Incomparable

Sometimes, I think I forget I serve a big God. I serve a God who created the heavens and the earth. I serve a God who created the land and the sea and everything in it. I serve a God who sits high and looks low. I serve a God that cares about every grain of sand and every nerve ending. I serve a God who made microscopic organisms and mammoths. It’s all about perspective. I serve the same God who was, is, and is to come. Nothing had taken God by surprise, not this virus, pandemic or even our response to it. So, either I am going to trust God or not. My life and times are in his hands. So, come what may. I still serve an incomparable God that’s still in control.

Broken being built

In my experience, God rarely uses things in a traditional sense. He uses pain to bless. He uses turmoil to elevate. He uses detours to direct. Why wouldn’t he use brokenness to build us? I’ve learned more about myself and God in isolation than any church pews. I’ve gained wisdom and insight through heartache that I never learned in any classroom. What lesson is God trying to teach you? Have you ever thought that maybe you’re broken being built?

Be Amazing

What was in God's mind when he created you? What words did He speak to create you? When you look in the mirror do you speak the words to yourself? Do you call yourself wonderful? Do you call yourself a prophet to the nations? See yourself the way God intended. Be beautiful. Be creative. Be amazing. 

 Jeremiah 1:5(NIV) “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”

I Am

We write affirmations in my house. I always tell the girls in addition to whatever they write to include "I am" statements. I tell them don't worry about if they aren't currently true because they will be. I understand that faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. I understand that words have the power to create our reality. I understand that generations before me spoke my freedom, my literacy, my liberty, and my ability to thrive and survive. I am because they were. I am because God created me. There is power in the great "I am" and there is power in knowing "I am."

Glory

“A woman in her glory, a woman of beauty, is a woman who is not striving to become beautiful or worthy or enough. She knows in her quiet center where God dwells that he find her beautiful, has deemed her worthy, and in him, she is enough."- John Eldredge
 

You are enough. I don't know when we stop believing those words. I don't know if somehow we forgot that we were fearfully and wonderfully made. Maybe we got lost in the weight we gained. Maybe we got lost in the dreams we forgot. Maybe we got lost in all the titles. Maybe we got lost when we changed our name. Maybe we got lost when the plans changed. We are enough. We are beautiful just the way we are. We are worthy. We are glorious. We are his creation. We are his glory.

Workmanship

I've always enjoyed hearing creation stories from all around the world. Some are a bit far fetched, but amusing nonetheless. I've always imagined God as a Master Craftsman. The human body is a marvel. The brain, the blood vessels, the heart, the lymph nodes all working together to ensure we function properly. I stand in awe of the clouds and the stars and the planets. Our sun and our moon co-exist in our sky. Creation is God's workmanship. It is meticulous and beautiful. It is specific in its design and function. It is engineered in excellence and has lasted several millennia despite our efforts to destroy it. It is nothing short of amazing. We are a spectacle. We are a wonder because we are God's workmanship.

Niche

Sometimes, it is hard to find your place in this world. You may know what you don't like. You may not be able to narrow down what you do like. You may be indifferent about some things, and completely neutral about others. Ask yourself, "what would you do for free?" "Is someone else doing that?" "Is there a way for you to do it better?" Sometimes, it's not about doing something different. Sometimes, it's about doing it better. Think about how many burger spots and pizza joints there are in your neighborhood. Pizza isn't just pizza. Papa John's is different from Domino's. Pizza Hut is different from Godfather's. Just like McDonald's is different from Burger King, but they all sell burgers and fries. "Identify your niche and dominate it. And when I say dominate, I just mean work harder than anyone else could possibly work at it."- Nate Parker