God Never Leaves

So I was actually about to start writing about a completely new topic when I felt a tug at my heart to write on this topic instead; it was not even a topic I was thinking about writing about, but when God gives you something you run with it. So here I am reflecting on the past 23 years of my life and how God has played such a radical part in those years. Throughout everything I have put God through, He still has never left. Even in the moments of me blaming my struggles on Him the most, He still embraced me every time with open arms when I returned. It blows my mind that He deserves so much better than me, but stays anyways. Something I believe everyone is guilty of is asking God why and accusing God of leaving us in the darkness; the funny thing is, God never leaves, we do. I believe that so often we have a problem with getting comfortable where we are and then doing our own thing from there. Our own thing may not even be anything bad, but we fail to continue on our path with God and ultimately leave Him behind as we "progress". As human beings we are too stubborn to see our own faults because in our eyes they were the best for us; this leads us to then blame God for failing us, when we have in fact failed God. When in this place, we begin to wonder why God allowed us to be here, but we allowed ourselves to be here when we began to place God on the back burner. Feelings of abandonment and betrayal towards God come to light, but the irony is that that is the exact thing we have been doing to God.
The definition of forsake is to abandon, renounce, and turn away from entirely. There are at least 7 verses of the Bible that state that God will never forsake or leave us.
Deuteronomy 31:6 says, "He will never leave you nor forsake you."
Deuteronomy 31:8 says, "He will never leave you nor forsake you."
Joshua 1:5 says, "I will never leave you nor forsake you."
1 Kings 8:57 says, "May He never leave us nor forsake us."
Psalm 37:28 says, "For the Lord loves the just and will not forsake His faithful ones."
Psalm 94:14 says, "For the Lord will not reject His people; He will never forsake His inheritance."
Hebrews 13:5 says, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you."
It is Biblical that He will never leave us, but yet after we leave Him we blame Him for the lies we have been feeding ourselves; we fail to acknowledge the Biblical truths.
Not every bad thing is our fault and some difficult situations that we face are a part of God's plan for our lives, but never once does God ever leave us. If God really did leave us, why would He ever take us back when we return to Him? We already do not deserve the tiniest bit of God, but yet He still is here. Why would He take back such undeserving people if He wanted to leave them forever in the first place? John 3:16 says, "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life." Why would He sacrifice His only son, for people He wants to leave? Someone who does not want to leave will never leave, but will stay as God always does. I believe many of the times we accuse God of leaving, we are forgetting that He is so much greater than us. Unlike us, God is full of grace, forgiveness, and unconditional love; you will never find that in any human, but will always find that in God. God loves us too much to leave, which is why He will forever continue to wait even in our worst betrayals.

It’s Not All About You

It’s not all about you; this is such a hard truth to realize but such an important one. The truth is, in your relationship with God it is not about you. So often we are selfish in our faith and do things based off of what we can get out of it versus what it can do for the Kingdom. We try to bargain with God, but He really doesn’t need us, He chooses us. We like to give God some things and then keep some things to ourselves, but it doesn’t work that way. You can’t live your life for God while only giving Him part of you. You can’t give half of your heart to God and keep the rest for your own selfishness. A relationship with God is about selflessness and giving everything to God. If you are holding things back from God you are harming yourself more than helping yourself. The point of a relationship with God is trusting Him with everything, which means sacrificing the things you are holding on to and being 100% vulnerable with Him. The world tells us that it’s all about us and if that’s not okay with someone then they don’t deserve you, but honestly we don’t deserve God. Serving the world puts the focus all on you, but serving God takes the focus off of you because you don’t deserve it in the first place.
“Turn my heart toward your statutes and not toward selfish gain.” Psalm 119:36

Me vs Me

I'm very excited about this blog because it says so much about me. It's allowing me to look back and compare who I am now to who I was. It gives me the chance to sit back and truly see the changes I've made and who I've become. This blog is more than a blog, in a way, it's my testimony now since I've grown so much.
The old me dated to avoid loneliness and didn't care who I was dating, me now dates the right person based off of what God says. The old me looked to everyone but God when I was lonely, the me now looks to God whenever loneliness begins to creep in. The old me looked to people for acceptance and approval, the me now looks to God for acceptance and approval. The old me went to people for comfort in the difficult times and the answers when I didn't have any, the me now goes to God first for answers and comfort. The old me had no confidence, no self-worth, and extremely low self-esteem because I was believing the lies of the enemy, the me now believes the truths of God and knows whose I am and that I am beautifully and wonderfully made. The old me was empty and tried to fill the void where God was supposed to be with everything else, the me now has filled that void with God and has been made complete because of it. The old me never believed in myself as being worth anything, the me now knows that I am worth more than enough. The old me was great surface level but a mess deep down, the me now has God both in my heart and on the surface.
I could go on and on with the differences between the old me and me now, but I've covered pretty much every area. The changes I've made and the life I live now make me so thankful that I finally stopped listening to everyone and everything else, and started listening to God. When you lay your life in His hands and give Him full control of everything, the changes will amaze you. God is so good and I'm so blessed to be a much better version of myself and the person God created.
"I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me."
Galatians 2:20

Facing Your Past

Facing your past is something you have to do because it is something you cannot hide from. Your past is your past and at some point you will have to face it. As nice as it would be to move past, forget about it, and live as though it never happened, you cannot. It is a very difficult thing to face but it is a very good growing experience. The growth you get from facing your old self as your new self and taking responsibility for something you never took responsibility for is growth like no other. You wanna talk about something that only God can get you through, facing your past and your past mistakes is definitely one of those things. Something I've learned recently is that the saying "Your past will come back to haunt you" is one of the most true statements. It does not matter what you did, how much you've changed, or how much you wish you could take it all back - you will have to face your past and the consequences of it at some point. The best thing you can do is know who you are and who God says you are. When the moment comes and you have to face your past, make sure that you are no longer what your past is; if you are still living like your past or acting like your past, facing your past does nothing. You have to be changed and see why the change you have now was so necessary. If you are changed and you are living that out daily and doing the most you can for your relationship with God, you have learned from your past and understand why the change was necessary. Your past is your past and you can't make it disappear, but you can show that you are different. Your past is your past, but your past is no longer who you are.

"You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness."
Ephesians 4:22-24

How Are You? What’s Going On?

“How are you?” “What’s going on?” Those are both two very simple questions, but yet they hold so much meaning and can impact someone forever. Although they are very simple and easy questions to ask, we don’t ask them enough. Why is that? Maybe it’s because we don’t want to invade their personal space or we don’t know if we can handle what they may tell us. So we let them go, continue doing what they’re doing, and assume they’re okay. As someone who has been the one who was asked a form of these questions in one of my darkest moments, I needed nothing more than to be asked. Being asked that question gave me someone to open up to and someone to express what I was and had been dealing with that very few people knew about. I was depressed, stressed, confused, lost, hurting, lonely and just needed someone. Regardless of any reasons why not to ask, there are so many more important reasons why you should ask. Whether it’s because you don’t want to get involved, don’t want to invade their personal space, don’t agree with certain things they do or decisions they make, don’t want to hurt their feelings, don’t think they will respond, or anything else, they need that so much more than you realize. When no one asks it makes you feel like no one cares; there is nothing lonelier than feeling like no one cares when you are in a dark place. If I would not have been asked, who knows what would have happened or how much darker that dark place would’ve gotten. I thank the Lord all the time that that person asked because at the time, no one else was. Never fail to ask because it is so much more than a question.

Your Weakest Is Your Strongest

It may sound crazy, but those moments that make you feel so weak, that make you feel so small, are some of your strongest moments. In those "weak" moments, you have faced and dealt with so much. You are so much stronger than you realize or give yourself credit for. The strength you have to endure what you have and make it through past events, makes you stronger than 10,000 men. Never forget the strength God gave you. Never forget the strength you have used to get you through the hard times. Never forget the strength you used to get up when it seemed hardest, smile when you thought you forgot how to, talk to people when you just wanted to be alone, and keep going. The strongest people are those who tell themselves they are weak. I am currently that person right now as I type this. Life has literally been one big ball of mess recently and it has taken a toll on me, but it also shown me just how strong I am. Weakness makes you stronger because it causes you to fight when you feel like you have nothing left. Weakness is one of the greatest strengths because it pushes and motivates you. Next time you tell yourself that you're weak or those voices come back into your head, remember that you're actually strong and that you can do it. Never give up because the feeling when you finally make it and get to that finish line is the best feeling ever. You are strong, not weak!


A song that has been really helping me through my current storm is "You Say" by Lauren Daigle:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N8WK9HmF53w

Galatians 6:9

As I was doing my devotion the other day, I came across Galatians 6:9 which says "Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up." This verse hit me hard. So often we fail to do what God wants because we are too lazy or seem to find an excuse of why we can't do it and we put it off. Two of the most simple things that I struggle with are doing my devotion daily and praying 3 times a day; I find myself saying "I'll do it later" a lot, but later never comes. I know that doing these 2 things will ultimately determine not only my attitude throughout the day, but how the day will go. On days that I have done these things, I have noticed that my day is a lot less frustrating and goes a lot smoothly; on days that I have not done these things, I seem to have a more irritated attitude and it seems like everything that could go wrong goes wrong. There is a sole purpose for why we are supposed to do the things God asks us to; these things not only make our relationship with Him flourish, but they also provide us with what we need each day to overcome daily obstacles and battles. Doing good will result in reaping what you harvest. If you don't know what reap means, Merriam-Webster says this:

1       a        (1) : to cut with a sickle, scythe, or reaping machine

                   (2) : to clear of a crop by reaping

         b        :to gather by reaping : HARVEST

2       : OBTAIN, WIN

Reaping means to obtain and win. In doing good we will reap a harvest, which means that if we do the good for God, we will receive a good harvest; the good harvest might not necessarily be what you're expecting, but the good harvest that we receive will be what will truly fulfill us. 

Do the good that God has called you to do and reap the harvest that He has planned for you! 

Seasons

We are always going through some kind of season, whether that’s a season of growth, a season of lessons, a season of difficult situations, a season of happiness, a season of flourishing, whatever the season is, we’re all going through some kind of season. Right now, I’m going through a season of growth where I’m learning how to 100% lean on God and trust in a Him. It is a very scary season because I have no idea what direction to go in, where to go next, what to do, I am the most confused I’ve ever been and at a complete standstill; the beauty of it all is I still have God. Regardless, of what has happened, He is still here. I believe God gives us seasons like this to grow us and bring us closer to Him. One of my favorite quotes is by Rick Warren and it says, “The deepest level of worship is praising God inspite of pain, trusting Him during a trial, surrenderingwhile suffering, and loving Him when He seems distant.” Throughout everything that I’m facing right now, I am not facing it alone and God has a purpose for it all. As scary of a season this is, I am so looking forward to what God is going to do in my life through this and how He is going to mold me!

The Greatest Love Story of All Time

With today being the day of love, I felt it only necessary to blog about the greatest love story of all time. How amazing it is to know that there is someone who knew you before you were even formed, put so much thought into every detail of you, going as far as each hair on your head, and sacrificed the only son He had so that you wouldn't have to sacrifice; what a love story that is. No one has anything on the love that our God has for us. He loves you at your worst moments and you at your best moments. He loves you through every failure and mistake, and through every triumph and success. He loves your vulnerable moments when you are open to Him. He loves you regardless of what anyone says about you. God does not hate a single person He created, otherwise He would have not created said person. God loves you if you're a part of the LGBTQ community, if you don't go to church, if you cuss, if you're a single mother, if you have been turned away from a church due to your lifestyle or the fact that your clothes aren't nice enough, or if you are what "Christians" look down upon; God loves the people in those categories just as much as He loves the person who leads worship, is a pastor, serves in the church, goes to church every Sunday, reads their Bible all the time, and is constantly praying. God has no gray area on His love for people; He loves all people. He didn't send His Son to die an unbearable death on a cross for people He didn't want it for; He sent His Son to die an unbearable death on a cross for you and me and everyone who has ever been on this Earth or will be on this Earth. That to me is the greatest love story to exist.

John 19 is where you can find this love story in the Bible. The link below will take you to John 19 in an online Bible:
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John+19&version=NIV

God Gives Us Amazing Days To Prepare Us For The Bad Days From Satan

Do you ever have those great days that are followed by life punching you directly in the face? You have a great weekend and then on Monday your car breaks down, or you go to a weekend-long conference that was beyond amazing and then on Monday everything seems to go wrong? I think things like this happen to everyone. It just happened to me last week; we had a youth event at church that was beyond amazing and God really moved and did some cool things. My Friday and Saturday were beyond amazing, but come Sunday after church, Satan was trying to knock me down as hard as he could. Sunday sucked and was beyond a struggle, but at the end of the day God had given me two amazing days before which prepared me for Sunday. Satan wanted me to get mad and be angry and forget about all God did in the past two days, but it didn't work in his favor. If it wouldn't have been for Friday and Saturday, I don't know what kind of wreck I would have been on Sunday. God is good and has the most perfect timing and I was reminded of that on Sunday. Satan is going to try to tear you down, especially after you have been built up by God, but God is good and gives us strength and hope for days that feel like the worst and longest days. The days following the really good ones where God really did something awesome, where God refreshed and renewed you, those are the days when Satan will fight extremely hard to make you who you were before, to make it seem like nothing even happened during those days. When Satan comes at you on the days following those great days, remind him what happened during those days prior and remind him who you serve. Remind him that he can fight as much as he wants to, but you're on the side that has already won. Don't let Satan ruin something God gave you. The day may be difficult, but another day is coming and that day will be better.

Waiting

You know what sucks? Waiting. Waiting sucks, especially when you are impatient. The even suckier part is that anything of actual importance, you probably had to spend some time waiting for. Whether it was waiting to find out if you got the job, waiting to find out if that couple who came to look at your house on the market wants to buy it, waiting to find the "one", waiting for the baby to be born, waiting for your relative to come home from deployment, the list goes on; the point is, we are most likely always waiting for something; it is even harder when it is something of importance, but it is also worth so much more. Have you ever stopped during the waiting process and thought about all of the different reasons why you are in the waiting process? Maybe you are being prepared for what is to come. Maybe you are being molded into the person you need to be for what is to come. Maybe you are being strengthened for what is to come. Maybe you are not yet ready for what is to come, or maybe it is not ready for you. "Why is it taking so long?" "Why am I having to wait?" "Why can't I have it now? I'm ready." We have all asked these questions probably every time we are having to wait on something. Why rush something that was meant to be waited for? If we never had to wait we would never experience discipline, growth, responsibility, and patience in the way we do when waiting. There could be dire reasons why you are waiting. Take car accidents for example. Everytime you are stuck waiting in traffic from a wreck, say thank you; if you would have left your house a little earlier that day, that could have been you. All to often we take for granted waiting and how much of a blessing it is. Stop, slow down, and embrace the waiting process.
“Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.” Romans 12:12
“Let us not become weary in doing good for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” Galatians 6:9
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.“ Philippians 4:6
“David was thirty years old when he became king, and he reigned forty years. In Hebron he reigned over Judah seven years and six months, and in Jerusalem he reigned over all Israel and Judah thirty-three years.” 2 Samuel 5:4-5