Kick Compromising to the Curb

I feel like the last week has been one big emotional rollercoaster for me. Satan has been coming at me from every angle and trying his absolute hardest to throw me off track. It's like the closer I get to God, the harder it gets. You think it'd be the opposite, but no. The only difference is that it gets a little easier to resist the things he tempts me with. He's definitely turned up the heat this past week, and it's taking everything within me to flee. To be honest, he's really wearing me down. I've been entertaining thoughts that I know I shouldn't. I really feel like one of the biggest tools Satan uses is compromising. He'll send me thoughts like, "It's okay for you to go out with them for just this one night and drink. It's not like you're getting high. You don't even have to get that drunk." When these thoughts come, I'm left with two options. #1 - I can agree with the thought, and go with it, convincing myself that it's really not that big of a deal. Or #2 - I can recognize the thought for what it is, reject it, and tell Satan to leave me the hell alone. Why is it so hard to choose option #2 sometimes? Why do we fall for the trap of compromising? When I compromise, I'm making a deal with Satan and settling for less than what God wants for me. How stupid is that?! I pray daily that God gives me eyes to see through Satan's tricks and for strength to resist them. Even though I've felt down this week, I know that God is stronger and faithful to come through on my behalf. It sucks feeling lonely and like you're missing out on all the fun that comes with sin, but we've got to trust that what God has for us is so much better and more fulfilling.

"Give Me Faith"

I encourage all of you to read through these lyrics and make this your prayer for today (and every day!)...


I may be weak
but Your Spirit's strong in me
My flesh may fail
but my God, you never will

I need you to soften my heart
To break me apart
I need you to open my eyes
To see that You're shaping my life

All I am,
I surrender

Give me faith to trust what you say
That you're good and your love is great
I'm broken inside, I give you my life

I need you to soften my heart
To break me apart

I need you pierce through the dark
And cleanse every part of me

I may be weak
but Your Spirit's strong in me
My flesh may fail
but my God, you never will

a21 campaign

Please take the time to watch this video and then visit the website to see how you can get involved! I'm very passionate about this, and am determined to raise awareness and get others onboard to help stop human trafficking.

Transition

The last few months have been a time of transition for me. I've had to cut off relationships that weren't healthy, ditch a lifestyle, finish up my sophomore year of college, get ready to move into my first apartment, make new friends... Everything I've known my whole life has been turned upside down and it hasn't been easy.

I've had a really hard time trying to figure out where to go and what to do. I've felt so torn. Part of me didn't want to leave what I've grown up with, and the other part of me felt like I needed to. My heart has been physically hurting from trying to decide what my next step in life should be. I've been praying for God to give me clarity on what to do and for him to just lead me to where he wants me to be. Until tonight, it still wasn't clear.

It's 3am, I logged onto Twitter before going to bed, and a tweet from Darlene Zschech (one of the greatest worship leaders of all time) came up on my newsfeed. It said,

"Don't let your heart get caught in the PAST of transition, but dream and be inspired for all that the future holds."

This was the clarity I've been asking God for.

I finally feel okay with where I am now. I no longer feel like I'm not being loyal, I don't feel like a traitor, and I don't feel bad... I know this is where God has called me to be. As hard as it's been to accept all of this change, I now know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that God has directed my steps to exactly where I am today. I still have a long way to go in this journey, but I know that he holds my future in his hands. He's blessed me with some awesome people to do life with, and I am forever thankful for that.

I don't deserve any of this and it continues to blow my mind daily of how blessed and favored I really am by him. Thank you, Jesus.

Just a reminder...

God loves you more than you could ever know. No matter who you are, what you do, what you've done, where you're from, what you believe... He loves you sooooooo much. I used to think that there was no way God could still love me after all the crap I've done. I didn't even love me! But the awesome thing is, I was so wrong. He loved me at my darkest, and he chose me when I didn't believe. And the same goes for you.

play it out

I stole this from Steven Furtick's blog, but I think it's a good read for anyone struggling with temptation! His blog can be found here: http://www.stevenfurtick.com/personal-development/play-it-out/

There’s a simple exercise that can reorient your perspective for any struggle or temptation you’ll ever face.

One of Satan’s greatest weapons is to get you stuck in the moment. The moment of your pain. Your trial. Your temptation. He freeze-frames your current situation and makes you forget everything that you have to gain from it. Or everything that you have to lose from it.

When you face these situations, the best thing you can do is get out of the freeze frame and fast forward to the end. Take a moment and play it out.

Play out your struggles:

If I suffer…I’ll get more reward.

If I experience pain…it’s not worth comparing to the glory awaiting me.

If I die…I’ll be with Christ.

Or on the negative side, play out your temptations:

If I do something unethical…I’ll lose my job.

If I look at porn…I’ll lose my ability to see God clearly.

If I have an affair…I’ll lose my family.

Yes, it’s simple. But it can make a profound impact on nearly every circumstance you’ll ever face in life.

Start taking your situations or temptations to their conclusion. See what incredible possibilities might be in store for you because of Jesus. Or what horrible ones might be in store for you if you neglect Him. There’s more potential in your pain than you can possibly imagine. There’s also more travesty that can come out of your temptation than you can possibly understand.

Don’t let the limited perspective of a moment dictate your life. When you find yourself in a moment of struggle or temptation, stop for a moment. Play it out. And then move forward towards the conclusion God wants for you.

Hell: We Can't Afford to Get it Wrong