Hello my name is...

July 16, 2014.

That's the day I decided FOR REAL. I wanted to make the Lord the center focus. At 16 years old I decided to make a critical decision. I made steps towards this decision multiple times before but this day, something was different. "Hello My Name is Revival" written on a name tag in my Bible at the time. Little did I know that the beginning of my journey would be "rough."

One would think that because I grew up "in the church" that my journey would have been a little smoother, but I found myself at a point where because I knew what was in the Bible, and I knew how to act the part. I had idols, hurt, distrust, and a plethora of things I needed to deal with. I knew what the bible said, I knew how to act the part, I knew when to lift my hands, but I did not have the experience to give meaning to the words I had soaked in my whole life. Deep down I wanted more, but I needed to deal with my issues. I had not accepted who I was or my past and I did not believe that I deserved the kind of love that God embodies.

In January of 2018, I left my comfort zone for the first time in my life. I believe this was needed for me to get to know God for my absolute self. To encounter His Word and test it for myself and know Him to the man He claimed to be. I believe that journey helped me to TRULY tackle who I had become, how far I had pushed Christ away, and the things I used to mask the hurt. In September of 2019 I received a phone call that literally changed the trajectory of my life.

When I received that phone call from my mother, before she even spoke I knew what she was going to say. I felt it in the pit of my stomach. I knew as I sat in the parking lot on that Friday afternoon. Since that fall afternoon it's like there has been a freshness to my walk. It has not been easy, but I have the encounter.

All this is to say an encounter, a moment in time is all it takes for Him to meet you in what you believe is your filth. Your "filth" is your testimony. Your filth is what He wants. At the point you believe you are unusable, is when He is drawing you in saying "This is what I want" " This is what I will use." His strength is beautified when we have come to a place of surrender.

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"And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.10 Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong."

2 Cornthians 12: 9-10