tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22029064160799882922024-02-02T00:09:48.636-08:00Elles RockElles Rockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392834836342258481noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2202906416079988292.post-12273523418543890002015-06-12T12:24:00.003-07:002015-06-12T14:45:54.637-07:00FINDING YOURSELF IN THE ALL THE WRONG PLACES<div class="MsoNormal">
I am a goal-oriented human being. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I set goals constantly. Do I always meet them? Absolutely
not. But that does not keep me from setting them.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I’m not talking New Years resolutions here. I have a friend
who is huge on New Years resolutions. She called me at the beginning of the
year and asked what my resolutions were. “I don’t have any,” I replied. She was
dumbfounded. I continued, “I set three new goals last week and I’m still
working on those. Why would I give myself a whole set of resolutions for an entire
year when I’m still working on my goals from last week? When I meet those goals
(or don’t), I’ll set new ones.” (Nothing against New Years resolutions, I just
know me, and I know that if I don’t have immediate goals in front of me then I
won’t get a thing accomplished.)<o:p></o:p></div>
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Being a goal-oriented human being, I set some for this
summer:<o:p></o:p></div>
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-Read one book per week (still working on this one…I have
been reading, but not one per week quite yet)<o:p></o:p></div>
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-Go another twelve weeks on my exercise program (just
finished my first twelve weeks (ACCOMPLISHED GOAL FROM MY LAST SET OF GOALS
(**go me!!!**)))<o:p></o:p></div>
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-Blog once a week (welllll this is the fifth week of the
summer and the first blog I’ve actually written so you can see how well that
one is going…hey! I’m trying over here!)</div>
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Because I am goal-oriented, I automatically expect the
people around me to be as well, so it’s no surprise that when I had a sleepover
with a friend a couple weeks ago I rolled over in my three a.m. delirium and
asked “So what are your goals for the summer?”<o:p></o:p></div>
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And here is where we get to the point of this whole thing!
Stick with me!<o:p></o:p></div>
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She thought for a second about the question (I could tell
she was about to make up her goal right there on the spot) and then the light
bulb came on and she replied, “My goal is to really focus on finding out who I
am.”<o:p></o:p></div>
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A noble goal. A huge one to take on at twenty-one years old.
Heck, there are ninety-one year olds who don’t know who they truly are (but not
for the reasons you might think. We’re getting to that.)<o:p></o:p></div>
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Everyone in our culture wants to find themselves. Students
take a year off school to “find themselves.” Middle-aged adults pick up new
hobbies to “find themselves.” People travel. People take up yoga. People start
cooking. People make new friends. People try out different religions. People go
back to school. People start new careers. All in the name of “finding
themselves” or “finding out who they are.” <o:p></o:p></div>
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Do not get me wrong. There is nothing in the world wrong
with wanting to find out who you are. You are an amazing human being. You have
a purpose. There is a reason you are on this planet…BUT, if you are trying to
find yourself in anything other than Jesus, you will never find who you truly
are. <o:p></o:p></div>
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You want to find out who you are? Look for Jesus. The Bible
told us at the very beginning who you are:<o:p></o:p></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">So God created human
beings in his own image. In the image of God he created them; male and female
he created them. –Genesis 1:27<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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In our original form, we were created in the image of God.
At our very cores, who we really are is a reflection of who He is! Let’s
continue.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Wanting to find something implies that what you are looking
for is lost or hidden. You want to find yourself? The Bible tells you exactly
where you are:<o:p></o:p></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #010f18; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">For you died to this life, and
your real life is hidden with Christ in God. -Colossians 3:3<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
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<span style="color: #010f18; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Even
the bible tells us that our lives are “hidden,” but it tells us exactly where
they are hidden. WITH JESUS. We seek Jesus, we find ourselves. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #010f18; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">Friends,
God wants us to find ourselves, but first and foremost he wants us to find
Jesus. That’s why he hid our lives with Jesus in the first place!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #010f18; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">The
enemy wants to distort the things that God has for us. The enemy knows that
when we find our God-given purpose in life that he stands no chance. It’s the
enemy who tells us that we can “find ourselves” in a new hobby, in visiting a
new place, in marrying a new spouse, in having another kid, in changing our
major, in fill-in-the-blank-with-anything-that-seems-edifying-but-distracts-us-from-Jesus.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #010f18; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">So
many people will make it to the end of their lives having never found
themselves, not because they didn’t seek whom they were, but because they never
sought Jesus. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: #010f18; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">My
pastor said it best a few weeks ago. “You will never fully know yourself until
you know God.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: #010f18; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial;">I’m
setting a new goal, friends. I am going to find myself…only in Jesus.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
Elles Rockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392834836342258481noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2202906416079988292.post-64499522860624143782014-08-06T19:22:00.001-07:002015-06-12T12:25:11.716-07:00COUNTERFEIT CHRISTIANITY<div style="color: #0a0a4b; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 11px;">
<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Bear with me here. Blogging is where I go when the Lord has given me a word, but I do not necessarily have a platform to scream it from the rooftops yet. This blog is my platform right now, and so I will just have to type it from the rooftops.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">For the last nine months the Lord has been taking me through a process of learning about truth vs. counterfeit, honesty vs. deception, God vs. the enemy. Growing up in the Christian faith, I learned about the two paths one can travel. There’s the wide path and there is the narrow path. Matthew 7:13 puts it this way: <i>"You can enter God's Kingdom only through the narrow gate. The highway to hell is broad, and its gate is wide for the many who choose that way.” </i>(NLT) Robert Frost would go as far to refer to the narrow road as “the one less traveled by.” </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Now, if we were to assign these two options colors, tradition would tell us that the wise decision, the one Jesus would want us to make, would be white, and the other decision, the one the devil hopes we choose, would be black. This is a simple concept that I’ve been taught my entire life, but about nine months ago the Lord brought me new revelation about such decisions. For mature christians, white vs. black is too easy. For people who really desire to make wise, Christ-honoring decisions, white vs. black is cake. White is obviously the right decision. Here’s the catch: the enemy’s option is rarely black. Most of the decisions that we make as christians are not white vs. black, but white vs. eggshell white. The enemy offers the counterfeit of what God offers. He offers something so close to the real thing that you have to put the two up to the Light to strain to see. The enemy offers a knockoff of what God offers and in the process he steals our authority. </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">So the question is this—how can we tell the difference between the Truth and the counterfeit? Simple. Study the Truth so diligently that when the enemy offers the counterfeit we can easily tell the difference.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Now, I’m about to go on a bit of a rabbit trail, but if you hang with me I promise I’m going to bring it all back together.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">A few weeks ago I had a conversation outside of Starbucks with a spiritual mentor of mine. We began discussing a concept that I knew, but never had the exact words to explain. To put it simply: most Christians fall at one place on a spectrum. On one end of the spectrum are Christians who believe in God the Father as an omniscient, all powerful, Creator-of-the-Universe who sent his Son to die on the cross for the sins of the world. They believe that Jesus died on the cross and rose three days later, and the generally believe everything the Bible says (they definitely claim that they do). The problem is that they ignore most things concerning the Holy Spirit. They either ignore the gifts of the spirit (such as prophecy, words of knowledge, tongues, the interpretation of tongues, etc) altogether or they preach against them. On the other end of the spectrum are Christians who are slain in the Spirit before they make it up the church steps. They believe (or claim to believe) most of the same things about God the Father and Jesus as the people on the opposite end of the spectrum, however, one will hardly ever hear them talking about those foundational truths compared to the time they spend on the Holy Spirit. They tend to be so focused on encounters with the Holy Spirit that biblical principles regulating such church services are often shucked to the side.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">The first end of the spectrum is could be referred to as the “dried up” end of the spectrum because without belief in and experiences with the Holy Spirit (who Jesus left so he could send us!!!!), our lives as Christians are void of the power and authority that is so freely offered to us. The other end of the spectrum could be referred to as the “blown up” end of the spectrum because when experiences aren’t grounded in the Word of God, they are often inflated. Like I said before, most of us Christians can be found at some point on this spectrum. </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Thankfully, in the exact middle of this spectrum a perfect balance can be found. These are the people who believe 100% in the Bible, what it says about the Father, the Son, AND the Holy Spirit. They understand the gifts of the spirit and that they are to be used to build the body of Christ, but they also understand that the use of these gifts is to never be chaotic. These Christians are growing up. They are walking in the full authority they have been given through their sonship/daughtership of the God of the heavens and of the earth. </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">When Jesus walked the earth, he lived in this perfect balance. Let’s take a quick look in the Bible:</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><b>Matthew 4:1-11</b></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><b><i>1 </i></b><i>Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted there by the devil. </i><b><i>2 </i></b><i>For forty days and forty nights he fasted and became very hungry.</i></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><b><i>3 </i></b><i>During that time the devil[a] came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become loaves of bread.”</i></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><b><i>4 </i></b><i>But Jesus told him, “No! The Scriptures say,</i></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><i>‘People do not live by bread alone,<br />
but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’[b]”</i></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><b><i>5 </i></b><i>Then the devil took him to the holy city, Jerusalem, to the highest point of the Temple, </i><b><i>6 </i></b><i>and said, “If you are the Son of God, jump off! For the Scriptures say,</i></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><i>‘He will order his angels to protect you.<br />
And they will hold you up with their hands<br />
so you won’t even hurt your foot on a stone.’[c]”</i></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><b><i>7 </i></b><i>Jesus responded, “The Scriptures also say, ‘You must not test the Lord your God.’[d]”</i></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><b><i>8 </i></b><i>Next the devil took him to the peak of a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. </i><b><i>9 </i></b><i>“I will give it all to you,” he said, “if you will kneel down and worship me.”</i></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><b><i>10 </i></b><i>“Get out of here, Satan,” Jesus told him. “For the Scriptures say,</i></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><i>‘You must worship the Lord your God<br />
and serve only him.’[e]”</i></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><b><i>11 </i></b><i>Then the devil went away, and angels came and took care of Jesus.</i></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">When the devil tempted Jesus, how did Jesus respond each time? With scripture! Jesus was grounded in the Word of God one hundred and fifty percent! He knew his authority and he knew his identity as the Son of God. Now, let’s go back to verse one. Who does it say led Jesus into the desert? The Spirit! Jesus was grounded by the word AND empowered by the spirit, and THAT is how he could stand up to the schemes of the devil!</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">This is where it all gets tied together, so stick with me here. When we as Christians fall anywhere on the spectrum but the middle, we are not walking in our full authority. Instead, we are choosing the devil’s counterfeit: a life living in religious bondage opposed to a life that looks like that of Jesus.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">The enemy came to steal, kill and destroy (John 10:10) and yes, at times, that looks like busting your door down, but more often than not it looks like him slithering in without notice. The enemy is a schemer, he is a snake in the garden that you have no idea is there! Don’t you think he’s going to try his hardest to take you down without you ever realizing you’re falling until you hit the ground? That’s what deceivers do! For Bible believing/obeying christians, the schemes of the enemy will not as often look like being tempted with things that are of the world, (and that’s not to say that Christians are never tempted with things of the world because we absolutely are) rather, they will be sly attempts to keep you from realizing the fullness of the authority you have as a child of the Most High God! Where is that found? In the spiritual things! It is white vs. eggshell rather than white vs. black! When we get caught up at any point on this spectrum other than in perfect balance, then the devil has us ensnared in not only counterfeit christianity, but in the spirit of religion, never realizing our full authority. Living a life of super religious christian activity is the counterfeit of a life walking in the authority that Jesus gives us.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">My God is the same yesterday, today and forever. He is the King of kings, the Lord of lords, the Father to the fatherless and He is a healer! And YES, HE STILL HEALS PEOPLE TODAY. Not only does he still heal people today, but he still does so through his children! Jesus even tells us that we will do greater works than him! (<i>I tell you the truth, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father. </i><b>John 14:12</b>) For goodness sake, Jesus healed the blind, he healed the lame, he rose the dead! He ascended to heaven so that he could send the Spirit to empower us. He had authority on heaven and on earth because he was the son of God, but he also gave us that same authority as sons and daughters of God because we were reconciled to God through his death and resurrection (<i>For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people's sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation.</i> <b>2 Corinthians 5:19</b>)! Let me repeat that, IN CHRIST, WE HAVE THE SAME AUTHORITY AS JESUS, but that authority is useless unless we choose to walk in it.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">My God is also a God of order and peace. He is a not a God of confusion or chaos. (<i>For God is not a God of disorder but of peace, as in all the meetings of God's holy people.</i> <b>1 Corinthians 14:33</b>) As christians, when we ignore the regulations that God has put in place, we rid ourselves of authority because we are disregarding the Word of God, and God is his Word (John 1:1).</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">This is ugly. Christians being deceived by the spiritual things is just as, if not more dangerous than being ensnared in worldly sin. But this is also beautiful, because Jesus died just as much so we would have grace in these situations as the black vs. white. </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">I can very honestly say that I do not live every day from the middle of the spectrum. From the time that I accepted Jesus as my Savior at a young age I was definitely closer to one of the extremes on the end of the spectrum than I was to the middle. Thankfully, Jesus, in his infinite grace, standing in the middle of the spectrum, reaches out his hand and says “Follow me.” He comes over to wherever I am on the spectrum and brings me back to where he is in the middle. Sometimes I see the error in the ways I used to live in and try to overcompensate, running straight past the middle and closer to the other extreme, and even then, Jesus takes my hand and brings me back in, sometimes dragging behind him. That is the fierce grace that Jesus offers.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">What is Jesus’s will? That we would take his hand as he leads us out of our bondage and into the authority that he died and rose to give us. Does he give us the option to remain in our religious bondage? Yes. However, if we choose to remain in our religious bondage, we will never remain in the authority that he desires us to have.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Let’s start seeking the word of God. The COMPLETE word of God. It will not return void and it will never lead us astray (Isaiah 55). Let’s also start tuning our hearts to the Holy Spirit and believing God to be the all-powerful Healer and Miracle Maker we say He is. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #0a0a4b; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 11px; letter-spacing: 0px;">Just like Jesus, when we follow the Spirit’s lead, equipped with the Truth, we will experience our full authority and ensure victory against every single one of the enemy’s schemes. </span><br />
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Elles Rockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392834836342258481noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2202906416079988292.post-62502989600628277752014-03-26T14:08:00.001-07:002015-06-12T12:25:32.397-07:00SHREVEPORT, AUSTRALIA, AND COLLEGE<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 11px;">
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">I will not be attending LSU Baton Rouge in the fall. Instead, I am going to stay in Shreveport and go to LSUS in order to get a degree and save money so I can…wait for it… move to Sydney, Australia and go to Hillsong College!</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">I have wanted to go to LSU Baton Rouge for my entire life. I mean, of course, I was raised in a culture drenched in purple and gold. My grandfather tried to have my first words be the words to the LSU fight song rather than the usual “dada” and “mama.” About two years ago I realized that my life has a very specific call to the ministry, and so I began to look into other options. Long story short, nothing panned out, however, when people would ask me where I plan on attending college, my answer was, “I’m not really sure. Really just wherever the Lord tells me to go.” Senior year got here way faster than I had anticipated. All of a sudden, all my friends were applying to the colleges of their choice, getting accepted, applying for housing, and making plans with future roommates, and there I was: no idea where I was to attend and definitely no plans for anything beyond that. It was decision making time, though! Eventually, I bit the bullet and just decided on my fallback option: LSU (which was not a bad option! In fact, it was quite exciting!).</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Around October, a good friend of mine and I were running errands around town one day and she asked the question. “Elles, I’ve noticed lately that when people ask you where you are going to college you say LSU…”</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">“Yes… and?”</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">“Well, I just thought that LSU was your fallback option.”</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">“Well it is… and I’m falling back. I haven’t received any clear direction about where I am SUPPOSED to be, so I just made a decision.”</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">My friend basically went on to say that is was not a bad thing to start planning and walking down that path, but to continue to seek the will of the Lord so that if He wanted me to change paths at some point in the future that I would hear His voice and be obedient. She also said that she really thought that the Lord was going to bring an option out of the woodwork that I had never heard of or considered, but that it would without a doubt be the place for me.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Fast forward to February and the Lord introduced me to the idea of Hillsong College in Sydney, Australia. I knew absolutely nothing about the college at the time, but through prayer and a couple conversations with close friends, it became apparent that this was an option I really needed to consider. The friend who had originally questioned my declaration about LSU turned to me and said, “Elles, this is the best option we have talked about for you in two years.” Two days after I started praying about it, I knew that I needed to at least talk to my parents and put it up to them whether to consider it or shut it down. I talked to my dad first, (if you do not know, I have been raised by a military man who greatly values structure and has had a specific vision of my future since day one) and it went way better than I anticipated. He then talked to my mom and later in the week the three of us sat down and discussed it. By the beginning of the next week, they asked me to meet with my pastor, meet with their pastor, and create a spreadsheet comparing the cost of LSU/life in Baton Rouge to HILC (Hillsong International Leadership College)/life in Sydney. I met with both pastors that week and both meetings went extremely well. I met nothing but encouragement, prayers, and sound advice. (If anything throughout this process, I have come to appreciate the wisdom of the people of authority in my life more than ever before.) I created the spreadsheet my parents asked for as well. At the end of that week, my parents and I sat down again to discuss what the next step in the process would be. My dad blessed me and paid the application fee for me to apply to HILC. </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">After about another week of prayer, my parents sat me down and let me know they had come to a conclusion concerning my college plans. They said that they appreciate that I am hearing from the Lord as to the direction in which my life is headed, and that they have known for quite some time that I am called to a different life than most. The decision reached is that they will, in fact, allow me to attend Hillsong College and help me pay for it, but there are two conditions. The first condition is that I would stay and get a secular degree first. The second condition is that I come up with (through fundraising, scholarships,and working) $20,000 before I leave for Australia. This left me with pretty much two options: 1) I attend LSU and they help me pay for it, however, they would not be able to help me financially with Hillsong after I graduate. or 2) I attend a less expensive school (LSUS), get as many scholarships as possible, and save save save, and then go to Hillsong after LSUS with the help of my parents.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Now, on my parents part, this was a miracle. The fact that they just gave their oldest daughter the blessing to move to another country thousands of miles away is a sacrifice on their part that I do not take lightly. The only problem was that never in this entire process was my plan to stay in Shreveport. I was either going to end up in Baton Rouge or Australia, but staying in Shreveport never entered my mind, nor had I wanted it to. I have longed for the independence that awaits me in August for too long and then all of a sudden, that independence was no where in sight. Do not get me wrong, I love Shreveport/Bossier. I have said on multiple occasions that I am so thankful that my roots are in the 318 area. I had just always planned to move away at eighteen. The same friend who questioned me on LSU and thought that Hillsong was the best option for me advised me not to make any decisions about my future for about a week. She said to feel every emotion to the highest amount, pray about it, cry about it, and to process the entire process without making any decisions at first. This is exactly what I did. I took the entire week to think, pray and cry about it every day (I didn’t think I was an emotional person prior to this process…boy was I wrong). </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Ultimately, I knew I was working with borrowed time. Graduation is fast approaching and enrollment fees are due within weeks. My dad and I sat down about almost two weeks later (about a week ago now) to talk about the options one more time. Here is the thing: I am confident that this is what the Lord is calling me to. Do I like it right now? Not necessarily. But as I talked to my dad (through tears again. I’m telling you… EMOTIONAL) and said, “Okay then, decision made: LSUS,” the Lord has used every moment since then to align my heart and my desires with His plan. When it comes down to it, I want His plans for me, not my plans for me, and I trust that as I walk in obedience, He will continue to align my desires with His plan.</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Here is the plan: come August, I will move out of my parents house and into an apartment. My goal is to finish LSUS with a marketing degree in three years. Be able to work and save money between May-December of 2017, and then leave for Australia in January of 2018. Hillsong College has 5 different streams of study: Pastoral Leadership, Worship Music, TV & Media, Production, and Dance. I plan to study in the Pastoral Leadership stream with a focus in Social Justice for probably three years. However, if I have learned anything over the past couple months, it’s that plans are always subject to change. </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">Some of most important lessons I have learned throughout this process:</span></div>
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<ul>
<li><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Submission and respect towards your authority, even if you are receiving things that you do not want to hear, is so important.</span><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"> </span><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">I know that in the end, I will be blessed because I chose to respect my parents and submit to their authority and their wisdom throughout this process.</span></li>
</ul>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><i></i></span><br /></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><i>“Children obey your parents because you belong to the Lord, for this is the right thing to do. ‘Honor your father and mother.’ This is the first commandment with a promise: if you honor your father and mother, ‘things will go well for you, and you will have a long life on earth.’” </i></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><i>-Ephesians 6:1-3</i></span></div>
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<li><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Keeping dreams that the Lord has put in your heart protected is vital.</span><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"> </span><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Hillsong is a God-given dream of mine.</span><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"> </span><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">At the same time that the Lord put this dream in my heart, He also gave me the wisdom to keep it protected from everyone except very specific people with spiritual authority in my life.</span><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"> </span><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">If I was to have broadcast this all over the place throughout the process, there would have been too many voices (well meaning voices, rest assured) giving me advice and opinions on this giant life decision, when the only voice I needed to be concerned with hearing was the Lord’s.</span></li>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><i>“My child, listen to what I say,<br />
and treasure my commands.</i></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><i>Tune your ears to wisdom,<br />
and concentrate on understanding.</i></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><i>Cry out for insight,<br />
and ask for understanding.</i></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><i>Search for them as you would for silver;<br />
seek them like hidden treasures.</i></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><i>Then you will understand what it means to fear the Lord,<br />
and you will gain knowledge of God.</i></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><i>For the Lord grants wisdom!<br />
From his mouth come knowledge and understanding.</i></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><i>He grants a treasure of common sense to the honest.<br />
He is a shield to those who walk with integrity.</i></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><i>He guards the paths of the just<br />
and protects those who are faithful to him.”</i></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><i>-Proverbs 2: 1-8</i></span></div>
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<li><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Do not make plans for yourself and then expect the Lord not to change them.</span><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"> </span><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">He already has a plan for you.</span></li>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><i>“For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” -Jeremiah 29:11</i></span></div>
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<li><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Following Jesus is not easy.</span><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"> </span><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Following Jesus requires sacrifice. Does it hurt a little? Absolutely.</span><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"> </span><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Is it worth it? Absolutely.</span></li>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><i>“Then he said to the crowd, “If any of you want to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross daily, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it.” -Luke 9:23-24</i></span></div>
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<li><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">There is often a season of waiting and preparing between one’s anointing and his or her appointing. King David was anointed to be king long before he was ever appointed as king.</span><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"> </span><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">Before he ever fought his Philistine (Goliath), he fought a lion and a bear in his season of waiting and preparation.</span><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"> </span><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">I know I have been anointed for certain things in my life and my education is all a part of the process. Hillsong may be a Goliath in my life, but before I face Goliath I need to take full advantage of my season of waiting and preparation.</span><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"> </span><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">I guess, in my case, LSUS is my lion and bear. </span><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"> </span></li>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><i>Then Samuel said to Jesse, “Are all your sons here?” And he said, “There remains yet the youngest,</i><b><i> </i></b><i>but behold, he is keeping the sheep.” And Samuel said to Jesse, “Send and get him, for we will not sit down till he comes here.” And he sent and brought him in. Now he was ruddy and had beautiful eyes and was handsome. And the Lord said, “Arise, anoint him, for this is he.” Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers. And the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon David from that day forward. And Samuel rose up and went to Ramah. -1 Samuel 16:11-13</i></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><i>“Don’t worry about this Philistine,” David told Saul. “I’ll go fight him!” “Don’t be ridiculous!” Saul replied. “There’s no way you can fight this Philistine and possibly win! You’re only a boy, and he’s been a man of war since his youth.” But David persisted. “I have been taking care of my father’s sheep and goats,” he said. “When a lion or a bear comes to steal a lamb from the flock,</i><b><i> </i></b><i>I go after it with a club and rescue the lamb from its mouth. If the animal turns on me, I catch it by the jaw and club it to death. I have done this to both lions and bears, and I’ll do it to this pagan Philistine, too, for he has defied the armies of the living God! The Lord who rescued me from the claws of the lion and the bear will rescue me from this Philistine!” -1 Samuel 17:32-37</i></span></div>
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<li><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">As my pastor says, where the finger of God points, the hand of God provides.</span><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"> </span><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;">I know the next four years are going to be hard. Between now and the time when I leave for HILC, I still have the $20,000 to raise, but I believe the finger of God has pointed me toward Hillsong, and, therefore, I will cling to the promise that His had will provide the means for me to go. </span><span style="letter-spacing: 0px;"> </span></li>
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<i style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 11px; letter-spacing: 0px;">“And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.” -Romans 8:28</i>Elles Rockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392834836342258481noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2202906416079988292.post-42723684598832528812014-01-15T15:38:00.000-08:002015-06-12T12:25:44.674-07:00BUT JESUS<div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 11px;">
<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>This morning I woke up at 5 AM, made myself a steaming cup of coffee, headed downstairs to let the dog out and promptly sat down to do my morning bible study. For the past couple months I’ve been doing Beth Moore’s James study. Yes, I am aware that this is only a seven week study and I am on week three after two months in, but we’re talking about an hour and a half of homework for this study each time I sit down… there just HAS to be some grace for going at my own pace!</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>As I got started, the passage being focused on for the day was James 1: 22-25. It says:</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><b><i>“But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.” </i></b></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><i><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></i></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><i><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></i>Now I wish I could say that this is what this blog post is centered on because I think this is one of the most important lessons for believers to learn today, however, I will save that blog post for another day. As I wrote this passage in my journal and turned the page, the next instruction was to read Zechariah 3:1-7. Now, although this is a Bible study on James, I was not surprised when instructed to flip to another part of the Bible. One of the things I have appreciated most about this study is the way Mrs. Moore is able to string together completely different passages of the bible to make one point, so I quickly glanced at the table of contents (yes, I admit to not being familiar with where the book Zechariah was *as all the kids who grew up doing bible drill gasp in horror*) and then flipped to Zechariah 3. As I began to read, the story was vaguely familiar and as it continued, I knew the Lord was downloading something in me like never before. This is what I read:</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><b>“<i>Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right hand to accuse him. And the Lord said to Satan, “The Lord rebuke you, O Satan! The Lord who has chosen Jerusalem rebuke you! Is not this a brand plucked from the fire?” Now Joshua was standing before the angel, clothed with filthy garments. And the angel said to those who were standing before him, “Remove the filthy garments from him.” And to him he said, “Behold, I have taken your iniquity away from you, and I will clothe you with pure vestments.” And I said, “Let them put a clean turban on his head.” So they put a clean turban on his head and clothed him with garments. And the angel of the Lord was standing by.</i></b></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><b><i>And the angel of the Lord solemnly assured Joshua, “Thus says the Lord of hosts: If you will walk in my ways and keep my charge, then you shall rule my house and have charge of my courts, and I will give you the right of access among those who are standing here.”</i></b></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;">OKAY. You cannot tell me that this passage didn’t just rock your world, and if you can tell me that, you need to take a minute and go back and read it again. I read this and was absolutely floored. THEN, the next question I read is, “Does anything about Joshua the priest in Zechariah 3 remind you of your own experience?” Wow, what a question. I barely had words to answer at this point. So here they are, raw and straight from the pages of my journal: (There are two things to keep in mind before you read the following paragraph: 1- do not get used to me posting excerpts from my journal online, I do not intend on it being something that happens on a regular basis. 2- keep in mind that this is my journal, Jesus may say things to me differently than he says them to you. This is just a little more modern and put in terms I can identify with.)</span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><i>“E V E R Y T H I N G about Joshua here reminds me of me! Joshua was the high priest, to everyone around him they must have thought he had it all together, but when he came before the Lord, not even Joshua was clean. Satan still had PLENTY to accuse him of!! And yet, the Lord stripped all of his dirt and filthiness away anyway. The Lord rebuked Satan on his behalf! The Lord gave him authority over His house and His courts! Jesus did the same for me! Jesus stripped me of my dirt and filthiness! Jesus looked at the enemy and said, “Screw you, Satan. When it comes to Elles you LOSE.” It is because of Jesus that I am an heir to God’s inheritance. It is because of Jesus that I can approach the throne boldly and with AUTHORITY.”</i></span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>I was obviously worked up, hints the excessive explanation points, but this is something seriously awesome and humbling to be worked up about. Here is the thing, Satan is the accuser. He entices us to sin through our own fleshly desires and as soon as we give in, he is standing there on behalf of us just to point his finger at us. He will stand before the Lord and point out every single stain upon our clothing, as if they already didn’t stand out in contrast to God’s perfect glory. BUT JESUS steps in. He takes our stains upon himself. He gives us pure vestments. He makes us WHITE AS SNOW. He rebukes Satan on our behalf with more authority than Satan ever had to accuse us with. He gives us authority. He trusts us to bring his kingdom to earth. He gives us a right to His inheritance. THIS IS SOMETHING TO BE WORKED UP ABOUT. </span></div>
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<span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>This is not something I deserve. I have messed up. I have paraded around in my filthy garments. I have been a bad steward of the name of Jesus Christ. BUT JESUS has given me grace. BUT JESUS has restored me and made me clean. BUT JESUS will always stand in on my behalf. This is not because of anything I have done, but solely because this is who Jesus is. He is the one who stands in the gap in the middle of the throne room for me while Satan screams my name and my iniquities. He is the one who makes me blameless. </span></div>
Elles Rockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392834836342258481noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2202906416079988292.post-12556136679993929452013-10-23T16:14:00.003-07:002015-06-12T12:25:58.466-07:00iBROKE <span style="font-family: Calibri;">About a week ago, I was getting
some work done in our student center with a friend.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When I asked my friend what he was about to
do, he said that he was about to fix the screen of our associate pastor’s
phone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Marcus’s phone had been shattered
for quite some time, and while the phone was still able to be used, the ability
to see things clearly on the screen was crippled.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When my friend said he was about to fix it, I
immediately said that I wanted to watch (I have always wanted to know how to
take apart and reassemble an iPhone).<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">As we got into the process of
repairing this phone, I began to see that in order to fix that one part of the
phone, the entire phone had to be first deconstructed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Each and every part that went in to form the
iphone had to be taken apart, piece by piece.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Every single tiny screw and vital parts such as the camera and the
computer inside the phone had to be removed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>As I continued to watch my friend take out every individual piece of the
phone, I realized how meticulous he had to be.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Not ONE piece of the phone, not ONE screw could be lost.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It had to be handled with an extreme amount
of care.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>About 30 minutes into the
process, I made a comment to myself, “Gah, this is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">such</i> a process,” and as soon as I said those words, I heard the
Lord ask me a question in my spirit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">He asked, “Don’t
you see that I’m taking you through the same kind of process right now?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">WHAT?!? </i>I was just not expecting a
question like that, but suddenly, things started to make a little more sense in
my head.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In my life lately, the Lord has
been taking me through a process, and with that question, He answered so many
questions I had about the nature of the process He has been taking me through.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; tab-stops: right 6.5in; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">In my life,
my screen is cracked.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Am I still usable
with a broken screen? Yes. But can I be used to the fullness of my calling with
a broken screen? No. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">In my
situation, I knew for a little while before the process started that my screen
was cracked, but I got busy with other things and did not tend to the issue (in
blatant terms, I was avoiding it at all costs).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Well, let me
tell you something that I have learned: the Lord I serve does not let things
stay broken for too long.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When I did not
tend to my broken screen, He did.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Now here is
the misconception: People see phone screens that are cracked and broken and
they think, “Hmm, that’s just a surface level break, I can take that to someone
to fix or even fix it myself (if you are a person who thinks you can fix it
yourself, God bless you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now that I’ve
seen it done, I would never want to try it on my own) and it will not be that
complicated at all.” This was my perception of a broken phone screen, and you
know what? That was FALSE… much like my perception of the broken screen in my
life! I thought, when the Lord started the process of fixing my broken screen
that it was just going to be a quick fix, and can you guess what? That was
FALSE. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; tab-stops: right 6.5in; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">When the Lord
began the process that He’s taking me through, I did not see what was coming at
all. I did not realize that in order to fix my broken screen that He had to
take out every tiny little screw, hinge, and piece of hardware in me that makes
me the person I am.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I did not realize
(yet) that what I thought was a surface level break, was actually a
foundational crack.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; tab-stops: right 6.5in; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">And boy was
it a surprise to me when I realized just what this process entailed… and in the
moment, I cannot say that it was a pleasant surprise.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; tab-stops: right 6.5in; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">But here is
the THING, here is the HOPE, here is the LOVE and the BEAUTY in the process
that that so many times I perceive to be ugly:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; tab-stops: right 6.5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I am being constructed by the ULTIMATE Creator.<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; tab-stops: right 6.5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I am being recreated in a process<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>orchestrated by the One who knows my inner parts, by the One who knitted
my together in my mom’s womb.<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; tab-stops: right 6.5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Who better to take me through this deconstruction, repairing, and
reconstruction process than the One who created me in the first place?<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; tab-stops: right 6.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With each screw that comes out,
there is pain and brokenness and often humiliation, but when the Lord strips it
all away and reaches the foundation, the broken screen, that for so long I
thought was merely a surface deep scrape, and He begins to pry each piece of
broken glass from the core of who I am, there is miraculous healing that comes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The healing that comes is from the only One
who can truly take me apart because He is One who originally knitted me together.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; tab-stops: right 6.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I have not reached the end of
this process, but I am promised how it will end:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; tab-stops: right 6.5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I am an overcomer in Christ.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(Romans
8:37)<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; tab-stops: right 6.5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">All things work together for my good because I love Jesus. (Romans
8:28)<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; tab-stops: right 6.5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">I am God’s MASTERPIECE and he makes me new in Christ. (Ephesians 2:10) <o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; tab-stops: right 6.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>…if I was going to let anyone
take me through this process, should it not be the One who considers me His
<em>MASTERPIECE</em>?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; tab-stops: right 6.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At the end of the process of putting that
phone back together last week, you know what the outcome was?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A phone that was able to be used to its full
potential.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A phone with not only no
cracks, but not even a scratch in sight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>A phone, which after the process was finished, had not a screw, hinge,
or piece of hardware missing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The finished
product was a phone that was, once again, ready for use. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; tab-stops: right 6.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know that I am fighting a
winning battle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know that I am
fighting from victory and not for it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And I know that as meticulous as the Lord has been to remove every tiny
screw in me and every shard of glass that pierced my heart, He will be just as
meticulous in putting it all back together.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
Elles Rockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392834836342258481noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2202906416079988292.post-4133364683022680002013-08-07T21:17:00.000-07:002015-06-12T12:26:08.581-07:00SACRIFICE<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>“Okay,
so before we leave we’re going to just cover these kids in prayer.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was the voice of my associate pastor at
Riverpark as he addressed all of the volunteers that had come out for this
evening’s backpack giveaway.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We had been
in one of the roughest areas of Shreveport for about an hour and a half where
we got to love on some kids and pass out some much-needed backpacks for their
upcoming school year (and probably many school years to come seeing as many of
their parents are not able to afford these school supplies for their children).
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">As soon as our pastor said, “Go,”
and we began to pray, the Lord’s voice hit me like a ton of bricks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">He said, “Elles, it is no
coincidence that this was where you are on your last night of the summer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was the perfect ending to the summer I planned
for you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was a summer of sacrifice.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">And you know what? He was right
(duh).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was my last high school
summer and instead of going to the beach, Disney world, camp with my church,
camp with all my friends, Wednesday nights with my youth group, etc… I spent my
summer in a foreign country doing evangelism and loving on kids, staffing a
camp of middle schoolers four days after I got back stateside, and spending
nights like tonight, my last night of “freedom,” in a rough neighborhood
playing with a bunch of smelly, sweaty kids.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This summer I sacrificed time with friends and family, comfortable
resources that I take for granted in the states, sleep, but more than that I
sacrificed me. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I put myself at the feet
of the Lord and said, “Here I am. Use me.” And you know what? He did. He
stretched me, pried me finger by finger from my comfort zone, and in the
process taught me more about Himself than I’ve ever known before.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Now do not get me wrong: I am not
writing this blog to say, “Look at me! This is what I did!” The purpose of this
blog is quite the contrary.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I want you
to see that NONE of this was my own doing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The sacrifices I made were merely the cost of the availability that I
laid at the Lord’s feet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Did I willingly
sacrifice my comfort zone this summer? Absolutely not! Most of the time, I did
it kicking and screaming. And how did the Lord respond? He said, “Look you
said, ‘here I am. Use me.’ <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So this is me
using you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I did not say it was going to
easy, but you said you were available, and so this is me telling you that it is
worth it.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">So this is me, on the other side of
the sacrifice, on the other side of obedience, telling you that what God told
me rang true.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was all worth it, and I
would not trade this season of sacrifice for the whole world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I would not trade the relationships I formed
or the lessons I learned in this season for anything.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">But tonight, there I stood in the
bottoms of Shreveport, thanking the Lord for this season and praying over the
next one I am about to walk into (school starts tomorrow), and somewhere I got
off thinking that when the summer is over, the season of sacrifice ends.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And there was the Lord saying, “Hello!!
Elles!!! Are you listening to yourself? These things that I taught you in this
season were not strictly for this season! Take these lessons with you into your
next season.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The sacrifice is not over,
it has just begun.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">One would think that after the
season I have just been through with the Lord that this would have been
obvious, and it really probably should have been.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But then, there is the contrast (one of many)
between me and God. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am stubborn.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I do not see the things God sees.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I do not understand the things that He understands.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But that is okay! He is walking me through it
each day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He is revealing to me the
things that I miss.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He is ever faithful
and He is drawing me unto Himself even in times that I do not deserve it—especially
in times I do not deserve it (let’s be real, I never deserve it)!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">So here I am, on my last night of
summer, my last night of this season, still being molded and taught by Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Being humbled at the lessons I am learning
and the plans that He has for my future.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Nervous about how much more He is going to pry me out of my comfort
zone, but excited because of His faithfulness to do so even when I put up a
fight… and all just because I said, “Here I am. Use me.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
</div>
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(above is the backpack giveaway from tonight... chaotic fun)</div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="text Isa-6-8" id="en-NIV-17778"><em><sup class="versenum">8 </sup>Then I heard the voice<sup class="crossreference" value="(<a href="#cen-NIV-17778A" title="See cross-reference A">A</a>)"></sup> of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send?<sup class="crossreference" value="(<a href="#cen-NIV-17778B" title="See cross-reference B">B</a>)"></sup> And who will go for us?<sup class="crossreference" value="(<a href="#cen-NIV-17778C" title="See cross-reference C">C</a>)"></sup>”</em></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="text Isa-6-8"><em>And I said, “Here am I.<sup class="crossreference" value="(<a href="#cen-NIV-17778D" title="See cross-reference D">D</a>)"></sup> Send me!”</em></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="text Isa-6-8"><em>Isaiah 6:8</em></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
</div>
Elles Rockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392834836342258481noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2202906416079988292.post-2855502510451637432013-07-21T21:30:00.001-07:002015-06-12T12:26:22.271-07:00INTENTIONAL EVANGELISM<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Intentional Evangelism.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">This is a phrase that I became all
too familiar with during my time in El Salvador.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After all, this phrase is, more or less, the
anthem of the Hope 4 El Salvador ministry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The entire point of putting on the block parties, blowing up the
jumpies, painting nails and faces, making balloon animals, giving out cotton
candy, etc., is to open up an avenue in which the Good News of Jesus Christ can
be shared.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Without sharing the Gospel,
all the work I would have done with this ministry while I was in El Salvador,
while good work, would have been merely humanitarian work.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Gospel, the Good News is what sets Hope 4
El Salvador apart from any other non-profit on the street.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Shortly
after writing my last blog about painting nails, I fell into somewhat of a
slump. I would pray each morning that the Lord would use me to reach his
children in El Salvador, yet when the afternoon rolled around and it was time
for another block party I would do the same thing every time: help set up the
tables, make sure the right supplies got to each table they needed to be at,
and then retreat to the nail painting table where I would paint nails and pray
for kids. That was not a bad thing by any stretch of the imagination.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Lord had appointed me to be there to
intercede for those children, and I knew that—for goodness sake, the Lord told
me that Himself! …but I had become content in doing only that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I thought if I stayed right there, painting
nails and silently praying for the little hands in front of me, then I was
exactly where God wanted me to be. Did He want me to be there, painting nails
and praying for kids? Absolutely.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Was I
outside of my comfort zone? Hmm, not really. Was He calling me to more? Yes.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">About three weeks into the trip, I
was at a block party in Alta Vista, El Salvador (a small town plagued with much
gang violence).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We had been out on the
street for a couple of hours and we were packing up to leave. I had already
packed up the nail painting table and was walking towards the other tables to
help take them down when two young boys approached me, one was 12 and the other
was 14.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(A little back story: a team
from Broadmoor Baptist was in doing ministry with us that week and they brought
1000 multi-colored evangelistic bracelets to use that could help when sharing
the gospel. These bracelets were very popular when it came to the kids.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There were way more kids who wanted the
bracelets than there were bracelets available.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>When the boys walked up, they pointed to my bracelet and told me (in Spanish…
yes, I understood! Woohoo!) that they wanted it. Honestly, the easiest for me
to have done at that point was just say “sure,” give them the bracelet, and
walk away. It was hot outside, I had been out there for hours, we were about to
leave, and the list of excuses goes on and on. At the same time though, I knew
the prayer I had prayed that morning. I remembered having asked the Lord to use
me to reach His children, and here I was, with His children right in front of
me! Not only were they right in front of me, but they were asking for the very
tool that I could use to share the Good News with them!! I knew what the Lord
had called to and I knew the only thing standing between those boys and Jesus
was my obedience.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I called one of our translators
over (her name is Jessy and she is a truly amazing woman of the Lord) and told
the boys that I would give them the bracelet on one condition: I would first
tell them a story about what each of the colors on the bracelet represented,
and if at the end of the story they could repeat each color and its significance
back to me then the bracelet was theirs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>In the midst of explaining <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>this,
a third boy walked over and joined the first two.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>By the end of the story, the three boys were
hanging on every word I (and Jessy) said.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They quickly and easily repeated the colors back to me and their
significance, and by the end, all three of these guys wanted to accept Jesus
into their hearts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After praying with
them we were able point them towards the church we teamed up with that day in
Alta Vista (that is where they would receive discipleship and accountability—we
were there to evangelize, but evangelism and discipleship go hand in hand).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">We loaded up to head to San
Salvador just minutes after that and the Lord started speaking, “You see? My plans
and purposes for you are bigger than you know.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Do not become content or complacent in only one of my plans for you—you
see a smaller picture, but I see things so much differently. I have given you a
voice and I am giving you opportunities to use it as I am also entrusting you
with some of my children. Step out and be willing to let me use you in whatever
ways I have planned for you.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Here is the thing: so many people
will tell you that if you do not share with who the Lord tells you to, or if
you do not fulfill a task that the Lord gives you, then He will raise someone
else to reach those people or walk willingly into that promise, but I believe
that is false. I believe that the Lord has specific plans for each of us and
that, as believers, if we are not obedient, than that will prevent others from
entering into or furthering their relationship with Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the Bible, when Moses refused to walk in
what the Lord had promised him and not enter the promised land out of fear of
the unknown, God let an entire generation of people die before He raised up
another person to walk the Israelites into the will of God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I believe that if I had not been obedient
that day to share with those boys, then too much time would have passed before
another person would have had the opportunity to speak into those boys’ lives,
and by then they could have pulled into the gangs or worse.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After all, we were almost all loaded up and
about to board the bus when this conversation went down.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Who else would have shared with them?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I have
been back in the States now for a little over a week and a half, but this is
still one of the things from my trip that I think about each day. Intentional
evangelism. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That block party opened up
an avenue by which I could share Jesus with them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The thing about intentional evangelism,
though, is that it is no different in El Salvador than it is in the States.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>ANY TIME a believer is in the same place as
an unbeliever that is intentional by God. The Lord desires to draw all people
unto Himself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As believers, we are
mandated to share the Good News.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is
not a suggestion, this is a command.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One
of the things I learned over the course of this trip was that I was not there
to learn just about being on mission in another country, I was there to learn
about being on mission everywhere I go.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>To be willing to step out and tell people about Jesus anytime and every
time the Lord asks me to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Is that easy?
Heck no! At the end of my life, am I going to regret sharing the Good News with
those boys on the streets of El Salvador or the random woman at Walmart in the
United States? Absolutely not.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Coming
home after this trip has been quite an adjustment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Being at home doing ministry presents extremely
hard, and equally as difficult, challenges as doing ministry in another
country.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One thing I am sure of more than
ever before though, is how thankful I am for the life God has called me
live.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It may be a life of various
sacrifice, but it is a life full of Him.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><o:p>(Pictured above is me with Jessy and the three boys who came to know the Lord from that conversation-- they were so proud of their bracelets!)</o:p></span></div>
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<em><span class="text John-12-30"><sup class="versenum">30 </sup>Then Jesus told them, <span class="woj">“The voice was for your benefit, not mine.</span></span> <span class="text John-12-31" id="en-NLT-26577"><sup class="versenum">31 </sup><span class="woj">The time for judging this world has come, when Satan, the ruler of this world, will be cast out.</span></span> <span class="text John-12-32" id="en-NLT-26578"><sup class="versenum">32 </sup><span class="woj">And when I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw everyone to myself.” </span></span></em></div>
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<span class="text John-12-32"><span class="woj"><em>John 12:30-32</em></span></span></div>
Elles Rockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392834836342258481noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2202906416079988292.post-10900797693223375292013-06-21T21:43:00.001-07:002015-06-12T12:28:02.332-07:00¿QUIRES PINTAR TUS UÑAS?<div style="text-align: center;">
¿Quieres pintar tus uñas? (Would you like your nails painted?)</div>
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Hope 4 El Salvador is a children's evangelistic
ministry run out of San Salvador, El Salvador by a family from the United
States who is now living in ESA. The main action step this ministry takes
is partnering with more than 200 gospel-preaching churches and communities all
over El Salvador, and hosting block parties to draw the people and communities
in to hear the Gospel. I am spending a month this summer living with the
family who runs this ministry and interning for Hope 4 El Salvador.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Block parties are very high energy events.
There are many things that go into pulling one of these off. There is
face-painting, nail-painting, balloon-animal-making, inflatable jumpies, loud
music, cotton-candy-making, and many more activities for people to participate
in that are packed into these two hour parties--and in the midst of all of
those things, the Gospel is shared with every child and parent who shows up.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Last year, while I was here doing block parties
with this ministry I worked mainly making the balloon animals.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The balloon-making table is crazy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is one of the first tables that is absolutely
swarmed with kids. There is no such thing as personal space and there are kids
pressing in from all sides yelling “Espada,” “Flor,” and “Corazon,” which, if
you do not speak Spanish, are words that one would not know until being put in
this situation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This year, however, when
the team that is here this week showed up, most of the people on that team
wanted to be the balloon-makers, so I went to try and find a new place at the
block parties to serve.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Somehow, by some
crazy chance, I ended up on the nail-painting team.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now, if you know me, you know that nail-painting
is a particular weakness of mine. I cannot adequately paint my own nails or
even when I do I cannot keep the paint on them without chipping for more than a
day, much less make someone else’s nails look good. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>None of that mattered. Nail-painting was where
there was a need, and really, at the end of the day, nail-painting is not all
that different from balloon-making.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>There are still kids pressing in from all sides yelling, they are just
yelling the colors, “Rosado, “Rojo,” “Verde,” and “Azul,” (and many more).<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>As soon as I walked over to
the nail-painting table and got to work, the Lord starting revealing some things
to me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the Bible, Jesus washed the
disciples’ feet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He knew that although
he was their leader, it was important to humble himself that much to serve
them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When the Lord brought this story
to my mind, I realized that we do not wash kids’ feet at these block parties,
but the closest thing we do is paint their nails.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We know from the Bible story that the
disciples feet were probably disgusting from walking around in their sandals,
traveling, walking through mud and manure, etc… and knowing this, Jesus got
down and got dirty with them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>See, when we
paint kids’ nails, we see a plethora of things: cracked nails, oozing sores,
infections…etc. Does that stop us from picking up those little hands with a
smile and painting those nails anyway? Absolutely not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The look of joy on these kids’ faces when they
see bright pink, or green, or red, or really any color of the rainbow (the
favorite so far is anything with sparkles in it) is priceless, as I can only
imagine the disciples’ faces looked when they looked down and their feet were
no longer caked with filth.<o:p></o:p><br />
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<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Another thing that I
realized while painting nails, something that actually really blew my mind, was
that these little hands that were in front of me have been in a lot of places,
situations, and circumstances and no doubt will be in many more in the future,
but for this split second in time, this INSTANT, that little hand is reaching
to me for something only I can give.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As
I started thinking about this though, the Lord instantly said, “Painted nails
are not the only thing you have to give when they reach out for you.” And then
it hit me--prayer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In all the places,
situations, and circumstances that these children have been in and will be in,
the chance that they are being interceded for in prayer is extremely
small.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the short moment that they
reach out to get their nails painted, the Lord wants more for them than a fresh
coat of nail polish, He wants someone to come to Him on their behalf.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p><br />
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<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>After this revelation, I
began to pray for each child whose nails I painted.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(I try to pray for each one by name, but
hearing all those Spanish names can get confusing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I realized it was more important to pray for
them without knowing their name if I could not understand it the first two
times I asked, than to waste my precious moment with each kid trying to
comprehend their name rather than praying for them.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It began to be reaffirmed in my heart the
promises from God over these kids’ lives.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He has plans to prosper and never to harm them and to work all things
together for their good. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Through this
process, He has given me a little more of His love to love them with, because
in that moment, I am the one interceding for them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am the one entering the throne room on
their behalf.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I may be the only one who
ever does this for them. And that, is the most humbling thing I can imagine.<br />
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<em><span class="text John-13-12" id="en-NLT-26608"><sup class="versenum">12 </sup>After washing their feet, he put on his robe again and sat down and asked, <span class="woj">“Do you understand what I was doing?</span></span> <span class="text John-13-13" id="en-NLT-26609"><sup class="versenum">13 </sup><span class="woj">You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and you are right, because that’s what I am.</span></span> <span class="text John-13-14" id="en-NLT-26610"><sup class="versenum">14 </sup><span class="woj">And since I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash each other’s feet.</span></span> <span class="text John-13-15" id="en-NLT-26611"><sup class="versenum">15 </sup><span class="woj">I have given you an example to follow. Do as I have done to you.</span></span> <span class="text John-13-16" id="en-NLT-26612"><sup class="versenum">16 </sup><span class="woj">I tell you the truth, slaves are not greater than their master. Nor is the messenger more important than the one who sends the message.</span></span> <span class="text John-13-17" id="en-NLT-26613"><sup class="versenum">17 </sup><span class="woj">Now that you know these things, God will bless you for doing them.</span></span></em></div>
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<em>John 13:12-17</em></div>
<o:p></o:p><br />Elles Rockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09392834836342258481noreply@blogger.com2