Then the Holy Spirit spoke a word to me about South Side Speaks and Life Stone. He led me to the verses below. 

Isaiah 42:16      16 I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them.

Isaish 43:13      ¹³ Yes, and from ancient days I am he.  No one can deliver out of my hand. 
 When I act, who can reverse it?”

Romans 6:4       ⁴We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.

Those changing leaves represent South Side, because God is changing the spiritual season in South Side even now. And we get to be part of it. The old ways of living will  die off, strongholds will fall to the ground and new life will bloom.

All this from leaves. I love walking with Him! Makes even simple things amazing! So thankful that He is leading us in this change, and He is equipping us to do what we could not do on our own.

“I am leading you into uncharted territory. Continue to seek the counsel of mentors and those who have been in the planting phase. But some questions, they will not have answers to. Don’t be discouraged. This is a new work. I am doing a brand new thing in South Side, the city and it will extend into the world.

Seek My counsel above all else. I have started this work, and I will be with you at every step along the journey.  I will lead Life Stone in some unconventional ways, and you will just have to trust in Me. I will give the wisdom for planning, the passion to communicate and the resources to make it happen.

Remember I am always here to guide, direct and encourage you. I can reveal to you in seconds what it would take months of meetings to accomplish. Be dilligent in planning, and I will be faithful with divine direction.

Continue to lay the foundation with prayer. Build community with those I have already brought into this family. They need to know that the leaders believe in them as I believe in them. They need to be reminded of how they are already living out the vision and challenged to continue doing so. “

God with us. The only One who is always there, being with us, listening to us, wanting to know our thoughts. Glad to be around us.

With us.                   Not busy with work or someone more important. Not looking for someone prettier, thinner or smarter. He chooses to be with us. He is constant. Loving us for who we are, not what we can do for Him. He’s always thinking about us.

With us.                We can’t wear Him out or push Him away with our great number of needs. He can handle us. He doesn’t need a vacation to recharge. He’s everything we could ever need or hope for at all times.

With us.                He wants to show exactly how perfectly He understands us. How we feel, think and dream. He is okay with any emotion we are having and will be the stability we need. Our Solid Rock is storm proof. We will not hurt Him by sharing our hurts.

With us.              He will always support you and back you up. He doesn’t think you’re weak because of fears or insecurities. He is safe. Our Fortress. He will always believe in You and be behind you.

He is God and He is with you.

At times, we all prostitute ourselves spiritually. We forget how beautiful we are to God, and we settle for a cheaper illusion of love. We look to others for completeness, for wholeness when they could never deliver that or fulfill our deepest needs.

Most of the time, we cling to the temporary. We may be able to find joy or a form of happiness for a little while, but it’s not what we really want. It’s not the unconditional, no strings attatched kind of love.

It seems sudden when the temporary happiness ends. And at the end of this selctive period of time, we are thrown some sort of cash or thanks for our services. Not appreciation or love for our souls. As if the extent of our worth could be expressed by cold, pressed paper.

What we wanted was a deep relational connection. What we got was an employer, a business transaction. What we wanted was an endless romancing of our souls. What we got was a counterfeit care package born out of lust.

Instead of going home to a warm and comfortable house, we shiver on the streets. We’re afraid of how ashamed out Love would be if He knew. If He ever found out. The truth is we are ashamed of ourselves, He is not ashamed of us.

He just wants us to come home. He already knows. He knows where we’ve been, and He doesn’t see us as we see ourselves. Dirty, marked up, unwanted, broken.

And while we wander in the darkness, He’s pacing the porch thinking “She’s usually home by now. Something’s wrong. We always talk at night before she goes to bed. I get to hear how her day was, what she needs, what she’s thinking. The pepppermint tea I made for her is getting cold. I ran a bubble bath for her cause I know today was hard.

I could hear it in her voice when she called Me at lunch. I had a nice evening planned so she could relax and let go. I’ll just wait out here till she comes home. I miss her voice already. That face, that smile.  All I want is for her to come home.”

And so God waits. For us.

No matter how we think we’ve failed or disappointed God, He is always right there. Just wanting to be with us. What an amazing God!

When I stopped to listen, this is what I felt God was saying for the team and the church.

“Watch as I bring about things for Life Stone that no man can put together. As I have been doing for Life Stone, I will continue to do as your eyes are fixed on Me. So that all who see Life Stone will know only the Lord could have brought these things to completion.

I choose those with willing hearts. I choose those with faith who will believe in what I say. Continue this hunger and dependence upon Me. Trust in Me. All that you have, I have given you. And I will continue to give you exactly what you need. For all situations.

Expect great things. Do not be afraid or intimidated by the opportunities I will give you. You walk in the power of My Spirit, the power and authority of My name. You have the truth of My Word and the protection of My hand. I desire for Life Stone to succeed and grow.

What I have started, I will be faithful to complete it. Life Stone Church will be a church that reaches the nations. I am specifically orchestrating the team for this work. Multi-talented people who will compliment each other. “

At the time, I had no clue what most of this meant or what it looked like.  But it’s becoming more clear every day.

We got our team assignments, and with shovels and loppers in hand we headed in different directions of the park. Two teams actually converged into one and thus Team Dolphin was born! Gretchen,Lori and Adam helped to clear a 60 foot by 40 foot area of previously unseen park territory.  We hacked away at the dead, diseased trees and an entire canopy of vines. We freed 6 trees from the poisonous weeds and plant life.

Tiffany, Jessica and Kimberly were on another team in charge of digging up a dangerous tree in a different section of the neglected park. In the course of the day, we were able to connect with several people who were very open to conversation.

God had truly prepared the way, which became more and more evident as we rubbed elbows with fellow volunteers. Beverly, former president of SSSNA gave South Side Speaks an open invitation to any and every event hosted by the SSSNA or SSLDC. She asked if we could bring more people like us next time, because she didn’t know church people did things like that. Then there was Deanne, who’s lived a very rich life full of adventure and traveling the world. She was so glad to see us “young folks” joining the community in the park clean-up.

We also talked with students from Pitt and Duquesne who are looking for real community, something more in their lives. Courtney from Big Dog Coffee and Jennifer were there clearing away trash as we found it around the park. What a community effort!

We were able to form some great friendships through this opportunity and invite our new friends to South Side Speaks! To end the work-fest, the SSSNA graciously provided a nice lunch and ice-cold water for all who served. Very classy. It was no PB&J! And our our friends at Bruggers donated some coffee.

Make the the most of every opportunity? Yeah, South Side Speaks did that. Saturday morning, cleaning up South Side Park. We shared more than garden tools, we were able to share Christ. We shared stories, memories, the gift of community. And people got to see that Jesus cares about the South Side, about the park, about each person. It was the vision in action.

In the Old Testament, there were special men and womed who were designated to communicate God’s message to people. These prophets delivered the Word of God faithfully till God told them to stop. And under Jesus’ new covenant, all believers are made ministers and heralds of God’s Word. Who He is, what He’s done and will do.

Being part of South Side Speaks, we are all called. Designated messengers. God is counting on us. Habakuk 2:2-3 says ² Then the LORD replied:  “Write down the revelation and make it plain on tablets so that a herald ^[b] may run with it. 3 For the revelation awaits an appointed time; 
it speaks of the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it ^[c] will certainly come and will not delay.

Upon studying this book further, I learned some key things. First, the word revelation is better defined as vision. And what has God given us at South Side Speaks? A strong vision. Second, to make it plain so that a herald can run with it means to make it understandable so that when the herald goes from town to town proclaiming it, even someone who walk by can see it and relate to it. So they can know what exactly the vision has to do with them and their lives. WOW!

Third, we get the assurance that God’s had the timing planned out way before we decided to run with it. It is His vision, and He will make sure it comes  to pass. God is the Leader, and I just need to follow His lead.

This led me to another thought process. We don’t have a group of 100 yet for a reason. Neither do we have a church of thousands. It is a growing time for us as leaders. Why? Why not now? Because we have to show we can be faithful with 10 or 20 before we’re ready for more. These are souls we’re talking about, not hamsters or sea monkeys. We must show we can disciple, train and mentor the ones we have before God will give us more.

As leaders, we have to learn to obey God’s voice of sharing the vision with one or two people before we have a church of many. We can’t just overlook this time, waiting for the day we can start pastoring and leading people. We have right now. We have today, this Wednesday, Thursday nights. The time is now. And what a blast!

I give that background to say that if God can use a shy, intorverted, timid gal like me to get comfortable talking to stangers everyday- He can use anyone. As South Side Speaks is taking off, and God is building His church a feeling has been growing in my heart. More than a feeling, it’s a truth. One that Ron spoke well about last Thursday.

He mentioned that in Colossians 1:28 we are called (as believers) to proclaim Christ. Proclaim means to speak publicly. About what God has done in our lives and now what He’ doing in our group. This challenged me, because we seem to find it easier to be vocal about more trivial things. Even if an introvert tries a new coffee drink, they will most likely broadcast it with excitement to at least 6 people. (statistically proven)

Think about the last time you bit into a perfectly baked chocolate brownie. Almost instinctively, you said “MMMM! That’s good.” or something similar. Colossians challenged me- how vocal am I about the blessing of being part of such a group as South Side Speaks? Am I giving other people the chance to let their lives be forever changed? Am I making the most of every opportunity? Or just some opportunities? Or just when I feel like it?

Now I don’t want to come across as condemning any personality types or communication styles. I am simply sharing what God has been working on in me. My prayer in sharing this is that you are equally challenged AND encouraged. God is depending on us. To talk, to share, to proclaim. Truly, how can they hear unless they are told? How can they believe unless they are presented with the truth?

Good questions, God.

Afterwards, on the drive home I was reflecting on the day. Even now my eyes are tear filled as I realize exactly what God allowed us to be part of. It was much bigger than just pulling weeds. That’s what you’d expect at a park clean-up. But God came too, and I am honored that He included us in His work.

For the last few weeks, we’ve been agreeing in prayer “God use South Side Speaks to draw people to You. Lead us by Your Holy Spirit. We want to be servants to this community. To be a voice of life and transformation.”  And today God came too, and said “Ok, then let’s do it.”

Jesus came to Earth to bring the Gospel, the Good News. And we got to share that today. It was so much more than just pulling weeds. Today, we were God’s messengers. With gloves and shovels and loppers. We uprooted more than dead tress and poisonous weeds. We uprooted spiritual weeds that have chocked out the life from the South Side for way too long. We tore out roots of spiritual darkness as we introduced people to The Light.

Divine appointments is an understatement. God just happened to position us in groups with people who said things like “I’ve been looking for a church that is active in the community. Can I come this Sunday?”.  And the leader of the entire thing almost begged us to come to any and every event we can, including help with leading the events. She was blown away that “people who go to church actually do this stuff”.

All because six of us got out of bed a little earlier on a Saturday. Put action to our faith, put legs to our prayers. Christ’s love compeled us, so we pulled some weeds at South Side Park.  And God came too. He changed the lives of several people. And reminded me why I suck in oxygen everyday.

It was so much more than just pulling weeds.