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The GT Weekend! ~ Worship VI 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) Where have you “felt the brokenness of the world with your own two hands”? Do you feel yourself shy away inside as your mind brings those unbidden thoughts and feelings to the surface? Are you skimming forward past these words, quickly hiding the painful scenarios or cutting words back in the corner from where they came? Brokenness. Shame. Gaping wounds. Grief so deep. Loneliness. Loss. Weariness. Fear. This brokenness is everywhere, isn’t it? But Oh praise God we have a Redeeming Rescuer! One who heals, One who brings life, One who binds up, One who brings justice, One who brings to light what was done in secret, One who l o v e s. Will you do something brave this weekend with me? Will you bring up one, just one, of those aching broken places and hold it in your hands while you talk with the Savior about its painful edges? I will pray for you as you do; pray for me!

2)  What have been some of your “seasons of wilderness”? What has been the prevailing factor in that desert time that has most discouraged you or caused you pain? Maybe it’s loneliness, loss, fear, or even anger. In looking back at other dry, weary seasons, what good have you seen coming from that time of stretching? What impact would a shift in your perspective have? What if we began viewing our seasons as opportunities for God to draw us close and make us more like Himself instead of begging Him to release us from the suffering? It is wisdom and maturity in Christ to choose surrendered submission in our wilderness prayers!

3)  What was the reason you last decided to intentionally praise God? Whether it was vocally or in your heart, think back to the last time you remember praising Him for something in particular. Now, think back to the last time you praised Him for the good work He was doing in the midst of your life’s storm. If you’re in a storm right now, take time to physically hold out your hands as you pray, choosing praise for His character in the face of your circumstances. Ask Him to reveal more of Himself to you, showing you His glory. If you aren’t in a season of struggle right now, intentionally take this time to walk closer with the Lord. Be consistent in your quiet time Bible study, journal your prayers and study notes, connect with an accountability partner to grow together, take a vow of silence to listen more intently to the Father, and choose praise. Practicing praise in easy times, will prepare us for worship in trial.

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 Exodus 33:18 back to the Lord and let His Spirit speak to you through it!

Then Moses said to the Lord, “Please, let me see Your glory!”

Prayer Journal
Please, Lord God, remove from my heart the incessant desire to keep focusing on the temporary, the fleeting circumstances around me that frustrate me, or the people who make me forget I’m human too. Lord, I want to be ensconced by Your presence. Permeate my heart with Your glory; just let me sit here and dwell with you, drinking in Your beauty, that I may be forever transformed as a result. May my heart bring You true worship that honors and delights You. May my eyes be for You and Your magnificence so that nothing else matters because Your mighty love will flow through me to a hurting world. Hear my heart worship, Lord!

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

Pause 3 Day 2 Intended For Rest

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Pause 3, Day 2

Rest.
We all need it, but most of us push back from it, not wanting to be found lazy, weak, or ineffective. We stay awake until the wee hours working, press ourselves to exhaustion during the day, or move from one activity to the next without a breath.
Yet, we were designed for resting.

Resting.
Pausing.
Breathing.
Being.

As often is the case, the physical realm mirrors the spiritual in order to accentuate it. Just as our physical bodies were made to literally live off of rest, so were our souls. This is the emphasis of chapter three in Hebrews. The only safe haven of rest for our souls is found in Christ Jesus, the author of our hearts.

Grab your Bible, a journal and pen,
and open your heart to bask in the presence of the Almighty!

Today's Challenge

1) Pull out your Bible and read Hebrews 3 fully through 3 times.

2) Each time, write down everything that pops out at you, makes you curious, or wonder “why?”. When you’re finished, go back through and you’ll be amazed at the new things the Spirit is leading you into knowing about Him!

3) Pay special attention to the kind of rest we are made for. Who is able to ensure we will be given the inheritance of rest? What kind of rest is the author wanting us to make sure we enter? How do we enter it? What keeps us from this specific rest?

Share your thoughts from today’s Journey Study!
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Hebrews 3

Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, who share in a heavenly calling, consider Jesus, the apostle and high priest of our confession. 2 He was faithful to the one who appointed him, just as Moses was in all God’s household. 3 For Jesus is considered worthy of more glory than Moses, just as the builder has more honor than the house. 4 Now every house is built by someone, but the one who built everything is God. 5 Moses was faithful as a servant in all God’s household, as a testimony to what would be said in the future. 6 But Christ was faithful as a Son over his household. And we are that household if we hold on to our confidence and the hope in which we boast.

7 Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says:
Today, if you hear his voice,
8 do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion,
on the day of testing in the wilderness,
9 where your fathers tested me, tried me,
and saw my works 10 for forty years.
Therefore I was provoked to anger with that generation
and said, “They always go astray in their hearts,
and they have not known my ways.”
11 So I swore in my anger,
“They will not enter my rest.”

12 Watch out, brothers and sisters, so that there won’t be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. 13 But encourage each other daily, while it is still called today, so that none of you is hardened by sin’s deception. 14 For we have become participants in Christ if we hold firmly until the end the reality that we had at the start. 15 As it is said:
Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.

16 For who heard and rebelled? Wasn’t it all who came out of Egypt under Moses? 17 With whom was God angry for forty years? Wasn’t it with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the wilderness? 18 And to whom did he swear that they would not enter his rest, if not to those who disobeyed? 19 So we see that they were unable to enter because of unbelief.

How Does “Pause” Work?
1. Each day, Monday through Friday, for 2 weeks, we will provide you with a simple challenge. Each challenge is designed for you to engage with the Almighty in a deeper way and perhaps in a new way than you have been recently.

2. Having a journal is a must! You’ll want to take notes as you walk this special Journey of Pause.

3. Each week focuses on one or two passage of Scripture and we walk with you as you study and flesh these out for yourself. As you write your thoughts, read His Word, and pray, questions might come up. That’s Perfect! Ask a trusted fellow believer, a pastor, or send us an email as you work through them!

4. Jumping in at the middle? No problem! Here is the entire Journey Theme.

5. Connect with others on Facebook by visiting our GT Community Group!

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 Pause 3 Week One!
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 Pause 3!

Captivating Day 15 Life For Life

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Read His Words Before Ours!

Isaiah 61:1-3
Luke 9:23-24
Acts 16:6-10

Captivating, Day 15

As I sat down to write this Journey Study, I took a deep breath and closed my eyes.
Within an instant, I was taken back to twelve-year-old Sara (who actually went by Lizzie, but that’s another story for another day), sitting in the church sanctuary pew, tears streaming down her face. I was a wreck!
My church’s mission team was heading to Jamaica for a week and was in the process of presenting a slideshow detailing how they would minister on the trip.

I sat captivated by the testimonies, the preaching, the song and dance, and envisioned myself walking the roads and sharing the gospel.
The longer I watched, the more tears I shed.

My mom leaned over and asked me what was wrong, as I was clearly engulfed in emotion.
Four words mumbled from my mouth through silent sobs.
I need to go.

 I had known about missionaries, and mission trips my entire life, but I’d always viewed it as something to do when I got ‘older’, whatever that meant.
It wasn’t until my sister gave us all hugs and said, ‘see you later’ I realized missions wasn’t intended for just some believers,
It was intended for every believer.

As mom and I talked, I couldn’t help but wonder why the emotion, and why the longing? It brought questions up in my heart, and I knew I needed to find answers. By the end of the night, we decided if I still felt the same way next summer, then I could sign up for my first mission trip.

Over the course of the next few months, I felt I heard the word ‘missions’ more than ever.
It’s beautiful the way the Spirit works to create a hunger within us, isn’t it?!
When you are increasingly sensitive to His leading, and really pressing into Him, He reveals His direction ever more consistently and clearly in our lives. From guest speakers, to videos, to Scripture, I felt drawn to missions more and more.

When the next summer rolled around, I had signed up for not one, but two trips. I was heading to El Salvador, and a couple weeks later, to Jamaica. It didn’t matter that it was summer and I was supposed to spend my days at the pool, what mattered to me was going. What mattered was obeying what God had told me to do.

The trip to El Salvador was overwhelming. To see how the world lives beyond my sphere was eye opening, especially as I wasn’t much older than most of those we interacted with.
I had spent one night on our trip praying and praying about what God wanted me to do with my life when I heard His voice for the first time.

I’ve called you to this, my daughter. To proclaim the Good News. To be a missionary.

I knew then, my life was forever changed.
This was why I was engulfed in emotion.
This was why the Spirit had been speaking to me for the last year.
He was preparing me to listen and obey.

The theme of the week in El Salvador was Vida por Vida, which means Life for Life.
Jesus gave His life,
So we can live our lives,
To tell others about Him.

This is the Gospel lived out!

If I wouldn’t have laid my own desires down, I would’ve missed what God created me to do. To make disciples, to teach them the Good News.

Following Him in obedience will always involve sacrifice.
But it will always be worth it!

Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of
The Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
Teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you.
And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
Matthew 28:18-20

We were all created to go.
It could be within the walls of your home, in the checkout aisle, across the street to neighbors, or going to the 10/40 window, but the mission is the same.
To ensure every person on earth has heard the name of Jesus.

If you’ve never been on a mission trip before, I encourage you to pray about it, then follow through and sign up for one. It’s incredible to see the Lord working beyond your everyday borders.

Will it cost you?
Yes
Will it be worth it?
Beyond measure, friends, beyond measure, as you give your life for another life.

Ready for more? Dig Deeper!
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Don’t miss today’s Digging Deeper!     And we’d love to hear your thoughts from today’s Journey!    Comment Here!

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 Captivating Week Three! Don’t miss out on the discussion below – we’d love to hear your thoughts!
Click the above image for today’s Digging Deeper!

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