Category: Spiritual

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Blog Spiritual

God Sends Messages at the Right Time

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If you’ve been following me for a while, you know that I have my hands on a few projects. One of those projects is my immigration podcast. Immigration is close to my heart since I’m a child of immigrants, and it’s been in my heart to help and get involved with immigration. I want to be able to help in any way that I can, whether it’s being an advocate, educating, or volunteering.

In 2019 I was determined to go to law school to become an immigration attorney because I felt that was the best way I could help. I took the LSAT (the test to apply to law school), but my score was average, and I was disappointed. At the time, I was finishing my master’s, so I had a lot on my plate and couldn’t dedicate enough time to study for the LSAT. Because of my score, I got discouraged.

After starting my podcast, I came upon the opportunity to help a non-profit organization that helps new migrant families find resources for things they need. I help with translating documents and in online meetings.

While doing this, I realized there was a need, and I reached out to an immigration attorney to get their advice on if I would be able to help with the demand that is there, but she told me to be careful – it would be best if the families hire an immigration attorney for that particular need.

So once again, I got the urge to go to law school. I felt like I wasn’t doing enough in the area of immigration and that I could do more. I talked to my husband and a close friend about it, and they both said the same thing, I am doing enough. They both told me that the podcast is doing something; it brings awareness to immigration. My close friend said she would pray with me (I had reached out to her for a prayer request) about the situation and see if God leads me toward law school.

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Well, this feeling of me not doing enough or questioning if what I’m doing is “worth it” comes to me occasionally. Like, right when I think, “what’s the point” and I feel like giving up, God ALWAYS reminds me that I’m right on track. And this time wasn’t any different.

Literally, the next day, I received a message from a person I’ve known since I was a child but hadn’t talked to in years, and she said, “I see you making a difference out there! Keep up the good work.” She then told me she had subscribed to my podcast. And to me, that was all the recurrence I needed to know that I was doing enough.

This reminds me of two bible verses – the first one is Jeremiah 29:11, which says, “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you hope and a future, (NIV). And Proverbs 16:9 says, “In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps,” (NIV).

God knows the plans for our lives, all we need to do is seek Him, and it will come to us. And His plans are much better than what we have planned for our lives.

I pray that you surrender any plans you may have to God and have Him establish the steps you need to take. And remember, God loves you, and He cares for you. All His plans for you are for your good.

Thank you, God, for always reminding me that I am doing your good work. Thank you for always being there for me and guiding me. Amen.

With Love, Heidy

Has God sent you any messages recently?

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Blog Spiritual

God is Present In The Heavy Seasons

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Between August 2020 and March 2021 was a heavy grieving season for me. My grandfather went to heaven in August, I suffered a miscarriage in November, and my mother-in-law was called home to Jesus in March. Fortunately, if you can say that, this wasn’t my first season of grief; I learned the hardship of grief early in my life. At the young age of 23, my biological mother passed suddenly.

You don’t think about the passing of your mother. Although it’s impossible, you tend to think of her as immortal – someone who will always be there. That wasn’t the case for me. Everyone around me still had their mothers, so no one could understand my pain. They didn’t know the void in my chest that never leaves, the constant heaviness that hurt even to breathe, and they didn’t understand that a part of me died and I would never be the same. Actually – at the time, I didn’t know it either.

Since I had already endured the pain of losing a loved one, I thought I knew how this season of grief would be; however, I thought wrong. Each season is different because your relationship with each person is different. And losing a baby is another type of grief, but I’ll leave that story for another day. One difference in this season from the first was my relationship with God was stronger. So today, I want to share three things that helped me in my most recent season of grief.

One – Talking about my memories with my grandfather

My grandfather lived with us since I was 16 years old. We lived in a humble two-bedroom house; I slept in the living room while he slept in my room, so he was involved in many milestones of my life. For example, I took my driver’s test with his car. He helped me purchase my first car. He was present for my high school graduation. And when I was younger, I was told that he would go to a children’s boutique in the Dominican Republic to purchase a dress for me as a birthday gift. He did that for the first five years of my life. My mom would then get professional pictures taken of me in the dresses. To this day, I still have the pictures. So, sharing all these stories and memories with whoever would listen was helpful for me.

Two – Going on a trip to the beach

My husband’s birthday is August 13, and I planned a trip for us to Anna Maria Island. My grandfather passed on August 10 – just three days before the trip. I was so conflicted if we should continue with our plans. On the one hand, I wanted to celebrate my husband’s birthday, but then on the other, I didn’t want to seem insensitive to the situation. Since we couldn’t receive a full refund, we went for three instead of going for four days. And I am so glad we went. It’s hard to continue your day-to-day routine when your heart is so heavy, and this trip helped us get out of routine. It gave me time away from everyone to process my feelings and distract my mind for a few days. Also, I feel the closest to God at the beach, which was therapeutic for me.

Three – Staying rooted in God’s word

As I mentioned above, you can’t do business as usual when your heart is heavy. So, your schedule and routine are all messed up. However, in this season of grief, I was intentional about continuing my Bible reading. I continued my daily Bible plan and enjoyed reading the Bible at the beach. Listening to worship music while going through the miscarriage was comforting. And during my mother-in-law’s passing, I signed up for an online Bible Study; although I couldn’t log on to the calls, I continued to do the study, and it helped me stay mentally and emotionally stable.

These are things that helped me during my heavy season of grief. I know that everyone processes grief differently, and grief doesn’t look the same for everyone, but I hope my experience can help one person. And if you haven’t experienced grief, I hope you save this article and use it as a resource to help you during that difficult time.

I want to leave you with a Bible verse that came up multiple times during this season and reminded me that God was with me.

Psalms 147:3 NIV – “He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.”

With Love, Heidy

What helped you during your season with grief?

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Categories
Blog Spiritual

The Storm Didn’t Come to Destroy You (Guest Post)

Hello Friends! It’s been a few months since I’ve brought you guys a guest post, so here is one! This message is from sister in Christ, Dennisha Blake, the founder of Led By The Spirit Academy. And she provides this encouragement to remind us that the storms we go through are not meant to destroy us but, in fact, provide growth in our lives. Check it out.

Have you noticed that every time you start to step out on faith, you step right into the middle of a storm? Feeling lost and confused, frustrated, and overwhelmed, Like God didn’t give you enough information to go on.

Many times, I’ve found myself in the middle of a storm, and these storms are not easy. I’m sure you can relate! You step out on faith regarding something you have been praying for. But then everything starts to go wrong: things don’t seem to progress as fast as you hoped; then confusion starts to settle in, and you’re wondering, did I really hear God? At this point, fear, doubt, anxiety, and frustration creep in—these are just a few of the emotions we may feel in the middle of a storm. Not to mention feeling alone because we start wondering where God is. And here’s the dangerous part: when we start feeling all these emotions and dwell on them, we put ourselves at risk of making the wrong decisions—causing us to lose our ability to remain obedient to the Lord in that season.

But here’s the thing: The storm doesn’t come to destroy you. It comes to qualify you to carry the weight of your destiny and prepare you for the promises of God.

So, what do we do? How do we navigate the storm well to receive the promise in the end? That’s what I’m going to talk about today—how we can team up with God so that when His promises finally come true, we’re ready to receive them—and all they entail. So be encouraged there is light at the end of the tunnel and a strategy to navigate the storms.

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Is Your Life on Repeat?

Not knowing God’s purpose for the storms will put our lives on repeat—and that’s not what God wants for us! Do you feel like your life has been on repeat? Do you keep going around the same mountain, not making any real progress? Do you keep making the same resolutions year after year? Do you keep praying the same prayers repeatedly without any manifestations of it? The reason why this keeps happening is that we allow our emotions to dictate our actions.

The disciples made the same mistake in Luke 8:22-25, Jesus fell asleep on the boat, and a storm broke out. The disciples became so afraid, losing faith, not realizing that the savior was literally on the ship with them. When they woke Jesus up, the first thing, He said to them was, “where is your faith.” That’s what God asks us about every storm we go through: “where is our faith.” Because every time He tries to get us over on the other side to receive the promise, we lose faith in the journey. In verse 22, Jesus literally says, “let us go over to the other side.” But if we lose faith, we repeatedly go through the same kind of storms.

There is a Strategy to Navigate the Storm!

Where do you go from here? Learn to become like the sons of Issachar (1 Chr 12:32), who were very knowledgeable of the times and understood what to do in each season. When it comes to the storms of our lives, we must recognize that it’s just a test. The Lord tests you to see if you are prepared to receive the promise. (Let me be clear not every storm is a test from the Lord. Some storms are self-inflicted by disobedience. But that is a blog post for another day.) As you go through the harvest, God is now testing you to see if you are worthy of the promise. This is biblical; God tested the children of Israel in the wilderness before they entered the promised land. We see this in Deuteronomy 8:2. God says I took you through the wilderness, and I tested you to prove your character.

God will test you to prove your character, but the enemy will tempt you to sin, so know the difference. God’s test determines if you are ready to receive the promise.

I’ll give you a sneak peek into one of the lessons I teach in my Led by The Spirit Academy: Execution of Faith course.

There are four stages to a season:

  • The identification stage
  • The cultivation stage
  • The harvest stage
  • The reaping/receiving stage

Everybody loves the reaping and receiving stage! We don’t care too much about the first three stages, but for us to reach the reaping stage, we must be able to get through the first three stages successfully.

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Identification:  You must identify what God wants to cultivate in you in every season (maybe it’s patience).

Cultivation: Once identified, cultivate it by studying the Word of God concerning that specific thing. Cultivation is successful when you start to produce fruit concerning it.

Harvest: Once we begin to produce fruit, it is now time for the harvest. This harvest stage is the storm/test. Do not despise difficult seasons because they are cultivating something in you. If you navigate it well, those seasons will grow you. God’s goal is always to develop you into the image of Christ and prepare you for his glory. The harvest stage has four additional components, but if you can get through each stage of the harvest: Picking, crushing, pressing, and settling without jeopardizing it, you will reap the promise.

Reaping/Receiving: If you don’t give into the enemy during the harvest stage, you will receive the promise (Taking matters into your own hands, pleasing the flesh, easy fix). God Reaps the glory, and we receive the promise.

We often want the promise, but we don’t want to be processed for the promise. The process gives us the ability to maintain and sustain the promise.

  • Never focus on what God is not doing; instead, ask God what he is doing.
  • Cultivate it
  • Pray about it
  • Study the word in regard to it
  • Be obedient to God’s instructions

Be encouraged because the storm does not come to destroy you; it comes to qualify you to carry the weight of your destiny and to prepare you for the promise. Everything you have been and are going through prepares you for what you’ve asked God for. If you’re in the middle of a storm right now, stay the course, be strong, walk-in righteousness, walk in obedience, and pass the test regardless of what it looks like around you. God is still faithful, you are still His child, and He still wants to bring you into your promised land, but you’ve got to get through the wilderness. You’ve got to get through it without being disobedient and without murmuring. The children of Israel wandered around in the wilderness for 40 years when it should have taken them a fraction of that time to get into the promised land. Don’t let this be you; pass your test and receive the promise!

Perspective is a powerful thing! And once you have God’s perspective, you will be able to smile at the storm and even welcome it.

Can you identify how your current or past storms can prepare for the next season and promise?

Thank you, Dennisha, for this message and reminder that God wants us to grow, and we grow within these storms in our lives. We have to go through the storms to get to the other side.

Connect with Dennisha at:

Instagram: www.instagram.com/faithinthejourneyllc/

Facebook: www.facebook.com/FaithintheJourneyLLC/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPPAhtng-T9FapalsMPD53g

website: http://www.Ledbythespirit.academy

Dennisha’s bio:

Founder of Led By The Spirit Academy and CEO of Faith In The Journey LLC, a Bible-based company that provides Kingdom strategy and perspective to believers to not only hear the voice of God but Execute his instructions with confidence walking into their GOD-given purpose while advancing the Kingdom of Heaven. Dennisha is a life coach & mentor who is also ordained in the office of a prophet at her local church. She has a passion for seeing believers in Christ walk in obedience to the biblical instructions of the Lord enabling them to receive the promises of GOD and embodying Kingdom Authority.

And if you are interested in guest writing for my blog please contact me! I would LOVE to work with you.

With Love, Heidy

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Categories
Blog Spiritual

Forgiving the Hardest Person There Is to Forgive…

As humans, we make mistakes. Some mistakes are small, like forgetting an ingredient in a recipe. And others are life-altering mistakes, like deciding to move to a different state when you’re not ready because you think that’s the best decision for you at the time. Thanks to Facebook memories, I’m reminded of that particular mistake I made in my life and rereading those statuses, I vividly remember how miserable I was during this time.

This was during my early twenties, when I thought I knew what I was doing, but in reality, I was lost. I was completely lost. I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life; I had no plans, goals, or sense of direction. The decisions I made at the time were based on someone else, and that is what is so hard for me to forgive.

When we are young, we think we know everything; however, we know nothing. And when I look back at that period in my life, I always down-talk to myself and say how foolish I was. I also regret certain decisions I made. Sometimes I wish I could do it all over again. But then I am reminded of one blessing I did get, my daughter. And I start to think, “if I had not gone through what I did, I wouldn’t be where I am today. I wouldn’t be the person I am today, and I wouldn’t have learned the lessons I learned.”

When the topic of forgiveness comes up, it’s usually about forgiving others. Forgiving the hurt they caused us, forgiving their betrayal, or forgiving their unfaithfulness, and it’s preached that forgiveness is for us – not for them, which is true. But what about forgiving the hardest person to forgive, yourself? What do we say about that?

Foxgloves in the Wyre Forest, near Buttonoak by P L Chadwick is licensed under CC-BY-SA 2.0

I believe forgiving ourselves is the hardest because we are our own worst critics. We think about the situation or scenario over and over again, even years after (like me). Sometimes we change to scenario into what we wish we would have done or said differently. It’s harder to move on from our mistakes, and we get stuck in this regret, beating ourselves up. But the same way we forgive others, we have to forgive ourselves.

We must be compassionate, empathetic, kind, and understanding towards ourselves to forgive ourselves, which we aren’t the majority of the time. God easily forgives us – as we confess our sins and repent, but why can’t we forgive ourselves as quickly as God does? He doesn’t hold our mistakes over our heads as we do ourselves. It says so in 1 John 1:9 (NIV), “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”

Healthline.com gives 12 tips on how to forgive yourself, and one of the tips is to journal because this can help develop self-compassion. You can write yourself a letter to identify self-sabotaging thoughts, or you can list things you like about yourself to help boost your self-confidence. Another tip they give is to take your own advice. Many times, it’s easier to give advice to a friend than to ourselves, so one good way to practice this is by pretending your friend made the mistake you did – what would you tell them? Take that advice!

I want to leave you with another encouraging Bible verse – Psalms 103:10-11, “he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him;.”

Is there something you need to forgive yourself for?

Be kind to yourself.

With Love, Heidy

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Motherhood Spiritual

God Answers Prayers But It’s Not Always The Answer You Want

As most of you know, I have a 6-month-old baby boy, who I’ve been able to breastfeed thus far. To me, this is a great accomplishment because I could only breastfeed my daughter until she was four months old. Well, my son doesn’t sleep through the night yet. He wakes up for one nightly feeding, and instead of feeding him a bottle and then having to pump, I just latch him.

I looked for different “sleep training techniques,” and none have worked. I had a friend send me a nine-page sleep training schedule that her neighbor provided, and we did it for a week, but it didn’t work. (Mind you, every article I had read stated that sleep training usually lasts three to four days.) We tried introducing him to formula since it’s been said that formula holds them over for longer than breastmilk, didn’t work. We tried putting cereal in the breastmilk at night, didn’t work. The cry-it-out method? Who got some sleep with that? Not me nor my husband.

Photo by Rene Asmussen on Pexels.com

So, I started praying hard, with tears in my eyes. “Lord, please, please, please let this child sleep through the night.”  I was beyond frustrated to the point that when he woke up, I started crying because I was so tired and over waking up a night. “Why, isn’t he sleeping!?” “Lord, please, how can I get him to sleep through the night?” Daily, I cried out to the Lord, begging him for an answer. Until He provided the answer, and it wasn’t the one I wanted.

I was texting with my cousin, her daughter is about to turn two years old, and I asked her when her daughter started sleeping through the night. She told me; that it wasn’t until she stopped breastfeeding. She breastfed her daughter for a year, and for that whole year, she woke up once at night to comfort feed, is what she told me. Because she knew her daughter couldn’t be hungry, she was old enough to sustain not eating through the night. And I knew right there my prayers had been answered. But it wasn’t the answer I was looking for. My son will not sleep through the night until I stop breastfeeding (hopefully, because I’ve heard stories of kids who don’t sleep through the night for years).

Photo by THu00c1I NHu00c0N on Pexels.com

Right there, I realized I had to make a mental switch; instead of being frustrated that I wasn’t getting the sleep, I needed to understand that this is a comfort thing. I also now thank God that I can still produce breastmilk because the formula storage is very stressful for parents. Every time I pump, I thank God, “thank you, Lord, that I am still producing and am able to continue to feed my child.”

Yes, I’m still tired because he’s not sleeping through the night, but I’m no longer frustrated like I was. And I am more grateful for the time I’ve been able to breastfeed. You see, since my daughter was switched to formula feeding sooner, she slept through the night sooner, so this was new to me. It’s incredible what switching your mind to focus on the positive can do for you.

Also, God answers prayers, but it may not always be the answer we are looking for, but we still need to trust him.

With Love, Heidy

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Blog Spiritual

Lifeway Women Live 2022!!!

I attended the Lifeway Women Live event this year, and this time I was able to attend in person because they hosted it in Orlando again! It’s definitely a different experience in person than online; either way, you receive God’s message for you, but nothing beats the in-person experience.

I write about this conference every year because I hope to encourage someone to attend based on what I’ve experienced and them wanting to either get closer to God or wanting to fellowship with other ladies.

This year the lineup was Jen Wilkin, Jada Edwards, Kristi McLelland, Jennifer Rothschild, Kelly Minter, and Jackie Hill Perry. Nikki Lawrence and Juliana Wilson hosted it. The musical guest was Ellie Holcomb, and the worship leaders were B.K. Bridge.

Jen Wilkin

The theme for this conference was Grace, so each speaker had a teaching about Grace.

Jen Wilkin was the first one to speak, and her teaching was based on John chapter 21. She started with justice and mercy and asked what they were. She said justice is getting what you deserve after committing a crime or wrongdoing.

And mercy is not getting what you deserve. She told us that God has forgiven us so much, and we should do the same for others. She mentioned 1 Peter 3:17 and 18. And said we should be quicker to repent and slower to repeat our sins. That really stood out to me. Jen reminded us that we must read the bible to know who God is, and that way, we can know who we are. And she ended by saying that God’s mercies are new every day.

Jada Edwards

Jada was my favorite this year. It was the first time I had heard her talk, and I looked her up on Instagram as soon as she finished. I’m glad she went next because she definitely woke me up. She was hilarious!

Her teaching was based on Romans 3:23 and 1 Peter 3:17 & 18. She told us we could not be afraid to confess what God doesn’t already know. He knows everything about us, what we need to work on, and our sins. There is nothing you can tell God that will surprise Him. She said that we need something from God; we are very specific, but we lump it all together when we ask for forgiveness. She also said we need to know who we are so we can love well. And lastly, we should humble ourselves and see ourselves in the small things.

Kristi McLelland

Her teaching was based on Psalm 23. She had us read it out loud altogether. Kristi said that the Psalms are words we give back to him. She mentioned that a few of her friends our counselors, and she asked them what they had noticed now that we are getting out of this pandemic, and they responded that people are not okay. The world shook us to our core. And she ended her message by asking if we are praying honestly?

2 Corinthians 4:16-18

Jennifer Rothschild

Jennifer is medically blind, and she has been since she was 15, I believe, she said. Her teaching was based on 2 Corinthians 12. And she started by telling us that she had asked God to remove her thorn. Her thorn of being blind and she had asked over and over again to be healed. She reminded us that we all have thorns. She said God’s Grace is undeserved, “I know I don’t deserve to be healed.” Then she gave us two takeaways:

  1. Since Grace is sufficient, how do we experience it? She said to rest and embrace what you cannot avoid.
  2. Since Grace is undeserved, how do you live it? And the answer spelled out G.R.A.C.E

G – Grasp loosely

R – Repent, not repeat

A – Apologize or forgive

C – Choose your words wisely

E – Empathize before you evaluate

Kelly Minter

Kelly’s teaching was based on Luke 8. I don’t have many notes from her talk, but I do have that she said God’s Grace is not bound by time or location. Which really stood out to me. She told us that God’s Grace could handle your whole truth. We don’t need to hide anything from God; in fact, we can’t hide anything from God.

Jackie Hill Perry

The last person to talk was Jackie Hill Perry, and as she was talking and said she was going to give us three points, I realized it was the same message she gave last year. But instead of being upset, I thought, this year’s theme is Grace, so let’s give some grace. She does have a four-month-old at home, just like I do.

In Conclusion

Overall, the conference was good this year. We were able to get 52 women from our church to go, and we had reserved seating. It was nice being with so many women and listening to God’s word together. I always encourage Christian Women to attend one of these conferences. The next one is in Atlanta in August.

With Love, Heidy

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Tradition and History of Easter

My first memory of Easter was when I lived with my mom. I heard a knock at the door, and she told me to see who it was, which was weird, I thought because I’m a little kid and we aren’t supposed to open the door, but I went. I found an easter basket with eggs to paint and candy. I spent the afternoon painting the eggs.

Growing up, we didn’t have Easter traditions, although I remember going to church on Easter Sunday after my dad married my stepmom. We attended Catholic mass, and it was always packed, but on Easter Sunday, it was out the door packed. We would dress up more formally than our usual Sunday Church wear, and then afterward, we would get together with the family. Well, I guess in a sense, that was our Easter tradition.

One year, my grandma hosted an Easter egg hunt, but it was with real eggs. LOL, that got messy. However, it was only for that one year. I low-key wished we would have done it again because I had fun.

I never believed in the Easter bunny, nor did I ever care for Easter baskets because that’s not what Easter was about for us. Easter is about celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

To write this blog post, I wanted to learn about the history of “Easter,” like where the name came from, etc., so I googled and found an article on History.com. They wrote, “Easter is a Christian holiday that celebrates the belief in the resurrection of Jesus Christ.” I already knew, but I also wanted to find out why the Passover was no longer celebrated, but Easter is, and here is what they said. It states that Easter is associated with the Jewish holiday of Passover, and the links are seen in the Last Supper. The last supper happened the night before Jesus was arrested, and it was essentially a Passover feast. But during the last supper, Jesus broke bread with his 12 apostles and said the bread represented His body, and the wine they drank was His blood.

“While they were eating Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take and eat; this is my body.” Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.” “I tell you; I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.”

Matthew 26:26-29 (NIV)

With this being done, this became a basis for the Christian ritual of Holy Communion and gave a new significance by Jesus. All of this occurred during the Passover celebration, even Jesus’s execution.

Now, where does the name Easter come from? The article states, “St. Bede the Venerable, the 6-century author of Ecclesiastical History of the English People,” informed that the word Easter comes from Eostre or the Anglo-Saxon goodness of spring and fertility. And many of the non-Christian traditions of Easter, like the bunny and Easter eggs, can be traced from pagan celebrations. Eggs supposedly represent fertility and birth. The bunny may also associate birth and renewal (like Jesus’ resurrection or re-birth).

We usually take my daughter to the Easter celebration our church hosts every year for Easter. We attend church on Easter Sunday and then go out for lunch or get together with the family to celebrate.  

My daughter at our church Easter celebration 2019

It was fun learning about Easter and its association with the Passover. It’s crazy how you can read the Bible many times, and many things can go over one’s head before someone else points it out, and you have a revelation. Sometimes it’s God himself.

Do you celebrate Easter? Do you have any Easter traditions? Do you celebrate Passover? Let me know!

With Love, Heidy

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Grief – Finding Encouragement in God’s Word.

It’s never easy to deal with the death of a loved one. Whether it’s a sudden death or an illness, it’s not easy. I’ve written about grief before, and I’ll write about grief again because once we lose a loved one to death, we never stop grieving.

I don’t like to say that it gets easier with time because it doesn’t. What happens is that life goes on, and once we feel strong again, we learn to cope with the pain. We learn to live with the void inside us, but the grief is always with us.

If you’ve lost a parent, spouse, grandparent, friend, child, or even a pet, you know grief. Because grief is grief, I would never take away from someone’s pain by saying that losing a parent is more painful than losing a spouse. No! I will empathize with them and try to provide comfort in any way. However, the only way to honestly know how someone feels when it comes to grief is if you’ve been there yourself.

Today I want to bring you Bible verses that have helped me in my time of grieving. In a way to bring you hope during this difficult time. God didn’t promise us a painless life, but He did promise to be with us in every situation, even when we grieve.

  • Joshua 1:9 NIV – 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.
  • Psalm 147:3 NIV – He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.
  • Psalm 34:18 NIV – The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

This verse reminds me of a blog post I read that mentioned how beautiful grief is because that means you really loved that person, and up until that point, I had not thought about grief as being beautiful. And this verse says that we who mourn are blessed.

I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.

Romans 8:18 NIV

This verse is a reminder from the Apostle Paul that all our sufferings on Earth will be rewarded.

It’s hard to be encouraged or have hope that things will be okay again when we are dealing with grief, but we must remind ourselves to go through the emotions that come with grief to come out on the other side.

On the other side of grief, we have remembrance of our loved ones. We have beautiful memories and moments with them. Stories to share with others, pictures, and videos to keep their memory alive. Their legacy lives on in you.

I want to end this by reminding you that you are not alone in this journey. God is with you, and He loves you. There are others around you who can be there for support. I am here, and you can connect with me if you need someone to listen. You are not alone.

With Love, Heidy

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Motherhood Spiritual

Peace for Today’s Mothers (Guest Post)

Hello friends! Today I’m bringing you a guest post. It’s a devotional written by Detria Moore J.D., and it is powerful! When she sent this devotional to me, I didn’t know how much I needed to read this! Motherhood is challenging, rewarding, yet hard, and this is a beautiful reminder that there is a reason why we were called to this.

I pray that this devotional fills you the way it filled me and touches all the mothers who need encouragement right now. Amen.

Enjoy!

Peace for Today’s Mothers

What’s a mom to do in 2022? Somedays, managing a household resembles running a corporation. I sometimes feel like I need project management experience to hold it together and keep it running smoothly. I need spreadsheets to figure out the logistics of getting everyone to and from all their activities and an assistance to take my calls. As a mother, you often make decisions that impact your entire family. Do you homeschool or send them to school outside the home? Do you work outside the home or work full-time as a stay-at-home mom? What is the magic number of extracurricular activities to have per child? How many play dates are optimal? When do you step in and intervene in the roller coaster ride of your teenager’s life, and when do you let them figure it out? And the never-ending question…what ARE you cooking for dinner tonight?

For a season, I thought I could have it all. I thought I could be the most devoted hands-on mom, work outside the home to help support my family, volunteer at all the things in the community, be a Sunday school teacher, workout at the gym four times a week, keep my kids in fun-filled activities, have the most dedicated, intentional family time, cook nothing but health-conscious food, read the Bible in a year, and still go on Girlfriend Getaways every year. Can I just say this led to utter disappointment? But I mused, “Aren’t I the modern-day Proverbs 31 woman? Doesn’t Philippians 4:13 say I can do all things through Him who strengthens me?”  So, I prayed to God for more strength. But that was not the answer.

What I needed was peace. His peace.

The kind that surpasses all understanding, I needed peace that what He’s called me to do was enough and that I would be okay without everything else. 

Who said that we had to have it all? And what does that even look like? The truth is we make choices. And choosing one thing, whatever that thing is, by default means we’re NOT doing something else. This can lead us to question our decisions. When I homeschooled my children, I thought I was missing out and utilizing my full potential. When I worked outside the home, I thought I was sacrificing family time. I wasn’t at peace. At some point, we all question whether we’re doing the right things for our families and for ourselves. We may even question if we’re being a good mother.   But as you balance motherhood and all that comes along with it, I pray the following for you: 

  1. I pray that you are at peace. Be at peace for whatever He’s calling you to do in this season. Your job as a mother to your children won’t look like anyone else’s. What God has called you to is unique to you and His purpose for you and your family. Look at these prominent women in the Bible. They each had a unique calling. Deborah was a judge; she was not a queen like Esther. Anna was a prophet; she was not a teacher like Priscilla. My prayer is that in motherhood, you will find YOUR calling, whatever that uniquely looks like for you. Don’t look to the left or right at how it looks for others. The God who holds the world together has placed unique gifts, talents, and desires inside of you. YOU HAVE A PURPOSE!
  2. I pray that you experience joy in mothering. Sometimes mothering can be difficult. Two mothers, sleepy yet awake at 1 am—one nursing her newborn, the other waiting for a teenager who’s missed curfew. Nether seem joyous at the moment. But when you realize God has specifically entrusted YOU with raising and imparting to your children, I pray you’ll find the joy of the Lord to be your strength. Don’t let motherhood so burden you that you miss the joy of raising your precious children.    
  3. I pray that you constantly cover your family in prayer. As mothers, we help set the tone of our homes. Life and death are in our tongues. Speak and pray over your family. And don’t forget YOU! Pray for yourself, your time, your emotions. Pray that God will manifest each and every gift He’s placed in you. Pray constantly that your family will walk in Godliness. Speak life into them. 

Motherhood isn’t for the faint of heart. But if God has called you, He’ll most certainly equip you. Walk in peace today, knowing that God is with you and has never forsaken you. 

Wasn’t this devotional so fulfilling? I absolutely loved having Detria as a guest blogger and I hope to collaborate again in the future. Thank you again Detria for this amazing devotional.

You can connect with Detria at:

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Detria’s Bio:

Detria Moore is a believer, wife to one, mother of two, college professor, intercessor, community servant, writer, speaker, and volunteer of all things.  Above all else, she is enamored with her Savior.   Her main goal is to serve the Lord, walk in a manner worthy of her calling, and bring glory to her Savior.  If, along the way, she can pray with and encourage other women to grow in their own faith, or keep them encouraged to walk with Christ, then mission accomplished! Detria writes and podcasts at detriamoore.com and she enjoys reading and teaching the Bible, praying for others, walking the Lynchburg trails. 

And if you are interested in guest writing for my blog please contact me! I would LOVE to work with you.

With Love, Heidy

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Jesus Loves You!

We are all sinners, every single one of us. Some people may forget that they sin too when they judge others for their sins; nevertheless, we are all sinners. Many haven’t pursued a relationship with Jesus because they think they have to be sinless, which is impossible, my friend. Maybe the reason is that they believe they have to be perfect or have their life together before seeking Jesus. Thinking, after I complete this in my life, then maybe Jesus will accept me.

Well, I’m here to tell you that Jesus wants you to seek him and come to him right now! Just like you are. He doesn’t want you to change anything before you seek Him. He loves you just the way you are!

Jesus himself says in Matthew chapter 11 verse 28 (NIV), “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” And He also says, in Matthew chapter 7 verse 7 (NIV), “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened.

Now, after you start gaining a relationship with Him, getting to know Him and His word, you’ll change. You’ll want to change. Things that you used to do; you might not want to do anymore. Things you used to pursue or thought you needed; you realize you don’t really care for that anymore. The first is starts with repentance. Jesus tells us, “I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance” (Luke 5:32 NIV). Repentance is being remorseful and asking forgiveness for our past sins. If you genuinely ask for forgiveness, Jesus will forgive you.

Then, you’ll accept Jesus as your Lord and savior. Romans 10:9-10, (NIV), “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.” That’s it!!! There is no complicated formula, no hurdles, or obstacles you need to go through to be saved.

Next, you have to renew your mind. “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will” (Romans 12:2 NIV). As a follower of Christ, you are called to be different, not follow the norms of this world, because you are in this world, but you are not of this world. You are a child of God!

And lastly, you should continue a relationship with Him. This is done by continually reading The Bible, praying, and worshiping. You’ll be amazed at the transformation He does in your life. How much peace you’ll have in your heart and joy in your soul.

Jesus loves you, no matter what! That’s how great his love is for you. And I wanted to remind you that you don’t have to have everything together before seeking Him. Even if you accepted Him as your savior years ago and you got off track, come back to Him today. He will accept you because He loves you! And I love you also, friend!

With Love,

Heidy

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