~This prayer is taken from my book, Visions of Celestial Love.
My son, pay attention to what I say; turn your ear to my words. Do not let them out of your sight, keep them within your heart; for they are life to those who find them and health to one’s whole body.
—Proverbs 4:20–21 NIV
Dearest Reader,
I’ve prayed just now. I prayed in this warm kitchen with chai tea steaming out of “my” coffee cup on this cold and dewy day. I’ve prayed for you, as a twenty-one-year-old girl, with the rain pelting on the kitchen roof and windows, that God’s Word in this book will be life, health, and medicine to all your flesh. Because that is what His word is. And I pray you feel the depth of the beauty in that. May it cause you to wonder. It’s so amazing to me. His Word is so good, so glorious, so gentle, so life transforming, so refreshing, so rejuvenating, so vital.
Sometimes in life we can be like a limp or fallen branch, caked with mud, on the side of the road, with cars bustling by, wondering why life seems so bleak. We sometimes get charred by the fire of disappointments in this fallen life, and swung about in the stormy winds of busyness, which produce only bareness. I’m glad to tell you that there is life, and there is light beyond your wildest imaginations. By opening what some call “just a book,” you, through graced faith, unleash hope more glorious than the warm feeling of the sunlight streaming through heavy unrelenting rain clouds.
I pray that as you read this, our Vinedresser God would unite you—for the first time, if you’re not saved, or unite you even tighter if you are—to our Vine Jesus Christ. I pray He will take you in His strong but gentle hands, and carefully wrap you to the tree of life.
May you feel the inner cleansing of His word as He washes you off. May your soul explode with joy as He shines the light of His face on you, which is brighter and warmer than the sun.
Imagine yourself as a branch in a beautiful winery. Because that is where He wants to take you, to the vineyard of Heaven, inside His holy palace, in the midst of His heart. He wants to rock you in His arms. He wants you to let Him love you. So let Him love you.
You’ll find yourself becoming full of life, like a bare winter branch during early spring, sprouting with buds of the brightest green. You’ll find yourself in the midst of the promised life. Let yourself blossom in the presence of the Great King. He has extended His arms of invitation. Just for you.
He calls you by name and says, “Come away, to be where you’ve always belonged.”
Walk with Him through His field, and smell the sweet berries of life. Taste from the running streams of Living Water and be awakened, and completely healed. Be full of life. Let real life, the abundant life that is promised to you by Jesus overtake you on the inside, and spring forth into your heart. Let it run through your blood, heal and wash your mind with the Word that brings peace, and envelope your skin like the trickling of a cool refreshing breeze. Let yourself be run over with water, in the breath of the Spirit that brings life.
Remember, as you read, that God’s Word is life, healing, and medicine to all your flesh.
~To purchase a copy of my book, click here.
“Come, all you are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost. Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen, listen to me and eat wha tis good, and you will delight in the richest of fare.” – Isaiah 55:1-2 NIV
Are you ready to taste of the sweet delicacies of God in a deeply reviving and personal way? For those who want to drink, for those who want to eat and be refreshed and renewed, Visions of Celestial Love is a feast between you and the King of Heaven, who loves you more than anyone else. He invites you to dine on wholesome, good, savory food and delicious, zesty, fruitful drink. He awaits you with a sparkle in His eye. He is ready for your company. He delights to have you as a guest.
“Eat, friends, and drink; drink your fill of love.” – Song of Songs 5:1 NIV
For more information visit: www.nourishmentthroughwords.com
“Ashley presents us with a true cornucopia of modern psalms, personal testimonies, and short stories. She has set out to reveal and unravel some of the most complex heart issues mankind faces in our quest of understanding what true intimacy with God really looks like. Prepare to have your soul massaged and worked on as you read Visions of Celestial Love.” — Jeremy Minard, Servant King Apparel