Learning Faith

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I am amazed how time flies by. It seems like just last year I was on pins and needles to graduate high school and go to college. Now I’m in my last year and am facing the reality that I will be thrown into the real world very soon. Maybe I’m just nostalgic, but Abba has been causing me to reflect on my life and where I am going a lot lately.

Since I was a little girl I always trusted and knew deep down somewhere that He was preparing me for something great and I needed to handle every situation, big or small, as Christ-like as possible so that I would be ready for whatever He asked me to do in the future. And now, He’s kick starting me. For those of you who don’t know the backstory, my best friend and college sweetheart proposed to me this past April, and we’ll be getting married and moving to Austin, Texas next June. Abba had been laying it on our hearts to move wayyyy south and to brave being far away from family and friends. Thankfully, both Stan and I love to travel and it’ll be an adventure.
I’ve been learning a lot lately that having faith is super easy until you’re actually faced with a life changing event or decision and you have to choose to follow Christ or stay comfortable. Abba has proved to me time and time again that whenever I take one step, even if it’s baby-sized, that I always end up happier and more blessed because I’m stepping in God’s will.
Stan and I have had people tell us it’s ridiculous to move to a place you’ve never been with no job, no home, and no knowledge whatsoever of the area. And I understand their concerns for sure! Believe me haha. But I’ve found such excitement and joy in the Lord when He covers my eyes, leads me somewhere, and then says, “Open!” It’s the best feeling to see what Abba had in store all along because it’s always beautiful. His promises never fail, and He never leaves His child’s side.

Here’s something amazing to encourage you. Judah Smith came to speak at my university and he said something amazing that really stuck with me and I hope paints a beautiful and powerful picture of Abba in your heart. When I realized the kind of love God has for me I became stronger and bolder in my faith in Him. Before, I didn’t try to strengthen my faith or step out in faith because I thought I had no worth to God. I thought I was too much of a sinner to be worthy of what He had for me.

There are three stories in Luke 15 about God that paint a perfect picture of how He pursues His creation. In Luke 15:1-7, Jesus tells the story of lost sheep. I love this analogy because God compares us to sheep. Little backstory – sheep are the dumbest animal! Despite that, the shepherd in this story leaves the 99 sheep to go find the 1 lost sheep. He doesn’t hesitate or think about the fact that the sheep shouldn’t have left the 99. This story paints a picture of Jesus.
In Luke 15:8-10, Jesus tells another parable about a woman who loses one of ten coins. She turns over her house trying to find the one coin she has lost, and when she finds it, she calls her friends together and rejoices! She says, “Rejoice with me, for I have found the piece which which I lost!” (Luke 15:9) This story paints a picture of the Holy Spirit.
In Luke 15:11-32, Jesus tells a parable about a Jewish man who had two sons – the story of the prodigal son as most of us refer to it. The one son decided he was going to do his own thing and took his father’s money he had in store for him and partied. When he ran out of money, his friends left him, and he had nothing. He realized what he had done but thought his father would never forgive him. He declared himself no longer a son to his father. He decided to go back to his father’s house as an employee instead of a son. When he entered the city his father saw him and ran to him. (Jewish men do not run). And met his son and kissed his face. Meanwhile, the son still tried to push him away and say, no no I know I’m no longer worthy to be your son, I just want to work for you. But his father did not care what the son had planned to say! He had been waiting for his return and ran to him, forgetting all that he had done. This is a beautiful picture of God the Father.

In every one of these stories God pursues His children passionately, He pursues, He does not wait for us to come up with some story of what we’re worth to Him. He already knows what we’re worth! We’re made in His image and that, my friends, is more worthy than anything on this earth we could come up with 🙂 Here is Judah’s entire sermon. He explains this so well! I recommend starting at 6:05 (this is when he starts to focus in on the topic – he does throw in a lot of jokes so bare with him haha).