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Stewarding Your Money Well

Stewarding Your Money Well

Have you ever wondered what makes some people successful with money and others not so successful?

I love the old quote by Henry Ford, “Whether you think you can or think you can’t, you’re right.” Our thoughts and behavior have way more to do with our success than anything else. And our attitude about money specifically is influenced a lot by the household we grew up in. This is true regardless of whether we grew up with one parent, two parents or relatives.

For example, my money story began during the hardest part of my parents’ money journey. I was born in April, and they filed for bankruptcy in September of the same year. They hit rock bottom and it took a good five years for them to climb out of that hole—right around the same time as my earliest memories.

I don’t remember the actual bankruptcy, but I do remember the aftermath and what became a new way of living with money for our family. I had a front-row seat to their open and honest conversations, and I watched as they budgeted what little money they had. We shopped at consignment stores and never went on vacation. My parents’ perspective on debt, budgeting and saving deeply impacted my own perspective.

Your story may not involve something as drastic as bankruptcy, but the way your parents handled money during your childhood made an impact on you whether you realize it or not. You may handle money a lot like your parents did when you were younger, or you may have chosen to do the exact opposite of what they did. Either way, your childhood household was your money classroom. Sometimes our money classroom leads to good habits and healthy views on money that help us—and some lessons we wish we could unlearn.

Money Is Communicated Emotionally and Verbally

In your money classroom, there were two ways you learned about money: what your parents communicated emotionally and what they communicated verbally.

You experienced the emotional side through the good or bad vibes you got about something even if you couldn’t pinpoint exactly why. When emotional communication is positive, we feel calm, and when it’s negative, we feel stressed. This type of communication is as powerful—if not more powerful—than verbal communication.

The verbal side is about what was (or wasn’t) said in our homes. Some households were verbally closed. Your parents didn’t talk about money in front of you. Maybe they didn’t talk about it at all. There was never any discussion around the dinner table about debt, budgeting or investing. Plus, you knew not to talk about some things, like money, religion, politics, sex—or all of the above—and so you never did. There was no discussion, no conflict, no give-and-take—just an absence of communication.

What Was Your Money Classroom?

Based on those different styles of communication, in my years of teaching personal finance, I’ve identified four money classrooms. I wrote about these classrooms in my book, Know Yourself, Know Your Money.

The four money classrooms are:

The Anxious Classroom

Emotionally stressed and verbally closed.

The Unstable Classroom

Emotionally stressed and verbally open.

The Unaware Classroom

Emotionally calm and verbally closed.

The Secure Classroom

Emotionally calm and verbally open.

Let’s dig into each of these classrooms.

The Anxious Classroom

If you grew up in the Anxious Classroom, you probably observed your parents’ money habits rather than hearing them discussed. You probably felt tension rather than hearing an argument. You might not have felt free to ask questions about money.

The tough reality of living in this environment is not just the lack of information; it’s also the heightened emotional state in the home—either in general or specifically around the topic of money. Because of that, you might have some fear around money: fear of talking about it, fear that you don’t know enough about it, or fear of it running out.

If it’s hard for you to face your finances, I want to encourage you to create a tactical, detailed monthly plan for your money. That’s all a budget is—it’s a plan—and it will remove the fear of the unknown. Be intentional and write out exactly where you want your money to go. Once you set your budget, it will tell you what you can and can’t do with every dollar—and give you the direction you need to move forward with confidence.

The Unstable Classroom

If you grew up in the Unstable Classroom, you’ll recognize it right away because you learned about money by seeing and hearing. In these households, money was a source of conflict. Parents argued about it between themselves, with the kids, with extended family, sometimes even with strangers. The arguments may have been public or private.

Today, you might feel fearful, anxious and unloved because you hear or heard “no” a lot from your parents (usually in a short-tempered way). Growing up in this household could’ve felt like an emotional roller coaster because the emotions would swing unexpectedly between the negative and positive.

What you need to know is that the topic of money doesn’t have to feel chaotic. You can learn how to talk about money in healthy, stable ways. The fact that you’re reading this article shows that you have the maturity to try to handle money the right way. And the Ramsey Baby Steps provide a plan for avoiding debt and building wealth while addressing money in a healthy, productive, and even exciting way!

The Unaware Classroom

If you grew up in the Unaware Classroom, you probably didn’t worry about money. Maybe you didn’t even think about money much at all. Ignorance is bliss for some things, but it’s definitely not true when it comes to money.

Being raised in a household where no one ever talked about money is very common, but to make wise decisions with money, you have to know the whole picture—the good, the bad and the ugly. If you were in the Unaware Classroom, everything seemed totally fine. You had no idea about the state of your parents’ money situation and didn’t have to worry about it. Money just wasn’t on your radar.

If money was never talked about, now’s the time to start talking about it. If you’ve never been taught how to do a proper budget, you don’t just intuitively know why it’s important and how it can help you achieve your goals. But don’t beat yourself up for what you don’t know, and definitely don’t just avoid your finances altogether. Creating a budget, saving for a rainy day, and planning for the future might feel really hard at first, but it’ll be worth it. Your money and your future self will thank you for it!

The Secure Classroom

If you grew up in the Secure Classroom, you grew up in the ideal money classroom. Emotionally calm and verbally open environments aren’t perfect, but they do reflect homes where parents practice healthy money habits and where kids feel the most safe and secure.

In this classroom, money doesn’t feel stressful because the parents know how to manage it well and are in control. Money was talked about often and openly. There was calm, intentional decision-making around money. There was mutual respect between your parents, and they were connected and on the same page. In a really perfect world, they may have even brought you in on some of the budgeting decisions or asked you to be a part of the discussion!

Your parents didn’t have to have a lot of money to be in the Secure Classroom, but they were managing what they had well. Don’t let their success allow you to slip into the belief that it was easy for them. Your standard of living won’t automatically be the same as your parents’ unless you’re as intentional and smart about it as they were!

Financial expert Larry Burkett used to say that couples spend the first five to seven years of their marriage trying to attain the same standard of living as their parents—only it took their parents 35 years to get there. Remember that your parents worked hard to get where they are, so it will take time for you to get there too.

You Can Change Your Financial Future

Now that you know where your money beliefs, fears and habits come from, you can do something about it. Money is a tool, and regardless of where you’ve been, you can use that tool to chase your dreams, to create opportunity, give generously, and change your family tree. I believe you can take control of your money and create a life you love.

If you want to learn more about your money tendencies and how to create habits to win with money, check out my new book, Know Yourself, Know Your Money.

Rachel Cruze is a two-time #1 national best-selling author, financial expert and host of The Rachel Cruze Show. Since 2010, Rachel has served at Ramsey Solutions, where she teaches people to avoid debt, save money, budget and how to win with money at any stage in life. She’s authored three best-selling books, including Love Your Life, Not Theirs and Smart Money Smart Kids, which she co-wrote with her father, Dave Ramsey. Her latest book Know Yourself, Know Your Money: Discover WHY You Handle Money the Way You Do and WHAT to Do About It will release in January 2021.

Follow Rachel on:

Twitter @RachelCruze

Instagram @rachelcruze

Facebook @Rachel Cruze

YouTube @Rachel Cruze

How My Faith Impacts My Sexuality

How My Faith Impacts My Sexuality

We are marrying later, living longer, and more educated than we ever have been in the history of humanity. This is great and all for the advancement of humankind, but real talk: waiting sometimes decades longer for sex than we thought we’d wait is a STRUGGLE. It’s one thing to be 15 years old and commit to abstinence until marriage.

So what happens when we’re 25, 30, 35, 40…and still single—Still longing for marriage, intimacy, connection, and let’s just say it: sex?

What do we do with our sexuality and desire as single people?

First things first: we have to give each other the permission to talk about it. Normalizing healthy dialogues around sex and desire and removing the stigma and taboo and capital ‘A’ awkwardness that can come with such topics, especially in the church, is so important. 

Next, be curious about the sexual scripts you were given both from culture and the church. What do you believe about your sexuality and desire? Where did those messages come from? Are they rooted in fear and shame, or love, hope and freedom? Remember the invitation of Jesus is not one of fear, but of power, love and a sound mind.

We live in a culture that says if it itches, scratch it. And don’t we all kinda want what we want when we want it, and we want it piping hot—like yesterday? Jesus help us if our takeout is late, or worse if our delivery is wrong! Underneath this pursuit of instant gratification, there’s a core message: I am the sum of my desire.

And in the wakes of a loud, albeit highly damaging shame and rule based purity culture, leaders seem pretty quiet about the whole sex thing. Often the message is to shut down your sexual desire until that one allusive day when a ring slides on your finger. Then, in an instant a flip is switched and voila…it’s on!  

In efforts to promote abstinence, unfortunately many of the messages we receive from the church are one-dimensional. The reality is we are not light switches that turn off and on, we’re humans. 

And ironically, in trying not to make sex and desire a thing, they’ve made it the thing. I mean if someone tells you not to think of a purple hippo—what are you going to think about? A purple hippo; it’s the oldest trick in the books.

So, culture says: I am my desire. 

The church says: shut down your desire. 

But what does Jesus have to say?

We see scandalous and provocative accounts of Jesus engaging with women, children, and those most ostracized in society. Jesus was unafraid to challenge societal and religious norms to establish his grace and kindness to a world longing for restoration. Throughout the Sermon on the Mount Jesus repeatedly said, you may have heard it said…but I say to you. In essence Jesus was saying culture may do it one way, the church another, but I have a different way for you.

So what is the way of Jesus when it comes to sexuality and desire?

In the Genesis creation account we see this rhythm of God speaking life into existence and calling it good. But then we get to the climax of creation when God creates humanity in His image and likeness. Distinct from all else in Creation, humans are made to be a reflection of God. The phrase for this concept is imago dei. Continuing the distinction of humanity God then says humanity isn’t just good, but very good.

The text doesn’t say our spiritual life is good, and the body sinful. Nor does the Scripture say your mind is good, but your foot is bad. The text simply says humans are made to reflect the image of God and that we are very good. This means God created humans with a holistic vision as opposed to compartmentally. 

In fact, this means that our sexuality and desire are good and God designed. There’s even something about our sexuality and desire that reflect the God image and God’s goodness.

The Jesus way is one that says God created humans holistically in his image and likeness and in light of that, we are very good. Our sexuality and desire is an integral part of what it means to be human, but it is not the main thing. We aren’t our desire, nor the absence of it. We are God reflectors.

The entire conversation surrounding desire and sexuality shifts completely when we challenge the starting point of what it means to be human. 

We are not our desire.

Nor the compartmentalized absence of it.

We are imago dei.

That is who we are.

This means that there has to be ways to connect to our sexuality and desire in ways that are holistic, God honoring, and shame free. 

Can we stop and acknowledge this is really good news for single people? We don’t have to compartmentalize our sexual desire for one day when, but can find holy integrated ways to stay connected to this integral part of what it means to be human while remaining true to our values and a biblical vision for sex.

With you on the journey,

Kat Harris

From Bible major to editorial photographer to educator to host of The Refined Collective Podcast, and now author, Kat Harris never shied away from doing things her way. Through her online platform, The Refined Woman, her vision is to be a voice of truth and hope while equipping women to walk in wholeness, worthiness, and freedom. She fiercely loves her big Texas family, and is indebted to her faithful community scattered all over the world. She believes in the power of story, and that every opportunity is an opportunity for growth if we choose it to be. She currently lives in Austin, Texas.

Perfectly Imperfect

Perfectly Imperfect

Let me be honest with you guys, when I hear the word scale or weight my stomach drops. As a college cheerleader for two years I put my worth in the number on the scale and was always discouraged.

I grew up as a competitive cheerleader and quickly realized my big dream in life was to be a college cheerleader. I made it onto a nationally ranked cheer team in Texas at Navarro College. What I thought were going to be my dream years quickly turned my world upside down. Within a span of two years I got hurt, had surgery, was fighting an eating disorder, made many mistakes, got diagnosed with an autoimmune disorder, and had to walk away from cheer due to health issues. I was so lost. I was so broken. But God redeems. God heals. God saves.

Have you ever thought “If only this one thing could change about me then I would be happy?” For me it was if only I was skinnier then I would be happy, I would be enough. If I could drop 5 lbs, I would be worthy. Even if I lost those 5 lbs, I know I would’ve found something else I wanted to change.

Now think, have you ever looked at God’s creation such as nature and thought “Wow that’s beautiful.” The sunsets, the mountains, the flowers, the clouds, and the trees – all God’s creation. Well guess what, YOU are God’s creation too so love and appreciate the beautiful masterpiece God knitted together.

There were many steps I took in order to allow God to help me back on my feet. Here’s a few that might help someone out there struggling like I was:

1. Surrender it all to God. We are not in control (thank goodness) so give it up. Whether it be an eating disorder, comparison issues, a break up, shame, an addiction, an illness, depression, or body image issues I challenge you to give it up, surrender. Stop trying to carry a burden you aren’t made to carry alone. Jeremiah 10:23 clearly states that we are not in control, the Lord is to guide us. “LORD, I know that people’s lives are not their own; it is not for them to direct their steps…”

2. Seek the right help. When I was facing my eating disorder the first people I told replied in a way that I felt like it was not a big deal. It was not until I told a mentor and my mom that they helped me get the help I needed. It is not wrong to ask for help, just make sure you’re asking for help from the right people. Matthew 7:7 says “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.” In this context let’s focus on seek and you will find, seek the right support and God will bring someone into your life that can help. I personally sought out a Christian counselor and a mentor who I met with (sometimes virtually) multiple times a week.

3. Don’t hold onto the past. I used to keep clothes from freshman year of high school in hopes I would get that small again. I bought clothes that were too small in hopes that I would fit into them later. When I surrendered all things to God I felt convicted of this. I was idolizing what I used to be, and what I used to look like. I got rid of all the clothes that did not fit me and began to buy clothes that were true to my body and that were more modest. This not only brought a renewal of my mind but I wasn’t “squeezing” into clothes everyday so I was more confident. This was a way for me to forget the past, to move forward, and to begin to love who God made me to be and give myself grace. 2 Corinthians 5:17 says “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”

4. Nourish and cherish your body. Food is to nourish your body. Working out is to celebrate all your body can do. Both are to keep the body God created strong and healthy. They are not to punish your body. There is no need to restrict yourself from foods you love or punish yourself by “burning it off” afterwards. I used to go on diets as a disguise to simply eat less, not healthy mentally or physically. Focus on healthy – what is fuel for your body? What movement helps you feel better? What do you enjoy? Focus on what you can do and what you can fuel your body with, not what you can’t.

5. Surround yourself with the right people. Not just in person, but online too. Who do you follow? Be intentional about who you seek out and who you let in. I had to go outside my comfort zone and find a church I knew no one at, get to know people and sign up for a small group with other college aged girls. I found some great Godly people in my same town that I could turn to when I was having a bad day or week. Make a list of the top 10 people you spend the most time with, then put a + or a – next to their name based on if they are a positive influence in your life or not. Always strive to have more positives than negatives. If someone’s post or story shows up and you start to compare or get down on yourself, you might want to stop following them. Follow people you strive to be as a person and as a Christian, as a girlfriend or someday wife. Looks will come and go, character is lifelong.

6. Remember who your Creator is. You are created in God’s image. When we complain and compare it’s as though we are telling God that he didn’t do a good job. You are precious in His sight. When you feel fear, lean into His faith. When you feel weak, grab onto His strength. When you feel resentment or jealousy, draw from His love. His grace is sufficient when we can’t seem to find any. “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” Isaiah 41:10

7. Affirmations. “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.” Luke 10:27

Let’s focus on the end of this verse, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” In order to love others well, we must first love ourselves the way God intended. What we believe we become, so it starts with what we believe about ourselves. In order to change what you believe about yourself, you have to start telling yourself truth. The only truth we can rely on is the word of God. We talk to ourselves more than anyone else does on any given day. What we repeatedly tell ourselves becomes a belief, even if it isn’t true. I love to write out positive statements or promises from God about who I am and who I am capable of being through Christ. Put them on your phone, on your mirror, on your desk, in your car or wherever you look frequently. Be intentional with your words and thoughts, over and over and with time, your outlook will change. Once your outlook changes, your outcomes can too.

God saved you by His grace. Read and memorize Ephesians 2:8-10. There is nothing you can do or change to make you more worthy of God’s grace right now. God created each of us uniquely so we can play a unique role in His plan. If you find yourself starving for joy like I was, start with some of these steps above and most importantly focus on finding things to be grateful for each and every day.

I am perfectly imperfect (and still fighting through the negative thoughts and attacks) and still fully accepted by God. You are perfectly imperfect, fully accepted, loved, and cherished by your heavenly Father. Keep showing up, keep fighting, and don’t ever forget that YOU are loved!

Stay original my sisters.

Kassidy cheered in college at Navarro College and is now a personal trainer while using fitness to lead others to Christ. She strives to encourage women to be confident in who God created them to be. She lives in Arizona currently and loves cooking, working out, flowers, and boba!

Follow Kassidy on Instagram @kassidywarnol

Cure For Insecurity

Cure For Insecurity

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how as women we naturally crave security. It is a cry from the depths of who we are, our very nature, whether we have put words to it or not.

For you, maybe one of these lies resonates:

I’m single, a boyfriend will make me feel whole.

Well now I’m dating, but a ring on my finger would solve all the problems and erase all these ever recurring doubt. If I could JUST lose those five, ten, okay maybe 20 pounds THEN, then I would be happy. And if I just had a different job I would definitely worry much less.

And if… If I just… If I maybe… If I had… If I could FINALLY…*insert missing item* that SURELY will erase the insecurity, heal the wound, or abate the loneliness. If…what a pesky word.

Here’s a different use of if: if you only knew, the enemy is constantly, ceaselessly and continuously attempting to lure us into reaching for things that satisfy knowing all the while as soon as we have those things… ultimately true satisfaction will once again seemingly be just out of reach. Right behind the next “if”. His desire is multi-dimensional, but one dimension I’ll choose to focus on today for the sake of time, is His desire to distract us and mislead us. Everything, (underline everything) in this life is fickle. It’s fleeting. A drop in the eternal bucket, a wave tossed in the ocean, a vapor whipped in the wind.  Yet so much of what we spend our life building, clinging to or worrying about can be gone in the blink of an eye. GONE. Just gone. Here one day and gone the very next, yet… we think attaining, one (or all) of these fickle fading temporary sources of security will somehow one day fill that void, thwart the reaching, ease the longing, soothe the aching, or cure the seeking for security. So knowing it’s all gonna leave at some point can then someone tell me how can our security come from any one thing thing or person?

THE TRUTH IS: *spoiler alert* it can’t. Whoa, I bet you didn’t see that one coming. Before I give you the other spoiler (hint: It can only come from God, big wow didn’t see that coming did you) let me explain the psychological dysfunction trap we’ve all fallen prey to. It’s the enemy’s favorite trap, or at least one of them. It’s called the principle of transference. 

All our deepest needs: purpose, identity, value, destiny and wait for it…security, all must have a source. They are not self originating. If they were we would innately be in need of nothing, and if you’re anything like me, girl, we are for SURE in need. We need all 5 of those things, but we are in search of where to find them. So instead of getting them ALL from the source, our sweet King Jesus & His eternal scriptures…. we turn to men, maybe money double taps which produce little red hearts on our screen or some semblance of status on an app that didn’t even exist 10 years ago. Those just won’t do. Why? Because the weight of security or purpose is GREAT, and when we place that weight on a human being or earthly thing, 

It will collapse. Don’t believe me? Try this.

Go up to your boyfriend/husband or even your friend and tell them your purpose, your security, your value, your destiny and your identity…it comes from them. WOAH. Heavy. Yeah let me know how that goes, they’ll probably start running before you get to the third item….but sweetheart, don’t we do this anyway? Sure maybe we don’t say it out loud, but when we get rejected, why does it cause us to question everything? When we fail why do we feel a little less worthwhile or beautiful? Why? I’ll tell you, even though I already gave you the spoiler alert….it’s because if we let the devil distract us, we will lose sight of the TRUE, SINGULAR, PREEMINENT AND EVERLASTING source. Yaweh.

HE and He alone, is our security. And our security comes from truly understanding the devoted love of our Creator. It depends on HIS faithfulness, not ours. The one thing that never changes is God and His love for us. It’s uncomplicated. Living loved means we have to really know who our Daddy is. Oh how He loves you sister.

Understanding God’s love for us is the answer to security and this is something we have to work at being rooted in each and every day by mediating on it constantly. There are six different tools that have helped me personally and I’m excited to share them with you!

1. Rewrite scripture over your life.

Journaling Ephesians 3:16-21 is a great place to start! Try rewriting it like this or in your own way:

Father, strengthen me with power in my inner being through Your Spirit. Dwell in my heart. I want to be rooted and firmly established in Your love. May I truly understand the depth of your love for I believe to know Your love that surpasses all understanding is the answer to being filled with Your fullness. I know that anything outside of You will always leave me empty. I know You are able to do above and beyond all that I can ask or think according to Your power at work in me, and to You be the glory forever and ever.

2. Ask Him to keep revealing His love to you.

We are surrounded by God’s love every minute of every day, don’t believe it? Breathe in. That breath you just took, that was a gift given, simply because Jesus thought the earth and his life would be sweeter with you in it. In Jeremiah 29:13, the Lord says, “You will seek Me and find Me when you seek Me with all your heart.” Simply ask Him to open the eyes of your heart to see what He wants you to see.

3. Ask Him what He loves about you.

One of my friends shared with me that she often asks the Lord to show her what He loves about her before she starts her quiet time and it inspired me to do the same! God is intimate and personal. Give Him the opportunity to show you how detailed He is.

 4. Write the alphabet of who God says you are

On a piece of paper write out the letters A-Z down the side. As you spend time with the Lord start filling in the page with words that describe who God says you are. For example, beside letter B, you can write “beloved”. I do this in the back of every new journal I start and fill it in as I spend time reading the Bible and come across new words.

5. Sticky note affirmations

I am a HUGE fan of this one. You can stick them to your mirrors, the dashboard, or even the computer screen! One of my favorites is: “I am peaceful, prosperous, stable and secure, healthy and healed.”

6. Gratitude journaling

This is basically like keeping track of God’s resume! Writing down what you’re thankful for each day and then looking back at all the moments God has shown up for you is the most comforting thing you may ever experience!

If insecurity is knocking at your door today, I want you to know you are not alone. I encourage you to choose at least one of these tools to implement into your everyday life. I’m confident you will be amazed at how much more anchored, rooted and secure you’ll become day after day as you start to understand God’s devoted love for you, sister.

Tayler is a personal trainer and founder of a mentorship program that integrates faith, fitness and well-being. Her purpose is to help women become TRULY fit by helping them understand who they are, Whose they are and that radiant beauty starts from within. She recently moved to Nashville, TN where she is fully embracing new friends, coffee shops, farmer’s markets and the best views for sunrises and sunsets.  

Follow Tayler on instagram @taylerjordanfit

From Ashes to Beauty

From Ashes to Beauty

Hey there!

My name is Gabrielle Wescoe. Most people call me Gab!  I am married to my best friend and have two beautiful boys that are 2 and 5 months old. I am a cancer survivor, and am a Holistic nutritionist. I live in a small town in PA. My favorite things are laughing, the color yellow, and anything that has cute bees or sunflowers!  I am known on instagram as Inspiring Honey. Ever since I was a little girl people have turned to me for inspiration and said I have so much joy. I laugh 90% of the time and can be pretty loud when I talk.

Without a doubt my life is filled with abundance of love, grace, and blessing. But I have also experienced a lot of pain and trials.

I do not know what you are going through or what you have gone through but I want to tell you this, God is working in your life. He is taking the pain and hurt you have had and will use it for his glory. He is a God of restoration and he is in the business of renewal.

I want to share how God has restored in me so that you can be challenged to look at what he has restored and is restoring in your life.

My story really began after I was diagnosed with cancer at the age of 10. I remember the day I was diagnosed so vividly. They didn’t know if I was going to live or have children. But God gave the verse Luke 8:50 to my family and we clung to it. Here I am today, 23 with two beautiful children and extremely healthy. Cancer put me through extreme physical pain for over two and a half years, but I have also walked through deep emotional pain. From losing friends and family to being bullied and getting in car accidents, family problems and getting pregnant before I was married, I have walked through situations that seemed hopeless. I have never doubted God’s plan but I have questioned my own ability to endure more.

On the outside I have always been able to come across happy and joyful, that’s just part of my bubbly personality. I always smile and laugh and enjoy life but I have scars not only physical but ones that are hidden on my heart. My husband and I joke that I am like an onion with a million layers and can easily be caused to cry!

Throughout everything I have seen and endured God has just been so loving to show me grace, redemption and forgiveness.  God has used so many people to  point me back to him and show me what it looks like to live fully for Christ. In my 23 years of life many have said that I am wise beyond my years and that is a combination of the trials I faced and what God has done in my heart but I know that wisdom does not come for me but true wisdom only comes from the Lord (Proverbs 2:6-8)

Throughout the bible we see so much redeemed by God and ultimately through Jesus on the cross. In our own life it can be challenging to see God working, but when we step back we realize how much he does everyday for us and how involved he is. Everything he does that moves us closer to him simply points us back to the cross. I have seen God restore the most broken and painful things. I have seen how God takes my pain and uses it for his purpose, he turns ashes into beauty.

I want to take time to tell you the lesson I learned and inspire to know:

No matter how painful of a situation or how hopeless you think it is, God has a plan and he will use it.

One of my favorite books in the bible is Esther. If you aren’t familiar with the story of Esther, it is a story of how God uses a Jewish woman and her uncle to protect the jewish people from an evil man who wanted to murder them. The main theme teaches us that God is always working even when we don’t see it or understand his plan. Throughout the story we are shown that God uses people for his purpose and even when we see no solution, he has a plan. Esther felt fear and did not know what God was going to do but she faced the situation, with bold faith and trusted he was working. She was obedient and bold in her faith. Instead of wallowing and moping in fear she boldly went in prayer and then action. Instead of letting her mountains stop her, she let God move her mountains.

I pray to become more like Esther when I face fear, to be obedient and bold and trusting of God’s plans. In this life we are promised there will be sadness and pain, but what a blessing it is to know we do not face it alone. It is not by our strength we are able to overcome, but by His alone. Whatever you are walking through, I challenge you to step out in faith, lay it at his feet, and trust his plans.

I don’t know what you have walked through or what you are going through, but I know there is purpose in it. I know that the pain you feel can be used for the glory of God. I know that no matter what you are going through you can give it to Jesus and trust him to restore. How have you seen God bring redemption and restoration in your life?

Follow Gabrielle on Instagram @inspiringhoney

The Cost of Abundance

The Cost of Abundance

One of the best pieces of advice that I have ever been given is this,

“God wouldn’t ask you to let go unless He had something far better in store.” That simple phrase has entirely changed the way I trust God for the better.

I challenge you to ask yourself these two questions:

  1. “Wouldn’t it be a tragedy to miss God’s best because I refused to release what He asked for in exchange?”
  2. “Wouldn’t it be heartbreaking to miss the fullness of what God has in store for my life because I settled for my own best?”

I have learned, through His grace alone (often in the midst of my chasing and wandering), that the most challenging yet rewarding decision we will ever make is to let go and trust Jesus wholeheartedly. It’s to give our lives to Him and to ask Him daily to have His way in and through us in all things. Life lived His way, all the way, is the best life we will ever live because it’s what we are made for. We, as creation, were made for our Creator. We are created in His image for His purpose and it’s not until we grab a hold of this truth and live by it that we will be fully satisfied. Fulfillment comes when we live it out.

Jesus shares in John 10:10 that He came that we might have life and life abundantly. Nothing compares to God’s best; for His best is abundance, and it’s found in Him alone.

Abundance defined is this – exceedingly, very highly, beyond measure, more, superfluous, a quantity so abundant as to be considerably more than what one would expect or anticipate. 

I’ve found myself praying this prayer often lately, “Jesus, show me what abundance looks like.” His answer is found woven throughout His Word.

1 Corinthians 2:9 says, “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him.”

In other words, God’s best is better than anything any of us could ever dream up on our own. If we trust that His Word is true, then this verse alone should move us to letting go of our own idea of satisfaction and adopting His. It should urge us to relinquish our best and grab hold of His.

The reality is, abundant life comes with a cost, the cost of surrender…but it is well worth what it requires of us. You cannot live a life of abundance without continually choosing surrender. Making that choice is worth whatever it may cost you because it means gaining more of Him. Gaining more of Jesus is worth whatever you have to release. Surrender is the choice; abundant living is the result.

Friend, don’t miss the fullness of His plan for you because you don’t want to release control into His hands. In the flesh, we often correlate our peace with knowing what comes next. In the Spirit, peace is simply knowing Him.

If you don’t live a biblical definition of abundant life, culture will try to define it for you.

According to culture, and even our own flesh, we have to have so many things to be fulfilled; money, success, marriage, followers, fame… the list goes on and on. According to God’s Word, we only have to have one thing to be satisfied – Him. He is the treasure. We will either spend our lives chasing fulfillment or we will receive what we can find in Him alone and simply follow His lead. We will spend our lives striving and never being satisfied or resting in Him, and being filled to overflowing. We either spend our time on earth building worldly kingdoms which will fade away, or we will live for an eternal, everlasting Kingdom.

We will never find true joy and fulfillment living for the things that break God’s heart or distract us from what He has called us to. We have to be bold enough to pray, “Lord break my heart for what breaks yours, even if it’s WITHIN ME.” We have to be willing to redefine our idea of fulfillment using the truth of His Word as our guide.

We’re complete when we live for His glory, not our own – or anyone else’s.

Take it from someone who has tried to find her satisfaction from a worldly perspective – Worldly “abundance” will leave you empty again and again, because it’s not true abundance.

You can lose every worldly thing and still be living in abundance. Isn’t that powerful?

Abundance is this – laying down our lives, picking up our cross, and following Jesus. It’s laying down our own plan/agenda in order to step into all that He has for us – for HIS glory.

As we follow Him, we get to experience the incredible joy of introducing others to Him. We get to be the light of the world. We get to represent Him and see lives forever changed, hearts restored, and freedom experienced. We get to see the dead come to life and the ruins redeemed through His power alone.

Abundance is contagious, and He came that we would live it. I pray that we choose to live it!

Let’s be the ones who choose the everlasting.

Let’s be the ones who place our hope in the eternal and not what fades away.

Let’s be the ones who experience the fullness of His goodness.

Let’s be the ones who walk in freedom by choosing surrender & releasing our grip.

Let’s be the ones who invite Him to have His way in us moment by moment.

Let’s be the ones who live for His glory.

Let’s be the ones who see ourselves and others the way He does.

Let’s be the ones who refuse to chase fulfillment and remain empty, but receive Jesus and remain fully satisfied in Him alone.

Let’s be the ones whose lives reflect the overflow of our time spent with Him.

Let’s be the ones who stand on truth.

Let’s be the ones who radiate His love.

Let’s be the ones who make Him the center of it all.

Let’s be the ones who define fulfillment through His Word by recognizing knowing Him and furthering His Kingdom as the ultimate reward.

Let’s be the ones who live with open hands and ready hearts. Let’s be the ones who say yes to Him wherever and whenever He calls us.

We won’t always get it right, and He knows that. His grace is extended through our weakness again and again. And through His grace, His strength is revealed. We will fall short, and He will forgive. He sees our heart’s desire to honor Him, even when we miss it. He is a faithful Father and friend.

Let’s live in the light of His abundance and radiate His love to a hurting world– One step of obedience after another. I don’t know about you but I don’t want to settle for less than the abundance He came that I might have. I want to live my earthly days to the fullest for the Kingdom of Heaven.

THIS is living – all for His glory and I promise you, it is worth whatever the cost.

Amen.

“But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” ‭‭Philippians‬ ‭3:7-14‬ /  ‭ESV‬‬

Maddie is a writer, speaker, and young adult ministry leader in St. Louis, MO. Her greatest desire is to point people to Jesus and to see lives transformed by His love and the truth of His word. Some of her favorite things in life are journaling, coffee shops, thrift shopping, rainy days, & championing/celebrating people. She is looking forward to getting married to her fiancé, Isaiah, in October!

You can connect with Maddie on the LO sister app or @maddiee_joy on Instagram

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