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Don’t Throw It All Away

“I’m probably going to throw some of this stuff away because y’all don’t show enough respect for your room for me to let you keep it.”

These were some of my words while speaking to my middle princess today. She was cleaning today after another mess had been created in her room. The only problem…she didn’t want to clean it.

Hence, my response about throwing things away.

I am that parent that has no problem throwing away toys, especially if I have to keep cleaning up the mess and you don’t care for your things enough to put them away.

However, as I was speaking those words to her, God apparently thought this was a good time for a lesson.

Funny how He works J

At that moment, I thought of my life and my relationship with God. How many times has God asked us to clean something up, to do better in a situation, to do what we know is right to do? And how many times have we been slow to act or just flat out chosen not to do what He has asked of us?

What if God told you he was getting ready to throw away the stuff he had for you, the plan he had for you, the blessings he had for you…all because you chose not to be a good steward? All because you didn’t respect the process?

I want my children to have nice things, but I refuse to care more about their room being clean than they do. I refuse to keep picking up toys and things they are responsible for.

God feels the same way.

He wants us to have wonderful things. He wants to bless us. He wants to help us walk out the callings on our lives, but, if He has to keep reminding us to see the value in what He has for us, what makes you (or me for that matter) think He will keep doing it over and over and over again?

It’s time to choose to do what needs to be done. What I need to do may be different from what you need to do. My path is not yours and yours not mine, but God has something planned for each of us.

He has been gracious and loving, but we must not forget that He is also just and righteous. He loves us enough to bless us, but He also loves us enough to teach us…even if that lesson comes at the expense of the very thing He intended for our good yet we chose not to nurture nor respect.

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Christian Blogging inspiration

Fear of Rejection

Earlier today, I was in my office and my girls were downstairs. My middle daughter, Bri, comes upstairs to ask me something, but her father tells her to ask him instead. We are working on them not always relying on me for everything (as if moms have all the answers). Dads know how to do stuff and have good answers, too. However, she decided that she would just not ask if she had to ask him. Time passes, and I forget that she even had a question. When I finally make my way downstairs, Bri is eating a bowl of cereal on the floor, and there is a nice size mess in the kitchen. She apparently created an opening in a new box of cereal but couldn’t get it quite right, so she made a mess and didn’t clean, nor did she tell anyone a mess had been made. When I asked her about it, she told me that she didn’t ask me for help because she couldn’t, and she didn’t ask her father because she was afraid he would tell her no.

In normal Jesus fashion, God reminds me of a situation I have been dealing with in which I legit need an answer from God, but instead of pouring out to Him, I have kept it (in part) to myself. I mean I have made mention of pieces of the situation while trying to do it myself. Just like my daughter, I felt that if I asked my Heavenly Father about my true desires, even though I think I have a good argument and reasoning for my desire, He would tell me no. Because this situation is dear to my heart, the thought of Him telling me no just made me afraid of bringing it and leaving it at His feet. When I thought about the mess my daughter made, all because she tried on her own out of fear of rejection, I realized that I didn’t want that to happen in my situation. I don’t want to look back and realize that all I had to do was fully invite Him into my heart and allow Him to work this out for good.

It’s the same for whatever it is you are going through that you are not giving to God. That job, that house, that promotion, that relationship, that trip. Maybe He will say no or maybe He will say yes…maybe even a “not right now.” We won’t know until we ask.

Let’s make a choice to give it all to Jesus, to truly seek Him as it says in His word. We should, according to Philippians 4:6-7, “be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” Instead of stressing over what we think we should do, let’s invite God into our decision-making sessions. Let us not reject Him for fear of Him rejecting our desires. God loves us unconditionally and genuinely wants the best for us. He is full of wisdom and guidance, and He can help us by leading us down the path He has for us. Let’s not just say we trust Him. Let’s really put it into action.

Trust him with your desires, your goals, your plans. Give them to Him and let Him lead you.

Be Inspired,

Erica Young

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inspiration Monday Motivation

Monday Motivation

Shall I compare thee to a summers day_ Thou art more lovely and more temperate..

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Encouragement for Today

Erica Inspires Quote

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Hope

St Valentine's day greeting card with candle and hearts

I’m healing, I’m hurting

Wait
Am I healing or am I just hurting

Sometimes, it’s hard to tell
If I’m making progress
Or just hurting
Healing is necessary, but healing is painful

You can have pain without healing
But
You can’t have healing without pain

Let me explain

We avoid healing, not because we don’t want to be whole
But because we know healing means removing masks, facing hidden truths, and being transparent
When you’re really ready to heal, it has to be all
Or nothing

You don’t want to be half healed
So don’t take off half the mask
God is a God of wholeness
He doesn’t do a job halfway

Walk with me on this journey

Let’s choose healing for all areas of our lives, not just the parts we’re comfortable uncovering.

Lord, Abba, Father,

We come to You
We remove the masks
Entirely, not halfway
Heal us
Make us whole
No more shame

We are Your children
You must come
You have to heal us
For Your word says
If earthly parents know how to give good gifts,
How much more will You?

Lord, we need healing
We want to be whole, truly whole
We need You

In Jesus’ name,
We, Your children pray,

Amen

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Whose Standard: God’s or Yours

While dealing with something recently, I had to tell myself ,“If I am going to tell my girls not to fear, I have to hold that same standard for myself.”

How can I require of them what I am not willing to do or what I have not done?

It is the same with Jesus Christ. He came, was born of a woman, lived on this earth, suffered, died, and rose. He knows what this world does and does not have to offer. So, when He says “don’t go,” “don’t do,” “don’t say,” “watch and pray,” etc. ….He knows what He is talking about; He has already walked this road, dealt with the temptations, issues and much more. Even though we have Christ’s example to follow, we will not get everything right; He knows that. In 1 John 1:9, it says “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” This brings me to my next point.

We need to quit requiring of others what we can’t expect of ourselves. How can you want people to be perfect, but you are not? How can you want friends that have never sinned, yet you just sinned (possibly before reading this)? So, because someone did not meet your standards of perfection, they are not worthy of your forgiveness? Matthew 6:14-15 says, “For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.” Holding someone else to an unattainable level of perfection is not only hypocritical, but it binds up your forgiveness from God.

Be real and examine yourself, then proceed with caution. Pray for one another, love one another, and quit casting thou the first stone. Jesus clearly stated in John 8:7, “He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.” Since not one of us fits that description, we should all be focused on living for Christ and being the hands and feet of Jesus. Let’s spend more of our time using our lips for praising God and encouraging others, and less time gossiping about what someone did or is doing wrong.

As iron sharpens iron (Proverbs 27:17) so let us sharpen and lift one another up, in the body of Christ.