"Lord, please give me the words" and more quotes

~Saturday Stories~

"Lord, please give me the words." -Gracie, Grace Notes

"Not making a decision is the same as making one. It's like saying you like how things are going, that you want to keep heading in the same direction. But I think that's a bad choice. I mean, why would you want to live a life that makes you miserable? It makes no sense." - Andrea, Harsh Pink

"If it wasn't valuable, why would God waste time giving you the talent?" -Abbie, So Over It

"Oh, believe me, I have no illusions, I'm certain there'll be more hard times ahead - I mean, you just never know what a day might bring. But what I do know is that God can see me through. I can't wait to see what he does next!" -Caitlin, Becoming Me

How about you? Have you made a decision for Christ? Have you ever asked God to give you the words? What talents has He given you? Are you waiting to see what Christ does in your life? 

Loving

~Friday for Friends~

"Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love." 1 John 4:8 (NIV)

We are called to love others, enemies included. And this can be hard. However, if God loved us so so so much, we know it is possible. Hard, but possible. 

Dear God, there are people who are very hard to love. At least for us. We want to get by by ignoring them or being semi-polite, but that is not what you called us to do. Help us to LOVE others, God. Thank you so much for loving us first and giving us the strength we need to do what you told us to. Amen. 

What should we wear?

~Tuesday Thoughts~

Nancy Rue on her blog In Real Life has an interesting post discussing this verse: 

"In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety; not with broided hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array;" 1 Timothy 2:9 (King James Version)

What do you think this means? How should we interpret this in our lives? 

Love Feels Like

~Monday Movies & Music~

"Love Feels Like" is a song by TobyMac. Here are the lyrics.

"And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love." 1 Corinthians 13:13 (NIV)

Who can you show love to today?

The Gift of Vulnerability

~Saturday Stories~

    Arielle maneuvered through the crowd following Mrs. Hale to a table. “Talk to me,” the teacher’s voice flowed softly. Arielle sat down drumming her fingers on the table. Her heart constricted with relief, while her mind screamed at her to run away.
   “You said you felt jealous, stupid, and ugly.” Arielle glanced at Mrs. Hale for a second, then turned away.  A number of months had passed since she had first caved in and called herself stupid. Too many beautiful, smart, and outgoing people had surrounded her to think that she would ever measure up. She had never met the expectations.
     “The devil’s feeding you a lie.” Arielle shook her head. She could not, would not believe that. How come, then, no one cared at all? Scenes of crying in bed, screaming at herself, and shrieking just to let the emotions out passed through her mind. She should stop the conversation. Had she not vowed to never go all vulnerable on anyone?
     “God loves you.” Mrs. Hale peered into Arielle’s eyes. Arielle played around with the table top. She believed it, but rarely felt it. Even so, the fact that God loved her did not mean she needed to value herself. She had not found any passage in the Bible that commanded people to accept themselves. Maybe God had crafted a lovely brilliant kid, but then she screwed it all up.
     “I care too,” Mrs. Hale’s deep soft voice permeated through Arielle’s slowly dissolving bubble. “I love you.” Arielle’s throat clogged up. She closed her eyes for a second. She had longed for a conversation like this for years yet had never allowed herself to fully trust others.
     “You are beautiful, Arielle. You are loved.” Through the blur of tears, she searched Mrs. Hale’s eyes for sarcasm or falseness but found none. She bit her lip. Did she dare? She opened her mouth, and words spilled out. Between tears pouring down and sobs ringing out Arielle spoke of her hidden emotions and troubles, opening the door to her story.
     Peace and love, two of the Lord’s many gifts, penetrated Arielle’s heart that day. The process of healing had begun.


How about you? Have you ever struggled with who you are and why you are here? How has God helped you? Did He place specific people in your life?  

Trust

~Friday for Friends~

 "Trust in the Lord with all your heart
    and lean not on your own understanding;
  in all your ways submit to him,
    and he will make your paths straight.[a]" Proverbs 3:5-6 (NIV)

This can be very hard. So often we want to place all our confidence in ourselves and "tough it out." We want to solve our own problems, to be self-sufficient. However, what we need to remember is this:

God has a wonderful plan for us (Jeremiah 29:11). We can come to Him with whatever stress we have (1 Peter 5:7). If we confess our sins, He will forgive us (1 John 1:9).

Amen! Amen! Amen!

Who we are

~Tuesday Thoughts~

"Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God—" John 1:12 (NIV)

"he[a] predestined us for adoption to sonship[b] through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—" Ephesians 1:5 (NIV)

"Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God." Romans 15:7 (NIV)

We are children of God! 

Lord, please help us accept ourselves and others as You want us to accept them. Remind us that we can be Yours and help us share that message with others. Amen.