Fear of Progression/ Mini Testimony/ 2014 Reflection

I have this fear of: could it get any better than this? Is all gonna go down hill from here? This feels like the best, at least it has been the best.

But God, being the great God He is, proved me wrong.

Basically:

When it was time for me to graduate high school I was SO scared to move on because my high school experience was absolutely amazing. It was the best (at that point), and my question was: could college beat this?

I mean, I guess it’s a reasonable fear of the unknown.

However!! How EVAAA.. College son..
God really showed up and proved to me it only gets better. I can boldly say my first semester experience was point blank bomb, all the downs (barely any) were ups in disguise!! Like really amazing.

God placed me in this school because I trusted in Him and really listened and followed the path He set out for me.

So now.. I don’t even have the right to be hopeless.

But I’m human, so it crossed my mind again this morning: could life get better? 2014 was too good to be true, how could 2015 be any better? But BAM, my answer:

God allowed me to remember that 2014 started off shaky (it was a spill over of 2013), but that was just the devil trying to put me down so I wouldn’t see the dope year God was building me up for.

It started with MRI & MRA scans.

This time last year, I almost didn’t want to live to see another day. Anxiety, fear, pain, worry and near depression.

December 31st 2013, I had prayed for 2014 to be good to me, but it didn’t seem possible, even up until April 2014

What I didn’t realize was God REALLY had me all figured out, I just couldn’t trust and see past my circumstances. I didn’t expect anything good to come out of such a horrible period of life.

But God saw my heart. He knew enough was ENOUGH.

He knew my soul.

Like prince charming, he would come and sweep me of my dusty crusty feet! He wiped my tears!!

It got better.

So much better. Anxiety, fear, pain, worry and near depression turned into an OVERFLOW OF HAPPINESS.
as the year progressed.

An unfathomable kind of better.

It went from hopelessness to scholarships, healing, love, success, another internship, starting this blog, growth, travel, etc etc.

(Quick shout out to David and Bri❤️)

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After all God has done for me?! I’m soooo hopeful and excited for 2015; stuck on the promise that He really has a plan for me. Not only that, a GOOD plan. Therefore, that only guarantees me, it’s going to get better. There’s no way out of it. It done! It is finished!!

So i’ll leave you all with this:

Even if you had a bad year (by your standards), TRUST that the best is yet to come. The devil may be trying to cloud that picture of possible goodness/greatness, but BELIEVE ME, it’s there. You may not see it now, but when you get there, and that picture becomes clearer, you’d be in your room balling crying because of how faithful God is, has been and will continue to be!

Our God isn’t one that would lie. He has PROMISED us certain things. He LOVES us (real love, 1 Corinthians 13 kinda love)!! Love is PATIENT. He was so patient with me, He waited on me through all my sin. He will be patient with you, so be patient with him. (Did I emphasize patience enough?)

Wow.

Stay strong. It only gets better.  ❤ ❤

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Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. (Matthew 6:33)

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. (Romans 8:28)

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes?” (Matthew 6:25)

For I am about to do something new. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it? I will make a pathway through the wilderness. I will create rivers in the dry wasteland. (‭Isaiah‬ ‭43‬:‭19‬ NLT)

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Happy New Year!!! 

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P.S.:  I’m taking January off to fast and pray for this blog.  This means I probably won’t post anything, but I will definitely be working on it so get ready.  This doesn’t mean leave! It means, stay and catch up!! Enjoy reading and re-reading my old posts.  Love ya and see you at the end of January xxx

Merry Christmas!!!

Oh sweet Baby Jesus. Born in a manger and all the other exciting stuff.

The most exciting part about today, Christmas, the celebration of His birth, is that God sent Him for US?!

Like really? US!!!

His chosen people.

Let us celebrate and give thanks!!

Put aside all the “extraness”. The expensive presents, the hype, all of that. And focus in on what’s really going on. We are celebrating the King of Kings. The PRINCE OF PEACE. The merciful and eternal God.

Imagine we lived in the days of the Old Testament?

Thank you Lord.

I never really valued Christmas as much as I do today solely because I didn’t fully understand what/who was being celebrated. And I believe that’s comprehensible.

This time last year was totally different for me but that’s why I am so thankful. It’s all making sense and I thank God for all His revelations, His INFINITE MERCY!!!!

You guys know I could go on and on.

Have a really blessed day. Give thanks!! Reflect. The year is coming to an end.  I pray God continues to reveal himself to you.

Lastly, remember, He came for US. Enough was ENOUGH. The battle has been WON. Victory is ours FOREVER. Nothing can separate us from a love so DEEP.

I hope you are blessed by the passages and song. See you later loves!

Comment below why you’re excited about Christmas and maybe share what God has done for you this past year.

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For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. (‭Isaiah‬ ‭9‬:‭6‬ NLT)

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. (‭John‬ ‭3‬:‭16-17‬ NKJV)

May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God. (‭Ephesians‬ ‭3‬:‭19‬ NLT)

But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 15:57 NLT)

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Nothing Can Separate Us From Gods Love

This morning was tough for me.
I thought it was bigger than I could handle.
I couldn’t really pray that much, but that’s ok:

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“And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. And the Father who knows all hearts knows what

the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God’s own will. (‭Romans‬ ‭8‬:‭26-27‬ NLT)”

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I sat here listening to worship songs, fully worshiping God:

And all I could do was worship for an hour.

Then, I was led to Romans 8:18-39 (a friend posted a status on Facebook, I went to that verse then followed the footnotes to Romans 8)

These are a few specific verses that really met me where I was:

1) I was a bit overwhelmed by everything I am doing:

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Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will reveal to us later. For all creation is waiting eagerly for that future day when God will reveal who his children really are. (‭Romans‬ ‭8‬:‭18-19‬ NLT)

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. For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. And having chosen them, he called them to come to him. And having called them, he gave them right standing with himself. And having given them right standing, he gave them his glory. (‭Romans‬ ‭8‬:‭28-30‬ NLT)

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2) I felt separated from Gods love because I thought I wasn’t “doing enough for God“:

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“Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death?

No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us. (‭Romans‬ ‭8‬:‭35, 37‬ NLT)”

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I’m so thankful that He’s ever present in my times of need.
He really sorted me out!
I feel awesome and I’m blogging again.

I urge you never to give up or give in to feelings of defeat, shame or guilt.

Have a blessed day!!

Why I Dropped Out Of College

“I don’t know how some things are going to happen but I don’t have or need all of the answers because I trust God with my life. His track record is perfect so why not give Him all of my faith? I know that this journey won’t be easy but God never promised us easiness or comfort. He promised us that He would never leave us nor forsake us through any of it and I’m content with that.”
“All in all, I don’t have all of the answers, I don’t know how everything is going work out, but I have faith and that’s enough for me. “

Goodness – VOTD 12/5/14

Titus‬ ‭3‬:‭2-8‬ NLT

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They must not slander anyone and must avoid quarreling. Instead, they should be gentle and show true humility to everyone. Once we, too, were foolish and disobedient. We were misled and became slaves to many lusts and pleasures. Our lives were full of evil and envy, and we hated each other. But— When God our Savior revealed his kindness and love, he saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit. He generously poured out the Spirit upon us through Jesus Christ our Savior. Because of his grace he declared us righteous and gave us confidence that we will inherit eternal life. This is a trustworthy saying, and I want you to insist on these teachings so that all who trust in God will devote themselves to doing good. These teachings are good and beneficial for everyone. 

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How Wide, How Long, How High, How Deep.

I am stuck on these verses.
Swimming in them and trying to fully accept its truth!

“When I think of all this, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father, the Creator of everything in heaven and on earth. I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit. Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God. Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think. (‭Ephesians‬ ‭3‬:‭14-20‬ NLT)”

God really spoke to me through these verses and I pray He speaks to you as well.

Just pray over yourself using these verses and accept the love of our Father. Thank Him for it.

Again:

“And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God. (‭Ephesians‬ ‭3‬:‭18-19‬ NLT)”

This alone is enough to make you worry-free. Knowing someone loves you SO much. Someone who is infinite and unchanging.

That’s as stable as love gets.

Someone who has been here since the very beginning and will continue to be here till the end.

This is eternal.
This is true love.

Don’t underestimate His love. Look deeper and reflect on all the instances in which God poured his love on you. Be grateful.

His love is enough and it COMPLETES you. No man or woman is capable of doing that. God completes you. So make sure He is number 1 in allllll you do.

Can you fathom that?

Abba, Father. Thank you. ❤

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Shoutout to my schools' IVCF President, Nick, for pointing these verses out to me. Thank God for that!!

“WHY ME?? WHY NOW??”

Basically,

There are a lot of good things happening in my life right now and I’m thankful.

I’ll share more details when it’s time to but for now; this is how I’ve been feeling.

I’ve been so confused as to “why me?”

I’ve been asking God; “why this sinner?”

I’ve been asking way too many unnecessary questions but God being the lover He is, has been answering every single one of them.

Last night, I almost went to bed without reading my Bible but God, oh my Lord, loves me so much and he nudged me to read it.

There is POWER in the Word of God so pick it uppppp!

Anyway, I opened my Bible and was flipping pages for a bit. Went to 1 Corinthians 13 to read over that, flipped past Matthew to check if I had finished that and I was just all over the place for a couple of minutes.

I finally ended up in Romans and God spoke ever so clearly to me as soon as I began to read. His Word says :

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“Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into this place of undeserved privilege where we now stand, and we confidently and joyfully look forward to sharing God’s glory. (‭Romans‬ ‭5‬:‭2‬ NLT)”

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Because of our faith…
Because of my faith…
Accept it, you’ve been faithful and now Christ has brought you to a place of UNDESERVED privilege.
So be happy about it.

I am forever grateful and thankful for these privileges and I finally understand why all these things are happening (to a certain extent)

Keep God first in all you do. Worship him in truth!! (Don’t just sing the songs; WORSHIP HIM)

So I got my answer, it’s time for me to stop asking why, continue serving and MOVE. Enjoy the blessings. It’s ok to be blessed.

………

For a bit more context read Romans 5:1-11!!

Here’s the link to a relevant worship song:

Self Control- Josh McDowell

This was taken from Josh McDowell’s Daily Reading Plan

You may really, really want to be more self-controlled. You may want to control your anger, your appetite, your desires, or your fears. But no matter how badly you want self-control, you can’t make it happen. Oh, you may improve a little bit, for a while. But no matter how hard you try, you won’t develop true self-control by yourself. Because self-control, like all virtues, comes from God.

In other words, your ability to exercise self-control depends on whatever or whoever-fills you. “That’s why,” the Bible says, “those who are still under the control of their sinful nature can never please God. But you are not controlled by your sinful nature. You are controlled by the Spirit if you have the Spirit of God living in you” (Romans 8:8-9).

So if you are a Christian, the power to be self-controlled is already living in you-the Holy Spirit. The key, then, is not to grunt and groan and grit your teeth but to surrender to the Spirit’s control day by day and moment by moment-just like a glove “surrenders” to the hand that wears it and controls it.

REFLECT: You already have God’s Spirit living in you if you’ve received forgiveness of your sins and trusted Jesus for salvation. Have you done that? If not, you can do it now by praying this simple prayer: “Lord Jesus, I want to know you personally. Thank you for dying on the cross for my sins. I open the door of my life and receive you as my Savior and Lord. Thank you for forgiving my sins and giving me eternal life. Take control of my life and make me the kind of person you want me to be. Amen.”

PRAY: One way to surrender to the Spirit’s control is to sincerely pray a simple prayer every morning, like the following: “God, I want to do right today, but I know I’ll need your help. I give up control of the things I do to your Holy Spirit right now, and I ask him to control me all day long. Please help me not to forget or to ‘take back’ control.”

I am beyond grateful

God I thank you.

Thank you so much.

I was all caught up trying to figure out if this is where you want me or what you want me to be doing.

I forgot that you put me here. Obviously it’s where you want me to be.

You placed me here.
Surrounded me with supportive and amazing people.
Continuously blessing me.
Always giving me pieces to the puzzle.

I thank you Lord God for everything.

Everyone.

Every moment.

You are awesome and I love you.

SIN – VOTD!!

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When I wrote to you before, I told you not to associate with people who indulge in sexual sin. But I wasn’t talking about unbelievers who indulge in sexual sin, or are greedy, or cheat people, or worship idols. You would have to leave this world to avoid people like that. I meant that you are not to associate with anyone who claims to be a believer yet indulges in sexual sin, or is greedy, or worships idols, or is abusive, or is a drunkard, or cheats people. Don’t even eat with such people. It isn’t my responsibility to judge outsiders, but it certainly is your responsibility to judge those inside the church who are sinning. God will judge those on the outside; but as the Scriptures say, “You must remove the evil person from among you.” (‭1 Corinthians‬ ‭5‬:‭9-13‬ NLT)

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Our UNIQUENESS

You see.. The way my life is set up.

God knows you so well!

Your christian life may not be the same as your brothers’, or your sisters’

You experiences on your journey may not be the same either.

You are YOU.

Remember, you are living a totally different life than the next person but God loves you both the same way.

Why worry about “how spiritual” someone seems?

We are all made to be unique and that applies to our journey as Christians as well.

LET HIM WORK.

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. For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. And having chosen them, he called them to come to him. And having called them, he gave them right standing with himself. And having given them right standing, he gave them his glory. (‭Romans‬ ‭8‬:‭28-30‬ NLT)

He’s all that Matters

Why is it only when things begin go wrong that we start shouting for the Lords help?

Why don’t we continue on a path of righteousness day in and day out?

We need to stand firm or before you know it you WILL be shaken.

It is hard to keep up because life gets busy, things happen, but that doesn’t make it not worth the effort.

Begin to rearrange your schedule and focus on God.

He doesn’t want you to miss out on His marvelous blessings.

He IS what matters, so focus on Him.