Just Me: The Inside Look

"By seeing the seed of failure in every success, we remain humble.  By seeing the seed of failure in every success we remain hopeful." Unknown It has been quite the week for me.  Full of revelations and truths.  Whether good or bad, painful of joyful.  Needless to say it's been emotional, yet exhausting, but also very humbling. Humble is normally not a word I would ever use to describe myself, in fact I've always told people, " I am anything but humble."  So, when God approached me on this topic, I was a little apprehensive and not sure what to write. Then I had an idea!  I started thinking...Yes, I know we covered this a couple blogs before, but it didn't stop me... The light bulb went on! I wanted to know what other thought, even though I was still confused.  I mean how am I suppose to speak on a topic I know nothing about!  So, as I presented the topic on my Facebook page on what they thought being humble meant, I spo...

"Anger is like poison, you must purge it from your mind or else it will corrupt your better nature." Christopher Paolini Lets face it, we have all been angry at one point or another.  Maybe it was something someone said or did.  Perhaps it was the driver in front of you or maybe you didn't get something you wanted.  Maybe you misplaced something.  Or perhaps you got bad news from the doctor.  Either way, something in your life happened to make you feel that way in that moment.   Anger is a common emotion and a normal response to certain circumstances.  It comes in many forms.   In some instances anger is justifiable, in others, not so much. It can shape and form your heart and slowly change who you are. From my experience, anger is one of the hardest emotions to work through.  Have you ever heard the saying "it is easier to be angry than to feel all that pain"? That seems like my life story! For many years now I ha...

"for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God," Romans 3:23 We all face challenges in life.  Whether it is financial, issues in our marriage, family life, or something else.  God is always allowing our faith to be tested. However, when faced with such trials sometimes we become stubborn.  We think we can fix our problems and we refuse to lay them down and allow God to move. This is my confession.  For it says in James 5:16 : "Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another so that you may be healed.  The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much." If you know/knew me, you would know that I have what I call "a double dose of stubbornness" inside me.  I was raised to be very independent and I can be strong-willed. Growing up, I faced many challenges in my life and because of the various trials, looking back, I was built to endure. (James 1:2-3) I didn't always know God, but fo...

"While only one day of the year is dedicated solely to honoring our veterans, Americans must never forget the sacrifices that many of our fellow countrymen have made to defend our country and protect our freedoms." Randy Neugebauer It's funny, sitting in church this morning as they were honoring the men and women who served my mind started to wander...  Oh admit it, you've been there! As tears filled my eyes, I started to think about how these men volunteered to fight for our freedom.  Appreciation started filling my heart, sure I have always appreciated them, but they died for us!   However, at the same time not only did He take beatings for us, but Jesus was nailed to a cross for our sins. God loved us so much that He sent His only Son to die for us.   "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life." John 3:16 We forget how precio...

This week I was going to come on here and tell you what I thought and what my opinions were on what others perceived as strengths and weaknesses.  Then I had a thought...I know, I know thinking can be a dangerous thing, but the light bulb went off nonetheless!  I thought of using my Facebook page as platform for a small survey by presenting 2 questions. So, I thought we would start there...What I thought people would say and what they actually said kinda surprised me, take a look: Question 1: What is the first word that comes to your head/thoughts when you hear the word strength? Answers: Heart Muscle Joy Power Character Fearless Courage Compassion Jesus Dad Family Survival Mom Stat ( I guess it's a game...lol) Alpha Question 2: What is the first word that comes to mind when you hear the word weakness? Answers: Humble Human Flesh Failure Weak Doubts Anger Lying Fear Sin Before I continue, I wou...

"A tree is known by its fruit; a man by his deeds. A good deed is never lost; he who sows courtesy reaps friendship, and he who plants kindness gathers love." Saint Basil As you open your eyes and take a look around the world we live in today, what do you see?  I see a world of hurt, shame, selfishness, hate and hopelessness.  A world of sadness.  People treat you a certain way because they feel they can.  Everybody is in a rush. Nobody takes out the time anymore to look at their surroundings.  Instead, they yell at you, cuss you out, they cut you off, push you aside and use words to tear you down.  It seems like impatience has become the normal in life.   Everybody has their moments, including followers of Christ.  However, we are called to be patient, to show love and to be kind, even if we are the ones wronged: 22) Now flee from youthful lusts and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, with those who call on the Lord fro...

We all face trials in life and during some of those trials we can't see the light, all we can see is the darkness that consumes us.   We begin to lose hope and our faith begins to get shaky.  Some of us think we can do it alone, some of us begin to cry out to God, while others are just lost and not sure what to do.  We begin to feel alone and afraid because we feel like nobody understands or that God Himself has abandoned us because we don't feel His love or grace. During these times we fail to remember that these are moments we need to trust God the most because our faith is being tested. It says in James 1:2-5  "2) Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, 3) knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. 4) And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. 5) But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, ...