Giant gladiolus

Former medium-turned-Christian apologist Jenn Nizza recently sat down with Don Veinot, president of Midwest Christian Outreach, to discuss what happens when believers show up at Paganicon, an annual convention for pagans, Wiccans and spiritual seekers, in the name of Jesus.

In a recent episode of Nizza's podcast, "Ex Psychic Saved," titled “Outreach to Cults, Pagans, and Atheists: What Happens When Christians Show Up at Paganicon,” Veinot shared how he and his team regularly attend the annual pagan spirituality convention to share the Gospel with those mired in deception.

Raised by an atheist father and a spiritually curious mother who was into astrology and fortune telling, Veinot shared his journey from disbelief to Christianity.

Continued below.

In the past year i have got fit and making importantand productive moves with my life, i am very grateful for the good life has given me. I have freed myself from my old life and can focus on my new one.

Thank you Lord

Skipper80 said:

Should Christians condemn people to Hell?

After answering, explain why

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I think this is different for Christians and non Christians. For Christians I think theres two aspects. There is the gospel but also following the teachings. They should go hand in hand. But there is an identifiable way of living (fruits of the spirit) we can tell.

The teachings tell us to gently rebuke and teach another Christian if they have sinned. But also to fogive them.

But then there is the church itself. The body of Christians. This is where the overseers are the guides and protectors over the church and the teachings from the wolves. Christ warned about the wolves not from sinners outside the church but within.

So in this sense and as Paul did in commanding members follow the teachings otherwise be cursed. Especially of promoting false teachings and ideologies or encouraging sin.

Then outside the church is different. This is where the gospel comes in. Being evangelists for Christ. I like the idea of messenger as it is the Good News to the world. THis is Good News not bad news about going to hell lol. Make people run for the hills.

Though I think the culture has changed where even saying repent for the Kingdom of God is at hand. Or repentence is part of the gospel people get defensive. In fact just saying the gospel and Good News is becoming offensive in some places.

But this is the thing. In the early church which the gospel was far more offensive under Nero who persecuted the Christians and executed some of the disciples like Peter and Paul.

They did not care. They still spoke the gospel. I mean Paul got assaulted about 10 times and thrown in jail. But he spoke the same truth even when the enviornment was hostile to it. It was this that the world seen that consistent truth even in the face of death that brought the Gentiles to God.

Bit old hat now, but a few months ago we had an American Catholic pianist singer-songwriter give a tutorial on music for the mass. I went along to listen with a few others from our parish.

The bloke who introduced him to us is a musician and song writer in his own right. He said the American chap had commented "Whoever they elect for Pope, you can be sure he won't be an American!"

That got a laugh.

Tucked away in a rocky mountain in southeast France is a cave formed by natural erosion called La Sainte-Baume. It is one of the oldest Christian pilgrimage sites in the world as it is the place where Mary Magdalene is believed to have spent the last 30 years of her life.

Esteemed by St. Thomas Aquinas as the “Apostle to the Apostles,” St. Mary Magdalene is regarded by the Dominicans as a secondary patroness of their order, which was founded in Toulouse, France. Appropriately, the cave remains under the care of the friars in the Toulouse province.

The Dominicans are charged with the task of welcoming and evangelizing pilgrims who make their way to La Sainte-Baume. (The word “baume” comes from the Provençal word “baumo,” meaning “cave.”) The friars, alongside staff and volunteers, run the hostelry located next to the convent at the foot of the mountain directly below the cave.

“One striking thing about Mary Magdalene is how many different people are drawn to her,” Frére Vincent-Thomas Rist, a Dominican friar of the Toulouse province, told CNA in an email. “At La Sainte Baume, we get a bit of everything: mainstream orthodox Catholics, hikers on holiday, converts from Islam, sisters on pilgrimage, tall blonde women convinced of being reincarnations of Mary Magdalene, traditionists, liberals, and even Jesuits.”

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Friedrich Rubinstein said:

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Evangelical Zionism will pass away with the boomer generation.

RDKirk said:

Disney's "Ironheart" has come and gone, unlikely in the extreme to get a second season, so it must be judged according to what we've got.​

There is a lot to dislike about Ironheart, beginning with its overeuse of outdated racial stereotypes that should have gone away in the 70s. The characters are a perfect example of writers who don't know anything about real people...they're writing characters based on characters they've seen in other media.

I couldn't get over the basic premise of the show: A technological genius named Riri Williams can't think of any way to make money except to join a Chicago criminal gang. Other people from the hood with even a smidgen of talent--like athletes and rappers--do better than that.

The writers portray Riri as completely self-interested and unable to accept responsibility for her own actions. She lies to those who love her most, putting family and friends in danger.

Moreover, it seems the writers have a glimmer of this: Halfway through the series, they actually have several characters spell out to her what her problems are, and instead of turning over a new leaf (the usual trope), she doubles down. Ultimately, she literally makes an deal with Marvel's analog of Satan to resurrect the dead friend she can't seem to live without.

It seems to me that the writers intend to tell this story as a classical tragedy of a protagonist eventually dragged to destruction by the inability to overcome their own character flaws.

If not...they're just stupid.

Faust Element	Doctor Faustus (Marlowe/Goethe)	Ironheart (Disney+/Marvel)
Gifted, restless genius	Faustus is a brilliant scholar, bored with limits	Riri is a prodigy, surpassing even Tony Stark's intellect
Desire beyond human limits	Wants ultimate knowledge and power	Desperate to undo death, Riri seeks to defy reality
Deal with the Devil	Faustus trades his soul for 24 years of power	Riri bargains with Mephisto for the resurrection of a friend
Rational vs. metaphysical	Torn between theology and necromancy	Riri, an engineer, grapples with science vs. supernatural
"You won’t miss it"	Faustus is tricked about the real cost	Mephisto’s phrasing mirrors classic demonic manipulation
Tragic weight	Faustus realizes too late what he’s done	Implicit tragic seed: What did Riri give up unknowingly?

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.... and here I thought that a faustian style story was more a Ghost-Rider plot rather than an Iron-heart plot.

eclipsenow said:

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I'm sorry but I think you got that back to front!

Climate scientists might earn $100k a year - but a Big Oil CEO probably earns that in their lunchbreak. Tell me - who has more motivation to lie?

Who has been CAUGHT lying? Exxon scientists predicted global warming with 'shocking skill and accuracy,' Harvard researchers say

Climate scientists are data driven people analysing tough questions in a slow and methodical and laborious way, trying to help the human race. Yet they get death threats from the foaming-at-the-mouth alt right for this valuable work? What has them so outraged? Ah - they perceive there are those who want to "control society". You said you believe in conspiracy theories? The link above proves one!

Also, climate change IS a thing. It's almost backyard science - indeed - Mythbusters proved the basic physics. In 1856 Eunice Foote put identical thermometers in identical glass jars in identical sunlight and filled them with different gases. Lo and behold! The CO2 jar was hot - and the methane jar even hotter! Imagine! Science works! Basically - this was old, settled physics before our grandparents even went to kindergarten.

Other points to consider:-

Why own an EV?
CHEAPER! Electricity as a fuel is cheaper than oil, and EV’s have no engine to service. Over the life of the vehicle they are cheaper. Soon they’ll be cheaper to buy outright!

PATRIOTIC
If we remain dependent on oil, we prop up the oil price so Petro-Tyrants like Russia and various Middle East types make extra profits. If the price lowers, we bankrupt our enemies.

POLLUTION COSTS MORE THAN THE SOLUTION!
4 universities studied global fossil fuel pollution: it kills 8 million people a year - that’s 1 in 5 deaths in 2018.
Deaths from fossil fuel emissions higher than previously thought
The EXTRA health costs to the world is $5 TRILLION a year.
Stop funding pollution
IEA estimates we only need to spend $4 Trillion a year on the Energy Transition. https://www.iea.org/reports/net-zero-by-2050
The sooner we do this, the sooner it pays for itself!

OIL IS FINITE
Oil does not run out any time soon - maybe in 50 years or so. But that's not what is important. Peak oil means after decades of ramping up a field is at its peak - and then starts to decline. GLOBAL peak oil means global oil output will peak - and then start to decline. Imagine the price? Imagine the geopolitical tensions - when it takes 10 calories of energy to grow 1 calorie of food?
At current rates - Oil RUNS OUT in about 50-ish years. Gas is less, and even COAL just over a century.
Years of fossil fuel reserves left

QUESTION: considering Japan bombed pear harbour because they were under an energy embargo - can you see any potential downsides to NOT preparing for peak oil? It takes a decent amount of energy to mine and refine the various metals for batteries. The long term goal is to not use any fossil fuels - and recycle all these metals we've mined into the new EV's. But the first generation is going to take some oil to get there! How about we prepare BEFORE some kind of peak oil Armageddon? Sounds like an idea to me! Peak oil - Wikipedia

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Eclipse what a climate scientist makes and an oil executive makes really has no bearing. Big business invests in both. It suits them just fine with all the climate mongering. They invest both ways. Either way oil prices are kept a whole lot higher than they should be and we pay through the teeth both ways. Be it by oil and fuel exploitation or by climate infrastructure exploitation . It’s always the everyday person that is milked and who has to foot the bill. As to climate scientists all being data driven. Well all scientists do claim the same. At the same time data can be manipulated and doctored to promote a political view or economic advantage such as with cigarettes when many a good doctor used to promote the well being of the cigarette to one’s soul back in the 40s to the 60s from what I have read. Fraud even promoted a dab of cocaine to his clients and so much more be it from the many claims of the specialist fields . Again you mention petro tyrants. Some amusing : ) there also climo tyrants too. They often have their fingers in both pies. Now again when thinking upon climate change l. I have no problem with climate change. As I said it happens everyday in various ways. What I have a problem is the political influence upon climate change as with the ozone layer and its holes which is now fully realised that they expand and decrease it’s a natural phenomenon and never really anything to do with aerosols. Far from It . More so when we consider what Mother Earth unleashes into our atmosphere on a daily basis like the gasses from volcanos even more so when they erupt along with various other things like forest fires. Car pollutions may be unhealthy to humanity but certainly not be to our vegetation for vegetation plants and trees thrive on it.. Now the arguments for and against ozone holes be a plenty. Our veiw points will probably never agree. Eclipse as to our oil production peaking and then declining there is always the matter of financial manipulation to consider . Some say fossil fuel is just a term used to make oil seem limited and precious. But considering the vast untapped oil resources in Alaska and many other places throughout the world not to mention that there be the strange habit of many oil wells that have run dry. But when checked in later yrs are now full to the max again. Seems to be a ever lasting abundance oil than what is claimed. Now you mention the Death toll from industrial pollution and vehicles. Your statistics from the universities are some 8 million deaths per year. Let’s say it’s correct. What are our alternatives. To suddenly ban all petrol driven cars and than to ban all coal fired powered stations as many environmentalists demand . What than ? The what then would be a death toll far exceeding the death toll you mention perhaps 20 fold more perhaps even more . Battery driven cars are not logical when it comes to travelling long distances and the infrastructure with power battery chargers is still problematic. And as to alternative energy filling the void replacing coal and gas via solar or wind power the alternative energy cannot be relied upon for immediate power nor constant reliable power for it depends on the good graces of the weather. It would be a economic disaster not to mention the well being of humanity for many of us without a reliable source of power. And finally Eclipse as we consider alternative energies we must always consider the well being of our human race. Have we found a better alternative energy that functions more cost effective and is a reliable source of energy other than the coal gas or nuclear that we have with us today. Not as yet or perhaps we have Eclipse perhaps there hidden away lovked under lock and key within the mind and thoughts of Nikola Tesla of clean and cheap energy within the boundaries of earths electrical fields that surround our planet. Me does think between all the religious fanatics and climate fanatics bidding for our final demise and destruction every year . It be a close run contest for first place between the both. One does think upon Georgia Guide Stones. I much happy that someone blew the nasty little stones up for promoting such a population diversity of only 1 billion people. Thankfully it be the God that has the final authority of when the earth shall end and not the science or dictates of men. Nor of anyone else that claims to determine the end. Yours Kathleen.

ThatRobGuy said:

I was referring to "clean" rap as in not explicit in its unfiltered form (which is why I referencing the cheesy old Will Smith and Vanilla Ice stuff). If you're referring to "clean edits" where they simply blank out the explicit content or do 'word replacement' in post editing, there is industry data to show that it's not terribly popular.

Sales Impact​

• Albums with the warning label saw a 30% boost in sales.
• Hip-hop albums with the label often outperformed their "clean" versions by 3:1

Modern Numbers​

The digital age brought new ways to mark explicit content, but the impact remains strong:

• Streaming platforms flag 65% of hip-hop content as explicit
• Labeled tracks get 35% more plays than clean versions
• 80% of listeners prefer explicit versions when available

The warning label transformed from a cautionary sign into a powerful marketing tool. What started as an attempt to limit sales created a new revenue stream for artists and labels. Now, the label serves as a content guide and a proven sales booster across physical and digital platforms.

Cultural Reach​

• 8 out of 10 Billboard #1 Rap/Hip-Hop albums in 2022 carried explicit content warnings
• 65% of music consumers aged 18-24 view the label as a mark of authenticity

So, I would suggest that it's a tad dishonest for people to try to pretend "it's just like every other genre, it's just peoples' skewed perceptions".

​

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Even if they played "sanitized" rap, the people who are upset now that they can't bring their own speakers to play their own music loudly in the public spaces will still be unsatisfied.

FireDragon76 said:

Anybody that treats discipline casually should remember, "with what measure you judge, it will be judged against you". Only the most egregious sins warrant church discipline in the form of expulsion, ones that threaten the good order of a church. Using it to shame, humiliate, or control other people isn't right.

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Thank you for sharing your perspective it’s a thoughtful and necessary reminder that church discipline must always be handled with deep humility, reverence, and spiritual discernment.

You're right: "with what measure you judge, it will be judged against you" (Matthew 7:2) is a sobering warning to anyone in a position of spiritual authority. We should never approach church discipline as a tool for control or humiliation. That would be a grievous misuse of Christ’s teaching. However, I do believe there's a broader purpose for biblical church discipline than just dealing with the "most egregious sins."


In Matthew 18:15–17, Jesus lays out a clear, gracious, step-by-step model for church discipline not to shame, but to restore. The goal is always redemption, never rejection. Paul echoes this in Galatians 6:1, urging us to restore a fallen brother "in a spirit of gentleness," being mindful of our own weakness.


Yet sadly, as the survey shows, many churches today avoid discipline altogether not because no one is sinning, but often out of fear of conflict, cultural pressure, or misunderstanding what love truly means. And this avoidance, ironically, can weaken the body.

Church discipline, when rooted in love and truth, serves multiple purposes:

• It protects the church from false teaching and divisive behavior (Titus 3:10, Romans 16:17).
• It helps the sinner see the seriousness of sin and opens the door to repentance (1 Corinthians 5:5).
• It preserves the witness and integrity of Christ’s body before a watching world (1 Peter 2:12, Philippians 2:15).

I totally agree with you that it should never be used as a weapon to control or embarrass someone. That’s spiritual abuse, not biblical discipline. But I’d gently suggest that the church does the Body no favors by treating discipline as a last resort only for scandalous sin. Even smaller, hidden sins can spread like leaven if left unaddressed (1 Corinthians 5:6–7).


The early church understood this balance. They were committed to both grace and accountability two sides of the same coin. Today, recovering that balance might just be one of the ways we revive holiness, unity, and power in our churches again.

Thanks again for raising this. It’s a conversation the modern church truly needs.

Grace and peace to you.

iluvatar5150 said:

I'm glad the Trump administration is so concerned with human trafficking. No deplorables here.

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I hear you. I keep telling myself not to worry about what appears to be deadly snakes in the raging river of rubbish that comes out of Trump's mouth - as he uses these trolling moments to distract from the bigger agenda. But then every so often the sheer arrogant hypocrisy of it appears to let them through my guard. I'm so busy thinking of how to explain why this is wrong to MAGA types - that I might forget the real agenda - the swarm of crocodiles and hippos in his two word answer: "I dunno!".

The question? Should the President obey and support the Constitution!?
"I dunno" should fail a citizenship test - let alone disqualify from holding public office - let alone the highest office the land!

But yes - this particular distraction snake has a certain nasty bite - especially when so many in the church try to argue Trump is a sincere Christian!

Kathleen30 said:

Xeno why didn’t the Catholic Church continue to lay the foundation of St Augustine’s theology. It’s seems to have retreated in the archives of the ages for nearly a millennia. Until the Reformation

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The fact is that for the 400 years before Augustine all the Church Fathers spoke of man's responsibility in salvation, that man is free.

1. This expression [of our Lord], “How often would I have gathered thy children together, and thou wouldest not,” (Mat 23:37) set forth the ancient law of human liberty, because God made man a free [agent] from the beginning, possessing his own power, even as he does his own soul, to obey the behests (ad utendum sententia) of God voluntarily, and not by compulsion of God. For there is no coercion with God, but a good will [towards us] is present with Him continually. And therefore does He give good counsel to all. And in man, as well as in angels, He has placed the power of choice (for angels are rational beings), so that those who had yielded obedience might justly possess what is good, given indeed by God, but preserved by themselves. On the other hand, they who have not obeyed shall, with justice, be not found in possession of the good, and shall receive condign punishment: for God did kindly bestow on them what was good; but they themselves did not diligently keep it, nor deem it something precious, but poured contempt upon His super-eminent goodness. (Irenaeus [A.D. 120-202], Against Heresies - Book 4 Ch 37 The Way and Free Will)

Why would the church accept Augustine's doctrine?

You are so consistent in your devotions JP! That is good. Keep doing it.

For my devotions, rather then trying to hit what we covered in AM, Sunday School, & PM services, plus my own devotional, what I was doing in the past, I'm choosing to focus on just one all week & work on that one all week

''A terrifying new study by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has found that extensive use of ChatGPT may be rotting our brains.

Researchers at MIT's Media Lab asked participants to write SAT-style essays while dividing them into three groups: one used ChatGPT, another used Google, and the third relied only on their own knowledge — the "brain-only" group.

Brain activity was tracked using EEG machines, which recorded how engaged different parts of the brain were during the writing process.

The results showed that the ChatGPT group had the lowest brain activity and performed the worst overall in terms of thinking, writing quality, and focus. ...

The study warned that relying too much on AI tools like ChatGPT can reduce critical thinking skills, especially in young people.

The lead researcher, Nataliya Kosmyna, said she rushed the findings out because she's worried about AI being introduced too early in schools.

"What really motivated me to put it out now before waiting for a full peer review is that I am afraid in 6-8 months, there will be some policymaker who decides, 'let's do GPT kindergarten,'" she told TIME magazine.

"I think that would be absolutely bad and detrimental," she continued. "Developing brains are at the highest risk."

SOURCE

Shalom

Glory be to the Father, glory be to the Son who sits on the throne forever and ever. Amen!

Heavenly Father, source of all happiness and joy, I ask you according to your word in Romans 15:13:

That through the Holy Spirit you would fill my faith in Jesus Christ, my Lord, precious Savior and Good Shepherd, with great joy and your shalom,
so that my hope in salvation in Christ may grow ever greater and overflow to all people in Jesus' name. Amen!

Thank you for your prayers. May the Lord bless you and may he bless Israel in Jesus' name. Amen!

Soli Deo Gloria
PS And I pray that the Lord sends out harvesters into his harvest (Matthew 9:38).

ArmyMatt said:

I will add as well that Fr Stephen De Young often points out that one of the reasons we have not rejected the Masoretic text is that some words and phrases make more sense and are more clear in Hebrew than in Greek.

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I can confirm the truth of that just by having lived with both the KJV (which I grew up with) and the Church Slavonic and Synodal version. Sometimes the KJV was clearer, sometimes the OCS/Synodal v. was clearer. I understood more by dealing with both texts and seeing it stereoscopically.

Now I’m doing Serbian, which I find surprisingly easy to read, though their italics throw me for a loop, having letters that are upside-down from Russian italics.

thomasw60 said:

Getting to know each other at church and there view s an beliefs

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It is, but I am wondering why you posted it under "Creation and Theistic Evolution."

jacks said:

Next time I will put a Smiley Face in the post.

Obviously concave otherwise the water would just run out over all the dry land.

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Of course!

Michie said:

The Scriptures offer us a sobering reality: our perception of ourselves can be completely out of sync with how God sees us. Nowhere is this more evident than in Revelation 3:17, where Jesus rebukes the church of Laodicea and said, “For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked.”

This chilling contrast reveals that it is possible to be fully convinced of your spiritual health while being utterly bankrupt in the eyes of God. Sadly, many professing believers are self-deceived, thinking they are secure when they are actually standing on shaky ground. At the judgment seat of Christ — where believers are evaluated for eternal rewards, not eternal punishment — many may experience deep regret for how they lived.

The following are 10 common ways people deceive themselves spiritually and what Scripture reveals about God’s true standard.

1. Are you merely religious, or are you truly born again?

John 3:3–8

Jesus told Nicodemus, a devout religious leader, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the Kingdom of God.”

Continued below.

10 ways people deceive themselves about their faith

The Scriptures offer us a sobering reality our perception of ourselves can be completely out of sync with how God sees us

www.christianpost.com

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in Matt 7- Jesus said that the "many" are "self-deceived" saying "Lord Lord did we not do this... and that... in Your Name?"

But Jesus says to them "depart from me"

So how is it that someone is undeceived?

John 16 says God sends the Holy Spirit (God the Holy Spirit - 3rd person of Godhead) - that "convicts THE WORLD of sin and righteousness and judgment".

Rom 8:14-16 says that for those that submit to God 'The Holy Spirit bears witness with our spirit that we ARE the children of God".

The personal - , private - one on one interview with God that we have in this life, in quiet moments of worship and listening - where God Himself speaks to us.

Isaiah 41:10
‘Do not fear, for I am with you;
Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you, surely I will help you,
Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’

FaithT said:

I never heard that one before.

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I don’t think that would offend me, either.

YouTube Channel Video Devo
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“Trust The Process”
Proverbs 3:5 NIV
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.

This past Saturday, I ran a 5K with a friend of mine from church. We were both really excited to run in the same race again. Before the race started, we were talking about setting pace and I mentioned how I wanted to get below a certain time. My friend offered to pace me and get my time lower. However, he told me to just listen to him, keep up and don’t look at my race watch. I agreed with the pace he told me and I ran along with him.

Throughout the race, we chatted a lot together and he commented on my breathing as well as asking me how I was feeling. He also encouraged me to keep up when he went faster and explained when he was going to go faster. The last mile, I was hurting and I had to mentally push myself to finish. I was exhausted, but at the end, I sprinted as well as I could. We crossed the line together and I took a few minutes to catch my breath.

When I looked at my final time, I almost fell down! I couldn’t believe what I was seeing! He took me faster than I thought he would. He was sneaky and pushed me harder than the pace time he had originally said. Why?? Because he knew I was capable and could do it. Hearing that blew me away! I had an idea in mind and he took me beyond that! I trusted him to take me through the race and coach me to get a better time. And….he did!

I spent the rest of the day and weekend just blown away at what I had just done. But, I could NOT have done it if I ran on my own. He had a strategy in mind and knew what he was doing. I did not. I just trusted the process and gave it my all.

Friends, so often in our lives, we have our own ways and try to do so many things on our own. We want to improve, but we don’t know exactly how aside from what we think might work. My friend had actually recommended me to set a pace and keep that the entire race, so that was the first 5K race I had done that. It worked and it was amazing!

If we trust God in life and let go of what we think are good ideas and trust His process and timing, amazing things happen! All weekend, I just kept thanking God for this opportunity and for what my friend had pushed me and encouraged me to do. I just couldn’t believe I had done that well and didn’t think I was capable of it quite yet.

We have to trust His process. We have to trust and let Him guide, even when it hurts and we don’t think we can finish. If I had run the race on my own, this would not have happened. I am grateful for my friend’s encouragement and I am grateful that God gave me the endurance to finish this well.

When life gets tough, trust in Him and His process.