Day 5: What do I need more of?

Day 5: What do I need more of?

1) Self love.

I need to value myself more.

Lately I’ve been trapped in this cycle of giving people what they want,

even though I know it hasn’t been good for me. 

I need to love all the parts of myself,

and be gentle with the parts that are struggling.

This also means understanding that there will be both good days and bad days;

things that come easily, and things that may take time.

I’ve learnt that loving myself is a choice

that I must make every single day.

2) Confidence.

In my abilities.

In who I am now and the woman I am becoming.

In my future – that the best is yet to come!

3) Faith.

Increasing and unconditional - for every situation or season. 

Isaiah 40:31

4) New Adventures.

For the first time in a few months I've been home bound - which has been good for me. But now I long for trying new things and making new discoveries.

Please feel free to say hi or leave a comment! :)

Follow the link in BohoBerry image to check out the details of this challenge.

When I say... "I am a Christian" by Maya Angelou

“When I say… “I am a Christian”

I’m not shouting “I’m clean livin’.”

I’m whispering “I was lost,

Now I’m found and forgiven.”

When I say… “I am a Christian”

I don’t speak of this with pride.

I’m confessing that I stumble

and need Christ to be my guide.

When I say… “I am a Christian”

I’m not trying to be strong.

I’m professing that I’m weak

And need His strength to carry on.

When I say… “I am a Christian”

I’m not bragging of success.

I’m admitting I have failed

And need God to clean my mess.

When I say… “I am a Christian”

I’m not claiming to be perfect,

My flaws are far too visible

But, God believes I am worth it.

When I say… “I am a Christian”

I still feel the sting of pain.

I have my share of heartaches

So I call upon His name.

When I say… “I am a Christian”

I’m not holier than thou,

I’m just a simple sinner

Who received God’s good grace, somehow.”

― Maya Angelou

Happy Easter!

HAPPY EASTER!

"But the angel answered and said “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for He is risen…" Matthew 28:5,6

"Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends." John 15:13

Skype Cell Group: Week 1: God will always reach out to you, wherever you may be

One of my best friends and her mother have started a cell group via Skype! She has been looking for a new cell group for a few weeks now, and asked me if I would like to be a part of it. I haven't found a church here at home yet, so this couldn't have been more welcome. It is a chance to have fellowship with a few women that are earnestly seeking God's heart. I need this.It is too easy to get lost in this world on our own and forget the promises God has made in our hearts. We need to be reminded of His goodness and love, especially during the storms in our lives.  

So, this group chat is made up of my friend - in Cape Town on campus, her sister - at their home in Somerset west; her mother - all the way in Wales; her friend - over in Newlands, UK; and me - here at home. 

It is truly amazing that no matter where you are in the world, the word of God can reach you. He will send you the right people to help you through whatever situation you may face, to support you and help you grow in His love. 

I am in awe. 

Here are little bits and pieces, words of wisdom and encouragement from the session. I will try to do this every week. I hope you find something that touches your heart too.

***

No more excuses to worship God or to make time to spend in His word. He will meet us wherever we are. He sees us always. There is no place to hide away. We can be lost in the world, but He can find us, out on the greatest ocean, or in the vast dessert.

*** 

The Lord tells us that He will be with us always because we are His children and He loves us more than we can ever know. So no more doubt, and no more fear.

***

 “We don’t arrive in the Lord, we grow in Him.”

***

Our past does not determine our future. And just because something didn’t change yesterday, doesn’t mean that it can’t change today or tomorrow. You need to feed the fire of the spirit that is burning within your heart in order for it to keep burning. And the only way to feed it is to turn to the word of the Lord.

***

  

***

 Do not lose faith when you are facing a trial. Always remember that He is preparing us for what is still to come. This is only a phase in your life, and this is the time that God will be strengthening you. So hold fast to His word, and believe that He is fighting this battle for you.

 ***

Let the holy spirit guide the decisions that you make in your life. And every morning when you wake up, put on the coat of peace, so that you may always know when you are making the wrong decision. You will know by the uneasy feeling in your heart. You will hear His guidance. Believe. Trust in Him always.

***

Sometimes our own feelings of guilt will bring us down, but if we repent and give it up to God, then we will be free of it. He died to pay the ultimate price for our lives, that we may have an everlasting life with our Heavenly Father.

***

Put your focus on Jesus and you will find your way.

***

“He steadied me as I walked along.”

When things aren't right in your heart

Words to my inner child

He truly delivers.

All things will be received in His perfect timing.

There is nothing more to worry about.

When things aren’t right in your heart, He sees it. He will make the difficult decisions that you are too afraid to make. Even if this means that you will not understand in that exact moment. But then, one day, when you are ready, He will show you. He will show you why, and He will reassure you. There is always a plan, Little girl.

Doubt can be a dangerous feeling. Sometimes it makes us rethink everything; everything that we were once so sure of. And it can be caused by so many different things. Irrational things.

Why do we doubt things we know to be true? Maybe it is because we find validation in other things; worldly things. But Little Girl, find your validation in Him. The one who gave His life to set you free, to take away all your troubles and woes. Can you not see how much He loves you? Find your identity in Him. Because people, they will come and go; and things, they can be destroyed. But He will forever be the Almighty Father that holds you in the palm of His hand.

In this life you may stumble and fall, but He will catch you. Oh Little Girl, see how much He cares for you. He is constantly fighting to win over your heart.

Give it to Him.

Give it to Him completely.

You know the saying, you know it well: “Let every man who seeks your heart, find it wrapped up in Jesus’ love. Let him see to whom it truly belongs. Let him know right from the start that the only way to you is through the One and only King.

Little Girl, do not be afraid any more. Even though it may be dark all around you, there is a light within your soul. And it shines so bright that no other light is needed for you to see ahead. Let this light be a fire burning for Jesus. A fire burning for Him will surely last for eternity. Whereas a flame burning for the world can be distinguished with the slightest breeze.

I know that it is not easy. But you have always known that it wouldn’t be. You were not destined to take the easy path. No, Little Girl, you know that you are destined for greatness. Lately, you have been so easily deceived into believing otherwise.

But you still know that deep down.

You know because there is passion in your heart. You know because He has sent so many people into your life to keep reminding you. You know, because even in the darkest hour, there was still hope. Hope that kept you holding on. Hope that is growing stronger and stronger every day.

So don’t lose faith. His love is everlasting.

You are blessed, and loved dearly.

Forever and always

Recovery

I will not allow myself to be defined according to my mistakes. 

I will no longer dwell on what happened. 

I cannot change it. 

But I also know that I cannot hide.

I give it all up to God, for His mercy is enough.

His grace and love will heal my broken heart. 

The choice is yours...

Let Your mercy light the path before me..

Called Me Higher - All Sons and Daughters

I could just sit

I could just sit and wait for all your goodness

Hope to feel your presence

And I could just stay

I could just stay right where I am and hope to feel you

Hope to feel something again

And I could hold on

I could hold on to who I am and never let You change me from the inside

And I could be safe

I could be safe here in Your arms and never leave home

Never let these walls down

But you have called me higher

You have called me deeper

And I will go where you will lead me Lord

You have called me higher

You have called me deeper

And I will go where you lead me Lord

Where you lead me

Where you lead me Lord

And I will be Yours

I will be Yours for all my life

So let Your mercy light the path before me

Fighting for our Hearts' desires

Sometimes it’s so easy to back down and hide away from all your troubles. We think that God wants us to just accept this fate and have faith that He will change things. And yes, He will overcome all our troubles, but I am starting to realise that there is more to it than just acceptance.  He seeks your heart and wants to give us all that we desire. So what if God doesn't just want us to be passive and to just try and cope with everything that is happening in our lives? Maybe He wants us to shout out and ask Him for advice. He wants us to pray to be recovered. Right NOW! Not to just wait and learn to cope with the misfortunes that come our way, but to first ask Him if we should FIGHT BACK and listen to His reply! God wants you to turn to him to find strength. 

I heard a sermon at church by Ps. Charles Niemand about King David in 1 Samuel 30.

David and his men arrived back to their camp site to find everything completely destroyed by the Amalekites. Not only did they burn down all their houses and steal all their possessions, but they took away their wives and children with them. The bible says that David and the men were so distraught that “they wept until they could weep no more.”  After this, the men started to become bitter and David saw that he would be in danger. But instead of accepting his fate and giving in to his grief, David found strength in the Lord his God. 

Then he asked God whether or not he should go after the band of raiders and whether he would catch them. And the Lord answered and told him YES he would catch them and that he would recover everything that was taken from him. So he went out and it was exactly as the Lord had said.

I feel that this message is so important in my life right now because for far too long I have been trying to cope with everything myself, and all that I have wanted from God was peace and understanding. I have been trying so hard to change myself to be better adapted to handle all these things but I still feel as if I keep coming short of that. And this then leads to me feeling inadequate and as if I am not good enough.

But I've finally realised that it is time to seek STRENGTH from the Lord, and to be RECOVERED! In this very moment I want to be different. And not on a physical level, but deep down in my spirit, I want to be renewed and I want to FIGHT for God’s will to be done, and to achieve all the desires that God has placed in my heart. 

God can only do so much for us. He gave us the the power of choice and the right to have our own opinions. So now we have to believe that with Him we are greater than without Him, and that He is equipping us to better handle the obstacles in our path, and to unite His nations for His glory. 

Praise be to God, forever and ever!

Written by Alyssa Joy Bethke:

To Pursue or Not to Pursue a Guy You Like?

• February 7, 2013 
• Relationships, Uncategorized
• alyssajoy

“If you’re a girl who likes your guy friend, is it okay to pursue him and let him know you like him?”

The question shone on our computer from stage. The room was dark, with hot lights shining on Jeff and me. My hand grasped my bible a little closer to my chest.

Ah, yes.

Oh how I remember those days (they weren’t that long ago!) of liking a guy so much my body ached. But the hardest part was that they were clueless. Or maybe they weren’t clueless, but simply weren’t interested in me? How many times I was tempted to ask them to coffee and quietly explain how much I liked them. How many hours I spent trying to analyze him and our friendship. How many times I prayed about the situation, gave my heart and desires to the Lord, prayed for that guy, and hoped that he would see me, want me, come after me.

Yes, I remember those times vividly. What do you do when you like a guy and want it to be known…So desperately?

Thankfully Jeff started answering the question first as I gathered my thoughts and let the Lord calm my nerves.

“Let me first say this ladies: if you pursue the guy first, you’ll be doing that for the rest of your life if you do get married. The guy will play the lazy card, and gladly let you take the reigns—forever. And you’ll be miserable. You’ll have to initiate everything else from here on out. But let me add this: You shouldn’t pursue him, no. But you can get in his way. Get in his way so that he sees you and has to run you over. He has to face you and knows you’re there. What does that look like practically? Maybe it means being at his games, going to bible studies that he’s involved in, sitting next to him in class, etc.”

Wise man.

As I thought about what to add, the Lord reminded me of 1 Peter 3:4,

“but let your adornment be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God’s sight is very precious.”

A gentle and quiet spirit. That doesn’t mean that we have to be quiet little church mice! God loves exuberant, outgoing ladies just as much as the soft spoken ones! What it does mean is that we as women trust the Lord. It means that we so trust in, believe in, hide ourselves in Him that we don’t try to take matters into our own hands and take control. As women that’s really hard because one of the things we struggle with most is taking control. But we are commanded throughout scripture not to, and we don’t need to. We have Jesus as our advocate, the Father as our shield and the One we can hide in. He is trustworthy.

What it comes down to is this,

Do we really believe that He is in control? That He is able?

Do we really believe that if it’s God’s best, He can and will move in that guy’s heart to see us, and go after us?

Proverbs 21:1 tells us that the king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord- that the Lord directs it wherever He chooses. If the king’s heart is in our Father’s hands, then most certainly that guy that we are crushing on is in His hands as well.

Ladies, God is able. God is in control.

Praise Jesus, then, that we can rest in Him. We can run to JESUS. We can tell him our deep desires, lay our hearts at His feet, and trust that He will work it out for His glory and our best.

Yes, put yourself in his way! Be available, be present. But check your heart. Do you believe in HIM? The One who knows every nook and cranny of your heart and is intricately and intimately working out His plan for you, dear one?

 ”Commit your way to the LORD; trust in Him and He will act.” || Psalm 37:5 ESV

You will always be loved

Faith is not knowing that God can, it is knowing that He will.

God has His own way of showing us what we need. Life may not always be filled with rainbows and butterflies, but there is always something to be grateful for.  One day, in the future, all the pain and heartache will just be a distant memory. And from it, we will draw great strength and wisdom. I believe that God is preparing us for something extraordinary. He has an incredible plan for our lives. 

The hardest part is just having faith.

You are not alone ♥

If ever you need someone to talk to, I'm only an email away... 

Take care friends ♥

Life is a journey...

A long and winded journey. And you can never truly know what to expect each day. When the sun rises and you open your eyes, you can never be entirely certain what the day will bring. So wake up with a smile and look forward to all the blessings that God is sure to send your way. 

***

Having faith gives us a future

The message in church on Sunday was about faith. Below is just a few notes and my understanding.

Pastor Phil Dooley of Hillsong Church Cape Town.

"You may not know what the future holds, but you know who holds your future."


Faith is so powerful.

Hebrews 11v1:
To have faith, is to be sure of the things we hope for and to be certain of the things we cannot see.

Faith is trusting in God. It is not just striving, but pressing forward and trusting God that as I live for Him, He will provide. God is big enough to handle what is going on in our lives. He will come to meet you. Always. God believes in each one of us.

As long as you welcome Jesus with an open heart, then He can use you.

Faith is seeing something that is not there YET.
Faith is believing something that has not happened YET.
Faith is thanking God for something that hasn't happened YET.
"YET" is a faith word. It says that it is still possible.

To build faith, you have to go back to the word of God.

Hebrews 11v6
"It is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who comes to Him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek Him."
To grow your faith:

1. Speak in faith

Sometimes God places things on your heart that you may not understand, but have faith and follow that instinct. That inner voice that guides you when you are quiet enough to hear it. Share His word at every chance that you get.

2. See faith

Start to see what God has planned for your future.

If you keep seeing only the obstacles, the things blocking your way, you won't be able to see the everything that God has planned for your future. Imagine it. Dreams it. And believe that it will come true.

3. Thank God in faith

Before it has even happened. Thank God now and believe that it is still coming. Trust that God has perfect timing. And our timing is usually a little off course. So thank Him now, for God has a grand plan. And He can make all things possible.

***

Throughout the message pastor Phil shared a few stories with us and they were truly magnificent to hear. Its always so inspirational and moving to hear and see how God is working in different people's lives. Nothing is too small or too big for Him. And the Lord loves us all equally. It always amazes me to see how different everyone around me in church is. This is one of the things I love most, God doesn't judge us on who we are. Because He made us all individually, each and every one of us is different.

Jeremiah 1v5
" I knew you before I formed you in your mother's womb. Before you were born I set you apart and appointed you as my prophet to the nations."

No matter where you are, and no matter who you are, He will find you.