Love Never Fails

As I sit here ready to wrap up a long day I’m reminded of this very thing:

God’s love is always constant.

He never runs out…..

Constantly He stands ready to pour into us the amazing amount of love that He has.

To understand God’s love is to know Him because He is love!

He disciplines us because He loves us.

He restores us because He loves us.

He sent His son to this earth because He loves us.

His Son gave the ultimate sacrifice….himself, because He loves us.

So, if God’s love is constant, what then should we who have Christ in our hearts be?

Constant.

Constant in His love!

We were made in His image. When people see us they should see unfailing love because they see Him.

Sometimes I have to check myself at the door and remember that it’s not about me, it’s about Him.

We walk so far into this journey of Christianity… We take what we need… But at some point we must realize it’s about Him and what He will do through us.

If everything we do is constantly centered around love, then constantly we will pursue a closer walk with God.

It’s about love. And His love NEVER fails.

Love People

Good workout today! Some days are harder than others to wake up. Lol. Today was one of those mornings. I had a late night last night as I was trying to get some things done. So my normal bedtime didn’t happen. Grateful I still got up and got everything done.

I completed a full body circuit today from my #becomingextraordinary trainer. I enjoy doing circuits from time to time. I do higher reps when I do them. I get exhausted mentally with higher reps so it’s good for me to visit them on occasion.

Today, I truly pray that we all begin to realize the power of #love. There is so much hatred in the world. God calls us to something better, something higher…. Something that can truly change lives. He calls us to love others. Specifically he says, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, Mind, Soul and Strength. Then,  love your neighbor as yourself.”

Jesus demonstrated this love by giving His life for each of us. It’s overwhelming when you can actually process that and begin to believe that you are worth it. Slowly I’ve come to that realization. I matter and I’m worth it! So are you!

Today, let’s take that love and do something good with it….. Love other people!

Be blessed!

Get up! Get Dressed!

I am mindful of this one thing: God is always present.

He never removes himself from us. We remove ourself from Him.

This world is full of so much distress. The world offers plenty of distractions. Now more than ever it is critical for us to stay close to the very one who offers redemption, forgiveness, healing and hope.

His light is so strong that in the midst of sadness and despair we can still find hope.

There has been a deep sadness in my spirit today. People that are close to me and people I don’t even know are hurting. So what do you do? I pray harder.

We have so much work to do. So many lives to save and people to reach. God needs us.

But I stand strong on this one thing:  God is in control.

Each of us in our own capacity must stand ready to fight and wage the right kind of war with the God who is inside of us.

We are equipped. We are called and we have been given authority to reach people. We can’t stand down. We can’t quit. We can’t get tired. We can’t fatigue or second guess our abilities. Today more than ever I feel it’s quite the opposite: we must realize who we are in Christ so that we can walk with our head high and do the very thing He has called each of us too.

It starts with us. With me. With you.

It begins with the realization that we are not perfect, but by His grace we are saved. A friend in my Bible study yesterday reminded the class of something our pastor said in a sermon.

If we were the only ones living, Jesus still would have died on the cross for us. He loved and still loves us that much.

So it is with that I remember the charge that we have been given:

Ephesians 6:10-18 – “And that about wraps it up. God is strong, and he wants you strong. So take everything the Master has set out for you, well-made weapons of the best materials. And put them to use so you will be able to stand up to everything the Devil throws your way. This is no afternoon athletic contest that we’ll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours. This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels.  Be prepared. You’re up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it’s all over but the shouting you’ll still be on your feet. Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are more than words. Learn how to apply them. You’ll need them throughout your life. God’s Word is an indispensable weapon. In the same way, prayer is essential in this ongoing warfare. Pray hard and long. Pray for your brothers and sisters. Keep your eyes open. Keep each other’s spirits up so that no one falls behind or drops out.” (Message)

We must dress ourselves daily…. Every second, of every minute of every hour. We must wear the clothing of God so that we can fight and wage the right way with the right one.

There’s More In Your Jar

1 Kings 17:14-16 – “For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: There will always be flour and olive oil left in your containers until the time when the Lord sends rain and the crops grow again!”  So she did as Elijah said, and she and Elijah and her family continued to eat for many days.  There was always enough flour and olive oil left in the containers, just as the Lord had promised through Elijah.” (NLT)

Today was one of those “AHA” moments. And I needed it.

God had spoken to Elijah and ordered him to go to a nearby town. In the town he would find a widow that would bless him with food. The widow was hesitant because she didn’t have a lot of food.

When the lady said she didn’t have enough food, Elijah said, “There will always be flour and olive oil left in the jar until the Lord sends a rain.”

In that simple verse God answered my own prayer. Sometimes we feel like we give and we give and we give until there is nothing more to give. But if we are obedient to God, then we keep pressing in, and in those moments there will always be something to offer. God will never leave us completely empty. And then, the rains will come and we will be exponentially blessed! Love that!

Live A God Kind Of Life

1 John 2:2-6–Here’s how we can be sure that we know God in the right way: Keep his commandments.  If someone claims, “I know him well!” but doesn’t keep his commandments, he’s obviously a liar. His life doesn’t match his words. But the one who keeps God’s word is the person in whom we see God’s mature love. This is the only way to be sure we’re in God. Anyone who claims to be intimate with God ought to live the same kind of life Jesus lived. (Message)

“Anyone who claims to be intimate with God ought to live the same kind of life Jesus lived.” Wow! Ouch! Sometimes the truth hurts, and sometimes the truth, while it hurts, propels us to do and be more with our life.

I love The Message version of the Bible. It’s so modern day and in your face!

The point is this:

If we truly love Him we keep his commandments, are obedient and we live a life that shows that. Our ultimate driver is always that we want to be like Him.

Recently several months back I had to evaluate my own self. I had to look at who and what I was following vs. What was coming from my mouth. It doesn’t mean you judge others, but it means that I had to clean my own life, because I love God more!

The closer we get to Him the more driven we are to live a life that matches His. I’m after one thing: a life with my Savior and being blessed to build His kingdom.

Be blessed today!

(Gym in a few hours!)

He Makes us Whole

Back day. Still not my favorite, lol, but I do it, because I realize it’s necessary. Truthfully I despise core much more than back day. And I did some core today also, so I suppose back day was great in that respect! Haha.

While I was lifting I was listening to a sermon by Steven Furtick called the #hauntedheart. He was talking about how what is inside of us can haunt us if we don’t expose it. For example: guilt, hurt, oppression, threats etc.

He reminded everyone that yes, when you are saved and receive Christ in your life that indeed we do become new creations.  Specifically we are told that we are made new, and that the old is gone.

The old being gone and the new coming in however is not an automatic snap of the fingers. It takes work. It takes constant work with God. Because all of our #struggles are in us and we have to purge them out.

We can never run from what’s inside of us. Never! Everywhere we go, it will go too. But we can, through God, purge those haunted, dark feelings from our heart and soul.

As I said in my post earlier this morning I’m not perfect. None of us are. It’s a constant progression toward what is good. And God is good! God is better than good. I truly don’t think there is one word that can summarize His greatness.

Be blessed today and keep seeking the One that can purge us and make us whole!

Immeasurably More

Awesome workout for chest and triceps today! I had 4 sets of 10 of 6 different exercises. I bench pressed 135 pounds for all 4 sets which thrilled me. I may try the next chest day to see what my 1 rep max is. One thing I love about chest and tricep day is the pain in my muscles the next day! Weird, but the truth.

I listened to a sermon today while lifting called “Immeasurably More” by Steven Furtick. It was just what I needed.

He preached from Ephesians 3:16-20 – “I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit.  Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong.  And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is.  May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God.  Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish immeasurably more than we might ask or think.”

I loved it! He focused on immeasurably more. Too often, (and I myself am extremely guilty of this) we measure ourselves against the world’s standards or against what we see on the outside.

God doesn’t measure against a man’s outsides. Look at the success of David, a man who had his fair share of mistakes, but he made it to the hall of faith, because no matter what, his heart was always in the right place.

God doesn’t measure against the outward appearance. He measures our heart. He measures the inside.

Keep pressing in. We will make mistakes, but eventually our insides will match up with our outsides. Because his glory and his grace is greater!

I love Him! I need Him more and more everyday!

Be blessed!

Keep Walking. You Got This!

Woke up this morning and immediately was grateful! Grateful first that my feet hit the ground and I still have life! Grateful second for wonderful banking holidays like today! No work for this girl today!

Had a great workout today. Today I had to complete a high rep circuit style of workout. With each exercise consisting of 20 reps. 20 reps requires serious dedication for me. I get bored after about 10. But I hang in there and push through, only to repeat each exercise several times more. Haha!

Today is a new week. But more importantly it’s a new day, a fresh start and a new beginning. We are told in the Bible that God’s mercies are new every morning!

He never grows tired of us. Too often we limit ourselves because of our past and our “has been” moments. We can’t let those moments stifle us and stop us from moving forward.

God’s heart is that all would come to know Him. Not only that, but in coming to know Him that we would truly experience the life He gives us. Yes, in those moments still there will be hard times and trials, he never said there wouldn’t be.

But He did say this: No weapon forged against us will prosper. He didn’t say they wouldn’t come, but friends, if we stay focused on Him, when they do come we will be VICTORIOUS!

Be blessed today!

We Will Not Be Overcome

Awesome workout today with #AchievingProminence. Had chest today. I was consistent and solid. I did have a new exercise today…. Dumbbell pullovers. But I feel like I nailed them!

I leave later today for a short road trip and get back home tomorrow evening. But, I’ll be able to get Shoulders in tomorrow using the hotel gym. Next week I’ll be back on #RecreatingYou.

Last night a friend introduced me to an awesome song. It’s called Same Power by Jeremy Camp.

I listened to it over and over during my lift.

While I was lifting a very simple yet profound statement from God came to my spirit. It was this: I want to see my people worship me, obey me, and follow me during their storms. I don’t change. If I said I would do it, I will. Trust me!

Not doing the above is EXACTLY how David got off track at times, and it’s the same way we can too. Hard times and dark moments come. But in the Word of God we are blessed with several promises. God is a man of His Word. He wants us to trust Him even when we can’t see.

I pray the lyrics below bless you as much as they have blessed me.

“I can see the waters raging at my feet. I can feel the breath of those surrounding me. I can hear the sound of nations rising up. We will not be overtaken, we will not be overcome. I can walk down this dark and painful road. I can face every fear of the unknown. I can hear all God’s children singing out, we will not be taken, we will not be overcome. The same power that rose Jesus from the grave lives in us.”

We have that power, because Jesus is inside of us. May we believe, rise up and walk this thing out.

Be Patient

Killed legs on #AchievingProminence today. I leave this weekend for another work trip and so I wanted to go ahead and get leg day out of the way. I had 4 sets of 15 dead lifts. Then everything else was 3 sets of 10, with 3 sets of 25 weighted walking lunges and 100 body weight squats. My back squats! The gym was crowded today so I didn’t take time to record. But I got all 3 sets in at 240. The depth of my squat now comes up to the level of a flat bench. Makes me happy.

You know, I was reminded today in my spirit of how we just have to be patient with life and the events of life. We are now people! We have grown accustom to that.

In order to see results we must lay off the now mentality and focus on consistency. This is not just in fitness, but in everything.

Stay the course folks. I’m learning that results come!

Be blessed today!

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