Jesus Calling from November 2nd encourages us to seek out The Lord and to not condemn ourselves for constantly seeking his help. I'm guilty of keeping things inside and not opening my heart for fear of being weak. I've told myself many times before that I shouldn't burden God by praying about my minuscule problems and struggles. It wasn't until recently that I truly realized God never sees our prayers or problems as a burden. In him and with him we are perfect and loved, he actually promises to take care of everyone who loves him which is unbelievably comforting. "Come to Me with your gaping neediness; let the Light of my love fill you. A yielded heart does not whine or rebel when the going gets rough. It musters the courage to thank Me even during hard times." If Jesus is your Savior and you've put your trust in God, you have no reason to live in constant stress and uncertainty. "Relax, because the Lord takes care of you." Psalm 116:7 I need to remind myself sometimes to take a step back and remember that it's all in God's control and he is working out all things for the good of the people who love him (Romans 8:28).
I feel like New Years Eve was just yesterday but it’s already April. Days run together with such ease and I hate the feeling of
time and life passing me by. Many of us get so caught up in ourselves and our
to do lists that we forget to sit back and enjoy the day that The Lord has
blessed us with. I’m guilty of doing it. Sometimes all we need is a reality
check and a little perspective.
I’m going to share an excerpt from today’s Jesus Calling. It
truly resonated with me and inspired me to share this short and sweet blog
post.
“Talk with Me about every aspect of your day, including your
feelings. Remember that your ultimate goal is not to control or fix everything
around you; it is to keep communing with Me. A successful day is one in which
you have stayed in touch with Me, even if many things remain undone at the end
of the day. Do not let your to-do list (written or mental) become an idol
directing your life. Instead, ask My Spirit to guide you moment by moment.”
I’m truly in awe at the abundance of love we are shown and
given through Jesus Christ. He is ALWAYS there and through prayer He can move
mountains. I know that He will never leave or forsake me. He knows the details
of my past and my future. I cannot even think of a word that describes how
wonderful it feels to know that kind of peace in his presence.
I really could not ask for more. No matter what heartbreak I
may experience in life I will be happy knowing that The Lord’s love is infinite
and that it will always be a constant in my life.
Hi! I want to preface this post by recommending Jesus Calling by Sarah Young. It is a daily devotional that truly impacts my attitude and mood every day. It helps me hold myself accountable and serves as my reality check every morning. Today I had the morning off of work so I decided to sleep in. I didn't wake up early enough and was rushing to get to my 11 am geology class. I was bummed to break the routine of reading my devotional in the morning before starting my day but I carried on like normal. When I got to class I looked down at my phone and saw a picture of today's devotional with a sweet message from one of my best friend's, Britta. I caught myself smiling because that was the Lord's way of giving me exactly what I needed in that moment. He has blessed me with sweet friends and family who are so loving and considerate of me all the time. Not only do I have Britta to support me but I also have Bri. I have been blessed with two of the most wonderful best friends in the whole wide world. They are always there for me and are absolutely amazing women who inspire me each and everyday. Bri is constantly cheering me up and checking up on me while Britta is always being silly and encouraging me. These girls make me laugh all the time and bring so much joy to my life. Whether they are sending me bible verses or ridiculous cat pictures, they are supporting me all the same. This excerpt from today's devotional touched my heart, "Bring me your weakness, and receive My peace. Accept yourself and your circumstances just as they are, remembering that I am sovereign over everything. Do not wear yourself out with analyzing and planning. Instead, let thankfulness and trust be your guides through this day; they will keep you close to me Me." I wholeheartedly trust in the Lord's plans for me and I have so much to be thankful for. Most of all I am thankful for my family, friends, faith, love, health, strength, and joy. Psalm 29:11; Numbers 6:24-26; Psalm 13:5 were referenced at the bottom of today's devotional. I always love to find visuals for various verses and save them to my phone to use as my home screen, desktop, etc. I found three amazing graphics for the bible verses listed above and wanted to share them.
Have you ever thought about how quickly our lives flash before our eyes? I feel like just yesterday I was a little girl without a care in the world. The world is really different to me now than it was then and the crazy thing is I still have a lot of my life ahead of me. I wonder what I'll be thinking 15 years from now looking back on this time in my life.
I started thinking about how quickly life passes us by if we let it. We get so caught up in day to day life and silly meaningless things and forget to live in the moment. Everyday seems like such a blur lately going back and forth from work to school and doing it all over again the next day. Everyday feels like such a blur because I let it be that way. I want to make a conscious effort to be more appreciative of all the little things around me.
Things like spending time with my family and enjoying their company. One day I'll be grown up and have a family of my own. Most people my age don't usually think about things like that but it makes you want to soak up everything that much more. On top of that, I'm only going to be earning a college education once in my life so I need to savor it. School is a drag sometimes because it requires so much time and dedication but its such a gratifying feeling knowing I'm working towards earning something so important (Aggie Ring Aggie bling - whoop). This year I don't want to let things pass me by because I'll only be 19 once. I've never had a New Years resolution before but maybe that can change.. even though I'm a bit late! Carpe diem sums it up perfectly. In 2013 I want to seize each and everyday. I know it won't be easy but I am going to focus on the positives in my life and remind myself to be grateful always. I constantly take things for granted and I want to work on changing that. I've always taken time for granted and so I thought why not start today. I will never grow if I don't find a place to start. Things don't always workout how I plan but that doesn't mean there isn't a different and greater plan out there for me. I came across the greatest bible verse last week, "You can make many plans, but the Lord's purpose will prevail." Proverbs 19:21 For right now I think that bible verse is the perfect place to start. It reminds me that someone much greater is in control and all I can do is make the most of everyday he gives me. I haven't posted on my blog in 10 months (geez quite a long time) but I'm glad to be back to my late night random rambling ways. Maybe Carrie Bradshaw is to thank, all the SATC reruns I've been watching may be getting to my head. :)
I've always admired the Duggar family (of 19 Kids and Counting) and the way they've used their show as a platform to spread the Lord's word and glorify his name. I didn't realize what an impact the season finale of their show would have on me. My boyfriend hadn't been paying any attention to what I was watching and looked over to find me bawling my eyes out like a little baby. I can't even express the overflow of emotions I was experiencing. These were tears of distress and sorrow yet at the same time tears of joy. The Duggar's suffered a miscarriage and lost their 17 week old baby girl, Jubilee Shalom Duggar. My heart truly goes out to all mothers who have suffered the tragic loss of a child. I can't even imagine what that would be like. Michelle repeatedly quoted the scripture, "The Lord giveth, and the Lord taketh away. Blessed be the name of the Lord." Job 1:21Despite such tragedy, the Duggar's never once doubted God's plan for Jubilee and they never questioned his unfailing love for us. I know that sweet baby girl is in Heaven rejoicing with the Lord. The song below was played at her memorial service and it truly touched my heart.
Life here on Earth is far from perfect but we should always remember, "He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away." Revelation 21:4
Its so easy to forget what a gift life is. I have been so blessed and I find myself truly humbled by our Lord, all the opportunities I've been given, and also by my amazingly incredible one of a kind family. I know I crammed a lot of adjectives in there but those words can't even begin to do them justice. I want to cry when I think of how lucky I am! (I'm an over emotional mess in case you didn't know that by now) As I was writing this blog post I remembered all that my Aunt and Uncle went through when their baby/my cousin was born prematurely. I was in middle school but I can still remember it like it was yesterday. Despite her initial struggle being born as a preemie, Sophie has grown to be the spunkiest and sassiest of all my baby cousin's! I am so overjoyed to have Soph in my life. She is the cutest thing EVER and to be so young and to already have overcome so much is just an absolutely incredible testament to God's grace.
[Then & Now]
She is the most beautiful little girl ever! I could go on and on because I am just SO thankful for her and her parents, my parents, basically I love my entire family too much for words.
"Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
I've been so emotional while writing this post but there could not be two more perfect bible verses to wrap it up.
"For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime; weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning." Psalm 30:5
"But may the righteous be glad and rejoice before God; may they be happy and joyful." Psalm 68:3
I hope you've all had an awesome week so far! Remember to forgive, apologize when you're wrong, and always say I love you because you aren't guaranteed tomorrow. :)
Women of all ages battle with insecurity and struggle to feel beautiful each and everyday. Valentine's Day is right around the corner and I see so many girls wasting their time worrying about finding a guy and having the perfect fairy tale relationship. Some girls reflect upon past relationships and wonder what guy is in store for their future. Ryan and I had broken up when he went off to college and I remember feeling upset and alone. When Valentine's Day came around I only made myself feel worse. I know so many girls who have struggled with this same type of thing at some point in their life. Teenage girls nowadays think that if they don't have a boyfriend it must be because they aren't skinny, tall, or pretty enough. NEWSFLASH. You don't need a boyfriend and YOU are beautiful just the way you are. The man you need to be focusing all your time and attention on is the Lord. Whether you're in a relationship or not this is something we should all remember. God is #1. When the time is right you will have a boyfriend/fiance/husband to love you unconditionally. In the meantime, always remember the Lord is by your side. He will never leave you and he loves everything about you. He thinks you're perfect, don't forget that. If you ever feel lonely, insecure, or maybe even anxious look to the Bible. I picked out a few verses that I think prove true the importance of inner beauty.
"She is more precious than jewels, and nothing you desire can compare with her."
Proverbs 3:15
"So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day."
2 Corinthians 4:16
"And the king will desire your beauty. Since he is your lord, bow to him."
Psalm 45:11
"Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised."
Proverbs 31:30
You might be FBO with your man or you might even be ridin' solo, the only thing that matters is God's love for us. :)
Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content
with what you have, because God has said, "Never will I leave
For those of you who don't know about Breakaway Ministries it is a non-denominational Bible study at Texas A&M. Every Tuesday night thousands of students come together to worship our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. I got to experience Breakaway for the first time earlier tonight and words can't even describe to you the joy it brought me. To be in a basketball arena full of young, influential, and incredible college students all sharing in their love for God is just indescribable. It gives me chills and brings me to tears (tears of joy, obvi!) that I have the opportunity to be a part of something so special and unique to Texas A&M. I hope many of you get to experience something similar. You may get to experience something this special at your college, church, or maybe even here in College Station at Breakaway like I do. I pray that all of my friends, family, and Christian's everywhere get to experience worship the way I have. From my experience at Impact this past summer and now my experience with Breakaway, I feel SO blessed that God brought me to this university. Many best describe their experiences at Texas A&M with this quote, "From the outside looking in you can't understand it. From the inside looking out you can't explain it." Now you have a little insight into why my experience and feelings about Breakaway are so hard to put into words. Amazing, magnificent, and perfect don't even begin to do it justice. You can find Breakaway Ministries on ITunes and I highly suggest you download away. It won't cost you a penny and I guarantee it will bring a smile to your face and bring you closer to God. I just wish every single person I know could have been there by my side to experience it with me, that is how AMAZING it is.
Now to preach just a teensy bit.. Ben Stuart (lead speaker for Breakaway) talked a lot about how in today's society many of us who have grown up with so much find ourselves getting caught up in material possessions and money. Ben reminded all of us the importance of taking only what you need and using the rest for the good of others. As a Christian you shouldn't want your life to be measured by the amount of money you make. Your life should be about the amount of love, compassion, and kindness you have shared with those less fortunate than you. In addition to that why not strive everyday to share God's ever growing and endless love with those around you? Ben wasn't saying as a Christian you should just give all of your money away. He was simply reminding us of money's insignificance in the scheme of things.
“And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.” – Phil 4:19
With a promise like that and the Lord watching over you, what else really matters? Now you might see why money and material possessions are truly so insignificant.
I hope all of you have an absolutely blessed week!
