Testimony

Suffering My Thorn

/ Liz Herod / Leave a comment

To be honest, I haven’t been feeling much like myself lately. I’m falling back into a depressive slump, and I don’t like it, but I don’t know what to do to fix it. Of course, I don’t have to know. Why? Because me knowing is all about “me, me, me” when it’s not about me at all; I should be focused on “Him, Him, Him.” That’s my problem when I start stumbling. I focus on my feeling helpless, my feeling lost, and my inability to quell this monster on my own. The thing is it’s not my battle to win! If I try to destroy my depression and anxiety on my own, I will lose every time. I need to give it to Him.

2 Corinthians 12:7-10 says,

“. . . So to keep me from becoming proud, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger from Satan to torment me and keep me from becoming proud.

“Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. Each time He said, ‘My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.’ So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. That’s why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

My depression, my anxiety – they are my thorn. I have cried out to God over and over again to remove them from me, but He refuses. He keeps sending me these verses instead, and so I will boast of this thorn in my side and use it to serve God’s glory. Through my weakness, He makes me strong. I place my trust in His will and His hand in my life, on my mind, and on my body.

“Even though the fig trees have no blossoms,
And there are no grapes on the vines;
Even though the olive crop fails,
And the fields lie empty and barren;
Even though the flocks dies in the fields,
And the cattle barns are empty,
Yet I will rejoice the LORD!
I will be joyful in the God of my salvation!
The Sovereign Lord is my strength!
He makes me as surefooted as a deer,
Able to tread upon the heights.”

Habakkuk 3:17-19

No matter what seems to be going wrong, I will rejoice in the Lord my God and trust His path for my life. The road my not be easy, but I know it will be worth taking, even with all the valleys I must walk through. The darkness will not claim my life but give me a testimony to bring others to the Light.

“Though the sorrows my last for the night, joy comes sin the morning.”

Psalm 30:5b

Who can know how long the night will last, but the morning will come.

I suffer this thorn in my side, for I know that I am trading my sorrow for joy, my weakness for strength, my pain for comfort, and my past for my salvation – and each of you can do the same. Your thorn may be different from mine. Your story certainly is, but God can use your testimony to serve Him, if you let Him.

Don’t be ashamed of your journey; share it! Someone needs your story.

God bless!

Elizabeth

Finding Peace and Remembering to Rejoice: A Journey With Grief

/ Liz Herod / Leave a comment

“I will rejoice, I will rejoice, and be glad…”

I Will Rejoice/There Is A River

Even when it’s hard, even when I don’t feel I can be, even when my heart is broken and my soul is hurting, I will rejoice, I will be glad, in the presence of the Lord.

He is El Sheddai. He rules over every part of my life, every part of my world. The pain and the darkness may last for the night, but the joy of the Lord – MY Lord – will last forever (See Psalms 30:5). He restores my soul, and I will praise Him – through the storm, through the fire, through it all (See Psalms 23:3).

It’s been a hard week for me and for my family. Tuesday morning, I lost my grandma. gmaThe possibility had been there – she had been sick – but she had been getting better, and I just wasn’t prepared. I’ve been fighting to keep myself together, and I have lost that fight and gone to pieces more than a few times. Sunday morning, I broke down during service when we sang “Wonderful Peace” because I just have not been able to find that God-given peace. I can’t understand why. I know she has finally reached her better, and I know she’d tell me not to worry because all is well now that’s she’s with the King, but the truth of the matter is that it doesn’t matter how much I know these things, I also know that the pain of her loss is still heavy on my heart regardless of how much I know.

When I hit the altar yesterday morning, I told God how much I’m struggling to find His peace, and he reminded me:

“You are not in this fight alone. Lean on those who love you: your friends, your family, and especially your church. They are in place at my command to help you through.”

For these God-sent people, I am ever thankful.

My eyes are red and raw, but I will carry on with the strength of the Lord my God, my Keeper, my Provider, my ever-present help in times of need.

God bless!
Elizabeth

God is Great, Even When the Road is Dark.

/ Liz Herod / 1 Comment

Y’all, God is just SO good. I’m wrapped palpably in His presence right now. He’s doing some great things in my life. I don’t know where I’m heading, but I know I have a trustworthy guide to lead me to my new destination. There’s a quote by E. L. Doctorow that says, “It’s like driving a car at night. You never see further than your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.” That’s kind of how it is with God. We can’t see the whole plan, but we can see enough to take the next step. All we have to do is trust our road, which is the path God has laid out for us. It’s when we stop following the road that we start wrecking.

I pray guidance and clarity over each and every one of you that you will be able to see the path ahead of you, that you will pay attention when God reveals to you with his light like Moses paid attention to the burning bush. I pray peace and trust into your spirit that you will have no doubt in your steps, even though you can’t see far ahead of you. But, most of all, I pray courage into your hearts that you will keep going when the path gets steep, when the path gets bumpy, and when there are so many twists and turns you think you must be lost. He’s got you! So long as you hold onto Him and keep your eye on His light and His road for you, you will not ever be lost.

God bless!
Elizabeth

What does BREAKTHROUGH mean to me?

/ Liz Herod / Leave a comment

This was the question of the night from last week’s weekly devotion. Everyone who shared their answer on the call had fantastic and inspiring answers. I’d like to share mine with you:

To me breakthrough means…

Overcoming: Breaking into:
Fear Freedom
Self-consciousness Joy
Doubt Confidence
Lack of self-worth Strength
Loneliness Protection
Heartbreak Love
Anxiety Peace

Reaching my breakthrough took time and work. For the most part, I didn’t overcome all of these things with one swift movement of God. He worked slowly on me for some of them. That’s the funny thing about breakthroughs: everyone’s (and every one) is different. God may instantly deliver you from what you’re struggling to break through in one miraculous moment, or he may work piece-by-piece, chipping away at the chains holding you down or the walls holding you in. It all depends on what’s best for you.

I’ve had a few of those worked-in-an-instant breakthroughs, but then I squandered my joy when I stopped working in my breakthrough. I took for granted what God had done in me and didn’t change what I as doing that led to the chains and walls to begin with, so I found myself trapped again. That’s why my breakthroughs usually take slow steps of effort to reach that final “I’m free!” moment. I’ve needed the focus of working on myself to fully appreciate the wonders of what he’s doing in my life.

Now, will my breakthroughs always work that way? Not necessarily. It all depends on what God sees in me and what he wants to do for me for my good and for HIS purpose. Every blessing I’ve ever received has been so I could work in line with HIS will. As soon as I start focusing more on what I want to do and not what HE wants me to do, I’m in trouble.

God knows what he’s doing. He knows what works for me, and he knows what will work for you. All we need to do is keep our eyes on him and follow his will above our own. As soon as he’s your focus, amazing things will start happening – I guarantee it!

Now, what does BREAKTHROUGH mean to you?

God bless!
Elizabeth

Who Am I in Christ?

/ Liz Herod / Leave a comment

I am a daughter.

I am a seeker of souls.

I am a child still learning how to fully depend on my always dependable, always faithful, always present father – my Protector, my Leader, El Shaddai.

I am an imperfect person constantly humbling myself before my ruler who is forever thankful for the forgiving love of my Father.

I am an OVERCOMER of fear and life’s distractions who will no longer allow the business of my everyday world suffocate my walk in my faith and my calling.

I am a FIGHTER for my soul, a WARRIOR who will not give up, will not give in, will not surrender when the world tries to knock me down and knock me out. I will NOT be KO’d!

I will renew my identity as a writer of words to reach, teach, and motivate a generation of souls to follow Christ as I revive the calling my God placed on my life.

This is MY breakthrough.pj442try5pn169p-cropped

Have you found your breakthrough?
Share yours in the comments or on Facebook or Twitter!
Tags: #breakthroughmovement #NCbreakthrough2015

God bless!
Elizabeth

Kicking Off My Journey: Why this blog?

/ Liz Herod / Leave a comment

This is my first post, and what better way to begin this new blog journey than with my inspiration to start this blog to begin with?

Every year, I work the NC Church of God of Prophecy youth camp in High Point. This year, however, I couldn’t get time of work to spend a week (or 5) at my second home in the summer. Not being there didn’t keep me from experiencing some of the amazing things that happened there, though. This year’s theme was “BREAKTHROUGH,” and there is no better way to describe what happened each week of camp this year. I read testimony after testimony about the amazing things God did and how changed people were from campers, workers, leaders, and directors.

The last week of the camping season this year was Senior High, which consists of youth ages 15 to college. Those attending were experiencing breakthrough after breakthrough throughout the week, and several of them decided that they did not want those breakthroughs to end when the week did, so they created the This is Our Breakthrough, a Breakthrough Movement geared towards uplifting and encouraging our generation to walk strongly in their faith. It functions as an all-inclusive support group for anyone who needs a Christian family and wants to pursue the greatness God has prepared for them.

That’s where I come in. My best friend from camp is one of the three who began the movement, and she, knowing how passionate I am for supporting our youth, invited me to join the movement, and I promptly accepted. Well, this past week or so they’ve been doing a “Breakthrough Challenge”:

The Breakthrough Challenge:
1. Make a status stating your name.
2. Telling us something good about yourself.
Ex; Katy is an amazing woman of God.
3. Then drop a selfie underneath.
Hashtag ‪#‎BreakthroughMovement‬ & ‪#‎NCBreakthrough2015‬

Naturally, I wrote mine and posted it, but I felt it needed to be more than a Facebook status, so it became a blog post on my broader, separately personal blog. Then, I participated in a devotional call with the group (10 or so people on one call is an interesting phenomenon.), and the question of the night was “What does ‘breakthrough’ mean to you?” That question has stuck with me, and when I realized my answer meant actively pursuing my calling, I knew a blog would be the best vehicle for me to use.

I’ve blogged some before, both as a personal endeavor and as a leader of a group that has since retired. I’ve missed having the platform I did with the group blogs because I knew people from all over were reading the posts and receiving something from them. In those few short months, I was actively pursuing my calling, and it felt great!

Unfortunately, due to a few team issues and members being lead in another direction, that group project ended, and the blogging platform went silent. The blogs still exist, but when the team behind the group they represent doesn’t, writing new posts just never felt right, so I stopped, and, then, slowly, all of my writing stopped.

It’s not that my desire to write stopped, but I no longer knew what to write. I’d be lying if I claimed my spiritual journey has been perfect and straight these last several months because it hasn’t been; it’s been messy, crooked, and overgrown – with people, things, and all kinds of distractions – and all that mess certainly messed with my ability to share God’s words.

Not anymore.

With this blog and this first post, I am reviving a journey into my calling that I began over a year ago, and I’d be incredibly blessed if you’d follow me as I make my way on this peculiar journey that is my walk with God.

God bless!
Elizabeth