Sunday, April 13, 2014
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Being the woman HE sees
Hi Ladies!
Do you know what God sees when He looks at you?
He sees a woman of great strength. A woman who can heal from hurt and rise up again and do things even greater than she has done before. A woman who can LOVE openly, sacrificially, without comparing new journeys to the past. A woman with a conquering spirit to build up and fortify the relationships that she is in and support those that are in her world.
He sees a woman who is tender. A woman whom He designed to love like He loves. A woman who chooses to be compassionate and who naturally extends her hands. A woman with honest, with pure intentions.
He sees a woman with purpose. A woman who does things with intention. He sees you in your moments of anxiety. He sees you as you align your life with His will and as you journey toward that.
Today, I had a moment of anxiety. I was speaking with my boyfriend about his dreams and goals [this is the subject I like speaking of most in life]. While we spoke I had a moment when I recalled an incident where I had been really hurt in my choice to help someone with a dream of theirs. Now ladies, I'm being very vulnerable here...in that moment I physically had a hard time breathing. I walked away momentarily to collect myself. I had forgiven this person in my past. I was a woman of my word and finished what I promised. But this was the first time I was revisiting this life-dream-goal topic with the male gender and there in that moment were these emotions that I had to sort out quickly so that I could continue. When I walked away to gather my thoughts. The very first thing I thought about was how much I care about this man I am talking with now. The next thought was....'I want to spend my entire life building into the dreams of others.' Followed by the thought, 'You need to do this. One day I desire to be a wife who is this pillar of substance, strength, support, and faith for her husband building him up and encouraging his dreams......what I choose to do and practice today will directly effect the way I am able to do those things and to what extent in my future.' So, I took a deep breath and said, 'God, I want you to do this through me.' I was so excited to be having this conversation with him. The only reason why this anxiety came up was because Satan has a way of trying to use reflections from the past to cloud the future of what God is trying to birth in front of us. In those moments....we have the opportunity to choose. To dwell in anxiety is to remain in the past. To complete the conversation with such determination is to proclaim the substance that your faith rests upon and the hope for your future.
Where ever you are today, can I remind and encourage you of something? DO NOT. DO NOT. DO NOT......allow yourself to be defeated in small spiritual battles of the mind or emotions. As my sister would say, 'Get it together!' Choose to stand in the middle of the substance that your faith is formed in and be the woman your heart longs to be. The woman HE sees. And btw.....no one else has to know or see it. You don't have to tell anyone about your moment with God, You will naturally reflect His beauty by your choice in the silence. People will be drawn to you without knowing why....and that is powerful. In that exchange, God's greatness is magnified.
Do you know what God sees when He looks at you?
He sees a woman of great strength. A woman who can heal from hurt and rise up again and do things even greater than she has done before. A woman who can LOVE openly, sacrificially, without comparing new journeys to the past. A woman with a conquering spirit to build up and fortify the relationships that she is in and support those that are in her world.
He sees a woman who is tender. A woman whom He designed to love like He loves. A woman who chooses to be compassionate and who naturally extends her hands. A woman with honest, with pure intentions.
He sees a woman with purpose. A woman who does things with intention. He sees you in your moments of anxiety. He sees you as you align your life with His will and as you journey toward that.
Today, I had a moment of anxiety. I was speaking with my boyfriend about his dreams and goals [this is the subject I like speaking of most in life]. While we spoke I had a moment when I recalled an incident where I had been really hurt in my choice to help someone with a dream of theirs. Now ladies, I'm being very vulnerable here...in that moment I physically had a hard time breathing. I walked away momentarily to collect myself. I had forgiven this person in my past. I was a woman of my word and finished what I promised. But this was the first time I was revisiting this life-dream-goal topic with the male gender and there in that moment were these emotions that I had to sort out quickly so that I could continue. When I walked away to gather my thoughts. The very first thing I thought about was how much I care about this man I am talking with now. The next thought was....'I want to spend my entire life building into the dreams of others.' Followed by the thought, 'You need to do this. One day I desire to be a wife who is this pillar of substance, strength, support, and faith for her husband building him up and encouraging his dreams......what I choose to do and practice today will directly effect the way I am able to do those things and to what extent in my future.' So, I took a deep breath and said, 'God, I want you to do this through me.' I was so excited to be having this conversation with him. The only reason why this anxiety came up was because Satan has a way of trying to use reflections from the past to cloud the future of what God is trying to birth in front of us. In those moments....we have the opportunity to choose. To dwell in anxiety is to remain in the past. To complete the conversation with such determination is to proclaim the substance that your faith rests upon and the hope for your future.
Where ever you are today, can I remind and encourage you of something? DO NOT. DO NOT. DO NOT......allow yourself to be defeated in small spiritual battles of the mind or emotions. As my sister would say, 'Get it together!' Choose to stand in the middle of the substance that your faith is formed in and be the woman your heart longs to be. The woman HE sees. And btw.....no one else has to know or see it. You don't have to tell anyone about your moment with God, You will naturally reflect His beauty by your choice in the silence. People will be drawn to you without knowing why....and that is powerful. In that exchange, God's greatness is magnified.
Friday, March 18, 2011
Gettin real with the girls...
Hey ladies!
So, It has been about a month since I have written. Wow, time sure does fly by! I want to share with you a few things that God has been doing in my life and also a few things that He has been challenging me on. Being willing to let go before you receive...refusing to give attention to what does not deserve your attention...and being honest even when you are not specifically asked, knowing that you will not look your best. I hope this encourages and empowers you.
Okay, first is this idea of letting go before you receive. God has challenged me on this before in the past but recently this has come up in an area of my life that is so close to my heart. This request I felt God speaking to my heart about actually came up in the same area on three different occasions. Each time, I saw this image of Abraham letting go of his son and watching his walk up a hill, feeling pain that he would have to say goodbye. Each time I saw this image I felt God challenging me to literally say to him, "God I'm okay with your will and am willing to let this go if that is what you desire." You know, it wasn't that I thought I was necessarily going to loose that desire in my life, but more that I felt God challenging my faith to see if I would confess with my mouth that I was okay and would trust him, even if I was sad or disappointed. The Bible talks about how out of the heart the mouth speaks...the things we proclaim in our hearts often need to be verbalized to assure our faith. Its not that God needs our assurance, but more so that He wants to see us holding onto Him alone.
The next thing I want to share with you is more of a question. Are there things or people in your life that you are giving attention to that are not lined up with God's priority for your life right now? Why do we entertain these ideas or in some cases, individuals. Maybe, we feel bad. Maybe, we do not know how to say 'NO'. Maybe, we think things will turn out differently. Maybe, we are trying to be kind. I want to share a personal story with you. A little over a month ago I shared with a man, I am now in a relationship with, a story about some pain I had experienced from a man in my past. I was open and honest, but also a little afraid. You see, I've always been the type to push myself, even in fear. Some might think, "Wow, she's super brave," but the truth is I'm just stubborn and refuse to be pushed around by a little fear. Well, that night after having that conversation I had a dream. There was no sound in my dream and the only thing I saw was this beautiful female figure suspended on one side of a line. On the opposite side of that line was this image of a person who was so honest and intentional. I woke up and knew instantly, that if I did not try with all of my heart I would loose my chance. I felt this assurance that I would not experience the same sort of pain that I had before.
Ironically, about 10 minutes later I was getting ready and received a text message from the very person who had caused all that pain well over a year ago. It read, "I miss you." Ladies, you know how certain words strike your heart....well, a year ago that text would have caused me to rethink everything I was getting ready to embark on. Yet, in that moment I looked in the mirror and literally said out loud, "You are going to cross that line and never look back and thought....Satan will have no room to cause doubt in my future love [whomever God deems]. I deleted that message and carried on. You see ladies, sometimes the very best thing you can do for yourself is to trust God just enough. It's not a matter of what you see in the physical but what you are believing in faith....beyond that line of security or fear.
One last thing that is on my heart today that I want to share with you is what real honesty looks like. Each of us has at least one area of our life that is muddled, or flawed. [to be continued....something just came up that needs my immediate attention.]
Love you ladies
Andrea
So, It has been about a month since I have written. Wow, time sure does fly by! I want to share with you a few things that God has been doing in my life and also a few things that He has been challenging me on. Being willing to let go before you receive...refusing to give attention to what does not deserve your attention...and being honest even when you are not specifically asked, knowing that you will not look your best. I hope this encourages and empowers you.
Okay, first is this idea of letting go before you receive. God has challenged me on this before in the past but recently this has come up in an area of my life that is so close to my heart. This request I felt God speaking to my heart about actually came up in the same area on three different occasions. Each time, I saw this image of Abraham letting go of his son and watching his walk up a hill, feeling pain that he would have to say goodbye. Each time I saw this image I felt God challenging me to literally say to him, "God I'm okay with your will and am willing to let this go if that is what you desire." You know, it wasn't that I thought I was necessarily going to loose that desire in my life, but more that I felt God challenging my faith to see if I would confess with my mouth that I was okay and would trust him, even if I was sad or disappointed. The Bible talks about how out of the heart the mouth speaks...the things we proclaim in our hearts often need to be verbalized to assure our faith. Its not that God needs our assurance, but more so that He wants to see us holding onto Him alone.
The next thing I want to share with you is more of a question. Are there things or people in your life that you are giving attention to that are not lined up with God's priority for your life right now? Why do we entertain these ideas or in some cases, individuals. Maybe, we feel bad. Maybe, we do not know how to say 'NO'. Maybe, we think things will turn out differently. Maybe, we are trying to be kind. I want to share a personal story with you. A little over a month ago I shared with a man, I am now in a relationship with, a story about some pain I had experienced from a man in my past. I was open and honest, but also a little afraid. You see, I've always been the type to push myself, even in fear. Some might think, "Wow, she's super brave," but the truth is I'm just stubborn and refuse to be pushed around by a little fear. Well, that night after having that conversation I had a dream. There was no sound in my dream and the only thing I saw was this beautiful female figure suspended on one side of a line. On the opposite side of that line was this image of a person who was so honest and intentional. I woke up and knew instantly, that if I did not try with all of my heart I would loose my chance. I felt this assurance that I would not experience the same sort of pain that I had before.
Ironically, about 10 minutes later I was getting ready and received a text message from the very person who had caused all that pain well over a year ago. It read, "I miss you." Ladies, you know how certain words strike your heart....well, a year ago that text would have caused me to rethink everything I was getting ready to embark on. Yet, in that moment I looked in the mirror and literally said out loud, "You are going to cross that line and never look back and thought....Satan will have no room to cause doubt in my future love [whomever God deems]. I deleted that message and carried on. You see ladies, sometimes the very best thing you can do for yourself is to trust God just enough. It's not a matter of what you see in the physical but what you are believing in faith....beyond that line of security or fear.
One last thing that is on my heart today that I want to share with you is what real honesty looks like. Each of us has at least one area of our life that is muddled, or flawed. [to be continued....something just came up that needs my immediate attention.]
Love you ladies
Andrea
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Forgiveness: Beginning to talk about it...
Good Evening Girls!
So after writing daily for 35 days and confronting the BUTs in our faith statements I was really unsure where to go next. What to write about from here? Do I continue to write daily or go back to every-so-often? I have spent the last week praying about this and this morning I woke up with the subject of forgiveness on my heart. The weight of the topic actually brought me to my knees and to tears. There is so much I want to talk with you about and I hope you are able to share some of your stories too. I really believe that this is an issue that many women and men deal with and one that is so close to the heart of God. I'm not sure what this chapter of the blog will look like fully....so I'll keep you 'posted' ;). For now, I want to begin by sharing this song that speaks to the heart of forgiveness. Looking forward to exploring this with you.
Lots of Love,
Andrea
So after writing daily for 35 days and confronting the BUTs in our faith statements I was really unsure where to go next. What to write about from here? Do I continue to write daily or go back to every-so-often? I have spent the last week praying about this and this morning I woke up with the subject of forgiveness on my heart. The weight of the topic actually brought me to my knees and to tears. There is so much I want to talk with you about and I hope you are able to share some of your stories too. I really believe that this is an issue that many women and men deal with and one that is so close to the heart of God. I'm not sure what this chapter of the blog will look like fully....so I'll keep you 'posted' ;). For now, I want to begin by sharing this song that speaks to the heart of forgiveness. Looking forward to exploring this with you.
Lots of Love,
Andrea
Sunday, February 13, 2011
The 35 Day Challenge: Day 35 of 35
The 35 Day Challenge: Day 35 of 35
It is finished. :)
Well, beautiful woman....where-ever you are in the world today....we've come to the end of our 35 day Challenge. These last 35 days have been soooooo good for me and I hope this challenge to eliminate the BUTs in your faith statements has pushed you, has encouraged you, and perhaps has even helped to bring restoration. As a conclusion I want to take a few minutes to share with you a few things that I hope continue to shed light on any life circumstance you might be facing. God's plans for you are to prosper. Never to harm you, but to give you a hope and a future that is exceedingly and abundantly beyond anything that you could ever ask or think. Remember that you already have the greatest love that anyone could ever know.
Faith is a process, but the testing of it creates the substance of the VERY promise you are waiting for. Hold tight and get ready for the adventure of your life!!!!
xoxoxoxx
Love you so much my sister
Andrea
It is finished. :)
Well, beautiful woman....where-ever you are in the world today....we've come to the end of our 35 day Challenge. These last 35 days have been soooooo good for me and I hope this challenge to eliminate the BUTs in your faith statements has pushed you, has encouraged you, and perhaps has even helped to bring restoration. As a conclusion I want to take a few minutes to share with you a few things that I hope continue to shed light on any life circumstance you might be facing. God's plans for you are to prosper. Never to harm you, but to give you a hope and a future that is exceedingly and abundantly beyond anything that you could ever ask or think. Remember that you already have the greatest love that anyone could ever know.
Faith is a process, but the testing of it creates the substance of the VERY promise you are waiting for. Hold tight and get ready for the adventure of your life!!!!
xoxoxoxx
Love you so much my sister
Andrea
The 35 Day Challenge: Day 34 of 35
The 35 Day Challenge: Day 34 of 35
Eat lunch, look out the window, and smile @ the fact that a building is blocking your view
One more sleep ladies. Today, I sat in a booth at Sweet Tomatoes for lunch and listed out my goals for the next year....periodically I stopped and looked out the window to see what I could see from my current perspective. Not much to tell you the truth. As I looked, I saw a couple buildings, but all else was blocked by their size and volume. I smiled thinking....there is so much more beyond what I do not see. Today, where ever you are and what ever is in front of you. Stop. Smile. Perhaps, look out a window...and smile at the buildings that are blocking all that you do not see. It won't take that long to walk around them.
xoxoxo
Until tomorrow.
Lots and lots of Love
Andrea
Eat lunch, look out the window, and smile @ the fact that a building is blocking your view
One more sleep ladies. Today, I sat in a booth at Sweet Tomatoes for lunch and listed out my goals for the next year....periodically I stopped and looked out the window to see what I could see from my current perspective. Not much to tell you the truth. As I looked, I saw a couple buildings, but all else was blocked by their size and volume. I smiled thinking....there is so much more beyond what I do not see. Today, where ever you are and what ever is in front of you. Stop. Smile. Perhaps, look out a window...and smile at the buildings that are blocking all that you do not see. It won't take that long to walk around them.
xoxoxo
Until tomorrow.
Lots and lots of Love
Andrea
Friday, February 11, 2011
The 35 Day Challenge: Day 33 of 35
The 35 Day Challenge: Day 33 of 35
Looking into the future and smiling at the unseen
Faith is the substance of things hoped for the evidence of things not seen. With only a two more days of this challenge, two more days til my 25th birthday, and two more days until the cut off for my birthday fundraising for Watoto Babies home....I can't help but smile at all that God has been doing in the last month. I'm not totally sure what He has in store around the corner. But whatever it is I am ready and so excited to be a part of His plan. This BUT eliminating challenge has stirred up so much in me and in some of you and I am so glad to see how God is stretching our faith and adding to its substance. Ready for the unseen? Don't grow weary at the end of the race.....when you are so close to the finish line. Look up and smile at what's around the corner.
Lots of Love,
Andrea
Looking into the future and smiling at the unseen
Faith is the substance of things hoped for the evidence of things not seen. With only a two more days of this challenge, two more days til my 25th birthday, and two more days until the cut off for my birthday fundraising for Watoto Babies home....I can't help but smile at all that God has been doing in the last month. I'm not totally sure what He has in store around the corner. But whatever it is I am ready and so excited to be a part of His plan. This BUT eliminating challenge has stirred up so much in me and in some of you and I am so glad to see how God is stretching our faith and adding to its substance. Ready for the unseen? Don't grow weary at the end of the race.....when you are so close to the finish line. Look up and smile at what's around the corner.
Lots of Love,
Andrea
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