Before I became involved in Thrive Ministries, my pastoral ministry was very much performance-based.  I felt a deep need to please people and was very sensitive to criticism, however well intended.  I also felt that to please God, I had to work FOR him.  After attending Thrive’s soul care retreats and taking part in their Unfinished Business course [group], I have come to realize that God wants me to serve Him not based on seeking to please Him by how well I perform, but rather based on a deep sense of His love for me.  I realized that he didn’t need me to work FOR Him as much as he wanted me to work WITH Him.  My life with God has been richer and deeper than ever before.

Thrive has been instrumental in helping me heal from the deep wounds of the soul that I experienced early in life.  This has helped me in my personal life, spiritual life and my ministry in leadership.  Personally, being healed of the deep wounds has given me a greater sense of value based not on performance or people pleasing, but rather on how Christ sees me.  I am now better able to love others even when they don’t always love me back knowing that I am loved fully in Christ.  Spiritually, I have been drawn into a deeper relationship with Christ as I have gotten to know His character and how much he values me.  Having a greater understanding of inner healing has helped me to become less frustrated with others knowing that they, too, have been wounded and need healing.

As I continue on my journey with the Holy Spirit, He continues to lead me on this healing journey.  I approach ministry tasks with greater confidence because I am serving from a standpoint of Christ’s love for me, and less on doing a good job to impress or please others.  I continue to grow in my understanding on how much Christ loves me and I am experiencing more freedom from anxiety and depression as a result.