First, let me introduce myself- my name is Maddy. I love my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, a good iced carmel macchiato, people, and the city of Norfolk with all my heart. My hope and prayer is that my life, the gluten-free, Birkenstock wearing, Starbucks barista, may show Christ’s love with no hesitation or fear- that I may live fully and completely for Him. I believe that no outfit is complete without dog hair. Also, I love minions. Today I want to share with you what happens when you add Christ’s truth to your own personal struggles.
:::TRUTH::: HIS PLAN > YOUR DREAM
I love to daydream- I love to dream about the future. Where am I going to be in the next five years? Will I ever graduate from college? Will I join Cru staff? Will I get married? Will I have kids? You know, normal girl stuff. When I graduated from high school (which was in 2012), I had a plan. My plan was to go to George Mason University and get a degree in counselling. My plan was to get super involved with Cru there. I had met the Cru staff, I already had friends there, and it was just outside DC. It was perfect- that was my dream. But the Lord? He had a whole different plan. That plan included me going straight to Tidewater Community College. .. from there go anywhere, right? Little did I know that I would meet THE best group of friends through TCC Cru my first semester. It started with meeting 4 guys at bible study one Monday, and that Friday night at their church’s college bible study those four new friends turned into 20 new friends. All of who love Jesus with everything they have. Little did I know that I would visit Cru at Old Dominion and fall in love with just about everything. The people, the city, the campus. Little did I know that in August of 2014 (just roughly 63 days from when you are reading this!!!) I would be moving out of my parents’ house to my own apartment in Norfolk. Little did I know that I would find a great church in the heart of Norfolk which shares the same heart as me for urban outreach.
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord,
“plans to prosper you and not to harm you,
plans to give you hope and a future.”
[Jeremiah 29:11]
Meditate on this verse. I know that you have most likely read this verse before, but do you honestly believe in your heart, that His plan is better than your dream? I am going to be honest, I struggle with that truth on a daily basis. Ladies, that is totally okay. If we had all the answers, had the map to our lives, and knew that all our dreams where to come true, what would be the point of out Perfect Saviors dying an imperfect death so that we may live in freedom? His plan for you is sweeter, more magnificent, more extravagant, and more beautiful than any dream you could possible come up with. We are free. Live in that!
:::TRUTH::: HE HEARS YOU
I am currently being discipled by one of the staff ladies. The last time we met we talked about the importance of prayer. Prayer is the humble acknowledgement of your need for Him. (if you aren’t being discipled it is seriously something worth looking into! We have fantastic ladies on staff who would love to spend time with you.) We started by reading Hebrews 9:1-10 where it describes the process that had to take place in order to pray to a Holy God. The tabernacle was separated into two rooms: the outer room was where the priests did their ministry and the inner room was called the Most Holy Place. There was a large veil that separated the two rooms. Once a year, the high priest entered the inner room to pray. But only the high priest could enter and not without blood. The priest would offer animal blood for himself and for the sins of the people. But then something amazing happened. You see, there is this guy, he is the greatest. He lived a human life and died a human death and was also fully God. Talk about a mystery. His name is Jesus. This God-man, he was mocked and scorned for you, he took every sin you have ever committed and placed it on his shoulders, he was nailed to a cross and died for you. By the blood that was spilled when he was nailed to the cross that became the final sacrifice for all sins committed. And by that blood the veil that separated the inner and outer room of the tabernacle was torn. The veil no longer exists. Because the veil was torn we can now pray to him, with the Holy Spirit interceding for us, which allows us to have a personal relationship with him.
“Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter
the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened
for us through the curtain, that is, his body, and since we have
a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart
and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled
to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our
bodies washed with pure water.”
[Hebrews 10:19-22]
So what does this mean for us? This means that not only does Christ want to hear from you, but now every prayer, every cry, and every shout of desperation is heard. He hears you. The Lord genuinely answers all of your prayers, but not necessarily in the way that you want. He wants us to pray and confess with each other and admit your need for him. We have free access to him.
:::STRUGGLE::: I DON’T ALWAYS BELIEVE
The struggle is real. I struggle with knowing that his plan is better than my dream. I struggle with knowing that the Lord actually hears my prayers. I struggle with being content in my life. I struggle with anxiety. I struggle with knowing that it’s okay not to please everyone. I know in my head that the Lord is greater than all of these things, but that doesn’t make it easy. And that’s okay. Ladies, it is okay to struggle. It’s okay to be broken. I confess that I don’t believe on a daily basis that He is greater than all of these things.
::::::
When you combine God’s truth and your own personal struggles, you get a life worthy of the Gospel of Christ. As I am writing this, I am sitting outside at the Colley avenue Starbucks (in Norfolk), with my feet up and a glass of iced coffee to my left, I can’t help but think what a blessed life I have. I am not sure if you all saw on the news this past weekend, but a young man, just 17 years old, was shot and killed in Norfolk. I knew him- and oh how he loved Jesus with all his heart. He lived fully and completely for Christ. It was a random shooting that no one can explain. While I am processing through this tragedy, it challenges me to remember to pray, to hope and to put my trust in a sovereign, good, and hearing God. So this is my challenge to you: If you were to be taken from this earth, right now, could you honestly say that your life is worthy of the Gospel of Christ?
“Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ.
Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you
in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in the one Spirit, striving together
as one for the faith of the gospel without being frightened in
any way by those who oppose you. This is a sign to them that they
will be destroyed, but that you will be saved—and that by God.”
