How to Wash a Cup!

Imagine this; you are washing dishes (ugh. I know) and it’s a cup. How do you clean it? If you’re like me, you wash it from the inside out. Now say what you are really cleaning is yourself, this concept still fits and works. You must wash from the inside out! Rinse yourself on the inside or that dirtiness will keep coming through to be seen on the outside. No matter what your situation is the cleansing must start from the inside. It must start from the core of you, your heart.

Starting this process and continuously cleaning is essential. We had a guest Pastor at church and he talked about having fresh encounters with God and how everyone needs new, fresh encounters.

This is the same for refreshing yourself. It needs to be done constantly with true, great intentions, and often.

Simply start with asking God to help you and guide you in what you need to be doing to “clean” or make one’s self-new again. I truly believe He will cleanse you of your past hurt and heartache. Truly letting go of past hurt is a hard skill to obtain but with help from God it can be overcome.

Your mistakes and regrets can be rinsed out and you can start fresh! Everything you’re struggling with or are trying to forget can be forgotten and won with a good thorough cleaning from God.

The best part is after you’re all rinsed out, you feel peace and love! It is truly a wonderful feeling you cannot get from anywhere or anything else. Feeling Him with you is a feeling I hope every one of you can experience and experience often! It’s not anything that can be explained because it’s such a strong feeling of love and peace, like nothing else you’ve ever felt before! You can feel God surround you and you feel the connection you have with him! With me, I feel like He is hugging and holding me. That is my favorite experience and emotion. Pure peace!

Another amazing part about God is, think about this; when you wash that cup and nothings in it who would want it? No one, right? Well with God, He is happy to take the empty cup. He wants the cups with chips, scratches, and crakes in them. He will mead all of those and not only fill but over flow that cup with love, peace, and joy!

Can you imagine an overflowing heart of pure peace and love? No? Well I’ll tell you a secret… it can be done! And it’s even better when you feel it!

Everyone around you will see it too! It’s amazing to witness someone’s whole world change in a split second, someone’s view on life look up!

Just ask and you will receive! Put in the effort and you will get the results!

Clean your heart out and Just Let Love Flow! 

God Can Reach You

I was listening to “You Are I Am” by Mercyme and I felt the need to share something with y’all. There is a part in the song; I believe it’s the second verse where it says “I've been the one to believe that where I am you cannot reach!” This line made me tear up but also sparked some things I feel like someone reading this needs to hear. 

To start, if this is the first article you are reading of mine then I should inform you of a few things so you understand I’m not just writing meaningless things I know nothing about; that I have actually gone through some really hard times. Being only 15 I understand how that would be hard to believe but I've gone through my mom leaving me really young to suicide attempt and all the crap in between; self-harm, eating disorder, and living with a father who is sick most of the time. I’m not telling you these things for pity because honestly everything I went through helped me be who I am today and I’m still growing from my experiences. I’m telling you these things because I hope someone reading this can relate to me and take what I type here and realize it’s from my heart.

This line expresses something so deeply and shows something I and maybe you are struggling with. The line says “I've been the one to believe that where I am you cannot reach"

Do you feel like that you’re such a mess or you’re going through something so rough that God can’t touch or help you; feeling like the devil has such a strong hold on you that God can’t reach you? Well you’re wrong! No matter what situation you are in whether it’s a loss of a loved one, abuse, addiction, any tragedy He can help you out of! He will meet you exactly where you are. You don’t have to take another step alone because he will come right next to you and take your hand and walk with you every step of the way. He is there waiting with a hand out to help pull you up. You’ll stand on your feet again with the hand of your Father on your shoulder! He never leaves us and he will never fail you.

God looks and sees this amazing person. He sees someone with so much potential. Don’t you know who you are? You are more than your brokenness, you are more than your mistakes, you’re more than the choices you made, and more than the circumstance you’re in right now, So much more! You are a human being that lives and breathes, someone who was not made by accident, NO but made with love and compassion in mind! Someone who was made with amazing talents, passions, ability, and beauty! You have a purpose no one else can fulfill. Not only were you made with all this in mind but you have someone who died with you in mind! Jesus Christ our savior died with you in mind, yes You!

God is going to help you out of any situation you face. Grace can really change your heart!! Start with prayer. Pray to have strength in your circumstance; ask god to give you an abundance of faith in Him. That you can trust him and let Him have control in whatever you may face. Ask Him to show Himself or show His love to you! He will, I promise! When you need it most He will wrap you tight in love and peace! Pray for guidance and understanding! Try to see the good in your situation; there will always be a small bit that will help you a whole bunch later in life. If you can’t find anything, look again. Have you considered the possibility of coming out a stronger, braver, wiser person? You’re going to be, and that’s a huge step in another positive outcome which is forming a better relationship with Christ! If you lean on him and seek Him throughout the hard times you are forming an amazing trust with your Savior! Look how much progress you could make it or hope you could form in just saying “Hey God, Please Help me!” He truly is something extra special that is just an amazing thing to have in your life and to witness in others! He will reach to the ends of the earth to meet you exactly where you are at! Stop believing He can’t because if you let Him, He will be there within the next heart beat ready to help you every step you need to take up the stairs to His grace and love! He is incredible and will do incredible things, just wait! He is capable of more than you believe!!

“You’re the one who conquers giants. You’re the one who calls our kings. You shut the mouths of lions. You tell the dead to breath. You’re the one who walks through fire. You take the orphans hand. You are the one Messiah. You Are I Am!”  

God can do amazing things if you open up your heart and Let Love Flow! 

You are Never Separated and Always Complete With God

Sometimes I feel insecure, unwanted, unloved, and unimportant; then I remember to whom I belong. I’m reminded who I am! I am a loved, wanted, confident, beautiful princess because I am a daughter of a King! I have a father in heaven who loves me unconditionally and through everything! And so are you!!

Romans 8:38-39 states that nothing can separate you from the love of God “not even death its self” When do you feel far or separated from God? For me I feel most separated when I give in to self-harm or when I have suicidal thoughts. I would never want to disappoint God, my Father and when I think and do those things I know I’m not honoring him with my body or my mind (as in harming myself.)

 It took me a long time to come to terms about how self-harm was a sin. I didn't want to believe it and I had people who cared for me telling me that “oh God will understand” or “that it’s not a sin” but then I had other people who loved me so much telling me that “yes it is a sin but God will forgive you” I had a choice to make. Was I going to rationalize scripture in my head to make it seem like I was not sinning or was I going to face the facts and realize that I was hurting Jesus just as much as myself. Well it was hard and very emotional and hurtful but I had to come to terms with myself and with God and ask for forgiveness.

Every day is a struggle and I knew it would be. I have to fully lean on God even when I don’t feel him there. I can’t let my thoughts and urges get the better of me and convince myself that small scratches or just one more time will be okay. I can’t say “He is going to forgive me anyway” that’s just not how these things work. Of course He is going to forgive you if you ask for it but there are going to be consequences and don’t you think God is going to know if your apology is from the heart? Of course He will! 

If you truly meant it you wouldn't do those things again. Refer to 1 John 3:6! It could be as simple as lying or cheating on a test or as big as stealing and murder. It really doesn't matter to God, all sin is viewed the same in His eyes! Imagine you hurting your Father every time you hurt yourself! That is exactly how I had and have to view it too stop me from self-harming.

Sometimes you may feel as if He has abandoned you and He is not with you or working in your life and you’re just stuck but if you read Philippians 1:6 “He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus”  You will see He is always working in you.

This shows no matter what faults you have or struggles you face that God is at work within you. That you are good work and He will complete what He started!

The Lord wants me to tell you that you are loved and cherished! You are precious in His eyes and He loves you so much more than you could ever fathom! Whatever you are going through you’ll get through! You will conquer like Jesus! Fix your eyes upon Jesus and you will find that you are looking for; whatever it is. Love, Hope, Healing, Strength, Understanding; you’ll find it through Jesus! I can’t express His love for you enough but I hope that for you, you’ll feel His presence and love! You’ll discover His Glory and find faith and Hope within Him!

He lets His love flow so Let Love Flow too!

Putting Your Self-Worth in Yourself and God

Maybe right now in your life you feel worthless and unwanted; maybe it’s because you just got dumped, one of your parents left, or your friend abandoned you. You would feel much better if you stopped putting your worth in worldly things.

 It’s called “self” worth for a reason.

Self-worth is the sense of your own value and worth. How much you respect yourself; how highly you think of yourself. It’s a synonym for self-esteem.

Truthfully I struggle just as much as the next person to put my self-worth in myself and God. I’m always looking for love in all the wrong places. My mom left me when I was little and my dad never found anyone else; all my life I've been looking for someone to give me the love a mother would… I never found it! Luckily there is a more fulfilling love than any a human could provide. The love of God! It’s quite a magical thing to realize. That there is someone who will love you no matter how you act or what you do.

I think the really special part that helps me most is realizing (I realized this while reading 1 John) that no matter how much you love or value yourself He loves you so much more, and that doesn't affect His love in anyway. To think, He loves you more than you could ever think, more then you value yourself, more than any thought you've ever had about yourself.

This was something incredible to realize for me because I always thought if I didn't love myself or if I had these awful thoughts about myself then He could never love me. But that’s so wrong!! He loves me and you no matter what; I can’t stress that enough.

I have felt unloved and unwanted and it’s the worst feeling, I know. You just have to remember that there is always someone who loves you. An amazing someone!! He is your Father, Friend, and God! I don’t know about you but that’s all the love I need to know and have, because that love never changes and never fails.

So maybe you don’t know God and you haven’t felt His love, but just know it’s never too late. Maybe you self-harm, are suicidal, have an eating disorder, or are depressed and you’re just looking for a reason to go on. Like me maybe you are looking for love and healing. I can give you one place I know of, in the hands of our God. An almighty, all powerful, all loving God! He can heal you; fill the cracks in your heart and flood your eyes with hope! Psalm 147:3 “He heals the broken hearted and binds all wounds” this is such a powerful verse and even more incredible is that it’s true! He really can heal you and fill your life with joy.

I’ll share my experience of the first time I really felt him hold me and give me peace.

Basically there was a fight between me and someone in my family who I had already had a lot of problems with. I was staying there but obviously after we had the argument I had to leave. I gathered my things and walked to the park close to their house; on my way out she said some very hurtful things and was just trying to make me feel as worthless as possible (which worked.) I got to the park and called my dad but I had to wait about 15 minutes for him to get there. I was hysterically crying and pleading with God to take away the thoughts I was having (yes they were suicidal) asking him to take me away or at least take away all the pain. My father finally came and I was angry and yelling because I felt so hopeless and such resentment. He drove me home and at first I wanted to tear through my desk draw and find my emergency blade but instead I was brought to my knees at the foot of my bed.

Sitting there crying and screaming for help. I asked him to wrap his arms around me, put my heart at rest and show himself to me. Then I started asking for the strength to not self-harm that night and more importantly the strength to forgive her for what she had done and said.

Then finally I started praying for her, truly praying that she would be forgiven and find God. That’s when I felt him. He did exactly as I asked and wrapped his arms around me and put my heart at rest! I felt such peace in that moment. In a situation that brought me pain and stress I found peace with God!

And it really is that simple. Ask God, pray for him to show himself to you. Even if you don’t believe in him; say “Hey God I don’t really think you exist, if you do will you please touch my heart and show yourself to me!” that’s all you have to do! With his love you will be complete.

It might take a while, you might have dark moments; I certainly still struggle with this. Leaning on something you can’t see is hard but once you feel him, there is never another doubt that he is real! It’s such a powerful feeling of peace and love! If you put your hope and self-worth in God you won’t be disappointed!  He loves unconditionally and wow is that amazing? Once you figure out that there is someone that loves you, is always there, and even died on the cross for you, you won’t feel unloved or unwanted again and if you do just remember He carried your pain and took those nails for you! All because He loves you so much and wants to spend eternity with you!

Open your heart and Let Love Flow! 

He is a Father that Loves and Never Leaves, Let Him Lead!

Something I struggle with and know many others who do too is realizing why things happen. “Why did that boy have to break my heart?” “Why did my mom leave?” “Why do bad things keep happening?” What if I only knew the answers to all these questions and so many more? Truth is, no one knows but even if We did would that change how you're truly feeling or fix the problem…. Well no, it won’t. I do believe though that something amazing, beautiful and powerful comes out of every situation. Do you believe that too? I sure hope so, because if you truly break down your situation you’ll see that strength and hope comes from it. Your faith will be made stronger. 

I use to self-harm (1 month and 1 week clean) and I always wondered why I went through that. Of course it was my fault, I choose to pick up the blade and I kept choosing to do it but something amazing came from that situation.

 I know it seems crazy, what good could come from cutting myself? Well actually, a lot of good did. Number one is I found Christ. If my gymnastics coach never would have found out about my addiction I never would have meet anyone to point me in the direction of Christ. Number two is Strength and Understanding. Strength in self-control and knowing who I am and what I want. Understanding in the aspect of I can relate to a lot of people in a lot of ways. I’m less judging then most teenagers. I also have a list of other things that are positive outcomes of struggling with self-harm including kindness, love, compassion, and empathy for other people. The point is that through something awful that you would never think would have a good outcome, it somehow did. Almost every situation is like this. No matter what it is I bet you something powerful came from it.

Some people ask themselves “Why me?” I don’t know your situation but what I can say is you’re going to be a better, stronger person through every circumstance you face. God would never give you something you couldn't handle. You will need his help to handle it but you’ll get through it. If it’s not better than it’s not over.

His love will shine through in every situation if you look to him for strength. Feed on his love and keep looking up because sweetie. I’m telling you it’s not over. You’ll make it through every predicament you face in life. He is a Father that loves and never leaves, let him lead!

 Ask Him for guidance and understanding and He will surly show you the way, revel himself when you need it most. He will never be late but right on time! Be patient for He is always with you. Waiting for you to look up and see him. He has been waiting there the whole time. Fix your eyes on God! Seek him in every situation and you will never be let down in what you find, Love!

He is Always with you, helping you overcome everything you face! You can do all things through Christ! He will give you the strength you need!

Like Jesus you will conquer!

Just Let Love Flow!