Overcoming the Lies: You Are Stupid

Overcoming the Lies: You Are Stupid

by | Jan 10, 2020 | Uncategorized

You Are Stupid

A phrase satan tries to whisper in my ears all day every day, oftentimes successfully. 

There have been a lot of lies I used to believe that I’ve been freed from, but this one seems to be the toughest to overcome. Why?? I think because out of all of the lies Satan has thrown at me, this one feels true.

Here’s a little bit of my story for you…

My Story

As a kid I was really sick, so growing up people had to do a lot of things for me. Although this was usually out of love, the enemy used it to tear me down when I got older. Because of this, I didn’t even think to learn how to do stuff on my own. It took me a while to learn how to practice problem solving and the enemy has used this as a way to make me feel that because I don’t know how to do something, or figure it out, it means I’m stupid.

When I was in high school I wanted to go to college to become a nurse, but I didn’t feel I was smart enough so I pushed that dream aside for a few years. Eventually, I realized it was something I was passionate about and decided I was going to go for it. During my first year of college, my mom told me about a profession called a Respiratory Therapist. The simplest way to explain it is that it’s like a nurse that’s very specialized in all things pulmonary. Not long after, I found out I didn’t get into the nursing program.

Before the respiratory program started, Satan would be whispering in my ear that I took the easy way out by choosing something besides nursing. Well, I like to throw back at him that respiratory school was REALLY HARD and I DID IT!! The “you are stupid” voice began to quiet.

Never Enough Without Jesus

You would think that would be enough to feel like smarty pants, but it wasn’t. Having confidence is something I struggle a lot with, and even though I had a degree and a great job, I was still so insecure. My job as a way I tried to prove myself and show others that I could do things. Sometimes I would even throw it around in my younger sister’s face, and talk about the things I did to try and sound intelligent. Soon I found my worth and value in my job. I don’t know why, but I had this strong desire to prove to my family that I was smart and capable.

When the Lord called me to YWAM, I had been working at my job for 2 years and I loved what I did a lot. But, I knew the Lord had so much more for me. It was really hard to accept the fact that I would be quitting my job to do missions. I had placed so much of my personal value and affirmation in my job and thought by leaving it I would be seen as stupid. After all, this was how I felt I was proving myself to those around me. This was how I showed people that I was smart.

Overcoming the Lies

I know that this is a really long story, but it’s a part of my life. Looking back, I recognize that I was trying to get my worth and affirmation from things that weren’t God. For example, my education, people, my skills, my job. No matter how much I did or how much encouragement I got, it still never made me feel that I was enough. This is the reality when we try to get our value from the world, instead of God.

I’ve been on staff here with YWAM Redding for almost 2 years, and am now overseeing a department where the skills I use are not my strong points at all. My brain has never been strong in this particular area, but I had to learn how to do what I do now. It has been extremely stretching for me, but I’m grateful for the growth that’s happened. Multiple times a day though, I get asked a question I don’t know the answer to, and here comes satan telling me I’m dumb and that I don’t know how to do anything. Something the Lord has been teaching me the past couple of months is that I can’t do everything in my own strength, I NEED HIM. So, when those moments of weakness come around, I remind myself that I need God, and I call on Him for help.

What I’ve Learned

Through this journey with the Lord I’ve learned a few things:

    • What the world sees as success and what God sees as success are completely different. The world may think you’re stupid for giving up everything to follow God, but whose voice is the most important?
    •  Your value and worth are not defined by what you do. They come from the one who created you.
    •  Lean on God because you actually can’t do everything.
    •  You need community and people to come alongside you who will speak the truth, because you can’t know everything.
    •  God created every part of you, and when you don’t like a part of yourself, that breaks God’s heart.
    •  Believing the lies is a CHOICE. It’s a choice to give in to what Satan is telling you. Instead, choose to say, “NO” and believe what God says about you.
    •  Don’t let a lifetime of lies, or experiences from the past,  be louder than who God says you are. 

If there’s a voice telling you that you’re something that God’s word doesn’t say that you are, please don’t believe it. The enemy knows what will hurt us the most, and loves to use our past and previous experiences to ‘confirm’ these lies because he’s very unoriginal. 

Though I still struggle with believing lies on the daily, I’ve learned it’s a choice we have to make in every moment. I pray that my story encourages you and that you know who God says you are, and that you choose to believe it. No matter if something or someone else is telling you differently. The area where Satan attacks you the most is your area of greatest strength and the place that God wants to use you the most. Choose to speak life over yourself and over how God created you. 

I’ll start at… I’m not stupid, 

I   AM  BRILLIANT.

DISCOVER DTS
CONNECT WITH US

Subscribe to Our Monthly Newsletter

What To Pack for a Six-Month DTS

What To Pack for a Six-Month DTS

by | Dec 10, 2019 | Uncategorized

Packing for DTS can be tricky. Being in different locations and climates makes it hard to pack for five to six months. Here’s a basic guide of what to pack for DTS regardless of climate or where you end up going for your DTS.

 

The Basics of DTS Packing

A hiking backpack- These can be expensive however are so helpful for outreach. Whether you pack in it for DTS instead of a suitcase or just bring it along for outreach, you are going to want one of these. DTS outreaches are often in more rural areas and sometimes with lots of moving. Hiking backpacks make it easy for any form of travel and help you pack light.

Here is a high end one if you want to invest- Click Here

Here is a lower-priced one if you’re just looking to get through one or two trips- Click Here

A laptop- if you have a laptop you are going to want to bring it! Our base and most bases have on-base Wi-Fi. As well, you may need it for your DTS lecture phase work duty, writing updates to your supporters, and taking notes in class. 

Bedding- For the lecture phase, we recommend bringing sheets, a light blanket, and towels. A sleeping bag for outreach will be best most of the time as you never really know where you will be sleeping. You could also just bring a sleeping bag for the lecture phase or purchase bedding when you arrive for the lecture phase.

Here are some sleeping bags we recommend- Click Here

Clothing- Doing laundry is normally very accessible on the base. Although clothes you don’t love or care about getting dirty on outreach are great, you are also going to want some normal clothes for your lecture phase. And at least one nice outfit for churches during both phases. 

Each base has different dress codes so make sure to look that over before packing your clothes.  Also, keep in mind the weather and the season where you are going. Outreach can be more unpredictable as you most likely will not know where you are going when packing. Thrift stores are always a great option for outreach clothes. Most likely you will need a pair of flip flops, tennis shoes or work shoes, and a pair of nicer shoes for churches. 

Passport- Make sure you have a passport before you leave for your DTS. You, of course, want to travel and you can’t do that without a passport!

Journal and Bible- These are a no brainer but make sure you have them. You will be having quiet times every day and you will probably want to write down your prayers but also your experiences and testimonies of what God is doing! 

Backpack- A backpack or daypack is both great for outreach and lecture phase. In lecture phase of DTS, backpacks are great to carry your journal, bible, water bottle and whatever else you have for your day from class to home and around the base. For outreach, a backpack is a great personal item to carry on that fits perfectly under the seat in front of you. And can turn into a day bag for the day to day life in a foreign country.

Here is a high end one if you want to invest- Click Here

Here is one that is good but less of an investment- Click Here

Check out this video of what to bring on outreach. Most of these things you will probably buy during lecture phase, however, if you already have them at home might as well stick them in your suitcase for the lecture phase!

 

Our best tip is don’t bring too much stuff! You will never really know what you’re going to actually use. But lighter is always better for both phases. If you rarely use your curling iron or makeup, don’t bother bringing it. But if you love those things, go ahead. You have to decide what is essential for you! 

Our base and most base will have a place for you to store the things you don’t bring on outreach so don’t worry too much about where your suitcase and nicer items will go! 

Last but not least, bring yourself with an open heart. It might be cheesy, but it’s the most important thing about DTS. DTS is a time to be encountered by God in ways that only come from setting aside six months for Him. 

Happy traveling! 

Haven’t done a DTS but this blog made you interested? We would love to have you at YWAM Redding! Click below to  learn more information!

DISCOVER DTS
CONNECT WITH US

Subscribe to Our Monthly Newsletter

A Lifestyle of Thanksgiving

A Lifestyle of Thanksgiving

by | Nov 19, 2019 | Uncategorized

Thanksgiving is a day that we reflect on our lives about what we are grateful for. It’s a time for family and of course food. However, for most of us, this is the only time that we intentionally reflect on our lives and give thanks. But isn’t there more to it than that? Thankfulness shouldn’t be just a time that happens one day a year. Is there power in thanksgiving? What could God do if we lived a lifestyle of thanksgiving?

“Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever” (Psalm 107:1)

Believing God Deserves Our Thanks

If you look up verses about thanksgiving in the Bible, there is not really a reason given to thank the Lord except God’s goodness. Regardless of the situation, His goodness is enough for us. Whether we live in Africa and have nothing or live in America in a rich household, His goodness toward us is always worth giving thanks. However, sometimes our life experiences convince us otherwise. We have to be convinced of God’s goodness.

Roman 8:28 says “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose”. If we fail to believe that God is nothing but good to us then we can’t truly give thanks to him. We have to let God come into the places in our lives that we feel He has failed us and let him heal those parts of our hearts. If we believe God is good and always working, then there are always things to be thankful for.

Shifting Our Perspective Through Thanksgiving

1 Thessalonians 5:18 states that giving thanks is God’s will for us. His will for us is good therefore giving thanks to God can only lead to goodness and blessing in our lives. Giving thanks can come quite unnaturally to a lot of us especially in hard times. So what does thanksgiving bring? Simply, it brings perspective to our lives. Thanksgiving gets us out of our routine and forces us to look around and see what God is doing in the midst of our messy lives.

In Numbers 21, Moses and the Israelites were traveling along the Red sea. They began to speak against the Lord, complaining, and not being grateful that God has brought them out of Egypt. The Lord sent venomous snakes among them and many died. Once Moses repented, God told him to make a bronze snake and anyone who looked up at it would be saved. It was only when the people began to look around at the circumstances that they perished. But when they looked up at the bronze snake, not at the snakes around them they were saved. Without thankfulness, we live in bitterness always mad at God for not providing or working how we think He should be. But it’s when we look up and on Jesus that we can truly see what God has done for us. 

Thanksgiving= Abiding

If we could truly practice this in our lives and keep our gratefulness towards God, our thanksgiving would become abiding. You would begin to live from a place of thankfulness constantly focused on God. How can God give us more if we aren’t even thankful for what we have? Blessing and thriving come from living from a place of thanksgiving. Not just one day a year but every second of every day. How could God not bless that? Parents love to lavish gifts on their children. But if it was never acknowledged, the gifts would probably come less and less. It is God’s will to pour out his goodness and blessings on us. So let’s be thankful for what He has done. But also simply who He is. He is always good and always faithful. What is there not to be thankful for, especially if He is working all things together for our good?

DISCOVER DTS
CONNECT WITH US

Subscribe to Our Monthly Newsletter

How To Be Content in a Season of Being Single

How To Be Content in a Season of Being Single

by | Oct 29, 2019 | Uncategorized

Ah, singleness. Singleness is something either a lot of people enjoy or a lot of people struggle with, or both. It can be hard to be content in the midsts of a season of being single. There’s always the question: “Will I ever get married?”. Let alone “Will anyone ever love me enough to want to marry me?” Only the Lord can answer this question for you, but here are some tips and insights on how to be content in a season of being single!

 

Singleness is a BLESSING

A season of being single is a time to: 

  • Focus on God by building up your relationship with Him, and a time of understanding who He really is.
  • Work on yourself and learn your identity in Christ.
  • Go on dates with Jesus!
  • You learn how to pursue others.
  • Teach you how to be vulnerable.
  • Grow you in intimacy. 
  • It gives space to be intentional with others.

A Person’s Desire

Part of being content in a season of being single is understanding our want to be in a relationship. We all have a deep desire to be fully known and still fully loved by someone. It’s how we are designed because God wants us to fill that desire with Him. A relationship does not fix this, as much as we think it will because our significant other is only human and there will always be rejection there. But God is the only one who can fill this void in us. This desire is not evil. Of course, it can be used for that. But it is God designed.

Our culture has morphed sexuality and as a response, the church has also morphed sexuality to seem wrong. We are told as young teenagers that sex is wrong and we shouldn’t have it. But that doesn’t change the desire. So no one is telling us and our young people what to do with sexuality. When in reality, Jesus is the answer. Shutting it down is not working. The desire is apart of us. Being content with being in a season of being single only comes through fulfillment in Christ. If we do not have that fulfillment in our single lives, our married lives will never be enough for us.

 

Andrea’s Story of Singleness

Every year Bethel throws on a single life workshop that we send our staff and SFM students to. Here is our friend Andrea’s story in what she learned through the seminar about singleness.

“Through the seminar a few of us staff members went to, I realized that a big part of me was actually holding hatred towards men. As a girl in today’s culture, I took in all of the thoughts and opinions society is screaming out about the opposite sex and allowed a few personal negative experiences to shape my worldview of them. After this realization, I got with Jesus and allowed him to change my heart and give me a new perspective on how to view and empower the opposite sex as God does.

Previously I had unconsciously been walking around flashing a giant “no, stay away from me” sign but, as I dealt with the root of where these issues had come from, I experienced so much truth and healing. Now, I feel truly open to being pursued by the opposite sex as God designed it. And, ultimately, I’m fully open to being pursued by Jesus.”

Allowing Jesus to pursue you is the most important thing you learn in a season of singleness. It teaches you how to be content in your identity with Jesus, instead of looking in the wrong areas to find your identity, such as the opposite sex. Or if you’re like Andrea, when Jesus pursues us, He works on hurt wounds that we’ve let shape our view of our relations with others and the world.

 

Your Relationship Right Now

Relationship has been around since the beginning of Adam and Eve. Genesis 2:18 says “It is not good that the man be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him.” God created us for relationship. Just how there’s God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. They’re all in relationship with each other and become one. In this season of singleness, the Lord is pursuing you because he longs for you to be content while single to produce health in relationship. So go after him! He wants to hear every little detail of your life. You’re in a relationship with God, your family, and your friends. You should be so in tune with the Lord, that when someone does come along, that your relationship with the Lord does not change, but grows.

 

The Four Boundaries T’s of Being Single

While in a season of being single, it’s important to fight for health in our realtionship which means setting boundries. Here’s some questions to ask yourself to evalute your realtionship with the opposite sex!

Time – How much time are you talking to a person or spending time with the opposite gender? Do you find yourself gravitating towards that person more in a room full of people? How much of your though life is taken up by someone else rather than God? Is your thought life crossing boundries?

Topic – What topics are you discussing? Have you talked to your same gender friends about this before? Are you giving away your heart and going too deep?

Touch – How are you touching each other? For example a hug, hand on the back/shoulder.  What is appropriate touch?

Technology – How much time are you socializing with someone over technology? Are you constantly texting each other and going deep in converations? Are you only privatly communicating?

These things may not seem like big things to you personally, but as a single person it is important to fight for your future relationships by setting boundries now. Evalute how you can protect your heart and others around you.

DISCOVER DTS
CONNECT WITH US

Subscribe to Our Monthly Newsletter

God is Working in the Waiting

God is Working in the Waiting

by | Oct 17, 2019 | Uncategorized

He’s in the Waiting

Our lives are so stop and go sometimes. We feel like God is really doing things and really moving one moment and other times it feels so hard to find God, hear God, and even want to pursue God. But God is working in the waiting and in the inbetween time of those seasons. Have you ever sat in silence and just let it sink into every part of you? Sometimes the uncomfortable of the silence where God meets the innermost part of our being. But it takes sitting in the waiting. It takes sitting in the uncomfortable. So what do we do in the waiting? Where is God in the midst of it and what is He doing? 

We all have been in seasons of trial. But we know that God is working through us and developing perseverance. Likewise, we have thriving seasons when we are in victory. In those times, it’s easy to see God and love him. But we also have seasons of weird middle ground, the waiting. In the waiting, we feel that nothing is happening. But God is in the waiting. God is working through the waiting and He’s in the midst of it. Of course, the other seasons have benefits and a time and a place but waiting is not instant. And often the waiting doesn’t make sense even when we come out of it. But what does God want to do in the waiting?

 

What the Bible Says About the Waiting

The Bible says those who wait on him will find renewed strength, be given rest, goodness from God, God’s justice and blessing, grace, and mercy. (Isaiah 40:31,30:18; Lamentations 3:25). There are so many more verses of the promises of God for those who wait. He rewards waiting. Although it can be hard and uncomfortable, some of the most blessed people in the Bible had long seasons of waiting. Abraham was in the waiting for a son for twenty-five years. Joseph was in the waiting for the dreams for most of his lifetime. Moses was in the waiting for forty-years before he even began his calling. David was in the waiting for nearly fifteen years until becoming king.

 

Wait on the Lord

It is easy to accept God’s promises. But it gets hard to hold on to the promises, especially in the waiting. But God wants us to give up our ideas of His perfect timing and actually wait for what His timing is. To lean not on our own understanding, but to let go and let God.

If you are in the waiting, use it as an opportunity to trust in God. Let him mold and shape you at this time. Let what feels like silence seep into your heart and bring up things within you that would not normally come up in the stop and go of our busy lives. Pray for God to give you humility and trust in Him with a childlike faith that knows He is going to pull through. The seasons of our life will always change but let God shape you in the waiting. Trusting in God is standing firm in what he has promised you because you are sure that He loves you and has only good intentions. Choose to trust Him in the waiting. “Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!” (Psalm 27:14).

He’s in the Waiting

Our lives are so stop and go sometimes. We feel like God is really doing things and really moving one moment and other times it feels so hard to find God, hear God, and even want to pursue God. But God is working in the waiting and in the inbetween time of those seasons. Have you ever sat in silence and just let it sink into every part of you? Sometimes the uncomfortable of the silence where God meets the innermost part of our being. But it takes sitting in the waiting. It takes sitting in the uncomfortable. So what do we do in the waiting? Where is God in the midst of it and what is He doing? 

We all have been in seasons of trial. But we know that God is working through us and developing perseverance. Likewise, we have thriving seasons when we are in victory. In those times, it’s easy to see God and love him. But we also have seasons of weird middle ground, the waiting. In the waiting, we feel that nothing is happening. But God is in the waiting. God is working through the waiting and He’s in the midst of it. Of course, the other seasons have benefits and a time and a place but waiting is not instant. And often the waiting doesn’t make sense even when we come out of it. But what does God want to do in the waiting?

 

What the Bible Says About the Waiting

The Bible says those who wait on him will find renewed strength, be given rest, goodness from God, God’s justice and blessing, grace, and mercy. (Isaiah 40:31,30:18; Lamentations 3:25). There are so many more verses of the promises of God for those who wait. He rewards waiting. Although it can be hard and uncomfortable, some of the most blessed people in the Bible had long seasons of waiting. Abraham was in the waiting for a son for twenty-five years. Joseph was in the waiting for the dreams for most of his lifetime. Moses was in the waiting for forty-years before he even began his calling. David was in the waiting for nearly fifteen years until becoming king.

 

Wait on the Lord

It is easy to accept God’s promises. But it gets hard to hold on to the promises, especially in the waiting. But God wants us to give up our ideas of His perfect timing and actually wait for what His timing is. To lean not on our own understanding, but to let go and let God.

If you are in the waiting, use it as an opportunity to trust in God. Let him mold and shape you at this time. Let what feels like silence seep into your heart and bring up things within you that would not normally come up in the stop and go of our busy lives. Pray for God to give you humility and trust in Him with a childlike faith that knows He is going to pull through. The seasons of our life will always change but let God shape you in the waiting. Trusting in God is standing firm in what he has promised you because you are sure that He loves you and has only good intentions. Choose to trust Him in the waiting. “Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!” (Psalm 27:14).

DISCOVER DTS
CONNECT WITH US

Subscribe to Our Monthly Newsletter

When Feelings of Failure Settle In

When Feelings of Failure Settle In

by | Oct 11, 2019 | Say Yes, The Things We've Learned, Uncategorized

Feelings of Failure

All of us have felt it at some point in our lives. The sinking feeling that happens when the feeling of failure settles in. Then looking down at what you made, whether a situation or a piece of art knowing that you’ve failed. Sometimes it comes from other people. Other times you just know. I’ve heard some people say they aren’t artistic, and maybe they aren’t. However, I believe God gives us the need to create. Create relationships, blogs, art, music, lyrics, cultures, food. If we were made in the image of God our creator, we were made to create.  It seems where creativity is, failure follows. Of course, when we do things for the first time, failure is common. But what does God say about failure?

It’s easy to get discouraged by our weakness and so often feelings of failure get wrapped up into our identity. However, God doesn’t see it that way. We are more than the sum of our works or what we create. He defines us. Not our failure, our sin, our goodness. God does. In Ephesians 1:7 it says “In him, we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace”. Here we see, God sees us through the lens of Jesus’s righteousness. No matter how much we fail. Our failure does not change who we are or how God sees us. 

True Failure

Failure is a term we throw around a lot. We pour ourselves into what we create. When we sin, feelings of failure come quick. However, it’s not a true failure. True failure is giving up. For example, a boxer in the ring, if they do not get back up, is when they lose. It doesn’t matter how many times they fail to block a punch or how many rounds they go. What matters is not staying down and getting back up. Satan is really good at telling us about our own failures and wrongdoings. But if we don’t quit, we win. If we continue to create, whatever it is, we are not failures. We can take our failure and use it. Learn from it. But we don’t get to do that if Satan has us wrapped up in shame of our shortcomings and failure.


What Would Happen if We Didn’t Get Back Up from Failure? 

So what would happen if we let our feelings of failure become a defining moment? If we were to get stuck in our shame, we wouldn’t get to experience God’s redemption and beauty in our lives. But our failures give God a chance to show up. Non-flawed people don’t need Jesus. Likewise, people would not get to experience the unique part of God that we bring to the table, the creativity that God gave us, the specific way that we can love people.

Sometimes we get stuck in our shame and failure and it makes us shut ourselves off to people. We know that God never fails (Joshua 21:45). So we can’t stay down. We can’t stay defeated. We have to run to him. Repent. Let him make all things beautiful in our lives. God never fails.

Take a moment to sit and ask the Holy Spirit where you have let feelings of failure become part of your identity. He wants to restore where you, others, and the enemy there are feelings of failure. 

Want to take a leap of faith? Join one of our Discipleship Training Schools!

DISCOVER DTS
CONNECT WITH US

Subscribe to Our Monthly Newsletter