Press In

It had been so long. Time and time again, she sought help, just to leave feeling empty and discouraged.

Doctor after doctor she saw, but no one could help her.

For 12 long years, she had been subject to the same bleeding. The same situation. The same obstacle. No relief.

Every day she looked at her situation, and said “God, when? When will I see a change?”

She had done all that she knew how to do.

One day, she heard that Jesus was in town.

Although she was hurt, discouraged, disappointed, and exhausted, she knew that if she just pressed in and touched Him, even the hem of His garment, she would be made whole.

Jesus was surrounded by soooo many people, but when she touched Him, He knew it. There was something different about her press.

Mount up on Healed Wings and Soar

“They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles. They shall run and not be weary, they shall walk, and not faint.” Isaiah 40:31

This is such a familiar passage of scripture. It is a scripture that most of us have found comfort in at one point or another. It is a promise of God that gives us hope.

Who doesn’t want to mount up on wings and soar as an eagle? Who doesn’t want the strength and perseverance to be the very best version of themselves that we can be?

This is a wonderful concept. I have found, however, that most women (and men as well), are trying to mount up on broken wings and soar.

Lord, Teach Us to Pray

The journey to a deeper prayer life that we have embarked upon this month has been a fulfilling and eye opening one. I have been a woman of prayer for many years (though not alway consistent). However, some things that I have learned and have been reminded of over this past month has changed my prayer life forever.

There have been times that I have gotten on my knees, thanked God, asked Him to bless me an my family, then asked myself, “ok, what’s next?” I have often felt like there was something that I was missing in my prayer life. I knew there was something that I could do to make my prayer life more effective, but I wasn’t sure what that was.

Then it dawned on me, the best person to teach me how to pray was Jesus.

All throughout the Gospels, you could find Jesus going to a secluded place to pray. The disciples one day asked Jesus, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.” That is when Jesus left us with a special gift.. the gift of teaching us all to pray through what we call The Lord’s Prayer.

Why Pray?: The Purpose of Prayer

Prayer is one of the primary ways that we connect with the heart of God. Prayer is the way that we communicate with our Father. Just like any other relationship, the more time we spend with God in prayer, the more we get to know about Him and His character. It is where we get to experience the REALNESS of God!

When we spend time with God in prayer, our confidence in Him increases, because He proves himself trustworthy every single time.

Say Goodbye to the People Pleaser

That’s it. I quit.

Today is the day that I let it go.

Today is the day that I break up with the people pleaser in me.

The Good Shepherd Part 2: From Religion to Relationship

When I made the decision to truly surrender my life to the Lord, I was in a quandary. I knew there was something more to salvation than going to church, serving on the usher board, and praying over my food as I ate.

I just didn't know how to obtain that "something".

There was an ache inside of me that no one or nothing could soothe.

No matter how many relationships I engaged in, how many degrees I obtained, how many friendships I encountered...

No matter how much alcohol I consumed..

No matter what I did to self medicate, there was always this ache and longing inside of me that I knew could only be healed by Jesus the Christ.

The Good Shepherd Part 1: Forget Not All His Benefits

With the holiday season upon us, this is the perfect time to reflect on the goodness and faithfulness of the Good Shepherd.

However, with the BUSYNESS of the season, we often forget about the REAL reason for the entire season.

He is the one who makes it all possible. He is before all things, and by Him all things consist.

You Still Have Worth

Sometimes when we make mistakes, we feel like there is no coming back from this. We feel that the mistake was too weighty, and there is no redemption.

Sometimes we feel like God or others will never forgive us for what we have done.

Sometimes…we feel like because of the mistakes that we have made, we have lost our worth as a parent, spouse, and child of God.

When we ask God for forgiveness through Jesus, all of heaven rejoices, BECAUSE YOU STILL HAVE WORTH.

We Are Giant Slayers!

My oldest son plays little league football. Last year, he was on the team that won the championship title…sort of like the “super bowl” of little league. He played for the Falcons.

It was a very memorable season. There was one game in particular that made a very lasting impression on all of us.

My son’s team was scheduled to play the Steelers. At some point during the season, we had seen them in action. One thing is for sure.. these boys were HUGE.

I mean.. they were REALLY HUGE. I literally was not convinced that they were even the same age or should be in the same league. I wanted to demand to see some birth certificates for some of these boys! I digress..

Overall, the boys that played for the Falcons were smaller in stature. Naturally, they were a little intimidated.

My son said, “Momma, they are so big!” I told him not to let that affect him. Their size doesn’t take away from his talents. “Keep blocking the same way you always block, play like you always play. Don’t let that intimidate you, son,” I said to him.

I can’t remember who scored first. But I do remember, when the Falcons scored, it caught the Steelers off guard. They weren’t expecting it. Of course, the Falcons won.

In the story of David and Goliath, we found a very similar scenario. This story can by found in 1 Samuel 17.

Freedom from Perfection

We buy tons of books, cd’s, dvd’s and other resources on parenting and/or marriage, in hopes that we can learn to be the perfect spouse or perfect parent.

We have to be the perfect employee. We have to be the perfect volunteer.

Although we know that social media may be the culprit for a lot of this.. have we ever stopped to think what is really the fuel behind our desire to be perfect? What is the fuel that keeps our perfectionist wheels turning?

The Masks We Wear: A Journey to Authenticity

When I was I little girl, my favorite holiday was Christmas, of course. But my next favorite holiday was Halloween.

The candy and other treats were awesome, going trick-or-treating with my siblings and friends was fun, but there was something else about Halloween that intrigued me. It was the masks that we we wore.

The first Halloween costume that I remember was a nurse's uniform. I wanted to be a nurse like my Aunt Rose, so my parents brought me this costume. I remember it vividly. It was a white smock with this heavy, thick mask.

Boy, was that mask uncomfortable! It was hot, it made me sweat, and the elastic that kept it in place was tight. Yet, I LOVED wearing it.

Even at a young age, I realized that if I wore this mask, I could pretend to be anything that I desired to be.

Life went on, situations happened, tragedies occurred. One thing remained constant...I continued to love to wear masks.

But these masks were different.

Stay Focused

No matter what you are going through,

No matter how the winds and waves are raging,

No matter how impossible it may seem,

No matter how scary it gets,

No matter how ugly it gets,

Keep your eyes on Him. Keep walking toward him. Keep letting Him lead you. And you won't sink.

Stay focused.

Overcoming the Paralysis of Fear

We won't move because we believe our fears more than we believe God. We shrink back. We become prisoners in our own mind. We become hostages to our own thoughts. At that point, the enemy has done a might fine job of keeping us from being all that God has created us to be.

But there is an anecdote. It may not happen overnight. It will take some effort. But, just like in every other situation, if you consistently apply it, it will work.

Be Uniquely You

Hey Hey Hey!!! Rise and Shine!!!! Rise to the occasion! Shine on to greatness!! God gave You a light that is unique to YOU and only YOU, and there is someone out there that needs you to let that light shine!

And that is what this blog post is about today.

Time for New Shoes

Hey you!! Rise and Shine! Shine bright girl!!! YOU have something that the world needs to see.

So, over the weekend, I had a lot of thoughts, and some things that were on my heart to share.

But first let me ask you….

After having your first baby, were you able to fit into your old shoes?

Chillleee..

I couldn’t. And I was crushed. Some of my cutest shoes no longer fit me. My most comfortable shoes were no longer comfortable.

I did not want to get rid of those shoes, because I had them for so long. They were familiar. I liked them. Although they no longer fit and were not comfortable anymore, I wanted to keep them... In hopes that they would fit again. Trying to make them work.

It was time to let them go.

Eyes Wide Shut

Hey you! Happy Monday! I hope you had a great weekend.

So, let's have a real conversation. Have you ever gone through a period in your life where you felt like your eyes were opened, but you couldn't see a thing? Like so much was going on that you needed a solution for, and although you were looking in all the places that you thought were right, you couldn't find one to save your life?

In the fall of 1999, I had begun my second year of pharmacy school. Although many would look at this as a major accomplishment, I felt like a complete failure. I had always done well in school. I certainly never had a problem with passing tests after I had studied. For the first time in my life, I would study for a test, and fail.

I would spend much of my weekends and my afternoons when I got home from class studying. At times, I would stay up all night studying. To no avail, I would still fail many tests. I was blessed to pull off a 75, at times, and ecstatic when I saw anything above an 80!

This may not sound like a big deal to some people. I get that. This was totally foreign to me, and I was not handling it well.

Then, the love of my life, my grandmother, fell really ill and passed away.

I felt like all the walls had come tumbling down around me.

I was in a really dark place. I talked to friends. I went to church. I prayed. I joined study groups. I did all that I knew to do, and could not get any relief.

My eyes were wide shut.

Jesus, Coffee, and a Candle

Hey hey hey!! How are you today? Are you happy, or are you a "grumpy grumpfish" today? Lol!

If you are a grumpy grumpfish today, it could possibly be because of how you started your morning.

Part of being refreshed is being intentional about how you start your day. Starting off on the right foot has to be a conscious decision.

Developing a morning routine is so important. It takes a tiny bit of effort, but it is so worth it! Your family, coworkers, and friends will appreciate it!

Spending time in the presence of the Lord in the morning provides me with the strength and patience that I need to accomplish the day's tasks, helps me to keep my focus on Him, and gives me direction, clarity, and grace to take on the day.

There is nothing like starting off the day with coffee, Jesus, and a candle.

The Wonder of God's Love

Hello Beautiful!! I have something very special to share with you today.

You are on God's mind, and He wants to remind you of His love for you.

But first, please ask yourself, how do I view God? How does God view me? Take a few minutes to ponder that and write it down if you must.

Some look at Him as being this great, big being, sitting in a chair...looking down at us, waiting for us to make a mistake so that He can chastise and punish us.

Some view him as being this celestial Santa Claus, believing that everything we ask for He will or should give it to us.

Although He is a God of judgement and certainly chastens those He loves (Hebrews 12:6), and the bible tells us that we have not because we ask not (although the concepts concerning this scripture have been misinterpreted by many to fit personal desires), these are just portions of His character.

God's motive for creating you, protecting you, caring for you, and sending His son Jesus for you is simply because of this...

HE LOVES YOU.

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Refreshing Moments with Sharon Fletcher

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