Operation: Asa Joy

I have been doing the Love God Greatly devotional book on Philippians for the past week. We are actually on Week 2 now. It has been very good and I have been enjoying it. Before the study actually started I asked my sweet Esther if she wanted to do the study with me. Surprisingly she said yes. I bought her the journal. Last week, when the study started, was kind of chaotic for our family with the Empowered play in production week. I was able to get a lot of the study done during the down times at the building while waiting for my scenes or even before at the coffee shop across the street. Esther was not able to get a lot done because she was home babysitting and taking care of chores. I am so grateful for her and all the work she does during those times when I am at STP. She allows me to serve in the ministry. She comes with me to the building a lot. I always try to take at least one or two kids with me when I go so I can spend time with them and so they can serve to. Last wee...

This is what I wrote on Saturday morning of the production, Empowered. It is about what occurred on Friday, October 27, 2017 in a small building in Garner, NC. Last Night. There are no adequate words to describe what happened at the Spiritual Twist Production building in Garner, NC. Something amazing and incredible. Holy. The Holy Spirit showed himself in a way I have never felt or seen before. I actually feel sorry for the people who did not attend last night. I also feel sorry for the audience. Yes, they got to experience a great moving of the Holy Spirit. But, the crew and cast up on stage were the ones who got the biggest blessing of all. We got to sing praises and worship in a way that I have never, EVER experienced before. The Holy Spirit moved in such a way that it was bubbling over from the stage and cast and filling the entire building. I Felt it and so did the entire audience and even those working backstage who were not even watching from the ...

October 23, 2017 I truly believe that there is no such thing as coincidences. I believe with all my heart that everything in my life is divinely orchestrated by a loving God for my good and His glory. That means that the blessings that he gives me should cause me to thank Him and live a life that pleases Him. It also means that the dark days – the days where I cry and sin and repent and do it again, the days where I lose things precious to me – are also for my good, even when I cannot see it. The idea of a tapestry keeps coming to my mind again and again. When making a tapestry the back, that we can see, is a jumbled mess of strings and threads. It is only when we turn it around to see the front that the jumbled mess becomes a beautiful masterpiece. I like to think of my life like this. All during my time in this earthly realm I am being worked on by God. God is making me into a beautiful tapestry. I do not know the end result. Sometimes I cannot see past the h...

October 20, 2017            The theater ministry, Spiritual Twist Productions, that we are involved in puts on a fundraiser production every year. The TTA’s or teacher training assistants are the ones who perform. It is the best that Spiritual Twist has to offer. These teenagers are the cream of the crop. They are one of the most talented and dedicated group of young people that I have ever seen. These kids love the Lord and love bringing glory to His name. When I was given the chance to perform with these kids I prayed about it and really felt the Lord telling me to take the opportunity. Performing theater is one of my favorite things in the world. When I get to do it all for the glory of God it makes it so much better. William is performing too so the fact that I get to do this with one of children is such a blessing. The play is actually a premier. The founder and executive director, Natalie Snapp, feels led by the Lord...

Peter was SLEEPING between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries before the door were guarding the prison. And behold an angel of the Lord stood next to him and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him, saying, "Get up quickly." And the chains fell off his hands. Acts 12:6-7 This passage literally "struck" me this morning. I have read it many times. I know the story. I have even talked about this verse with other people. Today, though, as I sat on the balcony, looking out at the ocean, hearing the waves crash on the shore, I am struck by the wonderful gift God gives us in peace and rest. True, deep, rest. The kind of rest that is supernatural. The peace that can only come from Jesus. Peter was in prison. Possibly facing death. Herod had already killed James. Yet, Peter was sleeping. He was sleeping so deeply that when an angel, an ANGEL, came in the room and a bright light shone in the cell Peter did not wake up. N...

And Saul approved of his execution. And there arose a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the disciples. But Saul was ravaging the church, and entering house after house, he dragged off men and women and committed them to prison. Now those who were scattered went about PREACHING THE WORD . Act 8:1,3-4 What an amazing passage! The whole book of Acts is an incredible story of men and women living in the power of the Holy Spirit. These three verses at the beginning of chapter eight are so rich. First there is Saul. One of the most well known persecutors and  haters of the man Jesus and his followers would later became one the most passionate servants of Jesus Christ. How? Paul walking in and claiming the power of the Holy Spirit. What a testimony! God can save even the most wretched of sinners. He loves us and pursues us even when we are against Him. Second, there are the d...

October 15th A day that I never thought I would be noticing. Today is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Remembrance Day. Actually the entire month of October is set aside to remember all the babies that we have lost either ones who have never breathed earthly air or those who stayed on earth but a short time. This day I am sitting on the beach hearing the sound of the ocean. I have spent the weekend with 5 other women. The majority of us have experienced pregnancy loss. It is a common thing and one that is almost a taboo topic. Most women suffer and grieve in silence. It is something that one never truly forgets. A mother who has lost a baby will always remember how old their child would be. For me, Asa would be 2 years and 8 months. I have talked to women who have told me that their children would be in their 40's. A mother never forgets. Ever. So today and every day I remember our Asa Rend Trautman. Even though he never took an earthly breath he turned our world upside down for ...

Stephen The first thing I think of when I hear his name is martyr. Faith, grace, power, and being full of the Holy Spirit. That is how the author of Acts describes him. I want to be identified with these things. I want this to be my identity. When I think of Stephen I am amazed at his boldness and the power he was living in. He plugged into the power of the Holy Spirit. He had learned how to fully access the power of the Holy Spirit in his life. Oh how I wish that I could lean how to do this. I want to walk in the power of the Holy Spirt that already lives inside me. I know that He lives in me. It is a promise. A fact. Something I can bank on. I can stand firm in it. Walking in the power of the Holy Spirit in my everyday life is a different story. Putting the power into practice is difficult. How do I in the day to day living access and walk in the power of the Helper Jesus promised us and sent us? This is a question for the ages. As I walk my path with Jesus I hav...

I have been spending a lot of time in the book of Acts for the past few months. It is due to being involved in a play at Spiritual Twist Productions. It is called Empowered and is all about the Holy Spirit. The play asks the question why doesn't the modern day church have the same power the New Testament Christians did? The play is based on the book of Acts and has caused me to really study the book of Acts and ask some very tough questions of myself. Some of these questions I have asked before and others are brand new ones. The other night, our director, Natalie Snapp, read an article, well more of a confession of faith, that a local pastor had read on Sunday morning. It was entitled, Fellowship of the Unashamed . Other than scripture, it was one of the most convicting things I have ever heard. I suggest that each and every Christian look it up online and read it. By the time our director was finished with reading it and another director had prayed there were quite a few of us ...

October 9, 2017 Legacy of Two Women Two days in October bring to my remembrance two extraordinary women that I have had the wonderful privilege to have known in my life. On October 7, 2016, heaven gained the presence of a dear friend, Pam Park, who lost her valiant fight with cancer. On October 8, 2012, my grandmother, Hester Baccus Holder, was ushered into the presence of her Lord and Savior after 96 years of being here on this earth. Two women of different ages who never met. One had lived a full life even seeing several great grandchildren. The other lived a shorter but no less impactful life and left behind a grieving husband and two teenagers. Both of these women left incredible legacy’s behind. At my grandmother’s funeral everyone said that they had never seen her ever raise her voice. Even her 7 children said that they could never remember a time where she got angry. What a testimony! At the memorial for Pam Park I just remember person after person getting ...