Elisa Pulliam - Unblinded Faith: Gaining Spiritual Sight Through Believing Gods Word

I am incredibly grateful to my supportive agent, Ruth Samsel of the William K. Jensen Agency, who continually considers how to steward the work and words God has for me in this calling.

I am humbled by the investment of Kathleen Kerr, my editor at Harvest House, who conceived this devotional, bringing into reality a project I prayed about for nearly a year but never spoke a word of to anyone but my husband. Dont you love how God orchestrates the details? LaRae Weikert, I count it a privilege to transcribe these words on your watch. Thank you for your sincere support of this calling. To the rest of the Harvest House team, your effort is remarkable and beautiful.

For my dear friends and beloved mentors at SBS and TVC, you indeed grew me up in the Word and were used by the Holy Spirit to impart such beautiful wisdom and a hunger for truth. For my WLW sisters, Friday Fellowship sisters, The Squad, and our CCC small group, thanks for praying me through this particular writing journeyIm grateful for each one of you!

Pastor Burch, the time you took to proof my theology was such a tremendous gift, only outdone by the words of affirmation you sowed into my heart. I am incredibly grateful for your leadership of our church body and your utmost devotion to God as well as the teaching of His Word.

Stephen, thank you for being my out-loud processor and hold-down-the-fort partner. But most of all, thank you for being Christ-with-skin-on to me for the last twenty-five years. Kiddos, this book happened because were a team. Leah, you sustained us with scrumptious meals and shuttle service. Abby, you kept life in order with your attentiveness to the chores. Luke, your mint-snagging, kiss-on-the-check interruptions were perfectly timed for spurring me on. Kaitlyn, you just might be my greatest cheerleader, always providing the reward of spending time together when Im finally done. I love you, my people, more than all the words Ill ever write in my lifetime.

And most of all, I am exceedingly grateful to God. My life purpose indeed began when I said yes to Jesus as my Lord and began to live a life of unblinded faith. Thank You, Father, for breathing life into my soul, my heart, my mind, and my life, when You made me Your chosen, holy, and dearly loved daughter.

Elisa Pulliam is the author of Meet the New You and founder of the ministry More to Be. She is a certified life coach, mentor, and speaker who is passionate about helping women to experience authentic life change and lasting impact through a fresh encounter with God and His Word for the sake of influencing the next generation. Elisa and her husband, Stephen, savor life together with their four children. Learn more at MoretoBe.com.

Helping You Experience Authentic Life Change and Lasting Impact

Whats the cost of saying no to the work God wants to do in you and through you? Or better yet, whats the reward of saying yes ?

God wants to use you in a mighty way to impact and influence those around you. His calling is right beneath you, and the way He wants to use you is right where Hes planted you. But maybe youre not quite sure how.

At More to Be, were committed to helping you find the answer.

Youll find tools and resources to help you connect with God and study His Word through our collection of Bible studies, devotionals, and online courses, as well as life coaching, coach training, and mentor training opportunities.

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All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work.

2 TIMOTHY 3:16-17

W ould you love to be prepared and equipped for the opportunities and even obstacles that come your way? How about being inspired by God in a way that makes you feel as if you have soul fuel to press on? Sounds good to me! But maybe thats because Im kind of a preparation junkie. I wonder if thats an inherited trait My mom is queen of preparations. Case in point: she must have thought I was going to Outer Mongolia with the way she packed for my freshman year in college. We filled a storage trunk with stockpiles of toiletries and cleaning supplies. A decade after graduating from college, I was still hauling around items from that trunk, which my husband teasingly referred to it as the traveling pharmacy.

We might laugh about it now, but the reality is, Im also bent toward being overly prepared. Ill buy two of a grocery item, just in case we run out. Ill have snacks in every bag, just in case I get hungry. Can you relate? Yet Ive lived long enough to know that being prepared with a storehouse of stuff doesnt compare to having a heart and mind prepared and equipped by God through His Word.

If we long to face each day prepared and equipped, we need to start each day inspired and steeped in the Word.

Within the Scriptures, we find all that we need for discerning what to believe as truth and what to do with the lies the Enemy of God will toss our way (John 3:16; 8:44; 14:6). Through reading the Word, well discover what to do with our sin because we cant handle it ourselves. Thats the work of the cross, where Jesus laid down His life for our sin. Well also learn how to experience the fullness of Christ dwelling in our hearts, infusing our lives with His peace, presence, and unquenchable joy. And well uncover the wisdom of God and how to make choices that keep us within the bounty of His blessings.

The Word is really the one and only training manual well ever need for living the full and abundant life God offers us (John 10:10), in spite of the challenges and trials well face. So whats standing in the way of using it?

READ

2 Timothy 3:14 4:5

RESPOND

God, I choose to embrace Your Word as truth, so that You may use it to teach me, correct me, and guide me, as You prepare and equip me for every good work. Thank You for providing it for my benefit. Forgive me when I neglect spending time in Your Word. Please decrease my distractions and increase my desire so I may spend time daily reading Your Word. In Jesus name, amen.

REFLECT

What are the top three mind-sets or physical obstacles that keep you from spending time in the Word? What can you practically do to overcome each one?

If youve not grabbed a journal yet for this journey, I encourage you to do so and prayerfully seek God as you write down your answers to these questions. God will do such an amazing work in you, friend, as you devote this extra time toward reflecting and responding to His leading.