5 Blessings for March 22

1. Hearing a few different people say they felt God brought them to Charlotte to come to Spirit of Joy...

It makes me think of how God worked in my own life to bring me to Spirit of Joy (which I started attending after a change of life plans, reluctantly at first). It was at Spirit of Joy that God brought a new level of healing to my life. It was there that He showed me His love and grace in greater measures than I had ever experienced. It was there that He enabled me to experience community unlike ever before. It was God's working in my life through Spirit of Joy that enabled me to sense the Holy Spirit's presence in my life for the first time. It was also during my time at SOJ that I heard God call me to seminary.

I followed His call, almost reluctantly at first because I didn't want to leave this incredible place of grace. But then, I discovered another incredible place of grace...

2. CIU ~ Columbia International University. I began attending seminary here in the fall of 2005 and during the last four years discovered that God led me there not just to get an education, but also (if not more so) to bring healing to my life, develop my character, & deepen my spirituality.

I was incredibly sad leaving SOJ to go to CIU because I feared I would never get to return to the place where God began a renewing and incredible work in my life (SOJ). However, God opened the door for me to return...

3. I came back to SOJ in August of 2008 to begin my counseling internship...almost reluctantly at first. I say this because my original intention was to do my internship at a larger church in Charlotte which had an already established pastoral counseling center. Needless to say, that didn't work out, and as God would have it, He opened the doors to do my internship at SOJ.

4. Where is God calling me next? I don't know. But what I do know is that wherever it is, He's already there. One of my fears when I first left SOJ to go to CIU was that I would lose the Spirit which I had found at SOJ. However, when I got to CIU I found the Spirit was there also and was just as powerful there. So, even though I don't know where God will take me next, I know that He is with me every step of the way...and He's already there, wherever "there" is!

5. I have learned many invaluable lessons through each of these experiences, including:

--There's a valuable lesson to be learned in every circumstance.
--No matter where I go, God's already there and He's with me every step of the journey.
--God is completely trustworthy (Time and time again he's shown me that, Yes, He can be trusted).
--When I depend on God, He will never let me down.
--God is full of compassion, grace, and unfailing love.
--"God always gives His best to those who leave the choice with Him" (Jim Elliot)...and God's best is always better than I could have imagined!