This statement is so simple and yet, it feels so complicated. Rather than making it plain I hesitate in development trying to make it appealing. This need for perfection creates a spiritual bottleneck. Leaving visions unwritten, dreams unknown, and revelations contained unable to run.
Read MoreThis week on Simply Put, one of my friends Bri and I are going to throw it back to the things we have learned from the roads we've walked. Our prayer is that this episode would meet you where you're at, give you encouragement for what you're walking through, and bring new insight into the real battles behind seeking Christ with your whole heart.
Read MoreAs He leads us from the valleys to the mountains and back down again, it’s easy to be discouraged by the darkness that surrounds. It’s instinct to question what lies ahead and doubt your endurance to finish the climb He has set before you.
Read MoreThis week, we're going to be taking a break from Romans and diving into the story of David & Goliath. Whether you've heard this story 1,000 times or just once - there is always new revelation found within the text! Come dive into 1 Samuel 17 with us!
Read MoreOn Episode #12 we're going to be digging into Romans 5:1-4 and looking specifically at the giving nature of God. On this episode, we'll talk about the way in which we tap into God's strength to rise.
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“Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we[c] also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.” (Romans 5:1-4)
Read MoreThere’s something so human in us that doesn’t want to believe this is who God is. If we’re honest, most of us believe that our Big God doesn’t care about little details.
But friend, here’s what I’m learning; there is an art to percolation and an undeniable confidence that comes when you leave the details in God’s hand. There is humor, adventure, and joy that present itself when we let God carry us from one inclination to the next.
Read MoreCan we be honest for a few minutes? Many of us, if we're ugly honest, have spent our lives focused on the principle, "I believe in God because I want to go to Heaven." We've spent our lives so focused on making it to Heaven that we've bound ourselves up in a current hell. In Romans 4:3, we learn, "Abraham believed God" and I can't help but wonder, how much different would our lives be if we started believing God. If we started believing that He is good, He is for you, He is with you, and He loves you.
Read MoreIn Episode #11 of Simply Put, we’re going to look at the story of Moses as he ventures through the wilderness. More specifically, we’re going to be looking at a particular instance when he disobey's God’s order. What does God do? Is God faithful even when we’re disobedient?
Read MoreBetter yet, how many times have we allowed fear of the future to mask the simple truth that we don't know what tomorrow will bring? (James 4:14) For, "farmers who wait for the perfect weather never plant. If they watch every cloud, they never harvest." (Ecclesiastes 11:4)
Read MoreSee, what happened in the grocery store is what many of us do with God’s plan for our life. When He shows us what our next step is, and it requires more waiting than we had planned; we often think, “that’s ridiculous- I can do this faster” and proceed abiding by a will that is not His.
Read MoreWhat if, leading someone back to Christ - either for the fifteenth time or for the first was less about the verses you memorize and more about the kindness you show? Honestly, what does it look like to lead someone in kindness back to Christ? On Episode #10, we’re going to dive into Romans 2:4B and John 8:1-10. My hope is that through these stories, we will find the courage to lead with kindness abounding in His love and grace.
Read MoreHere is what I am learning: When God asks us to take a step of faith we can rely on the simple truth that there is a museum of His faithfulness dating back generation after generation. Time and time again He has proven Himself to be diligent, detailed, omnipresent, kind, focused, loving, and wise
Read MoreOne of the most difficult things about having such a young public platform is that there is a lot of maturing God intends for me to do. In the words of Albert Einstein, "the more I learn the more I realize how much I don't know." I've wrestled with this - so much of me wishes I didn't have to learn this stuff publicly. So much of we doesn't want to speak up and doesn't want to share. Then, there is a piece of me that truly believes that when we walk in transparency, we will become mutually encouraged by His correction in our lives.
Read MoreOne of the most difficult things about having such a young public platform is that there is a lot of maturing God intends for me to do. In the words of Albert Einstein, "the more I learn the more I realize how much I don't know." I've wrestled with this - so much of me wishes I didn't have to learn this stuff publicly. So much of we doesn't want to speak up and doesn't want to share. Then, there is a piece of me that truly believes that when we walk in transparency, we will become mutually encouraged by His correction in our lives.
Read MoreAllow me to be brutally honest here. These prayers required of me two things; complete submission and total surrender. And, the things God revealed to me through these two wavelengths, I didn't necessarily like. Yet, in the midst of so much gray, He was bringing clarity to dreams that I had been afraid to dream. He was awakening my soul to His truth that "we are His handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." (Ephesians 2:10)
Read MoreDear ones, this is for you as much as it is for me. Let us stop digging and get back on the sidewalk. Let us still our hearts and focus on the last place we walked with Him well. Trust in the place God has you and seek out the power in His timing. We’re getting better but we’re not there yet and that’s okay. “In all your ways submit to Him and He will make your paths straight” (Proverbs 3:6) and if you’re going to dig, let it be at His feet.
Read MoreI thought to myself, I’ve climbed into something outside of my comfort zone and quite honestly, I know the basics. I can hear the words of my Father repeat themselves, “you’re speeding up - switch gears. Ease off, lean in, listen closely so you know when you have to kick it in.” Also, I can hear His promise to be faithful anthem throughout my life, “if you don’t know how to drive it before you leave. You’ll definitely know how to by the time you get home.”
Read MoreI don’t know if this is a common misconception or just the way I tend to operate in my own life. But, there is this idea that if my life is manageable and I am not stressed; then I am doing something wrong. That I am either not working hard enough, not pushing myself far enough, or plain and simple; where I am at is just not enough.
That morning, as she walked away, I couldn’t help but reflect on her words. I began to wonder, what have I picked up that wasn’t worth the effort? What have I added to His yoke and His burden that feels heavy and unmanageable?
Read MoreBut, if I am really honest with you guys, I find myself resisting the Sovereign stops in my life. I find myself questioning His motive for slowing me down and I begin to think He doesn’t want good things for me. It’s in this space I hear His prompting and see the revelation in my response.
Read MoreLately, I’ve been realizing how distorted my view of God can be sometimes. There is something in me that lives with a constant fear that at any minute the rug will be ripped out from underneath my feet. Almost as if I believe that unlike this man, God wouldn’t wait for me.
As I’ve taken this fear to him morning after morning and night after night, I hear Him remind me that He is not a rug to be ripped out from under me. “Truly He is my Rock and my salvation; He is my fortress, I will not be shaken.” (Psalm 62:6) There are no tricks when it comes to living in the grace of God. He is always intentional and diligently working everything together for His Glory.
