God is...

Hey ladies! :) I hope you all are having a great week! So I'm posting the list on here that I read at group Tuesday night, but I also wanted to tell you all just how thankful and grateful I am for our homegroup! Every Tuesday night I leave humbled, encouraged, and in awe of God's goodness. I really look forward to seeing what all God has in store for us over the next year! :)

• God is…
  □ Our savior
  □ Worthy of worship
  □ Our judge
  □ An all-consuming fire
  □ Delighting in us
  □ Always present
  □ Our healer
  □ Our teacher
  □ Our source of satisfaction
  □ Our light
  □ Our fulfillment
  □ Perfect
  □ Our provider
  □ forgiving
  □ Our leader
  □ Our deliverer
  □ Our treasure
  □ In control
  □ Faithful
  □ Knowing of our needs
  □ Our giver
  □ The road less traveled
  □ Just
  □ Our rock
  □ Author and creator
  □ Source of our purity
  □ Powerful
  □ True to His word
  □ Our cleanser
  □ The One who keeps us from perishing
  □ The One to whom creation is obedient
  □ The forgiver of our sins
  □ Our physician
  □ Desiring mercy and steadfast love
  □ Our eyes
  □ Our sight
  □ Lord of the harvest
  □ Lord of heaven and earth
  □ The giver of authority
  □ The healer of our afflictions
  □ Our shepherd
  □ Mindful of us
  □ Desiring us to trust Him
  □ Our light in the darkness
  □ All-knowing
  □ Our source of light
  □ After our hearts, our minds, and our repentance
  □ A jealous God
  □ Gentle
  □ Gracious
  □ Our resting place
  □ Finding value in us
  □ Where our value is found
  □ Seeing past our pretences
  □ Knowing of where our heart is
  □ Sanctifying us
  □ The source of our wisdom and knowledge
  □ The giver and provider of our growth
  □ The One who give and takes away
  □ The One who gives us sight and open ears
  □ The One who gives us knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven
  □ Our root and our joy
  □ the One who receives the praise and glory for the fruit bore in our lives
  □ the sower of the good seed
  □ worth more than anything of this world
  □ our one pearl of great value
  □ the doer of mighty deeds
  □ compassionate
  □ the source of our nourishment
  □ sought through prayer
  □ the source of our peace
  □ the planter and the weeder
  □ the healer of our broken, evil, sinful hearts
  □ the one who gives the mute speech, the crippled health, the lame the ability to walk, and the blind sight
  □ worthy of faith and trust
  □ guarding our hearts and protecting our minds
  □ the satisfaction of our hunger
  □ our revelation
  □ after our souls
  □ what and who our minds should be set on
  □ eternal in a temporary world
  □ seeking us
  □ pursuing us
  □ chasing after us
  □ searching for us when we go astray
  □ our pursuer
  □ our rescuer
  □ rejoicing over us
  □ relenting and relentless
  □ the joiner of flesh
  □ the One to whom all things are possible
  □ generous
  □ good
  □ humble
  □ our King
  □ merciful
  □ hearing our cries and answering our prayers
  □ persistent
  □ not swayed by appearances
  □ powerful
  □ loving
  □ everlasting
  □ the One who bestows talents and gifts
  □ our everything
  □ the account settler
  □ full of life
  □ giver of eternal life and eternal punishment
  □ worshiped
  □ doubted
  □ always with us

Mirror of Thy Grace

Ever felt the stirring of the Holy Spirit? Not in a feel good way...rather a ugh, I suck and am so unworthy way? That was me today.

I've been struggling with major selfishness this week. I could blame it on Spring Break, but honestly, it's just who I am. I want things a certain way. If I want something, I don't stop it till I get it. Or the times when I don't get something I desire, I pout. I am a major pouter.

This is the natural Lindsay, gross, gritty, and wicked.

And then there's Grace.

"I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more." ~ Hebrews 10:17

I was studying for group this week, and I should have seen this coming. Sitting outside in the morning sunrise, I opened my Bible to Psalm 23- "The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want." And there it was. The Spirit stirring. My haughty, know-it-all attitude deflated quick.

The LORD rapidly revealed how selfishness had crept into my world and dominated my thoughts, words, and actions. It was amazing that I did not recognize Satan's bold disguise sooner. Though looking back, my break from normalcy morphed into a break from my discipline of studying God's Word this week as well. I easily saw how my absence from His scripture had decreased my awareness of Satan prowling and my own sin reeling back into my life.

David's words in Psalm 23 called out my sin and easily displayed my grotesque, dark, earthly thoughts and actions.
The reminder of how horrible my life is on it's own immediately sought me chasing the cross.
There, I stand amazed in the presence of Jesus the Nazarene, and wondered how He could love me, a sinner, condemned, unclean. Oh, how marvelous! Oh, how wonderful! Is my Savior’s love for me! He took my sins and my sorrows, He made them His very own; He bore the burden to Calv’ry, And suffered and died alone.

Now, having received the gift of grace from the blood of the Lamb of God, I praise Him who saves! I adore my Father who met me this morning on my deck as the sun rose in the sky. I love that He cares too much for me to continue to live in my sin.

So, now I long that His Spirit work in me that I may be a mirror of His grace, to show others the joy of being His daughter. The delight that He has taken me as I am, and redeemed me.



Another tool that He used to remind me of my obedience to His love was reviewing our Covenant at the Village church. Reading through it was convicting and a wonderful measure of how faithfully I am living my life for the LORD and not myself.

The Village Church Covenant

The Lord is WHO defines me :)

Hello ladies!! Melissa is finally POSTING!!

This Sunday listening to JR Vassar really did wonders for my soul. I don't know if all of you have talked with me but I have just been struggling with being sensitive to sin and truly feeling the grace of God, I have been wiped clean and it would be prideful of me to not accept the Lord's beautiful grace. Recently, also, I have decided not to go to Spain and instead, as a work of God, have decided to apply for the Guatemala III mission trip. The application was full of deep, life enriching, faith provoking questions. I spent 10 hours on the application, writing my testimony and so on. One of the questions asked to explain some of the defining moments in your life. It wasn't until I had written the answer and reread it that all of the defining moments in my life all revolved around the Lord and Him graciously pursuing me and transforming my heart. I think this is beautiful - life really is empty without the Lord. I just wanted to share what I had written about my "life defining moments", keep in mind it was written for someone who doesn't know me, and share with you a slight glimpse at how God has been working in my life and truly changing me. I am living for Him and Him alone, He is my rock, He is my life, He is salvation and He alone is our one true love.

I believe that all of the defining moments in my life truly are examples of the Lord wooing me to Him and continue with spiritual growth. As previously explained, I am extremely new to faith. However, my newness to faith does not negate the Holy Spirit and how on-fire for the Lord I feel. I have lived a very blessed life free of any serious hardships or traumatic experiences. Before my faith, I used to think that I didn’t have any defining moments in my life; however, ever since my life began with the Lord a new light has been shed and the blinds over my eyes have been opened.

When considering this question, three specific life events come to mind, which have all occurred during the last year and a half. First, I have to say that one of the defining moments in my life involved my move to Texas and finding the Lord. I was 19 at the time and drove 19 hours straight across the country leaving everything I have ever known behind. I have my reasons for why I thought I moved but the Lord is showing me daily that they truly are His reasons and for His glory. I came to Texas after living in a small town in Wisconsin for my entire life not knowing my father, step mother and grandmother, which whom I’d be living, I came without friends, without a support group, without the boyfriend I was with for four years, without a major or any knowledge of my new school, without a mental map of the roads, without a job, without the support of my mother back home, without much money, without any sense of myself. A move across the country may not seem like a big deal considering the fact that I left one rural area only to come to another where I knew that money, healthcare and a home would always be attainable however, I was devoid of any feelings for or knowledge of the Lord, I was scared and felt alone. Being young and selfish, I didn’t really think of the repercussions of my move until two weeks after my arrival and things began settling in; this new life was hard. I was living with the standards that “nothing is ever enough”. I couldn’t find a job and when I did, it didn’t pay enough. I went to school and felt like a 90% could have been a 95%, the people I met in classes drank and experimented with drugs, something I never did. My parents didn’t know me nor did they strive to create a relationship with the daughter that had been almost forgotten for 19 years. I struggled with friendships and wrestled with meaningless, empty relationships. I called my mother crying pleading to come back home and almost did. It was at almost breaking point that the Lord revealed Himself to me and my life began, all new, better than ever and more fulfilling than the life I had back home. I can now see that the struggles and tribulations were all part of His plan to woo me to Him and accept Him as my savior.

Another defining moment in my life began with a “neat Christian guy” and ended with a broken heart. From the outside, it sounds like the average young break-up story but those three months will always be written upon my heart. To make a three-month long journal into a brief paragraph, that relationship was one of the most empty yet satisfying relationships I have ever had. The relationship as a whole was empty. First, full of butterflies and countless hours spent together only to find out it was all a lie and left me full of guilt and bitterness due to my sexual sin. It is pretty easy to fill in the gaps but the hurt and bitterness on my end is not my focus. I strive, to this day to focus on the joy it has brought to my life – contradictory, right? In essence, this is a small example of how I can see the joy and the sorrow in the cross of our savior. My sorrow comes from my sin, guilt, bitterness, suffering and anger but my joy comes from that fact that I have been forgiven, still have the one true love in my life and have a hope in the one true God which is eternal. One of the hardest things I had to do was thank the Lord for providing me a time of such trial but I praise Him for allowing me to grow into a deeper dependency on Him. How gracious He was in providing me the opportunity to truly feel the weight of my sin leading to an understanding of my need for a savior and the cross that He has graciously and mercifully provided me and my wicked heart.

Thirdly, another defining moment in my life just occurred recently. Again, impossible to completely explain on an application but involves the complete change and renewing of my heart. Before knowing the Lord I wasn’t exactly what you would call a “child person”. I didn’t necessarily dislike children, I just didn’t have the passion to hold babies and name my future children, if I was having any, as most young women do. Babysitting wasn’t high on my priority list and as far as I was concerned neither was being a mom. I slowly could feel the Lord working in my heart changing my view on children and started not only accepting but joyously embracing my role as a woman, including future motherhood. Through a series of radical God-driven events, I was led to the Little Village ministry and could not describe my experiences there in less than 100 adjectives. The preschool ministry has become one of the biggest joys in my life, continually renewing me. Each day being able to impact children, encourage them, present them with a Godly foundation and love and nurture them has done more for my heart than words can explain. So much so, I recently changed my major from business to ESL elementary education. For once in my life I feel like I am answering my calling. I have a peace in my heart knowing that I have found my niche, I can make a difference, one that starts with one child but will eventually lead to another child, to a family, to a community, to a city with no ending point in sight. Praise, praise, praise the Lord! J

HE gives restoration!

Hi beautifuls!

As some of you may or may not know, the whole month of February has been very difficult for me. As it is coming to an end, I have taken note of a few things and wanted to share to encourage you:

My prayers for the last 3 months have mainly been centered on asking the Lord to purify/transform my heart, to break me for Him, and for Him to use me as a light to show His glory. When my world crashed down on me in the beginning of this month, I didn't realize it was an answered prayer.

He is surfacing (and resurfacing) sin in my heart and what I struggle with. He is exposing me in His light so that my heart can be cleansed! And I see His glory in all of it - mostly through you all. You all have been so encouraging and just real legit gospel community and I know He set that up. He is such a provider and just awesome! I know you all have seen His glory working in this situation too through solely His continued presence in my life and in our homegroup.

Though I think His way of doing things are crazy, I see the goodness in it and I know that it is right. And of course I think it is crazy - I mean honestly, who would willingly choose to have their entire world fall apart, thinking it would ultimately benefit them? But that is why He is so amazing and beautiful! "He is like the surgeon - He inflicts the wounds for our healing."

I hope this was as encouraging to you all as it is to me. Pray for my suffering well, which He is so graciously already allowing.


Also, I was reading in Matthew last night, and He led me to this verse:
"You can pray for anything, and if you have faith, you will receive it." Matt 21:22

Have faith in His faithfulness! HE WILL PROVIDE!

I love you all!

Lauren :)

Still the Same God

Desert Song-
By Hillsong United

I love this song. It has been my theme this last month
and I wanted to share it with all of you.
It's truth, God is the only one who can provide.

1 Corinthians 10:13
"No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man.
God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability,
but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape,
that you may be able to endure it."


Psalm 68:9-10
"Rain in abundance, O God, you shed abroad;
you restored your inheritance as it languished;
your flock found a dwelling in it;
in your goodness, O God, you provided for the needy."


Malachi 3:3
"He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify
the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver,
and they will bring offerings in righteousness to the LORD."


2 Corinthians 9:10
"He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply
and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the
harvest of your righteousness."

"When your own emptiness is painfully
forced upon your consciousness,
chide yourself that you ever dreamed
of being full except in the Lord."
-Charles Spurgeon

This is my prayer in the desert
And all that's within me feels dry
This is my prayer in the hunger in me
My God is a God who provides

And this is my prayer in the fire
In weakness or trial or pain
There is a faith proved
Of more worth than gold
So refine me Lord through the flames

And I will bring praise
I will bring praise
No weapon forged against me shall remain

I will rejoice
I will declare
God is my victory and He is here

And this is my prayer in the battle
And triumph is still on it's way
I am a conqueror and co-heir with Christ
So firm on His promise I'll stand

All of my life
In every season
You are still God
I have a reason to sing
I have a reason to worship

This is my prayer in the harvest
When favor and providence flow
I know I'm filled to be emptied again
The seed I've received I will sow

You are the answer!

Hey everyone,

I wanted to let you girls know how the Lord changed my life this week.
First, I'll give you some background information. I have been struggling and battling with anxiety and hypochondria all of my life. I went through a really bad patch this summer and decided to start taking medicine. The medicine worked well and took away my anxiety, but it also dulled my emotions. I hated the way I felt on the medicine and decided to stop taking it about 3 or 4 months ago. Since then, my anxiety has come back full force and stronger than ever.

I recently started Step Studies at the Village. Last Saturday was the first week we met in our groups, and I had one of the worst panic attacks that I've ever experienced. The anxiety didn't go away like normal, and I was anxious for about three days straight. I was bitter and angry at God. I was saying things like "I'm doing something good by attending Step Studies and by digging deep into Your Word so that I can know You more and this is what You're doing? Why??" I talked to a few of you girls at homegroup last week and Britt and Jana really encouraged me to talk to their roommate Ashly Taylor. This is just the beginning of how the Lord provided even when I thought He was far from me.

I met with Ashly Taylor this past Wednesday, January 20th, to talk about my anxiety. I talked to her once before at Britt and Jana's house when we all went over to have dinner and play Catch Phrase. Anyway, we began talking and I immediately felt like the Holy Spirit was there. She and I have so many things in common regarding our anxiety. I felt understood, encouraged, and comfortable. Then Ashly began to reveal things to me about my anxiety:

1.Fear is a sin
2. Anxiety is rooted in me not thinking God is good or that He is enough to meet my needs.
3. Comfort is a HUGE idol in my life. When I'm uncomfortable I feel anxious.
4. I feel entitled to things because of my anxiety. I would think things like "Well I deserve to have this or that because my life is hard." I deserve NOTHING!!!

As she spoke to me, the Lord in His grace decided to reveal some things too:
1. My anxiety is a GIFT. The Lord is pursuing me and pushing me toward Him through it. I never prayed unless I was anxious. This was the Lord's way of drawing me to Him. All the times I prayed for my anxiety to go away, the Lord was answering me. His answer was "No, it's the only way you will NEED me and SEE me."
2. The Lord was always PROVIDING. Every bad day I had with my anxiety was just another day that God was preparing my heart to meet with Ashly and relate to her in the way that I did. The Lord also provided me with ways to combat my anxiety. I now feel HOPE in knowing that I'm not alone and that HE IS IN CONTROL.
3. The Lord's timing is PERFECT. If I didn't have my anxiety attack at Step Studies, I wouldn't have been led to Ashly through my gospel community.
4. The Lord PURSUED ME. I didn't find Him on my own or come to these amazing revelations because of my own wisdom or goodness. The Lord revealed Himself in His perfect timing for His GLORY and my eventual joy.

Just because the Lord revealed all of these things to me and provided me with truth and biblical community doesn't mean that I still don't or won't struggle with anxiety. "In the world you will have tribulation." John 16:33 But God in His Grace has given me hope, comfort, knowledge, and joy."In all their suffering He suffered. and the angel of His presence saved them. He redeemed them because of His love and compassion." Isaiah 63:9 He has given me this experience to look back on and know that He answers prayer and provides. Even when we can't feel Him, He is still working in our lives. We just have to trust that He knows what's best for us and that He works ALL THINGS for GOOD.

This weekend at Step Studies the Lord provided even more abundantly than I thought possible. Since I had such a rough time last weekend, I was fearful of having another attack during small group. I knew all of these truths: the Lord is good, He will provide, He answers prayer, and His timing is perfect. I knew that I had to trust in all of these things and step out in faith and allow Him to be God. As small group began, I could feel anxiety welling up with in me, but then I felt something I don't believe I had ever truly experience before. I FELT PEACE. The Lord blesses those who STEP OUT IN FAITH and trust Him. Hallelujah! Because of my anxiety, I feel like I appreciated PEACE in a totally different way. I needed to feel anxious to experience peace in that way.

The ONLY reason I tell you all this is to GIVE GOD THE GLORY. He opened my eyes and revealed so many things that I don't deserve. I feel like a completely new and changed person. "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!" 2 Corinthians 5:17 I am SO UNWORTHY of His love and His grace in revealing Himself to me this week and I am so humbled to know that despite all of my sin He still provides and answers prayers.

I really wanted to encourage you guys. I hope you can see the Lord through this story and NOT ME. Please be comforted in knowing that the Lord is near and He is working in you and answering your prayers even if you can't see it right now. "Take courage, I AM HERE!" Matthew 14:27 "For just as the sufferings of Christ overflow into our lifes, so also through Christ, our comfort overflows." 2 Corinthians 1:5

"My lips will glorify YOU because Your faithful love is better than life." Psalm 63:3

~Megan

No more checklists!

Hey girls,
I was doing my step studies homework tonight and just reflecting on Genesis 3:1-13 The Fall of Man. I have read this story too many times to count. This story was read to me over and over during my Christian school days. Until now, I never fully realized the weight of my sin.
Gen. 3:8-10: 8. Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord and they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden. 9. But the Lord God called to the man, "Where are you?" 10. He (man) answered, "I heard you in the garden and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid."
Before I came to the village I was just like Adam and Eve. The Lord obviously knew my sin, but instead of going to Him for help I decided to hide my face from Him when I needed Him the most. I'm so thankful for a homegroup full of ladies who are open and honest with each other. I've never experienced a place where I could talk about my sin and get Godly counsel and advice. I've always been told to keep my problems inside and deal with them myself until I was "good enough" for God. That's exactly what I did. I tried to get to a place where I was "good enough" to start my relationship with Him. You can imagine what that did to my relationsip with the Lord. I fell into the trap of "religion over relationship". My relationship with Christ was a checklist that I needed to complete in order to be worthy enough in God's sight and in the sight of those with whom I surrounded myself. That led to apathy towards my Savior. My walk was ritualistic and in no way heartfelt. Through the grace of God I came to the Village and God opened my eyes. I will never be good enough, but praise God because through Christ's blood I am seen as holy and blameless in His sight.
Today, I am grateful. Grateful for grace. I am also in awe of an amazing God who loves me when I am at my worst. I am glad that the Lord is faithful to remind me of these things. I am so unworthy, but God is chasing me and wooing me day by day to bring me to a REAL relationship with Him and He's showing me that I'm no longer that girl who is desperately trying to check things off of a list in order to gain approval. Thank you, Lord!

~Megan