Tag: Hope

This blog week we have been talking about freedom, how the Lord died so that we could have it and some of the things that are keeping us from it. On Tuesday I touched on toxic relationships and unhealthy environments. Yesterday I scratched the surface on distractions. Today, we will be talking about our thoughts.

Could it be that the way we think is keeping us from living life freely as the Lord intended?  I believe it is more times than not. While there are unfortunately times when people are held against their will, we ultimately choose to be in the relationships/environments that we are in and what distractions we will give our attention to. See, everything we do or choose not to do, starts in our minds with a thought which leads to an action or the lack there of.

In Romans 12:2 the word says, “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. How do we do that? By regularly making time to read Gods word. Why? Because when we do we equip ourselves with truth which leads to freedom. Let me give you an example of this. For me, one of the things that I have battled with since my childhood is poor body image. I have allowed this one thing to keep me bound from living the life that I now know the Lord intended for me to live. It is a mere opinion of myself….not fact . It is a thought that I created in my mind as a young child that I carried into my adult life that is based on things that I was told and believed to be true .  Yet, they were all lies. The real truth is, I, like you, are  beautifully and wonderfully made. The Word reminds us of this in Psalm 139:14.

The things is we have to read the Lords word, know the Lords word and apply the Lords word in order to see just how powerful it is. That is, to be set free from the thoughts that are taking up space in our minds that do not align with the truth. The question is, are you willing to invest the time it will take to do so? I really hope the answer is yes, if only for a few minutes each day. For I believe that by doing so, we will be set free and able to live the life that we were destined to live!

Thank you guys for joining me her this blog week. I’ll plan on meeting you her again on Monday and on Facebook until then. Sweet dreams to you all!!!

Warmest regards,

Salina Watson

 

Have you ever noticed just how many things are fighting for your attention throughout your day? From your phone, to the news, and those surrounding you, everything and everyone seems to be saying, “hey, look at me”. It’s almost like they have little magnets on them and are fearlessly drawing us in. Well, each time we surrender to those things and give them our attention, we are essentially allowing them to control us. For the word says in 2 Peter 2:19 (NLT) – “You are a slave to whatever controls you.” And in case you didn’t know, things like “control” and “slavery” are the complete opposite of freedom. My friends, freedom is what we are all striving for here, right? I mean, the Lord did lay down his life so that we could have it.

So, here is what you need to be reminded of today….YOU DO NOT HAVE TO GIVE ATTENTION TO EVERYTHING! No, you can choose what you give your attention to and when you do it. You do not have to answer every phone call &/or email. But if you choose to do so, you can also choose to do it when you are able. Those annoying commercials that seem to be crowding the air waves with an agenda to convince you that you need the latest greatest gadget…TURN THEM OFF! And the people that are begging for you time for mere personal gain, politely say, “no thanks”. Friends, we do not have to be a part of everything, nor should we.

The Word reminds us in John 10:10 – the thief comes to steal, kill and destroy. I believe  one of the ways he does that is by attempting to distract us with the day to day things. He knows that the Lord has a plan and a purpose for each one of us that if fulfilled will build the Lords kingdom and bring Glory to his name. By diverting our attention, we have less, if any, time to give to the plan. We have to get to a place where we truly understand the depth of our purpose in this life…our mission! We have an assignment to do that only we are able to do, the way we were created to do it! That said, we must learn to observe from a distance all of the many things that are in pursuit of our attention and only give in to those things that are in alignment with our purpose. We must break free from distractions!!!

So, is there something or some things that are distracting you from the life that you know you were designed to live? They are easy to detect,  because they generally frustrate you, make you anxious, take up your time, space &/or resources and rob you of joy, peace and love. If the answer is yes,  I’m going to challenge you to begin by taking note of these things. As your vision of them becomes clearer you and your mind becomes more aware of them, you will be able to break free from of them. Are you in? I sure hope so!!!

Thank you guys for joining me this Wednesday morning! Lets plan on meeting here again tomorrow to wrap up the blog week and on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/thefaithfilledtraveler/ ) until then! Make it great day!

 

Warmest regards,

Salina Watson

 

 

 

Recently my son, Montana and I were driving in the car together. While in deep conversation about life, a black bird in the distance caught my attention. It prompted me to ask him the following question, “what comes to mind when you think of a bird”? He answered, “freedom”. This obviously lead to my next question, “what about it makes you think of freedom”? His response, “the fact that they can fly anywhere”.  At this point in our conversation it was clear that the Lord was teaching me a lesson and that he was using my 18 year old son and a bird to do it.

See like a bird in the sky, the Lord has given each of us the gift of freedom. We are free to “fly” anywhere we choose. Unfortunately, more times than not, we forgo the gift by staying in places that we know are not healthy for us and that are not serving us in anyway. Examples of this would be toxic relationships and environments that are draining every ounce of our energy. Instead of being free like a bird in his natural habit, we are bound like those that are encaged. My friends, the good news is that this is not what the Lord intended for us! No, he did not die on the cross for you and I to be bound in anyway. He died so that we could be free !.

Galatians 5:1 reminds us of this – IT IS FOR FREEDOM THAT CHRIST HAS SET US FREE. STAND FIRM, THEN, AND DO NOT LET YOURSELVES BE BURDENED AGAIN BY A YOKE OF SLAVERY. In this case,  this means that we are not bound to our environments. If they are causing us more harm than good and are keeping us from living the life that the Lord intended for us to live, we are free to “fly”. See, not only does the Lord want us to live a rich and satisfying life, he has a mission for each of us to uniquely make this world a better place. We cannot have or do that if we are bound to environments that do not align with his mission for our lives.

So, is there an environment that you currently find yourself in that you know is not healthy for you to be in? Is it causing you more harm than good? Perhaps it’s time for you to be honest with yourself and consider breaking free. By doing so, a weight that you were never meant to carry will be lifted and you will finally receive the gift that has been yours all along.

Thank you for spending part of your day with me! Let’s plan on meeting here again in the morning. Have a wonderful Tuesday, my friends!

 

Warmest regards,

Salina Watson