The Only Thing That Makes Me Whole

Well hello!  It has been a full year since I last blogged.  That is NOT okay!  My life has done a 180 in the last year... the biggest thing being I MOVED TO TENNESSEE.  Yes, I packed up my life and moved to Knoxville to help start a church- Ignition Church.  I've been here for 9 days and have never felt more at home in my life.  Don't get me wrong- I love Charlotte.  I was born and raised there.  But I've known for quite some time that Charlotte was just the beginning for me.  God had a land with my name on it.  And boy, am I thankful that He got me to this land.

In the last year, I have grown immensely in my faith.  I've gone from a girl who strives to a woman who thrives.  I've gone from feeling like my faith depended on how much I do, to knowing that I am covered by the grace-laden blood of Jesus no matter what I do.  I was baptized on June 26th, and at my baptism, my Pastor asked me to share what this day meant to me.  I said that I now knew how much I truly need God in my life.  God has shaken me this last year and has shown me how I really can't do life without Him.  There is just no way.  The ONLY thing that makes me whole is the Gospel-- the Truth that Jesus died for me and covered all my sins-- past, present, and future.  "Not by works, so that no one can boast."

I knew it the day I volunteered at Redeeming Hope Ministries last March.  Seeing those kids' faces and knowing how deeply wounded they were made me realize I can't do what I'm called to do alone.  I am called to be the best mother in the world.  THE BEST.  And not just a mother to my own children.  A mother to my friends.  A mother to the children at Ignition.  A mother to this city.  A mother to this world.  I am called to be a part of raising up a generation that knows God intimately and loves Him and His people beyond all measure.  A generation that would give up their own lives to see the next generation do the same.  I need the perfect, pure grace of Jesus.  It is the only thing that makes me whole.  It's the only thing that makes me seen as holy and blemish-free before God.  Without Jesus, I can do nothing.  Without Jesus, I am nothing.

In this season, I am asking God to remind us every day that nothing we have and nothing we do is from ourselves.  It is all by His love that we are renewed each day.  It is by His mercy that we have everything we need to fulfill the calling on our lives.  We will NEVER be qualified.  We are so undeserving of the blessings we've been given.  We need to stop feeling like we have to earn His love.  It is much too large a gift to ever be able to earn.  Accept it.  Let it overflow from your soul.  And be thankful for it.

Jesus, thank you for all you've done.  Thank you for carrying the weight of our sin so we wouldn't have to.  I am grateful that you would choose me to be a tool in building Your Kingdom.  Please help us to accept your grace and to surrender our pride in thinking we can live life on our own.  We can't.  We need you.
"In Him we have the redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding." - Ephesians 1:7-8