just breathe

Dear Lord,

Right now, my life is a whirlwind. I'm moving. I'm remodeling the new condo. I'm selling and downsizing my stuff. I'm trying to keep up with summer school assignments. I feel like there just aren't enough hours in the day. I'm living at such a fast pace, never stopping to breathe. I've been putting my relationship with you on the back burner as I race against the clock to complete my long to-do list before school starts again in August. I almost forgot to write this post.

Lord, help me to remember to keep my focus on you and honor you through my crazy life. I know this is a season of testing my priorities, and I need to make time for you. Having an unfinished project before the start of school isn't going to affect my eternity. If my projects don't go as planned (which has seemed to become a recurring theme recently), help me to set aside my bitterness and stress and be thankful for the reminder that I -- a sinner -- am not in control of my own life, but you -- the God of the universe -- are. You have much more beautiful and valuable plans for my life. Help me to have peace in that promise.

I am exhausted, Father. I feel like I have to do this all alone. But those are lies. You are with me. Only you can give me the rest I need. You tell me --

 just breathe. 

come and rest at my feet. 

chaos calls but all you really need is me.

(lyrics from breathe by jonny diaz)

When I heard this song, it hit me like a pound of bricks. I know there is something more than this crazy life. So why am I living as if there isn't? The world is consumed by speed. Efficiency. Time management. Think about it -- fast-food, high speed internet, movies replacing books. Its almost impossible not to be busy in today's lifestyle. 

I've always wondered why that is. One lyric from this song really pointed it out to me: I'm busy, busy, busy and its no surprise to see that I only have time for me, me, me. When we live at a crazy-fast pace, we don't have time to notice, much less invest time, in the people around us. We don't have the spare seconds to hesitate. We don't stop and think. We don't listen. We don't want to slow down to listen to that voice inside us doubting the world we live in, wondering if there is something more, wondering if there is redemption. I believe that the 21st century is addicted to speed because it feeds our selfishness, and we don't even have enough time to realize it. The devil has sucked the world into this trap, and now it is nearly impossible to escape. 

- Savannah Brooke

Why do you think that our culture loves a fast-paced lifestyle? Do you find yourself falling into the trap as well? I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments.

living unconventionally

Dear Lord,

A common phrase comes to mind when I consider how you call me to live: "be in the world, but not of the world." But when I think about it, what does it really mean? How exactly do believers live among sinners, as sinners themselves, but not be "of the world"? It seems like a very broad and open-ended command.

(*disclaimer: When I talk about "the world," I do not reference the people in the world, merely the result of Satan's power over it.)

The first part of the phrase is much more straightforward. You placed me on this Earth for a purpose. I must live in this broken world for a short time, because it is Your plan and good will come out of it. However, while I must be in this world, I cannot be of the world. In other words, I cannot allow the world to own me and consume me by its deception. In John 2:15, you command me "Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him." I cannot serve two masters, and this choice is an easy -- but oh so complex -- one.

Sin has consumed modern culture, and needy people have turned to materialism, selfishness, drugs, sex, and even violence in an attempt to solve their problems; yet, no matter how hard they search, they still can't find satisfaction. Only You can fill this void inside all our hearts. Now, because I have you, I have no need to chase after false solutions to my brokenness. I know that You alone are my answer. The world can no longer lure me with the lie that I can find "happiness" in its lifestyle. I know the truth -- that joy comes from You alone. 

You call me to stand out from the crowd and live radically. How can I say no? This world has nothing for me. I can no longer find any value in the things I own. I am no longer happy when I get my own way. Why? Because the Holy Spirit is inside me, filling my soul with joy, peace, grace, and unconditional love. I don't want to walk away from that to join the chaos of the world (although often times my sinful nature says otherwise).

The challenge comes when you call me to enter into the world. After all, during Jesus' time on Earth, he did not stay isolated to his own safe little group of disciples. No. You went out into the broken world and loved. And not with the "love" the world labels as a "good act;" the motive behind it is merely for personal gain. This was a sacrificial love that only You can perfectly display. As your ambassador, You call me to love people with gentleness and forgiveness, even when they don't deserve it. You want me to love them enough to humbly challenge them, even if it threatens my own reputation. That is how I am your hands and feet. In John 15:18, you warn me "If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you." Because you lived differently, I will now live differently.

- Savannah Brooke

is God enough?

Right now, my family is in the process of moving from our rental house to a small condo we just purchased. And I'm not too thrilled with the move. I hate change. The condo isn't everything I want it to be. It's small and dated. I'm trying to be content with it, but I always return to my disappointment and complaints. I know that God calls us to be content with what we have. Material things are temporary. Eternal things like my relationship with God are so much more important. But, I was missing the bigger warning flag my discontentment raised.

This morning, during my quiet time, I started reading an amazing book called Lies Young Women Believe. When I read the first lie many girls my age fall for -- God is not enough -- my gut reaction was "I don't believe that!" I know that God is who he says he is and he is everything I need. However, there is a big difference between knowing in your mind and believing in your heart. As I continued reading, the authors spoke about the signs of those believing this lie -- discontentment and dissatisfaction. And suddenly, the Holy Spirit convicted me. He made the connection. I didn't realize that I was being deceived by Satan's lies. I merely thought that my discontentment was disobeying God's command to be joyful. In reality, I was doubting the character of God. I was falling for the trap that I needed something other than God to be happy. That couldn't be further from the truth.

The fall of man in the Garden dug a giant hole in my heart. God created man for close relationship with Himself. When Adam and Eve ate from the forbidden tree, sin entered the world, and with it, eternal separation from their Father. Now, humanity craves that relationship they are missing. As a result, we try to fill that hole with anything we can find -- friendships, materialism, romance, etc. But searching for fulfillment in anything other than the Lord is claiming he isn't enough.

Hebrews 13:5 says, "Keep your lives free from money and be content with what you have, because God has said 'Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.'" When I first read this verse, I didn't quite understand the connection between the command -- to be content -- and the reason behind it -- God will never leave us. As I dug deeper, I realized that this verse is a perfect representation that dissatisfaction is doubting God's character. God calls us to be content with what we have because material things will fall short of solving the deep aches in our heart. However, He will always be with us and He is capable of satisfying our deepest desires. He is enough to heal our brokenness. And he will be there when everything around us fails. God gave us everything we needed on the cross -- forgiveness, love, relationship, eternal life. Now, because of the hope we have in Jesus, He also gave us the freedom to be not only content, but joyful.

- Savannah Brooke

Are there things in your life you feel that you need other than God to make you happy or complete? I encourage you to go before the Lord and ask him for a peaceful and content heart. I would love to pray for you as well on our journey to relying on God alone, so please comment below!

ask, seek, knock

Dear Lord,

I find it so easy to get stuck in the motions. Read the Bible, pray, go to church, repeat. My mind is there, but my heart is not. I lack a passion for You. I want you to be my heart's deepest desire. Help me to crave your presence. I want to chase headlong after you and your character, because I know that what I will find will not disappoint. Lord, I have seen the effects of your love, but I want to know your love. I see Your light before me, but I want to understand every part of that light. In everything, give me eyes to look beyond the surface and find you working behind the scenes. My prayer is this: "You God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you in a dry and parched land where there is no water." (Psalm 63:1)

On this journey, Lord, I long to be like David -- a man (or, in my case, woman) after God's own heart.  At the beginning of time, you called me by name and put my first desire for you in my heart -- to accept you as my Lord and Savior. Now, I pray that you would put the desire in me to know you deeper. Only you have the power to relight my passion, for my sinful nature would always choose rejection. So, Father, I ask that you reveal Yourself to me as I seek after your character, that when I knock on the doors of you heart, you would answer with open arms.

- Savannah Brooke

"So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you, seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened." Luke 11:9-10

why choose boldness?

Dear Loving Savior,

The more I spend time talking to you and reading your Word, the more I fall in love with you. Your love is steadfast, comforting, and sacrificial. You died on the cross to take my punishment, knowing you would gain nothing in return. Father, you didn't need me, but somehow you wanted me anyway even with all my baggage that comes along. People don't love like that -- they give only when they benefit from it. People let me down, but you will never leave me or forsake me.

Lord, you created me. You chose me before the beginning of time to be your child. You chose to mold me to become more like you. You hand-picked me to be your vessel. Your broken vessel so that in my lacking heart, you could complete it. Father, you chose to use my life to glorify your name. I am overwhelmed by the constant grace you pour over me.

Because you first loved me, now I have the freedom to love. You have given me the power to move beyond self-seeking love and display a patient, kind, selfless, humble, forgiving, trusting, and unfailing love (1 Corinthians 13). Lord, I want to show my love for you in return for all the things you have done for me, not that it will ever equate to what you did for me on the cross.

In this verse, you tell me that love = obedience: "And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands. As you have heard from the beginning, his command is that you walk in love." (2 John 1:6) Saying "I love you, God" is one thing, but showing it is so much more powerful. If you call me to speak, I will speak. If you tell me to me to move, I will move. If you command me to be still, I will be still.

I can't remember where I heard this from, but it really impacted the way I view loving You: There is one difference between loving God and being in love with Him. Loving God is loving what he does. But being in love with Him is wanting to be more like Him. The latter is so much deeper -- and that is what I long for.

So, Lord, mold me to become more like You as I fall more in love with You. During your time on Earth, you lived completely different from the world. Well, the world hasn't changed much since then. I know that as I become more like you, I will become much less like the world. But I choose it anyway. I choose to follow the one who showed me sacrificial love on the cross rather than the one who "loves" for their own benefit. I choose to be obedient to the God who cares deeply for my soul, rather than obey the world that doesn't even know my name. I choose to chase after you, even if it means running against the world. That is why I choose boldness. I choose to be BOLD for you.

- Savannah Brooke

What do you choose -- boldly stand out from the world or mindlessly follow its unfulfilling ways? So often our sinful nature says something different than what our heart longs to say. I struggle with this just as much as the next person. Let me know your thoughts in the comments!

Welcome!

Welcome to The BOLD Ones! I'm so glad you found this blog; God has laid it on my heart for almost two months, and, well, here I am. During those two months, God spoke to me through Paul's life in the New Testament, challenging me to speak out boldly for Christ just like Paul. Although much of the world hated Paul for his courage and confidence in his Savior, he remained strong in his faith and full of joy. Because of this, he influenced so many, through both his prosperity and suffering. Philippians 1:14 says, "Because of my chains, most of the brothers in the Lord have been encouraged to speak the Word of God more courageously and fearlessly." In the same way, I pray that my struggles challenge you, my readers, to become a bold one for Christ.

Only a few verses later, when Paul is in prison and unsure of his future, he writes "I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage (or boldness in another translation) so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death." (Phil. 1:20) From this verse, the Lord cemented my purpose for this blog, and really, for my life. (Isn't it amazing how God's Word does that?) This verse eventually turned into a prayer, which then evolved into my mission statement.

Dear Heavenly Father, With this blog, I commit myself to the bold life you have called me to live. I surrender my earthly desires, my selfish heart, and my reputation to you. My prayer is that you will become more, and I will become so much less. From now on, let me focus on your eternal plan, be filled with your joy, and speak your truth alone. I will not be ashamed of the God I serve, but will boast of You, letting your light radiate from me into this dark world. Instead of falling into the traps of a sinful and broken culture, I will live authentically, showing your grace through my weakness. Lord, speak through me as I share my heart in these posts, not so readers see my own brokenness, but so they see You put my broken pieces together to make something beautiful. Let it challenge them to fearlessly share your truth and become a bold one for You. I want them to see Your power and love as you use an imperfect daughter to accomplish Your perfect and beautiful masterpiece.

- Savannah Brooke

P.S. My plan is to post every Saturday. If I feel I have something to say during the week, I'll surprise y'all with an extra post :)