The Blood

 "We have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body." - Hebrews 10:19

It's Friday and I couldn't be any happier. I have two final exams left and then I'm done with my first semester of  college! I can't believe it! God has been so faithful and the things He has done in my life this semester are crazy. He is so good and continually captivates my heart. Jesus is the greatest pursuer and the ultimate love.  Living in this divine romance with Christ out beats everything. Something that God has really placed on my heart recently is how much the blood of Jesus impacts my everyday life.  It"s funny because I started this week with wanting to study purity and the Holy Spirit led me to Calvary. Honestly that's where purity begins, at the foot of the cross. Jesus began to deal with my heart and show me that purity starts with His blood. Not just sexual purity but pureness of mind, heart, and spirit. When we accept Jesus as Lord and Savior we are washed in His blood and we become the righteousness of God. When God sees us He no longer sees our sins but sees the pureness of Christ. "Their sins and lawless acts I will remember no more." (Heb 10:17) When the enemy tries to attack us he sees the blood of Jesus and has to flee because he can not stand in God's presence. "When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord shall lift up a standard against him." (Isaiah 59:19) The blood of Jesus is a covering and washing. It breaks strongholds and opens up the floodgates of heaven. It secures eternal life, brings healing. It is everything. Do you see how dependent we are? We can achieve nothing of ourselves. Even our praise and worship to God is enabled to us by His breathe. The blood of Jesus is powerful, precious, but also very humbling. Why? His blood gives us life. Without it there is no life. His blood brings us to the foot of the cross which causes us to kneel in a posture of worship saying "Lord I need you." I come from a family that pleads the blood of Jesus, some might say it's an old school Pentecostal thing but I think it's a biblical thing and I can see the power in it. The power of life and death is in the tongue, when we plead the blood we appeal to the victory of the cross and speak the wonder working power of the blood shed over any situation or person we might face. Pleading the blood works and I think it should be apart of every believers life. We have a new life all because of His blood and the thing is the blood of Jesus is not just a one time thing. So many Christians live thinking once they accept Jesus into their lives the blood washes them once and that's it. While it is true that there is that one moment where you become officially covered in his blood and sealed by His spirit, it's not just a one time event. The blood of Jesus doesn't rub off of you. You stay covered in it and have total access to the victory in it because of His body that was broken on the cross. It's a supernatural transformation. The natural mind can't comprehend how people get miraculously delivered from illness, depression, greed, envy, rage, malice. The natural mind can't understand how a person can go from being strung out on crack one week and then the next week being a completely changed person who is on their face crying out to God. It's not supposed to make sense, the blood of Jesus is not of this world but it has entered this world so that we can have life. Isn't His blood so precious! Just think about it, we are healed and set free from our past, sin, and shame, all because He shed His blood. It makes us holy and marks us as His. I don't know about you but I am so thankful to be marked as a child of the King. I know that His blood has secured me and covered me and that no weapon formed against me shall prosper all because of His sacrifice. If God never did another thing for me it would okay because He already has done everything I need. He has given me everlasting life through the wonder working power of His blood. Let's live with these words from Jesus always in our spirits "This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you." (Luke 22:20). Drink from His cup and be satisfied. -Love Sofia

                                  

Victory (How a tattoo can display God's amazing love)

Happy Saturday everyone! I hope you all have had a good weekend so far. Today I just wanted to write a short post on tattoos. Not just any tattoo but my best friends tattoo and the beautiful story behind it. God has allowed me to be apart of Courtney's life and watch her go through some terrible things all while fighting and giving her life to Christ. Being friends with her has been one of the most rewarding things because I have gotten to see the healing power of Jesus displayed in an amazing way. Seeing  your best friend struggle with self harm, seeing the terrible physical scars, and the spiritual damage, and helping them carry that burden is one of the hardest things to go through. It was even harder for her! But seeing her get a tattoo that reads "Victory"over the scars is the most amazing thing in the world. I know you might be thinking "It's just a tattoo why are you getting so emotional." But it is so much more than a tattoo. It is a display of the wonder working power of the cross. This tattoo is a testimony of how Jesus literally takes our brokenness and heals it with His love. I love the cross!!!!!! Jesus came to defeat our enemies and because of the cross my best friend can get a tattoo over one of the most painful and darkest parts of her life that reads Victory. I'm weeping as I write this because I'm so overwhelmed by Jesus' love. It doesn't make any sense other than to say God is Sovereign and His blood defeats depression, self harm, anxiety, suicide, and every other attack that the enemy brings against us. I hope this can inspire you guys and touch your hearts. There is no one greater than Jesus. God I'm so in Love with You. Thank you for healing my best friend, thank you for the cross. Here's the verse that inspired the tattoo and her heart.
 "You give me strength for the battle and victory over my enemies." - 2 Samuel 22:40

New Seasons. Same God.

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