Luke 12: 11-12 And when they bring you before the synagogues and the rulers and the authorities, do not be anxious about how or what you are to answer or what you are to say; for the Holy Spirit will teach you that very hour what you ought to say.
We are all called to spread the gospel to those we meet. It can be done in many different ways, even without words. Our actions, love and support can all be an inspiration to someone to learn about and experience the love of God. Sometimes you may be confronted with questions about your faith and you may feel you don’t have all the answers. If you are ever faced with that situation, pause and pray a silent prayer inside and ask the Holy Spirit to guide you and make your words, His words. Just open your mouth, start talking and He will never fail you, especially when you start out with,”Come Holy Spirit”. He will always be there at your side to guide you through any situation!
5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; 6 in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.
I just completed a 10 day detox through Dr. Mark Hyman’s book called, ” 10-Day Detox Blood Sugar Solution”, which included healthy whole foods with no sugar, dairy, gluten, coffee, etc. Sugar and carbs have been my addiction and my go to for when I didn’t want to deal with my emotions and to numb the stress and pain I was feeling. Little did I know, it was only causing me to have more pain and more issues left undealt with and pushed way down. During the detox we had to take a detox bath each night with epsom salt, baking soda and lavender oil. It was so relaxing, but my emotions sure came out when alone in the bath to do nothing but deal with all the feelings I experienced. I wasn’t able to turn to sugar or carbs or anything of the sort for comfort. It was the first time in my life where I was faced with really learning to find a new way to handle my emotions, anxiety and stress. I learned to just sit in my bath and allow the feelings to come out and truly feel them. I cried a lot, turned to God in prayer and praise music to confirm his love for me and for me to love myself more as well. Throughout the 10 days, I also journaled my feelings and turned to my walks, meditation, breathing techniques and reading and writing to occupy my time. As a result, I eventually ended up not missing the sugar at all!
It was a true eye opener about how I was living my life and how I was turning to all the wrong places for my comfort through food, tv, social media, shopping; the list goes on. I’ve always known to turn to God for my all my feelings and trials and that HE could be the only one to bring me comfort. However, in addition to turning to God, I over ate the sugar and carbs as well. It didn’t allow me the total dependance on God I needed away from the food to see more clearly how to handle my issues and feelings when they arose.
My biggest lesson learned during the detox is to place my total trust in God for my feelings and not on food whether healthy or not because healthy food can become an issue as well with overeating and not dealing with the emotions being felt. With a much clearer head and more energy, I now know the importance of allowing myself to breathe and to feel my feelings. I so look forward to doing this by making my main focus on my alone time with God and studying scripture to keep gaining more wisdom about his promises for me. May you discover the same sense of hope and peace that can only come from HIM!!!!!
Jeremiah 15:16: “Your words were found, and I devoured them. Your words are my joy and my heart’s delight, because I am called by your name, O Lord God of Armies”.
I love this verse in Jeremiah as it truly describes how I feel when I get lost in scripture and listen to God speak to me. There are times when I don’t want to stop reading because God’s words truly become the joy of my heart. When I feel down or lost and confused about the trials in life, I turn to scripture to find my answers and every time I take the time to visit with God, the Holy Spirit always leads me to just what I need at each and every moment. I encourage you all to lean on God when you are in need of his guidance and love so you too can be brought to the same comfort and peace!
“Lord, be my light, my strength, my inspiration. Make me more like you. I want my words and actions to reflect your light. I want my life to be a lighthouse guiding others through life’s storms to the safe harbor of your love”~ From, “The Better Part”, by John Bartunek~
How amazing it would be to know that our actions and examples could be just what someone needed to guide them through a troubled time to the safe harbor of God’s love. Let’s make that our new goal to always be aware of our words and actions and pray that they will always reflect God’s light!
Mother Teresa of Calcutta often reminded us of Matthew 25:45 “Whatever you do to the least of my brothers, that you do unto me. When teaching this lesson to others, Mother Teresa held out her hand and pointed to each finger as she recited probably the most 5 important words you should never forget: “YOU DID IT TO ME”. Everything you do to others either good or bad, you do it to Jesus. This is something to remember when you don’t feel like being bothered when the “lost” are in need of your love. When you walk away from the lost, you walk away from Jesus. When you are too busy for the loss, you are too busy for Jesus. However, each time you notice Jesus in the lost, and treat them as though they WERE Jesus, you are doing it for Him. THAT’S Evangelization. Mother Teresa also says to “always look for the face of God in everyone you meet”. How can we look for the face of God and show love to the lost? Pause before you speak or act and remind yourself that each person you encounter is created in the image of God. Treat everyone the way you would want to be treated. Pray for those that are struggling and take that extra step to show kindness. Instead of walking past someone in need, take a moment to stop and help them. Every time you stop to hold a door, feed and clothe the poor, make a donation for a cause, encourage someone during a loss or help someone through an addiction, hold out your hand and remind yourself that,“YOU DID IT TO ME.”
“A”: Always study scripture and spread God’s word.
There are so many books out today for all of us to read for guidance, self help, and for just the enjoyment of reading. There is One book that the whole world can benefit from reading. By reading this One book, we can discover all the answers to life’s questions. The book that I am referring to is “The Holy Bible”. The amazing book has been on the New York Times Best Seller List since February 15, 1953 and the words and message from the Bible have been reaching and touching souls ever since. BIBLE: Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth. The Bible was handed down to us for one purpose; to study it, learn it, engrave it in our hearts and then spread the Word to others. The words in the Bible are simply God speaking to us through scripture. Whenever we hear the readings and gospels at Mass, God instructs us and speaks to us individually in our own special way. Try to spend time reading Scripture on a daily basis. Take time to meditate on what you read and keep note cards handy to jot down what has touched you for the day. Memorize as many verses as you can so they will always be in your heart to turn to in time of need. The more you spend time in scripture, and allow God to speak to you, the more comfortable you will feel in spreading God’s word to help your friends and loved ones that are in need. Always remember, YOU may be the ONLY Bible that someone may ever read. There are so many treasures in the Bible. Seek them and God will reveal them to you so you can share the golden nuggets to everyone you meet!.
“V”: Voice your faith. There is a music competition show out today called The “Voice” and to make it through the first round, the contestants are judged strictly by their voice alone. The judges never see what the contestants look like, what they wear or how they present themselves on stage. The only factors the judges have to evaluate are by the sound of the voice and how the judges were moved by the way the song was presented. We are all called to share God’s love and to move others about how much God loves us. Nothing fancy is required. When you voice your faith with others, don’t worry about sharing theology and lengthy quotes from scripture. Just focus on planting seeds. Be sincere and talk about your faith as though you are sharing the words to your own special love song with God. People may not always remember exactly everything that you say to them, but they will always remember how you made them feel. So, voice your faith and love for God with the same passion as the contestants on the “Voice”, Leaving others feeling moved with the desire to create their own love song with God.
~My Grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in your weakness~2 Cor 12:9
As I was contemplating today, this verse spoke to me as my treasure from God for the day. Whenever you feel weak and you don’t think you can make it through whatever your current circumstance may be, rest assure that God will always be with you. Even if you don’t feel his presence, he WILL give you the strength to endure.
~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. ~Phil 4:8
If you feel the need to change your thoughts, this is one of my favorite verses to change my state of focus. It helps to redirect my thoughts to look for the good and focus on words that lift me up!!! It’s a great verse to memorize to keep tucked away in your heart to turn to for comfort and a fresh new shiny focus!!!! Write it on an index card or store it in your notes on your phone for a quick and easy reference!!! Hope you all have a happy day filled with lots of positive focus!!!!
~It is better to be poor, but healthy and strong, than a rich person whose body is afflicted. Being healthy and fit is better than any gold, and a strong spirit is better than untold riches. No wealth is better than a healthy body, and no gladness is better than happiness in one’s heart.~ Sirach 30:14-16
When we are under the influence of an addiction of food, it can tend to effect us like alcohol due to the high sugar content in many binge foods of choice. It can bring us down and effect our health as well as our spirit. If we are down and out, it can hinder us from many opportunities to be available to serve the Lord and others.
I find when I am on the right path of eating healthy and drinking plenty of water, I have a more sound mind and more energy to be available to serve others.
Special Tip: (If you take your weight and divide it in half, that should be the amount of water one should drink each day.)
Imagine how effective we can become in serving others when we are fully hydrated and alert with sound minds and bodies.
When we are healthy and able to serve others for the Lord, it will bring you the greatest happiness more than anything else in the world.
May God surround you with his love and encourage you to become as healthy as you can so you will be better equipped to serve the ones that God leads you to each and every day~
