Lauren Sparks

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#TestimonyChallenge…and Grace and Truth Link Up

May 1, 2020 by Lauren 22 Comments

Photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash

I hate to see myself on video.  Absolutely hate it.  I’m getting over myself, though, to share a little more of my story with you.

 

Weeks ago, the church I call home started a Testimony Challenge on Facebook.  The purpose?  To spread the name of Jesus faster and farther than the coronavirus.  The instructions:  To post a video testimony of God’s work in your life and challenge 10 others to do the same.  Watching the responses of church members – some I know personally and some I don’t – has been such an encouragement to me during a discouraging time for our country.

 

When a church staffer threw down the gauntlet (in the best possible way), I broke with lockdown tradition and put on makeup, fixed my hair and pointed the iphone in my direction.  Below is an abbreviated recounting of the many ways God has blessed me, taught me and been faithful to me as I’ve walked (sometimes stumbled) through life with Him.

 

If you are tired of all the bad news, look on Facebook at 121 Community Church or search #testimonychallenge.  Or get in on the challenge yourself.  Post your testimony to social media.  And please post the link in the comments below.  Let’s fling His fame all over the internet!

 

If you want to know more about how to walk with Christ and experience His faithfulness for yourself, please comment below or go to the Contact page on this blog to send me a private message.  Nothing would bring me more joy than talking to you about Him!

 

And now for this week’s featured post!

 

Susan Nowell of My Place to Yours challenged me to think outside the walls of my home once the world starts to return to normal.  I was convicted of my selfish thinking, but also related to the fears and concerns so vulnerably expressed by the author.  Read Thinking Ahead:  What Will Coming Together Look Like When #stayathome Ends for this call to the global church.

 

Now for this week’s link-up! Let’s bless and encourage one another in our walk with the Lord.

 

Grace & Truth : A Weekly Christian Link Up

 

Grace & Truth exists to point people to Jesus! We hope this link-up will be a source of encouragement every week. If you’re a blogger, we hope you’ll use this space as a way to meet new friends within the Christian blogging community. If you’re a reader, we hope that you’ll encounter new bloggers that love Jesus as much as you do! Most of all, we hope you’ll meet Jesus here.

Join us each Friday for the Grace and Truth Link-Up!

To receive a weekly reminder of when the link-up goes live subscribe to laurensparks.net in the right hand column of this page.

 

 

Maree Dee

Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest
 

Lauren Sparks

Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest
 

Heather Hart & Valerie Riese

Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest
 

Lisa Burgess

Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest
1.)  Following your hosts via their blog and social media channels is not mandatory, but appreciated!

To receive a weekly reminder of when the link-up goes live subscribe to laurensparks.net in the right hand column of this page.

2.) Leave 1-2 of your most recent CHRISTIAN LIVING posts. Please do not link DIY, Crafts, Recipes, etc. We will delete these links. We also reserve the right to remove articles that don’t align with the theme or are deemed by the hostesses to be inappropriate.

3.) Visit 1-2 other links and leave a meaningful comment! We want to encourage community among us, so please don’t link and run!

4.) We sort all links randomly – feel free to link as early or as late as you’d like. The playing field is even!

Featured Post Requirements

5.) Grab a button or link back to encourage new linkers. It is not mandatory, but it is required to be featured.

6.) Each host will choose one link to emphasize and promote via their social media channels next week.

Grab a Badge and Link Back to this Post.

 

 

And now, let’s link up!

 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

 

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Releasing my Story

April 7, 2018 by Lauren 22 Comments

 

 

I bought this ring on a clearance rack at an accessories store.  You know, the kind my friend’s daughter calls “the color store”.  It caught my attention because of my passionate desire to tell stories.  I get a huge kick out of telling stories that make people laugh and it warms my heart when something I have said or written encourages someone else, but I get the biggest charge when I tell people stories about Jesus.

 

As a teen and young adult, I believed my story was as dull as the knives my husband makes me use in the kitchen so I won’t injure myself (true story).  I grew up in a lower middle class Christian family.  Both my parents taught school, volunteered or actually drew a paycheck from our local church, and they remain married today.  They rarely fought, raised us to love Jesus, and took us to God’s house every time the door cracked open.  I asked Jesus to save me at 12 years of age on my bunk at church camp and – with the exception of a rebellious season in college – have never looked back.  I’ve never been to prison, lived on the streets, been in an abusive relationship or harbored an addiction to drugs.  Thanks to my idealic childhood, my testimony didn’t feel compelling.  No dramatic rescue story for me.

 

Except it’s still an amazing story.  Jesus rescued me from the punishment for my sins, and He’s still rescuing me from sins I struggle with.  And now, as time is marching quickly toward by 45th birthday, I’ve been through some stuff.  I’ve coped with a medically fragile and intellectually disabled child and endured bouts of my husband’s unemployment.  I’ve been diagnosed with cancer and operated on more times than I care to remember.  And God has seen fit to leave me here with my family for another minute.  Rescue stories all over the place.

 

And yet, now that I have what my finite mind considers “interesting” stories to tell, I find myself connecting on a greater level with others over life’s more commonplace moments.  We all want to know we aren’t alone.  Universally, we want to relate.  At times I’m filled with doubts and insecurities about this writing life.  I’m not making any money at it.  In fact, I’m in the hole as I pay for page layouts, web hosting, workshops and books to hone the craft.  So even as I feel this calling to put stories to paper – so strong at times that I can do nothing else until I get one out – I wonder if it’s a waste of what precious time I have.  Am I making a difference?  If I shut my website down today, would it matter to anyone but me?

 

And then I publish an article about something as trivial as swim suit shopping with my teen or being the worst sports mom ever, and I hear from you.  Our shared experiences and feelings strike a cord that ties us together.  And I feel community with you.   I experience the ministry happening between us.  THAT is why I keep typing away.  THAT is why I answer the call when God puts a word (or many) on my heart.  THAT is why I keep doing what I do through the times it seems fruitless.  I can’t thank you enough for reading when you do and commenting when you can.  I know your time is valuable and I don’t take that lightly.  The fact that we are bloggy friends is more encouragement to me than you will ever know.  So I will keep wearing my ring.  Even though the words are so small that no one else will probably ever notice them.  I have fancier, prettier rings, but this one reminds me to keep telling my story.  The one He gave me and allows me to share.  Because all of our stories are important.  They are how we share the love of Jesus with others.

 

I would love to hear your story.  If it is too long to mention in a comment, use the CONTACT tab on my website to send me a personal e-mail.  Or if you live in the greater DFW area, I would love to set a time to have coffee or lunch and hear it.  Who else in your life needs to hear your story?  If you’ve never asked yourself that question, pray about it.  And then be bold enough to tell.  “But encourage each other daily, as long as it is called “Today”…”  Hebrews 3:13

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About Me

I love Jesus, my husband and caffeine. The order of these can change depending on how tired I am. When my two daughters, stepson, and 4 grandchildren get to be too much, I practice yoga. God graciously allows me to share our adventures, victories and flub-ups from my laptop. May He be glorified here.
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