Faith

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Faith adventures are the best

Provision follows commitment. 

I am a firm and faithful believer in this truth after this weekend. 

  God has answered my prayers about many of the key aspects of my move to Tulsa in January. 

It’s been so cool to see how His hand and influence has guided me-in many unexpected ways-to the answers I needed. 

There’s so much more that I want to say, but I want to use today’s post as a way of saying thanks to God. 

Living by faith is a great adventure. 

I want to leave you with three recommendations:

  1. Be as specific as you can be in your prayers. 
  2. Ask others to stand in faith–meaning they pray in agreement–with you. 
  3. Don’t be unwilling to share what you’re believing for when it comes up in conversation. Who knows if the person(s) you’re chatting with could be the answer to your prayers?

College Weekend gave me a small taste of what is to come. 

I can’t wait to see how this faith adventure unfolds! 

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A great start

Day One of College Weekend was a success! 

Dad and I are having a great time plugging into Rhema and making connections for employment and housing. 

We are also visiting old friends of my dad and stepmom. It’s been neat to see and hear of God’s faithfulness in their lives over the last 20 years. 

Tomorrow will be fun because we’re attending the Jobs and Housing Fair. I’ll be networking with men and women from all different banks and businesses. 

And you know how much Dad and I love to network. We’ll be like to kids at an ice cream shop. 

I’ll tell you how it goes in tomorrow’s post. Right now I’m resting up from a long day. 

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Wrestling with the Truth

IMG_1694Who doesn’t love stories about go-getters who look adversity in the eyes and say, “I know you don’t believe in me, but I’m going to do it anyway”?

I know that I love to read about the tenacious efforts of other people.

Their lives are filled with adventure and learning. No amount of barriers or persecution will keep them from achieving their goals.

Are you excited yet? Can I get a hip, hip, hooray?

But there’s one person you don’t cheer loud enough for. One person who you think is limited or needs to be limited. One person who must not try unless success is guaranteed.

Yourself. Or, in my case, myself.

I’m not talking about becoming a pompous jerk who is self-absorbed.

I’m not talking about getting angry when others do well.

So what am I talking about then?

  • Allowing yourself to believe that you are talented, equipped, and able to do all the things God puts in your heart to do.
  • Allowing yourself to believe that now is the time to live your life.
  • Allowing yourself to try–even if you fail–and knowing that your efforts are not in vain.

Maybe I should just stick a Dear Audra at the front of this post and call it a day……

I struggle with these truths.

In the face of a great adventure with a greater purpose, I want to throw up. Knowing that all of the risk and work will result in a beautiful story, a God story, doesn’t make it any easier.

Remember what we talked about yesterday?

Following the voice of God does not always leave you comfortable.

But I would rather have holy discomfort than stay in any comfort zone I build for myself.

I want to be tenacious, but I need some help. Help from the Holy Spirit and help from you too.

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The voice that leads you

Praying with strangers can be scary. 

“Lord, are you sure about this?”

The prompting of the Holy Spirit, though, is strong. 

“Okay, here I go…”

At least, that’s how it’s always been with me. And it happened again today. 

I stopped and helped a lady put her car tag on in the Taco Bell parking lot. 

Nothing really special about that deed. It took less than 2 minutes. She was excited because it was a new car. I listened to her tale and met her grandkids. 

Then it happened. 

“Pray with her and bless her new car.” I heard the Holy Spirit loud and clear. 

So I did. 

Velma (the lady) was very thankful for my prayer. I found out she was a pastor who had a lot of car trouble last year. This car was provision from God. 

Wow. God used me to confirm His blessing in her life. 

And all because I was willing to get over my nervousness. 

I think we need to pray more for people when we’re with them. Writing down there requests and praying later is awesome and necessary. 

However, there’s something special that happens when we pray together for that need. 

I know that it’s weird,  especially if they’re strangers.

We have a great helper in the Holy Spirit. He won’t let you down. If he leads you to do something, listen. 

There are many miracles and blessings that are missed when you don’t trust the Holy Spirit’s prompting. 

I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to miss an opportunity to serve God and help others see him more clearly. 

Be bold, my friends, in following the Holy Spirit’s prompting and mighty things will happen. 

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All I need is a cup of coffee and a little perspective

I used to be a chipper morning person. My grumpier self told her to get lost.

My younger siblings do not care.

They are loud and boisterous and excited about the day–even if they don’t know what day it is.

“Audra, what day is it?” Caleb asks.

“It’s Tuesday,” I reply.

His response is normally something like:

“Yay! That means we get to ________” or “What are we going to do today?”

Maybe us grumpy adults should be more easily excitable.

We tend to see each day from a more practical, soul sucking point of view. I don’t think we mean to, though, but it’s easy to fall in line with our work hating, wish-it-was-the-weekend culture.

Last night my little brother–in his childlike wisdom–prayed the most beautiful blessing over our dinner.

“Dear God,

Thanks for having us today.

Thank you for dinner and this time with my family.”

Amen.”

Caleb thanked God for letting us live.

And the thunderbolt of conviction struck my heart….

IMG_1692Every breath, every day comes from God. Begrudging my life and all the things I “have to do” is a slap in God’s face.

I understand that we all have hardships and bad days, but our worst day–especially if you live in the West–is someone else’s best day.

The minor inconveniences of our life will not affect whether we live or die. With that in mind, you and I have very little to complain about.

This is not meant to be a guilt trip.

Just call it a good, old fashioned reality check.

Sure, you’re not a morning person but you can be a thankful–yet quiet–non-morning person.

Sure, money is tight but you have food, water, and shelter. A cancelled Netflix account or a month without cable will not kill you.

Perspective has a way of making us honest.

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The problem with being spiritual

I’m more spiritual than you.

  • I read my Bible more.
  • I listen to cool worship music.
  • I never miss an opportunity to be at church.
  • I have 12,000 pictures on social media dedicated to Christian activities.

Because that’s what Christianity is all about.

Being spiritual.

Except that it’s not.

And, besides, how can anyone be more spiritual than someone else?

We’re all spirit beings. Every human on this planet is a spirit, has a soul, and lives in a body.

So please drop the “everything I do and say must be perceived as spiritual” act.No one is buying it.

I have this recurring thought that will not go away:

What if all church buildings were closed down?

What if every trace of Christianity was wiped off the internet?

Would Christianity survive such a fate?

Your faith has to be planted deeply in the soils of a rich, intimate communion with God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.

Most Christians do not have a deep understanding of their beliefs.

Maybe that’s because we spend more time posting “spiritual” things online than we do reading our Bible or even living out our faith.

I’m including a link to a study conducted by the American Bible Society titled “The State of the Bible: 2014” for those who want to read more on the subject.

I want us to think about the heart behind it all.

It bothers me that our precious faith is so marginalized–both inside and outside the church–when it’s potential to change hearts and lives is beyond compare.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this topic.

What are some of the problems you see with the quest to be more “spiritual”?

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Thank your pastor

Pastors have a tough job. 

They are called to shepherd God’s church, which is kind of like herding cats….

It doesn’t help that everyone has a different idea of what a pastor’s role is supposed to be. 

And they have to work hard to stay off the pedestal their church members want him or her to stay on. 

Here’s a funny video by The Skit Guys that highlights their daily struggle:

Be sure to thank your pastor tomorrow. 

They need your encouragement–not your criticism. 

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Thankfully overwhelmed

We all face busy days. 

The first of the month is especially busy for me. I have customers coming in and out of my office all day–on top of a pile of paperwork from the previous month to complete. 

Plus, today I was juggling getting my car to the shop. (There was a lot of moving parts to coordinate.)

On days like today, it’s easy to get overwhelmed. 

I know I was…

Not allowing temporary inconveniences to derail you from the bigger picture can be difficult. 

I encourage you to take a breath and count your blessings. 

You and I have a LOT to be thankful for. 

It’ll help you when the phone rings and a customer walks in and your boss wants you to dictate a letter–right now. 

Even in those moments, remember your blessings. 

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Want to vs. Need to

Putting off tasks that are not fun will not make them more fun later.

No one likes to pay bills.

To budget.

To exercise.

Some things need to be done–whether you enjoy them or not.

When I first started exercising, I hated it.

I hated when the alarm clock went off.

I hated leaving my warm house on cold winter mornings.

But I still did it.

After a while, once I saw the results, I began to enjoy it more and more.

We need to quit making people feel guilty when they don’t enjoy something at first.

Jesus tells a story in Matthew 21:28-32. Let me paraphrase it for you:

A father asks two sons to go work in the yard. One son says, “Are you kidding me? I won’t do it!” Later on, he feels bad and decides to go. The other son said, “Sure, Dad! I’ll be glad to help!” and then didn’t show up to work. Jesus said the first son was obedient.

Jesus was looking at their hearts and he saw what was really going on. He was telling this story to religious leaders (it was really about them). He was talking about their refusal to accept Him as the Messiah.

We need to realize, though, that this story can be applied to more than just “spiritual” things like missions and evangelism.

The principles in the Bible apply to all areas of our lives–spirit, soul, and body.

Keep this text in mind next time you’re struggling to want to do something.

Maybe you should just do it because it’s the right thing to do.

Your heart and attitude will catch up with your decision.

Remember: Words mean nothing without action behind them.

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Adventures are for now

Kisses from KatieI love stories, especially adventure stories–and I don’t mean the purely fictional ones eithers.

confedsMy favorite type of book is a travelogue aka Real Life Adventure Story.

Here are a few of my favorites:

Confederates in the Attic by Tony Horwitz

A Walk Across America by Peter Jenkins

The Average American by Kevin O’Keefe

Don’t Stop Believin’: How Karaoke Conquered the World and Changed my Life by Brian Raftery

Kisses from Katie by Katie Davis

I’ve reread each of these books at least twice.

These are great stories where quests for understanding lead to life-changing action.

average americanI think that travelogues are a favorite among book lovers because it always leaves us inspired.

“Wow! If they can do that, what’s stopping me?”

I believe that dreams inspire actions and actions inspire more dreams.

As a Christian, I think of James 2:14-18:

14 What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? 15 If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, “Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,” but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit? 17 Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.18 But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without your[d] works, and I will show you my faith by my[e] works. 

across americaDreams without actions are dead.

Bucket lists are great, but I don’t want to be 60, 70, 80 years old before I choose to follow my dreams.

Why not start now?

Quit putting your dreams in a bucket that stays in your closet for 30 years.

Reading adventure books is great. Writing your own adventure book is even better!

So, I’ll ask you this question again:

Why not start now? believin