Starting Strong

Starting Strong

Okay guys, we are still in the getting started stage. But it’s getting close. What we do from now until February 1st is VITAL to our success on this journey. No joke. It’s almost game time and we need to be ready. We have a real enemy that does NOT want us to be reading God’s word everyday! So we must be prepared with the right tools to fight him off and stay strong in this.What do we need to start strong? How can we be prepared? Here’s the list. Here’s the battle plan:

1. Decide on a consistent TIME that you will be reading the bible daily.
2. Decide on a consistent PLACE where you will be reading the bible daily.
3. Pray. Ask God now and daily to open your eyes to the truth of His word. -To help you understand His word and to show Himself to you through what you read.
4. Have an ESV or NIV STUDY Bible.
5. Have Bible highlighters
6. Have a journal
7. Print out your bookmarks
8. Set up your place

I have a spot at my kitchen table where I sit at every morning around 5:45 a.m. I keep my things on the kitchen bench next to the table, and every morning I grab my stack (Bible, journal and highlighters) from the bench, put it on the table, ask God to open my eyes and ears and speak to me clearly, and then I open it up and read. As I read, I underline and highlight different things. I highlight verses that are good truths and really move me. I highlight words that are repeated. I highlight connections I see between words or phrases or concepts. I underline and circle meaningful words. I often write small prayers like “Yes, God, help me remember this always!” I write notes when I understand something new or see a connection somewhere. When I’m done with my reading, I spend some time praying. Sometimes I write my prayers in my journal. Sometimes I pray in my head as I sit in the same spot where I read. And sometimes, on rushed mornings, I pray in the shower. That is what my designated time and place looks like. Your’s might be completely different. Decide what you think would work best for you. Maybe evenings when the rest of your household is asleep. Maybe afternoon nap time. Maybe lunch break at work. Or in the car waiting for your kids at pickup. Maybe it’s your recliner or your bed or your closet. Wherever it is and whenever it is, decide now and make that your daily habit. If you stick to that consistent time in the beginning you will develop a habit, and it will get much easier for you to continue this in the rounds to come.

Book Intro’s

There are 66 different books that make up the Bible. They are written by different authors at different time periods for different reasons. It is really important to have some background knowledge on a book before we start to read it. Therefore, we’ll do a “Book Intro” before we dive into each book. This will include writing down some brief and basic information about the book. This is one of the reasons why having a study bible is so important and helpful. In a study bible this information is included in the first few pages of the book. So we’ll skim those pages and write down the main points we are looking for. You can decide how you want to jot this information down. Two ideas are: print out the Book Intro Form linked on this page and make enough copies of it for each book. You could have a folder and keep all of your book intros in that folder. Another idea is to write the information down in your journal. The process of writing it down is important, as it is another way for it to really sink in your head and memory and help you with new understandings and connections down the road. So I urge you not to skip this part! It will help your understanding of the Bible as a whole book and it really doesn’t take that long.

(Click on link for Book Intro)

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1F9WJXWaf4YEU-mlj1hJVQR0RLTOuYaL0FdsSg90frug/pub

In the next few days I’ll be posting some more articles to help us get ready. This will include: HOW do I read the Bible by myself? Important things to remember when reading the Bible, and some background information on the book as a whole. Stay tuned as we prepare strongly so we can start and finish strongly!

1 Corinthians 12:1-2 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith.

Getting Started

Getting Started

Sometimes the very hardest thing for me to do in life is to just start something. Some people start things all the time and their problem is finishing the things they start. My problem is starting. I know I should do something and that it could be good for me, but somehow I just keep finding excuses to push it aside. One of those excuses has been- I don't know where or how to start.  And I just can't get going. Have you ever felt like that with anything? How about with dieting or exercising? That's a familiar feeling for me! How many times do we push off our "new diet for "tomorrow."

I recently started running. I've never been a runner. I used to think I hated running. Turns out, I just needed to get started! I rarely feel like i'm in the mood to run. I slowly and grudgingly get on my workout clothes, pull my shoes on, get my headphones out, and walk out the door. Sometimes I start by just walking, because starting with a full-on sprint when I don't even want to be there is just too much for me. So, I put on my podcast, start listening and start my slow walk. After a while, my feet just gradually start walking faster. A few more blocks and my feet have picked up to a slow jog. I'm not feeling great at this point. I much rather be on my couch flipping through the channels, reading a good book or scrolling through my newsfeed. But I look down at my running app, and just aim to make it to the 1 mile mark. I can do that, I know I can. I tell myself to just run until I reach one mile. One mile comes and I realize I can keep going, at least for one more mile. And so I keep running at this medium pace and now aim for that 2 mile mark. 2 miles is now nearing and I realize that I’m so into the podcast I’ve been listening to that I don't want to stop. If I go home now, I won't hear the rest of this podcast and I'm too far into it to stop now. So I steady my pace and brace myself for the long haul. I'm in this now. I got the hard part over with. I started.

Now I aim to make it 2 more miles. My podcast should be over by then. I can do this. Sure enough at about 40 minutes, which is 4 miles for me, my podcast ends. But I am not done. My mind is swirling with how good God is from the message I just listened to and my heart craves to sing out to Him and worship Him as I run hard. So I turn my phone to my music playlist and I run to worship songs that my heart was made to sing. Once again I take it one mile at a time. I get to the 5 mile mark and I keep going. I get to the 6 mile mark and my feet are still moving, so I keep on going. Soon I realize how achy my legs are and i’m slowing down. But in my heart I could keep going forever. I never want this alone time with God to end. Once I got past that horrible starting stage and entered into the zone of my running, the hard part was over and I knew if I took it one mile at a time I would reach my long term goal.  Finally I get to Mile 7 and I smile with gratitude as I wrap it up and get back home to shower. Once again, God took me to this amazing place with Him and I'm grateful for every minute and every mile.

That's how my running goes and honesty that's how my life goes. It’s just so hard for me to get started. But once I do, and taste the goodness of something, then I’m so grateful that I started and I’m excited to keep going and keep experiencing the good stuff.

So, this all has a point. I promise! God has given us so many incredibly amazing gifts. One of those gifts is His Bible. I think the Bible is often one of the most unappreciated gifts He’s given us. This book is amazing. I think often people know they should be reading it, and they want to, but they just don’t know where to start, or aren’t motivated to start. I have read through the whole book several times using several different reading plans. Each time it was an incredible blessing and journey with God to read His book in it’s entirety. I learned a few things along the way, that led me to pace out my own reading plan. This February, as a new year starts, I’m going to start this reading plan, and I want to invite anyone who would like to come along to grab their bibles and come along with me!

Before I get into the details of the plan, let me tell you a quick story. If you’ve ever eaten an amazing piece of steak, I want you to think about that piece of steak. Soft, tender, juicy, full of flavor, melts in your mouth kind of steak. Now imagine that you can eat this piece of steak whenever you want. Every night it sits there at your kitchen table on a plate with a fork and knife next to it ready to be eaten. And every night you walk over to that piece of steak and you look at it and then...you take one lick and then walk away. You lick it. You guys, this is what so many of us do! That steak is there to be eaten! To take full bites, be chewed on and swallowed and fill us up. And we are licking that piece of steak instead. Let me tell you what I mean by this. I’m a busy, working mom of 3. I know time is hard to find. Those of us who go to Church every Sunday or are professing christians, know we need to have some connection to God. And so a lot of us, at best, lick that steak everyday. We read a few verses on our phone. Or we get a devotional book that shares a few verses and then describes the meaning of those verses and how they can benefit us. And each day we read a page in the devotional book, ask God to help us remember this throughout our day and move on. I’m guilty of doing this for long seasons of time in my life. I’m also guilty of going long periods of time where I didn’t even lick the steak, but just walked right past it each day with no contact at all. But then something happened. One day, I took a bite of steak. And then the next day, I ate more. And I continued to do this until I realized how much eating that steak everyday filled me up and I couldn’t afford to stop.

Reading the Bible

The Bible is a book that was meant to be read by us. Every single day. Not as a road map to our life. But as a magnifying glass to our Great God. When we read this book, we can see Him. And when we see Him, everything changes. Everything!!!!!! Many people think the Bible is too hard to understand. Many people think it’s dry and they just don’t get much out of it. Many think it’s way easier and more applicable to read a devotion written by someone else who will explain the passage to us. Some people stick in the New Testament because they think the Old Testament is boring, confusing, or not relevant to us. Some people read a few of their favorite books often but don’t get into the whole book. Let’s just shatter all those! There is so much better waiting for us beyond the hesitation to dig deep into this book. Let’s read this whole thing from start to end and meet with God every day through His Word.

Have you read the Bible all the way through in a period of time? If you have, awesome, let’s do it again! You may have no desire to read the Bible all the way through.  But I encourage you to give it a try and just get started anyways. There are a million reasons you can come up with for not doing it, but they all fall short of the incredible blessings that await the one who humbly opens up their Bible and seeks God through His word.  

Did you know that if you started at the Genesis 1:1 and read a loud, like you are at the front of a pulpit, it would take you only 70 hours and 40 minutes to reach the end of the book. I did the math. That means to read the whole Bible in one year it takes only 11 minutes of reading each day. CRAZY!!!! We can all carve out 11 minutes a day. That is doable. However, I have found that I get so much more meaning and connection with God when I don’t rush through the reading. It’s good to stop and look at notes down on the bottom of our Bible. It’s good to highlight and underline certain words or verses. It’s good to write our own notes or thoughts in response to what we read. Also, seriously, sitting down and just reading a passage from Leviticus will not necessarily drive you to excitement and worship. But no worries! I got this covered! I mapped out a 2 year reading plan, where the whole Bible will be covered in the 2 years and each day the assigned reading is also paired with a passage from Psalm or proverbs. This requires carving out about 10 minutes a day to read the designated chapters. I encourage us to not just read, but also savor it. I’ll try to share some helpful ways to savor it. But most of that will be the Holy Spirit working in you and speaking directly to you through God’s truth, if you give Him your time and your heart.

2 Year Bible Reading Plan

I’ve made a pacing guide that will take us through the Bible in 2 years. 2 years feels like a long time to commit to, doesn’t it? Just like my 7 mile run, let’s just focus on one mile at a time. Let’s not think about how long 2 years can sound. Let’s just think about running one mile at a time. I have divided up our reading into 24 “Rounds.”  Each round has the specific chapters to read. Each day also includes a reading from the book of psalms or proverbs to go along with whatever else we are reading that day. So, every reading day will include a reading from Psalms or Proverbs, which helps the reading to not just be filling our minds but also bring our hearts into worship. Because, yes, Leviticus can be a bit tough to read, so we need the taste of those Psalms to help satisfy our taste buds. Also, let me explain the way the rounds are set up. Each month, we will start a new round. They are set up to be able to stand alone. Anyone can jump in at the start of each round. So if you are 4 rounds in and have a friend you want to invite to come run with us, they can jump in at the start of our next round (which is the start of the next month). There will also be optional memory verses to go along with each round.

And if you, like me, get overwhelmed with the thought of running 7 miles, or reading a 24 month plan, just don’t  think of it like that! Just start. Start round 1 with us and aim to finish that round. And once you finish that round, keep going to round 2 and aim to finish that round. After then you might feel like stopping, but go for 2 more rounds! After that, I’m pretty sure you’ll be in your zone and you will keep on going as you hit the sweet spot of connecting with God, hearing from Him and savoring this amazing thing of knowing more and more of the God of the universe. You will see things in the word that speak straight to your heart and you will experience Him like never before. If you think you won’t understand things, no worries, I’ll try to give tools to help along the way, and remember you are not alone. Let’s do this thing together. When you run with a pack, it’s easier to keep up with their pace. Let’s be done just licking the flavor off of our steak. We can go beyond reading a few verses a day. Let’s read this whole book and see the big picture of who God is, what He has done for us and what that means.  Let’s SEE God in his word and SAVOR Him in his word, and then it will be easy and natural to SHOW Him to the world. His word is a fountain. Let’s go to the fountain everyday and fill up with the lavish love and truth of God’s gospel. His scriptures are beyond compare.

What Do We Need?

First, we need a physical book. Let’s not just read on our phones. Let’s let our kids see us read this book each day. Let’s fall in love with these pages. Let’s highlight, and underline and write all over this thing. Let’s open our Bibles. Second, I’m a huge fan of highlighters. I will post of link of bible highlighters I use and love because they don’t bleed through. Oh and back to the Bible. Maybe you need a new one. I actually suggest getting a new one for this journey. Each time I start a new plan of reading the Bible all the way through, I start with a brand new book. Fresh clean pages, waiting to be all marked up, and underlined and prayed over on this new journey. And when you are done, those notes, those underlines and highlights and written prayers, document your journey from start to end. I think using a Study Bible is a must. It really helps to learn the background of the book and read some notes that help clarify some things. In the past I’ve used NIV study Bible and ESV study Bible and have liked these. Just recently I got an NIV Life Application Study Bible. I am loving this Bible. I would highly recommend any of these versions. (I will be posting some links).

Next, you can print off the assigned reading for Round 1. If you want to print it on cardstock or laminate it, you can use it as your bookmark. Every time we start a new book of the Bible it’s really important that we understand this book before we just rush into it. So, we will do a “book intro” before we start each new book of the Bible. I will post the simple and short format for this.  You can just use the notes in your study bible at the start of each book to write down some basic information about the book. That will introduce the book to you and help you understand the context as you dive in the chapters in the days ahead. The last few days of each round do not have assigned reading so that they can be used as “catch up days.” There will be times where you fall behind. It’s okay! Don’t get frustrated and give up. Know that there are empty days ahead that are put there to help you catch up. And if one month sometimes seems too long to focus on, focus on one week at a time. Each week is color coded in a different color. Aim to finish that week. One week at a time. One month at a time. And as we keep on going we will experience the depth of God’s greatness through His whole book from start to finish. We will see why reading just a few verses from a devotional book or scrolling through on our phone is like licking the steak when we can actually take huge amazing delicious bites! And you will never want to stop eating His word and meeting with God in this deep new place.

Why?

Anyone who has been a christian for a few years will have heard preachers encouraging them to make sure they read their Bible. This can be as source of guilt for those who haven't read the whole Bible and find the prospect daunting. But I believe we need not be overwhelmed by the thought of reading the Bible cover to cover, if we put the task into perspective. I believe that as we walk with him, God wants to teach us how to take hold of his Word and establish a strong grasp on it in our lives so that we learn to love his Word and grow in our confidence in handling in.

The following quote from Dwight L. Moody is vital to understand before diving in, “The scriptures were not given to increase our knowledge, but to change our lives.” The word needs to be the bedrock of our lives and the place where our feet are planted so that we are stable, secure and immovable in our faith. If I were to stand on a firm, solid stone, but it wasn’t a very big stone. What would happen if someone were to push me? I would lose my balance and fall off. The stone might be firm and solid, but if it’s very small, then one push will push me off the rock. Instead, our lives need to be based on a broad, firm foundation where no matter what is thrown at us, we will not fall off because of the broadness of that rock. That comes from having a real, deep knowledge of God’s word. The word gives us knowledge of the truth and we need to know the whole broad truth to help us stand firm in Christ.

We often become consumed by our problems and the circumstances around us, and yet we are holding the solution in our hands. The answers we are looking for are in the word of God. It’s right in front of us, we just have to hear it and believe it.

Romans 10:17-Faith comes from hearing the message and the message is heard through the word of Christ.

If you feel that your are struggling to have faith in your life, what do you need? You need to do a bit more of hearing God’s word, because it will result in faith. Faith comes from hearing the word of Christ. So, let’s open our Bibles and hear the word of God!

Below is the link for rounds 1-4. Print and cut out as bookmarks if you would like. Get your Bible, Bible Highlighters, a journal and whatever else you would like, and we'll be getting starting on February 1st. So excited for this journey!

Round 1 Printable Bookmark
Round 2 Printable Bookmark
Round 3 Printable Bookmark
Round 4 Printable Bookmark

Life Application Study Bible

Bible Highlighters

Reading Plan Rounds 1-24

Are You Building?

In the last 2 days I have fielded some hard questions and have had some huge conversations with my kids. Not brought up by me, but by the world we live in. Yesterday I had our very first sex talk with my nine year old daughter and answered her questions on what it means to be gay as well as why some people have babies when they're not married. We talked about dressing modestly and what God intends for marriage, sex, and our bodies. Seriously I thought I was going to puke afterwards. I literally sat down in front of the toilet bowl and waited. It never came, but mild shaking and nausea did last the rest of the day!  

Although I hated having that conversation with my so seemingly innocent daughter, I knew that God gave me all the right words to say. And I knew that he did that because I had been in His word that morning. And many mornings before that, filling my mind and heart with his truth and his grace. 

I have been letting him build into me with his words from the Bible. 

 Today I had to explain to my seven year old what an Amber Alert means and I held her crying face in my lap as she cried and cried. At first I thought she was scared, but she shook her head "no."  "I'm not scared mom. I'm sad. I'm so sad for the child who was taken. He must be so scared."

 

And so I grabbed her hands and we prayed. We prayed for the little boy in the gray Nissan. 

And we talked. Talked about evil in the world, but a God who is always with us. He is with the suffering, the scared, the needy, the lonely. And it's often those hard times when people feel Jesus with them the most. He never lets us go. She knew that already though. And so she wiped her tears and put her trust and hope for that boy in Jesus. 

She knew that already, because every night our family gathers together and has a devotional time. Where we read a passage from the Bible, talk about what that reading tells us about God, and we pray. Because of the that time together my kids hearts were prepared to hear the answers to tough questions and to believe and to understand. 

 And because I spend every morning having my own Bible time and time with God, I was prepared to give the right answers. 

Had I not been filling my mind with his truths on a daily basis, that sex talk would have been very different. Maybe not enough grace, maybe not enough truth. Maybe too much of my words and not enough of his. But I'm so grateful that it was just right. 

I reminded her that sin is anything that is not the way God intended it to be. And so that separates us from God. Our bodies are for our husband (someday!) and only him. That is the way God intended it to be. Not everyone understands that. But we still love them, knowing that we will be different. We will be set apart. We won't live like the world because we are not from the world. We, instead live from the word and live for our God. 

She nodded perfuesly, completely understanding, because we have had that talk before. 

And she gets it. She lives for Jesus. And she knows she makes mistakes, so she never judges others for theirs. But she keeps on trying to live out the truths she knows and to please the God she loves. 

Her understanding isn't something that came from one big talk. It came from night after night in the word and in prayer. It came from conversation after conversation about the truths in the bible. It came from Sunday after Sunday of church and from Wednesday after Wednesday of her kids bible club. 

You see, it's a process to raise our kids for Him. We can't just pull out the rules and the way we want them to live when the time actually comes up. It's something that is built over time.

 I am so grateful that God worked In my life to help me start building years ago. In their lives and in mine. So that when these conversations start to come up, we are all ready for them. I'm ready to give the answers and they are ready to listen and understand. 

This world we live in is crazy. CRAZY!!!! We live in a world where 12 year olds are mothers, where one year olds are kidnapped, where girls bully other girls, where social media can exploit anyone. Our kids need to be ready to face the world, to navigate it, and to understand how to live in obedience and in trust in the savior who lived and died for them. How to remain pure and set apart for Him. How to recognize lies and choose the truth. How to trust in him when the bad things of this world just hurt our heart. 

One or two conversations here and there will not do that. If you want to be ready to answer their questions and guide them as they navigate their way through this world, if you want them to listen and to understand, there is one way to do that. Start building now. Add your bricks in everyday. 

Get your nose in that book and gather your family around it as well. 

Teach them daily, invest in your church to be built up by them as well.  Spend less time at the three sports your child is in and more time being built up by the truth; church, small group bible studies, kids bible clubs, family devotions and personal bible study. Know God personally and deeply and bring your family to know Him with you. He will work in their hearts and their minds and will help them live for him. But you have to guide them there.

 Be intentional, be diligent, be in the word. It will prepare you for the battle field. 

Whenever that battle comes, your days and years of building will be the most amazing weapon. You will be ready to win battles for him. To speak his truth with grace and love. To answer tough questions and to help guide them through this life. And they will be ready to hear and listen and understand with a heart that knows Jesus and lives for him. Be ready. Get in the word daily and bring your family with you! 

Raising kids is a mission field. It is no light job. I'm reminded more and more lately what a huge responsibility I have.  These kids are growing up. And so much of how they are growing up is in my very hands. And so in those same hands I will grip that Bible tight and let it lead me and let it lead us. 

All the time, I hear people say that parenting never came with an instructional manual. I never understood that! It sure did! The bible is my parenting manual, telling me everything I need to know to mother these kids. It is clear, it is good and it is true. It is a book about the God of the universe who loves us and came to rescue us and wants all of us. And it is a book that has changed my life and my family's life. It is a book that will continue to get us through this rough and crazy world with Jesus right by our side. I pray that more mothers cling to it and use it to raise their children and bring their families closer to him. 

I can't end this without saying though that even as I'm in the scripture everyday day, I still make a million mistakes a day. So please don't expect perfection from yourself or anyone. I still lose my temper when my youngest daughter won't wear any of her socks because they itch her, I still don't listen to my oldest daughter as well as I should when she is telling the same story for the 16th time and I still feel bad on certain days when I know I spent too much time on my phone and not enough time playing with my son. I fail and I fail. But by the grace of God and my continued time in the word and in prayer, I'm able to get back up and keep trying to get this right in Him. 

And on some days, like the last 2 days, It is because of Him, that I do get some things right. It is with joy that I fall asleep tonight knowing that I was able to answer my kids' questions and speak to them about hard things with the truth as my guide. It is my joy that when I needed to respond the right response was there. Because of the time I had spent in the book that gives us truth. 

It is my joy that I know my kids understand the truth and trust in Him. And I deeply pray that more mothers will have that joy and peace knowing that they are building something good for Him. 

On those long days, and busy weeks I tell myself "just keep building!" If you haven't started building yet, start now. It's never too late. Do a daily bible reading with your family. Slowly but surely, amazing changes will happen and you will see the fruits of your labor! And if you have started building already, don't ever stop! It is a such a great role we have been given. So grab that book and just keep building! Through Him build into your kids and onto yourself. 

For when the time comes when you need to respond, if you are in the word, the right response will be there. Truth and grace will flow from your mouth and into their lives. So just keep building. 

Psalm 119:105

Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path

Deuteronomy 6:6-9 And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.  You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes.  You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

My Story-The Ups, the Downs, the Past, the Now

My Story

We all have a story. The people, experiences and parts of life that have shaped us. Sometimes we don’t recognize they key parts of our story. The big things that brought us to a whole different place. I want to recognize those key parts. I want to reflect back and and be grateful for those key turning points. Because it helps me to see Jesus’s hands and his heart always with me.

When I think back on when I started loving Jesus, I can’t remember a start time. For as long as I've remembered I have loved him. I grew up in the catholic church and we went to church every Sunday. I remember dreading going to church and not understanding any of it. But every night my mom would pray with us. And I knew he heard my prayers. I knew he was with me and protecting me. And every once in a while I would see a picture of Jesus. His kind eyes always drew me in. I knew he loved me. And I knew I loved him. But that was about all I really knew.

We didn't own a bible and I didn't understand what Jesus really did on the cross for me. My parents sent my siblings and I to private schools growing up. We went to a Catholic school until 8th grade and then to a Lutheran High School. That Lutheran High School, Martin Luther in Greendale Wisconsin, was a huge part of my story. It was there that I first opened a Bible. On my first day of school, in our theology class, the teacher told everyone to open up to John chapter 3. Everyone opened up right to the page. I had no idea how to navigate this huge book in front of me! And I was still just in shock that we could have a Bible and read it and that it wasn't just for the Priest in front of the congregation. So, I was slightly embarrassed that day that I didn't know how to find things in the bible. So, that night at home in my room, I surfed through it trying to get familiar with it. I fell in love. I remember tears falling down my cheek. There was so much in this book. God was speaking to us through a book! What?! How had I never known that?? I have loved books since I was 4 years old and started reading. I would read everything I could. And now there was a book from God himself! Holy cow!!!!!!!! I started to read. I read quickly and I read a lot. I read Matthew first. I loved learning about Jesus and felt so close to him. I wanted to know him more. So, I kept reading. In about a month I read through the New Testament. Then I went back to Genesis and read through the Old Testament in about 3 months. This book was amazing. I loved the Theology classes at school and would sit at the end of my chair listening to every word the teacher taught. We would memorize bible verses and learn historical and factual information. And I loved every part of it. I took a college level course about the New Testament instead of an easy elective that everyone else picked. I was just drawn to this book.

But I there was a disconnect between my mind and my heart. I didn't understand how to nurture my relationship with God and what a life of faith should even look like. I looked for approval from guys and wanting to be popular. I gossiped and cared about clothes and hair and silly high school things.  I didn't have a church or people around me really nurturing or guiding me in how to walk with Jesus. So, that would come  in the next part of my story. But still in this part of the story, I loved the Bible and I wanted everyone I knew to love it too. I held a weekly Bible study at school in my Theology Teacher’s classroom. I held a summer Bible study at my house. I was determined to teach what I was learning.

The next part of my story happened at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, where I quickly got involved in Campus Crusade for Christ. This is a HUGE part of my story. This ministry changed my life. Through discipleship, bible study, other women who took me under their wing, I learned to how to grow in my relationship with God. I recognized how much I was living for myself throughout my life. I recognized the magnitude of what Christ did for me on the cross. And there was no one else I wanted but JESUS. And I wasn't alone. There were others who wanted Jesus. And together we’d gather in small bible studies every week in a dorm room. We’d gather at weekly Cru meetings with hundreds of other students where we’d learn from a speaker and sing praise and worship music to God. An older student would take me to coffee once a week and mentor me. I made amazing friends. We’d have so much laughing and hanging out and enjoying life and God together. We’d go to conferences and retreats together, growing in our walks with him. It was a dream! It was a small glimpse for me of what Heaven will be like. Being surrounded by amazing friends who love God and push and challenge each other and grow together. I grew so much because of these friends God gave me to grow with.

In the midst of those friends who loved God was a tall,skinny,shy boy with glasses. He was kind and sweet and he loved Jesus. Which brought me to the next part of my story.

We got married and started life in the real world. Out of our Christian bubble of Campus Crusade we were quickly thrown into the stresses of reality. Upon graduation we moved three hours away, started our full time jobs, bought a house, and oh crap that baby we planned on having in 5 years came 4 years earlier. And this part of my story kinda sucks. It’s the part where I let God slip away. I lost my focus. Working full-time with a colicky baby who kept me up all night long and an overwhelmed and stressed husband who was thrown into this mess too early along with me took up my life. I wasn't reading my Bible. I went to Church every Sunday but desperately missed the fellowship I had in College. Everyone else I met with children was almost 10 years older than me. It was hard for me to find anyone to relate to, and I felt very alone.  Marriage was hard and life was hard and both of us were searching for a way for things to be better. So in all our wisdom, we moved across the country because that would solve all of our problems and bring us complete happiness!  (Please hear the sarcasm).

So we sold our house in cold Wisconsin, quit our jobs, picked up our one year old (in the process broke my parents heart by taking their only Grandchild away), rented a U haul and off we went! To sunny California where life would be better, because there is sun and beaches and a new life waiting for us. We quickly found that life here was just the same. There were still bills. There was still work. There was still a disconnect between us, between us and God, between us and others. Life was just hard! And then came child number two. That fixed everything. Um, nope! More hard stuff ahead. We searched for a church for about a year in our new state before we settled on one. We got involved in a few different Bible studies throughout our time there, and met some great people. We wanted to please God, but we were just pretty blind and selfish with our lives. Our faith was small. Our eyes were on ourselves. After a few years at that church we felt started looking for another church. We recognized that we weren't growing and we wanted to. But  there was so much we did not recognize. Like if we wanted to hear from God we needed to give him our everything. We needed to lay down our lives for him. And we just weren't doing that. After about a half year of looking for a new church we found one that we finally both agreed on. NEXT Chapter! And this is a good one!!

We now have 3 children. In the last decade there had been seasons of my life that I spent time in the Bible and trying to have consistent devotionals. There had been seasons of growth. But I would quickly get sucked back into just trying to survive as I balanced working and kids and marriage and life. Everything was about to change for me. By the grace of God He drew me back to him. He opened my eyes to so much. I attended a women’s bible study at the church and immediately fell back in love with the Bible. I felt like I could hear from God again. I heard his promises. I heard him  say he was with me and he wanted me. Oh did I want him to! I started consistently spending time with God again. Every day, praying to him and reading the bible. How could I forget how key that was to a life with him? Somehow, amidst the kids and busyness I did forget. But he did not forget me.

And once again, I was back in his arms loving him, loving his words to me, wanting to know him more, and wanting to give him all of me. So, he started to change me. Slowly and surely, And Oh I am still such a mess needing to be changed everyday. But he’s doing it. He’s using people, books, experiences, our church and more to change me. One thing that really knocked me off my butt was when I picked up a book last year written by Jennie Allen called “Restless.” I can’t explain what that book did to me. What it did FOR me and IN me.

Jennie Allen has a rare passion for God, a deep thirst for him that is contagious. I caught it. I’m so glad I did! And then I read her book “Anything.” After reading that book, I was ready to give up ANYTHING for him. I realized so many ways I went wrong in the past. I wanted things my way. I didn’t put everything on the table for him to do anything he wanted with me. I wanted him to do things my way. And that kept me from him. So, I put it all out there. I prayed the scary prayer that caused more amazing change in my life. “God, take everything. Everything is yours. Do anything you want. If it means me being closer to you, then do anything! I’ll give up anything. I’ll take in anything. I’ll go anywhere.”

I once again realized, how important it was to put my relationship with God first. So after growing so much by the challenges and the reminders of God’s promises and faithfulness given by Jennie Allen in her books, in February of 2014 I saw that she was putting on a conference called If Gathering. I downloaded it from my phone a week after it took place. Speakers upon speakers spoke to my heart. Challenged my core. Gave powerful words straight from God's word. He was there that weekend. I could hear him and feel him as I folded laundry listening to the speaking sessions on my phone. It took me two weeks of laundry folding time to get through all the sessions. Tears rolling down my cheeks as I folded towels and hung shirts. God is so good. God is working in this generation. And has so much in store for us.

Now a year later, the second IF Gathering is taking place in less than a month. God will be there again. God will speak through women and to women to change hearts and change lives. And this year, I am not going to listen to it by myself on my phone. This year our Church, Gateway in Visalia, will be hosting this weekend simulcasted live. We are praying for women from all over the central valley to come and gather together for this event. I am praying for every woman I call friend within an hour radius to be there.  And the reason is this. I think that as I felt alone for so long, many other women feel the same way. I also think it is common to get distracted with the stresses of life and not put God entirely first. Not lay down everything and anything for him. And when we don’t lay down everything we can’t hear everything and see everything that he has for us.

Now that I see God in such a clearer way, I want to grab people and say come over here!!! It is so much better!!! To walk with God daily. To get in his word every day. To hear from him everyday. To grow closer with him every day. Not just a Sunday-sit-in-the-pew-christian. But come run a race passionately and completely chasing after him. It’s so much better than a mediocre convenient type of faith. Knowing God has no comparison to anything else. It is life to the fullest. Even when it is extremely hard. Even when things go wrong, family gets sick, and relationships struggle, having the hope of God that only comes from knowing him intimately, is amazing and worth more than anything.

So, all of this to say: A pivotal part of my life was brought about by an author, a speaker, a mom, a Jesus follower, named Jennie Allen. She is holding the 2nd ever If:Gathering this February. And I want you to come! Come to Gateway in Visalia for the simulcasted event. Friday February 6th from 6:00 pm-9:00 pm and Saturday the 7th from 9:00 am-4:00 pm. Tickets are $10.00 each or a table of 8 for $60.00. I know it’s not easy to give up a weekend. To find childcare or miss a sporting event your child has is hard to do. But if you want to get to where he wants you to be, ask yourself if you are willing to give anything. IF you are, please come! You will hear from him. You will be changed. It may be a part of your story that you will gladly share with others in the near future. Thanks for listening to my story. I know I’m too wordy. So if you made it to the end, you are awesome! To God be the glory in everything he has done in my life. For bringing me to him over and over again. For not giving up on me. For getting me past some dark days and into his arms. I will never leave those arms again. I will not forget the importance of being in the Bible everyday. It changes me. It brings me to him.  His words, his people, and time with him, is what changes me and brings me closer to him every day. He is so good!

Maybe parts of my story sound like parts of your story. Maybe not. But the truth is, no matter where we have been. No matter where we are right now. God has more for us. So much more!!!! Come see where he wants you, what he wants from you, what he can do in your life. If God is real, then let’s live like it!  Here’s a clip for If:Gathering and a link to get tickets to IF:Local at Gateway in Visalia.

Post by Jennie Allen.

Get your tickets here! If you don't see the link on the page please check back soon!

http://gatewayvisalia.com/

If you want to learn more about If Gathering or want to find a simulcast closer to you, check out their site here: https://ifgathering.com/

Let’s never be satisfied in where we are, but seek to know him more. Then, we will be a light so bright to others around us! They will see Jesus when we are filled with Jesus. Let’s live our lives like God is real! Let’s get a bigger picture of who he is, because he is bigger than we can imagine. Let’s magnify him!

God’s story is beautiful. Your story is beautiful.

As we are in the Christmas season, the story of Jesus’ birth is something many of us are reflecting on, reading about and of course celebrating. His story is so beautiful. 

The king of the universe, coming as a baby. In a stable underneath the night sky,  with animals, humble parents looking at him with love and admiration, the bright star, the singing angels, the awed shepherds, the reverence of the wise men.

Everything about this story is beautiful to us. We love seeing nativity sets and the beautiful image of Jesus’s arrival. 

But when you really think about it, why is this beautiful to us?? The God of the universe was born as a baby. He came out covered in blood and gue and placenta. Um, Yuck.  That is what he was covered in, instead of the rich royal robes of a prince. That would have been beautiful.   Poor Mary did not have her mom or a sister or best friend, coaching her through the pain, telling her its going to be okay. There were no family members anxiously waiting outside to see and hold the new baby. I hate the smell of stinky animals and their poop. Can you imagine being stuck in a small area with that stench? Why is this story and the image of the nativity so beautiful to us, when I really think about it, it sounds kind of dreadful?

It’s beautiful to us, Because we know the outcome. We know what came from that night. 

We know that over the next 33 years, that baby grew and became strong and wise. We know that he walked the earth and he healed people, and performed miracles and showed unimaginable love to people around him. We know that he sacrificed his life for us. Died a death only explained by crazy, limitless love. And he victorious conquered death and is still alive today. That WHOLE story is what makes the story of Jesus’ birth so beautiful to us. Sometimes, I look at my story, and all I see is mess. I see mistakes. I see “what if’s” and Why’s? There are some things that seem so unfair to me and I don’t want it to be part of my story. But this Christmas as I continue to reflect on the beauty of Jesus’s birth, I have heard God clearly speaking to me. 

Leslie, I am the writer of your story! There is beauty in it. There is beauty in the process, there is beauty in the outcome. And when you later look back you will then see the beauty in the mess and the stink that you see now. So don’t dread the mess! Stop asking why and wanting a different story. This is the story I wrote for you and I am the best story teller there is. Writing stories that you could never even dream up. Trust me. This is what I love  to do. I love to create beauty from ashes. You are seeking me and you have given me your heart, so you can trust that I will write your story in a beautiful and incredible way.  

This is what I hear him telling me. What do you hear him telling you? Are you seeking him? Are you in his word daily. Do you know him and walk with him every day? If so,then trust him with the things that don’t make sense and don’t seem fair. Trust him with the things that you want so desperately to be different in your life. You are his child and he is creating a beautiful story for you.  He has a reason and it is beyond us. If your answer was no to any of those questions, I encourage you to start now! Only God can create beauty from a stinky stable. Only God can help us out of our mess.

There are two different kinds of messes that I see in my life. The first type are messes  that I need to walk away from. A mess that is holding me back from the abundant life he wants to give me and keeping me from full joy in him. Girlfriends, walk away from these messes!!!! They may not be bad in themselves, but may have effects in your life that hold off all that God has to offer. It could be a friend that gossips your ear off and her negativity rubs off on you. Walk away! It could be a sport your child is in that keeps you too busy to regularly attend church or a bible study, or causes continuous stress on your child or family. Walk away! You can come up with reasons to stay. Such as you want to be a light to your friend and help her see Jesus. Or your child loves the sport and you want them to learn perseverance through difficulties. If it’s having negative results on your relationship with God,  maybe it’s not from God. Maybe you don’t see the negative results. I encourage you to look deeply. Put your relationship with God, and your family’s relationship with God before all else. It might be scary to walk away from something. But I encourage you to trust him. Trust that he will create beauty for you who choose him over something else.

Something that God has put on my heart is to continually evaluate my life to see if there are things I need to get rid of. I’m reminded that this life is so short and really, I am more fulfilled when I am invested in what has eternal value. God calls us to take a magnifying glass not only to him to see him more clearly, but to our lives as well. I encourage you to examine your life. Where you spend your time, what stresses you out. what might be holding you or anyone in your family farther away than the most abundant relationship with Christ you can imagine. Because that’s where he wants us. Closer to him and more in love with him and in line with him than we can even imagine. So, let;s consistently take up our magnifying glass, examine our lives and search for the messes that we need to walk away from.

The second type of mess that I see in my life is in areas that God has entrusted me with and it’s obvious that these things are not to be walked away from. We do not walk away from Biblical commitments such as Marriage, family, responsibilities, contracts. Those are areas of life that WILL get messy. And it’s okay to fall on your knees sometimes and call out to God “Why? What if? It’s not fair.” I have had these moments. And with full trust that God can make things better at a snap of his finger, I question why he doesn’t.

But I see my answer in the story of Jesus. There WILL BE beauty. 

There is beauty in the process. 

There is beauty in the hearts that are called to him through the process.

And there will be beauty in the outcome. 

Seek him, walk with him, know him, and the beauty will come. We can not skip the story that is leading up to great beauty. Trust that God is working through everything.  All that’s happening is happening to make miracles. God comes through mangers. The resurrection and fulfilled promises is what makes that manger so extremely beautiful.

The outcome of your messes, your stinky stables- will cause you to look back at the manger, and the process in between and see great incredible beauty in it.

You may not see it now, but have hope that it is there. Keep your eyes on him and watch for him and his gifts. How I desperately want him to snap his fingers and instantly fix the struggles and hard parts of my life. But that’s not what God does most of the time. He definitely has the power to. He didn’t send Jesus to Earth as a grown man that would go directly to the cross to take our sacrifice and then resurrect three days later. He started at the beginning. There was a process. A process of Jesus learning how to walk, being weaned from his mother, learning work from his father, starting a ministry and experiencing persecution and even his own family doubting him. It was a process that was far from the perfect bliss he deserved to be experiencing on his throne in heaven. But God loves the process and he loves to work in it. And that’s how he made this world. So trust, and wait, and walk with him, seek him, call out to him, look for him and the work he is doing. Keep your eyes on him and know that there will be beauty because God is not going to leave us in a stinky stable!

“Joys are always on their way to us. The are always travelling to us through the darkness of the night. There is never a night when they are not coming.” -Amy Carmichael.

That is the beauty of the Wise Men in his story. The gifts are always coming. God is preparing them. God is sending them.

“The miracle of gifts...is never not coming. When your Father’s hand isn't readily apparent, it’s only because he's readying gifts. Gifts always come out of the unseen and hidden places.” Ann Voskamp

So, that thing that has you wondering why, wishing God would hurry up and answer your prayers, wondering why he doesn’t... know that he’s there. He is working. He is creating beauty. It will be a beautiful story...someday. The less than ideal beginning, the longer than expected process, the poop, the persecution, it will all beyond beautiful and point to the amazing love of God when he finally shows the full outcome. So keep your hope in him and have confidence that he is there. God is with us. Look for the beauty and the small gifts to help strengthen your hope in the outcome. The shepherds awe, the wise men’s journey, the bright star, they are beauty that God placed in his story. Showing us that he’s there, he’s working. Cling to glimpses of hope and beauty that God shows you as your story unfolds. Walk with him, lean on him and trust him as he works in the process of your life, whether you see him or not. He is there. He is the writer of your story. And one day, it will ALL be beautiful.

Ecclesiastes 3:11

God has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.

I want to encourage you to take some time today to reflect on the beauty of the the story of Jesus’s birth. You can start by reading Luke 2:1-20. I used to wait until Christmas Eve to read the story and reflect on it. Now I see the importance of not waiting until Christmas Eve or morning to spend time reflecting on the miracle of Christmas. By spending time in the weeks leading up to Christmas focusing on his amazing story Christmas has become so much more meaningful and special to me. I am brought so much closer to the baby in the manger, the God of the universe, the Lord in my heart, the savior of the world. It helps me to truly treasure him as the greatest gift. To not just know it in my head, but to feel it in my heart and soul and be overwhelmed by the greatness of his gift. So I encourage you to spend these next few weeks before Christmas adoring and worshiping the Savior of the world. As you reflect on the beauty of his story, be reminded that there is beauty in your story! The story that he has written for you, the story that points to him.

One Devotional that I am reading during this advent season is on SheReadsTruth.com
 Each morning, there is a new scripture reading and devotional posted on the site that focuses on the gift of Jesus. You can find this great devotional here:
Come Let us Adore Him

Lastly, I wanted to share this song with you.  “The Night Before Christmas” By Brandon Heath. God’s beautiful story is sung in this song, and moves in our hearts! If you take a few minutes to listen, your heart will be grateful!

Okay, actually one last thing I wanted to share. Here is a playlist of Christmas songs on Spotify. This music does so much for my soul as I prepare my heart for Christmas and take joy in the gift of Jesus!

Luke 2:19b-20a

 Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen

Like Mary, let's treasure and ponder God's story in our hearts. Like the shepherds, let's hear and see the truth from God. Let's dive into his word. If we do this, if we see him and hear him, praise will flow out of us.  And HE WILL be magnified. - He'll be made bigger, greater, and seen more clearly. I pray that each of us will magnify HIM this Christmas season!