Wednesday SHINE.....
Today's Reading: Job 20
Happy Worship Wednesday, SHINE girls! Whew, what a week this is turning into here on SHINE.
I love how the Holy Spirit leads us on these journeys together, arm in arm, seeking and learning His truth together. It sure makes the path a little (a lot) easier knowing that we are all together.
I feel like we have reached a whole new level of friendship with each other here on SHINE. Seriously, I do.
When the Lord quickens our hearts about sin, it is a good, good thing. It means He loves us! It means He wants only the very, very best for us!
NONE of us have it all together. NONE. We are just all trying to walk the path, and clear the branches for those on this same path with us to get to know the Lord better.
If you are reading this blog--YOU are on this path with us! You are earnestly seeking to know Him deeper. Guess what? So, are we! Yay! :)
One of my most favorite things in this world, is an honest girlfriend. For real, it is. (thankfully, i am surrounded by many of them! even the kind that tell you that you have a big chunk of spinach in your teeth! oh yeah!)
Sometimes, though, her honesty can be painful. At times, I even get defensive and a little wall goes up. "Who is she to point out my faults??" Oh yeah, I say that. (to myself, of course.)
However, when it is all said and done, I thank her for loving me enough....hear me again.....for loving me enough to gently encourage me in another direction. If she is showing me another path, it is only because she has been on the one that I am on. She knows that it leads nowhere. Period.
With that said, be blessed today by one of my honest girlfriends. Not only honest, but wise beyond her years.. I love just sitting in her presence and soaking up her wisdom. (she is probably laughing now--but it's true!)
I love you, SHINE sisters!
Spiritual Eyes
by: Lisa Inlow
I want to first start off and say that I can be so bold and blunt in this blog entry because this is something I deal with. I have not conquered the mind, though I will say I am in such a better place only for the reason of being so sick of acting/saying/watching/reading something that I KNEW was not best for me, feeling like junk afterward, asking the Father to forgive me as I KNEW He wanted more for me...then still having to deal with the image or words, that are stuck in my mind.
Here's the deal. We need to have our spiritual eyes on, AT ALL TIMES! We need to make decisions based on what our Savior thinks. Is this going to make us stronger in our faith, does this have eternal value...
Proverbs 4:23 Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.
Proverbs 23:19 My child, listen and be wise: Keep your heart on the right course.
I picture the Holy Spirit living behind my chest wall, sitting right smack dab on my heart. Feel your heart right now, come on, He's right there, seeing, hearing, reading your thoughts...
What are we putting into our hearts and minds?
I have seen movies before that I knew I did not need to see. I am a visual person, and know this is one of my numerous weak places. I still have images in my mind from when I was a very little girl...they are stuck. A few of them I wish were not.
Ephesians 4:29 Don't use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them.
1 Timothy 5:13 Besides, they get into the habit of being idle and going about from house to house. And not only do they become idlers, but also gossips and busybodies, saying things they ought not to.
What about our conversation? Oh y'all I am horrified at the zillions of conversations I've left and felt so guilty because if someone overheard what I was saying, they would not have thought I followed Jesus Christ.
Gossip too. Oh man did I love to gossip. All in a futile effort to fit in with whomever I was gossiping with. I mean, hello, who doesn't know that gossip is so wrong? But we keep doing it...
I want to stop here and say, you can stop gossiping. About 3+ years ago I begged God to forgive me for this nasty habit and promised Him I would repent and start down a new path. He forgives!!!
Now, do I still stumble, unfortunately. And when I do, the Spirit has pushed me to call or email the one I was gossiping with and ask them to forgive me. Holy cow, that's brutal!! Hence the reason I fight like heck to not gossip!
Ladies, we must stop gossiping! It's an awful thing to do.
Here's the deal. As daughters of Jesus Christ, we have to stop watching, reading, talking...like the world. For real, we need to be the light in this dark, dark world. We need to keep our minds pure of filth. We need to speak kindly, uplifting one another, encouraging one another in our Walk with our Savior. Fill our hearts and minds with Truth, goodness. Things that are clean and wholesome...holy.
1 Peter 5:8 Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.
The enemy is crouched down low, sneaking around, waiting so patiently for us to crack the window of our heart letting in just a little something. Then a seed is planted and over time, it can grow into a big, suffocating weed.
Isn't it time? To be done with mediocre? To be done being enticed by the things of this world? To be done with guilt over what we allowed to get in our minds and heart? To be done with regret over a conversation?
Oh SHINE sisters! Rejoice in your Savior who forgives! Rejoice in the Light of walking with Him! Rejoice in the peace of living, DAILY, hand in hand with the One who died for you because of His immense and deep love for you.
Rejoice in that we are His lighthouses, shining so bright as we walk in Truth! Drawing others in, showing them there is true Hope!!
Father today we are done with tip-toeing in the darkness. We are so done with putting things in our hearts and minds that do not, in anyway, please You. We are daughters of the King! We are loved, unconditionally, by the Creator! We commit today, to SHINE so brightly for You! We love you Father and we are so thankful for Your sweet love for us. In Jesus' Name.
Happy Worship Wednesday, SHINE girls! Whew, what a week this is turning into here on SHINE.
I love how the Holy Spirit leads us on these journeys together, arm in arm, seeking and learning His truth together. It sure makes the path a little (a lot) easier knowing that we are all together.
I feel like we have reached a whole new level of friendship with each other here on SHINE. Seriously, I do.
When the Lord quickens our hearts about sin, it is a good, good thing. It means He loves us! It means He wants only the very, very best for us!
NONE of us have it all together. NONE. We are just all trying to walk the path, and clear the branches for those on this same path with us to get to know the Lord better.
If you are reading this blog--YOU are on this path with us! You are earnestly seeking to know Him deeper. Guess what? So, are we! Yay! :)
One of my most favorite things in this world, is an honest girlfriend. For real, it is. (thankfully, i am surrounded by many of them! even the kind that tell you that you have a big chunk of spinach in your teeth! oh yeah!)
Sometimes, though, her honesty can be painful. At times, I even get defensive and a little wall goes up. "Who is she to point out my faults??" Oh yeah, I say that. (to myself, of course.)
However, when it is all said and done, I thank her for loving me enough....hear me again.....for loving me enough to gently encourage me in another direction. If she is showing me another path, it is only because she has been on the one that I am on. She knows that it leads nowhere. Period.
With that said, be blessed today by one of my honest girlfriends. Not only honest, but wise beyond her years.. I love just sitting in her presence and soaking up her wisdom. (she is probably laughing now--but it's true!)
I love you, SHINE sisters!
Spiritual Eyes
by: Lisa Inlow
I want to first start off and say that I can be so bold and blunt in this blog entry because this is something I deal with. I have not conquered the mind, though I will say I am in such a better place only for the reason of being so sick of acting/saying/watching/reading something that I KNEW was not best for me, feeling like junk afterward, asking the Father to forgive me as I KNEW He wanted more for me...then still having to deal with the image or words, that are stuck in my mind.
Here's the deal. We need to have our spiritual eyes on, AT ALL TIMES! We need to make decisions based on what our Savior thinks. Is this going to make us stronger in our faith, does this have eternal value...
Proverbs 4:23 Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.
Proverbs 23:19 My child, listen and be wise: Keep your heart on the right course.
I picture the Holy Spirit living behind my chest wall, sitting right smack dab on my heart. Feel your heart right now, come on, He's right there, seeing, hearing, reading your thoughts...
What are we putting into our hearts and minds?
I have seen movies before that I knew I did not need to see. I am a visual person, and know this is one of my numerous weak places. I still have images in my mind from when I was a very little girl...they are stuck. A few of them I wish were not.
Ephesians 4:29 Don't use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them.
1 Timothy 5:13 Besides, they get into the habit of being idle and going about from house to house. And not only do they become idlers, but also gossips and busybodies, saying things they ought not to.
What about our conversation? Oh y'all I am horrified at the zillions of conversations I've left and felt so guilty because if someone overheard what I was saying, they would not have thought I followed Jesus Christ.
Gossip too. Oh man did I love to gossip. All in a futile effort to fit in with whomever I was gossiping with. I mean, hello, who doesn't know that gossip is so wrong? But we keep doing it...
I want to stop here and say, you can stop gossiping. About 3+ years ago I begged God to forgive me for this nasty habit and promised Him I would repent and start down a new path. He forgives!!!
Now, do I still stumble, unfortunately. And when I do, the Spirit has pushed me to call or email the one I was gossiping with and ask them to forgive me. Holy cow, that's brutal!! Hence the reason I fight like heck to not gossip!
Ladies, we must stop gossiping! It's an awful thing to do.
Here's the deal. As daughters of Jesus Christ, we have to stop watching, reading, talking...like the world. For real, we need to be the light in this dark, dark world. We need to keep our minds pure of filth. We need to speak kindly, uplifting one another, encouraging one another in our Walk with our Savior. Fill our hearts and minds with Truth, goodness. Things that are clean and wholesome...holy.
1 Peter 5:8 Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.
The enemy is crouched down low, sneaking around, waiting so patiently for us to crack the window of our heart letting in just a little something. Then a seed is planted and over time, it can grow into a big, suffocating weed.
Isn't it time? To be done with mediocre? To be done being enticed by the things of this world? To be done with guilt over what we allowed to get in our minds and heart? To be done with regret over a conversation?
Oh SHINE sisters! Rejoice in your Savior who forgives! Rejoice in the Light of walking with Him! Rejoice in the peace of living, DAILY, hand in hand with the One who died for you because of His immense and deep love for you.
Rejoice in that we are His lighthouses, shining so bright as we walk in Truth! Drawing others in, showing them there is true Hope!!
Father today we are done with tip-toeing in the darkness. We are so done with putting things in our hearts and minds that do not, in anyway, please You. We are daughters of the King! We are loved, unconditionally, by the Creator! We commit today, to SHINE so brightly for You! We love you Father and we are so thankful for Your sweet love for us. In Jesus' Name.
