Tag Archives: Faithfulness

An Anchor for Your Soul

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Welcome to 2022! It’s a fresh page in the newest chapter of your life! The Lord has preloaded experiences, events, and encounters into each day of this new year (Ephesians 2:10).  He designed each day specifically for you and with your best interests in mind (Psalm 139:13-170)! It’s important to have faith in His plans and purposes because not all of those experiences, events, and encounters will be easy.

As you embark on Day 1 of whatever year this is in your journey, can I encourage you to grab ahold? Grab ahold of a promise of God that speaks to your heart and will sustain you through the difficult times! It doesn’t have to be the same promise all year; in fact, God wants to give us “fresh bread” a.k.a. “fresh Truth” each day. You see, when the river of life begins to churn and feel more like white water rapids than a docile stream, we NEED to have an anchor to cling to! That anchor is found in the Truth of God’s Word and in the Truth of His character.

Let me connect two verses for you that I hope will encourage you to dig afresh into God’s promises for you!

In Jeremiah 1:12, the Lord tells the prophet “for I am watching to see that My word is fulfilled” (NIV). When the Lord makes a declaration, He is committed to follow through on His Word! That’s exciting!

Now check out II Corinthians 1:20: “For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ. And so through Him the “Amen” is spoken by us to the glory of God” (NIV). Imagine a child that has an earnest desire and climbs up on daddy’s lap to make her request knowing that the answer is already a “yes.” That child has no fear or trepidation, only confidence in what is to come!

With the heart of that child, we participate in the process by identifying God’s promises and then affirming them with an “Amen” in our lives! Sure, God can do things on His own, but He wants to partner with us in this journey! He wants to build our confidence in His faithfulness (Hebrews 1:21).

Each new year, I pray for a word to help me embrace what the Lord has planned for me. This year, He gave me the word “hope” with Romans 15:13: “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit” (NIV). I don’t know what experiences, events, and encounters even today holds, but I know Who holds me every step of the way and my hope is in His faithfulness!

Reach out for a Word from your Daddy, a promise1 from His heart, and know that He is faithful to bring it to pass! He is not sending you into 2022 with a handshake and pat on the back, He walks with you every step of the way. Grab ahold of a promise, grab ahold of some Truth, grab ahold of HIM each moment of every day and watch Him fulfill His promises to you!

Live loved,

1 There are many, many promises God has given us in His word. If you are unsure where to start, here are some resources for you. When you read one that causes your spirit to jump, that’s a great starting point!

Pathways to Joy: Faith & Hope

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You cannot have faith without hope. You cannot have hope without faith!

Think about it… these two are inextricably entwined. The very nature of having faith inspires hope! All is not lost, there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

The very nature of hope requires that you have faith… faith that what you are presently enduring is temporal, good things are coming!

Faith is a belief, or confidence, in something or someone. Hope is an expectation of better.

Faith and hope pair up to create a pathway to joy! I’ve experienced this over and over in my life. Whether you value faith or not, I cannot share pathways to joy with you without spending time sharing how faith has impacted my journey.

A popular song in worship these days is called The Goodness of God. This song deeply moves me. It celebrates God’s goodness amidst all my ups and downs: life and death, hurts and healings, gains and losses, success and failures. I can’t help but sing with abandonment:

“All my life you have been faithful, All my life you’ve been so, so good, With every breath that I am able, I’m gonna sing of the goodness of God!”1

You might read that and think, “Joy, you have no idea what I’ve experienced. I can’t possibly sing those lines and believe it.” You’re right, I don’t know what you’ve been through. You may be still dealing with dredges of pain that I can’t imagine. Even if I’ve experienced what you have, your journey is your own.

Let me share how I’m able to declare that God has been faithful to me in spite of painful times. It’s in the lyrics: “With my life laid down, I surrender now, I give you everything.”1 You see, I choose to submit everything I’ve experienced, the difficult things I’ve endured, to the Lord and His purposes. This is where faith and hope come in!

  • I have faith that God will cause everything to work together for my good because I love Him and have an amazing destiny! (Romans 8:28)
  • I have hope that God can bring good out of what the enemy designed for evil in my circumstances! (Jeremiah 29:11, Genesis 50:20)

It’s all about perspective. When we set our difficult journey within the framework of divine goodness, we can believe that our lives are a tapestry in which the threads of all we experience are woven together to create a masterpiece of beauty called our life.

“But Joy, how can this loving God allow terrible things to happen to us?” This valid question has been asked through the centuries.  People have written books on it.2  I will not attempt to answer it here, but will share this simple truth: humans have free will to choose their actions! When God created Adam and Eve, He said, “Let them have dominion over the earth.”  He gave us the opportunity to govern ourselves (as well as animals and nature).  Why didn’t God stop Eve from talking to satan or eating the fruit that was off limits? If He had, would she have had free will?  Nope… He would have overridden His own law by stopping her free will. 

So, why do terrible things happen in the world? Because you and I, as well as all the people who affect us, have free will.

This is why faith is important! When we have faith that He is a good God that loves us, we invite Him into our lives and circumstances and give Him permission to intervene on our behalf! It doesn’t mean we have life without pain or sickness, but it does mean that He will cause goodness to be the theme of our lives!  That is faith that breeds unstoppable hope, resulting in incredible joy!

Let me go a bit deeper… I don’t just have faith in God… I TRUST God! I trust that He has good plans for me. I trust that He created me amazing. I trust that He loves my family more than I can imagine. I trust that He will never leave me or abandon me. I trust that His Word is true! I trust Him as a Father and Friend. There are times that my journey has been unbearable, yet I’ve come through on the other side! He has proven Himself to me over and over! What joy I have found in my faith! Hope rises up in me when I meditate on His goodness!

If you haven’t considered yourself a person of faith, this may have been a difficult read for you. I hope that you will explore the Word of God and ask Him to show up in your circumstances! I pray that you will encounter His goodness and come to know that He has been there all along, crying with you in the painful times, sharing your laughter, and celebrating your successes.

I would love to pray with you if you want to start your faith journey or need encouragement in it. Drop me a comment with your email and I will connect with you!

Live loved,

1Lyrics from Goodness of God, Bethel Music, Written by Jenn Johnson / Ed Cash / Jason Ingram / Ben Fielding / Brian Johnson

2Where is God When it Hurts? Philip Yancey, When Bad Things Happen to Good People by Harold S. Kushner are two books you can explore.

Faith Over Fear: A Practical Guide to Mindset Management

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It seems that unless you are living in a cave, you, like me are being inundated with talk, texts, or posts about COVID-19.  My social media world is comprised of parents, teachers, pastors, and young adults trying to come to grips with making decisions in the light of constantly changing information and directives.

If we are not careful, our curiosity, boredom, or just need to be “in the know” will reap a harvest of fear, uncertainty, and paranoia.  For some of my readers, you may already be there! 

This is no time to fear!  Throughout history, when times of stress, trauma, war, and upheaval have come, it’s then that heroes emerge, leaders arise, and problem-solvers create!  Instead of seeing COVID-19 as a curse, it’s time to view it as in impetus! When we look back on this time in history, what will you and I have done to make our world a better place? When we reflect on these world events, will we be able to see beauty arise from the ashes? If we want to be part of the beauty, we will need to conquer the fear!

Overcoming Fear

So, how do we tackle the fear?  It’s all about our Mindset!  Circumstances can help assuage our fear, but they will not alleviate it long-term.  Sure, several rolls of toilet paper can help you breathe a sigh of relief, but that relief only lasts as long as the loaf of bread, or the jar of peanut butter, or the money in the bank.  There will always be a circumstance that can rear its head and thrust us right back into fear. Only managing our mindset will enable us to maintain peace regardless of our circumstances.

Mindset Management 101

  • Be thankful! When your heart and mouth are filled with thankfulness, it becomes hard to complain! Start each day by listing 10 things you are thankful for… clean water, eyes that see, food in the cupboard, fresh air… you get the idea!  Model thankfulness for those around you.  They will catch on. 🙂 When you are thankful, your mindset shifts from complaining to celebrating!1
  • Be busy! Jammies are cozy, the couch is comfortable, relaxing is important! But set boundaries for yourself (and your kiddos!). Get dressed, go for a walk, clean out a cupboard, play a game, learn a language, create, build, read! When you are engaged in life, your mindset shifts from problems to productivity!2
  • Be purposeful! Do you remember that old saying: garbage in=garbage out? It still holds true today.  What you allow into your eyes, ears, and heart will determine what your mind focuses on.  Shut off the 24 hour news loop! Stop reading all those fear-inspiring articles on the internet.  Change a complaining conversation into a constructive one.  When you are purposeful about guarding your home and head, your mindset shifts from cluttered to centered!3
  • Be kind! This should go without saying, but when the world goes topsy-turvy, sometimes our priorities get scrambled and we forget that we are not the center of the universe! Everyone has trials they are navigating; avoid judging journeys that are different than your own.  Smile more, criticize less. Post an encouraging word. Make a “just because” phone call.  Share a square. 🙂 When you are kind, your mindset shifts from self-centered to other-centered!4
  • Be positive! This is a big one, so bear with me! I know that we all have different personalities.  Some of us tend to look at life with rose-colored glasses, while others of us can’t seem to get the dark shades off.  But YOU are in control of YOU!  You can choose to swing your tendency from negative vibes to positive ones.  This will probably be very challenging for those who are chronically negative. Determining to find and focus on the positive may require you to enlist some help.  Ask a family member or friend to help you identify negative ideas and phrases as they come out of your mouth.  Then consciously rephrase your thought to reflect a positive idea.  When you’re tempted to point out the faults in others, pause and look for good instead.  As you grow in this process, you will feel like the sun shines a little bit brighter, people seem somewhat kinder, and the sky really isn’t falling!  Build your positive focus by listening to uplifting music, reading biographies of social heroes (biography.com) and practicing looking for the good around you. When you focus on the positive, your mindset shifts from barrenness to beauty.5
  • Be faith-filled! Being positive is big, but finding faith is foundational! There are not many things in this world worth trusting. People fail, systems fail, finances fail, marriages fail, contracts fail, doctors fail. But my God has never failed me!  There were times when I felt lost or forgotten; but He has never left me.  It has taken me much of my adult life to grasp how deeply and unconditionally my Heavenly Father loves me! I trust in that love.  It’s my faith in His love that enables me to punch fear in its face! If you are struggling to find faith in this season, you’re not alone!  And I happen to know that God loves you deeply and unconditionally. Ask Him to show Himself to you, He will show up for you right where you are! When you begin to grasp how deeply the God of Heaven and earth loves you, your mindset will shift from fear to faith!6

No matter where you find yourself on the fear to faith spectrum, you are never stuck there unless you choose to be! Circumstances may appear to be out of control, but you are not without power! Proactively manage your mindset and find peace… then share it with those around you!

Live loved!

1I Thessalonians 5:18

2Luke 16:10

3Isaiah 26:3

4Romans 12:10

5Philippians 4:8

6Psalm 36:5-7, Ephesians 2:4

A Precious Paradox!

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It’s a simple thought really! One of the core beliefs of our Incredible God, Eternal Father, and Everlasting Prince is that He is unchanging!

Jesus, the Anointed One, is always the same—yesterday, today, and forever. Hebrews 13:8 tPt

And yet, this unchanging Bridegroom loves us so intensely that when we get it… when we grasp just a smidgen of that love, when we open our hearts to be loved unconditionally, His love changes EVERYTHING! It changes how we view ourselves and how we view others. It changes how we perceive our difficult circumstances. His love changes how we view the hurting around us. It changes our actions AND reactions! His love changes everything!

Let that seep deep into your spirit today! His love for you is unchanging and yet, His love for you changes everything!

My prayer for you is that you will grasp and BELIEVE that His love for you is unconditional, relentless, and unchanging… that you would trust this truth a little bit more today than yesterday and tomorrow, more than today!

16 And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. 17 This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. 18 There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. I John NIV

He is the Lover of your soul and the keeper of your heart! He wants the very best for you!

Live loved,

My family is evidence that His love changes everything! #thankfulheart #Imabeliever Photo Creds: Jaime Hinton

Favorite Friday… Just Wow!

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True confessions… I’m not a dancer!  Oh, I look like one in my mind!  I enjoy beboppin’ around the house, trying those dance moves that my daughter makes look so easy!  I’ve had my moments of “River Dancing” right along with Michael Flatley and I can do the Cupid Shuffle with the best of them!  But…  I’m probably the only one who thinks that what I’m doing is actually dancing!  (At least I’m having fun, right?!)

 

Regardless, dancing competitions and cool dancing videos are popular around our house.  Miranda showed me this video the other day and I was captivated!  The incredible talent and synchronicity of this group blew my mind!  In fact, I used it in a lesson on teamwork with my students yesterday!  I liked it so much that I decided I had to share it with you!

But… that’s not the only reason this song caught my attention.  After watching the dancing video, we watched the lyric video of the song, Lazarus.  Trip Lee tells a story of coming to life spiritually in such a creative and unique way!  I turned to Miranda and said, “That’ll preach!” Her response: “It already is!”  And she is correct!  The truth of God’s faithfulness, how He rescues us, and restores our spirits can be “preached” in so many ways!  God’s power is at the heart of Trip Lee’s Message:

“Hopped up out the grave, thriller style
They ain’t think that He could do it, but He did it now
I mean the Captain, the almighty Lord
Setting captives free, all aboard, all aboard
Can’t stop Him when He got His mind made up
He don’t like that grave? Sayonara, see you later
He made the blind see and got the lame up
So it’s no surprise He can raise us
Wake them up now
Believers when your life is looking tough now
When you’re at your all time low
Don’t forget that power that He already showed”1

God has shown His sustaining power and His faithfulness to me in so many ways!  I see it in His provision on a daily basis.  I hear it in the voices of those I love.  I feel it in His grace that carries me through the difficult days!  I can’t help but celebrate who He is whenever I get the chance!

 

Our God is amazingly creative and we are just like Him!  How do you share Your Father’s faithfulness with those around you?  Singing, writing, drawing, posting, sculpting, dancing, chatting, giving, loving?  You were designed to paint His reflection on your world! You have a story to share and someone needs to hear it!

Live Loved,

1Lyrics from “Lazarus” by Trip Lee