Be Worry-Free

There is so much going on in the world today. It is so incredibly easy to become depressed, to fret, to worry and to lose hope, especially at this time of year. Currently, there are devastating news reports from the city I was raised in, acts of pure and sheer evil have already taken place. There are people battling disease and loved ones are sick and may be near the last stages of there time here on earth. The sadness all around us is seen and heard about everywhere, on televisions, on the radio, on the Internet and while talking to those we know. It’s almost as if there is some great plan taking place all over the world to keep people down and in the dumps.

I must admit, lately, I have allowed the news to bring me down. I fall back into the habit of letting myself focus on the negative rather than the allowing the positive to inhabit my thoughts and actions. It’s easy to do when your eyes and mind are flooded with it everywhere you turn around. I literally have to stop and remind myself of a few things when I find myself falling back into these old habits.

1. There is more good in the world then there is evil. Evil wants to portray itself as if it has the upper hand, but it does not. This is especially seen when something tragic happens. Good always rushes is and begins to overshadow the bad. People rise up, they act on behalf of humanity and are motivated to do whatever it takes to come to the aid of those in need. The throne of God is flooded with prayers and those prayers are heard in heaven. I am so thankful that good wins in the end.
2. We should not feel guilty about what has occurred or try and change the joy we have in our own hearts. That is exactly what the enemy wants. He wants a bunch of people walking around in a depressed state so that we are less effective or ineffective altogether for the greater good. This does not mean that we do not grieve. Ecclesiastes 3 tells us that there is a time for everything. However, we do not allow the grief, pain, sadness, or tragedy to swallow us up.
3. We turn our hearts and minds to Jesus. Psalm 37 (NIV) says:
   

   ¹ Do not fret because of those who are evil
       or be envious of those who do wrong;
   ² for like the grass they will soon wither,
       like green plants they will soon die away.

   ³ Trust in the Lord and do good;
       dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.
   ⁴ Take delight in the Lord,
       and he will give you the desires of your heart.

   ⁵ Commit your way to the Lord;
       trust in him and he will do this:
   ⁶ He will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn,
       your vindication like the noonday sun.

   ⁷ Be still before the Lord
       and wait patiently for him;
   do not fret when people succeed in their ways,
       when they carry out their wicked schemes.

   ⁸ Refrain from anger and turn from wrath;
       do not fret—it leads only to evil.
   ⁹ For those who are evil will be destroyed,
       but those who hope in the Lord will inherit the land.

   ¹⁰ A little while, and the wicked will be no more;
       though you look for them, they will not be found.
   ¹¹ But the meek will inherit the land
       and enjoy peace and prosperity.

   ¹² The wicked plot against the righteous
       and gnash their teeth at them;
   ¹³ but the Lord laughs at the wicked,
       for he knows their day is coming.

   ¹⁴ The wicked draw the sword
       and bend the bow
   to bring down the poor and needy,
       to slay those whose ways are upright.
   ¹⁵ But their swords will pierce their own hearts,
       and their bows will be broken.

   ¹⁶ Better the little that the righteous have
       than the wealth of many wicked;
   ¹⁷ for the power of the wicked will be broken,
       but the Lord upholds the righteous.

   ¹⁸ The blameless spend their days under the Lord’s care,
       and their inheritance will endure forever.
   ¹⁹ In times of disaster they will not wither;
       in days of famine they will enjoy plenty.

   ²⁰ But the wicked will perish:
       Though the Lord’s enemies are like the flowers of the field,
       they will be consumed, they will go up in smoke.

   ²¹ The wicked borrow and do not repay,
       but the righteous give generously;
   ²² those the Lord blesses will inherit the land,
       but those he curses will be destroyed.

   ²³ The Lord makes firm the steps
       of the one who delights in him;
   ²⁴ though he may stumble, he will not fall,
       for the Lord upholds him with his hand.

   ²⁵ I was young and now I am old,
       yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken
       or their children begging bread.
   ²⁶ They are always generous and lend freely;
       their children will be a blessing.

   ²⁷ Turn from evil and do good;
       then you will dwell in the land forever.
   ²⁸ For the Lord loves the just
       and will not forsake his faithful ones.

   Wrongdoers will be completely destroyed;
       the offspring of the wicked will perish.
   ²⁹ The righteous will inherit the land
       and dwell in it forever.

   ³⁰ The mouths of the righteous utter wisdom,
       and their tongues speak what is just.
   ³¹ The law of their God is in their hearts;
       their feet do not slip.

   ³² The wicked lie in wait for the righteous,
       intent on putting them to death;
   ³³ but the Lord will not leave them in the power of the wicked
       or let them be condemned when brought to trial.

   ³⁴ Hope in the Lord
       and keep his way.
   He will exalt you to inherit the land;
       when the wicked are destroyed, you will see it.

   ³⁵ I have seen a wicked and ruthless man
       flourishing like a luxuriant native tree,
   ³⁶ but he soon passed away and was no more;
       though I looked for him, he could not be found.

   ³⁷ Consider the blameless, observe the upright;
       a future awaits those who seek peace.
   ³⁸ But all sinners will be destroyed;
       there will be no future for the wicked.

   ³⁹ The salvation of the righteous comes from the Lord;
       he is their stronghold in time of trouble.
   ⁴⁰ The Lord helps them and delivers them;
       he delivers them from the wicked and saves them,
       because they take refuge in him.

In times like this, the only answer is to choose joy. It’s Christmas time, a time when we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Be merry, have hope, celebrate His birth, choose joy and give it away, keep your thoughts and mind focused on Him. Doing so will keep you from falling into the trap of our enemy. He wants more than anything for you to live as if there is no hope.

Reminding myself this morning that is a time of true joy, 

~Misty~

 

Stop what you are doing for a couple of minutes! Consider how you might end 2015? Literally, we are just 31 days away from this year coming to a close.  Will you end this year with your heart full of the many blessings and joy this year has produced or will you head into 2016 with no hope? At this point, the choice falls in your corner.

I am not sure about you but I want to finish 2015 well. I want this year to come to a close having lived with no regrets. I want to bask in all that has taken place and be thankful for how the Lord has used 2015 to draw me closer to Himself. I understand that not every situation has gone exactly how I would want it to go, but overall, I have to stop and reminisce of the fact that I have so much to be thankful for. I am truly blessed and so are you. All you have to do is take some time to reflect and you too will see the overflow of blessings that are all around you.

Consider the following as you close out 2015:

1. Journaling about 2015.  – What have you learned this year? What do you hope to learn and achieve in 2016?
2. Listing as many blessing that took place in 2015 that you can possibly think of. If this is too overwhelming for you, start small with just three things a day until the end of the year. You will be amazed at what you recall from the past year.
3. Make a plan for how you want to finish the year out. Do you want it to be spent being busy and forgettable or do you want to reflect and remember all you have been given.
4. Pray for a closer time with family, friends and most importantly with the Lord. Draw near to the Lord as you close out 2015 and He will show you great and mighty things as you walk with Him.

This year has been a beautiful year for my family and I. So much has happened over this past year and even when things did not turn out as planned or as I originally wanted them to, they still made a lasting impact on me for the betterment of having lived through them. I love how Jesus has a way of doing just that. He takes the ordinary and makes it extraordinary.

Close out 2015 with hope. Notice all that you have to be thankful for. Love those that are in your life and be filled with true joy. 

Here’s to finishing out 2015 well.

Finding Meaning and Finishing this Year Well, 

~Misty~

images via love this pic

As the Lord speaks, He tends to repeat Himself. He does this for His children who just don’t get what He is trying to tell them. I love this about the Lord. He is relentless with His love, grace and mercy. He will go to great lengths to help me understand what it is that He wants me to know. He is even artistic and creative with the ways in which He communicates with me. As a teacher myself, I see that I have learned all that I know from Him and His ways of instructing.

Lately, He has been trying to get me to see this one certain thing and you would think that I would have gotten it my now, but it hasn’t quite sunk in just yet. So, He creates ways for the same lesson to be brought before me and played out over and over again. He has spelled out the message clearly in His Word, He has shared the message with me in a book that I just so happen to be currently reading, He has put the message in a friend’s mouth as I called and asked her for advice, He has stuck the message in several of my daily devotionals and my pastor has talked about it lately in his Sunday sermons.

It almost appears that the Lord is beginning to scream at me, but He doesn’t communicate that way and I know it. Instead, He just brings me around full circle to the exact same spot and does not allow me to progress and move forward until I have learned what it is that He wants me to learn. I love that about my Lord. He cares so much about me and my well being. He wants so much for me to learn these life lessons so that my heart can be in the right place and so that I can be effective for Him and His Kingdom.

I bet you are wondering what He has been trying to teach this knucklehead lately. I am happy to share it with you. I have high hopes that you will get it much sooner then it has taken me to learn it. Here it goes. I am “the light of the world” (Matt. 5:14). Jesus said that His followers are the light of the world. John the disciple also wrote that Christ the true light “shines in the darkness” (John 1:5). So Jesus invites us to reflect our light into the darkness around us: “Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matt. 5:16).

If you didn’t get what I was trying to say, I will reiterate it for you. That is a call for us to show love in the face of hatred, patience in response to trouble, and peace in moments of conflict. The Apostle Paul reminds us, “For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light” (Eph. 5:8). The only response to evil and darkness is love.

Never forget the way things work in God’s economy. Light is on one side and darkness is on the other. People are either for God or they are against Him. Anytime a person who has Christ in them reacts in a sinful way, they automatically tip the scale towards evil. In her book Unglued, Lysa Terkeurst describes it in terms of a balancing scale. People are on one side and the enemy is on the other. We can either keep Satan from weighing us down with our sin when he vets and uses us to do evil or we can allow him to win by the way we react and behave.

So there is the lesson that Christ has been wanting me to learn. Love should be my only response to those who offend me. To respond in any other way is to chalk one up on the side of evil. For way too long, I have been responding to offenses in the same way. It’s time for a change, a restructuring of the way I think, act, respond and behave to offenses. I have had to say I’m sorry a lot lately. An apology goes a long way. Learning this lesson daily.

Love,

~Misty~

#LoveIsTheAnswer #LetYourLightShine #TipTheScaleTowardsGood #EvilPlanLosesToLove 

image via quotes gram

I woke this morning and thanked the Lord for the gift of laughter. I actually wish that I laughed more often. Days go by and sometimes I stop and realize that I haven’t laughed in a very long time. Just thinking about the fact of not having laughed in a while, makes me sad. The human soul needs laughter. In fact, God created laughter to uplift the soul. Humor is God’s gift to us and a saving medicine. Proverbs 15:13 says “A happy heart makes the face cheerful, but heartache crushes the spirit.”

Living in an imperfect world can often times make it hard for us to find reasons to laugh. However, I believe that laughing should be one of those things that we do without even thinking about it. If you have to remind yourself to lighten up and laugh more often, it is time to start asking the Lord to show and give you more reasons to laugh and laugh long and hard.

Laughter is so important that whole industries have been created around it. Comedians make a living helping others to laugh. Sitcoms are written to cause laughter and movies are created with the purposeful intent to cause people laughter and joy upon watching them. Laughing just feels good to the physical body and also to the soul.

Did you know that human beings are one of the only species that laugh. When we laugh, we are using the same complex muscles needed to reason and think logically. Laughing is a skill. It teaches us to be more creative and more flexible with the heavy burdens and demands of this life.

I came across the following poem referring to laughter:

Laughter Came From Every Brick

Just these two words He spoke changed my life,

“Enjoy Me.”

What a burden I thought I was to carry

– a crucifix, as did He.

Love once said to me, “I know a song,

would you like to hear it?”

And laughter came from every brick in the street

and from every pore in the sky.

After a night of prayer,

He changed my life when He sang,

“Enjoy Me.”

– from Love Poems from God, by Daniel Ladinsky

I am one of those people who love to laugh and to laugh hard when I do find something humorous. So here are some tips for us all, let’s incorporate more laughter into our lives:

Tips to help you add more laughter in your life

1. Figure out what types of things make you laugh and engage in those things more often.
2. Surround yourself with naturally funny people. Be around funny people every chance you get.
3. Begin to develop and embrace your own sense of humor.
4. Never laugh at anyone else’s expense. This is not humor, but rather teasing, insulting or being hurtful.

A friendly reminder: “All the days of the oppressed are wretched, but the cheerful heart has a continual feast.” – Proverbs 15:15  Thankful today for the gift of laughter. God is so good to give us such a beautiful gift. What makes you laugh? What brings you joy? 

Needing a good laugh today, 

~Misty~

#LOL #LaughOften #ThereIsBeautyInLaughter

 

courtesy of lovethispic

A few days ago I watched a video from a guy who encouraged Christians to tell their Starbucks barista when ordering a drink that their name is “Merry Christmas.” He encouraged this all while claiming Merry Christmas had been taken off the cups this year from they previous years. I liked the video and idea so I shared the video with a little heart. Not giving much thought to all the hype that it would cause, I have since realized that it has become national news and all the social media outlets are blowing up with people chiming in on it. I spent a little over an hour reading blogs, messages, quips and articles on this and I must admit, I still feel annoyed by it. Why did I waste my time reading through so much and why am I wasting time to write this blog post about it?

I read articles from people who work at Starbucks (on both sides of the matter) and articles from prominent Christians who claim that we Christians look like wackos because we actually take the time to care and comment about this kind of stuff. Each one of the articles I read went to great lengths to state areas where our focus as Christians really should be. Most of them addressed human suffering, human sex trafficking, the war on Christians in Iran, adoption, abortion, praying for American pastor Saeed and the list was extensive. Some of the blog posts and articles were very well written. But not one of the articles that I read actually addressed the need for our focus to be on Jesus at Christmas time. Hasn’t this been how Satan has worked since the beginning of time? Distract them with good, meaningful and noteworthy issues so that they miss the most important thing of all “Jesus.” 

If Christians spent this kind of time with Jesus rather than on all the annoying media hype, He could and would move us to do extraordinary things for His kingdom. Jesus is so worthy of all the hype. He is so worthy of our time, our reading, our writing and of our meditation. This Christmas, I will do my best to focus on Him. He alone is most worthy.

One last thought that hit me last night as I was reading through all the articles and blog posts, perhaps Christians might need to rethink this matter a bit. It doesn’t matter which side you fall on. There’s a book called the Marketing of Evil…it would be so worthy for the Christian to read. The marketing of evil has absolutely NOTHING to do with coffee cups…nothing. This is just another tool of the enemy to misguide our focus from where it should actually be at Christmas and that is on Jesus.

If you are interested in reading the book, it can be found on Amazon. Here is a description of the book taken from the Amazon site:

“Millions of Americans today accept ideas and behaviors that would have horrified all previous generations. Why? Why have thousands of years of Judeo-Christian moral standards suddenly been abandoned? What’s behind today’s divorce epidemic? Why is public prayer being criminalized? Why are 3,000 innocent unborn children aborted daily? In this widely acclaimed exposé, veteran journalist David Kupelian reveals the brilliant marketing strategies that have turned America upside down. “Within the space of our lifetime, much of what Americans once almost universally abhorred has been packaged, perfumed, gift-wrapped, and sold to us as though it had great value. By skillfully playing on our deeply felt national values of fairness, generosity, and tolerance, these marketers have persuaded us to embrace as enlightened and noble that which every other generation has regarded as grossly self-destructive―in a word, evil.”

Marketing is just one strategy of the enemy to distract us from Jesus. I am not sure about you, but this Christmas, forget everything that takes our focus off of Jesus.

Focusing My Heart, Mind and Soul this Christmas on Jesus, 

~Misty~

#AllEyesOnJesus #CelebratingJesus #JesusISTheReason

image via i heart inspiration

Book Reads and Small Reviews

Last year around this time, Candace Cameron Bure talked about reading a bunch of new books in the upcoming year, so for Christmas, I put about 14 different books in my Amazon cart and asked my hubby to buy nothing but books for me as a Christmas gift. He did. I had a goal of spending 2015 reading one book a month and I believe that I may have read more than 12 books this year and it is only the beginning of November. Here are some of the books I took the time to read.

January –  In the month of January, I read Freefall to Fly by Rebekah Lyons. I actually read this book while doing an online study led by her. At the time, the study was a promotion for her newly released book. The online study portion was through Lifeway and I really enjoyed getting to hear from her each week as I made my way through the pages. Reading Freefall to Fly gave me a breath of hope for 2015. It helped me to see that my life has meaning and that God created me to fly even if I felt like I was free-falling. I highly recommend this book for anyone who is scared to take a leap of faith, trust God and step into the unknown. God has a plan and a purpose and most certainly it is to fly rather than to fall.

February – In February I read Let’s All Be Brave by Annie Downs.  During this time, I actually found out that she was speaking in town at a local church, I immediately bought a ticket and went and saw her speak. Annie’s down to earth personality touched and inspired me like no one else ever has. I left feeling encouraged to step out in faith and begin writing on my own blog. Because of Annie’s words, I am a much braver person.

March – In March I read The Fringe Hours by Jessica N. Turner. Reading The Fringe Hours gave me permission to take time for myself and to not feel bad about doing so. Jessica opened my eyes to the need for renewal and not neglecting my hobbies like reading and running. I walked away from reading the book feeling inspired to care for myself so that I can also care for my family. Next, I read The Best Yes by Lysa Terkeurst. This book opened my eyes to a deep problem I have. That is saying yes too much. I realized I am overwhelmed and overbooked because I never say NO. Reading The Best Yes showed me how to  make decisions that are the best for me and my family. Finally, I finished the month off by beginning to read Chasing God by Angie Smith. I still need to finish reading this book and plan to do so in December.

April – I loved reading and doing the Seamless study by Angie Smith. It was a beautiful overview of the entire Bible. Going through The Old and New Testaments in a cohesive study really sharpened my understanding of Biblical context and history.

May – In May I began reading Sacred Parenting by Gary L. Thomas and Wherever the River Runs by Kelly Minter. I got lots out of both books and hope to finish reading Wherever the River Runs in December. Sacred Parenting helped me to realize the importance of my calling as a parent. It is important to raise my children up with a Biblical worldview. It is also important to raise them up to have their own personal relationship with Jesus. Not one based on my relationship with the Lord. Wherever the River Runs was a beautiful read for those who are missionary minded. I actually stopped reading this book halfway through the book because a friend of mine was going on a missions trip over the summer and I felt that she needed to read the book immediately. She ended up loving the book and told me to make sure I finish reading it.

June – In June I did a study with my family called 24 Family Ways by Sally Clarkson. I loved this book and learned so much about raising my children up to be godly individuals. I also gleaned so many ideas for how to be a cohesive family. I started reading and journaling from the book 50 Reasons Jesus Came to Die by John Piper. This book was deep and theological. It taught me so much and opened my eyes to Biblical nuggets of truth. Finally, in June, I reread the book Restless by Jennie Allen.

July – During the month of July, I read Brave Girl Boots by Tami Walker. This 40 day devotional really helped me to revisit the act of being brave.  I started reading It’s Good To Be Queen by Liz Curtis Higgs and almost finished the book. However, I plan to finish reading it in December. I learned things about Queen of Sheba and King Solomon that I never knew. Both books inspired me to make stepping out in faith a daily practice.

August – In August my family and I went to Pine Cove Family Camp and I picked up the book Live For What Outlives You by Bill McKenzie. Bill is the founder of Pine Cove Christian Camp. The book was so good that I read it twice. The message of the book inspired me to not just live in the now but to live for what will out live me. I also read the Armor of God by Priscilla Shirer. It is a new study by Lifeway on the Armor of God. I enjoyed reading the electronic version of this study. One More Step by Rachel Wojo was given to me at She Speaks Conference and I began reading Rachel’s book but did not finish it. I plan to also finish this book in December.

September – During the month of September I read For the Love by Jen Hatmaker. I actually read the book twice. Yes, the book was that good. I highly recommend this book. I started and almost finished reading Taming the To Do List by Glynis Whitwer. This book taught me so much about controlling my to-do list. Also, a message of learning what to say yes and no to was interwoven throughout the entire book. I have a couple more chapters of this book to finish reading as well.

October – During October I read Simply Tuesday by Emily P. Freeman for the (In)Courage Bloom Book Club. I loved this book. Emily inspired me to see the gift of ordinary. She also taught me that our souls are not meant for fame. I needed to read this book and reading it came right at the perfect time for my soul. I am still finishing up the last few pages of the book but am encouraged to finish well.

November – I am currently reading Unglued by Lysa Terkeurst. So far I have loved the book as it has helped me to understand the importance of not allowing my emotions to cause me to literally come unglued.

December will be spent finishing up books that I started and didn’t finish reading all the way to the very last page. I am not sure why, but for some reason or another, I must of gotten side tracked because several of the books listed above, I dropped off reading and didn’t finish the last several chapters of the book. I may have felt in a rush to complete and start the next book but this is a very bad habit to get into. It causes a disconnect with the text. I want to go back and finish completely reading Simply Tuesday, Taming the To-Do List, It’s Good To Be Queen, 50 Reason’s Jesus Came to Die, Wherever the River Runs, Chasing God and One More Step.

Daily Devotionals – Some of the Daily Devotionals that I have read all year long are If:Eqip by Jennie Allen and friends, Our Daily Bread, Choosing  Joy by Angela Thomas, Savor by Shauna Niequist, The Bible and Ann Voskamp’s Only the Good Stuff Multivitamins for Your Weekend.  

On The Nightstand – I have several books on the nightstand to be read in the upcoming few months. Some of those books are Hoodwinked by Karen Ehman and Ruth Schwenk, Twelve Unlikely Heroes by John MacArthur, Surrender Your Junior God Badge and The Mentoring Mom, 11 Ways To Model Christ For Your Child both by Jackie Kendall. I have further hopes of reading Stronger by Angela Thomas and The Sacred Year by Michael YanKoski. Another book that caught my eye this year was Through the Eyes of a Lion by Levi Lusko.

God really opened my eyes to several themes throughout this year. One theme that I saw in each book I read was the need to be brave and step out in faith. Trusting that God has always had and will always have my best interest in mind. I also saw the theme of learning to manage my time, resources and to focus on that which the Lord has put before me in a better and more effective way.

All of the above mentioned books are only the adult reading that I have participated in during 2015, not to mention all the books I have also read aloud to my children. I am currently in the middle of reading The Little House on the Prairie series with my middle child. We are on book four entitled On The Banks of Plum Creek. I enjoy reading to my children and will continue to do so for as long as I can.

No Regrets – Whoever regrets reading? No one! In fact, after someone has usually finished reading a good book, they feel elated about their accomplishment and are eager to read more. I am so glad that I took the time and spent my free minutes reading as much as I did over this year. I am truly encouraged and inspired to spend 2016 reading even more. Life is all about learning and growing and reading helps one to develop and grow minute by minute, hour by hour, day by day, week by week, month by month and year by year. Now, my goal is to always finish the books that I start within a reasonable time frame. Not months later.

~Misty~

#AlwaysReading

 

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I recently read Jen Hatmaker’s book For the Love and one of the chapters in her book was a letter written to her children. After reading Jen’s letter and tears were everywhere, I was truly inspired to write a letter to my own children. What better way to tell your children how much you love them and are blessed by them, then to write a beautiful letter spelled out, raw with words written just for them. I plan to write a couple more of these before they have fully grown up and moved out of the house. So here it goes……My first love letter to them because I don’t always get a chance to tell them how much they mean to me.

Dear Keith Kiddos, 

As I write this letter to you, you are 6, 8 and 10 years old, and soon to be 6, 9 and 11 years old. We have two birthdays coming up in the next few days and months. With each passing year, we realize that time is ticking away and our days of influence over you are reducing. As I write this letter to you, Rea has 2363 days, Ky has 3094 days and Karis has 4189 days until graduation. This may seem like lots of days right now, but time goes by fast. Nevertheless, it is never too late to let you know what you mean to your Dad and I. 

You see, I know that we tell you often how much we love you, but you just don’t fully get it yet. We love you so incredibly much!!! Our love and affections for you will never wind down or grow old. They are new each passing minute and our demonstration of love for you is a constant reminder of how much you mean to us. We truly are blessed to be your parents. 

Our love for you is demonstrated most in the ways we sacrifice for you. We know that you didn’t ask to be brought into this world or that you really had no say in coming, but a parent’s sacrificial love for their child is a beautiful demonstration and parallelism of Christ’s love and sacrifice for His people. He is/was such a beautiful example and it is our prayer that throughout your lifetime, we can exhibit and display to you, that which Jesus already modeled for us all, as the greatest sacrifice to humankind. Himself. Hopefully when our days of raising you have come to a close, you will know that we loved you and gave of ourselves immensely.  

W – We have huge dreams for you. Know that Daddy and I would forfeit any of our own hopes and aspirations to make your dreams a reality. We see in each of you a tremendous gifting that can only be handed down by a loving and generous Creator. We know that Father God has big plans for your life and those plans will be carried out in your everyday ordinary life of being uniquely you. Nobody else comes even remotely close to your style, personality, heart and uniqueness. (Jeremiah 29:11)

E – Embrace change. Time changes, people change, circumstances change and life is forever changing. One thing you need to always remember though, is that in the midst of so much change, God never changes. He is the same yesterday, today and forever. (Hebrews 13:8)

 

L – Love others knowing how much you, yourselves, are loved. Love is the greatest gift given. Let Christ’s love for you and for others be an example of how to love and accept others. Always remember “Agape.” It is the highest form of love and it should always be your example in how to love each other and those whom Christ has allowed in your sphere of influence. 

O – Our hope is that you will always be true to who God made you to be. In a culture that has so many different sources and examples, it is easy to want to be like someone or something else. Know that it is okay and that it delights God’s heart for you to be who He made you to be. Always remember that He is the Grandest Artist of all time, the most creative and He knew what He was doing when He made you.

V – Voice and speak up for those who have no say or who have not found their voice just yet. You were blessed to be born into freedom. We hope that we have been an example of one who is fair and who remembers those less fortunate then we are. Remember that everyone needs an advocate. Stick up for the under dog, the lost, the bullied, the forgotten. 

E – Esteem others more highly then yourself. In a world of self-centeredness it is super easy to get caught up in focusing on you. Christ walked around denying Himself and praying for others. There is no room for our own egos and our own pride, or being all puffed up.  

 

Y – You’re noticed. Even when you think no one else is watching. God is always watching you. You would be surprised at who else sees you as well. Keep this in mind and don’t be deceived into believing that what you say or do does not matter. It does, so live with no regrets. 

O – Our goal is to have modeled adequately for you the Fruits of the Spirit. Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness and Self-Control. I know that we have not been perfect at all the fruits, but we hope that we have taught you what they mean and how to go about demonstrating them.  

U – Understand grace and mercy. It helps you to develop eyes for seeing pain and for loving others right where they are. Know that if you develop this quality early on in life, God will use your imperfections for His glory. He is great at taking the broken and making them whole again. Don’t be afraid to learn life lessons early on in your life. They are needed later in adulthood. 

! – The exclamation point stands for and represents our showing excitement for you. We are excited to see where God will take you throughout your lifetime and where He has you right now. Love Jesus and love others, these are the two greatest commandments. Know that it is okay to be a Jesus Freak! Even when no else seems to be excited for Jesus, you can be. 

 

We hope that someday you will also know the love a parent has for their child as you yourselves become parents. It is our prayer that we led by example and that you fully saw love spelled out for you.

As your Mamma, I hope to look back on the family years someday. I just know that we will be privileged to say that we had a blast raising you. You have brought us so much joy and our hearts are forever full from getting to be your Mommy and Daddy. We love you to the moon and back!!!!!

~Love Mom~ 

#TheLoveOfAParent #WeLoveYou!

It’s a wrap! Thank you so much, readers. This series on Discovering True Beauty has been encouraging for me to write. It has also helped discipline me in areas that I needed, areas like today’s topic, that being beautiful  also entails having a grateful heart. It is my prayer that this mini-series has encouraged and blessed you as you have read and followed along. I would love to hear your thoughts on this series. If there is anything that has stood out to you over the past month, could you send me a message and let me know? Or could you respond to this last post in the comment section? You feedback is much appreciated.

image via daily good

Gratitude

Being grateful is one of the most beautiful qualities a person can have. Have you ever spent any time around someone who is thankful for everything? Their positive outlook cheers you up, encourages you, helps you feel secure and allows you to be in the presence of pure joy. Without even knowing it, you become happy yourself or at least you begin to recognize your happiness within more than you normally do.

Colossians 3:16 says “Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts.” I love this particular verse. It is impact full of wisdom but it also gives the directive to sing to God with gratitude in your heart. The verse right before the above mentioned verse says, “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.” ~Colossians 3:15~ Within these two verses we see the words gratitude and thankful. We are reminded of the importance of being grateful.

Gratitude is one of those areas that has changed my life. Instead of always looking for what I can obtain next, I have learned to be content with what I have already been given. My outlook on life has went from being negative and always searching to noticing what is in front of me and being happy with what I have. I have also found it extremely important to teach this to my own children early on in their lives. The longer you have gratitude, the longer you live a happier and healthier life.

The heart reflects the beauty that lies within it. Gratitude helps others to see the true beauty that is reflected from within the heart.

Ways to be Grateful or Show Your Gratitude

1. Write and send personal hand-written thank-you notes. This has become a novelty due to the advancement of technology.

2. Wake up and write about or journal three things you are grateful for each day.

3. Take gratitude walks where you look around you, notice and voice the things you are most grateful for.

4. Tell people immediately when you are thankful for them. This is encouraging to people and gives them a reason to keep on doing what they are doing. Keep in mind that people do not remember what you know, they remember how you made them feel.

5. Teach your children and those around you about gratitude by modeling it everywhere you go. If you are constantly positive, grateful and respectful to those around you, then chance are, others will be also.

Forever Grateful

~Misty~

#write31days #31DaysToDiscoveringTrueBeauty #TheBeautyOfAGratefulHeart

Welcome! Each day during the month of October I am writing on the topic of discovering true beauty. Please join in with me on this journey. Also, please feel free to share these posts during the month of October with family and friends on the many social media outlets. I appreciate you taking the time to do so.

Happiness is Found in the Small Things

A couple years ago I started counting the small things, one at a time, they all began to add up. I realized then that I was/am rich with lots of small blessings. Really, all that I had to do to discover my abundant supply of wealth, was to look around me. I wish I would have known this long ago. I guess it just takes a level of maturity to realize how truly blessed you are and to see the beauty of the many small blessing you truly do have.

Naturally, we want to focus on the big events in our lives, keeping our eyes focused on the hopes of something big to happen upon us. If we don’t have anything big getting ready to happen in our life then we start to think and believe our value and worth are less than important and we then begin to feel insignificant. Insignificance then leads to depression and depression to discontentment in life. This is a sour way to live life. There is no joy, no happiness to be found when one is always looking for something great and big to happen.

It is important to keep the following in mind – “For most of life, nothing wonderful happens. If you don’t enjoy getting up and working and finishing your work and sitting down to a meal with family or friends, then the chances are that you’re not going to be very happy. If someone bases his happiness or unhappiness on major events like a great new job, huge amounts of money, a flawlessly happy marriage, or a trip to Paris, that person isn’t going to be happy much of the time. If, on the other hand, happiness depends on a good breakfast, flowers in the yard, a drink or a nap, then we are more likely to live with quite a bit of happiness.”  ~Andy Rooney~

The Beauty of Happiness

Have you ever seen or met someone who is always happy? You can’t help but to think that person is beautiful. There soul radiates joy and you naturally want to be around them. They are like a magnet and you become attracted to them naturally. Happiness has a way of doing this to people. A person with the quality of happiness, makes life fun.

Let us desire to be happy. Let us set out to make others happy through the joy we exuberate. Let us see the beauty in the small things, in doing so, true happiness is found. Why wait all of your life for true happiness when you can be happy now?

~Misty~

#write31days #31DaysToDiscoveringTrueBeauty #TheBeautyOfHappiness

Welcome! Each day during the month of October I am writing on the topic of discovering true beauty. Please join in with me on this journey. Also, please feel free to share these posts during the month of October with family and friends on the many social media outlets. I appreciate you taking the time to do so.

I saw a picture earlier today with Charlie Brown carrying Snoopy on his back. The quote in the photo said, “In life, it’s not where you go – it’s who goes with you.” Boy isn’t that a beautiful nugget of truth? The photo was so inspiring to me as I thought about the quality of being a friend. In order to have friends, one must first be friendly. I have taught this motto to children for years, first in my classroom as a teacher and now as a parent to my own children.

Proverbs 27:9 says “A sweet friendship refreshes the soul.” David and Jonathan thought that friendship was so important that they swore it to one another. Job talked about having intimate friendship with the Lord and God warned us that we were not to have friendship with the world but to have friendship with Him and we are to be friendly towards others.

Life is not meant to be lived alone. We need other people in our life or we become extremely depressed and lonely. Friendliness towards another is one of the most beautiful gifts that we can give to a person. In fact, God uses friendly people to carry out so many of His plans and purposes. I am not sure about you, but I desire to be used by God. If He can use me to make another person’s life more beautiful by bringing companionship in it, then I am all for it.

Tonight I get to meet up with some new friends that I met about a month ago. I am so looking forward to getting together and sharing our hearts around the topic of things that we are individually working on. In today’s busy economy, friends very rarely make time to speak to each other let alone meet together face-to-face. Let us not forsake taking time out to meet together and be friendly towards one another. In doing so, we let others know that they matter, what they do matters and that God loves them immensely.

Being Friendly in Order to Bless Others, 

~Misty~

#write31days # 31DaystoDiscoveringTrueBeauty #SweetFriendshipBlessestheSoul