.smiling heart.

My aunt has a precious gift; she receives love letters from God. My sister and I have gotten a couple of letters over the years. Recently my parents found one when they were looking through some boxes in the basement. The main reason I am putting it on here is so that I will have easy access to it when I need a reminder. I hope that through this letter you will allow God to show you more and more just how much he loves you and how much you make His heart smile when you are seeking after Him.

 

“O My daughter, Courtney, it is with delight that My Heart looks upon you for I am in the midst of your heart and My Love surrounds you. And you are dearly Loved, for I have given you to those who have nurtured and loved you and are preparing you for the Plans and Purposes I have for your life. You are unable to look upon those things, right now, but know that in all of My Leading in your life, it is with Purpose and for My Pleasure that I Lead you that I might fill your life with good things. For those who look to Me shall never lack in any good thing. So then, My daughter, be at peace, for there is never any need that you would be fearful or anxious for that which lies ahead for you. Even as your Daddy would never allow any harm to come to his little one, know even I, your Heavenly Father, will never allow any thing that would harm or mar that which pertains to your heart of the lovely things I have Prepared for you to walk in. For My Love for you is Constant and Deep and I am ever Mindful of you and everything that concerns you. I would never leave you to fend for yourself, or to find your way by your own devices, see, do I not Lead you with Faithfulness and Love each day? Nor then would I ever fail you. I readily give wisdom to those who ask, so you need never be afraid to ask, for I want you to know that those who come to Me shall always receive. For it is the very desire of My Heart to fill you out of the treasures of My Heart that you would be one who would speak forth with wisdom of the good things of the Lord. For even as your heart reaches out to know Me more and more, indeed you will find your longing abundantly fulfilled. My Heart rejoices when you come to Me and fellowship with Me. And know that of the times when you have worshiped Me and praised Me and danced before Me, because you just desired to bless My Heart this is a delight in My Eyes. Know then, My precious one, the Joy of My Heart as I sing forth My Song of Love to you. For in the giving forth of your love there shall be an overflow of My Love to you. For it is My Love that will Lead  you forward each day, even as you are being led by those who are Mine whom I have faithfully entrusted you to as you grow, it is through them that I am teaching your heart My Ways. And as you begin to respond more and more to their direction, you will find how I am filling you with all the lovely things of My Heart and storing up within you that which I would have you share. For there are those who will have need of that which you will give, and you shall be one who speaks forth with conviction, not as one who simply knows of the fact with his mind, but you shall speak forth of My Love as one having been Loved most dearly, and from the overflow of that fellowship with Me you will find that it comes forth from your heart most freely. As you continue to grow in your love for Me, each day, there shall be such a freedom in your spirit that others shall see and behold and know that of your life there is a reality in where you walk and what you speak forth. And know of that which you speak forth about Me it shall bring forth Life and Joy and Freedom in the lives of others for they shall reach out and find that Portion I have for them, also, and it shall be reflected in every place that you go. It is a lovely and precious work I shall do through you, and I will do it.”

.famous.

Tonight was my first time back to Bible Study in three weeks. How I needed to be there tonight! God once again showed me that his timing is perfect. This year we are studying the book of Isaiah and it has been an amazing journey. This week’s lesson focused on Isaiah 44:24-45:25 and how God is the author of all, including our life stories. So I wanted to create a recap of the lecture from tonight; it may be long, but bear with me. God has something he wants you to see.

 

How many of us dreamed of growing up to become famous singers or movie stars? Our culture praises amazing performances with award shows. Trivia fact: Meryl Streep holds the record for the most Golden Globes. Now why is that important? Writers knew who Meryl Streep was as an actress and wrote their screenplays to conform to her acting abilities. Imagine having a part written out exactly for you because you can play the part the best. Amazingly enough, God has done that for us. He has created specific parts for us in his story. He is asking us to become the supporting actor and to make his son famous. He is the author of history and he invites us to trust his authority.

God is the author of life and he wants nothing more than for us to trust him as the author of our lives. He displays his authority as supreme and final through his Word. How confident are we that God’s Word is written to us on a personal level? How do we grasp the fact that God had us on his mind when he was inspiring his Word? What could God do with individuals today who truly have confidence in him and his Word? Remember that evil is not outside of God’s control. God can use evil to bring about his plan and not endanger his holy nature. God is the author of history and the final authority in life. What about your life proves that you are putting all of your confidence in God and his Word? God’s will is his future for you.

In this passage, the people of Israel begin to ask some very arrogant questions. They are questioning God’s use of a pagan conqueror, Cyrus, to redeem them. How could a Gentile be able to save the holy nation of God? God does not mind questions that express a real doubt and search to understand what he is doing. However, God knew what he was doing, for Cyrus was a representation of the Messiah. Questioning God’s authority is unbelief and angers God. Are we impressed to carry out God’s Word or are we content with letting someone else do it? What kind of questions are we asking of God–ones that are questioning God’s authority or ones that are from a heart truly seeking to learn?

The passage ends with invitation of salvation extended to all. With God, nothing is impossible. One interesting thing that the teaching leader said was, “God’s wisdom in salvation is hidden in the foolishness of the cross.” At first, I had no idea what she was talking about. I kept thinking the cross is not something we should call foolish, nor should anything be hidden behind the cross. But then it hit me! This is one of the deepest sentences I have ever beheld. The cross was absolutely foolish for God had called it a curse to die a death on a tree and Jesus was completely innocent. However, until we recognize it as foolish and see it’s freedom, we cannot begin to grasp God’s wisdom. His wisdom is not hidden to those who seek with a genuine heart. When we accept the foolishness of the cross, God meets us immediately and intimately and begins to reveal truth to us. God has promised that when we seek him, we will find him. The passage continues to say how one day every knee will bow to God. There is coming a day when all knees will bow–some in judgment, some in humble worship. John 17:2 shows us how Jesus is the only one that God has granted full authority to. God grants all authority to save to his righteous son, Jesus Christ. Have you put your total confidence in Jesus for your sins? If you have, how have you recognized God’s authority over every part of your life?

God is inviting you as a redeemed individual to play a part in his story. He desires nothing more than for you to make his son famous to all.

 

.refreshing.

This weekend has been an amazing reminder of who God is and who I am not.  Among many things, the weather was absolutely gorgeous. Winter is my least favorite season and I gladly welcomed the warm sunshine this week. Yesterday I was outside almost all afternoon and am proud to say that I am now on my way to establishing my Chaco tan!

I must be honest: this morning I did not want to wake up and go to church. It is so true that there is a daily battle going on for your soul; I recognized the battle today. However, I got my tired self out of bed and went to church. How God showed up! In class today we talked about spiritual gifts and took a spiritual gifts test. I had three that tied for number one: teaching, administration, and apostleship. Not very surprising to me, but a good reminder that God has given me the desires and gifts to fulfill his calling on my life. I also met some very sweet people this morning and had a great time hanging out with them after church. Last night I was thinking about how I miss having friends at church. God’s timing is so good!

God also showed me yesterday an amazing reminder of how he is completely in control and how nothing will ever happen that he didn’t know would happen. In Isaiah 52:10 it says,”The Lord will demonstrate his holy power before the eyes of all the nations. The ends of the earth will see the salvation of our God.” I think my favorite word in these two simple sentences is will. It doesn’t say that God might think about showing all his saving power or that it will happen in the distant future. God will display his salvation for everyone, for all nations. Oh how I want to be a part of this! How I deeply desire to go and hear peoples’ stories. How I want to share with them Truth.

Just as the warmth of the sun felt so good yesterday, so was being reminded that God will bring his plans to fruition and that he desires to use me. May I never abandon what God has called me to do with my life. May you seek God’s will fully for your life and proclaim with your life that you are his. May we be propelled by the love of God to go and bring the refreshing truth to the nations.

.tucked away.

Yesterday I found an amazing treasure! At first I didn’t fully register what I had found, but then I realized the richness of it. Amazingly enough, I desire to share this treasure with all.

“May the Lord bring you into an ever deeper understanding of the love of God and the endurance that comes from Christ.” 2 Thessalonians 3:5

Some may not see this as treasure; go back and read it again. God desires for us to know how much he loves us and to daily see how he loves us more than when we first began to understand his love for us. It is a never ending, forever enduring, and constantly supplied kind of love. It blew my mind to realize that God wants us to try and figure out just how much he loves us!

I am one of those people who likes to fully understand something. If I cannot figure something out, I begin to greatly dislike that thing because it frustrates me that I cannot wrap my mind around it. However, God is asking us to use our minds to go on a sort of hunt. I begin to imagine a game of hide-and-go-seek played in the summer sunset. Each time I find out a little bit more about God’s love for me, he hides again, and it’s time to go find out a little bit more truth. The game never ends; the sun never sets.

But it is also necessary to see here that it was Paul who was praying this for the Thessalonians. We must begin to pray for others in that they will begin to delight themselves in discovering deeper and deeper how much God genuinely loves them. May they, and we as well, begin to truly experience God’s love in our lives. God is simply waiting for you to seek after him; he desires nothing more than for you to know how much he loves you. And in return we can do nothing less than to love him more and more.

.be mine.

Valentine’s Day is right around the corner and I have noticed that many people (myself included) become slightly crazy during this time of year. Some take the extreme of being bitter while others go all out. Never having a real Valentine before, this time of year always propels me to focus on the future, which in turn begins to consume my time. I think about how nice it will be to have someone who desires to be around me, someone who desires to talk to me, someone who will be there for me. I begin to drift into this ocean of self-pity. I begin to discount myself and negativity slowly creeps back in to my life.

But today God got a hold of me. Oh how I tried to hold back the tears as He did. I am loved and sought after by a God who knows me better than I can ever know myself. And when I try to focus on my future I begin to place myself on the throne of my heart by telling God how my life is going to go. I am so foolish when I tell him that I am tired of being alone and that I know who he should send my way. Who am I to tell the creator of all that I can make better decisions than Him?

Yes, it is hard, especially when this time of year comes around and you see couples almost everywhere on campus. Yet God has me in this spot at this moment for a reason. It will not last; His will shall come to pass. I must learn to be patient and to refocus my life on Him, pushing my time table aside.

God help me to become captivated by your love. Thank you for being my everlasting Valentine.

.living the dream.

Growing up, the idea of college was presented to me as the best four years of your life. However, this was given to me in the light of using those years for partying and doing anything you felt was right. I am so blessed that God woke me up to see that He had a better plan for me during this time in my life. If I was still following my desires and attending a large state school, I know that God would be the furthest thing from my mind. How my heart breaks as I write those words because I know that it is the truth. God has brought me to a place where he shows me on a daily basis that my life is not my own and that his plans for me are so much better than anything I could ever dream.

This past weekend I traveled to Gastonia, NC and led a small group of middle school girls. I challenged them with a quote that I had heard from Steven Furtick: “If the vision of your life doesn’t overwhelm you, then you have the wrong vision.” We are called to live the impossible life, whether that is becoming a doctor when we never succeeded in science in high school, going to the foreign mission field when we have never been out of the country before, or opening an orphanage even though we don’t know a thing about children. God has put desires in our hearts for a reason; his desire is that we use our desires for his glory! I love to dance and God gave me the opportunity for several years to use those talents for him. Now he has shown me that I enjoy accounting and that I have a heart for international missions and that I can combine those efforts for his glory as well. God has also given me a desire to teach his word to others, and even though I don’t know when or how that is going to happen, I know that God knows the desires of my heart and that I desire for my life to be absolutely glorifying to him.

Our lives become so scheduled and packed that we sometimes forget to stop and ask ourselves, “Am I using my desires, talents, and gifts for God’s glory or am I focusing on myself?” God has created you with the ability to get excited about something. Ask God to reveal to you how you can use the desires he has created you with for his ultimate glory and that you will be obedient when he calls you to use your talents and gifts.