Awake My Soul!
This week's blog is written by AST student Esther:
When God speaks to you about something you should do, you’ve just got to go for it! For me, that was The Academy. I assumed it would be too much for me to do, with having three children under 5 and a busy church schedule, but God had other plans! As I started to read about the Academy, God spoke and I knew that this was for me!
I am not normally a ‘go for it’ type of person, I like to be a part of a team and do things with people I know around me. New situations intimidate me and not having a buddy to sit with is like the thing of school nightmares! Inevitably the months past and the time came to start. I was the only one from Southampton, but I knew it was right for me to do this on my own and to be honest I was beginning to quite like it. I came round to the idea that a little bit of anonymity could be quite fun!
One of the things I struggled to get my head around was the ‘Supernatural Transformation’ part of the title. There are so many negative connotations these days with the word ‘supernatural’. Whether it’s the latest hit TV series or the thrilling documentary or ‘The’ book of the moment, I can get lost a little in whether supernatural is a good thing or a bad. But I think it’s time to restore that word, attributing it to our supernatural God and through Him, us! Was I not supernaturally transformed when I came to know Jesus as my Lord and Saviour? The challenge is to start showing the world around me what is it to live in the fullness of what God has given to me through the sacrifice of His Son and the power of His Spirit flowing through me.
This is where the course has come in, increasing my already growing thirst to know who God is, gaining further understanding of who He has made me to be and knowing the important part I play in my sphere of influence. At this point we are only halfway through and yet I feel I have teaching to chew on for the rest of the year and yet I am hungry for more. I guess you could say it has awoken my soul for more! In Psalm 84 it is put so perfectly, ‘my soul yearns and my heart and flesh cry out for the living God.’ The more I know of God, the more I love Him and the more I want to see His name glorified in my every day.
I have a growing confidence of who I am as a child of God; God made me, me. And I like it! This new found beauty is developing my identity that is still me, just with God-confidence attached to it. I am realising more that I have the upper hand in life, I have direct access to the all-seeing and all-knowing One. I am beginning to believe that the everyday acts of obedience I adhere to, can bring the power of the kingdom and it doesn’t matter if I stumble, because He loves that I try!
The intimacy with God is building and if I were a house, I guess you could say that the foundations have been laid and the walls are taking shape. Watch this space….