Letters to my Fourteen Year Old Self

The Lord is like a father to His children, tender and compassionate to those who fear Him. —Psalm 103:13

Dear sweet girl,


Be grateful.


Love, Me


As a teen you haven’t experienced God speaking to you personally yet —but later, when you stop hearing Him, you’ll feel the loss deep in your gut. As an adult, you’ll stare at the occasional lines printed in red in in your Bible and fight an internal war. Apart of you has always believed, has always yearned for the balm that those words might bring. Something drew you to these words long before you knew why, but eventually the time will come when you begrudge every spark of hope you felt reading God’s promises because now you know that there isn’t always a happy ending.

You’ll ache at the memory of the young girl who was so sheltered and naive.

You’re no longer tiptoeing around the shadowy edges of your room, avoiding the squeaky floorboards. Now your tiptoeing around the edges of your faith. Wanting God, but not wanting to be caught wanting Him. Wanting to hold tight to promises that sometimes seem to be false. That in the silence between those creaking floorboards, He whispered into your soul a desire for words that you wouldn’t need for many more years...  What you need now is what you needed then.


But sweet girl? That sheltered place? It still exists. It doesn’t reside in the house your family no longer owns. It’s not to be found only in a church, because even if you don’t always like the words you hear, God still whispers. He still holds you close. And you’ll find that even in the midst of pain, Gods presence is the only balm. When you hurt enough that you’ll finally fumble through the words to ask God to fill your soul, to smooth over the gaping wounds of loss and disappointment and loneliness — well, that’s when He will pick you up in His arms and hold you in the shelter of His heart. And you’ll know that you were never alone. That you were never abandoned. That when you face the crippling sorrow, when you let God back in to feel it with you, you’ll find something new. Reminiscent of the past, and not always easy, but in some way better. Because along the way. You’ll discover that your safe in you our Father’s arms, and that you’re found your way home.


Designed to Pray by Kelly Stanley  


Live an Art Filled Life



Creativity is the God-given ability to take something ordinary 
and make it into something special.
 It is an openness to doing old things in new ways... 
the creative spirit is part of our heritage as children 
to the One who created all things. 
And nurturing our creativity is part of our responsibility 
as stewards of God’s good gifts.
-Emilie Barnes

The Strong Man


In Job 24 the weak and abandoned are preyed upon by the strong.  The scriptures talk of binding the strong man. 

Mark 3:27 - who is powerful enough to enter the house of a strong man like Satan and plunder his goods?  The answer is only some one even stronger - someone who could tie him up and then plunder his house. 

Luke 11:21 says When a strong man fully armed guards his own house, his possessions are safe. But when someone stronger attacks and overpowers him, he takes away the armor in which the man trusted and divides up his plunder. 

The question is Who is stronger - Satan or the authority of God in the Kingdom. We know the answer. Satan is well armed with deceit, pride,and manipulation. Often our God Granted armor is rusted and dented by the work of complacency, self pity, or ignorance. Jesus said whoever is not with Him is against Him. He calls us to be fully armed according to His battle plan and to be ready to be His army. If we let our guard slip, we become less than useful to Jesus in defeating  Satan. We do this all the time. but the good news is that we can always and repeatedly put on the armor of God. It is not a one time action; His weapons are always at the ready to rearm us at any juncture. 

So...rather than complacency, put on vigor and determination.

Rather than self imaginations, put on self identity that God gave you. You are a child of God - A member of His family and have the strength of God behind you. 

Rather than ignorance, put on the knowledge of God and Christ. He is the stronger man in you. Knowledge in this instance means to experience His presence and strength and in you. 

Rather than manipulation and trickery, put on agreement in Christ that He is Lord and we are on His side!  Do all for the fulfillment of the kingdom on earth.  Rebuke the spirits that would manipulate you in Jesus name. Rebuke the strong man. You are stronger. 

TAKE NO PRISONERS!


Message from W.E 11\14\2015

Seek His Presence

No matter what your circumstances may be, you can find joy in God’s presence. Begin by remembering that He created this day, it is not a chance occurrence. Recall that He is with you whether you sense Him or not.  Then start talking with Him about whatever is on your mind. Rejoice in the fact that our God understands you perfectly and He knows exactly what you are experiencing. As you continue to communicate with Him your mood will gradually lighten. Awareness of His peaceful presence can infuse  joy into the grayest of days.


The king shall have joy in Your strength, O Lord; And in Your salvation how greatly shall he rejoice! You have given him his heart’s desire, And have not withheld the request of his lips. Selah For You meet him with the blessings of goodness; You set a crown of pure gold upon his head. He asked life from You, and You gave it to him— Length of days forever and ever. His glory is great in Your salvation; Honor and majesty You have placed upon him. For You have made him most blessed forever; You have made him exceedingly glad with Your presence. For the king trusts in the Lord, And through the mercy of the Most High he shall not be moved.
Psalm 21:1-7 

Study from Jesus Calling Devotion
10/22/2015

Church Notes 02/02/2014



He will give you strength along the way, following His call, (red sea was parted) step out in your faith, trust that God is ahead of you setting the path before you. 
The Miracle comes along the way, not before, when following in obedience. 


"I can do all thing through Christ who gives me strength" 
Philippians 4:13

I will fight for you, you need only to be still. 
Exodus 14:14

God Is With You: What Glorious Relief!

Loneliness is simply feeling as if no one sincerely cares about you or is interested in your life beyond surface interactions. It is assuming that nobody desires to listen to your thoughts or quietly understand what is going on in the recesses of your heart. Loneliness might be identified as believing that even if you did have a friend who knew your whole heart, they probably wouldn’t like it or accept it.

If loneliness is not recognized and lovingly healed, it will certainly be the precursor to depression. And when loneliness and depression join forces in a woman’s life, it can be a lethal combination of poisonous warfare.
Your spiritual enemy has a strategy for how to defeat you. Satan’s goal for your life is to keep you weary and exhausted every single day of your existence. He is wily and beguiling and knows exactly how to magnify the pangs of loneliness in a believer’s life. He can grip a woman’s heart with loneliness when she is also dealing with weariness, exhaustion, and fear.
There is power in God’s Word to fight every negative emotion and to dismantle the schemes and plans of your archenemy. The devil’s subtle whispers shout most loudly when we are alone. Although you may feelalone, you must remind yourself that God promises you are never alone (Hebrews 13:5).
You serve a God who will never leave you alone. You are not forsaken in any situation or at any moment in life. He is with you: what glorious relief! The enemy wants you to believe that you are alone, but according to the greatest book of truth in all of history, you always have Someone by your side.
Whenever your heart tells you that you are all alone and that no one cares about you or your life, you must choose to believe the truth of the Scriptures rather than the instability of your feelings. When it comes to loneliness, you must open your Bible and agree with the Word of God and not with the emotions that threaten to alienate you.
“Don’t love money; be satisfied with what you have. For God has said, “I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.””
‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭13:5‬ ‭NLT‬‬

““The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is?”
‭‭Jeremiah‬ ‭17:9‬ ‭NLT‬‬

“Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.””
‭‭Matthew‬ ‭28:20‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Out Loud

You are a child of the most High God and no weapon formed against you shall prosper. You dwell in the shelter of the most high and He anoints your head with oil. The enemy has no right and no authority over you.

Just speak His Holy name out loud... Jesus.