Sunrise Reflections

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As I lay here in bed, looking out my window as the sun rises, I am overcome with gratefulness. I’m sure this seems like a bit of an odd statement, given our current state of affairs, but gratefulness is the message today and everyday!

Not every season of life can be without hardships, but we tend to take everyday gifts for granted. It’s true that we open two gifts every day; our eyes! Life. The simple act of waking in the morning is often overlooked. I am always overwhelmed with gratitude for opening my eyes to see another day. I know sometimes we feel so negatively and can get so down that we grow apathetic towards life; we are so depressed that maybe we don’t care if we wake up or not. I hope anyone reading this today does not feel like way, but the sad reality is that most likely someone does. I have felt that deep despair, and it’s not a place in your mind where you want to set up camp! With so much craziness going on in the world each day, it’s easy to get lost in depression and anxiety. The unknown tends to strike fear in the hearts of many, but will our depression and anxiety halt the happenings of tomorrow or even today? No.

One thing I have concluded about my own anxiety, after many years of dealing with it, is that the lack of control in a situation can really be a trigger. I will constantly obsess and worry about things that haven’t even happened yet and may not ever happen! I think my mind is under the impression that if I worry enough about today or tomorrow or next week or even next month or year, that it’ll somehow keep things from occuring. Maybe if I worry so much over something, I may be more aware of what’s going on and avoid potential disaster. I suppose that could happen, but you know what else could? I could also worry and stress so much about something that I create new problems that may have never even transpired otherwise! Isn’t that something? We worry so much and try to control a particular situation, that we create a whole new problem that would have never happened without our trying to play God, and even worse, the original problem that we were worried about initially, may never have happened to begin with! Mind-blowing I know!

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There will always, always be something to worry about but there will always, always be something to be grateful about. I know many people are social distancing and isolated from most people, and that could bring on some unwanted emotions, but what if it was a good thing? I’m not meaning this virus is a good thing, but what if time away from the rest of the world was a good thing? What if instead of complaining about all you can’t do, you smile and accept all the gifts God has given you each day, that you may overlook in your normal routine? Open your eyes today to the beauty of God’s creation. Silence your cell phone. Turn off your notifications. Don’t turn on the news, it’ll still be there tomorrow, trust me. Watch the sun rise or even set. Make yourself a hot cup or coffee or tea. Sit in silence (if your kids aren’t awake yet 😜). Go out into your yard and soak up some rays. Watch nature happen all around you. Despite present world problems, the trees are still blooming, the birds are still chirping and hunting worms,

the bees are still buzzing around the flowers, the sun is still shining, the wind is still blowing, the rain is still falling and the world is still turning. We are alive today and in this moment, so please don’t take the gift of life for granted today or any day. Find happiness in the midst of chaos. Try not to let the media overwhelm you with negativity, it’ll be sure to set the tone for your day. Know that although bad things happen in this world each and every day, we still have a God above us that is for us and never against us. He wants to see us thrive. He wants us to come to Him with our worries and fears, so that He can give us the strength and courage to overcome life’s obstacles. We are meant for so much more than we realize and maybe we can wake up and see that we can do so much better than what we have been doing.

Dear God,

I pray that today and every day You give us the gift of seeing the world through Your eyes. Help us discover that there is more than the negative perspective. Let us take this virus seriously, but at the same time don’t let the panic and fear the media creates consume us. Make us aware that these types of things are always out there, some of which kill more people than this virus each year, but that our worry will not stop it from happening. Let us put our trust in You and find comfort in knowing that You are already helping us and guiding us through this season of life. I lift up those reading who are stuck in darkness, may they find their light in You! Thank you for all of us waking up to another beautiful day and may we be grateful today and every day. Amen!

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One more thing I would like to say about this virus. Remember that a Coronavirus isn’t new; it’s been around for years. This strain, however is new, but the flu has different strains as well. We have encountered different flu strains that we haven’t seen before, which also were deadly for many, but we never acted the way we are currently. The media will always report the negative side of things. They will always make sure you hear how many people have died from any illness, but they tend to leave out how many have survived. They also leave out little details like age and health issues etc. Positivity doesn’t gather ratings. I am in no way trying to downplay how serious this virus can be for some of us, but know that this virus was causing issues before the news ever reported it. No one was in a panic then because people weren’t aware of the virus and it’s name, they were only aware that they weren’t feeling good at all and doctors were telling them was they had upper respiratory issues or infections, or it’s viral so it has to run it’s course, when really they may have had this virus but they just weren’t aware of it because the media wasn’t sending people into a panic over it yet. You will only ever find out about something when it can be hidden no longer. I’m reminded of the Flint, Michigan water situation. Those poor people, adults and children, were basically being poisoned (knowingly) yet it only came out because so many people were being effected by it, they could no longer hide it! Look at how long it was happening before anyone bothered to make those residents aware! We need to wake up and see that we are never given the truth and if we are we only get bits and pieces. I just want everyone to breathe a little easier. I want you to know that although this virus should be taken seriously, all illnesses that you can spread should be too! Washing your hands should be a very common practice as well as staying home when you are sick! I understand some will still have to work, but don’t take your kid to Chuck E Cheese when they’re sneezing/coughing and nose is running everywhere. Don’t send your kid to school to get everyone else sick. Don’t go around pregnant people or elderly when you’re sick too! As a matter of fact, not just when you’re not feeling well but when anyone in your family hasn’t been feeling well, because as I tell everyone, you can always be a carrier even if you feel fine! Say one of my kids were sick but I never got sick and felt fine, I can still carry it on to someone else. Give it time before running around everywhere. Again, I fully understand that some places you have to go and sometimes there isn’t anyone to watch your child if you go alone, but there is almost always something you can do to help prevent spreading any kind of germs. Our bodies are also made to help us fight off illnesses. Our bodies can build up a natural immunity to things as well. Please research any vaccine they roll out because it will not have been tested enough and although it may help you not feel like crap, it’ll leave even more crap in your body that your body will never rid of. All I’m saying is read, read, read. Most vaccines won’t prevent you from getting whatever it is for, it MAY lessen the symptoms or severity, but only on certain strains and no one ever knows which strain they will get. Just please don’t panic. Don’t be anxious. Stress and worry can only make the situation worse. So as hard as it is for some of us, try your best not to. We will be great! ❤️

Much Love and God Bless!

Selah Grace Update Continued

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I figured I would just include a screenshot of my post on another social media page for today. ❤️

If anyone is interested in donating to Selah’s Recovery Fund, below is the link to her page! Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thank you in advance! 🙌🙏❤️

https://www.gofundme.com/f/selahswarriors?utm_source=customer&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_campaign=p_cp+share-sheet

Update On Selah Grace

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Above is an update from Selah’s Dad.

Selah did great during surgery and is now in the recovery phase. The doctors are amazed at how well she is doing and how great her stats already are! GOD IS GOOD! Thank you all for the prayers for Selah Grace, and please continue to pray for her and the family! ❤️🙌🙏🎉

A Prayer For Selah Grace

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My baby cousin, Little Miss Selah Grace, has just been taken back to the OR for open heart surgery. Join me in prayer…
Heavenly Father, we come together in prayer this morning, to lift up Selah Grace. We know she has several heart issues Lord, but we also know You are The Great Physician! We pray that You would watch over the entire team in the room with Selah; we pray you guide the hands of her surgeon. Lord, we also pray that You continue giving Selah Your strength, the strength only You are able to give. We know she is very strong, but with You on her side, she’s even stronger! Thank you for watching over her since she was born 18 days ago and we trust You will continue watching over her. Only You know what is best for Selah; what she needs and when she needs it. We trust this is You intervening with the moving up of her surgery. May Selah Grace have a wonderful surgery and an even better recovery so that she can finally go home with her brothers and mom and dad and that they can all hold her and love on her ❤️ I pray for the entire family and most importantly Selah’s mother and father as they wait during surgery. Let Your comfort and peace be over them. Just as David went up against Goliath without physical armor, so Selah goes against her giant, both having You as their armor, strength and courage and we have faith that Selah Grace will be victorious! We pray this all in YOUR name, AMEN!❤️🙌🙏💪

Little Miss Selah Grace

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Hi everyone! This is my baby cousin (my cousin Kayla’s baby girl). Her name is Selah Grace and she was born on October 5th, 2019. She has always looked so great since birth, one would never know she was born with a few complicated heart issues. She has some leaky valves, among other things, but the main concern now is getting the leaks fixed. She was set for surgery this Thursday the 24th which is actually her mother’s birthday, however her surgery has been moved up to tomorrow Oct 23rd at 8:15am. She has been able to do things that most of the little patients in her position don’t normally do, so needless to say she is a very strong little girl! She was born a fighter and God has given her the strength every step of the way and we believe He will continue to do so! We believe very much in the power of prayer and I am asking all of you to please keep my precious cousin in your prayers! Please pray God will guide the hands of the surgeons tomorrow and pray for His comfort and peace to be over the family during the waiting period. They said it could be a shorter surgery or it could go up to 8 hours! Please pray for Selah to come out of surgery with wonderful improvement and be on her road to going home with her family! Let’s pray that Momma gets to hold her baby girl very soon, as she hasn’t been able to because of all the pesky tubes! This baby girl is already such a symbol of strength and I have faith that she will do wonderfully in surgery and after! Please remember Selah Grace today, tomorrow (especially during surgery time) and every day after! God bless you Selah Grace! We love you baby girl!❤️🙏💪 Please feel free to comment on this post your well wishes for the family! Let them know you’ll be praying!

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Reaction or Response

As I sat here in my semi-cleaned kitchen, chomping on baby carrots (straight from the bag because I like to live my life on the edge) and sipping my sparkling water, I came across a thought-provoking post on a social media outlet. The question posed to the readers was, do you mindlessly react to situations or do you thoughtfully respond? A rather deep question, it would seem, for a person in my current state who was just asking herself the equally deep question, “…should I get some ranch to dip these carrots in?” In all seriousness, this question did beckon a response from myself. I felt the response I gave wasn’t all too shabby, so it sparked the decision to blog! Here was my response,

“I would agree, reacting can be this reflex action sometimes, but I try to be more mindful. As you said, some days we will be more successful with responding than others, but at least we are making the effort to self-correct! In certain circumstances, reacting can be momentarily gratifying but that is always short-lived. It goes back to the old saying, ” Two wrongs don’t make a right.” I try to reflect what I want seen in the world. Although our mind may tell us, “react, they NEED to see my reaction!” I think simply responding speaks volumes. Our mindset can change many things in our lives, and the beauty is, it can always be reset! ❤ “

I would like to elaborate more on my response.

Certain times throughout our days, people may disrespect us or try to provoke us and if you’re like me, your mind tells you REACT REACT REACT. We can’t fathom sometimes the act of just thinking before reacting. Instead of taking a breath and contemplating a more intelligent and graceful response, we want to show we can go toe-to-toe with this person and possibly one up their actions. We don’t believe we should be disrespected, so we think we will teach the other person a lesson by beating them at their own game. While I’ll agree that I don’t usually extend respect to someone who isn’t extending it to me, we can most certainly stop and think of a better way to respond. I’m often hearing a voice in my head reminding me, ” …quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to anger…” which comes from James 1:19-20.

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Sometimes, this appears as a weakness in the eyes of others. They believe if we don’t meet a negative with another negative, that we don’t have any self-respect and we allow people to walk all over us. Not true! There is a healthy balance where you can respectfully be assertive while thoughtfully responding to what has just been done or said. As I mentioned in my response, there can be a momentary sense of gratification after “putting someone in their place” and trust me, I KNOW some people seem to need that reaction or don’t seem to be receptive to anything unless you do choose to react, but those same people also get gratification out of provoking you; when they see you react they know they have the ability to control your emotions. Although they may be somewhat offended by you putting them in their place, they still feel pride that they were able to disrupt your inner peace and joy. Those individuals will love knowing that although they may not have gotten what they set out to get, they still caused you to react which will likely spill over into the rest of your day and onto others you come in contact with. I don’t know about you, but it doesn’t seem worth it. It’s also worth noting that these individuals are prepared to meet reaction with reaction, so a thoughtful response rather than a mindless reaction can truly throw a monkey wrench into their plans and really throw them off their game.

Some people we encounter may not even intentionally set out to provoke a reaction from us, so once their mindless reaction is met with a thoughtful response, this serves as a wake up call and reminds them that grace is better than retaliation. This could also serve as a reminder to believers that we are to be a reflection of God to others, and extend the grace He freely give us to others as well. To reiterate, you will be more successful some day than others, but the important fact is that you are acknowledging and putting forth the effort for self-correction. It will not happen over night, or even all at once, but over time you will see that the little corrections here and there will retrain your mind. I am in no way telling you not to stand up for yourself, but choose a wise way of doing so. There are usually always those extenuating circumstances, but normally those aren’t occurring on the daily.

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I loved what I had to say at the very end of my response and I think God gave me those words in that moment! “Our mindset can change many things in our lives, and the beauty is, it can always be reset!” We like to believe that we don’t have the power to retrain our minds, but this is simply false. I can tell you that from personal experience with extreme anxiety, panic attacks, depression and more, that I truly have felt with all my being that “I cannot come back from this. I am too far gone.” Something I want everyone out there reading is to know you are NEVER too far gone! You can always come back to center and reset. Trust me, anyone who would have witnessed how bad things got for me, would have said there is no way to recover from this and certainly not without being heavily medicated. While I am in no way condemning getting help in the form of medication, what I am saying is you CAN get back! God allowed me to get so lost that once I was able to find my way back, I knew how to help myself and more importantly, how to help others! I found understanding and purpose! So, if you’re someone who feels that you cannot retrain your mind to be more positive, that it’s impossible for you, hear me tell you IT IS ABSOLUTELY POSSIBLE and if you truly desire to, YOU CAN DO IT! Self-correcting once a month, once a week, or once a day is all equally productive! It starts off small and over time will multiply and before you realize it, you are thoughtfully responding rather than mindlessly reacting! It takes no effort what-so-ever to impulsively react, but it takes true strength and character to be mindful of how you will respond.

Much Love and God Bless XO

Armor of God Series: Sword of the Spirit & Helmet of Salvation

In Ephesians 6:17 (as seen above) you’ll notice the helmet is listed before the sword, but in this post I am going to touch on the Sword of the Spirit first. I hope everyone reading has not only found this series interesting but informative as well. My hope is that everyone take these words to heart and apply them to their own lives.

The Sword of the Spirit is a weapon belonging to the Holy Spirit. Not unlike in battle where a sword is used to protect ourselves, His Word is our protection against the enemies attacks; our sword. Whether in battle years ago or in our spiritual battle, in order to wield the sword properly we must first learn how to use it; we must go through training in order to receive it’s full benefits. All Christians need proper training to understand the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God; the Holy Scriptures.

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The Word of God (The Bible) is from The Holy Spirit and written by men. Only when understood and used properly, can the Word of God or Sword of the Spirit be effectively used as protection against evil.

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Hebrews describes the Word of God as a sword, and not just any sword but sharper than any double edged sword. Double edged swords are known to be easier to penetrate and cut in every way and in telling us that His Word is sharper, it is giving us the knowledge that His Word penetrates our hearts and gets to our very core where it reveals our true motives and feelings.

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The purpose of the Sword is to give us strength and allow us to withstand the evil attacks of the enemy. The Holy Spirit uses the power of God’s Word to not only save souls, but also to give us strength to become mature soldiers of Christ so that we may fight against the corrupt world we live in. The more we familiarize ourselves with His Word, the more useful we will become in carrying out His Will and the more effectively we can stand against the enemy.

Helmet Of Salvation

I saved the Helmet of Salvation for last because, quite simply, when putting on armor it would be the last piece to go on. When suiting up, our helmet would go on last, signifying our final act of readiness. In battle, the helmet is vital for survival as it protects the brain. If a soldier’s head becomes injured, the rest of the armor then becomes impractical.

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Our defense against the enemy is our assurance of salvation. In preparation, we must secure our Helmet of Salvation. The salvation which God gifts us is on-going; an eternal state which we can enjoy daily protection and deliverance from both Satan’s schemes and our sins.

The power of the cross cancels out the hold the enemy has on us. Satan is aware of this, but he also knows that not all of us are aware of that fact or that most of us don’t live as if we are aware. It is imperative that we learn to keep our helmet secure so that the enemy doesn’t enter into our minds. If we allow him into our thoughts, he will gain control of us. We can never fight against attacks if we are already defeated in our minds.

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Through the Helmet of Salvation we destroy every obstacle that hinders us from knowing God. There are steps we can take to ensure that our helmet stays securely fastened and functional. We can renew our minds for starters. Our minds are our battlefields and the outcome of our battles determines the course of our lives.

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We must allow truth to erase all of our old ideas, opinions or world views and replace them with what we know to be right through His Word. Allow that truth to wash away the filth of this world, all of it’s lies and confusion from our minds, so that we may see how God sees. We can also reject doubts caused by our circumstances. Humans are emotional creatures by nature. We are sensitive and we tend to ignore anything we cannot come to comprehend through our senses. If we allow our situations to dictate our thoughts, they will likely convince us that God doesn’t love us and that His Word isn’t true. Where there is doubt, there is no faith and where there is faith, there is no doubt. You cannot have both at once. Through our faith, we choose to believe the appearance of the impossible.

Another thing we can do is, when life doesn’t seem to be going our way, we can look to Him and keep an eternal perspective. Salvation is the most priceless and precious gift we have received and remembering that can help us get through any of life’s storms. We would do well to remember that victory has already been attained.

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In knowing that we are dead to sin and alive in Christ, we rid Satan of his trap and opportunities. We cut off failure.

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We can find hope in Him. The Helmet of Salvation is most effective when we value what it represents. We have to treasure it more than any other earthly possession; it just not be regarded as such. We can phase out our enemy by making God our focus. Wearing out helmet daily allows us to guard and protect our minds from any tricks the devil tries to play on us. It will help us guard our minds from excessive worldly influence, allowing us to think of things which bring honor to God. The Helmet of Salvation protects our hearts as well as our minds.

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Don’t let this be the end of your Armor of God Series. I hope I can encourage you all to dive into His Word and study yourself. I have been a Christian for my whole life, being born again at the age of 9. Although I was baptized at an earlier age (a couple years prior) when I reached 9 years old I felt like I truly understood the gift of being born again and wanted to make it known publicly by another baptism. Not necessary, but symbolic. I’m almost to 31 years of age and I can assure you that the more I study God’s Word, the more things I see that I never did before. Imagine how many times I have heard some of these passages in my life and yet, each time (like us daily, through Him) they become brand new. What I am saying is, no matter what stage you are at in your faith/beliefs, you can always uncover something you haven’t before.

God, I pray over everyone who has taken this series journey with me, that they read my words and see You in them. I pray that they understand You more and what You have done for them and what You are willing to do for them. I pray every knows it is never too late to come to You and there is never a point in life where they are “too far gone”, they can always come home. Thank you for using me to reach so many and I pray that You continue to use me. I lift up everyone reading who is struggling or has things going on in their life causing them distress, may you comfort them, guide them and heal them. Thank You for the gift of Salvation through Your Son Jesus Christ. In Your name I pray. Amen.

One more thing.

I know I spoke a bit about being baptized, but I want to stress that you can become born again without baptism. If you accept Jesus in your heart, regardless of baptism, you are still saved. You still have a place in Heaven. Don’t think that because you haven’t been baptized or can’t for some reason that you aren’t truly saved. Baptism is a nice public show of being born again and if you are able you definitely should have that celebration, but know that it is not essential for becoming new. Anyone out there reading, from right where you’re sitting, can pray to God admitting that you are a sinner and have sinned, that you believe God is the one and only God and sent His son Jesus to die for our sins on the cross and confess that Jesus is Lord of your life and you commit your life to following His Word and you will be saved. Ask Jesus to come into your heart and you will receive the gift of salvation. That’s easily. We as Christians must commit to turning away from our old way of living, our old ways of thinking and embrace truth through His Word.

Since starting this blog and sharing His Word with others, I have felt a renewed sense of faith. I have always had what I feel to be a strong faith, but feel closer to God as I study His Word more and more. I want to publicly rededicate my life to Him today, right here on my blog. I want to become stronger if my faith and to continue seeking God in all that I do in life. I want to do more. I want to renew my heart and mind and reprogram it with the knowledge I have always had but may have not always put into practice. I don’t want to just simply be saved, I want to help save others and live my life in a way that bring honor to God. I want my faith in Him to be so evident that people who don’t know me know that there is something different about me! What a blessing for the end of this series. I wasn’t aware that I would end with this or feel led to do so, but how amazing it is 🙌🎉

Much love and God Bless 💓

Armor of God Series: Breastplate of Righteousness

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Continuing the Armor of God series, we move on to the Breastplate of Righteousness. In order to wear the breastplate, we must first have the Belt of Truth securely fastened. As we discussed in the previous blog, the Belt of Truth is essential to the armor as a whole; without truth, the armor becomes futile.

A breastplate was often used in battle to protect the wearer from attack by covering the vital organs. We can easily agree that if we were made to go into battle in those days, we would ALL desire to wear a breastplate! Why do we view it as a necessity when it comes to physical battle but not spiritual battle? Putting on the Breastplate of Righteousness symbolizes our desire to seek God and His righteousness. We crave for our ways to become like His! We acknowledge that apart from Him, we can do nothing and we realize that regardless of our failures, His righteousness has already been given to us. God will often reveal areas in our lives in which change may be necessary and we should always answer that call. If we refuse to answer the call, or say no to God, we leave ourselves vulnerable to Satan’s weapons.

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As God’s children, we receive the Armor of God; each piece representing His strength. God gifts us with strength directly from Him! At the cross, Jesus died not only for our sins but for us to inherit righteousness from His Father. We receive the gift of righteousness through our repentance. This gift of righteousness is designed by God to protect our heart and soul from the evilness and deception of Satan and his followers. We are called to “put on” our armor thus implying that we are not always wearing it. Wearing the armor requires us to make a decision. Do we suit up, or do we try to go it alone? Our righteousness alone is inadequate, we need Him! When we make that decision to put on the Breastplate of Righteousness, we are then deciding to put into practice what we believe. In other words, we have talked the talk but can we walk the walk! Taking up the breastplate is a lifestyle change in which we strive to be more like God, in turn making more godly choices thus protecting ourselves from further temptation and deception.

Carelessness, unbelief, abusing grace and disobedience are just a handful of factors that can and will interfere with the effectiveness of not only the breastplate, but the armor in its entirety. With the armor’s effectiveness in question, our chances of standing firm against the attacks of the enemy are drastically reduced. If we choose to rely on our personal righteousness, refusing to forgive and tolerating sin, we start to permit earthly concerns to take up residence in our lives. Once we start allowing those concerns to settle in our lives, we give them permission to consume our time, which then steals away our time for God. In the end, we remove our Breastplate of Righteousness, minimizing it’s power to protect us and eliminating the purity we receive from it.

Wearing the Breastplate of Righteousness allows us to become fair, honest, good and humble individuals who do right in God’s sight. We surrender our heart to God, relinquishing control so He may protect it from the enemy’s attacks. Will you choose to wear the breastplate, leaving your old ways behind or will you continue to try and make it on your own?

Dear God, I lift up all of my readers to you today that they may have a better understanding of the Breastplate of Righteousness and its importance. I pray we all choose to make that lifestyle change and strive to make more godly decisions in our lives. May we never forget that You are always with us and You are always willing to help us. Please allow us to recognize that You have given us the gift of righteousness through the death of Your Son. May we all remember to put on our breastplate daily! Thank You for all You do for us and may You help anyone out there who needs You today. In Your name I pray, AMEN.

Much Love and God Bless!

Armor Of God Series: The Belt Of Truth

Hi everyone! I’m overjoyed to be back and to have renewed the blog, as I mentioned in my previous post! WordPress actually informed me today that it’s my one year blog-iversary! 😂👏🙌🎉 Doesn’t seem as if it could already have been a year, yet here we are! At the same time, it feels as if I haven’t done as much as I should in one full year!! Hopefully this year I will be more present and mindful of posting.

As I stated in the last post, I will be doing a little blog series on The Armor of God! I will pick apart the different pieces of spiritual armor and analyze them to the best of my ability. I hope you will all find it an interesting subject and maybe learn something you were not aware of before. Also, I must stress this point again. I write my blogs as a Christian, believing there is one and only one God who sent His son (Jesus) to walk this Earth doing good works and performing miracles until He died for ALL of us (believers and non) on the cross! He died so that all of our sins past, present and future, would be forgiven. Now that I have reiterated that point, I am ready to suit up!

The Belt of Truth.

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Now, when we envision armor, we normally envision the more prominent pieces such as the helmet or breastplate, but what about the belt? The belt may not always be seen, but without it our armor becomes compromised. When a chain has a kink it will not work effectively or even at all, in the same way our armor cannot work effectively if our belt isn’t securely fastened or if there are missing pieces to our belt. Although the belt seems insignificant, it holds great meaning in it’s role. The belt was often used to hold the sword while going into battle. Our Sword of the Spirit cannot be carried unless we wear our belt. The belt secures all the other pieces of armor!

So, what does the Belt of Truth represent?

Truth is God’s word or The Holy Bible. Christians believe that absolute truth can be found in God’s word and that it is meant to be shared with others. Truth guides our decision making and frees us from the lies of Satan. Truth will allow us to fight the spiritual battle without being hindered. As Christians, we should hold on to what we know to be good (the truth) and discard the rest! Truth should adhere to us just as a belt would. If we don’t truly believe, what then can we accomplish?

Now some of us may still think a belt is nonessential. “If I wear all the other pieces of armor surely I’ll be safe in the spiritual battle; a belt isn’t very important anyway.” Well, we already concluded that the belt, although small is not without meaning; it actually holds all the other pieces into place and secures it. So, without the Belt of Truth (the Word of God) we become vulnerable to attacks. The world would like us to believe that truth is what man says it is; ever changing and dependent upon circumstances. The world would also have us to believe that “good” and “bad” are relative and there are no absolutes, just opinions. We know that’s not true because God is truth. The Bible is truth. God has defined “good” and “bad” and has done so without being influenced by the world or outside opinions. Absolute truth is absolutely NOT a myth!

We talked earlier about kinks in a chain and how it alters the function of the chain. It either keeps it from working effectively or keeps it from working at all. This can be compared to living a life that’s not in 100% accordance to the truth (word of God) we know. We can’t know truth and only live up to 75% or 80% or even 99%. Our trust in God and His Word (the Bible) must be solid, otherwise our armor becomes penetrable. Even if all other areas of our lives are solid and in accordance and all of our other pieces of armor are accounted for and well put together, one weak area (or kink) will compromise the entire armor and render it useless in our spiritual battles. Our sword is essential and without the Belt of Truth we have no sword. We must know what we believe and why!

Have you forgotten about your belt? Have you adopted the view point that some is better than none? How secure is your belt?

God, I pray that all who weren’t aware and even those who have heard of The Belt of Truth now have a better understanding after reading these words. I pray we all understand the significance and importance of the Belt of Truth and that we apply it to our lives. The Belt is Truth and Your Word, The Bible, is the absolute Truth. May we carry it with us always, living our lives as You have instructed us to and sharing truth with others. Thank you for allowing me to share Your truth with others so that they may follow suit. Thank you for this blog and for all those who take the time to read it, may you bless them in their lives and hear their prayers. May you help them in any area of their lives that they need help in and give them comfort and peace that exceeds all understanding. In Your name I pray, Amen!

Quickly, I’d like to ask for your prayers for my brother in law Carlos. He has some testing to go through and has to play the waiting game and many of us know the unsettled feelings that process brings! Pray for Carlos and my sister Aarin and their family as they go through this time please! There is power in prayer and I am confident God has blessings coming their way 🙌🙏 God is good ALL the time!

Much Love and God Bless💚

I’m Baaaaaccckk!

It’s great to be back on the blog! I had some issues trying to renew, but that’s all taken care of and now I am ready to get to work! 😊 It has been TOO long! To be honest, the thought of not renewing crossed my mind. Something told me, “It’s not like you have a huge following anyway.” I admit, I did let that thought linger for a short time, but I recognized it to be the words of the enemy. What more could satan want than for me to quit spreading my belief in God to others? I may not have a bunch of followers for my blog, but the number of followers I have is not the issue! When I set out to do this blog, I said all I want is to be able to at least reach ONE person. I wanted to have an impact on multiple people, but if I was told just one person out of 60 something followers was moved by any of my blogs, then it would all be worth it!

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I appreciate all of my followers on here and I apologize for even entertaining the thought of letting this blog slip out of my hands. I have so much love for you all and I truly care to share so many things with you! Even though I was unable to get on here for some time, I was brainstorming about new subject matter. I questioned some people I knew personally that read, asking them what subject would be interesting to them to learn about etc. For some reason, I have wanted to do a 3 part blog series; diving into parts of the Bible and breaking them down. I was unsure of where I would go with it, and I did get some ideas from others, but the one I think I will end up going with came out of a simple conversation I had. I think dissecting the armor of God would make for an interesting read. I would love to know what all of you think about the idea! Also, if any of you have an ideas of topics for me to discuss or personal experiences for me to share, feel free to ask questions or leave comments/suggestions! Feedback is always appreciated and insightful! I’m so overjoyed to be back to my blog space!!!! Sending tons of love to all of you beautiful people!! 💚

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Much love and God bless!