Noisy Soul

28 Monday Jan 2013

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Sometimes I wish you could walk around inside my head for just a day. Or an hour. That would be long enough for you to get a clear picture of how I live “in my head.”

Unwanted thoughts. Do I look stupid? Surely God is tired of me repeating this same old sin. Does she think I’m a good person? What are they thinking about what I just said? It’s just a matter of time before everyone figures out who I really am…

Pastor Joe called it a “noisy soul.” A man of God, leading a church in Chattanooga, TN and ministering to many. On the outside he looks like he has it all together, but inside he’s battling negative thoughts and feelings. Inner “noise” telling him none of what he says is making a difference. That what he says doesn’t matter. Isn’t relevant. Isn’t even true. All lies. Noise.

After he shared his story at a conference, I approached him with tears streaming down my face. I just wanted to let this brave man of God know he wasn’t alone. And that he had put into words exactly what I was experiencing.

pastorjoeI could not stop crying.

I hate crying in front of people. But I couldn’t stop the tears.

A humble man, he turned toward me and our eyes met. I’m sure I looked a wreck. But he saw beyond the physical and said words I’ll never forget: “do you have a noisy soul, too?” And in that instant, I knew I wasn’t alone. In fact, Pastor Joe said to me, “welcome home.”

Pastor Joe’s solution? Continue to trust God. Resist the enemy of my soul. And tell my friends I trust to ignore the “no trespassing” sign and check on me.

See, I had been pulling away from my friends and telling them I was okay, but was isolating and growing more depressed. Living in my head. In my noisy soul. All alone.

I confessed to my friends who’d gone to the conference with me and I continued to cry. Tears of regret. “Please ignore my no trespassing sign.” They already knew I had that sign up. “We’ve been waiting to be invited in…” Such grace I received that day.

It’s been three months since that conference.

Is my soul still noisy? At times, yes. But thanks to people like Joe and my safe friends, it’s a little quieter.

How about you. Do you have a noisy soul?

Pure Religion

13 Tuesday Nov 2012

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How much is one child worth to you?

What if it meant being insulted, robbed, physically assaulted, and jailed?

How about living in another country for almost a year where you don’t understand the language?

Away from everything familiar?

What if it cost you nearly every dime you had? What if it meant being separated from your family for almost a year?

Would it be worth it?

It certainly was for the de Blecourt family.

A family of three, heard God’s call to adopt a child from Ukraine.

Sounds simple enough, right?

The de Blecourt’s journey was anything but simple. In fact, it just about cost them everything they had. Physically, emotionally and spiritually.

My name is Kimberly de Blecourt. I understand there may be a problem with my passport. A look of disgust flashed through the officer’s eyes. Then he laughed a hollow, wretched laugh. ‘You have been misinformed, Mrs. de Blecourt. There is no problem. He sneered. ‘You are under arrest.’

I love reading true stories. In fact, I’m working on my own book now about my life and God’s redemption. And Kim’s book has encouraged me to be gut-wrenchingly honest. Until We All Come Home is a page-turner. Filled with excitement and sadness. Laughter and tears. Hopelessness and grace.

Kim didn’t just write a book about her adoption journey. She lives out the command found in James 1:27. Author profits from the sale of her book will go to Food for Orphans at www.foodfororphans.org.

Adoption may not be something you can do at this time. Or ever. But there are many other things you can do. One is to buy a copy of Kim’s book. Another is to like, tweet, pin, etc. this post and share with others.

The de Blecourt’s journey is in many ways a spiritual picture of the lengths God goes to in order to save us and adopt us as his own.

I’ve had the distinct privilege of being on Kim de Blecourt’s book launch team for Until We All Come Home. I’m so smitten with this book that I’m giving away a free copy of Kim’s book (Thanks Kim!). To be eligible for the giveaway, leave a comment below. I will announce the winner this Friday. Tune back in to see if you are the winner!

To what length are you willing to go to fulfill God’s command to care for the orphans and widows? 

Learning Who We Are (Awesome Guest Post by Sundi Jo)

05 Monday Nov 2012

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Hello friends, Please help me welcome my sweet friend Sundi Jo. I hope you’ll check out her new ebook, Liar Liar which is free right now. To get your free copy click here.

I love this quote from Ghandi,

Men often become what they believe themselves to be. If I believe I cannot do something, it makes me incapable of doing it. But when I believe I can, then I acquire the ability to do it even if I didn’t have it in the beginning.

There’s so much wisdom built into that statement.

I want to introduce you to words that can change your life, if you allow them to.

Right now you may know yourself solely based on what others have said about you or what you’ve said about yourself. But the buck stops here.

It’s time to believe the truth. 

On July 31, 2006 my life was interrupted. I’d heard about this guy named Jesus. People were telling me that he loved me. He died for me. He wanted a relationship with me.

I said my prayers every night since I was a little girl. We’re taught that right? Now I lay me down to sleep… I pray the Lord my soul to keep. I didn’t have a clue what that meant. My assumption was that was my ticket to Heaven. I prayed. I asked God for help when I needed things. I was in.

I was wrong.

Turns out this Jesus is more important than I had realized. He is the ticket. If you don’t know Him, Heaven ain’t happening for you. (That’s my sophisticated redneck accent coming out)

I started watching this overweight Indian man named Ted, who happened to be the Worship pastor of a church I was checking out. He had grace like I had never seen. He was a man’s man, yet he cried when others cried. He loved others in a way I didn’t know existed. If that’s what following Jesus looked like, I wanted it.

I began a relationship with Jesus, but I didn’t really know what that meant. He kept wooing me, with the goal to learn who I actually was in Christ.

It’s time to learn who you are in Christ. It’s time to learn what the Bible says about who you are. These truths will replace the lies you and I have believed too long. I encourage you to speak these truths out loud, as many times as it takes until they sink in.

There were times I stood in front of the bathroom mirror and spoke them out loud. Though I felt like an idiot at the time, it did the trick.

  • I am God’s child – John 1:12
  • I am Christ’s friend – John 15:15
  • I have been bought with a price and I belong to God –1 Corinthians 6:19-20
  • I have been chosen by God and adopted as His child – Ephesians 1:3-8
  • I am free from condemnation – Romans 8:1-2
  • I am a citizen of Heaven – Philippians 3:20
  • I have not been given a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and a sound mind – 2 Timothy 1:7
  • I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me – Philippians 4:13

This is just a tiny bit of the truth God reveals to us about who we really are. For the complete list, visit Freedom in Christ Ministries. 

Though this won’t sink in overnight, I promise, if you repeat these truths out loud, you will start to believe what God really says about you.

Those toxic words, thoughts, and lies you have believed about yourself will disappear and you’ll experience a sense of freedom you didn’t know existed.

Believe it.

Out of the list above, which belief do you struggle with the most?

 Sundi Jo is a writer, speaker, and small business owner, making her home in Branson, Missouri. She is the author of Liar Liar, a manifesto that will challenge you, change your heart, and lead you in the right direction to believe the truth about your true identity. You’ll find her engulfed in the social media world, spending time with friends and family, hanging out in a pair of jeans and flip-flops, or writing. Find Sundi Jo on Facebook or Twitter (@sundijo).

To find out more about Liar Liar click here.

“AYDI Gospel”

28 Sunday Oct 2012

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I’m in a small group at my church. We are focusing solely on the gospel. I’m also a part of Mary DeMuth’s book launch team for her latest book Everything: What you give and what you gain to become like Jesus. I love what Mary says about the gospel:

The gospel isn’t a life management program. It shouldn’t merely be a crutch we fall on when life gets ugly. It should be the legs we walk on, the air we breathe.

I’m guilty of it. Maybe you are too. I want so desperately for people to “get it” that I end up sounding a bit like a television infomercial:

  • Pray this prayer and your life will never be the same!
  • Jesus wants to change your marriage, kids, & finances!
  • Jesus can heal your body, mind & soul!

As Mary reminds us, these things are true to some extent, but they are “wholly incomplete.” She goes on to say “we don’t preach (or live) the whole gospel. Instead we live the AYDI gospel. The All You Do Is gospel.”

We try and convince people that all they have to do is...

Say the sinner’s prayer.

Go to church.

Join a bible study.

Serve.

Pray.

Tithe.

Go on a mission trip.

Share the Good News with others…

Until at long last we tell them “all you do is die to your own desires and embrace Jesus’ lordship.” Which is actually where they need to start.

Mary calls this the watered down gospel. And this gospel isn’t the gospel of Jesus. It is exhausting. And we teach people they can achieve holiness progressively by following a series of steps and activities.

As Western Christians, we tend to think linearly, but the gospel is more circular, all-encompassing.

The answer to the All You Do Is Gospel?

It should be the All Your Life Is The Gospel.

Otherwise we create confusion and downright falsehood if we make the gospel about improving our lives for the sake of our own selves. What will the newly converted Christian think if all of a sudden the prosperity gospel turns out to be a lie? What will they do when reality hits and their spouse isn’t healed from cancer? Or their child dies even though they prayed their hearts out? Or they don’t get the job they’ve waited their whole lives for?

The gospel has to be about more than all you do is. It must be about, as Mary reminds us, all your life is the gospel.

How would your life be different if you believed Jesus was your EVERYTHING? Would you share the all your life is the gospel?

Jesus offers us the Everything life. Have you responded?

To purchase a copy of Everything from Amazon click here. To purchase from Barnes & Noble, click here.

To receive Everything freebies, click here.

To follow Mary’s blog tour click here.

Who is HE to YOU?

16 Tuesday Oct 2012

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Recently, Mary DeMuth’s latest book entitled Everything: What you give and what you gain to become like Jesus released. To purchase the book click here.

As part of her book launch team, I am thrilled to tell you this book is phenomenal. Mary is the real deal. She’s humble and smart and honest. She’s not just talking about Jesus being her Everything from a detached viewpoint. She’s living it.

Over and over again her faith was tested. And over and over again she’s surrendered. For many years she followed hard after God in service to him. Out of the comfort zone of “home”, she wrestled with God.

While living with her husband and children in France, on the mission field, her home in the U.S. was taken away by a con-man. Her children were mercilessly teased. By teachers. In France. Nothing was working out.

Nothing significant in the kingdom of God happens unless death occurs.

In her book Everything, Mary talks about how we are more like Jesus when we suffer.

C.S. Lewis reminds us that “pain is God’s megaphone to rouse a deaf world.” And it’s true. Isn’t it?

I grow more in Christ-likeness through suffering than I do through a life controlled by my self sufficiency. When things are going well, I don’t seem to need God as much. Pain reminds me of my dependency.

I’ve seen Mary’s faith firsthand this week. Her precious 14-year-old daughter Julia has been in the hospital with frightening symptoms and no clear diagnosis. Mary has faithfully reached out to her friends and family and asked for prayer. She didn’t hide the fear. She voiced it. Named it. Claimed Jesus as Her Everything. Even when things looked dark.

All of this just a few short days before Everything launched. Coincidence? I think not. There is a real enemy of our souls who will stop at nothing short of obliterating our hope. Make us doubt God’s goodness. Turn our backs on Him.

I don’t know where you are today on your spiritual journey. Maybe you don’t know either. That’s okay. There is ONE who does know. Knows the very hairs on your head. Knit you together in your mother’s womb. Knows every breath you’ll ever take. Collects ever tear in HIS bottle.

Why wrestle alone? Why not begin letting God be your Everything?

Jesus became my Everything 10 years ago. When I was at my lowest point, He reached out and snatched me from Satan’s hand. I was an atheist. Living in a homosexual relationship. Had burned through 3 marriages and was in deep shame about my former life as a stripper and prostitute. I was on my kitchen floor planning my suicide.

When I met Jesus face to face he took away my shame and welcomed me at his table. He washed me and I was clean. Whiter than snow..

He can do the same for you.

Will you let HIM?

**Here’s your chance to win a FREE Kitchen Aid Stand Up Mixer the color of the Everything Book! See instructions below!! Hurry contest ends October 31st!

 

 

I’d love to hear your thoughts. Please consider leaving a comment. I respond personally to all comments.

Thanks for stopping by~

Hurry Up!

12 Friday Oct 2012

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Hey peeps! It’s Friday. Yea boy! Time to join Lisa-Jo Baker and all the peeps writing blog posts for #FMF (five-minute-friday). Today’s word: Race.

Go!

It seems like I’m always busy. Running here and there. This meeting, that one. Talk to her. Help her. Listen to them. Always on the go.

I love every minute of it. But sometimes I feel like it’s a race. A race to see who can get the most done in a day yes that’s me.

My mom used to say, “honey, you need to learn how to relax.” Relax? I am ADD. We don’t relax. We race until we are all wound down and then we crash.

In this fast-paced world in which we live, isn’t the only option to be in a hurry? Microwave ovens. Drive-thru dining. Fast-tracks. Hurry up. Let’s go. But where are we all going?

Stop.

If you are interested in finding out more about FMF’s, click here.

Do You Need To Journey?

06 Saturday Oct 2012

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We all follow something. Or someone.

Let’s face it. Our world offers lots of distractions. Some of them are even good things. Like jobs. Friends. Family. Children. Christian activities.

When Jesus told his disciples to Follow Me he asked them to abandon everything familiar and travel on a physical as well as spiritual journey.

I’ve had the privilege of being part of Seth Barnes’ book launch team for Kingdom Journeys: Rediscovering the Lost Spiritual Discipline. And I’ll tell you, it’s not for the faint of heart. Or the comfortable Christian. If there is such a thing.

Kingdom Journeys is a book about surrendering all to God. It’s about leaving. Leaving the comfort of your home and becoming broken by the brokenness of the world. As Seth shares, “If I hadn’t abandoned the comforts of home, I would not have experienced the challenges that enabled me to discover new truths about God, his world, and myself…without the physical adversity and pain of a physical journey, I would have missed important lessons along the way.” For Seth it took a physical journey to complete a spiritual one.

Isn’t that essentially what Jesus did? He gathered his team and led them on a physical journey around Judea for several years and even commissioned them to lead their own journeys without him.

According to Seth Barnes, “God gave us this concept of sacred, intentional travel as a means of finding our way back.” We need to find our way back because we often get lost in this world with all its trappings.

As Christians, we are somewhat used to the upside-down principle. The least will become the greatest. The first will be last. If you want to be like Jesus you must die to live. And so on. After reading Kingdom Journeys, I understand the message better: “In the end, the leaving is the finding.”

As Christ followers, we are called to make disciples. “God doesn’t ask us to innovate, but to imitate.” Seth goes on to say, “disciples are not born, they are developed; through a holy partnership between God and the teachers he provides.” Our world is asleep. And as Seth points out, “if we are to awaken a generation, discipleship is key.”

Kingdom Journeys reminds us that to go deep with people, you need to physically be with them. Which brings us back to the focus of this post: We can’t be fully transformed in our own backyard. We need to journey.

Seth talks about the need to journey for longer than a short-term mission trip. Those, he says, can be more like “spiritual vacations than Jesus-centered kingdom journeys.” A good reminder that we need to abandon the comfort of our culture and enter the places where the poor, broken and lost are. Unable to rely on comfort, our dependence upon God helps shape us into our true selves.

Kingdom Journeys was downloaded over 22,000 times last week which made it  number one on Kindle in the Christianity & Evangelism section. If you’re considering buying Kingdom Journeys (which I highly recommend-unless you are satisfied with the status quo), you can purchase it here. And as an extra bonus, Seth is giving away over $80 worth of bonus books including discussion questions for Kingdom Journeys as well as many other books he has written. But hurry, the special promotion ends October 13th!

For more information about Seth Barnes check out his site here.

Sex Trafficking Needs To Stop

02 Tuesday Oct 2012

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My friend Sundi Jo is doing something about sex trafficking. In Moldolva. God has orchestrated a series of events so that she and a team of missionaries will go for 9 days to give hope to the outcast, downtrodden, hopeless. To the modern day lepers.

Imagine being forced to do sexual acts. Over and over again.

As a former prostitute held against my will for far too long, this trip is personal. Not just for the girls she’s going to help. But for me.

25 years ago when I was trapped, I couldn’t do anything. But today I’m free. And I can help. I can pray. I can spread the word to others so they can pray. I can help financially. Even if it is only a small amount. Remember the two loaves and the fish? The young man was willing to share. And Jesus turned it into enough for thousands. With baskets left over.

What are you willing to do?

For more information please click here.

I’m a Believer (Guest Post Tammy Bolt Werthem)

01 Monday Oct 2012

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Please help me welcome my new friend Tammy!

I’m a Believer

One of the most poisonous of all Satan’s whispers is simply, “Things will never change.” That lie kills expectation, trapping our heart forever in the present. To keep desire alive and flourishing, we must renew our vision for what lies ahead.

― John Eldredge, The Sacred Romance: Drawing Closer to the Heart of God

I used to be so insecure.  I sought my worth and value in fleeting things.  My addiction to drugs and alcohol ruled me and I lacked healthy relationships.

I bought into the lie from Satan that I was stuck in this mess and I would never be free!  I was living out of my woundedness.

Complete healing came when I fully surrendered and started really BELIEVING.

John 8:32 “Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

Learning my identity in Christ has been fundamental in experiencing victorious and abundant life.  The foundation of all truth is the word of God.

The Bible is God’s love letter to humanity.  He assures me in His word that my life is secure in my relationship with Him.  He reminds me of who I am.

I am my beloved’s and He is mine.  His banner over me is love!

He instructs me on how to live and love. His word is a lamp to guide me.  His word comforts me and assures me that He is my refuge and strength in times of trouble.

Two books that were helpful in shaping my identity in Christ were The Sacred Romance and Captivating.

John and Stasi Eldredge are a dynamic couple who teach about the romance and adventure of God. Their books have compatible workbooks and are most useful when shared in a small group.

You can learn more about their ministry here: http://www.ransomedheart.com/

I had the privilege of reading both books and discussing the workbooks in a small group when I got sober. These books were transformational in my life. Captivating led me to a place where I believed that I deserved to have God’s very best in finding a husband.

God is essential. He wants us to need him-desperately. Eve is essential. She has an irreplaceable role to play. And so you’ll see that women are endowed with fierce devotion, an ability to suffer great hardships, a vision to make the world a better place”
― Staci Eldredge, Captivating: Unveiling the Mystery of a Woman’s Soul

We desire to possess a beauty that is worth pursuing, worth fighting for, a beauty that is core to who we truly are. We want beauty that can be seen; beauty that can be felt; beauty that affects others; a beauty all our own to unveil.”
― Staci Eldredge, Captivating: Unveiling the Mystery of a Woman’s Soul

Awakened souls are often disappointed, but our disappointment can lead us onward, actually increasing our desire and lifting it toward its true passion.

― John Eldredge, The Sacred Romance: Drawing Closer to the Heart of God

Now that I know the truth and walk in it, there is evidence in my life and my relationships.  I have inner peace and confidence that can only be attributed to my redeeming Savior.

I have healthy relationships which include friends and family who tell me the truth and challenge me to dig deeper in my walk with Christ.

I have the privilege of raising children to love the Lord.  I am blessed to be partnered with a husband who leads and loves me like Jesus.

We are surrounded and supported by a community of believers who spur us on to bigger dreams and greater awakenings.

Life is great – beyond my wildest dreams!

Tammy Werthem is a work at home mom to two boys.  She lives with her husband, Jacob in south Florida.  They are native Floridians who met at church, while getting sober. They live their lives to lead others into the “abundant life” promised to all who believe.

Tammy is a life coach at http://everydaylifeline.com/ and a blogger at http://iwokeupyesterday.com/.

Tammy is writing her first book with her twin sister called “Inseparable”.  This is the story of their lives as identical twins; one who struggled with addiction to drugs and alcohol and the other who tried to save her.

His Grasp

28 Friday Sep 2012

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It’s Friday! Woot woot! It’s time for five-minute-friday (#FMF) where we write for five minutes and today’s topic is Grasp. To find out more about five-minute-friday, click here.

Go!

I’m running. In fields of wildflowers. Yellow flowers tall like grass. Warm sunshine on my face. My hair is blowing in the wind. I see him. His shape. His robe. Beard. He’s smiling. I run as hard as I can and jump into his arms and his grasp is gentle yet firm. He spins me round’ and round’. Me and My Jesus. Spinning and spinning. Giggles and laughs. In fields of wildflowers.

He whispers into my ear, “I love you Leigh. I made you to love me. And I’m proud of you.” Tears slip from the corners of my eyes. Happy tears. He’s not mad at me. For all the things I’ve done wrong. Not mad at me for all the bad things I’ve thought and said.

We laugh and he spins me and tears flow like rivers. Healing me. From the inside out. He never loosens his grasp. Never grows tired of me. He loves me. He loves me.

Stop.

#FMF

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