God is a gracious God. He is everything we need. He alone is worthy of our praise. He alone is worthy every day. He is great. He is high and lifted up. He’s amazing. He’s unfailing.

God is love. He is a loving God. He is everything we need. He is joy. He’s my strength. When I am weak, He’s heaven sent. He’s my peace and oh so sweet, so gentle, and so kind. A love that’s like no other kind.

God is good. He is the lover of my soul. He is everything I need and more. He is sweet and so completely with me in ways I never knew. He is all that I will serve. He makes me new. A new creation I am to Him, after He has cleansed me from all my sins.

I have always loved reading the book of Psalms in the Bible. Psalms are just so inspiring and encouraging. I also love to write. I love to write in my journal and process my thoughts and feelings; I love to write in this blog and share what God has taught me as I walk along my life journey. When I was younger, I used to write poems. I haven’t written a new one in quite some time, but I was reading some of my poems recently; and I thought it was time to share some on this blog. This one is entitled, “My Help Comes From The Lord.” It is based on Psalm 121 and Psalm 46:1.

“My help comes from the Lord;” that’s the verse I read today,

I know that He is with me, every single day.

No matter what I face,

He is there for me with His love and grace.

He will not let me down, He will not stumble or faint,

He will keep His watchful eyes on me forever without restraint.

It has taken me some time to truly see,

I need His help in everything.

On my good days and my bad ones too,

He is truly my source of strength, so faithful and so true.

O Lord, my God, I give you all of my praise,

for you reign over all of us as we journey through life’s maze.

Hi blog post readers!! I was getting ready for work one day recently, and I had You Tube on with my “Liked videos” playing. You know how there are all these ads in between the songs you play, and you can’t always skip the ad right away? Well, one of these “ads” was a song from Danny Gokey called “Fighter.” When I heard the first verse, I was thinking “This is my song! This is my new anthem!” Sometimes songs are just songs, but other times, songs like this one are encouraging and uplifting like nothing else. Sometimes a song is more than a song; sometimes a song is a declaration. That is what “Fighter” is for me.

Let me tell you about this song, why it’s made such an impact on me, and why it has officially been added to my “Liked videos” on my You Tube account. First of all, it really describes my life to me. It talks about going through broken nights and going through fire but that the fire does not burn you…. that’s my story for sure. Secondly, when I sing it, it lets me declare that I am a fighter, and that I am not giving up on life. Thirdly, it is a reminder of all that God is has been showing me about trials and disappointments.

I’ve been through so many things in my life. Only recently have I been able to see more of the value and purpose of the painful trials and situations that I have walked through. After years of ups and downs, valleys and mountain tops, I finally realize that bad things are just gonna happen in life. I can’t always have sunshine or happy seasons, but I know that no matter what season I am walking through, God is with me. One of my favorite verses in scripture is Isaiah 43:2 NLT: “When you go through deep waters I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown. When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you.” This verse is my reminder that life is hard sometimes, but God is still good. God is with me through all of it, and I can make it through and come out even stronger than before. I can come out a fighter.

I wrote a blog post awhile back ago entitled “Christ is enough for me.” I heard a song recently entitled “Enough” by Elias Dummer, and it beautifully speaks about this very thing when it says “Jesus, you are enough. Jesus, you are enough for me. With nothing, I still have everything. Jesus, you are enough for me.” I’m telling you: this song spoke to my heart so much and touched my soul the first time I heard it. It’s exactly the song that I need to sing to help me in this season of singleness that I am walking through right now. It’s exactly the song I need to sing when I am worried about having my needs met. It’s exactly the song I need to sing when I am lonely. It’s exactly the song I need to sing when I feel inadequate.  I have sung songs like this before, but I don’t think the sentiment has been more true in my life than it is now. It has taken me 36 years to be able to say and sing “Jesus, you are enough for me” and really mean it. It has taken me 36 years to see the truth: my worth and value is not defined by my relationship status or by my performance or even by my looks; it is defined by who I am in Christ.

One day, earlier this year, when I was journaling about being single and praying for help to trust God’s timing, I was really struggling. I was admitting to myself and to God that I feel lonely and disappointed sometimes because I am single. I was thinking about my love of romance novels and movies and how I thought reading these novels and watching these movies was helping me cope with being single. I realize that it wasn’t. It just reminded me of what I do not have which was probably making me feel worse. So I decided that instead of reading the Christian romance novels that I have accumulated over the years and binge watching Hallmark movies in my down time to de-stress, I would read “A Confident Heart” devotional by Renee Swope for 60 days. Not only that, but I told myself I should also listen to more sermons, more Christian music, and just take in more positive “media” to help me focus on good things and things that make me feel grateful and just make me feel good. I’ve actually been doing this, by the way. I have not been reading and watching romance; I have read through the devotional I mentioned as well as listened to and watched various sermons, found new Christian songs that I like, and just worked on trying to connect with God more. I think it’s making a difference in my life. I think I am more clear-minded and more focused on God than ever before.

Right after I decided to challenge myself to abstain from romance, I ended up reading Psalm 37:5 NLT “Commit everything you do to the Lord. Trust him and he will help you.” When I say that this spoke to me, I mean that. It was as if God was telling me I could do it and that I needed to do it: I needed to take a break from human romance and I needed to fall in love with Jesus even more than before. Then, I decided to look at all of Psalm 37 and verses 4-7 from NIRV were exactly what I needed to read in that moment: “Find your delight in the Lord. Then he will give you everything your heart really wants. Commit your life to the Lord. Here is what he will do if you trust him. He will make your godly ways shine like the dawn. He will make your honest life shine like the sun at noon. Be still. Be patient. Wait for the Lord to act. Don’t be upset when other people succeed. Don’t be upset when they try to carry out their evil plans.”

I still have my days when I struggle with my season of singleness; but I am committed to waiting on God’s best for me and on His timing. Even though it has taken me some time to realize, I know now that Jesus has always been enough for me; He is enough for me now, and He will always be enough for me forever.

I have been going through a difficult season with regards to my health, and this season has lasted a very long time. I am finally feeling like I am on the upswing; but for a while there, I just felt like I would never feel well again. It felt as if once God healed me from 1 health problem, 2 new health issues would crop up to take their place. I’ve been praying about my health for what seems like a very long time. Praying and trying to keep the faith. Praying and trying to accept whatever God’s answer is to my prayers.

Not long ago, I felt like giving up on praying for healing of the health problems that I have struggled with on and off for the last 4 years. It seemed like I would pray, have faith, and nothing would happen. It was discouraging and disheartening, BUT then I remembered a time in my past when he healed me of other symptoms. When I had migraines and muscle spasms every day, I thought I would never get better; but God has taken those symptoms away. God answered those prayers; maybe not as quickly as I wanted, but he did answer them.

Then I thought about other answered prayers: becoming a counselor, learning how to drive after years of trying, even being able to pick up and move to where I am now are all examples of answered prayers. God is the source of all that is good in my life. When I look back and reflect on all that I’ve been through and all of the prayers that God has answered, I feel like I have to keep trying. I have to keep praying and believing. There’s a reason the Bible says to “be unceasing and persistent in prayer” (1 Thessalonians 5:17 AMP). I personally think it’s because we do want to give up sometimes when our prayers are not answered quickly and in the way we want them to be.

A hard truth to accept is that every prayer is not answered with a yes. I am sure that everything I pray for may not be what I need. Sometimes I pray for work to be calmer, and it is the opposite; and I still make it through. I survive, and God is with me whether it’s crazy or calm. There are verses in the Bible that I have to bring to mind to remind myself that God gives us what we ask for when what we ask for is His will. The verses are 1 John 15:14-15. When I read these verses, I am also reminded that I don’t really want God to give me “yes” answers to “no” prayers. I don’t want God to give me something that is less than or different than His will for me, than His best plan for me. If God doesn’t want me to have it, then I don’t need it.

God answers prayers according to His will. This we can be sure of. There are times when the answers do not come quickly; BUT if we are praying for something that is His will, we must not give up. We must keep our faith in our God and in His promises. “The Lord is faithful and will keep all His promises. He is loving toward everything He has made” (Psalm 145:13b).

Hello! It’s been a looooong time since I blogged, but I feel inspired today. Some may or may not know: when I was 5 in the summer before Kindergarten, I was run over by a truck. Thankfully, none of my bones were broken, I didn’t spend a lot of time in the hospital, and I was stitched up in two places: my scalp and my face. I thank God for the angels He had watching over me that day; they didn’t slack off on the job!

Recently, I have felt like I have needed to pray through, process and unload some “unchecked baggage” in my life as I move forward on this journey.  I decided to unpack this incident because I can link it to the first time there was something different about me that made me stand out and led me to feel self conscious. In Kindergarten, kids asked about the scar because it’s noticeable, on the left side of my face, and lines up with my cheek. Needless to say, I’ve compared my face with others (in the past and sometimes now too) and not felt as beautiful as them as a result.  I see why Paul says in 2 Cor 10:12 that it’s not wise to compare ourselves with others. I’ve learned that either I feel worse about myself as a result of being different or I feel some how like I’m doing better than them in some area, and I become prideful. Neither outcome is good. God says ” For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.” (Eph. 2:10 NLT) God’s word and perspective trumps mine every time. I’m going to choose to believe what God says about me and not let my scars, physical and emotional, define me. I hope you’ll do the same. When I processed this scar from my past, these are some lessons I wrote down: 1. Own the truth and be ok with it. 2. I’m still beautiful and a masterpiece of God, even with the scar. 3. If God says I am beautiful, it does not matter if the whole world tells me something different. 4. God blessed me to survive because he has a plan and a purpose for me on this Earth and that is something to celebrate every day. 5. It’s time to let go of the negative pieces of that summer day, and God can help me do it. Be blessed and enjoy your life! Jesus came so you could!

How much courage and strength do we need to keep moving forward and not give up when the storms of life are raging all around us? How do we make it through our day when we wake up feeling worn out and tired? Where does our strength really come from? It comes from the Lord (Psalm 121:2). He is the only one I know who can give us all the strength we need when we need it. He is the only one I know who can talk us into doing the good things we don’t always feel like doing; but when we do them, He shows us just how strong we are in Him. It has been really busy in the last month or two and there have been so many ups and downs. I’ve been able to see more and more that God has a perfect time for everything that we need to do and that my time is not always His time, but His time is best. I am realizing (once again) it’s ok not to have it all together or to have all the answers. Sometimes just being honest and telling someone that we are struggling too is exactly what we need to do. Sometimes just bowing our knees and our heads and crying out to God, telling Him about our worries and sorrows, admitting our weaknesses to Him, and asking for His strength, is exactly what we need to do. He already knows, but I can truly say when I talk to Him about my weaknesses and my “I don’t understand’s,” He reminds me that I am not alone and I can depend on Him and trust in Him to work every thing out for my good. The key I guess is to fix our eyes on Him and on His abilities and strengths, not our own. I love Ephesians chapter 6 and how Paul tells us about the importance of having the whole armor of God in order to fight our battles well. I love how Paul talks about the strength we find in the Lord. “In conclusion, be strong in the Lord [be empowered through your union with Him]; draw your strength from Him [that strength which His boundless might provides].” (Ephesians 6:10 AMP). I think this verse sums up this whole blog post. In our relationship with Jesus, we find all that we need including strength and power to do all that we must do.

 

 

Songs that remind me of God’s truth: “There is Power” by Lincoln Brewster; “Same Power” by Jeremy Camp; AND “Greater is He” by Blanca.

 

Hello, everyone! I have not blogged for a while. I’m really glad to be able to blog today. A few years ago, I started a binder of Bible verses organized by subject so that I can find the verses I need when I need them. My struggle with anxiety is real so I have plenty of verses for that. I know we all have things that we feel anxious about or worry about. I just want to share “my list of God’s reasons for not being afraid,” based on several verses from the Bible. This is not an exhaustive list but serves to give me a gentle reminder from time to time that God’s got me and I don’t need to worry about anything.

1. He is with me wherever I go.
2. Jesus gave me His peace.
3. He will never leave me and He will never forsake or reject me.
4. He is my helper.
5. He gives me strength.
6. He holds me up.
7. He is my God.
8. He comforts me.
9. He is my light and my salvation.
10. He is my stronghold (a place of security or survival, per Merriam-Webster Dictionary).
11. He is my refuge and my strength.
12. He is my ever present help in trouble.
13. Tomorrow will worry about itself.
14. If I seek His kingdom and righteousness first, He will give me everything I need.
15. He has not given me a spirit of fear. He has given me a spirit of power, a spirit of love, and a spirit of a well balanced mind.
16. He cares for me.
17. He is my shield and my very great reward.
18. He is my confidence and He will keep me from hidden danger.
19. Worrying only leads to evil.
20. The battle is not mine but God’s battle and he will fight for me.
21. He will keep me from all harm and watch over me as I come and go forever.
22. The righteous live by faith, not by sight.
23. I can trust God to guide me and help me go down the right paths.
24. With God, all things are possible.
25. Jesus is the one who gives me the strength to do everything I need to do.

As I  have spent more time in the Word, I have realized how serious God is about our faith in his promises. He is not a man that he should lie so we can hold on to what he has said in the Word.

Hello, everyone!! Thanks for checking out my blog! Today, I am sharing my thoughts on hope. Life has been so busy lately, and sometimes it gets so overwhelming. I know that God has great plans for my life-plans to give me “hope and a good future” (Jeremiah 29:11); but sometimes I feel discouraged as I journey from where I am to where he is taking me. My future God-given hopes, goals, and dreams seem so far away sometimes, like they will never happen; but I know my God can do the impossible in me and through me and for me. Hope is defined in one dictionary as a “favorable and confident expectation.” When I was a small child, my heart and life were filled with hopes and dreams. I remember daydreaming about the future plans that I was sure would become a reality one day. However, as I grew up and life set in, and I started to experience disappointments and sorrows, my hope grew dim. There were times I didn’t expect anything good to happen; instead I was waiting on the worse possible outcome. I am thankful that my heart and life are filled with hope again. Somehow (and I’m really not sure when it happened), God helped me start to expect good things to happen in my life again. I have hope for the future now because of God’s promises in his Word and how they apply to my life generally and specifically. I have hope because I have read the end of the book, and I win because of the cross of Jesus. I have hope because I know that God has brought me through so many trials in my life already and he will continue to do so-He doesn’t change. I feel like I could write a long book sharing testimony after testimony of how God has shown up time and time again for me and for my family. I know that God is faithful to his promises. When I get discouraged about the dreams that haven’t come true yet, I need to say what David said : “Why are you cast down, O my inner self? And why should you moan over me and be disquieted within me? Hope in God and wait expectantly for Him, for I shall yet praise Him, who is the help of my countenance, and my God” (Psalm 42:11 AMP). In order to not lose hope again, I have to keep looking to Jesus, who is my anchor and the author and finisher of my faith. I have to keep trusting in him to lead and guide me, to protect me and direct me. “We wait in hope for the Lord; he is our help and our shield, In him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in his holy name” (Psalm 33:20-21 NIV). And even though I made what seems like a thousand I-statements in this post, I encourage you to do the same: keep hoping and keep expecting good things to happen, just like God has said they would. Keep believing that all things are possible with God because they really are. Keep going even when things don’t seem to be getting better. God will be with us every step of the way, and He will not let go of us.

Songs that inspire me: “My Hope Is In You” by Aaron Shust; “Hope In Front of Me” by Danny Gokey; and “It Is Well” by Bethel Music.

Hello, everyone! Thanks for checking out the blog! Today I want to share some thoughts about contentment. As I write this blog, I am listening to Hillsong Worship’s song “Christ is Enough.” It is a powerful song, and describes so much of what I am learning. Finding contentment in Christ alone is a huge goal for me and a pretty important one as well. In this season of life I am, I have been asking God to take me to a place where I am content with what I have because I know God will not leave me or forsake me (Hebrews 13:5 NIV). When I think of this verse, I am also reminded of verses that say that God always gives us what we need when we need it (including Psalm 145: 15). Contentment in Christ alone can keep us from coveting what others have and envying them which often lead to discontentment and dissatisfaction. Jesus spoke some deep truth when he said “Beware: Guard against every kind of greed. Life is not measured by how much you own” (Luke 12:25 NLT. All through the Bible, especially Proverbs, God reminds us that godliness trumps riches in his sight. It’s the idea that even if you don’t have all the possessions or money you want, if you have a personal relationship with God, it’s more valuable than all the riches in the world. One thing I try to remind myself of now is I can’t take any of the stuff or money when I leave this earth. It’s not required by God that I have this amount of money or this stuff or this account; what he really cares about is me seeing him as my source and my provider. The one who knows what I need when I need it and who is committed to taking care of me (and all of his children as well!). There is no reason to stress about what I don’t have. When this life is over, I know I will have all that Jesus has. As a matter of fact, because of Jesus, we have the Holy Spirit living inside of us now who is a “down payment” of what’s to come. I have a piece of Heaven in the person of the Holy Spirit  inside of me right now, and He gives me power to overcome every obstacle I face in this life.  I am truly blessed. I was strolling through my facebook newsfeed yesterday, and I saw this quote Christine Caine posted: ” It’s the presence of Jesus not the absence of trouble that brings contentment.” That’s exactly what I’m learning: that even though I always have some type of trouble to deal with, I also have an ever present help in trouble (Psalm 46:1 NIV).

Songs that inspire and remind me: “Christ is Enough” by Hillsong Worship; “All I Need” by Bethany Dillon; “I Am Not Alone” by Kari Jobe; and “Never Forsake Me” by James Fortune