Below is a picture of my wonderful and incredible friend Taylor Philips. She has just released her new book Training Ground.
“This book has dramatically changed my life for the better. God has blown away my expectations on what he promises and what he speaks. But also how God speaks.
Training Ground by Taylor Phillips, message on Anointing to Appointing is quite audacious to say the least.”
For instance, She has this way of opening your eyes to see the process of how God trains us for what he called us to do.
Whether that is on a platform of ministry in a traditional sense or a sense of trade work or even the general workforce.
Everyone has a platform of ministry no matter what our jobs are. Part of the message of the book that resonated with me is how we cannot force God’s hand or His timing, but how we are called to trust His character instead. And how we are to rest in his everlasting peace.
Whereas, if we run ahead of God or jump to the wrong conclusion or try to make something happen it will only end up making us stumble or make us look foolish.
Thus, we need to embrace the promise God has set for us and take a leap of faith in trusting his timing. And when opposition arises (which it will) we are not supposed to flee but stand our ground.
Moreover, I want to point out how in the book Taylor emphasizes recalling how faithful and good God is.
This is more powerful than we can comprehend. When we recall how wonderful God is, then we get a glimpse of how astounding his love is.
Also, when we do this we take the focus off of the circumstances we cannot change and onto what is important we put it back where it belongs to God.
Recalling how faithful God is putting our perspective back to see things through His eyes instead of our own perspective that can get cynical or distorted.
I love how Taylor explains this in Training Ground, in how she recalls God’s faithfulness.
She has this way of pointing out how focusing on the circumstances we can’t change can cause us to lose the ground we fought so hard to take. In this training ground process of going from anointing to appointing.
The reason I am sharing this quote is, Taylor, reveals we cannot base decisions on the flesh, but on the faithfulness and character of God instead.
Most of all I have been able to relate to this message because there have been times where I have tried to jump ahead of God or tried to make things happen and it just didn’t work.
So now I better understand that in those moments I need to rest in God’s faithfulness. I need to rest in His character and most of all rest in His peace. Instead of wasting time trying to make things happen.
Because God has appointed them to come to pass at the appointed time. I must recall His faithfulness and rely on Jesus to get me through.
Furthermore, have also been times where I have compromised and not prepared for things that God has wanted me to do.
So I can relate to how Taylor speaks on compromising and not preparing for things.
For instance, at one time I believed that I could compromise on settling for less. In volunteering in ministry with little kids instead of taking a rest and letting God bring into my life an opportunity to volunteer with teenagers.
I did not wait but settled and ended up not having my heart in it. So I grew bored and dissatisfied.
I did not write for quite a while and did not feel inspired or compelled to write. Instead things felt numb and dissatisfying.
Another example of not being prepared is this whole year of 2020 itself. For starters I was not ready to miss two steps on the stairs, fall, and break my ankle.
Yet, I was also not ready to go through the long recovery process that took over seven months. I was not quite ready to be removed from things because of the pandemic.
However, God knew that I was ready to write again and share the gift he’s given me again.
He knew that in the breaking process I would grow stronger and that it being part of my story would bring Him glory.
God knew that I needed to let go of serving in youth ministry for the time being and put it on the back burner right now.
He also knew that I needed to rest in the gift of writing and speaking that he has entrusted me with through the blog.
God knew that I needed to be refreshed to write again. And that is exactly what he has done by refreshing my soul and has given me a genuine peace that fulfills.
The point being God has been resetting my focus to see how he is training me to write again. This year has been a training ground to find my voice again in writing and to share God’s love with others again."
You never know I might become an author in the near future.
References:
Written Review, Hughes, Elizabeth(2020
Philips, Taylor(2020) Training Ground, Anointing to Appointing, United House Publishing,
Pictures, by Taylor Philips(2020)
Links/websites:
My Summary of the book:
“This book has truly changed my life and my heart. It has given me an awakening to see things in a new way. Training Ground has given me fresh eyes to see more of how God works and trains us for what is next. So if you want a book that challenges you, helps you grow, and helps not only change your perspective but also your heart. And, if you are at a crossroads in life and a waiting period. Then this book is for you.”
“I received a free copy of this book in return for an honest review.”
Elizabeth Hughes
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