Magnetic Beauty

As we get older, we should be maturing a little bit more every year.

We should be able to look back at this time last year and say,
"I have learned so much since then."
And, we should be able to look ahead to this time next year and say,
"I will not be struggling with that anymore by then."

You can call it what you want:
GOALS
PRIORITIES
STEPS

All those things are correct.
But, I personally like to call it GROWTH.

Because staying the same is just not God's best for me....or you.
Staying the same means comfort and predictability and stagnant living.
Not growing means limiting ourselves to what we 've always done.
Like, staying a sprout when God calls us to shoot up towards the sky and bloom.

I want to bloom!
I want to flourish!
Don't you?

GROWTH is a sign of health and life.
It means we are letting God direct our steps.
Because HE wants us to GROW and CHANGE.

HE wants us to be so beautiful with our colorful petals that other sprouts and seedlings will look at us and want to GROW too.
Cause when we let God lead us in our GROWTH, we are magnetic in our beauty.

It's not a "look at me and how far I've come" kind of beauty.
It's not even an "I've worked so hard to get here" kind of beauty.

It's a "by His grace, for His glory" kind of beauty.

GOD breathed His life into me, watered me with His love, and warmed me with His touch.
I can't take any credit for where I am or who I have become.
It's all because of Jesus.

So this year, 2015, be intentional in your goals, priorities, and steps.
But don't forget the only ONE who can get you to your intended destination.

Ask Him to lead you in your GROWTH this year.
Surrender your plans to the ultimate Plan-maker and watch as God blooms in you.

It's not just about what we are becoming...it's also about what those around us are becoming.
When you bloom, they will too.

Let's be magnetic in our beauty this year....
And GROW in the grace and glory of our loving Saviour, Jesus.

"We find ourselves standing where we always hoped we might stand - out in the wide open spaces of God's grace and glory,

standing tall and shouting our praise."

Romans 5:2 (msg)

 

 

STAND

If I've learned anything in my 34 years of life, it's this:

STAND FIRM 

....when the storm rages on all around you

....when the night cloaks you in darkness

....when the wind blows so hard that it knocks you over

STAND FIRM

.....when the waves rise over your head

.....when the sound of their laughing behind your back haunts you

.....when every door closes in your face

STAND FIRM

....when the unthinkable happens 

....when you don't even know how to take one more step

....when evil looks like it's gonna win

Just....STAND FIRM on God's promises.

His word is faithful and true. (Psalm 33:4)

He does not lie. (Numbers 23:19)

He has given you everything you will ever need. (2 Peter 1:3)

He always comes through...even when we don't. (Romans 3:3-4)

He is faithful to the end. (1 Corinthians 1:9)

When you've done all you can, just STAND.

How Loud is Your Roar?

COURAGE
-(noun) mental or moral strength to venture, persevere, and withstand danger, fear or difficulty

What exactly is courage? Is it not being afraid at all? OR... is it being afraid but facing the fear and doing it anyway?One of my fave Bible teachers, Joyce Meyer, says that sometimes we just have to "Do it afraid."I love that!

There are plenty of things in this world to be afraid of, aren't there?What are you afraid of?

We have a fear epidemic in the world today, ladies!
And all because we don't know the power that lies within us. COURAGE!!!

Joshua 1:9(msg) says, 

"Haven’t I commanded you? Strength! Courage! Don’t be timid; don’t get discouraged. God, your God, is with you every step you take.”

According to this verse, courage is a command. 

That means we can do it !

God doesn't ever tell us to do something that we cannot do.

And He is with us the whole time.

I feel braver already! 

There are people in this world who need you to be brave for them. 

There are lost, hopeless, helpless, poor, abandoned, crippled, abused, lonely, orphaned, and distraught people who don't know HOW to be brave. 

I don't know how to be brave!

Yes, you do Beautiful Warrior. 

Christ in you is all the courage you need. 

Here are just a few courageous women to inspire you!

HELEN KELLER - became deaf and blind at 19 months old from an illness. She became a world famous speaker, author of 11 books and advocate for  people with disabilities! She was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1964 and raised a lot of money for The American Foundation for the Blind!

CORRIE TEN BOOM- helped many Jews escape persecution during the Nazi Holocaust of World War II! She was imprisoned for it but eventually released due to a clerical error. She wrote a famous book, "The Hiding Place" ,and all the Jews she hid except one survived! 

QUEEN ESTHER- orphaned as a young girl, raised by her Uncle and chosen to be the King of Persia's bride! Her race was going to be eradicated if she didn't act. She spoke up for the Jewish nation without an invitation into the King's chambers and could have been killed! Her bravery saved her people!

HARRIET TUBMAN- an African-American woman born into slavery during the American Civil War. She escaped and rescued more than 300 slaves using a network of safe houses called the Underground Railroad! She then worked for the Union Army and helped to free more than 700 slaves! 

This is just a short list of women that have made history due to their obedience to walk out their calling with courage! Florence Nightingale, Mother Theresa, Catherine Booth and many more! Look them up! Their stories will inspire you and motivate you to "DO IT AFRAID!" 

What is it God is asking you to do?

If you're silent or take a back seat, then what? 

Someone else will be used to fulfill that calling. 

God's plan will come to pass...with or without you!

But don't you want to be one of the women who said YES!?

I know I do.

I've said no for too long.

Saying no instead of yes may seem safer.

Staying instead of going may be easier.

Silence instead of speaking up may be more comfortable.

BUT...here's the truth!

You risk becoming hardened to the harshness of this world.

You risk ignoring the needs right in front of you. 

You risk becoming disheartened and losing hope!

Isn't that scarier than facing your fear and just doing it?

For me, it is. 

I don't want to be quiet.

I don't want to sit down.

I don't want to be still.

God is calling us to something great, ladies! Won't you heed the call?

Our lives are meant to bring Him glory.

That's why we're here.

So, harness that power within you and be brave today, mighty woman of God.

Someone, somewhere needs your voice, your hands, your song, your prayers!

Let me hear you roar! 

Don't Forget to Remember

SEEK
(verb) -to look for; to go in search of; to try to discover

I've been told all my life to seek God. 
Most of us know these simple truths:

1.Seek His face, not His hand.

2.Seek Him first.

Yes and Yes on both. 
We should seek God's face because we love Him, not just to get Him to do something for us. 
And we should seek God before anything else because life is better when we do. 

BUT 
What about when we don't want to seek God? 
When we're tired and don't even have the energy to muster a prayer?
What then? 


I've definitely had days, weeks, and months in my Christian walk where I'm so beat down by this world and my own mistakes that I don't even have the desire to seek Him. 
I know, it's shocking isn't it? 
I did just admit to that.  

Maybe when those hard times creep up on us, we lose our bearings because we forget why we seek Him in the first place. 

In Jeremiah 29:11 it says, 
"For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope."

We quote this verse so readily to others when they're down and out but forget to remind ourselves of it when our own lives are tough. 
How is this related to seeking God? 

Notice the next two verses:
v.12- THEN you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. 
v.13- And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. 

According to this famous passage in the Bible, we don't even have the desire to seek God if we aren't aware that His plans towards us are good, peaceful, and full of hope!  

Why would we want to trust Him with our hearts if we don't believe His heart toward us is good? 

When life gets hard and bad things happen, it's easy to stop seeking God. 
It's easy to forget what He has promised us. 

That's why we stay down for so long sometimes. 
We can't climb up out of our pit on our own. 
Unless we remember that God didn't put us in that pit and that His plan is to prosper us, we won't ever get out of it. 
We have to remember!

I challenge you today:
Remember His goodness.... so that you want to seek Him.

Focus on His amazing promise of a hope filled destiny and a peace filled purpose! 

Then our hearts can't contain their joy!
Our mouths long to sing His praise!
And hope, like air, fills up our lungs! 

That's when the real fun begins!
When we remember....



VERSES TO PONDER:

Proverbs 8:17
"I love those who love Me,
And those who seek me diligently will find Me."

Luke 11:9-10
"And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened."

You Can Make It Through

PERSEVERANCE
(noun)- steady persistence in adhering to a course of action or purpose; steadfastness
- those who have been chosen by God will continue in a state of grace to the end

Why is life so tough sometimes?
Can't we all just breeze through each day with no major interruptions, challenges and disappointments?  

If only...


Here's the thing:
A life without interruptions means the same monotonous routine, day after day, week after week.

A life without challenges means no one ever questions our choices or holds us accountable.

A life without disappointments means we never have a reason to look up and ask for His help.

All of these situations in life require perseverance. 
I love how God never gives us more than we can handle.
He does, however,  promise to be there for us in the midst of the daily grind. 

Cause that's how it seems sometimes, right? 
Like we are being ground up into little bits of ourselves...

You know what I mean:
The baby won't stop crying and the phone rings for the thousandth time.
The kitchen sink is full of dishes and you can't remember the last time you took a shower. 
OR
Your husband left and you have no one but the dog at home waiting for you.
Your closest friend moved away and you're too scared to reach out and meet someone new. 

Life's tough and there isn't a single one of us that is exempt from hard times. 
So we have to make a choice.
To press in to God more than ever before and push past the pain that interruptions, challenges and disappointments can bring. 

Why? 
Because He is faithful.

Romans 8:28 says,
 "And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose for them."

It's just a realization on our part really: 
That He is always in control. 
That our lives can NEVER spin out of control cause He has each of us in His ever capable hands.
That He will bring joy out of the pain.  

THAT, my dear Beautiful Warriors, is what perseverance is all about. 
Taking step after step after step...until you look back and realize you made it through! 
It wasn't easy and you had some obstacles to overcome. 

But you did it. Because you gave it to HIM. 

Verses to encourage you:

Galatians 6:9 And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.

Romans 5:2-5 Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.

James 1:2-4 Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

You can do it. 

You're an over-comer!