Zoom Out

           You don’t have to be perfect you can be who you are. I love your heart. I created your heart give it to me.

God spoke this word to me dear readers and I believe it’s going to bless you. So often I try to be perfect. I look at the lives of others with a super hyper focused lens and I think I have to be like them, but I encourage you to zoom out on the lens of comparison. It’s like a camera when you are zoomed in you miss the other things surrounding your subject. So when you look at someone’s life and think man I wish my life was like that you’re actually zoomed in and don’t see the whole picture. You don’t see how that person has to get up at 6:30 every morning to go for a walk to ease the anxiety that will inevitably will come. You don’t see how that person prays every morning for others and reads her bible before she gets ready for work. You don’t see the courage it took for that person to get out of bed. You don’t see me and my daily struggles. What you may see is this joyful person that exudes the light of Christ. And you might think man I want that. If you want that you’ve got to go after it in your own way. There is no one like you dear reader. No not one. So no one can have your relationship with Christ. Only you can have that relationship with Christ. So I encourage you and I encourage myself to zoom out when the temptation to compare comes.

So often I compare myself to other people. I should pray how they pray. I should worship how they worship. I should have a deep relationship with God like their deep relationship with God. I should give how they give. I should love on people the way they love on people. God never meant for us to compare ourselves to others. There is no one on this earth like me. There is no one on this earth like you. Therefore, God created you to be unique and who you are. God wants a relationship with you, yes you, exactly how you are. You don’t have to be perfect. You don’t have to pray like someone else prays because no one can pray like you with your heart and your mind and your relationship with Christ. We are not meant to compare ourselves with others because we don’t have their heart or their unique experience with the Lord. We have our very own experiences and our very own heart. Your heart is beautiful. Share it with others. There’s no kind of beautiful like your kind of beautiful.

So often I fall into legalism believing I have to pray a certain way or read my bible a certain way for God to see me. God sees me all the time. He’s constantly there for my good. I don’t have to be perfect and follow the letter of the law. I can just seek God with all my heart, with my own heart, and he will bring his word to pass in my life. So too can you seek God with all your heart with your own heart. So too will he bring his word to pass in your lives dear readers. So I encourage you to zoom out this week and see others as the unique individual that God created to love God in their own way. Just like you.

What do you need to zoom out on?

I’m here.

I’m listening.

Genuinely Yours,

Amy Z

Sharp as a Sword

            Dear readers as I read the scripture below it got me thinking about the truth in me being as sharp as a sword. So too is the truth in you.

Listen to me, all you in distant lands! Pay attention, you who are far away!
The Lord called me before my birth; from within the womb he called me by name.
He made my words of judgment as sharp as a sword.  He has hidden me in the shadow of his hand. I am like a sharp arrow in his quiver. Isaiah 49:1-2

I don’t know about words of judgment but I know He’s given me the authority to pierce through the darkness with my words. He will use my specific personality to reach the lost and hurting. This piercing will set people free from bondage. It will set lands free because it is the word of God and it does not come back void. The truth is sharp as a sword and lies cannot hide from it. The darkness is pierced by the light. We pierce through that darkness by being the light in the darkness.

Because of God’s tender mercy,  the morning light from heaven is about to break upon us,
to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, and to guide us to the path of peace. Luke 1:78-79

The light that the verse above is talking about is Jesus. And as disciples of Christ we too have the authority to bring light to the darkness.

How do we become sharp as a sword? By reading his word, by prayer, by meditation, through fellowship and by assembling together hearing God’s word from a learned person. Fellowship is so important for the word says, as iron sharpens iron so a friend sharpens a friend. Proverbs 27:17 We also become sharp as a sword through surrendering to the will of God. All these things prepare us so that we can be that sharp sword that does what the following scripture says.

For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires. Hebrews 4:12

What does that sharp sword do?

It sheds light in the darkness.

It sets the captives free.

It cuts through the chains of bondage.

It carries the truth on it’s very tip.

Lies, darkness and chains fall at the swift movement of its blade.

You dear reader are the sword in God’s hand. Will you let the Lord lead you to his target, the lost and the hurting? Will you cut through the lies and set people free?

I’m here.

I’m listening.

Genuinely Yours,

Amy Z

The Arrow in the Quiver

             Dear readers I got to thinking about how the Lord can use us as an arrow in his bow string. The arrows are put in a quiver waiting for the archer to pull one out and strike his target. An arrow in the bow is different than an arrow in the quiver. An arrow in the bow is ready to strike whereas an arrow in the quiver awaits the moment it will be used by God. Where do you find yourself today? Are you an arrow in the bow or an arrow in the quiver? I feel I am in between, being taken out of the quiver about to be loaded onto the bow. I feel the Lord is stretching me, maturing me, readying me for a big assignment.

There are times in our lives that we are on the bow ready to be released and there are times that we are in the quiver. An arrow in God’s bow will always hit its target. We are arrows at rest waiting for the Lord to use us. While we rest we lean into the Lord with prayers, fasting, songs, worship and meditation.

The moment you start pulling back on a bow string potential energy is stored in the flexing limbs of the bow. The instant you let go of the string all of the stored energy is transferred to the arrow, sending it flying down the range. Physicsbuzz.physicscentral.com

God is the archer and when it is our time he takes us out of the quiver loads us upon the bow string and fires us at his intended target. When he releases the bow it is his energy we go with.

Much like Jesus sent his disciples with his authority so too does God send us with the authority of his Son’s name.

After these things the Lord appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and two before his face into every city and place, whither he himself would come. Luke 10:1

And the seventy returned again with joy saying, Lord, even the devils are subject unto us through thy name. Luke 10:17

Ready yourself. Prepare yourself to be an arrow used by God. This pandemic is teaching us that time is short. People are dying at an increasing rate. We don’t know when our time is up. While we are in the waiting why not go in the will of God and reach out to the lost? The bow is the will of God, God is the archer and he transfers his will into the string and that will is then transferred to us when the Lord releases us and aims us at his intended target.

Will you let the Lord load you into his string and use you to reach out to those that are hurting and lost?

What steps can you take while you’re waiting for God to use you?

I’m here.

I’m listening.

Genuinely Yours,

Amy Z

God My Creator

               In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth, and in that beginning God thought of me, and in that thought he didn’t just think about how he was going to form me he thought about how I would conform to the image of his son and be a part of his kingdom and be a disciple.

                Who am I that God would think of me? I am his daughter. A child of God. Beloved and loved and chosen and cherished. Have you ever wondered how you came to be? It was a thought that God had of you. When God created Adam he did not just create a man he poured his breath in and created a living soul. And that is what you and I are. A living soul. God has a purpose for us in his kingdom and that is to glorify him. He’s using everything in our lives to point it all back to him and what he has done for us. The word says that we will overcome by the blood of the lamb and the word of our testimony. There is nothing more powerful that we can do than to speak of Christ and what he has done for us.

God created my soul, the very essence of my being. He created my personality and my essence. Everything about me was formed before breath was put in my lungs. He fashioned me together in my mother’s womb. I am fearfully and wonderfully made. He created me because he knew one day he would delight in me and that I would make his heart smile when I gave my heart to Christ. I do believe that God delights in me. I know without a doubt that he loves me and I am so embraced by his love. He speaks to me even now in this blog to give me encouragement so that I can in turn encourage you. I am so grateful for you dear reader. It encourages my heart to see that you have visited this blog. To know that somehow God is using me for his kingdom and his glory. Thank you for reading my blog week after week.

Do you know that I was destined to be writing this blog before I was ever born? God knew me and formed me in my mother’s womb. He knew and knows my destiny and he’s using me every day to bring the light of Christ to others. Oh to be known by God. To be cherished and loved and held dear. You too are known by God. You too were formed by his hands before you were ever born. He thought of you and he delights in you. Every moment that we have breath is a miracle given by God. It blows my mind to think that the one who created the heavens, the earth, the stars, the animals, the insects, this creator also created me. He paid attention to every detail in forming my body and my cells and my soul and then brought them together to all function perfectly. God did that.

So what can you do to thank God for his wonderful creation, you? How can you treat yourself better this week to reflect the miracle that you are? How can you treat others better, with kindness, because of the miracle that they are?

Share it with me.

I’m here.

I’m listening.

Genuinely Yours,

Amy Z

Prize Fighter

            You can’t be victorious if you don’t fight the battle.

This was true of the Israelites who came out of Egypt. They would have to take their promised land by force little by little but God was with them in the battle. So too is God with us in the battle. We cannot receive the blessings in our promised land without fighting for them.

Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest. Joshua 1:9 KJV

I fight a battle daily. It is the fight to get out of bed when the anxiety tries to convince me its better trapped inside with it. But I have evidence to the contrary. I’ve lived that life. I’ve stayed inside in my bed and it was miserable. I was miserable. Day after day I slipped further and further into a stagnant life.

When I was suicidal one thing that saved my life was having a job and having to get out of bed. There was somewhere I had to be. There were people counting on me. The same is true even now but the stakes are higher. I’m the boss. I’ve got to come to work in the best possible mood I can be in because it will affect how I lead others. So my battle is getting out of bed.

What’s your battle?

So recently I succumbed a little to the anxiety. I get up at 6:30 every morning to walk. I didn’t stick to my routine Monday or Tuesday and it depressed me. However, I’ve decided to use this verse to battle the anxiety and get out of bed.

So let’s not get tired of doing good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we do not give up. Galatians 6:9 NLT

There’s a blessing on the other side of your struggle.

Don’t give up.

Fight the battle.

You win the battle because Christ is victorious.

You win you just have to fight!

Genuinely Yours,

               Amy Z

Dare to Dream Again

          When the Lord turned our captivity again then we were like them that dream. Psalm 126:1

I was suicidal, thought I was possessed by demons, I was on the last thread of my life and the Lord rescued me. He plucked me out of that situation and put a new song on my lips (Psalm 40:3). I was in the shadow of death. I had no dreams in that place. I thought hell and death were where I was headed. I couldn’t dream in such a hell. It took me awhile to dream again. I began to dream of being a librarian and God brought that dream to fruition. I dreamed my book would be published and it’s on its way. God is the one who brings our dreams to pass. What’s your dream? Those who are broken, do you dare to dream again?

Then was our mouth filled with laughter and our tongue with singing then said they among the heathen God hath done great things for them. Psalm 126:2

I began to laugh again. I began to sing. I began to be blessed and love my life all because God brought me back from captivity and gave me a dream. Many shall read or hear my testimony and many shall receive Christ through my testimony. God’s word says

And they have conquered him by the blood of the lamb and by the word of their testimony. Revelations 12:11

My testimony through Christ will reach the deepest darkest places of the hearts of the people.

The Lord hath done great things for us, whereof we are glad. Psalm 126:3

The Lord hath done great things for me. He gave me a job with the library eventually promoting me to librarian. I started out at the bottom position but because of God I was able to reach higher. He broke the silence for me about the cult and brainwashing that happened. He showed me Jesus when I needed him most. He’s carried me through every trial, every anxiety, every burden. He gave me the words for the book Set Free Through Christ Who Strengthens Me. He gives me the words for the blog each week. He speaks to me through his word. He calls me beloved.

Turn again our captivity o Lord as streams of the south. Psalm 126:4

Anxiety holds me captive. It was a mountain before me and God has chiseled it down to a grain of sand. He is doing a new thing in my life. He’s making me a new creation.

Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. Isaiah 43:19.

They who sow in tears will reap in joy. Psalm 126:5

I have wept many of tears over anxiety. I have cried out to the Lord many times and even though it is not completely gone I still feel as though I can reap in joy because my Savior, my God, my King is making a way for me to finally be free.

He that goeth forth and weepeth bearing precious seed shall doubtless come again rejoicing bringing his sheaves with him. Psalm 126:6

I have wept, I have cried out, I have prayed for the anxiety to be gone. God honors those moments when we are completely transparent before him and even though I’m on the last bit of the anxiety I see the relief on the horizon and I will be made new. I know God will give me even greater dreams than these.

What’s your dream?

Will you share it with me?

I’m listening.

Genuinely Yours,

Amy Z

Fiery Trials: A Test of Faith

          We all face fiery trials. They are meant to grow and mature us in the Lord. I’m being stretched at work. I’m going to be doing contact tracing, which puts me way out of my comfort zone. I don’t want to do this, but neither do I want to stay stuck in the state I’m in. This is going to free me from anxiety. This is to grow my confidence in the Lord. This is to try me. To show me if my faith will stand strong in this trial. Will I continue to seek the Lord even in this? Or will I try to do it on my own? I know I want to seek the Lord in this. If I want to get past my comfort zone I have to do this. I want to move forward. I want to forget my past and strive toward the future. Paul put it like this:

 Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:13-14 KJV

We have not arrived. We will always be a work in progress in the Lord. Thank God. Letting go of our past rejections will help us strive forward for the high calling God has placed on our lives. No matter where you find yourself today God has placed a high calling on your life.

Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you: But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy. 1 Peter 4:12-13 KJV

So the word says a fiery trial is to be expected. I fully believe that God is giving me a heart for people. It is an answered prayer but boy its uncomfortable. But God is not here to keep us comfortable. He’s here to make us holy and look more like Jesus. I thank God that he does not give up on me and that he keeps refining me because I need it. I can’t wait to feel joy at the end of this trial instead of fear and trepidation. God has not failed me yet. However, I still imagine that he will. That I can’t do this but God says I can. God encouraged Moses when he asked him to go before Pharaoh. Moses had trepidation just like we all do. He said:

And Moses said unto God, who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring for the children of Israel out of Egypt? And he said, certainly I will be with thee; Exodus 3:11-12a KJV

See how God encouraged Moses right away? He said he would be with him. So too is God with us in our fiery trials. And God tells us not to fear.

Fear not for I am with you. Be not dismayed for I am your God. I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Isaiah 41:10 ESV

What fiery trail are you in?

Share it with me.

I’m listening.

Genuinely Yours,

Amy Z