Confidence. In God. con·fi·dence ˈkänfədəns/ noun
Who is your someone that you can rely on and have firm trust in? God. The truth is, people in this world are going to fail us. They will let us down. They will hurt our feelings. That is because we are all sinners, and none of us are, or will ever be, perfect. However, we have confidence God is never going to fail us. He is never going to let us down. That is because He is God, and He is perfect. Sure, we might be disappointed that we didn’t get the promotion for the job we wanted. Or maybe we didn’t get the opportunity we expected. Or maybe even, God didn’t fix a situation in which you felt He should fix. Believe me, I would love to have all the answers. I wish I could answer the “why” questions. I have asked God the “why” questions, and I still don’t have all my answers today, but that is okay. God has a purpose for my pain. I can have confidence in God's plan, His timing, and His reasoning. God didn’t promise an easy life. In fact, He told us the opposite. John 16:33 33 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” Acts 14:22 “We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God,” A great christian blogger, Grace Valentine, says this. “I am not promising God won’t give you more the we can handle. What I am promising you is that God won’t give you more than He can handle.” So, God is with you in the troubled times. God has endured sadness because you have endured sadness. God has endured disappointment because you have endured disappointment. God has endured depression because you have endured depression. He goes with you. He feels what you feel, and experiences what you have experienced. He is with you on the mountain tops, and in the valleys. And today, you might be at an all time low. You may feel like you might just be in that valley. val·ley ˈvalē/ noun
Ephesians 2:10 10 For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. I saw a tweet on twitter that went perfect with this topic of having confidence in yourself. So today I will leave you with this… “To wish you were someone else is to waste the person you are.” Have a marvelous week!!! Xoxo, ali b. <3
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Comparison. Comparison is something that can be detrimental to your self confidence. By comparing yourself to others, you can do yourself a huge disservice. But, I am sure this isn't something you are intentionally doing. It may just happen without realizing it. It's a common thing, and a lot of people struggle with it.
What does the Bible say about comparison? 2 Corinthians 10:12 ESV Not that we dare to classify or compare ourselves with some of those who are commending themselves. But when they measure themselves by one another and compare themselves with one another, they are without understanding. I also like this next verse even more. 2 Corinthians 12:9 NIV My grace is sufficient for you. For my power is made perfect in weakness. I really like the first verse, because it reminds me not to compare myself to others. I've learned, that there will always be someone that is smarter, prettier, and more talented than me. That's okay. God has blessed me in other areas and made me perfect in His eyes. I love the second verse, because even in my weakest places, my God is POWERFUL. The same is for you. Isn't it wonderful that even in your weakest places, you are strong? I know a lot of people that feel unworthy and inadequate. More teenagers than anything, but adults really can struggle with it too. It's so sad to watch because you can tell in the way people carry themselves, speak, and perform actions that they aren't confident in themselves. Comparison is a thief of joy. As I am writing this, I have one or two girls specifically in mind. One girl is constantly downing herself. She doesn't see herself in the way everyone else sees her. She is beautiful and has so much going for her, but she is so insecure. She doesn't see her beauty. Comparison could be thinking to yourself, "I am not as equally attractive." "There are other people smarter than me." "My friend achieved a goal in a couple weeks that I have been working so hard on for years." "Why did they find a partner to spend the rest of their life with, and I can't?" If you don't get anything else from this blog post, get this next thing. You can not feel contentment, until you kill comparison. We need to swap all these lies with the truth. You are made perfect. You are smart. You are talented. You have a beautiful future ahead. Let God work through you. Compliment, don't compare. Encourage others. Show kindness. Be confident that you are the son or daughter of Christ. Nobody can take that away from you. Don't conform to the ways of the world. What does the world want you to believe? That you aren't good enough? That you're a horrible person? What does God want you to believe? Look to Christ Jesus for the truth and for guidance. Find your worth in Him, because He calls you lovely and beautiful. Until next time, Ali b. ❤️ "new school year, new me!!!!"
(psa: i changed my text up a bit. so sorry if it was weird and you didn't like it, but im gonna roll with it!) it's an over-used statement, but has so much truth in it. new school year, new beginning!!! I have some changes I would like to make in my life. I have some things I would like to achieve by the end of the year. And I also have some chapters I would like to close, & some I would like to begin. i am a stressor, but you guys probably know this already. I like to believe I'm a calm, cool, & collected gal... but I AM NOT EVEN CLOSE !! 😂 This year I want to put my faith & trust into the Lord. However, it's easier said then done, I will definitely lean on God more. letting go & starting over! so this means new beginnings. new (still keeping some old,but) friendships, new commitments, new dreams, new goals, &&& a new attitude. I will try not to worry about grades and unimportant situations. Ya home boy ,Jesus, isn't near as worried about that bad test grade ya got as you and your parents are. Don't get me wrong, grades are very important, but don't compromise your self sanity over that math grade! 😂💯 stayin' true to yo' self!!! (so, my pastor used slang words similar to this Sunday, but I gotta be honest, it sounded much cooler when he said it than when I said it aloud in my head://) so im all about new beginnings and fresh starts but not at the cost of my character, values, and morals. Lots of times we have many things running through our heads at the beginning of the school year. You want people to like you. You want people to accept and welcome you. In some cases (thankfully not in mine), teens aren't accepted because of the values they carry. Some actually mold and shape themselves into someone they aren't just to fit in. I am always upset to see those teens changing for others, when they can be a witness 4 Christ!!!!!! So stand up & be a witness to your friends. following the path of God. Like y'all, a couple weeks ago I had my life planned out lolol!!!!! Well God decided to go a different route than me( which happens pretty often..ugh!!). In all seriousness, I'd rather follow the path God has put me on than stroll down the wrong path and not know where I am or how I ended up there. I am a Christian and I stand up boldly, but I am NOT perfect. And I still make mistakes and I still misinterpret the Lord. Sometimes, I want things so bad I talk myself into believing God gave me a "YES" when He really didn't!! So, I said that to say, I am running towards the Lord's plan for myself this school year & you should be too!!! Try to not get distracted and get caught up in unimportant things, because IT IS SO EASY TO DO! if you made it to the end and read it all, you are the bomb & you rock ;)!!!! my insta dm's are always open. my Facebook messenger thing is always open. my snapchat is always available. i will always find time to talk and pray with you, if you allow me too. you can even text me! my insta and twitter accounts will be listed below!! follow me. 😇😇 also check in with me & lemme know how ur life's going, because i wanna hear from u <3 love to all, ali brooke!!! insta: itsalibrooke twitter: itsalibrooke Tonight, I read Psalm 56:4. It read:
"In God, whose word I praise---in God I trust and am not afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?" I really feel like someone needed to hear that, because I know I needed to hear that. So, I have a question for you. Where does your happiness come from? I ask you this because our attitude tends to change according to the events that unfold in our life. Or for me, at least, this is true. We need to find our happiness in God's word. Instead, we are getting it from the of the amount of likes on Instagram, the text from that certain someone, or other materialistic things. I read an article by TIME magazine on the American people's happiness. 38% of the American people said that just SCROLLING THROUGH social media picks up their mood. Open up that Bible app and that percentage will go WAY up. ;) My friend and I were talking one day last week and she told me that she cared too much about how people thought of her and what they thought about her. And I realized, I do too. I know that we aren't the only ones. But, I have to remind myself constantly that the way God sees me is far more important than what anyone else thinks about me. I believe Joyce Meyer said it best when she stated, "Once we understand how God sees us through Christ, we can refrain from caring what people think about us, and feeling bad for ourselves. We don't have to be addicted to their approval, because we already have God's." So today, ask yourself these two questions.... 1.) Were does your happiness come from? 2.) Are you seeking approval from God or someone else? Have a marvelous week! Also, pray for me, because I wrote this blog post when I really should've been reading my summer reading book. Hahah. Much love to all.
These past few weeks I have been in a dry season. Do you ever go through that? You know God can hear you, but you just can't feel Him. I went through that. I have prayed countless prayers, worshipped to multiple songs, and opened up my Bible app over and over again these last few weeks. I just wanted Him to speak to me.
Christians will go through or have gone through what I went through. Jesus went through it. Jesus was on the cross, next to two thieves, and in John 19:28 it tells us this: After this, Jesus, knowing all that was now finished, said (to fulfill the Scripture), "I thirst." When we can't hear God, we get frustrated and upset. We cry out to the Lord and ask "why?" We think we are the only ones not understanding and feeling God. It's upsetting, especially when you look around you and find people hearing from God & having God speak to them. Jesus felt the same way when He was the Son of God. He felt His own Father had shunned Him. He thirsted for God, to hear from Him and to understand. The only way I am able to pull myself through the dry season and not get frustrated with God, is to think of it as a test. I tell myself that I have to remain faithful even when I can't feel Him. I have to rely on God and know that He is my defender. I have to praise Him, when I can't feel Him. When I can't see Him moving and when I can't hear from Him, I give Him the praise and the glory anyway. I am not an open person, so when I write blogs like this, it's kind of hard. It's hard sharing my personal stories of things I have gone through or what I am going through. Some things I choose not to share right now, but God may speak to me and lead me to share later on. This week I wanted to touch on my "dry season" because I know many people will go through the same thing and I really do know how hard it is. But, I also wanted to touch on something else. If I hadn't written this blog post about my personal relationship with God, you probably wouldn't know that I was struggling to listen to God and hear Him speak to me. If you looked on my Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat, etc., you wouldn't see the struggles that I go through and the challenges I face on a day to day basis. The way my pastor put it is, our social media life is "fake" & a "highlight real." The things that we choose to share are the good things that happen to us. We talk about the brand new house we just bought, the job we just got offered, or the picture perfect friends and relationships we have. We never post about the struggles, lies, and temptation the devil tries to throw our way. I went around the world to say, you don't know someone based off of their social media. You don't know what they go through and you definitely don't know what goes on behind closed doors. You don't know where someone is in their walk with Christ and you don't know who is going through the exact situation you are facing. If you are going through that "dry season", please click the prayer request button so I can pray for you. You will make it out, I promise. I have been where you are. Stay strong! Don't give up. I love you all and pray for everyone who reads this. - aliiiii b❤️ 1 Peter 5:8-9
Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. 9 Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world. We are living in a PG 13/R rated society. It is especially hard living in this kind of society being a teenager. There are lies and temptation in every corner. Try not to speak garbage into your life. Do not listen to garbage and do not watch unkind things. Like 1 Peter says, keep a sober mind and remember that the devil will try to set you up to fall. Things you say, do and listen too will affect the outcome of choices you make in life. Even if I tried to describe the week my family and I have had, you wouldn’t even believe it. A small gist of it would be, my grandmother tore her meniscus and will have surgery, my grandfather tore his rotator cuff, my mother has her car in the shop, and my father is buried deep into his job. Things finally started to look up when I woke up Tuesday to the news that I would soon be heading to the beach. Best news I had all week to be honest. By saying that, I am not throwing myself a pity party. I know that people have it much worse than I and this is small potatoes compared to the children in orphanages wishing they could have a family. Or the people in Africa that need clean drinking water. I am just stating that life will get you down, things will spiral downward and not end up the way you predicted. Resist the devil and stand firm in your faith. Don’t shy away from the Lord because you are a chosen generation. You are kings and queens. You are called out of the ordinary and into the extraordinary. You aren’t basic or boring. The devil will get you down, but turn to him and say “Not today, Satan.” and keep going!!! You never know who has been or is going through the same situation is you. Xoxoxo, ALI B!!!!!!!! WHO IS IN CONTROL?
When you have a new situation pop up in your life, what do you do? Most would say they turn to the Bible. I do. The problem is, I like to have control of my life and the situations that occur to me. I know that in order to be a follower of God, I cannot be in control. He is in control, always. And He also steers me in the right direction. I have read in the Bible many times to lean not on my own understandings, to cast my burdens upon the Lord, and to trust in God. Well, it’s a new week and I have a new confession. Sometimes, in situations, God has to give me a reality check and show me who is in control. Wednesday night I went to church and our youth pastor preached a short message about needing to give situations over to God. And, I felt a tug at my heart. There isn’t one particular thing that I need to hand over to God. It’s my entire life choices and decisions. I don’t feel the need to write some long story to everyone. Let’s be honest, you would probably just want to skip to the bottom, haha. Instead, I will keep it short and simple. It’s easier to read the bible and live by it when your life is just dandy. It is a lot harder to apply the Bible to your life when you have a more complicated life. I have lied to myself, in the way that, I told myself God is in control. I wanted to make things more complicated than they already are. So starting now, I will not fight against God’s plan. I will go with the flow and let God work in many ways that I did not even know were possible. Love to all, ali. Psalm 100:5 For the Lord is good and His love endures forever; His faithfulness continues through all generations. Monday night I went to read the bible and Matthew 22:37 stuck out to me. It says, “Jesus replied: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment.” Loving Christ is the most important thing in our lives. It is so easy to love Christ when I think of the price He paid for me. Not many fathers would allow their son to be crucified to save other people. God did. He showed me so much love and I can only pray to return half of that love. I thought about the love that Jesus shows me every day. I also thought about the grace and mercy that He shows me. I pray every night that I will have a heart after Jesus himself. How awesome would it be to love others like Jesus loves me? How awesome would it be to forgive others as quickly and as easy as He forgives me? I strive to live a sincere and authentic lifestyle. I can honestly say, I have no grudges or vendettas against anyone. However, I am not a perfect Christian and never will be. I know that in order for God to forgive me, I have to forgive others. Matthew 6:14-15 For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive their sins, your heavenly Father will not forgive your sins. By saying this, I have often asked myself how to forgive someone when they have wronged me? The only answer I come up with every time is love. I find it is so much easier to let go of the past when I come to terms with how much love I actually have for someone. I know you are probably thinking, “how can you love someone when they have done you wrong or mistreated you?” They are your brother or sister in Christ and that should count for something. You cannot hate someone when you are that closely related to someone in Christ. You also can not love God, if you don't love His son or daughter. You must love God, others, and you must also love yourself. Yes, it is okay to love yourself. It is okay to be confident, not cocky, in yourself. It is okay to know your worth and know your value. The greatest astronomer and artist, whom aligned the stars in the sky and hung the moon, created you with a purpose and is constantly leading you in the right direction. I am thankful that God never says, “I am giving up on this one. Ali has sinned one too many times for me to forgive her again.” So, you are beautiful and you are so valued. Love God, others, and yourself. Much love, Ali b. Before I take a test, I have anxiety. While I am taking a test, I have anxiety. After the test, I have anxiety. I worry about how I did, how it will effect my grade, or when I'll get my grade back. Before a big event, I have anxiety. If anything important comes up, I have anxiety and stress. I hate that a care so much. It's like a constant battle between two opposing forces of my brain. One part tells me to worry, the other part tells me it's a no biggie and get over it.
However, I don't stress about the small things. Most stuff, I try to let roll off my back. My mom is a worrier, very bad. She worries so much worse than me. She mostly worries about me and everyone else's kids too. However, my dad is so carefree, he doesn't worry about anything. He is blessed that he doesn't have to deal with it. I know many people who do have to deal with stress and anxiety. I have a friend that's stresses before there is stress to stress about. People, school, life in general, anything stresses her out. Anxiety and depression is a major problem these days. Especially, with teenagers and young adults. Most everyone around this area has watched the popular series, 13 Reasons Why (I didn't, sadly). I believe it was an eye opener for a lot of teens. I'm going to get straight to the point: there are students and adults that walk around every day, battling with anxiety and depression. Some people let worry consume them and they struggle to enjoy their life. You have absolutely no idea what others are struggling with. You don't know their insecurities and deepest feelings. Please be aware. Xx, ali :) “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” 1 Peter 5:7 NIV Many people I know, right now, are going through pain. The amount of prayer requests are unbelievable & it is awesome so many people are turning to Christ in their time of pain and hardship. I took a week off writing, because I felt pain too. I doubted God's plans. And I just didn't feel good. I thought to myself, "how can I write about faith and relationship's with Jesus, when I'm doubting God's plans myself." There have been multiple deaths recently and all I could do was ask God why this was happening. I don't know the exact reason, but I do know that 15 people had given their life to Christ after the loss of one. 20 more people gave their life to Christ after the loss of one more. It doesn't lessen the pain, but to know that 35 people have a better understanding of God and have been saved is awesome. And also I keep telling myself, " the God on the mountain, is still God in the valley." There are many other things I'm sure you are going through, have gone through, or will go through that will make you wonder how this could be the right plan for your life. However, there is one thing I want you to know. Do NOT take one single breath or day for granted. God can take it away from you in an instant. We aren't guaranteed another day, another year, or another breath. One Wednesday when I went to church, my youth pastor preached about struggles you may face and how you will conquer them. He talked about how at times there were multiple faithful servants, and their faith was put to the test. At that time, my life was going dandy. I didn't relate, at the moment. I didn't have a struggle that I was facing, but I knew I would eventually. Just a few short weeks later, and I am facing that struggle/test. I have to keep telling myself that I have to pass the test. I cannot get angry at God and question His ways. I have to praise God in the storm. It is always so much easier to praise God in victory and in happy times. It is in times of hardship, that your faith is truly revealed. I have come to the conclusion, sometimes it's just not part of God's plan to part those waters that I want parted. The mountain you want moved, might not be in God's plan to be moved. The door that slammed in your face, slammed in your face for a reason, and it isn't in God's plan for that door to be open. However, all things work together for our good. God is carving out a perfect path and future for us. There isn't a day He hasn't already seen. He knows the struggles and adversity that we will go through. How we react to that adversity, will show how strong our faith and trust is in Him. Love to all. - ali b. |
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