Overcoming Fear

Hi everyone!  I hope you are having an awesome day! 

We are all born with seeds of greatness in us.  What we do with them depends on us.  We are all given a purpose and a path to follow.  Obstacles are put in our paths for us to overcome.  Sometimes we become afraid of these obstacles.  This creates a fork in the road.  We can either choose to rise up and conquer this fear and overcome the obstacles, or we can shrink back and become a shell of the person we are supposed to become.  It's our choice.  I believe that eventually we will choose to overcome our fear and overcome the obstacles. 

So what will you do?  Will you rise to the occasion and overcome these fears and obstacles and release the greatness within you, or will you give into the fear? 

President Franklin Delano Roosevelt said, in his first inaugural address, quote "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself".   All it takes is a small mustard seed of hope that will bloom into something bigger until it becomes something great.  I believe that you are an overcomer. I believe that you have what it takes to win the battle and claim victory.

Freedom

 




 

Hi, everyone.  Happy Independence Day weekend!  As we remember the people who came before us and gave us our freedom, let us remember what freedom means.  Here is the definition from Merriam Webster Dictionary. 

Definition of freedom from Merriam Webster Dictionary

1. 1 :  the quality or state of being free: as a :  the absence of necessity, coercion, or constraint in choice or action b :  liberation from slavery or restraint or from the power of another :  independence c :  the quality or state of being exempt or released usually from something onerous <freedom from care> d :  ease, facility <spoke the language with freedom> e :  the quality of being frank, open, or outspoken <answered with freedom> f :  improper familiarity g :  boldness of conception or execution h :  unrestricted use <gave him the freedom of their home>
2. 2 a :  a political right b :  franchise, privilege

We all have the freedom to make choices, either good ones or bad ones.  We are free to move around.  We are free to speak what's on our minds.  We are free to choose to be positive or negative.  There are so many things that we are free to do each and every day.

One of the things we are free to do is to make use of our time.  Most of the time, we use time to earn money at a job.  Some of us are lucky to have a relationship and spend time together.  Sometimes we make commitments with friends and our churches or social clubs.  Some of us have spent our lives being busy and now are retired and are learning how to relax.  Some of us spend our time keeping our countries safe from harm.  Thank you for your service.

We have such an array of choices to make.  Are you making good choices with your time?  Is there something that you want to do, but are doing something else instead?  What is it that draws your attention?  What makes you smile?  What makes you dance inside?  What makes you feel good?  What makes you laugh?  These are the things we can concentrate on.

One of the things that makes me happy is helping to make people feel good about themselves and making them laugh and see that they are loved.  I've learned that helping people help themselves is very rewarding.  It is said that laughter is very good for the soul and very healing.

Another thing is to relax when you are tired.    We get ourselves so busy and take on so much in our lives, that we get overly exhausted so that we have a hard time laughing and smiling.  Take time to just be.  This weekend, I get to do just that.  I'm going fishing and getting back to nature.  Nature always heals my soul.  Who knows, maybe I will catch "The Big One" lol.  Let us remember to take the time to relax so that we can laugh and smile and be an infectious source of light.  May you all be blessed with a loving and contagious sense of humor. 

We Are Thirsty Part III By Sheri Steiner

 




Hi everyone!  I am writing today about how we are thirsty for divine connections in our lives.  What I mean by divine connections is that there are people that God sends into our lives to make an impact on us.  They are in our lives for a purpose.  Sometimes they teach us.  Other times, we teach them.  Sometimes God sends people into our lives to open our hearts or open our minds to new things.  Sometimes they are sent to us to help us face our fears so that we are more able to fulfill our destiny.  These people may be our spouse or significant other.  They may be a close friend whether male or female.  Sometimes they are strangers that you meet for a few minutes.

 One time, I met someone who came walking by right in front of my house, and I didn't know him but we talked for about 15 minutes about gardening.  It made an impact on me and stands out in my mind.  That's how I know it was a divine connection.  When you remember moments or remember people who have made an impact on you in your life, that is divine intervention.  These people make a difference in your life.  I've had several people throughout my life who have been divine connections.  God used people in my life to listen to me and to open my heart.  When I was young, I was mute and traumatized, but I eventually started talking very slowly.  I had a couple of teachers who stand out.  One was Mrs. Anderson.  She was my 5th grade teacher.  She believed in me and took the time to understand me.  Another person that I remember was Mrs. Davis.  She was a friend of the family.  She worked at the high school where I went and I would go see here and we would have tea while I was waiting for my father to pick me up.  We talked about life and how things were going.  I've had a few more people, both men and women, who have been brought into my life as divine connections.  I'm sure you have had some too.  Look at the people who have been in your life and the people in it now.  Who has made an impact on you? 

We are Thirsty Part II

Hi everyone.  We are thirsty!  This is my 2nd blog in my series regarding our thirst.  In this blog, I am talking about our thirst for God.  In our thirst for God, we run to instant gratification.  This does not quench our thirst.  It will only help for a short while, and then we need more-- more stuff, more relationships, more food, more travel, more things to fill our time.  But when we call out to God and allow him to come into our lives, something happens.  We are a new person in Christ.  And when we ask for baptism of the Holy Spirit, we are filled to the brim with his Holy Spirit.  When these things happen, we are unable to do the sinful things we did in the past.  We strive to do good.  We are happy and content during any storms that come our way.  We learn to trust God and have faith in him.  He uses the storms to draw us closer to him and to trust him.

In my life, God has been a part of my life since I was 4.  I was raised catholic and went to  classes and also went to catholic school for 6th through the 9th grades.  I learned more.  I felt close to God.  At one point I wanted to be a nun.  That changed later.  When I was in my 20's, I fell away from the catholic church.  It no longer seemed to fill my needs.  I went looking for a new church.  I went to a mission baptist church, but that didn't suit me.  My supervisor invited me to her church, which was a lutheran church and I stayed there for 20 years.  It seemed like I had found my place.  But something

started happening.  As my life started to unravel, my church and I didn't seem to connect.  I was able to connect only when I was singing.  I felt empty and was searching for God.

Then my divorce came and I decided to try out this church that I had been driving past almost every day.  I had been curious about it.  It drew me.  So, on an overcast Saturday with a car that was dying, I made my way to the church.  I was a little late.  The ladies in the lobby said they would find me a seat.  When I walked into the auditorium, I immediately felt the power.  It was amazing!  I sat off to the side but I heard every word.  I clung to the pastor's voice as he gave the message. My gaze never wavered.   I really liked the church.  I felt close to God.  I felt like he was in the church.  I recommitted my life to Christ then and it has never been the same.

Pastor Kevin Gerald said that the church is a hospital.  He is so right.  God wants to draw us near to him.  He wants to fill us with his spirit.  He wants us to have an intimate relationship with him.  He wants to be right beside us as we go through our trials and tribulations of everyday life.  He wants to be our best friend.  He wants to fill us with the living water of himself.  He is everything.    

We are thirsty! Part I

Good evening, everyone!  Today I want to say that we are thirsty!  We are thirsty for so many things.  We are thirsty for friendship.  We are thirsty for love.  We are thirsty for the ability to connect with people.  We are thirsty to understand God and connect with him.  We are thirsty in our bodies.  I am starting a series of blogs about our thirst and how we can help ourselves.

Today's blog is about the ability to heal our thirst in our bodies.  I will begin by telling you a story.  It all began yesterday when I woke up.  I was very congested.  I had been feeling achy and not quite right for quite some time.  I had gained some weight and I had not been eating the right things for my body.  I knew my system was backing up and it would be inevitable that I would get sick, for what goes in must come out.  I woke up with sinus pain and pressure.  I was wheezing and coughing.  But I still needed to go to work.  Five years ago, I had started with a naturopathic doctor and she helped me to gain my health back.  One of the first things she did was to help me to cleanse my body.  So I remembered this yesterday morning. I didn't feel like eating much so I decided to drink most of the day.  I prepared smoothies to drink and chicken broth to drink also.  I had some left over green salad from the day before that I took along with some trail mix that I had made and a couple eggs.  I also drank some hot tea and some hot water.  I did this all day long yesterday.  When I got home last night, I had some game bird and a vegetable along with some more juice.  Today I woke up feeling much better.  I had no lung pain or wheezing and no sinus pain.  I had a tiny big of congestion.  But the best thing was that I had no pain in my body except a little in one of my fingers.  No joint pain and no achyness.  So it goes to show that I was thirsty and my body needed some liquids.  I felt like a new person today.  My smile was back and my step was quicker.  I could bend down without it hurting.

So if you want to do all that you are meant to do with a healthier body, start by drinking healthy liquids--fruits and vegetable juices, beef and chicken bone broth, lots of water, and green tea and herbal teas.  This will do wonders for your physical and mental health.   You are an overcomer and you can do anything!  Never give up!

What Does It Mean to Sparkle by Sheri Steiner

I believe that to sparkle means to have passion and a zest for life.  That they shine from the inside out.  I believe that it's not something that we do but is put their by God himself.  It's God shining from within us.  When we receive Christ into our lives, we receive something very special.  God uses special divine connections to bring out the sparkle and inner glow.  Have you ever felt that you connected with someone on any level whether it was an aquaintence, coworker, friend, or love interest?  That is God using that person to bring out the best in you.  To open yourself up to letting God use you to inspire, motivate, and open people's hearts.  We are given a sparkle and passion to fulfill our destiny and purpose in life.  So go out and shine and let your eyes sparkle with your inner glow. 

You Are Worthy by Sheri Steiner

To all of my friends here who don't think they are worthy because they have been beaten, broken down, called names, and told they are not worth anything, I have to tell you that that is not true. God says "You are fearfully and wonderfully made.  He loves you just like you are.  I know you might not believe it, but it's very true.  He made you just like you are for a reason.  He knew what you were going to go through and he let it happen to make you stronger.  He has a spectacular purpose for you that only you can do.  Sometimes we go through things so we can relate to other people and empathize with them.  Sometimes people will only listen to ones to whom they can relate.

You are beautiful.  You are amazing.  You are everything you were created to be.  It's now up to you to believe in yourself.  This will not be easy.  It will take time.  Look toward those people who believe in you.  Look toward those positive and encouraging people.

Smile.  A smile can say a thousand words.  It can shine God's light.  It can warm people's hearts.  It can warm your own heart.

Talk to yourself.  I don't mean talk to yourself and think you are talking to another person.  I'm talking about self-talk.  Positive self-talk.  Tell yourself what you like about yourself.  What you are good at.  If you don't believe it, just say the words.  God says you are fearfully and wonderfully made.  He doesn't lie.

I am passionate about this because this used to be me.  I grew up with so many obstacles and trauma in my life, that I thought I was the odd one out, the ugly duckling, and that I didn't fit in anywhere.  It took some beautiful people who believe in me and let me express myself and listened to me for me to slowly let go of the negative image I had of myself so that I could grow and let the walls down.  As I grew, the pain and walls came tumbling down, and I began to smile, and smile, and smile.  I laughed and let God in.  Now, in the middle of storms, I can smile just for the sake of it, knowing that God is there as my best friend and everything is going to be alright.