Take a Deep Breath

Take a Deep Breath

Sarah P.
“Praise the LORD! I will thank the LORD with all my heart as I meet with His godly people. How amazing are the deeds of the LORD! All who delight in Him should ponder them. Everything He does reveals His glory and majesty. His righteousness never fails. He causes us to remember His wonderful works. How gracious and merciful is our LORD!” -Psalms 4-111:1 NLT
I’m a fan of a Christian band known as The Afters. I want to start off today by introducing some lyrics from their song “Breathe In Breathe Out,” which is one of my favorites. It goes like this:
“[I] Always think tomorrow will be better
There will come a day when I arrive
The list of everything I’ve gotta do would be a page of empty lines
I apologize…for living in the future…
Cause if happiness if always down the road, then I’m missing it today.”
How often do we live in the future? We get so caught up in our next class, our next assignment, our next meeting, our next meal, our next everything, when life is lived not in the future but in the present moment. Sometimes we just need to slow down, take a deep breath, and thank God for the amazing things around us. In this psalm, David chooses to focus on God’s greatness and glory for a few minutes out of his busy day- and he was the king of Israel! Surely we can set aside time for God in our days as well!
As teens, we tend to focus on the future. We tend to think our lives will “get better” or we’ll “arrive” when we turn eighteen, or get our driver’s license, or graduate, or start college. Yet we need to focus on appreciating what we have right now. Planning for the future is good, but we can’t get so caught up in it that we forget to be thankful for what we have. Today, that is my challenge to you: slow down, take a deep breath, and thank God for something in your life. It doesn’t have to be difficult; maybe you’re just thankful for Christmas lights, or your sweet dog, or chocolate. You might be surprised at how many things you can come up with! The point is that gratitude helps us focus on the One who gives us our lives instead of what’s down the road from here.
What are you thankful for today?

Dreaming Intentionally

Dreaming Intentionally 

By Sarah P.

“Reach for the stars.” “Follow your heart.” “Dream big.” All of those phrases express the idea that we’re supposed to “follow our dreams.” What does that mean? The world tells us that it means we can and should pursue whatever we want to do or whoever we want to be. While that may sound magical and exciting, it’s not very practical, is it? What if you want something that isn’t good for you? What if you end up being someone you weren’t meant to be? “Chasing your dreams” could easily be a really bad idea. 

Despite what the world may say, “dreaming big” is not the most important thing in life. We can easily become wrapped up in what we want to do instead of following God’s plan for our lives—a plan that will ultimately leave us more satisfied. God doesn’t want us to stop dreaming! God is a Dreamer Himself; He dreamed up this whole world and everything in it, including you and me! The difference between worldly dreaming and godly dreaming is where you put your focus. Worldly dreaming says, “I want to do what I want to do, what feels best to me, what makes the happiest.” God-focused dreaming says, “What can I do to love God and other people better, serve Him with the talents I’ve been given, and best meet the needs around me?”  

The Bible talks about dreaming in several places. Baruch was a scribe who lived during the time of Jeremiah the prophet. When Jeremiah received a message from the Lord, Baruch would write it down for him on a scroll. During a time of intense persecution where people were trying to kill Jeremiah, Baruch got discouraged. He started complaining about having to be Jeremiah’s scribe and thinking about what he wanted to do to keep himself safe. God sent a message to Baruch to stop him in his tracks: “Are you seeking great things for yourself? Don’t do it!” (Jeremiah 45:5, NLT) God told Baruch to stop seeking his own selfish dreams and instead focus on God’s dreams for him. God promised to protect Baruch because He loved him and wanted what was best for him. 

I don’t think God would say that daydreaming about being a superstar or an astronaut is wrong. But I do believe that God wants us to let Him use our dreams for His glory instead of our own. Instead of building castles in the air and “seeking great things for ourselves,” we need to seek great things for God’s Kingdom. Following God’s plan is hard, but it’s worth it. Jeremiah 29:11 says, “‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ says the Lord. ‘They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.’” God will always satisfy our needs better than any dream can. So why don’t you start dreaming intentionally about the plans God has for you? You might be amazed at what He does through you, one dream at a time.

The Fruit of the Heart by Sarah P.

The Fruit of the Heart 

“You can identify them by their fruit, that is, the way they act. Can you pick grapes from thorn bushes, or figs from thistles? A good tree produces good fruit, and a bad tree produces bad fruit. A good tree can't produce bad fruit, and a bad tree can't produce good fruit…Yes, just as you can identify a tree by its fruit, so you can identify people by their actions.” –Matthew 7:16-18, 20 NLT 

I don't know about you, but I’m definitely a fruit person! There's nothing quite like ripe strawberries or freshly-picked peaches. The awesome thing about fruit is that it is naturally sweet and flavorful; it not only tastes good, it’s also good for you! 

In this passage of Scripture, Jesus compares our actions to fruit. He tells us that how we live shows what our hearts are like, much how the fruit that a tree produces shows what kind of tree it is. If a tree produces figs, you can conclude that it's a fig tree. Similarly, if a person produces good actions and loves God, you can conclude that they’re a Christian.  

Jesus also says that the condition of our hearts will always determine our actions. A sinful heart full of bad attitudes, fear, and doubt won't produce charitable actions, good attitudes, and godliness, just like a patch of brambles won't produce apples.  

Yet sometimes Christians fall. We revert back to our old sinful ways instead of relying on God’s grace. Like even good fruit can rot and get old, our actions can change from good to bad very quickly. In Romans 6:15-16, Paul tells us, “Since God’s grace has set us free from the law, does that mean we can go on sinning? Of course not! Don’t you realize that you become the slave of whatever you choose to obey? You can be a slave to sin, which leads to death, or you can choose to obey God, which leads to righteous living.”  

When we become Christians, we commit to following God’s will instead of sin. If we fall, we can ask God for a new heart—one that will lead us to good things instead of sin. It is our duty to make sure our hearts are right with God. In order to keep producing good actions, we have to rely on His grace and His power to renew our hearts.  

What do your actions say about you?

We are the Light of the World; Shining for God at School

We are the Light of the World; Shining for God at School 

By Sarah P.

As the new school year approaches, many girls around the world are either looking forward to or dreading going back to school. I know you ladies come from many different backgrounds and that some of you are home-schooled, some are private-schooled, and some are public-schooled. Although I’m currently home-schooled, I attended public school for five years and wanted to talk specifically this month about shining for Christ at school. (Home-schooled girls, keep reading! There are ways for you to shine for God at home, too!) 

It’s no secret that a lot of public and private schools are full of secular beliefs, rules, and teachings. Sadly, there are also a lot of kids attending the average middle to high school that aren’t Christian. School can get really complicated with all the social ladders, cliques, bullying, cheating, and violence. When we’re surrounded daily by all the pressures a worldly environment puts on us, we can really wonder how we could ever make things better. 

In Matthew 5:13-16, Jesus tells us, “You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor? Can you make it salty again? It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless. You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.” 

First Jesus compares us to salt. In Jesus’ time, salt wasn’t just used for seasoning food. There were no refrigerators, so people used salt as a preservative to keep food from going bad. Meat was salted to keep bacteria out. In the same way, we are called to be the salt of the world: to purify it and keep sin out. 

Then Jesus compares us to a city of light and a lamp. In both of those examples He points out that a light is always visible: you can’t miss it any more than you can miss a city on top of a hill. He talks about how no one in their right mind would light a candle and then stick it under a basket. The whole purpose of a lamp is to give light and help people see where they’re going. If you’ve ever been without electricity for a while, you know how wonderful light is! It’s really hard to get around even your bedroom in the dark. Similarly, we are called to show God’s love like a shining light bulb, burning through the darkness to help others see where they’re going—and where they need to be going. 

School can be a pretty dark place to be, but as Christian girls, we have the opportunity (and responsibility) to shine like candles in a dark place. No matter how dark a room is, you can find your way around by the light of just one candle. If each of us would choose to stand for God unashamedly in our schools, everyone would see the light—our fellow students, our teachers, our principles—and be touched by it. No, standing out doesn’t always earn you the approval of others. You might lose some friends. You might be looked down on by some people. But there are others that you’ll touch in ways you might not ever know. Your peers and teachers will see a difference in you, and it will leave a lasting impression that they won’t be able to forget. 

Shine brightly this school year, dear girls. Know that no matter what dark place you walk through, the light of Christ will always see you safely home. 

Who Will you Follow?

Who Will You Follow? 

By Sarah P.

Who will you follow? In today’s world where life can pull us a million different directions, finding the answer can be hard. So many things grab for our attention: guys, social media, grades, popularity, chores, family. Some things seem worthwhile, some really are worthwhile, and some look like fun but aren’t all that great; how’s a girl to choose? What are we supposed to do when every inch of our lives is vying for our attention and promising to make us happy? 

Joshua wasn’t undecided about who he would follow. He stood up in front of the entire Israelite nation and proclaimed this challenge: 

“…choose today whom you will serve. Would you prefer the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates? Or will it be the gods of the Amorites in whose land you now live? But as for me and my family, we will serve the Lord.” (Joshua 24:15, NLT, emphasis mine) 

And you probably know what the people said in response. “…‘We would never abandon the Lord and serve other gods. For the Lord our God is the one who rescued us…we, too, will serve the Lord, for he alone is our God.’” (Joshua 24:17-18) 

Yet we find only a few chapters later, in Judges 2, that God is saying this to those very same people: “…you were not to make any covenants with the people living in this land; instead, you were to destroy their altars. But you disobeyed my command. Why did you do this?” (Judges 2:2) 

Maybe that’s what we do. We get saved and pledge our allegiance to Christ, promising to follow Him. And then a few months later it’s like nothing ever happened. 

Ladies, I’ve got some news. It’s not just those disobedient Israelites who tend to fall away. 

It’s us. 

We pick other gods to follow: popularity, romance, social media, self-image. And we forget that promise to God. We forget to follow Him. We lose our vision. 

I was recently asked the question, “Where do you find purpose?” And, honestly, that would be hard for many of us to answer. What drives you, what makes you want to live? If you’re really being honest, is that whatever you’re chasing filling you up? Is it satisfying you craving for love? Is it being what you need? 

Or do you know deep down that the stuff you’re chasing just isn’t enough? 

Jesus said, “Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me. Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing.” (John 15:4-5) 

When we follow other gods, we keep Jesus from satisfying us. We’re like grape vines trying to thrive off of Dr. Pepper: it’s not going to work. We chase after the empty sweetness of this world instead of drinking deeply of the Living Water.   

If you’ve wandered away from God, I earnestly ask you to run back home. Throw out the other stuff. Get rid of it. It will only hurt you and leave you empty. Believe me, dear sisters. It will only hurt you. Our only real source of purpose is Christ. Only in Jesus—the Living Water—can we thrive. Only in Him are we truly satisfied. 

Who will you follow? 

God Bless, 

Sarah 

All Things

All Things

By Sarah P.

We kind of underestimate the Easter story, don’t we? Jesus’s resurrection is the greatest event that ever occurred! He literally conquered death. When his disciples asked Him about eternal life in Matthew Chapter 19, Jesus gave told them the “secret” behind defeating death: “With God, all things are possible.” (Matthew 19:26, NLT)

Read that again. With God, all things are possible. Now apply it to your daily life. All things are possible with God—not just your big, amazing, applause-worthy deeds of valor, not just your career choice or your spiritual callings—all things. The little impossibilities. The things you can’t defeat: feelings of unworthiness, depressing thoughts, character flaws and faults and normal sins that you just can’t nail down—with God, all things are possible.

I was thinking about that the other day. I had gotten frustrated because there was a sin I simply couldn’t defeat on my own. This verse reminded me that God has power over all, even the things that seem small and not worth His time. The truth is, He cares about the small things (1 Peter 5:7)! I can’t conquer my own sinful nature, but there is Someone who can. There is a Healer for my brokenness, a Savior for my sin, a Comforter for my grief, a Faithful One for my faithlessness, a Humble One for my pride.

With God, all things are possible.

The cure for perfectionism, frustration, depression, just plain old sinfulness, is this simple truth: With God, all things are possible.

He doesn’t require us to carry the world on our shoulders; He takes our hands, wipes our tears away, and whispers that we can always come to Him with our burdens (Matthew 11:28-30). Our sin is never too deep, our flaws are never beyond repair, and we are never beyond His reach. Our crosses really aren’t too heavy when the God of the Universe is sharing the load. When I rely on my own strength, I’m refusing to trust Jesus with my life. If I allow myself to think I’m great enough to do life on my own, I’m only fooling myself. Because, really, only with God are all things possible.

Beloved sisters in Christ, listen close. Here’s the secret to changing the world, to defying depravity, to defeating sin and winning the battle with temptation:

With God, all things are possible.

God Bless,

Sarah