Happy Saturday everyone! I hope you are all having a fantastic weekend! I also hope your Lenten journey is going exceptionally well :) I know a lot of you are doing The Best Lent ever by Matthew Kelly and I know others are doing #ShareJesus. I am doing both and can honestly say they have opened up my eyes to see things in a different way.
Look at the picture above......isn't it beautiful? I took this picture up in Big Bear last year in November, I think. What I love about this picture is that this picture needed no touching up, no filter, and no extra beautifying. This is God's work. This is AMAZING this is more than amazing this is exclaiming God's love, beauty, goodness, and power to all of us.
I know a lot of people are going through hard times right now. I know for a fact we all struggle. No matter what it is. I think it's safe to say that every month we go through something we would maybe not like to go through. Maybe for you it's weeks of struggling, months of struggling, or years of struggling. I've had bad days in a row, so many other people have too.
When I struggle I want to know other people are struggling too. As humans we are going to struggle, we aren't perfect. We will mess up, we will get mad, we get sad, we are human and humans make mistakes. As humans we are comforted by knowing we aren't the only ones struggling.
Look back at that picture above. The sky is just breathtaking, the mountains are tall and beautiful, the air is cold, and the forest down below is green. Man could not make that. God is the ONLY person who can make that. If God can make that then he can handle our sadness, anger, frustration, addictions, financial problems, our loneliness, our broken hearts, and whatever it may be you're dealing with.
If the picture above does not prove to you that God can take care of your problems how about the one below.
God made YOU! He loves you so much! He does not want to see you, suffer. It will get better and maybe you've heard someone say that before but it does. We are all living proof things get better. Our God IS LOVE.
God put us on earth to learn, spread the gospel, and to walk through this earth and get back home.....home is Heaven. On the way to Heaven we get lost but we are never too far to return to our God. He always has his arms opened wide for us to give us a hug which will overcome us with peace like wave out on the ocean that overcomes the shore renewing it with gorgeous shells.
That brings me to my next topic which is still on suffering but a different word STORMS. Have any of you heard the song by Hillsong United, Gracious Tempest? If you haven't read no further until you go on you tube and you look the song up!
Beautiful song, right? Ugh! I love that song so much. When I'm suffering I go to that song. It's not a song that talks about suffering though. Here's the reason..... Gracious Tempest. If you look up Tempest in the dictionary the definition is a violently windy storm. If you look up Gracious in the dictionary the definition is courteous, kind, and pleasant. If you put Gracious and Tempest together it would be a violent storm that is good.
I've yet to see a violent storm that is good. People get hurt, houses get knocked down to the ground. Bad things come from storms so how could storms be good? If you were to just see the word Gracious Tempest it wouldn't make sense.
All of us go through storms, we all have a cross to carry, we all have problems. We're human so all these things are normal for us. Whether it's relationship problems, financial issues, addictions, or work situations, we all hit them eventually. (We're Never Alone But Forever Accepted.) When we're in the eye of the tornado, the beginning of the dark tunnel it can be hard for us to ever see a way out or to see the end of the tunnel where the sun is shining.
There have been times where I put a put a period where there should be an apostrophe because I feel like things will never get better but things will. There have been days where nothing goes right and the whole day is ruined and wasted. There have been days in a row where I feel mopey and nothing can help me get out of it. Or at least that's what I thought.
If you've ever had storm in your life or if you've ever carried a cross then you know how hard it is. If you are carrying one right now then know I'm praying for you and things will get better:)
I listen to Gracious Tempest when I am suffering because I always remember bad things can turn into good things. God is going to make everything good. That black, dirty, filthy, harsh storm is going to stop and God will make it clean, renewing, pure, and white. Not only will that horrible storm stop but you will come out stronger and you will get to tell people like I am telling you right now IT WILL GET BETTER.
Gracious Tempest is that reminder that bad things don't last forever, be happy because God picked the storm for you because he knew you were tough enough to handle it. I know, I am not afraid to say it, I deal with anxiety constantly and I thought that I was never going to get over it, I thought it was going to stay with me through my days and all nights.
I thought I was the only one who dealt with it but when I actually started telling people I was dealing with anxiety then people started telling me they were dealing with it, or they dealt with it. Which brings me to my tips on how to stay happy when you're in the storm.
1.) Tell someone. It's hard, I know, trust me. I don't like telling people about my problems. It's a really bad habit and I'm trying to break it. Keeping it bottled up inside, though won't help. Please tell someone. Please tell someone, it doesn't matter who just tell someone because that was the first thing I did when I was afraid of my anxiety.
2.) Pray. Yup, you need to pray. Go to your room, open up the bible, and look up Jeremiah 29:11. My favorite bible verse, 'For I Know The plans I have for you declares the Lord. Plans to prosper you, not to harm you. Plans to give you hope and a future.' God has plans for you, good plans. He will catch you when you fall and he will hold you until you're ready to get back up again. It is a really good time to pray too because it's Lent.
3.) Visit the blessed Eucharist. I'm blessed to live five minuets away from my Church. I also have another great Church twenty five minuets away from my house. I've learned that if you pray in front of Jesus in the Tabernacle you will be enlightened and relaxed. I also encourage anyone who lives out close to Rancho Cucamonga to come out to Sacred Heart Church where there is an Holy Hour every Thursday starting at 6:30. Every first Thursday of the month is where the Lifeteen band puts on XLT which is an amazing gift from God. Please, text me and please make it out. I'd love to pray with and for you! :)
4.) Exercise. It may sound weird but it helps. Keep your muscles busy and your mind. Do something healthy instead of focusing on worrying or your struggles.
5.) Put on that Meghan Trainor! Have a dance party and Shake It Off ;) Dancing helps, singing helps, and having a dance party is those two things put in one. Listen to happy music and put yourself in your happy place. The beach, Disneyland, a land filled with every ice cream imaginable, just turn up that radio and be at your happy place.
6.) ASK. Ask to be prayed for. Don't be afraid to call your friend, parent, or sibling up and be like, 'Yo say a quick for me and I'll say one for you.' Psychologically this helps. Knowing someone is praying for you will make you feel better, guaranteed. I frequently ask for prayers and it's not a bad thing.
7.) Get out of the house. It's best not to be in your house if you're feeling sad or unhappy. It's best to get out of your bed, put on clothes, and go outside. Go do something with your friends, treat yourself to In-N-Out, or go see a movie. Don't give attention to your sadness.
I hope these tips have helped you my dear friends. I pray for you so much, if you would like to ask for prayers, I'm always here for you. Text me, Call me, Message me and know I'll pray for you and i pray for you all every first Thursday of the month in front of Jesus. I'll pray that your storms will not be dark but lit, I pray that they will truly end fast. I pray that they will be Gracious Tempest.
It's hard to see the big picture, it's hard to carry your cross but when you're out there in the middle of the sea remember your life guard walks on water.
Fearlessly,
Sammy
P.S. The quote from the movie Soul Surfer by Carrie Underwood, 'I don't know why terrible things happen to good people but I have to believe something good is going to come out of this.'
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