Personality change

So... I was driving along in my car the other day, and I was thinking about the way I was when I was younger. When I used to go up to anyone and just talk to them. It is supposedly meant be part of my personality.
As I went through... I guess we will call it a "down" period in my life, I became more nervous to talk to people. I even began to avoid people so I didn't have to talk to them. My so called personality, was not holding up to its name.
Because I was not walking with God at that time, I now recognize the Joy that only comes from God. I had lost my joy! Happiness comes and goes, but joy is from the Lord and is ever present, even when you are going through something huge.
The joy of the Lord is your strength. Neh 8:10
Getting that joy back has been a long process, as I have sort God after it.
I can honestly say that the joy of the Lord is my strength, and after it playing such a huge role in who I was, and then walking away from it, is it meant to be this hard to get it completely back again?
The question I have come too is, Have I had a personality change? Is that even possible, or, am I just on a long journey back to wholeness?
Lord, Your joy is what I need to be filled up with every morning before I go into my day. Your joy is my strength, and always will be what i need to make an impact in people.

Amazement

I am continually amazed and blown away by God's Grace, blessings, and kindness. God is always showing me grace, blessing me, and coming through when I get to the end of myself, and it never ceases to blow me away.

I thought to myself the other day... What if I got used to it? What if I began to become complacent with all the things God does for me? What is it that keeps me amazed, and others oblivious?

When you have an open mind and spirit, you begin to see stuff you didn't see before. I know that when I wasn't following God for a while there, I couldn't see the wonderful things He was doing or trying to do, but as soon as I started acknowledging Him again, things that I couldn't see before became so real to me. I started to recognize "good things" for what they really were, Gods Blessings.

Ps 145:3 Great is the LORD and most worthy of praise; his greatness no one can fathom. This passage proves to me that the Greatness of my God will never stop blowing me away, if I never stop acknowledging things for what they truly are.
Ps 155:2 Praise him for his acts of power; praise him for his surpassing greatness.
Surpassing means 'To be beyond the limit, powers, or capacity of; transcend.'

(A smile from God)

Always praise God for things that happen in your life. Anything from a good car park or a good view from your back yard, to the fact that the creator loves you, and gives you salvation (plus all the other cherries on top).

Running in your lane?

I noticed one of the things I say to people (especially the youth I teach), is "make sure you are running YOUR race, that you are being who God created YOU to be".
When I talk to people about life principles and just life in general, I always try and talk about things that I practice myself, not things that I don't do (practice what you preach and all that).

Well, today in my devotional time I was asked that same question that I so often ask... Am I running my own race.

"Woops"

Holly Wagner speaks about watching sprinters in a race and how they all stay in their own lane otherwise they will be disqualified from the race. She writes, "How many of us are trying to get through life running in someone else's lane?"

Well, I'm reading away thinking , YES and AMEN when... I get to the end and she says go and write down 3 things you are great at and 1 thing you are passionate about. That got me!
It made me realize how much easier it is to tell someone that then to do it.

I'm a classic for trying to run in someone else's lane. I see cool things and think... Yeah, I could be good at that. But why try and be good and something God didn't create you to do, when you could be great at something that He did.

There is no one in this world that can be me better than I can. It is the same for everyone. I think that we forget sometimes that we loose out when we try and run in someone else's lane. But not only that, all the people around us do, as well as God. We not only rip ourselves off, we rip the others off too.

What I learnt?
Be an inspiration, and let others be an inspiration.
Don't try and take from someone else's what works for them and try and make it work better for me.
It is Ok that I am not good at everything, just as long as I am great at being me.
No one can take that, even if they try!

I will be who God has created me to be. That way I can be great.

"Everyone has the power of greatness- not for fame but greatness, because greatness is determined by service." Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Write down what you are great at. What is it that you have been gifted to do? Serve in that area and you will be made great!

Pretty basic stuff, but something the majority of the world misses.
Something like 5% of Christians are doing what they are called to do.

Appreciation/ Acknowledgment

Twice now I have been given this scripture by someone. Is God trying to tell me something????
James 1:4. It talks about perseverance being complete.

You know when things are just so hectic, and you wonder if anyone really cares about or, appreciates or, acknowledges the things you do. Or do we do it all in vein?

Well, the first question is... Who do we do it for?
The next question is... Why do we do it?

The first question is so important if we want to feel good about the things that we do. (Feeling good isn't the reason why we should be doing things but that is another thing).
If we are doing things just for people to see us doing them, well we are going to wear ourselves out.
Doing things for people always seems to get me down. Us humans don't always seem to see all the little things that go into everything others do. We don't always give others the recognition they are expecting, even if they deserve it or not. They may be the most appreciative person in the world, but they aren't perfect and they get stuff wrong, and they miss things.
This is why we MUST do everything we do for God. God sees all, and He sees our hearts as well.
God will always give us the recognition we deserve.

The second question should be the driving force. Why do you do what you do? That is it! Why do you do what you do?

I think that this might seem like simple, silly stuff when you read it (or write it, as the case may be), but when we try and live like this, in a world where everyone is trying to impress others, (girls buying the latest clothing, guys trying to make the most money, have the coolest car, people trying to get the best career, putting others down to lift themselves up, and so on and so on, that is where the challenge lies.

Do we do things for recognition?
I think everyone wants to be appreciated, but who is going to give that to us whenever we need it...not whenever we want it... but whenever we need it?

This week God showed me that He appreciates what I do. Just when I needed it. I just need to keep persevering.
I was shown appreciation from human, but above that, God let me know, He is always watching.

I'm not really one to do things for recognition, but I do hope that people believe in me and appreciate me.
It is important for us to appreciate people and let them know that. But for yourself, don't do things based on that. You will just become more and more discouraged.

The Women I Will Become

I was sitting, after reading the Proverbs 31 Women, thinking about all the things I want to be. Who I want to be to my friends, who I want to be for my future husband, who I will need to be for my children, but most of all, all that God has designed me to be. Not because He doesn't think that I am not good enough the way I am, but because He has designed me for GREATER things. I don't only know this from reading the word and hearing the promises He has made, but because He has confirmed it to me over and over again.

This is what I got from reading Proverbs 31 plus some of my own add ins.

The women I will become

A women who:

Fears the Lord

Truly loves God above all else

Makes God the center of everything she does

Loves peoples individualism (the way God made them)

Is faithful to her word

Sees in people what they can become

People come to for wisdom/advice

Works hard, but not just hard, with EAGER hands.

Doesn’t put the cart before the horse

Makes the most of every moment

Walks in the Spirit

Is disciplined

Runs after Purity

Thrives on the word and continually knows it and uses it

People look up too

Shines Jesus’ light

Respects her family, friends, elders, leadership, and guys

Is happy with how God has made her

Knows she is forgiven and made NEW

A women of:-

Integrity

Faith

Love

Joy

Character

Wisdom

The spirit

Humility

Strength

Encouragement

NOW... HOW TO GET THERE? HHMMM

Faithfulness

"Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever." Heb 13:8

And this is what God continually shows me. As much as I may beat my self up and think, "why would God love me today, I've done nothing to deserve it," He proves to me that, He is the same yesterday and today and forever, regardless of my actions.

Lately God has been showing this to me through His faithfulness. Always coming through, always standing right there, always teaching, yet always ready to just listen. He just continually blows my boxes out of the water. Boxes that I put Him in, boxes that I put others in, and boxes that I put myself in.

God is just so faithful. Every time I get to the end of myself, there He is, just waiting, ready to pick me up and carry me the rest of the way. If only I would stop getting down out of my fathers arms and trying to walk out in front, instead of just holding His hand, walking with Him, ready for Him to pick me up when I realize, once again, that my strength can't get me through.

Yesterday, today, and tomorrow, He was, is, and will be my rock. He is where I place my trust.

Just testing this out

I really have know idea about this whole blog thing. I really enjoy reading my friends blog spots and although i have thought about doing it myself I was not sure if anyone would get anything out of it, but then I had a request for my very own thoughts and revelations to be put down. So I am. And for anyone else who would like to see what is going on in the world of Natasha, well this is for you.