~A Writer's Thoughts~

It's my life...

2010-03-04T19:47:00.000-08:00

It's been quite some time since I've posted and feel its time to jump back on the blogging bandwagon. Life is ridiculously busy these days. Work, school and church consume all of my time. I've grown by leaps and bounds in the past months.
Last July, I was very blessed to spend a week in the amazing country of Peru. The people are so amazingly sweet and hungry for God like I've never seen before. It was beautiful to spend time so far from home and see how the same God that is here is in fact moving and working over there. I saw things that changed my viewpoint on life. As cliche as this sounds, that experience changed my life forever. I know now more than ever before that I am very blessed and fortunate to live where I do and to have the life that I have. I saw young children living on the banks of a river in small huts/shacks living off the generosity of travelers and people passing by. We were passing by train and my heart sank as I saw a young boy, maybe 7 or 8 holding the hand of a young girl, who was maybe 5 or 6 (possibly his sister). They were both wearing tattered and dirty clothes. They were running alongside the train as we went by, we slowed and stopped. They ran up to a window a few seats behind me and I looked out at them. I couldn't help it. I reached into my bag and pulled out two bags of animal crackers I had. I called to him, "Mijo, mira..." He looked up and I tossed the bags out to him. The smile on his face was mind boggeling. How something so small could bring such happiness to a young boy was heart-wrenching. As the train started to pull away, the young boy ran to keep up as long as possible, waving and smiling. As I watched him disappear, the emotions that I felt cannot be described.
On a much different note, I am still plugging away in college, trying to get those units under my belt. Anyone who knows about school knows that its a marathon, not a sprint.
I have an incredible job working with kids. As unpredictable as children are, they can bring a happiness to your day that's so very special. They have a perspective on life that is so innocent and simple. They help me enjoy things that are most important. I am blessed to have fantastic management. They are so supportive and pull the best out of me. They are constantly challenging me and showing me just how much I am capable of.
Church is indescribable! God is doing some amazing things and I am so proud of my Pastor, the ministry, and the departments that I am involved in. I couldn't ask for a better group of brothers and sister to walk in faith with! As I have unloaded much of my thoughts this evening, I will leave you to yours.

As my Great Grandmother always says, God be with you!!!
~Elizabeth Ashley~

You Never Let Go

2009-06-01T21:08:00.000-07:00

So, I've heard this song many times on the radio and thought, "Oh, that's a cool song." It was nothing I ever pictured in a church service though. Until Bro. Mark Christain came. He had so much anointing when he sang this song. I never thought in a million years that this song would be such an awesome tool! But really, the whole church was moved beyond words. People were so open to the moving of God. He didn't even preach. He just sang this song and people instinctively came to the altar. Let me tell you, God met them there. It was such a beautiful thing to experience!

Read these lyrics and really think about what they are saying. See if it doesn't touch you.

You Never Let Go by Matt Redman

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death
Your perfect love is casting out fear
And even when I’m caught in the middle of the storms of this life
I won’t turn back I know You are near
And I will fear no evil
For my God is with me
And if my God is with me
Whom then shall I fear?
Whom then shall I fear?

Oh no, You never let go
Through the calm and through the storm
Oh no, You never let go
In every high and every low
Oh no, You never let go
Lord, You never let go of me

And I can see a light that is coming for the heart that holds on
A glorious light beyond all compare
And there will be an end to these troubles
But until that day comes
We’ll live to know You here on the earth

Yes, I can see a light that is coming for the heart that holds on
And there will be an end to these troubles
But until that day comes
Still I will praise You, still I will praise You

As my grandmother says, God Be With You!!!
~Elizabeth Ashley~

No Limits

2009-04-28T23:13:00.000-07:00

Limit: the final, utmost, or furthest boundary or point as to extent, amount, continuance, procedure, etc.:

I'm not a man, I cannot lie.
I know the plans for your life,
I'm asking you to dream again,
believe again
and take the limits off of me.
No I'm not a man, I cannot lie.
I know the plans I have for you
they're my design,
so I'm asking you just to hope again
and trust again
and take the limits off of me.
All I'm asking is take the limits off,
take the limits off,
release me to accomplish what I promised you,
take the limits off me,
take the limits off
release me release me
No limits
no boundaries
I see increase
all around me
stretch forth
break forth
release me
enlarge my territory
Take the limits off
take the limits off
release me release me

The lyrics above are to the song No Limits. It came on last night and I begin to think (yet again, I know) about the recent events in my life. I've taken leaps and bounds in the spiritual sense and it's been the best choice I've ever made. Then again, you can't go wrong anytime you move foward spiritually. LOL.

In all honesty though, I've really gotten to the point where I've taken the limits off of God and let HIM do what HE wants to do in my life. I tried figuring it out on my own and let me tell you, it doesn't work.

We are the ones who put the limits on. God has such great plans for us and when he starts to reveal them, we start putting limits on. We say, "God, I'm too young. God, I can't speak well. God, I don't know anything about that."

What we fail to realize is God doensn't call the qualified, but he qualifies the called. He looks and sees a willing vessel, an available life and says, "I'm going to use them." God never looks at us as we are. He sees what we are IN HIM. On our own we are nothing. But in him we become something BEAUTIFUL!

Don't tie God's hands by telling him what he can and can't do through you! He's the ALL-KNOWING, ALL-POWERFUL, MIGHTY God of the universe!!! He knows what he's doing!!!
Who are we to question HIM?!?!

God Be With You!
~Elizabeth Ashley~

Souls...this one is for you Audrey...=)

2009-04-24T13:56:00.000-07:00

This past Tuesday I went on a little "field trip" with my English Professor and some classmates downtown to see the play The Kite Runner. It was a great experience on many levels. It's always interesting to see people in a different setting than what you normally see them. The play was well-written and wonderfully acted. If you're not familiar with the play, here is a bit of background. It is set in Afghanistan over a period of time. Towards the end of the play (while depicting the civil war in the 1980s), the main character is in desperate need and beings to call out to allah to help him. The emotion was so raw and the sincerity was astounding. So much so that it brought tears to my eyes.

I know it was just acting, but I knew there was reality of that in everyday life. It struck a chord with me and I fought tears. My heart ached for those who are hungry and hurting. I come in contact with so many lost people everyday who are looking for an answer. We see them everyday, but do we really SEE them? This reminds me of the song Give Me Your Eyes by Brandon Heath:

Looked down from a broken sky
Traced out by the city lights
My world from a mile high
Best seat in the house tonight
Touched down on the cold black top
Hold on for the sudden stop
Breath in the familiar shock
Of confusion and chaos
All those people going somewhere,
Why have I never cared?

Give me your eyes for just one second
Give me your eyes so I can see
Everything that I keep missing
Give me your love for humanity
Give me your arms for the broken hearted
Ones that are far beyond my reach.
Give me your heart for the ones forgotten
Give me your eyes so I can see

Step out on a busy street
See a girl and our eyes meet
Does her best to smile at me
To hide what's underneath
There's a man just to her right
Black suit and a bright red tie
Too ashamed to tell his wife
He's out of work
He's buying time
All those people going somewhere
Why have I never cared?

I've Been there a million times
A couple of million eyes
Just moving past me by
I swear I never thought that I was wrong
Well I want a second glance
So give me a second chance
To see the way you see the people all along

Give me your eyes for just one second
Give me your eyes so I can see
Everything that I keep missing
Give me your love for humanity
Give me your arms for the broken hearted
Ones that are far beyond my reach.
Give me your heart for the ones forgotten
Give me your eyes so I can see

This song is just a reminder that WE are HIS eyes, hands, feet, etc...He has put us here to show the world who he is through us! We need to look at them as souls, not just another person that we are brushing shoulders with. This is such a humbling task, but it's empowering and enlightening as well!

As my Great Grandmother always says, God be with you!
-Elizabeth Ashley

Some food for thought...

2009-04-20T17:50:00.000-07:00

So, on the way home from Convention I was thinking...scary, I know, but it produced good results this time. The topic of self condemnation came up (in my mind lol) and I'm not really sure why. However, I began to think about why we feel so bad when we mess up and after we've asked for forgiveness even though God is so merciful. I was telling a friend how it amazes me how much we fight condemnation when we have many examples in the Bible of people who were so close to God, but fell in major ways: people like David, Jonah, Moses, Samson...this list could go on and on. We are all human and therefore, CONTINUALLY make misakes. The thing is we tend to sit where we fall and wonder why we did what we did and how we could ever be forgiven. The amazing thing is we are already forgiven. God said, "I forgive you" when he shed his blood on that cross for us. All we have to do is voice our repentence and receive that forgiveness. Then, we get up, dust ourselves off, and continue walking. The issue of self condemnation has nothing to do with God forgiving us, but it is about us forgiving ourselves.
Until Next Time!!!
~Elizabeth Ashley~

The First

2009-04-19T19:32:00.000-07:00

My first entry...and what should I write about? I'm really not sure. Therefore, you'll just get my current thoughts. It's Sunday evening and I'm finally putting my feet up after quite a week. Last weekend (Easter Weekend) we had our Easter Drama, The Messiah 2009. It was a wonderful weekend. It was filled with an anointed cast and SO MANY touched lives. The Drama took so much work and dedication, but the end result was worth every bit. The second thing was our annual Youth Convention. Words cannot describe what this convention did for me personally and our youth as a whole. On the way there I sent a text to my friend and asked her to pray that I would get something from God and that I didn't want to come back the same. Boy, did I get what I asked for. Bro. Nathan Keating taught a message titled "Who are you and who do you belong to?" It was so powerful yet so easily understood at the same time. We have a name, heritage, and a Father who is THE King! Bro. Caballero hit home preaching "Preserved for a Purpose." He talked about the calling that God has placed upon our lives and how when situations come and try to destroy us, God preserves us and uses those situations to make and mold us so that we can be used for that purpose. Then finally on Friday, Bro. Gurley preached a message that changed me forever. "I Am The Revival." Instead of asking God to send the revival, we need to start it within ourselves and take it out to those in need. It was SO eye opening. At the end of his message, he called everyone up to the front and had all the ministers face us. Then he told us all to lift our hands and they were going to pray that Boldness would come over us. After the prayer said, "Now, we're going to put into practice what we just prayed for. Find those in your youth group who don't have the Holy Ghost and you're going to pray them through." Let me tell you, we prayed them through and then some. Young people we're getting blessed right and left. It was such a beautiful thing to experience. My life was changed and I know that I will never be the same.

Well, that's all for now. Until Next Time!

-Elizabeth Ashley