Poverty

Proverbs 10:15
The rich man's wealth is his fortress,
The ruin of the poor is their poverty.

Most of our lives can be lived within a state of mind. The rich often have an easier time living a free life than the poor. It can be harder to see the other side of a situation when you are hungry. It can be harder to see the other side of the coin when you pockets are always empty.

In the United States, we make more money, even on welfare, then almost 99% of the rest of the world. Is it our fortress or do we still live in a state of poverty? Do we allow our wealth to lift us up and allow us to do for others or do we live as though we never have enough?

Wealth and Poverty are the states of mind we choose to live our lives in. All money aside, we are truly wealthy in all that Christ has given us. After a week of Proverbs that have asked me over and over about my behaviors in my speech, I need the riches of heaven. I need Grace. After a week of being reminded that I lack in wisdom and knowledge of the one God I serve, I need the treasure only He can give. I need Mercy.

Praise God that each day is given to us new. That His grace and mercy fill our cups. We are rich, abundantly. Build your fortress on the Rock. Stop living a life of poverty, you are Forgiven, your sins are covered. Live free and be willing to give the gifts you have overflowing to all those that still live separated from our Father.

Abba~I come with reverence today, Lord. In awe of the grace you poor abundantly into my life. Thank you Lord that when I lift my hands to you, you pick me up. Thank you for your comfort, thank you for you strength. Thank you that you have come and overcome this place. Remind me Lord that you are my Rock, my Salvation. ~In Jesus Name

Amazing Grace by Todd Agnew




Pray for healing for Bonita that is suffering with the flu.

Pray for Kameron's safety, pray for his living situation to change, pray for his emotional security. Thanks LEW

Thank you for praying for Sam Y this week. Please continue to lift Sam and her husband Julz up in prayer.

It is only 11 weeks until the Oligers leave for Africa. Pray for continued provision. Pray for peace in their hearts and minds. Pray for a renewing in their marriage and family as they prepare to follow God's calling in their lives.

Please pray for safe trips for everyone on Spring Break.

It is hard to believe after 6 months of preparing the Marathon is only a week away. Please pray for peace of mind and a strength that only comes from God. I will need it. ~Angela

I would like to say a special Thank You to everyone that takes the time to comment on our posts. Agree or Disagree with us, we love to hear from you. Please continue to make this a community by creating great conversations. God Bless you for the courage to say what is on your heart and mind.

Undefined, Day 3

We are a week into our New Year. How are your resolutions going? Have you made it to the gym? Some things about us can be very predictable like our new found commitment to health at the beginning of every new year.

One of the reasons I chose the word undefined this week is because it is actually one of my goals this year. In 2008 I learned more about myself then I could ever have imagined. I found out I am stronger then I thought. I realized I have more courage and also more weakness then I would ever like to admit to.

Because of this blog I have also started to taste what it means to be an overcomer. There were a few moments last year where I truly felt my life was a response to the grace I have been given. In some of my weakest moments, I was able to find the conquering spirit that lives in me. I want more of that and I want people to wonder what it is that is different about me. I want to be undefinable. I want to stand up when I am knocked down. I want to love the people that are unlovable. I want to live outside of the stereotypical boxes that society tells me to live in. I want to live and experience the freedom my faith has given me. I want to Praise His name in all of it.

Romans 8:35-39 Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation,
or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or
sword? Just as it is written, "FOR YOUR SAKE WE ARE BEING PUT TO
DEATH ALL DAY LONG; WE WERE CONSIDERED AS SHEEP TO BE
SLAUGHTERED." But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him
who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels,
nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor
height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from
the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

I have to admit I don't have a game plan. I don't know how to be undefinable but I have confidence in my God and know He knows what I desire and how I want to respond to His grace. I pray the same for you. I pray that you too will be known as someone that overcomes and has something people just can't put their finger on. I pray that the Spirit that lives within us shines through so brightly that lives are changed.

Please continue to pray for Sue O this week.

Thanksgiving, Day 3

Do you have enough?

How much is enough?

Is the sacrifice God made for you enough?

Do you have enough to be thankful for this week and always?

Romans 5 (msg)

18-19Here it is in a nutshell: Just as one
person did it wrong and got us in all this trouble with sin and death, another person did it right and got us out of it. But more than just getting us out of trouble, he got us into life! One man said no to God and put many people in the wrong; one man said yes to God and put many in the right.

20-21All that passing laws against sin did was produce more lawbreakers. But sin didn't, and doesn't, have a chance
in competition with the aggressive forgiveness we call grace. When it's sin versus grace, grace wins hands down. All sin can do is threaten us with death, and that's the end of it. Grace, because God is putting everything together again through the Messiah, invites us into life—a life that goes on and on and on, world without end.

When you loose focus this season; remember the best gift ever given is free and available for everyone to receive. Be thankful and let let Him be enough. Find rest in the chaos and know He Reigns.

Freedom Day 4

Here is a great worship song for your weekend prayer and praise time.
Jason Upton:Freedom Reigns

Praise God for the short week. Praise God for family and friends.

• Prayers: (our ongoing prayer requests)


• Jayne M leaves the 8th for missions
• Ron M leaves for Africa on 22nd to visit their orphanage
• Rachael R needs continued prayer for pastor licensing
• Rachael S needs prayer for this year, perseverance
• Matt S last day is this Sunday as he sets out to Hume Lake to pursue his career
• Kathy L needs continued prayer for restoration
• McKayla L needs prayer for protection and safety in her living situation
• JoAnne A needs continued prayer for restoration of health, healing of cancer
• Janell O and her family need prayer for provision in there planning phase of an Africa missions trip.
• Farah R needs prayer for provision and employment opportunities in their family.
• Canvas Fellowship needs prayers for location opportunities.
• Julz Y and Sam and their upcoming marriage on Oct 4
• Ginny R needs prayer for healing of her cancer
• Brittany J and her family are in need of Gods provision

Freedom Day 3

Because of Adam, we are all born to sin; death. We are separated from God

Because of Jesus, we are a new creation; alive. We are in relationship with God.

What is Freedom in Christ? Christ paid the price for you. He is the living sacrifice. You have been given the opportunity to live a life filled with the same spirit that rose Christ from the dead.

Romans 8:1-2 With the arrival of Jesus, the Messiah, that fateful dilemma is resolved. Those who enter into Christ's being-here-for-us no longer have to live under a continuous, low-lying black cloud. A new power is in operation. The Spirit of life in Christ, like a strong wind, has magnificently cleared the air, freeing you from a fated lifetime of brutal tyranny at the hands of sin and death.

Romans 8:3-4 God went for the jugular when he sent his own Son. He didn't deal with the problem as something remote and unimportant. In his Son, Jesus, he personally took on the human condition, entered the disordered mess of struggling humanity in order to set it right once and for all. The law code, weakened as it always was by fractured human nature, could never have done that.
The law always ended up being used as a Band-Aid on sin instead of a deep healing of it. And now what the law code asked for but we couldn't deliver is accomplished as we, instead of redoubling our own efforts, simply embrace what the Spirit is doing in us.

Do me a favor today, look at your life and ask yourself if people that see and know you believe you live a life of freedom. It is easy for some to believe, it is easy for some to have knowledge, it is even a gift to trust God for provision. In our world of to-do and need-to-succeed, even our Christian walks become competition. We spend days in prayer wondering what God wants us to do and how he wants us to respond. Although this is important, sometimes it takes away from the confidence we should have in our Savior.

Look at the highlighted scripture above. 1st says that we are no longer slaves, "freed from tyranny". AMEN!! Second says to "embrace what the Spirit is doing in us". Freedom isn't about what you are doing, how you are serving or how successful you are at your Christian life. It is about what the Spirit is doing.

Okay, for all of you that are wondering how to do this, I don't have that answer for you. I think it is a very personal experience. In my own life I embrace the Spirit in times of worship, in praise and thanksgiving. When I am acknowledging God's amazing grace, my perspective is transformed. My freedom in Christ isn't about how I feel when I get up everyday or how I end the day. For me, it is about knowing my God has conquered the world (John 16:33). I try to focus on things bigger then my struggles. Part of me refuses to live my life consumed by the bumps in the road when I know that in the end I will be with the Creator of the Universe, my Papa.

Heavenly Father, Your beautiful words from Romans 8 reminds me of Your sacrifice and my need for You in my life. You know my heart Lord, overwhelmed by Your grace and desiring nothing more then to live in response to You. Forgive me when I loose focus and cloud the freedom You have given me. Show me Lord the fruit of an embraced Spirit in my life. Some days, I am so human and desire the how-to's and the to-dos. Remind me today that it is our relationship, my reaction to your love that keeps my perspective focused on the things of you. ~Desiring more of You in your Precious Name.

Please continue to pray for Julz Y this week. Tomorrow is Friday so send in your Prayers and Praises to share. If you have a testimony of how Christs gift of freedom changed your perspective toward a situation, we would love to hear it. Please email us at womenofworship1@gmail.com or simply add it to the comment section. God Bless

Freedom Day 2

Romans 8:5-8 (msg) Those who think they can do it on their own end up obsessed with measuring their own moral muscle but never get around to exercising it in real life. Those who trust God's action in them find that God's Spirit is in them—living and breathing God! Obsession with self in these matters is a dead end; attention to God leads us out into the open, into a spacious, free life. Focusing on the self is the opposite of focusing on God. Anyone completely absorbed in self ignores God, ends up thinking more about self than God. That person ignores who God is and what he is doing. And God isn't pleased at being ignored.

May I encourage you to read all of Romans 8. If you don't completely understand what Christ has done for you or have moments where you can't remember, it is a great place to be reminded of the sacrifice and the inheritance.

Freedom in Flesh

Freedom is a beautiful thing, allowing us to live lives in response to the promise of Eternal life. The scripture above says that attention to God leads us out into the open. Wow!! Have you ever stood in a field or on a mountain and breathed in the freedom of Gods serenity?

Freedom has a funny way of bringing fear though. On Monday when I stood in one of the most beautiful place I have ever been or seen, I knew it was majestic. Other than understanding the basic need to respect the boundaries of nature and laws of gravity it was time to start making the rules. The overwhelming sense that someone was going to do something they weren't suppose to do.

We like to do this to our faith. We start creating Religion in our freedom, doctrine and ideas to help guide people in the right direction. We become obsessed with measuring every ones moral compass. Instead of allowing people to focus, pay attention to God we show them what to do. Give them the to do list. Give ourselves the rules and lists to follow. Sometimes the best of intentions can steal away what God intended freedom to be.

Sometimes freedom in flesh is also the misunderstanding of what grace is. Grace is the gift that is given to reconcile us with God. Sometimes people think this is a license to go about "free" from ever being responsible for their sin again. Forgiveness requires a repentant heart, one that comes from understanding that we need Him to be reconciled to Him. There is no doubt that we battle with flesh even when we are new creations in Christ. We are still responsible for every choice we make, in this world and the eternal one.

The pendulum swings in both directions. Those that live by law and forget they can't earn their freedom by following all the rules and those that accept their freedom without ever focusing on the source. It is time to find the beat that comes with living a life in the true freedom that God's grace brings through His Living Word.

Heavenly Father, Your beauty and majesty of creation takes my breath away. A reminder of the freedom your sacrifice has given me. You know in my heart Lord and that I desire a life that lives in the wide open space of your freedom. Lord, don't allow me to bind my life with rules and restrictions. Be my strength when fear overwhelms me and takes my freedom from me. Renew my mind, be my discerner so that the deceiver won't tell me the lies that come from fear and law. Lord, be my focus so that when my flesh becomes a struggle I may focus on your truth and your love. Remind me that I am an example of your freedom and live my life as a response to You. I love you Lord ~In your precious Holy Name.

Please continue to pray for Julz Y this week.

Freedom Day 1

I hope everyone had a great Holiday. My family and I enjoyed a wonderful hike with friends yesterday. Part of our hike came to an overlook. A rock that jetted out of the mountain as you overlook the Cumberland Plateau in TN. It was amazing and a beautiful reminder of how creative and divine our Creator is. Standing on the edge of the rocks I was reminded of freedom, my freedom in Christ and how it takes my breath away.

I would like to kick things of this week with not a feeling but a state of being. Sometimes our perspective can influence who we are and how we react to situations.

freedom (from dictionary.com)
1. the condition of being free; the power to act or speak or think without externally imposed restraints
2. immunity from an obligation or duty

Isaiah 61:1-3

Exaltation of the Afflicted

1The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me,

Because the LORD has anointed me

To bring good news to the afflicted;

He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,

To proclaim liberty to captives

And freedom to prisoners;

2To proclaim the favorable year of the LORD

And the day of vengeance of our God;

To comfort all who mourn,

3To grant those who mourn in Zion,

Giving them a garland instead of ashes,

The oil of gladness instead of mourning,

The mantle of praise instead of a spirit of fainting

So they will be called oaks of righteousness,

The planting of the LORD, that He may be glorified.

Please pray for Julz Y this week.

Expectation Day 3

Expectation Day 3

What to do about Expecting?

Romans 5:5And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.

Psalm 62:5 My soul, wait silently for God alone, for my expectation is from Him.

Psalm 145:15-16 The eyes of all look expectantly to You, And you give them their food in due season. You open your hand And satisfy the desire of every living thing.

God does not have any expectations on us. He already knows our weaknesses, our limitations, our hearts. He knows the measure of our faith and he knows our thoughts. So why would be have expectations? He already knows who we are, why don't we? Is it because we are always striving to be someone else? I hope this will be profound. Stop being someone else, just be you. Be the best you that you can be. How? Just do what you can with what you have been given. The Bible has given us many ideas of what we need to do. It is more a responsibility than an expectation. One thing I know is that if we are to live for today, then having expectations would be against that very call in our lives. If we have expectations, we are living in the future, in the not yet, in the later on. If we have love, hope and faith, we live in the now and we are in relationship with our God.

James 1:27Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

Dear Lord, is it really that simple? Can we be freed from all that is expected? Will you help to remind us of this revelation? I am so amazed at how you have revealed the simplest of truths to us. May we abide in relationship with you by not allowing the world to pollute what it is that you want from us. There is not a huge list of things in our lives that we must accomplish, yet I feel like I was created to do so many things. I know that it is living in this society that makes me think this way. I know that you call each of us to do different things, to have different levels of accomplishments. I pray that you will continue to reveal your will to us, that you will help us to believe that you love us more than we could possibly ever imagine. I pray that you will be blessed by our lives. Amen.