discourage

The GT Weekend! Screenshot Week 3

Leave a Comment

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 shares in “Hidden Talent” how the Lord took her progressively deeper into truth through Scripture in regard to the spiritual discipline of stewardship. She began with applying stewardship to her finances, was later convicted of stewarding time in her life, until the Spirit of God moved in her heart, showing her that she herself, the whole of her, was the “talent”. Where do you see yourself fall in that same progression of discovery? How are you living that out currently? What’s holding you back from surrendering more control to the Lord?

2) Discouragement sprouts up anywhere, ready to slow us down and disarm us of passion and excitement to grow God’s Kingdom. Fear and worry follow close behind discouragement, ready to distract us so effectively that we become ineffective for all the Lord has invited us into. Where are you most tempted to give in to any of these three “weeds”? Share honestly with the Lord of these areas, and cling tightly to truth, remembering that “The Story Isn’t Over!”.

3) While developing spiritual habits like Scripture reading and prayer are full of highs, lows, and mediocrity, we are absolutely assured these sweet truths: The Father is Ever-Present when we sit with Him, and He will never waste what we are willing to invest in relationship with Him. Whether you carve out 3 minutes or 63, the Lord will meet you. He has much to show you about Himself, precious encouragement to personally give you, and direction to help you refocus your heart. Don’t wait; begin creating a plan to spend regular, consistent time with Him! Get ready for what He wants to do in your “Now”!

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 3:12-18 back to the Lord and
let His Spirit speak to you through it!

12 Since we have such a hope, we are very bold, 13 not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face so that the Israelites might not gaze at the outcome of what was being brought to an end. 14 But their minds were hardened. For to this day, when they read the old covenant, that same veil remains un-lifted, because only through Christ is it taken away. 15 Yes, to this day whenever Moses is read a veil lies over their hearts. 16 But when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. 17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 18 And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another.6 For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.

Prayer Journal
Father, I praise you for truth from Your Word that victoriously declares, “The Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom!” Freedom to come out of hiding, ready to follow your leading despite my fears. Freedom, whose voice drowns out those of discouragement and worry. Freedom that openly invites me, every moment of every day, to build Your Kingdom.

Make my heart tender to You, Spirit, that I might learn to follow quickly as you lead me into that freedom. Lord, break my heart for those whose faces I see around me; all of them with hearts that long for freedom. Give me opportunities to share what You have faithfully done in my life that they too might discover the deep freedom only You give!

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

Justice Day 13 He Calms The Anxious Soul

Leave a Comment

Read His Words Before Ours!

Psalm 68:5
James 1:27
Philippians 4:6-7 

A few months ago, after supper, a dear friend of mine sat down with me, and began to open up about a big part of her story. I’d heard bits and pieces over the course of our friendship, but we hadn’t gone this deep before. She gave me permission to share her heart with you, in the hopes that you can encourage someone else.

When you first meet Wanda, you can’t help but smile. She embodies someone that loves the Lord, undeniably. She has a servant’s heart that I pray I can learn from, as well as a genuine love for everyone that crosses her path. She is one of the most creative people I’ve ever encountered, and has this incredible ability to turn something from rags to beauty with just a bit of love and inspiration. I admire her so much, and when I think of all that she has gone through, it stops me in my tracks.

On that Monday evening in her living room with my daughter Maizie playing at our feet, I asked her to tell me about losing her 3rd husband, Brad. Wanda’s life had significantly altered course, yet she still passionately chose to live and love deeply. Her life spoke volumes of a dependence on our Heavenly Father and I wanted to hear the heart behind her faith. She smiled and told me that for her to talk about the present, she needed to start in the past.

You see, Wanda’s story is one that includes being in multiple abusive marriages, losing her husband to suicide, spending time in jail, being involved with drugs and alcohol, and losing custody of her children.

It’s real.
It’s raw.
It’s messy.

But, her story doesn’t end there.

Following Brad’s death, Wanda’s life took an unfortunate turn. With no one to lean on, she found herself in a home filled with hard drugs and alcohol, causing her to fall back into a lifestyle she thought she’d walked away from. This time the consequences of her decisions carried even more weight, as she had her twin boys by her side.

One night, she gathered enough courage to pack her things and leave that home and all it represented. During the trek out of town that night, a series of events landed her in jail and her boys in the foster care system.

She spent the next few years in and out of jail. While in prison for the last time, she allowed herself to unpack the weight of all she’d been carrying over the course of the last decade.

The hurt.
The anger.
The bitterness.
The sadness.
The loneliness.

It all came to a head, and a once-familiar Voice of the Lord came rushing back with these sweet words:
“Do not be anxious about anything,
but in everything by prayer
and supplication with thanksgiving
let your requests be made known to God.
And the peace of God,
which surpasses all understanding,
will guard your hearts and your minds
in Christ Jesus.”
(Philippians 4:6-7)

These verses have become Wanda’s battle cry over the last several years. A reminder, that though life has thrown unexpected curve balls her way, she can rest and rely on Jesus, because in Him she will find His perfect peace.

Even after all these years, Wanda is still working through the grieving and healing process of being a widow and a single mother. This encourages me that grieving is a process, a necessary one. Wanda’s story reminds me to be compassionate to the widows in my life, sensitive to the reality that they have experienced grief in a way I haven’t. We can learn from these ladies!

One of the ways that the Lord has brought healing and allowed the walls that once surrounded Wanda’s heart to come down has been through the local church. It has been a place where she has found true brothers and sisters in Christ that have come alongside her, and her boys, encouraging and lifting them up through the process. She has been able to use the talents that the Lord gave her in many of the church ministries, from painting to taking care of babies, and everything in between.

Again, Church, where are we? Women who have lost their Loves are among us, do we know them? Are we alert to their needs? Are we finding new outlets for them to serve because God’s purposes have not ended for these precious ones!

For Wanda, she has chosen to remain single, even though she is still young, and
run after all that God has for her.
A beautiful encouragement for each of us; whether we are single, married, widowed, or divorced.
Let’s run after Him together, arms interlocked, so we can carry each other along the way!

Share your thoughts from today’s Journey Study!
Can we pray for you?
Sign up to receive every Journey Study!

Join the GT Community and share your thoughts!

Embracing God’s fullness in our lives is rooted in scripture and memorizing His word is vital to our continued growth and depth with Jesus. Tap and hold from your mobile device to download this week’s verse and make it your phone’s lockscreen!

Thanks for joining us today as we journeyed into Justice Week Three! Don’t miss out on the discussion below – we’d love to hear your thoughts!

Looking for other journeys from this theme?
Here’s a link to all past studies in Justice!