There are five gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, and YOU. Most people will never read the first four and will only read the last one. Will your gospel be worth reading?

As I sit hear writing this post, I can’t help but think about the importance of authenticity. My pastor ALWAYS lives by “Leading by example and not by parking space”. These words have resonated in my spirit more than ever in the past few days and being under the leadership of AMAZING pastors at Metro Life Church is a truly a blessing. (Shameless Plug: If you are not attending a local church, you have to! Watch how being plugged in to the right source {God + His great house} will revolutionize your life.)

I will never forget the day one of my close friends sent me a snap about being at church that day for one of the Sunday services. It is important for you to know that this friend had no interest in church or even building a relationship with God so seeing her there was a MAJOR win. After the service had ended, I remember her telling me how much she loved the word and the worship and about how she felt the tangible presence of God in her life. Her life truly began when she discovered who God was at Metro Life Church and now she makes it a priority to be at His house on Sunday and Monday Night for our Young Adult Service. She is even joining a connect group with two of her best friends (Did I forget to mention she loves inviting people?!?!?!) on Wednesday. Isn’t that INCREDIBLE?!?!

RELATIONSHIPS. RELATIONSHIPS. RELATIONSHIPS.

Relationship with God.

Relationship with Others.

Relationship with the World. (Each Other)

These three R’s (in that specific order) are non-negotiables when aligning our vision to the kingdom vision of our church. Stephanie’s story is just one of the many #LifeBeginsHere testimonies. How many Stephanie’s do you have in your life that are waiting to experience Christ in a new way but are waiting for you to say something to them?

Paul and Silas were in route to Asia and were joined by Luke and Timothy but ended up in Philippi because God had others plans for them. In chapter 16, Paul and Silas had been severely beaten and thrown into prison for casting out a fortune telling spirit out of a woman. Although they were bound to the chains and the confinement of being in prison, Paul and Silas had a different perspective of their current situation when “About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them”. (vv. 25 ESV) Your perspective will either confine you to the way things are or will release you into the way things can be.

Being rejected on route to Asia was nothing more than a redirection to this very moment. Paul and Silas saw everything through God lens. When you realize you are connected to God, it changes your perspective because your perspective is a product of your connections.

________ in your life is really God moving you into position for some of the blessing He desires to bring to you that you don’t even know it yet. Just like Paul and Silas were thrown in prison and had a guard watching their every move in verse 23; You have an enemy that has also placed guards at the door of your life to make sure that the purpose that is in you never gets out.

What if the thing that is holding you captive is just an indication of the calling that is inside of you and if it ever got loose or if it ever got free, it might change the world.

You see, hope rises when we come together. The enemy could have kept their feet from moving but He could not keep Paul’s and Silas’ voice from singing. Their praise broke their chains! Their perspective wasn’t connected to their pain; it was connected to their purpose. Hope is what causes us to believe that our setbacks are merely setups for greater things than we could ever imagine.

What relationships are you building today?

What perspective are you walking with in every situation you will encounter today?

Please share your thoughts on today’s post in the comments below.

I can’t wait to hear from you!