(Photo by Summer Mims, all rights reserved)

treadingwatertiljesuscomes.com

Well, the earth has circled the sun again and Jesus has not returned.  Still we wait, treading, with our eyes on the Eastern sky.  We are 365 days closer to His return!  We are anticipating some world events that will signal His imminent return.  Soon we will all stand face to face to give an account of the life He entrusted to us.

During the past two years the LORD has had me deep in His Word.  I have faced some demons, conquered some fears, seen my reflection in the light of God’s truth, been led to repentance, and written a blog to share this journey.  I have laughed, cried, been shocked, been left speechless, and made some decisions based on what I found God’s Word said.  I have “shown up and been seen,” an act of courage for me tantamount to scuba diving in a cave!  No guarantees I will survive.

I believe this study on the “fear nots” has lifted me out of the quagmire of quicksand holding me paralyzed and panicked and unproductive and placed me in waters that are still at times choppy, murky, and cold.  Any good swimming instructor will tell you, you must relax and breathe to be able to ride the waves until the storm subsides or you are lifted out of the water by the Lifeguard.  

The Word has given us close to one hundred fear nots and each addresses a different fear we face in life.  Each “fear not” gave us specific ways to trust and “lean in” to the fear.  Verses were at times repeated and yet the lesson was new!

The child’s prayer, “Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep.  If I should die before I wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take,”  speaks of the fear of death, the hope of life after death, and where to place our trust as we spend hours of each day totally dependent on His hand to sustain us.  

I am honored you chose to join our journey.  Thank you for treading through the first year of  our “blogging” bobbles to a virtual audience.   For you our faithful readers, I am so humbled by you.  

Let me share with you some of the statistics that have blown us away!

Views for the year is >10,000
Visitors to the site is >4000
Comments on the posts >250  (that is an average of one per day!)
Seen in 51 countries
Shared on Facebook, Twitter, and found on various search engines
Our top two most read posts were written by a 12 year old–”oh the places she will go!”  

We have been privileged to share other bloggers and some new music and partner with Fabric of Hope to bring attention to a special home for orphans in Romania.

Our format is different.  We have multiple contributors from ages 12 to we will let you guess.  Music is a big part of our daily devotionals because music is the language of the soul.  We dig deep in the Word and our lives are our object lessons.

Will we ever be as popular as the Pioneer Woman, Fixer Upper, or Beth Moore, Kay Arthur, or Ann Voskamp?    Only God knows the answer.  We only know we are going forward believing He has called us to encourage His Bride in these difficult days.  Being obedient equals success.  If you are blessed share us with others by liking us and sharing on Facebook, sign up for daily drop into your email, or tell a friend, coworker, or family member.  Pray for us as we weekly write from one to three entries each.  Continue to encourage us by adding a comment or two.  

So, from all of us…………… THANK YOU FOR SHARING THE WATER!  WE ARE BUOYED BY YOUR SUPPORT.  

Father,

Thank You for Your faithfulness and for challenging us to share all You have taught us, shown us, and brought us through.   We stand in awe.  We are humbled You would choose to use us “at such a time as this.”  

We pray for those who follow us.  May they find YOUR words, YOUR encouragement, YOUR wisdom, YOUR direction for their lives, and YOUR hope.

We love you Jesus and it is YOUR name we lift high.

Treading in His Love,

Treadin’7

The Anchor Holds by Ray Boltz