Born for a Battle

Hi friends!  Can you believe it's been 2 months since I've blogged?!  I wrote about the big changes coming here but since that site is still not quite done I want to write this post to share a bit about what's going on with me.  

In November I completed my Revelation Wellness Instructor training and the day before I went on that retreat my husband and I completed a Spartan Beast.  Both of these things were defining moments for me because God did things in me spiritually and physically that I didn't even know were possible. 

(pic of me & Matt at the end of the Spartan Beast)

The last few weeks I've been battling with feeling defeated in all that I'm doing. I'm not real sure why but I just have been in a battle for my mind and the things God has called me to.  As I ran tonight I felt the Lord remind me of our Revelation Wellness theme for the month "born for a battle".  He reminded me that we are in a battle and battle can get ugly sometimes.  As I ran I felt Him download these core truths about being in a battle and I felt someone else could use this encouragement too:

WHAT

The truth is that we were all born for a battle of some kind.  If you are a believer in Christ than your battle is the Lord's.  We are all in the Lord's army.  However, we all play a different part in that army.  We all have one goal but we will all be called to different areas in order to see God's battle plan come into action.  So my question for you today is: WHAT is the battle for which you were born?  

WHY

Now that we've established that we are ALL born for a battle we must answer the question: WHY is this my battle?  The battle in which I am called is two fold: one for marriage because I'm sick of seeing God's people ripped off of the beauty that God intended for marriage. And two, for our body, God's temple. I long to see people set free and God's temples restored.  When we answer this WHY we are receiving our call to action from God. This WHY is what drives us when we just want to quit.

(Side note: I wrote this article a few years ago called What is your Why? that has been my most viewed and shared blog post. I think many people are looking for the answer to this question :) )

WHEN

Any good soldier knows there is a time to enter into battle, a time to study your enemy, a time to make your game plan and a time to rest. If we are going to enter battle we must WAIT on God's timing. If we run off ahead of Him we will get slaughtered every time.  The battle belongs to the Lord but we will only win if we get our marching orders from Him.

WHO

Because battle is intense it is important to know that you have backup support from other troops.  Who are you surrounding yourself that is for you?  Who's got your back in prayer and encouragement?  This is an area that I long to see the church rise up in and cheer one another on. We must stop competing and comparing and start completing one another. Take a minute today to ask God who He is bringing along side you to fight(like He did for David) and who He is asking you to come along side and cheer on.  A simple text or phone call to someone might be the momentum they need to keep fighting their battle.  

What is the battle for which you were born?  I would love to hear about it and know how we can support you. 

A few more fun pictures from our Spartan Beast:

Finish line!

Dunk wall

Wouldn't be a Spartan without some barbwire :)

Sandbag carry up & down a steep hill

Big Changes Coming...

Hi friends!  Wow, I have really missed blogging regularly and sharing my heart with you.  But as you know, God has taken me on quite a journey recently and I've been busy with new projects. In case you don't already know this about me, I've been teaching group fitness classes for almost 10 years and I have my Bachelors of Science in Health & Exercise Science.  Over the last 10 years God has brought me on quite a journey in my own health. I've had eating disorders, been overweight, underweight and just flat out hated myself(at times).  But God has set me free from all of that and I have a heart to see other women set free as well.  

With that said, God spoke very clearly to me about a fitness ministry I am to start called "First Fruit Fitness".  The story behind how God gave me the name and what it means will have to be its own blog post. But for now I want to share with you the direction God is taking me with this dream He has birthed in me.  Because it's a new name I feel I need a new site but am not quite ready to move on from Life Outside the Shell since my heart is still to see women set free and walk in all God has called them to be in every area of their life.  While this is not final, more than likely I will transition this to a new site under my name and there will be a tab for Life Outside the Shell posts and First Fruit Fitness posts.  

Now on to the exciting part.  Here is what I envision First Fruit Fitness will offer:

• An At Home Workout membership library.  Each month you will receive new workouts(lead by me) and a new workout calendar written by me. 
• Healthy Recipes & Nutrition tips
• One on one coaching and/or accountability calls with me(this would be a separate fee depending on how often you want to do the calls).
• Devotionals & Power Verses
• Fitness games to play with your kids
• and so much more...

I am not tech savvy at all.  Thus I must pay someone to help transition this site into something a little more functional and user friendly for all the things I feel God calling me to.  Will you please join me in prayer as I seek God about all of this?

I have to be honest, it would be so much easier to stay hidden in my shell(or should I say, tucked under my covers in bed) but I know God wants to use my personal testimony along with my experience and book knowledge of the body to help set people free.  Below is a short video on a few things I will be doing to raise funds to get these things up off the ground.  I would love your feedback on any and all of this so please don't hesitate to reach out to me if you have comments or questions!