Day 189: Don't Run Away, Deal With It!

Something that I have learned time and time again is that running aways from problems does not solve them. It hides them for the time being but they will always catch up with us.

James 1:2-4

Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

The keywords in these scriptures is, “face trials”. It doesn’t say have problems or run away from them. It says consider it pure joy when you face trials. That to me means we have to face the trials in our lives head on if we want to keep our joy. We cannot ignore what is going on in our lives because we don’t want to deal with it. If we want to move forward we have to face whatever it is in our lives that is bothering us or presenting a problem.

This is something that God has been teaching me recently, to get in touch with my feelings and not ignore what is going on in my life. I believe that mental and emotional health is just as important as our spiritual health because if we are not mentally and emotionally healthy, then it will start to take a toll on our spiritual wellness. I think many times as Christians we tend to ignore these things because we are Christian, we feel like we don’t have to deal with a problem because we pray. Sometimes it starts with a prayer, and then we have to do some deep digging to get to the root of the issue, then we pray some more. We have to be honest with ourselves if we want to grow, yes prayer changes things, I believe in the power of prayer, but we sometimes use, “I’m praying about it.” as an excuse not to deal with it. We use prayer as our scapegoat.  

If we want to grow in life we have to learn how to access our true feelings and not shy away from them, no matter what they may be. Pinpoint the problem and face it head on like David did Goliath. Now the thing about prayer is that it will get us through, God will give us all we need to get through the trials, but we still have to go through them, we still have to deal with it. That is how we persevere and become stronger, we look to God to help us face trials, not to help us skip over them. In the end we will be stronger. We have to choose to do this however. We have to choose to stop running and hiding and dare I say it again, deal with it.

Reflection

1. Check in with yourself from time to time. Set a reminder to check in with yourself. Take the time to examine every area of your life. How you’re doing spiritually, emotionally, mentally, physically. Set a reminder, take at least 10 minutes at the end of every day or every other day to see how you are doing. You must prioritize yourself.
2. Find a way to let out whatever it is you're going through, to get to the root of it. For me I write and make video diaries.
3. Find a way of release, pray first and then do whatever it is you need to do to release yourself. For me this is working out, painting, or going for walks or hikes. Spend this time alone to recuperate and really talk to God.
4. Last but not least, talk to someone. Someone you can trust. Don’t be afraid to set up an appointment with a therapist. God has given therapist the gift they have to serve others, He knew we would need it at some point. If you need to see a therapist, go. You don’t have to tell anyone about it unless you want to.
5. This is your life, take care of yourself, take care of your spiritual, mental, and emotional health.

Prayer Time

Pray about what we talked about today, start by checking in with yourself and pray about, Talk to God about whatever is on your heart ask Him to help you face your problems head on and uncover the truth that needs to be revealed within you. This is between you and God, if you choose to share with others, do so. If not, then you don’t have to share.

I love you so much, and I hope you have an amazing day. Be sure to share this with someone and come back tomorrow for Day 190!  

Day 188: Whose Job Is It?

Galatians 6:2

Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.

John 15:12

My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.

Proverbs 3:27

Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in your power to act.

Luke 3:11

John answered, “Anyone who has two shirts should share with the one who has none, and anyone who has food should do the same.”

The big question today is, whose job is it to know when our neighbor is in need, and more importantly whose job is it to act on our brother or sister’s behalf?

Before answering that question I want you to refer to the scriptures above but also to the story of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37).

The statement that stands out to me the most in that passage is in verse 33. It says, But a Samaritan as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion.

Compassion - a feeling of deep sympathy and sorrow for another who is stricken by misfortune, accompanied by a strong desire to alleviate the suffering.

The prefix com- means “with”, “together”, “in association”.

The thing about compassion is, it is about our feelings toward another person. It’s not about us, it’s when our heart breaks for someone else, or rejoices for another person. Compassion is not about us, it is about our neighbor.  With that being said, where is our compassion for one another? What happened to good Samaritans? I know there are many out there, we have to step up. All of us should be like this good Samaritan. We have let our communities be so divided, and the world is filled with so much hate that we are letting our brothers and sisters hurt and die because we don’t like them, or we don’t agree with their lifestyle or it’s not our problem or responsibility. If not ours whose responsibility is it? We have allowed our selfish judgements cloud our ability to be empathetic, and it is ridiculous.

It would be great to note that Jews and Samaritans in that time did not get along, like at all. This is a rivalry that dated back to times of Joseph, centuries have passed and this battle is still standing. We can assume that the hurt man was Jewish because he was traveling from Jerusalem. But it also great to note that a Jewish priest passed him by.

Here’s what happened in a nutshell. Israel divided into two kingdoms, the northern kingdom and the southern kingdom. The northern kingdom was conquered by Assyria, the southern kingdom was captured by Babylon. Both kingdoms were taken into captivity. Jews in the northern Kingdom began to worship the idols brought over by the foreigners, along side God.  Seventy years later after being held in captivity,  a remnant of 43,000 was permitted to return to Jerusalem and rebuild. However the Samaritans who now inhabited the Northern kingdom ‘vigorously opposed the repatriation and tried to undermine the attempt to re-establish the nation’. The full-blooded, monotheistic (serving one God) Jews detested mixed marriages and the worship of their northern cousins. For this reason the Jews and Samaritans have hated each other for centuries.

I tell you the backstory to all this because in the story of the Good Samaritan, he was not concerned that this man was a Jew and that he was supposed to be at battle with him. It didn’t matter because his compassion for this hurting man was more important, it didn’t matter that he was a samaritan. It mattered that he was a man that needed help. Which brings me back to my original question,  whose job is it to know when our neighbor is in need, and more importantly whose job is it to act on our brother or sister’s behalf? It is our job, it is our responsibility to be there for our brothers and sisters in need. To have the same compassion for others that Jesus has for us. It does not matter who the person is, what lifestyle they are living, or whether we like them or not, our compassion for others must be bigger than our differences. If we see someone in need it is our job to do what we can to help. There are too many people in need and hurting for us to walk pass and ignore it, or pretend we don’t see it. What if the shoe was on the other foot? We’d want someone to help us, The bible teaches us to treat others as we want to be treated.

Let’s get to the point where we hold so much compassion in our hearts for our neighbors. That’s how we will be united as a community. When our compassion for one another forces us to put our differences aside and be there, lend a helping hand. When our compassion for one another becomes bigger than our differences, that’s when we will start to make progress. We have to look away from ourselves and our own selfish desires and selfish rules and beliefs and see someone else. Compassion will unite us.

Reflection/Prayer Time

Talk to God about what we discussed today. Ask him to give you compassion for His people your neighbors, Talk to Him about putting those differences aside, whatever they may be, and be united with our brothers and sisters.

I love you, I hope you have an amazing day. Be sure to share this with someone and come back tomorrow for Day 189!

Day 187: Live to Win

1 Corinthians 9:24

Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win.

One of my least favorite statements is,

“I’m hoping for the best, but I’m expecting the worst.”

That statement makes me livid, because no, don’t write yourself off like that. If you’re going to hope for the best, hope for it. Believe it, and if the result is anything less than that then atleast you tried, it just didn’t work out. I think many of us are afraid of being let down and hurt so we don’t expect much out of the things we hope for. We don’t want to be disappointed so we don’t get our hopes up. We don’t want to get our hearts broken so we act like we don’t have feelings. Well, get over it, that’s life. It’s full of ups and downs, heartaches, headaches, and disappointments, but all of these things work together to make us better people. God uses all of these things to mould and shape us. The biggest disappointment would be, if we let our insecurities and fears stop us from ever trying. I’d rather be disappointed and know that I tried rather than angry and bitter because I never tried in the first place. Which brings me to the title of today’s devo, we have to live to win. We have to give it our all. What’s the use of running a race if you’re not running to win?

I truly believe that God wants us to win, not in a way where we are competing with our neighbors but in a way that we are living the best way we know how. That we are giving everything we have to this life that He has given us. It is apparent to me that God doesn’t want us to sell ourselves short. He loves us and believes in us enough to send His son to die on a cross for our sin. Why can’t we believe in ourselves the same way? He definitely didn’t sell us short.

Over the past year I have seen a wave of, ‘glorified insecurity’, where it has become almost a trend to talk down on yourself and write yourself off. From ‘funny’ memes to grunge tumblr posts. It’s something that has started on social media but has also taken root in the lives of many people. It’s not okay or funny or cute to talk down on yourself. There are many other people out there who are going to do that, why do it to yourself?

We have to learn to believe in ourselves, believe in our dreams, and most importantly believe that God has sent us here with a purpose. Having faith in the fact that God is rooting for us, He wants us to win. Jesus is like our cheerleader, He’s on the right side of the father interceding for us day in and day out. He is rooting for us too. It’s so easy to let fear stop us from trying, but God is not a God of fear. Yes we will fall, and we have to get back up. We will get a few scrapes and scars but it’s makes for a better story in the end. Something my mom always told me growing up, before Kanye said it, “What doesn’t kill you will only make you stronger.” She’s been telling me this all my life. Whenever I got a no from an audition, or didn’t get picked at a showcase, she’d look at me and say that statement. What that meant was, don’t let this stop you, I know it hurts but you have to get up and keep trying. Let it fuel you to do more.

All this to say, live to win. Live for something bigger than yourself and don’t write yourself off. You are much more than you think you are. God made you for a reason, live like you believe that.

Reflection

1. How often do you talk down to yourself, or think less of yourself?
2. Have your written yourself off?
3. Are you running this race to win?
4. Do you believe that you can win?
5. Do you know your worth

Prayer Time

Allow your answers to the above questions guide your prayer. Whatever you feel the need to talk to God about today, talk to Him. Leave the self-doubt, fear, and insecurities behind.

I love you and I hope you have an amazing day or evening. I really do love you and I want you to know that. Be sure to share this with someone and come back tomorrow for Day 188!

Day 186: Turn Over a New Leaf

Deuteronomy 2:2-3

“Then at last the Lord said to me, ‘You have been wandering around in this hill country long enough; turn to the north.

We’ve talked a lot about staying put, and being patient and waiting on God before we move. But what about when it’s time to move what about when we’ve been in one place too long? When we’ve gotten comfortable and God is like, okay it’s time to go you gotta move on. I believe that this is what God is telling the Israelites, He’s like “You’ve been here long enough wandering around, it’s time to go you have to keep it moving.”

I’ve said this time and time again and I’ll say it once more. At this point in our lives, in our twenties, we are changing so much. It’s like we are constantly changing, constantly getting new revelations about ourselves and life, and making decisions. Old chapters are closing and new ones are opening and it’s scary. I would be lying if I told you it was all a breeze. Change is amazing, I am a fan of it, but that does not mean that it doesn’t scare the crap out of me, because it does.

This year has been full of change for me, recently the biggest thing I’ve done was decide to turn over a new leaf and close a chapter of my life to start a new one. I decided that I could not sit in the same spot anymore, this part of my life was done, I couldn’t sit in the same situation, I had to face my past and my fears. I had to decide to let go of a lot of things, and rather than allowing my past to continue to hurt me, let it inspire me. I made big decisions as to where I would live when I graduate, what I would do to survive on my own. The main reason this was done was because I felt God pushing me, telling me it’s time. That I have to step out on faith like I never have before and trust Him. One of my favorite quotes is from Viola Davis, and she says,

“Just jump afraid. Dare to do it, and maybe you land. Maybe it’ll be perfect.”

One of the biggest things stopping us from moving forward is uncertainty. If you are like me, you like to have a plan, security, you have to know what’s going to happen. You don’t like going into places blindly. I had to let go of that, because everything will not go as planned even if I do think I know what’s going to happen. I’ve learned to substitute uncertainty for faith. Meaning I might not know what’s going to happen but I trust in God’s plan. Sometimes we just have to leap, and trust God and trust me, the net will appear. God’s not going to tell you to jump and not catch you. He’s not going to tell you to move if He doesn’t know where you’re going.

What I want you to get out of today is, learn to close a chapter when it’s done. Don’t drag it out, I know starting new chapters and new things in your life can be scary, but it’s just as rewarding, it’s just as inspiring. It feels good to close a chapter and start a new one, It feels amazing because you know that God has a plan for you. You are trusting in that plan and depending solely on Him. This is kind of like finding our independence. We have to take leaps for ourselves. Parts of our journey will have to be walked alone and I don’t mean that in a bad way. What I mean is that we will get to a point where we start to make decisions and moves for ourselves. We don’t base our living on anyone else, or pleasing anyone but God. I’m going through that right now. We decide that we have to do this whatever ‘this’ may be, for ourselves, even if it means our friends and family don’t understand. We can’t let that stop us, nothing will stop God’s plan anyway. But this chapter is for us. It’s just something we have to do, and in the end we will be better for it.

God knows what He’s doing, just believe and trust in Him. He’s right there, He’s got you.

Reflection

1. Is there a chapter in your life that needs to be closed? Are you dragging it on?
2. Do you feel like you’ve been in the same place too long?
3. Don’t feel like it’s time to turn a new leaf?
4. What’s stopping you from moving forward?

Prayer Time

Allow your answers to the above questions guide your prayer. Talk to God about moving forward in your life and find comfort in knowing that He has a plan for you. He’s knows it’s scary but you just have to trust Him and move.

I love you, Have an amazing day. Be sure to share this with someone and come back tomorrow for day 187!

Day 185: Small Beginnings

Zechariah 4:10

Do not despise these small beginnings, for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin, to see the plumb line in Zerubbabel’s hand.”

One of the greatest lessons I have learned in my life is to appreciate the small steps and the humble beginnings. I’m a dreamer, I grew up with my parents always telling me to dream and think big, but also being reminded that I will have to start small, I will have to struggle a bit before I get to where I want to go. There’s some hard work and I have to get my hands dirty. But that never meant that I had to stop dreaming big, it meant that I had to go through a process.

I think what God is telling us here is exactly that, but also He’s telling us to start, even if it’s a small start just do it and watch what He does. One of the things that always gets lost in the shadows of success stories is the beginning, how people weren’t always successful. When people tell the stories themselves then you get the truth. I’m interested in people’s stories, I’m interested in where they came from and where God has brought them. We all had to and have to start somewhere. Just like when they went to build the second temple in the book of Zechariah which would be smaller than the former temple. It doesn’t matter how small the beginning is just start and let God finish, start and trust God. Whatever God has called you to, start it.

What I’m getting at here is, we all have a calling and we all have a dream. For many of us that dream is our calling. However God has put a vision in each and every one of us, He has given us a passion for something. For me that’s acting, for you it might be different. But whatever it may be, do it. Start it, you’re going to have to start small before you can go big. But don’t let that stop you, Start somewhere, I think that’s what God is looking for us to do, just start. Even if you don’t know how it’s all going to pan out, trust that God will guide your footsteps because He will. Appreciate the baby steps because one day those strides will get wider and steeper, we just have to keep walking.

Reflection

1. What have you been called to do? What is your dream?
2. Have you started?
3. If the answer to your above question is no, what’s stopping you?

Prayer Time

Allow your answers to the above questions guide your prayer. Talk to God about where to start. Just have a conversation with Him.

I love you, and I hope you have an amazing day, be sure to share this with someone and and come back tomorrow for day 186!

Day 184: Recap

Day 177: The Bright Side

Today we talked about looking on the bright side of a situation and being content with where we are. We focused on 1 Timothy 6:6-7 and Philippians 4:12-13.

"If we continue to look on the brighter side one day we will get up and the darkness will no longer hover over us, one day the clouds will clear up, the rain will stop. "

Day 178: #LoveYourself Part 2

Today we took it all the way back to day to the beginning, Day 7, when we talked about loving yourself. Today we talked about loving the skin we are in and knowing that God made us beautiful and perfect just the way we are. Today was about who you are on the outside as much as you do on the inside. We focused on Mark 12:31, Ephesians 5:29. and Psalms 139:14.

"We project ourselves onto other people. How we treat ourselves is often how we treat others. So just imagine, if we are loving ourselves and feeling confident and beautiful, and good about the skin we are in. Thankful for who we are, and the life we live. How do you think we are going to treat others?"

Day 179: Gotta Have Faith

Today we talked about faith and how we must exercise our faith if we want it to grow. We talked about trusting God and having the faith of a mustard seed. We also talked about choosing to have faith in God and not using it as a last resort. We focused on Hebrews 11:1, Mark 11:24, and Matthew 21:22.

"Faith isn’t just for the moments when we’ve lost all hope. Faith in God is what gives us hope."

Day 180: Don't Trade Your Integrity

Today we talked about holding on to our integrity and our belief and morals. We talked about having something that is not worth giving up for anything. We focused on Proverbs 11:3.

"What I’m saying is, getting to the top doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice or trade in your integrity, just to get there a bit quicker. We can do that to get to where we are going quick but as fast as we go up we’ll come down even quicker. There is something beautiful about holding on to your beliefs, even if it means it takes a bit longer, and it’s a little harder. But you know that once you get there, wherever ‘there’ is, once you’re there, you’ll know that you didn’t have to trade anything or compromise at any point."

Day 181: Back to Our Roots

Today we talked about our roots and where they are planted. We talked about how we are standing on the prayers of our grandmothers, mothers, and elders. We focused on Mark 4:14-20 and 1 Corinthians 3:6.

"We cannot survive if our roots are not planted in God’s word, it is the good soil we need to be planted in in order for our roots to be strong and healthy, It is through Christ that we are able to have a relationship with God, and he is feeding us, and stabilizing us, and making sure our spirits are healthy and growing. That is when we start to grow in Christ. We get everything we need from Him."

Day 182: Not Today

Today we talked about having a good day. We talked about choosing to have a great day and not let anything stop us. We focused on Psalms 118:24.

" Have you ever noticed that these are the days you are tried the most, I mean the most, when all you want to do is have a good day it like all the forces for ruining your day come at you like the paparazzi comes after Justin Bieber. But the thing about it is, there is so much joy in the Lord that nothing can stop you, nothing can get to you because you’re already covered. You just smile for the cameras and keep it moving. So in the words of Hillsong United, 'Tell the devil, no not today.'"


I love you and I hope you have an amazing day. Enjoy your Sunday have some fun today. Be sure to come back tomorrow for Day 185!

Day 183: Not Today

Psalms 118:24

This is the day that the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it.

You ever have one of those specific days where you wake up and you can feel it in your bones. You wake up smiling and singing, and you just know, so you say to yourself, “Today is going to be a great day.” You don’t really know what’s going to happen today but you know that today is going to be great. I love those, because it’s one of those days where you aren’t going to let anything bother you, the things that would usually make you mad or upset don’t have any effect today. You’re walking around like Spider-Man when he finally decided to let loose and put the black costume on (I am in no way telling you to go to the dark side). You get up and dress nice, put an extra little pep in your step because you feel good about today. You just feel motivated to do something. Even when something does try to get in your way you curve it by saying, “Not today Satan, not today.”

These are some of my favorite days because while a huge miracle might not happen these days are always marked in my calendar because something good happens, whether it be spiritual, emotional, physical, whatever it may be. Have you ever noticed that these are the days you are tried the most, I mean the most, when all you want to do is have a good day it like all the forces for ruining your day come at you like the paparazzi comes after Justin Bieber. But the thing about it is, there is so much joy in the Lord that nothing can stop you, nothing can get to you because you’re already covered. You just smile for the cameras and keep it moving. So in the words of Hillsong United, “Tell the devil, no not today.”

This is the day that the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it. One day I finally understood this scripture. It is a scripture that I would hear my mom say in church every time she got the chance to speak. Every day is great day because the Lord has given it to us, so even on our worst days we can find comfort in knowing that God decided to wake us up this morning, so let’s enjoy it as much as possible.

Wouldn’t it be great if we woke up everyday with the attitude that today is going to be a great day? If we were motivated and feeling good about ourselves every day of our lives. I truly believe that every day can be great, if we choose for it to be. We won’t wake up everyday saying that today will be a great day, some days we have to make that choice. We have to choose to have a good day even when everything is going wrong. We have to choose not to be bothered and let things roll off our shoulders. God made it, it’s a great day, rejoice and be glad in it.

Response/Prayer Time

 

Take the time to respond to what we talked about today, pray and talk to God, then go and have a great day!

I love you, have an amazing day, really enjoy your day. Share this with someone and come back tomorrow for Day 184!