Lens of Christ

Whenever I write a blog, I always want to be real and extremely transparent.  With that being said, I’ll admit that these past couple of weeks hasn’t been the easiest for me.  Sometimes looking at certain situations around you can be so draining.  Sometimes it just sucks the joy out of everything when things just aren’t going your way.  Truth be told, this is exactly how I’ve been feeling lately.  But I realized life has been feeling like this only because I allowed it to be.  I wasn’t looking at my circumstances through the lens of Christ and because of that this beautiful gift called life has been feeling like a dry desert. 

Colossians 3:1-2 says

“So if you’re serious about living this new resurrection life with Christ, act like it. Pursue the things over which Christ presides. Don’t shuffle along, eyes to the ground, absorbed with the things right in front of you. Look up, and be alert to what is going on around Christ—that’s where the action is. See things from his perspective.” 

The highlight of this entire scripture is when Paul mentions for us to see things from his perspective!  So many times we look at our present situations and think that it’s the worst that it could ever be, when really God has been trying to get your attention to assure you that all will be ok.  God will never allow his children to go through a storm and not carry them through.  He has your name written in the palm of his hands (Isaiah 49:16).  There’s no way that he can ever forget about you and the situation that you’re in!  Often times we can prolong the uncomfortable seasons we’re in.  Instead of handing the situation over to God, we try to figure things out in our own “strength” and our own “understanding” which can lead us into the wrong direction.  We have to learn how to give our burdens onto God and follow HIS LEADING. 

As I mentioned earlier, I was not looking at my current situations through the perspective of Christ.  Instead, I was allowing my emotions to control my actions and it made me frustrated.  I felt like I was in a place where nothing was ever going to change.  But this morning God spoke to me through Ecclesiastes 11:4, which reads, “He who observes the wind [and waits for all conditions to be favorable] will not sow, and he who regards the clouds will not reap.”   I realized that I was just waiting for the storms to pass.  I was waiting for all the conditions to go back to normal.  I was waiting for everything to fall back into place naturally. But where was my work?  How was my faith being put to exercise so that I could reap the benefits of being a faithful servant?  I realized this morning where my problem was.  I wasn’t working at all.  I was too busy looking at circumstances from a natural vantage point instead of wearing the lens of Christ.  I was letting my emotions take the best of me instead of attaching them to the word of God as my Pastor would say.  But today that will change for me and I hope that it will change for you also if you are in my situation.  No longer will we just sit back and allow the enemy to flash trials in our faces as a way of torment.  Instead, we will work and exercise our faith! We will see things in the eyes of the spirit and start claiming the rights that are ours as Kingdom Citizens.

Lamentation 3:30-31 says that the worst is never the worst because the Master won’t ever walk out and fail to return.  When we begin to understand this and look at our lives through the perspective of Christ, looking past what the natural presents itself with, we’ll realize that we truly have AMAZING lives, with AMAZING testimonies.  So let’s cheer to exercising our faith to view life through the lens of Christ!

Love you all! Xoxo

-Jan

Make The Most of What God Gives

“After looking at the way things are on this earth, here’s what I’ve decided is the best way to live: Take care of yourself, have a good time, and make the most of whatever job you have for as long as God gives you life. And that’s about it. That’s the human lot. Yes, we should make the most of what God gives, both the bounty and the capacity to enjoy it, accepting what’s given and delighting in the work. It’s God’s gift! God deals out joy in the present, the now. It’s useless to brood over how long we might live.”

-Ecclesiastes 5:18-20

When I read this scripture, the line that stood out to me most was this: “here’s what I’ve decided is the best way to live: Take care of yourself, have a good time, and make the most of whatever job you have for as long as God gives you life.”  King Solomon makes it clear that we only need to do these three things to live the best life that we can ever have here on Earth.  There are so many times that we let our present issues and circumstances take over the fun and enjoyment of life, but I encourage you to change this today.  Here’s how you can do that according to this scripture:

1.)  Take Care of Yourself

Don’t ever think that life is too busy or stressful to take care of yourself and don’t let your financial situation get in the way of this either.  I’m not saying that you should splurge on yourself on a daily basis, but I do feel that it’s important to make sure that you are caring for yourself.  If you are tired of the same clothes that you wear, treat yourself once in a while to a nice outfit.  If your finances are pretty tight, try to save as much as possible and buy while your favorite clothing items are on sale.  You can even go thrift shopping and save lots of money for amazing clothing.  Treat yourself to a mani and pedi, ladies get your hair done and fellas get those shape ups.  Do the things that you feel are considered taking care of yourself; everyone’s definition of this can be different.  Often we carry the burdens of our struggles so much that we forget to take care of ourselves instead of offering those burdens to the Lord so that we can enjoy the life that God intended for us to have.

2.)    Have a Good Time

ALWAYS enjoy the life that you are given!  Yes, we all have different stories and different struggles, but that does not mean you can’t enjoy your life.  I’m a firm believer that life is what you make it.  If you start to look at the good and the minor things we have in life that we take for granted, you’ll start to become grateful and see that life isn’t too bad.  Looking at life from a positive vantage point will allow you to have a good time.  Paul says in Philippians 4:11 that he learned how to be content whatever the circumstances.  Learn how to have a good time through all seasons of your life.  Focus on the good aspects in your life; instead of allowing the enemy to make you feel like your life isn’t great.  Go out with family and friends, fellowship with the ones you love, enjoy improving your crafts.  Life is truly what you make it.

3.)    Make the Most of Whatever Job You Have

Whatever job you have whether your working full-time, part-time, managing your own business or even a student, make sure you make the most of it.  So many times we take these positions for granted when there are so many people dying to be in our places with jobs or an education.  Ephesians 6:7-8 says “Work with enthusiasm, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people. Remember that the Lord will reward each one of us for the good we do, whether we are slaves or free.”  When you work hard and make the most in wherever you’re at, the Lord rewards you for doing good!  So stay encouraged when you’re working with this in mind!

I truly believe that if we stay committed to taking care of ourselves, having a good time, and making the most of whatever job we have, we all will have the BEST life with great fulfillment.  Never loose focus on the blessings that God has given you and most of all Make The Most of What God Gives.

Xoxo,

Jan

Rest!

I don't know about anyone else, but I find myself to be one heck of a worried individual at times. I'm always worried about passing an exam or having enough money in my bank account, etc.  I feel like we all have times like these where we let our current situations make our minds feel uneasy and troubled. Whenever you feel this way, I encourage you to meditate on Philippians 4:6-7. It reads "Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus." I find it so comforting that my Lord and Savior is telling me not to worry, he's basically saying "chill out, I have everything under control!" However, we must notice here that he doesn't just say to stop worrying solely, He tells us clearly to substitute that with prayer.  Doing this will only give us the peace that we are yearning to have in difficult times in our lives. 

I remember how stressful my last semester of undergrad was. It was a really tough time. I felt like I had so many thoughts bottled up into this little mind of mine and it was really getting to me. I was nervous that I wouldn't do well in my courses and I even contemplated not going straight to graduate school although I was accepted and everything was set for me. I was allowing my troubling situations to take over my mind and what God had planned for me. One day in my dorm room I got on my knees and cried out to God because I was so tired. I was tired of school, I was tired of certain situations I was seeing, I was just plain tired of thinking so much. As I was praying I heard God tell me that I was going to enter into my season of rest. I wasn't quite sure of what that meant. Later that week an elder at a church I visited confirmed those exact words to me. After sometime I finally understood what God was trying to tell me. Here's what it means: whenever God gives us a promise, it is already fulfilled. It is up to us to match our faith with that promise to see it come to past. To rest means to fully dwell and believe in the promises that God has freely given to us. See, when I was in that tough time in school, I was worrying and not praying. I wasn't resting in the promise that says 

"I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength!" (Philippians 4:13). If I did, I wouldn't have felt as stressed and overwhelmed mentally. 

We must remember when God gives us the promises mentioned in the Bible for peace, prosperity, a sound mind etc., they're not just mere words that we read during our devotional time. They are there for us to take in and to rest in, even if that situation looks opposite of what it should be. In Romans 4, it says that against all hope in hope Abraham believed in the promise that God gave him on receiving his son Isaac. Although he had to wait 25 years for the promise to be fulfilled, his faith was never wavered. It was strengthened  instead. Abraham rested in the promises of God because he knew that whatever God said would never return back void. 

Today I encourage you to look up some promises that God has given us that pertain to a current situation that you're in. I want you to start replacing your worries with prayers (Philippians 4:6-7) and then I want you to read those promises with confidence. Rest in them! Have a sound mind knowing that you can rest in your promises that are to come. 

God bless you! 

-Jan S.

         xoxo

Do Not Lose Heart

There are many times when I feel the Holy Spirit directing and giving me convictions on things that I should and should not do and although his guidance only directs me into all truth, it can sometimes get frustrating. Many times when I want to do things I feel a great tug in my spirit telling me to do opposite of how I feel. Of course with great strength and my faith in Christ, I listen, but at the same time I would often feel frustrated because what I wanted to do for that moment wasn’t being satisfied. What the Holy Spirit was telling me to do was obviously so that I could avoid obstacles that would be presented before me in the future if I did not listen to his leading. Although I was living in obedience, I often wondered why I was feeling so frustrated after following God’s will. In Galatians 6:9 it says “And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.” After reading this scripture I realized that I was beginning to lose heart. Although I was doing God’s will, I was growing weary of doing good. I was beginning to forget that all the hard work and diligence that I was placing in my walk with Christ was for a greater purpose than any desire that I had on this Earth. It’s important for us to remember that doing good will reap us a good harvest in due season, and this harvest is eternal life. Apostle Paul says in 2 Timothy 4:7-8 that because he has fought the good fight, finished the race, and kept the faith, there is a crown of righteousness laid up for him and for those who love the appearing of Jesus Christ.

I pray that whenever we are asked to deny our fleshly desires in any situation, we will do it with good attitude. I pray that we will never be weary in doing good because our diligence and obedience to Christ will only lead us to a life of eternity, where the crown of righteousness awaits us. Do not lose heart!

God bless you!

Ladies, What is True Beauty?

I’m sure if we were to do a survey and ask woman what they considered beauty to be, they would start off by describing physical attributes: long wavy hair, white teeth, brown eyes, nice cheekbones, plumped lips and a body with curves that would catch anyone’s attention from afar.  They may even describe beauty as a woman with the latest designer clothing, handbags, and shoes.  While all of these attributes are beautiful indeed, do they truly exemplify the definition of beauty?

Sometime last week during my devotional time, I decided to read Proverbs 31, which talks about being a virtuous woman.  I’ve read this scripture several times before, but last week this scripture had a profound affect on me.  When I read Proverbs 31:30, God began speaking to me about what he considers true beauty to be.  The scripture says, “Charm is deceitful and beauty is passing, But a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised.”  I read this and realized that a lot of us woman have the wrong idea of what beauty is.  A lot of woman are depressed and have low self-esteem because they do not feel beautiful. They may not be happy with their outer appearance because they don’t have a particular hair length, their eyes aren’t a certain color, or they’re not the weight that they want to be.  But this is not what God sees beauty as.  Here in this scripture it says that this type of beauty, what I call the worldly definition of beauty, will fade away.  This type of beauty doesn’t last forever.  Does this mean that we’re doomed and that God intends for us not to live beautifully forever?  Not at all! 

After God spoke to me about the worldly definition of beauty, he led me to a scripture that speaks on what true beauty is, an everlasting beauty!  Psalm 96:6 (MSG) says, “God made the heavens-Royal splendor radiates from him, A powerful beauty sets him apart” WOW! Not only does God have beauty, he has a POWERFUL BEAUTY that sets him apart.  After reading this scripture, I felt encouraged and empowered.  I felt beautiful in its truest form! Want to know why?  Because in Genesis 1:27, it says that we were made in God’s own image and likeness!  Therefore, if God has a powerful beauty, then so do YOU!  Now I know some of you ladies may be thinking, “What’s the difference between this powerful beauty that God has and the beauty discussed in Proverbs 31 that fades away?  Here’s the answer: notice in the scripture in Psalms 96:6, it says that God’s powerful beauty sets him apart!  The reason why his beauty sets him apart is because he is Holy.  As Christians we must always strive to be holy, which means to be set apart from the world and to radiate amongst the lost souls.  The only way we can do this is if we fear the Lord and reverence him and when we do this we will be praised as it says in Proverbs 31; so these two scriptures connect.  Unlike the worldly definition of beauty that fades away, those who strive to be holy, have a powerful beauty that last forever because this type of beauty reflects an eternal God!  If we take the time to develop this powerful beauty, we never have to worry about our beauty fading away.

Am I saying not to care about how you look physically? Of course not! I’m a woman who likes to get her hair done, nails done and have nice clothes! I’m all for that! I just want you ladies to understand that these things do not define TRUE BEAUTY!   These things will all fade away!  The point that I am trying to get across is for you to begin to take the time to beautify your spirit also!  Take the time to recognize that you have the greatest beauty out there that sets you apart from everyone else!  The same way you would take the time to make sure you look good physically before you go out to any event, take the time to beautify your spirit so that you can be praised!  The way to do this is spending time in prayer with God, reading your word, and being a light to the lost sheep!  By doing this, your inner beauty, the powerful and eternal beauty, will radiate through your physical beauty! And ladies, the next time you look in the mirror and don’t feel beautiful remember that you have a POWERFUL BEAUTY within that sets you apart!

Love you!

Iron Sharpens Iron

During my devotional time, God instructed me to write about the importance of having Godly friends in our lives.  After he told me this, I started to reflect on my own life and all my wonderful friends and I had the biggest smile on because I know they are all God sent!

As I started to reflect on this topic, I began to realize that God truly honors friendships.  It is so imperative that we reflect over our lives and the people we associate ourselves with because the friends we hold dear to our hearts make a huge impact on our lives, whether we believe it or not.  Think about it, whenever something comes up in our lives, whether good or bad, we usually call our friends if we need some type of advice, guidance, or even if we just need an ear to listen.  When friends are open and available to do this for us, it is such an awesome feeling.  It is even greater if the friends we associate with are of the same faith.  In Proverbs 27:17 it says “as iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend.”  When we have friends who have a relationship with Christ, they will be able to sharpen us with the Word of God as they give us advice.  They will not give us advice based off of what they feel is correct, but they will give guidance through what they know aligns with the Word of God.  These are the best type of friends to have.  Friends who you know will pray for you even if you call them in the middle of the night with an issue,  those who will be real with you and tell you when you are acting a fool and not afraid to tell you when your doing something that is clearly out of God’s will.  If you have a friend who says yes to everything you do and never is real enough to tell you when your off, then something is not right.  Sincere friends are able to speak the truth in love, even if that means that it may hurt you a bit.  Here in Proverbs 27:5-6 it says “An open rebuke is better than hidden love! Wounds from a sincere friend are better than many kisses from an enemy.”  I love that I can say that I have friends who keep it 100% with me and let me know when I am acting a fool and I’m also glad to say that I’m that friend who keeps it real with them also.  People are sometimes afraid to be honest with friends in fear of loosing them, but honesty out of love shows that you care for them too much to see them fail.

Take a moment and think of the friendships that you have in your life.  They all play a major role in the way you think, act, and speak.  Your friends can either sharpen you, which is how Christ designed friendships to be, or their bad company can corrupt your good character (1 Corinthians 15:33).  If you’re looking over your life and feel like you don’t have any friends who can sharpen you, it’s ok! God did not forget about you! Instead, he is waiting for you to pray and ask him to send you the Godly friends that you need.  When I rededicated my life to Christ in July of 2011, I asked that God would send me more friends in my life who were radical for Christ and who would hold me accountable for my actions.  I cannot even describe how many new friendships that I have made since that prayer.  I know that they all are God sent and they are all lifetime friendships.  A lot of times we don’t have what we want because we fail to ask God for it.  I know it seems like a minor prayer, but it really isn’t.  Ask God to send you the friends that you need who will help you grow in your walk with Christ and who will hold you accountable for your actions.  God will honor that prayer because he is the person who designed for us to have these types of friendships!  If your reflecting over your life and you know that you have Godly friends that are God sent, don’t just stop there with a smile.  Go beyond that and pray for them, bless them with words of encouragement, and support them in their dreams and aspirations.  Don’t get comfortable with knowing that they will always be there, but show them that you value them, tell them that you love them and appreciate them.  I believe that friends who pray for one another only become closer, so never stop praying for them for strength, peace, love and joy. 

Friendships are a beautiful gift from God and I am learning that more and more everyday!  Cherish them all and don’t fail to only receive Godly friendships, be a Godly friend to yours also! 

Does Your Rooster Crow?

Compromising. This seems to be an issue that many of us Christians face. Well at least I did. I would make myself feel better by rationalizing my actions in participating in sinful acts by ranking sin. I would tell myself that participating in this sin is not as bad as what others around me are doing and this would make me feel better. I thought by comparing my life to others and not doing the exact things as they were doing made me a "better" Christian. Man, talk about pride! I was thinking to myself recently of why I did certain things in the past and I came to one conclusion...I was ashamed of Christ! I grew up in church all my life and I had a pretty good foundation of who Christ was, yet I was still in the world. I guess the perfect way to describe the old me would be a "lukewarm Christian". I knew what I was doing was wrong, yet I did them anyways. Why? Because I wanted to feel apart. I wanted to be like everyone else! I didn't want to be the "over spiritual" one. I was ASHAMED point blank period. 

  

I'm being really transparent because I want you all to evaluate yourselves. Are you able to standout, being unashamed of Christ? Or are you engaging in activities that you know aren't pleasing to God because it makes you feel accepted or important?! Luke 9:26 says “Whoever is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels”. We must not be ashamed to be bold and profess the name of The Lord. If we are ashamed of Christ, he will be ashamed of us. This is not the way we want our Heavenly Father to feel towards us and I know that he doesn't want to feel this way either. 

I was reading John 18 and Jesus said that Peter would deny him 3 times and after the third time the rooster would crow. That's exactly what happened. The question I ask you today is does your rooster crow? Understand that every time we intentionally engage in activities that are not pleasing to God and every time we are ashamed to speak to others about Christ, we are depicting the scene of Peter denying Christ and the crow of the rooster following. We have to stop being ashamed of Christ. He is probably one of the few people in our lives who is truly unashamed of us. It's crazy how we can be so ashamed of a person who accepts us for who we are completely, flaws and all. When we set our minds on the bigger picture and realize that standing for Christ outweighs anything this world can offer, the simple thought of being ashamed of Christ will fade.  I believe that there will be a silence among the crows of roosters in our lives. WE are unashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We will profess His name! 

No Need To Worry

Before you even start to continue reading this blog, I want you to take a minute and think of every situation that has you worried; whether it be your finances, school, relationships, finding a job, etc.  As you have this worry in your mind, I want you to read this blog and let God speak directly to you about what you should do about it.

It’s amazing how many of us are knowledgeable in the word of God and everyday we claim that we trust God, yet when a circumstance comes to test our faith, the first thing we do is cry and complain that our lives are too complicated and that life isn’t fair.  How many times do we complain and cry about the current situation that we’re in instead of changing our posture in prayer, telling God in spite of what we see currently, we will trust Him no matter what?  It’s through these times where our faith truly gets tested.  Whenever life throws a curveball at me, I love to meditate on Matthew 6:30-34, especially in the message version.  It reads:

30-33 “If God gives such attention to the appearance of wildflowers—most of which are never even seen—don’t you think he’ll attend to you, take pride in you, do his best for you? What I’m trying to do here is to get you to relax, to not be so preoccupied with getting, so you can respond to God’s giving. People who don’t know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don’t worry about missing out. You’ll find all your everyday human concerns will be met.34 “Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don’t get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes.

It’s so comforting to know that God tells us not to worry about tomorrow because our steps are already ordered.  God already has everything taken care of.  We spend so much time worrying about how things are going to work out when God is simply telling us to RELAX.  I love that the scripture says that we need not to be so preoccupied with getting, so you can respond to God’s giving! Our God is a provider! He will never leave us to fall on our face.  Please understand and believe that God will meet your every need!  Instead of worrying, let us pray about everything and allow His peace that surpasses all of our understanding to guard our hearts and minds as we live in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:6-7).

So remember that situation I asked you to think of previously that has got you worrying?  I want you to take it and literally give it to God.  I want you to stop worrying about it and trying to “fix” it by your own strength.  Free yourself from worrying about it by praying to God and allowing him to handle it for you.  As you pray to God to free you from worrisome, God is working on your behalf behind the scenes.  Just as mentioned in Matthew 6, God will attend to you, take pride in you and do His best for you. 

So cheer up, walk with your head held high knowing that your steps are ordered and that you’re taken care of! God has got you and your future is bright!  Stay encouraged!