Dear Christian Girl, You’re going to Get Lonely

Loneliness is one of the worst feelings isn’t it? That horrible feeling that no one understands you, no one is going to be there to pick you up when you fall, and no one cares. These are the lies of the enemy. These are the lies that bind us to a life of fear. Christian girls: You are not alone.

“So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” Isaiah 49:10

“Yet I still belong to you; you hold my right hand” – Psalm 73:23

“Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.” – Deuteronomy 31:6

“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9

You are not alone. You will NEVER be alone.

But you will feel lonely. You will feel lonely because you were made for something bigger than what this world has to offer. It’s hard to be set apart. It’s hard to stand for something that isn’t “mainstream” or even “normal”. Of course we, Christian girls, are going to feel lonely. We’re going to feel lonely when everyone is gossiping and we walk away or keep silent. We’re going to feel lonely when everyone is telling sex stories and we can’t relate. We’re going to feel lonely when we are surrounded by people who think we are weird because we are giving and forgiving…and many perceive that as a weakness. We will face the darkness…and we have to be brave.

I have never felt as lonely as I do as a young, single, Christian woman in the military. I do not fit. I don’t want to talk about sex. I don’t want to tell or hear dirty jokes. I don’t want to cuss every other word. I just don’t want to. And some people just…don’t get it. I used to try to explain myself, “I believe in waiting for marriage because I believe God has someone planned for me and I want to wait for him”. Only to be met by 10 different voices assuring me that this is not the case and that I will be waiting forever if I keep up this mentality.

You don’t have to explain yourself. The world is not going to get it.

“The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit.” – 1 Corinthians 2:14

You will feel lonely, but you will never walk alone.

And then there will be the times you give in to temptation and mess up and pay heavily for it: “I saw you drinking last night; I thought you were a Christian” “Is that something a Christian would say?” That’s not very Christian of you is it?”

Again, these comments are from the enemy. His tell tale signature of shame and discouragement.

Hear me out: We all mess up. It is not about perfection. It was never about perfection.

The world doesn’t understand…we live for God’s glory…but we are flawed. We can’t possibly get it right. We strive to balance obedience with grace. We want to be true to our convictions but we fall short. The illusion of being alone and the feeling of loneliness is a sure way to get you to slip. Don’t believe it.

When I started talking openly about my upcoming 11 month overseas mission trip I was met with hard resistance.

“Aren’t you scared you’re going to get kidnapped?” “Aren’t you scared you’re going to get sick?” “Aren’t you scared you’re you won’t raise the money?” “Aren’t you SCARED, SCARED, SCARED, SCARED, SCARED, FEAR, FEAR, FEAR, FEAR”

ENOUGH!

“For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.” – 1Timothy 1:7

We have to stop listening to the voice of fear. We have to stop listening to the voice of loneliness. They are lies.

We are called to be different. To be set apart. To be lights…joyful, shining, peaceful, lights in the dark. If we allow the dark to influence us, how can we hope to outshine it?

Christian girls: STAND. Stand firm on God’s promises. He will NEVER leave or forsake you. You are NOT alone.

STAND TOGETHER.

“If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand.” – Mark 3:25

Never once did Jesus say it was going to be easy, but it is worth it. We have to stand up and fight together. You are not alone. We are in this together.

There is power in the ability to stand alone, just you and Jesus. There is power in Christ. When you are surrounded by people who represent the voices of discouragement, shame, condemnation, and fear, Stand on God’s promises. Stand firm in the knowledge that you are not weird, confused, or stupid. You are chosen. Now stand.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bfveawSAHJA

All Different and All Beautiful

“How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity!” – Psalm 133: 1

Have you ever noticed that when people don’t understand something or appreciate something they have a tendency to label it as “bad” or “wrong”? Are we naturally threatened by things that are different from us? I’m honestly disgusted by this side of humanity that seems to be the reason behind racism and discrimination in general. Just because you don’t like something doesn’t make it wrong. Just because you don’t understand something doesn’t make it bad.

Can we all just get more comfortable with saying, “I don’t understand that” or maybe just acknowledging that another person’s way of life, though not for us, still deserves respect and honor?

Sometimes in Christian circles it feels like everyone is competing to have the “right” answer. Topics are often looked at as “right or wrong” and “good or bad”. Personally, I believe this is an unproductive way of looking at the world. If everything had a black and white answer that could be looked up research style in the bible, wouldn’t it eliminate the need for prayer and reliance on God? My experience with God involves a lot of not knowing…and being ok with that. A relationship with God does not involve having all the answers…it involves faith and struggle because there is tension between our limited human understanding and God’s way of doing things. Yes, it makes life feel safer when we can label and define. We get to feel like we are in control, like we hold the power to judge and make decisions on other people’s worth. Do you really think that’s what Jesus had in mind for us as followers of him? To spend our lives turned inward analyzing ourselves and others?

This is the same God that created the sunset, ocean, rainforest, mountains, and stars. This is a God of variety. This is a God of color, abundance, and life. You know how I feel when I’m in a room of people heatedly discussing some trivial matter like which version of the bible is the “right” one? I feel bored. That’s the colorless, tasteless, bland life.

Have you ever heard the saying about Jesus being the light? As Christians we are called to be the light. Do you know that visible light is made up of different colors? When light passes through a lens or prism it is dispersed in to different colors of the rainbow. Doesn’t it make sense that when Jesus shines his light through us, being that we are all different, we would each shine him in a slightly different shade?

I think that we need to be more aware of the beauty in every different shade of Jesus around us. I don’t think Jesus wanted us to focus so much on “right and wrong” because what he really stressed was love. He said a whole, whole lot about love. Somehow, we tend to overlook that in our quest to be right. If Jesus calls us to live together in unity, but also made us each different, he knows that we are going to have to “agree to disagree” on some things for the sake of unity. Let’s not make our goal as Christians to be who can “get it right” but maybe to be who can love, give, respect, honor, and forgive. Just like the colors of the rainbow, we can all be different and still uniquely beautiful.

One way to line your attitudes and motives up with Christ is with the biblical description of love from 1 Corinthians 13. Ask yourself, “Are my thoughts/words/actions:

Patient?

Kind?

Humble?

From a place of contentment?

Forgiving?

Truthful?

Genuinely desiring the best for the other person?”

If you can’t honestly answer yes to the above filters…maybe just let go of that for a while and spend a little time admiring the beauty around you! 🙂

Don’t Be a Porcupine

Have you ever had someone make one of the snide remarks towards you that you find yourself thinking about later in the day and replaying all the great comebacks you could have had?

I think we’ve all been there.

Sometimes the person may not have even meant to touch upon a sensitive spot of ours. Other times, lets be honest, some people are just mean and really do want to put you down.

Either way, our immediate response to threat, like any animal, is to put up a quick defense. I think of a porcupine because that’s what I feel like when I’m threatened. When I hear that someone has made a comment about me that I feel is offensive or someone critiques me in a not-so-loving way…my first reaction is to pull out the quills and get ready to defend myself.

This is understandable of course, who really likes their vulnerable places to be carelessly critiqued by seemingly heartless bystanders? But that’s just the thing…many times these comments are not spoken out of love or by someone who truly knows and appreciates us.

So…why allow someone who isn’t committed to doing life with us or to growing together in a positive way, affect us? We shouldn’t! We definitely shouldn’t let people have the power to bring out the porcupine in us! It’s not pretty and it’s not our best representation of Christ. So instead of pulling out the quills…there is something so much more effective we can do in these moments that will turn a negative irritation in to a positive opportunity for spiritual growth.

1. Perspective Change: As with most negative emotions, we have to start by realizing that it needs to be addressed with the Lord before it spews and releases more negativity. One of the main reasons we are hurt by other’s opinions is because we have placed the importance of people’s approval above the importance of God’s approval and because we are not completely secure in the area that has been attacked. We shouldn’t view the person who hurt us as an enemy to be fought but should take a step back and refuse to give them power over us that they did not earn and do not deserve.

2. Reflect: There is a reason they say, “the truth hurts”. If what the person says bothers you that much, it reflects that a part of you believes what they said. Think about it, if you truly thought it was complete nonsense, you wouldn’t have taken it to heart so much. Try to identify the part of you that was threatened by the comment or what it is that you feel insecure about in your identity.

3. Take it to the Lord: You can learn so much about yourself by paying attention to what things upset you. This helps uncover areas that you may not have fully surrendered or even old wounds that haven’t been healed. You can take these issues to the Lord and allow Him to use the things you are offended by to aide in your healing and personal growth. Go to his word for his truth about how he feels about you. His reality is the only reality that deserves to be validated in your life and thoughts.

4. Pray for the offender: I can’t tell you how much this helps calm me down when I’m about to spray my quills over a porcupine moment. People are people and as I always remind myself, positive, happy, healthy, people are not going to cut you down purposely. Yes, there are people out there who like to cut others down to make themselves feel bigger but guess what, you don’t want to be like them anyways, and you certainly do not need their approval. So pray and call it a day. You know the Lord loves you and approves of you, flaws and all. He loves a sincere, humble, and forgiving heart so let that be reason enough to never ever let a mean person turn you in to a porcupine!

When Friends Offend: Navigating Conflict and Moving On

I think it’s safe to assume that none of us enjoy conflict. Conflict is just…uncomfortable. It has the ability to bring a relationship closer together if you are both willing to listen and work at it. Unfortunately, and probably most often, it can cause relationships to become weak or even end completely. So what do you do when you have had a falling out with a friend? What do you do when you have openly and honestly shared your heart and the person is unresponsive or does not validate your opinion? What do you do when someone has hurt you (maybe multiple times) and does not seem capable or willing to change their behavior?

This is the hardest thing for me with friendships because I tend to value the people in my life above all else. In the past several months I have asked several of the women I look up to about their past friendships and have discovered something shocking, we have ALL lost friends that we at one time considered near and dear to our hearts. I was so surprised that some of the most beautiful hearts I know have been broken over friendships ending. I am comforted to know that I am not alone and want to share some of the ways I have found to deal with friendship conflicts in a healthy and Godly way:

1. Review the situation: Is this situation occurring because you are being taught something about others or about yourself? Be honest. Did you say or do something offensive? If yes, it’s time to suck it up with an apology. (God can help you get your heart in the right place of humility by spending a little time with him first. The worst thing is an insincere apology…it will only make matters worse).
2. Put it in perspective: “But now, O LORD, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand.” – Isaiah 64:8 The person who hurt you is clay…a work in the Lord’s hands, just like you. We can not expect people to be perfect and we can usually expect them to grow and change in time. However, only you can choose what is and is not acceptable in your life and sometimes that means loving yourself enough to know who should not be influencing you. If someone makes you feel bad about yourself or disrespects you repeatedly, it might be time to move on. It is important to spend time in prayer to ask the Lord for discernment since every situation is different. He may tell you to “forgive and forget” or he very well may tell you to “forgive and remember”. Being a Christian means being kind…that does not mean you have to be a “doormat” or a “yes person”. Honesty, respect, and consideration are not too much to ask for.
3. Remember Who and Whose you are: So, maybe you’ve decided to distance yourself from someone for a while? What about those yucky feelings you get when you see that they are spending time with all your mutual friends? First of all, stop judging yourself, we can not help the natural human feelings we have of hurt when someone has hurt us but continues to be well received by those around us. Secondly, understand, it is NOT your place to “enlighten” anyone about the person’s character. There is NO EXCUSE for gossip. Remember you are a daughter of God. He bought you with a price and He desires that your heart stay pure even while enduring trials. Again, this takes prayer because God doesn’t call us to be fake. He doesn’t want us to put on plastic smiles and pretend everything is perfect…because that would be lying. He is the truth and He calls us to be the light. He calls us to spend the necessary time being honest with him about our emotions so that he can transform our hearts and remind us He is in control. Remember this, God loves you and He also loves the person who offended you. You can never fight darkness with darkness so when you see the person who has hurt you, treat them with respect (doesn’t mean acting like their best friend). When someone else brings them up in conversation speak either positively or keep silent.
4. Keep Being You: Move on. Keep doing the things that inspire you. Keep listening to your favorite music. Keep meeting new people in random places. Be spontaneous and make new memories. The point is…sometimes we have to leave people behind in order to truly respect ourselves and yes, it hurts for a little while but, LIFE.GOES.ON.

Girls: The Truth About Pretty

“Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised” -Proverbs 31:30

What’s the big deal about pretty? I get it, the first thing you notice about someone is their appearance. So for first impressions, I understand why people are so concerned with how they look. We all want to present the best version of ourselves. But the desire to be “pretty” goes so much farther than just desiring to make a good first impression. Girls are obsessed with it. Guys won’t stop talking about it.

Why does it seem like the most important criteria we use for judging people is based on their appearances?

If we think about this for a minute, it makes absolutely no sense. We tend to judge others and ourselves based on something that is not only temporary, but holds almost no weight in terms of being actually valuable. Yes, it’s nice to look at something that is attractive but…isn’t the ability to lend a helping hand, give wise advice, or offer a listening ear, more valuable?

Somehow girls get in this cycle of striving to attain perfection (which doesn’t exist) and it sucks the life right out of us. I’ve been stuck in the cycle before. The more you strive to look a certain way, the more you compare yourself to others, look through magazines, spend time obsessing over size and little details; it sucks the very life and joy right out of you. It’s not worth it.

When I went to Army Basic Training, as challenging as it was, I felt more empowered and more myself than ever before. I had my hair in a tight bun, wearing a men’s uniform, with no make-up on, but I was more confident. I was forced to be the most real and raw version of myself and I felt free.

Girls, I think it’s time we stop pressuring ourselves over our outward appearances. I’ll let you in on a little secret: how you look only matters as much as you allow it to.

When I was focused on my appearances, I was focused on what guys had to say about me. I was seeking validation and feeding my insecurities by surrounding myself with other people who were obsessed with appearances too. The crazy thing is, no amount of compliments or affirmation was ever enough because I was my own harshest critic. I realized that the people I was turning to for validation, although pretty on the outside, were not people that had many inner qualities I admired. Now, I surround myself with people who look at the heart as a way of appreciating others and seek to build up positives instead of point out negatives.

You know what pretty really is? Pretty is being there for the people in your life when times get tough. Pretty is looking to give instead of to take. Pretty is being more aware of others than of yourself. Pretty is realizing you don’t have to look any certain way to be valuable because you know that you already are.

Challenge: This week, every time you find yourself making an “appearance based” judgment about yourself or another person, point out a positive character quality instead.

 

Welcome to the Family (Part 2)

In my last post, I talked about what it means to be chosen and called to be a member of God’s family. I hope as you read this next part of my post that you have come to realize how exciting it is to be adopted into God’s own family as his son or daughter! Let me just share with you one of my favorite verses about the heart of our Father:

“Your God is present among you,
a strong Warrior there to save you.
Happy to have you back, he’ll calm you with his love
And delight you with his songs”
Zephaniah 3:17 (The Message)

I just love this verse. God is happy when we acknowledge him in our life and allow him to lead us. He delights us with his songs and calms us with his love! Can you think of the last time your heart was calm and delighted? Can you think of anyone in your life that seems to have this kind of attitude of overflowing joy? This is God’s desire for us, to have a full heart that KNOWS it is loved, chosen, accepted, and cared for. This is the truth that Jesus came to tell us about so we could experience life on a whole other spiritual level of security and abundance that is not possible outside of his provision. But what about the people who don’t feel loved, chosen, accepted, and cared for? As God’s children we need to be on the look out for these people and be ready to show them what it means to be in God’s family. Words can only go so far when it comes to spiritual things and that is where actions come in to play. I think one of the best ways to bring more people in to the family of Christ is to treat them like they already are. It doesn’t matter someone’s background history, past mistakes, race, age, religion, occupation, or any other dividing factor you can think of…God sees them as his. As Christians we have to start living this out. Here are some ways we can invite people to God’s family by being their spiritual brother, sister, mother, or father:

Pray: Obvious and often overlooked, but most important, is praying for people. Don’t get in to the trap of thinking you have to “save” everyone. Jesus saves, you listen and obey. This isn’t about going out and trying to mass convert people or trying to get them to simply say a quick prayer. This is about building relationships with people that God hand picks for you. You have to spend time in prayer to discern who these people are and how you can reach them. Don’t fall in to the trap of being sucked under by someone who is trying to take advantage of a kind person; you have to pray for discernment, if your energy is being sucked by someone then that is a good hint that they may not be someone that God is calling you to focus on right now.

Be Genuine: When you are someone’s family, you do not get to control or change them, you just love and accept them exactly how they are. When it comes to building a relationship with someone you should not put expectations on that relationship of how they should respond to you. I can’t tell you how many times I have seen Christians befriend someone with the intent of sharing Christ and then when the person is not receptive within a certain time frame the Christian moves on to the next “project”. NO. NO. NO. This sends a terrible message. God always meets us right where we are and that is how we should act towards others. Just be real. You don’t have to condone what they do or join in by any means but don’t make people your project.

Love and Encourage: What else is there to say about this one? What God does for us, we do for others. We are his hands and feet. We are representatives of God on this earth we need to act like it. How? Find your individual style of love and encouragement. Is it writing letters, sending quick but encouraging texts/emails, Taking the time to call and keep in touch, or remembering specifics about people’s lives? Basically, just literally being there is usually enough to send the message, “I am here for you, I care.” That is a message that God wants us to share and it says so much more than you may ever know.

Spend time with God: How can we pour out love on others? How can we be spiritual siblings and parents? We have to be full in our hearts first and this comes from time with God. Taking the time to express our every worry and concern is so key to allowing him to minister to our hearts and calm us in his love. Taking the time to praise, worship, and thank him enables us to have that supernatural joy to give out to those around us.

So my fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, let’s make it our mission this Christmas season to be living invitations in to the family of God. Let’s go out there with our little joy-filled hearts and show them whose they are 🙂

To Say or To Pray?

“Do not be quick with your mouth, do not be hasty in your heart to utter anything before God. God is in heaven and you are on earth, so let your words be few.” Ecclesiastes 5:2

As a believer I feel a lot of pressure to talk. I feel a lot of pressure to tell people about Jesus and stand up for my faith. When the opportunity comes up during conversation sometimes I get a little nervous and I feel like I have to say some perfect, witty thing that will turn people to Christ and cause them to seek him.

There was one time after I got back from my mission trip to Africa where I was sharing about my trip with my non-believing friend. She graciously listenend to me go on and on about how God had used my team and me in these other countries. She listened with slightly glazed over eyes as I tried to paint a picture of what my faith in God is like. I tried to tell the story as interestingly as possible, giving God the glory, making a case for him, trying to show her more about him. Honestly, I wouldn’t be surprised if she didn’t hear one word of what I said.

There’s something annoying about a person who strives to change the way you think. I know we have all experienced this in one way or another. The person with very strong opinions who goes on and on thinking people actually care. I know I have been that person before. The thing about striving so hard to share your beliefs and opinions with people is that you are relying on yourself. If you find yourself replaying the conversation in your head, or wondering what you could have said differenly to make better points, you really might be relying too much on yourself.

The wonderful news that has taken a lot of that pressure off of me is realizing that God himself draws people in, not me, not you, not the most inspirational person on earth. It is through the power of the holy spirit that people come to Christ. You don’t have to have the perfect argument or the most persuasive testimony. As a matter of fact, when you don’t know what to say it’s totally fine because maybe that is when you need to pray! There is power in prayer. There is comfort in acknowledging that it is not you, but Him who does the saving. I have noticed that some people have a curiousity and a hunger for God, they WANT to know more, they ask questions, they seek. Other people really do not seem to care at all. Which group of people will benefit from words and which simply need prayer? Sometimes people are most touched by the things they see you doing when you don’t even know you are being watched. Today I am reminded that God is in control, not me! 🙂

Facing The Past: That’s Not a Scar, It’s a Beauty Mark

Have you ever been deeply hurt by someone you cared about and trusted? Maybe it was someone that was supposed to protect you? Maybe it was the person you thought would ALWAYS be there?

No matter what your story, we have all been wounded, many of us several times. You can’t get through life without being hurt by people…because well, none of us are perfect. The best and worst thing about emotional wounds is that they change us. Will you let your wounds change you for the better or will you get stuck obsessing over them? You can’t help but be changed when someone you love makes you feel worthless. You can’t help but break when the person you knew you could always run to, isn’t there. It’s in these dark moments when we question our very identity, “How could they do that to me”, “What’s wrong with me that made them do that?” We ask the hard questions and we draw conclusions about ourselves because we try to make sense of the pain we are feeling. What conclusions have you drawn about your past hurts? Are you carrying around heavy burdens of bitterness because you can’t let go? Do you feel like if you forgive it will diminish the severity of what was done to you?

God gave us a standard by which we are told to live. Jesus told us the two greatest commandments:

1. Love the Lord your God with all you heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.

2. Love your neighbor as yourself

When someone hurts you they aren’t loving you the way they are required to by Jesus Himself, are they? I can only imagine the kind of darkness inside people who purposefully hurt, put down, or abandon others. If we are called to love our neighbors as ourselves, we must start with loving ourselves. The person who hurt you did not do it out of love. Maybe it was out of insecurity, maybe it was selfishness…maybe it was because of what someone had done to them. Do not allow the darkness that someone brought in to your life to spread. Do not allow it to shadow your feelings for yourself. It is time to fight the dark with the light. You do this through forgiveness. You do this through letting go. You do this through surrender to the God who will heal you and use your struggles for a greater purpose.

Today, I encourage you to face your past. Think about the things that you believe about yourself as a result of someone else’s shortcomings. It is time to re-write the script that plays over and over in your head. It is time to replace the feelings of inadequacy, rejection, and defeat. You have a God that knows exactly who you are and if you can see yourself the way He sees you, you will be well on your way to healing. The bible is FULL of verses about God’s love for each of us, individually. One of my personal favorites is Psalm 139, take some time today to read it and see who you really are and how God thinks of you. He thinks wonderful things about you and His desire is that you will see yourself as He sees you, beautiful.

Today, I encourage you to forgive, not for the sake of the guilty, for the sake of your own heart. The thing about a wound is that it still hurts. It is still open and it is still affecting the way you live your life. It is with you everywhere you go. It is sensitive and you want to protect that part of you. It comes with you in to new relationships, with people who weren’t even there when the wound first occurred. Wounds have a way of creating a cycle, an unhealthy cycle of heartbreak. It is time to let your wounds heal. It is time to let your wounds form a scab and start to turn in to a scar. You can let go now. You may never know why it happened or why some people are mean and selfish but I can promise you that whatever was done to you came from a place of darkness and God himself promises to deal with that personally. Harboring bitterness, hatred, regret, or un-forgiveness hurts you, not the person it is directed at.

When you finally allow the past to form a scar, you can look at it and be reminded of the lessons you learned. You can look back and see how far you have come and how much stronger you are now. And you know what? I don’t think those are scars after all…I think they are beauty marks. They are the part of you that make you deep and mature. They are the part of you that enable you to experience empathy for others because you’ve been there, you lived it, and you have overcome it…now that is beautiful.

Sometimes You Gotta Fight For Your Rights!

As children of God we know we have the power of the Holy Spirit dwelling within us, guiding us, strengthening us, and filling us with his presence. This is our birthright as princes and princesses of The Most High God. We are entitled to the fruit (or evidence) of the spirit and the enemy would love to try to tell us otherwise. This is why we have to fight for the life we are called to! The evidence of the spirit in our life is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5: 22-23). If you take a second to dwell on these you will realize that they are the qualities that help guide us through life. What else do we really need to overcome any situation? These are the qualities that help us forgive the seemingly unforgivable, serve the people who aren’t easy to serve, and reach out to those who are hard to love. When one of these things is missing from our lives we need to immediately identify the problem, most often it is a lie that has infiltrated our thought life and is messing with our spirit. When we are not experiencing the fruit of the spirit in our life, it is a nudge from God that something is “off” and sometimes we really do have to put up a fight to figure out what it is and take back the gifts that we have been given. Here is what I have found helpful for when my Spirit is lacking:

1. Immediately pray and ask The Lord to reveal to you what is going on that is causing you to feel this way. Remember to invite the spirit to guide you and have full reign in your life.
2. Try to find a place to be alone and in quiet to listen to what God could be speaking to you.
3. Spend some time in the word and see if anything is revealed to you. If you are able to identify a lie or obsessive thought, memorize a scripture to combat it. Write the scripture somewhere that you can keep looking at it every time the lie creeps in.
4. Give thanks- acknowledge The blessings in your life and thank God for them
5. Worship- listen to praise music or life up the name of The Lord in prayer
6. Serve – How can you touch someone’s life in Jesus’ name today? This is one of the best ways I have found to get my joy back!

Praise God that things are not always perfect or smooth in our lives because these little stumbling blocks send us running back to the one who guides us and fills us! He is our hope, our strength, our very life and He is worth fighting for!

An Answered Prayer and a Moment of Doubt

For the past several months I have had Psalm 90:14 on a note card in front of my journal, “Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love, that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days.” My goal of course is to actually spend time with The Lord first thing in the morning. I don’t know why this is such a difficult task but every time my alarm goes off I can’t seem to find the will power to get up out of bed unless it is for something mandatory. So a few weeks ago I started thinking that if only I had a secret place to meet with The Lord than I would be more motivated to get up and actually go sit in peace somewhere. I pictured something outside like a garden or a pond so last week I went for a run to try and find a secret place. I went about a mile and half in both directions and could not find anything secluded. Well last night one of my close sisters in Christ invited me to her “secret place” where she spends time with The Lord. It was a small, private beach that overlooks a lake and even has a fountain. Unfortunately, she lives atleast 30 minutes from me so this is not a good option for my mornings. I sat there last night, looking out at the lake and listening to the peaceful sound of water from the fountain and I prayed, “Lord, I just really want something like this but closer to me. Please help me find it.”

So today I decided to go for a walk. I went my usual route but when I got to the entrance of the neighborhood where I usually turn around and head back, I turned in. I literally went 5 steps farther than I usually do and guess what i found…a beautiful, secluded, secret place, complete with 3 fountains and a bench! He never ceases to amaze me. What a wonderful father we have that He would hear such a small request and bless me the very next day.

I wish I could say that from there I had a positive and faith filled day but that is far from the truth. I sat down tonight to start putting together my support letters for my upcoming mission trip and the whole time I was being so incredibly negative. I made a list of people to send letters to, the whole time thinking that they will probably be annoyed to receive my letter. From there my negative thinking just went down hill to dwelling on how much money I need to raise and how no one would want to donate to me. What the heck?! Didn’t God just literally give me a huge boost of faith earlier in the day?!! UGH…it’s so hard to focus on truth sometimes. Thankfully, as I was listening to these lies of the enemy and putting myself down, I was directed back to the word (the truth) and remembered that God is in control.