It's a masterpiece to Him

I am convinced He likes it when I get to the point where I know it seems impossible, where I realize I cannot do it anymore, to the place where I want to give up or give in. It's usually at those times when I get me out of the way and let Him do His thing. Oh how I wish He would hurry up and do His thing.....I'm tired and I'm worn out mentally. I know the lesson He has decided I will learn this year is that I'm in charge of me and what others do is not of my concern. Not an easy task.....it still bothers me when I work as hard as I do and others get away with doing very little. I have to let go that what they do they are responsible for, I am in charge of how I respond. I am in charge of making sure I don't get frustrated, don't worry, and don't let it overwhelm me. Honesty check: THIS is IMPOSSIBLE without God. That's why the enemy throws it at you. That's why the enemy does everything He can to mess you up and cause you to feel stressed, worried, and overwhelmed. The enemy is smart, he knows just where your weaknesses are....and TRUST me he will push those buttons. When you know who you are in Christ and how God looks at you, it makes the devil MAD. When he gets MAD, he comes looking for you and tries to mess you up.

So that being said....I will pass this test, but it is going to take one hour at a time, one minute at a time, relying on Him to tell me when to speak and to tell me when to keep my mouth shut. It's Him to tell me how to walk and when to run. It's all apart of the journey. The less days you spend running forward and not sitting still, the closer you are getting to looking in the mirror and seeing Him not you.

To you it looks like a jumbled mess, to Him it is a masterpiece. You see He is the same One that slept through the storm and whispered to it to be still. None of this is too big for God.....He can handle it all because to Him nothing is too big or hard. The quicker we realize that, the better off we will be. God doesn't see what you do, He sees who you are. He doesn't think you have made a mess out of things, He has the puzzle lid and knows just where every piece fits.

So step out of the way and let Him do His thing. After all, you are doing what He has called you to do, now let Him do His part. He can do what you can't, He just needs you to let Him.

Until next time readers,
~Melissa

Blogs still to come on The Light switch and Content

Who's got your stress?

I'm going to be perfectly honest tonight...Today is the first day all year, when  I have eaten my way through the entire day. I used food as a reward for handling the stress, for keeping my mouth shut, for just doing what I was supposed to regardless. I can honestly say it doesn't feel good at the end of the day(especially not after watching The Biggest Loser). Food is not the answer, yes it made me feel good at the moment, but the moment didn't last. Pretty sure I'm not the only one who has lost that battle on any given day.

Stress is not from God, but after the last couple of weeks I have decided He can use it if we will let Him. Think about it for a minute.....Stress can be the thing that pushes us to change, stress can be what He uses to show us what really is on the inside(good or bad), stress can be the force that makes us dig our heels in and just stand. Stress can be the sand paper, He uses to smooth off our rough edges. It all depends on who has your stress? Stress is going to happen, it's the world we live in. It is what we do with the stress that determines who has our stress. Today for me, food had my stress(which meant I had it). Tonight, He has my stress...because I have slowed down long enough to give it to Him.  Lesson learned...hope so, but knowing God, pretty sure I'll get to retake the test so He can make sure I've learned it.

Different kind of blog tonight, but that's been my day. Is He finished writing this, probably not?

Surround yourself with those that love you for you. Believe in yourself, it makes the days when others don't easier to get through. Know what He says about you, and push through until you see it happen! If He promised you, it will come to pass!! Just wait on His timing ;-)  Remember those moments when He has shown out in your life, and know the best is still to come! Don't let the opinions of the masses cause you to forget about the One.


More blogs to come that are deeper and more focused, but this is me tonight. Even if it was just for me ;-)
Until next time,
~Melissa

Discouraged or determined

Okay so God had pretty much already had this talk with me on the way home....then Joyce Meyer's latest tweet just kind of nailed it in. So this is another short and sweet blog, but has some meaning ;-)

Looked at the mountain again today and had a choice to make. Am I going to continue heading down and end this 40 year journey or am I going back up and around the mountain again? I'm going to admit and be perfectly honest....it took AWHILE(okay so all day) to realize I didn't really want to go back up the mountain again. Let's face it, my flesh was hot today and I was ill. I was tired of a lot of things and wanted nothing more than to speak my peace. WELL.....some people heard the peace...but mainly cause I needed someone to listen. I was headed home still thinking about my soapbox and all of a sudden a sense of determination hit. It was one of those, let's go past the "extra" mile. It was a sense of, let's give it 150% instead of just 110% and see what happens. Sometimes when you think you have given it all you have, He tells you to go another mile...but this time He's doing the heavy lifting.

You can't control what happens to you, what other people do etc. Might as well give up trying now and settle in with just trying to take care of you. So when someone does something to you/says something etc. (and it's not an if, it is a when situation)....you have a choice to make. Joyce Meyer would say to be pitiful or powerful....my words are discouraged or determined. You can let what happen get you down or you can decide to let it drive you to that extra mile. (Word of caution....the extra mile is only extra if you let Him take you there). Discouragement only hurts you.

So stand up tall, smile, and remember He's got your back sweet princess! In due time you will shine to others like He sees you now ;-)

Until next time
~Melissa

Still on the journey....

The journey is getting closer to 11 days, but it is a process. Sometimes God doesn't move/change the situation because He wants to change/move us. He doesn't give us what we ask for because sometimes He wants us to realize He really does know best....even though we can't see it just yet. I told Him this afternoon His "this" keeps getting bigger...sure am thankful He doesn't mind ;-)


Take away from today(somebody besides me needs this reminder): Regardless of how you feel in the moment...God knows your heart!! He's not looking for things to always go perfectly, He is looking for you to rely on His strength and realize you can't do it on your own. Each day is more than any of us can handle without His grace. I have learned a new appreciation for the verse in Matthew about borrowing trouble from tomorrow. God knows what you can handle in each day....focus on that and trust Him for tomorrow's grace then. Have a Plan B, but realize God's plan is always Plan A.


Trust without seeing the next step is faith. Faith is more than saying you believe God's got it, it's walking it out regardless of what the day throws at you. It's staying off the soapbox, not letting the stress cause tears, and enjoying some well deserved chocolate ;-) .

More to come soon.....I promise....
~Melissa

He gave you your talents and gifts for a reason. He thinks you are pretty special and loves you just the way you are!! Don't let anyone put a lid or bury what God gave you! He has a job and a call only you can do. Stay close and listen to what He tells you about it....focus on His words.

An 11 day journey

Last night I had the most intense discussion with God that I have had in awhile. Let's just say I listened more than I talked and it was deep. I'm not going to get the details on the blog, that's between me and Him, but I wanted to challenge you the way He challenged me.

What kind of journey are you on that's taking longer than it should? What are you doing now that should have only taken 11 days, but instead you have spent 40 years going around and around the same mountain. (Let me stop here and say if you are unfamiliar with the story of the Israelites, that's what I am referring to right now. Their journey to the Promise Land should have only taken 11 days, but because of their choices their journey took 40 years).

Our choices(words/actions) can turn our journey into 40 years instead of 11 days. Hear me now, God's plans are always for our good and not to harm us, but sometimes our choices determine how long we stay still(in other words how long we stay in one season).

Are you standing on the verge of a new season? The choice is yours whether you walk into that season or whether you continue to go around that same mountain. What journey are you on that should have only taken you 11 days, but it is seeming to go on forever? Ask God to show you what is holding you back, trust me He will. Then the choice is up to you, are you going to do what He says or let fear keep you on your 40 day journey?


There will be more to this later on, I'm sure. For now though, I have some choices to make, some walking to do.

Until next time,
~Melissa

**Hope this makes sense ;-)

The Waiting Place

God help me, but only He knows how I'm going to survive the next four months. The past two days especially have been diamond making days. I asked God on the way home, please tell me there is a blog in this. I'm frustrated and mad at myself for letting it get to this point. I'm frustrated because I feel like I am spinning my wheels at times. I'm frustrated because I'm impatient. That last one is the one that sums up the others. See God and I have had long talks already about who I am in Him, what His plans are, and some of my dreams. He knows my heart and He knows what I can do.  Now the hard part comes in, reminding my heart when the enemy throws discouragement and frustration in my face what I can do and who I am. I'm going to be really honest right now, if you let what other people say about you and how they treat you cloud your view of who you are and how you see yourself, then the enemy has won. Keeping my focus has been a struggle today, but I should have realized yesterday this test wasn't going anywhere. See God is such a patient teacher, that He will give His students(aka His kids) plenty of chances to retake until we pass it. Well I'm tired of retaking, so it's time to stay focused and pass. Will I see this test again? Yep and probably next week...apparently God's ready for me to pass it now and I am too. I'm tired of feeling frustrated and letting discouragement be my focus. Things will not always go as planned, but reacting His way will keep you in His plan.


I wish I could say that after passing the test, the material wouldn't be presented again, but it will. It's not that it gets easier, it's that you get stronger with each test passed. Now why is this blog titled The Waiting Place? How many times do you know the dreams God has placed in your heart, but you stand waiting for them to come to pass? Dreams that you know you are supposed to walk out, a call that only you can do, but you don't see how it is all going to come to pass. I've realized those moments can be exciting, simply because it means God is fixing to show out and do what only He can do. The waiting place is where you learn patience(not an easy lesson!!). The waiting place is where you learn His timing has nothing to do with yours. The waiting place is where you learn to trust His timing and know that if He still has you where you are, the season isn't over yet. As long as you are willing to move when He says too, you'll know when it's time to.

Dreams are a part of you for a reason, don't let anyone take that away. God has given each person talents and gifts. He is using this waiting season to develop those talents and gifts by developing the fruits of the Spirit. You are a unique individual and He knows that. He has a reason why you are where you are, learn it and just cooperate. You'll retake the test until you pass anyway.

Different kind of blog I know, but the past two days have been diamond making days. Days when I'm just thankful to know God's got it, because my feelings want to explode, cry, and stand up for myself. Change what you can, and then let go of the rest and leave it in  His hands.

As much as I want this season to pass because I am so ready to pass the test and move on, I realize that this season is making diamonds, it's sandpaper smoothing out the rough edges. It's a cookie cutter taking off the excess so to speak.

The best advice He has given me thus far, "know who I say you are, do what you can do, take care of you, and let me handle the rest."

Until next time,
~Melissa

The real Me

Who is it you see when you look in the mirror? Which me do you see?

You may be reading that thinking, what is she talking about, but stay with me. How many times do we let the me that others want us to be crowd out the me God designed for us to be?  That is a question, I took to long to find the answer too. Only when I found the answer, did I realize it has been there all along, sometimes we just don't want to see it. We have gone on a search for our talents and gifts, only to find that we are the ones who buried them. We listen to what others have planned for us, we say yes to too much only because we want to make someone else happy, and we run around doing way too much and none of it well.

We have become good at hiding behind the mask and becoming the me that others want us to be, but at the same time inside we are stressed, lack focus, and just down right not happy. In short we are busy, not fruitful. Life is not about only doing for yourself, that is not how God planned it, BUT...he also didn't plan for us to run around doing way too much and taking care of everyone but ourselves. He never planned for us to see the gift He has given us, open it up and look at it, and then take and bury it to fit into someone else's box. God gave each one of us talents, gifts, and abilities that only we can do. There are steps only we can take, a voice only we can have, and a difference only we can make. That in short is what Jeremiah 29:11 says. It says His plans, purpose are for our good and not to harm us, that means the steps He planned for us to take, not the ones someone else laid out. (Think about that for a minute). We get ourselves in a lot of trouble by playing the people pleasing roll and forgetting about pleasing God. We work hard at stepping where others have laid out for us, having the voice they tell us to have, and making the difference they want to see us make. We forget about the me He created us to be.

I wish I could tell you I'm completely on the other side of this question, but I'm not just yet. I am however a LOT closer to where I should be than where I used to be. I still have days when I fail miserably at this. Days when I compare myself with others way too much, when I let what someone else thinks be the words I play back in my head over and over, when I follow someone else's plan instead of listening to my own heart, days when I just go with the flow. In the world we live in today, Christians have spent too long going with the flow and we need to get off of the fence. God has things planned that only you can do, people that only you can reach, mountains that only you can move....if you aren't doing it, then who is? Rest assure God's plan will always prevail, so if you wait too long, you may miss out on something.

In the parable of the talents, the one that went and buried his talent was worried what his master would think, so he wanted to play it safe. The other went and found a way to make a difference and invested the talent. What have you done with your talents/gifts today? (Think about that really...are you playing the part that someone else has designed for you or the one He has?). Look at your schedule, weed out what isn't bearing fruit, and allow God to put in some things that only you were meant to do. If you stay so busy doing only good things, you'll never be able to do God things.

One last point/thing, quit apologizing for who you are. I think we hurt God's feelings when we look at our weaknesses/flaws as something being wrong with us. He made us just the way we are, strengths and weaknesses the same. If we were nothing but strengths, how would we ever get to see God show out? Quit thinking your weakness is your fault and instead give it to Him and ask for His help. Trust me, it's a mountain He can move.

On those days when you can't see the you He made you to be, those days when the world has told you over and over again what they think of you(and trust me the devil will push repeat on those comments if you let him), on those days when  you just want to cry.....run to His lap and let the tears fall. Let Him push delete on what the world has said and remind you what He says.

Walk into 2013 being the you He made you to be! The world needs the you that only you can be.

Until next time,
Melissa