Meet the Shaneyfelts

faith

Merry Christmas!

I’ve been participating in the She Reads Truth Advent Devotion this year.  I’ve really enjoyed the reading each day–especially the first twenty days or so because it showed the different types of Christ and how Jesus was always better–Jesus is the true and better Adam, Abel, Abraham, Melchizedek, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Passover Lamb, Moses, Manna, Job, Boaz, David, Esther, and Jonah.  I can’t pick a favorite devotion because they were all so wonderful!  I really loved the commentary from day 23, and I wanted to share it with you:

“Since Adam and Eve ate the fruit God told them not to, every generation has groaned with the pains of childbirth, longing to be delivered from the effects of their first parents’ fall (Romans 8:22).  And now, our deliverer has come.  He is the hero of our story, the perfect spotless lamb sent to adorn the doorposts of our hearts with his own blood (1 Peter 1:17-21, Exodus 12:22).

He is the descendent from Eve sent to crush the head of the deceiver (Genesis 3:15).  He is Isaac’s ram caught in the thicket, God’s perfectly timed provision of a substitute (Genesis 22:13).  He is the heir of Abraham’s line–born by a miracle and filling the world with laughter (Genesis 22:18).

He gave Jacob the gracious gift of a limp to remind him of his weakness (Genesis 32:25).  He is the new Joseph, the forgotten brother, unrecognizable in a foreign land (Genesis 42: 8, John 1:11), though He alone possesses the resources needed to satisfy our spiritual famine.

He is our new Moses, sent by God to deliver us from the land of our slavery into our promised inheritance (Exodus 3:7-10).  He doesn’t just deliver God’s Law to us (Exodus 34:29), He fulfills it on our behalf–perfectly (Matthew 5:17).

He is the faultless judge who rescues His people from our own waywardness (Judges 2:17, 2 Corinthians 3:4-6).  He does what no other judge is able to do–He takes our hearts of stone and gives us hearts of flesh (Ezekiel 11:19–this one is my favorite!).

He is the King the Lord promised to David, a ruler from his own body whose kingdom the Lord would establish forever, ancient and strong (2 Samuel 7:12).  He has courage deeper than David (Luke 6:1-5), wisdom greater than Solomon (Luke 11:31), and faith firmer than Elijah (Matthew 4:1-11).  He is the remnant growing beneath the smoldering ruins of Judah, the Son to be given, the child to be born (Isaiah 9:6).

He is Immanuel–God with his people (Isaiah 6:13).”

As the Christmas season ends after tomorrow, I hope you haven’t forgotten the real reason of why we celebrate–that God sent His son to live a poor and humble life, but a perfect life; to be our perfect substitute on the Cross; to take the wrath from God that was meant for you and me.  Celebrate this!

I hope you and your family have a wonderful Christmas!

Merry Christmas,
The Shaneyfelts


Weekend Recap–Revive ’15

This past weekend was AMAZING!  I went to the Revive ’15 conference with a group of ladies from my church–and my mom 🙂  I am so glad I attended this conference.  I learned so much about teaching women the Bible and was able to listen to an awesome pastor preach on two difference passages in the Bible.

We left on Thursday to make the long trek to Indianapolis.  Dustin dropped me off at church that afternoon.  He might not admit it, but I know he missed me being around while I was gone haha!
I started out as navigator and my friend Sarah took the first shift driving.  We ended up stopping in Cool Springs, TN, to eat supper at Panera.  Side note:  I had the new Autumn Squash soup.  It tasted so good!
The conference didn’t start until 2:00 on Friday so we had all morning to hang out and do whatever.  My friend Callie and I headed out to go run/walk.  Our hotel was in such a nice area and there were lots of people out an about!  The NCAA office and museum was across from our hotel, so naturally I took this picture for Dustin!
A view of the city on our run.  It was a gorgeous day with perfect weather.
This was the big park area by our hotel.  Indianapolis was a lot nicer than I had expected!
This was our schedule for the weekend.  This is a ministry of Nancy Leigh DeMoss’s (one of her books is Lies Women Believe) and so she was a main speaker along with Jen Wilkin and Dr. Eric Mason.  Lauren Chandler led worship–I don’t have words to explain how amazing worship was!  Music really helps get your heart ready for the message and I have really missed a more contemporary worship setting.  You could look around and see the sincerity in the worship of each woman–and there were 2200 there!

Lauren Chandler leading us in song.
Dr. Eric Mason teaching us the Word.  He taught Friday on Psalm 51 (which was my favorite message from him–I learned so much about that passage) and on Saturday he taught us Ephesians 4:15-20.  I didn’t get any pictures of Jen or Nancy.
On the way back Mom and I accidentally wore a similar outfit.  She’s so cute.
Our whole group Saturday morning before walking to the convention center.  These ladies really strive to glorify God in all that they do, and I am so thankful for their friendship and accountability!

When God Restores Your Hope

Lately I’ve been a little discouraged in people and the world around me.  Nothing in the news is positive anymore, and there’s so much pain and suffering–even in my small town.

When we moved into our home almost a month ago, I got really excited about the idea of getting to meet our neighbors and letting them come introduce themselves to us.  But that didn’t happen.  I was actually shocked and a little hurt because I felt like the people I surround myself with are hospitable, and I just assume that everyone else is, too.  I think that’s the part of me that wants to see good in everyone.  But it didn’t happen and I decided that once mine and Dustin’s schedules meshed, I would bake cookies and we would take them to all of our neighbors to introduce ourselves.  (We’re still waiting on that time to do that but it’s going to happen soon!)

Yesterday it seemed that God used a lot of little things to prove that His love for me is the ultimate–that I don’t find my joy in others but only in God and worshiping Him.  In everything that happened to me yesterday, God reminded me to not wait for people to come to me, but to love and pursue those in my path because we are all made in God’s image.

Yesterday after I got home from my workshop, I was eating supper and playing around online.  I was on The Gospel Coalition site when I read an article about Leviticus.  Reading this article really encouraged me to do a study in Leviticus because of this excerpt:
“So while Leviticus emphasizes the importance of maintaining distinctions between the sacred and the non-sacred, the holy and the non-holy, it also emphasizes that everyday acts of kindness and love and mercy are incredibly sacred, incredibly holy, because they show forth the incredible kindness, love, and mercy of the One who is ultimately sacred and holy.”

Then right before I was about to leave for church the doorbell rang.  It was three kids from a house down the street with a pie!  As soon as I opened the door they said, “Welcome to the neighborhood!”  I could have cried at the kindness shown to Dustin and I.  I refrained myself from stooping down and hugging all three of those children, but their small action reminded me to rest in the Lord’s sovereignty over everything.

It was so good!

Last night I really sat and reflected on neighborly love.  I feel a mission here living in this new neighborhood, and I can’t wait to meet everyone and build relationships in order to reach the lost on my street.  But I remembered that article on Leviticus and how it talked about neighborly love being more than just sharing the Gospel, but that it also includes things like extending mercy and pursuing reconciliation and being just and fair because all of these things show them God’s mercy and love for us.  God’s love for us is the ultimate because he loves and wants us so much that while we were still sinners, He sent His only Son to live a perfect life as 100% human and 100% God, to die the death that we deserved to die on that cross in order that we might have a relationship with Him.  Please email me if you have any questions about this!