I'm just here to talk about God

A Women’s Accountability Group 💕✝️📖 we are a group of young women who show up for our present and future selves and for one another. Let’s chat!

[intentional-faith]

RUN! (to God)

Psalm 139: 7 - 12:

7 Where can I go from your Spirit?     Where can I flee from your presence? 8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there;     if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. 9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn,     if I settle on the far side of the sea, 10 even there your hand will guide me,     your right hand will hold me fast. 11 If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me     and the light become night around me,” 12 even the darkness will not be dark to you;     the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you.

As humans, we mess up. A lot. The problem is that after we mess up, we also try to "fix" things. And by "fix" we often really mean "hide." When we mess up, we don't actually want to do the necessary work to make amends and corrections - instead we usually are trying only to protect ourselves. 

And when it comes to God, we act up even more! We try to be like Cain & hide ours sins from God but He can see all things. There is nothing that is hidden from the Lord, nothing that is in the dark for Him. We try to hide because we think that there is something that we can do to lose our acceptance by God – so we hide. But He knows our sin before we even think to try to sin.

Romans 8:35-39 reminds us how nothing can separate us from the love of God.

It states: "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Again, the Lord knows us and we cannot do anything that will surprise Him or cause Him to love us any less. Instead of trying to run and hide, we should be running TO Him. 

Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for your grace and your mercy. Thank you that there is nothing that can separate me from your love and that you are the one who guides and orders my steps. Give me peace as I navigate this new path of acceptance and your love - lead me as I draw closer to you and be my comfort. Thank you. I love you.

[intentional-faith]

God's Mind over My Matter

Romans 12:2: 

Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

1 John 1:9: 

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

A curious thing happens when we become believers. Because our eyes have been opened to the truth and to sin, we start to notice it everywhere. Moreover, we often find that we ourselves are the worst offenders! And it becomes an internal struggle and debate, often making us think that there must be something wrong with us that we cannot "stick" to our salvation. We think; I'm saved now, so why am I still struggling with sin? 

That is the great irony - it is our salvation that leads us to walk into the light and to notice all the things that are not of God. It can be overwhelming, and even paralyzing, to realize just how often we are sinning or not honoring God. It can make us feel that we are simply not good enough, or that there must be something that we are doing wrong. The truth is, our eyes are finally OPEN. When you can finally see it all, you can actually see it all. 

So instead of feeling down or undeserving because you noticed that you sinned, be proud that you caught yourself! We cannot change anything that we do not observe, so this is a necessary step. Bad news? You will never be perfect. The good news? You don't have to be! 

Now, I want to clarify that I am not saying that it is acceptable to sin or to not even try to improve. NOT AT ALL! What I am instead trying to instill is that we cannot let ourselves feel paralyzing guilt every time we fall short. We will make mistakes, we will sin, we will be human - it is our salvation that reminds us that we do not have to conform to the world just because it is hard to do Godly things. As Romans 12:2 reminds us, we are to be transformed by the renewal of our mind. And each and every single day we must strive to do and be better, through Christ. Yes, this is very hard and challenging, but we never have to walk alone. 

And if we do sin? Thank GOD we have a gracious and merciful heavenly Father who will cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 

Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for your never-ending grace. Thank you for the gift of salvation and the chance to grow and mature more richly in you. Lead me as I walk through this earth and guide my steps. I pray for your hand of protection and that you would draw me closer to you. Thank you for your love and your mercy. Thank you for mental clarity. Thank you. 

[intentional-faith]

This is your reminder that you are exactly who you should be and while we should be striving each and every single day to be better versions of ourselves in the Lord, we should never be forcing ourselves to be a different person.... Yes, absolutely, many of our old habits and desires should (and will) fall away as we grow in our faith, but you cannot hate yourself into a version of yourself that you will love. You can grow and learn and gain wisdom and experience, but don’t try to be something that you are not. Remember to be YOU. The you that was fearfully and wonderfully made.

[intentional-faith]

Remember, you are fearfully and wonderfully made

Psalms 139:13-16 

For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. What a beautiful thing it is to know that we are loved beyond love.

These verses provide some beautiful imagery, highlighting how our very existence on this earth is the culmination of the Lord weaving together every miracle that led to our births. It is a reminder of how deeply the Lord knows and loves us – and that each and every thing that occurs in our life is a part of His divine plan for our good. And perhaps more importantly, these verses should serve as a reminder that we are perfect exactly as we are.

Now, I am not saying that we should not strive to be better; quite the opposite actually! We should be striving each and every single day to be better versions of ourselves in the Lord, but the key words here are “of ourselves.” We are made special and unique for a reason! And the mix of way we were raised, when we were raised, and our experiences, and our cultures, and our everything is what makes us the versions of ourselves that exist today. But you cannot force yourself to be a different person. You cannot hate yourself into a version of yourself that you will love. You can grow and learn and gain wisdom and experience, but remember to be YOU. The you that was fearfully and wonderfully made.

Often, things we dislike about ourselves are actually our best features. You may think you are too loud and talkative – but to others you are a bright, friendly warmth in a cloudy, stormy day. Alternatively, you may chastise yourself for being too quiet and reserved, while those who know you may adore the deep, thoughtful consideration you provide to everything. Trust that the God that created the heavens and the earth, and everything within them, who also created you, knows what He was doing. Grow? YES! But never lose sight of yourself – of the you that was knit in your mother’s womb, of the you that is loved beyond love.

Lord, thank you for the gift of life and the opportunity to worship you in all that I do. Thank you for reminding me of how I am created in your image, and how it is you that guides all of my steps. Lord, I pray that you strengthen my faith and that you direct me in your perfect ways. Keep me safe and help me as I grow in my walk with you. I love you.

[intentional-faith]

Bless the Lord, O my soul

Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.

Psalm 103:1-5

What does it mean to bless the Lord? It means to praise Him, to exalt Him, and to worship Him. But this still begs the question - what does it mean for us to "Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name"? This means that we are to live the entirety of our lives in submission to the Lord, that we should be seeking to honor Him and do His will in all that we do at all times. This is simple but increasingly difficult as it means that we have to reexamine how we live our lives even in the small details. 

When you wake up in the morning, what is the first thing that you do? Do you check your phone for emails or social media? Do you reach for a morning coffee? Or do you thank the Lord for another day of life? Are you studying the Bible daily to ensure you are filled with the Word of God or are you filling yourself with worldly information? Do you move and stretch your temple daily to ensure it lasts for decades, or are you simply living for the day to day? 

Reminding ourselves to "Bless the Lord" is a way that we can filter our lives to be not only better, but more blessed. It is not about changing everything, but it is a way of changing how we view everything. 

Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name! 

Dear heavenly Father, thank you for another day of life. Thank you for the opportunity to take stock of my life and of all my actions. I pray that you would give me wisdom and grant me the strength to do your will and not my own. Help me daily as I navigate through this crazy world and guide me in all of my actions. Thank you. I love you. 

[intentional-faith]

Do not be conformed to this world...

Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. Therefore do not become partners with them; for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. -Ephesians 5:6-10

Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. -Romans 12:2

This week, the theme that kept emerging over and over again has been discernment. To discern is "to perceive by the sight or some other sense or by the intellect; see, recognize, or apprehend" or "to distinguish mentally; recognize as distinct or different; discriminate."  In this age, it is especially necessary to have that discernment; to view everything through the lens of our salvation. 

The Bible is very clear, we should be taking the time to educate ourselves fully, to always pursue knowledge, and most importantly to have a deep and personal relationship with the our Lord and Savior. We need to be spending time with Him daily and studying His Word, so that when we are presented information we can review it and discern what is true and what is good. 

The message is simple, but also challenging - it calls for us to take an honest stock of everything around us and hold it in judgment of the Word. Let us take on this honorable challenge with grace and thanksgiving. 

Heavenly Father, thank you for giving me the mind of Christ. Help me daily as I walk through this life to discern what is good from what is bad, what is right from what is wrong, what Godly from what is worldly. Help me to navigate this world with your hand guiding me. I love you. 

[intentional-faith]

Count it all joy...

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

James 1:2-4"Faith untested cannot be trusted." 

I hated this phrase when I first heard it from my sister. We were going through a VERY long trial of faith as my mother was hospitalized and it was not something I was interested in hearing. But it is the (unfortunate/fortunate?) truth. It's easy to say that we have faith and say that we trust in God. It is a lot different to actually believe, and to trust, especially when we are going through trials and tribulations that are lasting days, months, even years!  It is during these uniquely trying times that we need to cling to our faith and to our Lord. 

And it is this testing of our faith that refines us, that makes us grow, that makes us complete. We need to be tested in order to grow - so as the verse says, "count it all joy." When you are going through the trials and the tests, be grateful and keep your faith. It's cliche, but it's true. You just have to go through it. Faith untested cannot be trusted. 

The good news? There is joy even in the trials and tribulations, and the better news is that you will go THROUGH this and come out the other side with so much more to celebrate! 

Dear Heavenly Father, Thank you for your continued grace and mercy as we walk through this life. Thank you for giving us faith and for showing up and showing off in our lives. We pray that we find ourselves approved and that we continue to grow in your divine will. Thank you. I love you. 

[intentional-faith]

"Clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience..."

"Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity." -Colossians 3:12-14

Today I am thinking a lot about common courtesy, and how challenging it can be to keep being courteous in an increasingly discourteous world. It is not easy to maintain our compassion, our kindness, our humility, our gentleness, and our patience, especially when it seems that everyone around us is not bound by these same convictions. But again I must remind us that our peace and our joy should be coming from the Lord, not from our interactions with others. If we lose our peace after one conversation, then our peace is not from the Lord; it is from our conversations and from others. Again, this is a LOT easier said than done and the Lord understands this, encouraging us to "bear with each other" and to "forgive one another." 

It is not about being perfect, because perfection is not something that we can achieve, but it IS about being consistent. Consistently clothing ourselves, as the Word says. And while it is not easy to stay vigilant and to keep our virtues, it is very easy to slip into our carnal flesh. It is not easy to be compassionate, but it can feel almost too easy to be inconsiderate. It is a challenge to maintain our kindness, but we can be rude on demand. It is unfortunately too easy to act out in our human nature. So the challenge this week is to choose to be compassionate, to be kind, to be humble, to be gentle, to be patient. 

Read the verses again (and again) and remember, your clothing is also a shield. When people are not compassionate to you, you can keep your compassion because you are dressed it in. When others are not gentle, you can keep your gentleness about you. Let us truly be a living example of what a Christian walk looks like - not a a cake walk, but a deliberate march in the right direction. 

Lord, THANK YOU. Thank you for another day of life, for your grace, for your compassion, and for your mercy. Thank you for always forgiving us, even when we are acting up and acting out. Remind us daily how to trust and lean on you, even when we are faced with daily challenges. Help us to clothe ourselves daily with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Thank you. I love you. 

[intentional-faith]

Good Grief

I've been thinking a lot about loss and grief lately. Unfortunately, I know too well the devastating (and sometimes crippling) grief that loss can bring, and often when we think we are "okay" we are hit worse. 

When we lost our older brother (my parents' first born), my mother shared with me that she found the most comfort in the phrase "the joy of the Lord is my strength", found in Nehemiah 8: 10: 

10 Nehemiah said, “Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”

For a little context, the people were weeping softly as they were listening to the Book of Law - perhaps themselves overcome with emotions as they were adjusting to a new way of life. This verse is often misconstrued, we hear the word "joy" and assume that we will have joy; but the verse does not say this. It says the joy of the Lord is my STRENGTH. On those days when it seems like there is absolutely nothing and no one that can lift your spirits, remember that that's kind of true - nothing but God will be able to lift your spirits. It is our faith that brings us the strength to go on, even when everything around us is crumbling. And remember, our meditation with the Lord is more than prayer, Bible studying, and listening to messages - it can be a a time of crying, of silence, of stillness, of singing, of joy, of laughter, of whatever. It is our time and conversation with our Lord who loves us so deeply. 

Here are a few more verses that may provide some comfort: Psalms 34:18 "The Lord is near to the brokenhearted And saves those who are crushed in spirit."

Psalm 73:26: “My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.”

Psalms 147:3: “He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.”

Matthew 5: 4 “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.”

Matthew 11: 28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”

2 Corinthians 1:3-6 “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, 4 who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. 5 For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ. 6 If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer.”

May some of these verses be a comfort to you. 

Let's keep being intentional! 

[intentional-faith]

"So the last will be first, and the first will be last."

Matthew 20: 1-16

1 “For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard. 2 He agreed to pay them a denarius for the day and sent them into his vineyard. 3 “About nine in the morning he went out and saw others standing in the marketplace doing nothing. 4 He told them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.’ 5 So they went.  “He went out again about noon and about three in the afternoon and did the same thing. 6 About five in the afternoon he went out and found still others standing around. He asked them, ‘Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing?’  7 “‘Because no one has hired us,’ they answered. “He said to them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard.’ 8 “When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the workers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last ones hired and going on to the first.’ 9 “The workers who were hired about five in the afternoon came and each received a denarius. 10 So when those came who were hired first, they expected to receive more. But each one of them also received a denarius. 11 When they received it, they began to grumble against the landowner. 12 ‘These who were hired last worked only one hour,’ they said, ‘and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the work and the heat of the day.’ 13 “But he answered one of them, ‘I am not being unfair to you, friend. Didn’t you agree to work for a denarius? 14 Take your pay and go. I want to give the one who was hired last the same as I gave you. 15 Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?’ 16 “So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”

We often quote verse 16: So the last will be first, and the first will be last. But have we truly captured the meaning? There is no reward in heaven for being first - and the one who gets saved at the very last possible moment is just as saved as the one who was born into the religion. This goes against what our human (carnal) brains can think of - we think we should get a bigger reward in heaven for our long suffering and tenacity, and that we should get more than those who deserve less. While agreeing that we should all love one another, we often secretly have our own tally to keep score and have crowned some better and some worse. 

But (thankfully), that is not how God's love for us works; we don't have to do anything to gain salvation and we can't do anything to earn it. And it is this beautiful concept that we seem to struggle with most - that we are given something we did not earn that can be freely given to another without diminishing what we have. It is this submission and belief that forms the foundation of our faith. We are saved because of our faith and our faith makes us saved. We don't have to understand it, we just need to embrace it. Thankfully, favor isn't fair.

Lord, thank you for your amazing grace and your free gift of life. Thank you for another week of opportunities to bless your Holy Name and to move with purpose. Guide me and lead me in your precious ways. Thank you. I love you.

[intentional-faith]

[intentional-faith]

Don't just look good, BE good

Matthew 6:1-8

1 “Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. 2 “So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 3 But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. 5 “And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 6 But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. 7 And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. 8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him."

Matthew 6 may best be known for the verses that follow (The Lord's prayer is found starting in verse 9), but it is the first 8 verses that set the groundwork for how our prayer lives should truly go. It is not about the presentation of our prayer and our giving, but about the actual content and our intentions. We should be reaching out to the poor because it was put on our hearts, NOT as a show for others to see. Our prayer time is our private time with the Lord; it is for us to communicate our innermost feelings and struggles with our father. God wants us to have this special time with Him - an honest time, not a presentation of our latest vocabulary acquisitions. Pretty words alone are not enough, it is about our hearts. 

On the opposite end, it is not about hiding our actions and our faith and our prayers, but instead about making sure that we are doing all of these things for God, not for our own recognition and validation. Time and time again, the Lord strips away all of the extra fluff - the over the top presentations, the bloated words, the fanfare - all to reach the very nature of the matter; our hearts. It is critical that we guard our hearts and protect ourselves fully. 

So often we want to portray the best and greatest versions of ourselves, but God is asking for our true selves. We do not have to hide and pretend with Him. Bring God your truth, no matter how messy, and watch Him turn it into your greatest blessing. 

Lord, thank you for loving us the way that you do. Thank you for your grace and love and compassion as we navigate our lives. Help us to draw closer to you, as we decenter ourselves from our need for validation. Guide us in your holy path to our ultimate purpose, and protect us from ourselves. Thank you. I love you. 

[intentional-faith]

Life is HARD, and being a believer doesn't make it any easier...

2 Peter 1:3-11:

3. His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. 4. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.5. For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; 6. and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; 7. and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. 8. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9. But whoever does not have them is nearsighted and blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their past sins. 10. Therefore, my brothers and sisters, make every effort to confirm your calling and election. For if you do these things, you will never stumble, 11. and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Life is HARD, and being a believer doesn't make it any easier. Many times, it feels harder. Just like everyone else, we deal with temptation and sin, and just like everyone else, we have to make a choice. 

And that is the real challenge we face, that it is not one single decision to follow Jesus, but it is constantly choosing to follow Him and honoring Him in all that we do. Following our human (sinful) nature and desires is easy, but choosing the path less traveled feels more like an actual challenge and work. It can get tiring and frustrating. But one "bad" decision can snowball into another faster than you think. This is expressly evident in how quickly we can turn back to our bad habits, especially when under stress. But as the verses say, God has given us everything we need and through Him we can escape the evil corruption of the world - but again, that has to be a choice we make each and every single day, over and over and over again. 

It is difficult to seek to bless the Lord in ALL that we do, but that should be the goal. It is the challenge and also the cheat code - that we will never be able to be perfect, but we should still be striving for consistency. And if we fail, we are immediately given a new opportunity to grow. We should strive to have the qualities "in increasing measure" - we are (or should be) constantly learning and growing in the Lord. He has given us a full book to get to know Him on a deeper level, and through our own studying and Godly conversations, we can get to know Him deeper. As we seek Him and draw near to Him, He reveals Himself to us. 

[intentional-faith]

We are not meant to do life alone

“As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.” – Proverbs 27:17

“And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” – Hebrews 10:24-25

We are not meant to do life alone. Real life is challenging and messy and often overwhelming - unexpected issues arise, problems pop up, and bills keep coming in. It is very easy to want to rely on ourselves and our own knowledge as we struggle to understand what is happening and why, but it is critical that we do not lean on our own understanding. Instead, we should be bringing ALL our burdens to the Lord, no matter how big or small. 

And again, I will reiterate - we are not meant to do life alone. That is why it is critical that we surround ourselves with good, God-minded people that can uplift and encourage us when we need it. A good friend will pray with you, intercede for you, and stay by your side when you need them. And as the Word says in Proverbs - we can sharpen one another. Your close friends and acquaintances will either lead you closer to the Lord or further from Him, they will provide Godly council or they will provide secular council. That is why it is so critical that we are selective about who we call our friends. Hebrews reiterates this - good friends can encourage you and "spur" you "toward love and good deeds." 

So, does this mean we have to drop all our friends and start from scratch? No! But we should ask for God's wisdom as we navigate this life, and our friendships. We can ask Him for guidance and to reveal who we should draw closer to and who we should draw away from. 

As we start a new day, filled with new opportunities, let's take the time to consider who we call our friend. We are a conglomerate of all of those who surround us, let's make sure we are choosing friends who will sharpen us. 

Dear Heavenly Father, Thank you for another day of life and another glorious opportunity to draw closer to you. I pray that you would guide my steps and that you would reveal what needs to be revealed. Help me to deepen my bond with those that will sharpen me and remove those from my life that only seek to destroy me. Thank you for your discernment as I navigate this world, thank you for never leaving me, and thank you for your outstanding grace and mercy. Guide me and lead me so that my steps may always be ordered by you. I love you. 

[intentional-faith]

Doing Good to All

Galatians 6:1-5: Doing Good to All

1. Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted. 2. Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. 3. If anyone thinks they are something when they are not, they deceive themselves. 4. Each one should test their own actions. Then they can take pride in themselves alone, without comparing themselves to someone else, 5. for each one should carry their own load.

In a world of social media and constant online presence, it is easy to compare ourselves to others. Often, we feel we are falling short of the perfection we see on our screens - people who "have it all together" and who seem to be accomplishing everything that we have not. But as the famous quote says, "comparison is the thief of joy." We are not meant to compare ourselves to those around us - our paths are not the same and our we will never achieve our ultimate goals by following someone else's path. 

So how do we correct our course? As the Word says in verse one, we should restore ourselves and each other GENTLY.  If we approach one another out of anger or annoyance, it may not be received well, AND we should be extending that same courtesy to ourselves. A good community is a major part of that - we are not meant to do life alone, and we are meant to help one another carry our burdens. These two verses go hand in hand - we are meant to correct gently and help carry burdens; but again, the emphasis is on correction. We should not be accepting of all actions; we should have a standard that we hold ourselves and each other to. However, we are human and we will fail. We should always strive to hit the ultimate mark and to be as close to the perfect ways of Jesus as possible - but again, we are human and we will fail. That failure requires us to have grace so that we are restored in God. 

The passage continues to remind us to be humble; that if we believe we are something (without God) we are nothing. In verse 4 it goes on to say that "each one should test their own actions."  This speaks to how we will all have to stand alone before God and answer for our own actions. We cannot blame or fault someone else because as verse 5 says, we are to carry our own loads. 

So what now? CHECK YOURSELF. 

Are you living by the Spirt or by your own flesh? 

Are you a part of a Godly community that will help restore you and carry your burdens? Or are you part of a secular community that will stamp your bad actions and leave you to die? 

Are you thinking of yourself too pridefully? Or are you humbled before the Lord? 

Are you constantly examining yourself, your heart, your life to make sure it lines up with the Word of God? Or are you comparing yourself to others? 

Are you carrying your load? 

Lord, thank you for another day and another opportunity to grow closer to you. Thank you for your grace and mercy, for your love and your comfort, for your compassion and your salvation. We pray that you help us examine our hearts and help us to let go of anything that does not serve you. Help us to keep our eyes focused on you, not on those around us. Bring good, Godly helpers into our path and weed out negative friends and influences. Thank you for everything. I love you. 

[intentional-faith]

Be very careful, then, how you live—

Ephesians 15-20

15 Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. 17 Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. 18 Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit, 19 speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord, 20 always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Th Word says be careful how you LIVE and how we take care of each day/each opportunity. This is not about what we do one time or how we look on social media - it is about being intentional and following what God has called us to do daily. The passage continues to push this point, reminding us to be wise (not foolish) and to understand God's will. To understand His will, we must know Him. Verse 18 further brings this point across; telling us that instead of numbing ourselves with drink or any other vice daily, we should instead choose to be filled with the Spirit.  

The point continues to be carried in verses 19-20, which again emphasize the need to intentional - to speak to each other not just in kindness, but "from the Spirit" and "from your own heart."  This highlights once again our need to not only be filled with the Spirit, but to daily feed ourselves with the Word of God and with "psalms, hymns, and songs" as verse 19 says. 

This is not a race; it is the journey of an entire lifetime. And we cannot change anything in our journey so far, but we can make sure we are on the right path moving forward. How? By getting to know God on a personal level and doing what we were called to do - being intentional! Spend time with Him in prayer and in His word daily. Finally, we give thanks in this and everything, always, as we see in the last verse. 

Lord, as always, we thank you for your amazing grace and mercy and for how deeply you love us. Thank you for helping us each and every single day as we navigate this world. May we always remember that you are a prayer away, and that we can throw all our cares and sorrows on you. Thank you. I love you.