The Ostrich Effect

My beautiful daughter loves to play peek-a-boo and hide and seek. She loves to hide herself and go – ‘Where is Gracia? Where is Gracia?’ And then we repeat after her – ‘Where is Gracia? Where is Gracia?’ and pretend to look for her. And that gets her real excited and then she jumps out with excitement, shouting – ‘Here is Gracia!!’ And we pretend to be surprised and laugh and clap along. It’s a fun game to play with your toddler. She sometimes also finds a blanket or sometimes just a shirt or something and covers her face and does the same thing.

Lately she has found an easier way of playing this game. She just closes her eyes J ! When she closes her eyes, its dark and to her, probably, she is not there anymore. She just closes her eyes and goes - ‘Where is Gracia? Where is Gracia?’ And then opens her eyes and goes - ‘Here is Gracia!!’ It’s just so funny when she closes her eyes and starts shouting – ‘Where is Gracia?’ J

This little funny game of ours reminds me of the Ostrich Effect. I googled and found that there really is a theory called the Ostrich Effect which simply means - Avoiding a situation by pretending it doesn’t exist. Another website puts it this way - In the Ostrich Effect, people look away from that which makes them anxious, setting in motion a sequence of events that get them stuck with difficult work situations, problems, relationships and people.

This is one problem I have had a lot of issues tackling. Whenever I feel that a confrontation would turn ugly or bad, I just close my eyes to it or push it under the rug.

Some time back I was reflecting on some things that were troubling me and I realised that I didn’t want to deal with it. And whenever I prayed about it, God always told me –‘Child, I want you to deal with it. So I am not going to make these issues magically disappear. You have to learn to face things boldly and positively.’ I knew God was right, just like He always is but I still didn’t want to deal with things.

The Dentist Scenario: I hated going to the dentists. And not surprisingly, I had quite a few teeth problems that needed fixing. I remember praying – ‘God, please make the cavities and tooth problems disappear magically’ And God replied – ‘Go to the dentist!!!’ I put off going to the dentist as much as I could and just piled on the pain killers and clove oils and everything anyone suggested would help the pain. But in the end, I had to go to the dentist. Once I had taken the step of going to the dentist, God also worked so beautifully. He gave me strength and boldness, strong encouragement in the form of my husband. And he also gave me an awesome awesome dentist. She was patient, encouraging, positive and so calm. I’m not afraid of a dentist appointment anymore. It’s not a huge deal anymore. God did give me a miracle but only, not my way. He took away my fear of dentists.

Facing things removes fear (and gives you healthy teeth J ).

The Milk Packet Scenario: I remember years back, I was upset with my husband for something. I just walked off, without talking about it. Just pushed it under the rug. My husband knew something was wrong and the last thing that he knew had happened before I was upset, was that I had asked him to go buy milk and he hadn’t gone. So he thought that’s what upset me and was wondering why something as small as that had made me that upset. He was probably upset that I was upset over something that small. After about 2- 3 days (I know, days, but I was immature) when I talked it out with him about what made me mad, he went – Oohhhh.. (typical male response I guess. He had no idea!) and he added – ‘I thought it was the milk packet!’ We laughed it out and things got sorted. It’s only when we talk about it that the other person even realises what the problem. Most times they are left wondering what happened!

I realise that the people closest to me are the ones who talk things out with me. I know my weaknesses. I know I go wrong. There are people who can walk away when there is an issue. But there are people who know you and will talk things out with you; those are the ones you develop a close bond with.

Facing things gives you beautiful relationships and beautiful friends.

The Fear Factor: I remember I was too scared about dealing with something that God wanted me to deal with and I remember what God spoke through a message of T D Jakes. T D Jakes talked about how God has not given to us a spirit of fear. So any fear you have, is not from God. God has given us the Spirit of Power, Spirit of Love and Spirit of Strong Mind. I also remember a message of Joyce Meyer’s where she said that when you’re afraid to do something, do it anyway. Do it afraid.

Facing things gives you new experiences and solves problems.

The Spouse Factor: I think one important component in a marriage is communication. There are times I don’t communicate fearing a fight or argument. But I have realised one thing, a fight or argument is temporary but if I didn’t talk about things that need to be talked about, it just leads to bigger problem. And most of the time, my fear has been baseless as we immediately come to an understanding. A wise lady told me how men think different and most times don’t even know what’s going on with us and how important it was to tell them how we felt instead of bottling things up. There are times when things do end up in an argument but whenever we have communicated, 100% of the time things have been solved. Even when things turn into an argument and we tell things out in a not-so-nice way, we still tell out everything and that leads to helping us understand how each other feels and decide things more easily depending on what each other needs. But yes, we are still working towards getting to that place, where we learn to say and communicate things in always a nice way 100% of the time J.

Facing issues gives you a healthy beautiful marriage (Thank God for mine J ).

The Difficult People Scenario: Okay, so this is the difficult part. What about the ones you have talked things out with and it has only brought huge repercussions? What if facing a problem does not help? I’m sure there are such people in everyone’s life (at least one or two). I guess in this scenario, you just pray and pray and pray some more. I remember I was talking to a wise lady about something and she said – Pray! And I said – ‘Oh I’ve prayed so much!’ And she said – ‘Pray More!’ We learn to not give up on God (even if we may want to give up on a person). We learn to not be the victims and at the same to not victimise. We learn to be assertive and not aggressive nor passive. We learn to maintain our dignity and self-respect without disrespecting the other person and also not losing ours. We learn to be calm, to be strong, to hold our head up high, to be peaceful in the midst of turmoil, to be confident. To be People of Power, People of Love, People of Sound Mind. People of God!

This has been quite a learning for me. A difficult lesson but one that does bear a lot of beautiful fruits. It’s the hard things that lead to the most beautiful things. The first step is usually the hardest. Just take your first step, the rest will follow. And also, keep at it.

So let’s get our head out of the sand and open our eyes and say like my beautiful daughter – ‘Here is me!’ and I’m going to confront and deal with this.

Philippians 4 13 -  I can do all this through him who gives me strength.

Philippians 4: 6 - Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.

Fear of the Unknown

I don’t like suspense thrillers or any kind of thrillers much. For the simple reason that I just can’t enjoy it. Though it’s supposed to be entertainment, it does everything but entertain. My heart starts beating fast, my nails and whatever else is near me gets chewed up real fast, and the tension… oh the tension !! It doesn’t entertain me one bit. Just scares me. So I don’t enjoy suspense thrillers much.

It doesn’t necessarily have to be a suspense thriller, even a simple rom com where suddenly there is a twist in the story and there is this uncertainty factor. It would sometimes be just a silly story but yet, I cannot bear the suspense. Usually I ask if the person next to me has seen the movie and find out how it ends or I just quickly google the movie, to know how it ends. I knowww… I can hear you say – Boring!!! But yeah that’s what happens J. I’d rather know what’s going to happen and relax and watch the movie, than sit on the edge of the couch and worry. And usually in rom com and feel good movie and shows, things do end well, so once I know that, then I can sit back and relax and enjoy the movie.

Last Sunday, at our church our pastor spoke about this and he beautifully connected it to how we sometimes relate to the ‘Unknown’ and how we handle our fears. It was such a blessing to me as there were a few things running in my head and God continued to speak to me through that message.

Sometimes in life, we come to that point, where our life becomes like a suspense story. You don’t know what’s going to happen. You’re afraid of the future. You’re not in control. It’s a big suspense. It keeps you up in the night. It robs you of all peace and happiness. You just want to know how it ends, so you can breathe and relax.

Well, the good news is, we know how it ends!! For every child of God, it ends well! The ending is wow!! Its yayyy!! J

So now that we know the ending, you can just sit back and relax and watch every scene unfold in front of you. No matter how scary or frightening or how filled with uncertainty, anticipation, you know its temporary. You know it ends well. Not just well, it ends great!! 

Of course the devil will confuse you and put doubts in your head, as to if you’re really sure of the ending. If you’re really sure things will be okay. But that’s a lie. The devil is a liar. Tell yourself again and again, it’s all going to end well. Ask God for strength to believe. Ask God for wisdom to believe the truth.

Once I know the movie ends well, the uncertainty and suspense in the movie doesn’t affect me much, because I know the ending. So I enjoy it. Now I tell myself, in a tough situation to treat it just like that movie. It seems tensed and uncertain but I know how it ends so I’m going to treat it just like a movie and watch as every scene unfolds, and remind myself again and again, it ends beautiful, so just relax and enjoy.

Know that whatever situation you are in, it ends well. It ends beautiful. So just sit back and relax and enjoy the show.  J
 

Romans 8: 28 - And we know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose, (NIV)

Hebrews 13: 5 - …for He [God] Himself has said, I will not in any way fail you nor give you up nor leave you without support. [I will] not, [I will] not, [I will] not in any degree leave you helpless nor forsake nor let [you] down (relax My hold on you)! [Assuredly not!] (AMP)

Jeremiah 29:11 - I say this because I know the plans that I have for you.” This message is from the Lord. “I have good plans for you. I don’t plan to hurt you. I plan to give you hope and a good future. (ERV)

Jude 1:2 - Relax, everything’s going to be all right; rest, everything’s coming together; open your hearts, love is on the way! (MSG)  

A Father's Love

About a week ago or so, I remember being totally stressed out. So stressed, that it started affected me physically too. It wasn’t even something in the present. It was something in the future, that might happen and probably might not too (like most future worry things). But the point is, I was totally stressed.

I remember having a conversation with my parents sometime around the same time and though I hate to get them worried about me, I really needed to talk it out.  I remember telling this to my Mom, while Dad just stood in the background and listened. He didn’t say anything, just listened. No solutions, No advice… Just listening. I even thought at a point if he was even listening, cause there was no response or reaction from him. Anyways, I felt a little better for a little while, after being able to talk things out a bit.

I remember waking up the next morning feeling all bright and chirpy, happy and light. I remember working at the kitchen and just singing away. I suddenly realised I was feeling really happy and didn’t feel very stressed or nervous anymore. And I immediately knew – Somebody had been praying for me. And after the conversation I had with my parents the previous day, I thought it must be them. I just felt so relaxed and happy regardless of whatever the future may hold, I just felt confident and strong.

There was this verse that specially helped put things into perspective for me. Proverbs 31: 25 -‘She is clothed with strength and dignity, and she laughs without fear of the future’.

So about a week or so later, I shared with Mom about how the very next day after speaking to them I had begun to feel relaxed and confident. I knew they had been praying, of course. But what Mom said really touched my heart. She told me that after Dad had quietly listened to me, he prayed for me. She said how he had prayed. She said when he was praying for me, he had tears running down his eyes. He was crying as he prayed for me. Though he stood quietly and listened, he was just so hurt by what I shared and decided to take them to the presence of God.

I always know I am very loved by my Dad and special to him, but that day, I just felt so much loved and special and just so awesomely valuable. How awesome to have someone in your life who loves you this much. So much that your smile can just make his world beautiful. So much that your problems can bring tears running down his face. How awesome to be loved this much!!

More than anything this kind of love increases your self worth. It makes you realise how valuable and special you really are. To have someone love you this much.

And then God spoke to me and I realised that it’s true I have an amazing loving Dad. But what is truer is the fact that God’s love for me was far greater than my Dad’s love for me. The Bible says in Ephesians 3:18 – ‘how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ’.

He loves me so much that he would give his life for me. My smile lights up his face. My sadness breaks his heart. How awesome to be loved this much by my Heavenly Father.

My parents always taught me to read the bible and pray. As I grew older I have had my own ways of connecting to God, besides my regular prayer time. Of course this makes God happy. But more than what it does to God, I love it for what it does to me. Every time I connect with God, I am reminded of how much I am loved. It makes me realise my true value and increases my self worth. And a person, who knows what they are worth, would handle life in a strong effective, powerful, healthy, good way. I think this is what God wants too. He knows what it does to us, to stay connected to Him. To be aware of His love and be connected to His love.

This is what Christianity is all about, isn’t it. It’s not a religion. It’s about a Father’s love for His children. It’s about staying connected to Him and enjoying and basking in His great love for us. It would be so dumb to have someone love me this much and to not even be aware of it or to not have a relationship with this person.

I’m so so grateful to have a dad like mine, but what I’m more grateful about and can never thank God enough for, is to have a Heavenly Father like ours. And to know Him and have Him in my life.

Ephesians 3: 18 – ‘…how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ,’

Give God the Glory

Psalm 75:2 - You say, “I choose the appointed time; it is I who judge with equity.

God says I am the one (no one else, not your boss, or anyone else) who chooses the appointed time. God has already preordained a time for every blessing in our life and God’s timing is the best. God judges with equity and decides what blessing and when.

Psalm 75: 3 - When the earth and all its people quake, it is I who hold its pillars firm.

When things seem unstable and out of control, the person who holds it all together is God. Every blessing we have in our life is from God. Every stability, every good thing (even the ones we don’t notice and take for granted), come from God. I could go on in length about how much and how undeserved God’s blessings are but the main point here is – EVERY blessing, every stability in our life is from God alone. Just as He says – It is I who hold its pillars firm.

Psalm 75: 4 - To the arrogant I say, ‘Boast no more,’ and to the wicked, ‘Do not lift up your horns.

Every time we decide to take any credit for any blessing in our life, we are being arrogant. Every time we don’t give God the glory, we are lifting up our own horns. Horns – Used for proclamation, For making noise to draw attention. I can either lift my own horn and draw the attention to myself or lift God’s horn and draw the attention to God and proclaim God and His Goodness. This verse calls those who lift their own horns and not God’s horn as arrogant and wicked.

Psalm 75: 5 - Do not lift your horns against heaven; do not speak so defiantly.’ ”

Crystal clear, DO NOT lift your horns. And when we blow our own horns we are doing it against heaven. And we are doing so, defiantly. Whatever our intentions maybe, this is what the Bible says we do when we don’t give God the Glory, when we don’t lift up God’s horn.

Psalm 75: 6 - No one from the east or the west or from the desert can exalt themselves.

Only God is the reason for the blessings, honour, stability in our lives. No one else, no matter how high ranking or how loving or good. Everything comes from God. Consider the fact that there are others who work as hard as us, if not more and yet we are blessed. The truth is that it’s not what we do, but what God does. That does not mean we do nothing. We do our best, trusting God and his timing in our lives. And we learn that everything we have is from God and learn that the wise thing is to give God the glory. To life up God’s horn.

Psalm 75: 7 - It is God who judges: He brings one down, he exalts another.

Re-iterating the fact that whatever blessing or honour or stability we have in our life is only because of God.

Psalm 75: 9 - As for me, I will declare this forever; I will sing praise to the God of Jacob,

David knew this secret and made sure he gave God the Glory in everything. From a shepherd to a king, God knew he could trust this guy and lavish His blessing on David, and that David would definitely give God the Glory and lift up God’s horn. David was always declaring God’s Goodness and Praising God. David was someone who was constantly meditating on God’s Goodness. It looks like he was looking for new ways to glorify God. It’s like his brain constantly was thinking – In what else, can I glorify God? What else can I thank God for? Who else can I tell about the Goodness of God to? I can imagine him having a conversation with someone and thinking in his head – How can I bring God into this conversation and glorify Him and talk about His Goodness?  In Psalm 77: 11 and 12 David says - I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago. I will consider all your works and meditate on all your mighty deeds.”  In order to effectively give God glory for everything, David has his mind meditating on all that God had done for him. Thinking of all the blessings from long ago.

Psalm 75: 10 - who says, “I will cut off the horns of all the wicked, but the horns of the righteous will be lifted up.”

The horns of the wicked will be cut off. But the horns of the righteous will be lifted up !!! Those who blow God’s horns, will be exalted and honoured. They will find more and more in their lives to praise and testify about. God will be able to trust them knowing, the more I bless this person, the more this person will lift Me up. Declaring God’s Goodness and finding out ways to do them keeps us grateful and happy and also opens ways (new and more) for God to lift Himself us through us. 

The Mint Story

Last week we had been to this place for berry picking and when we got to the counter to get the berries billed, we found some mint leaves there. This mint leaves were a little unusual to the regular mint leaves (the leaves were bigger and the stem thicker too) that we get at the store, so we decided to buy a bunch. They were real fresh and nice and the lady at the counter wrapped them up in a paper and gave them to us.

When we got home late evening, we were surprised to see that the bunch was actually a little droopy. My husband, the clever guy J, took a glass of water and put the end of the bunch, dipping into the water. When I woke up the next morning, the bunch was fresh again and standing straight. I called out to my husband to have a look. And I used it to make some awesome biryani!! J

God taught me how similar this was to, how my life was. The water was God’s word and God’s presence in my life. Without it, I would be droopy and how when I drank from His word and His presence, I would be refreshed and stand tall and strong and be fresh too.

I remember a few weeks ago, something happened that kind of broke me up a bit. I was crying a lot and was pretty upset. In short, I was droopy. I was trying to read the bible and pray and worship but it was all a bit hard for me. I remember we had this Bible Study at our home one day and we had a beautiful discussion on prayer that day. That one hour that we spent discussing from God’s word and learning from it and sharing experiences, was like water to my thirsty being. I was completely refreshed. There were so many things shared that was just what my heart and mind needed to hear. No one in the Bible Study group knew what I was going through. I remember one beautiful lady who is also a friend sharing – ‘Stop having a pity party for yourself, get up and start praying. Stop thinking about yourself and start praying for the people around you. There’s so much prayer needed’. Things like this and so much more put things in perspective for me. Thank God for God Given friends and fellowship.

That’s why it’s always good to have a good fellowship too. To find a church to go to and be a part of a fellowship. In times when you find hard to pray, they will lift you up and you can do the same for them.

So back to the mint story, I, like the bunch of mint leaves, was refreshed and I could see that I was standing tall and straight. Connecting with God and His word has that effect on us. When we are droopy we can’t handle much and the little we can handle, won’t be very effective. But when we stand tall and are connected to God, we face things with God’s help and will be very victorious. We can do all things through Christ who STRENGTHENS us.

So if you are droopy, dip into the well of His Word and His Presence and you will be refreshed and victorious!!!

Jeremiah 17:8 - For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters that spreads out its roots by the river; and it shall not see and fear when heat comes; but its leaf shall be green. It shall not be anxious and full of care in the year of drought, nor shall it cease yielding fruit.

Matthew 11: 28 - Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy-laden and overburdened, and I will cause you to rest. [I will ease and relieve and refresh your souls.] 

Psalm 1: 3 - He is like a tree   planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season,  and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.

Philippians 4: 13 - I can do all things through Christ^[a] who strengthens me.

Harsh Words

There are times when certain harsh words can completely get into your head and have a very harsh effect on you. They could take a long time to recover from and sometimes even completely break a person beyond recovery. And sometimes when you think you are over it, they could come back to haunt you bringing back all those hurt and tears and pain. The worst part is sometimes those harsh words can break a person down completely. A beautiful person could start believing over a period of time that they are indeed worthless, bad and ugly. An intelligent person can start thinking, they are foolish and completely lose their self-confidence.

Harsh words can sometimes be abusive as well…

But the good news is, you can completely heal and forget and be peaceful and NEVER be haunted by it.

I think everyone at some point in their life goes through this issue of facing Harsh Words. I was talking to a really sweet girl sometime back. She was upset that something harsh had been said to her and we discussed a few things which was something I found useful too and I thought I should write this down. I want to share three points here.

Point 1 – Look UP to God

In Numbers 21, there is this incident where venomous snakes bit the children of Israel. They come running to Moses for a remedy and God tells to Moses to put up a bronze snake. God says to Moses that - …” anyone who is bitten can look at it and live”… John 3: 14 compares the lifting up of the Bronze Snake in the wilderness to the cross.

Negative words can have the effect of a venomous snake in our life. The words bite you and cause pain and the pain slowly spreads. You, of course, try to forget it, but they don’t go away. They keep coming back causing fresh tears and heartache every time they are back. They spread like poison in your body. You lose your peace. You lose your self-confidence. You start believing those words. And slowly, very slowly the poison has spread and starts destroying the person you are meant to be, and you begin to die. And eventually the beautiful, chirpy person is replaced by a dead lifeless person with no confidence. But there’s good news, God’s word says – When you are bitten by a venomous snake, you don’t have to die, you could look UP to the cross and live. Just look up to Jesus. Don’t allow yourself to think about what was said. It’s not easy but it’s possible. God knows you’ve been bitten and He wants to help. So look UP to the cross, look UP to God and you will live. God will remove every effect of those words and remove all the venom and You Will Live!!!

Point 2 – It’s not You!!

This was something that took me a long time to realise. It’s something that I learnt probably in the last recent year. It’s not about you!!
 

What someone says is a reflection of who they are. Healthy, Good, Nice people says nice things. Hurting people say hurting things. When someone says something ugly, hurtful and bad, it’s more a reflection of who they are than who you are. So NEVER Ever let yourself believe anything those words would say. For some maybe it’s not a thing of the past but an on-going thing. Always remember, it’s not about you. Always choose, make a conscious decision, to not believe any of it. It’s not about you!!

Point 3 – Be Assertive

Usually when someone is rude or hurtful, and especially when it’s an on-going thing, it can cause one to get angry and be aggressive. But by being aggressive the only thing you do is become a little more like the person you are dealing with. I remember this girl I was talking to, she is a beautiful person and I remember her saying that she planned on talking back to the person who hurt her in exactly the same way they did to her, so they would know how it felt. I asked her, how she would feel if one day she was exactly like this person she was dealing with? And she said she would hate that. And I told her that every time she talked back to the person, the way they did to her, all she achieved was to become a little more like that person and this would go on and on, till one day she would completely be that person. 

But at the same time, just sitting quietly and being bullied and pushed around is not the answer either. Jesus didn’t sit quietly when the Pharisees and His enemies tried to put Him in trouble. Sometimes we think that maybe if we are quiet and ignore what’s happening, maybe it would just go away. From my experience I have seen, it just makes matter worse, making the attacker more and more powerful knowing no one is going to question what they do or say.
So what is being Assertive? Wikipedia says this - a form of behavior characterized by a confident declaration or affirmation of a statement without need of proof; this affirms the person's rights or point of view without either aggressively threatening the rights of another (assuming a position of dominance) or submissively permitting another to ignore or deny one's rights or point of view.

For some, being Assertive comes naturally but for most, it needs to be learnt, as a skill. Learn about how you can communicate in an Assertive way. Make sure you communicate. If the person actually means well, they would get your side of the story. If the person does not mean well, they at least know that you are not going to take it lying down.

Most important, Pray. Pray for God’s wisdom to handle the situation. No amount of harsh or ugly words, rude tones, manipulations can stand before the wisdom of God!!! So Pray and Pray and Pray for God’s wisdom. For God’s guidance. For the strength and courage to speak up and to do what is right. For strength to not react in anger. For strength not to let any of it affect the beautiful person that you are. For strength to forgive. For strength and the wisdom to move on!!!

Ephesians 4: 26, 27 - … You do well to be angry—but don’t use your anger as fuel for revenge. And don’t stay angry. Don’t go to bed angry. Don’t give the Devil that kind of foothold in your life.

Proverbs 12: 18 - Rash language cuts and maims, but there is healing in the words of the wise.

Isaiah 54: 17 - But no weapon that is formed against you shall prosper, and every tongue that shall rise against you in judgment you shall show to be in the wrong. This [peace, righteousness, security, triumph over opposition] is the heritage of the servants of the Lord [those in whom the ideal Servant of the Lord is reproduced]; this is the righteousness or the vindication which they obtain from Me [this is that which I impart to them as their justification], says the Lord.

Mark 10: 27 - … “No chance at all if you think you can pull it off by yourself. Every chance in the world if you let God do it.”

You Are Special !!! Awesomely Special !!!

You are special

You are valuable

You are loved

Every time after I have spoken to Dad, I feel so awesomely special… so awesomely loved and so valuable. My Dad thinks the world of me and he shows it in the way he talks, in what he talks… sometimes just the way he calls me is just so full of love. He always has this awesome effect on me and no matter how down I have been before I talk to him, after I have spoken to him I just feel so special and so valuable and loved.

The more a person thinks you are special, the more they make you feel that way. You know how special and valuable and loved you are to a person by just being around them.

More than anyone, God is the one to who you are the most special. Many more times than you could be to anyone on this earth. He is the one who knows the true measure of how special and valuable and beautiful and loved and awesome you are… you know why? Cos He created you!! His evaluation of you is the true, accurate and the right one. And He thinks you’re awesomely special.

You will know and feel your true measure of how special and great you are, when you are with Him. The more you are with Him, the more and more you realise just how awesomely special and valuable and awesome and loved you are. This is one of the reasons why we need to spend more and more time with our God, our Heavenly Father. This is why we need to stay constantly connected to Him. No matter what you are doing, remember to have a conversation with Him, just like you would with someone who is constantly hanging out with you.

This is why we need to start our day with Him and end our day with Him and live our day with Him. When we know the true value of what we are and who we are, we are more equipped to live a successful and more importantly, happy lives, regardless of what is happening.

If you don’t make a conscious decision and effort to put your mind on God and stay connected to Him and if your mind is empty, then there is also the devil waiting to fill your head with what he exactly thinks of you. Someone rightly said – An empty mind is the devil’s workshop. The devil thinks you’re totally worthless and no good and all things bad. If that’s the way you feel about yourself today, then you really need to realise that’s not what you really are. And that you have been listening to the wrong person.

There are times I have been down and felt not very special. At such times all I need to do is make sure I spend more time with God and hear what He has to say. To just hear over and over and over again, till His love flows thru all of me, drenching me in His love and making me realise just how awesomely awesomely special I am… from head to toe. How this awesome God of mine, who loves me like crazy created me so awesomely special. We just need to spend time with God. If you don’t feel like praying, just sing. Or take a walk and have a normal conversation. The devil will try his best to stop that because he knows what happens when you connect with God and spend time with Him.

God has really blessed me and filled my life with so many special amazing people who I would like to call God’s agents. There are some people, who if I even just see or see online on Facebook or Skype, I have this BIG smile on my face. They have such a positive and a wonderful effect on me. Just talking to them or being with them makes me feel so special and good. There are people with whom my talk or chat would start in a very complaining tone and they have this way of encouraging and pointing out the things you are good at and shifting your focus from what’s wrong to what’s right and making you feel like everything is beautiful around you and in you. I would love to be more like that. To be God’s agent to everyone I come in contact with, so that when a person has been with me, they feel special and awesome, just the way God created them to be, just the way God thinks they are, just the way they truly are.

You are special

You are awesome

You are valuable

You are beautiful

You are loved!!!

John 3:16 - This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life.

Matthew 10: 29 – 31 - “What’s the price of a pet canary? Some loose change, right? And God cares what happens to it even more than you do. He pays even greater attention to you, down to the last detail—even numbering the hairs on your head! So don’t be intimidated by all this bully talk. You’re worth more than a million canaries.

Psalm 139: 13 – 16 - Oh yes, you shaped me first inside, then out;
    you formed me in my mother’s womb.
I thank you, High God—you’re breathtaking!
    Body and soul, I am marvelously made!
    I worship in adoration—what a creation!
You know me inside and out,
    you know every bone in my body;
You know exactly how I was made, bit by bit,
    how I was sculpted from nothing into something.
Like an open book, you watched me grow from conception to birth;
    all the stages of my life were spread out before you,
The days of my life all prepared
    before I’d even lived one day.

Jer 29:11- I know what I’m doing. I have it all planned out—plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for.

Genesis 1:26 – 28 - God spoke: “Let us make human beings in our image, make them
        reflecting our nature
    So they can be responsible for the fish in the sea,
        the birds in the air, the cattle,
    And, yes, Earth itself,
        and every animal that moves on the face of Earth.”
    God created human beings;
        he created them godlike,
    Reflecting God’s nature.
        He created them male and female.
    God blessed them:
        “Prosper! Reproduce! Fill Earth! Take charge!
    Be responsible for fish in the sea and birds in the air,
        for every living thing that moves on the face of Earth.”

Words that Strengthen

Job 4: 3, 4 - Think how you have instructed many, how you have strengthened feeble hands.          Your words have supported those who stumbled; you have strengthened faltering knees.

This brings to my mind, those people who have really held me up. Everyone has to deal with problems in their lives. What makes it easier during such times is encouraging words, words of comfort. There have been times in my life when I have been really really down, and what has sustained is the wonderful people in my life who speak to encourage, who speak to strengthen, who speak to build me up. I am so glad and ever thankful that God has filled my life with such people in abundance.

You never know who is hurting. Someone may seem all laughter and smiles on the outside but you never know. Always make sure to speak something encouraging. Always make sure you say something nice, something complimentary. Everyone has something (actually lots) that we can appreciate them about. Look for that quality and appreciate. Whenever we say something nice, something encouraging, something appreciative, we build a person up.

I love how the same verse is mentioned in the Easy to Read translation - "You encouraged those who were ready to quit.You gave strength to those who could not stand by themselves." The Message translation puts this verse this way - "... put fresh hope in people about to collapse....".

There have been times where I have been ready to quit, where I couldnt stand by myself. And I really owe to some of these awesome people in my life, who have just literally held me up. And some without even knowing they were holding me up. Whenever we speak positive words to people, we give strength to them, we infuse hope into their hopeless situation. We become God's instruments in their life.