2011 has been a year of breakthrough!! Just in this year the personal growth I have experienced is mind blowing. God has become more real to me than I ever imagined He could be. My distorted view of Him is long gone and my adoption as a daughter of the Most High God continues to grow in understanding. He, becoming my "Abba", my Daddy God, has taken the place of so much hurt and woundedness. I've prayed for so long that my life's experiences and traumas wouldn't be for nothing, but that they would become a platform for ministry. I believe I'm seeing the beginnings of that. There is not much else that I desire in this life other than to be most effective for God. My heart goes out to those who are trapped in their pain and who are lulled into complacency or accepting that life can't be any better for them. I am finding my voice. The voice that was taken away, the voice that was afraid to speak. God has given me the strength to battle my issues and overcome deceptions of the enemy so that I can find and use my voice, and I fully intend to.
Another major breakthrough we have seen this year has been in our marriage. Robert and I attended the 2gether + 4ever Marriage Conference a couple of months ago, and it has rocked our world. We were at our end, and within a week, God restored our marriage. At the end of that conference we renewed our vows along with others who received healing in their relationships, and had our first dance together after 7 years of marriage!! We never even realized how uncomfortable we were with looking at each other in the eyes, until we were asked to do it. Our marriage is continuously being restored and we are more in love now than ever before. We are truly united and connected.
The last area of breakthrough has been the most recent...OUR FINANCES!! Since day 1 we have struggled in this area, but after hearing our Bishop say for the 10380347984594th time, "You deserve what you tolerate!", something finally clicked in both of us and we knew we had to step up our game in order to have financial peace. It has been tough, but God is blessing our efforts.
We haven't "arrived" and we are "there" in any area, we are just realizing that we can't have control anymore. 2011 taught us that God needs to be first and in control. It's been about trust and relationship this year. We have seen some amazing heights, and we have seen some despairing depths, but God was with us in all of it. Even when we were doing it our way. We got so tired of seeing things work out the same broken way. We had to surrender our control and our way of doing things. I've learned that what we went through today prepares us for what's coming tomorrow. Going through the hard times is truly worth it; the character building is needed, growth is necessary. Without growth, we die.
This isn't our testimony, but just a quick summary of the good things that came out of 2011. I hope one day to share all of what God has done. He truly has blown me away at how He's always there. He defends me, teaches me, loves me, gives to me...I see Him becoming my Everything, the first One I run to when I'm happy or sad or hurt or whatever!
And I can't end this note without saying that God has put some AMAZING people in our lives.. We are under incredible leadership and people who want to see God's best for our lives. I think it's fair to say that without them we would not have been encouraged to make it even this far.
I hope one day I get to say more, but I just couldn't let 2011 go by without sharing just a little bit ;)
Love,
Ashli
Another major breakthrough we have seen this year has been in our marriage. Robert and I attended the 2gether + 4ever Marriage Conference a couple of months ago, and it has rocked our world. We were at our end, and within a week, God restored our marriage. At the end of that conference we renewed our vows along with others who received healing in their relationships, and had our first dance together after 7 years of marriage!! We never even realized how uncomfortable we were with looking at each other in the eyes, until we were asked to do it. Our marriage is continuously being restored and we are more in love now than ever before. We are truly united and connected.
The last area of breakthrough has been the most recent...OUR FINANCES!! Since day 1 we have struggled in this area, but after hearing our Bishop say for the 10380347984594th time, "You deserve what you tolerate!", something finally clicked in both of us and we knew we had to step up our game in order to have financial peace. It has been tough, but God is blessing our efforts.
We haven't "arrived" and we are "there" in any area, we are just realizing that we can't have control anymore. 2011 taught us that God needs to be first and in control. It's been about trust and relationship this year. We have seen some amazing heights, and we have seen some despairing depths, but God was with us in all of it. Even when we were doing it our way. We got so tired of seeing things work out the same broken way. We had to surrender our control and our way of doing things. I've learned that what we went through today prepares us for what's coming tomorrow. Going through the hard times is truly worth it; the character building is needed, growth is necessary. Without growth, we die.
This isn't our testimony, but just a quick summary of the good things that came out of 2011. I hope one day to share all of what God has done. He truly has blown me away at how He's always there. He defends me, teaches me, loves me, gives to me...I see Him becoming my Everything, the first One I run to when I'm happy or sad or hurt or whatever!
And I can't end this note without saying that God has put some AMAZING people in our lives.. We are under incredible leadership and people who want to see God's best for our lives. I think it's fair to say that without them we would not have been encouraged to make it even this far.
I hope one day I get to say more, but I just couldn't let 2011 go by without sharing just a little bit ;)
Love,
Ashli
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