Friday Feminar Favorites

We spent Friday evening and Saturday morning at the Feminar and what a blessing it was!! I just wanted to share a few of the things the Lord spoke to me, and some of my favorite moments of this weekend! This post is mainly going to focus on Friday evening.... maybe i'll post on other parts of the weekend later!

Lord, first I just want to say thank You for this weekend! I say it a lot lately, but You are good! You are SO good! You know exactly what I need and if it isn't present in my life then it's not best for me right now and I completely trust You with that truth. I pray that we all grab a hold of that and that it takes root into our souls and minds. Thank You that we don't have to live in captivity of the things that make us afraid. We don't have to run from the idea of our worst fear happening, we can instead run to You and trust that even if it does happen... then You know best and have our best interest in mind. You will comfort, bring peace, sustain us, turn our mourning into gladness and joy... and ultimately use what we thought would completely break us for Your glory and our good. You have, and are, the power that sets us completely free! Praise Your Name! Thank You for Your sovereignty! We love and need You! In the specific name of Jesus who makes all of this possible.

Lysa Terkeurst was one of the speakers for Feminar 2010 and her message on Friday evening was about God's will for our lives.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 says

• Be joyful always;
• pray continually; and
• give thanks in all circumstances,

for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.

Be Joyful

She used Baking a Cake as an example - If you took all the ingredients used to bake a cake and just started to eat them individually without blending or sending them through the oven it would taste absolutely disgusting and you would never experience the goodness that is cake! :)

The same is true for us; God has a recipe for our lives. The dry, sweet, good, bad, fattening, etc. and He combines all so that we "lack nothing". We can't just pick the parts that we think taste good. We must trust the He knows what we need, when we need it, exactly how long we need to endure it, and that He promises to complete the work He began in us. You will go through heat (just like the cake), sometimes extreme heat, but you will rise.

Be Prayerful

When the Lord gave us the model prayer he focused on today - one day at a time. Matthew 6:11 Give us this day our daily bread. If Jesus had to ask for God to be His portion daily then why do we think we can go any moment without asking Him to be ours as well?

God, will You be my portion? When my mind is weak and I want to venture off to things of the past... When i'm tempted to sink back into depression and push others away... When vulnerability haunts me... Will You be my portion right now in this moment?

Be Thankful

How do you take situations such as depression, the loss of a loved one, or a diagnoses of cancer and be thankful? Because that's what He calls us to do and sometimes it's extremely hard to get to that place. Let's just be honest.

I don't even remember how the Lord brought me to this place, but I remember realizing that I had a choice to make - sit in my tears and pain, or trust that He was doing something far bigger than I could ever imagine (even in the midst of my mistakes). And my response was to thank Him when I was depressed, lost, unsure of my relationship with Him, and completely doubting all that I believed growing up. He wouldn't let me get to that place if He didn't have a greater purpose in mind. Even though people thought it was ridiculous and that it was taking too long and I should snap out of it. It lasted exactly as long as He wanted it to last and He is molding me because of it. Praise You Jesus. Somewhere deep within me I knew that He had the power to strengthen where the enemy thought he could break me down. And I wanted it to be within His timing.... because then and only then would it be complete and right.

We must choose in the midst of hard times to be thankful - even when we don't have a clue and can't see our way out. Thank You for what You are working in me. Thank You for allowing me the opportunity to grow. Thank You that one day I will be complete (in You), lacking nothing.

Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. James 1:2-4