Beyond the Walls Part 1

whew..... has it really been nearly 5 months since my last post..... YIKES!!! i need to get on it more often.

this post is stirred out of a topic that has been on my heart for some time and really want to touch as many people with it as i can. I am a youth leader at my church and i recently did a series on Beyond the Walls. in my definition walls are the limitations that we have put up in our lives because of things that we have been told, or experiences we have had. i believe there are 6 major things that limit us in our lives and these things will keep us from living up to the potential that God has placed within us. in John 10:10 it says

"A thief is only there to steal and kill and destroy. I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of" (emphasis mine)


Jesus has given you the potential to live a life better then you could ever dream of, the life he wants for you exceeds any life that you could ever build or hope to have by doing it withing your own limits, on your own. 


the 6 areas that i feel are the biggest are
1) How you see yourself
2) Fear
3) Habits and Addictions
4) Guilt and Shame
5) Being a first generation believer in your family
6) Depression


All of these "walls" will limit you because they will keep you from moving forward, stepping up, and moving out of the comfort zone of what you know and think. I'm not gonna go to in depth with these but I want to break them down a bit so that you can see how each one can affect you personally. tonight i will cover three off them with more coming soon....


1) How you see yourself: If you read the stories of Gideon (Judges 6) and Moses (Exodus 2-6) you see that these are two men that thought lowly of themselves. They didn't think they had what it takes to live up to the potential that God had for them. It blows me away though because you soon learn that, with Gods help, they overcame the Walls in their lives and did some pretty amazing things. 
If you think that you aren't good enough to do something then chances are that you wont even try to do it. i challenge you to rust God and his word for your life, i promise you will see some amazing things happen.


2) Fear: i could go on all night about fear, its such a huge wall for so many people. we're afraid of what others think, afraid to fail, afraid to let someone down, etc. for many people they feel like they are standing on the edge of a cliff afraid to jump. fear limits you because it will keep you where you are comfortable, you freeze up, unable to move. if that is you, ask for boldness, ask for strength, give it a shot and jump off that "cliff."if you do that you wont look back,  you will experience true freedom and and your life will never be the same. 


3)  Habits and Addictions: habits and addictions can get out of control very easy. i know many times in my life i have found myself dealing with addictions and bad habits and i think to myself "how did i get here? what happened? where did i go wrong." many times that question can be answered by retracing my steps. i look back and see how i allowed one tiny compromise after another to creep into my daily life. eventually they build up into an uncontrollable force in my life that sucks the very life right out of me. our addictions keep us bound as slaves, and until be can learn to break those chains, we sit there staring at a wall.


Jesus desires that every person goes beyond the walls in their life and live up to their potential. it is my prayer that as you read these God has spoken to you about some of the walls in your life and has begun to show you how to overcome. please keep an eye out for the next post with the next three areas and allow god to work in your life to do exceedingly above all you could ask think or imagine. 


have a blessed day and thank you for taking time to read my blog.

Psalm 27

I know its been awhile since I added a new blog, but lately i've been fascinated by Psalm 27. Its EPIC!!!!

1 The Lord is my light and my salvation—
so why should I be afraid?
The Lord is my fortress, protecting me from danger,
so why should I tremble?

2 When evil people come to devour me,
when my enemies and foes attack me,
they will stumble and fall.

3 Though a mighty army surrounds me,
my heart will not be afraid.
Even if I am attacked,
I will remain confident.

4 The one thing I ask of the Lord—
the thing I seek most—
is to live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life,
delighting in the Lord’s perfections
and meditating in his Temple.

5 For he will conceal me there when troubles come;
he will hide me in his sanctuary.
He will place me out of reach on a high rock.

6 Then I will hold my head high
above my enemies who surround me.
At his sanctuary I will offer sacrifices with shouts of joy,
singing and praising the Lord with music.

7 Hear me as I pray, O Lord.
Be merciful and answer me!

8 My heart has heard you say, “Come and talk with me.”
And my heart responds, “Lord, I am coming.”

9 Do not turn your back on me.
Do not reject your servant in anger.
You have always been my helper.
Don’t leave me now; don’t abandon me,
O God of my salvation!

10 Even if my father and mother abandon me,
the Lord will hold me close.

11 Teach me how to live, O Lord.
Lead me along the right path,
for my enemies are waiting for me.

12 Do not let me fall into their hands.
For they accuse me of things I’ve never done;
with every breath they threaten me with violence.

13 Yet I am confident I will see the Lord’s goodness
while I am here in the land of the living.

14 Wait patiently for the Lord.
Be brave and courageous.
Yes, wait patiently for the Lord.

bear with me as i break this down a few verses at a time.....

vs. 1-3: these 3 verses speak immensely to me because often times i find myself worried about the situations around me, i worry about what others will think of me, or do to me. i worry that i will get hurt and cast down. i find that when pressures get to be to much i tend to throw in the towel, give up and sulk in my pity and/or shame. through these verse God has shown me that there is HOPE and that i have nothing to worry about. when people are trying to destroy my reputation and try to attack the things that i value, God is right there upholding me. when the pressures and weight of the world surround me, he is there. he is protecting me. i'm reminded of the portion of scripture in Romans 8:31 that states, "if God is for us, who can ever be against us." knowing this gives me the strength to remain confident, even in the deepest, darkest valleys i experience. 

vs. 4-6: these 3 verses are amazing because it states that the one thing David sought the most was to REMAIN in the house of the Lord. it wasn't some place that he was striving to get into, he was already there and he wanted to keep it that way. he goes on to say that, when troubles come, God will conceal him there. its a sanctuary, a place of rest, and a place of refuge. God will protect me if i remain in His house, he will give me peace of mind to help me through whatever i'm experiencing. towards the end of verse 6, David mentions that he will offer SACRIFICES, not offering and not tithes, but SACRIFICES. this means that when i remain in the house of the Lord, i should be willing to give up things that i hold dear, things i never thought i could live without. i shouldnt just give because i have extra but i should make room to give out of what i've already got. i could volunteer to serve out of the time that i have nothing planned (offering), or i can rearrange my schedule and cut out things i love to do and replace them by serving for others' benefit (sacrifice).

vs. 7&8: out of this entire Psalm, i think that these verses are my favorite. they, to me, are the most intriguing, thought provoking verses of all of them. they start out with a cry for God to hear Davids prayer, and go on to say "my HEART has heard....." and "my HEART responds" this is the craziest thing to me. i believe that all to often i allow my mind to overthrow what my heart has already heard. there are times that i know God has spoken to my heart, and i know that i know that my heart has responded (i can feel it). but i allow the doubts and the lies and the cacophony of pressures that the world throws from all sides, to get in the way. my heart responds to God but i quickly forget the response, i move on to the next worry. my mind doesnt allow me to hear what my heart has already responded to. 

vs. 9-10: these verses speak of a heart condition that i feel is all to prevalent in the world today. they speak of the feeling of abandonment. i sometimes get into a rut where i start thinking that i'm not good enough, and i begin to doubt the calling and direction of my life. i begin thinking that God will turn his back on me when i fail or mess up. i think that its a normal healthy thing to feel every now and again because it helps me stay alert to the life that im living. i'm reminded that i should be crying out to god when i feel less than perfect. the amazing thing i MUST remember is this "even if my father and mother abandon me, the Lord will hold me CLOSE" when i feel like i'm facing the world on my own and everyone has walked away from me, i can know that God is standing right beside me, defending me. he is right behind me, holding me up. he is in front of me, making a way. he is above me, guiding me. he is beneith me, my solid foundation. he hold me close and he is all i need!

vs. 11-13: these verses show me that the Lord will TEACH me how to live. i'm not gonna learn it on my own. its something that i must learn. there are more than one path i can take, but i should be following the Lords path that has been laid out for me. even when others accuse me of things i never did, i can be sure that the God is good. he will not allow me to be trampled down. i will see his GOODNESS!!! 

vs. 14: WAIT PATIENTLY! this is not a suggestion, it is a command. God will most likely NOT follow my timeline, but thats ok, i must be courageous in uncertainty and i must be brave to speak the truth in love. God is my salvation and he is the LIGHT OF THE WORLD. piercing the darkness and exposing the lies of Satan.

i'm sorry this is kind of long, but i kept thinking about this portion of scripture and i really feel that this is for someone. i dont know who, but i pray that they can gain a new understanding of the life that God is calling them to live. God is there, he is REAL, he will not abandon you, he is ALREADY speaking to your heart. it is my prayer that you allow him to be your comfort, fortress confidence, bravery, salvation, and that he will Guide you into truth. God bless you guys!!!!

Sun Stand Still

I'm reading pastor Steven Furticks book called "Sun Stand Still" and it has truely opened my eyes the what faith really is and what it means to really have faith, faith that Steven Furtick calls audacious faith. he mentions a portion of scripture that captivated my mind and is helping me to reshape my life to be built upon a foundation of true faith.

Joshua 10:12-13
On the day the Lord gave the Amorites over to Israel, Joshua said to the Lord in the presence of Israel:
“O sun, stand still over Gibeon,
O moon, over the Valley of Aijalon.”


13 So the sun stood still,
and the moon stopped,
till the nation avenged itself on its enemies,as it is written in the Book of Jashar.
The sun stopped in the middle of the sky and delayed going down about a full day.

Joshua had the audacity to ask God to make the sun to stand still in the sky. WOW!
if it were me in that situation, I dont think that i would have enough faith to ask for something that i know is scientifically IMPOSSIBLE. not only did Joshua belive that the impossible was possible but he had the guts to actually ask God to do it. These few versus have opened my eyes to the truth that God CAN do anything, and he WANTS to do the impossible in my life. I've also relized that the impossible isnt neccesarily something that is physically or scientifically impossible. It is something in my life, because of my experiences and understanding, that i think is impossible to happen, such as a healing, broken relationships getting restored, finances, etc.

In my life i've been placed in my share of trials and heartaces, some of them more recently. we found out about a week or two ago that my mom has been diagnosed with graves disease. this has got me to thinking and really challenging me to apply what God is doing in my heart lately. to apply what i know of this audacious faith, to ask god for the impossible. pastor Steven calls this a Sun Stand Still prayer.   my sun stand still prayer in this situation isnt for divine healing, but that He would do something in my moms heart and reveal himself to her that he is Provider, he is Healer, he is Comfortor, he is Saviour. she believes in God and believes in Jesus Christ, but she doesn't have a deep, true relationship with him and thats all i ask.
i have been creating a list of my Sun Stand Still prayers, prayers for things that are imposibble in my life. i've been stretching my faith and having the guts to aske god for them. i dont know how, but i know how but i know that He can do them. he is bigger and stronger than i could ever imagine. BUT i have to remember that it may not, and probably wont, happen the way that i see it or think it should happen. God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love him.......

Everything in Time

Everything in Time........
Some people are probably wondering why I chose this to be the title for my new blog, but i can assure you that its not just something i thought would be a "good one" or "good idea"

everything in time is something that it very heart felt and it stems from Romans 8:28

"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"

This verse speaks VOLUMES into my life, and I have decided that it will be my life's verse. these words have been there with me through thick and thin, difficult and easy. In my life there has been many things that i believe have lined up with exactly what this verse says. When I recieved the letter of acceptance into the University of Washington I was ecstatic. I thought that this was the direction that my life was meant for, I felt like I had purpose. But what I didn't know is that my life already had purpose, I had already been called and I was already headed in the direction that God wanted me to go. I was right where God had wanted me to be. As the summer came to a close and my first year at UW was about to begin, it became very clear to me that I was not meant go there. After everything that I had strived for and worked for (and paid for), I knew that it ended there! Was i supposed to trun my back on God's direction? I don't think so!!! I was upset, confused and frustrated. I didn't know why God had allowed this dissappointment. As time when on, I would soon find the niche for my life and discover the true passions and desires in my heart. I now know that I have been called by God according to the specific purpose of my life.
It seems like every week there is something new and exciting, as well as something dissapointing and frustrating, but I know that God will always be there and things will always work out for what is BEST for me. I may not always understand or see the big picture but I know that it doesnt have to make sense, because in time I will see it unfold. there has been some very recent things that have happened that are very exciting, but have not panned out in the order or way that I have understood or planned. Through these things though, Romans 8:28 has been even further burned into the fabric of my heart, mind and soul. I know that God wants me to be fully prepared, fully equip, and fully ready to depend FULLY on Him. In time everything will work out and I believe that I will NOT be dissapointed.

thanks for reading!!!!!!