Hey guys! It's been awhile......we have had an unbelievably busy last few weeks and I've been dying to post again! Just to give you a little background.....we had a chance to go spend a few days at the beach with Steph's parents and had an absolute blast as always. Then as soon as we all got back to Greenville, Kaden and I hopped right in some vans and headed to The Ramp is Hamilton AL. This was a CRAZY trip. Two days and 4 sessions of the presence of God! I really feel like in the last few years I have really grown in my walk with Christ but as soon as I walked into the room for that first session I could feel that this was about to be different......very different. I've heard people say many times that "it is thick in here", meaning you can physically feel the Holy Spirit in a room. I've felt this before.....but having over a thousand people in a room worshipping together increased that feeling so much that it was almost as if you walked into a wall when you entered the room. I've rewatched these sessions pretty much non stop since then and there are so many things I want to talk and write about. Finally yesterday while on my way home from work I got to experience something that was discussed during one of the messages....I was having some worship time in the car and I could hear God tell me to turn it off. Think about that statement for a minute, I'm listening to worship music and God wants me to turn it off? Basically, at least for me in this situation, this was God's way of saying "Steve turn off the music we need to have some quiet time together." Obviously I turned the radio off in the car (that's really weird by the way) and just spent time telling Him exactly how much He means to me. Thanking Him for all that He has given me and all that He is doing in me. And then it hit me......one message from the Ramp kept coming back into my mind....God was telling me what He wanted me to write about. This is definitely the first time I've felt God show me this clearly exactly what He wanted to be in the blog, it was pretty awesome! I really feel like this post is meant for more than one person to read....usually I have a person in mind that may need to hear the message but this is different.... if you are reading this post the message is for you and if you feel like it isn't then it is definitely for someone that you know. We all deal with this issue, me included. The question is What is your identity? Do you ever find yourself going through a tough time and saying something along the lines of " I'm just a screw up", "I'm a failure", or "I'm not a good parent"? I do. Here is where my "favorite" part of these posts comes in.....the story of how this applies to me. I have times here and there where something just doesn't seem to be going my way and my immediate first thought is "I am a screw up" "Nothing ever goes my way". And to be completely honest with you this past weekend while getting ready to go to a wedding I was getting dressed and nothing seemed to fit right. Which of course lead to "I'm just fat and lazy". Wow, that was a lot harder to type out than it was to say that's for sure. The problem is, anytime we feel like things aren't going great or even just when we look in the mirror sometimes we are hearing what the devil says we are. The great thing is there is someone much more important that has His own views on us, the Father. I challenge you to sit down in a "secret place", somewhere quiet and free from distractions....spend a few moments thanking God for all the blessings in your life and then buckle in because your life is about to be changed forever....ask this one simple question and do it out loud, God loves to hear your voice, "God, who do YOU say I am". For me personally it is "man of God", "leader", "someone who tries to lead his family towards the cross", and "son of the living God". I mean seriously guys we need to do this and do it often, especially when the devil tries to attack....and he will attack. He attacks people that he is afraid of! So I ask you......who do you say you are? And does that line up with who He says you are? I promise you if you spend some time just listening and talking to the Father, He will take away those feelings of inadequacy and all those things you thought defined you and fill up those empty spaces with His love. If this message was for you please reach out to me, I want to be heavily in prayer for you on this issue and as always if you have any prayer requests please drop me a message and let me know. Love you guys and I'll be listening for the next topic!
