Blogroll

As we celebrate Women’s History Month there are many events that bring recognition to some trailblazing famous women that have helped build our nation and shape progress. It is a wonderful time to celebrate these events and the women that have made a difference. But as I reflect on these accomplishments, I am also drawn to the everyday events that may seem simple and ordinary that also deserve recognition. The woman that gives of her time freely volunteering in a homeless shelter, the mom who pours into her children every day, the Sunday school teacher that teaches biblical values through bible stories and song, and all the women who simply support each other through everyday challenges and take time to celebrate the milestone successes along the way. We are all worthy of celebration every month of the year! 

God has a habit of picking ordinary people for some very important tasks. One story can be found briefly in Luke 2:36-38.

There was also a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was very old; she had lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, and then was a widow until she was eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshiped night and day, fasting and praying. Coming up to them at that very moment, she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem.

Anna was a faithful witness. She literally could not stop talking about Jesus. A witness that shared her faith to everyone she came in contact with. A woman that most likely impacted the lives of so many with her faithful words. Anna demonstrates the importance of spending time alone with God, being faithful in prayer, and sharing the gospel with others. I don’t know about you, but I think that is worth celebrating. An ordinary woman chosen by God to receive the gift of prophecy and to see Jesus as an infant. Only mentioned briefly in the bible, but her impact so mighty and in ways we may not completely know and understand. 

Anna is not unlike many of us as we spend time with God during our Yada time and as we listen to what he has to say to us personally. We share the good news of Jesus with those we encounter during ordinary events – in the grocery line, at the office, coffee with a friend, or a brief encounter with a stranger. We are all making a difference one encounter at a time. 

 So, during Women’s History Month, I encourage you to stop and celebrate all the ordinary and mighty women that are on mission, sharing the good news of Jesus! 

Christine Brevik, Executive Director

To understand Agape love, you have to first understand that there is a distinction between love as we know it and what Agape love is all about. Love is an intense feeling of deep affection, used to describe things that invoke pure emotion and delight. We tend to use the word loosely to describe things we fancy. Agape love is so much more than a feeling. It’s a promise. It’s a covenant that believers of Christ are committed to showing others. Agape Love is love but at its highest form.  In 1 John 4:8 it states that, “Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.”

Simply put, Agape love is Godly love. We can learn and appreciate the true context of this love by seeing the greatest example set by our Lord in Romans 5:8, “But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” We also see this in John 15:13, “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.” He laid down his life for all of man-kind. This act of selflessness is rooted in Agape love.

Agape love is an action of loving others as much, if not more than, we love ourselves. Agape love is bigger than what our flesh can fathom. It is demonstrating true love through actions of service, obedience, and selflessness. As we look at how God defines the love we should have for others, we can look at how it is described in 1 Corinthians 13, specifically in verses 4-7.

“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.  It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.  Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.” These qualities/sentiments can be applied to the way we convey Agape love to others.

In 2007, I started a residential program for sex trafficked teenage girls. I’ll never forget the first resident that arrived. She was 14 years old and had been trafficked across several state lines. She came into my office one day crying about selling her body for 50 dollars while her roommate would earn 250. She kept saying, “I sold myself so cheap.” At that moment I shared with her that her body was priceless. I talked with her about Jesus and His sacrifice that was made on the cross and that by accepting His gift of salvation her sins would be as white as snow; and through Him she could find forgiveness for others who had hurt and abused her. I reminded her that she was a child of the King and His Agape love for her was unending. This strong young lady started a jewelry making business called Queen Elizabeth’s Jewelry because she wanted the name to symbolize her royalty in Christ. She went on to get a Masters degree from an Ivy League school on a full scholarship.

Agape love can restore and encourage others to walk in their full purpose. We would love to hear from you about ways God has used you to show Agape love!

Written by Emily Reed, YadaFactor Marketing Assistant and Founder of Flagship Equip

Happy New Year!

As we start the new year, I am excited and encouraged to see what God has planned for YadaFactor in 2023. Our winter courses are starting next week with only one spot open! We also have another course in Nepal starting mid-February. God is so good!

With so much to celebrate I am also reminded that the new year is a popular time for resolutions, new focus, and creating new habits. While I love the approach of starting fresh in the new year, I have always wondered why we wait for a calendar to prompt us to start something new. I like to think that every day is an opportunity to start new. A fresh day, a do-over, a chance to reconcile and regain focus. To me, that is what the YadaFactor process is all about. When I think about fresh starts in a new year it reminds me of the hope found in Lamentations 3:22 – 23.

The faithful love of the Lord never ends! His mercies never cease.
Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning. (Lamentations 3:22-23 NLT)

Lamentations is full of so much hardship, but then comes the beautiful message of hope. Hope that can come from a new year, but also comes “afresh each morning”!

My morning time with God is so precious and provides the hope of a new day. That hope comes from my quiet time in scripture, journaling, and sharing what I am hearing God say to me. It has provided the framework that allows me to start new things, refocus, and form new habits any day of the year. Every day is a new day, a new beginning, and a new opportunity to learn, grow, and go deeper in my relationship with God. Can you imagine if God waited until the start of the new year to make things new. I for one am thankful that “his mercies begin afresh each morning”!

Although the calendar is a great reminder to celebrate and reflect on the previous year while refocusing on the new year, I am rooted in the knowledge that God is with me every day. He waits for me patiently with love, grace, and forgiveness as I form new habits and focus on putting him at the center of all that I do.  Every day is a new day to start fresh and receive the mercy that God gives so graciously.

How will you start fresh and receive God’s mercy today?

Heavenly Father, thank you for the opportunity to start fresh every day. Be with me, guide me, and help me recognize the mercy you provide in the midst of chaos. When I get discouraged, I will remain in the truth that your faithful love never ends. Amen

Christine Brevik, Executive Director

I am honored and humbled to be serving in this ministry as we continue to grow and explore new opportunities to share the YadaFactor Experience with more and more people. We have an incredibly dedicated team of board members, coaches, volunteers, and internal support staff that make everything we do possible. Join us in prayer as we ask for God’s continued blessing over the mission He has placed before us. 

We recently finished our summer YadaFactor Experience course and as usual I am in awe of the testimonies that tell of new habits and changed lives. As our participants learn methods to strengthen their relationship with God, the results they share are always so inspiring. New habits are changing lives through strength, courage, growth, and resilience.

In his book Resilient, John Eldredge reveals a path toward resilience through Jesus himself. I don’t know about you, but I for one have found the past two years to be a time where much resilience was needed. And now, when my sweet state of Florida is recovering from the devastation of Hurricane Ian, I am reminded just how much a resilient soul is necessary to carry us through our storms!

When I was first introduced to YadaFactor I was intrigued and had to learn more. I immediately signed up for the YadaFactor Experience course and I, too, had a testimony of new habits and a changed life! These habits have created space for a deeper relationship with God that allows me to be still to hear His voice guiding me daily through my journey. My changed life puts God in the center of everything that I do, with a big faith that continues to grow every single day.

My big faith comes from practice, every-single-day! When I practice my faith, it leads to great fruit and rewards. My big faith provides resilience that strengthens my soul – resilience when devastation hits or even when I am just feeling like my day is not going the way I planned. When we are in relationship with God, our souls are strengthened, and we can be encouraged by His faithfulness. The evil one prowls around, trying to damage our souls and destroy our faith, but big faith is hard to destroy!

I am not saying that everything is always easy, but being in the word, being still, and having a daily relationship with God gives me strength and resilience. And when the evil one tries harder to destroy my faith, the full armor of God’s protection is available to me. Great resilience of our heart and soul comes from our relationship with our Lord and Savior. We discover the strength available through Jesus and being in His word.

Colossians 2:6-7 provides the instructions for how to practice our big faith…

“So then just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.”

Right in the middle, Colossians 2:6-7 provides the instruction to practice our big faith. Being in the word daily opens my heart and soul to receive the message God has for me and to live my life rooted and built up in Him.

As I hear from friends and family who have been part of the recovery efforts in Florida, one thing I hear consistently is the resilience of the people impacted – thankful for what they have been able to salvage and working together to rebuild and recover. I don’t know about you, but I want to have resilience like this all the time…rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as I was taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.

Heavenly Father, thank you for providing a space for me to grow, heal, and receive your gift of peace. On the hard days I come to you first and seek comfort and strength through the resilience you provide. I pray that others find resilience in relationship with you.

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Christine Brevik is the Executive Director of YadaFactor and enjoys sharing how the YadaFactor process has impacted her personally.

The YadaFactor process has provided me the tools and discipline to be in the word and go deeper in relationship with God. I pray you too can experience a deeper relationship that provides opportunity to hear God through the peaks and valleys of your journey.