Category: God

The Heart of Giving According to 2 Corinthians 8
Advent · Christmas · church · discipline · faith · Generosity · gift · giving · God · godliness · hope · Hurricane Maria · kindness · Love · offering · Puerto Rico

The Heart of Giving According to 2 Corinthians 8

Ally VelsorLeave a comment

Our desire is to provide a bit of joy to the children in Puerto Rico through the giving of Christmas shoe boxes full of toys, school supplies and hygiene items.

Our goal is to provide enough boxes to distribute to a local orphanage as well as to some local low income communities with which Calvary Chapel Puerto Rico has a working relationship. However, the staff at Calvary Chapel Puerto Rico have said that every day they are meeting more and more families who have lost everything: home, furniture, clothes, etc.

luke 10: responding to racism & charlottesville with the humility of Christ
charlottesville · courage · faith · God · hope · mercy · prayer · racism · rejection · Repentance

luke 10: responding to racism & charlottesville with the humility of Christ

Ally VelsorLeave a comment

Have you ever attended a party without an invitation?

I’m ashamed to admit this, but I have.

A friend from a moms’ group had invited me to her sons’ birthday party. I bought each a gift and dragged both Kenny and Joshie to this party with the promise of some fun and fellowship. It wasn’t just any party at a house, it was being held at a children’s gym and we knew Joshie would be excited about the fun activities being offered. Additionally, we’re self-proclaimed hermits and hardly know other parents with kids around Joshie’s age so any chance we get to go out as a family, we do and try to seize the moment with much gratitude. As we walked into the gym, I looked around with the hope of recognizing the people inside. As they all stared back at us, I placed the gift down on what I assumed was the gifts table and proceeded to take off my shoes to get on the padded area where all the fun stuff is.

(what i learned) belief in God is not meant to keep us comfortable
Belief · church · Comfortable · contentment · faith · genuine · God · Grief · hope · Spiritual Comfort · What I Learned

(what i learned) belief in God is not meant to keep us comfortable

Ally VelsorLeave a comment

As we embrace the warmth of these summer months, I decided to share with you what I learned this Spring. I adopted this idea to do some serious introspection and soul-inventory from my favorite author, Emily P. Freeman, and share my lessons in hopes you will join me too!
This one is an odd one as I’m getting extremely personal.
I’m not sharing a list of things I learned, rather a spiritual lesson I am currently processing.
Belief is fundamental to our Christian faith, but help me as I explore what it means to believe in the absence of evidence and spiritual comfort.
“Absence of Evidence IS NOT Evidence of Absence.”

when her name is Courage (an ode to a friend for mother’s day)
adoption · church · courage · faith · family · God · godliness · hope · humility · inspiration · leadership · legacy · Love · motherhood · Ode · redemption · Resilience · service · Sisterhood · Testimony · Waiting · wisdom · Worship

when her name is Courage (an ode to a friend for mother’s day)

Ally VelsorLeave a comment

I do know a friend whose name is actually Courage.

I thought she was kidding at first,

anyone would merely dream of displaying such formidable surname.

It was 2013 when I met her and became friends

as we served together in a restaurant at a church.

Adding to the Conversation: Who’s in Charge of the ‘Christian’ Blogosphere?
#WriteHopeFWD · blogosphere · church · faith · God · hope · politics · Politics · Repentance · women in the church · women's rights · Worship

Adding to the Conversation: Who’s in Charge of the ‘Christian’ Blogosphere?

Ally VelsorLeave a comment

In church, I was seated.

Waiting for communion

to be distributed.

The mind set on

things I wish I could have muted.

What I read in these threads disturbed me because a lot of it sounds exactly like the voices emerging from the political arena these days.

This Easter 2017: When Death Defers Hope, Remember He is the Resurrection & the Life
#WriteHopeFWD · cancer · easter · faith · family · fear · God · Grief · hope · legacy · Memorial · mom · Nostalgia · Ovarian Cancer

This Easter 2017: When Death Defers Hope, Remember He is the Resurrection & the Life

Ally VelsorLeave a comment

Last year’s April 16th wasn’t Easter or any major holiday, it was just an ordinary Saturday. Before that day, there were plenty of other days, ordinary days, I chose not to think about death. Every time I did think about death, fear would invade every aspect of my life. Whenever I think about death, it becomes an obsession. The what, when, where, why, how questions would flood my brain to the point of keeping me idle and isolated as to avoid anything that could possibly kill me. So, I did my best and I deferred.

But April 16, 2016 was one of those days I didn’t think I’d remember, but one picture brings a plethora of memories and emotions.

Because for the first time in my mother’s diagnosis, I thought of death. Her death.

Simply Jesus: Bringing Simplicity & Godly Sincerity to a Complex World
church · faith · food · Friends Tv Show · God · godliness · hope · humility · Kelly Minter · politics · pride · Repentance · restaurant · Simply Jesus · women's rights

Simply Jesus: Bringing Simplicity & Godly Sincerity to a Complex World

Ally VelsorLeave a comment

For our boasting is this: the testimony of our conscience that we conducted ourselves in the world in simplicity and godly sincerity, not with fleshly wisdom but by the grace of God, and more abundantly toward you.

-2 Corinthians 1:12

Last time I read this verse, it made me sorrowful.

Dr. K’s Best Medicine: Take Your Own Advice & Make Lemonade
cancer · faith · family · fear · Forgiveness · God · Grief · humility · inspiration · legacy · Love · mom · Nostalgia · Ovarian Cancer · pride · redemption · Resilience · this is us · wisdom

Dr. K’s Best Medicine: Take Your Own Advice & Make Lemonade

Ally VelsorLeave a comment

NBC’s This is Us has been renewed for two more seasons! (Yippee!). But there’s a reason why this show has captivated the hearts of many, including my own. Here’s my take on the latest episode “The Big Day,” although I really missed the grown up Big Three, this prequel to the pilot episode gave us a window to peek into the depth of Dr. K’s grief over the death of his beloved while further explaining to us his “when life gives you the sourest lemon” philosophy.
**Spoiler Alert** Don’t read if you haven’t watched the episode and don’t want to know what happens!**