God is a storyteller, an author. He fashions the intricate stories of our lives. The Holy Spirit is the writing utensil, and we are colorful words on paper. Pay attention. He is presently writing your life. And it's uniquely designed in the form of a testimony to touch someone else. Understand it. Embrace it. Have fun with it!
What is your story? Share it. Someone needs to hear it. Truth is beauty.
Life is a reflection of God's incessant working miracles. It consists of trial & error, growth, and lessons learned. It takes a lifetime in understanding life, yourself, the people that come and go, and His unfathomable mysteries. However, Christ is what makes it worth living. Trust Him...He knows what He's doing. His intentions are totally pure. And one of the many benefits is the journey!
So just rest in God... let Him write your lifestory...be aware of the adversary...and well, the rest is a walk by faith...
"And I will walk at liberty: for I seek thy precepts."
{Psalms 119:45} Ashley Card 2009 ©

We are the expression of the Father loving the Son. And because of His love, we are free from the opressions, timing, labels,& system of this world, and free to be ourselves. In Him, there is true liberty.

In Him,
Ashley
{Galatians 4:5}

Ashley Card 2009 ©

Hmmm...Need Water, Nelly?

Hmmm....Is your faith being tested?

In a "dry" season?

Need a drop of water? Lol hahaha :)

It seems the more we seek God, the more mystified our futures become.

The more we grow in God, the more our faith seems to be tested.

The more we think we understand Him, we realize we know nothing.

I could be wrong, but there seems to be an hierarchical order in the Body of Christ; different levels of his anointing are imparted.

Some may come with age... some may come with growth...some naturally inherited simply because He has called you by name...and others are depending upon your obedience and availing to the truth.

Who knows? I'm still seeking understanding myself lol.

As you grow to the different levels in Christ, it seems as if He reveals more of His mystery.

And then He begins to operate differently. That which used to work with you doesn't seem to work anymore.

It's as if you've temporarily reached solid ground. Then He removes the floor from under your feet, smiles saying..."Got ya!" Just like a Papa with a good sense of humor... AHHHH I LOVE IT!! :)

Embrace ambiguity; our finite minds will just not understand.

And if your eyes are finally enlightened to that clarity, lay hold to it in the midst of obscurity.

Don't doubt yourself. He will correct you where you are in error.

Stand in faith, and don't look back.

Press in and press on.

We don't measure the time, for only God knows the time. It's our duty to pay attention to the seasons.

So if need be, just stand alone. Wait on God.

If no one understands you, He does.

If no one feels what you are feeling.....He feels you.

Even when there's no confirmation, and your emotions have abandoned you....He has not left you. You are not forgotten.

In the mean time, cause your flesh to remain subject to His will.

Die to self.

Fall in love with His will.

Have the triumphant faith in knowing that despite of what happens...you are totally in Love with the Lord.

His will is best for you.

Why?

Because He is jealous for you.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JoC1ec-lYps

The journey is understanding the unfathomable secrets of God's heart , order, and the mystery of His will.

But the good news is...HEY, you're saved, washed, and blood bought.

At least you're not going to Hell, and He sees that you're trying lol hahaha.

So relax... but don't get too comfortable.

"For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end." {Jeremiah 29:11}

May God Bless you according to your faithfulness and obedience to Him.

Hold it Down...
Ashley
Philippians 3:7
Ashley Card 2008 ©

God is the ultimate parent. He fills the void that earthly parents did not fulfill. If you were abandoned...He takes you in. He raises you. And the best part is...you receive the best parenting. Parents are His babysitters. The goal of the parent should be to emulate the ultimate parent. They should seek His wisdom in how to deal with specific situations, and scream for divine intervention in the areas that they cannot meet for their children. Parents are not perfect. They are human. And like everyone else...they are a product of their environment...

Children look to their parents for advice. Because our first source of information is authority...parents can sometimes give bias information and not truth. That's why at the end, we should take everything to the Lord.

Speaking from the heart of a woman, I've noticed that women who have lacked the affirmation of their fathers have a very skewed perception of love. They yearn for that male role model to shed light...that wisdom they desire. They stumble in the hands of men, seeking the love that their father did not give them. They cling to every intimate male relationship they can find...hoping that it will fill their void. Some girls are extremely clingy. They cling to every male for attention. They have a hard time in deciphering who is a friend, and who is their mate. So...They flirt with all of them. They want to be the center of attention, and will compete with any female to get that attention. If only they had a father to build their self-esteem...a father that took on the task of exemplifying the man that their daughter should desire instead of chosing men below her standards. Then there are the women who cope with their abandonment by remaining extremely guarded. They don't have a hard time deciphering who they do and don't like, but they are extremely picky all because they fear the reoccuring action of another future heart ache of male abandonment. Both are extreme versions of insecurity. And for those women that God has graced in finding a stable guy to lead their household in the future, somehow they either rush the process....or they don't how to properly love them.

My father was an excellent provider, but not emotionally available. He would give me excellent practical advice as far as future careers, finances, and etc.... But He never gave me spiritual advice. I believe he always had that male phobia (lol) of talking to me about romantic relationships. The only advice he gave me was that I need someone who will treat me like a lady. Therefore my mother gave me over to the hands of the Lord. My mother was single and self sufficient. She cooked, fixed cars, & etc... She is what you would call..."single and complete." So I grew up with the independent woman mentality, but at times...it cripples me. I observed the men in the church and how they treated their wives, and was able to get some sort of an idea of what to look for. However, because it wasn't consistent, I tend to forget. I told the Lord..."I didn't have that perfect father example to know what to desire in a mate. How should he treat me?

And like a loving father He softly whispered...."I got you Ashley. The man of God I have for you will emulate me. Look to me...Look to papa. The same mercy, grace, love, & etc... I gave you...he will as well." And because I am not perfect myself...I told the Lord " I need a mentor...a married couple" And the next day I went to a Bible study, and the lady leading the Bible study offered a mentoring program for young women away from home. God really loves me...He really takes care of me.

I do not claim that the one God has for you will be perfect. Some of us will find their mates before their time, and they may not be in the best shape at the moment. But it will be your responsibility to pray them out of their areas of instability. You do not necessarily have to be romantically involved right away. You can be a simple friend. Observe them along the way. Women...how does the guy treat his mother...does he have a temper? (red flag) Men...how does she treat her father...is she bitter? (red flag) The will of God is the will of God, and it stands and remains. So if it is in His will for you to be with that particular person, it will come to pass regardless. If you've come across 26 red flags in the relationship...it is best to let it go, until the two of you are a finished product. And if it was never ordained...at least you ended it before it became the relationship from Hell.

You don't have to receive any sort of emotional drama, disrespect, or anything that will cause your heart to be bruised. You can simply wait, until you feel your heart is ready. You're worth too much. And if they are the one...they'll meet you at the end.

For any male or female that has been emotionally abandoned by their mother or father, and you are having a hard time in deciphering what to look for in a future husband or wife. Let me drop this peace of advice....

look to Papa.

It is worth the wait...

May God Bless you according your faithfulness and obedience to Him.

In Him,
Ashley
Philippians 3:7
Ashley Card 2008 ©

Allow the Holy Spirit to reveal to you the unfathomable secrets of God's mysterious ways...the secrets of His heart.

Hearken unto the voice of the Lord...

After deep meditation... comtemplation... and resting in His quiescent presence...I woke up one morning in total peace, hearing only the rushing cars flying down Centerville Turnpike. Three words weighed heavily in my spirit "standing in faith." I figured it was the Lord getting my attention...like a teacher, it was the Father's way of telling me "This is your lesson of the day."

After chasing the truth of God's word for years, I've finally reached a place where I'm walking alongside the Father. And though my walk has been trial and error, I feel no guilt in understanding that there is liberty in Christ to experience Him the way He wants each and every one of us to experience Him individually. Christ is relational; our Father is patient. If He knows that we are seeking Him whole heartedly, He just sits and waits for us to experience a quickening, a spiritual reawakening, a revelation that opens our spiritual eyes to the enlightment of our wrong doings. As Abraham was known to be the friend of God, All of us should feel that we too are His special companions. And His word is not just letters written on thin paper with leather binding, but it's organic...it lives. Where? Inside of us. His existence is our being. We breathe and eat the bread of life, and without it we become unfamiliar with our spirit man, that new being in Christ that is known to be our identical stranger that takes a life time in getting to know and understand.

Hmmm..."standing in faith." Okay God, what are you teaching me today?

The more I grow in the word of God, the more mystified my future becomes. The more I think I understand His ways, the more I realize I know nothing. The voice of the Lord is mysterious. He speaks, and we carnally place a judgment as to what we think the word He gives us is pertaining to. Then we misinterpret. Allow God to be God.... Let Him live through you.... Allow His prophetic sayings to manifest before you. Do not be rash to make assumptions on what He is saying to you. Wait for the confirmation and clarity. And while waiting for the confirmation...pay attention to the spiritual things, things in the spirit. If you pay attention close enough you will see your answer... your confirmation for what God is really trying to say to you. Once you receive that confirmation...STAND IN FAITH for its manifestation.

A lot of times God will give you a glimpse, a vision of something He has for you in your future. And like children we leap before our time. With each manifestation comes an adversary. Say for instance God promised you a position of leadership, and with that promise God will prepare you by allowing the adversary to test you by way of intense tribluation, that will prune you in preparation for your manifestation. But while in the process of waiting on God, standing in faith, and holding on to the dream while in the midst of the test, you follow these peculiar instructions of the Lord that make no sense to you. However, you have faith in knowing that it will lead you to this promised future that for now seems mystified. You step out with your eyes covered with a blind fold and your carnal mind not comprehending what exactly God is doing with you. When you get to that place in your life...that is evidence that your will is totally surrendered to the Father...and you understand what it means to "stand in faith."

Our futures are in the hands of the Lord. His promises are definite. It is up to us to totally surrender our will to Him, and not be afraid to stand in faith, knowing that the Father is faithful. What the Father has started, He will complete. And while we step out in faith chasing our mystified futures, do not be afraid. For His grace will shield us from running in error, and His mercies will bail us from sentence deserved along the way as long as we diligently seek Him and keep a repentant heart. the road to our destiny is a journey full of mystery...THAT'S WHAT MAKES IT EXCITING! :) So just rest in God...and well...the rest is a walk by faith...

"Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience."
{James 1:3}

Lord help us to not just say we are standing in faith, but know that we know that we are standing in faith. And though things may seem mysitified at the moment, may we not be afraid. For as long as we seek your face our future is in your hands. In Jesus name...Amen.

May God bless you according to your faithfulness and obedience to Him.

In Him,
Ashley
Philippians 3:7

Love Harder. Be a Blessing.
Ashley Card 2008 ©

Just when the heat turns up til it suffocates your lungs...

Your knees give out so that you can't stand...

Your body becomes so exhausted until you can't fight...

Your vision is blurred.

You've become faint.

And though you've done all you can,

You hit the ground in a prostrate position.

You're tired, and not an ounce of energy is left in your body to put forth any effort in fighting the good fight.

Then God steps in at the last minute, and performs the miracle.

Puzzled...you laugh & cry simultaneously out of shock & amazement!

Then the voice of the Lord whispers..."I had to let it get the best of you so you wouldn't take credit for anything, and I get all the glory."

"The contractions that a woman experiences before the actual labor, are a sign of the infants delivery. When your trial in life seems to get harder and harder, the labor pains and contractions draw closer within time frame, and the earthquakes are bigger and bigger. THEN LOOK UP! It's a sign that your blessing and deliverance is near." ~Creflo Dollar

May God bless you according to your faithfulness and obedience to Him.

In Him,
Ashley
Philippians 3:7
Ashley Card 2008 ©

" And his disciples asked him, saying, Why then say the scribes that Elias must first come? And Jesus answered and said unto them, Elias truly shall first come, and restore all things. But I say unto you , that Elias is come already, and they knew him not, but have done unto him whatsoever they listed. Likewise shall also the Son of man suffer of them." {Matt.10-12}

The scribes are the perfect example of people in the Body of Christ.They have awareness of the scriptures, but do not understand the flow of the Spirit.

The scribes were religious men that tried to always comprehend the mysteries God with their carnal mind.

Sometimes we miss God's blessings and deliverance.

We sometimes try to comprehend God with our head knowledge, until it's too hard for us to see His mysterious manifestations when they presently unfold before us.

Our carnal minds go against the will of God, and therefore are subject to the enemy.

However, it is recorded in God's word that Christ died for all.

And if he died for the scribes, the very ones who missed Him, so that they too could have equal access to The Kingdom of God...

Then those of us in Christ can have a second chance by simply repenting.

And He will grace us by restoring that which the enemy stole from us, and nudge us in the right direction so that we may obtain it.

"And in the morning, It will be foul weather to day: for the sky is red and lowering. O ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times?" {Matthew 16:3}

Lord, help us to continue to worship you in spirit and in truth, and come to grips that your ways are not ours. Help us to remain updated with what you are currently doing, so that we can remain in the flow of your blessings. In Jesus name...Amen.

May God bless you according to your faithfulness and obedience to Him.

In Him,
Ashley
Philippians 3:7
Ashley Card 2008 ©

Months ago I asked myself...

"God I'm waiting on promises that you have spoken, but how come I haven't seen the manifestation?"

Then I realized, it wasn't my time.

I had to be made. I still had dangling flaws that needed to be chisled away.

I had to go through a process of pruning before I stepped into the promise.

No one pours new wine into old wineskins.

Have you ever nailed a sin to the cross, or broke a generational curse, and wonder why that spirit still lurks about you? Why that bad habit still roars within? Why your flesh won't remain subject to that which you know is right in the eyes of God? I've come out of a long and tremendous season of pruning, and during that season brought rapid growth. I grew so quickly until I wasn't able to completely process that which God wanted me to learn. I grew so rapidly until I became super sensitive to a lot of my surroundings; I felt nude, vulnerable, and everything that would happen around me I became susceptible.
Just like a new born's fresh skin is sensitive to the new environment, I became transparent, where I couldn't hide anything. I felt as if God persistently stripped layers of old wineskins that were holding me back from worshiping Him like I should have worshiped Him, obeying Him like I should have obeyed Him, and hearing Him like I should have heard Him. I became so sensitive until I crashed. And when I crashed, I reached a plateau of rest.

And within this season of rest, things are becoming more clear to me. The wounds that came during that process are being healed, the sensitive spirit that developed throughout the process is being thickened and made stronger, and revelations from God of my sinful nature are being revealed. I realized I had fear of falling back into a sin that I wanted nothing to do with, and I would battle within so hard, til I would slide right back. And now that I've crashed and reached a place of rest, I feel it no longer lurking. My weak areas of resistance are becoming hard, not because I'm scared of falling back, but because I know I won't go back. God has me, and He loves me. Because He knows what I'm running from, and sees my heart persevering towards righteousness. By faith I know that He won't let me slide back because He's my daddy, and I love Him.

I've realized that God will grow me rapidly during a massive season of pruning, then I would reach plateau of restoration, then another massive pruning season, and then give me another quick season of rest. And during those seasons, the tribulation would be so immense until I would try to cover wounds, and hold myself together, and think that I learned a lesson. Thinking the tribulation had ended, God allowed it to overtake me until I got tired of doing and fixing things on my own. I'm officially broken, there's nothing I can hide. And now that I've been completely stripped and made new, doors of opportunities for singing, dancing, and marketing that God has promised are now flooding my way. He's now pouring in the new wine.

"And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the wineskins will be ruined. No, he pours new wine into new wineskins." {Mark 2:22}

God help us to remember that sometimes your promises do not manifest right away simply because we are not prepared; we are an unfinished product. And it doesn't mean that it won't come to pass, it means that it's not our time. But before the time comes, help us to appreciate the season of pruning. Because after pruning we are able to handle the promise when it manifests.

May God Bless you according to your faithfulness and obedience to Him.

In Him,
Ashley
Philippians 3:7
Ashley Card 2008 ©

"For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints." {I Corinthians 14:33}

As individuals made in the image of God, what are we made to do?

Communicate.

We communicate with God and we communicate with one another.
Communication is simply the exchange of information, e.g., writing, speaking, or using a system of signs and behaviors.
We communicate to explain, uplift, and even tear down.

So if communication is meant to bring understanding, why is there so much confusion in the Body of Christ, when God clearly is not the author of confusion?

Each member of The Body is born into a different social group and system. We each hold a different worldview, and take on a different form of communication. When we communicate with eachother, we sometimes forget about the underpinnings that fall behind our spoken thoughts. From this we take things out of context and misinterpret eachother. Where there is a lack of understanding, Satan shows up and plants seeds of misleading thought structures in our minds...creating massive strongholds of decepiton. Before you know it, confusion and division occurs in The Body. This is why there's division and strife.

We do not understand eachother due to language and cultural barriers. That is why it is our duty to persistently walk in the Spirit, to take no offense, quickly forgive, and be of the same mind towards one another. Let God be the judge. By this we will stay within His will, and not give into the enemy's seeds of discord, retribution, and fulfill the lust of the flesh.

"And Jesus knew their thoughts, and said unto them, Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and every city or house divided against itself shall not stand." {Matt 12:25}

The same applies to communicating with God. God speaks a universal heavenly, language that our carnal minds cannot comprehend. Our modern philosophy of Christianity places God in a system, a box. God will never fully be comprehended. It is up to us to always walk in the spirit, run after, and discover the mysteries of God. A lot of us walk around claiming that we are confused with what God is trying tell us where to go or what to do. If you claim to be confused, please understand that God is not in the midst of confusion. God is truth, and His absolute truth clears all matters of gray area. It's not God, it's us. It is our duty to understand what He's really saying, and to not misinterpret God and take things out of context. God doesn't change, His word remains and will not pass away. And His will comes to pass regardless.

God help us rid the spirit of confusion so that the enemy will not linger. In Jesus name...Amen.

Be a Blessing,
Ashley
Philippians 3:7
Ashley Card 2008 ©

" From that time forth began Jesus to shew unto his disciples, how that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day.
Then Peter took him, and began to rebuke him, saying, Be it far from thee, Lord: this shall not be unto thee.
But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offense unto me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men.
Then said Jesus unto his disciples, if any many will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me." {Matt. 16:21-24}

Peter didn't understand that it was the will of God for Jesus to be crucified. People in the world always question why bad things happen to good people.
Sometimes it takes going against the grain of natural living in order to follow Christ and understand His ways. Our society is based on feeling. Whatever feels good must be right. But God has a different plan that goes against social norm. And though it's God's will for us to prosper and feel good, we sometimes forget that it's also His will to allow us to suffer. For with everything there is a time and a season. There is a time to mourn, kill, rejoice, etc.... What season are you in? Remember that just because it doesn't feel good, or looks right to the natural eye doesn't mean that it's not the Will of God. For without suffering we cannot authentically appreciate who He is, and we cannot truly rejoice. Some mountains are not meant to be moved right away, but are meant for us to climb. Whatever season you are in, whether it's a season of mourning, remember to always go through with triumph and rejoice in divers temptation for it's only the Father chastising His children for the good.

May God bless you according to your faithfulness and obedience to Him.

Be a Blessing,
Ashley
Philippians 3:7
Ashley Card 2008 ©