A Blessed Journey
My Sweet Journey Girls,
WE MADE IT!!! 40 days of fasting, prayer, spending time in God's Word, memorizing His Word and serving others - I am SO proud of you! My emotions are so mixed this morning as I begin to write to you. I have been praying and spending some time with my precious Savior. I am listening to my praise and worship music and tears are streaming down my cheeks as I think of you. I love you so much! You cannot imagine how much you mean to me. God has placed each of you in my life. Some of you I have only met through this 40 days and some of you have been through so much with me. How wonderful that the LORD would place us together for this journey. You have made my 40th Birthday the best one yet! I was so dreading it and because of you, it has been a blessing. Thank you!
As I was praying about what to share with you on this last day of our journey, God just prompted me to share my heart. The last 2 1/2 years in my family's life has been the most difficult season that I have ever endured. It has been so painful, yet I know that God has been with us. Right before this season started, I had to have a total hysterectomy. To some this may seem like no big deal, but to me it was closure to something that I had prayed for many years. I had desperately wanted another child. I wanted Andrew to have a brother or sister. Tom and I had battled infertility for many years and shared this with very few people. That day, as I was about to enter surgery, I had my tatered scripture index cards that I had prayed for many years in my hands. My heart was sad, but I knew God must have a greater plan. I kept praising Him for giving me Andrew, oh what a blessing! GOD IS FAITHFUL!
Not too long after that, my husband became ill. He battled pneumonia and continued to struggle. Things at our home church were in a difficult season. The enemy had gotten a foothold and was trying to destroy us and our precious congregation. The elders gave my husband a 6 week sabbatical to heal. For the first 3 weeks, he was so sick. He laid in bed and slept a lot. I prayed for God to heal him and to make our path clear to us. We had been called 6 months earlier by another congregation to be their pastor. Our first response was "no." We loved our church and wanted to spend our life and ministry there. We had no desire to leave. After a series of events, and God opening doors, we found ourselves as a crossroads on our journey. GOD IS FAITHFUL!
We begged God to turn things around, to show us what to do, to lead and direct us. Our son was a junior in high school. I had always prayed that the Lord would allow Andrew to be able to have friends, live in a community where he could call home and have a church family that he knew from a young boy until he grew into a young man. I wanted him to be able to graduate from this same community that we had grown to love. Oh, how I loved this church! I had never opened my heart to a group of people like I did to this one. We had been through so much together. We had seen God do a GOD thing like never before! HE was the reason, it had nothing to do with my husband and I, it was all JESUS!! GOD IS FAITHFUL!
One night, we found ourselves in the midst of a horrible meeting. My husband was the one who the enemy was seeking to destroy. My husband is not perfect and neither am I, but what happened that night was not deserved. I watched and prayed as I heard the most hurtful things being said. It was awful. I wish I could erase it from my memory. After that evening, we were so beaten down that we felt we had nothing left. We resigned and moved. I feel as though we went from the fire into an oubliette (place of torture). GOD IS FAITHFUL!
God called us to the desert. We went through an extremely difficult year. I can't even bring myself to write about all that we endured. We received much criticism. I believe the hardest part was the fact that we were unable to grieve the loss of the church family that we loved more than anything. We broke contact with them for this period, so that they would embrace their new pastor and love him as they had loved us. It was the hardest thing ever and was so painful. We felt so alone and so beat down. My husband resigned after one year to be there for his family. It was the bravest thing he has ever done. He sacrificed his career, what others thought of him and finances, all for his family. I love you Tom, more than ever! Thank you for loving us more than the church. Thank you for loving Jesus with all your heart! Thank you for being a man of God's Word and for never compromising your values. Thank you for not watering down God's Word, but standing on truth!! Thank you for being the best husband to me and father to Andrew! I LOVE YOU FOR ALWAYS! GOD IS FAITHFUL!
Andrew graduated from high school and we left him in Southern California at Azusa Pacific University for his freshman year of college. I felt as though my heart was being ripped out of my chest! Oh, how I love my boy and I am so proud of him. Andrew, you cannot imagine how much your Momma loves you!! You have been so gracious through this difficult season of life.You did not turn away from your First Love. Thank you LORD! You are the best son a Mom could ever hope for and you have blessed my heart more than you will ever know. Thank you for loving your parents in spite of our shortcomings! Thank you for being sensitive to the Holy Spirit. Your heart for God is so amazing! You are an awesome man of God! I love you SO much! (ttmab!). GOD IS FAITHFUL!
I know that God has plans to prosper Andrew and not to harm him, plans to give him hope and a future. Andrew had felt his call to ministry right before our move across country. I was so worried that because of all we went through, that he would doubt. I prayed fervently that GOD would continue to clarify His call upon Andrew's life. Sure, there were times of questioning and doubt and we have had many tears together, but PRAISE GOD, He saw Andrew through this desert experience! He has continued to clarify His calling upon Andrew's life! GOD IS FAITHFUL!
As most of you know, in August of last year, we moved to my parents home in Illinois. We lost our savings, had to short sale our home, and felt as though we had lost our church and our friends. We had been in a vast desert, but our GOD had remained faithful. Andrew was able to go to the college that God had called him to and we were able to get a loan for the amount his scholarship did not cover. We have not missed a meal, we have paid every bill and we have our health. Most of all, God has began to restore relationships with those who mean so much to us! Oh, what a mighty GOD we serve! He is wonderful, merciful, gracious and full of love! GOD IS FAITHFUL!
I am not telling you all of this to feel sorry for me or to think I am some kind of martyr. Please hear my heart! I just want you to know where God has brought me and my family. I want to give Him ALL the glory, honor and praise! I am SO blessed! I had been battling depression the days leading up to my 40th birthday. There were times in the desert that I didn't want to get out of bed. I cried all day long. As I poured my heart out to Jesus, he begin to lay this journey upon my heart. Through much prayer and time with Jesus, a Servant Girl's heart began. I prayed for those who would join me on a 40 day journey and God brought you along with me. You have been such a blessing! I hope that this past 40 days has brought you a little encouragement and drawn you closer to JESUS. I love you and thank you from the bottom of my heart for sharing this with me.
God has brought amazing healing to my life through this journey with you! HE continues to renew me and make me stronger. I know He has a plan, and even though I still have no idea where our next ministry will be, I know GOD is working. I know HE is real, alive and active in me! HE has a plan and HE desires to prosper us, not to harm us, to give us hope and a future! (Jeremiah 29:11) GOD IS FAITHFUL!
This is the verse the LORD gave to me this morning:
"The LORD your God has blessed you in all the work of your hands. He has watched over your journey through this vast desert. These forty years the LORD your God has been with you, and you have not lacked anything." - Deuteronomy 2:7
PRAISE GOD!! He has blessed me with 40 years of life, and not just any life but an abundant life! He has been my Creator, My Redeemer, My Savior, My Daddy, My Friend, My Healer, My Strength, My Shepherd, My Life Sustainer, My Comforter, My LORD and My King! He is the great I AM! GOD IS FAITHFUL!
Sweet ones, wherever you are at on your journey in life, know that I AM is with you. He cares for you and loves you with an everlasting love. Trust HIM! Completely surrender your life to Jesus and allow Him to lead you. His words are true and faithful. He will make all things new. He did not promise that we would not go through trials in this world, but He did promise never to leave us or forsake us! Praise God when we go through the fire, He is there. When we pass through the waters, they will not overtake us! When we go through the desert, HE provides a way to the promised land! God is faithful! One day, we will join the King and He will take us by the hand and say, "Well done good and faithful servant!" We will see our Father face to face. The One who has had His hand on us throughout our lives, will take our hand in His and bless us with eternal life! Thank you LORD! I love my Savior so much and I just praise Him for His hand upon my life these past 40 years. I love you Jesus with ALL my heart, soul, mind and strength! Praise YOU Father, YOU ARE FAITHFUL!
I would love to know how God has spoken to you throughout these last 40 days! Let me know! Please post in the comments what this journey has meant to you. I would also like to send you a small gift, if I can get your address. You can email me at eapelt@gmail.com. Please continue to check back with me. I will be posting on Mondays and Thursdays. I will continue to pray for each of you and the Journey Girl prayer closet will always be open. Directions for the "So Long InSecurity" book study will be posted later today. I love my Journey Girls! You are a blessing! Thank you again from the bottom of my heart! Praise GOD who deserves all glory, honor and praise!
Praising Him for a Blessed Journey,
Elisabeth
WE MADE IT!!! 40 days of fasting, prayer, spending time in God's Word, memorizing His Word and serving others - I am SO proud of you! My emotions are so mixed this morning as I begin to write to you. I have been praying and spending some time with my precious Savior. I am listening to my praise and worship music and tears are streaming down my cheeks as I think of you. I love you so much! You cannot imagine how much you mean to me. God has placed each of you in my life. Some of you I have only met through this 40 days and some of you have been through so much with me. How wonderful that the LORD would place us together for this journey. You have made my 40th Birthday the best one yet! I was so dreading it and because of you, it has been a blessing. Thank you!
As I was praying about what to share with you on this last day of our journey, God just prompted me to share my heart. The last 2 1/2 years in my family's life has been the most difficult season that I have ever endured. It has been so painful, yet I know that God has been with us. Right before this season started, I had to have a total hysterectomy. To some this may seem like no big deal, but to me it was closure to something that I had prayed for many years. I had desperately wanted another child. I wanted Andrew to have a brother or sister. Tom and I had battled infertility for many years and shared this with very few people. That day, as I was about to enter surgery, I had my tatered scripture index cards that I had prayed for many years in my hands. My heart was sad, but I knew God must have a greater plan. I kept praising Him for giving me Andrew, oh what a blessing! GOD IS FAITHFUL!
Not too long after that, my husband became ill. He battled pneumonia and continued to struggle. Things at our home church were in a difficult season. The enemy had gotten a foothold and was trying to destroy us and our precious congregation. The elders gave my husband a 6 week sabbatical to heal. For the first 3 weeks, he was so sick. He laid in bed and slept a lot. I prayed for God to heal him and to make our path clear to us. We had been called 6 months earlier by another congregation to be their pastor. Our first response was "no." We loved our church and wanted to spend our life and ministry there. We had no desire to leave. After a series of events, and God opening doors, we found ourselves as a crossroads on our journey. GOD IS FAITHFUL!
We begged God to turn things around, to show us what to do, to lead and direct us. Our son was a junior in high school. I had always prayed that the Lord would allow Andrew to be able to have friends, live in a community where he could call home and have a church family that he knew from a young boy until he grew into a young man. I wanted him to be able to graduate from this same community that we had grown to love. Oh, how I loved this church! I had never opened my heart to a group of people like I did to this one. We had been through so much together. We had seen God do a GOD thing like never before! HE was the reason, it had nothing to do with my husband and I, it was all JESUS!! GOD IS FAITHFUL!
One night, we found ourselves in the midst of a horrible meeting. My husband was the one who the enemy was seeking to destroy. My husband is not perfect and neither am I, but what happened that night was not deserved. I watched and prayed as I heard the most hurtful things being said. It was awful. I wish I could erase it from my memory. After that evening, we were so beaten down that we felt we had nothing left. We resigned and moved. I feel as though we went from the fire into an oubliette (place of torture). GOD IS FAITHFUL!
God called us to the desert. We went through an extremely difficult year. I can't even bring myself to write about all that we endured. We received much criticism. I believe the hardest part was the fact that we were unable to grieve the loss of the church family that we loved more than anything. We broke contact with them for this period, so that they would embrace their new pastor and love him as they had loved us. It was the hardest thing ever and was so painful. We felt so alone and so beat down. My husband resigned after one year to be there for his family. It was the bravest thing he has ever done. He sacrificed his career, what others thought of him and finances, all for his family. I love you Tom, more than ever! Thank you for loving us more than the church. Thank you for loving Jesus with all your heart! Thank you for being a man of God's Word and for never compromising your values. Thank you for not watering down God's Word, but standing on truth!! Thank you for being the best husband to me and father to Andrew! I LOVE YOU FOR ALWAYS! GOD IS FAITHFUL!
Andrew graduated from high school and we left him in Southern California at Azusa Pacific University for his freshman year of college. I felt as though my heart was being ripped out of my chest! Oh, how I love my boy and I am so proud of him. Andrew, you cannot imagine how much your Momma loves you!! You have been so gracious through this difficult season of life.You did not turn away from your First Love. Thank you LORD! You are the best son a Mom could ever hope for and you have blessed my heart more than you will ever know. Thank you for loving your parents in spite of our shortcomings! Thank you for being sensitive to the Holy Spirit. Your heart for God is so amazing! You are an awesome man of God! I love you SO much! (ttmab!). GOD IS FAITHFUL!
I know that God has plans to prosper Andrew and not to harm him, plans to give him hope and a future. Andrew had felt his call to ministry right before our move across country. I was so worried that because of all we went through, that he would doubt. I prayed fervently that GOD would continue to clarify His call upon Andrew's life. Sure, there were times of questioning and doubt and we have had many tears together, but PRAISE GOD, He saw Andrew through this desert experience! He has continued to clarify His calling upon Andrew's life! GOD IS FAITHFUL!
As most of you know, in August of last year, we moved to my parents home in Illinois. We lost our savings, had to short sale our home, and felt as though we had lost our church and our friends. We had been in a vast desert, but our GOD had remained faithful. Andrew was able to go to the college that God had called him to and we were able to get a loan for the amount his scholarship did not cover. We have not missed a meal, we have paid every bill and we have our health. Most of all, God has began to restore relationships with those who mean so much to us! Oh, what a mighty GOD we serve! He is wonderful, merciful, gracious and full of love! GOD IS FAITHFUL!
I am not telling you all of this to feel sorry for me or to think I am some kind of martyr. Please hear my heart! I just want you to know where God has brought me and my family. I want to give Him ALL the glory, honor and praise! I am SO blessed! I had been battling depression the days leading up to my 40th birthday. There were times in the desert that I didn't want to get out of bed. I cried all day long. As I poured my heart out to Jesus, he begin to lay this journey upon my heart. Through much prayer and time with Jesus, a Servant Girl's heart began. I prayed for those who would join me on a 40 day journey and God brought you along with me. You have been such a blessing! I hope that this past 40 days has brought you a little encouragement and drawn you closer to JESUS. I love you and thank you from the bottom of my heart for sharing this with me.
God has brought amazing healing to my life through this journey with you! HE continues to renew me and make me stronger. I know He has a plan, and even though I still have no idea where our next ministry will be, I know GOD is working. I know HE is real, alive and active in me! HE has a plan and HE desires to prosper us, not to harm us, to give us hope and a future! (Jeremiah 29:11) GOD IS FAITHFUL!
This is the verse the LORD gave to me this morning:
"The LORD your God has blessed you in all the work of your hands. He has watched over your journey through this vast desert. These forty years the LORD your God has been with you, and you have not lacked anything." - Deuteronomy 2:7
PRAISE GOD!! He has blessed me with 40 years of life, and not just any life but an abundant life! He has been my Creator, My Redeemer, My Savior, My Daddy, My Friend, My Healer, My Strength, My Shepherd, My Life Sustainer, My Comforter, My LORD and My King! He is the great I AM! GOD IS FAITHFUL!
Sweet ones, wherever you are at on your journey in life, know that I AM is with you. He cares for you and loves you with an everlasting love. Trust HIM! Completely surrender your life to Jesus and allow Him to lead you. His words are true and faithful. He will make all things new. He did not promise that we would not go through trials in this world, but He did promise never to leave us or forsake us! Praise God when we go through the fire, He is there. When we pass through the waters, they will not overtake us! When we go through the desert, HE provides a way to the promised land! God is faithful! One day, we will join the King and He will take us by the hand and say, "Well done good and faithful servant!" We will see our Father face to face. The One who has had His hand on us throughout our lives, will take our hand in His and bless us with eternal life! Thank you LORD! I love my Savior so much and I just praise Him for His hand upon my life these past 40 years. I love you Jesus with ALL my heart, soul, mind and strength! Praise YOU Father, YOU ARE FAITHFUL!
I would love to know how God has spoken to you throughout these last 40 days! Let me know! Please post in the comments what this journey has meant to you. I would also like to send you a small gift, if I can get your address. You can email me at eapelt@gmail.com. Please continue to check back with me. I will be posting on Mondays and Thursdays. I will continue to pray for each of you and the Journey Girl prayer closet will always be open. Directions for the "So Long InSecurity" book study will be posted later today. I love my Journey Girls! You are a blessing! Thank you again from the bottom of my heart! Praise GOD who deserves all glory, honor and praise!
Praising Him for a Blessed Journey,
Elisabeth
12 Response to A Blessed Journey
Elisabeth...
You ended well on this journey and I am so thankful that I have been able to join you on this. While I haven't been as consistent or disciplined as I was hoping to be, I know that I am still so much closer to the Lord than I was a month and half ago. I have a desire to be in His Word and I find myself in sweet fellowship with Him once again. The desert is so hard but I know it is all part of my journey and He has been so tender and loving towards me. He is faithful when I am not.
Thank you for sharing your heart in this post and once again for your obedience and willingness to lead us. I know that the Lord will look upon you and say, "Well done, my good and faithful servant."
I love you Elisabeth!
Christy,
Thank you for posting and thank you for sharing your heart! I appreciate your words of encouragement. I am so thankful that you joined me in this journey. Thank you for your love and support! It means so much to me. I continue to keep you in my prayers!
I love you!
Elisabeth :)
Sweet Girlfriend, I am so proud of you on this journey. I know at times it has been a difficult jouney to be on but watching you trust in the Holy Spirit to guide you and lead you every day has shown me what it looks like to take up the cross and follow Jesus every day no matter what.It has been such a blessing to be on this journey with you. I have been so encouraged every day by your words and reminded of what a great, amazing and loving God we serve. Thank you for helping me grow into the women God created me to be. Enjoy your EXTRA LARGE DIET COKE and what ever SWEET TREAT you desire. I love you.
You are the best!! Thank you for your encouragement and reminding me where I need to seek comfort, love and security! I have prayed for you (and your family) for months. I look forward to the rest of our "journey" through this life, but my anticipation of moving on to Heaven, excites me out of my skin!! I love you Elisabeth, I praise GOD for your friendship~ Beth
It has been great to be on this journey with you! I have enjoyed reading your posts everyday and knowing that someone is praying for me. You have trully shared your heart on this journey, thank you for being so open and honest! I pray that God blesses you as you continue on in your journey. I look forward to what God wants to teach us in this next book study! Thank you for your friendship and prayers!
All. I have been encouraged and loved reading your journeys. It is so great to hear God being Omnipresent. Elisabeth thank you for modeling "Barnabas" which God continues to grow in me and continues to show His love and care for me by putting people in my life that grow me in that area.
I won't be able to continue the next study (I have another study I need to finish first) but I will check in and hope to be able to journey in another study in the future. GOD IS FAITHFUL. Love you
Sweet Suzi,
I am so thankful for you. Thank you so much for sharing!! I appreciate you and I am so glad that you came on this journey with me. You saw me at my worst and loved me anyway. Thank you!! I am blessed by your friendship! By the way, my Diet Coke and donut this morning was AMAZING!!! :)
I love you!
Beth,
I am so thankful for your prayers for me and my family!! Thank you also for being on this journey with me!! I appreciate you and love you so much! We do serve an awesome GOD!! I can't wait to see what HE does next! :)Thank you for your encouragement!
Love you,
Elisabeth
Christy,
You know me more than any other friend on this journey. YOU were there on the mountaintop and you were there in the desert alongside me. THANK YOU for your precious friendship and for your accountability!! I praise JESUS for you! Thank you for your listening ear and for your encouragement. Thank you most of all for your prayers. I appreciate you hanging with me on this journey, when you had so much else going on in your life. I am so proud of you and all that God is doing in and through you! I am excited to see what He has in store for us both through this next study. You are a blessing to me & I love you so much!
Love you,
Elisabeth
Maggie,
Thank you for your sweet words of encouragement! I am so happy that you were able to do this journey! I will be praying for you as you finish your other study. God is using you in mighty ways in the lives of children!! I will be praying for that ministry as well.
Love you!
Elisabeth
I can hardly find the words to express all that this journey has meant to me. It has been such a blessing in so many ways: truth, learning, discipline, encouragement, sacrifice, love, friendship, accountability, and on and on and on... I will never stop thanking our amazing, loving, all-knowing God for bringing Tom, Elisabeth, and Andrew Pelt into my family's life!! I have no idea how to tell you how much your friendship, love, and spiritual guidance has meant to me. Today I am leading a Beth Moore bible study with teenage girls ALL BECAUSE God used Elisabeth Pelt to show me how to do it. I remember how your precious face looked when you would lead our studies and suddenly you would realize that one of God's sweet daughters was beginning to "get it". You poured your heart and soul into us!! I'm feeling a little bit of that these days as I watch these young girls work through this study. Earlier tonight, just as I got ready to start our video, one of the girls said to another, "I can't wait to see what she'll be wearing in this one." They watched so intently and they laughed out loud. They shared "Godstops" with the group and were excited about them. PRAISE GOD!!! Beth talked about the early days of her ministry and how she was scared for it to grow too large. She feared she would fail God. After the video ended, I told the girls about the Beth Moore event we had attended several years ago at Rupp Arena. I told them that UK had nothing on Beth Moore...she too could fill Rupp Arena to sold-out capacity. One of the teenagers responded, "hey, maybe we all should go to one of those together sometime." Anyway, I told them I was going to Mt. Sterling in April to see a Beth Moore simulcast and they want to come too!! Looks like we may be planning a road trip to Mt. Sterling with some "Believing God" girls!!
Can't wait to start this new book study but my book still hasn't come in the mail yet. If it doesn't get here by Tuesday, I'm going to Walmart to buy another copy.
Let's journey on, Elisabeth. I love you!!
Rhonda,
My eyes are filled with tears as I read your comments. YOU are such a blessing and I praise Jesus for you! I am so thankful that the LORD allowed us the privilege of pastoring in Ashland. What a blessing to have met the Cullop family! (The Pelt family loves y'all SO much!!)I am so humbled that HE allowed me to serve in women's ministry. It was such an amazing experience. I loved our times of prayer, fasting, Bible study, laughing and sharing together. What an incredible time of growth! The Lord taught us so much. I will always cherish our sweet memories and the amazing GOD things that we saw take place during that season. Thank you Lord!! I am so thankful for your friendship, love and support Rhonda. Thank you for being with me on this journey! I am SO excited that you are leading this precious group of teenage girls through Believing God and even more excited that they may come to the simulcast!! :) YAY!! GOD is so good! I continue to pray for you and this small group. I am thankful that you are continuing on this book study too! It's going to be great! Thank you again Rhonda for your words of encouragement!
I love you!!
Elisabeth
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