Tag: hope

Christian, exmormon

Twinkle Lights…

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One of my Facebook memories from today was an excerpt from the book; Ending Your Day Right by Joyce Meyer it said, “The highest call on your life is to enjoy God. But you can’t enjoy Him if you are convinced He is upset with you. Jesus came to deliver you from the wrong kind of fear in your relationship with your heavenly Father. You should be relaxed in His presence. You need to have reverential fear, the kind that provokes respect, honor, and obedience. But you must refuse to believe any thoughts that the Lord is angry with you.

You are no surprise to God. Jeremiah 1:5 states that before He formed you in the womb, God knew you! He knew what He was getting when He drew you into a relationship with Himself. He already knows the things you will do wrong in the future. God is not nearly as hard to get along with as you think He is. It is not your sin that hinders you, it is unbelief!”

Oh, how often I still struggle with this concept.  It is so hard to let go of the thought, “I will never be good enough for God”.  Life is hard.  Every day is a struggle.  That’s one of the things that has been the hardest things for me to accept as a Christian.  I want God to make life easy.  I want Him to say, “Hey you’ve accepted me, here ya go… here’s an easy life”. Unfortunately, life doesn’t work that way.

gods plan

John 10:10 says, “The thief’s purpose is to steal kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.”  God has a plan and a purpose for each of us.  We are our own biggest barriers. The devil uses us as a wedge to get between us and God.  He feeds on our fears and our doubts.  We fall into that trap and we often feel worthless.

I remember growing up the struggle I had with myself and believing that God loved me.  I struggled with feeling that I was good enough.  I struggled to find happiness.  I spent a good part of my life searching for joy, for happiness, for purpose and meaning.  I really believed the mantra of; I’ll be happy when… but when those moments came, I was happy for a moment but it didn’t last very long and then I was focused on the next big thing that I wanted in my life. I had no identity and no real purpose for living other than what my religion told me.

Growing up I often struggled with the thought that God was mad at me. I struggled with believing that God could love me even after some of the things I had done.  At times I felt like God wanted nothing to do with me. I believed the more I accomplished in my life, the more God would love me.  The better chance I would have at going to Heaven.  I believed the lie that I could do enough.

When I found Christ, I was at rock bottom in my life.  I was at a point where everything I was afraid of happening was and I had lost all hope for myself and my future. I felt worthless and hopeless. It wasn’t that there wasn’t anything good in my life, it was just I was so focused on the big things, I couldn’t see the amazing details of my life.

little things

As I have mentioned many times, I am a huge fan of Brene Brown.  I love her books and insights, I love watching her Ted Talks and using them to help people improve their lives.  One of my favorite Brene Brown quotes is, “Twinkle lights are the perfect metaphor for joy. Joy is not a constant.  It comes to us in moments – often ordinary moments.  Sometimes we miss out on the bursts of joy because we’re too busy chasing down extraordinary moments.  Other times were so afraid of the dark that we don’t let ourselves enjoy the light. I believe a joyful life is made up of joyful moments gracefully strung together by trust, gratitude, inspiration, and faith.”

It’s so easy to get caught up in the shoulda, coulda, woulda’s, or become so afraid of doing things or afraid of the good moments that I don’t take time to enjoy them. But God didn’t create us with a spirit of fear.  God created us to draw near to Him when we struggle.  God isn’t a god of anger.  He is our Creator.  He loves us and wants us.

joy

The closer I draw to God the more twinkle lights I have in my life.  Knowing God, helps me appreciate the small moments in life. He helps me embrace the struggles and find meaning and purpose in every situation.  I think because I have found purpose in Christ and I know He loves me regardless of anything, it is easier for me to appreciate the small things in life.  Life isn’t about the big extraordinary moments.  It’s about learning to appreciate the small everyday things knowing that God has your back.

I’m just a Small Town Girl…living in a world of twinkle lights.

 

 

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Christian

Heart Problems…

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I’ve struggled with writing my blog lately.  Recently, I even thought maybe, I would just stop writing.  I feel God has made it very clear to me that isn’t an option.  So, as I was pondering the last few weeks, I thought about the world and all the turmoil going on right now.  I thought about a friend who is going through a really rough time, I thought about the church shooting that just happened and that mass shootings seem to be an almost regular event anymore.  I thought about my job and the hurt and pain that people struggle with on a daily basis to the point they want to take their own lives.  I remembered, my purpose in writing this blog is because people need Jesus!!

life hurts

There is so much hurt and heartache in the world today.  I sit and think about all of the yuck in this world and I remember when I was there.  Hurt, broken, feeling worthless and hopeless.  When I opened myself up to the love of Christ, when I heard that it didn’t matter to Him all of the horrible things I felt I had done, He still loved me, it changed my entire world.   In the past I would have told you I knew who Jesus was, and I believed in Him, and I tried to live a good life.  But having a relationship and opening yourself up to God’s love is different, it changes you, it changes your world.

I try not to be political in my blog.  I try to just focus on my religious experiences.  But as I think about the state of the world today, I can’t help but take more of a political stance.  I’ve seen a quote many times that says you don’t need religion to have morals, and while I don’t disagree with that, I feel as a society as we work to remove God from our culture, our morals are going by the way side.  I have worked in a school and worked in a prison and it blows my mind that we discourage kids from freely pursuing and practicing their faith in school.  We put many barriers in their way and yet if you are in prison, religion is encouraged.  I remember sitting in parole hearings and listening to inmates talk about going to church and Bible studies and how God was changing their lives.  One of my many hats at the prison was the religious coordinator, I oversaw all religious activities and made sure all religious volunteers were in compliance with facility policies.  Just imagine if we put that much energy into assisting the development of spirituality and religion for our children.  Maybe we wouldn’t have the struggles we have now.

universe

I’ll be honest, there were many different religions in prison, and several weren’t Christian based, and I could tell those who were genuine in their pursuit of a relationship with Christ and those who weren’t.  The difference was, their lives, even in prison, just seemed to go better.  They didn’t get in trouble with the jail staff, they followed the rules, and they didn’t argue.  They were accepting of their situation and if something didn’t go their way or if they felt they had been wronged, they had a conversation with the staff and tried to work it out.  They were different.  Their hearts were different.

There is truly something amazing that happens when you give your life over to God.  When you are willing to accept that He has a plan and a purpose for you it changes your perspective and changes your heart.  I know when I came to that realization, I wanted to know God more, I wanted to know everything I could, I read devotionals, Bible studies, I listened to sermons on the Radio. I began to develop a relationship with this God, who before seemed so scary and condemning, but as I learned more about Him, was loving and kind.  It blew my mind as I read the Bible and learned about the people he chose to spread his message.  The people he chose to be the ones that would represent Him.  They were not perfect people who always did right.  They were very much sinners.  But…They all had one thing in common.  They all loved God.  They had a relationship with God and they pursued Him.  They wanted to please their God.  And although they made mistakes and struggled with their sin, they still pursued Him. It wasn’t just because they believed in Him, it’s because they had a relationship with Him.

jesus heals broken hearts

In today’s world, God is a foreign concept.  Society teaches trusting in God is a weakness.  In today’s world, we want to be our own gods.  It’s heart breaking to me.  As I watch people struggle, I think, “You need Jesus!!”  And I struggle to say anything for fear that they will condemn me or make fun of me.  I can say, “You need Jesus!!” on my blog because it’s not face to face.  That’s easy.  And yet, I know that’s what I need to do.

The thing that needs to change most in this world is we need to get back to the basics.  The 10 Commandments, the Beatitudes, and having a relationship with the Creator of the Universe.  The problems in this world are not about race, religion, sexual orientation, politics, gun control, or any other social issue the media wants to glorify or criticize at the moment.  It’s about the heart.  It is what is important to us as a society and where our priorities lie.  Matthew 6:21 says, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also”.  In today’s world our hearts are anywhere but with Jesus.

giraffe

I’m just a Small Town Girl… living in a world in need of Jesus!

 

Christian

Even If

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“I know the sorrow and I know the hurt would all go away of you’d just say the word.  But even if you don’t, my hope is you alone.”  So many people turn away from God when things get hard.  When the going gets tough we can get angry at God and blame Him for our pain because we know He can take it away.  This song by MercyMe should be our prayer in times of hurting.

even if

We all have been hurt.  We have all had times in our lives where we are at our absolute worst and have no hope at all.  There is so much pain and sorrow and we wish it would go away.  Most of the time we curse God and beg for Him to take away whatever is causing us so much hurt, most of the time believing He won’t.  So instead people turn to drinking or drugs or self-harm or something else to take away their pain.  We put our hope into materialistic things that in reality won’t help at all.  Instead of getting angry at God for not helping us in times of great sorrow, we need to put our trust and hope in Him.

hope

Once again we’re going to go back to when I was in middle school and high school.  I was in so much pain during those few years.  I turned away from God thinking He couldn’t help me.  I was one of those people that turned to self-harm.  I had so much heartache from feeling so alone that I thought the physical pain would help and take it all away.  But it didn’t.  Finally, when I was completely at breaking point, God saved me.  I put my hope in Him and He was able to bring me away from all of that and showed me I wasn’t alone.  If I had put my hope in Him from the beginning I would have saved myself a lot of pain and trouble.

Now for a story where I did put my hope in God.  Going to college is a really scary thing at first.  You are alone, without friends, and expected to do a lot of things for yourself because you’re an adult.  You have to completely start over.  After my first day of classes my first semester I completely broke down.  I cried for hours.  I felt so alone and had no idea what I was doing.  I was convinced I wasn’t going to make any friends because of how introverted I was.  I had my roommates but I knew I wasn’t going to be good friends with them because they were all into the party scene.  I had so much sorrow and hurt, but instead of just letting it consume me, I turned to God.  I prayed and asked for peace and comfort.  I asked Him to give me complete contentment in Him.  I put all my hope in Him.  I knew that God would provide me with friends.  Maybe not right away but I knew he would provide for me.  The very next day I met one of my best friends completely by chance.  We had two classes together and ended up being paired up for a short class project.  Ever since we have been best friends and I know we will be friends for the rest of our lives.

psalm 62.5

It is so important that we put our hope in God in the midst of all our hurt and fear.  I know it’s hard, but even when He doesn’t give us an answer right away or doesn’t take away our sorrow right away; we still need to completely trust and rely on Him.  He will provide for us, just like I talked about last week.  Even the sparrow knows He holds tomorrow.  Put your hope in God even in your darkest times.

I’m just the daughter of a small town girl… putting my hope in God alone.

images taken from Google.

Christian

A Submitted Life

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Hey everyone!  I would just like to start out by introducing myself a bit.  My name is Cheyenne.  I grew up in a Christian home, but didn’t really become a true follower of Christ until I was a freshman in high school after an awesome trip to the Hills Alive Music Festival in Rapid City, South Dakota.  Now I am going to college at Idaho State University and just finished my freshman year.  I love to read and write, so I was pretty excited when my mom asked me to take over her blog while she is recovering from her surgery.  I can’t wait to share with you guys what God is doing in my life!god can do more stg

Being in college is a lot more stressful than I thought it was going to be.  Between classes, homework, and work, it’s hard to catch your breath.  Luckily, God is the best stress reliever there is!  The first Sunday before classes started fall semester, I went to a small church near campus and ran into a couple of awesome women who have become great mentors to me.  They invited me to Chi Alpha, one of the on-campus ministry groups at ISU.  They meet every Wednesday night during the school year for worship, bible study, and fellowship.  Going to Chi Alpha and a cell group, a small group of girls who meet to live life together and worship God, helped me get through my first year away from home.  I can’t praise God enough for the amazing girls whom I am proud to call my sisters and the amazing mentors I have gained from Chi Alpha!  My cell group has helped me through some pretty rough times and Chi Alpha was always there to give me a break from my studying to worship God!

So, this last week was finals week for me and I was worrying a lot about my tests and projects.  On Monday morning I opened my bible to get a little encouragement from God before taking my Statistics final, a class I struggled with all semester.  I found this verse, “Commit your actions to the Lord, and your plans will succeed” (Proverbs 16:3 NLT).  This verse definitely gave me a confidence booster and reminded me of what we had been talking about at Chi Alpha all semester.  This semester we were studying how to live a life, submitted to Christ.  I want to talk about a few of the virtues that stood out to me.connection stg

The first one is courage.  Living a submitted life takes a lot of courage.  You have to be willing to trust God and follow Him, even when the future is unclear.  In Luke 22: 39-46, Jesus is on the Mount of Olives praying fervently to God to, “take this cup of suffering” away from him.  In that moment, Jesus is so scared because he’s about to be beaten and crucified for our sins.  And yet, he was walking in courage. He trusted in God and in His promises.  He was able to walk in courage because he was constantly in prayer and accepting the strength God had for him.  I’ve had to do the same thing in my life.  Just before Christmas break, my cell group leader came to me and asked me if I wanted to be a cell group leader for Chi Alpha next year.  I was completely in shock.  My first instinct was to say no.  I couldn’t lead a group of girls in a weekly bible study fellowship group!  I could barely talk to strangers!  How could I have the courage to talk to strangers and invite them to Chi Alpha and my cell group?  I took time to pray about it and God made the answer clear to me.  I could do it, as long as I relied on His strength and trusted in His promises.  “Commit your actions to the Lord, and your plans will succeed.”  I committed to being a cell group leader next year, and because I trusted in God, He has already surrounded me with a group of girls to help me and we even already have one girl who is going to come next year!  It also took a lot of courage for me to step up and write this blog.  I will be honest, I’m scared to death that I won’t live up to the legacy my mother has created.  But once again, I’m getting my courage from God, accepting the strength He is giving me, and I am trusting that I will succeed as long as I’m following Him.

My favorite Chi Alpha this semester was when we had a guest speaker come and talk about faith and hope.  People tend to think that hope and faith are the same thing or at least very similar.  Hope is a virtue that deals with the future.  The speaker said, “even though you are losing right now, you’re going to win,” because God has already won the war.  Faith, on the other hand, is the action of hope.  Faith is putting hope into action.  The guest speaker said, “There comes a point where what you believe in the future you have to bring into right now.”  And that is faith.  Hebrews 11:1 says, “Faith is the substance of things hoped for.”  So if you see a hungry person on the street you can say, “I hope you get some food.”  But faith is going out and bringing that person some food; bringing that hope into right now.  Faith, is knowing that God is going to provide, which was also the last Chi Alpha of this semester.  What I learned through those two lessons is that I have faith that God will provide a way to bring my hope into right now; as long as those hopes are His will.FAITH INTO ACTION STG

The last virtue I want to share is shalom, peace.  Peace seems impossible to find in a world full of war, stress, and chaos, but despite all that, we can have peace within ourselves.  What God means when he says we need to live a life full of peace, is that we should have wholeness in every area of our lives.  No area of your life should cause you chaos.  In Matthew 4:16, it talks about how Jesus went and lived in a place that was absolute chaos, where, “death casts its shadows.”  He goes and lives among them and brings peace to them.  We have perfect peace through the Holy Spirit, and Isaiah 32, gives us a promise of a peaceful life.  God promises that no matter what trials we face, we can have peace in them.  We need peace in our lives so we can bring peace to others, just like Jesus did.

These are three of the biggest lessons I’ve learned.  That I need to walk in courage; to have hope and faith, knowing that God is going to provide; and knowing I can have peace even when everything seems to be chaos.  I have all of this because, I have committed my actions to the Lord.

I’m just the daughter of a small town girl, living a submitted life.