We 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.
Women
Rejoice! God is with us!!
…The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel (which means, ‘God is with us’) Isaiah 7:14
Today, I join my praise and worship with Christ Followers around the world, pausing and giving thanks to my Heavenly Father for sending Jesus, to ransom my life from the bondage of hopelessness, shame, and fear.
To ransom is, to free from captivity or punishment by paying a price.
Because of Jesus, I was delivered from captivity! Before I encountered Jesus, I was a hostage to my circumstances. Bound by the unjust things that had happened to me, and limited by my own ignorant choices. I was without hope, constrained by shame, and enslaved to fear. Thanks be unto God, because He did not leave me in that state of darkness and confusion. Instead, He sent Jesus, just as He had promised the Prophet Isaiah, some 700 years prior, that He would. It was the Father’s unconditional love that made a way for me to be saved, freed, delivered.
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 would be saved. (John 3:16-17)
Your Presence IS the Gift
The past two weeks have been challenging, not so much for me personally, but for my loved ones. Two who received devastating diagnosis news about a parent, and several who have been in the throes of the fear and anxiety that just being alive can bring. I was in the middle of a blogging challenge, and feeling deep disappointment within myself for simply not being able to create the extra time to BLOG, while being present for my loved ones, investing time into the women’s organization that I lead, and accomplishing the daily responsibilities of my full time career! In the midst of my wallowing in self-pity for “just not being enough” to get it all done, I felt like I was jolted awake by this thought,
While it’s nice, maybe even “noble” to have a desire to inspire people I don’t know through my writing, it is a part of my DIVINE PURPOSE to care about, encourage, uplift, pray for, listen to, and BE PRESENT for those who are right in front of my face!
“Hot and Bothered” #30Layers30Days -#TBT , #BlogLikeCrazy
I am, HOT, frustrated, and set a blazed, for broken women who are alone, silenced and put to shame.
I am BOTHERED, annoyed, yes PISSED, that we live in a culture that requires women to hold up tattered banners of UN-BOTHERED-NESS! Continue reading
Where I Live – #30Layers30Days + #BlogLikeCrazy
Growing up it bothered me when I’d hear people say, “I stay there,” in reference to their home, opposed to saying, “I LIVE there.” I would often correct my friends, “Don’t you mean live there?” Most people use those two, live and stay, synonymously in this context. Yet, to me there is a significant difference between the two. Continue reading
“The Right Person” – #30Layers30Days + #BlogLikeCrazy
I can’t say that I was waiting for you, but I am thankful that you found me. I can’t say that I “always knew” because when I met you, I was fully content with being with me.
I can’t say it was “love at first sight” because though you were immediately handsome to my eyes, I was not looking for love. Continue reading
“The Idea of You” #30Layers30Days #BlogLikeCrazy
The idea of you precedes your conception. You were known before you were knit together. The Master Creator envisioned all that you would be, and He spared nothing, from the inside out, designing you perfectly.
When the Master Creator completed You, His Exquiste Masterpiece, He marveled at His own expertise, and with a loud voice He declared, “It is Good”. And just like that, You were complete. Whole. Lacking nothing. You were, as Perfect and Beautifully you, as you would ever be!
There was only one thing The Master Creator would leave up to you and me, and that is the faith to believe that this could even be. He designed you with the ability to choose what to believe and what to reject, and He determined that your belief would be the fuel to guide your steps. Continue reading
When You Promised….. #30Layers30Days + #BlogLikeCrazy
Happy November 1st!!!
I am so excited about the month of November! Last year, I participated in GG’s #30Layers30Days writing challenge on my social media platforms! It was an amazing experience!
I was so thrilled when I saw the prompts for this year in my email box! I am thankful for this space to share the experience with you all this year!
I am also a member of an amazing writing community called “See JANE Write,” so I am joining in on the #BlogLikeCrazy Challenge also, well actually more like combining the challenges:)! Find out more about the “See Jane Write” Community, and the #BlogLikeCrazy Challenge HERE !!
I hope you will join in! I will put the prompts below for you!! Be sure to use the hashtags -#BlogLikeCrazy and #30Layers30Days
Here’s to Today’s Prompt:
When You Promised….
Promises, promises are meant to be kept, so why are so many broken? It’s funny how committed I am to promises that I make to other people, but I have not always demonstrated that same loyalty to the promises that I have made to myself. Continue reading
Hope for the 4th Quarter
Welcome to the 4th Quarter of 2017! I don’t know about you, but I have spent a good portion of this year being shocked by its pace. At the beginning of each month, I have found myself stating, “Is it [insert month] already?!” Only to discover the same definitive answer each time, “Yes it is“! I can’t count the number of conversations I have had with loved ones, friends, coworkers, and others in passing, who have not only confirmed by sentiments about the pace of this year, but who have also shared in my anxiety laced fear that, THERE’S JUST NOT ENOUGH TIME!!!!!.
But, What if I told you that there IS enough time? Will you accept that? What if I told you that the culprit of your anxiety is something you and I have full control over? Will you, for the sake of this discussion, entertain the notion that the deficit has not been in seconds, minutes, hours, and days, but instead, that the true deficit, has been in your FOCUS? Does that encourage or discourage you? Continue reading
God is IN the Details…
I don’t know about you, but sometimes I can be a little abrupt and disorganized. Don’t get me wrong, I have the capacity to be extremely organized and strategic, but it’s definitely in doses. The thing is, I am just not naturally “wired” that way. If I want to be well-organized, I have to really put in the effort because my organization and meticulous skills come and go in phases. Since this is something that I am actively working on, I was truly enlightened and inspired by Jesus’ attention to detail in today’s passage, found in 
Matthew 21: 1-11. Continue reading
Hope Notes 