If you hear a voice screaming at you – accusing you, chastising you, belittling you – ask God to remove it, because it hasn’t come from Him, and it doesn’t belong.
God would never call you fat and tell you that you don’t deserve to eat. He would show you how precious you are to Him and give you a desire for healthy things.
He wouldn’t blackmail you into a corner of shame. He would shine a light to show you the way out.
He wouldn’t tell you that your life has no meaning. He made you on purpose, with purpose, and has a role for you in His Kingdom.
He wouldn’t tell you that your sins define you, so you should give up. He would encourage you to give it to Him, trade that for hope, and show you a new way.
If you struggle with difficult, accusatory, shame-ridden thoughts, ask God to come into your thoughts and your life and fill that area and bring you healing.
He will, because He wants you well. He wants you whole.
God doesn’t yell. He whispers, because He is safe, because He is loving, because He is Home.
“Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them” (Ephesians 5:11).
There is no playing around with or entertaining dark forces. When children and teen movies try to normalize and familiarize our kids with dark rituals, highlighting them and making them light, we are out.
We can’t get used to this just because companies we used to trust are slowly seeping in these messages. How badly do we need to be entertained?
Have you ever watched something and you feel grieved or just gross?
“The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eyes are unhealthy, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!” (Matthew 6:22-23)
I thank God for leaving His Holy Spirit here to guard and to guide us. If we can’t find anything on TV or movies that feels right, let’s just shut it off. There’s plenty more to do.
I want to be sensitive to and gain my whole confidence from Jesus. I’m not willing to make allowances just to be relevant and to not been seen as the weird Christian. The stakes are too high. And, when it comes to my kids, I will do my very best to protect them – not just from physical harm but from spiritual harm. Its no laughing matter.
“What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul?” (Matthew 16:26)
And God will give us wisdom and courage as we seek Him. We are not weaklings, but we are strong because of Him.
“Jesus summoned His twelve disciples and gave them authority and power over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every kind of disease and every kind of sickness.”
“… And as you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give.
“Listen carefully: I am sending you out like sheep among wolves; so be wise as serpents, and innocent as doves.
“So do not be afraid of them, for nothing is hidden that will not be revealed, or kept secret that will not be made known.
“What I say to you in the dark (privately), tell in the light (publicly); and what you hear whispered in your ear, proclaim from the housetops [to many people].
“Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; but rather be afraid of Him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.
“Therefore, the one who confesses and acknowledges Me before men [as Lord and Savior, affirming a state of oneness with Me], that one I will also confess and acknowledge before My Father who is in heaven. But the one who denies and rejects Me before men, that one I will also deny and reject before My Father who is in heaven.”
Marketing slogans tell you to believe in yourself, but you are not God and neither am I. We have a very limited view. I learned a long time ago – the hard way – that I am highly fallible even on my best day. If everything depended on me, it would not last long.
Believe in Jesus. You won’t get far without Him. But, WITH Him, you will see supernatural things happen that you never knew were possible!
When we come to understand His great love for us and HIS power available to work in and through us, we will not have a low or a high view of ourselves. We will feel a deep sense of relief and peace, with hearts full of gratitude and enthusiasm for each day, knowing God loves us, He is in control, He never slumbers, He is limitless, and He is ever-present to us. He’s never going to abandon us.
And He is doing GOOD all over the earth every moment of every day! It is absolutely amazing to see! And He includes us in His great mission here on the earth! It blows my mind.
“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing” – Jesus (John 15:5)
“Do not participate in the worthless and unproductive deeds of darkness, but instead expose them [by exemplifying personal integrity, moral courage, and godly character]” (Ephesians 5:11).
The enemy is cunning. He wants you to be confused. If something seems off, stop and pay attention.
Instead of brushing it off and barreling forward, get away from the noises and demands of the world.
Get into a quiet space to hear from the Lord. Create space and time to hear from Him.
Stop and ask the Lord to give you discernment and clarity — to make it clear as day. Then listen up to hear from His Holy Spirit.
Expose the darkness for what it is and let the light in. Seek counsel from a Godly friend or counsel. Pray together.
Read the Scripture to combat the lies with the truth of God’s Word.
Then be sure to obey. Stay away from the fruitless deeds of darkness.
If God shows you to walk away – from a job or opportunity, a situation, or a relationship – as hopeful as you were for it, walk away!
God is our protector, and we need to trust Him at His Word and listen in for His voice and let Him do His job. The Bible says God provides a way of escape. Take it!
“No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it” (1 Corinthians 10:13).
God is also our Provider, and He will provide a healthy and productive job, opportunity, situation and relationship when we yield to Him and follow His lead.
Do not cower to dark and fruitless situations or relationships, friends!
“You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world” (1 John 4:4).
“‘They will fight against you but will not overcome you, for I am with you and will rescue you,’ declares the Lord” (Jeremiah 1:19).
I love this verse: “… in the Lord woman is not independent of man, nor is man independent of woman. For as woman came from man, so also man is born of woman. But everything comes from God” (1 Corinthians 11:11-12).
In my home, in business, in the church and in community, I am not in competition with man, nor am I to be independent of man.
Instead, God has brought us together in community in different ways and settings – as husband and wife, as brothers and sisters in Christ, as co-workers, and as servants – all under the head and lordship of Jesus Christ.
Each of us has something unique and valuable to bring to the Kingdom — in our churches, our workplaces, our communities and to the world. And we can learn from and encourage one another.
I am grateful for my brothers and my sisters — each of you! And I am very grateful for the leadership of, love from, and partnership with my husband.
Thank you, God, for the beauty of your creation and your good plan for us all.
God, Today it strikes me that you are limitless. I have so much to surrender today, but you can absorb it all and still be good, and still be love, and still be strong.
You are the ultimate Dad – protector, provider, and uplifter — the one who lifts my head. I love you, Lord.
Thank you for always being there when I need you, and even when I think I’ve got it, because you’re always there to catch me when I fall, even in those moments that catch me by surprise.
You aren’t surprised by anything. You’re always ready to protect and guard me. So I can close my eyes and sleep peacefully.
I love you, Lord. You are a good and loving Father.
Sunday at church, we sang the 150-year-old hymn, “Nothing But The Blood of Jesus.” I felt the Lord impress this message on my heart in a new way.
As I sang, “What can wash away my sin?”, I felt the Holy Spirit reveal to me the many ways I have tried to wash away my sin in my life — the substitutes I have tried to manufacture to make me … to make the situation… right on my own.
As we asked this question through song yesterday, “What can wash away my sin?”, I felt this reminder come to my mind…
Nothing can wash away my sin…
– Not perfection.
– Not performance.
– Not good works.
– Not secrecy or denial.
– Not self-righteousness.
– Not shame.
– Not alcohol.
– Not starvation.
– Not time.
“Nothing but the blood of Jesus.”
There is absolutely nothing that zeroes out our sin and makes us righteous and clean again but the blood of Jesus. Even our very best is like filthy rags compared to His holiness: “How then can we be saved? All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away” (Isaiah 64:5b-6).
Yet, He made a way to make us right again – by sacrificing Himself on the cross — sinless and spotless – for our sins. All we must do is believe in Jesus as our Savior to be made right with God. His blood is all we need.
Here is how we know we are made right: “If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved” (Romans 10:8-10).
I have worked in vain, spinning my wheels, striving to make things better in my own strength or make the pain go away. But it has been futile. Because the truth is, not a single thing can wash away my sins but Jesus, and that is exactly what He came to earth to do for me and for you.
His goodness and His kindness is real, and it brings me to tears. I am made right again by His blood — only His blood. Thank you, Jesus.
“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go” (Joshua 1:9).
Anything that you have been called to do will require you to be courageous – whether it is waking up in the morning or living out a calling that exceeds your experience. In today’s world, even smiling at a stranger requires courage. To stand with the Lord and rebuke darkness takes courage in a dark world. Everything requires courage.
Meanwhile, our nervous systems are overstimulated and easily triggered. The weirdness of the world, even in just a single moment in a public setting, could trigger us. But we cannot back down… not from our calling, not from our kindness, not from showing up.
The older I get, the more I realize courage is like a muscle. It develops as we trust God, believe that He is with us, and that He indeed fights our battles for us. It grows by pressing ahead through obstacles and seeing victories by the power of God.
I say it regularly, and I will say it again today — to you and me both: Do not be bullied out of your calling. Do not allow others to scare you off of the path God has placed you on. Ask God for courage. Don’t be afraid to stand up for yourself – to speak truth – when you need to. And keep pressing forward.
Have you ever walked into a meeting, feeling the palpable tension in the room — difficult dynamics and confusion? Or entered an event with a pit in your stomach knowing someone there was ever-ready to antagonize? Ever experienced a confounding – even dramatic – situation that could easily have been pleasant?
Some situations and relationships cause us to ask ourselves and God a lot of questions, like… Why? Why does it have to be like this? How do I navigate this? Should I even bother showing up? Or should I just give up and throw in the towel ? Maybe I should back down?
I have admittedly thrown in the towel on some pretty major things in my past because it felt easier. But the Lord has been developing spiritual and mental fortitude in me. And today, I feel led to encourage you with this:
Step up. Don’t back down. God is preparing a way for you.
“You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever” (Psalm 23:5-6).
You have everything you need walking into that environment. He has prepared a place for you. And His goodness, love, and protection are far greater and longer lasting than the antagonism you are up against.
Don’t be bullied out of your calling. Do not forfeit your calling to quiet your nervous system, or those loud voices used by the enemy. Choose to hear the voice of God, your Father and Lord, louder than the antagonism of the enemy.
Trust God more than you fear the enemy.
God says you can. The enemy says you can’t. But, make no mistake, God is more powerful. Jesus conquered death and has the victory over all. And so do you when you yield to the Lord and look for His approval only.
So, be brave. Be confident, knowing God’ love and goodness follows you everywhere — in that meeting, at that event, in that encounter. He has called you to show up, and He is making a way for you.
So pull up to the table, knowing you have access to the wisdom of God in that moment by yielding to and drawing from the Holy Spirit. The Lord is available to you in that moment through His Spirit, and you lack absolutely nothing with His love in and around you.
Sarah Guldalian 