Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas, Friends!

Isn’t it wonderful?! We are in the midst of this amazing time of year when we remember the birth of Jesus – the One we love! I pray you have the sweetest Christmas with Jesus yet!

As we celebrate Christmas, the Lord has been putting a variety of things on my heart that I want to share each day leading up to Christmas.

Here is the first one:

~ Christmas (as well as life) is all about Jesus.
It is all about HIM! When we can keep our heart and focus here, the rest of Christmas (and life!) falls in to place and is so much more meaningful. This is a time to rejoice in the birth of the ONE we love and Who is our LIFE, our JOY, or SONG, our SALVATION… The One Who came, so that we might come to Him! Let's seek to keep our eyes on Him every day.

“For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen.” Romans 11:36

May you be blessed remembering Christmas (and life) is all about Jesus!

FINAL LTL Videocast - Your Identity in Christ

Dear Friends,

Who are you? Where we find our identity is so important because we behave in line with what we believe about who we are. As a child of God, you have an identity in Christ that will transform you the more you understand and live in the reality of it!

2 Cor. 5:17 tells us, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come."

I invite you to join me as we look at this important issue in our final videocast. Then may we all go and live in our identity in Christ!

This will be our final videocast for now. We pray that the videocasts have been a blessing to you as you continue to seek Jesus! You can watch any of them again anytime on the videocast site (http://vimeo.com/user3463095/videos). You can also stay posted for more encouragement on the blog - (www.lovingthelord.org)!

May the Lord bless you as you continue to seek Him with all of your heart! He is so wonderful!

Because of Who He is,

Amy Vest

Trust in the Lord

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths."
Proverbs 3:5-6

So much to thank Jesus for!

With Thanksgiving, I have been thinking in a special way of the things we have to be grateful for... and there is SO MUCH we have to be thankful for in Jesus!

Psalm 136 has been a special passage - Here are a few excerpts:

"Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good,
for his steadfast love endures forever.
Give thanks to the God of gods,
for his steadfast love endures forever.
Give thanks to the Lord of lords,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
to him who alone does great wonders,
for his steadfast love endures forever...
It is he who remembered us in our low estate,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
and rescued us from our foes,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
he who gives food to all flesh,
for his steadfast love endures forever.
Give thanks to the God of heaven,
for his steadfast love endures forever."

This verse from the hymn "Great is Thy Faithfulness" sums up how I feel:

"Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth,
Thy own dear presence to cheer and to guide;
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow,
Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside!"

May you be blessed as you thank Jesus for all that He is and all that He has done!

LTL Videocast #9 - Living for Eternity - Part 2

We have this short moment in time to invest our lives in knowing Jesus and making Him known. Charles Spurgeon said, “Time is short. Eternity is long. It is only reasonable that this short life be lived in the light of eternity.“ Join Amy as we consider this together, discuss what it can look like in our lives, and are encouraged to look to the Lord for how to live our lives for what counts for eternity!

This video is the second part of the “Living for Eternity” videocast. You are welcome to watch this part alone, but if you have not seen Part 1, we encourage you to watch it as well!

Matthew 6:19‑21, "Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also."

Jesus loves you!

Recently I had the privilege of being in the wedding of a dear friend and sister. During the outdoor pictures, I looked at the ground and saw a HEART-SHAPED leaf on the ground! I had to share it with you. Jesus is always wanting to remind us of His love for us and to draw us ever closer to Him as a result!

Jeremiah 31:3, "I have loved you with an everlasting love, therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn you."

May you be so richly blessed as you press closer to Him, live in the reality of His love, and love Him in return!

A few more testimonies...

Here are a few more testimonies from young women who took part in the Summer Pursuit. We pray that you will continue to be encouraged that pursuing the Lord is worth all of your attention, time, and effort! He is "a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him." Hebrews 11:6

"Participating in the Summer Pursuit was a great way to focus on what is most important – God!" ~ Karen, Iowa

"I learned a lot during this challenge." ~ Rose, Minnesota

"These 3 months have given me a fullness in my walk with Jesus – a priceless treasure that has been so very special and will continue to be." ~ Amelia, Oregon

"When I decided to take the Summer Pursuit challenge, I was excited to see what the Lord would teach me this summer. It has been a wonderful, yet somewhat challenging, pursuit for me. Even though I usually spend time with Jesus every day, sometimes it can be difficult not to just read a short portion of Scripture, pray a short prayer and then jump into the day’s to-do list. The challenge was a blessing in making sure I got in at least 15 min. of time with the Lord. It has helped me think more about studying and how to apply it to my life, not only reading it… This pursuit helped me to pursue Jesus more and to focus on Him, even when there are full days. He has done so much for us and what a special joy we have to spend time with Him." ~ Elizabeth

“The Lord has in so many ways given me so much through doing the Summer Pursuit and, ultimately, I think I grew closer to Him this summer than I would have without. The 15 min. a day and 1 verse a week habit is one I hope and pray will stick with me for the rest of my life – because the greatest challenge I have ever had is from my Jesus Who says that those who diligently seek Him will find Him. And what can I say to that?!" ~ Anonymous

His love is better than life

"Because Your lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise You."
~ Psalm 63:3

LTLM Videocast #8 - Living for Eternity

We are given life by God and are on this earth for a very short time. All that takes place in this life directly impacts our eternity and the eternities of others.

It can be easy to focus on the “here and now” and what we can see in this life because we live in a world that focuses on this life because they do not know Jesus and don’t have hope of anything past this life! But the Lord calls us to know the deep purpose of living this life for Him and eternity - the life to come!

Join Amy as she takes you to a graveyard as we consider the importance of living our lives in light of eternity!

2 Cor. 4:18, “…We do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.”

Encouraging Siblings in Seeking Christ

We were blessed to hear about what the Lord lead these two sisters to do in encouraging their brothers in pursuing Christ. We encourage you to consider doing something similar with your siblings!

"We were so excited when we found out LTLM was hosting a Bible challenge this summer. Since the goal of reading and memorizing God's Word is wonderful for anyone - not just young ladies - we invited our three brothers to join us for the summer pursuit. They each invited other young men they know to be their accountability partners, and they encouraged one another in manliness and in God's Word. We were thrilled to have them join us in this mutual summer goal, and for their prize, we sisters made them a special dinner and dessert, and cards exhorting them in their journey seeking the Lord.

As the pursuit neared its end, since all of us enjoyed the pursuit so much, we decided that we would host another "pursuit" this fall so we all could continue seeking the Lord together. Again, our brothers have joined us in our fall quest, with new accountability partners.

It's been so exciting to seek the Lord together as sisters, siblings, as a family, and with godly friends! This quest to know the Lord better will never end and will span into eternity when we all bow unitedly before Christ's throne praising Him forever! Why don't you make a challenge for all of your siblings to do in the coming month(s)? May we seek His face every day and every minute He gives us! "My soul breaketh for the longing that it hath unto thy judgments at all times." (Psalm 119:20)"

~ Sarah and Rachael Bryant (Kansas)

Summer Pursuit Testimonies

Here are a few of the wonderful testimonies that we have received from young women who took part in the Summer Pursuit this past summer! We plan to post more in the days to come, so be sure to check back! May the Lord bless you ALL as you continue to pursue our precious Savior! He is worth seeking with all that we are!

I really enjoyed being a part of the Summer Pursuit this year! It helped me to stay in the habit of spending time with God – even in the busy summer months. It has strengthened my faith in Christ and I have learned a lot!
~ Bethany, Texas

I truly believe I fell in love with Jesus even more. I mostly learned more about new attributes of God and how forgiving He is. He’s more wonderful to me every day! I learned so much this summer – so much more about Jesus – and I can’t wait to learn more!
~ Lily, Iowa

This summer has been a wonderful summer. God has done so much in my life; so many blessings! Reading my Bible every day was very hard. I failed many times, but God gave me strength and helped me persevere even though I was busy and sometimes didn’t want to be in God’s Word. Reading everyday has helped me learn more about Who my saving God is; but there is so much more to know! Memorizing verses was especially helpful. Now I have God’s words and promises in my head with me all the time! Before I never really made myself memorize God’s Word, but now that I have, I am so glad. God has been so gracious and good to me, more than I deserve. ~ Minnesota

I was so encouraged by it, and feel that I have drawn a lot closer to the Lord!
~ Martha, Alabama

What a blessing to have a set time each day for reading His Word and also to have accountability for memorizing. Accountability really helps and it was wonderful to get to talk and be encouraged every 2 weeks when we talked! The time requirement led me to spend more time in the Word and made me more “at home” in regard to where different verses/passages are found… and opened my eyes to new ones. I’ve found many “treasure” verses throughout this summer…
~ Maggie, Alabama

I’ve been blessed by how God has used the Summer Pursuit to show me the eternal importance of spending time with Him (in His Word). Our summer was super busy with so much to do and no matter what did get done, I look at my chart and see a huge amount of total time that I know was not wasted… it was spent in the best possible way. No regrets!
~ Annamarie, Minnesota

"For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.

For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.

O LORD of hosts, blessed is the man that trusteth in thee."

~ Psalm 84:10-12

This makes us so happy!

It has been an amazing blessing to receive your charts from the Summer Pursuit and to hear what the Lord did in your hearts as you have pursued Him this summer! We look forward to sharing some of your testimonies soon!!! May this only be the start of a lifetime of faithfully seeking our amazing Jesus!

“…Let us pursue the knowledge of the LORD. His going forth is established as the morning; He will come to us like the rain, like the latter and former rain to the earth.” Hosea 6:3