I’m sitting out on my back porch this morning watching two squirrels fight over one of my birdfeeders. When Sunny’s had enough, she’ll charge through the middle of them and they’ll learn their lesson for a pair of minutes. Beanie’s out of town with Keith. They have serious stuff to do this time of year. A birddog can’t be bothered with snuggling during hunting season. She’s Keith’s dog for about five months a year, watching every move he makes until he says her favorite words, “Load up!” And to the (front seat of) the truck she flies. The rest of the year, however, I am a big contender for her favor and all fifty-six pounds of her transforms into a lap puppy. That’s when Keith refers to me as “Absalom” for trying to steal the heart of his dog.
Women who aren’t hunting widows (no, I’m not a hunter. Hate it. But love him.) ask me from time to time how I put up with Keith being gone as much as he is this time of year. Three ways: 1) This is the way it’s been since we dated. He came straight from the deer lease to our wedding. I had the gall to schedule it during the coldest part of the year. 2) He is a mighty big handful and he’d probably tell you the same about me. We have a very “on” relationship and require no little attention from each other. These times apart give us just a tad of a break and make us so glad to see each other when that couple of days is over. 3) After he’s been with what he calls “nothing but a bunch of *hairy, *stinkin’ men” he comes home thinking I am darling and I get lots of attention. Sometimes *presents. After twenty-nine years of marriage, that’s pretty fun. (*I shave my legs. *I wear deodorant. *I can be bought.)
But that’s not why I’m writing you today.
I’m writing you today because I was thinking again this morning how brilliant God is. How perfectly, in His unfathomable wisdom, He set up the system. My devotional this morning was on faith and, as I stared into the distance and meditated on it, I thought once again what a bright idea God had when He called us to it. What if we could figure it out? Him out? What if what we saw was all there was and that was that? We’d have long since gotten bored and moved on. Instead, God called us through Christ to an adventure that never ends. To seeks answers that are never fully satisfied. Not here on earth anyway. You and I were given restless hearts so that we’d only be satisfied with a wild ride. Some of us try to find it elsewhere because we’ve reduced our relationship with God to a neatly compartmentalized religion we pay regular homage to. We keep our faith to ourselves because we haven’t got that much to spare. We expect little and get little. This way, we don’t have to let it get to us much. But if you engage in the real, live walk of faith with the real, live Jesus Christ, it’s GOING to get to you because HE’S going to get to you. You will get your feelings hurt at times because you’re close enough to be vulnerable. Faithful enough to put yourself out there. Because sometimes walking by faith and not by sight creates as many questions as answers.
But isn’t He brilliant? Would we really have wanted a God we could figure out? Or wouldn’t that have made us His God instead? Isn’t the unknown the very thing that keeps this life an adventure? Some of our destructive lusts for the strange and new in human relationships (inability to commit; addiction to romance novels or steamy TV series; continual fantasies about someone different; or maybe more than fantasies) erupt from unknowingly trading in a holy adventure with God for a feel-better-few-minutes with man (real or imagined) that only ends up feeding our dissatisfaction. The result is even deeper despair that pounds with every beat of our injured heart, “Is this all there is?” The answer is a resounding, “NO!” The innate human desire for something new isn’t what’s unhealthy. The need for adventure was sewn within our souls by divine hands so that deep would call out to deep and we’d drive our insatiable selves straight to the One and Only God who can sustain it. His mercies are new every morning and treasures are inexhaustible every day.
Christ: the perfect blend of security and mystery. He’s security because of all we really can know about Him. Count on about Him. Believe unwaveringly about Him. But He’s also mystery. Someone we can’t conquer. Can’t explain. We know He’ll show up (security!) but never know how (mystery!). I love that about Him.
He was right to set up this system called faith. It’s what makes the whole thing a wild ride. The very thing that drives us the craziest now will be what we loved most about earthly life when we look back on it in His Presence. The drama is the exact thing that will make our stories, told from Heaven’s perspective, so thrilling. And every single one of them will come complete with musical scores. The songs of deliverance that surrounded us at our most faith-defying times. (Ps. 32:7)
Without faith it really is impossible to please Him. That’s why I’m a broken record about it. Our greatest call to encouragement is to exhort one another to the pure practice of faith. To flat believe God. He didn’t set up the system out of egocentric tyranny. As surely as He cannot be pleased with faithlessness, neither can we. Without faith it is also impossible to please our restless souls. God knew what He was doing. The system is no accident. He knew that life in the lowlands would strain its neck for something high. And – don’t make me have to say it again – there ain’t no high like the Most High.
“Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and how fathomless His ways! For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been His counselor? Or who has first given to God, that God needs to repay him? For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be glory forever! Amen.” Romans 11:33-36 NET
I love the way you can sum things up for me and make it all so clear! I spent a season in college really questioning my relationship with God because I wanted an explanation for everything about Him. In my analytical mind I couldn’t understand everything and that really freaked me out. It wasn’t until I looked up in the heavens one day and felt God saying “you will never understand everything, so just believe and let’s move on” that I was able to let go of wanting to understand the how and the why behind our creator and just have faith. He has never let me down and He blows me away on a regular basis! Knowing Him is the ultimate adventure!
~Kristin
I thought long and hard on this very post topic last year at the peak of Grey’s Anatomy. (Oh yes, I said it… Grey’s.) It was my haven. My respite. My mindless, thoughtless, emotional fix. I LOVED it.
I found myself living through the relationships. (Mer-Der, Burk-tina) The best friendships. (Meredith/Christina, George/Izzie, Derek/Sloan)
Until I realized that it was dangerous to my marriage. NOT because I lusted after a fantasy with “McDreamy”… or “McSteamy” but because what I lusted after was the romance of my evening “soap opera”. I wanted in my marriage the wooing, the sweet nothings, the “staged production” of it all.
And that’s dangerous because I don’t have a team of writers handing me a script daily. I don’t have a director telling me where to stand. Or a casting agent putting “extras” in my path.
What I do have however, is a team of writers that established a “script” that I am indeed to abide by. Writers like Paul, Matthew, Mark, David. And I have THE director… that as I spend time in His word, in His presence, He reveals His will for me… consistently telling me where to stand. And well… I have a ton of “extras” running around. Husband, three children, extended family, friends, etc.
I don’t need the romance of it all… even the characters of Grey’s don’t have that. I need Jesus. I need Him in my heart, in my marriage, in my family…
I need Him.
It’s just as you said. This thing… FAITH… is a tricky thing that requires me to be fully invested in the person of Christ! I can’t figure Him out…
It’s exciting!
Thank you for that Beth!
I SO greatly desire to go on a great adventure with my great God! I tremble at the thought of it and yet it is what moves my heart like nothing else.
I pray for Him to use me everyday!
(((((HUGS)))))
I’m a huntin’ and fishin’ widow, too. Only now it has infiltrated my son’s blood and I rarely see him in the summer thanks to the lure of the fish. And he wondered why I screamed when he came back from summer camp this year. I hadn’t seen him but 3 days out of 15!
And of not being able to see God. It reminds me of my daughter when she was four. She couldn’t understand why we couldn’t see God. I tried to explain it to her and finally came up with “it’s because we have normal eyes and normal eyes can’t see Him.” She started literally bawling and wailing, “Oh why oh why do I have normal eyes????” I, too, long for the day my eyes won’t be normal and I will see Him as He is, face to face. Thanks for the moment to reflect on our faith.
Oh how I needed these words this morning as I prepare to teach Sunday School in a couple of hours. Thanks for the blessing!
Love you!
Thank you for a new perspective on that glorious truth, and for this blog.
Chris Taylor
Bel Air , MD
Beth, I thought this weeks Romans series was good, but you totally out did yourself this morning.
I remember well 44 years ago when I married my man that the pangs of jealousy never arose in me over some other woman but just as strong were those pangs whenever I knew my man was going hunting or fishing with his “men friends”. I also knew while dating that this was part of his life and over the years I have accepted it as reality. As he has grown older the desire to “git” those fish and animals has grown a little less year by year. So now I get more and more of his attention. That is how I look at my faith–it has grown and grown over the years. What a great and awesome God we serve. Thank you, Beth, for these good lessons!!!
Hello from the Icy Snow Banks of Wisconsin…but whose hearts overflowing of blessing and praise for all that the Lord has done. I love you girls dearly and am so excited to have found your blog! Jesus is the Most High! May He continue to bless and use this site for His glory ~ this side of the kingdom…from scripture to spittle HA ~ HE IS SOOO AWESOME!!! Time to go teach the children…keep up the great blog…I LOVE IT! H.
Oh Beth,
I’m sitting here in the quiet on this chilly Sunday morning before my family gets up surrounded by boxes of Christmas decorations (with my faithful dog at my feet) and I’m overwhelmed with love and awe for our Father. Your words ring so true. What a perfect start to this glorious Christmas season. This is not the porcelain baby Jesus in the manger scene that we worship….this is the unfathomable King of Kings!
Thank you for the great gift of fresh perspective. I’m so thankful for you. Love, Terri
Thank you for this. This is EXACTLY what I’ve been wrestling with. I just watched The Nativity Story and seeing Herod’s legion come through to kill all of the firstborn children has ravaged me. I realize that God is HIGHER than I can know. I do not understand so many of His ways. But when I question, often He says, “you are clay”. One day I’ll see Him, and all the mystery will turn to Glory.
Beth, thank you so much for this post! God has invited us all on a wild ride! It is crazy at times and we are on a part of that ride right now where we wonder where he is taking us – what he is doing – what he is preparing us for. It is faith alone in Him that we are able to hold on during the ride as we are anxiously awaiting what is on the other side of all this chaos. Thanks for this reminder :
“Christ: the perfect blend of security and mystery. He’s security because of all we really can know about Him. Count on about Him. Believe unwaveringly about Him. But He’s also mystery. Someone we can’t conquer. Can’t explain. We know He’ll show up (security!) but never know how (mystery!). I love that about Him.”
Beth,
Thank you so much for this post. I really needed it. There are alot of things in my life requiring much faith right now. I needed that precious reminder of the mystery of Him. I tell everyone I have a new name for God-God of the fine details. He cares about every little detail in my life, even the ones that seem insignificant to others. I love that. I share the craziness for Him with you, siesta!
Thank you for your dear words. They spoke specifically to me. I wonder why we don’t spend more time studying “faith.” Thank you.
Thank you! I can’t wait to share this with my group of girls! We are doing “Believing God!” This will be perfect YEAH! I love how God does that! He is AWESOME!
Have a very BLESSED day!!! Emmy : )
Thank you Beth! Our favoite song is by Steven Curtis Chapman, The Great Adventure! I tell our family all the time that we are on HIS Great Adventure -it has shaped our foundation of TRUST in Him-after a HUGE job loss and a journey across the globe to bring our daughter into our family-to sitting in a hospital room watching God perform a miracle before our very eyes! And honestly, that was just what has happened in 2006- but through it all we have continued to walk in victory and our victory chant is 2 Corinthians 2:14 But thanks be to God, who made us his captives and leads us along in Christ’s triumphial procession. Now wherever we go he uses us to tell otehrs about the LORD and to spread the good news like a sweet perfume.
Thank you for reminding me again today that Faith is not something that we attain but something that we strive to follow hard after.
You can check out our journey to Tatumn at http://www.journeytome.com Adoption story-Journey to Tatumn
Hope
With a grateful heart-Stephanie Crawford
Hi Beth,
Thanks for expressing so eloquently the very deepest things we all feel. This week I spoke to a group of local ladies and the Lord had me speak on this very subject. One of the commentaries I used referred to it as “robust faith.” I love that! While it would never be considered complimentary to be called “robust” as a woman, you gotta admit that robust faith sounds kind of appealing. As I thumbed through my thesaurus to further explore this idea of being “robust,” one of my favorite synonyms was BIONIC! I saw they are remaking the Bionic Woman on TV this season, but I say, who needs a bionic arm or leg when you can have BIONIC FAITH! With trembling knees, I’m bowing before Him and asking for a fresh indwelling of BIONIC FAITH to believe Him for the unbelievable. That’s really all I want for Christmas this year.
Blessings to you,
Renee
Oh I long for a faith like yours dear lady… it just seems so far out of my reach…
What truth! I needed to be reminded of that today. Sometimes my walk with God seems bland, ordinary, and, frankly, boring. In those times I know that the problem is with me and not with Him. He is the immeasurable and incomparable…I’m just not really looking! I don’t ever want to put God in a box or try to define Him. Thanks for the reminder to seek God out today for who He really is, and not who I think He is.
Thanks, Beth- I was encouraged by your thoughts. It reminded me of one of my favorite quotes….”We should accept with simplicity whatever understanding the Lord gives us; and what he doesn’t we shouldn’t tire ourselves over. For one word of God will contain within itself a thousand mysteries.”
-Teresa of Avila (1515-1582)
– Candice
i want to start by saying this is gonna be a long one so if you don’t have about 5 minutes, you might want to read later :o)
so, looks like i’m the first one to join you in the trenches beth…i too am a hunter’s widow. i was one yesterday morning when you wrote this post and again this morning as i’m reading it (and i just wanted to clarify we went to the saturday night church service :o) no skippin today!)
i can’t agree with you more and just loved your post. you gave wise explanation of the reason why we don’t know all about God. i can’t tell you how many people have asked me the HARD questions and at times i’ve been lost for a good answer. you’ve given me something to chew on and to really process and i think i’ll have quite a different answer the next time i’m confronted.
when you said “the very thing that drives us the craziest now will be what we loved most,” (and really the whole paragraph) just reminded me of how much my relationship to my husband is an image of my relationship to God with in the very nature and elements of it. God’s so creative in how he relates to us. in my story, my husband was to me, a tangible source of love from God. and the whole things remains a mystery to me. i mean the things i’ve put that guy through, just as Jesus, he’s stuck with me. still loves me. it’s a mysterious adventure, life… and i love it.
thanks again for you post beth.
btw…in case you do read this. i wanted ask you if you remember me? years ago (i want to say maybe 15 now) you spoke at a small ladies retreat in idaho, put on by broadway ave. baptist. becky, whom you are friends with now, is now the pastor’s wife, but at the time my mom judi was and i, unfortunately, was making quite a mess of my life at the time and giving my mom her fair share of grey hair (which i must say looks lovely on her now :o) i remember talking to you a bit and you prayed for me. well, i’m quite different and i’ve always wanted to tell you thank you. it’s because of the MANY fervent prayers of my sisters and brothers in christ that i was rescued from the lion’s mouth (after 6 years of entrapment.) the most recent bible study we did “why bad things happen to good people” was MY story. thank you again & bless you and your wonderful ministry.
i will forever love you and your ministry. it’s helped me on soooo many levels of my journey as i have made my way back to jesus’s arms (11 years and going strong).
have a wonderful sunday & God bless
oh and….blogging rules!!!! lol (i just love putting that… cause i don’t REALLY know what it means :O)
Oh Beth, I am 44 years old and have just finished Believing God. Although I have believed in Jesus I have recently, in the last few years, really started BELIEVING Jesus. What you have written I am finding to be so true, I actually look forward to what Jesus is going to show me everyday. I am so amazed and in awe of what He is doing in my life and in the life of those that I have prayed for. I pray for you and your ministry often and I can’t thank God enough for what He has done in your life and how that has spilled over in to my life. Your sister in Christ, Tina McVay
Thank you for your posts! They help encourage us to keep the faith! As I sit here reading it, playing in the background is the song “O Come Let us Adore Him” How appropriate! And thank you for your Bible studies! They are loaded on my Ipod for shoulder surgery soon. God Bless you and your family!
Bingo, girlfriend! You hit several nails on the head. I most certainly understand about this time of year and the men that love it. My man is headed back in from the deer lease as we write. Unfortunately our Brittneys didn’t get to go 🙁 They stayed home with me. My basement looks like a Wild Kingdom mortuary minus Marlin Perkins I’ve got so many dead animals hangin’ on my walls!!! LOL!!
Don’t you just love God? He truly does pursue us and challenge us to greater faith each day. I love loving Him and I never want to go back to the place where I didn’t love Him wildly.
Thanks for sharing with us. You bless me!!
Leah
http://www.thepoint-leah.blogspot.com
Amen
Beautiful words. I find having faith in God is easy, but obedience with that faith . . . well, that is something I must motivate myself towards. When I’m trudging ahead in my obedience, I then realize I need trust. Sometimes God sees us as stronger than we feel. God’s system is definitely complex. It keeps us on our toes =)
I feel like that was written just for me! I recieved some hard news this morning and was comforted by your reminder! Thank you som uch for being used by Him!
This post truly spoke to my heart. You know the adage, “There’s no such thing as coincidence”? Well, I tend to think the same thing about irony. Just a couple of days ago, I posted about the struggles I have been having trusting God and waiting on his action, on my blog, http://www.rcjenkins.blogspot.com. I haven’t posted since. After being sick all weekend (not a good idea to eat leftover Thanksgiving yummies a week + later, I suppose), I came in to “read up” on all my blogger friends. Your post this morning was like you were answering me and writing in response to my post. Thank you for that. I know you believe your gift is God-sent and you probably aren’t good at taking credit for much of what you do. There is probably a very good chance we will never meet on earth, but I surely hope we can have a cup of coffee and chat together on Heaven’s porch!
Deep calls to deep in the roar of the waterfalls of life. Psalm 42:7. Not that we claim to be deep like you, Beth, but you certainly call out to us all from the depths of our soul, bringing God to us—making us want to draw near to our good God on our backporches.
Walking by faith this year for me has raised more questions that I ever thought in my mind? What does it really mean to live an abundant life? Been thinking this very day about the blind man who lost his family, lost his job, kicked out out of his church for receiving double sight of salvation and spiritual freedom. What did it mean for Peter to live the abundant life? He died upside down on a cross. What did it mean for John? Alone on the Island of Patmos dying alone. What does the abundant life look like for me in my difficult days? Walking by faith not by sight. God is such a Gentleman that He doesn’t cram anything, not even Himself, down our throats. Jonah 2:8 – but I don’t want to miss HIM and forfeit the Grace of God in my life. God multiplies Grace through you, Beth. Most of us probably will never meet you in this life, while we may not know you “in person,” you have so invited us into your beautiful passionate heart and family. We are so appreciative of this blogging world. You don’t have to do this.
You so bring God to me and He is a God of Security and such Mystery, such Adventure “sewn into our souls.” How I love that thought!
Thank you for inviting us to sit with you on your backporch. Most of all, thank you for the glorious Grace of your Beautiful God being multiplied through your life. Grace upon Grace. May we never forfeit that Grace. Grace to you, dear friends—Beth, Amanda and Melissa.
Beth, Both you and my pastor are on the same page and not only that but you are both a Drama King and Queen in His Kingdom!!! I love it and I want God to send more drama people from His court in my life.:)
I don’t want to live safe anymore. After God spoke to me this weekend very clearly, I want His plans, His adventures to make me fall inlove with Him more.
Like “Much Afraid” in the book written by Hannah Hurnard “Hinds Feet on High Places” I desperately want to go to the high places with my Shepherd. If I have to get bruises and cuts on my way there so be it. I was never meant to live in the mundane.
Thank you Beth for not holding back, we love you!
Joy
I never get tired of you telling me this!
“God called us through Christ to an adventure that never ends.”
Amen Beth. Thank-you for sharing your heart with us!
Melana in Wyoming
Beth,
Please know that God uses you so often to speak His truths to me. I love reading your blog and the pictures of Jackson and entries from the girls are wonderful.
(Long time reader of the blog, but this is my first time to comment.)
Wow, thanks Beth. What a great message and explanation of faith. As I’ve been sitting on the edge of “go forth in faith or sit out in a fit of self pity” in a situation, I am encouraged that it will be risky and that is what will make it most exciting. I am struggling with not being able to trust the people involved, but have been reminded that my trust is only in Him. He will be faithful. Yes, the situation will be challenging and will be beyond me, but it seems that is the perfect recipe for Him to show Himself big! Thanks for the encouragement!
Amen, Siesta!!
mmmmmmmmm
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Wow. Thank you for such a wonderful lesson. My God is soooo incredible and so awesome!!!
Thanks Beth, this football widow really needed to hear that. I often think that God gave me a preoccupied husband(at least for football season) because He knows I desperately need the solo space to seek HIM more. Thanks for the good word.
I really loved this post, Beth. Thank you for reminding me that faith was created by Him for us, not just something we have to conjure up! The picture of my sweet 8 yr. old and other kiddos belting out their Christmas musical with all the faith in the world was also an amazing faith lesson today.
Beth, I have never commented before, but I had an ah ha moment after I read you blog. God is so awesome and I am always hungry for more from him since I have only been a believer for about 2 years. This faith thing is so exciting especially when things are going bad and the Holy Spirit reminds me how the Lord has brought me through other things when I had little faith. It does make me want more and I realize how boring it would be if we didn’t have to push ourselves. Thanks for the reminder.
How very wonderfully put. We humans all tire of things so easily and take so much for granted. It is funny I was just teling my daughters that very thing tonight! We we went to a glorious Christmas Keyboard Festival featuring Paul Todd and they said they were bored…I was like how could you possibly be it was amazing…
What a great message, Beth. Thank you.
I’m sitting here at my computer with tears on my face. What you wrote is so true. It as made me renew my thankfulness that God is who He is. I am stuck at that vulnerable spot and feeling let down. How easy it is to lose sight of the bigger picture. Please pray with me that God will deepen my capacity to trust Him and be content with where He is taking me, so that someday I can enjoy the thill of it.
Thank you for this post. It’s just what I needed today. We talked about Hebrews 11 today in sunday school. I think God is trying to reach me at a time when my faith is wavering. I know God is there, but He sure is taking awhile to answer some prayers. Thank you again for drawing me back to Scripture.
All I can say Is WOW! Gave me alot to think about this evening. In Jesus’ Love Kathy Knoblock
Thank you, Beth. I needed to be reminded of this today.
Ms Beth,
I have always loved a good mystery and God writes the best ones!!
He currently has taken our family through a bit of a drama and now we are facing the mystery of the what now! Trusting in Him is the only way!!
He is so awesome – thank you for this post and reminder of our wonderful Father!
Much love,
Kim
Beth,
I have this saying written on a sticky note on my computer and am not sure where I got it? It could be something you wrote, but it’s good and worth sharing:
“Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in side-ways, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming: Wow…what a ride!”
I love that!
I love that God’s ways are higher than my ways and His timing is always perfect. I’m learning to believe Him and trust Him more and more every day.
Love ya!
Valerie
P.S. Off the subject totally, but, I made King Ranch Casserole over the weekend! Yummy!!! And yes, Keith….I boiled the chicken and grated the cheese! Now I have 2 qts of broth for future use. 🙂
During this Christmas season, a song recommendation for you guys … Andrew Peterson’s Christmas CD – Behold the Lamb of God – has a wonderful song called “Labor of Love.” I don’t think it’s on iTunes, so you’d actually have to buy the CD, but I think it’s well worth it. I was listening to the song the other day and it brought to mind that essay Beth wrote from Mary’s perspective. Enjoy and Merry Christmas!
Thanks, Beth, for reminding us once again how important faith really is! I love Hebrews 11:6! As you referred to in “Believing God”, sometimes it takes alot of work/energy on our part to have faith especially during those “waiting” periods. You reminded me that the “waiting” seasons (aka “mystery” seasons) are, (even though the hardest), the best times to learn and experience God like never before!! Thanks for all you do!!
Beth, This “message” is so timely for me! I am facilitating “Believing God” at our church right now. We are going through a very difficult time… (my husband is also on staff) Many are left disillusioned, confused and wondering where God is and what He might be doing in the life of our church. This Bible study is perfect timing, God’s perfect timing. All that to say…You have NO IDEA how this study is being used to touch the hearts of many women every Thursday night. I just stand in AWE of HIS love for us…and “Believing God can do what HE says HE can do”
Beth, I just want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for your obedience to the Lord. Faith is what it’s all about. Your study “Believing God” has made me a new woman in Christ. The amount of revelation, wisdom, and understanding that God has imparted to me through it has been life changing! I completed it this summer with a dear friend. She and I were facing serious fiery trials at work. This study was the spiritual “boot camp” we needed to not only survive, but more importantly equip ourselves to battle the enemy. The lessons I learned about faith are engraved on my heart. During this study, I heard about the Women of Faith conference in Washington D.C. I went and even in a room with 11,000 women, I felt like you were talking right to me. You commissioned us that day to our own ministry. After returning from the conference I felt that God wanted me to lead a women’s group at my church through the same study. I knew that this was my time to step out in faith, believe God, and do something that I felt completely unqualified to do. We did not have any women’s ministry groups at all at the time. I had already convinced myself that if only me and one other person showed up, then praise the Lord, we would still have a good time. But, God sent 14 other women! We are almost finished now. We have 3 more sessions to go. After reading your blog and being in the midst of the Believing God study, and just reflecting on how God has orchestrated all the details in my life in just past six months it is mind blowing. I love Him now more than I ever have. And I know: God is who He says He is, God can do what He says He can do, I am who God says I am, I can do all things through Christ, God’s word is alive and active in me. I’m believing God!