Faith-Filled Friday with Brandi Linai Most of us have experienced those times of hopelessness, where life
seemed lifeless, and we could care less. What do we do in those times? Thanks for joining us for Faith-Filled Friday with Brandi Linai where she shares one of those times as well as what turned it around from hopeless to hope-full! Hope in the verse… 2014- if there was one year I’d love to send hurling into the sea of forgetfulness it would be 2014. That was the year I experienced the most excruciating, indescribable pain as I watched my son go through one of the most difficult periods in his life…in OUR lives. I had been a single mom for 18 years, and for 18 years my son dreamed of what it would be like to have his dad in his life. Then it happened. In 2014. The dream turned into a nightmare as it crashed into reality. This was not going to be a fairytale story. The disappointment was crushing, and I watched my son spiral into a dark hole of depression, anger, resentment, and self-loathing. In the midst of trying to hold my son together, trying to hold on to my sanity, and trying to keep life as we knew it from slipping away forever, God sent me a lifeline. It was one Bible verse. Exodus 14:14, “The Lord your God will fight for you, you need only to be still.” That was it. That’s all I needed to hear. My God was in control and all I had to do was trust HIM. I watched as God put our lives back together in miraculous ways. HE restored hope, peace, joy, and LAUGHTER! HE healed in ways only HE could. I am so thankful for the one verse that got me through. I would love for you to share your life-line verse.
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Thursday's Trench Truth Since the body houses the mind and the soul/heart, it is safe to say we are spiritual
beings housed in a physical body; therefore, to achieve true balance, we must include the spiritual part of us. It is when we include the spiritual component of life into our lives that we gain power to fight against many forms of confusion. Mind + body + soul = balance and balance protects us against confusion! There’s still time to join us in a trench near you! Thoughtfully, Kim-Evinda Wednesday Word She looked out the window as she realized they had started their descent…but then the pilot’s voice came on letting them know that they had just been diverted to Oklahoma due to weather in Dallas.
Thanks for joining us for Wednesday’s Word with Kim-Evinda and Trench Classes United. What do you do when you’re delayed unexpectedly? Today’s blog reveals an opportunity to obey because of such a delay. It’s a bit of a long story so settle in for a few minutes. As the plane began to touch down, i turned my phone on to see if there was a message from American Airlines, knowing I had missed my connecting flight. When the phone had fully powered on, the message was there: “We’ve already booked your new connection.” My mouth dropped as I read the time of the new flight. I would not arrive to my destination for 36 hours! “We’re going to lose a whole day of filming,” I said to myself, “not to mention I have no idea where I’m going to sleep!” By the time I got off the plane, I had rebooked a different flight, but I was still stranded for the night. As thoughts of filming, and my luggage hit me like a tidal wave, I reached out to one of the airline stewards and asked for directions. He was kind, but not much help as this was the first time this had happened to him as well. The proof that God was with me was that I was strangely calm! I made it downstairs by 8:45 p.m., and when I found the customer service line to be almost two miles long, I felt like a helium balloon that lost its helium. “Don’t panic,” I told myself. I think I’m getting hangry.” Common sense told me to get dinner first then deal with this situation. After enjoying my Ahi tuna on leafy greens and a glass of wine and a great exchange of Biblical views with a young man, I went to stand in line. It was 11:55 p.m. before I made it to the customer service agent who offered to print my new boarding passes – which was a good thing considering their ap wouldn’t download them for me. ☹😊She then informed me that I was eligible for a hotel voucher. When I asked what hotel, and where, I left the offer on the counter for a few reasons, so my only alternative was to find a place to sit…and wait. My first opportunity to obey because of the delay happened the next morning on my first flight. I was determined to sleep; God had other plans and i was too tired to argue with Him. No matter how tired I was, He was already to offer hope and encouragement through me to someone. But the biggest opportunity happened later, after finally getting to Asheville and learning my luggage didn’t make it with me so we would have to return three hours later to pick it up. Again, I was strangely calm, knowing that He was in control and I wasn’t. The three of us went downtown for dinner and got caught up on events in life. I felt myself getting passionately frustrated and then stopped as God reminded me of our only responsibility: to be ready and help get others ready. Since we still had two hours left before going to retrieve my luggage, we decided to go for a walk. As we were enjoying the cool breeze in downtown Asheville, a blood-curdling scream stopped us in our tracks. Again, and again, the scream rang through the quiet town. “Somebody found out somebody died,” I said to Steve and James. At James’ suggestion, we stopped and prayed over the screamer, and the situation and then began to walk again. Again, the scream, and James said, “She’s over there.” “Where?” I asked. “To your left, and she has a little boy in the backseat.” The only way to describe what happened next is to say the next 15 minutes were powered by His Spirit for I have NEVER done anything like this before. I looked at Steve and James and told them I was going over to her and going to pray for her. When I came up to her in her car, her window was down, and the first thing that greeted me was her tattoos literally from head to toe. She sat with one leg up on the dashboard, her hands in her face while talking to someone on the phone who I later learned was her mom. The best way to describe the little boy in the backseat is to say that while he looked nervous, he also looked like he was used to this type of breakdown from his mom. I gently put my hand on her shoulder, asked if she was okay to which she replied no, and began to scream-cry again, though not as loudly. Her son pointed behind him that that was her husband’s house, while she began to explain that her and her boyfriend were in a fight, that he was blowing her off. Had I met the woman at the well, I wondered? Empathy took over and washed any form of judgment that I might have in my human condition. The words that came out of my mouth were definitely other-worldly, coming from the Father’s heart to her ears and hopefully to her soul. And after speaking them, I firmly but kindly asked her to look at me and repeat I am good enough. “But what if I just don’t believe it, she said in between sobs. “Say it anyway!” And she did, not once but twice. I reminded her of how much God loves her, that He had sent me over to her to tell her that, that she was good enough and no one should have that much power over her. I then vaguely remember praying for her, and asking her mom if she was close by, to which she said she was and would be there within a few moments. My last words to her were, “Remember, God says you are good enough,” and were met with a countenance so different from the one I had walked up on. The next morning as I relayed this to my dietician, these words came to me and rendered me humbled: He used this delay because He knew I’d obey! This divine appointment had nothing to do with me but my availability. Can I encourage you to be on the lookout for a delay in your life; it just might present an opportunity to obey Him and help others get ready for His return. Love, Kim-Evinda Tuesday Trench Truth When you hear the word “normal,” what comes to mind? Here are a couple of
definitions of “normal” from the Merriam Webster’s Dictionary: “usual or ordinary: not strange: mentally and physically healthy.” Now, when I look at those definitions, I can’t help but wonder why mental and physical health are mentioned, but nothing about spiritual health is. And “usual or ordinary compared to who or what? It is safe to say that when I began writing the study on the Root of Confusion, I was “confused” about where to start until reading that definition. This is the perfect starting point and a true source of confusion albeit not the only source. We can’t be “normal” if we don’t utilize all three God-given parts that make up the person. Trying to live life without the spiritual component and our damaged emotions is like a ship without a captain, a class without a teacher and/or a church without a pastor. Could it be that this is one of the reasons there is a root of confusion? There’s still time to join us in a trench near you. Monday Message We’ve all heard the saying “scared of your own shadow.” Fears are like
shadows that follow us around and cause us internal distress. Thanks for joining us for Monday’s Message with Abigail Rice and Trench Classes United. Today’s message is a great reminder of how to shrink those shadows by stepping into faith. We don’t know But we believe We can’t see Yet we still believe We can’t touch, taste, or hear what is to come what’s right what’s wrong But we still believe In something bigger Something bigger than us Something that created the vast beauty of us Of the world The people The places The hearts The bodies The minds & the souls Even those that are so far gone... So led on to be deceived That they are weak fear driven & ridden Down So far down So far gone Yet He stands there still Softly saying Please come home Back to my arms To my love My endless grace Is it not enough? Because you are enough More than enough More than a face with a name But a home and a heart A mother, a brother, a father, a son Someone. Someone that someone else loves So don’t take this life for granted It is ALL that you’ve got. & don’t for one second believe that thought That thought that you are not good enough That you are not brave enough Kind enough Smart enough Wise enough to know, it’s not your time to go & it won’t be until the good Lord says so So just hold on my dear Stop living in the shadows of your own fear. Those thoughts? Yeah, those thoughts - He hears. “The LORD looks from heaven; He sees all the sons of men; From His dwelling place He looks out On all the inhabitants of the earth, He who fashions the hearts of them all, He who understands all their works. The king is not saved by a mighty army; A warrior is not delivered by great strength. A horse is a false hope for victory; Nor does it deliver anyone by its great strength. Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear Him, On those who hope for His lovingkindness, To deliver their soul from death And to keep them alive in famine.” - Psalm 33:13-19 Love, Abigail Faith-Filled Friday with Brandi Linai Have you ever searched in a crowd of people for a familiar face and when
you saw them, were you relieved? Thanks for joining us for Faith-Filled Friday with Brandi Linai, Founder of Ignite Radio! Today’s blog is a fantastic reminder that in the crowds of life, Abba stands ready for us to recognize Him. The power of showing up… Recently I watched a video that was circulating the internet, showing a little boy’s reaction to spotting his mother in the crowd. He and his classmates were marching onto the stage for a performance and you could see his eyes intently scanning the faces in the audience searching for the one he would recognize, the one that would bring him comfort, confidence, and reassurance. And then he saw here. When this little boy laid eyes on his mother, he was overwhelmed by emotion. His smile was enormous, but at the same time he was almost moved to tears. What a beautiful thing to witness. My 11-year-old-niece had a similar reaction the other day when she spotted all of us family members in the audience for her school performance of Aladdin. Though not quite as emotional, you could see her face light up and she seemed relieved once she found us in the crowd. That’s the power of showing up. Showing up to root for our kids gives them the assurance that we will always be their cheering squad, their support. It reminds them that they are not doing life alone. But then, I realized something about our Heavenly Father: God shows up for HIS kids, too. He’s there in all of our challenges and struggles, in the midst of our storms and dry places. He’s always there to root for us, reassure us, cheer for us, support us, and provide for us. Even though it took a minute for that little boy to find his mom in the crowd, she had been there the entire time. God promises us HE’s always there, too. If you look for HIM, you’ll spot HIM. Love, Brandi Linai Thursday's Trench Truth Did you know that there are at least 69 contributors to chaos and confusion? Most of them are internal, meaning what is happening inside of us because of us or others close to us. Watch this FREE segment of our next trench. Wednesday Word The pull was on so many levels that made it so difficult to ignore, let alone not give into
it. This had definitely been a birthday celebration to remember. Thanks for joining us for Wednesday’s Word with Kim-Evinda and Trench Classes United. As usual, she shares from her heart about a real-life experience with the hope that it will encourage you in your life’s day to day temptations and struggles. She was on the dance floor dancing with a couple of her girlfriends from her community group and she saw him… He was standing at the bar and dancing, staring at her. She didn’t even think about it before she motioned over the music and said, “Get out here!” He came immediately, and they danced, and laughed, and danced and laughed. She didn’t think anything about it at first, especially after a good look at him and thinking, “he looks so young!” She told herself she was just having fun doing what she loved, dancing like no one was watching. But by the third dance, there was no denying the attraction. When the band announced a break, she took him back to the table and introduced him to her friends while swallowing a couple big gulps of water to replenish what she had lost through sweating . As she sat down, indicating she was taking a break, he told her he’d come find her after checking on his friends. Shortly after the band started up again, he did exactly that. They danced just about every dance after that. The night was nothing less than magical, especially realizing that what they were both experiencing was being taken in by others as they videotaped them dancing. It was like an attraction that attracted the attention of everyone close to the dance floor. In the days that followed, he was definitely taking up a lot of space in her head and not paying much rent! And yet, that night had definitely served to remind her of yet more things that were missing in her last marriage. It wasn’t until a few days as she was filming for a new promo for her republished book, The Men in and out of Her Life that a revelation hit her and hit her hard. As she was re-familiarizing herself with the words on the back of the book, she couldn’t help but chuckle at God’s sense of humor, especially all these years later, sixty-something and single…again. “With the help of her counselor, girlfriends and ‘The Voice’ within her, Lacey learns the most valuable lesson she could: She didn’t need a someone to be a somebody; she didn’t need another man in and out of her life to know she was loved.” It was a reminder that God was with her then and definitely with her now, and she was learning to recognize that sometimes an attraction is merely a distraction from all things good that God had for her. Friend, when life hands you things that attract your attention, can I encourage you to determine if the attraction is merely a distraction from His will for your life? Love Kim-Evinda Tuesday Trench Truth So many people have asked, what’s a trench, or why do you call it trench classes? The short answer: A TRENCH can be defined as Together, Receiving Extraordinary Nurturing, Coaching, Hope. In other words, a TRENCH is a safe place to be real with ourselves, God and others. Watch this introduction to our next trench, Rising above Chaos and Confusion and consider joining us. Monday Message Where do you go when you need rest, emotionally and physically?
Thanks for joining us for Monday’s Message with Debra Dolce and Trench Classes United. When we’re tired, we go to bed for rest; when we’re emotionally tired, which can also exhaust us physically, where is it we turn? Today’s love letter is a reminder that God, Jesus, Abba want us to rest in Them, Their promises to us and for us. ~Love Letter~ Are you weary, carrying a heavy burden? Come to Me. I will refresh your life, for I am your oasis. Simply join your life with Mine. Learn My ways and you'll discover that I'm gentle, humble, easy to please. You will find refreshment and rest in Me. For all that I require of you will be pleasant and easy to bear. This is a good Word for you who are struggling and gives you hope at the moment when you need it. Memorize this good Word, repeat it often to yourself so that you don't forget all My goodness to you. do not want you to become weary or burdened down with the cares of this world. This is why I say come to Me and I will refresh you. Remember that I am your oasis as you join your life with Mine. When you surrender all of your ways to Me, you will find that I am gentle, humble, and easy to please. People run around trying to do all kinds of things for Me but did I ask them to do that? Did I ask you to exhaust yourself trying to prove your worth to Me? You never have to prove anything. Remember, I came and died for you long before you were ever born so you don't need to prove a thing. My child, if you're struggling with a heavy burden, then stop, step back for a moment and examine all that exhausts you. Did I call you to do all the things you're struggling to do? Probably not. I will never ask you to do things that weigh you down because My burden is light. Things are light when you let Me carry the heavy stuff. Beloved, all the things that you desire, surrender to Me and in due time I will cause things to happen as they should. ~DebraDolce |
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