life-advice

The Purge…

Our thoughts are powerful and they have an aroma that fill our minds. They either impart pleasant attractive scents that lead to enthusiasm, hope, and productivity or they impart putrid rotting scents that lead to lethargy, discouragement, and stagnation. The aroma that our thoughts give off impacts others through our words and actions. See,  all thoughts eventually transform into words and/or actions. So every place our voices are heard, we are either stinking up the atmosphere with negativity or releasing a sweet smelling fragrance of hope, faith and strength. Continue reading →

Trusting over Feeling

Trust Wooden Letterpress Concept

Yes, [God] wants you to sense His Presence, but He’s more concerned that you trust Him than that you feel Him. Faith, not feelings, please God   -Rick Warren

Do you ever feel like God is hiding from you?  Have you ever felt like you were going through the toughest time in your life, and He was no where to be found,  or like your heartfelt prayers were unheard? If you’ve felt these or similar feelings, what were your responses?

I certainly have had times in my life where it seemed like God was silent.  I have cried myself to sleep many nights, wondering if God was even listening to my intense pleas for comfort, clarity, and/or direction. These seasons in my life where God has seemed silent were some of the most challenging times in my faith journey.  My responses have varied during these times.  There have been times when God’s seeming distance made me shut down,  and there  have been times when His seeming distance made me pray more and continue to intentionally draw closer to Him.  There have been times in these seasons when I have felt alone,  depressed,  lost,  and even forgotten….

If  you haven’t experienced these times of seeming distance,  it is inevitable that you eventually will,  You may even be enduring one of these seasons as you read this, and I want you to know that God has not forgotten you. In fact, it is impossible for Him to forget you. Your ability to inhale and exhale in this moment testifies that He hasn’t.  Most importantly,  your breath is evidence that you have not reached the end of your life’s story,  so that means,

 IT AIN’T OVER,  and God’s goodness for your life is still ahead of you! 

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Surrendered

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Victory comes through surrender. Surrender doesn’t weaken you; it strengthens you. Surrendered to God, you don’t have to fear or surrender to anything else

~Rick Warren, Purpose Driven Life

As much as I’ve understood that “Surrender” is necessary in my personal relationship with God , I had never thought of surrender as being a position of continual VICTORY.  Yet, when I read those words, they immediately  resonated with me, and awakened me to a greater desire to be fully surrendered to God.  Continue reading →

Come Closer


img_1214Last week, I shared the immense impact that reading Purpose Driven Life  had on me this year.  On Sunday evenings for the next several weeks,  I want to share some of the impactful principles in the book. My hope is that you would be encouraged,  and also intrigued to consider reading, or maybe even re-reading the book as well.

The closer you live to God, the smaller everything else appears 

-Rick Warren, Purpose Driven Life 

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Before Giving Up… Do this Self Check-up!

Annual Buisnes Check-UpHere we are 43 days into a brand new year.  It is about this time, of any given year,  that most people have completely sobered up from their  #NewYearNewMe high.  It’s the time of year when reality kicks most people in the butt, and they wonder, “Am I really able to achieve ALL of these goals I set in one year?” Or, “Do I  really have what it takes,” or the all too common question, “Am I really enough?” This is the time when most people  start to get into their own heads – worrying, stressing, and doubting.  And, I’m not talking about those who haphazardly entered this new year, I am talking about the  people who did the work! They spent the entire month of December, investing time, money, and energy into creating the Vision Board, writing the Vision statement, and deciding on their” buzz word” for the year. They’ve purchased the planner, filled it up with goals and plans galore, but NOW WHAT?!!!!!!!

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Dependent

img_6782We live in a culture where it is frowned upon to be dependent. Everyone wants to be self-sufficient, self-made, and self-maintained, no one wants to “need” anyone. Having a need is thought to be a sign of weakness, and in our culture, we insist on  being perceived as “strong,” even if we are struggling and stressing to uphold this persona.

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