Took this book with me to read on my Caribbean Cruise and it was fantastic. Pastor Steven Furtick from Elevation Church in Charlotte, NC is one of my favorite pastors who has been teaching me through his sermons, blogs, and books. I recently went to Charlotte last month for their band's live album recording which was PHENOMENAL! Pastor Steven's first two books are called Sun Stand Still and Greater. I read Greater and really gained a lot from it, so when his third book was released, I made sure to purchase it. It is called Crash the Chatterbox. For someone who struggles greatly with depressive and persistent negative thoughts, this subject matter was perfect for an area of my life that I am constantly trying to improve on and where I know God wishes for me to have life and joy. Here are some quotes that stood out to me from the book:
- "He has not chosen you blindly but intentionally, even while knowing you inwardly and intimately. And let me tell you why this is some of the best news in the history of the universe: If this God has chosen you while totally knowing even the worst parts of you, then you no longer have to live up to anything. Instead, you are now empowered to live out of an awareness of divine acceptance."
- "This is one of the main reasons we struggle with insecurity: we're comparing our behind-the-scenes with everybody else's highlight reel."
- "Because fear often finds its power, not in our actual situation but in what we tell ourselves about our situation."
- "It's also true that God's Word cannot adequately sustain you--no matter how prevalent it is around you--until you receive it within you."
- "Flip the script on what the Enemy meant for evil--let Me use it for something good. Take the first half of the equation the Enemy is presenting to you, insert grace and truth in the middle of it, and you'll discover a much different outcome."
- "We cannot change anything until we accept it. Condemnation does not liberate, it oppresses."
- "The more you grow in Christ and the closer you get to fulfilling the things He put you on the earth to do, the more intense the battle with your chatter becomes."
- "Going to the next level isn't about graduating from difficult circumstances and dark emotions. It's resolving to live with the mindset that declares, My joy is not determined by what happens to me but by what Christ is doing in me and through me."
- "Inner conflict is often a confirmation of your calling. The Enemy only fights those who pose a threat."
- "Don't let what you expected keep you from what God wants you to experience."
- "But gratitude allows us to disconnect discouragement at the power source by choosing to call God good in spite of our situation."
- "Gratitude begins where our sense of entitlement ends."
- "Believe what God has already declared to be true about you. Resist the lies. Enjoy the brief reprieve with every victory God grants you, but keep the gloves close by, knowing that if you will simply keep making contact, ultimate victory is yours."
Elevation Weekend
has come to a close. It was spectacular! One of my best weekends EVER! Road tripped with 20 amazing
WEC'ers to Charlotte, NC to attend Elevation Worship's live album recording
and got to worship with over 13,000 others in the Time Warner Cable
Arena. Talk about WOW! God truly woke up our wonder that evening. God was truly in that place, and our hearts were on fire with His love! Then
got to attend Elevation Church and hear Pastor Steven Furtick preach live! Talk about another WOW! He is one of my favorite pastors who has really ministered to me through his preaching over the last 4 years. After all is said and done, all I can think is....can we do it all again? ;)
Last weekend, my friend Blaine and I road tripped to Charlotte, NC to visit Elevation Church.
It was a phenomenal weekend and trip. We both follow the church and Pastor Steven Furtick pretty closely, so it was a privilege and exciting experience to get to be there in person at their church. We even got a behind the scenes tour of their production rooms by one of their volunteers at their Blakeney campus, and I got to talk first hand with their Producer about how they do multi-site, etc. Their band, Elevation Worship, is extremely talented as well. Their latest CD, Nothing is Wasted, came out very recently. Here is one of their songs off that CD and that is also on their For The Honor CD called "Give Me Faith."
Can't get enough of Elevation Worship right now. Check out this song by them called "Nothing is Wasted" just recently released from their latest EP.
One of my favorite worship songs from the past few months is called "Exalted One" by Elevation Worship. I was so excited when I got to be the volunteer Producer for the services at WEC today when our worship band was teaching that new song to our church! It's a song originally written and sung by Elevation Worship, the band of Elevation Church in Charlotte, NC. Elevation is an amazing church that I have been following since just before Thanksgiving. Their pastor, Steven Furtick, is a truly passionate and anointed leader, speaker, pastor, and Christian. I have been listening and watching his sermons online for the past couple months. In addition to the pastor being amazing at Elevation, their worship is off the chain. I absolute love the worship they host at their church - so on fire, unrestrained worship of our One, True God! You can see how passionate they are in their worship by watching the video below. A couple friends of mine have been listening to Pastor Furtick's sermons too, and we are planning a road trip to Charlotte to hear him preach in person and to attend Elevation. I can't wait!!!!
