My Battle Field Mind | We Are Worthy

More often than not I feel less than worthy of the blessings God has placed in my life. Even more than that, sometimes I feel unworthy for Him to use me.

Recently and quite frequently I've been going through some spiritual battles in my mind.  Seriously. It's like a modern war between two forces, good and bad, going on in my brain. I think the worst part though, is that I didn't even realize it. I was losing the battle, thinking I was winning in my relationship with God.

It's funny how one simple moment can reveal to you the lies you have been believing. 

In my particular revelation, I was holding my precious niece. So innocent and cute. On my drive home, I began to sob my eyes out, because it hit me:

I need God the way my baby niece needs her mother to survive. I need God's unfailing love just like my niece needs her mother's. 

I've easily gotten caught in the lie trap that I needed a guy to come in and sweep me off my feet. Do you do that too? We start to fantasize about how our life would be so much more fulfilled with a companion, a best friend, a comfort right by our side. 

But God created the world and my life, your life, and I'm sure He knows just a little bit better as to what we need than we do.

My mind battle continues in my taking advantage of the fact that God's always with me. I know He loves me. I know who He is. I know what He's done. But there are times when I don't live like it. 

Yet I continue to hear him say,

"Never will I leave you; Never will I forsake you." Hebrews 13:5

I know it's truth. 

You or I may not be worthy to have the God working in our lives and using us, but I believe He is creating in us. Something beautiful. He uses the weak to lead the strong. 

Jesus makes us worthy by wiping our sin and shame away and declaring us perfect before God. 

I believe  He wants to use anyone who is willing to be used, so long as they get back up every time they fall and continue to run the race.

So, that's what I intend to do.

And my mind battle? I won it, because Jesus went before me. 

Talk to us

How about yourself?

Is there something stopping you from moving forward?

Talk with us about it in the comments below or on our Facebook Page.

Love, Bailey.

ABOUT BAILEY: Bailey is our High School Becoming Girls Conference Intern. She loves writing and music and YOU! Come say hi. 

Are You Ready for School?

Summer's over, the bell has rung, and school's officially in session.

When the word "school" comes to mind, some of us don't necessarily get excited. Let's be honest, as much as we try to like it, it can be a real pain! Between getting up early in the morning and information overload, the new school year can be a lot to handle. 

For me personally, school can really push down my self confidence. You too? Or is it just me? The couple first weeks can be great, but it gets terrifying as the year progresses. Especially when those finals come up. Geez louis!  

So what exactly can we do to avoid losing confidence this school year? I want to share 3 things I'll be reminding myself of and maybe you can too.

1. Start off the year P.O.S.I.T.I.V.E!
(What?!) Yes, positive. When you wake up in the morning all through your first week of school, be positive. Because, who knows what the year will bring you! 

(My brother's favorite verse!)

Phillipians 4:13
"I can do all things through Christ who strengethens me"

2. Don't stress out.
Stress is something that gets to us all, and it gets triggered more once school starts. A few years back, I had some major stress levels when school hit, but I kept forgetting to tell myself to breathe! If you let your mind depend on God, I promise you that He will guide you through everything that can tear you back (:  

Phillipians 4:7
"And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."

3. Keep your head forward
If you put forth your best effort & have confidence, it makes a huge difference in your year. And when you know that you've accomplished those things, it gains a trait in you that helps you handle stressful things. One helpful thing that I use as a guide at school is a tiny pocketbook of the New Testatment. Now, I admit, I'm not a huge Bible reader, however in my version, there a small section in the front that gives topics like Anxious, Stress, Doubting, and other topics. In those topics, it narrows down verses that fit perfectly for those situations including the page number. It never fails when you can carry the word of God when you need it; they fit right in your backpack! School can be full of obstacles, but with your head foward and a strong heart, you can make this year one of your best!

Psalms 27:14 
"Wait on the Lord; be of good courage, and He shall strengethen your heart; wait, I say, on the Lord"




~Madi <3


What do you do to prep yourself before school? Share with us by commenting below!

Wait, WHY does God Love Me? | A Reminder of God's Love

Faith is defined as having a confident TRUST in someone or something...

Trust is reliance on the integrity, strength, ability of a person. 

I am going to be very real right now. Lately I have been struggling with having faith in God and knowing that when I fail, He will be right there to pick me up. I have been struggling with my heart all week going back and forth between feeling so cruddy and trashy because of the amount I have messed up and remembering to rejoice in the fact that I am redeemed and made new by the blood of the lamb. 

I know, its a hard truth to live into sometimes, but we have to TRUST and have FAITH in the Lord.

Why??

He knows my name... Isaiah 43:1

He sees my every move... Psalm 139:7

He thinks about me... Psalm 139:17

He is with me... Joshua 1:9

He will fight for me... Exodus 14:14

He made me in His image... Genesis 1:27

He is my safe place... Psalm 62:6-8

He has a plan for me... Jeremiah 29:11

He is GOOD... Psalm 119:68

He is freedom... 2 Corinthians 3:17

He is always with me... Matthew 28:20

After everything I have done and everything Christ knows I will do, He will still love me. He holds me in the palm of his hand and nothing, "no power in hell and no scheme of man can ever pluck me from His hand." He is and always be my protector and the only one who will love me with endless grace, mercy and forgiveness. 

Remember that lovlies. You are a redeemed, beautiful creation of God.

Love,
Sam


Samantha is on our Becoming Intern Team and loves talking with middle school and high school girls about all things beauty, God,  writing and boys. She is currently studying to be an Ultra-Sound Technician. 

You Are Beautiful Enough

Original Photo

Dear Beautiful Girl,

Today there are thousands of voices telling you, you don't meet their standard of perfection.

Your eyes aren't blue enough. Your hair is too curly. You hair is too straight. Your waist is a bigger than hers. Your voice isn't as good as hers. Your ____________ is not _______________.

They are telling you simply this: You are not beautiful enough.

But we are telling you, that is just not true. You ARE good enough. You are beautiful enough. You are valued and loved and perfectly fashioned.

There is a God who designed every fiber and hair curl and drew your eyes with His very hand. 

You are a child of God. 

Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God. John 1:12

You are beautifully created.

For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. Ephesians 2:10 

You are a part of something bigger.

Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. 1 Corinthians 12:27

You are forgiven of all your sins.

For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. Colossians 1:13-14

You can talk to God because of Jesus.

Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. Hebrews 4:14-16 

You are safe.

For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline. 2 Timothy 1:7

Be strong sweet girl, and know you are loved.

The Mirror of Nakedness | What do you see?

I am beginning to wonder if my choice of coffee shop wasn’t the best choice for today.

This place is lined with mirrors. Along the wall of my booth is a mirror so close if I turned my head slightly to the left, I could see to the bottom of my pores. If I turn my head to the right, I gaze out across the coffee shop, which in some sense is very cute and cozy but when I look closely, I can see three of four of myself depending on my angle. I’ve been here plenty of times, but for some reason, today, it’s just become a different experience and I think I know why.  

In the middle school session at the Becoming conference we took a trip back into the Garden of Eden and revisited the events and conversations that took place there.  When Adam and Eve realized that they were naked after partaking from the tree they were instructed not to, they hid, due to fear and shame. They heard God’s voice calling for them in the garden and they were afraid.  When God pursued them in conversation, He asked them one of the most profound questions of all time:

"[Adam, Eve]…..Who told you that you were naked?"

I have spent my whole life listening to all of the voices who find it entertaining to lie to me and to try to tell me who I am.  Sometimes the voices are actually voices of people that I know- and other times the voices come in disguises like thoughts, things I see on TV, or things I read in a magazine...you get the idea.

So this morning, when I woke up- the very first thought that popped in my head was, 

“I feel gross.” 

Which led to, 

“this is not going to be a good hair day.”

Which led to a trip to the bathroom and straight toward the mirror accompanied by the thought,  

“ OMG- not a pimple too!!!”

And after 3 attempts to get my hair looking cute, I threw it in a pony, left the house frustrated and thinking horribly about myself.  Sound familiar?

Now, isn’t it funny that today I chose THIS coffee shop, of all the coffee shops in my area, to come to??

I didn’t think about those darn mirrors while I was on my way here.  However, now as I sit here quietly, annoyed as crap with all of these mirrors, I hear a different voice.  Ever so gently (which is one of the ways that I know God is talking to me because He is always loving, and always gentle when He corrects) I hear Him say, 

“Cara, who told you that you weren’t beautiful today?  How did this start?” 

And I am reminded of how my loving Father said to my brother Adam and my sister Eve, “Who told you that you were naked?  Who told you that you should be ashamed of how you were made? Who told you that you are not okay, and absolutely WONDERFUL, just as you are?”   

I wouldn’t be surprised if he spoke to Eve specifically about her beauty, for God knows that at the heart of every woman is a desire to be stunning, and to be told that she is so.  

Girls, the Enemy will take every opportunity to tell us a lie.  Remember my sweet sisters—no mirror, no man, no media or voice other than God’s alone can tell you who you are- for “you are fearfully and crazy wonderfully made!” 

Love,

Cara

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Cara is a girl who is embracing each season and capturing key moments through writing, music, coloring, and community. She enjoys doing all of these things much better when she has a cup of tea in hand and her slippers on. You can find her at caraemaat.blogspot.com

You are Perfection | Understanding How God Views His Daughters

Have you ever felt like you are the only person on the planet who gets nervous? 

The only student at school who has embarrassing moments? The only girl in the history of woman to not have much confidence? Does it kind of seem like everyone does everything so effortlessly while you seem to just be stumbling through life? Yea, me either;)

For some reason "perfection" has become an acceptable standard in our everyday lives. In our grades, in our talents, in our creativity, even in our physical appearance (hair, skin, nails, body). While it is admirable to strive to be the very best we can be, "perfection" is an unattainable goal that will drive us more insane, the more we aspire to reach it.

It is perfectly ok to get nervous while talking to that cute guy and it's cool if you spill food on your clothes, or trip in the hall. A few blemishes on your face doesn't make you ugly, and no matter how curly or straight your hair is there is ALWAYS someone who wishes they had what you have. And you know what? It's not even that big of a deal if you rip a big one in front of class (okay, that's kind of mortifying, but you get the point).

No matter what we do - however silly, foolish, random, embarrassing it is, our Creator has the only opinion that should matter most to us. And His opinion is that we've already reached perfection in Jesus Christ.

Even when our peers sneer and laugh and we feel a little less than, we know we always have Gods stamp of approval.

The word of god says "We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ," (2 Corinthians 10:5 NIV).

You may be wondering, how on earth do you "take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ'? 

It starts by feeding our minds truth. 

Truth is, that no matter how you or anyone else makes you feel: You are Smart, you are beautiful, you are loved and you are worth it. 

You don't have to have it all together to be loved, You don't have to be perfect to have confidence. The confidence you need to be the best you can be lies in christ alone. Feeding your heart and mind truth kills the lies and heart and mind that is obedient to christ knows it's worth/value.

This may not always FEEL or SEEM true, but it is. 

So train your thoughts, tell Your self everyday that you are beautiful, loved and Worth it! Remember, You are his workmanship, created by the hands of god for good.(Ephesians2.10)

Ask God to show you what He sees in you. I can guarantee that the results are beyond "Perfection"!

xoxo,

Ryen

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Ryen is a 21 year old girl who has a hand full of dreams and a heart full of God. (Yes, those are Toby Mac lyrics.) To read more from Ryen go to funfabsaved.blogspot.com"