Deeper Still: Sightseeing

One of the great benefits of having the Deeper Still conference in San Francisco was all the beauty and diversity we were able to experience. Well, that and the food!

Here are a few of my favorite pictures from our weekend:

My favorite shot of the Golden Gate Bridge

Chinatown is amazing!

A view from near our lunchspot in Yerba Buena Gardens.

The Streetcars of San Francisco



Street Vendors were lined up along the main

thoroughfare along Fisherman's Wharf

A spectacular view of the city
from the Golden Gate Bridge!

Pier 39 is a great place to hangout

Thanks for indulging me as I took some time to remember such an important weekend in my life. For those of you who were there with me, I love you and am so glad we shared this experience!

You are my sister-friends and I thank God for each one of you!

Deeper Still: Kay Arthur

Mrs. Arthur was the Grand Finale of the Deeper Still conference. I was blown away with the way scripture was always on her lips and in her hands. The last portion of the entire event was a Q & A with all three speakers. As Priscilla Shirer read the questions, Kay was opening her Bible to the exact scripture needed to answer the question. This is a woman who has spent an incredible amount of time immersed in God's word!

Before this weekend, I had not been privileged to hear Mrs. Arthur speak, nor have I ever done one of her Bible studies. Is it shocking to admit that? It seemed like everyone else at that conference knew all about her. I didn't. She only shared a bit of her personal testimony, but what she shared touched me deeply. She is a shining example of how God uses anyone who is willing. ANYONE! You can't out-sin God's Grace. He is always waiting for you to turn to Him. Don't ever think you've done something so horrible that God will never be able to forgive your sin. He can. Our spotless, sinless Savior, Jesus Christ, the son of God who is God Himself, paid the blood sacrifice necessary to atone for any sin ever committed. All we have to do is ask.

Mrs. Arthur talked about the life of David after he returned the Ark of the Covenant to the children of Israel. God used a man who had done despicable things: David was an adulterer, a murderer, a liar, and a thief. Yet, God Himself called David a man after God's own heart. How can that be? It had to do with David's acknowledgement of God's authority and God's sovereignty. Yes, David messed up. Multiple times. But he loved God and ultimately wanted to do what was good in the sight of God. As messed up as David was, God allowed the most precious gift He ever gave us to come from the lineage of David. Jesus Christ, Himself!

God does not want perfection, God wants passion. God does not ask us to be wimps, He asks us to be willing! He wants children who are completely sold out to Him. Just like the three women I was so blessed to hear this year at Deeper Still: The Event.

Deeper Still: Beth Moore

link: Living Proof Ministries

On Day 2 of Deeper Still: The Event, we were priveledged to hear from the woman who, by her example, helped me break free to be a dynamic woman of God without shame or fear. Personal testimony time:

Those who know me already know this: I have a very strong personality. When I was younger, this got me into trouble. I would assert my opinions over everyone else's no matter the circumstance. I had the courage of my convictions, but not the discernment necessary to know when to speak and when it was appropriate to be silent. As I moved into adulthood, my limited Bible study and comments from others led me to believe to be a Godly woman, I needed to be meek; that whole "gentle and quiet spirit" thing. I went through my mid 2os-to mid-30s frustrated and confused. I knew what God's word said, but I did not want to be judged as pushy (which would be equal to ungodly in my thinking at the time), so I kept my thoughts about how scripture applied to our lives to myself. I threw myself into the busyness of doing church. I sang in 3 choirs, worked in AWANA, taught a children's Sunday School class, taught VBS, led praise and worship time at our church's women's events, and anything else anyone threw at me. And I kept my mouth shut regarding my belief about scripture.

It wasn't until I began to do a Beth Moore Bible study that the light began to turn on in my mind. Mrs. Moore is not a meek person, but she is an incredibly loving person. She knows the Bible and through God's Mercy and Grace, shares Truth in love....in the very real sense of the term. As I grew to know Mrs. Moore through the videos I watched and grew closer to my loving heavenly Father as I benefited from her teaching, I realized that a gentle and quiet spirit was not the same as a gentle and quiet personality. God made me exactly who I am for a reason. He has blessed me with the ability to share truth in love! He has matured me to be able to understand and share the truth from the scripture with others! Most important, I know God loves me exactly the way I am. To be anything other than what He made me to be would be to spit in His face. I would be telling him I didn't like the way he made me so I'll just be something else. Trust me, I spent years in that mode and it is depressing and unfulfilling.

Mrs. Moore's influence, along with other people and circumstances God has brought into my life, has allowed me to begin to embrace the person Christ made me to be. This freedom I am experiencing in Christ is why my blog is called "Singing Like Myself." Mrs. Moore helped bring me to a place in my life where I understand God created me to sing a song that he gave only to me. He wants me to sing that song in my unique God-given style. And when I say "song", I don't mean a literal song, I mean the song that is seen in the way I live the life God gave me. Thank you for that, Mrs. Moore!

Mrs. Moore's teaching at the Deeper Still event was incredible! She spoke about David bringing the Ark of the Covenant to it's proper place...the second time. The first time, David tried to bring the Ark back his own way, not God's way. As a result, sombody died. David became angry at God for taking someone's life over it. Mrs. Moore reminded us that many of us might be angry at God for something He did. Oh, I wish I could share what she shared, word for word, but it is too much to type here. Read 1 Chronicles for the account of David returning the Ark properly. He learned that God is sovereign. God is loving, and He is Holy. There are consequences to our disobedience, even though God loves us, and we simply have to accept that. Parents who love their kids discipline them. God loves us. He is our Father. He disciplines us.

She asked us if we were holding an offense in our lives against God. If so, we needed to surrender that offense to God's sovereignty and restore our relationship with Him. Look at David's life after he returned the Ark the way God intended. He grew to have an even more intimate relationship with God. He was blessed and his family was blessed.

God has so much more to show us in this life. If it weren't true, he'd take us home to glory right now. But in order for him to take us where he wants to take us, we have to be willing to go with Him. If you are hurt and are blaming God, I pray you will let it go. God is sovereign and He loves you. He has so much to show you. Let Him!