Is God Still Speaking?

Until recently I really didn't understand what people meant when they said God spoke to them about something. We continuously hear it preached that if we want to hear from God then we need to read the Word. "Read your bible and you will hear God speak to you," they say. I wish people would explain that more....

I can't tell you how many times I have gotten into a situation and wanted to hear God's opinion on something so I did exactly what everyone says. I got my bible and prayed for God to show me what I needed to hear. I open it to a random page, put my finger on a verse and it is something like "Jeshua begot Joiakim." Not exactly the dramatic word from God that I was trying to hear. I was doing it all wrong.

God is always talking to us. He cares about all the little stuff. He wants to be involved intimately in every detail of our life, closer than anyone else. Studying the bible is the way that we hear from God because it IS God. Jesus IS the Word. (John 1:1)

The reason we need to study the bible to hear from God is because if we don't know what the bible says we don't know God's character, or the way he works in our lives. If you don't know the truth, you can't tell right from wrong and you will have no discernment to make good choices.

Let's say you wanted to find an endangered animal in it's natural habitat, but you didn't know where to start. What would you do? You would get books and search the internet learning about it's eating habits, where it sleeps, what it looks like. You would want to know what kinds of noises it makes and what it's footprints looked like so you would know them when you saw them. You would need to know what the habits of that animal are in order to find it.

You must do the same with God. If you want to know how God speaks, the way he leads, and how he corrects then you have to know his character. You have to gather as many details as you can find. The incredible news is that it can all be found in his Word! There is no mystery. He left us the bible to study and learn all about his wonderful ways.

It is not responsible to go around saying that God told you something unless you have regularly been in the Word.

I once had someone tell me that God told them they needed to talk to me about something. When we talked they told me they could not forgive me and get over an issue that happened previously between us, and it seemed they wanted an apology. I had completely forgotten about it, and to be honest, I didn't think I did anything wrong. Whether I was right or wrong was really not the point. That wasn't God telling them to talk to me, that was their own issue of unforgiveness towards me. The bible says to forgive, even when the other person is wrong (Matthew 6:15.) If they knew the Word they would have just forgiven me and gave the issue to God. God would have gotten through to me a lot better than they did.

Christians can make God look really bad if we go around telling people "words from God" that are contrary to what his Word says!

If you want to hear God speaking to you then you must learn the bible inside and out, you must "meditate on it day and night." Jesus lives inside of us and according to the bible, we as Christians have all of his power available to us (Matthew 28:18-20.) The Word is a reflection of our spirit, a mirror. We check our physical mirror every day, often more than once a day. How often are we looking at our spiritual mirror?

I have gotten to the point now that even though I still have a lot to learn, if I need guidance on something, I don't have to open my bible randomly and blindly pick a verse that will hopefully fit my circumstance. I have learned so much that I can make decisions based on the knowledge that I have gained. When I don't know, I study, and don't stop until I find my answer. My mind is being renewed constantly through the word and I now hear God speaking what he had been speaking to me all along!

If you want to hear God more, study his word. Meditate (think) on it. Give yourself time to really contemplate it. "Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." John 8:32

XXOO

 This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. Joshua 1:8

Guilt is a Liar

As Christians we know that God is always speaking to us, but we don't always know how to listen. I think the biggest problem we have as believers is that we don't understand God's character and we believe that when we need correction from God we are going to hear it in the form of condemnation and guilt. We know that we aren't supposed to feel guilty, but what we don't always realize is that we are supposed to feel convicted. Conviction and guilt couldn't be more opposite, but many times they are confused for each other. So what is the difference?


Guilt drags you down, tells you that you aren't good enough, you don't measure up.

Conviction encourages you to do better, shows you a better way, and uplifts you.

I am a teacher so during the summer I don't work. No work means that my regular stream of income is non existent. While my husband and I do prepare for summer and save up to help ease the burden, there is still a need to trust God with our finances.

I have a couple little side gigs I do from home to bring in extra income, and one of those things is market research. Every so often I have a company call me and survey me to see if I fit their credentials for studies they are doing. Sometimes it's personal care products, other times its cleaning stuff, even food or drinks. Anyway, the extra income is nice and being an opinionated person, I don't mind getting paid to tell them what I think of their products.

Today they called me and asked a series of questions. I knew what they were getting at, and I wanted to do the study so against my better judgment I told a little white lie about what kind of dish soap I use. I qualified, got my appointment and hung up the phone.

Immediately I heard God speak to me, "Why don't you trust me?"Hmmmm... How could lying about dish soap not be trusting God? I thought about this for a second and realized what it meant. Here I am trying to walk in faith for our finances and trust God to provide, yet I lie to manipulate the situation, as though God needs my help? God doesn't need me to lie for him to take care of us. If I really trusted him I wouldn't care whether or not I qualified for the study, I would be confident knowing that if I didn't get it, there would be something else on the horizon.

I prayed and asked for forgiveness and realized that I had to call back and make things right.  I don't want to give the devil any entrance into my life and after all, he is the father of lies, even little tiny white ones.

I called the lady back and told her that I gave her the wrong brand of soap, that I actually use a different kind. She sounded confused and put me on hold. She came back on the phone a couple minutes later and told me that I still qualified and thanked me for calling back. All of that and I could have just been honest from the beginning! The lie was a waste, but the lesson was not.

This may seem like a silly incident, but it gave me a huge understanding of how God redirects our steps. The devil uses guilt and says things like "you hypocrite, you say you hate lying, but then you go and lie about something so small. What kind of Christian are you?" We start to believe lies about ourselves and the devil starts getting victory in our lives. He is defeated, slam the door on him!

In contrast, God convicts us gently and tells us there is a better way, just to trust him and he will work it out. No guilt, just encouragement.

What an amazing difference! I wish I would have just told the truth the first time, so that I didn't need to have the humbling experience of calling back, but I am so thankful I heard God's voice gently reminding me to trust him, that it is for my own good.

Do you feel guilty when you do something you know you shouldn't? Well you need to stop. God sent his son Jesus to die for your sins and we need to be more God conscience and less sin conscience. If we are in Christ then the bible says we are a new creation. Our past, present and future sin is covered under Jesus' blood and we should feel nothing but freedom.

After that experience today I felt so good. Even though I messed up, I was so thankful God showed me how I can trust him more. I don't want any unbelief entering in to ruin all the blessings God has planned for me!

Conviction provides a solution showing us how we can trust God more, and grow closer to him! Give me more of that!

Do you have any stories about times God convicted you and it strengthened your relationship with him? I would love to hear about it!

XXOO

How religion ruined me, then grace saved me

This is my story. I tell it because I see so many of the people I grew up with lost and in need of hope. My desire is that this will give freedom to those who have been searching for truth and not found it in religion.

I grew up with a strong foundation of Christian faith. From the time we were little my mom taught us everything that she could, while being a struggling single mom of three. We always went to church, and when I was a teenager I was very involved with my youth group. During these critical years of figuring out who I was and what I was put on earth to accomplish, I gathered some ideas about God that were completely inaccurate.

I was told that God had a plan for my life. I was also told that if I did things God's way that I would be blessed, but if I didn't then God would not bless my life. If I sinned and fell short I might still make it to heaven, but only depending how bad the sin was. The people who told me things like this were not bad people, but they were wrong. I believed that there was one big master plan that God had for me and if I messed up and did something He didn't like, well that plan was ruined.

It started with small stuff. A little lie here, a little compromise there. Before I knew it, I had done so many wrong things in my own eyes that I believed God's plan for my life was ruined, so I gave up. My heart hardened towards God. I stopped talking to him, I stopped listening to him. I didn't read the word, I didn't go to church. I wasn't interested. I thought I had screwed up so bad that God couldn't use me anymore. Maybe he would still let me into heaven, but even that was questionable in my mind.

I spent years ignoring God's call. He would try to catch my attention, but all I associated him with was duty and bondage. I associated God with guilt. I thought he was disappointed in me and I could never get back in his good graces so I might as well just do what I wanted.

This all changed a few years ago. After my husband and I got married I quickly realized I thought I had everything I ever wanted, but it wasn't enough. God has called me to more. God has called my family to more.

Slowly but surely I have gained freedom through learning the word of God. Not by listening to what other people say, but by learning it myself. I know now that it broke his heart that I associated him with guilt and duty. I know now that he loves and adores everything about me. See, he died for my sins, which means they are erased. He only sees the good.

I have learned that religion is bondage. Nothing you can do or not do is going to make God love you more. You can jump through all the religious hoops, go to church every Sunday and do good deeds every day in between and God won't be moved. If you go rob a bank, kill someone, or commit adultery God won't turn his back on you. If you have made Jesus the Lord of your life and made the decision to believe that he is God and rose from the dead on the third day then there is absolutely NOTHING that can separate you from his grace. Nothing will make him stop loving you.

Am I telling you to go sin and it doesn't matter because God loves you anyway? No. While sin does not change the way God feels about you, it will hurt you. If you have an area in your life that you struggle with, then stop struggling so hard. Spend more time finding out how much God loves you and your desires will change. Things that once tempted you won't tempt you the way they once did.

I have found freedom in knowing that anytime I mess up, he has me on a spiritual GPS and can recalculate my route. He does not abort the mission when we fall short. God has a plan for my life, and I am en route. I am sure I will head off on some side roads at some point, but when I do he will be there to put me on track again. He promises to never leave or forsake me. I will never get stuck on the side roads.

One thing I know breaks God's heart is the guilt tied in through religion. If you are feeling duty or guilt in serving him, then you are doing it wrong. If you feel anything but freedom, then you are doing it wrong. Jesus came to restore the relationship between God and man. The religious people of the day hated Jesus. He made it too easy because all he required was to believe in him. He was disgusted at the Pharisees who thought they were saved by their good works. He called them hypocrites.(Luke 14:13-17)

"For by grace you have been saved through faith, and not of yourselves; it is the gift of God."
Ephesians 2:8

This literally means that through your faith God has given you the free gift of salvation. It specifically says "not of yourselves."Believe in what he did on the cross, don't trust in your own works, and you will be saved. This is so simple, why do we make it so complicated? All we have to do is believe, that is it.

We all believe in something, why not believe in Jesus?

People don't want to believe in Jesus because they associate him with duty and works, They think that believing in Him means that they have to go sit their butt in a pew every Sunday and stop doing all their fun sinning. This is a lie that Satan has gotten people to believe to keep them away from God.

The truth is that all we have to do is receive the free and almost too good to be true gift of salvation by believing in Jesus Christ and we will be saved. I promise you that if you do that, you don't have to go to church or stop sinning, but you are going to want to. God will clean you up from the inside out if you will let him, but even if you don't he will still love you. He will change the way you think and show you that he has a better way for your life. He will show you that sin only hurts you but he has a way that is going to prosper you, keep you in perfect health and peace.

Since I have learned more about who I am in Christ the change in me has been effortless. I don't do anything out of guilt or obligation. I do everything out of love. My husband has changed from seeing my change, our finances have changed, we have peace, we have health and we have love. I never get depressed, and I am so excited for my future. There has been nothing but good, and God wants to give it all to you too.

He is offering you a gift that will give you more freedom and happiness than you have ever had, just take it. Say yes.

XXOO

21 Day Cleanse

Do you feel groggy and tired all the time? Do you depend on caffeine and sweets to keep you going throughout the day? Even though I exercise and eat way healthier than most people I was still not feeling my absolute best and I knew my diet was to blame. Last month I did a 21 day cleanse and I have never felt better in my life! I lost inches, and because I was doing some strength training, I didn't lose weight, but actually gained 4 lbs (which I was happy about!) Even though I gained some muscle weight, my stomach was flatter within days of starting the cleanse and overall I felt way less bloated.

 My husband and I went on a little trip, then Easter rolled around and I got disorganized and started eating bad again out of convenience. I felt awful so I decided to do the cleanse again and I have been asked for the details, so here they are (sorry it took so long, Brandie!)

It is very simple, basically the foods you are avoiding are:

-Grains (no bread, pasta, rice, corn or wheat of any kind)

-Sugar (no processed sugar)

-Dairy (milk, cheese, butter)

-Processed foods (pretty much just don't eat anything in a box, perishable foods only)

-Alcohol (I didn't do any alcohol, but a glass of organic red wine would probably be okay once a week or so)

You CAN eat any vegetables or fruits, and unlike Paleo or Whole 30, I allowed legumes and potatoes. Depending what you are trying to achieve you might want to avoid beans, but personally I tend to be low in iron and beans are a power packed nutritional food, so I kept them in my diet. 

You can also eat nuts, small amounts of dark chocolate and raw honey. I found an "almost raw" samoa bar recipe that I made to have when I had a sweet tooth, it is soooooooo good! You can get that recipe here. 

After a few days, I couldn't believe the difference in how I felt. I started again yesterday, and I am being a little less strict this time because I want to make this a lifestyle change and not just a 21 day thing. I would suggest doing a really strict cleanse at first, then slowly allowing yourself to have a little bit of your favorite things so that you don't get burned out and give up altogether.

You are going to be spending a lot more time in your kitchen, and it is absolutely crucial that you plan out all your meals and grocery list. I spend a good portion of my Sundays planning meals then preparing some stuff ahead of time, but it is so worth it because then you don't have to think about it the rest of the week.

Need some meal ideas? Check out my Pinterest board here. 

I would love to hear about your results! Have any good recipes? Please share!

How I think I am better than everyone else, and I am actually not

Last night I was standing in my kitchen and I heard a really loud noise outside. I automatically assumed it was some kind of animal getting into our trash (happens all the time.) A couple minutes later our neighbor texted my husband and told him that the people across the street backed into our mailbox with her car and completed destroyed it. The people across the street from us are well.... Let's just say that there are lots of customers coming in and out all day and all kinds of special deliveries unloaded in the middle of the night. Their visiting clientele is the reason we don't let our kids play in the front yard by themselves. Anyway, you get my point.

We walked outside to check out the damage and here comes the girl who did it. Right away I start judging her. She smelled like alcohol, was wearing nothing but a bikini, and seemed totally out of it. She was in a rough state, however she came over to me and was very nice and extremely apologetic. At first I didn't really have much of a response to her because in my head I was thinking that she was just a strung out, dumb girl, who should make better life choices and not drive her car under the influence. Then God just dropped one word in my heart.... Mercy.

Who the heck do I think I am?! I realized right away God was trying to tell me that it is not my job to decide how people should live their lives. I realized that if I am going to call myself a Christian then I better start acting like one and start loving people, all people. You see, me and that girl are no different. I could have been her. There were times in my life where I was her. While my issues might have been different than hers, to God it's all the same. He loves her the same as he loves me, and he wants to save her life like he did mine. I want to live a life of helping people, but if I can't even start with my neighbor what makes me think that I can help anyone else?

Right when I heard that word mercy drop into my spirit I changed my tone. I talked to her, I joked around about the stupid broken mailbox with her. God shows us mercy, so what makes me think I have the right to hold anything against this girl? It is just a dumb mailbox anyway. Maybe God was giving me the opportunity to befriend and help this girl, and I almost ruined it by being a jerk. The last thing a person like her needs is another person judging them. I want to be an ambassador for Jesus, and the bible says in John 3:17, "For God did not come to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved." Jesus didn't come down to earth and start judging everyone, telling them how horrible they were and that they needed to change, he gave them good news. He was light and hope and salvation.

I think we as Christians tend to get on a holy high horse and start to think of ourselves as being better than everyone else because we don't do some of the things that other people do, but that is wrong. We are not saved by what we do, we are saved by what Jesus did for us. He did it for me, but He also did it for the girl across the street. I am not better than she is, but I do have the answer to her problems... Jesus, He is always the answer! I should be eager to help her, not quick to judge her.

What about you? Do you find yourself constantly putting yourself above others because of the things you do, or don't do? Comparing yourself to people around you? I admit, I am guilty. From now on the only person I want to compare myself to is Jesus.

This silly little mailbox episode kept me up last night doing some real soul searching. It humbled me. While God still has lots of work to do with me, I know that I don't want to be a judge anymore, but rather a light in this dark world.

XXOO

Why My Husband Can't Make Me Happy

Dustin and I have been married 6 years this coming November, and since then we have seen so many of our friends and family get divorced, or separate from their spouses. The craziest thing about it is that most of the people appear on the outside to have it all together.

Can I just be real for a second? Marriage is the hardest job on the planet. The ones who appear to have it all together are probably a bigger mess than the rest of them. You don't have to play that game here, I understand what it is like to go through stuff with your spouse. There are times when you can't stand them. There are times when they aggravate every living cell in your body. There are times when they aren't giving you what you need emotionally or physically. There are also those times when you feel like you did in the beginning, and you remember the reason you picked them forever.

Dustin and I have always gotten along really well. We rarely argue, and actually as I sit here and write this I can't even remember our last fight. We have fun together and enjoy each others company. I realize how fortunate we are to not have some of the issues that others have, but that doesn't come by default, it takes work.

When you get married you have no idea what you are about to experience.

Becoming a wife and mom has made me realize how incredibly selfish I am! Getting married is most of the time done under very selfish pretenses. Think about it. YOU fall in love, the person makes YOU feel good, YOU like the way they treat YOU, so YOU decide to tie the knot. It is selfish. I am not judging you here because I did it too and then real life hit.  Suddenly you have to live with this person who doesn't always do everything YOU want, the way YOU want it, and there the trouble begins.

My love language is quality time. It used to be that if I was not getting the quality time I needed from Dustin, I would get depressed and angry. I would talk to him and try to explain how I felt, and he just didn't ever seem to get it. His love language is acts of service. He thought that he was showing me love by working hard to provide for our family, even if it meant not having as much time with us. He couldn't comprehend my frustration.

I quickly realized that I was depending on him too much for my happiness. It was not fair to him. Depending on any one person to make you happy is not the way it should be. Dustin is an awesome husband and father, but there will always be a space in my heart that he cannot fill. The only person who can make me whole and completely happy is the One who created me. I started putting more effort into learning how much God loves me by reading the Word and praying. Knowing how much God loves me has taken away the need to find love anywhere else.

I know Dustin loves me, but I don't depend on him anymore for my happiness or contentment. Having him for a husband is better than ever because the pressure is off. Now if I am ever tempted to get discouraged or depressed I know my focus is on the wrong place and I need to get my eyes back on Jesus, what he has done for me, and how much he loves me.

If you don't make God the center of your life, you will not have a happy marriage. Sadly most people never realize this and put too much pressure on their spouse, turn to other things, cheat, or self medicate to deal with this reality.

God did not design us to live without him. He designed us to be in a relationship with him first and foremost. He made Adam before he made Eve, and it wasn't Adam who asked for a mate, it was God's idea. Adam was content with his relationship just him and God. God gave Adam the wonderful gift of a spouse, but the first thing that was established was God and Adam's relationship. Eve was the icing on the cake!

I encourage you to stop trying to find happiness solely through your marriage, or anything else in this life. Surrender yourself to the One who made you, and let him love you. Not only will you be happier in your marriage, but every single area of your life will prosper!

XXOO

Why I Don't Believe in Falling

We all have heard someone say or said ourselves things like, "I am falling in love" or "I fell out of love" or "I am falling into a depression" or "I fell for it." We "fall" for a lot in our society. Now I am about to get a little deep here y'all, so keep up with me.

Have you ever thought about what those sayings mean? When you fall for something, it means you believe it, or you believe in it. The issue I have, is that these expressions push the responsibility off ourselves, and take away our choice in the matter. Stay with me.

We live in a society that does not like to take responsibility. We like to blame the way we are on our childhood, our parents, an ex who cheated on us, a sickness, a chemical imbalance, our hormones, you name it. We are fickle little creatures who "fall" in and out of love, "fall" into depression or whatever else comes our way, and we just can't help it.

No. Just no.

The bible says "Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will." Romans 12:2

Conforming, as it speaks about above, happens naturally when we live in this world and would be comparable to this "falling" I speak of. Conforming doesn't take effort or decision, it just happens. We live in a fallen world, and an example of conforming can be seen in the physical body. If we don't eat right and exercise, as we age, have babies, get comfortable in our marriages, we gain weight, and body parts start to "fall" (lol) with pulling gravity. Transforming can only be done with a lot of effort. We exercise and gain muscle, fight off fat, and keep ourselves healthy, which transforms our body. It is hard work to continuously transform your body, you have to stay consistent. Exercising one time won't change your physique.

The Word says we have to transform our minds. Transforming and renewing our minds means that we are changing our mind to think the way Jesus thinks. We are reading the Word and studying it continuously. Just like physical exercise, you must constantly work on it, going to church on holidays and reading your bible once in a while won't transform your mind. Not only should you put the good stuff in, but be careful to block out the bad stuff.

This is going to sound ridiculous, but I am going to go ahead and say it anyway because it is a good example. I LOVE watching the Bachelor and Bachelorette. I used to put the kids to bed, and get a nice snack ready, plop my booty on the couch and watch that senseless silliness for hours. I realized over time that it was affecting my mind. It was having a negative effect on my marriage in the sense that it was putting expectations on my husband that were not realistic. Marriage is not all candlelight and butterflies. It is hard work, and to compare it to a show is ridiculous, but I was doing that. I had to stop. I don't watch anything like that anymore, it was polluting my life and making me ungrateful for the great marriage that I have. It was not helping me transform my mind to be like Jesus. I am not saying you are wrong if you watch this show, but for me it was wrong.

We have a choice who we "fall" in or out of love with. We have the choice whether we let our emotions (things like depression, sadness, anger) rule us. As the above scripture says, IF we renew our minds then we can test and approve... APPROVE, as in decide. We have a choice in the matter! I love that the verse ends in His GOOD, PLEASING, and PERFECT will. He desires all good things for us, nothing bad.

The key to your happiness is you. You can conform, which happens automatically when we live in this world, or you can transform your mind through the Word, making your own choices, deciding your own happiness and living for the purpose God designed for you!

"..I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life.." Deuteronomy 30:19

Stop falling, and start choosing!

XXOO