Tag: mood

Acting Like It

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The righteous will rejoice in the Lord and take refuge in him; all the upright in heart will glory in him! Psalm 64:10

Do you ever observe your life as an actor?

Maybe the phrase “fake it til you make it” comes to mind?

I’m not talking about times when you’re genuinely smiling.

Like really enjoying life.

Because that’s when it’s as easy as falling off a log to act happy. Because you are.

But what about the times when you’re not?

Can you choose joy even when you’d rather be anywhere else?

Can you choose love even when you feel anything but?

Yep. Know why? Because God’s strength in you is bigger than your weakness.

Bigger than the flesh that covers you.

Picture yourself in a situation where you really should be nice to someone undeserving.

Approach it as an actor would in their starring role. You can do it, I promise.

And after your performance, you might even feel a bit happier, too.

Yes, we must not pretend everything is always hunky dory.

Yes, we must not let horrible people run over our lives.

But generally in life, if you are needing to keep that fresh face forward, act like it.

Often removing yourself and becoming a happier version keeps relationships humming.

And before you know it, God may help your happy mood become your genuine reaction.

Until then, ask God to fill you with His strength, and jump into that loving actor self.

And give yourself an Oscar! I’ll applaud you!

Now you’re smiling!

Photos by Jon Tyson, Avel Chuklanov, & Nick Fewings on Unsplash

Known

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Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. 1 John 4:8

God sees you when you’re ill.

When you’re a lump buried under blankets on the couch, hacking loudly.

God sees you when you’re healthy.

At the top of your game, running this way and that at full speed.

God sees you when you’re sad.

He sits with you, drying your tears with His hand on your shoulder.

God sees you when you’re happy.

He smiles when you break out into hearty laughter, filling the room with joy.

God sees you when you’re afraid.

He walks beside you, covering you with His protection.

God sees you when you’re fearless.

He stands beside you, shielding you from the enemy’s fire.

God sees you every moment of every day.

He sees you in every mood, whim, feeling, or ability.

While we tend to fluctuate wildly, God never does.

His steady hand is always there to bring you peace.

To bring you His peace, strength, and hope.

Healing you when you’re less than and rejoicing with you when you’re good.

Nothing we can do is away from His sight.

How precious it is to be known by God.

Photos by Daiga Ellaby, Travis Grossen, chen lei, & David Beale on Unsplash

Measuring Life

Published on by amylinnea2 Comments

Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, whom we acknowledge as our apostle and high priest. Hebrews 3:1

What do you measure your life with?

The yardstick of worldly success, fame, or money?

The ruler of putting yourself first?

Counting your possessions, 401k statement or stock market?

Or just God?

When we measure our life, we decide how happy we are or not.

How content we are, how peaceful, or fearful we have become.

Your focus equals your measuring stick.

What you focus on helps determine your level of contentment.

Take your family for example. They are needy, sometimes too much so, and you find yourself in a bad mood with the work load.

You are focusing on what you are unable to do at that moment while stuck helping others.

Focus instead on God and what He has you doing at this moment. Make your work an offering to Him.

Changes your mood.

God must be our first focus, our second, our third, and on and on it goes.

When you change your perspective, your measuring stick disappears.

When you focus on knowing God is always with you, walking beside you every moment, life suddenly brightens.

Remembering your inclusion into the family of God Himself yields the ultimate acceptance.

You don’t need the world’s love. It’s fleeting anyway.

God allows us wonderful times here on earth, but when you focus on those, disappointment is right around the corner.

Focus on God and His love for you.

When you put Him first in all things, you’ll begin to depend upon Him more and more.

And that, my friends, is the best life ever.

Photos by Diana Polekhina, Elisa Michelet, Roberto Sorin, & Annie Spratt on Unsplash

Horribly Disappointed

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Return to your stronghold, O prisoners of hope; today I declare that I will restore to you double. Zechariah 9:12

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When you are horribly disappointed at something in life…

When there is not a thing you can do about it…

What then?

What is your response?

Wallow in self pity, relishing the mood of despair hanging over your head?

While that might be fun for a moment, it will send your mood straight into the toilet.

There is a better way.

I like to make a list.

A list of my blessings.

I try to keep it updated, but I admit, I do a horrid job at best.

Alternatively, you can also compare your bleak disappointment to something even worse.

That definitely puts things into perspective.

 The point is this: switch your focus to the precious things God has given you.

Like that list of blessings we all should have somewhere.

Or encouragement whispered to you from your dear friend or spouse.

Because, when you focus on the blessings instead of the disappointment, you will pass God’s test with flying colors.

And your mood will stay out of the toilet.

In fact, you’ll be quite pleasant.

Respond to life with grace.

Your example will be a stepping stone to God Himself.

A stepping stone to God instead of a stumbling block to Satan.

So, what will your next disappointment turn into…?

Life, or death?

Photos by Casey Fyfe & Matthew Smith on Unsplash

Posters

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Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will. Romans 12:2

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Satan loves to tell us lies.

The lies are not only whispered into our heads, but held up as posters.

The posters are so large, we cannot help but see the words that pull us into believing.

You are so ridiculous.

You are not loved.

Nobody cares.

You are such a disappointment.

Why does Satan love to feed us lies?

So we feel defeated.

Walking around ineffective.

Useless to the cause of Christ.

The posters he shows us are lies.

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Why does he keep going, trying to change our course?

Because he’s scared.

He knows WHOSE we are.

He knows we KNOW the truth.

But will we act on it?

Will we act on the truth deep down we know is right?

Or will we succumb to his lies?

Will we succumb to the lies from the pit that were made to render us lifeless?

The ultimate choice is yours.

Are you going to make the evil one win with you today?

Or will you rise up and tear the posters in half, declaring, “Not today, Satan!”

Declaring to all instead, “It is well!”

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Photos by Victoria Palacios, Mitchel Lensink, & Corinne Kutz on Unsplash

Lies

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He (the devil) was a murderer from the beginning. He has always hated the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, it is consistent with his character; for he is a liar and the father of lies. John 8:44

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How dare we believe the lies of who we are instead of the truth declared from God’s lips.

How dare we.

Yet we do.

We listen to the lies in our head deeming us inferior, sub par, and unlovable.

Rejected.

How is it we allow these lies to not only live in our heads, but listen and then also believe them?

And when we believe them, we act on them.

We walk around defeated.

We become the lies.

We become unlovable and reject-able because of our walls.

Why do we stoop to these lows?

Because at our core, we do not believe God.

We do not believe God’s truth about us.

We do not believe He really loves us with His whole heart.

We do not believe we were worth dying for.

Ouch.

If we do not immediately reject and bury the lie whispered in our head, it becomes cemented into our brain.

We begin to treat the lie as fact.

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Listen instead to the truth.

God created you for love.

His love.

Relationship with the One True God.

He gave you life.

He chose you.

Live like that matters.

Live like He died only for you.

Live like the Creator of the universe longs to hang out with you.

When you place your trust in God, His heartbeat pulses in you.

And His heartbeat is full of truth.

Lies are dispersed.

Walls are broken.

Choose to believe.

Believe the heartbeat of God.

And dare those lies to leave.

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Photos by Ben White on Unsplash

Not My Monkey

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Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me – put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you. Philippians 4:9

Not my monkey,

Not my circus.

Love that.

Means- it’s not my problem, said in an extremely funny way.

Whatever it is that threatens to pull me down….

Whatever it is that seeks to destroy my peace…

Whatever it is that begs to steal my joy…

It’s not my monkey, not my circus.

It’s not my issue, so I will not care.

I will choose to focus on God while I throw yet another issue at His feet.

The problems I think exist are not mine.

They are God’s.

My irritations I think plague me are not mine.

They are God’s.

They are God’s when I choose to fling them back to Him.

When I decide they are not my monkey, not my circus.

When I first discovered this phrase (thanks, mom!), I applied it only to things beyond my control.

Things that literally should not involve me, but genuinely bothered me.

After awhile, I began to realize this phrase covers really everything.

Everything that takes my peace.

Why?

Because God is in control.

I am not.

When we choose to rely on God and submit daily to Him, we rest in the knowledge that He alone holds our future in His hands.

And when He holds us and our future, we can stay in peace.

And peace evaporates when either a monkey or a circus intrude, wrecking havoc.

So, I began to repeat that phrase whenever I became irritated.

Irritated at whatever life threw me.

Because I trust God fully, He is in control.

And when He is in control, I am in peace.

This life is not my monkey, not my circus.

It’s God’s.

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Prickles

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Whoever is slow to anger has great understanding, but he who has a hasty temper exalts folly. Proverbs 14:29

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How often do your prickles erupt?

Once in awhile?

When life really goes to pot?

When you’ve finally had enough?

Or too, too often….?

Prickles are easy to spot.

In fact, one can feel them rising to the surface.

They’re ugly.

Painful to others.

And frankly to yourself as well.

They put a barrier between you and the world.

It’s normal to get upset-

Just make sure it’s godly.

What?

Treat little annoyances like water off a duck’s back.

They simply don’t move you.

And when your children need your quick firm stand, be as a gentle bear they cannot move. 

If you react instead to life as someone who quickly sprays quills, you’ll be one of those people.

People who need lots of space for whatever mood they happen to jump into.

And you don’t want that.

To be so unpredictable.

People are scared of porcupines, because their prickles can erupt in an instant.

Don’t be prickly.

Be a quiet gentle giant, standing firm when you must, predictable to life.

You can’t often control your circumstances, but you can always control your reaction.

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Photo by matthew Feeney on Unsplash