Underneath

It is officially winter on Ferrell Farms.  The sky is deary, the days are short, it's cold and there is snow.  Let me peel back a layer of myself and tell you I despise winter.  It is just all the things.  I don't like being cold, I can't drive in winter weather due to a car vs black ice situation that could have ended my life and I have seasonal depression so there's that. WINTER, yuck.  However, I have seen some beautiful things around me this winter that called me outside with the little's this weekend.

There was white snow on the ground around the farm this week and it has been so pretty to look at.  Except that under snow there was mud.  Nasty, dirty icky mud.  The ground was so saturated that my boots were sinking down into the mud.  Which left the snow dirty and my boots (and little boys) filthy.

The last few years I have been all in and committed to transparency.  I don't want any woman to begin talking to me, hear me speak or read my blog and think she just has it all together. I always want you to be reminded that I am a hot mess.  There is no perfection in the lines of these words.  I am 100% washed in the grace and blood of Jesus and that is the only way this hot mess steps one foot in front of the other most days.  So, I have a group of women (my prayer group that is now a part of the Imperfectly Brave movement, you can join in too!) that I am nothing but 100% real with.  This week they literally heard me talk about how I have felt so out of sync with God these last two weeks.  I told them all the yucky places while they all sat around my farmhouse table and nodded their heads.  Their pointing fingers were down, they were judgement free and they let me say all the things.  Then they prayed with me. I cry with them I laugh with them and we are so real.  From that group I have realized we just need to be so very real with each other. If we walk in perfection, there is no room for Jesus.  If I act like I've got this all under control then I can't show you that it is only through Christ that I am even keeping my head a float.

Under the snow, was the mud.  But the mud reminded me that there is life, real true growing life under there.  Snow is the precipitation that keeps our ground watered and prepared for the planting and the harvest.  The mud holds that all together till the harvest comes.  There is beauty in each role, the snow, the mud, the yucky of it all holds a beautiful picture in the end.  I want to present Jesus in a good light, I want to be washed white and I am, but then I get muddy again and there is grace.  Wash, rinse and repeat.  Perfection only takes away from the beauty of grace, and ladies grace is where it's at.  May I always be reminded of the hot mess that Jesus loves so fiercely he gave his life away for all the mess to be washed in the blood and remade into a beautiful daughter of the most high King.

I took my eyes off the prize last week and in my transparency I found it all again. In my weakness he stayed strong, sought me out and brought me back. It's not different for you sweet girl.  You can be real, there are people out there that need you to show the imperfection to see the work that the Lord has done and is doing.  May we all find grace in the muddy places, for the harvest will be plentiful.

Much Love,
Chrystan

Let Forgiveness Reign This Holiday Season

Merry Christmas Friends, Family and faithful readers from Ferrell Farms!

This is going to be short and sweet today (well maybe not super short...). I have one thing tugging at my heart to share with you. One thing you may not want to hear. One thing that may leave you shaking your head and running for the next exit!

In this season of hope and joy it is time to let love reign and forgive.

As you step into that door, knowing that that family member that was so terrible to you last year is going to be there let me urge you to let forgiveness reign.  I know it's hard. I know it's impossible.  I know they hurt you to your core, but you can do it. Do you want to know why I can say with great confidence that you CAN forgive them even though it hurts to just think about it?  Because I did it, it was impossible, but with Christ forgiveness should flow out of us like water off a waterfall. Freely, with no just cause.

Someone in my life hurt me so badly this Fall (I am not vague-booking here, I am going to protect my family by not saying who. But know that it is not you. If you are thinking it is you, it is not you)  Anywhoo, this person hurt me both emotionally but also physically and mentally. She used forced on me and slayed me with her words in this most painful places.  She attacked all that I hold dear and it hurt me.  I found myself begging her to go, to leave, so that I would not also hurt her.  It was hard, it was just the hardest thing.

Since then we have had to coexist in spaces and I have had to bite my tongue.  Yes, this is possible, the online generation, the social media generation is not used to holding back the airing of all the dirty laundry. This is a lost art form, we should work on in 2016.

In Christ I am a new creation. As I have leaned into him through this he has shown me the ways he forgives me.  How he loves me in my ugliest places and I have been able, through prayer and reading scripture, to forgive her.  I have found ways to put my hurt away, to give grace and let God take over. That's the thing about grace, it is UNMERITED favor.  She doesn't deserve forgiveness, she hurt me very badly but I don't deserve forgiveness or grace either.  Grace is not earned it is given, freely, unmerited.  So, thank you God for this grace you gave me. Thank you for showing me how to truly forgive, even when someone is not seeking forgiveness.

May I say again, without Christ this is foreign and impossible.  Maybe it even seems ridiculous.  How could I forgive her after all she did?  Absolutely, it is impossible and I felt like it was impossible. Until I invited God into the problem and realized nothing is impossible in him. He is all about making the impossible come to fruition, that brings him GREAT Glory, and isn't that my goal...

Do it.  Forgive.  Let God do the impossible in you today.  You may have to work really hard at it.  It's not easy, but so worth it.  So WORTH IT!  I am not best friends with her.  I will keep a safe distance right now. But forgiveness has freed me, glorified my God and made me understand his love for me even more.My prayer is that she will see Christ in me and seek him.  That others will hear this story and be changed for the glory of God is the goal.

Hope. Love. Forgiveness. These things are found at the foot of the cross.  If you haven't gone there, may I suggest today seeking forgiveness in Christ so you can also be free.

May your eyes be on him this Christmas.

Much Love,
Chrystan

PS- Forgiveness also applies to yourself. God will forgive you maybe already has, you should also forgive yourself.

With Reckless Abandon: My 34th Year

For my 34th year I want to live with reckless abandon.  Now, before you start to dial the mental facility I want you to hear and know what this means to me.  I spent a lot of time in my life living for myself.  Really more than 25 years at the least was all about me.  I am learning and growing into a space that has caused me to turn outwardly and see the world. I see loss, despair, hunger, loneliness, emptiness, an un-Godly scary world, and sadness around me.  I see the church huddled in their pews refusing to turn outward for fear of the world.  I see fear of man instead of fear of God.  In my 34th year I want to live facing outwardly in reckless abandonmentt. I want to chase, sprint, after God's desires and I want you to run alongside me.

Reckless Abandon: Throw everything you can into it, without caring about the consequences. Give it all you've got.

I will not let my duties fall away. I will still put God first, I will still seek to serve and love and care for Farmer Adam. I will tend to my family, serve them and love them fiercely. All these things will not fall away, they will only gain from a life lived with great intention.

Great intention. Focused on the prize. I will outwardly face and attack the needs of the community around me. God has me broken for the broken. I have prayed so often, "Lord may I see them as you do, break my heart for what breaks yours." He has done that this year. He placed a broken family in my path, a foster child in my home and gave me a heart for the hurting community of women around me. I don't want this masquerade of church life to go on around me. I want authenticity and action.

This year is the year of outreach in my church. I am ready Lord, send me. I will go where you will go, your people will be my people, you will be my God. To the ends of the earth or just down the driveway, I will seek you Lord with Reckless Abandon. Lord, use my gifts and talents for your glory. You have made me to do your work, you have created my FEARFULLY, WONDERFULLY and BEAUTIFULLY in your image Lord. My 34th year and those that follow will be spent chasing hard after you, FEARING GOD NOT MAN. I will seek you with all of my days.

Thank you for hearing my hearts cry readers.  What is yours? If you don't know the answer to that question, may I suggestion opening the nearest Bible and begin to read, start with 1 John. 

Much Love,

Chrystan

A Treasure Map Through Suffering

“You don’t really know Jesus is all you need until Jesus is all you have.” - Tim Keller

I don’t understand suffering. It’s a concept I cannot wrap my brain around.  I am a human person and suffering is something that I get stuck walking through.  Easily I shake my fist at my sweet Lord.  I say “How could” “Why are you” “What about your goodness”  “What about your love” “Don’t my tears mean anything to you Lord?”  “What about her faith, don’t you see she is a good and faithful woman?”  “What about my faith?  Don’t you see I am praying over here, do you hear my prayers Lord?”  “You can answer them Father.  You can strike this down and make this well.  I don’t understand!”  

I don’t understand so I go to the word, The Bible, it’s the only thing I can do.

The Bible is not meant for beating on.  The Bible is not meant to be a step stool for us to stand on so we can look down on those around us. The Bible is not meant for what so many use it for, self-righteousness and hurt. For lashing out on, for judgment and agendas.  This sweet book, the Holy Bible, is meant as a guidebook for the lost.  Think of it as a map, a treasure map.  Right now there is suffering in this life. Right now today my family is hurting and confused and so am I.  So today, I go to The Holy Bible, and start back down the path for treasure. Let us run, not walk, to the treasure of the word of the Lord.

The Lord is a stronghold for the oppressed a stronghold in times of trouble. And those who know your name put their trust in you, for you, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek you. Psalm 9: 9-10

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For as we share abundantly in Christ’s sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too.  If we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation; and if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which you experience when you patiently endure the same sufferings that we suffer.  Our hope for you in unshaken, for we know that as you share in our sufferings, you will also share in our comfort. 2 Corinthians 1: 3-7

The verses go on an on.  Something to remember is we are not meant for here.  We were never meant to be out of communion with God.  We were supposed to be spending our days in a garden in the presence of the Lord, being in direct relationship with God and loving him with all our days.  This world is full of pain and suffering and hardness and death.  God is literally counting up till the day when we are reunited with him in Heaven and can get back to the plan. The plan of him, with us all our days.  He is anxiously awaiting our arrival into his courts. Until that day comes there will be bad days, sick babies, sin, pain and suffering. But we can look forward to the future of being with our good Father someday.  Until then I can meet him in prayer and in his word through the Holy Bible.  Until then, I will hunt for treasures stored up in Heaven.

Sister, if you are struggling today. If you don’t know the Lord or if you have shut him out of your life may I encourage you to lean into his word today? If you don’t know where to start I suggest Ephesians and Psalms those are some of my favorites.  Reach out to the believers around for your love and support.  We are here, struggling through the same life and have troubles as well. Let us band together in love and solidarity for the glory of God, the one who made us FEARFULLY and BEAUTIFULLY in his image of LOVE.

Much Love,

Chrystan

PS- I know there is so much more on this topic, we could go deeper and deeper. There's so much theology here and so many more words. Maybe someday we will study this topic together. Today these are the words God gave me, for someone out there that needs to here just this.

The Story of Ruth: Let's Hear if For the Boy (Redeemed Part 2)

Ya'll I am a sucker for 80's & 90's music.  Oh my gosh, I just love it so much. I mean they don't make it like that anymore (for the sake of sounding really old).  I mean old school Whitney, Janet, NKOTB you know who you are out there. You're about to go dust off your favorite mix tape and jam to the good stuff. Go on girl, I'm not gonna judge. Well, 1984 brought one of my fav's in, Let's Hear it For the Boy off the hit movie Footloose.  I mean if that doesn't get your toes tappin', you're dead!  So what does this have to do with the final installment of our Ruth study.  Start by reading Ruth chapter 4 if you haven't already.  We have journeyed with our two gals Ruth and Naomi to the end. We have seen them loose their family and make a scary, lonely trek to Bethlehem. Ruth began to provide for herself and her mother-in-law by working in the fields where she caught the eye of Boaz.  At the leading of Naomi, Ruth went to Boaz to present herself and her estate to be redeemed by either him or the other guy in line.  (see the chapter 3 post)  Now we are caught up!

Boaz literally comes to the rescue here in chapter 4, but not before he does the right thing.  In the first part of chapter 4 we read of Boaz going to the next man in line to be the kinsman redeemer for Ruth. To inherit her land with her along with it (ladies can you imagine loosing your husband and then being passed down the line till someone takes you. Whew, I'm glad we don't do that anymore!) Boaz probably could have gotten away with marrying Ruth and gaining her and Naomi's land.  It didn't seem like anyone much cared about these two ladies.  However, Boaz was a good man and he was led to do right by Ruth but also do right by the law.  So we see in the middle of the chapter a funny transaction of the land, the inheritance and the taking off of a shoe (part of the custom of the times, again glad we don't do this nowadays!).

So our sweet Ruth becomes the wife of a good man. She is redeemed but so is our girl Naomi.  Naomi began with us a bitter woman, she even named herself Mara for all her pain and anguish.  We end the book of Ruth and Naomi has found great joy.  She has a family again, God has provided the desires of her heart through her love of Ruth and Ruth's love of her.  What a sweet story this is.  Cue the 80's theme music, all is right with the world, Boaz redeemed her and Ruth's name resides in the line of Jesus.  Don't skip over the genealogy stuff at the end guys, it is a bunch of boring names but it's an important bunch of names. This is the line of David, the lineage of our Savior.  So special!

So, we close the Book of Ruth with a great ending, redemption has happened and we are setting up for the coming of Christ.  It all points to OUR need for redemption OUR need for a Savior.  The first time I read the book of Ruth it blew me away, this time it blew me away again!  Go back and read books of the Bible you haven't read in a while, you will see them in a different light and learn new things each time I PROMISE!

I also promised an announcement to my friends and readers at the end of this study.  No i'm not pregnant and right now I'm saying praise the Lord for that, we have our hands full already! However, I am birthing a new baby of sorts.  God has led me to pursue more writing, more mentoring, more encouraging women and families.  So, there will be a new blog and new website where Family, Faith and Food will all come together around the table at Ferrell Farms.  Beautifully Made will be fused into a whole new site. More details to come, it is currently and actively under construction!  Follow me on social media to see all the new things as they come in!

For now, have a wonderful week following hard after God. My prayer for myself is Lord increase my Faith, feel free to join me in that adventure!  This week don't' forget you are a daughter to the King BEAUTIFULLY, FEARFULLY and WONDERFULLY MADE!  Redeemed in grace and love!

Much Love,
Chrystan
PS- Let's here it for the boy (I couldn't resist!):

The Story of Ruth: Redeemed Part 1

This weekend I celebrated my 5th anniversary.  Oh there is so much to say about this man that I have been blessed to call my husband.  Though I feel God chose him for me at just the right time in our lives, I got to choose to say yes or no when he proposed.  It was my choice, though there was clearly a right answer as I loved him and desired to spend my life with him, I still made the choice.  God knows what choices we are going to make, yet he gives us the right to make those choices.  With Adam I am thankful to have chosen him for my husband.  I am also thankful to have chosen to follow God and that we choose to follow him in our marriage.  As we continue to lean into the book of Ruth we see how Ruth's choices affect her and Naomi.

Ruth and Naomi have found themselves in a situation as we round the bases and head to third in our study of Ruth.  They are without men, they have traveled to a foreign land and they are basically alone in this journey. Just the two of them at first and now we see Boaz enters the scene.  Back in the early Biblical days women did not get to choose their husbands and if they were widowed it was likely they would be passed down to the next relative in line (see Leviticus).  In Ruth's case she chose to stay with her mother in-law in the passing of her husband, with no option of being re-married.  Ruth chose a life of hardship to do what she felt was right.  At the end of chapter two we see Boaz has become fond of Ruth and is taking good care of her.  He is giving her extra food and goods and providing for her in many ways.  She has turned his head with her work ethic and good character.  Ruth doesn't get to choose her man as women were not held in high esteem at this time, however, Ruth got to choose what her actions were going to look like. She changed her life by choosing to stay with Naomi, by choosing God and by being a woman of good character. Ruth could have chosen the easy way, gone back with Orpah and lived a regular life safe in Moab.  Instead she chose a path less traveled that has led her to the threshing room floor (read Ruth Chapter 3).

During harvest time the owners of the fields would stay overnight to either work or guard their fields from thieves.  Boaz was this type of field owner, he was there guarding and working when Ruth came to the threshing floor to state her intentions.  This is not a sexual matter, it is easy in this day and time to say that Ruth was after Boaz here, but she wasn't.  Ruth was obeying and following the lead of a Godly woman to do what was the right next step. Ruth followed Naomi's instruction for indicating to Boaz that he could be her kinsman redeemer.  Laying at his feet showed Boaz that as a relative of Ruth's he could find someone to marry her or he could harry her himself.  (Boaz was a distant relative of Ruth's husband)  What an interesting thought, to lay at the feet of a distant relative to spur on the next relationship in your life, can you imagine! So, Boaz is flattered but in comes a curve ball. He informs Ruth; "I am not the next in line, but if this other guy is ok with it I'll have your hand in marriage. I will redeem you." (paraphrased for understanding).  We leave our girls Ruth and Naomi at the end of the chapter unsure of what will happen when Ruth is presented to this other relative.  Naomi is reassuring Ruth that Boaz will settle this matter quickly.

Where are we leaving you today?  Have you chosen the easy route?  Ruth's path has not been easy since she chose Naomi over returning with Orpah.  She's had to work hard and venture into the unknown, but she has displayed great character through this process.  I'm sure she had her doubts and days where she looked back towards Moab and longed for the path well traveled, but in the end she is blessed for her choice.  If you feel like the path you are on is not a good one you can choose to make a change!  I'm am telling you from experience the path less traveled is the best one to be on.  I do not believe a life well lived by God's standards is an easy one, but if you are following hard after God's leading you will be cared for by your Savior.  You will be poured into and loved on as Boaz has for Ruth.  He saw her choosing the right path, working hard and seeking good things and was led to provide for her out of what will we find out later is love.  God sees you girl, he wants you to lean into him so he can pour into you.  He's waiting for you to follow him whole-heartedly so he can redeem you in his love.  As in the case of our girl Ruth, choosing Him and seeking more of Him will change your life!

There's so much ahead of us as we close out Chapter 3 of Ruth and look towards Chapter 4!  I cannot wait to dive into the end of the book of Ruth with you this week!  We will also have a fun guest blog from my gal pal Leesa Mead author of Save a Skillet to close out this study, I cannot wait to hear from her, ya'll she's so good! Until then let's spend time this week praising God for his creation in us as FEARFULLY WONDERFULLY MADE girls in his image.

Much Love,
Chrystan

The Story of Ruth: God's Perfect Timing

Have you ever missed the bus, taken a wrong turn or had a flight cancelled?  Did you praise God for that event...hmmm...probably not.  This morning I went to the pharmacy to pick up my prescription. You see here at Ferrell Farms we don't live right in town, it's a little bit of a jaunt to get to the grocery store and the pharmacy.  So, when I go into town I am intentional with my errands. This morning I had 4 tasks; kids to daycare, Pharmacy, UPS and coffee.  When I arrived at the pharmacy the drive through window was still closed, 30 minutes after their opening time.  I called them as I sat there and the manager informed me they had a sub coming in, he wouldn't arrive for another hour.  Bummer.  Remember, jaunt and to do list. As I drove away I began to be frustrated, this was not part of the plan this morning. I need to get home, now I have to come back!  Then I had a sweet reminder of my study of the book of Ruth.  I was reminded of God's perfect timing and I smiled.

In Ruth chapter one we meet Ruth and her mother-in-law Naomi after great tragedy has struck their family.  Three women were left to fend for themselves.  Orpah, Ruth's sister-in-law, has left the picture.  Ruth has insisted Naomi let her stay by her side, no matter what.  Chapter one closes with a very BIG detail that we as readers can easily gloss over:

"So Naomi returned from Moab accompanied by Ruth the Moabite, her daughter-in-law, arriving in Bethlehem as the barley harvest was beginning."

God has brought these two women back just in time!  There were two harvest times, spring and fall. The women were returning during the spring barley harvest, which was a time of hope and plenty.  Bethlehem was a farming community and because it was the time of the harvest there was plenty of leftover grain in the fields.  This grain was left out for the poor of the community to collect (glean) which they then made into food.  Do you see how God is providing? Do you see here how his timing is so perfect!?  It get's better... (read Chapter 2 of Ruth)

In chapter two we meet a man, a good man name Boaz.  Ruth goes to glean in his field for her and Naomi.  She is such a hard worker she caught the eye of this great man.  Exhibiting admirable qualities in our lives is so important, we never know who is watching and who is taking notes.  Boaz saw these great qualities in our girl Ruth and he admired her from a far.  Because of the qualities of Ruth and because God is so good, Boaz found favor in her and began to give her a little extra throughout the remainder of the barley harvest.  Let's walk away from today with two great take homes:

1. God's timing is perfect and way better than ours!  Even though there was tragedy. Even though they had to leave Moab and journey into the unknown, God provided much more than these two ladies could have ever dreamed!  He continues to provide for them greatly, he remembers Ruth and finds favor with her.  You sweet girls are no different.  He remembers you.  Continue to seek him, follow hard after his ways and walk his path. There is blessing in that, I promise!

2. Good character and reputation go far.  Chapter one showed us Ruth was loyal. Chapter 2 showed us Ruth was hard working on top of being loving, kind, faithful and brave.  Ruth's life exhibited admirable qualities consistently and it was noticed.  It turned the head of a good man and played a part in how God moved and worked in her life.  Boaz is going to change Ruth's life and redeem her. The story gets pretty exciting!

Ruth's life was changed by God.  His timing was perfect, her qualities were more than admirable.  Let us all rejoice this week in God's perfect timing for our lives and thank him for always having our best interest in mind. His ways, not ours, are the very best!  I pray this week that each of us reflect on the qualities we are exhibiting and adjust accordingly.  Strangers, friends, boyfriends, husbands and our children are watching us to see what our character is.  Let it be said of us that we are loyal, hard working, loving, kind, faithful and brave....and don't forget FEARFULLY and WONDERFULLY MADE in our good God's image!

Much Love,
Chrystan
PS- Chapter 3 gets good...more coming soon!

The Story of Ruth: Chapter 1 Your Tribe

Let's face it family can be complicated.  Mostly made up of a group of people randomly thrown together through marriage and the unlikely combination of DNA and genes that intertwine them.  Family, it's a whole thing right?  My family has some very interesting dynamics.  I have the Fuller side who are pretty much all extroverted (except my step-mom bless her heart she's stuck with all of us) and some of whom are extroverted introverts which is like a real thing and very complicated. The Fuller side brought me to Jesus.  Then I have the Foster side, which is my mom's side.  We are all pretty much sassy in our own right over on the Foster fence.  Full of strong, fierce women, the Foster side has fought hard to get their family where it is today.  They have taught me how to be strong, stand up and stand in for my family.  The Foster side also brings in my Grandaddy who passed away this year.  He was one of my favorite people.  The Foster side taught me that family is a person who walks in the front door.  There are no thick blood lines there are no walls up, just a welcome hug and sweet tea in your hand.  This is why I would say that my family has become more of a tribe than a family.  We are missed matched, some are here by marriage, some are here because they don't have a family so they have ours, some are here through a series of strange happenings that I don't even know the details to but I still call them aunts, uncles or grannies.  The Ferrell's bring a beautiful dynamic of a more quiet, serving support which has taught me so much. I wouldn't have my family any other way.

This is where we find Ruth in the Old Testament of the Bible as we launch into our 2 week study of our sister Ruth (take a minute to read Ruth Chapter 1). A brief intro of Ruth will tell us that she basically enters the story a destitute widow of the wrong kind of people. Ruth was a Moabite and had married outside of her tribe.  When we meet her we are walking into her tragedy immediately.  She has lost her father in law, brother in law and husband one right after the other.  Leaving the women with no men, which back in these days was a really big deal.  Through this tragedy we meet Ruth's mother in law, Naomi.  Naomi really has taken the hardest blow here. She has basically had to walk through the death of her entire family at this point. Shes in a foreign country with two sad, scared little girls Ruth and Orpah.  This is where we see Ruth make family her tribe.  In verses 10-14 we hear Naomi telling the girls she basically has nothing to offer them and she urges them to go back to their people.  Which really would leave Naomi completely alone, but she is wanting the best for them. Right here is where we find some of the most beautiful verses in the Old Testament (personal opinion)

16 But Ruth replied, "Don't urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go and where you stay I will stay.  Your people will be my people and your God my God.  Where you die I will die and there I will be buried.  May the Lord deal with me, be it ever so severely, if even death separates you and me"

She is pledging her life to Naomi no matter what that means to her!  In our society mother in laws get such a bad wrap.  Ladies, I love my mother in law. Linda Ferrell is the kindest most loving woman.  I am so blessed and happy to be in her tribe. Here we see, Ruth pledging to leave all opportunity to re-marry and to have safety and provision in order to stay with Naomi.  We also just saw a HUGE thing happen to Ruth.  She pledges her life to God, even though she doesn't know yet exactly what that means at this time. When she pledges her life to Naomi she also chooses to follow her God, which just so happens to be the God of the Universe. Coincidence, I think not.  This decision will not only change Ruth's life on Earth for the better, which we will see play out through the next few chapters, but her name ends up in the lineage of Jesus and she gets to spend eternity in Heaven. Huge decision here for her.

Family, it's a whole thing right?  I didn't get to talk about the Jacobs side of my family.  Grandma Nancy is my sons grandma.  She loves him with the fire of a thousand suns, rightfully so, he is her grandson. The flip side of that coin is she loves me and my boys and my husband.  She treats us as her family and she doesn't have to.  She gives my kids baths, she buys us Christmas presents, she feeds us and sometimes we stay at her house and her at ours. She is in our tribe by choice.

You see family is who you fight for. It's who you stick with.  Naomi and Ruth maybe didn't see eye to eye on all the things.  They probably voted for different presidents in the last election.  Naomi likely wanted Ruth to have some babies, maybe that was sore spot. However, here in just the first chapter we see them choose each other no matter what.  They became for each other and because of that love relationship God was glorified and their lives were blessed.

What's your tribe look like?  Are you harboring bad feelings for your mother-in-law or that brother that stepped on your toes the last family gathering?  Let's decide that we are going to fight for the family unit again.  Let's fight for our tribes and stop letting the world break them apart over silly things like who makes the jello mold this year at Thanksgiving. Satan hates family. He was to destroy it.  Lets shout out loud, where you go I will go, your people will be my people. Love on your mother in law today and that tricky brother. Grow your tribe in love!

Today is a beautiful day for restoration, go restore those hurts so you can walk together down the road to the next chapter, BEAUTIFULLY MADE and all!

Much Love,
Chrystan

See you in a few days for Ruth Chapter 2, where we meet Ruth's new man!!!

This Is Amazing Grace: Remembering the Journey

I dated a really bad guy once.  A really bad guy.  He was abusive in a way that I'm not sure you will understand if you haven't experienced it before.  He was controlling and emotionally abusive through his control of my life.  He made me feel teeny tiny and unworthy of him.  I changed who I was for him, I gave up my beliefs and pushed my family aside to be with him.  Through all the warnings and red flags I couldn't see the forest for the trees.  I try not to say I regret things in life, as God uses those things to mold and shape us and bring us somewhere beautiful, but it's the closest thing I have to regret. (If you are in an abusive relationship please seek help today!)

Today I am typing from my front porch at Ferrell Farms.  I am about to celebrate 5 years of marriage to Farmer Adam and I am blown away by where God has brought me.  My college years were rough, the world won me over in my 20's.  Cohen's birth and raising him as a single momma saved my life.  The years that followed were filled with extreme highs and lows.  Dating an abusive man took a toll on me but after that I began to find a personal journey in my walk with God.  It became less of something my parents brought me up to do and more about a need and desire.  I had an ache I was trying to heal with a lot of things, an ache that only God had the medicine for.  When I met Adam the first time, we were no where near ready for each other, so a year later God tried again and we have been together ever since.  In this time the Lord has worked in our lives in the most incredible ways.  He has blessed us with two more boys, kept us together fighting against the world for our marriage and most importantly he has drawn us each so closely to him that we have become one unit.  I sit on this porch saying there is no way I could have ever dreamed this big for my life, my God he is so BIG!  (Ecclesiastes 3:11)

I am reminded this morning of one of my favorite Bible stories. One that I fell in love with when I fell back in love with God.  The story of Ruth in the Bible is incredible.  It is a love story, but not exactly the kind of love story you would think of.  This story has a special place in my heart, because it was the first time I fell in love with the words of the Bible.

In honor of my love story meeting it's 5th year anniversary this month and to celebrate a new chapter coming in my life, we are going to do a 2 week study together of the book of Ruth.  I am not a theologian, I barely know how to spell that word.  However, I believe that God is calling me to go deeper with you and for you to step in closer to him through his words revealed through this blog. This will be a great journey together and I am excited to share my love of this book in the Bible.  So join in on the fun and let's discover together how God worked in one woman's life so greatly he put her name in the lineage of Jesus!  A lowly widow of the wrong kind of people group ended up in the lineage of Jesus, I mean how big is our God!

Can't wait friends!  You can join in by subscribing to my blog or following me on social media for more posts which will lead to a BIG announcement at the end!  Eeek so excited!

This week as you step into all the hard places look forward into the eyes of your Savior! Step in knowing that God's plan is so great, that you are FEARFULLY, BEAUTIFULLY and WONDERFULLY MADE in his image!

Much Love,
Chrystan