When fear comes knocking, send your faith to answer. EL

Monday’s Mantra

I went in there ready to get it done. I was looking forward to seeing Renee, the manager of the imaging department, and I just knew she was going to be as ready as I was to accomplish what the tech was unable to the week prior.

Welcome to Coffee Hour with Chicklit Power and Monday’s Mantra with Trench Classes United. Have you ever noticed that when we don’t know how something’s going to go, or how something’s going to feel, or why something is happening the way that it is, that anxiety rises up in you, especially if it’s about something serious?

I’m not going to lie and say I wasn’t anxious at all, but there was definitely a difference this time in that I knew a more about what to expect…at least I thought I did until they put me in a different room with a different mammography machine. “I don’t have to go on the table?”

“No, there’s an angle I forgot to try last week that Renee’s going to try.”
Just then Renee walked in and we hugged like we were old friends. Immediately I was at ease.  There is something to be said about experience, and hers was definitely apparent when after getting me and my itty-bitty all situated…albeit painfully, she got the image she needed on the second try. “I got it! Stay right there while I go show the doctor.”

“Uh, it’s not like I can go anywhere,” and we both laughed.

The tech from the week before came over to me and placed her phone close by, proud of herself for remembering what genre of music I liked…Christian worship.

Renee came back with the doctor: “Okay, we’re going to get started.”

Again I was embraced and held by a song and suddenly the unknown didn’t seem so bad. The name of the song is “Oh, my soul” but these words sang at the beginning really calmed me: “There’s a place where fear has to face the God you know.”

I was once again blown away by the appropriateness of not just the powerful words of the song, but the timing it. I was definitely in that place, my itty-bitty squished and compressed, waiting for the needle that would numb just the top layer, and totally unprepared for the pain that came with the insertion as it went deeper, twisting and pulling, shooting a pain that brought immediate tears to my eyes.

This moment catapulted me into His comforting grace as I stared into the sweet face of Renee and she talked me thru it. Within moments the actual biopsy part of this procedure was finished. It was after that, while Renee applied compression to the wound that we sat and had the sweetest fellowship, exchanging mini testimonies and professing our love for God and His infinite grace displayed thru important people in our lives. I mean it was the sweetest relief after such a painful procedure that it truly made me move on from the pain faster than I ever have from any pain.

In recovery, Renee explained she would walk the sample over herself to the hospital and that I should hear something in 3-5 days. We hugged and I couldn’t help but smile as I left the imaging center that day because though my itty-bitty was bittier and minus some tissue for sure, my heart was full of gratitude.

Grateful,

Kim-Evinda

Are you focused on your mountain…or your Mountain Mover? EL

Monday’s Mantra 

I was prayed up and emotionally ready for the biopsy, and I just wanted to get it done so I could move forward without this shadow following me.  Welcome to Coffee Hour with Chicklit Power and Monday’s Mantra with Trench Classes United. If you’re new to the blog, you may want to go back a week to get parts 1 and 2 to this so you don’t feel lost reading what I’m sharing, from my heart to yours.

After an hour and a half of twisting, turning and torturing, these words are not what I wanted to hear: “We can’t do the biopsy.” The tears that had been sitting in my throat and threatening to spill out did…like a faucet forcefully turned on.

In an effort to practice not focusing on the negative, but grasping for something positive in the midst of chaos, I can honestly say that though I walked out of there without the biopsy completed, I now had knowledge that I didn’t have when I walked in.

I had an opportunity to talk with the doctor who will be performing the rescheduled biopsy and she showed me the two clusters they are concerned about. The problem lies in where they’re laying! They are close to the chest wall, which is why the nurse had such a difficult time getting a clear enough image, because the image is what will guide the needle to the correct location for the actual biopsy. If they were to have just gone ahead with it, they could have punctured my lung!

You see what I mean about finding something positive in the midst of chaos and confusion? So as you’re reading this today, I will be undergoing another attempt to accomplish this procedure but in the meantime, I have had more time to prepare emotionally and spiritually, to become more confident in my mountain mover and less focused on the mountain – or in this case the little clusters inside my itty-bitty! J J J To look toward healing, and not speak the C word over myself, to be a walking testimony for and about My Healer!

Stay with me in this journey, please,

Kim-Evinda

Thursday’s Trench Truth

It’s okay to not always be okay, but wouldn’t it be great to feel great even when life is hard?

Learning how to live fueled by hope even when life is trying to knock us down, coming to a trench near you…

Hope to see you there

God talks to you in your language EL

Wednesday’s Word

Have you ever received a message that you know that you know it was from God? Did you know He talks to you in your own language?

Thanks for joining me for Coffee Hour with Chicklit Power and Wednesday’s Word with Trench Classes United.

Last week I shared some unexpected news I received after a 3D mammogram and another very specific mammogram to reveal the need for a biopsy but what I didn’t share with you is a very specific message I received in the most unexpected place and time.

We were making our way back to the boating dock after a great day on the lake. For the most part, I had left my news at home, but every now and then, it would weigh in on my thoughts like an anchor holding a boat in one place while bouncing up and down, side to side in response to the passing boaters. 

I was up front with one of my friends, and I remember sharing my fears about the biopsy, still in disbelief that I have to have it done but then again, I didn’t linger there long.

I relaxed in the bow of the boat, listening to the steady sound of the engine on the water, the music of the waves splashing as we crashed over them, and Pandora blaring Country music which had been playing the entire time…until all of a sudden, I’m singing the words to a Christian song, and at the same time, sort of puzzled by the change in genre but nevertheless I kept singing.

When the solid ground is falling out from underneath my feet
Between the black skies, and my red eyes, I can barely see
When I realize I've been sold out by my friends and my family
I can feel the rain reminding me
In the eye of the storm, You remain in control
In the middle of the war, You guard my soul
You alone are the anchor, when my sails are torn
Your love surrounds me
In the eye of the storm

As the words came out of my mouth, their meaning warmed my soul and tears ran down my face, the wind drying them almost as fast as they fell.

I continued to sing along to this song I hadn’t heard in a very long time

When my hopes and dreams are far from me

And I'm runnin' out of faith
I see the future I picture slowly fade away
And when the tears of pain and heartache
Are pouring…

In the eye of the storm, You remain in control
In the middle of the war, You guard my soul
You alone are the anchor, when my sails are torn
Your love surrounds me
In the eye of the storm

As soon as the song finished, Pandora returned to the Country genre and my girlfriend looked at me, I looked at her, and I’ll never, ever forget her affirmation: If that wasn’t God talking to you, girl, I don’t know what was!

My hope is that I’ll have only one more blog to write about this storm, sharing how I get thru the biopsy and thereafter receive positive results…but only He knows when my next storm will come and He promises to be there with me.

I pray that you take time to listen to God speaking to you, for you and about you

Love,

Kim-Evinda

Is God missing you? EL

 Monday’s Mantra

I’m so excited to feature one of my favorite bloggers this week, Jenn Woosley, and I know you will enjoy her blogs today and Friday as well. Thanks for joining us for Coffee Hour with Chicklit Power and Monday’s Mantra with Trench Classes United.

The other morning I was sitting on my couch, as I do nearly every morning. In the quiet, I read inspirational things, talk to God,  and think. My thoughts are all over the place…and often there are tears. Today was no different... I was thinking about the people I love most, and the loneliness that comes from their absence. 

Then, I read something, the gist of which is that God is thinking of ME every single moment, and that I am in His thoughts constantly. Now, supposedly I know this; it's in the Bible, how God cares for me, but for some reason, it stood out to me today in a different way. 

Suddenly, I pictured Him wishing to be with me the way I was wishing to be with my loved ones. Does He wish to be next to me, give me a hug, hear about my day, my thoughts? Is He lonely without me? What if He is? 

In church, the sermon was on Romans 8:16-17. In The Message Bible it says: "God's Spirit touches our spirits and confirms who we really are. We know who He is and we know who we are: Father and children."

The tears came but this time because it hit me how beautiful this is. God gives us relationship with others to help us understand Him. It's true that He longs to be with those He loves, me and you. And the warmth of this truth, knowing we're never really alone washed over me and filled me to overflowing!

May you always know you are never alone!
Jenn

Sometimes He calls us into deep waters to teach our faith to float! EL

Wednesday’s Word

Welcome to Coffee Hour with Chicklit Power and Wednesday’s Word with Trench Classes United! You’re in for a treat today with a heartfelt blog from Julie.

When “time hop” pops on your profile FB and reminds you all God has done  🙌 😭
Seriously, I had no idea I would be taking a photo six years later of our five children at the same spot!

Children did not come “automatically” for us as my Uncle told us. We walked the road of infertility and bringing our “wants” to the Lord and exchanging them for his beauty. Honestly, it has felt like God pouring children into our lap at one point.  😭

🙌 

Anyone out there praying and knocking and feeling hopeless like God is not answering?

Don’t lose hope; instead pray, seek, knock and keep knocking.

Remember the story in the Bible how the disciples had fished all night and caught nothing and then …“When he had finished speaking, He said to Simon, “Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.”

Simon answered, “Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.”

When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink.” (Luke 5:4-6)

Notice Jesus spoke to go into the DEEP waters, put down your nets, not just one net, and Simon said “we worked hard all night…” it was beyond their “works”.
God was requiring FAITH in that moment in their lives. They were about to partake in a tremendous miracle of the His faithfulness, of His authority, and of His word.

Imagine they threw the net down and said “not today Lord, we are tired!” They would have missed a blessing, a gift, a miracle, and not just for themselves but for all the others too, and us as well.

So when you feel tired and you want to scream “forget this!” dig deeper in the Word of God and listen for His voice. He may be speaking in the still of the night.

When Nathan and I went back to foster/adopt, we had basically the bare essentials. Honestly it didn’t really seem “like the right time” in our eyes... but God showed up unexpectedly!”

Is God asking you to walk by faith and not by sight? Throw your net again?! Maybe He has a miracle ahead...remember our “works” will never be enough; we will always come back exhausted but when God speaks, He brings the Harvest AND you will glorify Him!

Thanks for joining me….

Casting my nets,

Julie

Oh, His principles and promises are as refreshing as cold water on a hot day! EL

Monday’s Mantra

                     

I’m so excited to feature Julie Held this week! You’re in for a treat today and Wednesday, too! Come on in and thanks for Joining us for Coffee Hour with Chicklit Power and Monday’s Mantra with Trench Classes United.

Do you remember being a kid and drinking out of the hose? There was such sheer delight and excitement!

This moment with my son drinking from the hose reminded me that we all thirst in life. And somewhere along the road of life we start to “grow-up” and the simple starts to fade out and we begin to thirst beyond the simple things. We become aware of all that the world offers us and it begins to entice us: egos, pride, admiration, money, status, good works, education, you name it. But God tells us in his Word to hunger and thirst for righteousness.

But what does righteousness mean? It means acting in accord with divine or moral law: Free from guilt or sin. “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they will be filled.” {Matthew 5:6 NIV}

God wants us to hunger and thirst for a life free of guilt and sin and then we will be satisfied! Think on that: has your sin and guilt ever satisfied? Never!

We are only made righteous through Christ alone, not by any good works. If your heart feels empty maybe you need to take a step back, confess your sin and ask God to bring you a thirst for Him again. Drink of the living water and you will be satisfied.

“Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord, “{Acts 3:19}. “Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.” {Psalm 34:8}

Thanks for joining me,

Julie

Active listening is authentically listening! MP

 Faith-Filled Friday

My Mother instructed me to always make eye contact with my teachers so they would think I was interested in what they were saying …

Welcome to Coffee Hour at Chicklit Power and Faith-Filled Friday with Trench Classes United & Megan Pilarik.

My Mother was a teacher, so undoubtedly she knew what it took to make a teacher feel valued. Making eye contact is an important component of active listening, but active listening is not the art of making others think you are interested in what they have to say. Active listening is the ability to be authentically interested in what someone is communicating to you.

My husband and I attended a family wedding this weekend. I thought this would be a good opportunity to practice active listening skills. I should have known better. My novice listening skills and I failed miserably. I was constantly distracted. Being a good listener takes a lot of commitment and focus! The only thing I accomplished was recognizing I was not being a very good listener.

Jesus listened. He was fully present with everyone He encountered. He gave people His full attention and permitted them to tell their story. He first listened - and then ministered to their needs.

The Christ-centered, Christian care Stephen Ministry teaches its caregivers the importance of listening before responding. People going through sickness, grief, and hard times need someone to share it with. Being heard helps them feel valued and understood.

God works through our listening to accomplish healing. God works through our listening to inspire others to do what they know they must do. 

James 1:19 (NKJV) “So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath.”

                                                                                                                                

Be swift to listen … it just may be your greatest gift.

Your comments are always most welcome.

Lovingly in Christ,

Megan

Perseverance changes lives…yours and those whom you’re preserving for and with. EL

Wednesday’s Word

Do you ever feel uncomfortable sharing your faith with someone you fear won’t be as receptive as you’d like them to be? Do you feel reluctant to even approach the subject sometimes? I know I do. Thank the good Lord for those who don’t!

This is a reposting of a blog by Megan, one of our Coffee Hour writers. This blog though written last year is so relevant today and a truth that never gets old. I am confident you will agree.

Welcome to Coffee Hour at Chicklit Power and Wednesday’s Word with Trench Classes United.

Some time ago, I volunteered for the Women’s Bible Study sign-up table at church. As I assisted with registration, I could not help but overhear the conversation a woman was having with another volunteer at the table. She was lamenting how, once again, she had asked her friend to attend the bible study – and how, once again, her friend had declined.

I remember attending my first Bible Study. I did not know the first thing about the Word of God. Over the period of three years, a faithful Christian friend called me every time her Bible Study group started a new study, and every time I answered with a “No.” Even though I believed in God, I felt nothing I did was good enough for Him. I felt all of my failures were indicative of my unworthiness of Him. I definitely had a tumultuous relationship with God, and the point at which my life began to mirror my relationship with Him, I despairingly responded with a “Yes!”

When I told my husband I was going to attend a Bible Study, he asked, “What made you change your mind?” I told him I needed to find out why God did not love me.

I attended my first Bible Study because I believed God did not love me. Why was I convinced He did not love me? Because, I did not know the first thing about the Word of God! By the end of the first month, I knew how wrong I had been.

I momentarily stopped filling out a registration form and shared this story with the disheartened woman whose friend, once again, had turned down her invitation to Bible Study. I encouraged her to please...

DON’T STOP ASKING!

Perseverance like my friend’s, changes lives.

I know - it changed mine.

Your comments are always most welcome.

Lovingly in Christ,

Megan

Be the change you want to see…in others! EL

 Tuesday’s Trench Truth

If you could change one thing in your most significant relationship, what would it be?

Join me for Easy-chat via Facebook Live where we will embrace dreams, share laughter and build solid ground for those times when we need each other the most. Coming mid September…stay tuned!

Love,

Kim-Evinda

Sometimes we need to let go of what is to grasp what could be!

 Thursday’s Trench Truth

Living Fueled by Hope is coming to a trench near you!

Join us on Facebook to stay updated on when and where www.facebook.com/trenchclassesunited

Love,

Kim-Evinda

You can never overeat from the B-I-B-L-E! EL

 Monday’s Mantra

I love when I see such simple but profound truths on social media! Welcome to Coffee Hour with Chicklit Power and Monday’s Mantra with Trench Classes United! I just know you’re going to enjoy this post from Julie Held.

I believe the Bible has the answers to life. As a mother, it’s so easy to become entangled in finding answers to life in other parenting books, blogs, videos, etc. They have a place but they honestly can’t replace the Bible. The Bible is real, true, a rock to stand upon.

We, as parents are not to hinder the Word of God but share it. Whatever season you may be in —-> littles, tweens, teens, young adults, grandkids  ....don’t hesitate to just read out loud as we are instructed to in Deuteronomy 6:7 “Teach them to your children. Repeat them when you are at home and when you are away, when you are resting and when you are working.”

This picture was a funny moment. I was highlighting 2nd Samuel 7 and my baby girl climbed next to me and started doing the “same thing” in a devotional book. I figured she would highlight something that would go with the study. J J J  

The Word of God is never void. The Bible sharpens and shows me what real love is. The Bible is like looking in a mirror and really reflecting my heart. It brings my voice to the Lord to confess my sins; it helps me to thank God for His grace, love, mercy and faithfulness!

I walk away so FULL of His love I can’t wait to share…and you will/can too!

But then the opposite is this.... when I don’t read my Word I am just empty. Anyone relate? There is none like it, the B-I-B-L-E!!! Amen!

Fulfilled,

Julie Held

He’ll meet you @ your mistake! EL

 Monday’s Mantra

^{Have you ever ignored the little gut feeling that tries to warn you not to do something? Well, darn it; I just did that and as the day continued, the warning got louder and louder and louder!
Thanks for joining me today for Coffee Hour with Chicklit Power and Monday’s Mantra with Trench Classes United. Please, come on in and et comfy for a true story, from my heart to yours that actually may take us to Wednesday’s blog as well.}

^{I was pretty tired this particular morning and by the time I was dressed and ready to head to my deposition in Temecula, I had made a decision: beginning in two weeks, I would no longer work more than one day a week; I would trust God to meet us in our financial needs and hunker down as we prepare to launch a program that will truly help others live more transparently, love healthier and laugh more.  Oh, how many times have I said I would do this? I groaned aloud as I loaded my car and got the dogs situated.}

^{But I mean it this time! Sound familiar? Oh, thank you, Abba, for your grace that out-waits our unfulfilled promises to you and to ourselves. I asked Him to help me be a light to someone in that room today.}

^{Looking back on the day, there were actually plenty of warning signs of a tough road ahead. For starters, I’m not sure how it happened, but my GPS sent me on a crazy hunt for my location. I mean it had me going on and off the freeway and what felt completely out of the way and instead of being early enough to be calm, cool and prepared, my equipment set up and a job dictionary built, I arrived with only 10 minutes to accomplish all of that. Talk about hot flashes running down my back! But it doesn’t stop there.}

^{As I’m getting set up, I turned my computer on and it’s telling me “Preparing updates; 30% complete; don’t turn off computer.” WITW? (What in the world?!)  And then just like that, it let me into my court reporting program…and then proceeded to freeze! At this point I had only five minutes to be ready and waiting for counsel and the witness.}

^{To top it off, when I finally took a moment to look at the caption and let it sink in, I groaned – to myself of course, as I realized we had a minor in the witness chair with a claim of molestation by a teacher. L L  As I was frantically trying to get my computer to cooperate – ever have one of those moments? – I invited God into my frustration and literally offered up some honest-to-goodness begging! HE HEARD ME! J}

^{I was ready to go by 10:01, thankful, trying to put the previous warnings behind me and focus, focus, focus! J J}

^{Within the first hour, I could tell that this witness had definitely been molested…but the teacher wasn’t the first person who had molested her. When I hear cases like this, it confirms my knowing that dysfunction is a cycle, whatever flavor, and is cross-cultural, non-denominational and worldwide. Don’t get me wrong; I don’t keep the cases stored up in me, allowing their truth to weigh me down; but I do use this information for others good and His glory.}

^{Several times the witness and her counsel had to confer off the record – which means we stop and they go outside and chat. No big deal; I begin editing my transcript so there’s less to do at the end. There were some questions that you could tell that while she may not have been lying, she was trying to be very careful with her response as it was a tricky question; and then there were others that she just flat-out didn’t get. To top it off, she is an African-American high school student with lots of Ebonics and once fired up, wow, all I can say is my fat fingers were all over that keyboard and my machine was smoking as the speed indicator kept flashing. They actually got up to 310 words per minute!!!}

^{Towards the end of the day, as we tread on the waters of this witness’ promiscuity, her attorney asked to confer with defense counsel outside. I was totally a proponent for this girl, but as the case began to unfold, I began to realize she has been a troubled child since grade school, and the teacher was not the only contributing factor. In fact, when a jury hears her case, her promiscuity may deter them from the facts, from the root of it all, but is really a symptom of it all. Oh what a complicated web of dysfunction that I long for the world to understand.}

^{I’m not sure what came over me but in the first few minutes that both attorneys were out of the room, I took the liberty – I could get in trouble for this – to begin talking with her and at the risk of incriminating myself, let me just say, it was a pretty powerful conversation and as I said the last thing, I returned to my computer screen and the door opened and the attorneys returned; I breathed a sigh of relief, and we went back on the record.}

^{By the time we finished for the day, I was pretty wiped out. I sat in my car for a moment, allowing the air conditioning to cool me from the inside out, shaking off the oppression of the case, and then pressed my destination of home.   I didn’t even give it a second thought, just expecting it to take me home the right way, not the long way.}

^{I began to return phone calls and it wasn’t until I had been on the phone for a while, that I realized I had followed the voice on GPS and gotten off the freeway. But WITW Why? Unbelievable! It took me home the same way we came and I’m still perplexed as to why. So what should have taken about 45 minutes turned into an hour and 45 minutes! Needless to say by the time I got to my next mistake, I was pretty wiped out! Have you ever noticed that one mistake often leads to another?}

^{Join me Wednesday for part two of this blog where I will share something that I am still trembling about, and probably will every time I think about it. What comforts me is I know that I know that He was there at the beginning of my mistake, and He certainly met me in the midst of another one.}

^Love,

^Kim-Evinda

Negative habits & emotions have a lot in common with ants

Monday’s Mantra

Welcome to Coffee Hour with Chicklit Power and Monday’s Mantra with Trench Classes United. You’re in for a treat with Jenn’s thoughts today! Enjoy.

Ants...they have got to be one of nature's most annoying insects. J L J  Just when I think I've won the battle, I'll find a new line marching along, mindless to my eyes on them as they continue on with their business. Everywhere I turn, there they are: Cupboards, the sink, the fridge handle, stove top, an opened bag of chips, all things kitchen. But…yes, but, they were even on the bathroom rug. Imagine my dismay when I stepped on it and discovered that it was covered with ants!

Strategically and consistently placing ant poison is the only thing that will stop them in their tracks.

You have to hand it to them; they are persistent, hard-working, and definitely sneaky.

Kind of like those habits that are hard to change: Fear, discouragement, doubt, anger, despair…oh can’t those things behave just like ants, sneaking in when least expected? One day it seems I've won, and the next, there's that familiar line of reactions or negative emotions making their way into my heart. 

Prayer, praise and meditating on the hope God gives: this is the only defense against these most annoying issues of the heart, daily, hourly, and sometimes by the minute. It's the only thing that stops human nature in its tracks.

Learning and unlearning…

Jenn

No matter what your ‘Goliath’ is, the battle belongs to the Lord. Let Go! EL

 WEDNESDAY’S WORD

No matter how many times you’ve read a scripture, a portion of scripture with a story in it, or an entire chapter, as long as you invite Him into the reading, you will get something new every single time!

Thanks for joining me for Coffee Hour with Chicklit Power and Wednesday’s Word. I’m so excited to share today’s blog with you.

So I have been studying the books of 1^st and 2^nd Samuel…for quite some time. In fact, our home group has just finished those books after eight months! But I am doing an extra in-depth study on these two books so I asked my husband to join me the other morning during our coffee hour together. Let’s just say that he wanted to read something else as he felt he’d gotten enough out of the many stories within those books. I lovingly reminded him that there was something new for us in it that morning, and then proceeded to confirm that with prayer.

I wasn’t disappointed!

In 1stSamuel 17, the Philistines were preparing to go into battle with the Children of Israel and literally cremate them, take them all out. They just knew they were going to win because they had what the other side didn’t: a real live giant who stood well over 9.5 feet! His name was Goliath. Not only was he tall, but he was armed to the hilt. I mean, there was nothing that was going to penetrate this guy’s protection on his body. 

Every day for 40 days, this giant of a dude would come to the edge of the mountain they were camped on and cry out to the army on the other side – a valley separated them – and taunt them, inviting them to choose one man for battle that he could slay and take the Children of Israel to be the servants of the Philistines. Oh, the prideful parading for power that is displayed in the first 16 verses.

Well, the Israelite's were terrified, and I do mean terrified. And if you’ve ever been in a panic situation, you know that you don’t always think the most clear when you’re trembling with fear. To make a long story short about how David was chosen as the man to fight Goliath – when he really was a boy – David volunteered!

I can just imagine the Israelites’ first reaction of chocking down laughter in the midst of their terror at the thought of a young shepherd boy volunteering to slay this giant and save them. Well, the fact that they allowed him to go thru with it proves the depth of their terror. They were willing to try anything. Oh, how I would have loved to have been a fly in their heads to know their thoughts.

They get David ready for battle by weighing the little guy down with a bunch of armor and garb but he, being wise, said heck no, I’m not used to this, so he took it all off and went and got his sling-shot and five stones. Now they’re really laughing…no, not really. I think they were just so shocked, and at this point, just hoping for a miracle.

Imagine Goliath’s response when David is brought forth as the guy he’s going to fight! Wouldn’t you have loved to have seen the look on his face?  

Goliath proceeds to taunt David, and I mean taunt him with some pretty harsh insults that would truly trouble most of us, even with the strongest of faith. Goliath taunted and taunted and David only had one response: “You come to me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel whom you have defied.”

Then David proceeds to give a very detailed description of what he was going to do to him, ending with a reminder that the battle belongs to the Lord.

It was as if David didn’t even hear the insults of this giant, nor did he look at Goliath’s size, his armor or feed into his attitude. David was focused on his God whom he knew would not fail him and as Goliath came at him, David ran toward him, eager to slay this giant.

Friends, sometimes we can be our own Goliath! What “Goliath” is taunting you and whispering in your ear lies of being no good, or lies of giving into your weakness that prevents you from a victorious life?  Do you stop to listen, or do you just move forward, one foot at a time, armed with a faith that cannot be broken or taken?

That morning with my husband, I was so excited for this different revelation, this truth that all of us go thru periods with a Goliath of sorts and if we are armed with our faith, filled with our portions of scripture, walking with Him, we will slay our giants, no matter how big!
Have a Wonderful Wednesday,

Love,

Kim-Evinda

You have a direct line to Christ; He’s waiting for your call. EL

Tuesday’s Trench Truth

And isn’t it great to know He won’t have voicemail on! He is concerned about all that concerns you!
Join us at www.facebook.com/trenchclassesunited for a cup of daily encouragement

Looking for a fun filled night full of laughter and GOOD times? Come and join us as we laugh the night away!Doors open at 7 PM, check in by 7:40 PM. Show Starts at 8 PM.  August 24, 2018. Food is available for purchase.
Funds raised will go towards supporting the mission of Trench Classes United: Helping others thrive in life and love through exploring and understanding past and present experiences for a transformed future.  

Bitterness and truth cannot coexist! el

Faith-filled Friday

James 3:14 Kings James 

But if ye have bitter envying and strife in your hearts, glory not, and lie not against the truth.

I find when I get focused on a situation and my feelings have been hurt and my hurt turns to strife, it usually escalates in my mind. I find I began to play out a scene in my mind that’s never happened. Yet, in my mind I'm predicting it to fruition. Have you found yourself doing this? Thanks for joining me today for Coffee Hour with Chicklit Power and Faith-Filled Friday with Trench Classes United.

James 3:14 instructs us on what to do with our strife or bitterness that seems to go straight to our heart. We aren’t to cover up. We are to address it, and I believe God is instructing us to place it before Him because out of bitterness stems actions that do not bring glory to our Lord.

I've realized that by allowing this strife, bitterness, and/or jealously to take hold of my mind, it opens the door to a downward spiral, and a mall issue becomes far greater in my mind and heart than it really is. Could it be that each situation occurs, He wants to use it to help build our endurance, keep us looking to our Abba? These trails build our character in in Him.

Romans 5:3-5 New Living Translation (NLT)

³ We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. ⁴ And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. ⁵ And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.

Without these trials of hurt, strife, and jealousy we would never see that there's still so much in us that needs to change. It humbles us, brings us to our knees, helpless for our Abba’s help, for we are helpless without Him.

Be encouraged through these trials, knowing that God will never give us more than we can handle. Praise God for His new grace, mercy, and forgiveness for our sins every second of the day. Take courage, beloveds; He is making warriors of us so He can use us for far greater things.

Humbled,

Ashley