Amy's story + song: You are faithful, Sovereign God.

Trials are bound to come but like they come, they go. Recently, I've had friends, family, worship leaders go through some really though time. I feel honored they share with me. Quite a number of them though, it was almost looking like a season of trials. I have been faced with some myself, as a matter of fact, i just pulled through a recent trouble (ergo, my previous post), but this story and song i'm about to share carries a message of HOPE. I like to think no testimony is bigger than the other - they all show the Mighty hand of the Sovereign God.

This story got me teary and smiley as i soaked in the spontaneous song the story birthed. GOD IS INDEED FAITHFUL!!!

I hope you find Joy in hope from this story:

My husband Jason and I have been married for 13 1/2 years. We’ve been incredibly blessed to have a marriage full of adventure as we’ve pursued God’s best for us. Along the way, we’ve had challenges (and lots of learning opportunities) and have grown closer at every turn. 

Even though we longed and tried to get pregnant, it was just not happening. This turned into a long, almost decade-long, journey for us, pursuing natural means of fertility, physical checkups, and waiting. As we waited, I had a discussion with my chiropractor, who suggested that a severe car accident I had when I was 26 may be a contributing to factor to the difficulties we were having conceiving. So, we prayed about pursuing more intensive fertility treatments, but our insurance would not cover this and the cost felt unreachable. I began to wonder if I’d ever get to experience motherhood through pregnancy, and my heart grieved for my husband, who longed to be a father.
During this process the Lord would remind us of the legacy He had in store for our family. We would stand in church every time there was prayer for those that longed to have kids. Friends would gather with us privately and pray over us and declare God’s faithfulness. Over the years these powerful words and prayers seemed to grow almost painful as they were left unfulfilled. 

But amidst this pain, each one was covered in hope and promise, and I tucked these words deep in my heart.  

We feel adoption is one of the most beautiful examples of the gospel– giving the orphan a home. So we pursued foster care and private adoption. We learned so much about the need for adoptive parents to bring kids out of tough situations, and I grew more and more excited at the opportunity to welcome a child into our family. In late 2014, we were finalizing our adoption paperwork and had raised over $6500 to pay for the initial steps of private adoption with the help and support of friends and family. We scheduled our final home inspection and interview with the state in January of 2015. 

Two weeks after our final interview with the state, I realized I needed to take a pregnancy test. Every sign pointed to the potential of pregnancy, but I couldn’t let my heart go there one more time for the fear of disappointment. I reluctantly went to the store, and when the pregnancy test showed “positive” I stood in shock. I let out a scream that made Jason come running to my side. We sat with that positive pregnancy test on the edge of our bed and wept together with joy. It was unbelievable. The feeling of a promise fulfilled that we’d almost let go of. 

 At times it felt we had let go and God was the One still holding on. In a moment, everything changed, and it was totally unexpected. 

Today, we are in a season of feeling completely empowered to give hope to those in waiting. We are so inspired to encourage the broken hearted that, in a moment, it can all change! I fully believe that choosing thankfulness along the way, celebrating the victories of those around you, and remaining faithful in the midst of it all will plant seeds– and while they may take time to grow, their fruit will come in season. It may not always look exactly the way we plan in our minds, but oh, how sweet that fruit is when it becomes ripe in the right timing! 

Each moment of this pregnancy is beautiful and full of joy, and this little girl on the way has prophetic words spoken, journals written, and now songs sung in expectation of her arrival. What a legacy she already has. Though there was pain in the night, joy arrived in the morning. And it is a joy that is far deeper, sweeter and richer than I ever dreamed imaginable! She is, and will always be, an undeniable sign of the faithfulness of God in our lives.

This song is birthed from that place of expectation, but also from a place of seeing promises fulfilled right before me as this child grows every day. His love can move mountains. In my life I’ve seen him do incredible things with the tiny amount of faith I carry. What an amazing and good father we have!

Amy is part of the Bethel Church, Redding worship team and family. Two weeks ago at church, Amy sang out her story in spontaneous worship, sparking a powerful moment of prayer, declaring that our circumstances are overcome by the h o p e & p r o m i s e of everything He is.

Soak...

You are faithful, you never give up - never give up on me
You are able, to finish the work You started in me
You are stable, through every change that this life can bring, You remain

*Culled from the Bethel music blog
*Photo credit: Bethel music blog 

Random muse: I have a place... #JoyinHope

 I have a place, a place i call home. A home where fathers are shepherds to fathers, mothers play similar roles, a home with the luxury and company of  siblings, they are almost countless, but if you are a detail oriented person, good luck trying.

I have a place, a place i call home. A place to rest my head, a place i find peace. Here, it's like a garden, where the songs from the choir is like the bird's that make this garden harmonious, the words from the gardener nurtures the shrubs to maturity, and the loves from all beautifies effortlessly. This place is mine.

''God expresses His love through family. You see God in people. In the multitude of counsel there is safety. I may want to be an island spiritually, and say ''it's between me and God''. yes, my relationship with God is personal, but in times when you bury the voice of God on burrowed grounds of worry, grounds of despair, when the storm rages in mighty waters crashing. You search for hope in His word, but the overwhelming storm has swallowed every word once stored, tossed around by the surge of strong tides, you cant seem to get a hold of it to comfort... 

then, the spirit speaks ''peace be still'' through someone, or you may feel the warmth of heaven's embrace from an infant child, sometimes you see God's hands in Wendy's hands. God sometimes doesn't speak, even when he does you may be beclouded to hear. Here, in this family will you see God, amongst these ones will a finger point you back to Him,with people to bring out the beauty in your tears and like a bridge over troubled waters, they lay down; from someone else's testimony will you find hope and in JD's words will you hear God''

I have a place, a place i call home. A home with a family. A clan of people related by a blood divine.

at least, at most... - Musing (Joy in Hope)

What is the worst

That could happen?

What is the best

That could probably be?

A minus of worst from best,

 yields

But a median figure

associated mostly with mediocrity.

A figure

complacent with the heart

that craves easy.

A mind that says:

"Nothing to lose

Nothing to gain"

Is worse than having lost it all,

in the face 

of the ugly truth.

Good news is:

Inconsequential will be

The number of odds

When just one good finally comes.

The premise is:

Provided hope stays unflinching.

BLOOD OF LOVE - Divine Condescension.

From the fountain of Love
Priceless drops drip steady
One drop,
A thousand flaws to rid.

From the fountains of Love
The pierced side gushes so.
One touch,
A thousand sins to cleanse.

From the fountain of Love
The thorn pierced head trickles red
One stream,
A thousand chains to free.

                Oh fountain of love's blood
                Divine blood of Love.

From the fountain of Love
The whip lashed skin bleeds so
One stripe,
A thousand ills to heal

From the fountain of Love
The cross ever to shine
One gaze,
To live a thousand years and more

From the Fountain of Love
Is an Ocean of blood divine
Drown me,
To be saved, forgiven and Accepted

(Photo credit: truth for life daily.)

Picture Quote - #MomentsLikeThis

People like me, (especially those that grew up within the confines of the church walls + in this part of the world) have these worship lines all crammed up in our heads. I remember my Sunday school teacher (+ her cane) teach us what to say whenever it is time to worship, and asks us to repeat these words over and over again. I still feel these lines imprinted in my head, so even subconsciously i have words to utter from the stack of cliches planted in my head.

Well, for some people it's just an accustomed repetition of lines that store up over time.

Trust me, this could get really boring, and it entertains distractions. It makes you feel like you are worshiping even when your mind has wandered away, this can be attributed to the repetition of the same words everyday.

Worshipers, get real with God. Don't feel obligated to speak when silence floods your heart. keep your words real and true. Allow eulogies to well out from the depths of your spirit, consciously

.                                       "Our worship Shouldn't be a repetition of cliches
                                            but a verbal expression of our deepest
                                                      intents at the moment."

Blessings!

Picture Quote: JOY IN HOPE

Just one of those words that come to mind - JOY IN HOPE
The joy that hope brings surmounts every possible doubt or mountain of gloom.

so, when you find a glint of joyous moment on a dark day,
hold on to it all day long.

Blessings!

Tribute to Mothers (BY Abigail Wallace)

From a Mother to her Mother...

Push, Push, Push,
You heard the midwife say.
You pushed with every inborn strain,
As all of nature stood still,
Poised, hovering, in tranquil,
Waiting to sing the refrain.
There was no stopping until,
You heard the midwife say,
“It’s a girl”

Mother!
The name suddenly echoed in your ear,
As your teardrops touched my nose
Mother!
That name, oh so dear,
Precious as the most perfect rose
Mother!
The song you will always hear,
From the day your arms first held me close

Your life would never be the same,
Everything would change.
But all you have is praise
For the gift of life,you have to raise
So, you reached deep into you,
To the strength God has put in the name.
Yes, it was well within your range
To shape the life God had given you.

Mother!
Your bosom is a rest so rare.
Mother!
You alone can give me tender care.
Mother!
Your heart is laid bare
Mother!
To embrace your child,so dear

The miracle of birth
Is but a fusion of the divine and human.
For heaven fuses with earth
When a seed is taken by a woman,
The wonder of motherhood,
Is but a revelation of the nature of God
Nurturer, Sustainer, Protector, Friend and Rock.

By Jennifer Abigail Koshie Wallace