walkingbythelight-blog

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Beware, my dear Christian friends, of living by feeling. He that lives by feeling will be happy today, and unhappy tomorrow; and if our salvation depended upon our feelings, we should be lost one day and saved another, for they are as fickle as the weather, and go up and down like a barometer.

Charles Spurgeon, Encouragement for the Depressed (via grace-after-the-fall)

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Freedom in Christ isn’t the freedom to do whatever you want, it is the freedom from sin and the things of this world that hold you back.

A child of God (via love-your-bible)

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Alivia Latimer

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Be authentic in the way you live life, talk to those who hurt you. Engage in honesty and love, open up and ask those in your life why they are distant. Life is short, it gets muddied by lies and fear. Be courageous enough to reach out to others, seek forgiveness and redemption in your community. We have been given an opportunity each day to love those around us, all it takes is one step. Healing starts with communication, communication comes with humility, and humility only comes when we are willing to lay down our lives for others. Love right now, not tomorrow or the next day, love in this moment and watch it become something beautiful.

T.B. LaBerge // Go Now (via tblaberge)

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Looking to the Lord before looking to Social Media.

 Hello friends, 

I am writing to share the things that have been unveiled to me by unplugging from my social media accounts and taking time to focus solely on my relationship with my heavenly father. 

I have been fasting social media since July. 

Being a 19 year old girl in a world that seems to revolve around likes, followers, and perfectly retouched pictures, you are probably thinking.. what was my motivation to unplug from Facebook, Snapchat  and Instagram?

I can tell you. Almost two months ago I had no idea how much pressure I was putting on myself. I strived to seem like a “perfect” version of Mackenzie. I was oblivious to the fact that when I did not get a certain amount of likes, the enemy used it against me in a huge way.  

When I would go home and do my hair and my makeup I would leave fulfilled and joyful, but then, I would go online only to see that someone had done theirs better. 

I would make healthier eating choices, ( baby steps of course) and feel confident and happy that I had made a small victory. Then log on only to have the enemy whisper..

“You will never look like her in a bathing suit.”

“You will never have a waistline like hers.” 

After a while of hearing these lies, I began to believe them.  I would constantly compare myself to others and I would feel empty and unworthy. 

I was talking to a guy at the time. We talked for a while and with lots of prayer and guidance we decided to not further the relationship.  

After this, it was like the enemy knew exactly how to attack 

All I saw after reaching that decision was couples on couples on couples everywhere on my timelines..

The enemy would whisper 

“There must be something wrong with you.”

“Nobody will pursue you like that.”

“You will only obtain a relationship like that if you look like..”

“You will never be happy until you change…(Fill in the blank).”

I am not saying these things to bash social media, because thats not what I am here to do. Im here to tell you how I escaped this bondage of comparing myself to others. You see my bondage was never a social media problem… it was a Kenzie problem. 

In the midst of all of those months, I was “seeking God.’’ I went to church. I hung out with the right crowd. I was the first one to say “Yes God is Good! He can help you in any circumstance.” but I was the last one to apply that to my life. 

I would tell my friends about my struggles. 

I would tell my mom.

I would tell my co workers.

I would tell every person other than the one who could heal it. 

God.

In this time of insecurity, I went to a small group and I put on a happy face. 

I did my usual of

“Hey Kenzie, How are you?’’

my response was always “ I’m Great! how about you?” 

Why is it that in the middle of our trials and struggle we always want to seem put together when we are falling apart?

Anyway, the service got started, we sang, we worshiped, and then we split into groups of two and began to pray over one another. I got paired with a girl I never met so, I of course wanted to seem as though I was worthy of her friendship and, that I had everything together.

(We have already been deemed worthy)

In the middle of my prayer it was like everything I had been holding in came bursting out. It was a divine appointment that I was paired with this stranger because she had been through the same struggle and she began to share her testimony with me. She told me that she had fasted dating and social media and she felt freed from all of her inner struggle.

I immediately shot that thought down in my mind, I immediately thought,

“Oh well she is a better Christian than I am, I could never do that”

“Oh God has more favor on her, she is closer to Him.”

“No that is not for me, my friends would be upset with me if I wasn’t on social media.”

or worse

“I would lose my friends if I wasn’t represented on social media.”

and then I didn’t even want to begin to think about giving up dating 

Dating was a huge stronghold of mine. 

In high school, if i ever felt insecure or unwanted my immediate and very temporary solution was to get a boyfriend. 

I yearned for them to give me validation and I knew for sure if i had a relationship with a guy i would feel valued and worthy.

Right?

Wrong. 

So after going home the thought of fasting social media and dating turned violently in my heart.

And then I heard Him. 

I heard that sweet small voice that resides in the innermost pits of our hearts, 

He said

“Sweet heart, Give me three months.”

I began to get defensive again and thought no.. no.. no..

Then I wept, because I knew in order to overcome these exhausting thoughts in my mind. I would have to sacrifice. So I began to count the weeks between July the 7th and the month of October. I counted 12 weeks. Then I began to count the days I would have to wait. I counted 89 days.

Then out of my weird curiosity, I wanted to know what the meaning of these two numbers where.

12-The meaning of 12, which is considered a perfect number, is that it symbolizes God’s power and authority. It can also symbolize completeness.

89-Number 89 signifies that a major event is seeing a closure and with that all associated things will come to an end. Whatever challenges you are facing in the process of completion will be eliminated. Your material needs and monetary necessities will be taken care of by the divine forces and you will be free to focus on your spiritual goals.

After reading this, I knew God was reaching out for an opportunity to change me. 

It was a tough decision but after a lot of prayer I decided to let self go and let God in.  

You see, how can we expect change if we never make room for the new?

After making it a priority to seek God first and give up my strongholds. God has prevailed. While I haven’t been perfect, and I have stumbled on this journey, God is constantly making his presence known and showing that even that in the strongholds I thought i could never escape….

Change is possible.

My self worth has overflowed because I no longer look to the world to show me what is beautiful. I look to TRUTH.

               Song of Solomon 4:7

7 You are altogether beautiful, my love;    there is no flaw in you.”

                  Proverbs 3:15-18

15 She is more precious than rubies;    nothing you desire can compare with her.

                       Luke 1:45

45 Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfill his promises to her!

                   Psalm 139:14

14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;    your works are wonderful,    I know that full well.

And as far as giving up dating, the thing the enemy would use against me was 

“What if you miss your opportunity?” 

“What if during this fast, you allow him to slip through the cracks?”

This is what I use to fight back against the enemy’s lies. 

              Ecclesiastes 3:11

11 He has set the right time for everything. He has given us a desire to know the future, but never gives us the satisfaction of fully understanding what he does.12 So I realized that all we can do is be happy and do the best we can while we are still alive. 13 All of us should eat and drink and enjoy what we have worked for. It is God’s gift.

I want to end this lengthy blog post by thanking God for being so good and so gracious and always working for our good during times of trouble. 

I also want to encourage anybody who is struggling with insecurities that come from social media and comparison. It is possible to overcome those thoughts. You don’t have to do exactly as I am, just seek God in all you do and He will take care of you. Only He has the power to set you free. 

              Romans 8:28

28 We know that in all things God works for good with those who love him,[a] those whom he has called according to his purpose

No boy, no amount of likes, no polished picture could ever give you the abundance of love that comes from our Heavenly Father. 

It is time. 

Lets all fix our eyes on our maker and move forward.

and if you have never built a relationship with The Father, I will encourage you to do so. 

This is real love. 

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Don’t hang your head low and think you don’t have anything to offer to people because the Jesus inside of you is the greatest thing you can offer to anyone.

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Discovering your Best Self by: Not Holding Back

   When you are in a large crowd of people, are intimidated by those around you?   

   Does the thought of others looking down on you keep you from fulfilling what you want to accomplish?

You are so not alone. This is something I struggle with often. 

so the first question we should ask ourselves is… Why do I hold back?

_We are afraid we won’t be loved_

Holley Gerth in her devotional “You’re already amazing” explains, that

God says “Love all and please one (Jesus)”, “Be who I have created you to be”,  and lastly 

“You are enough because Jesus is enough in you.” 

  We are not expected to please everyone, we are only expected to please Jesus. As women we can be so hard on ourselves. We set such a high standard, when the only standard we are expected to meet is to live our lives to please Christ. 

I am not designed to be perfect by the world’s standards, because I am designed to be perfectly loved and so are you!

_We must understand that hiding is what is COMFORTABLE_

Hiding is a response made out of fear, come out of hiding!!!

We are not to put something of worth somewhere it will not be valued.

You have something to offer this world!

You are free, loved, and found forever. 

By faith, step out! and make your mark on this world for the glory of God!

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Loving yourself by relaying Gods grace.

       Food for thought. Are you hard on yourself? Are you struggling with forgiving yourself for the sin that you have committed? Maybe you asked God for forgiveness but you are having a hard time forgiving yourself and putting in the past? Be careful. The enemy uses this scenario every day. Have you ever had the thought “God’s not going to use you, look at what you have done in your life. You’re not even a real Christian.” Let me warn you.. that is a lie straight from the enemy. That sentence has smoke all over it. If we are not careful we can allow the guilt of our pasts stand in the way of us fulfilling our purpose. God uses broken people. God called King David a man after God’s own heart and David was a dirty sinner just like the rest of us. 

    Davids sin: First Degree Murder 

                      Sex out of wedlock

                      Lying 

                      Pridefulness 

      David was so deeply flawed, but because he was readily available,God did a lot of work through him. We all sin. We all do it. You are not alone. This world is broken and our flesh is weak. That is why God sent down his only begotten Son. So He could live the life we could not. God knows that we are weak and we are sinners otherwise Jesus wouldn’t have to come down in human flesh. Jesus died so that our sins could be forgiven and we could do work for His Heavenly Father. 

       Love yourself by moving out of your own way. Jesus wants to forgive you and use you to further His kingdom. Don’t let the enemy control your identity in Christ. You are the daughter of the most high King. 

    If this is you, if I’m speaking to your heart my challenge to you is to pray and ask God to restore the joy of your salvation. Ask Him to use you as an instrument to bring glory to our Heavenly Father. The best way to find joy in the Christian life is to find your purpose and use it for the Glory of God.

 Love yourself today by: 

 Writing a letter of forgiveness to yourself

 Forgive someone who has wronged you 

 Making a thoughtful gesture to someone else

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Loving yourself by trying something new.

 Are you in a rut of re-living the same activities every day? Do you feel as though your confidence is struggling because your everyday routine is motionless. One way to give yourself a confidence boost is to expand your horizons! Do not live in fear of what others may think or may feel about you. If you wear neutral makeup, try a pop of color on your lower lash line! if you are an introvert, make it a personal goal to say something nice to someone you meet in the hallway. There is something liberating about doing something for yourself. Life is short. Enjoy yourself! Remember, Life begins at the end of your comfort zone. 

Don’t be intimidated by new territory.  As humans we enjoy what is “normal” to us.  If we let this boundary hold us in, we will never reach our full potential.

“If it doesn’t challenge you, it doesn’t change you.”-unknown

“Never be afraid to try something new. Remember, amateurs built the ark; professionals built the titanic” -unknown

“If you want something you’ve never had, then you’ve got to do something you’ve never done.”-unknown

“Move out of your comfort zone. You can only grow if you are willing to feel awkward and uncomfortable when you try something new.” - Brian Tracey

Remember: Without the beauty of trying something new, Troy and Gabriella would have never came together. Just food for thought. (shout out to all my HSM lovers!)

Ways you can love yourself today: 

Try something new with your makeup

listen to a different genre of music

Try a new hairstyle

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Happy Wednesday Ladies!  Don’t forget to #loveyourself by reading today’s blog post!

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Loving yourself by being patient

 Do you have something in mind that you feel as though you need and you need right now? A relationship? a job? a degree? Have you thought of plan A,B, and C on how you are going to make it happen? Practice Patience. Accept the limitations of living one day at a time.  Cast these wants and needs to God. This simple act will relieve stress and fear of the future. This creates an abundant amount of simplicity to your life.  A life close to God is not complicated or cluttered. Focus on God and yourself and the stress of the future will lose its power over you. Although the world around you is messy and and confusing, Jesus has overcome the world. Jesus has told us this so that we may have peace.  Thank Him in the waiting!

There is a time for everything,and a season for every activity under heaven. Ecclesiastes 3:1

Today you could love yourself by: 

Visiting a friend and/or

enjoying your favorite dessert and/or

going for a long walk 

reference- young, sarah. Jesus is calling. 2004

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You are so used to your features, you don’t know how beautiful you look to a stranger.

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Loving yourself through chaos

When times get chaotic it becomes hard for us to stop and take time for ourselves. No matter what the circumstances, it is important to stop and take care of yourself.  Be still and listen for Gods small voice.Life is sometimes intimidating. We must build confidence in ourselves and our relationship with Christ so that we can face what life throws at us. Just breathe. Jesus has got this and will carry you through. Remember Gods unwavering love for you and look at yourself through his eyes.

WAYS TO LOVE YOURSELF TODAY:

take a long bath

buy a face mask

listen to your favorite song on the way to school or work.

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you are beautiful. dont let anyone tell you otherwise. :)

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