Me and Who.
Life as it happens.
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A pastor recently reminded me about this truth—that every woman deserves a man who would love her, respect her, and protect her. He advised me to protect myself and find a man who would value me; that if I were a Christmas present, and was given on November, that man would be willing to wait til Christmas to open such a present.
Every woman does deserve a man who would love and respect her. But is she worthy of it? Does she love and respect herself?
The world has had its standards on a low for as long as I can remember. The standard of beauty is said to be relative, and it may really be. What is beautiful for some, may not be beautiful for others. But a respectable and dignified woman, may she be beautiful in everyone’s eyes.We are already loved, regardless of how we feel about it. But we too must have the courage to love as Jesus loved. Respect others, and respect yourself. Be a woman worthy of the pursuit.
“Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes. Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight.”
1 Peter 3:3-4“Quiet and gentle spirit? But my personality is not like such.” God us beautiful. To better capture the verse, here’s what a friend sent me a few months back. Be blessed, woman of God.
“Having a gentle and quiet spirit isn’t the same with having a quiet personality. It’s a heart that says, “Whatever my God ordains is right, He will never deceive me and will follow where He guides me.” -
“STORMS OF LIFE” Oftentimes storms seem to engulf and overwhelm us when we least expect it. You discover your spouse is carrying on an illicit affair, your doctor says it’s cancer, the company you depend on to pay the bills closes down, your teenager rebels. In an unexpected moment our deepest fears rise to the surface.
We cry out on our knees pleading, “Lord, save me!” Jesus responds, “Don’t be Afraid. Trust Me First.” If you are being devastated by the turbulence of life’s trials, Trust Him First, no matter how overwhelming the storm appears. He will not allow anything to touch your life without it first passing through His hands.
Written by Pastor Joby C. Soriano -
It is always good to be reminded of God’s unconditional and stubborn love for us. Looking to the cross, we’re reminded that we were in such a bad state. Sinners, with no hope of redemption and salvation unless heaven interrupts and intervenes. And the Most High and Almighty God sent His one and only Son to die for us. The cross is where God’s love and justice met. We deserved death, not Jesus. But because of God’s amazing grace, He sent Jesus, His perfect Lamb to die for us.
Yes, we didn’t and will never deserve God’s grace. After all, that’s what grace is—undeserved. We can never pay for it, it is freely given. And it’s always humbling to hear that God loves us despite ourselves. But it’s also good to be reminded that God loves us simply because He does. He delights in us, we are the crown of His creation. We are His children. Rejoice, for your Father in heaven delights in you. :)
“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.”John 3:16
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Correction. Consequences. We’ve learned early on in life that for every action there is an opposite and equal reaction. Depending on what you’ve been up to, consequences can either be easy, hard, positive or negative. And sometimes having a negative consequence actually feels like punishment. But punishment is not equal with discipline. Punishment has the notion for fear, but discipline is to our benefit.
Depending on the authority we’ve been exposed to, it can affect our view of God in light of such a situation. Sometimes when we are under discipline we can either see God as Someone we can let go to, surrender, and trust. But other times, we don’t feel the love but we feel the iron fist instead. But God is not like most people. He doesn’t correct for the sake of being correct. God corrects us because He loves us. Because He wants us to grow. He wants us to glorify Him by pursuing a holy life. And living a holy life takes pruning. Achieving quality is to learn that processes cannot be rushed. It may take a while, the steps may become harder and more challenging. But God’s grace, mercy, sovereignty, and control misses not one detail of our life, not even one part of our every minute. Brokenness does not mean damaged. Brokenness puts us in the best position to trust God.
“Come, let us return to the LORD. He has torn us to pieces; now he will heal us. He has injured us; now he will bandage our wounds.” -Hosea 6:1 -
We’ve always associate Noah with the great flood and the big ark. Imagining him with a long white beard, long white robe, on a boat in the middle of smiling animals. But there’s something more than the usual things that we know.
“This is the account of Noah and his family. Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked faithfully with God.”(Genesis 6:9)
Noah was found righteous, in other translations, blameless. Was Noah sinless? Definitely not. As the chapters move forward, we see Noah’s imperfections. But what set him apart in His generation is that he walked with God and he obeyed God.
“Noah did everything just as God commanded him.” (Genesis 6:22)
“The LORD then said to Noah, “Go into the ark, you and your whole family, because I have found you righteous in this generation… 5 And Noah did all that the LORD commanded him.” (Genesis 7:1;5)
Noah obeyed ALL that God commanded Him. That’s how he walked with God. Was it easy to obey God at that time? Time will not make things different. Walk with God, and people will deem you crazy, radical in a mental sense, and all other things. But your obedience to God despite circumstances and criticisms will always make a difference. It set Noah apart in his generation. And that obedience unlocks God’s blessings.
