As I sit in the library at 8:00 a.m. on this Monday morning, I’m enthralled by the students, professors, and library staff who are up and at it early on a Monday morning. I see focus, diligence, and grit. Are you living a focused life? 3 KEYS TO LIVING A FOCUSED LIFE: 1. Ability to process conflict. All of us experience conflict in our relationships. The difference, however, is how we handle it. Most are consumed by conflict, while the rarity is to know how to process it in a way that one is still able to remain focused on what’s important. If you are unable to handle conflict the…
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Feeling Stressed? 2 Keys to Living an Anchored & Orderly Life
You know what I believe causes a lot of stress in our lives? Not living an anchored & orderly life. We would be surprised at how much more peaceful and enjoyable our lives would be if we simply lived more anchored & orderly. Mondays are a source of stress for many people. We’re coming off the weekend which can sometimes be a whirlwind. It’s time to get back to business but so often we haven’t properly and spiritually dealt with the many issues that we faced over the weekend. As I write, I still have a few issues that I will sit and fully give to the Lord. Mondays are…
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Beat the Monday Morning Blues
Monday mornings are not always easy. Monday means back to business and it often comes so quickly that we aren’t quite ready. If we don’t take the time in advance to prepare for our week, we will find ourselves flustered and frustrated on Monday morning. Despite how it starts, we don’t have to give in. There are ways that we can respond in order to beat the Monday morning blues. 5 Ways to Beat the Monday Morning Blues 1. Spend time with God. This is imperative. Though we are all pulled in various directions, our #1 focus must be God [Matthew 22:37-38]. Spending time with God through prayer and His…
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3 Dangers of a Critical Attitude
Women can be extremely critical. So often, we don’t even realize how critical we are. Our critical ways attempt to hide behind motives such as wanting the best for others or being a truth speaker. It is certainly important to speak the truth in love (Ephesians 4:15), and desire the best for others; but we must do this minus a critical attitude. It is so important for us to understand the dangers of a critical attitude. Do you realize that you have a critical attitude? It is only by the Holy Spirit that we can identify our critical ways and it is only by His power that we will be…
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Creating a Grace-Filled Home: 5 TIPS
What’s the atmosphere of your home? How does your family interact with one another? Our home should be a safe space for the family, yet it certainly won’t happen on it’s own. It takes intention. As you’re focused on creating a grace-filled home, here are 5 tips. 5 Tips to Creating a Grace-Filled Home: 1. HUMILITY. Where there is pride, there is no grace. Pride places demands upon others and is critical and judgmental, while humility is gracious and patient. As parents, it’s imperative for us to humble ourselves before the Lord and His Word as this will allow us to parent with humility & grace. As the Lord humbles…
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How To Focus On What Truly Matters: 5 TIPS
One of the challenges that we constantly face in life is to remain focused on what truly matters. When being pulled in different directions, how do you focus on what truly matters? 5 TIPS ON HOW TO STAY FOCUSED ON WHAT TRULY MATTERS: 1. Write out your priorities & review them regularly. One way that I remain focused on my priorities is that I have them written out. You can’t trust yourself to just ‘know‘ them. Knowing them in your mind is somewhat abstract, while writing them out makes them real. Write them out, review them regularly, even speak them aloud. 2. Get quiet. One thing that I’m continuing to…
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My Birthday is 2 Days Away: 2 Days Left of 33
I wrote 4 days ago, sharing how I was in a state of reflection regarding my birthday. If you haven’t read it, read Choose to Live Right Now: 6 Days Left of 33. As I sit at IHOP on this Sunday evening at 11:37 p.m., with 2 days left of 33, I can honestly say that I’m now ready for the next stage. You know 1 thing that the Lord has been majorly dealing with me on? Humility. I’m simply humbled to realize how deep pride runs. How natural it is and honestly how good it feels. Pride is deceitful and ultimately destroys (Proverbs 16:18), but the only way to…
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Choose to Live Right Now: 6 Days Left of 33
Are you living right now? I mean really living. Are you enjoying your life? So often we rush through life, waiting for the next big thing, that we are not really living in the now. Whether we realize this or not, our desire for more keeps us in a continual state of dissatisfaction. We must learn how to live right now. We must choose to live right now. Today I am exactly 6 days away from turning 34 and I’m not excited about it. Actually, I’ve been a bit overwhelmed and discouraged because I haven’t completed a major project that I wanted to be done with before my birthday. Why…
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Spiritual Attacks Come In Various Forms: 3 Ways to Fight!
Today I stayed in bed all day. Yesterday wasn’t the best day. I felt a sense of uncertainty regarding my work- more specifically my gift. I woke up this morning grumpy, negative, lacking optimism for the day. Did I mention it was a rainy day? All I felt like doing was sleeping, and after my morning drop-offs and a quick work-out, that’s exactly what I did. I slept. I share all that with you to get you to this. Later in the day, I finally sat with the Lord (which ideally I would’ve done first thing this morning but I’m not perfect) and within 15 minutes I got exactly what…
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MARRIAGE: What I’ve Learned in 4 Years + 1 Day
Yesterday marked 4 years of marriage for us. Even as I write this I’m humbled and praying that the Lord gives me the words to share. I appreciate writing the anniversary posts because it allows me to reflect & simultaneously share with you what I’ve learned. Some of you are already married and will be encouraged by this, but I know others aren’t yet married so I want to share with you to provide insight that will assist you on your journey toward marriage. 4 Learnings from 4 Years + 1 Day of Marriage 1.Making the decision to marry my husband was the second best decision I’ve ever made in…
