Gifts are what Christmas is all about...

Christmas. It’s all about the gifts. Gifts are the reason for the season. What’s under your tree? Designer jeans? the new Ipad? a new video camera perhaps? or maybe some new clothes? an envelope full of cash? Have you gone and shook the brightly wrapped packages trying to figure out what’s wrapped up in each one? I have...I mean come on! This is the one time in the whole year (besides your birthday) that you get to bask in receiving a present. You can jump around and shout: look what I got!!!!!! and no one thinks your a brat. 

WHOOAAAAA! Right about now, you’re probably thinking what on earth is she talking about!? What on earth has happened to the Inner Lady and wasn’t she supposed to get on here and tell me that ‘Jesus is the reason for the season’?

Well that’s actually what I am about to tell you, but in a different way. Jesus is the reason for the season, but Jesus is the best gift giver of all. Jesus came to earth and delivered the greatest gifts of all.

Have you ever thought about the gifts God has given you?! He sent His son in human form on Christmas day to deliver them to mankind in the form of a baby. Jesus came and brought the gift of hope. He brought love. He brought joy. He brought peace. He brought grace. And most importantly he came in that humbled form so that we might have the gift of salvation. Jesus came and was the greatest gift giver of all time. He didn’t give us gifts that would ever perish, rot, or break over time. The batteries on hope will never run out. The spokes in His love will never grown rusty. A hole will never grow in His joy. The threads of His peace won’t ever get worn, nor will the binding grow slack on His grace. Jesus’ gifts will last for eternity. 

Every one of us focuses so much on the material gifts under the tree when really the best gifts are with us 24/7 365 days a year. We simply must unwrap them and put them to use. So many times we forget that we have these gifts, or we get distracted with the flashy gifts in front of us that we forget about the true gifts of this season. Christmas should be the time of year when we most remember Jesus Christ as the greatest gift giver of all. He himself was the greatest gift. 

So, yes, tomorrow when you are opening your gifts under the tree enjoy! But remember that tomorrow, and the next day, and the day after that the greatest gifts of all cannot be wrapped. The greatest gift giver of all came in the form of a baby. He came and gave us the gift of life, of hope, of security, of a beautiful future. He gave us peace, hope, love, and joy. He didn’t put a price on any of them except for our love and trust in Him. THAT’s IT! It isn’t a trick. It isn’t a competition. Christ humbly came and gave us the greatest gifts of all, and that is the reason we celebrate. We celebrate Christ’s gifts! Christmas is all about the gifts, but it’s not about the gifts wrapped under the tree. It’s about the gifts that continue throughout the year. It’s about the gifts that Christ came as a baby and gave with His own life. Christmas is about the gifts of Christ.

Merry Christmas everyone, and enjoy the priceless gifts that Christ has given you.

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows - James 1:17

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What does your heart say?

As water reflects a face, so a man’s heart reflects the man. - Proverbs 27:19

Have you ever been to a lake, or a swimming pool? Sure you have.

Have you ever peered down at yourself and taken in your reflection? The person looking back at you may be a bit blurry because of the water’s ripples, but you still get the general idea of what you look like. Looking at your reflection, you can make out your face. Your eyes are gleaming back at you. Your nose is present along with your mouth, your ears, and your cheeks. The color of your hair is easily discerned, and the color of your cloths radiate back at you. You know that that person staring back at you is essentially you. 

Now a little dare for you. Look at your heart. 

Look at your heart?

How on earth do you look at your heart?

What are your dreams? What do you desire the most? For every heartbeat, what do you long for?

This is not the place of reasoning, for we all know that our hearts can be outrageous at times. Your mind is the place for your sanity. Your heart is where you long for things you know you shouldn’t or possibly for things you think you can’t have. Your heart is the place where your first crush develops, your first love. Against all reason, against all sanity, this is where we have the dreams of becoming someone great, something completely beyond our own reasonings. This is the place where our biggest secrets lie. This is the place where love, hatred, anger, deceit, and truth take root and grow. You want to find out where dominant factors in your life came from? Look at your heart. Everything first took root in your heart and like a wildflower grew from there. 

Ask yourself what do you desire the most?

Some of us jump at the question. For example, when a friend asks me what I desire at that moment, I feel loved and cared for. For others however, when someone asks them what they most desire, they shrink, they don’t want to tell you the secrets that lie in their heart. They may know that their desires are wrong, or they may think they have no way of getting what they desire, so thinking about it gives them pain.

Would you like to lay out the plans of your heart?

Looking at a finished house, you can see how a contractor followed the plans that an architect had drawn out months earlier. If you look at your life, you can trace almost everything you have done, are doing, will do, or almost every relationship you have with people back to your heart. On your heart are written the plans of your life. Your desires have shaped those plans. 

So again I ask you - what are the desires of your heart? What are those desires doing in your life? Are they making you a better person, or are those desires dragging you down a path of unrighteousness. 

Contrary to what you may be thinking, we are the worst architects for our hearts, we desire things that lead to our destruction. We tend to want things we shouldn’t want. Our heart never knows what’s best for us. 

But someone does. God knows what is best for your heart.

Let Him be the master designer of your heart. Seek Him for the right desires. Ask God, plead with Him, to align your desires up with the ones He has for your life. Then and only then will your life turn out the way it should. Just like with every house, there are always problems: a leaky faucet,  a cracked wall, a broken light switch, so also will there be problems in our lives. However, having God design the plans leads you down a much healthier heart path. After all, a builder would never start building without first consulting the best architect. And you can’t get any better than God when it comes to designs for His children. He is omniscient, omnipresent. There is nothing beyond Him. He knows the ends and outs of every person, every situation. So why not give the panning over to the One who knows best? What have you got to lose?

Send you heart down a healthy path. Let God give you your desires. 

Take a look at your heart, and be honest with yourself - what do you really see?

The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?

“I the Lord search the heart and examine the mind, to reward a man according to his conduct according to what his deeds deserve.” - Jeremiah 17:9-10

God's Love or Your Own?

What is the first thing that comes to your mind when you think of the word love?

Do Positive or Negative feelings flood your mind?

Perhaps you are currently “in love” with someone, so your stomach is filling with warm bubbles. Or perhaps on the opposite end of the spectrum, you have just been scorned by a someone you thought loved you, so the thought of love right now makes you angry, resentful, doubtful of its existence.  Either way, it tends to bring up strong feelings. For the most part, love is something that we have have fierce feelings about. It is no passive element. Shrugging of the idea is close to impossible, for it is too powerful of a force to be ignored. Love affects us in more ways than we know. Most problems stem from love or the lack of it. Think about it right now. Almost all relationships that are having problems whether they be familial, friendly, or romantic, all spring from a lack of love. When love is absent, true Godly love is absent, liken it to a ship that has sprung a leak on the bottom - it will indefinitely sink unless you get that hole fixed immediately. You cannot have any form of a healthy relationship without love, well, the right kind of love. As imperfect humans, we tend to love the wrong way. Our priorities tend to get a little cloudy.

What kind of love are you exhibiting? There are many things that come in the form of “love,” but it isn’t really love unless it is God’s love. 

God’s love? What is the difference between our love and God’s love?

God is the essence of love. He is the source. From Him does all love flow forth. Only through Him, can true love be exhibited. Test your love towards someone right now. It can be your mother, father, brother, sister, friend, neighbor, boyfriend, girlfriend, whomever. Ask yourself: is your love toward them patient? Kind? Selfless? Humble? Enduring? Do you love them for what you receive from them, or do you just love them for who they are? Do you love them for their very being even though you know they are human, and they make mistakes? Do you love being in their presence more than you enjoy being away from them? Do you enjoy just sitting and talking with them for hours on end? Or do you enjoy just sitting with them knowing that you are happy just to be in their presence?

Do you really, really love them when you say it?

Our love is selfish. God’s love is selfless.

Our love is needy. God’s love is giving.

Our love is arrogant. God’s love is humble.

Our love holds grudges. God’s love forgives instantly.

Our love rebukes harshly. God’s love suggests softly.

Our love thinks forever of ourselves. God’s love thinks always of others.

Our love is angered easily. God’s love remains calm.

Our love is never enough. God’s love is more than enough.

Our love is what we have grown to live with. God’s love is what we need to grasp.

Have your ever thought about the importance of love? So many people pass it off as a feeling, but it is so much more. It is a power behind our motives, our actions. Love is the foundation to all things. Love is the very essence of our existence. Everyone we have relationships with, everything we do, every task we take, must all be done with love, for without it, there will be no success. Leaving love out of the picture is leaving God out. For God is love.

Anyone who does not love does not know God because God is love. - 1 John 4:8

Love is not some rare thing in fairy tales. Love is meant to be present every second of our lives. God’s love is meant to be interwoven into the core of who we are. The problem with today’s society is the lack of that love. Oh we have love everywhere, our own version of love, but not the true deep rooted love. The absence of God’s love has turned us humans into selfish, self-seeking, depraved individuals. We have become so used to this second rated love that is the norm...it is what we expect. We have come to expect our love. We have settled for second best.

Return to God’s love. Bask in God’s love for you. Exhibit God’s love to others. We choose to ignore the elephant in front of us. You cannot escape God’s love, for with it we were created. God’s love made us. God’s love is in us, but we, we have settled for our love. We have settled for second best. No wonder so many of us feel absolutely empty. Our being hungers for God’s love, for it is our essence.

It’s there. Now dig it out, and share it with the world.

On this day of love - forget about your love, your love falls short every time. Rather exhibit God’s love to everyone around you. Share it in a smile, share it in a hug, share it in an encouragement. In giving God’s love,  you will truly be loved yourself. And remember the greatest love of all comes from God himself.

Happy Valentines Day...

If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing.

 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

 Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears. When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me. Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

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

In the world, but not of the world

"But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables Him even to subject all things to Himself." - Philippians 3:20-21

Do you ever feel like this world is completely against you? Like no one, I mean no one cares? Or do you ever look around you and feel like your life is pointless? Have you ever asked yourself why am I doing this? Why does it really matter?

As Christians, we are always going to be oppressed by the world. Satan, his minions, and the world hate us because we oppose them. Everything within us that is Christian appalls the world.

Some Christians don't like this at all. They don't like being oppressed. They much prefer being liked.This is where the problems begin because you have to ask yourself who am I on this earth to please: the world or God?

You cannot serve both. You cannot do the things of the world, you cannot take on forms of worldliness and still be a true follower of Christ.

Now, you might be asking, "Ok, well what are things of this world?" After all, you do live here on planet earth. You don't really have any options there. You must live, learn, work, eat, sleep, exercise, communicate all within the world. Unless you die, there is no alternative to living on planet earth right smack in the middle of all the worldliness.

Remember this: God created the world and everything in it. Sin was brought in through the fall of man, and ever since we have been paying the price of Adam's disobedience.

While we have to live in the world, we do not have to live of the world. Our time here on earth is simply a passing point for us. Our goal is heaven, for like the verse said above, that is where our citizenship as Christians lie.

So what could be labeled as living "of the world"?
Lovers of self - Self-centered behavior.
Lovers of the flesh - a constant desire to gratify your flesh desires
Jealousy and envy - lack of contentment
Strife - constant discordance with people
Anger - for no reason, you always feel anger about something
Lovers of Money - you can never seem to get enough of it. Yes, you need money to live, but when the gain of it consumes your every thought, it has become an idol in your life.
Pride - this is a huge one because we could be prideful and not even realize it
Arrogance - enough said
Ungratefulness - this is prevalent in today's society with the spread of people thinking they should get something for nothing
Heartless - not caring what happens to others around you
Lacking self-control/self discipline in all manners of living
Sexual Promiscuity
Homosexuality
Sexual Immorality
a perverse and crude tongue - remember what comes out of your mouth reflects whats on your mind and in your heart
Gossip - yes, even something like gossip is keeping you locked into the world.
and the list goes on.

The above is an overwhelming list, for I am sure you are guilty of many of the things on it. I know I am. I'm human. We have all fallen short, but through God's grace and mercy, and through our desires to please Him, we can overcome these things. You CANNOT however, willingly continue to do these things and continue to say that you are truly seeking God. Either your desire for the world or your desire for God is going to be greater.

"No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money." - Matthew 6:24

Your devotion cannot be split between God and the world. Either you will aspire to the things of God, or you will lower yourself to the things of the world and worldly pursuits. The choice is yours.

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and its desires." - Galatians 5:22-24

Is the past holding you back?

I'm sure there are (many) things you've done that you've regretted in life. As a human, mistakes are inevitable in our life. We can't avoid them. While we need to be repentant of our mishaps, we cannot allow them to keep us from moving on and succeeding in the things that God has planned for us. Some people have the tendency of wallowing in their mistakes and getting stuck in the mud pit that they are. I know because I've been there.

When I was going through such a time in my life, I headed to God's Word. Through it, He revealed a scripture passage to me that encouraged me and reminded me of His amazing love. 

As a teenager, I made many decisions that, like most people, I later regretted, and as a result of these shortcomings, my mistakes, I felt like I could not move forward in life. The feeling that God was done with me dominated my thought patterns day and night. How could God use me? I had made way too many mistakes in life. I had ignored Him earlier. Now, it was too late.

Daily, I struggled over my regrets. One day, I was reading in the book of Philippians, one of my favorites of Paul's epistles. As I was reading on this particular day, a verse stuck out to me: "Brother's I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus." - Philippians 3:13-14. 

Most likely, I had read that verse hundreds of times in my life, but the weight of its significance hit me especially hard on this day. The details of Paul's life came to mind. When we meet Paul in the Bible, he is Saul overlooking the execution of Stephen, a man preaching about Jesus Christ. Through God's amazing love and mercy, Saul is transformed into Paul and becomes one of the most prolific missionaries of all time. Despite his past of persecuting those following the Way of Christ, God used him to do many great and wonderful things. What if Paul had told God he could not preach to people because he had once persecuted Christians? What if Paul had never moved on from his former life? He would have greatly missed his calling! How many people would have been affected had he ignored the call of God?

This encouraged me beyond words! I was reminded that God can use anyone no matter what their circumstances are as long as they have a willing heart. It is never too late!The verse in Philippians reminded me that I must not let things of my past hold me back. My mistakes had to be surrendered to God. Without forgetting the past, I could not strive forward toward the goals of Christ; I could not press on toward the prize of the upward call of God. This verse truly changed my perspective on my life and made me see God in a whole new way. I couldn't wallow in my past. By doing so, I was being held back from all of my potential. After reading this verse and allowing God to manifest it in my life, I have truly been able to move on and press forward toward the call of Christ Jesus, my Lord and Savior. Ever since, it has been amazing to see how God works. By letting go of my mistakes and refocusing on Him, my life has been so much richer. Praise God for His word and praise God for working in my life!

So no matter what you have done rather big or small, rest in peace that God will forgive, and you can most definitely move on. Harboring feelings of low self-esteem and unworthiness is only holding yourself back from the amazing plan that God has for you. You must let go of the past, and you must move forward! If Saul can become Paul, you too can become someone great in Christ Jesus! 

But first and foremost, we must let go of our past. We can't run forward at full speed if we are constantly looking back over our shoulder! Truly, then we are going to stumble. We must keep our eyes focused on the road ahead. WE must keep our eyes focused on Christ, and the amazing future He has in store for us.

Feeding your desires?

Desire: a strong feeling of wanting to have something or wishing for something to happen - New Oxford American Dictionary

I’ve mentioned how desires of the flesh can send you down the wrong path, how they can form into full blown lifestyles, and how these desires can ultimately destroy you.

But what about good desires? Are desires always bad? My goodness, no! A desire to do good is the only thing that will change you and allow you to grow in Christ. We must have a desire for Christ. We must have a desire to change for Him.

In fact, the transformation toward being more like Christ can only begin with a desire. The only way we can ever change our ways is to actually desire change within ourselves. Change from the evil that plagues us day to day. Change from our wicked thoughts. Change from our selfish desires.

Daily, we are going to experience:

Good desires vs. bad desires. 

Desires of the Spirit vs. desires of the flesh. 

The key is to giving in to the right desires.

Inside every single one of us, there is a desire to do bad, but there is also a desire to do good. All of us are born into sin, thus we all have the natural inclination to desire things of the flesh. As a baby cries for milk, our flesh cries for food. The flesh is fed by worldliness, sin, carnality. We feed our fleshly desires by choosing things that are directly opposed to God, by choosing things that are in accordance with the world.

But we are also made in the likeness of Christ. 

Genesis 1:26a - Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.”

Genesis 1:27 - So God created man in His own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female He created them.

Therefore there is a giant part of us that craves, that desires to do what is right! God has revealed himself to us through His divine creation and through His word. Our Spirit inside of us longs for Christ and His desires. It too desires to be fed. Reading God’s Word, spending time with Him in prayer, and fellowshipping with fellow believers are good ways to feed the Spirit within us. 

The question stands then: which desire are you going to feed? The desire of your flesh, or the desire of Christ?

It is each and every individuals own decision. No one can force anyone to choose, for it will not result in true desire. Look closely at the definition of desire: a strong feeling of wanting to have something. The definition doesn’t read, “A strong feeling forced upon us by someone else.” No, your desires are born within. It lies with you to decide which to feed. 

So desires of the flesh, or desires of the Spirt?

But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do.  - Galatians 5:16

The two cannot live in harmony, for they are morally opposed to one another. 

Whichever one you choose to feed will affect your life. It affects your heart’s desires, your thoughts, your speech, your actions. Whatever you feed is what is going to grow within you. Which desire are you going to go with? It’s your choice, and your choice alone.

Flesh or Spirit?

The world or Christ?

Yourself or others?

Ungodliness or Godliness?

Impurity or Purity?

Jealousy or Contentment?

It’s feeding time...

1 John 2:16-17

For all that is in the world - the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride in possessions - is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.

What is the value of a lady?

Have you ever thought about this?
As a lady, you are a valuable being. You are a treasure, a flower, a gem, precious in her own right. You are  known as the beautiful, dainty, charming, pretty, fierce, lovely sex. Of the two sexes, we are the ones that were created to complete the other. Our role on the earth is irreplaceable. We are the bearer of life, for it is only through us that children can be born. Any male can father a child, but a mother is the one who must carry and bring forth this life into the world. Think about how valuable that makes us. Men have conquered the world, in the name of a woman, for the love of a woman, for the prize of a woman. We are treasures that true men will vie for, live for, die for.

So why is it that we give ourselves so little value? We devalue ourselves by giving away our heart, our minds, our bodies so easily. Our hearts are almost like items up for sale at the market, and we eagerly give them to the first man that makes an offer. A dollar? a dinner? a ticket to the movies? Is that all we are worth? Is that what our pattering hearts are worth?

No, no, my dear ladies, we are worth so much more than these things. We are so much more valuable. First and foremost, we are valuable to our creator and king, our Lord Jesus Christ.  He loved you so much, He gave His life for you. That's how much you are worth to Him.

As ladies, we must respect the value within us. After all, we are the ones who set the standards of how people treat us. How we carry ourselves and treat ourselves is how other people are going to treat us. Do you hold yourself with confidence and dignity and respect?
Then other people are going to respect you.
Jesus Christ holds your eternal value, but we set our value base for ourselves.
How much do you value yourself? Remember that you are a sacred, valuable daughter of a King.

Jeremiah 31:3b - I have loved you with an everlasting love

ONE, says the mind, two says the flesh, forever says the devil. Never says Jesus Christ!!

For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law; indeed it cannot. - Romans 8:6-7

Reading those words, sends shivers down my back. Read them again, and think about every word. To set the mind on the flesh is death! Think about those words. What is the apostle Paul talking about, the flesh? Is he talking about our actual skin, muscle, fat combination? Is he talking about what we can pinch with our fingers? Well, sort of, but this is only the beginning. What you can pinch is only the shell of the flesh. The flesh is a roaring beast within us. It is a collective term for our desires, our nature, our will. We are born with an appetite for sin, a nature bent on destruction, and a will to do evil.

You are thinking...seriously I'm fine...I don't struggle with the flesh. I am in complete control of myself.

According to Galatians 5:19-21, these are the works of the flesh:

Sexual Immorality

Impurity

Sensuality

Idolatry

Sorcery

Enmity

Strife

Jealousy

Fits of anger

Rivalries

Dissensions

Divisions

Envy

Drunkenness

Orgies and things like these...

Do any of those sound familiar to you? Do you struggle with any of these?

The flesh is more powerful than we give credit. We always tell ourselves and others that we have control, but oh are we wrong. The flesh has a mind of it's own. How many times have we perhaps said something, we really shouldn't have said? Or drank more than we were supposed to drink? Or kissed someone we really shouldn't have kissed? Done something, we really shouldn't have done? Where is the control then?

The biggest lie that the flesh sells to us is that we are in control of it. Satan wants us to believe a lie that we can do as we please up to a point. Satan wants us to think we have control: I'll only have the one drink, I'll only have sex this once, I'll only yell this once, I'll only lie this once, I'll only fantasize this once, I'll only try drugs just this once...JUST THIS ONCE!

Ask the alcoholic about his one drink, or the drug addict about his first hit, or the porn addict about his first magazine. Ask the teenager who is pregnant about the first time she had sex. It was just that one time. Ask the girl at 29 who has had 30 sexual partners and who is now suffering from an STD about her first sexual experience.

It was just the one. It was only ever suppose to be one...

The flesh convinced them that the one time was ok...the one wouldn't hurt them.

One second everything was under control, you were just hanging with your friends and the next minute, everything seems to have gone completely wrong. One minute, it was just a thought in your mind, and the next second it is a complete addiction, you can't get rid of.

But there is hope! Great, beautiful, wonderful hope! And, it too starts in the mind. If we set our mind on the flesh, it is our death. Paul himself says it in the book of Romans. The only sure way to battle the flesh is through Jesus Christ and focusing on minds on Him. We must set our mind on His Spirit, His love, His grace, His purity, His mercy.

We cannot fight the flesh alone. The battle of the flesh can only be won through Jesus Christ by setting our minds on Him!

The next time a desire of the flesh begins stirring in your mind, give it to Christ. Focus on His word, his truth, his love, and through Him every single battle can be won. Through Him is life and peace.

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God and the peace of God which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. - Philippians 4:6-7

What does it mean to be a STRONG Lady?

 Women are universally known as the weaker gender. Physically, it’s evident. In general, we are shorter, smaller, and usually slower than men. However, it is no weak thing to be lady. Women, ladies especially, are strong creatures. In fact, we must be strong, for weak ladies will not survive in this world. They aren’t known as ladies. They are the other type of girl...

     It takes a great amount of strength for a lady to stand up for what she believes in. Do you have good morals? Good! Keep them! But don’t ever think they won’t be challenged. For the rest of your life, other people will try to tear you down either out of jealousy, hatred, or strife. Malignant people hate to see other people succeed, especially good strong ladies. Girls that have standards lower than yours will always try to lower you to theirs, for they feel incompetent next to you. Ladies with high morals are set on pedestals. The girls standing underneath are forever trying to tear that pedestal down! Am I advocating that you ladies are better than the girls beneath? Absolutely not! For we are all sinners saved by God’s overwhelming grace, and by that grace we have thus  been presented with a choice. It takes great strength to choose to be a lady, and take the ridicule that goes along with being one. 

     Applied strength is required to go against the “grain” of the world. In a recent poll, I asked people of all ages if they could think of one celebrity that they would say was a lady. Surprise, surprise: almost everyone said something along the lines of: not really, I don’t think so.  Now isn’t it sad then that most of today’s young girls are fashioning themselves after celebrities! The system is so messed up. Think about famous women like Madonna, Rihanna, Katy Perry, Kate Hudson, Paris Hilton, Kim Kardashian, Lauren Conrad, Lady Gaga herself (how she thinks she can choose Lady as her title is beyond me) - all of these women are influencing the way girls think, dress, dance, eat, shop, date, sing, write, you name it and they influence it. These women date one man after another, or date both men and women (that’s another lecture all in itself), they dress with almost all of their body showing, they sing suggestive songs, make sex tapes, diet to the point of producing low self-esteem in every girl under the age of twenty, and make the party life look glamorous. It’s no easy thing to go against what’s shoved in our face in the media everyday. It’s hard not to wear mini skirts, mini shorts, and mini dresses when Elle Magazine names them the most fashionable items of 2009, and every celebrity is wearing them on every cover of every magazine! Young girls think: I want to look like them!! Celebrities have glamorized every aspect of our lives. It’s cool to have threesomes now, it’s great to have both male and female lovers. It’s ok to have an affair with a married person. It’s ok to diet 24/7. It’s ok to skimp o clothing. It’s ok to not wear underwear! Umm no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no and let me repeat NO! None of this is ok. None of it is of God. None of it is the behavior of a lady, and none of these actions are respected. Only strong ladies can go against the ways of the world and not fall victim to life’s snares. It’s takes amazing strength to not be enticed by the world. Remember no one considers these celebrities ladies.

     We face battles everyday, and it is no easy task, but with His strength and guidance we can choose to be strong ladies in Christ. It is through this strength that we can win these battles. We can sit and listen all we want, but listening takes no strength. The strength comes in doing. 

     But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the Word and not a doer, he is like a [wo]man who looks intently at [her] natural face in a mirror. For [she] looks at [herself]  and goes away and at once forgets what [she]  is like. But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts [she] will be blessed in [her] doing. - James 1:22-25 

Don’t read these things and forget. Take the courage. Be a strong lady!

     

I asked; You told

Recently, I sent out surveys or shoved them in your face when I ran into you. (Sorry, but things must be done!)

Want to see some of the results?
I'm not going to sit here and type every response I received, but I will list the top answers.
This is part one which list the first four answers

First word that comes to mind when you guys think of a lady?
1. Respect - this was the answer I received the most. Men and women both agreed respect is the one word that is synonymous with a lady.
2. Classy
3. Sophisticated
4. Confident
5. Strong
6. Kind
7. Dress
8. Well-mannered
9. Poised
10. Proper

2. What do you think it means to be a lady?
Conducting yourself properly.
Strong-willed, strong -minded
Strong, powerful, confident, Modest, respectful, eloquence
wisdom, gracious, polite, dignity, selfless, good character. YOURSELF.

Nearly everyone agreed that the word is becoming obsolete, BUT the same people don't think that ladies are considered boring.

Let me ask you all a question. The above adjectives are all positive. Who wouldn't want to be a lady?

What girl doesn't want to be known as respected, poised, graceful, classy, sophisticated, kind, STRONG?

All of you look at it as a positive thing.

The gentlemen all said that they treat girls different when they act like ladies. They respect them more.
Most of you girls that took the survey wish you could be a lady.

A lady is powerful being. Something all girls should aspire to be. She is looked at with awe, wonder, respect, and amazement.

Being a lady is an envied position. Confidence exudes. Respect follows wherever she goes. She is strong. Powerful.
It's something to think about.

More results to follow...

A Heart Checkup

Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life. - Proverbs 4:23

Think about where your heart is: the center of it all; whether you are thinking about your physical heart or your emotional heart, it is the key organ, the key piece. So doesn’t it make sense that this is where most of the difficult battles take place?

From a physical aspect, the heart is the center, the pumper of our life. While the brain is the control center of our body, our heart is the actual organ that pumps all of our blood. If our heart stops, we are dead. Notice also where it’s located: the most protected part of the body, right in the center, nestled behind the rib cage. The heart is so important to our existence that God encased it in a cage in our body.

Now think about your heart from an emotional stand point. We tend to base our decisions (the brain) off of what we are feeling (the heart).The heart carries so much power over us, so much so that we are not even aware of it’s power at times until it’s too late.

Our heart will betray us if we aren’t careful. What we are feeling especially in the area of love isn’t always what is good and healthy and moral for us. If we are justifying our feelings when our mind is telling us that they are wrong, our heart is preparing to form mutiny against us. You’re thinking: That’s insane! Everyone says to follow your heart.

And while that isn’t always bad advice, you must ask yourself a vital question: what is the current condition of my heart? Is your heart healthy? Content? Satisfied? Or is your heart desperately love-sick? Desperately lonely?

If you have a healthy heart that is bent on following God than following your heart isn’t necessarily a bad thing. 

BUT! If you are hesitant to answer the previous question, check your heart condition. If our decisions are based on irrational feelings and behavior than most likely your heart is sick and needs to be healed.

The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? ‘“I the Lord search the heart and examine the mind, to reward a man according to his conduct, according to what his deeds deserve.” - Jeremiah 17:9-10

The only healer of the heart is the Lord. Examine your hearts. It can be the most difficult task you may ever face, but it will be the most rewarding. If your heart is unhealthy, your actions, deeds, and words will be unhealthy. You will make decisions you will regret in the long run. You will do things, you’ll wish you had never done.

A healthy heart focused and given to the Lord will be rewarding for years to come. For only through Him can we truly be fulfilled.

Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart. - Psalms 37:4

A new way to look at love

Everyone says they love everything! I love coffee! I love shoes! I love traveling! I love Muse! I love, love, love, love, love everything. But what does it really mean to love something? Someone??

We say (well there are some exceptions here, but just go with it) that we love our families, our parents, our siblings, our friends, our boyfriends, our GOD. But do we really? Do we really?

When you love someone, you respect someone. You think about their needs, their desires. You think about things that are good for them, you try to avoid things that are bad for them. But, in regards to that last sentence we tend to get a little hazy. 

Hazy? Allow me to explain.

I know I write specifically to girls, but boys can take this and turn it around for themselves if they like. 

Ladies is your conduct around boys pleasing to God? Think about this...

If you are always flirting, teasing, enticing, you may think that you are showing the opposite sex love and affection. 

But is that beneficial towards them? Boys already struggle with desires without girls ever even opening their mouths or shaking their booties. 

That desire is greatly multiplied when girls start whispering things in the ears, touching them excessively, and dancing around inappropriately. (Inappropriate dancing is any kind of dancing with suggestive sexual movements.) 

These actions intensifies boys' struggles. Is that loving someone? Purposely accelerating a their struggle? When you love someone do you want to make them struggle.

A lot of times, I hear the argument, "Well, it's not my fault boy's struggle. I can dress the way I want, say what I want, and move the way I want." 

Yes, you can that is your liberated right. However, is it what a lady would do?  Is that showing love for your fellow man? And I'm not even speaking strictly here on romantic love. I'm speaking about general love towards fellow man. However, in a romantic situation this is even more vital. 

Our conduct - what we do and what we say affects everyone around us. EVERYONE! So ladies, think before you go out, think about the motivation behind what you're wearing. Think about what you say to boys. Think about how you act around boys.

Is your behavior Christ like? Is it truly loving them?

Ask yourself this: are you loving someone if you are causing them to stumble?

And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony - Colossians 3:14

Regretful Weekends

It is the end of another weekend, ladies.
The weekends are a time for relaxing and recuperating, but too often we end up doing things we regret.
Weekends offer so many opportunities for our Purity meter to hit an all time low. Our guard tends to be let down; it's a live and learn as you go time.
Did you do something this weekend you wish you hadn't?
You may be having feelings of remorse, regret, guilt.
There is hope. Our Father God is a loving, merciful, and forgiving God. If we repent of our transgressions, He will forgive, but we must truly repent.
Repenting for the sake of feeling better about ourselves is wrong. It's selfish. True repentance is when we feel so overcome by our own failings, and we realize we've wronged our Savior Jesus Christ, and we are out of touch with Him. We must realize that we need Him; that we are nothing without Him.

Too often however our pride gets in the way of this. As women, we think we know everything! If only...

Let tonight be a beginning for you. Start your week out right: ask the Lord to forgive you, spend time with Him, pray, and seek His will for your upcoming week.

I challenge you this week to actually question your actions, your thoughts. Ask yourself, "Would Jesus approve of my thoughts or my actions right now?" "Would my parents approve of my thoughts or actions right now?" Your parents might not be with you all the time, but Jesus is. He sees everything you do, and hears everything you think. Be a lady for Him.

And Jesus said, "Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more. - John 8:11b

Did you know that you are a Temple?

Do you know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you? If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him. For God's temple is holy, and you are that temple. - 1 Corinthians 3:16-17

Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God with your body. - 1 Corinthians 6:19-20

Go and stand in front of a mirror for a minute. Look at yourself. Your eyes, your nose, your arms, your legs, your feet, your hands. God designed every single inch of you. He is your creator. Your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. If you are a born again Christian, you carry the Holy Spirit around with you everywhere you go. Everything you do, the Holy Spirit is there with you. Treat your body like a temple. God's temple. You are God's.

It all begins in Our Minds

What is purity? 

Does purity mean that you are refraining from sexual relations outside of marriage? It's true that this is a key element to being pure, but purity starts much sooner that that. Purity starts in the mind.

If we do not have a pure mind then we are not pure, and we will not be pure. The only way for us to truly be pure is to be pure in mind, heart, and body. The only way to have purity of body is to start in the mind. If our minds are not pure then our bodies will not be pure. 

 Many people think that sexual purity is impossible in the today's society. We think, "How? How on earth can I be pure when sex is everywhere around me?"

It isn't easy, but we can avoid falling into sexual sin by first cleansing our mind. I have a task for you today: what kind of thoughts do you entertain about boys in your mind? Do you imagine things about them that you would be embarrassed for other people to hear those thoughts. 

Remember Jesus hears those thoughts. He hears every thought that passes through your mind. 

If we want to conquer this sexual battle, we must first purify our mind.

When impure thoughts come into your mind, immediately push them away. Think about God, think about His holiness. Read the Bible. Sing praises to God. There are many things that you can do to overcome this battle, but we must take the initiative.

Go forth my sisters of Christ, and give your thoughts over to Jesus.

"For God has not called us for impurity, but in holiness." - 1 Thessalonians 4:7

Spirit vs. Flesh

But I say walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality..." Galatians 5:16-19

My dearest friends...the Spirit and the flesh battle within us, but we must choose to feed our Spirit that we may beat the flesh! We are conquerors through CHRIST! Our flesh wages a war within us to give into to sexual sin, but through prayer, daily Bible reading, and a commitment in our hearts and minds, we can defeat our own flesh. We can CHOOSE not to get caught up in sexual sin! We can choose to feed our Spirit! WE can choose a better way of living...Christ's way!

Freedom

Sex outside of marriage is a sin. There's no way around it. ANY form of sex outside of marriage is a sin so don't even try to get technical on the definition of what you're doing. Here's some food for thought: when we sin, we are enslaving ourselves to Satan and his devices.

As women of the feminist generation, we have come to buy into the ideal that sex is empowering for women. Many girls claim that they have sex with multiple partners because it gives them power over men. It gives them a sense of control. "It's freeing! I can have sex with whomever, whenever!"

Oh really?

If it's so empowering then why is it leaving women broken emotionally and physically? When the sex is over, women are left feeling empty, unloved, and lonely when they realize the guy only cared about getting his physical needs met. The woman was just a body to him nothing more.
But they are also risking the chance of pregnancy or the possibility of contracting an STD. In the USA alone, more than 9 million people between the age of 15 and 24 contract a new STD every year. DO YOU REALIZE the impact that is having on our youth's health?

Empowering isn't it? Oh yes. STD's and pregnancies...they are a walk in the park, aren't they? I mean the emotional baggage, the physical repercussions, the burden you'll have to carry for years. All because of the empowering feeling of sex.

Sexual sin forms chains around us binding us to it time and time again. You must make a decision to free yourself from sin. You must choose in your heart and in your mind that you no longer want to be bound to Satan's chains.

Choose today! WE are meant to be free women! But women who are free in Christ!

For Freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to the yoke of slavery. - Galatians 5:1

Don't be a slave to Satan and his evil devices. Make the decision today to be truly free. Make the decision to be a lady...

Transformation

We must transform ourselves to be ladies in Christ. This is a great verse to live by: "Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. Bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other, as the Lord has forgiven you, so you must also forgive." - Colossians 3:12-13

The Question of Why?

Have you ever asked yourself why?

Why is a tough question to answer, for we can't give it a yes or no answer. We can't pull the answer from a list, we can't just nod our head and the question be forgotten. The question of why is more complex than that. We have to think about it, and in doing so we must reveal apart of ourselves.

For girls involved with sexual immorality, have you ever asked yourself why you are doing these things? Why are you giving your body over in an act that is meant to be sacred between you and your husband? Why are you giving it to someone who won't love you forever, who won't be there for you years from now?

You may have convinced yourself that, oh yes, he does love me. He does care for me. He wants me, he needs me, he loves me!
BUT!
You are forgetting something: Love and respect go hand in hand.
If he loves you so much, shouldn't he have enough respect for you not to ask sex of you?

I challenge you. The next time you and your boyfriend, or your friend, or whomever you are with are together ask yourself why if the question of sex comes up?

Why are you having sex with this person? Why are you wanting to have sex with this person?
WHY?

Our message to society...

Ladies - young or old - but this is especially for the younger generation as it seems we tend to struggle more with how we should act in public. We want to act ladylike and yet we want to be cool with our friends. I've been there! I know!
This verse is always a helpful reminder to me on how I should always act: Let no one despise you for your youth, but set an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity!! - 1 Timothy 4:12.

Ladies of God! We are to set the example. We should be bold and proud of our ladyship. I encourage you to put this verse to heart; and whenever, you feel conflicted on how you should act, remember this verse.

Verse of the Day

As ladies our first priority is to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! What better way to get to know Him better than to read His word? As ladies we should apply this to our lives daily: Likewise, you who are younger, be subject to the elders. Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble." - 1 Peter 5:5

What does her ladyship mean?

I asked a seventeen year old boy what the word "lady" meant to him? 
His answer?
Respect!
Respect for herself. 
A lady demands respect for herself! 
How do you demand respect for yourself?

• Dressing modestly! Not boring. You don't have to wear a turtle neck and ankle length skirt, but you shouldn't run around with most of your body exposed. As one of my good friends says, the way you dress reflects how you feel about yourself." Ladies please show yourself some respect.
• Speaking with maturity and respectful language. Is every other word out of your mouth an expletive? Are you always bad mouthing your friends? Your boyfriends? Your parents? We are meant to lift up and encourage one another. And as for the foul language, no lady is ever heard uttering curse words. There is no dignity in cursing. It's not cool. It's not hip. And no one ever things better of you for it.
• Abstaining from all forms of sexuality. Just ask a guy, he'll tell you this. There are two kinds of girls: girls that "put out" and girls that won't. 9 times out of 10 the girls that won't are considered ladies. The girls that continually give their bodies for sexual pleasures aren't respected for who they are, but what they do. The guy has no respect for that girl, he only wants what she'll give him. 

BE a lady that demands respect!

The Beginning

This is the beginning of something ridiculously new. This is something I have a dream and a vision for, and it is only now beginning to come to life. This is the only the beginning and a lot of time is going to have to go in this to build it up. Patience is a virtue and a true sign of your inner lady.