​Thanks for joining us for Monday’s Message with Abigail Rice and
Trench Classes United. In a day and age of digital, receiving a letter in
the mail can feel like a breath of fresh air.

Writing a letter to myself
Because I don’t know where else
To begin
Here
Again
This distance
Guilt ridden
Forbidden
Or forgotten
I seem to feel
quite often
Forgotten
& lost in this distance
I created
With my Lord and my Savior
Wondering why I always seem to find
Myself in this dessert
Wandering ‘til my feet hurt
Falling face down to the cracks in the dirt
Or is that sand?
& I’m actually in His plan
For me to see
The depth of my need
So deep
I can no longer see
The roots of my tree
Dried up
Empty
Time to dig
Time to bleed
Unravel me
& sink
Every want
& every need
Show me what it means
To feel the depth of the need
There’s a light behind this knowing
That if I just believed
Then I would finally see
the path to where we meet
At the intersection of
My hurt & His feet
Now go
Go seek

Love,
Me

Seek Him Who made the [cluster of stars called] Pleiades and [the
constellation] Orion, Who turns the shadow of death or deep darkness into the
morning and darkens the day into night, Who calls for the waters of the sea and
pours them out upon the face of the earth
–the Lord is His name–”

Have you ever taken a timeout from the craziness of your day?
Thanks for joining us for Faith-Filled Friday with Brandi Linai, one of my
favorite radio personalities.

I’ve always said, and now trying to live, that if we’re too busy to care, we’re
too busy! Today’s blog from Brandi is a great reminder that to carve out
moments to just “be” will bring you a great energy.

Recently my family celebrated a couple of milestones. My grandson King graduated from
kindergarten, and my daughter Lily celebrated turning 5 years old. Quite honestly, all the
festivities have left me exhausted. But, in a good way.

In the midst of a time when it feels like our society is drowning in anxiety, depression,
financial woes, division, and confusion just to name a few, it’s nice when we can carve out
moments that are special, moments that leave us feeling uplifted and hopeful, feeling joy,
and often leave us feeling refreshed.
​
Maybe there hasn’t been a graduation or birthday in your family recently, but we can still
take a break from the crazy, spiraling world, and create “just because” moments. Grab your
family and go for ice-cream “just because”. Push the couch aside tonight and have a family
dance party in the middle of the living room “just because”.  Sometimes waiting for those
milestones to celebrate can leave us feeling like we’re in the humdrum desert of daily
monotony with no spark to excite us. So, create your own spark. One of my favorite quotes
says it perfectly…” Every day may not be a good day, but there’s something to celebrate in
every day.”

“Each day is a gift God has given us, and each moment of our day is in HIS hands.”

Recently I came through a horrible bough of colitis, which is a
flare-up of IBS. I mean the pain was indescribable. It got my
attention though. Now, not coincidentally, a friend of mine
experiences the same symptoms; so she turned me on to the
FODMAP which is an acronym for a lot of long words . Anyway,
I have learned that what I’ve been eating as a regular diet has
been wrong all along.

No wonder my stomach is bloated and looks as though I’m 4.5
months pregnant and that’s not an exaggeration.
Abba was so, so good to steer me in the right direction,
especially since I was considering surgery for my bloated
tummy.

The same is true for our spiritual nourishment: what we take in
with our eyes, ears, our hearts can either infect our souls or
perfect our souls in this journey until we are with Him face to
face.

Can I encourage you to be mindful of what you’re listening to, or
watching as you scroll through all those TikToks, or any of your
news feeds, what you take in with your eyes through the TV. Is it
infecting your soul or perfecting your soul?

Join us for Rising above Chaos and Confusion coming to a
trench near you in September.

Truthfully,
Kim-Evinda

The word “test” sent her on a detour in her 100 Days of Healing devotional. Maybe
because test-taking had never been her strong suit. As she read the text, she was
reminded of some of her most important tests in life.
Thanks for joining us for Wednesday’s Word with Kim-Evinda and Trench Classes
United. When you hear the word “test,” what is your first thought? Today’s blog from
Kim-Evinda just may give you a new and positive outlook on this word “test,” which is
a reality for all of us.

It had been 34+ years since she had taken her court reporting two-day test, which
had been a not-so-positive experience the first time. She had been so incredibly
nervous, especially for the reporting part of it. She remembered that her hands
shook as if she had cerebral palsy in them ☹ And though she had failed the first time;
but that didn’t deter her from returning to retake it six months later.

She smiled at the memory and returned to her devotional.

Psalm 139:23-24 Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my
anxious thoughts.24Point out anything in me that offends you and lead me along the
path of everlasting life.

As she read the New Testament definitions for the word “test,” she was surprised to
learn that this word was most often used in a positive context; but the Old Testament
(Hebrew) definitions were what caught her attention: “Infinitive absolute; figurative of
purifying people, the hearts, purifying.”

A powerful truth came to life more realistically as she rewound her life’s most
significant tests, especially this most recent test that was ongoing: choosing to heal
from a season of betrayal. Failing her court-reporting test that first time was so small
compared to the test of parenting, the test of marriage/divorce, the test of ministry.
As this new revelation sunk into her soul, she realized that every test she had ever
gone through and would go through still was and is not a reflection of her inability,
but an inflection of His ability, His purifying, strengthening her, preparing her.
Another truth settled into her soul and came to the surface of her mind in the quiet:

Isaiah 41:10 Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your
God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right
hand.

Friend, can I encourage you that while there are times when we wish He would use
other ways to strengthen and purify us, Father knows best and will get us through
the test.
​
Tested and loved,
Kim-Evinda

When I was a kid, I witnessed addictions, anger and other types of unhealthy cycles
that wound up ripping me off of my childhood. Statistics say I would repeat the cycle,
but God has made it possible for me to break the cycle.

What about you; is there a piece of your history threatening to keep you doing the
same thing, expecting a different result? Can I encourage you that whatever was
done wrong to you or about you or even from you, God can make right for you.
Oh, and here’s an even more amazing promise: The Lord will restore what the
locusts (Satan) have stolen.

Plan on joining us for Rising above Chaos & Confusion in September to overcome
those things in your history that have kept you in any unhealthy cycle.

Thoughtfully,
Kim-Evinda

When you don’t get an answer right away about anything you’re waiting for, what
do you do? Do you deem silence as ignoring?

Thanks for joining us for Monday’s Message with Abigail Rice and Trench Classes
United. For those of us who are during a period of silence as we wait for Him to
answer a prayer, this one’s for you.

Contrasting colors
Like storms in the summer
The heat lightning
That creates no thunder
Silent
yet bright
As it shoots across the sky
Like veins of light
pulsating around the sun
As it settles into the night
Like knowing
& seeing
Believing
That what He has in store for you
Is visible
In reach
Yet silence depletes
Every last ounce of your energy
As you sit and wonder
Will you ever hear the thunder?
Left asunder
With voices
In the quiet
Feeding their lies in
Despite it
You fight it
Realizing the position you are in
Is with Him
Right by your side
Through the darkest of nights
Close your eyes
Take a deep breath
A long pause
Then sigh
Because darling it is all
going to be alright
Stay in the fight
​
“It is He who changes the times and the epochs;
He removes kings and [fn]establishes kings;
He gives wisdom to wise men
And knowledge to [fn]men of understanding.
It is He who reveals the profound and hidden things;
He knows what is in the darkness,
And the light dwells with Him.” - Daniel 2:21-22

We are so excited to welcome renown radio personality Brandi Lanai to our
weekly blogs. This is a God wink for sure, and maybe some day we’ll be
broadcasting live to share how it all came to be, but in the meantime, enjoy
what she shares today, Faith-Filled Friday with Brandi Lanai.

Earlier today I was part of a women’s conference on CONFIDENCE. Something that the
keynote speaker said stuck out to me. She said, “confidence is not about a person, it’s
about a purpose”. So often we allow fear to keep us from pursuing our goals and
dreams because we’re focused on ourselves or, on what others may say or think
instead of focusing on the purpose.

God gives each of us gifts, talents, and skills, not just to lift ourselves, but to be a
blessing to others. That is the purpose. When we allow fear or intimidation or lack of
confidence to hold us back, we’ve lost sight of the purpose. The purpose of your vision,
the purpose of that business you’ve always wanted to start  or that dream you can’t
shake, is ultimately to bring joy to someone else’s life, it’s to encourage or inspire them
in some way, it’s to impact their lives for the better.
​
So when we focus on ourselves, our doubts, our fears, our insecurities, we lose sight of
the reason God gave us our unique skill or talent in the first place… to be a blessing to
others. We’re not supposed to keep those gifts for ourselves, we’ve been called to give
those gifts away. So whatever it is you’ve been holding back, remember the PURPOSE
and that will give you the confidence to achieve anything.

“Each day is a gift God has given us, and each moment of our day is in HIS hands.”

A man takes his sick Chihuahua to the vet. They’re immediately taken back
to a room without much of a wait at all.

Soon a Labrador walks by the room, pulls his owner back and sticks his
head in the room where the Chihuahua is. He comes in closer and
proceeds to say hello to the Chihuahua by sniffing for a good 10 minutes
and then leaves.

Then a cat comes walking in the room and stops, and stares at the
Chihuahua for ten minutes. The Chihuahua’s owner was like what the
heck? When’s the vet going to come in, he wondered.

Finally, the doctor comes in, prescribes some medicine and hands the man
a $250 bill. The guy stood there dumbfounded and blurted out: This must
be a mistake; I’ve only been here for 20 minutes and you haven’t even
examined my dog.

"Nope, there’s no mistake," the doctor says. "It’s $100 for the lab test, 100 for
the cat scan and $50 for the medicine”

Oh my goodness, signs and symptoms of sickness whether exhibited in our
children or our four-legged children tend to send us scurrying to someone
who can help, right? But what do we do when we are not feeling well
emotionally? Our emotional and spiritual health is every bit as important as
our physical health. Type yes below if you agree!

For more encouragement for your soul, join our Instagram fam and
Facebook Community www.facebook.com/trenchclassesunited

Much love,
Kim-Evinda

Her blog from exactly a year ago stared her in the face and penetrated into the cracks
and crevices that still remained in her heart.

“Help me let go of what could be, could have been, Abba!” She desperately wanted to
know how to do this, to be done with whatever it was she was supposed to learn so she
could continue to move forward in life again, to be able to look back and not see huge
cracks in her once shattered heart.

Thanks for joining us for Wednesday’s Word with Kim-Evinda and Trench Classes
United. Today’s word is a great reminder that sometimes the hardest thing to let go of is
what could be or could have been. May we learn to practice believing in His Word and
taking Him at His Word in those difficult areas of surrender.

Sometimes, especially in difficult times, we just want it to be done, right? Just put
another check on our to-do list, get it, got it, good and done! But life doesn’t work that
way, or at least it’s not working that way for me right now.
Though I’ve talked and written about letting go and letting God, sometimes it’s as if I’m
suspended in midair, white knuckling through the pain still residing in my once
shattered, now fractured heart. The pain reminds me that I must learn to let go of my
need to understand the “why” of it all. What I am learning, however, is that the more I
cling to this mentality of needing to understand, the less I understand and the more
unrest I experience.
The other day, the realization that this persistent feeling of there’s something I’m not
getting hit me…hard! And when He led me to this scripture, I was finally able to figure it
out. Light bulb moment!
Hebrews 13:5-6 says:

5  Don’t love money; be satisfied with what you have. For God has said,
“I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.” 6  So we can say with confidence,
“The LORD is my helper, so I will have no fear. What can mere people do to me?”
​
The real victory came when He reminded me to put me in it, which is a powerful
exercise that brings the scriptures to life in our life. As I began to write my re-write for
you today, I felt divinely encouraged to write it as if it was coming from Him to me…and
now to you.
                                                                        Daughter
“Don’t love needing to know and understand the why of it all; be satisfied with Me, for I
have said and proven that I will never fail you, nor have I ever abandoned you. Instead
of crying out about this season, cry out to others with confidence that I am your first
helper and companion, your first husband.
Because that is true, whom or what shall you fear? When you truly allow Me to be your
focus, and not your current season, the One you run to and not from, looking to Me
instead of all the what-ifs, you will understand that no one or nothing can take from you
what is yours: Me in you and for you.”

As I read this again, I realize I only need to let go…again and again and again so I land
in His will for my life, knowing that I can trust Him and His plans for me.

My friend, what would your rewrite look like?

Love,
Kim-Evinda

​​Tuesday Trench Truth

Last week in my quiet time, looking for those moments that were
undeniably God, and also for those moments where I undeniably left him
out, a conversation came back to me that I had with a friend. My tone and
everything about my response repulsed me.

My tone of voice when responding to something she had said was sharp,
and incredibly defensive. A picture of a bull in a China cabinet came to my
vision followed by conviction that washed over me l bringing a clean and
correct vision of how I had come across.

I knew I had to apologize so I determined that I would the next day. On my
way to meet her, my pride reared up and the phrase “swallow your pride”
came too. And then I heard no, don’t swallow your pride and keep it inside;
spit it out! Well I did apologize to my friend. I owned it and genuinely said I
was sorry for the way I had responded, and we were able to move on like
nothing had happened.
​
If I had swallowed my pride and let it stay inside, I don’t know that an
apology would have been as quickly accomplished. But I spit it out of me
and didn’t let it stop me. Apologies can bring the sweetest of victories.