Not Like Them

These faces seem so unfamiliar… they look like they belong…  I feel so out of place.  So different. So “not” like them.

Is this feeling of exclusion always going to invade everything I do?  I didn’t grow up happy…  I didn’t grow up belonging…     And now, here I am, middle aged, and I still feel like a stranger among friends.  Will I ever get to the place where I don’t sit there and doubt every word I say, every emotion I feel, every choice?

I’m not sure what each day will bring.   I think I know what God wants me to do, even though some days I feel horribly incompetent.  One thing I am certain of– I know that each and every day is a new opportunity for me to start fresh.

I can’t change what happened ten, twenty, or thirty years ago…  I can’t change the awkward thing I said or did five seconds ago…  but I CAN make a conscious effort to try to make a difference to someone else- maybe there is someone out there like me, watching me, listening,  and too afraid to say, “Hey, I understand you, I’ve gone through the same things!”   After all, don’t we just want to be able to find someone who actually gets us, that doesn’t look at us like we are damaged?

My hope and prayer is that you, first of all, embrace your awkward self, your weirdness, your out of place personality, and realize that your ability to stand out in a crowd is a gift that can be used to bring in more people like you.  You can be a leader, you can be the different one and, in fact, you are more like Jesus than you realize.  YES- YOU!!

Do you think Jesus led people to know God by blending in?  Do you think he would’ve gotten anyone’s attention by looking, acting, and being like everyone else?  NO!!

So, today, take a moment and be thankful for being different.  For once, realize that you will create change, you will impact lives, you will make a difference because of the fact that you don’t blend in with everyone else- and THAT is what makes you beautiful!!

Jeremiah 1:5 “I knew you before I formed you in your mother’s womb. Before you were born I set you apart and appointed you as my prophet to the nations.”   So see, you weren’t meant to fit the mold- you were born to break it!  You were born for more.

Prayers for peace, and I hope this message helped you today.  Please share with someone you think needs to hear it, too.

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A light for my life

Stop trying to please man!!

Are you sitting there worrying about how someone is going to respond to you?  STOP

There are always going to be people around who take pleasure in finding what is wrong, in creating chaos where there is none, in making your life miserable because THEY themselves are actually the miserable ones.

Who will you ultimately be answering to?   I can guarantee that when your book of life is opened, they won’t be the ones reading it.

YOU are a child of GOD!!    Take your worries, your struggles, concerns- TAKE IT ALL to the one who created you and knows every hair upon your head.   You may not know or completely understand how God can handle your situation, but that is none of your business!!   Let HIM handle your situations.  Your job is to TRUST and BELIEVE.

I pray that this word has helped someone today.  Keep being a light to shine upon the world.   You never know how many people are being touched by your example.

Psalm 119:105 (KJV)–   They word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.

 

Finding Five Minutes

This morning, I realized that I don’t start my day out with God.   I wake up, realize I’m still exhausted, and then begrudgingly get out of bed and attempt to make myself look and feel human so that each task can be checked off in my planner.  Most of the time, though, I end up overwhelmed and discouraged.

I know me, and I know that I am not the person who will spend hours a day reading my Bible or committing to a devotional.  That’s pretty ironic since I wrote a devotional…  but anyway…  =)

I stumbled upon this website this morning, and this article hit my “AH-HA” nerve.  It’s just what I needed today to help me deal with everything that’s going on.  I hope you find it helps you to start out this week.   Blessings to you~ Angela Walsh

Full article found here —> Fighting Daily Discouragement- from 5 minutes for Faith

Excerpt by Dawn Paoletta:

There’s a saying about the little things in life. It’s the little things, so the saying goes that can end up being the big things. This can be true in relationships, careers, and attitudes. A teensy mouse can terrify a huge elephant, and so the story goes, one young man with the proper vision took down a giant who had defied armies. The unnoticed dripping faucet by day rings out like a maddening racket in the quietness of night, when one longs for quiet and sleep. It’s the little things we are thankful for, we rejoice in and the little things heaped upon us that can undo us in one moment.

It’s no wonder we find ourselves feeling overwhelmed when we deal with bits of discouragement daily. Who can avoid all negativity? 

Complete the article here

Finding Hope

Maybe I’m just tired, or maybe I’m noticing it more… but the sheer evil in this world has been wearing me down.  Turn on the television- violence, open the paper or a magazine- more stories of violence, and don’t even look at social media unless you want to see graphic pictures and graphic writing.

The stories that really hit hard are the ones about crimes against children.   I am sick to my stomach about these things.   How can children be abused so horribly?   I thought I had seen and been through some bad things, but lately, oh my goodness….  I cry out to God to save these poor innocent babies.

We are in the process of opening a foster home.  It’s been a long process, and yes, I am tired and stressed…. but oh, how amazing it is going to be to welcome in a child to our home and help rebuild what someone else has destroyed.   I suppose the whole point of this post is to encourage you to find hope, give hope, be hope to someone out there, regardless of age, race, male or female– give someone hope today.   In return, you may find yourself being hopeful again.   For when two or more are gathered, God is present.

 

Ch. 4- Psalm 39:7

And so, Lord, where do I put my hope? My only hope is in you. 

Days of hopelessness, feeling lost, unsure of where you’re supposed to be in your life, are sure to come.   But, as believers, we have the promise that our Father is going to take care of us.  

Breathe…

Jeremiah 29:11

For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord. They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.

They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.

You have a gift that was bestowed upon you even before you were placed on this earth.   The problem arises when we are taught to ignore those inherent feelings and listen to what society tells us is the appropriate path for our lives.

God has a reason for you to be here.

No one is greater, more special, or more deserving.

We all have a plan.

We all matter in the eyes of Father God.

Close your eyes and imagine yourself being happy.  What comes to mind when you think about this?

What comes to mind when you think about this?

Excerpt from Boss Lady Believer by Angela Walsh

I Cry Out

Psalm 142:1-2 ESV

142 With my voice I cry out to the Lord;
    with my voice I plead for mercy to the Lord.
² I pour out my complaint before him;
    I tell my trouble before him.

Yesterday was a difficult day.  Something that I had been working on for months, did not work out as planned.  I thought I was dealing with the disappointment well, going through my daily routine, taking care of my family, laughing, baking, and watching a movie.  Yeah… I really wasn’t doing well at all.

Later in the evening, a friend called to tell me about a job opportunity that sounded perfect for me.  I was excited!  As she continued to speak to me, an overwhelming sense of dread came over me.  My chest tightened and I could feel the lump forming in my throat and tears invading my eyes.  After a year of trying to figure out how to find a job that worked around my chronic illnesses, that would allow me to rest when needed, I sat there and realized that I wasn’t going to be able to do this.

Although the qualifications are there, the hours are whatever I decided they would be, and it involves helping children, it’s not the purpose God has placed on my heart.  That alone, made me curl up on the couch and want to give up.  A job that will provide food, clothing, and shelter for my family is not what I am supposed to do right now, and I was devastated for a few hours.  But then, two friends reached out to me in the late hours of the evening.

These two ladies made me realize that all is not lost.   I need to be strong and have faith.  At a time when I was crying out to God to show my family relief from this turmoil, stress, and suffering, He sent these two angels to me to tell me that it was going to be okay.

I still don’t know what today, tomorrow, or next week will bring.  I still struggle with trying to figure how in the world I’m going to buy my family food and clothing for the cold spell that’s about to hit us.  But, there is peace in knowing that when I cry out to God, he has set people in my life to send me a message of reassurance, that I am supposed to be working for HIM, and that He will not forsake me.

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