Tag: Challenges

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DEVOTIONAL WRITINGS

Lessons I’ve Learned

I’ve learned that it is ok to feel the pressure but it’s not ok to pressure myself. You know that feeling of wanting to get it right, get it all done, and get it all together can be overwhelming. Taking on more than we need to can be a way of putting pressure on ourselves. I’m here to tell you, that you don’t have to add anything more to life’s daily to-do list. You can pace yourself through it. By pacing, I mean sometimes things will go quick and sometimes they move slower. Everything you do doesn’t have to be a sprint, a fast-action drama, a fast forward or a speed race. Clocks will keep on ticking no matter what, so think of your pace before pressuring yourself to do more than you can handle. Now that’s what I call living on pitch! What are you pressuring yourself to do or accomplish? How will you pace yourself today?

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TWO WORDS

Two Words

I have just two words of wisdom for today:

Dream Big

Don’t be afraid to chase after those God honoring and inspired dreams.

Now that’s what I call living on pitch!

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DEVOTIONAL WRITINGS

Minutes vs. Hours

Have you ever said  or thought there’s just not enough hours in the day?  I’ll admit I  thought that many times.  I’m learning to work through these things called minutes though.  Managing the minutes of my day is no easy task.  Early this year my church challenged me to read the Bible for 15 minutes a day. They meant everyday too.  I love my church  and the annual focal points each year.  We are reading through the New Testament together this year.  Well, I accepted the challenge and in my mind I thought immediately ok, I can do that.  Sounds easy enough.  I started to read, marked the time off my calendar and set a reminder. That was earlier this year, it’s now September and the  15 minutes a day challenge has me feeling like I didn’t get the memo. I have a confession to make.  I haven’t consistently used my 15  minutes a day to read through the Bible.   I don’t always complete the challenges I accept. I’m  a work in progress and  I really want to do better.  The time is still marked on my calendar.  I still read the Bible, but not for 15 minutes a day with intention.  The reality I face and most of us face is being intentional about using our time.  Mentally blocking out the time to meditate on God’s word is one of the hardest, but most rewarding and fulfilling things we could ever do.  I saw a TV commercial speaking of how 15 minutes could save a person 15% on their insurance.  Most of us have heard talk of  someone getting their 15 minutes of fame.   What’s so special about 15 minutes with God?   I don’t know for sure but I believe forming a habit of  daily bible intake is more than likely better than saving on insurance, or becoming famous for a short time period.    This is not the same thing as tracking progress in an app everyday, drinking 8 glasses of water, or or waiting over 10  minutes for a table at your favorite restaurant.  It’s about showing up, even it it’s just for 1 minute.  I keep telling myself if you can listen to audiobooks for hours, chat on the phone with your friends for hours and watch your favorite tv shows for hours of entertainment then surely you can take a minute or two, maybe even 15 minutes to listen to God, chat with Him and watch Him work things out in your life.  I hope to continue forming the habit of reading the Bible with intention and anticipation.   How do you intentionally use your time?

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DEVOTIONAL WRITINGS

Ultimate Recipe

shallow focus photography of assorted kitchen tool
Photo by rawpixel.com on Pexels.com

I love a good recipe.  Recently I watched a television cooking show, which I often do to unwind, and I found myself intrigued with the challenges faced by 4 chefs. They were all passionate about cooking and although they all had the same assignment, each one of them had a different way to do it. The instructions were given, they listened intently and then the clock started. They scurried around the kitchen from the pantry to their stations as they showed their love for cooking food and creating the best tasting dishes they could muster up. They were competing for a grand prize of $25,000. Judges sang praises about how the plating was and critiqued how the textures of the various items was satisfying or not. Whether they were winning or losing a round these chefs one by one showed how happy they were just to be in the competition and to cook for the world class celebrity chefs. I admired that. I wondered how often do I show God I’m just happy to be serving, be on his team and in His presence? How often do we get excited about the curve balls life throws at us? I’m pretty sure it’s not too often. When the expected ingredients of life get tossed in with the unexpected storms of life, we don’t always say God is going to make something good out of this. God is good and creating from scratch, revising menus and overcoming challenges are His specialty.  God is the Master of everything. There is no problem too big, no ingredient too unheard of to throw Him off course. With God we have the ultimate recipe to overcome any challenge. Thank God for that reality because with God’s help you can make it through each round.

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TWO WORDS Uncategorized

It Depends

romans-12_18-verse

I have decided to put on some depends today and declare it’s possible to live in peace.  This scripture always speaks to me. Now that’s what I call living on pitch!

 

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DEVOTIONAL WRITINGS

Fits & Faith

simple.b-cssdisabled-png.h0f287b3dbd6e91e04ca7d9d501904a95I recently lost my fitbit device that I normally wear to track my steps.  I feel  like something is a little off  because I can’t keep track of my steps through the device.  I really don’t want to have a fit about it  but my wrist feels naked and my little reminder to get up and walk is basically out of sight and out of mind.    Truthfully speaking just because I am not wearing the band, it hasn’t stopped me from walking and taking some steps. While I may not be taking the 10,000 steps recommended I am still taking steps everyday.  Sometimes I feel like I need to have a fit over faith. I don’t always have the faith of a mustard seed. I get discouraged and things feel a little off track when I can’t see how it will all work out for my good. While my fitbit can’t track my faith, God can and He does.  So I must keep believing.  I must keep the faith every step of the way.  Steps of faith are occurring daily as we walk through storms and issues of life, as we walk through valleys of the shadow of death, as we walk humbly with our God, as we walk in the newness of life, as we walk not according to the flesh, and as we walk in the light.  I’ve come to realize all my steps are ordered by God. I don’t have to wear a band to remind me of that.  It’s just good to know God is keeping track of my steps of faith. I can’t lose with Him so I am encouraged to keep walking by faith and not by sight.

 

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DEVOTIONAL WRITINGS

He Let Me See It

I don’t know about you but sometimes I don’t want to go through storms.  I don’t want rain to fall in my life and I don’t want hard times to come.  I don’t want to think about financial difficulties, health challenges and daily struggles, let alone see them coming in my direction. I am not like the weatherman who can track, follow, predict and forecast.

Continue reading “He Let Me See It”