“His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.
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Sneak Peek of [RE]volution YOU – The Book!
Hi guys! Hope you all are having a great week so far! Sorry I have been so infrequent in my postings lately – it’s been a very busy [and really fun] summer so far. Last weekend my aunt and uncle were here visiting from New Zealand! They are going to be in America for a bit, and we were their first stop on their trip. We had such good time hanging out, showing them around Dallas, and just spending some quality time together. It’s always so good to see them! I’m in the process of editing some of the photos from the weekend, so I’ll be doing a post on all of our adventures soon here on the blog:)
In the meantime, I thought I would do something a little bit different. As some of you might know, I have been working on an inspirational type book for the past couple of years, and am in the final stages of editing and read throughs. I hope to release it as an e-book in the VERY near future, so if you think of it, I would really appreciate your prayers as I am finishing up the process. Seeing as I am still in the editing stage, and am in need of some feedback, I thought it would be a good idea to share a portion of the first chapter with you all here on the blog. I truly value your opinions [you are me readers after all – I write for you guys!] and would appreciate any and all feedback you can give me. So without further ado, here is a portion of the first chapter of [RE]volution YOU. Let me know what you think!
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Believe in Your Dreams.
“Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.”
1 Corinthians 15:58
Sometimes I just feel like giving up.
I feel as though I’m not accomplishing anything, and that everything I do will eventually fail. I know what God has promised me, and I know that he has a plan for me, but sometimes I just don’t see it.
Have you ever felt this way?
Paul says in 1 Corinthians that when we are working towards the goals God has placed in our heart, nothing we do is in vain. No matter how long those goals may take to achieve. When we feel like giving up, it’s important that we stand firm and remember the promises God has spoken over us. He has a plan and a future for us—one that is better than anything we could ever imagine. And even if we don’t see immediate results from our efforts, we can’t just assume it’s time to quit. No. We need to press on, stand firm and let nothing move us.
I recently came across this quote from Earl Nightingale…
“Never give up on a dream just because of the time it will take to accomplish it. The time will pass anyway.”
If God has planted a dream in your heart, don’t let yourself give up on it! Dreams take time, commitment, determination and a lot of patience before they ever come into fruition. Don’t let the time and energy required in accomplishing your dreams deter you from becoming the person you were intended to be. Because in the end, nothing will be better than looking back on what you’ve done and realizing that you actually did it.
Discerning the Will of God.
Hello! Hope you all are having a great Monday so far! Mines been kinda hectic, but overall not too shabby. James and I both had most of the weekend off, which was super nice and very relaxing. We had a chance to walk by Grapevine Lake near one of the marinas—something we’ve wanted to do for a while, and even made a trip to Trader Joes [the best store…ever]. Overall it was a great weekend, and I’ll try and post some pictures later in the week from our adventures:)
Anyways. This morning I was reading in Romans, and I came across a familiar verse from Romans 12…
“Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.”
Romans 12:2
I’ve read this verse many times—even memorized it back in the day. But, for some reason it really stuck out to me this morning. As I was asking God what he wanted to speak to me about concerning this verse, I began to see the words in a new light—different from the past times I have read them.
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Living Courageously.
Good Morning and Happy Monday! Hope you all are had a great weekend! Mine was great. While the majority of Friday night was spent at Best Buy, I ended up with a new iPhone, which is SOOOO much faster than my previous one—love it! Then on Saturday, James and I went to see the Hobbit, which was AWESOME. Seriously, go see it. I absolutely love all things Lord of the Rings, so naturally I was nervous about the book to movie rendition. However, I was definitely not disappointed. The whole thing was very well done. Sunday I had the day off so we were able to go to church, grab lunch with some friends, take a walk, and finally put our new grill together! It took forever, but I can officially say that we now have a grill—yay! So excited to start grilling up some dinners:) Over the weekend I also read one of my all-time favorite passages of scripture, and I thought I would share it with you this morning…
“For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.”
2 Timothy 1:7
We were never meant to be wallflowers—timidly fading into the background of life. No. We are meant to be bold and courageous in anything and everything that we do. God did not give us a spirit of fear, but instead a spirit of power, love and self-disciple. We don’t have to be afraid, and we definitely never have to live in fear. Through the Holy Spirit living in us, we have the courage and boldness to do anything we set our minds to. So often the enemy tries to sneak into our lives, telling us that we need to be afraid. Well, those are lies. And those lies keep us living in fear, which in turn keeps us from fulfilling our destinies in Christ. We never have to be afraid to do the things God has called us to do. Through his power we are stronger than anything the enemy could put in our way.
This verse really hit me this weekend. I feel like I am afraid to truly start doing the things I know God has called me to do, but I’m not sure why. Now I understand that I have been afraid because the enemy has been lying to me. Trying to keep me living in fear—as far away from my calling as he can keep me. I need to start living more courageously and boldly, instead of hiding behind my fear. While hiding may seem easier at the time, I know that in the end it’s not going to get me anywhere, and will accomplish nothing for God’s Kingdom. It’s time to start living out of courage instead of fear.
Well, on that note, I hope you all have a great, courage-filled day! God Bless:)
Believing is the One and Only Key.
It’s Monday again! Hope you all had an excellent weekend. We did some exploring (as usual) on Saturday, and had the opportunity to hang out with some awesome people from church on Sunday. Overall it was a successful weekend:)
I also started reading the book of John over the weekend, which has so far proven to be an excellent book. One thing I love about the different gospels is that you are able to see the same timeline of events from various perspectives. Even though some of the stories may seem a little repetitive, each gospel provides a slightly different tone, which creates depth within the overall timeline.
In John chapter 6, the people were asking Jesus what they needed to do please God, and receive eternal life.
“ Then they asked him, “What must we do to do the works God requires?”
Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.”
John 6:28-29
The people were convinced that God required works from them in order to be deemed righteous and good. It makes sense that they would think this way because this was the way they had always been taught. How strange Jesus’ words must have sounded to them when he said, “The work of God is this” to believe in the one he has sent.” God didn’t have any requirements for them, other than believing in Jesus—the thing that matters most in life.
So often we try [sometimes subconsciously] to earn our own salvation through our various works because we believe that is what God requires of us. Somehow it just seems easier to believe our works can cover us than to believe that Jesus has already done that, and all we need to do is believe. Personally, I think this is cultural. We’re so used to working hard to achieve results that we just can’t totally buy in to the idea that someone would just hand us something so great as eternal life, with only the belief in Jesus attached. But, just as Jesus told those people in John that they only needed to believe in him, the same answer applies to us.
There is NOTHING we can physically do to earn salvation—no task that God would demand of us to complete. In dying on the cross, Jesus paid the ultimate price for our sins so that we wouldn’t have to, and instead have the opportunity to receive eternal life. All we have to do is believe in Jesus, and accept him as Lord of our lives. If you’ve never asked Jesus to come into your life, I would encourage you to do so. It doesn’t matter what you’ve done, or what your past is comprised of—remember there is nothing you can do to earn salvation; all you can do is receive it!
Lord, I recognize that I am a sinner, and that I need your forgiveness. I understand that you sent your only son, Jesus, to earth, and that he died on the cross to save me from my sins so that I can receive everlasting and eternal life with you. He paid the price for my sins, and right now I ask your forgiveness for all of the sins I have committed. Cleanse me. Purify me. I ask Jesus that you come into my life, and that you be my Lord and Savior—forever king of my life. In your name, Amen.
Hope you all are having a great day so far! God Bless:)