“The greatness of a man’s power is in the measure of his surrender”  That is my favorite quote by William Booth. He was a self-taught teacher and preacher, and also founded the Salvation Army.

Tonie Wright Stroup is my name. I grew up in Huntersville NC with one brother and one sister.  I was raised in Church my whole life and religion was not an option in my house. At age 12 I had a sense that I had a calling on my life. By the age of 17, I put my running shoes on. One wrong decision after another led me to be married at 21 and then divorced with two girls by the age of 30.

Yet more years of my life wasted on meaningless things.  Until I was asked one question, “What is our purpose?”  I answered, “I was always taught that if you put God first you know your purpose.”  At that point, I knew God was not first in my life.

God let me know that even though I left Him that He never left me. “I am with you always” Matthew 28:30.  God knew what I needed He always did I just had to surrender and stop trying to fight my battles alone. God is my purpose in life! I spent the next four years studying at Lee University. I managed to graduate with a BA in Christian Ministry with honors while working and raising two girls.  Then sent me the perfect man to go into ministry with.

My whole life I struggled with putting God first.  Everything in my life came before Christ! It was not until I fell in love with Him, did I understand how to put Him first.  Now all I want to do is tell others about the love of Christ. With the guidance of the Holy Spirit, through this devotional blog, I will share God’s Word and the ups and downs of walking a Christian life.