Forever Beloved

Faith, Love & Truth

Pray More, Worry Less {Thanking}

Welcome to the third week of the study Pray More, Worry Less. Sorry it’s a few days late. I’m so super excited for this weeks subject, being thankful.

Throughout our lives, we’ve all faced struggles. We’ve all made a mess of our lives at times. We’ve all had seasons of storms when it seems you can’t even see the shore. No matter what form this season of your life comes in, we all know what struggling feels like. Every single one of us. And it’s not a good feeling. And normally (in my case), it’s not pretty. What makes the struggles a little easier to bear? Knowing we have someone to lean on. It’s so comforting to know that during those times, we are never ever truly alone.

It is not easy to be thankful in every circumstance. But when we choose to thank God in the midst of difficulty, it defeats the forces of darkness in the spiritual realm. When we thank God for every gift He has given us even when things are hard, the enemy loses the battle against us. He is stopped in his tracks when we come to God with a thankful heart.

I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound, Everywhere and in all things, I have learned both to be full and hungry, both to abound and suffer need.
Philippians 4:12

Most of us are familiar with the trials and tribulations of Apostle Paul as he traveled and spread the gospel. At one point, Apostle Paul was in prison along with Silas.

Even in this situation–jail–Apostle Paul still resounded with joy. He and Silas had a devotional service right in their prison cell. You see, Apostle Paul lived for Jesus and for no other reason! And, Paul was grateful–even while he was in prison. In the darkest days of his life, he wrote Philippians, the most positive book in the Bible.

Paul knew the power of a thankful life. He was thankful in good times and bad. He knew that God was conforming him to His image through every trial he faced, if he handled it correctly. He knew that a heart overflowing with thanksgiving could turn any situation around for good.

Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Thanksgiving is defined as the expression of gratitude, especially to God. Giving thanks to God for all of His blessings should be something that sets believers apart. We can’t allow a spirit of ingratitude to harden our heart or change our relationship with God.

Be thankful for where you are! Be thankful for the job that you do have! Your house may not be as fancy as some others, but it’s yours. You may not even own a house–be thankful that you have somewhere to live–a place of rest. If there is nothing else to be thankful for, be thankful you have Jesus! It’s not about getting things in life, it’s about having a relationship with Jesus!

No matter what this hard season is, throughout pain and despair and when things are at their worst, there is always always always something for which you can thank God.Paul had been through so much, more than we could ever imagine. Yet, he was thankful. When asked how he did it, Paul replied, “I can do ALL things through Christ who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13).

We tend to forget how blessed we are and focus solely on the problems we have. We need to switch our focus to how much the Lord has done for us, how good it is to still have joy, how good it is to be alive and well.

Legacy of Love

Today is the 50th wedding anniversary of two pretty amazing people.  A couple I’ve been blessed to call Mom and Dad.  Fifty years is a long time y’all, especially in this day and age.  To honor their super special day, I’m re-posting a blog I did last year about their legacy of love.

Last week, as I was cleaning my new office space in my home, I came across a box. As I opened the lid and peeked inside, I saw it was filled with old pictures. Instantly my heart soared.

As I’ve said before, I am enamored with old photos. So much so that it sparked this insatiable craving to take pictures of people. To me, pictures are priceless treasures. I found a box full of moments, perfectly captured, allowing me to travel back in time.

I settled down on the floor, sitting indian style and pulling the box over in front of me. As I started rifling through the photos, I realized what I was actually looking at. A smile graced my lips. I was looking at love letters, in pictures, my parents had sent back and forth while they were dating. My dad was in the military and stationed across the country. So their only way of communication was through letters and pictures.

At first, I felt like I had barged into a secret diary. But I just couldn’t stop looking, reading and smiling. This is where the legacy of love began. The legacy that was passed to me and now on to my children.

And now the tears begin.

These pictures, so innocent and hopeful, with no idea of the future. Thinking about all of the highs, lows, and wonderful things they’ve experienced together over the years brought me to tears. They had no sense of the struggles they would eventually face. They had no idea they would someday have to hold each other through cancer, the death of loved ones and lost jobs. That one day they would travel to another state and adopt the sweetest baby girl ever. They had one thing…love.

Through that love, and devotion to each other, they sat such an amazing example of marriage and parenting for me. Every day, they wrote more of their legacy together. A legacy that will be remembered in lives long past their days on this earth. When we say words like legacy or inheritance, money or heirlooms usually come to mind. But the legacy I’m speaking of is different. It’s a legacy of priceless and intangible things. They’ve built a legacy of loving God, loving others before yourself and having a selfless heart.

I was given directly by God a family with two parents who are still married. I was given a family where both sets of grandparents were married until their dying day.  A family that bonds closer together during tough times rather than throwing in the towel.  At times, I wonder how I got so lucky…to be hand-picked by God and placed into this amazing family. Like a whisper in the wind I’m reminded that luck had nothing to do with it. This is part of my story, the one He wrote long before I was born.

They are incredible parents, living out a legacy of love passed down from both of their parents! They have never tried to be perfect, but they have tried to love me and others well and show us the best example of Christ that they could. They know how to fight when the enemy brings the battle close to home and they know how to praise when another battle is won. They are my legacy of love. 

Pray More, Worry Less {Trusting}

Hey y’all, welcome to the second week of our Bible study on praying more and worrying less.  If you missed last week’s lesson, you can check it out HERE.

You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you. Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord, the Lord himself, is the Rock eternal.
Isaiah 26:3-4

We all have needs, desires, worries and concerns.  Sometimes not knowing the difference between them.  We know what would make us happy and we pray for it with all our might, asking God to help us get it.  I mean surely because we prayed for it we should get it, right?  And really, since it’s our life, we know what the right answer should be.  When we don’t get it, we feel frustrated and disappointed.  Or we actually get what we want, but find it doesn’t make us happy as we thought.  Then many times we blame God for not holding up His end of the deal.

It comes down to one thing…trusting God.  Trusting His timing, His answer, His plan and His heart.  The remedy for anxiety and worry is complete trust and confidence in God’s ability to deal with anything that threatens us.

So then, those who suffer according to God’s will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good.
1 Peter 4:19

God has promised peace of mind to those of us who are willing to commit our worries and anxieties to Him.  That’s where we (read this as where I) mess up. We want to trust in anything rather than the Lord. We’ll trust in our own abilities (hello diet failures), in peoples judgment of us, in our money or our doctor. But the Lord? Well…

Who do you trust more: yourself or God? When we trust that God will provide for us and we need not worry about anything, we are freed to love God and neighbor. When I trust that God will continue to bless me, as God has always done, it’s absolutely freeing and the weight is lifted off my shoulders. When I trust God to be God, I don’t have to be!

Sometimes it takes reminders…day after day or minute after minute, that God rules.  He is still in control of all the situations life throws at us.  He can take your troubles, hold them in His hands and create something beautiful {Isaiah 61:3}.  The enemy wants nothing more than to have the pain in your life destroy you. But thankfully, our God is bigger!  He can bring good out of any situation or hardship if we only put our trust in Him.


This week, take some time to consider where you put your trust.