No matter how hard we try to keep control over others, our circumstances, the more out
of control we become.

Thanks for joining us for Monday’s Message with Abigail Rice and Trench Classes
United. Today’s message is a great reminder of this truth about control.

How many times have you come to the end of yourself and recognized you really aren’t in
control?

Thanks for joining us for Monday’s Message with Abigail Rice and Trench Classes United.
Today’s message is a great reminder that while it’s okay to make plans, set goals and dream
dreams, it is our Creator who is in control

There has to be a fine line
Between surrendering to God
and putting up a fight

Because when I think about control
I think about how much He wants me to let go
Because all is in His hands
and all is a part of His plan

So then, where is the fine line
Drawn in the sand?
Because the more I let go
The more I don’t know
If I’m doing this right?
Am I even still in the fight?
Or have I given up
Because I know I'm not enough?

My mind begins to race
As confusion takes its place
and as I anticipate
Another lost battle
I don't take the blame
and a chain on my heart
Begins to slowly break

As I hear the morning coo
A dove reminding me
Of all God’s promised
the abundance of His love
That never runs out
and never gives up
Because nothing can compare
to the peace from above

For our God is not a God of confusion
But of peace, {mercy, and love} -1 Cor. 14:33a

and if I can remember
When I surrender
My body as a vessel
I no longer have to wrestle

Because I have let go
My God is in control

Every affliction
Every trauma,
Every long sleepless night
They are worth the fight
To shape and renew
to discern
and to know
When to surrender
and when to grow

Love,
Abigail

If you were asked “Do you believe in God,” what would your answer be? A large
percentage say they do, but what does that really mean?

Thanks for joining us for Faith-Filled Friday with Deborah Dolce and Trench Classes
United. Today’s blog is a great reminder that to accept Christ is to go the whole
distance with Him until we see Him face to face.

~Love Letter~

Healthy people don't need a doctor; sick people do. I have come to call not those
who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners.

When you come to Me, knowing that you are a sinner and present yourself to Me in
humility, with a desire for forgiveness, I will shower upon you My grace and My
Mercy. I wash you clean of everything that has gone on before and I desire to make
you whole.

Many come to Me, accept forgiveness and that's as far as they go but I have so
much more for you. Why would you settle for only the beginning of something when I
have extravagant plans for you.

It's difficult for you to walk in our plans when you're hanging onto brokenness. I not
only came to cleanse you from sin but also to set you free. My freedom is a
wonderful thing that can never be replaced by anything on Earth. When you come to
Me sick, I desire to heal you. When you come to Me broken, I desire to restore you,
not to your original state but to My original state.

When I created you, you were perfect and the things you've gone through have
pulled at you and tried to shatter you. I come to put pieces together and to seal them
in My precious love and grace.

Meditate on the promises that I have given to you. Do you think I have forgotten any
of those? Have you forgotten those? Do you meditate on them giving Me glory for
them even when you haven't seen the answers yet?

These are the things My lovers do. My lovers think about our conversations, they
think about My promises to them, through My Word and through our conversations.
Do you come with expectations to our secret place waiting for a new Word from Me?
I eagerly anticipate your arrival each day waiting for you to pour out your heart to Me
so that I may gather the pieces together to minister to your heart and to your body.
Beloved, call unto Me and I will answer you and I will show you Great and Mighty
things that you don't know anything of. 
​
~DebraDolce

​One of the most hurtful things we could say to someone struggling
emotionally is: “Just pray about it.”

The reason it’s hurtful is because while prayer is powerful, this can add
insult to injury by the perceived and projected “lack of faith.” Steve’s
explains it this way:

“Will more prayer speed the healing of a broken leg or change the condition of
Diabetes? The level of mental or emotional illnesses and struggles we’re looking at
here is significantly affected by chemical imbalance. There is no ‘natural’ control over
our physical chemistry. So, a response to an ignorant statement like this would be,
‘Do not ask me to spiritualize a non-spiritual issue.’”

Maybe a better answer would be to pray for them; or pray with them!
​
Truthfully,
Kim-Evinda

Dang it! She had lost in Triple Tile again. She waited for the game to reload,
determined to succeed this time.

In a cell-phone kind of world, games are becoming more and more consuming as
they become readily available. Is there a favorite game you play on your phone?
Thanks for joining us for Wednesday’s Word with Kim-Evinda and Trench Classes
United for today’s word which ties a very simple spiritual truth into it.

“This is like my tenth time trying this” she said to herself. “There has to be a way to
get it,” she concluded, desperate and determined to get to the next level.
Something caught her eye at the bottom of the screen, and she noticed she had
several re-dos in her game bank, and even more free matches. “Why haven’t I
noticed this before?”

She clicked on a freebie and instantly three tiles disappeared uncovering others that
she was able to match. Within seconds, she completed the level, marveling at how
easy that hard level had become simply by using what was in her game bank for
help.
As the n
ext level loaded, she heard a whisper: “My Spirit is like that.” The profound
yet simple truth wrapped itself around her, bringing conviction, comfort, and joy
simultaneously: Often we limp through life without calling on His Sprit to help us
which is in each of us who accept His gift and believe.

Why do we struggle through life without withdrawing from the banks of our hearts
and asking for provision, protection, guidance, wisdom or whatever it is that we are
needing to reach a solution from The Helper? Why do we complicate our lives by not
reaching for The One who can uncomplicate things by one simple invitation into it?
“But the Helper, The Holy Spirit, whom My Father will send in My name, He will
teach you all things and bring to remembrance these things I have said.”

Friend, can I encourage you to allow the truth that Greater is He who is in you than
anything happening outside of you. Invite Him in.
​
Love,
Kim-Evinda

​Tuesday Trench Truth

​There are 7 common and naïve things we say to others, especially those who
consistently struggle mentally/emotionally; and these naïve things we say tend to try
and spiritualize the struggle instead of truly understand the struggle.
One of these naïve statements – and I have been guilty of saying this, is: “You have all the
tools to get better.”

Steve says: one of the necessary tools is other people. Professional help is good but
lasts only 45-50 minutes at a time. We need relationships that can speak into our
value and offer encouragement. The person who says, ‘You have all the tools’ does
not desire to go the extra mile for the hurting person.”

What about you; are you willing to go the extra mile for the hurting person by not
trying to “fix them spiritually” but try and understand them emotionally?
​
Truthfully,
Kim-Evinda

How many times do we hear the word “faith” thrown around, whether in
songs, conversations, or decorations? faith is more than an adjective; it’s
an ongoing action.

Thanks for joining us for Monday’s Message with Abigail Rice and
Trench Classes United. Today’s blog is a great reminder of this truth: the
verb form of faith is faith-ing; and it rhymes with bathing.

Trying to believe
When my heart
Just wants to grieve

These dreams
They don’t make sense
Unless there is such thing as recompense

Stripped away
All in a day

Heavy soul
A dark dismay

and when I pray
I still see no way

“Just believe”
Seems far fetched to me

I ask
But don’t receive

I plead
Yet I still bleed

Lord, this night
It’s taking over me

Easy
It’s so easy to stay stuck

To lie here hopeless
Sick and tired of the muck

You say enough is enough
Yet your actions
They don’t measure up

Because Faith is not just a pretty word
Stitched into the fibers of every Bible verse

No, Faith requires action
Faith cannot be stagnant

You say you believe
Then let me see

Because if you are called to create this God-given dream
Then that Faith
That mustard seed
Must go deep

Deep into the darkness
Of the soil beneath

there it will die
and there it will gain
Every last ounce of strength
As it calls out His name - Yahweh!

Yahweh, I believe!

Lord, just open my eyes
and let me see
That everything I have
Is everything I need

Let me believe

Remove the dirt from my eyes, Father
For it is was always You
and only You that I need

“If the stars were made to worship, so will I”
                        - So Will I (100 Billion X), Hillsong United

“What is the use (profit), my brethren, for anyone to profess to have faith if he has no [good]
works [to show for it]? Can [such] faith save [his soul]?...But someone will say [to you then],

You [say you] have faith, and I have [good] works. Now you show me your [alleged] faith
apart from any [good] works [if you can], and I by [good] works [of obedience] will show you
my faith. You believe that God is one; you do well. So do the demons believe and shudder
[in terror and horror such as [a]make a man’s hair stand on end and contract the surface of
his skin]!” - James 2:14,18-19

​More and more families are counting four-legged fur babies as family.
Thanks for joining us for Faith-Filled Friday with Brandi Lanai and Trench Classes United.
Today’s blog from Brandi reveals this truth: God uses all things/circumstances for our good.
When our fur baby started pushing his bowl of food to the side for a few days, we teased him
and said, “you’re getting spoiled, Boy; you won’t even eat your food. No more human scraps for
you.”

But, when he started whimpering and couldn’t walk, we knew something was wrong.
After rushing him to our Vet, we found out he wasn’t acting spoiled. We thought he was
snubbing his dog food, but actually he had a cancerous tumor in his tummy and fluid in his
lungs. The Vet said there was nothing that could be done. The cancer inside our baby was too
far gone.

We said our goodbyes and had our last hugs, and returned home devastated, without him. We
asked ourselves if we had missed any early signs. If we had noticed anything, could we have
saved our fur boy? And , how do we talk to the kids about this?

We’ve gotten a lot of good advice from family and friends. But the kids have been the ones
leading the conversation, asking the questions they want to ask, crying when they need to cry,
and sharing their favorite moments with our boy as the memories pop-up.

I’ve learned how resilient kids really are. When your family goes through a difficulty, don’t shy
away from inviting your kids into the discussions - age appropriate discussions of course, but
your kids might just surprise you with what they can handle.
​
Love,
Brandi-Lanai

There are various obstacles to owning what you feel; a huge one is social media. Let me
share what Steve says to us in our Rising Above Chaos and Confusion © trenchclassesunited

Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Tik-Tok have become reactive to different political issues.
They have appointed themselves the judges of content to be good, healthy, true, and
socially beneficial. While participating in this self-appointed role, they have chosen to
eliminate certain views or contributors determining them to be harming to the public at large
without any discourse.

Whew, what about you, when you see something on any of the platforms that you have a
differing view about, what is it that you feel?

Owning what you feel is the first step to rising above the chaos and confusion all around us
and is the only thing we can control.
​
Truthfully,
Kim-Evinda

​She smiled with satisfaction at the words of revenge that jumped out at her, not her own revenge but her
Father’s.

Thanks for joining us for Wednesday’s Word with Kim-Evinda and Trench Classes United. Have you ever
pondered acts of revenge to pay for hurt that was heaped upon you? Today’s blog gives a whole new
perspective on revenge and the freedom from the need of it.

She re-read the already underlined portion of scripture from Proverbs 5, all of it. The handwritten note
written several years ago caught her attention: “After finding out I moved out. My senses are on high alert.
Grant me wisdom and knowledge. Bring to light the dark that is still not revealed.”

Well, God had revealed the ugly truth, and four years later, she was still recovering from it. Her life would
never be the same but at least she was no longer in the dark, fooled by their scheming and sneaking.
Years of healing had replaced her desire for revenge with a feeling of sadness. She re-read the words of
warning about the “Peril of Adultery” in Proverbs 5. As she continued to read verses 4-6, anger was
replaced with a sense of validation. “Her feet go down to death, her steps lay hold of hell. Lest you ponder
her path of life, her ways are unstable; you do not know them.”

She continued to read the warnings and she couldn’t help but put those who had betrayed her in what she
was reading. “Lest you give your honor to others, (in other words lose credibility), and your years to the
cruel one”; (obeying flesh steals life)

The verses basically confirmed that one day, some day they would regret what they did. Her notes from the
past reminded her that God had been in this entire journey and was still with her. She continued to read:
Verses 11-15: “You mourn at last when your flesh and your body are consumed and say ‘How I have hated
instruction and my heart despised correction! I have not obeyed the voice of my teachers, not inclined my
ear to those who instructed me….” Yes, drink water from your own cistern and running water from your own
well.”

She sat in both satisfaction and sorrow, marveling that these emotions could co-exist. As she did many
times over the last several years, she prayed that the eyes of their hearts would be open; that the scales of
denial and shame would be removed so that true repentance could enter into their souls.

And because she believed in His Word, trusted Him for His promises, satisfaction overcame her sorrow.
Friend, if you’ve ever been betrayed before, especially with the peril of adultery, I pray you realize that while
others leave us, betray us, God never will, and He will be the one to right what’s been done wrong.
​
Thoughtfully,
Kim-Evinda

​In looking at the obstacles that hinder us from identifying and owning what we feel is the
pressure put upon us by others. For example, in the not too distant past it felt like most of us
had similar views and feelings about most issues. Part of this was because of our limited
awareness of differing views and opinions because we were isolated from those differences.
Since we are now inundated with all sorts of different views, input, and feedback with very
diverse and sometimes personally threatening results, many of us hesitate to “freely” share
our thoughts about much of anything.

What about you; do you not share a feeling because of what others may think? This
tendency brings chaos and confusion to relationships.

Can I encourage you to practice emotional integrity by separating your opinion from your
feeling and being honest about what you’re feeling…without an attitude. This is a step in
rising above chaos and confusion.
​
If you agree, type amen below!