Proverbs 12

by Live Original | Dec 2, 2019 | Life Advice | 6 comments

What a gift it is to be able to study Proverbs together! We have absolutely loved learning the ways of wisdom as a community and this chapter is PACKED with practical advice for living a life of peace, joy, honesty, and fruitfulness.

How’s your heart today? Maybe there is something in your life today that has you entangled in a web, leaving you feeling hopeless. Friend, if that is you, we want you to know that you are never too far gone for Jesus to welcome you back. He sees you and everything you have done, and still adores you. Better yet, He wants to be a part of your life and actually provide for you a way out. Ask Him to speak to you today through this chapter and guide you into His arms.

Want to start from the beginning? Start with Proverbs 1 HERE.

Now let’s dive in!

Verse 1 (TPT): “To learn the truth you must long to be teachable or you can despise correction and remain ignorant.”

What do you long for? We all have a desire for something. Maybe it is a certain appearance you are trying to achieve, and specific relationship, or that accomplishment at work. To long for something is to hold it at the top of the list and to give it most of your time, attention, and emotional energy.

So what is at the top of your longings? Here in verse 1, Solomon is saying that our longing should be teachability. Aka—we should be hungry to grow in what is true.

Paul tell is in Philippians 4:8, “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.”

If you want to grow, start asking Jesus for a longing of the above, for He will give you the desires of your heart.

Verse 9: “Just be who you are and work hard for a living, for that’s better than pretending to be important and starving to death.”

Isn’t it so true that we all want to be important people? We try and figure out what the world wants from us to be seen as valuable, and then we change who we are and lose ourselves just to gain mans approval. But the truth is, we already are called valuable and important by the greatest opinion.

This verse is telling us that we are allowed to just be who God created us to be and that will be enough. No more, no less.

Here’s a fun exercise, write down some features about yourself and then next to it, write the word ENOUGH. Thank God for how He created you and praise Him what who he has made you to be.

Verse 18: “Reckless words are like the thrusts of a sword, cutting remarks meant to stab and to hurt.”

Have you ever blurted out something without thinking through it and then immediately wished you could take it back? You are not alone! Often times, it is even towards the people that we love the most.

James, the brother of Jesus, tell us that our tongue (our words) is one of the most powerful forces on the planet. He says that “the tongue is a fire” spreading like wildfire by the smallest flame.

That is why he tells us a few verses later in James 1 to be quick to hear, slow to speak, and slow to anger. Don’t know about you, but this makes us realize our HUGE need for Jesus. Jesus is the key to having this discipline of slowness of speech.

Verse 20: “Deception fills the hearts of those who plot harm, but those who plan for peace are filled with joy.”

This is such an insightful comparison!

Plan for Deception= Harm 

Plan for Peace=Joy

What are you planning for today? Start your day and ask God how you can actually plan for peace! Ask for opportunities to bring peace to yourself and those around you. We can promise you that at the end of today you will feel such abundant joy that is not of this world!

Verse 25: “Anxious fear brings depression, but a life-giving word of encouragement can do wonders to restore joy to the heart.”

 What a timely verse! Anxiety, fear, and depression are running rampant in our culture today. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that each year approximately one million people die from suicide, which represents a global mortality rate of 16 people per 100,000 or one death every 40 seconds. It is predicted that by 2020 the rate of death will increase to one every 20 seconds.

This is a devastating statistic driven by anxiety and depression. As we look to 2020 and the statistic that the death rate will increase, we can see how we can get involved to bring light into the darkness. Check it out: “A life-giving word of encouragement can do wonders to restore joy to the heart.”

The solution is encouragement and life-giving words! Who is someone you can encourage today? Who is someone you can go out of your way to reach out to? Never ignore that pressing on your heart to reach out that specific person. They could be gong through something you know nothing about but God might want to use you to restore joy to their heart!

Verse 28: “Abundant life is discovered by walking in righteousness, but holding on to your anger leads to death.”

Spend some time today really, truly thinking through this question: Is there any resentment, bitterness, or unforgiveness in your life you are holding on to today?

According to this verse, Solomon is saying that the thing that holds us back from abundant life, aka a fulfilling life, is holding on to anger.

Friend, maybe you’ve really been hurt by something or someone. We will never take away from the real pain that you might be walking through because of this broken world. But holding resentment in your heart will only hold you back from freedom and healing. And God, our sweet, loving, and attentive Father, has such bigger plans for you.

Someone wise once said, “Resentment is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die.”

We want you to experience this freedom, this abundant life, mentioned here. Forgiveness and letting go of your anger might be what will free you today.

We want to ask you again after reading this, how’s your heart today? Maybe God is telling you to confess something to a trusted friend. Or maybe he is asking you to give a word of encouragement to someone specific to fight anxiety and fear. Or He may be calling you near to walk you through a prayer of forgiveness for the injustice that has been done to you. Regardless, we hope He has spoken specifically to you during this time!

If you’d like to share something that stuck out to you, feel free to comment below and we’ll do our best to get back to you!

XO

Want more from Sadie and Live Original? Follow us on Instagram @Liveoriginal

WHOA That’s Good Top Moments

by Live Original | Nov 27, 2019 | Life Advice

Hi Fam,

Happy “Whoa That’s Good” Wednesday.

Below is a list of some of our favorite podcast episodes with the guest’s best piece of advice they have received. We’ve also included some fun conversation starters for you to have on hand this holiday season!

Keep these on hand for around for dinner table convo, in the car, or sitting around with those you love!

Also, be sure to check our  new episode with Brooke Ligertwood of Hillsong Worship.

1. Conversation Starter: 

What is the best piece of advice you have ever received?

2. John Luke Robertson on The Power of Love (S1 E7)

Best Piece of Advice: “Create the world you want to live in.”

Although he can’t fully remember who gave him this advice, he took this wisdom to heart years ago and it has impacted the way he sees his relationships, his time, and especially his faith. And if you know anything about John Luke, you’ll know that he truly lives this out as an original.

Conversation Starter:

Who is an example of someone you have seen create a change in the world for the better?

3.  Laney Redmon: Everything Is A Gift (S2 E3)

Best Piece of Advice: “Everything is a gift.”

This advice was shared with Laney from her mom…..“my mom, she told me, you can’t strive to keep something you didn’t earn in the first place! I feel like that starts with our salvation – God’s gift of grace – but that flows into everything, because everything is gift. If you look at life like that you being to be thankful and you see everything as something you can’t loose because it’s all God’s in the first place.”

Conversation Starter:

What’s one thing you can take a moment to stop and recognize is a gift in your life?

4. Elisabeth Hasselbeck: Fear of Letting People Down (S2 E10)

Best Piece of Advice: “I see you, I know you, go show them.”

Elizabeth explained, “I question myself a lot, because I  a really hard worker and I do suffer from what I call, “F.O.L.P.D – Fear of Letting People Down” and my Dad, I think without naming it as such, I think could see that in me and he would say at crucial parts in my life,  “I see you, I know you, go show them!” What that gave me was a layer of truth to understand what God says about me too. I see You. I know You. Go Show them.” WHOA that’s good!

Conversation Starter:

Who has been an influential person that has given you confidence and who is that person?

5. Chrissy Metz: The Power of Purpose and Positivity (S2 E5)

Best Piece of Advice: “Believe in someone until they can believe in themselves.”

Talking about a friend in her life that stood by her side during the valleys of life, she told us: “She believed in me when I didn’t believe in myself and that for me was so important and I realized afterward then I could be someone who would believe in someone until they could believe in themselves and you pay it forward.”

Conversation Starter:

Who is someone who believed in you before you could believe in yourself?

6. Shawn Johnson & Andrew East: 100% Transparency (S2 E9)

Best Piece of Advice: “Show 100% transparency with each other in relationships.”

Shawn said, “This came from our marriage counselor, right before we go married and he always said, going into your relationship, make sure you have 100% transparency with each other. Approach our relationship, almost to a fault, in being 100% transparent – if need space, if we need the other one to say something supportive or encouraging. We are too a fault transparent and it makes for a great relationship!”

Conversation Starter:

How have you seen the value of honesty and transparency unfold for the better in your relationships this year?

7. Christian Huff: Intentionality Protects the Heart (S3 E1)

Best Piece of Advice: If it breaks God’s heart, why do you think it will fulfill yours?

Christian heard this piece of advice years ago from a sermon and it stuck with him so much that he put it as his Instagram bio for thousands of people to see. Since then, so many others have come up to him on his campus and thanked him for passing along this truthful, just straight good advice. “I just wanted to be on the same heartbeat of God, breaking my heart for what breaks His on my college campus.”

Conversation Starter:

What is something this year you have seen break God’s heart and how were you able to respond to it?

8. Emma Jenkins: Bullies and Beauty (S2 E8)

Advice: “He is safe, he is loving, he is great dance partner, that’s who he is and he welcomes you.”

This piece of advice actually comes from Emma during her episode and it was too good not to share! Emma has gone through so much as a result of her living sold out for Jesus and she has learned to find her confidence not from the world, but from her heavenly father that has arms wide open, excited for the dance of life.

Conversation Starter:

What is your go to dance move?

9. Bob Goff– (S1 E1)

Best Piece of Advice: “I always get to where I’m going by walking away from where I’ve been.”

“We need to be super picky about whose advice we take. So the people who have influenced me the most aren’t the people who told me what to do, but they told me who I was.”

Conversation Starter:

Who is someone who has reminded you of who you are and how did they do it?

10. Conversation Starter: What is your best piece of advice for others?

We hope you love these conversation starters, take these to your home for thanksgiving, and have abundant gratitude for all that you have been given today!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

XO

Proverbs 11

by Live Original | Oct 23, 2019 | Life Advice | 3 comments

WE’RE BACK! We LOVE getting to study Proverbs with you as a community and dive into this book all about wisdom!

Who is ready for Proverbs 11?!

There are actually so many applicable takeaways from this chapter! Remember– the Proverbs are like putting tools in your toolbox. All different shapes, sizes, and purposes, yet all vital to a life lived in discernment and wisdom.

If you are loving this study and want to dive deeper, take advantage of our open membership this week in our online community, LO Fam! First week is free, and you get access to a sisterhood going through this study together and SO much more exclusive content!

Okay, now we’re excited. Let’s dive in!

Verse 1 (TPT): “To set high standards for someone else, and then not live up to them yourself, is something that God truly hates. But it pleases him when we apply the right standards of measurement.”

Have you ever been just urked (I know it’s not a word, but we’re making it one here) by something someone was doing?

Committing and following through is something that is really important to me. One time I was a part of a small group of friends that agreed to meet every Tuesday night to study and grow together in community. There were a few nights that I knew couldn’t make it to group so I let the group know that I wouldn’t be going those nights. After one of the weeks I missed, some of the others in the group texted, last second, and said they weren’t going to be there for certain reasons. I’m not going to lie, in that moment, I was really urked! Didn’t we make a commitment to make this a priority in our weekly rhythm? Don’t they know that in order to have a discussion and grow together, we all need to be there? And then it dawned on me, I had done the exact same thing RIGHT before they did it (hate it when that happens!).

Solomon is warning us here to not get caught up in the “high standard’s” game. The truth is, we shouldn’t be putting high standards on those around us or even ourselves, if those standards are not the standards Jesus sets for us.  When Solomon refers to the “right standard of measurement”, as you may be able to guess, he means God’s standards. And friends, when we see each other through a lens of Jesus (covered by grace), we have a Father who is SO pleased with us.

Verse 5: “Those with good character walk on a smooth path, with no detour or deviation. But the wicked keep falling because of their own wickedness.”

Has anyone seen those interesting (or should I say odd) videos of people feeling different textures? As strange as it is, the textures that most people are drawn to watching are the smooth ones. It’s oddly soothing to the soul and it’s proven to help people with stress lower their anxiety levels. There is something to that!

In this verse, good character is equated with a “smooth path.” And if I’ve learned anything about textures, smooth or, getting to smooth, isn’t always easy, but it should always accompany peace. Here’s another way to think about it. When you are driving down a rough and bumpy road, you will get to your destination, but it will not be peaceful. If you take the smoother road, you’ll get there and have a peaceful ride. Do you feel peace on your path? If not, ask God to examine your heart and your character, that He may point it out the way for you to find a smooth path and lead you down the smooth path of everlasting life.

Verse 9: ^“The teachings of hypocrites can destroy you, but revelation knowledge will rescue the righteous.”

 Okay! I love the language of “revelation knowledge” here! Have you ever had a revelation from God? A revelation is defined as “a surprising and previously unknown fact”. Meaning that God has facts, aka spiritual truths, that He wants to show you right now! And it is not only for the “spiritually elite” (as if that is even a thing) that He saves revelation! We see the qualification for revelation in the verse: righteousness! Want to know if you are righteous? Check it out:

“But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.” Isaiah 53:5 (ESV)

 His wounds = Our righteousness. Rest in that today!

Verse 10: “The blessing that rests on the righteous releases strength and favor to the entire city, but shouts of joy will be heard when the wicked one dies.”

 I have heard favor described as seeing things happen in your life that only God could get the credit for. When we seek Him, we see his favor play out in ways that will affect you, your family, your community, and even your entire city. So, friend, don’t be afraid to ask for favor! The spiritual blessing and revival that could come from that could be bigger than your wildest dreams.

Verse 12: ^“To quarrel with a neighbor is senseless. Bite your tongue; be wise and keep quiet!”

In a world full of opinions, doesn’t it actually (almost) physically hurt when you try and keep your mouth shut when you are upset? What a weird feeling! I have a rule. If I am emotionally charged about something that I want to speak into, I try my hardest to not speak. Rocket science, right?! No. Truth is, I’ve never come out on top when I prematurely speak out when I am frustrated. And even the thought that there is a winner and a loser to an argument shows that you will probably lose! In God’s family, there should never be a winner or a loser, for we are not each other enemies.

Friends, we have a very real enemy who will tempt us to use our tongues for evil and tear the family of God away from unity, peace, and kingdom work. Don’t disqualify yourself from letting God fight FOR you. If you literally have to bite your tongue, do it! Be slow to speak, slow to become angry, and quick to listen and forgive.

Verse 24: “Generosity brings prosperity, but withholding from charity brings poverty.”

The message here: give, give, give. And when you think you have given A LOT, give some more! Of your time, your resources, your love, your encouragement, and your life. When we give first from what we have, we commit the remainder to God and we hold it with open hands. Then, it becomes a joy to steward what we have well. I LOVE when the bible uses words like prosperity, blessings, and revelation because it doesn’t mean worldly prosperity or riches like so many others think of when thinking of a “good life”; it means something so much better. Paul says in Philippians 4:11-12 while in prison:

“I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need.” (ESV)

Paul got it! He gave of his whole life and left the rest up to God. Even in the scarcity, he lived with abundance.

Verse 28: “Keep trusting in your riches and down you’ll go! But the lovers of God rise up like flowers in the spring.”

God requires one thing for us to flourish like a flower in direct sunlight planted in good soil: simply to be a lover of Him. Do you love him? If you want to love him, I encourage you to first know Him. To know him you need to be planted (get it?!) in His word. And what an encouraging thing this is! By reading this verse, this study, you are currently in good soil! You are right where He wants you to be, friend.

Verse 30:  ^“But a life lived loving God bears lasting fruit, for the one who is truly wise wins souls.”

 How sweet that our Father allows us to participate in “winning souls” to Himself just by being found in Him. Just by loving Him, you will bear fruit that lasts. I hope you see yourself as a child with a good Dad today! Let’s pray.

“God, I thank you that you call us to a life of bearing lasting fruit and winning souls back to you. May we continue to rise like flowers in the spring as we simply love you. I pray that we would be a generous people knowing that every time we give anything, we are being a reflection of the One who truly gave it all. Father, please allow us to strive for unity with our people around us as we discern when to speak, when to listen, and when to wait. Would you give us revelation knowledge as we walk on the smooth path that you have cleared for us? Allow us to not measure the lives around us that lead to cynicism and disunity but allow us to walk and focus on our hearts being pure before you. Thank you for being the ultimate standard and, by that, covering us in your sweet, sweet, grace. Amen”

It All Starts With Love

by Live Original | Sep 20, 2019 | Life Advice | 3 comments

Note from Team LO: We are SO excited to bring you this month’s post from our LO Fam member, Marissa Michaud! If you want to be a part of this incredible community, the doors are open for you this week! Join the Fam today!

My relationships with my friends and family are so important to me. For a lot of people reading this, I bet you feel the same as I do.

When I joined the LO Fam, I was pumped. When I got the email that the Fam was open for new members for one week, I signed up immediately. I’m pretty sure I didn’t even think about it, I just went for it. And I’m so glad I did it, the encouragement and evidence of God has been so amazing. However, I think my favorite part about the LO Fam is the Prayer Wall. This gives us the opportunity to talk about our struggles, ask for prayer and pray for one another. I love that so much!

But something about that Prayer Wall caught my eye and grabbed my full attention.

Sister after sister kept asking for prayer over the rocky relationship issues they were having with friends, family members and in romantic relationships. And yeah, it happens. We all have issues in our relationships at some points, it seems pretty inevitable. But as I scrolled and scrolled through the prayer requests asking for prayer over relationships, I thought to myself. What are we missing here?

For the rest of the evening on that day, that thought kept poking at my mind. I wanted to know, what are we missing in our relationships that causes them to crumble? Because we’re Christians. Shouldn’t we know how to have good relationships because we have Jesus? I mean, yeah, we mess up sometimes. But what keeps breaking them?

The next morning, God woke me up at 1:25am and told me why. It’s because we forget about the Spiritual Gifts He’s given us. Particularly, the Fruit of the Spirit.

But that wasn’t all that God showed me.

Did you know that the Fruit of the Spirit are written in the order that they occur in a relationship? Paul did that on purpose. Did you ever realize that before? I didn’t. It absolutely blew me away when that realization hit.  It’s amazing, the things that God will tell you at 1:25 in the morning.

 Galatians 5:22-23 (ESV)

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

1. Love. The beginning of a real relationship, whether it be family, friend or a romantic relationship, is love. First you meet the person, you like the person and you grow to love them.
2. Joy. When you grow to love a person, you experience joy from being around them and their presence brings happiness. And to you all who dearly loves someone, you know this is true!
3. Peace. Joy brings peace, I know that from experience. Because joy brings about a feeling of being content, happy and full – and that’s pretty much the definition of peace right there.
4. Patience. Think about it, peace follows patience because we’re patient when we’re at peace. I know it’s wordy, but that’s the truth! The opposite of peace would be war, anxiety, inner conflict or conflict with others. Are we ever patient when we’re seriously stressed out about something? Not really, and that’s because peace is needed to bring forth patience.
5. Kindness. We can’t have kindness without patience. Could you be patient and show grace to someone but be unkind in the process? Is that being patient at all? See, kindness immediately sprouts from patience.
6. Goodness. This one can get confusing because I feel like we interpret goodness as a lot of different things. Isn’t it being like kind? Or, you know, being… good? What’s the point of goodness being included if we have kindness? But actually, synonyms for goodness include honesty, integrity, wholesomeness, morality and virtue. Goodness is having a strong, godly morals with an honest heart that acts in integrity. From Kindness bears goodness.
7. Faithfulness. Faithfulness comes from an honest heart that lives life in integrity – it comes from goodness. Faithfulness is full devotion that has no room for betrayal. That comes from an honest heart, which comes from kindness, which comes from patience – so on and so forth.
8. Gentleness. Gentleness would not be here if the other fruits weren’t first, from love to faithfulness and all in between. They all combine into a gentle heart, a gentle mind and a gentle attitude.
9. Self-control. And now it all comes together and produces self-control. Because when we have love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness and gentleness in a relationship, self-control is manifested because we have all the fruits we need to grow in a healthy relationship. There would be no reason to lose our control. Do you now see the significance of the order of the Fruit of the Spirit? God put them in that order for such a beautiful reason.

But yet, we still mess up. Sometimes we get lost in the temptation and pressure of the world and the Spirit does not act in us. We sin, push away the spirit in hasty anger and hurt those we love. Those who give us joy and peace. Those who we treat with patience and kindness, those we treat with goodness. Those we are faithful and gentle towards.

We lose our self-control.

This is the devil trying to get us. This our sin nature. This is losing sight of the greatest love in existence: Jesus.

But the Holy Spirit is stronger. But it’s only stronger if we make the choice to love like Jesus loves us, even when the enemy keeps whispering lies into our ears that penetrate our hearts.

But friends, it all starts with love.

But it gets even better! Because Paul mentions it again:

2 Timothy 2:17 (ESV)

For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.

 Guys, Paul wrote both Galatians and 2 Timothy and he’s not fooling around with it. Paul takes the Fruit of the Spirit seriously and we’re now getting to the most important part of this blog post.

 See, in Galatians, Paul tells us what the Fruit of the Spirit is. But right there in 2 Timothy, he tells us that God already gave it to us. So Paul’s saying, “Hey! This is the Fruit of the Spirit,” and then says, “Oh, you have the Spirit? Then you already have the Fruit!”

Did you hear that? You already have the Fruit if you have the Spirit!! And praise God if you already have these Fruits in your relationships!

But to you, friend, who needs help building and fixing a relationship but don’t know what to do. I have a question for you.

Do you have God in you? Is the Holy Spirit your advocate? To all the believers reading this with Jesus as your Savior, say YES!

Then let me tell you. You have the ability to fix what was lost, to build what was broken and to regrow what was burned. You are adequate and you are called to do this. Because OUR GOD IS SO GOOD and He literally gave you EVERYTHING YOU NEED to fix the broken or icy relationship. You can continue to have and grow new, godly relationships. Does this not excite you?! It excites me! Praise the Lord for giving this to us, He is so good!!

But how do you start? It all starts with love.

But it won’t fix everything in a relationship because your relationship takes more than just you doing the work. Remember what I said about still messing up? It happens to all of us because we all sin, whether we purposefully invite sin in or not. Sometimes people won’t want to fix a relationship that could be healthy, or won’t know how to fix it. Some relationships eat away at our relationship with God and that’s when it’s time to let go. Toxic relationships that do not honor God should be put to death, that’s what I’m saying here.

But don’t stop loving someone just because the healthy relationship failed, because the Spirit of Love that we receive is unconditional. It may not be the same as it was, but love those who decide to no longer love you because they are also children of God. Love them in a way where if you see them again, you will not be pained by their sight but see them as a God sees you: beloved; a work in progress; an unfinished masterpiece.

I will say it again. Because from love comes sprouts joy, which brings peace. From there grows patience and kindness where the two start working together and produce goodness. From the heart of goodness sprouts faithfulness and gentleness and self-control is born. This is the Fruit of the Spirit. These are the fruits of a good relationship.

It all starts with love.