)

The Beauty of Scratches and Scuffs

Watching him sleep, with his hand relaxed on the pillowcase, I see the ring. Almost 17 years ago, that ring was picked out and purchased at Sam's Club, of all places. We were young, barely in our 20s, with no idea of what our futures would look like. But we loved each other, and he asked, and I said yes.

My first memory of loving him was in first grade. The snow was pouring down that day, and as our 45-minute van ride to school progressed, no other kids from our class were showing up at their pick-up stops. Just maybe, I began to hope, no one else will show up and we would be the only two in class with no one taking his attention away from me. 

It happened. For that day, it was just the two of us, working puzzles together with our teacher. I had never seen anyone work a puzzle as fast as him. Just one more thing I added to the list of what I loved about him. 

Fast-forward through the next 14 years, after happiness, break-ups, tears, I'm sorrys, and I love yous, I was walking down the orange carpet of my church in my much-too-poofy-for-my-short-self dress to say I do for now and forever. 

Since that day, that simple ring on his finger has been with us through some better, and through some worse. And it's still there. 

That ring was on his hand as we signed papers to buy our home, the home we still live in today. 

That ring was on his hand as we relaxed in Cancun, and as we came back home and took a pregnancy test, finding out we were going to have a baby. That ring was there as he was holding my hand through the pain of labor, and then as he held our son for the first time. 

The ring was on his hand as we waited happily in the exam room getting an ultrasound done of our next pregnancy, and as he held my hand when the tech said she wasn't able to find a heartbeat. 

The ring was on his hand as he let me cry over an awful paint job with some fancy new denim technique I had tried in Noah's new room to make space for a nursery we would no longer need. 

That ring was on his hand as he taught Noah to ride a bike without training wheels, through Noah's tears and frustrations. But Noah mastered it, just as he knew he would.

The ring was on his hand as I nearly ended our marriage. The hardest and darkest days, when he could have easily left, and had every right to. But he never took his ring off, and that ring was on his hand as he said he wasn't giving up on us. 

The ring was on his hand as I cried tears asking for his forgiveness over tortilla soup at Max & Erma's.

That ring was on his hand through job changes, the deaths of his father and of my mother, school plays, soccer games, date nights, vacations, home improvements, prayers at the altar and at bedtime with our boy. 

These 17 years have seen some better and some worse. The ring, though warped, scratched and scuffed, represents every moment since the day we said I do, and all the moments we still have left. It is beautiful.

Our story, with it's own scratches and scuffs, is even more beautiful. It's ours and even with it's imperfections, it tells so much. Rather than bringing guilt and shame, the scratches and scuffs of our story remind me of love, forgiveness, healing, restoration, grace. 

And what a beautiful picture of the love of God, who transforms all of our stories in the same way. My heavenly Father offers me that love, forgiveness, healing, restoration, and grace, sweetly handing it to me when I deserve it least. 

If you have failed our Father, please know He loves you still, and He's waiting for you to come back to Him. He doesn’t offer guilt, but heaping measures of grace instead. Please don't wait any longer. Run to Him. You won't regret it.

"...I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kindness." (NIV)
- Jeremiah 31:3

Thanks, babe, for being such a good example of the grace-giving love of Jesus.

What I learned about Prayer – Eucador, part 2

In the weeks leading up to our mission trip to Ecuador, we would get emails with details of things we needed to do.  The real excitement came when one email had a video attachment with more than 20 minutes of information – what we needed to bring, what to expect, and my favorite: what we would be doing! Months of planning and dreaming about how this trip would go, and I was about to hear exactly how we would be spending those precious 2 weeks!

I got comfortable and got my people and the three of us watched it together.

Now, keep in mind this is my first out-of-the-country mission trip. What I typically assume a mission trip to be: build a church and spend days with beautiful kids at an orphanage.

While we watched the video, I hear “gather to pray,” “prayer adventure,”” 4 a.m. prayer” (that’s right, A.M., baby)… And I should be too embarrassed to tell you this, but I often share more than I should, so here is what I said after watching the video –

“I hope we do more than just pray. That sounds lame.”

Boy, did I have some stuff to learn.

In fairness to myself, I have to tell you I don’t think prayer is lame. I happen to love talking to Jesus. I just thought prayer sounded like something I could do from my couch in my comfy PJs rather than travel to another continent.

Turns out… prayer was more meaningful to me during this trip than anything else could have been and I am so grateful.

Prayer is a big deal. There was a serious focus on prayer during this trip because it is the absolute most important thing we can ever do. Ever.

We prayed at a small shop owned by a lady of the church in Ibarra, for her business and her family.

We prayed for “Houses of Prayer,” home Bible studies led by young missionaries dedicating more than 2 years of their lives at a time to help get the churches going.

We prayed for the cities we were in, stopping at parks, schools, markets, and malls to pray in specific ways for the people living there.

We prayed in such detailed ways for the church – ways I would have never thought to do on my own. Praying for the people, the electricity, the sound and computer equipment, the building, the neighbors, the salvation of the landlord, the influence of the church sign (a prayer that was answered even as we were praying), a television screen the church needs … you name it, we prayed it. Beautiful. (For those of you who go to Huntington First Church with me – I’m super excited to say we are going to try this out at our church next Saturday, Aug. 23!!!)

We had a prayer meeting for 2 hours, beginning at 4 a.m.! We shared and prayed for each other in very specific ways. Definitely worth the early wake-up.

We prayed for a man at the park, who asked us to pray for his mind and his thoughts.

We prayed for healing for our friends.

While praying from my couch would have gotten through to God, and it would have been good, there is something to be said for being in the presence of what you are praying for, and inviting the presence of God to join you there. Touching the wall of the school, sitting on the doormat of the church, sitting in the grass of the park, sharing a Coke with a store-owner as you pray for her shop – those are things that put passion in my prayers. I meant what I prayed, and believe that God will answer.

In Mark Batterson’s book, The Circle Maker, he said, "...I've come to the conviction that one prayer can accomplish more than a thousand plans."

Our speakers during our trip kept reinforcing that prayer is ministry. Prayer isn't what you do simply because you are supposed to, or because there is nothing else you can do. It's the most important thing.

We could have met and discussed ways to come up with money for a television for the church, or planned fundraisers, but instead we spoke to the One who owns everything already and told Him every need.

Prayer is the best. Knowing that the God of the universe wants to hear from me... Wow.

Pray. Go to God like you mean it. Give Him thanks and praise, and tell Him every concern, need, fear, desire...everything. He wants to hear it. And what a privilege. 

Thank you, Father, for listening and answering.

"Pray continually..." I Thessalonians 5:17

"Look to the LORD and his strength; seek his face always." I Chronicles 16:11

"This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us." I John 5:14

  

The church sign in Ibarra 

Praying for the church in Ibarra. <3

Praying for the church in Ibarra

Our group posing for a picture during the
city prayer adventure in Ibarra

Praying for the church in Ibarra

Our friends during one of our prayer adventures as
we stopped to pray for a school

Praying for the city of Ambato

Overlooking Ambato, we met there to pray
in specific ways for the people of this city.

Shawn and Noah, right before praying for Ambato

Noah and me right before we prayed
 for Ambato

What I learned about Fear - Ecuador, part 1

Pretty plane picture taken by Noah

This is part 1 of an 8-part blog on our 2 weeks in Ecuador this summer... I would love for you to take this journey with me through this blog :)

I am pretty much afraid of everything. Water, heights, the dark, deer, owls – you name it, I have some level of fear of it.

So making a move from my safe, comfy home in Barboursville, WV, for two weeks in Ecuador, brought with it an entirely new list of things to fear – forgetting our passports and missing the trip, flying, spearing, malaria, being detained in Ecuador, kidnappings, the bus driving off the side of the mountain,  natural disasters, etc.

Our flight was from Charleston, W.Va., to Atlanta, which took less than an hour. Not scary. I was proud of myself. Then after a 9-hour layover, the fears came flooding in.

Noah, waiting to board the plane in
Charleston

Occupying ourselves during the layover :)

At the last second there were “mechanical problems” that were fixed in 5 minutes. (Does that mean it was a tiny problem, or did they do a not-so-thorough job at fixing whatever problem it was?) Then we had problems with our boarding passes, and literally had them thrown to us to get us on the plane as quickly as possible. Being the last ones on, everyone else was happily seated and buckled in, while we were scurrying around the plane searching for carry-on space.

Then came a good hour of flying, with the sun setting and glowing all pretty, and all of a sudden, turbulence and the blackest, meanest clouds I’ve ever seen up close, and several hours of flying left to be done.

I was rather confident I wasn’t going to make it out alive, and began praying pretty hard and preparing to meet Jesus in person. Somehow during that time, God brought me peace.

Our group after arriving in Quito, Ecuador...
we were so tired

All these other things I had been afraid of before didn’t make me panic after that. We landed in Quito and took a 2-hour bus ride to the city of Ibarra, and stayed there for a week. I had peace and enjoyed each minute.

Then we took a 5-hour bus ride to the city of Ambato. A couple days into that city, we were awakened early to the sounds of loud, angry Spanish-speaking voices in the lobby of our hotel. That was followed by the sounds of banging and glass breaking. Then silence.

Fear came rushing back. I honestly don’t know if I have ever felt that scared in my life. Not knowing what the voices were angry about, and not knowing that the glass was just the porcelain basins of the lobby water jugs rather than the glass walls and windows, compounded with not knowing how to call the police – I was a mess. Crying and praying hard.

Some of our group helping to clean the
hotel lobby after the scuffle

Turns out, it was a scuffle in the lobby between a hotel guest’s drunk friend and the owner of the hotel, not a group of mafia-style men out to get all American Christians staying in the hotel (as my 5 a.m. mind led me to believe).

I know I have blogged many times about fear. And I like to think that one day I will have it all mastered and will not need to keep learning lessons about this, but until then, hopefully someone else can be learning along with me.

Fear keeps sneaking in. But God gently reminded me, again, that when I am afraid, I am not trusting Him. 

Whether it’s about our safety, or my fear of not making a difference while on the trip, if I truly believe God is who He says He is, I won’t be afraid. I have no reason to.

God is big, powerful, limitless, loving, and because of this, I can’t fear.

Do I trust Him? Do I believe that whatever happens, God will use it for His glory? Yes. Ultimately when I think it through, that is what I want – His glory.

While a perfect flight, health and a great trip sound wonderful, God’s glory and His plan are what matter most.

Even if difficult things in life happen (malaria, lost luggage), I don’t need to fear, because I am never alone.

God reminded me that His sovereign will is what will happen on the trip, and that is what I wanted and needed to hear. Thanking Him for His peace

Psalm 23

“The Lord is my shepherd;
I shall not want.
He makes me to lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside the still waters.

 He restores my soul;
He leads me in the paths of righteousness
For His name’s sake.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil;
For You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil;
My cup runs over.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life;
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord
Forever.”

God is good, all the time...

Noah cracks me up; he gets his sense of humor from his dad. There are times when he says something so funny, I have no words. I just laugh and look at him, then say, "I love you."

Once, after I said that, he laughed and said I just love him when he's funny. He was kidding, but it made me wonder why I say  it so often during times he makes me laugh or does something sweet. I do love him then, but I also love him even when he is being obnoxious, or in a mood. My love for him isn't based on what he does. I just love him all the time.

There is something our awesome worship leader says at church frequently: "God is good, all the time; and all the time, God is good." 

It is true. Often I hear other people, and I will say it myself, after something goes really great in my life and we talk about how good God is. Like, getting extra money that was needed, or a surgery going well, or making it home safely. And He definitely gets the credit for all those things, and I am extremely thankful for each one of them. 

But I have to make certain I know He is good even when...

Even when money doesn't come, or there are complications, or car trouble. God is good.

His good isn't proven by His actions. He defines good. All the time.

In the Bible, a guy named Hezekiah was King of Judah and was doing an excellent job at it. II Kings 18, verse 5 says, "Hezekiah trusted in the Lord, the God of Israel. There was no one like him among all the kings of Judah, either before him or after him." He kept God's commands and was very successful.

But he wasn't perfect. In chapter 20, some visitors from Babylon's kingdom stop by for a visit after Hezekiah had been so sick he nearly died. He welcomes them in and shows them every single thing he has in his kingdom.

What's the harm in this? It doesn't sound that bad, but it's possible Hezekiah is doing this in an effort to sway the Babylonian kingdom to his side in fighting the Assyrians, just leaning a little to the side of depending on human power rather than God's.

Isaiah quickly brings a message from God, saying that Judah will eventually be taken over by Babylon, leaving nothing. While this won't happen during Hezekiah's lifetime, it has a devastating impact on his descendants.

Crummy, right? But Hezekiah's response...

"The word of the Lord you have spoken is good."

God's word is good because God is good. He defines good.

Seriously, read this book... So good...

In Jennie Allen's book, "Anything" (which I HIGHLY recommend, by the way), she talks about her friend Rachel, who had a damaging childhood, with lasting effects into her adulthood. Yet Rachel is filled with joy and love for others, even for those who had hurt her, and most especially for her Jesus.

When asked how she could not feel like a victim, she answered, "You have to thank God for the seemingly good and the seemingly bad because really, you don't know the difference." (page 59)

She knew beauty could come from what seemed bad, and the same can happen from what seems like our bad as well.

We really don't know the difference, just looking at a situation as it's happening. Only God does. We have our own ideas for sure, but our scales aren't weighted the same as God's. He can see with an eternal sort of vision.

We can be much like a kid would see a good lunch as one filled with Cool Ranch Doritos and gummy worms, but a parent would know that vegetables and fruit and protein are good for helping the child grow and thrive. The parent knows what ultimately is good for the child. God knows what is good.

It is easy to see God as good when we are given the metaphorical Doritos and gummy worms, but He is just as good when we are given the metaphorical carrot sticks. He knows what is best for us, and ultimately what is best for bringing Him glory.

And trusting Him in this, it is the most freeing thing we can do.

If you are in the middle of some crummy stuff, trust God. This is where the rubber meets the road, so to speak. If you believe He is real, and He is good, then you can trust His plan. And that trust can bring with it peace and rest, which is way better than worry anyway.

"Taste and see that the Lord is good;
     Blessed is the one who takes refuge in him." - Psalm 34:8

A lesson from some lightning bugs

The sunshine had gleamed off the pool water just hours before, but suddenly a storm was rolling in. What seemed to be one enormous black cloud that covered most of the sky was moving quickly toward our home, and the wind ripped through our neighborhood. And just like that, the electricity was gone.

As the evening turned to nightfall, with the storm long-gone, the hope for a quick fix was beginning to fade. I stepped on the porch, looking at my usually busy and well-lit neighborhood and seeing simple darkness.

But the longer I stood there and let my eyes adjust, I began to see a few lightning bugs in our tree. Then as if they were multiplying, there were bunches of them in the tree, and as I looked across the street, the other trees in the neighborhood began flicker with their light. 

This isn't my yard or my bugs,
but it was a pretty picture :)

It was beautiful. In that moment, I felt God’s presence and began to thank him for the lesson he was teaching me.

Every evening those fascinating little bugs could be filling the trees and I miss out on them. Between my busyness and the lights and distractions all around me, they are hard to see, and I don’t take the time to stop and look for them.

Often, I’m sad to say, my time with God is similar. I let so many other things distract me from purposely taking moments of my day to focus on Him, listening for his words that He is speaking just for me that day, and sharing things from my heart with Him. Sometimes it’s hard to hear Him when I let so many other things take priority. It’s not how He intended it to be.

Our time with God is crucial. When I don’t take those moments with God, my fears get bigger, my confidence weakens, and my sense of direction gets skewed. God knows how much we need Him; He created us to be with Him. But there is someone else whose main job is to keep that from happening. Satan doesn’t want us to focus on God. He knows the power that comes with that, and for him that is bad news.

Thankfully, there are times in our lives when we are forced to slow down and make him a priority. Often those times don’t feel like a blessing, muck like the loss of electricity with its frizzy hair and cold showers didn’t feel like a blessing in the beginning. But when I begin to see what God is trying to show me during those times, it is worth it.

Spending time with God has so many benefits… Seeing new things in scripture, feeling a sense of direction, peace just when we need it, a reminder of how much we are loved by the creator of everything.

So together, let’s make it a priority to spend time with God daily. We need it. And keep your eye out for the lightning bugs… they really are beautiful.

Matthew 6:33

“But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”