Life by Betsy

3/18/15--3/18/16 One year of Divine Healing, inside and out. One year of low to no pain. One year of low to no depression. One year of seeing the brokenness in myself reflect the brokenness of this nation, this world. One year of living in the reality of God's binding love. One year of being overwhelmed and under-qualified. One year of feeling unworthy, undeserving, and guilty for the gift I've been given. One year of attempting to process the un-understandable.  One year of failing to live in light of His Love. One year of learning the power of the Spirit. One year of seeing faith, others' more than my own often, move the physical and emotional mountains of my life. One year of Healed.  But I'm learning there is still so much in me to heal. Healing is a process, just like sanctification. Living the Christian life is learning to allow God into all of the broken, hidden places.  He will restore.  All. Piece by piece. He is still here, living and ac...

"God is light." Have you ever thought about how radical that is?  We were in darkness. Pitch black.  The very absence of light and fullness of shadow.   But as soon as the door cracks, as soon as one little beam pierces the deep veil,  darkness is broken.  That beam doesn't only illuminate one spot on the floor.  Light spreads, fills the space, refracts, and slowly yet surely helps you see anything and everything where you are.  The more the door opens, the more the light gets through, the clearer and more colorful life becomes.  And that one day, when the door is fully opened, and we are one with our true Light, everything about this life will be made crystal clear and we will see and behold things no one can comprehend. It all starts with someone being bold and willing to crack the door to a friend's life. Speak truth in love. God is Light, and darkness SHALL NOT overcome Him.

Recently, I read an article on Facebook that was an open letter of sorts from "Mr. Right" for Christian women. In this article, the author writes for the reader to let God make her something whole and complete, as well as her Mr. Right, before entering into a relationship or seeking after one. This sparked a line of thought for me that doesn't necessarily have to do with relationships on earth, but our relationship with God.  For a while, my prayer has been that God would fill me up with more of him, that I would be overflowing with his peace and his love for this world. But I noticed something. I would have periods of my life where I would feel so full of love, and soon find myself empty and broken, wanting more and more from God and wondering why I couldn't hold onto joy through life. Here is what I realized recently, after a summer of whole and pure love from God. Broken vessels don't hold water.  Likewise, broken souls won't hold the Living ...

"A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity." Proverbs 17:17 Six months ago, God healed me. That's right, you heard me.  My thought for today was to sit down with a cup of tea, put on some instrumental worship music, and finally write out the full story of how God healed me. Every tear, every bump along the way, every thread of Grace that has connected my story so far and woven me into God's crazy unfolding plan for my life.  But, I have decided that it would be wiser to wait, as this story is one better told in person.  So please, ask me!  I wish to tell any and everyone the honest miracle that The Lord of Love has worked in my heart, mind, and knee. I'm going to try to keep this brief, so I'm omitting a lot of details. It may seem like a lot, but trust me--there is so much more to share about who God is and who I am because of that. (Again, just ask!) -- Long story short, two and a half years ago, I had a life-c...

Close your eyes for a moment~ Breathe in, and breathe out. Think of everything wrong you have ever done.  If you're like me, you do this often.  Too often.  Think of it all, starting when you were young. Every white lie. Every swear. Every angry outburst and bitter inward comment. Every lustful thought, word, or action. Every selfish deed and prideful belief. All of it.  Every. Last. Sin. Think of everything you probably will do. Hard to fathom, isn't it? The amount of wrong we are capable of doing?   Breathe in again, and out. Think of Jesus on the cross, the nail in his feet pulling as he breaths in and the nails in his hands ripping as he breathes out.  Think of all of that wrong you've done, all of that wrong you are capable of, on his shoulders and digging into his brow like the thorns that your sins are. For you .  It's all for you.  Watch as he breathes his last, crying "It is Finished." Watch as a spear pierces his side, as Mary weeps a...

I've come to a conclusion as of late: Insecurity is the devil's favorite tool. He uses it as a wedge--to break into your soul. If he can make you doubt who you are, question what you know, and forget your worth , he's gaining serious ground in your mind, heart, and life. Insecurity is a drug that you don't know you're becoming addicted to. It creeps in and seeps into how you see everything around you, especially yourself . It opens you up to fear that you cannot ever shake.  Insecurity is a disease that runs rampant not only in my generation, but seemingly the whole globalized, media-driven world in which we live.  Insecurity worships an idol, a god we all have wrongly come to fear, called " public opinion ." Insecurity lies to you, telling you that you need validation through just one more like on social media, or just one more compliment to make it through the day. It makes you feel hopeless, as you begin to hate things about yourself ...

Let's be clear. This isn't a blog for the sake of blogging, a journal for my personal opinions, or a place for me to vent. This blog has one purpose and one purpose only:   to glorify the Father through the encouragement of his children .  I have been so blessed by the many people who have thanked me for sharing what God lays on my heart via various social media outlets, and after praying about it as well as in the interest of practicality and simplicity, why not have all of it-- every late night pondering, mid-day musing, early morning blessing that God lays on my heart-- in one place? That way everything is both easy to find for others, and for myself, who I often find is the main recipient of God's grace through my posts.  I pray that God speaks through me to any hurting hearts out there, and that despite of my shortcomings,  His will is brought about through my imperfect words. I pray that through this blog, through my simplest thoughts and deepest ones, ...