Posted on by darleneishealedtospeak

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hello everyone! How are you on this Thanksgiving afternoon? 😊 I hope you are feeling blessed. I live in Georgia and the weather is beautiful today. The temperature will be about 60 and that is my husband’s favorite kind of weather. Later today, he will be outside on our deck grilling duck! Not my cup of tea, but it makes him happy.

I have been up since 6 am preparing for the day. A day of chopping, cooking, and cleaning; but most of all, giving thanks. As I cook, I am thankful for simply having food on my table with enough to feed my family and plenty of leftovers. Growing up, my Thanksgivings did not feel this way. The Thanksgivings I remember were filled with nervousness and anxiety because everything had to be perfect. Food cooked perfectly, the right outfit, and I had to be sure I said the right things.

Ephesians 5:20 – “Always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (NIV).

I am thankful that as I cook for my family, each of my children enjoys lending a hand in the kitchen. The oldest keeps it clean as I move from dish to dish. My little ones don’t ask for much because they understand the magnitude of what’s happening in the kitchen and that alone is helpful. Besides, they know the mac and cheese is coming…

I am thankful that my Thanksgiving is easy going. My children don’t have to worry about being dressed “properly” and doing and saying the right things. I am thankful that my home is full of God’s peace and joy.

My prayer as each of us prepares for Thanksgiving, is that we focus on what matters. It’s not the perfect turkey, the perfect meal or the perfect outfit. What matters is that you are here another year with the ability to give thanks to our God.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Posted on by darleneishealedtospeak · 2 Comments

A reminder from my eight-year-old

I am so grateful for my children. All five of them are unique in their own way and a blessing to me in many ways.

My children and I always talk. It is something I cherish because I did not have it with my parents. My youngest son, who is eight, likes to talk the most. For an eight-year-old, he has such profound insight and it amazes me. He reminds me of myself at that age as God allowed me to see things that most adults did not see. Unfortunately, I could not express what I saw. As a result of my experience, I allow my children to speak what is on their heart and mind…most of the time. 😊

A few days ago, my youngest and I were talking about his eldest brother who is twenty-five and experiencing his own life struggles. I said to him, “Your big brother is going through a lot right now.” He said, “I know, but people think life is over when bad things happen, but there is always a blessing after the bad.” I looked at him and told him he was correct!

Psalms 127:3 – “Children are a gift from the LORD; they are a reward from him” (NLT).

God is amazing! He will use anyone to remind us of his word, even our children.
His statement was a reminder of God’s love, and grace towards us even in difficult times.

As Christians, we will endure trials because the Word tells us so. I Peter 1:6 says, “Be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you have to endure many trials for a little while” (NLT).

However, when experiencing a trial, the difficulty comes when the trial lasts for more than a day, a week, a month or a year. The key to success while going through any trial is consistently praying and studying the Word of God.

God will use the most difficult times in our lives to stretch us in our spiritual walk and teach us how to trust him on a deeper level. We must keep our focus on Christ alone. If our focus shifts elsewhere, we open ourselves up to discouragement and feelings of defeat.

But I encourage you to stay with God. I thank God that negative circumstances are only designed to build us up, not to destroy us. The trial is only for a season. As my son Jeremiah said, “there is always a blessing after the bad.” When we come out on the other side of it, we will be better.  Job 23:10 says, “But he knows the way that I take; when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold.”

These days, as we watch the news, we can be saddened and discouraged by what we see and hear. But we must remember God has a blessing after the bad.

John 16:33 – …“In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world” (NIV).

 

 

Photo by Jeremy Gallman on Unsplash

Posted on by darleneishealedtospeak · 2 Comments

Let’s be Balanced!

Hello there. How are you? I pray all is well and you are excited about your week!

Who isn’t busy these days? I am, and I’m sure you are too. Lately, I have been pondering on the word balance. What is balance? Is it something we can actually attain?

According to Merriam Webster’s dictionary, the word balance is defined as a physical equilibrium or the ability to retain one’s balance.

I believe most of us want balance. We already know the effects of being unbalanced. But knowing this doesn’t prevent us from falling into the abyss of it. Therefore, how do we achieve balance? How do we juggle our relationship with God, husbands, children, businesses, ministry, blogs, friendships, and our own personal lives?

To achieve balance, we must take the necessary steps. That means including God in all our plans. Proverbs 16:3 says, “Commit to the LORD whatever you do, and he will establish your plans.” I believe many of us live unbalanced lives because we have taken on certain roles God never intended for us to take on. Ask yourself, “What can I remove from my life?” “What is taking up unnecessary space?” Once you take stock of what is it, remove it. If you cannot remove it immediately, do it over time.

Next, prioritize. Understand what is most important and stick to it. It doesn’t mean certain things won’t pop up, because that’s life, but learning to prioritize keeps balance and organization. For example, keeping balance in your family life is paramount especially if you have younger children. Those toddler and teenage years go by fast and you should enjoy every moment of it. You want to be there as much as you can because there will be a time your children don’t want you to be around. You don’t want to look back and realize you were more engaged with work, and other activities then the relationship with your children.

Turn it off! Social media, in many regards, is wonderful but if we are not careful, we can allow it to infiltrate our entire lives. We live in a world when everyone and everything is pulling at us in one way or another. One simple thing to do is cut it off completely, but if you cannot rip off the band-aid, work at having a time limit.

Balancing our lives MUST start and end with God. Luke 12:34, says “For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” This simply means where you place your thoughts, time, and energy is where your focus will be. If your treasure is wrapped in work, that is where your focus will be. If it’s achieving financial success, your heart will be there too. And the wrong focus leads to an unbalance life.

I encourage you to take a hard look at your life. Be honest and acknowledge if there is unbalance in your life. Pray, repent and ask God to help you put him in the center of all you do as God is the architect of balance.

Blessings.

Posted on by darleneishealedtospeak · 2 Comments

Anxious?

Hello everyone! I hope each of you are well and had a blessed weekend. I pray you are refreshed and ready for the week.

I love the Bible. It is full of stories filled with instruction and wisdom. And for the believer, victory. Several scriptures are my favorite, and many I hold close to my heart. The scriptures that have blessed me most are the ones that have walked me through my deepest valley’s. One of my absolute favorites is found in Philippians 4:6-8.

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things” (NIV).

This scripture is packed with wisdom and instruction concerning how we are to handle our emotions and life’s circumstances.

God tells us not to be anxious about ANYTHING. Seems easier said than done, right? How do I remain calm when everything around me is in total chaos? Well, according to the scripture, we start with prayer. God says, “pray and petition Him with thanksgiving.” Go ahead and tell God why you are anxious. He knows anyway. After you tell him, tell him you trust Him for the answer as you give Him praise.

After obeying the first instruction, God says, “He will give us His peace which transcends ALL understanding and will guard our heart and mind.” As you stand in faith and continue to pray, he will give you peace about the situation.

Finally, God says, “think on what is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, and praiseworthy.”  When thoughts come that try to make you anxious, remember to think of what is true and nothing else. As you do this, you will continue to experience God’s peace. As we follow God at His word, He will give us exactly what we need in His perfect timing.

In those moments when I find myself feeling anxious about a situation or circumstance, or when the enemy tries to convince me of anything contrary to God’s word, I am reminded by the Holy Spirit to pray and give thanksgiving to God.

Today I encourage you, that instead of allowing the feelings of anxiousness to weigh you down, do what God says. Pray, give thanks, and think on these things according to Philippians 4:8.

Scriptures
Philippians 4:6-8

 

 

Posted on by darleneishealedtospeak · 4 Comments

Why Do You Blog?

Blogging is not always easy especially if your goal is to help people as you strive to please The Lord.

About a month ago, I concluded that in order to grow and keep traffic flowing to my site, I must blog more than once a week. However, with my schedule, it has been difficult to make that happen. Therefore, I continue to send my blog posts each week.

As I continued to write weekly, I watched other blogger friends of mine and thought “Wow, they send out blog posts twice and sometimes three times a week. “How do they do it?”

Then…God did two things. First, he reminded me why I started my blog, (to uplift and impart as you go through your process to healing). Second, I received an email from one of my favorite Christian bloggers, Arabah Joy. The title of the email was, “Blogging on my Knees.” After reading the title, I remembered what was most important about blogging, and that is seeking God about what he desires for me to say, not how often I say it.

Matthew 6:33 “Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things will be added unto you.”

Whether I blog once a week, twice a week, or five times, the question is am I impacting the people God sent me to? Ultimately am I blogging on my knees? Am I seeking God about what to write or am I seeking the latest trends and gaining my writing idea from it.

As a blogger, I certainly desire to see progress and growth, however, I must always go back to the premise as to why God gave me the green light to blog in the first place. And that is to impart into His people.

Whether you blog, teach, cook, clean or paint, remember, do it all for his glory and continuously seek the Lord concerning his will for your profession.

Lord, thank you for reminding me that only what I do for your will last.

Are you blogging on your knees?

Scriptures

Colossians 3:23 – “Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people.”

1 Corinthians 15:58 – “Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.”

Matthew 6:33 “Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things will be added unto you.”