Will you go.....Will you recognize God's voice and heed to His word?

Its funny how God will send you to a place that is completely out of your norm, and you can't figure out why He sent you there until after you have left. If He says go back, He will give you what to say and do this time, will you heed to His word, even when its completely out of your comfort zone?

 I am a travel nurse in the operating room. I spend most weeks at very different outpatient centers, with a wide variety of cases.  I contemplated this same scenario when I was first sent to work at an IVF surgery center. My thoughts were, "why am I here? I am too emotional to be here. I don't know what to do for these patients. What can I offer these patients when I can't even control my own emotions in the hard times?" There's a difference in how you see yourself versus how God sees you. Even when you think you have affirmed yourself and, know that you know, who you are and whose you are, you still have a ways to go. God knows our beginning and our end, He sees us in a way like no other.  He wants our thoughts to be His thoughts of us.

After weeks of working at this particular location, I soon came to realize why I was there. I was there to cry with these couples, to hold their hands, to silently pray over them for comfort, and peace, and strength; to encourage them to stay strong and know there is a plan in the works if they only just keep believing, to be right there during each step of the process and ensure them that they are not alone. It is just so much inside of me that I could not even see, until I opened my mind to exploring why God wound send me.

This is relevant for so many other circumstances and situations. Listening to the radio the other day, I heard the host say " The enemy's attack is on our belief. God will strengthen you and remind you who you are in Him. I Pray to God to help my unbelief." God knows you way more than you know yourself and believes in you even when you can't see His plan for you in a given moment. He just wants us to connect, relate, and open our hearts and minds to believing even what we can not see just yet.

Get out there, just go where He sends you, When you get there (preordained destiny), He will give you what to say and do. Don't be afraid, just delivery the message. Jeremiah 1:9

Restoring Someone

True Faith can change someone's situation, if you can do, do.......God will not allow you to go down helping someone in need. Its His purpose for us.

-James 1:14-20

Faith can be difficult to sustain, I once heard a preacher say, "the one thing that lets you know you are not trusting and having faith is the manifestation of your sins." You sin because, you don't believe God will handle your situation. Or you don't help others when you are able, because you fear that you will cause yourself to be in need also. This means you do not trust that God will take care of you and yours. Restoration of Life Center, is a small, still developing organization that is stepping out totally on faith, believing that God will do what seems to be the impossible. We are helping others with the little that God have giving us, expecting that God will continue to give even more so that we are able to continue in our mission and calling. Faith is easier when you carry a spirit of expectation.

Expectation is not thinking the worst, and looking forward to what is great to come. In all areas of our life, having great expectations of our great God can begin by changing the surface and then penetrating those areas and turning them around for our good. I believe, because God said, and I've seen Him do it before.

Step out of your comfort zones and give as your heart desires. Trust God to do the exceedingly, Great and what seems impossible. I personally rejoice in what God enables me to do for others........as I rejoice, he sees my heart, and blessing me also.

Thanking God for this season of Grace, Mercy, and Favor......Amen.

Spring into Stronger Relationships......beginning with God first

If we think about it, we have many relationships and many of them are pretty strained. Yes the relationships have good moments but, there are some pretty big bad, stressful, and unhappy moments as well. The first thing we tend to do is to blame the other person in the relationship rather than looking are our contribution to the problem and turning to God first. The key solution, which is rarely ever the first approach is to examine our relationship with God and what needs to change to perfect that relationship first by aligning our life with Christ. This sounds deep, but its really not.
As Christians we are suppose to be living like Christ, so our life should reflect a Christ life, right. That can only be accomplished by giving up yourself totally and trusting God completely. Now this is hard. As a human, with sin, your first approach to relationships is to get your own pleasure from it, as well as all things you do in life. The sincere and real approach should be a whole other motive. Your ultimate goal is and always should be to live as Christ would, love and give without focus of only what you want in return, but because it is what God wants from you.
All it takes is for one participant in the relationship to surrender totally to God and He will mend and restore your relationships to a level you could not even imagine. Try it. I've know it works......I've seen it work.

"When a man's ways please the Lord, He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him"
-proverbs 16:7

National Boost Your Self-Esteem Month

Reach out to someone this month, especially our youth. Let them know that this too shall pass, and the things happening now are only temporary, that they all wonderful, they are beautiful, and they are loved. They need to hear this Badly.

Do not let your adorning be external—the braiding of hair and the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear— but let your adorning 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.  1 Peter 3:3-4

http://www.mhasck.org/news/article72.html

"February is National Boost Your Self-Esteem Month, and not a month too soon for teens who are in dire need of self-esteem boosting. Low self-esteem is a critical issue facing teens today. It has been proven that low self-esteem affects learning and can lead to such problems as delinquency, unhealthy relationships, eating disorders, drugs and suicide. According to most estimates, about 30 percent of today's teenagers are dropping out of high school and every school day 160,000 students miss school because of bullying. Hey U.G.L.Y. has teamed with the National Association for Self Esteem help teens realize they are cool just the way they are."

Knowing Your History

It is very important to know where you come from. If you never know where it all started and all the history behind you, your family, you culture, and your world, then you will more than likely never know what exactly makes you tic, what's really inside of you, and what you can really accoumplish. Take the time, this month, to explore everything about yourself, even if you are not African American, History is good for everyone.

The Beginning of your History is that God knows you, before you knew yourself, and He knows your future......

For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.
Psalms 139:13-16

New Year, New You......

It's a new year, and that means that everyone is trying to be something or do something different than last year. Making changes, that hopefully will last, but seldom do. If I can think of anything that I want to do, it would be to strengthen my relationships, with God,  with my husband, with my children, with my family, and with my friends. This take effort of my part, Even when I can see that the other parts of the relationship are not doing much or at least not as much as me. I want to humble me self more, less of me and more of God, so that everyone can see His Glory first, and not focus on what it is they think I have done so great. Cause it's all Him. I plan to serve even more, for I have found that this is truly the heart of a Christian and is truly my heart and serving encompasses all of my life's goals (from directing the community center, to nursing, to event planning and all giving). I Love it all. I just want to do more, and love it every step of the way.

The best thing you can do is find that thing that makes you the happiest, and ask God and actually listen for direction. He will direct your path.

Proverbs 3

1My son, forget not my law; but let your heart keep my commandments:

2For length of days, and long life, and peace, shall they add to you.

3Let not mercy and truth forsake you: bind them about your neck; write them upon the table of your heart:

4So shall you find favor and good understanding in the sight of God and man.

5Trust in the LORD with all your heart; and lean not unto your own understanding.

6In all your ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct your paths.

Become a Mentor, Be there, Encourage Someone

I was blessed to have a mentor my senior year of high school, which was something I never thought about before. At first it was really just another way to get out of class and wrap up this long senior year that I as was ready to be over, so that I could "get on with my life." Of course now I am ready for life to slow down and give me time to catch up on my goals  and achievements I have yet to accomplish. Unexpectedly, this mentor became an outlet, even though I didn't feel comfortable letting everything out, it was enough to know that someone, a human, was listening and actually seemed to care. Now I can see that God is so much more than I thought at that age. But it is still good to have that earthly contact and connection with someone that can either relate or at least is able to care enough about you to listen and give advise where needed.

Just give it a try, it can be just a kid in the neighborhood, at church, and a near school or community center program. You never know the impact you will have in their lives. It can be extraordinary for you and your mentee. http://www.bbbsatl.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=68&Itemid=69


Proverbs 1:1-7
To know wisdom and instruction,
    to understand words of insight,
³ to receive instruction in wise dealing,
    in righteousness, justice, and equity;
⁴ to give prudence to the simple,
    knowledge and discretion to the youth—
⁵ Let the wise hear and increase in learning,
    and the one who understands obtain guidance,
⁶ to understand a proverb and a saying,
    the words of the wise and their riddles.

⁷ The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge;
    fools despise wisdom and instruction.