Laughing At His Promises

Happy Thursday! I feel like it has been so long since I last posted. College is no joke. Seriously I never have a day where I have no homework, projects, assignments, etc. I'm thankful for all of it though. I'm getting a world class education and once in a lifetime opportunities so I fight to be grateful. God is faithful guys. I can never say it enough. As I see His promises unfold I get filled with wonder but also look back at myself a  few months ago and say "Man, why didn't I just trust Him." Has God ever said something to you and you just laugh because of how crazy it sounds. Reading Genesis 18:10-14 strikes familiarity in my heart "Then the Lord said, "I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife will have a son." Now Sarah was listening at the entrance to the tent, which was behind him. Abraham and Sarah were already old and well advanced in years, and Sarah was past the age of childbearing. So Sarah laughed to herself as she thought, "After I am worn out and my master is old, will I now have this pleasure?" Then the Lord said to Abraham, "Why did Sarah laugh and say "Will I really have a child, now that I am old?" Is anything to hard for the Lord?" Sarah laughed at God's promise and I have done the same thing countless amounts of time. When God speaks the impossible into our lives and does not operate according to our timing or plans we can shrink back in disbelief. That's what Sarah did. She laughed at the thought of having a child because of her old age. Personally when this happens to me my disbelief turns into fear, my fear turns into doubt, and walls are built around my heart. It's a deadly cycle. I look back over these past few months and see how God has been so faithful to carry me through and provide in ways I didn't even think of. I was terrified of coming into this new semester of school. I was fearful of the unknown, uncertain of the promises of God, and elevating the lies of the enemy and opinion of man. Nothing was going the way I planned yet God's plan remained perfect and in place. God never once says to Himself, "Oh no I have to change this now because this didn't work out, what am I going to do!?" Instead He says "I have known all along, I go before you and behind you, before you are even in the next season of your life I am already there preparing the people, the place, and everything in between." It is a fight to trust. The enemy will always whisper the lie of "You can't trust God." But I hear the Lord say to me, "I am silencing the lies with My love." What lie have you believed? What promise has God spoken to you that you have laughed at? Be honest with yourself. I've believed the lie that I can't trust God, so therefore I must take things into my own hands. I've laughed at the fact that God has told me He will provide me with EVERYTHING I need, even when my circumstances say otherwise.I have so many times been Sarah. I have laughed at what God has told me because it is to big, to radical, to miraculous.  But that is the God we serve. We serve a God who takes or mundane broken lives and does the miraculous with them. We serve a God who cares about us so much and has no limit to how much He cares for He is love itself. God is a promise keeper. If God has promised you something and you still haven't received it, do not stop waiting. He is faithful. The enemy will tell you in the waiting that God won't come through, but that is a lie, God ALWAYS comes through. Jesus adores you. Your name is on the palms of His hands. You have not been put on standby you are always before Him. So when God gives you a promise laugh not with doubt but with expectation, because as crazy as that promise sounds "He who promised is faithful."(Hebrews 10:23).
-Sofia

Living In His Heartbeat

"As a bridegroom rejoices over his bride, so will your God rejoice over you."-Isaiah 62:5

The more I seek Him, the more I find Him. This has become so true in my life. The more and more that I press into Jesus the more He meets me and overwhelms me in His presence. Jesus' heart beats for us. When the Holy Spirit revealed this truth to me it wrecked my world. I look back at my life and sometimes think "How in the world did I live without constantly being saturated in the presence of God" I realize that I wasn't truly living or fully alive. My heart had not yet been fully awakened by the lover of my soul because I had not yet surrendered. But oh the rush of glory that overtook my life when I truly surrendered to my King! We were created by God and for Him. We are not meant to be out of fellowship with the very One who formed our inmost being. You know how your heartbeats really fast when you're super excited or when you're with the person that you're in love with? That's how Jesus is with us. I believe that His heart beats fast and passionately for us. He is excited about us and takes the utmost joy in our fellowship with Him. A lot of this I'm just discovering.My Savior is letting me see myself through His eyes and it's changing my life. I've never been at a more intimate place in my life with Jesus than I am now. It all came out of surrender. Saying "Jesus I"m scared and hurting and I don't want to let go of my flesh but help me, I give all of me to You, please have my heart." I hear Him say "You don't have to say please I've been waiting for this moment." I share this with you guys because I believe God has placed a mantle over my life to minister to people by sharing my heart for Jesus and most importantly by sharing His heart for us. Living in the heartbeat of Jesus is many things. It's to realize that we can't do life without Him, It's to surrender our hearts, souls, and minds at His feet, Most importantly it's to step out of the "oh yeah I'm a Christian" mentality and to step into the glory filled love of our King. To live this life in the midst of the wild and relentless love of Jesus is to be in His heartbeat. Like I said earlier Jesus' heart beats for us. I want to express this truth with my life and words. I want people to experience life in the heartbeat of Jesus. I believe that I am alive to know Jesus and to make Him known. My heart beats for the presence of God and to see His supernatural love and glory fill His church and His people.  My heart beats to see the sick healed, physically, spiritually, and emotionally. My heart beats to see chains broken off of peoples lives by the blood of Jesus. My heart beats to see salvation. My heart beats to see others experience the restoration found only in Jesus. I pray that as I take on this adventure of living in the heartbeat of Jesus that it not only effects my life but that it overflows into every life I encounter. I'm not perfect but my God is and I want His perfect love to flow out of my spirit so that others can encounter Him. Throughout this series I encourage you guys to pray to experience living in the heartbeat of Jesus. Pray that He changes your heart and removes everything from you that is not of Him. Jesus loves you, He is passionate about you, He wants all of you. His heart beats for you as if you were the only person on planet earth. This isn't just a one time event it's a lifestyle from glory to glory.- Sofia

I got this amazing blouse from my favorite clothing store called Altar'd State. It's a beautiful Christian boutique that shines with the love of Jesus and sells the cutest clothes. All the proceeds support different organizations and charities. You guys should check them out!
http://www.altardstate.com/

Sweet Victory.

Have you ever been so in awe of God that you just can't stop laughing and rejoicing?! You find your breath taken away and can't seem to come up with words to describe the goodness of what He has just done. Yep that's me right about now. Last night I went to a strip club. Never did I think I would be standing outside in the dark night submerged in 18 degree weather, huddled in a circle with girls (and one guy) standing outside of a strip club in the middle of no where singing "How He loves." Declaring His promises, and singing praise over such a dark place that the enemy has invaded was incredible. It was amazing how as we lifted up the name of Jesus outside of the club with a guitar, voices, prayer, and God's Word chains of darkness began to fall off that place and it was made into Holy ground. This process started last year. A girl on my hall, Katelyn had a vision and heart for reaching out to girls suffering in Human trafficking and prostitution. She made an announcement during our hall meeting asking if anyone would be interested in praying with her and seeing what the Lord wanted to do with this dream placed in her heart. Two fundraising clothing stores and 4 group meetings/time of prayer later we all loaded up in two cars with 20 gift bags completely unaware of what was going to happen. Only having the knowledge that Jesus is sovereign and is in complete control. We show up at the club around 9 pm and started off in prayer and worship. I've never been so cold in my life but I've also never felt so close to the heartbeat of Jesus. It was beyond humbling. I mean think about it, Jesus suffered so much for us because He is passionately and endlessly in love with us. It was amazing to see Him place me in a spot where there was suffering and a passion for souls. After praying and worshiping together for about 15 minutes. Two of the girls who have been our leaders through this took the box of gifts inside as we all waited in the car outside off the doors interceding and praying that God would do a work in that place. (Side note: the gift bags were valentines day themed and had chocolate, nail polish, face wash, hand written letters declaring God's promises and love towards the girls, and new testament bibles.) They were inside for about 25 minutes. We were honestly expecting nothing more than for our girls to deliver the gifts to the manager of the club and then leave but of course Jesus always does exceedingly above or beyond anything we could ask or think. When Kendall and Katelyn came out of the club with a man we were all a little shocked, but it turned out to be something amazing. This man was one of the managers of the club. He came to walk them out and say thank you. He wanted to let us know that he is going to make sure every gift gets to every girl and that he is glad we came to do this because the girls need hope. Not only that but he invited us back  and gave us discount cards to get in the cub so we could share our testimony of Jesus Christ with the girls face to face! The head manager took down our leaders e-mail just in case some of the girls at the club wanted to get in contact. The crazy things is, is that this is exactly what we prayed for. We prayed that the managers heart would be softened and that doors would be opened for us to build a relationship with him so the girls at the club could be ministered to. Look at God!!! Oh and the manager even opened up about his spiritual life and where he is with God, which then led him to say that because we came there he will be in church this Sunday! UMMMM JESUS!! We were all so pumped and overwhelmed by the power of prayer and the power of our awesome God. Because of Jesus 20 strippers are going to get a gift that tells them they are loved, valuable, precious, and the King of the universe is passionately pursuing them. I believe those girls are going to get saved because I believe a seed was planted last night and God is going to water it with the only living water and make it bloom into salvation. Gosh the sweetness of Jesus is amazing. Guys never underestimate the power of prayer. Never in my life have I felt so unworthy and so unseen yet so engulfed in Jesus' heartbeat. Who I am that I get to go and stand outside of a strip club crying out to God and asking Him to break chains when I am no better than the men and women inside of that club. That's how our redeeming Savior works. He is a miracle worker. I pray that this testimony encourages you guys to be passionate for souls and willing to go into the lowest of the low so that people can get saved and experience His amazing love. God wants to do marvelous things through you, you just have to be willing to say yes. Please continue praying for the girls in this club, the manager, and our team that went out. We are going to continue pursuing God's heart and seeing where He wants us. But while we are pursuing we are praying. This ministry didn't stop with us giving the gifts and leaving , it has now just begun for we have been given a mandate to pray for these women and men and trust God to have His way in their hearts. Satan is defeated and every chain is broken in Jesus Name.

- Cause I loved you before you knew what was love

And I saw it all, still I chose the cross

And you were the one that I was thinking of

When I rose from the grave,

Now rid of the shackles, My victory’s yours,

I tore the veil for you to come close

There’s no reason to stand at a distance anymore

You’re not far from home. (Steffany Gretzinger)

Preparing the gifts and praying over them!

The coupons the manager gave us.

Beer Lahai Roi

           Happy Saturday everyone! I can't believe it's November! October went by so fast and now I only have 20 more days until I go home. I am so excited! College has been so amazing and God has covered me in His grace to the utmost. My beautiful roommates are so fantastic and I have grown immensely in my relationship with Christ since being at Liberty. My passion for ministry has sparked beyond a fire and is full ablaze. I just get so overjoyed when I sit back and realize that there is no other explanation for this other than it was all orchestrated by God who created the universe and yet still sees me. And that's what today's post is about. Beer Lahai Roi means "well of the living one who sees me."  This phrase appears in Genesis 16:14 when God responds to Hagar's fear and pain
             She gave this name to the Lord who spoke to her: “You are the God who sees me,” for she said, “I have now seen the One who sees me.” That is why the well was called Beer Lahai Roi; it is still there, between Kadesh and Bered. (13-14)
  Hagar was being mistreated by Sarah, the woman in charge of her, and so she ran away in pain and fear. She stopped next to a spring (it's funny how God did that because the Holy Spirit represents a spring of living water) and that's when she encountered the Angel of the Lord and made a statement that gives me strength everyday. God sees me. He saw Hagar in her distress and confusion and he sees me in my distress and confusion. God is a well of living water that fills us constantly with His Spirit and through His Son Jesus, and the power of the Holy Spirit, we can walk in the truth a woman thousands of years ago did. God sees us. It's such a humbling statement for me, to know that the God who rules over all things sees me. I'm one person out of the billions of people in the world yet He personally knows me, created me, and knows every single detail of my life. It's mind blowing and it makes me fall so deeply in love with Him. To be in love with Jesus is amazing but to know that He is in love with us even more is the most beautiful and powerful thing to ever know. I find myself greatly relating with the Apostle Paul when he says, "Yes, everything is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord." (Philippians 3:8)   Know that you're not always going to feel like God sees you. You're not always going to feel like knowing Jesus is the best thing ever. Feelings come and go and are always changing, that's the result of living in a fallen and sinful world. But also know that God's Word never changes. Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever. The same God that met with Hagar next to that spring is the same God who wants to meet with you and bring you to the the spring of living water. God loves you so much and He wants you to bring Him your pain, confusion, tiredness, and burned out heart, so He can lift you up and wrap you,fill you, with His loving presence. When you do, you to will have a Hagar moment and be able to say, "I have now seen the One who sees me." - Love you guys.  Sofia

P.S- Watch this amazing video and just worship and enjoy the sweet,restoring, presence of God. 

Salvation is So Sweet.

But I will sing of Your power, Yes, I will sing aloud of Your mercy in the morning: For You have been my defense and refuge in the day of my trouble. - Psalm 59:16

I am so thankful for the cross. I'm so thankful that my salvation isn't earned or obtained by works but that it is obtained through the blood of Jesus shed on the cross. I am so thankful for the cross. There is nothing else that can save me. Being a good person, making good decisions, getting baptized, going to church twice a week, none of these things give me salvation or put my name in the book of life. Only Jesus. Only by His mercy, grace, and sacrifice is our salvation available. It's so glorious. What's even crazier is that when we accept Christ to be Lord over our hearts, and lives, he fills us with the Spirit and changes our values to His values so that those things I just listed above become apart of our lives; not apart of steps to salvation but a result of salvation. It's one of the craziest things in the world. And I am so thankful for it. Reading this bible verse this morning really encouraged me and refreshed my spirit. I have just been going and going this week. With non stop work, randomly getting sick, and feeling drained because I've allowed myself to worry and stress but not trust God, I've been discouraged. That's one of the reasons I love God's word. It is alive and active and literally takes a discouraged heart and brings power and truth. Today in convocation at school our campus pastor shared with us that a girl we had been prying for who got hit by a car a few weeks ago had a 25% chance of recovery. Now the doctors are saying she is going to fully recover. Praise the Lord for turning that 25 to an 100! God is our defense. He covers us in the shadow of his wings and makes Himself a refuge for the worried, broken, hurting, and sick . So I've made up in my mind by the life changing power of the Holy Spirit to worship God regardless of what I feel, to take time all throughout my day to just say "thank you Jesus." His mercy is new everyday, it sustains and makes me whole. I encourage you guys as I encourage myself to sing of God's greatness and power everyday. Even if you have no idea what your future holds, even if you're in the hurt, wondering, waiting. Continue in thanksgiving and constantly remind yourself of the cross. Praise is a weapon against the enemy and a fragrant sacrifice to God. Use it and rest in the fact that your sins are forgiven and your name is written in the book of life. - Sofia

The Beauty of Submitting.

"Wives submit to your husbands as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church."- Ephesians 5:22-23

     Wednesday night at campus church (Liberty University college church service) I witnessed hundreds of college guys run to the altar, get on their faces, and cry out to God. All the girls in the room reached their hands out and covered these guys in prayer as we worshipped God together. The atmosphere was majestic. I could feel in my spirit the chains of addiction, lust, and pride being broke off of some of the young men's lives. It was breathtaking. The sermon was pointed toward the guys of Liberty calling them out and telling them to step up and be the men of God Jesus was leading them to be. The ladies were encouraged to not settle for a man of this world but to make sure the guy they are committing their lives to is committed to doing nothing else but loving and serving Christ. It was a beautiful night and it really got me thinking about this verse.

          

 "I'm an independent woman and I don't need any man in my life." "the bible is old fashioned and so are women that let their Husbands take the lead." To the world this might make sense, but to a woman of God we should run from these views. ( I am not saying in any way that women should put their worth in men and think they have to have a guy in their lives to be valuable!!!) You won't feel valuable with a guy if your worth is not yet found in Christ. The reason why wives submitting to husbands has become such a taboo in society is because society has warped what true marriage is supposed to look like. In the worlds view wives submitting to their husbands means being beaten and bossed around. It means being treated lowly. This is NOT what submitting means and this isn't what the husband being the head means. Another verse we have to check out is Ephesians 5:22. Right after wives are told to submit to their husbands as they submit to the Lord it says "Husbands love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy cleansing her by the washing with water through the word." Do we understand what loving wives like Christ loved the church means? Jesus died for the church! He gave His life, humbled himself, shed his blood, and washed us clean. Hello! This is the most beautiful, selfless love that their ever could be. And God is telling Husbands to love their wives in this way! That is so beautiful. There is no selfishness in this. The man isn't being told to beat his wife and rule over her life. He isn't being told to call all of the shots and deny everything his wife says. He is being told to passionately and sacrificially love his other half. He is being told to protect her, support her, love on her, and lift her up. Jesus didn't have an affair with the church, he died for it. Just think about that. Ladies when we are being told to submit to our husbands we aren't being told to worship at his feet and let him run everything and never speak up. We are being told to honor him, lift him up in prayer, protect and support him. This is what marriage is supposed to look like. This is the beauty of submitting. The world has clogged it's brain with images of  what they think relationships are, friends with benefits, sex outside of marriage, same sex relationships. This has corrupted what the beauty of submitting in marriage means. When we submit our lives to Christ His love is lavished out on to us in such a glorious and beautiful way. Marriage is nothing more than a representation of God pursuing the church. Now I know I'm only 18 and not even in a relationship but this is something that God has just recently heavily laid on my heart. On Wednesday night I was encouraged to understand this biblical principle and God has so greatly opened my heart to it. One thing the preacher said on Wednesday is "Marriage is when a single man who has glorified God to the highest with his life and when a single woman who has glorified God to the highest with her life, come together to glorify God even more." I think this will remain in my heart for a long time. Ladies we are precious vessels and beautiful daughters of God. Christ lives in us and we deserve nothing more than a man who respects, love, honors, and prays for us all while worshipping at the feet of Jesus. I pray that God continues to keep my heart while I'm in college and that He leads me to a man that loves Him more than he will love me. This is my prayer for all of you guys as well. Whether you're in a relationship or not I pray that you realize the beauty of submitting in a Godly way. I pray that you only pursue someone who is pursuing Christ, purity, holiness, gentleness, humbleness, and reverence of the One true God. You're worth it.  Love you guys and Jesus loves you even more. - Sofia

The Kingdom of God (lessons from women in the Bible)

Today I was reading in my study bible about the Kingdom of God and I looked at the side notes and it said something very interesting. "The kingdom of God is not for those who seldom pray or who compromise with the world, neglect the Word and have little spiritual hunger. It is for women like Deborah, Ruth, Esther, Mary, Anna, and Lydia." I'm familiar with some of these women but I decided to go ahead and study each of their stories individually. As I began to read each of their stories in the bible God placed these three words on my heart. Eagerness, Dedication and Offering. In each of these women lives there was an eagerness, dedication, and offering to and for God. They were all eager to have God's will be done, dedicated to Him and anything He gave for them to do, and offered there lives and worship to Him. Deborah was a prophetess, and judge of Israel (Judges 4:4). She was dedicated to judging and leading these people according to God. Her eagerness and authority came from God and He rewarded it. Ruth completely gave her self away to serve Naomi and Boaz, her selflessness and honoring lifestyle was an offering to God. Esther was eager "Go, gather together all the Jews who are in Susa, and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my maids will fast as you do. When this is done, I will go to the king even though it is against the law. And if I perish, I perish." (Esther 4:16) "If I perish, I perish." 'I and my maids will fast as you do." Wow! How I desire to have a eagerness like hers. She completely laid herself down for the benefit of others. She didn't parish, her eagerness and dedication was rewarded greatly by God. Mary, the mother of Jesus "I am the Lord's servant," Mary answered. "May it be to me as you have said." (Luke 1:38). She gave the offering of herself to the service of God. Anna was a prophetess and "she never left the temple but worshiped night and day fasting and praying." (Luke 2:37) Her life was an offering to God. She was dedicated to seeking Him and eager for His presence and Word. Lydia was a "worshiper of God" (Acts 16:14). Her worship gave her an open heart and allowed God to move in her and her families life (she and the members of her household were baptized ~ Acts 16:15). So you see all of these women have something in common. That is there eagerness, dedication, and offering to and for God. These women were seeking after God's will and heart. There lives were His. As I began to understand these things I realize that my life is not my own. Our lives should be full of eagerness, dedication, and offering to God. We should be eager for God's will and presence, dedicated to His word, prayer, and continually offer ourselves in worship, and in life. This isn't something we can accomplish on our own but something that can only take place trough the working of The Holy Spirit in our lives and through encountering the precious and mighty love of Jesus. It is a daily thing not just  a one time event. I want to see God's power manifested here, I want to see people healed, changed, miracles taken place, chains broken, evil spirits crushed. I hunger and thirst for Jesus. And here is the encouraging thing for all of us who hunger and thirst for the same things, God has promised that we will be filled "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled." (Matthew 5:6) Let these women of God be an example to all of us that eagerness, dedication, and offering that is pure and to God will manifest the kingdom of God here and as we do these things through Christ our lives and others will be greatly changed forever. ~Love Sofia




            

Holy Spirit Power

             "But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you." Acts 1:8

    A few weeks ago my pastor did this really cool demonstration. He took a bottle of lotion and squeezed some out onto his skin. He then said "this is how some people live/view the Holy Spirit. They think it's just something that we put on and can easily take off. They allow the Holy Spirit to just gently brush them and not really take effect. The minute they leave church they think the Holy Spirit has left them and they go back to living according to the flesh and world." He then took the lotion and rubbed it into his skin. "Now this is how we should be receiving the Holy Ghost. Not as just a mere thing that comes upon you, but as The Spirit of God that fills you and gives you power and produces fruit in your life." This message really opened my eyes to how I used to view the Holy Spirit. I was squeezing on the lotion and not rubbing it in. Basically I was unaware of who the Holy Spirit truly is and what he does. But God began to deal with me and  open my heart to not just merely knowing about the Holy Spirit but to being filled, empowered, and overflowing with him. Being filled with the Holy Spirit and living in constant communion with him will change your life. The Holy Spirit will empower you, lead you, comfort you, pray through you, convict you, and speak things through you and to you. When we walk in the power of the Holy Ghost we are no longer operating in the natural but we are operating in the supernatural. So much power is manifested in the works of the Spirit. Healing, prophecy, miracles, breakthroughs. This Sunday at my church  a woman was brought back to life!! Literally! This isn't the work of man, these kind of things only happen with an out pour of the Spirit. These kind of things didn't just happen when Jesus was walking the earth. They happen now! That's why Jesus promised and gave the Holy Spirit. We have the same Spirit with us that enabled healing and was poured out on Jesus and the early church. It's amazing. Right before Jesus was lead into the desert to be tempted by the devil and go without food for forty days and forty nights the bible says he was "full of the Holy Spirit." (Luke 4:1). The Spirit enabled Jesus to fight temptation, hunger, and have victory over Satan. The Holy Spirit empowered Him. That truth remains the same today. The Holy Spirit empowers. So many people are playing patty cake with The Spirit. They don't realize the extreme power that is held in being filled with Him. The truth is it's time to stop playing patty cake and time to start seeking the face of God and asking for a hunger that can only be satisfied by the Spirit. Jesus told the disciples in the book of Acts that they "will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you." (Acts 1:8). Not just any kind of power, but the power to call things that are not as though they were (Romans 4:17), to shutdown the evil works of Satan, to bring healing, prophecy, deliverance, to produce fruit (Galatians 5:22), to edify oneself with speaking in tongues (1 Corinthians 14:4) , and the list goes on. The Holy Spirit is active. Jesus said "and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." (Acts 1:8) the Holy Spirit empowers us to preach the gospel. Life is all about glorifying God and sharing the love of Jesus Christ everywhere we go. The Holy Spirit enables us to go into the world and proclaim the glorious and life changing news of Jesus. How beautiful is that!? God cares so much about us that he gives us His Spirit to fill and dwell within us so that we don't have to walk in defeat but we can walk in victory and grace and lead others into that same truth. I am so thankful for these revelations that have taken place in my life. I pray that we stop neglecting the Holy Spirit in our churches and personal lives but that we realize the importance and power that comes from being filled with Him and fully embrace everything He has come to do in our lives. My encouragement to you is to pray for the Holy Spirit to fill you, lead you, and change your heart to walk in harmony with Him. I promise that when you start living attentive to and according to the Spirit your life will never be the same.

                             ~Sofia  

Overflow of the Heart.

Happy Friday everyone!! I hope you all have had a good week so far. Besides being sick for a few days my week has been pretty good. One thing that has been on my mind recently are the matters of the heart. In my youth group bible study this morning we read this verse "For where your treasure is there your heart will be also." (Luke 12:34).  It stuck with me all day. I began to think about my heart and what it truly is consumed with and where it's leading me. Recently I've found myself trying to hold the overflow of my heart back. Why? God is doing something AMAZING in my life and for some reason I found myself worried that I wasn't ready. I really felt myself wrestling with the enemy and my flesh saying things like "Sofia you're not ready for this, you're not old enough, wise enough, you have no idea what your getting yourself into. Just stay in your comfort zone, your safe there."I begin to pray because I knew that there was no way that God was saying these things to me, but I just couldn't hear His voice in the situation. That's when I read this in the book I'm currently reading "God hasn't called you into His marvelous light just for you to sit there and gaze or to be afraid on this new level and run back into the comfort zone of the outer court. There's a divine purpose for you and grace to meet every need just beyond that door." (The Threshing Floor~Juanita Bynum). When I read this I was like, "Oh my gosh Jesus just spoke to me right in the middle of school out of nowhere I needed this so bad I might cry." God is so good. I've realized that He has transformed my heart, covered me in His grace, and because my treasure is Jesus my heart is with Him, and because my heart is with Him it overflows with His love and I can't hold it back! It's impossible. His work in my life and amazing love are to great of things for me to just let slide off my shoulder. As our hearts are filled with the Holy Spirit and love of Jesus, God begins to do a complete transformation and our lives begin to overflow with Him. The overflow of our hearts is something precious because when our hearts are overflowing with the love of Jesus we can touch others lives. I'm learning that as God takes me into this new season of life He isn't just blessing me but those around me. In this He has shown me once again that it's not all about me but about Him working through me to change lives, bring love and healing to the broken, and be a light in such a dark place. Take a minute to think about your heart and what you think it's consumed with. Are you giving it to Jesus or allowing other worldly things to consume it? Know that Jesus loves you so deeply and longs to bless you and use you as a vessel for His glory. In order for this to happen though you have to give Him your heart. Seek Him and when His love pours out on your heart and the Holy Spirit takes over don't hold back. Allow His love to run over from you into others. Leave your comfort zone and allow Jesus to take over, you will find yourself and others being blessed beyond measure. Love you guys and hope you all have a blessed weekend! Love Sofia. 

Jehovah- Nissi

   Hi everyone! I hope you all are having a good week so far. With high school slowly starting to come to an end for me, I'm finding myself having more work than I've had through my whole high school career! Everything from 8 page research papers, to tons of college papers, scholarships, payments, and test to take can get pretty overwhelming. I am so thankful that I am able to enter into the rest of Jesus. Without His peace and guidance I would literally go crazy. In this new season of spiritual intimacy and prayer I've entered, God has revealed some different  things to me. One of these things are His characteristics and who He is to me and for me.

 Jehovah-Nissi means "The Lord is my banner." Jehovah, meaning Lord, and Nissi, meaning "refuge, exaltation, banner." As I came across the names of God this one really stuck with me and as I searched it up in the bible God poured His love and revelation into my heart. In Exodus 17:8 The Amalekites go to war and attack the Israelites. Moses orders Joshua to take some of the men and go fight against the Amalekites and says "Tomorrow I will stand on top of the hill and with the staff of God in my hands" (9). So Joshua went and fought the Amalekites and Moses went and sat on a hill with Aaron and Hur. The interesting thing is this "As long as Moses held up up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but whenever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning," (11). So basically when he was holding up his hands he was getting victory but when he lowered his hands he was being defeated. This has such a deep meaning. Moses wasn't just lifting up his hands randomly., he was lifting them up to God offering a sacrifice of worship and prayer.Think about a time you were at church and saw people lifting their hands during worship, that's probably what Moses looked like in that moment. When Moses's hands were lifted victory was established and poured out on the Israelites, but as soon as those hands of worship and praise came down defeat also came down upon the Israelites. This passage shows the value of offering ourselves to God as a living sacrifice and what can come of it. As the passage continues it says "But Moses' hands became heavy; so they took a stone and put it under him. and he sat on it. And Aaron and Hur supported his hands, one on one side; and the other on the other side; and his hands were steady until the going down of the sun, (12)." Sometimes it get's hard to worship. We find ourselves getting beat up by our emotions and the world. We become weak and our hands and heart grow so heavy that we just don't think we can praise anymore. That's when we need to sit on the stone. I'm talking about the cornerstone, who is Jesus. When Moses's hands became heavy he sat on top of a stone. When I read this it all just hit me, this stone represents Jesus. Our strength, our fortress. Without continually turning to him ,and sitting upon His word of truth our hands become heavy and we can no longer find ourselves able to worship. He is our strength. We have to rest upon Him or we won't rest at all. Not only did Moses sit on the stone but his companions Aaron and Hur supported him. Helping him to lift his hands up. To me this represents having people in your life that will point you to Jesus even when things are hard. Aaaron and Hur could have let Moses struggle and watch the Israelites be defeated but they stepped in and helped their friend offer a sacrifice of worship to God. That's beautiful and that is true friendship.  So guess what happened after all of this "Joshua overcame the Amalekite army with the sword," (13). When I read this I couldn't help but praise God. Joshua overcame. Because of Moses' sacrifice of praise to God they overcame adversity. "Moses built an alter and called it. The Lord is my Banner. He said, "For hands were lifted up to the throne of the Lord, (15-16)." God is our Banner. He fights for us and lifts us up when we are weak. Moses gave direct glory to God after this victory. He built Him and altar! And basically said "God is my protector, my fighter, my banner, my strength. I lifted my hands up to Him and look what He did. Not only did He give me the strength to carry on but He gave us the victory." Today know that God is fighting for you. When it seems hard to lift your hands in praise sit yourself upon the Rock of Ages, the cornerstone, the word of God, Jesus. When we are weak we are made strong in the Saviors love. Offer yourselves to God and He will pour out victory, strength and more than you could ever imaging. Thank you God for being our Banner our Jehovha-Nissi.    "Those who think they can do it on their own end up obsessed with measuring their own moral muscle but never get around to exercising it in real life. Those who trust God's action in them find that God's Spirit is in them- living and breathing God!" Romans 8:5 (MSG)

Here are the names of God found in the bible. Study them and see what God has to say about your life and what He has to say about Himself. They will reveal the intimacy of God and what He has in store for your life. 

                                 Love,
                                         Sofia

One Year Anniversary!

Hey everyone! So today is a very special day for Fashionably Faithful. This day one year ago Fashionably Faithful first post was published! I can't believe it's already been a year. It feels like just yesterday me and my best friend were sitting at Starbucks and I said "Do you think I should start a blog?" I have to say that I am so glad that I followed my passion and God's call on my heart to do this. Blogging over the past year has been such a cool experience. I've gotten to share with tons of people the love of Jesus, awesome experiences I've had, and great fashion. Having Fashionably Faithful has also brought me closer to God and brought out a lot of confidence in me. Every time I got ready to post a devotional or inspirational message I would settle my heart and seek God first. I found the things that I wrote didn't only inspire others but inspired me as well. So many of my posts leave me in awe of God because I know that there's no way I could've come up with them myself. I've also discovered so much about what it means to be beautiful. At first I was really scared to have a fashion blog because I didn't want to post pictures of myself, but I've found myself breaking out of my shell and finding this amazing beautiful confidence that comes from knowing Jesus. I'm not afraid to call myself beautiful and so much of that comes from doing this blog. Besides getting really awesome confidence, my passion for Jesus and fashion,that started this blog, have only increased. Fashion has always inspired me it's like a breath of fresh air, and I hope I get to style it, make it, design it, write it, read it, and wear it for the rest of my life. I have so much fun putting together outfits and  finding other designers or people that love fashion to blog about. It's been an awesome journey to see my love of fashion grow through blogging!  I am also so overjoyed with the response that Fashionably Faithful has gotten over the past year. I've had awesome support from family and friends and even strangers! It's the coolest thing to get emails and messages from people telling me how much they love this blog and that it greatly inspires them. When I published my first post I never would've though that 1 year later this blog would have over 5,200 views! I never thought I would be interviewing a famous musician! God does amazing things and I can't take any of the credit. I'm so thankful for the grace He has given me throughout this experience and for the amazing support system of loving friends and family. When I started  this blog my vision was to create a place full of faith and fashion. I had no plans of it effecting my life in any way. I did it because I thought it would be fun and unique. But I was so wrong. Fashionably Faithful is so special to me, not because of all the views or awesome response , but because of it my heart has been touched and I have gotten to see God work in my life and in others in an amazing way. Glorifying Jesus is what life is all about and the fact that God has allowed me to do that through fashion and writing is so incredible and it blows me away every day. Thank you so much to everyone of you who read this blog, support it, and enjoy it. I can't wait to see what this next year of blogging brings. I know that I'm in for an adventure! The best is yet to come. 

                 I'm bursting with God-news; I'm dancing the song of my Savior God. God took one look at me, and look what happened- I'm the most fortunate woman on earth! What God has done for me will never be forgotten, the God whose very name holy, set apart from all other. His mercy flows in wave after wave on those who are in awe before Him. ~ Luke 1:46-55 (MSG)

          Love,

             Sofia 

 

Wondrous

Happy Monday everyone! It's a start of a brand new week and I am finding myself feeling refreshed and ready to go. Usually on Monday's I don't feel this way. I tend to be more tired, stressed out and ready for the weekend to be here already. But I had a really refreshing weekend and God revealed a lot to me through His word that has re -sparked the fire in my heart that burns for Him.  As a teenage girl there are times when I feel the intense pressures of this world. I can find myself stressing out about all types of things. College, homework, boys, my future, what I'm going to wear tomorrow. I've also come to realize that focusing on these stresses causes me to forget how precious I am.This world is loaded with stress and pressures that will crush us and cause us to feel out of control. By focusing on them we draw away from Jesus and therefore loose heart of our worth and value. Being a girl can be a serious challenge. Especially in  today's world. The pressure is crazy and I find so many girls my age breaking under it. This past weekend I found myself slowly slipping into that pressure. I knew that my stressful thoughts didn't line up with what God had to say about me though so I decided to worship. I cranked up Oceans by Hillsong and poured out all of my worries to God. And He came through meeting me in my breakdown and picking me up. He reminded me of  how precious I am.

                     "And how blessed all those in whom You live, whose lives become roads You travel; They wind through lonesome valleys, come upon brooks, discover cool springs and pools brimming with rain! God-traveled, these roads curve up the mountain, and at the last turn----Zion! God in full view. God-Of-The-Angel-Armies, listen ; O God of Jacob, open Your ears--- I'm praying! Look at our shields, glistening in the sun, our faces, shinning with Your gracious anointing...All sunshine, and sovereign is God. Generous in gifts and glory. He doesn't scrimp with His traveling companions. It's smooth sailing all the way with the God-Of-Angel-Armies."~ Psalm 84:5-9;11-12 (The message)

We are precious. We are daughters of the God of the universe. The God who created the oceans and skies created us and loves us. We are blessed because we get to travel through this life with Jesus. We go through trials and hard times and then find ourselves coming upon "brooks, cool springs, abundance, love, forgiveness, deliverance!  Our faces shine with the gracious anointing that comes from God. This message gives me hope and opens my heart to the abundant love of Jesus. I know that I am dearly loved, and I want all of you to know that as well. God has a beautiful and amazing purpose for each of our lives and desires to pour His love out on us. So this week, as you dive into the motions of school, work, and life, fix your eyes on Jesus. Don't fall into the pressures of this world but fall into the love of Christ. You are beautiful, you are fearfully and wonderfully made, and the anointing of grace and splendor is there waiting to be poured out onto your life. Dive into it and you will find a peace and healing that goes beyond the pressures and stress of this world. Have a beautiful week , and remember because of Jesus we are free.

           Love,
              Sofia.

Fashion and Endless Love

 Hi everyone! Happy Valentines Day! I hope everyone has had a great day so far. I personally love Valentines Day. Celebrating the people you love is so important and to have a special day put aside just for that is so wonderful to me.Before I get into the fashion part of this post, I just want to give a reminder that each and everyone of us is apart of the greatest love story ever told. Before we compare our lives to unrealistic movies or other people's relationships we need to take a minute and look at the beautiful love story we are apart of. It's full of scandal, heartbreak,restoration, hope and joy and it is the only love that NEVER ends. Jesus died in our place out of love. We don't deserve it but he did it anyways. He pursues us daily and longs for our hearts. He is intimate and wonderful. There is absolutely nothing that can separate us from his love. So whether you have a significant other or are riding solo this Valentines Day remember that His love is Ultimate and above all. It's the most precious, wonderful, and sweetest love there is. His love is endless. 

 My beloved friends, let us continue to love each other since love comes from God. Everyone who loves is born of God and experiences a relationship with God. The person who refuses to love doesn't know the first thing about God, because God is love—so you can’t know him if you don’t love. This is how God showed his love for us: God sent his only Son into the world so we might live through him. This is the kind of love we are talking about—not that we once upon a time loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to clear away our sins and the damage they've done to our relationship with God. 1 John 4:7-10



So for those of you who don't know this past week has been full of amazing fashion. Why? It's fashion week of course! Everyday when I get home from school I watch all of the shows that went on during the day. My instagram feed has been flooded with nothing but shots from the runway. It's a super exciting time, I love seeing all of the hard work and beautiful creativity that the designers have put into their clothes and work. It's a very inspiring week full of inspiration. It's like the fashion world gets a breath of fresh air. So in honor of Valentines day I'm going to post looks from fashion week that I absolutely love. 

Designer: Tadashi Shoji. This dress from Shoji's 2014 Fall Colllection is breathtaking. The vibrant red color and elegant bodice are perfect combinations. This dress is hot but super classy. I'm in love.

Designer: Rebecca Minkoff. This whole look from Minkoff's Spring 2014 collection is so fun. The sporty jacket, graphic tank ( my favorite, Mexico is always a good idea :)  beautiful yellow lace pencil skirt, and heels work together so perfectly. Every piece is different from one another but when you bring all the pieces together it works and I love that!

Designer: Lela Rose. This dress is from Lela Rose's 2014 fall collection and it is an absolute dream. The color is beautiful and I love the simplicity of the whole look. It's extremely elegant but also really fun and whimsical.

Designer: Oscar de la Renta. So there was no way I could just pick one look from Oscar's fall 2014 collection. He is my favorite designer of all time and to pick just one of his designs would've been to hard! So I picked my top five (which was still difficult to do). The first dress is beautiful and reminds me of a fairy tale. It's pastel colors, gold belt, and shimmering  bow embroidery make a classic look that is soft and sweet. The second dress is a masterpiece. The color blocking of light pink and deep maroon is genius. The velvet fabric bodice adds edge to the look while the soft pink full skirt makes it girly and playful. The third look is what I like to think of as business women 2014. More people should wear things like this to the office. The peplum jacket with the silver belt and gorgeous skirt are a perfect combination. The whole look is very simple but it definitely turns heads. Lastly we have the man him self standing with his two final looks. The cobalt blue flower print gown and shimmering ruffle of polka dots gown are the supreme dresses. Elegant, fun, inspiring. Everything Oscar is about. Now I just have to wait for mine to come in the mail. :)

I hope you all enjoyed these looks as much as I do!
Happy Valentines Day!
xoxo
Sofia

He Knows Me

                                                                           

Hey everyone! I hope you guys have been enjoying your weekend so far, I know I have. This past school week has been so busy and stressful, full of tests, projects, quizzes, homework, and a very difficult math class, I have been awaiting a relaxing Saturday. Although this week has been a hard one full of different trials and obstacles that tested my faith I have found great comfort. In the beginning of the week right before school stared I came across this verse "For the Lord is a God who knows." - 1 Samuel 2:3. I carried this verse in my heart the rest of the week. Through every stressful day, heartache, and frustration of this week this verse would come to my mind. God knows me. He knows me better than I even know myself. The God of the universe who created the stars and skies knows me. I found so much peace in that truth this week. At the end of every day I would find myself resting in the love that Jesus pours out on me and the truth that He knows me. This week also made me think of what my life would be like without Jesus. It honestly is scary to think about. What would I have done with myself this past week without the peace and hope that is found in Christ? I can't imagine. I know this, I wouldn't have found peace. It's truly amazing that we have unlimited access to a peace and love that can't fail or run out or be shaken. Although spending time with God and trusting in His truth's did not change the difficulty of my math class, the not so nice people I encountered, or the workload I was presented with, it changed my heart. His peace and comfort restored me and filled me up after such draining days. Take a minute to think about the fact that God knows you. He loves you and longs to refresh you after awful days of stress and trials. This week was tiresome but refreshing. God has drawn me nearer to Him and I've found myself wrapped in His love, which by the way is an incredible feeling. God doesn't have to love us or care about our small lives that consist of stresses and worries but He does. He loves and cares and that's so wonderful. In our pain and mistakes, God loves and knows us. Rest in that truth and take a minute to breathe and realize that the Creator of the universe is deeply in love with you and knows you better than you know yourself. 


                                                                      Love,
                                                                          Sofia

                           Watch this awesome video to hear some awesome acoustic music by Hillsong that will definitely fill your heart. 

Giving

Hey everyone! Can you guys believe that Christmas is only 9 days away? Time goes by so fast. This season is all about giving so it's funny how God has really placed it on my heart this week. He's been teaching me a lot about being a cheerful giver and being generous. Through God's word I've also been learning a lot about how you don't have to have money to give. Giving of yourself and investing the gifts God has given to you into others lives is the ultimate way to give. Last night my youth group hosted a kids night. Basically parents from church signed their kids up and my youth group watched them for a few hours while the parents could go do whatever they wanted. I had no idea how much it would bless me. I'll be honest it was exhausting. Chasing a three year old around a playground, holding a one year old on your hip for most of the night, and making sure everyone was safe and having a good time will wear you out. As crazy as it was I found myself feeling great. When the parents came to get their kids I found myself not wanting to let go of the little one I bonded with, but I also saw the extreme gratefulness that the parents had. Some of them hadn't had time until now to go Christmas shopping because there was no one to watch the kids, others just needed to run errands or rest. It was so awesome to give of myself and offer the gifts that God has placed in me to contribute to helping others. When I came home tired and ready to sleep I decided to read one chapter in the bible before going to bed. I'm so glad I did. I've been reading in 2 Corinthians all week and this was in my next chapter.

                        

 "This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of the Lord’s people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God.  Because of the service by which you have proved yourselves, others will praise God for the obedience that accompanies your confession of the gospel of Christ, and for your generosity in sharing with them and with everyone else.  And in their prayers for you their hearts will go out to you, because of the surpassing grace God has given you.  Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!"- 2 Corinthians 9:12-15

This describes my experience in nut shell.  Remember that giving is so much better than receiving and that that's what Christmas is all about. We received the Ultimate gift from God, so it only makes sense to give to others out of the overflow of what God has given to us. Whether you have tons of money or very little, a lot of time on your hands or not enough, know that Jesus is the reason for the Season and that the gift of Christ is the greatest gift of all. Give of yourself, offer love to others, show that you care and then you to have accomplished giving a great gift. 

                                                            Love,

                                                                Sofia

Inspiration is everywhere.

  Hey everyone! I hope you all have had a great week so far. Finally the weekend has arrived! I am always looking for inspiration and tend to find it in everything, as Chanel once said "Fashion is not something that exists in dresses only. Fashion is in the sky, in the street, fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening." Here are some of my inspirations from the week. Be inspired! 

                                                              Love,
                                                                  Sofia

The smell, sound, and life. The ocean has greatly inspired a big project I've been working on this week. It's one of my favorite places in the world. 

One of my favorite fashion designers, Zac Posen, inspires me always, but especially this week because he keeps posting pictures on instagram of his pre fall 2014 collection and it looks absolutely wonderful. He is a genius.

I haven't sewed in so long and it's one of my favorite hobbies. This picture I came across on Pinterest has got me wanting to get back to it!

A Million Suns ~ Hillsong United  (This song is beautiful and fills me with beams of hope)

Sophia Bush (we don't have the same name)  is an amazing actress and activist. Her passion to make this world a better place has inspired me so much and encourages me to do big things. Something she said this week on instagram really got to me "Some people say that educating every child on earth is impossible. Those people are wrong. It is possible to change the world. Don't just dream about it. Do it. Impossible Is Nothing."

 Chiara Ferragni, aka The Blonde Salad is a  walking piece of art. Everything she wears, designs, and writes is a inspiration. Her style is so unique and artistic. I will literally sit on her blog for hours scrolling through hundreds of pictures of her outfits. Now I just need to figure out how to get into her closet...

So this week I started reading The Chronicles of Narnia series by C.S Lewis. First of all it's one of the best book series ever and one of my absolute favorites. With it's wonder, magic, and the wonderful Aslan this series has inspired my heart this week. God is everywhere.  

Music to my ears and style to my eyes. This amazing music group Haim not only has wonderful songs but a great sense of style.  I love these dark colors, biker jackets, tights, and combat boots. The perfect combination for a perfect winter outfit.

Forgiveness

               I love when God reveals things to me, even if He does it in the midst of my weakest times. So what have I learned recently? Christians need forgiveness too. I have accepted Jesus into my heart. I have been forgiven and strive to live life not for myself but for Jesus. I study God's word, fellowship with other believers  and spend time with God. So why do I still need forgiveness. I shouldn't right? I've already been forgiven. I'm a Christian now so I should no longer do anything that causes forgiveness to be needed. Wrong. Being a follower of Christ does NOT make you perfect or in any less need of forgiveness than someone who isn't a believer. Sometimes this can be hard to accept. When we are truly in love with Christ and are following Him in our lives, failing and messing up can take a pretty big hit on us. We can become mad at ourselves and think things like "I can't believe I just did that, I knew it was sinful and wrong." Accepting Jesus into our hearts and becoming a Christian does not mean we are perfect, we are still going to fail, give into temptation, hurt others and so on.That is why it is so important to understand the depths of forgiveness. Jesus didn't say, "I'll forgive you once and that's it." He has forgiven everything we've done and everything we will do. All we have to do is ask. We are sinners. Messy, broken, and dirty people who no matter how much we serve God, deserve to worship Him or come face to face with Him in heaven. The good news out of all of this? We get to experience how wonderful God's grace is. The fact that He continually offers forgiveness throughout our whole lives is amazing. Don't ever think that because you are strong in your faith you don't deserve forgiveness when you mess up. Because no one deserves it, but God gives it anyways. I learned this lesson today and it's really opened my heart and mind to the depths of God's love. You're never to strong or far in your faith to learn more. So if you're struggling with somethings and find yourself failing and falling into your desires, don't beat up on yourself. Repent, accept the grace that is freely yours, and pray for God's help to give you the strength you need in order to forgive yourself. And here is a great bible verse for all of us to remember when we fail, sin, or do something wrong.

            For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin.  Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.  Hebrews 4:15-16

Pray Without Ceasing

             Hey everyone! I hope you guys have been having a good week and a great Sunday! Over the past few days God has really placed the meaning of prayer on my heart.The testing of  my faith and willingness to pray and let God take control has really come into play this week and I believe that I've really grown in my walk of prayer just over the past two days. Life is hard. That's something we all know. But Jesus never once told us that it would be easy. As a matter of fact in Matthew 16:24 He says "If anyone desires to be My disciple, let him deny himself [ disregard, lose sight of, and forget himself and his own interests] and take up his cross and follow Me [cleave steadfastly to Me, conform wholly to My example in living and, if needed be, in dying also]." Doing this is not easy. Denying yourself each day and taking up the cross is one of the hardest things there can be to do. But we have hope. Right before Jesus was arrested to be crucified He prayed. He went aside by himself and cried out to God. "My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done." (Matthew 26:42) Before praying he said to His disciples "My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death..."(Matthew 24:38). Doesn't this sound like us sometimes.? We can become so overwhelmed and burdened with sadness that we become hopeless.  Before taking up the cross Jesus himself prayed seeking peace and guidance in such a dark time. He was burdened and in anguish so He prayed. What does this tell us? We are supposed to imitate Christ and if Jesus the very person who wiped away all of our sin and shame got down on His knees and cried out to God for help then we to should do the same. Taking up the cross is a big deal and there will be times when it feels impossible to do. That is why we must pray.   Knowing that we have been asked to take up the cross, which is a task far to impossible for us to do on our own, we must pray asking God to help us throughout our day. So my challenge to you today is to pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17) know that your prayers are powerful and effective and that God is listening and will provide all that you need and ask for. My prayer for everyone that reads this post today is that "The God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit." Romans 15:13  

Love,

Sofia