LIFE CHANGE STORY - Rachel Waters

God is so faithful to bring about transformation every week here at ELEVATION! It never ceases to amaze me what God does through His Church as we get out of the way and submit to the leadership of the Holy Spirit. I am a grateful pastor that is for sure. To be a part of a move of God is THE most humbling thing in all the world. I tell the Lord every day, "Lord make your people dependent upon you. Constantly allow students and leaders alike to be submitted to you Jesus and relying upon your Holy Spirit." Today, I share with you a work in progress. God is renewing a life named Rachel Waters. As you will see below, she is expressing honest frustration from her family but in the very next breath, follows it with unshakeable faith. Sounds a lot like Martha in John 11:21-22 huh?

"Now Martha said to Jesus,"Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died." (expressing honest frustration) "But even now I know that whatever you ask of God, God will give you." (faith follows in the same breath)

Trust me - Jesus can handle it. Be open with Him today. Here is her testimony:

______________________________________________

Hey Pastor Craig!


I have been coming to Elevation services the 
past few weeks with one of my dear friends, Caitlin Schrider. I want to 
thank you so much for what you are allowing God to do in Elevation. I
 wanted to give you a little testimony of what God is doing in my life 
through Elevation.


It has been a whirlwind of a couple of semesters. I feel like I've really
 been going through the wilderness. It's just one attack after another, it
 seems like. It's so frustrating because I feel like I'm taking one step
 forward and then getting knocked two steps back.

 Two weeks ago at Elevation, it was my second time coming, I had this 
huge feeling that the Lord was going to do something big that night...and 
boy did He ever! There was a time toward the end of the service and you
 came and prayed over me. The Lord used you in a huge way that night. He 
spoke to me and told me that I had allowed my joy to be quenched and that
 it needed to come back. He told me I needed to stop being responsible for
 other people's mistakes, He affirmed my calling to missions once again, 
and told me that I was good enough. When you spoke over me it was like you 
had gone through and read my mail before service. Everything that I was 
dealing with that night before service, the Lord answered in a crazy way.
 I walked out of service completely renewed and ready to go out and conquer 
the world, or so I thought.



Like I said earlier, once I take a step forward, I feel like I get knocked
 two steps back. Well, I got knocked back the Friday after that service.
Through a series of events with my family, my paternal grandparents and 
aunts and uncles called my Dad and basically told us that we were all 
horrible people, that we weren't worth anything, that we are useless, and 
that our family is never going to amount to anything. My grandfather said 
that he was through with my parents and my brother and I. This has been a
 huge hit to my family. We have all cried and cried and cried. Growing up 
in a small southern town, you never think that it would be your family to 
split up, but it's us. I'm trying to understand why, but there is no
 legitimate reason that I can see right now. 

I know that the Lord has a plan in all things but I'm having a hard time
 understanding why my own family wants nothing to do with us. I understand
 that sometimes you have to dust off your sandals and keep going. It's what 
I'm trying to do. Keeping the faith, maintaining my joy from Him, and
 trying not to focus on the things that make me weary but it's getting 
harder and harder.



I'm just trying to understand why the Lord would start breaking off
 chains, and breaking away the hardness of heart, and restoring joy one day
 and then two days later, my family gets destroyed.

 I know that out of the bad there has to be some good and honestly, I'm not 
half as broken and distraught about our family situation as my parents 
are.

I know that the Lord will remain faithful and that I'll have another
 testimony to tell one day, and I can't wait for that day.

 Thanks so much for your faithfulness and obedience to Him and allowing Him
 to work in a mighty way at Elevation. Thanks for allowing me to come be a
part of something amazing!



Blessings,


Rachel Waters

Would you join with me today in praying for this family? Rachel - we love you and call you family. Welcome to ELEVATION!