Are you surviving, or are you THRIVING?

If you haven’t read Jesus’ parable about the vine and the branches, I encourage you to do so today! I was so inspired by really thinking this through and comparing my life to it. What an amazing and mighty God we serve! I am so blessed! 

““I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.”

‭‭John‬ ‭15:1-8

Here’s my spin on the words:

The vine sustains the branches. It provides minerals, nutrients, and everything the branches need in order to not just survive – but to THRIVE. Because of the sustenance from the vine, the branches will flourish and bear fruit and seedlings. The fruit becomes larger as the vine continually provides for it, even through tough wind, water, and harsh weather. Inside the fruit, it in turn provides for the seedlings from the vines nourishment.

Now replace Jesus with vine, me with branches, and my family as seedlings. 

Jesus sustains me. He provides everything I need in order to thrive. Because of his sustenance, I will flourish and be blessed, including my family. My faith will grow, from Jesus’s continuous provisions, including all trials that life throws at me. Within me, because of Him, I will be able to provide for my family, so they may also thrive. 

How blessed are we?! Let that sink in for a moment… 

In this passage, Jesus also speaks about life and death. The branch needs the vine in order to survive. But if you stray from Jesus, you will fall from the vine, wither, and die. If we think about our faith, and our relationship with God, we must remain near at all times!

I once heard a saying where if you give sin an inch, it will take a foot. I have experienced this SO many times in my life. I am so thankful for a forgiving and loving Father! He always takes me back! He picks up my withering, dry, and brittle branch – and always fixes it back to the vine – my source of nourishment and sustenance. I always go back to Him, always. I don’t count on it, but I do count on Him being there with his mercy and grace – arms wide open. I know I could leave this life at any day, and as a branch I could easily burn away without Him!

I am working really hard at changing that. I don’t want to go back to my old ways. I feel like a new person, and my heart as changed. I’m thankful for a merciful and forgiving God, and I pray that I do not stray from Him again. 

In just a few months, He has become my sustenance in life. His blessing are abundant, more than they ever have been before. I pray that I continue to thrive, and not just survive. I am so thankful for his continual guidance in my life. I am also thankful for my relationship with Him. I pray that He remains in my heart forever, just as I in His. 

I hope that this post encourages someone out there reading this to keep pushing through!

As a side note, I picked up a book by Joel Olsteen called “I Declare” on Amazon after my Aunt had sent me excerpts over the past few weeks. It was delivered a few days ago, and I finally was able to sit down and read it today! I became so excited after I read the Introduction and Day 1’s declaration! More to come on those thoughts later…

Have a blessed week! Happy Monday!

Monologue vs. Dialogue

Originally written on 1/25/17:

This was in my devotional on 1/25/17. It reminded me of my Aunt Vicki’s word focus for the year: relationship. It made me think about how my relationship with God is very monologue and how hard I am seeking him to make it a dialogue. 

I often talk to God, but i rarely hear from God. For me, prayer has always been a monologue. What if i talk to my husband, but he never talks to me? That’s not a relationship. A relationship has to have conversation – a two way street. Shouldn’t it be just as important to talk to God in prayer, and also listen and allow him to talk to me? I believe it is. In order to do that, I’ve realized I have to want it – want it more than anything else!

Deuteronomy 4:29, “You will search again for the LORD your God. And if you search for him with all your heart and soul, you will find him” (NLT).

King David wrote in the book of Psalms, “My God, I want to do what you want” and “What I want most of all and at all times is to honor your laws” (Psalm 40:8 NCV).

David was passionate in his declaration that what he wanted most of all was to honor God. Being obedient and following God were not options for him. It was the only thing David wanted to do. He used words for seeking God like, “I long for it,” “I crave it,” “I hunger for it,” and “I’m like a dear panting for water.” When you get that desperate, you’re going to hear from God. I’m desperate now – I need you now God! 

To start this new dialogue, I’ve got to start spending time with God through his word. I prefer it to be a quiet place, with my pen and paper, coloring books, colored pencils, etc. so I can ponder and think about God.

Matthew 6:6: “Find a quiet, secluded place so you won’t be tempted to role-play before God. Just be there as simply and honestly as you can manage. The focus will shift from you to God, and you will begin to sense his grace” (MSG).

I need to just be still and listen. Prayerfully put in my requests to God, but also give him a chance to respond. 

A lesson from a bent, orange colored pencil.

Originally written 1/14/17:

My hands hurt from arthritis today, but that didn’t stop me from writing a few pages in my journal. However it did stop me from writing this, so instead I decided to type it. I feel the guidance to share with all of you, what I have learned today – from a bent, orange colored pencil. 

At the end of each journal entry as of late, I have been writing a prayer, a summary of my learnings, or even words of encouragement. I always try to choose a color to go with it, not only to make it look pretty or artistic, but also a color that means something. Today, as you can see, I wrote about the things that hold me back from hearing God’s voice – ultimately His “guidance”. Fear, bitterness, and pride were the three things with focus. These are three very strong qualities that required a lot of strength to face. (Who else doesn’t like to see and recognize the negatives in ourselves?!) 

As I was finishing my entry, I choose the color orange. I read somewhere that the color orange can represent strength – and Lord knows I need a lot of it lately! Before I started coloring, after my prayer and summary was written, I noticed something odd about this orange colored pencil. So I started coloring, and thinking: yes, it was bent – it was still so beautiful on the inside, outside, and on paper. It colored, just as my hand guided it to. It was a magnificent color of orange on the paper, just as I imagined it would be when I selected it to represent my words and feelings today. This bent pencil was worthy of my hand as I colored. I loved this colored pencil, no matter the bent shape. 

After I finished coloring and thinking, I looked at this pencil, and immediately broke down in tears. This bent orange colored pencil represented me in God’s eyes, just as I saw it to be! I realized that no matter how bent I am, and no matter the shape of my heart, I loved this pencil as much as God loves me – beautiful, worthy, guided by His hands, and loved – so very loved. 

I hope and pray that this short story of my experience will inspire you, and encourage you! 

Ditching the pen and paper… for today!

Today’s reading plan brought me to the below quote from the Bible. How beautiful is it, that this woman had that much faith, that much belief, that God would heal her, just from a touch of his clothes. If only, I could had that much faith. How inspiring?!

Today is day three. The past two days have been spent in bed, puppy beside me, and the tv on. I couldn’t do much else – walk, shower, get dressed, and no – not even easy to wipe my butt. I spilled my coffee all over the place because I couldn’t hold my cup. (I chuckled a little on the inside – because my cup did runneth over!) But then after the giggle, then the depression set in. I’m not independent like I normally am. I had to rely on my husband to make food for me, kids to hand me something, etc. But through all of that, the depression is the worst. 

Today I had planned to go to work. When I woke this morning, the soreness and stiffness had set in. After a flare up from psoriatic arthritis, my body just plain hurt. I needed one more day to recuperate. 

So this morning I get an amazing text from my aunt. She knew I was struggling, I hadn’t been reading the Bible app like before. Funny how at the time she texted me, I was thinking I needed to do some reading today, and possibly even writing. I have found so much joy in bible journaling. It’s been a little over a week since I’ve written anything down and today wasn’t looking so good either. Drawing out verses is fun too. Coloring and pondering also brings me peace and comfort. 

After a quick chat via text with my aunt (thankful for awesome technology), I thought how cool it would be to do an online blog for the days when writing on traditional paper isn’t really an option. A quick google search later, and here I am…

Ive always kept notes in my phone. But today I’m going to compile them on here. So I can come back later. I’m not here for likes, or comments, or anything like that. If you’ve stumbled upon this blog by accident, and you continue to come back to read more – then great! If not, that’s okay too. It’s more for my own personal growth and understanding. It’s for my relationship with God, and a healing that I am declaring!