this week i’ve learned how to say yes to God. to give him my alabaster heart. to lay it all at his feet.
i surrender to him. i want him to do what he wants with me. i don’t want to live for me, but for him! he’s so good and so worthy and so perfect!
i choose to run into your open arms.
i choose to believe i am who you say i am.
i choose to live each and every day for you.
i choose to obey you.
i choose to be filled with your fruits of the spirit.
i choose to continue raising a hallelujah for those who don’t know you yet.
i choose to praise you even when i don’t understand what you’re doing.
Abba brought me to the song “where you are” and these lyrics really stood out to me:)
in the quiet place, God
fill it with love
in the motives, Jesus
wash them with love
everything i do
let it be for you
. . . . . . .
anywhere you are
i wanna be there
it’s written on my heart
you’re all i’ve ever needed
anywhere you go
i wanna be there
it’s written on my soul
you’re all i’ve ever needed
i want to go wherever he calls me. i know he’ll lead me there.
he is the same yesterday, today, and forever. even when i’m “not feeling it,” he can use me. he doesn’t call me to “feel it.” i fall. i get up. i don’t want to wait for bad moments to go running to God, i want my life to be a constant chase after him.
i’ve been giving God my day every morning and giving him the permission to use me however he pleases. then God challenged me into saying “yes” to him . . . publicly in front of a bunch of people!
i got baptized yesterday. february 13, 2020 i renewed my vows with the Lord. i was not expecting it AT ALL.
let me tell y’all the story:)
so i got baptized when i was 13. on my 13th birthday actually. i was so so excited but i didn’t exactly understand what i was doing, i just knew it was a big deal to God and all my friends were going to be there to watch me.
yesterday after activation, Gabe came up and said there was going to be an opportunity to get baptized in our big green yard. immediately my heart started thumping. but i wasn’t super excited to do it, not at first. as i watched a bunch of my squad mates and staff on the base get baptized, i kept thinking about how i had gotten baptized for the wrong reasons before, and i didn’t want to get baptized again just bc other people were doing it. i wanted to be sure this was something that i really wanted. i asked God to give me some sort of sign that he wanted me to go through with it, and low and behold, my friend gel walks by, and all this girl has to do is LOOK at me and we both knew. i KNEW. i still waited a bit bc i was so frustrated that i was nervous. i told gel about how this is the same rushing feeling of excitement and terror as before i jumped off the cliff into the lake at midpoint debrief. i knew it was going to be okay, i just had to jump. and i kid you not, as soon as i told gel that, gabe comes back with the hose to fill the tub up with more water and says, “i feel like there’s someone standing on a cliff.” and BRO it was literally so crazy. so i get up in front of everyone, literally already crying haha, and get baptized again. and let. me. tell. you. it was the most freeing thing ever. i renewed my vows with the most perfect being ever. he loves me so much and i made a public acknowledgement that i love him too and want to do whatever he wants me to. holy cow, being obedient is oh so freeing!
so i want to encourage all of you to say “yes” to God. whether that means getting baptized or not, God wants to use you, just give him the green light! surrender your life to him, it’s the most freeing feeling in the world.
love love love you all!
maddie
