Author: Katelyn Palmer

The GT Weekend! ~ Champion Week 3

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The GT Weekend!

At Gracefully Truthful, weekends aren’t for “checking out”.
Use this time to invite the Almighty’s fullness into you life in a deeper way!
Saturdays and Sundays are a chance to
reflect, rest, and re-center our lives onto Christ.
Don’t miss the opportunity to connect with other women in prayer,
rest your soul in reflective journaling,
and spend time worshiping the Creator who
longs for intimacy with each of us!

Worship Through Journaling

Worship Through Journaling

1) As we are reminded in the picture of Mary’s life through her encounter with the angel Gabriel (my what an occasion that must have been!), we are each commissioned for a purpose. Though it looks a little different for each of us, every Christ follower is to spread the gospel of truth about salvation through the Lord Jesus Christ. We share this commission together as believers in Jesus, all working for the same goal, but it doesn’t necessarily mean the way in which we accomplish our mission will look the same. Mary had the unique privilege of birthing and raising Jesus as His human mother, but your calling may involve touching lives through song or by volunteering at a local shelter; it could involve ministering to lost souls overseas or starting a Bible study in your neighborhood. Just as there are multiple ways to get the same result in a math equation, there are many ways God calls us to spread the gospel and to emulate His light in our lives. Don’t be discouraged if you haven’t fully uncovered His path for you yet, but don’t get caught waiting for tomorrow, either. He is calling you to do something right where you are, right now, just one step of obedience at a time. You are never anywhere by accident, for He has gone before you and placed you just where He needs you to follow Him faithfully. (Acts 17:24-27)

2) Saul is a man we love to hate, and Paul is a man we revere as his love for the Lord is exceeded by few. We are all Saul and we are all Paul. Our flesh wages war against our spirits daily (Galatians 5:17) and thus we see these two versions of Paul in each of us as our fleshly selves fight against the Spirit of Christ within us. This is the great connecting thread amongst all the biblical heroes and the very reason we can derive hope for ourselves from each of their stories. Even from the beginning of Paul’s story, we see that God used his upbringing to prepare him for his ultimate path: ministering to gentiles all over the world about salvation through Jesus. This is yet another reminder that God chooses the season, the year, the place in which we live with purpose. Ladies, God wastes nothing in our lives. In fact, it is the very misguided nature of Saul’s own spiritual blindness that shines the brightest spotlight on God, because if he can turn Saul into Paul, then He can transform you into the woman He has created you to be.

3) We’ve heard about Peter, Mary, Daniel, David, and more in the Champion Journey Theme. We’ve heard about great feats and greater shows of faith, but if you only take one thing from this Journey Theme, I hope it’s this: you are not enough. I know that sounds counterintuitive but understanding this reality is the necessary starting point for every single “hero” we read about in the Bible. That is the foundation for a blossoming relationship with Jesus and ultimately a life that points directly to God. We must recognize our weakness and frailty, as each of our Champion characters did, while also recognizing the resounding strength, love, and fullness of the God we worship. Then choose to surrender our “not enough” to the Only One who IS Enough. When we do, the Holy Spirit empowers us and shapes our lives into beautiful reflections of God’s glory. Peter failed countless times, even when Jesus told him it would happen beforehand. Despite his failures, Jesus still called on Peter to be the rock on which Jesus would build His church. (Matthew 16:18) So I implore you, the next time you find yourself in a situation where you can’t, meditate on the fact that Peter couldn’t either and Jesus still called on him because Jesus could. He was, and is, and always will be, enough. He is our Champion!

Praying Scripture back to the One who wrote it in the first place is a great way to jump start our prayer-life! Pray this passage from 1 Peter 2:11-17 back to the Lord and
let His Spirit speak to you through it!

“Dear friends, I urge you as strangers and exiles to abstain from sinful desires that wage war against the soul. Conduct yourselves honorably among the Gentiles, so that when they slander you as evildoers, they will observe your good works and will glorify God on the day He visits. Submit to every human authority…For it is God’s will that you silence the ignorance of foolish people by doing good. Submit as free people…Honor everyone. Love the brothers and sisters. Fear God”.

Prayer Journal
Yahweh, our Heavenly Father who has gone before us, You are the Artist Who has painted the beautiful world around me, and the Author of the most incredible story known to man, and within that story, You wrote me a part to play. I ask You, Lord, teach me to trust Your direction and rest in Your fullness. I ask You to change my heart posture so that when You commission my work, I will respond like Mary with humility (Luke 1:26-38); like David with passion for Your heart (Psalm 51); and like Daniel with absolute confidence in your power (Daniel 6:10-24). Shape me into a living stone for Your church (1 Peter 2:4), oh God, and rid me of the things that fight against the Holy Spirit inside me (1 Peter 2:1). Provide me with a net, Lord, and provide me with so many fish that my net breaks. Let me walk in your provision and become a fisher of people in Your name, God, so the world may know Your face and bow at Your feet, for You are our Champion, Lord. In Jesus’ name I pray this, Amen.

Worship Through Community

Can we pray for you? Reach Out! We’d love to pray for and with you!
Send us an email at prayer@gracefullytruthful.com

Build community, be transparent, and encourage others:
Share how God spoke to you today!
Comment Here or in our Facebook Community Group!

Worship Through Prayer

Worship Through Music

The GT Weekend! ~ Champion Week 2

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The GT Weekend!

At Gracefully Truthful, weekends aren’t for “checking out”.
Use this time to invite the Almighty’s fullness into you life in a deeper way!
Saturdays and Sundays are a chance to
reflect, rest, and re-center our lives onto Christ.
Don’t miss the opportunity to connect with other women in prayer,
rest your soul in reflective journaling,
and spend time worshiping the Creator who
longs for intimacy with each of us!

Worship Through Journaling

Worship Through Journaling

1) On average, authors will write up to ten drafts before they are ready to publish a finished novel. Each time life has thrown you something of a plot twist, have you found yourself reaching for a pen, furiously rewriting what the next chapter of your life should look like, desperate to get it right this time? Well, I have a secret to share with you. Just as He was the author of Esther’s story, Yahweh is the Author of yours, too, so you can put down your pen and take a deep breath. And unlike the literary greats of our time, it only took God one draft to get it right. We can trust God with our own stories because His good works are all around us. His characters illustrate imperfection, gumption, disobedience, obedience, pride, humility, fear, courage, doubt, and faith. That is to say, His characters are perfectly human. And the best part of all of His stories? Each one ends with redemption. So the next time you find yourself reeling from one of life’s great heartaches, turn to your favorite story in the Bible and remind yourself who is writing your story.

http://www.gracefullytruthful.com/champion-day-6-behind-the-scenes/

2) It is easy in our world, today, to forget that we are lacking. Self-fulfillment is the message preached in every corner, but we have limitations, weaknesses, struggles. We are insufficient. God is what connects us from where we are to where we are meant to be. The thing is, God also values free will. This means every day from the moment we wake up, we are faced with the choice: do I act in God’s name, or do I act according to my flesh (the world)? Daniel shows us what it’s like to face the majority culture and say no for God’s sake. He abstains from the easy meat and wine of the king (Daniel 1:8-16); he calls out the incapable Babylonian priests and magicians, pointing to God for wisdom (Daniel 2:27-30); he worships God despite the fatal repercussions of breaking the king’s new decree (Daniel 6:7;10-13). These choices don’t make Daniel’s life easy, nor does God promise to make our lives easy, but rather He promises to never leave us (Deuteronomy 31:8); He promises to make us fruitful (Jeremiah 17:7-8); He promises us eternal life with Him through His Son, Jesus Christ (John 3:16). Which choice will you make today?

http://www.gracefullytruthful.com/champion-day-8-fearful-and-fierce/

3) Just as Daniel showed us that each day we are offered a choice to follow God, king David shows us repentance will also be a daily battle. David gets quite the rap as far as Godly men are concerned, but make no mistake, he was just as broken and sinful as we are. What David does so well, though, is honest repentance. Let’s visit Psalm 51 to get a closer look at how he does this. At the time of writing this psalm, David has just coveted a loyal soldier’s wife, knocked her up, and had the soldier killed so he can marry the woman and hide the unlawful pregnancy (2 Samuel 11). Yikes. How does David even start to address this mess? Well, he starts with asking for forgiveness from God, relying wholly on God’s mercy and compassion. Then he admits his sin without trying to hide any of it from God. David recognizes that of all the people he hurt when he sinned, his relationship with God suffered the most. David continues by asking God to renew his heart and recognizes that God wants our broken spirits and hearts more than He desires physical sacrifices. The next time you find yourself in need of repentance, look at Psalm 51 as a reminder of how to ask God for forgiveness. Remember that your words matter less than your humility, honesty, and a willing spirit to turn from sin and back to God.

http://www.gracefullytruthful.com/champion-day-10-casting-out-the-shadows/

Praying Scripture back to the One who wrote it in the first place is a great way to jump start our prayer-life! Pray this passage from Philippians 1:6, 9-11 back to the Lord and
let His Spirit speak to you through it!

“I am sure of this, that he who started a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. (…) And I pray this: That your love will keep on growing in knowledge and every kind of discernment, so that you may approve the things that are superior and may be pure and blameless in the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ to the glory and praise of God.”

Prayer Journal
Yahweh, I come to You today with a solemn heart for life troubles me. I cling to the promise You have made to always be with me (Deuteronomy 31:8) and I know, Lord, that even in times of lamentation I can be joyful in God my savior (Habakkuk 3: 17-18). So I lay my sin bare in order that I may receive the righteousness You have offered through Your Son, Jesus Christ, and I seek your compassionate, merciful heart just as David did in Psalm 51. I pray that when I get lost in the words of the page I am living now, I will be reminded of the great stories You have woven throughout history and the redemptive and eternal ending that waits patiently at the close of mine. I know you will finish what you have started in me according to Your own timeline. The troubles of today will prepare me for Your glory tomorrow. So God, I ask that You give me the discipline to obey, the humility to submit to Your will, and the patience to see Your plan through, God. It is in Your Son’s name that I pray, Amen.

Worship Through Community

Can we pray for you? Reach Out! We’d love to pray for and with you!
Send us an email at prayer@gracefullytruthful.com

Build community, be transparent, and encourage others:
Share how God spoke to you today!
Comment Here or in our Facebook Community Group!

Worship Through Prayer

Worship Through Music

The GT Weekend ~ Champion Week 1

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The GT Weekend!

At Gracefully Truthful, weekends aren’t for “checking out”.
Use this time to invite the Almighty’s fullness into you life in a deeper way!
Saturdays and Sundays are a chance to
reflect, rest, and re-center our lives onto Christ.
Don’t miss the opportunity to connect with other women in prayer,
rest your soul in reflective journaling,
and spend time worshiping the Creator who
longs for intimacy with each of us!

Worship Through Journaling

Worship Through Journaling

1) This week, we were introduced to some very difficult truths. The difficulty lies in the profound simplicity of God’s love for us, and in our inability to think outside of our own human limitations. “Now it is clear that no one is justified before God by the law, because the righteous will live by faith.” (Galatians 3:11) Abraham’s defining trait was faith. His faith prompted obedience, and his obedience was credited to him as righteousness. (Romans 4:3) This brings us to our first difficult truth: we are not chosen because we are qualified; we are chosen simply because He chose us. All we must do is believe. Read any story in the Bible, maybe Daniel in the lion’s den or Joshua at Jericho, and consider the qualifications of that story’s “hero”. You might be happy to realize they are people just like you and me and the hero isn’t them at all. God is always the hero. As we look at those same stories, the second truth comes to light: faith means letting go of limitations because God is not bound by them. Joshua never raised a sword, yet he watched a city crumble. (Joshua 6) Daniel spent the night in a den of lions and left without a scratch. (Daniel 6:21-22) The Almighty created us and all we see; who are we to tell Him what He can and cannot do?!

2) In keeping with these truths, we are introduced to the nitty gritty side of Moses and his faith journey. Moses rejected God’s commands because of his own human limitations. How often do you find yourself telling God, “I can’t possibly do what you are asking? I am weak or unskilled. I am incapable. You can do better than me.” Too often we avoid stepping into God’s purpose for us because we trust our insufficiencies to be more significant than our Savior. We tend to focus on the end result, but the end result isn’t for us. It’s for Him. God gives us the ingredients and then asks us to give them back to Him, so He can give us something even greater. In 1 Kings 17:8-16, we read of a widow who is instructed to feed Elijah some bread but has none to offer. She does have a handful of flour and a small bit of oil. We watch as God multiplies her ingredients so she can make bread and glorify Him who provides. Remember back in Moses’ story when we see him protest God? Each protest is based on his insufficiency, and each time God answers based on His sufficiency. Reflect on stories like these when you feel discouraged or unqualified and remember you serve a God who is qualified.

3) The waiting is never wasted. What a powerful sentiment! How many times have you felt stuck like you were called to go somewhere or do something but couldn’t quite make it happen? I have encouraging news for you. God is always working in your life; He is preparing you to do His will while simultaneously using you to do His will. Setbacks are teachers. They are purposeful, but we must remember God doesn’t face setbacks. He knows all things always and is in complete control. So, if you find yourself feeling stagnant, ask yourself why you are hesitating to step into God’s purpose for you or perhaps if you have focused on your purpose for you instead of God’s. If you are fearful and afraid, ask yourself what you are holding back on trusting God and why. Prayerfully ask Him to make these answers clear and for the strength and courage to move forward as He is calling you. He will not shy away from your doubt, your questions, your fear, or even your anger. The Lord of the universe longs to guide you. He does not need us, but He chooses us anyway because He loves us extravagantly!

Praying Scripture back to the One who wrote it in the first place is a great way to jump start our prayer-life! Pray this passage from 2 Corinthians 12:7-10 back to the Lord and let His Spirit speak to you through it!

So that I would not exalt myself, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to torment me so that I would not exalt myself. Concerning this, I pleaded with the Lord three times that it would leave me. But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is perfected in weakness.’ Therefore, I will most gladly boast all the more about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may reside in me. So I take pleasure in weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and in difficulties, for the sake of Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Prayer Journal
Yahweh, thank you for showing me Your strength and wisdom this week. I am grateful to know my God is capable of impossible feats; no lion is too mighty nor storm too big for You. Lord, I know I can’t do this life without You, but sometimes I falter and doubt. I question You and Your sufficiency, but You know my heart and my mind. You know the weakness of my flesh, so please hear my cries when I’m weak, and calm my heart. Remind me who You are and what great power You possess. Help me let go of the limitations I have placed on You and simply bask in the sweet fact that You choose to use me to further Your Kingdom just because You love me. You are my strength, Lord, and my shield, for I have put my trust in You. (Proverbs 30:5) It is in Your Son’s name I pray, Amen.

Worship Through Community

Can we pray for you? Reach Out! We’d love to pray for and with you!
Send us an email at prayer@gracefullytruthful.com

Build community, be transparent, and encourage others:
Share how God spoke to you today!
Comment Here or in our Facebook Community Group!

Worship Through Prayer

Worship Through Music

The GT Weekend!

At Gracefully Truthful, weekends aren’t for “checking out”.
Use this time to invite the Almighty’s fullness into you life in a deeper way!
Saturdays and Sundays are a chance to
reflect, rest, and re-center our lives onto Christ.
Don’t miss the opportunity to connect with other women in prayer,
rest your soul in reflective journaling,
and spend time worshiping the Creator who
longs for intimacy with each of us!

Worship Through Journaling

Worship Through Journaling

1) Sara put words to a struggle we all encounter at various points in life, either to live in fear of people or walk in faith with the God who has never failed us. Take some time to identify where you have lived in fear of people in the past. How has the Lord shaped your heart to choose Him, as the better, over acquiescing to others? Celebrate His work here! Consider new challenges where you are apt to choose what people want at the expense of following the Savior? Take these specifically to the Lord in prayer!

2) On Wednesday, we were challenged to consider the pitfalls of our identity sources. Sara noted how grateful she was for having walked through a season of having her identity deconstructed. Consider writing out your top 4 markers of your identity and sift through the source for each of those. If the source is removed, the identity will crumble. What is holding up your identity?

3) All throughout this Journey Theme of Seeds, we’ve been challenging ourselves to consider “what if” we lived as boldly as the examples we find in the pages of Acts of those first century Christians. Their stories are incredible and their faith seems entirely other, but it began simply, exactly like our own. Each of their journeys grew from a seed of faith, nourished by a regular, consistent investment in a relationship with the God of the Universe in everyday life. The invitation for dramatic life change is ours as well. What If  you were to begin investing deeper with Jesus this weekend? Where might He take you? What would He want you to know? Who would He want you to share the gospel with? Suppose the Lord had written an invitation to you, what would your response be? Write it out and be willing to be different!

Praying Scripture back to the One who wrote it in the first place is a great way to jump start our prayer-life! Pray this passage from Job 38:31-33 back to the Lord and
let His Spirit speak to you through it!

Can you bind the chains of the Pleiades
or loose the cords of Orion?
Can you lead forth the Mazzaroth in their season,
or can you guide the Bear with its children?
Do you know the ordinances of the heavens?
Can you establish their rule on the earth?

Prayer Journal
Ah Lord God, Your good kindness to us is so far beyond my comprehension. Keep taking my breath away with the vastness of Your love and Your design for life! You, who created galaxies we haven’t even explored. You, who gather the seas in Your hand. You who measure the mountains on a scale. You, who crafted the body of an ant and the structure of micro-organisms, purposed to have a relationship with every single human being on a deep and personal level. And then You called us out, made us new, and gave us purpose as You invited us into a mission to love others as You have loved us. Keep my eyes focused in this rich truth, reminding me You’ve invited me ever deeper into “What If!”.

Worship Through Community

Can we pray for you? Reach Out! We’d love to pray for and with you!
Send us an email at prayer@gracefullytruthful.com

Build community, be transparent, and encourage others:
Share how God spoke to you today!
Comment Here or in our Facebook Community Group!

Worship Through Prayer

Worship Through Music

The GT Weekend! ~ Eden Week 2

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The GT Weekend!

At Gracefully Truthful, weekends aren’t for “checking out”.
Use this time to invite the Almighty’s fullness into you life in a deeper way!
Saturdays and Sundays are a chance to
reflect, rest, and re-center our lives onto Christ.
Don’t miss the opportunity to connect with other women in prayer,
rest your soul in reflective journaling,
and spend time worshiping the Creator who
longs for intimacy with each of us!

Worship Through Journaling

Worship Through Journaling

1) In the beginning of Genesis, we catch a glimpse of the life God intends for us. We see beauty in every aspect of life, even, or perhaps especially, in work. In our broken world, we can easily lose sight of the biblical significance of labor and its fruit. Society’s version of work leaves us disheartened, unfulfilled, and stressed because it shifts the focus off God. When you find yourself in the thick of it at work, what’s your focus point that renews your strength and motivates you? If it’s anything but God, you will eventually find it insufficient. When we change the lens through which we view labor, filtering our perspective through God’s character, we realize the gift of work! Each day, God provides opportunities to glorify Him and align ourselves with His character as we enter work attempting to model Him as He diligently labored over Creation. When you struggle to push through whatever labor you face, pray for God to shift your lens and align your heart with His. Don’t be discouraged should you not see tangible fruit from your labor, instead remind yourself of the truths Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 15:58, “be steadfast…excelling in the Lord’s work because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain,” and Galatians 6:9, “let us not get tired of doing good, for we will reap at the proper time if we don’t give up.”

2) Temptation is perhaps Satan’s most effective tool to spiritually attack mankind. He merely sets up situations that pull at the sinful desires of our flesh, knowing our bodies are at war with the Spirit of God living inside us, leaving us weakened and vulnerable. The best illustration of handling temptation is on display as Jesus suffered temptation in the wilderness after His baptism by John. He spent 40 days and 40 nights being tempted by the devil, but effectively resisting the urge to sin. (Matthew 4:1-11) Each time Satan spoke, Jesus replied using Scripture from the Old Testament. He used God’s words, the very words we read in our Bibles today, to expose Satan’s lies with Truth. This requires us to spend intentional time studying the Bible. Scripture is God’s favorite way to talk to us. What are some activities you could sacrifice in order to make time to listen to God and equip yourself against temptation? Could you wake up 30 minutes earlier, or turn off the television a little bit sooner, or scroll on social media a little less?

3) Jesus didn’t spend his time as a human here on earth building marble laden castles, throwing lavish feasts, and laughing drunkenly in wide hallways ordained with gold and silver. He walked the dirt lined paths of His earthly kingdom with His bare feet alongside messy, imperfect people, healing the sick and despised. He engaged them with questions that illuminated truth, tore holes in their lies, brought understanding and healing, and exposed those who weren’t yet ready to hear the answers they sought. God has never stopped asking us questions, engaging us in conversation to illuminate, heal, and expose the sin in our lives and lead us back to Him. His goal has always been to share in relationship with His creation, so make it a point, today, to follow His lead and engage the next person you run into with His love. Be open minded and intentional. After all, you never know where a question could lead, or how the Lord could use your obedience to rescue a soul for eternity!

Praying Scripture back to the One who wrote it in the first place is a great way to jump start our prayer-life! Pray this passage from 2 Corinthians 11:12-15 back to the Lord and
let His Spirit speak to you through it!

But I will continue to do what I am doing, in order to deny an opportunity to those who want to be regarded as our equals in what they boast about. For such people are false apostles, deceitful workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. And no wonder! For Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. So it is no great surprise if his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. Their end will be according to their works.

Prayer Journal
Dear Yahweh, I thank you for being the guiding star that ever points north and whose light never falters. Each morning, You give me a day full of new opportunities to bring glory to Your name. I ask for Your help in shifting my gaze back to You when I lose sight of this gift. Please give me a heart that aches for Your Word and a soul thirsting for truth. I ask for Your direction when navigating worldly temptation. Please, Holy Spirit, remind me to put on Your armor in protection of the enemy as Ephesians 6:10-18 commands. Help me recollect Scripture in my times of weakness and allow me to move forward with the shield of faith and my feet sandaled with readiness for the gospel of peace.

Give me courage to explore the power of asking questions not just with my loved ones and close friends, but with strangers and even my enemies, as I remember this battle we are in is not against flesh and bone, but against spiritual powers beyond what my eyes can see. Help me remember You love my enemy just as You love me. Thank You, Yahweh, for Your endless grace and mercy. May Your will be done in me today and every day. Amen.

Worship Through Community

Can we pray for you? Reach Out! We’d love to pray for and with you!
Send us an email at prayer@gracefullytruthful.com

Build community, be transparent, and encourage others:
Share how God spoke to you today!
Comment Here or in our Facebook Community Group!

Worship Through Prayer

Worship Through Music