Being Thankful

As Thanksgiving week is almost upon us I just want to take this week to reflect on how blessed I truly am and how thankful I am for the life I have. As Americans we take for granted for what we have and what we can get. We often forget a lot of times just to say thank you to the people around us. There are so many things going on around us and we just need a moment to breathe in the fresh air HE has given us. I want to thank God for giving me life, provision, shelter, family, friends, and everything that I need to survive. I want to thank my amazing family and friends for always pushing me to become better and reminding me that I am loved and cared for. I look up to soo many people and I just want to thank you for having an impact on me. I am also thankful for the soldiers who risk their lives each day for the freedom for this country. I am thankful we can live in a someone free country because of them.  I am thankful for the laws that have been put into place to keep us safe and the bad guys off of the street. One of my friends always tells me to be safe if I am going anywhere and I can understand why. There are crazy people who do crazy things some times. I am also thankful that I have a job. I actually do like where I am working. The opportunities there to move up are increasing and my chance to shine gets even better. I am thankful that I have co-workers who encourage me and love me. Some of them have become my closest friends and I am so stinkin' grateful for a great group of ladies. I am also thankful I can learn new lessons daily. I am not perfect and I struggle with issues. The more I grow and learn, the better I know how to handle situations. I am pretty much thankful for everything in my life but, I am most thankful for Jesus and HIM dying to save me from my sins. I love HIM more than anything in this world. He is the reason that I live, move, and breathe. It is a Love that I am holding onto forever. I am thankful I have the opportunity to spread this Love to the people around me and to share how much God has come through for me. His life is an example for all of us.  If you don't know this Jesus dude you are definitely missing out on something that changed your life.

Have a wonderful and Happy Thanksgiving week! May Gods grace and peace be with you all!!

Compassion....

Compassion is so important to Jesus. He was pretty much all about compassion to others and God. That is the main commandment which is Love God and Love people. Today in church we talked about being compassionate to others. Most of the time we want to be compassionate or have the intentions to but do not really do anything about it. It is about time as Christians that we step up and take the initiative to help those who we see on the side of the road, comfort those who are hurting, give food and clothing to the least of these because in the end we will be kneeling before the throne of God and we will be condemned for not being compassionate when we had the chance to. In the parable of the Good Samaritan we saw three different kinds of people of compassion. The Good Samaritan is the one we should be following. It breaks my heart to see people struggle and who need help. So compassion is what I am going to show even if it is out of my comfort zone because after all what would Jesus do?

Let go and let God

A phrase that I have heard over and over. Yet letting Go and letting God is one of the most hardest things to do. There are things or people in life that we don't want to let go of cause they mean so much to us. One of the life lessons that I have been learning lately surrendering everything to the Lord and being all in for Christ. Being all in for Christ is being fully devoted and committed to Him but in order to do that you will have to give up some things. Life is not worth the pain, but the pain brings light and love to our hearts. Things happen for a reason whether you like them or not. God knows our hearts and what is best for them. Just let Go and let God be God and do His amazing work and heart transformation that He could ever do. Joy and peace will come from the Lord when you need it the most. Happiness is based on how you want your life to be and how you make it. Honestly life is meant to be lived with a purpose and nothing short of being happy. If we are all in for Christ anything can happen. :)

DREAM BIG....

We all have some kind of dream, all of them unique and different. But some times they just stay dreams and nothing more and it feels like we have not accomplished anything. That is not the case. Your life is a story and has a purpose within it. Whether it is working with kids, creating a non-profit, or going into the working/business world, all of it matters. I went to a conference/retreat this past weekend called IDEAFarm 2011. It was a gathering of college aged students who had visions and dreams they want to act on. I learned a lot about myself and my vision throughout the weekend. It is not about the big things, but about having faith in the little things in life. We have to make sure that the dream that we have will bring glory to God and not to ourselves. Dreams are what make us come alive in this world and want to have an impact on it somehow and some way. If we keep pursuing God, the dream will become more real to us. By serving the Lord and the people around us everything can become clear. Some of us may not know what dream we have, but it will come in time. As a long as we take small baby steps toward the vision that we have, anything can happen. From this weekend I feel more excited about life and the journey the God has me on. Knowing that His plan for my life is something beautiful, is something to hold on tightly to and never let go of. Keepi dreaming big and pursuing the dreams that God has for you!

"For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago" (Ephesians 2:10)

NEW CHANGES, NEW BEGINNINGS, NEW OUTLOOK

Being a college graduate is definitely having its lessons being learned. Throughout these past few weeks I have been pulled towards to many different directions on what I am supposed to do with my life. Am I supposed to go back to school, stay here in the Hilton Head area, move to a different state, etc? It is kind of funny how when you have had a routine for so many years and know what expect. Now I don't know what to expect. All I know is that there is an amazing journey out there for me if I would just believe it. My relationship with the Lord has been slacking and I haven't had the community or friends around me that I used to have. Coming back to a place where I have a few friends is kind of tough but I am changing my outlook and going to meet new people and rekindle old friendships. The new friendships that I have are pretty amazing! I want to start a new beginning and outlook on life of joy, hope, forgiveness, letting go of friends who disrespected me, love, standing up for the Gospel, serving Christ and people, beginning to trust the Lord more for what He has for me, and being positive about each new day that I live in. We are not promised tomorrow so I want to live everyday that God has given me to the fullest even if I do not enjoy what I am doing in it. We are called to love and serve one another and I want to get involved in more opportunities of doing that. I am starting a business and I am praying that the Lord will guide it to wherever it is supposed to go. I don't want to live life without a purpose anymore. I have been put on this world for a calling in my life. I may not know what that is yet, but it may be in my everyday living. Not everyone is going to be the nicest and I am ok with that. I am in the process of finding the right group for me and working on my heart at the same time. I am grateful for everything that I have in my life and trusting the Lord for His direction. My new outlook is going to be based upon love and having a positive attitude when things don't go my way. Trials will come, but the storm will soon pass and the light will guide the way. I just have to stay strong and keep the faith!

Stranded

So like a month ago I was stranded in the Atlanta Airport. It was my first time ever stranded in an airport alone. It was a new experience for me and a lot was going through my head during that time. I was praying hard that I would be able to get home. It was not fun having to deal with all the crowds and having to sleep on the airport floor. There are times in our lives when we are stranded because it feels like God isn't pointing us towards anything. There are circumstances in life where we feel stuck such as financial problems, relationships, job problems, and family issues. In order to not feel stuck we have to be able to give it all to God and let Him work in all areas of our lives. He wants us to Cast all of our burdens onto Him and turn to Him when we feel stranded.

CHANGE

Change is something we deal with everyday. Some times we change schools, where we live, jobs, and the person who we want to be. I haven't been acting the way that I want to lately and it has been getting to me. Our attitude should be the same as Christ and I am going to work on that even if it means loving people more. I don't want to do something that will make me loose everything and people that I love very much. My personality is much different at school than it is at home. I have been trying to keep them the same, but something is stopping me at home. The devil tempts us whenever He can, but we have to stand firm in what we believe. Actions speak louder than words and i am committed to my actions lining up to what I say. I have messed up soo many times and i am done doing that. Yea we aren't perfect, but we can try our best to represent Christ. Change is going to be the word of the year for me and I am excited about the change that the Lord is doing in my heart.