• Faith

    You Have Already Arrived

    September 19, 2015

    Do you ever catch yourself wishing your life away? Not in a way where you wish your life was over, but in a way where you aren’t content with what life has given you now? Maybe it’s by always wanting the “new things” the world has to offer. A newer car. A newer phone. The latest fashion. Or maybe it’s not materialistic at all. Maybe you’re wishing for that next step of your relationship to finally happen. When will he finally propose? When will we ever be financially ready to have a baby? Or another baby? Or a bigger house? Why is it so hard to just stay content where we are? Isn’t that what Jesus calls us to do?

    I struggle with this more than I realize. It starts out small, one day looking at something someone else has on Instagram and feeling that little pull in my heart towards whatever that may be. For me, I struggle with being content where I am in my relationship – no matter what my relationship status is. When I was single all I wanted was to have a boyfriend, now that I have a boyfriend, all I want is to get married. So it starts out small, I see someone else’s blog who seems to have a happy marriage and I start desiring that. But the longer I dwell on their marriage and wanting it the more I find myself discontent with what I have now. It’s like I can’t focus on enjoying what I have because I feel that if I had more or something else then I’d be able to enjoy that more. It’s frustrating too because I want to be happy with where I am and I want to wait for God’s timing so why does this have to be so difficult?

    Just this morning I was sitting on my deck and I felt God answer this question and it was only then that I realized that I had done it again. I had been desiring to push forward and go ahead of him rather than just sit and love where He has me.

    So I made a list, for myself and maybe this will help someone else out too – of ways to be content. Ways to make sure that I can keep my heart in check and not run ahead of where He has me. Because my fear is that once God allows me to finally have whatever I think will make me happier then I will just set my heart on something else and continue to strive and desire for that and be discontent all over again.

    1. Seek His kingdom first- when we put God’s will over our life first, He promises to work everything else out for us and we don’t have to worry about earthly things because He tells us that it’s His job to provide that for us. If you are seeking God’s will for your life then what you’re experiencing is God’s best for you.
    2. Dwell on the good things you have- When we wake up with a grateful heart, it’s hard to keep wanting more because we’ll be too busy enjoying the things we do have. Every good gift comes down from God.
    3. Remember this life is short and temporary- We’re only here for a short period of time when you think about how long eternity is. I don’t want to be someone who is striving for the next thing when it’s all going to be taken from me eventually anyway.
    4. Spend less time on social media- Every once and a while I try to take a social media break because I can feel it in my heart that it can be where my discontentment comes from. There are even statistics that show how the more time you spend on social media, the more unhappy or discontent you tend to be. It’s hard not to want what others have when everybody posts about how great their lives are and how happy they are that they now have whatever it is that they’ve got.

    I’m starting to notice that the closer I get to the next season of my life is the time I struggle the most with not being content. When it’s so close but so far away, it’s hard to not to wish for the next thing. And I don’t think think that it’s bad to just wish for something else. I think it’s good to keep striving for things and reach our potential but I think the problem comes in when we start to want something more than we’re enjoying what we have at the moment. I think it’s important to always remember that everything we have is God’s and that even if we feel God is leading us towards something to allow Him to work and not hold anything too tightly.

    I named this post “You Have Already Arrived” because if you’re a Christian then you already have it all. Jesus should be our biggest desire and we should set our heart on striving to love and be more like Him, not wanting and wishing for more things. The things we’re wishing for will never truly satisfy like only He can anyway. You’re already here, there’s nothing more that you need to live a complete or happy life. God’s already given you His best.

    Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” Hebrews 13:5

    But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and we can take nothing out of it. 1 Timothy 6:6-7

    Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desire of your heart. – Psalm 37:4

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  • Faith,  Life

    Currently // Blog-tember Day 12

    September 12, 2015

    D A Y  1 2

    So today is day 12 of the blog-tember challenge and what I’m learning is I’m more awful at following this blogging plan than I had originally thought I would be lol but I’m back today and the topic is a “Currently” post.

    Currently…

    Reading: The Mingling of Souls: God’s Design For Love, Marriage, Sex & Redemption by Matt Chandler. Matt Chandler is such a great pastor, I listen to him online sometimes and this book has been just as great. He has a way of writing in a really interesting way, and the topic is something that’s very interesting to me. He’s going through Song of Solomon and it’s been really helpful.
    Playing: catch up on sleep. Two weekends ago I traveled home from an airport that was 6 hours from my house and last weekend I was in Maryland and woke up at 4 AM to drive home on Monday morning because Tommy had to work so not having any weekends to just relax and recuperate has really taken a toll on me.
    Watching: Bates Motel. This is the show Tommy and I have started watching since finishing Friday Night Lights and it’s insanely suspenseful but kind of freaky and weird sometimes so I don’t think I’d recommend it to anyone unless you like that sort of thing lol I didn’t realize it was like that until I started watching so now I’m hooked and can’t stop
    Trying: to start eating healthy and start working out regularly. We’ll see how this goes
    Cooking: nothing at the moment. I keep thinking about getting up to get a bowl of cereal though
    Drinking: a nice cup of coffee 🙂
    Calling: I was just recently on the phone with my cousin, confirming plans to hang out later
    Texting: Tommy, of course 😉
    Going: to get up soon to get ready to go for lunch
    Loving: the season I’m in with my relationship with Tommy and that fall is upon us! I went hiking yesterday and the leaves were so orange and already starting to fall, so exciting
    Hating: the stress that I’ve been experiencing lately. I feel like God’s trying to teach me to be content in all circumstances, even when things that I thought were going to happen actually don’t. This has been super hard for me because I love knowing what’s going to happen and having a plan for everything and tend to get pretty cranky when things don’t go as planned but with God’s grace I’ll learn to be content even when they don’t – knowing He knows best and His plans are better than mine anyway
    Discovering: how sinful I can be but how amazing God’s grace is in those moments
    Thinking: about how this is taking me longer than I had thought and that I really need to get up to get ready lol
    Feeling: a million different things. anxious, excited, happy, confused, all of the above
    Hoping (for): a more peaceful week
    Celebrating: that this is the first semester I haven’t had to go back to school!! so much more free time
    Ordering: a case for my Kindle. I’ve been just keeping it in my purse and I’m really worried it’s gonna break

    So this has been what I’ve been up to currently. I really am going to work on posting more regularly, I hope this will serve as a little bit of excuse as to why I haven’t really posted all that much (If not, I’m sorry). I am still planning to write a post about my Bahamas trip. I just want to really have a lot of time to do that to make sure I really show how awesome it was and I think there’s even a day in this challenge that it will fit in with so maybe you’ll just have to wait till then to hear about it 😉

    What have you guys been up to lately? Anyone dealing with anything I am or have any tips for dealing with stress or being content in all situations? Also how do you manage to post regularly, I could use some tips on that too. I would love you hear from you 🙂

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  • Faith,  Life

    True Life: I Hate The Unknown

    August 24, 2015

    It’s true. I hate the unknown more than anything. When I don’t know the details of things that are happening in my life I get anxious. I love to be prepared and when I’m prepared I think that I’m the one in control of what is happening in my life. Obviously this isn’t true in the slightest. God’s in control, no matter how much planning and preparing I do. He ultimately decides how things happen in my life.

    Planning and preparing aren’t bad things in themselves of course, I think God honors us when we are responsible and plan for things that are happening in our lives. But I believe it’s a sin when we plan and plan and plan so much that we think we are out planning God. I don’t know if anyone else struggles with this but sometimes I think I know better than God does. I know what I’ll enjoy and I want to enjoy it when I want it. I can be very impatient at times.

    The most frustrating part to me is that I KNOW Jesus’s ways are better than my own. I know that waiting on His timing will only bring me more joy, but sometimes I still feel that I know better or maybe it’s just that I can be selfish at times and I want what I want more than I want to wait for whatever Jesus has prepared for me.

    I’m having a hard time with this but I know that Jesus will carry me through. What do you guys do when you struggle with waiting on Jesus? I’d love to hear from you.

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  • Marriage

    Bliss Part 2

    August 21, 2015

    Hi friends 🙂 I just wanted to stop by and elaborate on my last post (if you missed it, you can check it out here). When I wrote that one I was having one of those days where I was so exhausted that I was having a hard time really focusing on getting out what I really wanted to say. I thought I’d try my best to try to explain a little more about my thoughts behind the post today but I’ve also been having I guess what you would call writer’s block. I can’t clearly get across what I want to write about lately and I haven’t really had any great ideas to write about either which has been kind of discouraging. Sometimes I even think that starting this blog wasn’t a good idea and that maybe I’m not all that great at writing anyway but I am going to persevere and see how things go.

    So back to the point of this post (hopefully this one will be a little clearer) – my heart behind the last post was that waiting on God specifically when it comes to a dating relationship is way more worth it than you could ever imagine it to be. Thinking back on the years I went through wishing and wanting and praying for a boyfriend are some what of a blur now. Looking back isn’t exactly a fun experience either because it reminds me of how much more I wanted a boyfriend or husband than I really wanted the Lord but it makes me really appreciate to be in where I am today.

    I took my relationships into my own hands for quite a while and had to go through quite a few heartbreaks before I was willing to admit that maybe God knows a better way. I am just so thankful that the Lord never gave up on me though and kept pursuing me despite my sin and eventually got through to my stubborn heart.

    I wanted to encourage those of you out there who might be in a similar season. Maybe you have taken things into your own hands and suffered the consequences, or maybe you haven’t yet but are really struggling not to. Being on the other end of the spectrum now, in a  relationship that is God-honoring and such a joy, I can honestly say that every moment of the confusion and pain of waiting will be more than worth it in the end.

    Running ahead of God and pursuing a relationship that is not honoring to Him may be fun for a season but usually ends in heartbreak. And even if it doesn’t, I can promise that a relationship outside of His design will never have the same joys that one with Him in the center of it does.

    And I want you to know that I only know this through experience. I’ve been in relationships that were not God-honoring and they do not compare to the one I’m in today. I went through the waiting process (sometimes gracefully, most times not) and on the other end I can tell you the only reason why it is worth it is because in that waiting process you learn that GOD IS ENOUGH. You learn that He’s all you need and how to make Him to be the desire of your heart rather than a husband (or wife). This then sets you up in a wonderful place to eventually be able honor and respect your future husband in the correct way rather than elevate him to be a god in your heart. It sets you up to have such a sweet relationship where you both can love and spur each other on to fall more and more in love with Jesus.

    I am so so thankful for my relationship with Tommy and how God uses him to continually point me towards Himself. I couldn’t ask for a more thoughtful and loving guy. He is always pursuing me and putting my desires before his own and I really don’t understand how I got so lucky. It’s never easy to wait on God, no matter what the circumstances are, but it is always worth it.

    Some things that really helped me in the waiting process was to read my Bible and cry out to Jesus when I was at my lowest. Tell Him how you feel, He is cares and is closer than you realize.

    The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. – Psalm 24:18

    Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you. – 1 Peter 5:7

    Something that also helped was reading books written by people who had been in my shoes and had good advice for me. Some of those books that really helped were:

    Praying For Your Future Husband: Preparing Your Heart For His – By Robin Jones Gunn

    Lady In Waiting: Becoming God’s Best While Waiting For Mr. Right – By Jackie Kendall

    Another thing that helped was talking to others about how I was feeling. I know we may be strangers but I have been there and if anyone needs just someone to listen and be encouraged I want you to know that I am here just for that. My hopes in writing posts like these are to help others and I would love to do that on more of a personal level as well.

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  • Marriage

    Bliss

    August 19, 2015

    A word I would use to describe how I feel about my relationship with Tommy. I’m not naive enough to think it’s because of how great of a guy he is, though that’s true. I also know that it isn’t because we are practically the same person, just different genders – though that’s true as well.

    I’ve been at this dating thing for quite some time now. I’ve always been one of those girls who wished and dreamed of the day that she got married. It’s always sounded like it was going to be amazing, but I also wanted it for the wrong reasons as well. I don’t come from the greatest of families so I used to be on a quest to get married so that I could move out and start my own family. Although God has corrected my view of wanting to get married, it took a lot of pain and heartbreak to get me to where I am now.

    Bliss would be the word I would use to describe my relationship with Tommy and I know the only reason it is this way is because I know that God is with us and growing us towards each other and towards himself.

    I want to encourage anyone out there who is struggling with singleness and doesn’t know if God is even there at all. Struggling to believe if He even cares about your desires to be married. I want to you to know that He is there and He cares. More than you could ever know. He wants more for your life than you do and that’s why He has you in this season. Don’t do what I did and take things into your own hands, it will only leave you more alone and hurt than you’re feeling now.

    Trust.

    God knows your desires and He wants you to know that He hears you and your prayers for the future. He wants you to trust Him to bring to pass whatever is best for you. Use this season to get closer to Him, singleness is only for a season.

    Lay your desires down at the foot of the cross.

    Let God fulfill you like only He can.

    It’s never easy but always worth it.

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  • Faith,  Life

    how to experience J O Y in every day life

    August 6, 2015

    Okay so my computer has a virus and that’s why I haven’t been blogging all that much. I’m currently on my work computer (shh don’t tell anyone). But my plan is to buy a Mac, hopefully tonight actually.

    I love sharing what God’s doing in my life in hopes to encourage others too. God’s really teaching me how to experience joy amidst my every day life.

    Joy.

    Real joy. Something that I’m not too familiar with if I’m being honest. God’s really teaching me how to really enjoy my life. Wanna know the secret? Focus on the good. Only the good. Acknowledge the bad, sure. But focus on the good. Dwell on it. Be thankful for it. All of the good, even the small stuff. Especially the small stuff.

    A fresh cup of coffee

    Sunshine at lunch

    Good smelling lotion

    A cute coffee mug

    A sweet kiss

    There’s so many good things to be thankful for on any given day, it just takes us to direct our attention towards them to realize they’re there. I also found this is the key to struggling with contentment as well. It’s hard to be wishing for more when we realize just how much good we already have. We are blessed, truly blessed and I don’t ever want to forget it. Join with me and let’s commit to never getting bored of the blessings in our lives.

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