Here goes nothing..

"My great Defender, He will never surrender, He's already won, He's already won! Freedom is coming, and the enemy is running! It's nearly done, it's nearly done!" - Keep Breathing, Alanna Story

I was sitting in the tiny and quaint Christian Book Store in my hometown today surrounded by women of all sorts. Older, younger, taller, shorter, conservative, free-spirited, quiet, outspoken..you name it, but as I was sitting there it hit me that we were all there for one reason: to spend time with our God. To fellowship, enjoy worshipping our amazing Father and dwell in His presence, together, no matter the difference. We all came broken and bound by sin of some sort and even discovered that others were going through those very things we all thought we were facing alone.
I didn't go with the true realization that God ordains things daily in our lives...how have I overlooked this so much?! I simply was invited by a good friend and thought, hey, a Saturday morning service should be pretty good, why not? Little did I know, Christ would speak to me in more ways than I knew.
Over the past few weeks Christ has been tugging at my heart. I am often a part-time Christian, letting God be important to me when times are tough or when I need forgiveness. This breaks His heart, and mine. I should be rejoicing in every little detail that happens in my life, whether I like what's happening or not. I am saved. I have a God that loves me SO much even when I cling to Him only when it's convenient for me. I have experienced a true love that God knew I would choose, I am His child and I should be so greatful for the faith I have and the people Christ has placed in my life. I should be oozing Jesus to those around me. I should be living for Him alone! God loves me no matter what: when I reject Him, when I choose to live for myself, when I have doubts, when I feel worry and guilt, when I dwell on my past..Christ wants us to be FREE! And the rewards for living for Him will surpass anything this world has to offer. I am so thankful for the opportunity to realize that there are so many Christian women facing the same hardships as me every single day but that Christ knows each and every struggle and is RIGHT THERE to run to, every single time.

As I stood listening to all of the women sing today in closing, I felt closer to Christ than I have in a long time and it was such a blessing. I can't wait to keep sharing what Christ is doing daily in my life, and what an AMAZING GOD we serve!