God's Been Good

Friends & Family,

Simeon and I are so blessed to have such a large group of what we would consider our "friends and family." What a blessing it is to have godly people in our lives. Because that group is so large for us, we decided that instead of sending out hundreds of Christmas cards, we would give our Christmas/2014 update on our blog. I hope you don't mind! :) Please enjoy reading about what God has done in our lives during this past year. . .

Merry Christmas! I can hardly believe that 2014 is drawing to a close. This year has held so many major life events for Simeon and I. We have seen God answer so many prayers! As I look back, I can say God truly has been so good to us!

One thing that has been special about this year is that due to some of these life events, we have had the opportunity to spend time with family and friends that we have not seen in a very long time! What a blessing it has been to both of us to be able to catch up with some of our past school teachers, Sunday school teachers, childhood friends, and more!

This letter has a twofold purpose. First, Sim and I would like to update everyone on the many changes we have experienced in 2014. Secondly and most important, we would like to take this opportunity to praise the Lord for how He has led in our lives recently! We have so much to be thankful for!

The first major event that 2014 held for Simeon and I was our college graduation in May. We both received our Bachelor’s degree from Crown College of the Bible. Simeon’s major was Missions with a minor in Business. I majored in Secondary Education with an English emphasis. Our college years were so special to us, and we learned so much not only academically, but also spiritually. We will always be grateful for the influence of our teachers and staff at Crown!

The next major event happened on Saturday, July 12^th . . . our wedding day! Outside of the day we accepted Christ as our Savior, this has been the most special day of our lives! It has been so amazing to see how God has brought Simeon and I together, and how He has had His hand in our marriage. We have been married 5 months now and are loving every minute of it! There is nothing like sharing your life with your best friend! Simeon surprised me with our honeymoon- a two week trip to Spain! This was my first time out of the country, and what an experience! We had such a wonderful trip, learned a little Spanish, and enjoyed sampling a different culture!

Since then, we have been busy with daily life. . .

           Simeon is nearing his 2^nd year working as a Financial Counselor at 21^st Mortgage. He is also taking online classes on web design, html coding, and a bunch of other “techie” things I do not understand. Haha!

           I have been blessed to primarily be a stay-at-home wife and work from home. Two days a week, I work outside the home as an office assistant for a Mary Kay Sales Director. I have been doing this for 5 ½ years and love working with my boss! For the past 2 years, I have also been doing the same type of work for other directors online. Another thing I have the privilege of doing is to do office assistant work for Dr. Ed Reese. He is an elderly man in our church who has written many books, compiled thousands of books, magazines, articles, etc. on Christian history, and is the greatest Christian researcher I know. I also teach piano lessons to three awesome kids, and I occasionally substitute teach at our church’s academy. Whew! I think that covers everything! God truly has blessed me by allowing me to do things I love, yet be able to work so much from home.

            Simeon and I are enjoying being active members in our church, Temple Baptist. One of the things Sim and I love to do together is sing, and are thankful to be members of our church choir. We also enjoy participating in the weekly prayer meeting and visitation. What a blessing it is to be a part of a church where the Gospel is preached and the main goal is for people to be won to Christ!

         

   Simeon and I are so blessed to come from Christian families. This past August, my parents moved back to Knoxville from Dover, Delaware. This was a surprise and a huge answer to prayer! We have enjoyed having both sides of the family close. Another very special family event was the Lord blessing Simeon’s older sister, Keanne and her husband Brian with a precious baby girl, Paton. She is the first grandchild on Sim’s side, so his parents are having the time of their lives spoiling her, but then so are we. She is such a joy to us all! My brother, Clay, is still serving in the United States Army in Ansbach, Germany. In May, he will have been there for 2 years. Another answer to prayer was finding out that his next duty station will be at Fort Campbell, Kentucky which is only 3 hours from Knoxville!

That about sums up what 2014 has held for us, and now we are so excited to see where God will lead in 2015! Please pray that we will continue to follow in His way for us!

As many of you know, God has called Simeon and I to be missionaries to Australia. That is all the direction He has given us at this point. We are currently praying through things, learning all we can about the country and missionaries that are already there, and saving for a survey trip we hope to take in the next few years. If you could pray for us in this matter, we would greatly appreciate it!!

I know this letter is very much about my husband and I, but I hope that as you read it, you didn’t just read an update on us, but a testimony of how God is working in the lives of two of His children. The only reason we have been blessed with anything is because of His goodness and mercy! When I was a freshman at Crown College, our Pastor preached on the story of Abraham’s servant going to find a bride for Isaac. He read Genesis 24:27, “And he said, Blessed be the LORD God of my master Abraham, who hath not left destitute my master of his mercy and his truth: I being in the way, the LORD led me to the house of my master's brethren.” The point of his message was that as we follow in the way the Lord has set for us, He promises to lead us. This verse has resonated in my heart ever since, and I have seen it played out in my life over and over again!

Thank you for the influence you have had in our lives. We are so blessed to know each of you!

May God richly bless you and your family in the New Year!

All for His Glory,

Brettnay Brazzell

Philippians 1:20-21

I'm Getting Older - But Should I Look Back or Forward?

Yes, I did have a birthday. It was on October the 23rd. I am now 23 years old. Many of you just rolled your eyes and muttered to yourself something about twenty-three not being old. I suppose you'd be right. I just feel like I'm still supposed to be sword fighting with a hockey stick in the backyard with my little brother.

I wrote once before about time being like a vapor. (The link is here) That is certainly beginning to feel true for me. It seems like yesterday, I was playing high school soccer, and today I'm 23, working a full-time job, and married! What on earth happened?

I'm not going to act like I'm distraught over it because I'm not. I love the fact that today is a new day filled with new experiences. Yesterday is the past, and I cannot change it nor would I. That brings me to my topic.

The past and the future. According to an article published in October 2010, people are more likely to react with more intensity when presented with situations effecting the future rather than the past - link. What exactly does that mean? Let me illustrate. Let's say that you were talking to someone and they told you that a friend of yours was cheated on by her husband last week, but you are in a foreign country and are unable to speak with her to let her know how sorry you are. You tried to call her but you got no answer. You would probably hurt for her for a few hours to a day and then forget about it until you got home.

Now let's take the same scenario and reverse it. Let's say that you somehow know that in one week your friend's husband is going to cheat on her, but you are in a foreign country. You tried to call her but you got no answer. I'd be willing to bet you'd do everything in your power to get a message to her. You might even pay a little extra and have your return flight tickets bumped forward a few days since you couldn't reach her by phone. It wouldn't be something that could wait. Why?

I'm not necessarily talking about adultery and its effect on people. I'm talking about the measures you would take to ensure you got a message to her. Cheating is cheating. So why in one instance do you wait till you get home, yet in the other, you do everything you can to get home? Because the past is over and you can't change it, but the future is uncertain and you feel like you can make a difference in it.

What's the point? Why do we as Christians gawk in awe at men and women of the past who made a difference, but hold no hope for the future? People spend their lives studying famous and infamous men and women of the past. That's not wrong, but we cannot effect the past personally. You can however effect the future. People are dying and going to Hell. Some people died and went to Hell yesterday. That's a terrible thing, but if we asked them I guarantee they would rather we tried to witness to others rather than live in pity for those who are already gone. (Luke 16:19-31)

Is someone's eternal future important enough for us to be a little inconvenienced? Just a thought.

Keep thinking friends,

Simeon Brazzell - I Tim. 1:12

Insignificant or Important?

Wow! So much has happened since I last wrote a blog post! I got married to the Love of my life, he whisked me off to Spain for an amazing honeymoon, and now we are settling into our daily routines together. . . yes, we've been pretty busy! But in the business of life, we have made time to seek God as a couple, praying together and studying God's Word. I'd like to share with you something God laid on my heart the other day. . .

I can't take all the credit for this blog post. Some of the inspiration came from a sermon I was listening to by Dr. Tom Farrell, but God took the seed planted by his message and has been developing it in my heart.

There are many things in life we deem important and many things we pass off as insignificant. It is amazing how God repeatedly used seemingly insignificant things in a very important way! I have listed several examples from Scripture of this very truth!

1. The Mustard Seed
Matthew 17:20 " And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you."
While some seeds have unique shapes, colors, patters, or sizes, the mustard seed is not one of those! Ranging in size from 1-2mm in diameter, you would probably not even see it if it was lying in front of you. Yet, God chose to use this plain, little seed to make a word picture for us. He said that if we have as much faith as a mustard seed, we could move mountains! So, does God see this small seed as insignificant or important? Important!

2. A Staff
Exodus 7:8-10 "And the LORD spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying, When Pharaoh shall speak unto you, saying, Shew a miracle for you: then thou shalt say unto Aaron, Take thy rod, and cast it before Pharaoh, and it shall become a serpent. And Moses and Aaron went in unto Pharaoh, and they did so as the LORD had commanded: and Aaron cast down his rod before Pharaoh, and before his servants, and it became a serpent."

Here we have a simple rod. It was probably not made out of any precious wood, for its purpose was to aid men as they walked. To us, it may not appear to be anything of value, yet God used this rod to show His power before Pharoah's entire court! Insignificant or important? Important!

3. A Scarlet Cord

Joshua 2:21 "And she said, According unto your words, so be it. And she sent them away, and they departed: and she bound the scarlet line in the window."

Joshua 6:25 "And Joshua saved Rahab the harlot alive, and her father's household, and all that she had; and she dwelleth in Israel even unto this day; because she hid the messengers, which Joshua sent to spy out Jericho."

In this story, God chose a scarlet cord to picture His greatest gift to man, salvation! By Rehab hanging that cord from her window, she saved her entire family! Insignificant or important? Important!

I could go on to list the stones David used to slay Goliath, the widow's mite, the five loaves and two fishes of the little boy, and so many more! Or what about not only when God has used "insignificant" things, but when He has used people we might consider insignificant like Esther, Zaccheus, or even Jesus' mother Mary ??

In each case the item or person, in and of itself, was not important. But there is something in common that made each important and that is Jesus Christ! We are all important to God. If we let Him, He will show us He desires to use us in such an important way! You may wonder why God chooses to use 'insignificant' things and people.  He does it so that when the glory is received for what is accomplished, there is no choice but to recognize that it came directly from Him! 

I know this was a lengthy post, but if it encourages one person, it's worth it! So next time you are wondering if you are important, if anything you do matters, remember that you are important to God! What other people think does not matter! Yield your life to Him, and though you may not be seen of men, God will use you in a way you could never have imagined!

So what are you. . . insignificant or important??

All for His glory,

Brettnay Brazzell

Make up your mind

Ok, so it's been a while.

Yes, it's been over a month, and I apologize! I got married to the love of my life on July 12th so cut me a little slack. In case you don't believe me, here is a picture.

Wow she's beautiful!...Now that you believe me, we can get on to the topic of choice.

Make up your mind. People in today's world are indecisive. We all are this way from time to time. My wife asks me what I want to eat and my answer is most always "I don't know". The are some times where it's not a big deal to not know, and there are other times where you need to know. Is it a big deal whether or not I know what I want to eat? Of course not! But there are times where it's important to know what you want.

I took the picture on the left a few days ago while coming home from work. It actually was the inspiration for my article. The top no parking sign is always there, but the bottom temporary sign obviously isn't. So is it temporary or not? Someone should make up their mind.

We all have to make choices in life. Some minor, some major, but all are choices. God created us with the ability to choose things for ourselves. We have to make up our minds about certain things. Adam had an option to choose to sin with Eve or follow God. Abraham had the option to choose whether or not to sacrifice his son. Lot had a choice of which field he would take. We know what results were wrought because of their choices. Listen to what Joshua said in Joshua 24:15

"And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord , choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord."

Do you think it was an easy choice for him to go against the crowd and pick a side? He could have just not made a choice right? Wrong! He had to choose to either follow God or not. God doesn't leave room for a "maybe" answer. You're in or out and there's no middle ground. So why as Christians do we think we can straddle the fence between worldliness and godliness?

We all know people who have left church recently. Teens who decide that they don't want to "play church" anymore, adults who don't have time, families that say they spend Sundays "as a family" rather than attending. Why? Because they finally chose a side.

The barrier between sides is more like a gate than a fence. It's always an option to go from one side to the other. There's a gate and you can either cross the gate and leave it open behind you, or you can close the gate and give the key to Christ to hold. If you leave the gate open behind you, then someday you'll cross back over. If you lock it but don't give the key to Christ, then you'll unlock it someday. But if you give it to Christ then you'll have to steal it back to cross back over.

Make up your mind. Where do you stand? Are you leaving the gate open just in case you want to indulge yourself? Are you holding on to the key to that one thing you won't give to Christ? Or have you given Christ your all?

I don't pretend that I've given everything to Christ. I would like to, but every day he shows me a key I still have in my pocket. Search yourself. Ask Christ to search you for keys you haven't given him. Then chose you this day whom you will serve.

Married but Lonely

   I can hardly believe it; Simeon and I are 3 weeks away from our wedding day! We are so excited not only about that special day, but also about the days and years to follow as we live our life as a married couple!

   The pastor that is performing our ceremony lives 8 hours away, so marriage counseling has been a little different for us. Pastor Brown has sent Sim and I a total of four books. We were to read them, discuss them together, and then write him and let him know what we learned from each book. So, we have spent the past few months reading through these books together and gleaning wisdom from couples who have gained a lot of  life and marriage experience. I know that I personally have learned many things from these books!

   One of the books we read was about communication. Something in the very beginning of the book caught my interests. The author wrote about how people often experience loneliness in marriage. Now he was not referring to couples who were unequally yoked, distant, or not as in love as they once were. He was talking about couples who were Christians and were deeply in love! My immediate thought was, how on earth could I be lonely when I have a wonderful marriage to my very best friend?! That just didn't make sense to me! The author went on to explain what he meant by that statement. Every human being is created with a void inside them, and we all have a desire to have that void filled. We seek for true love, total acceptance, and a relationship that will be our rock through all the up's and down's of life. Most people, myself included, would first think that this is found in a spouse. While you can find all of those things in your life's mate, they will never be able to fill that void in your heart. God didn't create that void in a way that could be filled by a person. The only one who is able to fill that void in your heart is God Himself! So yes, if God does not have his rightful place in your life, and if you are trying to have that void filled by your spouse, you will face that loneliness!

   Simeon is above and beyond anything I could've dreamed for myself! I love him with all of my heart, and I know he is the man God created me for. He is my true love and my rock, yet he cannot fill the void in my heart. We can have a heavenly marriage, but God has to be my first love! Only then will everything else fall into place!

    Now I know some of you are probably thinking, why is she writing about marriage when she hasn't even experience it yet? And to be honest, you are right! But I do know from other areas of life, that we all must put Christ first! He must be the one to fill the void in our hearts! Not a spouse, money, things, family, friends, etc. This principle can be applied to all areas of our lives!

   So friends, as Sim and I are beginning to enter into this new stage of life, please pray that we will always keep Christ first! And I challenge you to do the same! We need never be lonely when we have such a wonderful God and Savior! Deuteronomy 31:8 says, "And the LORD, he it is that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed." God promises He will always be there for us! What a precious promise!

All for His Glory,

Brettnay

Where are the brakes on this thing?

School is over, but I am not really any less busy! What's going on?

Well, I have no furniture in my bedroom now because I spent all day last Saturday loading it into my dad's truck and dropping it off at my future house. Brettnay is currently living there until we get married. We've been decorating and purchasing necessities for weeks now. And I thought life would slow down a little!

Maybe life will slow after the wedding, and maybe not. I learned a while ago that life isn't about wishing things would come sooner or wanting time to move slower. Some people spend their days wishing it was tomorrow, and some people spend them hoping tomorrow never comes.

God says in Ecclesiastes that there is a time for everything. He mentions several things like a time to laugh, cry, go to war, have peace, etc. The point of the passage is that there is a time for everything in life and all things are under His control. People get all out of whack when things don't happen exactly as planned or when something bad happens. They fail to realize that everything happens right when God allows it to.

Have you ever heard someone say, "When it rains, it pours"? The phrase means that everything seems to happen all at once. I have my own theory about that. I think we tend to make a bigger deal about minor things when we are already stressed about something else. It seems like everything is going wrong at once when really most of the time, there is only one major thing and a few minor issues.

When things don't seem to be going our way, we wish the whole thing would just be over with. Sometimes we know something is coming up, so we wish time would just stop. Christ wants us to live in the time we are in. He gives us the trials we have to teach us. Sometimes it's to give us the ability to influence others for the better. So stop and smell the roses from time to time and allow yourself to enjoy today!

I can't wish that life would slow down because there is much I need to do between now and the wedding to prepare myself. I'm also looking forward to my wedding and sometimes it seems I can't wait for it to be here, but I have to make sure that I don't miss today. God may have something special for me. I don't want to rush right past it.

Keep thinking friends,

Simeon Brazzell
I Tim 1:12

That's Final!

No, I'm not yelling at anyone!

Sorry I've taken so long to blog. Saying that things are busy right now would be a gross understatement, but everyone is busy, so it's not really an excuse either.

Next week, I will be having finals at school. Most schools around the country are doing finals next week or the week after. What does that mean exactly? Well, it means that it's the last school related thing you have for that school year. If you are a senior, like myself, it means that you will be graduating, and you have no school responsibilities left to complete for your degree! It means for me that school may be over for life for me. Or is it?

Truth is, you never really get out of school. If you have (or had) one of those dads like I have, then there's a continuous project going on at the house all the time. As soon as you finish building that deck, you start working on mulching all the gardens or replacing the gutter guards. Frankly it can be frustrating for a kid who just wants to have fun. But at the same time, I'm always learning how to do new and useful things.

No one appreciates that aspect of life like they should. Your brain is like a piece of "Silly Puddy" on newspaper. You are constantly "copying" new things then reforming your thought process and "copying" something else. Life makes you learn whether you want to or not. God made us this way. We are like clay on the Potter's wheel. He forms us and shapes us. If He doesn't like what He sees then he breaks us down and starts over. If we harden ourselves, then He's forced to work us over to soften us back up.

Life is learning. Its much easier if we stay soft and pliable. Be open to learning new things whether it be how to use a new tool or what you read in devo's this morning. Sorry kids, schools not out just yet!

Keep thinking friends,

Simeon Brazzell
I Tim. 1:12

Exterior or Interior Actions

Our days are made up of decisions and actions. Each one can be classified as either an exterior or an interior action. Simeon and I are reading Joel 2 this week, and a thought stood out to me today as I read the chapter. . . .

Joel 2:13 says, "And rend your hearts, and not your garment, and turn unto the LORD your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil."

The first part of that verse says to rend your hearts and not your garments. What does that mean exactly? I believe that God is speaking of the motivation behind our decisions and actions. Rending your garment is an exterior action. It is an action that is seen by men. We often "rend our garments," yet never render our hearts! Our motivation is to make a show of our works. We publicly do things so that man will see us and  think "What a good Christian they are!" or "Look how much they love the Lord!" Now let me add a disclaimer here, it is not bad to have other people think that or to have people see what we do for the Lord! We just cannot allow that to become our motivation! God instead tells us to rend out hearts. This is an interior action. It may never been seen or known by those around us, but it does not go unnoticed by God!! In this verse, He promises that if we rend our hearts to Him and turn unto Him, that he will be gracious, merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness toward us! What a promise!

I'm an English major, and I love studying words. I want to define the words that God used to describe Himself in this verse, and may it bless you as it did me!

• Gracious: compassionate, generosity of spirit, marked by kindness and courtesy
• Merciful: treating someone with kindness and forgiveness, compassionate, giving someone something they do not deserve
• Slow to anger: long-suffering, patient
• Great kindness: goodness, showing compassion

God promises to show all things to us when we rend our hearts to Him!

Let's all purpose today to have interior actions, actions that are motivated only by our love for the Lord and our desire to glorify Him! God gives us all a choice, we can live for Him of live for self and others. What do you choose- exterior or interior actions?

All for His Glory,

Brettnay

Being Ready for Change

I've been thinking a lot recently about what it will be like when I'm married. Brettnay and I are getting married on July 12th, so a lot of big changes are headed my way. Sometimes the thought is scary, but it's always exciting. Then I got to thinking about what "being ready" really is.

1. You can't truly be ready
           The truth is, when monumental things happen in life, you are never really fully ready. You cannot possibly anticipate every scenario. Anyone who has ever had a baby knows that there's always something you forgot. Something you don't realize until you get home from the hospital. Maybe it's diapers, maybe there isn't a lock on the crib, maybe something broke a day after you brought the little person home. My big sister is about to have a baby, and they are having a baby shower today! She'll get lots of things that are necessary for baby care and lots of things that are more for mommy than the baby. The point is that you are never really 100% prepared.

2. You can rely on God

           Here is the sticky part. How much should you rely on God, and how much should you rely on preparation? Well realistically we should rely on God 100% and not on ourselves at all. Our God can supply all our need according to His riches in Christ Jesus.

3. You must also prepare
           Yes we should rely totally on God, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't prepare. Christ says, "look to the ant thou sluggard". What do ants do? Well, they are constantly preparing for the cold season. All day, everyday thay are working hard to store up food for the colony and for their eggs so that they can last through the cold winter. We should be prepared for the future, but all our preparation could get ruined in a day. Like a child stepping on that ant hill, we could lose all that preparation. We must still rely on God.

3. You shouldn't overwork

            Another teaching of Christ may seem like a contradiction the the previous one. When Christ was visiting with his dear friends, Mary and Martha, he taught them a very important lesson. Mary was sitting at the feet of Christ listening to every word He had to say. Martha, however, was hurriedly running around the house cooking and cleaning and making sure everything was fit for Christ to be there. Christ rebuked Martha and commended Mary by saying that Martha was troubled about many things "but one thing is needful". The biggest and most important piece of preparing for any change in life is to spend time at the feet of Christ! You can get that baby room perfect. You can make your wedding an wonderful fairy tale wedding. But you will never be fully prepared for what is to come without spending that time with Christ!

I wish you would pray for Brettnay and I as we're getting married soon, and I hope you'll pray for my sister's pregnancy as well. We need your prayers!

Keep thinking friends,

Simeon Brazzell - I Tim 1:12

Trusting God to Write Your Love Story

In honor of the month of love, I thought I would share my testimony of how I learned to trust God in leading me to my Love! Now, I will warn you up front, this may be quite lengthy. When it comes to talking about how good God has been in leading me to Simeon, I tend to get carried away:)

My "love story" started way before I even knew that a Simeon James Brazzell was walking on the face of the earth! Let's make the starting point my dinner table on my 12th birthday, for it was on this birthday that I received one of the greatest gifts my parents have ever given me, my purity ring. That night, my Dad did a devotion on purity and how God desired for me to keep not only my body pure until marriage, but also my heart and mind! That night, I made a commitment to my parents and to my Lord that I would save myself for the man that God would have me marry.

Now, fast-forwarding to the high-school years. . . as I began to "grow up," that commitment started getting harder than it was when I was 12. I knew the boundaries as far as purity of body, but I began wonder what the lines for purity of mind and heart were. It seemed as though everyone around me was dating and enjoying having a girl friend or boy friend. And oh how I wanted to be a part of that!  I wanted to know that Mr.______ would be waiting for me when I got to Sunday school! I wanted to have a guy to call and text! I wanted to fit in with everyone else! What I did NOT want was to be the one without a date to the Jr./Sr. Banquet, or have people asking all the time why I wasn't dating anyone. Because of these feelings, I began to grow very impatient with the Lord. Now, my parents had told me up front that I was not allowed to date until I was in college, but I at least wanted a "special friend" (as Mom would say) while I was in high school. I spent many hours pining away wondering when I would find my special someone. I also spent too much time watching chick flicks and reading Inspiration Romances (which I now realize did NOT help the situation, but that thought is for another time). Looking back, I see that I wasn't so much concerned with falling in love with a guy, as much as I was falling in love with love! I had painted a picture in my mind of what love is from the movies, books, and examples of the teens around me, and I had fallen in love with that idea of "love"! (which I now know was very far from what love truly is!) But, through it all, my parents kept encouraging me to wait on God and trust Him. I heard a preacher who said that every teen should be praying for their future spouse, whether you knew who they were or not. This thought was so profound to me! So that is what I began doing. Now I'll have to admit that sometimes when I prayed for my man, even though I prayed generically, I would have possible faces in mind, wondering if I was praying for "him." I went through all of high school single. I wish now I would've spent that time devoting myself more to the Lord instead of allowing my heart and mind to be given to this fantasy idea of love. But God was working in my heart. . .

Onto the college years. . . I was finally of dating age! Now, which one is the guy for me?! On the outside, no one would ever have know that I was scoping, trying to find my Mr. Perfect, but in my heart, I was on the look out! I spent my freshman year and the 1st semester of my sophomore year hoping that "he" would cross my path! But then God used different circumstances to make me realize that I wasn't the one who was supposed to be looking!! Really, I didn't have to be looking!! God already had my guy picked out! And when He thought the time was right, He'd bring that man into my life. Finally, after years of pining and searching, I let go! I told the Lord that I was going to leave this in His hands! I turned the reins over to God, and decided that I was done trying to figure it out on my own. What peace filled my heart!! I knew that God was in control! I knew that while God's ways may not be my ways, His ways are ALWAYS best!

I have a best friend who can totally vouch for what I'm about to say. . . It was hardly any time after I turned it over to God and told her that I was not going to look for a guy my Junior year of college that God brought Simeon into my path! The funny thing is that Simeon had been at my church, in my youth group, at my college the whole time! All those years that I was searching for my man, he was right under my nose, and I had no idea! Maybe Simeon will write soon and tell you our story from his perspective. It's quite an interesting one!

As of today, I am 151 days away from marrying the Love of my life! I want to thank God for leading us to each other! I want to thank God for giving me parents who cared about my life and my purity, and who taught me to trust God and let Him lead me. Yes, there are things that I wish I would've done differently, but God used it all to teach me  and to bring me to this point! By God's grace, Simeon is the only man I have ever dated! He is the only man (other than my family) who I have ever said the words "I love you" to. And soon, he will be the man I stand before and pledge my body, heart, and mind to!

Reader, I'm not sure at what stage you are at in life. Maybe you are a parent or grandparent. If so, encourage your children/grandchildren to be pure and to wait on the Lord!! We need your encouragement and prayers more than you'd ever know! Maybe you are a young person. If so, please turn EVERY area of your life over to God's control! And please take a stand for purity!! In today's world, those who are taking a stand and remaining pure for their future spouse are growing fewer and fewer. And while you are trying to work purity in your own heart, I challenge you to start praying for your spouse too! It amazed me when I found out later that about the time I began to pray for my future husband was a time when he needed prayers the most!

Again, I apologize for the length of this post, but it is my prayer that God may use my testimony to be a blessing to even just one person!

All for His Glory,
Brettnay

P.S. I want to end by saying that any good in my life is only because of my Savior and the grace He has extended to me. May He be the one who receives all the glory!

Contentment

First, it has been a while since my last blog entry, and for that I am sorry. December and January are a crazy time of the year. It's always busy during the holidays, especially when you are still in school. Speaking of which, it is my last semester as an undergrad student! I'll be graduating this May along with the love of my life, Brettnay! It is both exciting and scary to move on from something and launch out into something new. This is the time in people's lives where they often take a wrong turn. That decision usually comes because they aren't content.

I am definitely not a pro at being content. In fact, I may be the least content person I know. Yet it is extremely important to be content! People tend to make New Year's resolutions at this time of year to do things that they haven't been doing already. These things are usually good things that will improve their lives. This isn't being discontent; it is trying to improve the things that you can control. Contentment doesn't mean that you should be perfectly satisfied with everything in your life. It does mean that you should be satisfied with the things that are out of your control. You may not like everything in your life. God doesn't ask that you like everything, but He does ask that you be content.

We all know people who just wring their hands over every single circumstance in life. When it rains they are worried about flooding, they are worried about their hair, they are worried about their car, etc. Everyone knows someone who is an ultimate worrier. The ultimate worriers are those people that simply never have something positive to say. They are the ones that add "so long as..." to every sentence. There is always an "as long as everything goes my way I'll be just fine" attitude to their speech. Then there are the people who don't worry about anything at all because they simply don't care about anything. That's not good either. How do you find a middle ground? Is there a way to be perfectly content?

Well, we are commanded of God to be content so there has to be a way to do so. God will never give a command that He will not empower us to follow. We are to find our contentment in Christ not in circumstances. The circumstances in life are going to change. The world rocks like a boat in a storm. The stock market rises and people go crazy. The stock market crashes and they go crazy in the opposite direction. Nothing is stable; nothing is safe; there is nowhere to hide from the change.

Christ is our rock and our hiding place. We can remain calm in the bumps. We can stay composed when everything in life is crashing down because we can be content in Christ. He is all, and in all, and through all. He is in control. So next time you are tempted to panic with anxiety, just remember that godliness with contentment is great gain. Peace and contentment are linked and inseparable in the Scripture.

So go ahead and go on that diet. Lose that weight or go gain so muscle. Quit drinking those sodas. That's all good and has little to do with contentment. But here's a resolution for you...don't panic, and let go of the reins. Let God take control. It's much easier.

Keep thinking friends,
Simeon Brazzell
I Tim 1:12

Verse for 2014

Around eight years ago, I heard a preacher speak of choosing a "life verse." This is a Bible verse that stands out to you. Maybe something that encourages you or something you want to strive for. I chose Philippians 1:20-21 to be my life verse. It says, "According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also, Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life or by death. For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain."

Since that time, I have claimed other verses based on different situations or circumstances that I found myself in. For example, the summer of 2012 I traveled in a singing group with Crown College and I claimed Psalm 100 as my verse for the summer. The entire summer, I dwelt upon the truths in that passage such as how God says not to simply serve Him, but to serve Him with gladness or that when I sing, I am coming before the very presence of the Lord.

2013 held many changes for my family. I will not get into all of them right now, but within two months time, my younger brother Clay had joined the army and was preparing to leave for a 2 year assignment to Germany and my Dad got a new job which required my family to move to Delaware. For eight years, we had all lived together in Tennessee. We knew that things would be changing in the next few years as Clay and I would start our own lives, but we had no idea that in such a short time, everything we knew, everything we had come to love would be drastically changed. It was in these circumstances that I decided to claim a "verse for the year." The verse God led me to was Isaiah 26: 3-4, "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee. Trust ye in the LORD for ever: for in the LORD JEHOVAH is everlasting strength:" God greatly used this verse to comfort me as I was reminded that in Him, I can find peace and strength no matter what the circumstances were around me. 

I have been praying that God would lead me to a verse to claim for 2014. This year holds many changes for me as well, but they are changes that I am so excited about such as the birth of my first niece, college graduation, a wedding. . .and so much more. As I enter this new year, there are also many things that I am praying for God to break through in, whether it be unsaved family members or family and friends who are dealing with serious health concerns. With that in mind, I have been searching and praying that God would help me land on a verse to claim.

Last night during the church service, my Pastor, Clarence Sexton, had us turn to Ephesians 3:20. It says, "Now unto him that is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us," As Pastor read this verse, I knew this is the verse I wanted to claim for 2014. This year, I want to remember that it is God who blesses us and works in our lives. I want my trust in the Lord to be greater than it has ever been as I claim this promise!! 

I want to challenge each of you to seek out a verse that you can claim for 2014 and let God use that verse to work in your heart. Maybe you'll choose the same verse I have, maybe not. Whatever verse you choose, make it yours! This year, I'm claiming this verse just as if God had written it for only my eyes and heart. I'm trusting Him to do exceedingly abundantly above all that I could ever not only ask, but THINK!! And I know that God always keeps His promises!!

All for His Glory,

Brettnay Varner