Pearls

Matthew 13:45-46

"the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it."

- God has been revealing himself in so many ways these last couple of weeks since I've been back at school- and mostly in the terms of pearls. May seem odd but let me explain myself.

- I have been reading a great book called "and the Bride Wore Whit

e" by Dannah Gresh. It is a beyond wonderfully written book about sexual and emotional purity. In this book Gresh uses pearls to symbolize the things in our lives. We often take on so many different "fake pearls",whether they be vanity, pride, jealousy, bitterness ( all of which I struggle with), and each "fake pearl" costs something of ourselves. We have all of these fake pearls that have no value, when we can trade them all in for something better, the pearl of great price, which is Jesus Christ.

- It has been CRAZY how God has been tying this into everything in my life right now. I have been blessed with having AWESOME dreams (one of the ways in which God speaks to me the most)- ask me about God dreams sometimes because it is one of my favorite topics and I truly believe that God can speak to ANYONE through dreams. Anyway, I had a dream the other night that was really odd but when I woke up and prayed about it I knew that God only wanted me to focus on one thing about the dream, one girls name, Megan. Low and be

hold I go to look up what Megan means and guess what? It means pearl- snaps for God-He is SO cool! Also various visions God has given me where I am somehow always wearing pearls. Basically I think that in life we can either live for all of this crap that in the end is meaningless, or we can live all out, no limits, for the One True Eternal God, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!

- I just LOVE how much I am seeing the fruit of the trials that I went through last semester. God is SO faithful and I am just soaking in all of the truths I'm hearing. The Spirit is moving and teaching and I just want everyone to get hit with the Spirit like I have!

- Another key word right now that the LORD is teaching me- trust. I have so many plans for my life and I've just got to realize that I AM NOT IN CONTROL! One thing that my awesome Discipleship Group leader Katie said tonight when she was speaking at House Church was that God only gives us glimpses of the plan that He has for us because if He showed us the whole thing then we wouldn't have a reason to Trust Him! SMACK IN THE FACE- that was So

a revelation for me!

All in All I am So excited for what God has planned for me. There are big things coming and I am so pumped about them, whatever they may be. I just want to strive to live a life of purity (heart,mind,and body) and of living EVERYDAY, ALLOUT for the King of Kings my one true love, Jesus Christ.

God will show Himself- all you have to do is ask.

Love, Abigail

~Zephaniah 3:17~

P.S.- Food for Thought: God sings over you (see Zephaniah 3:17), but He also loves it when YOU sing to HIM! (another revelation from House Church

tonight!)

READ IT!!!! >>>>>>

The Wolf

- Well as this semester begins I am again out of my natural environment and thrust back into the real world. As day by day passes by the yearning in my heart to see Jesus grows. Not to make it sound like I want to die but I just know I am not meant for this world. Our life is but a mist in the span of eternity. It kills me when I see people just living for this world because they think it's all they have. They don't realize that their is a Father that yearns to love them with an everlasting love, a love that will change your life. The main thing that has been hitting me over and over again just within the last 4 days is how drastically this world has changed in regards to sexual purity. I purposely haven't watched hardly any television this past semester because of this. The last couple of days though I have watched an episode of desperate housewives and secret life of the american teenager. Gone are days of wholesome tv shows, not that I didn't know that promiscuity was going to be in the shows. I can honestly say that now, as I used to be desensitized, television and movies bug me. They portray a world that is so screwed up but socially excepted. Secret Life of the American Teenager, along with every other show, has continued to grow worse. Now every character, whether gay, straight, christian or non-believer, is having sex, and lots of it. Not only is this on the tv screen but it has also jumped off the screen into my college environment. Any worldly pleasure that is out there is being indulged in on this campus and it makes me nauseous. I feel like sexual purity is rarely found anymore, and its definitely not treasured by most people. What most of all just irritates me to my core is when there are people that I know are believers yet they flaunt around there sin like its no big deal. Not that I don't screw up sometimes but we are called to be lights in this world, not part of the darkness.

" fear and flee the wolf; for, worst of all, the wolf may be more than he seems."

This quote was part of a short story that I read for my English Comp. 2 class. It stuck out to me because, to me, a wolf symbolizes the enemy. As this quote says, and as Satan is, the wolf may be more than he seems. Think about the character of Satan he is a liar, The Father of lies, and a deceiver. The sin that he tempts you with seems like just an experience that you must have in life when once you indulge in it it can become you. Not only does sin pull you way from God but it tears your life apart piece by piece.

So in conclusion- we, as believers, are called to be of this world, not in it. The temptation isn't bad, its giving into the temptation. But God can redeem anyone. I heard this in a sermon recently- that the people, or situations, that seem the most unreachable could be the people that God has such amazing plans for than we could ever imagine. No one is unreachable but the enemy will tell you that they are.

Continuing to Live for the King of Kings!

Zephaniah 3:17

Love, Abigail

After Passion 2010 :)

I just got back from Passion 2010 and I am still just letting everything that happened over these last four days soak in. It was amazing and the Holy Spirit was moving so greatly! I am definitely a changed person and I feel like God finally renewed my heart,mind, and mission. This is my assessment of everything having to do with Passion.

- Louie Giglio- WOW! This man has such a passion (ironic) for the Lord and is also an unbelievable speaker, God was speaking straight through him to my heart. Louie, unlike many people, has decided to live his life pursuing God's dreams. Many people get a word, dream, or vision from the Lord but fail to go through with it or pursue it ( I can honestly say i've done this many times!) But Man i mean look at the amazing fruit that Passion Ministries has produced. Louie's talk during the first session about letting God awaken us and taking off our grave clothes helped me realize that I myself was calling to be awakened by God. This definitely helped me to open my heart and mind to what God was trying to tell me- healing is in His hands and His hands alone.

- Beth Moore- .... that means I'm speechless. This woman again is a great example of how God uses ordinary people to accomplish extraordinary things that can only be done through Him. Beth spoke on how God equips us. The statement that she made that resonated with me the most was- " Do not try to run in somebody else's lane. It's your own lane, run your own race, the only we should strive to imitate is Christ!" Often times I look at other people's lives and wish I was like them, even to the point of trying to be them, but God has a specific purpose and plan for each person. Every plan is unique but every plan is glorious but we have to let HIM run the show! I also attended Beth's (yes we are on a first name basis ;) )breakout session on spiritual discernment. I can say it was very eye opening and helped me to analyze how I can tell if I am just being judgmental or if the Holy Spirit is trying to tell me something (there is a very fine line between the two!)! All in all God worked through her and it was incredible. I only hope that I can be as spunky and on fire for the Lord as she is because It was truly amazing to see just how much she loved God and was devoted to Him.

- Francis Chan- A) He's asian so I like him B) He always has such a light from the Lord that pours from him C) His message was fantastic!

We sometimes take the word of God for granite and forget just how truly amazing it is! Francis reminded me of just this and how we need to crave the word of God. He also pointed out how we have to stop making excuses for our sin and to realize that "if we aren't waking with God it's because we chose not to." Overall he had some amazing insights and I would love to hear him speak again, Lord willing.

- Andy Stanley- I had another chance to hear what God laid on Andy Stanley's heart and God really revealed many things to me through Him. Andy's main statement was "it's always a mistake to determine what you want to do or how your relationships are going to be before you determine who you are going to be." He also challenged us to pray and list out what kind of attributes we want to have in order to be who God wants us to be. Simply put, it was great.

-John Piper- ummm .............................................. Yeah i'm still digesting it and it's been about a day. The Holy Spirit hit me hard and I was forced to think about things that I had honestly never thought about before. God was definitely working through Piper and he is not afraid to work through the tough questions often asked about the Christian Faith. I'm still processing Piper's message but it was truly breathtaking and I definitely believe that the Holy Spirit was sweeping through Philip's Arena heavily last night!

-Louie Giglio (again) - The part of this last message that hit me the hardest was actually after the message when Louie said "We all have wounds, but God can heal them. We will always have the scars, but even Jesus still has His scars." The scars left from the wounds in our lives are left to show God's glory and what an amazing work He did in your life!

Other Highlights of these last four days included: Gobena coffee (mmm mmm mmm) and the Do It Now exhibit- all of these exhibits were mind boggling but it again showed how a little vision that somebody gets from God can turn into a HUGE DREAM! Also- seeing Hillsong United live has always been a dream of mine and it was probably the most intense worship I have ever experienced and it was unbelievable. But really all of the men and women who led worship were amazing and let God move through them greatly! The new songs that were sung also were incredible- my favorite line " and if our God is for us, then who can ever stop us ? And if our God is with us then who can stand against us?!"

If I could summarize what God taught me over Passion 2010 is that this world has NOTHING for me. God might choose to put certain relationships and blessings in my life if He so chooses but ulitimately the main goal in my life is to serve HIM no matter what the cost or call! God is the God of this universe so why would we settle for a mediocre and selfish life instead of the HUGE, BIG, AMAZING, GLORIOUS plans that He has for us?! I truly strive to have a life that is a blazing offering to my Lord and Savior and cannot wait to see how He uses me on my campus this semester. I'm definitely praying for boldness and courage to step out and shine for Him. I life without God is not a life worth living!

-I also finally realized if I ever get a tattoo (when I'm older and being provided for by my parents) what I want it to be- Isaiah 26:8 " Yes LORD, walking in the way of your truth, we wait eagerly for you, for your name and renown are the desires of our souls."

May the God of love and peace be with you always.

~Abbie~

Zephaniah 3:17

PASSION 2010!!!

It's currently 3:13 am on Saturday January 2nd, 2010. I just finished the 2nd Book (Return) in the Karen Kingsbury Redemption series and am well into the 3rd book. I just packed my suitcase and am listening to the Passion 2010 podcast making my to-do lists. Can't wait for what God is going to do in the next 3 days! I'll update when I get back!

abigail