It takes what it takes!

Chile, writing the blog title alone made me want to roll my eyes.

But as David wrote, ”It is good for me that I was afflicted, that I might learn your statutes.“ (Psalm‬ ‭119‬:‭71‬ ‭ESV‬‬) Let me explain…

On Saturday, January 20, 2024, I hosted the second A Day at The Well event for the Well Woman Movement. It was perfect. From the weather to the location, the food to the flow of the schedule, it was literally perfect. And per usual, the women in attendance bonded like longtime friends because of the atmosphere we intentionally create and my team helped me serve the women without restraint. The problem? I was depleted at the end of the night.

Specifically, this was the first time I’ve hosted an event and the success of that event didn’t get me excited for the next event. Normally, I’m on such a high from the success of an event that I immediately dive into the planning process because I can’t wait to build the vision God gave me. This time was different. Instead of feeling excited, I was exhausted. It felt like I’d won the war, but lost the battle. The only way I can describe how I felt is like the ending of the movie 300. Although the Spartans won, nothing was ever the same because they all died on the battlefield.

You know what? As I’m writing this blog, it just hit me. That’s exactly what happened to me on January 20th. Something in me died on the battlefield while I fought for the victory of that event. My low expectations died. My faith only for the possible died. The use of my spirituality to anesthesize the spiritual warfare of ministry died. And the tendency to dumb-down God’s vision died. It’s really no wonder I felt so depleted after the event, these are major, faulty features of my spiritual life. And it feels as if I was spiritually cut open for inspection, the infected areas were surgically removed, and now I’m in rehab. I have to learn to hope differently, exercise my faith differently, practice my spirituality differently, and cast vision differently.

After more than a week of sulking and fighting a cold, because I was both physically and spiritually depleted, I tried to encourage myself. I was minding my business on a Monday morning and watched a message from Dr. Dharius Daniels called, It Takes What It Takes. I stopped watching at least three different times because I felt too seen. He was directly answering a question that I’d never directly asked God: “If You want me to lead this ministry, why are You making it so hard?” God’s answer via Dr. Daniels? “It takes what it takes.”

Of course it wasn’t the answer I was looking for, but it’s the answer I need. So, I must learn how to extract the asset from the suffering I endure. Deciding to not host events or to intentionally dim my ministry light will not exempt me from hardship. There is nothing I can do to escape or become ineligible to experience suffering. But thankfully, being in relationship with Jesus Christ means that His power is at my disposal to endure suffering.

So, with all this being said, A Day at The Well will be happening again Saturday, April 20th in Jacksonville Beach, Florida. Early bird registration ends Friday, March 1st. Space is limited.

From now until the event, it takes what it takes to receive the promise of victory as a result of my obedience. And if I sow in tears, I’m determined to reap in joy!