Hope in the Storm
During one of the most painful times of my life I truly found myself fantasizing about death. I never would have killed myself, but many days I did hope death would take me. For a moment of my life I didnt live; I simply existed. I was plagued with daily pain in my head and in my heart. I suffered daily- spiritually, physically, and emotionally, which led to pretty deep depression and anxiety. Fear is one of the enemy’s favorite weapons. Worry, anxiety, fear… it can all overwhelm us like a thick shadow of darkness, controlling our every move and decision. Yet reality tells us that so much of what we spend our time worrying about never even happens. Living under the weight of the "what if's" is a hard place to dwell. God has words of life and of truth. In the middle of the storms of life it is easy to feel overwhelmed and be tempted to just stop trying. But storms don’t last forever. Jesus freed me enough to work on freeing myself. He promised He would help me, but He expected me to do the work. I have found that God has one primary lesson for His children to learn and that is unconditional trust in Him. He allows storms to rage all around us because He wants us to be unphased by troubled waters. He wants us to have so much faith in Him that we too learn to sleep through storms. Don’t be troubled ladies, our Father is leading us to still waters within our hearts. He is teaching us how to have peace no matter what life throws our way. When He decides He will not transform our situations, He is transforming our hearts and there is great purpose for those who submit to the process, lean into the pain, and conquer fear one step at a time. In the midst of the storms in life, we must remain hopeful for it is hope that gets us through any difficult situation and gives us the motivation to break free from the chains that hold us back from our destinies. #embraceyourdiva
From A Male's Perspective
The thing about the spirit of rejection is that as time goes on and each time you are rejected or feel rejected it builds a case against you and the courts of life. These experiences of rejection are facts of life to show you that you are worthless. It's very easy to fight lies, all you need is to open your eyes to the truth but facts are something different. The facts about rejection are that they all hurt and the effects can be more than you expect. Unknowingly, I took the feelings that are associated with rejection and I covered them up with things such as staying busy, drinking, sex, music, and work. It's easier to mask the outer self but you can never escape the inner hurt. For me, it became harder to keep up with the outer image that I wanted people to see, even often times what I wanted to be. During the daytime I would stay busy being around different people, but at night it would just be my emotions and me. So I tried to wear myself out throughout the day so at night I would just crash! I filled my mind with everything else but it would never last. Even pornography with masturbation didn't help or erase the pain I continually held in. See the thing about our emotions is that they are patient and forever waiting for us to deal with. They know that eventually the body will be worn out and come to end of itself, so they stay there waiting. I came to realize through the hurt of my rejection, that my cell doors were open but in reality I was still imprisoned with no escaping. I thought that I had my emotions tamed and in check, but in reality they were running wild hurting others with only me to blame. I grew up with a father who suffered from manic depression and taught me to suppress healthy emotions. In his mind he thought that he was making me better, but in reality he was making me just like him. My father developed a hatred towards God, because he lost his mother at an early age so he stayed mad. Not just mad as an emotion, but mad as an acronym: Man Against Destiny (A man who builds with one hand and tears down with the other.)
Growing up I was never shown how to express healthy emotions. Nor was I taught that it was okay for men to cry. Talking or sharing my emotions with ease became lost to me, so when people asked me "how I felt" it became easier and easier to lie. Because of my lies, this became a part of my character. I would either stay quiet, make people laugh, or show anger rather than letting someone in to reject me. So in many of my social relationships I suppressed my healthy emotions by attaching and loving quickly, rejecting others before they rejected me, and never letting too many people get close to me.
Over the years because of rejection and going in this destructive direction, my heart was eventually captured and surrendered totally to the Lord. Through worship and prayer God began to reveal the negative effects of rejection and the strategy of how it can go from generation to generation. He also revealed to me how to break the pattern of rejection and experience the true freedom that He has designed for all of us. You must know that there is life beyond the pain of rejection, and you don't have to live a life M.A.D. Now how to uproot the spirit of rejection is by seeing the plans behind it. God never sees you how the spirit of rejection portrays you.
Written by: Minister Manu Brown
Refreshed and Renewed: Mind, Body, and Spirit
As Christian women, we know God thinks we are beautiful just the way we are. We were created to be beautiful, but He didn’t create us all to be a size 2, 4, 6 or a size 30, for that matter. But if we are stuck in a place of defeat, He wants to take us to a new place. Not so that we will be skinny, but so that we will be healthy and so we will be at peace — physically, mentally and spiritually. God made us to consume food, but food was never supposed to consume us. We must remember that "our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in [us], whom [we] have from God, and [we] are not [our] own? For [we] were bought at a price; therefore [we should] glorify God in [our] body and in [our] spirit, which are God’s." (1Corinthians 6:19-20) Gym memberships can be costly and fitting a gym trip into your daily routine might be challenging for most women who have many other duties and responsibilities within their week. So here are some proven workouts that can help you shed pounds, live healthier, and feel better. The awesome thing is that you don't even need to leave the comfort of your home. You just need a space, a towel, and some water. Remember God wants us whole, and that includes our health too.
https://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/4-effective-at-home-weight-loss-workouts.html
Book of the Month
** This book can be purchased online at:** https://www.amazon.com/
A Healthy Meal for the Gal on the Go
With only 24 hours in a day and half of those are taken up with school, family, work, church, and extracurricular activities. Sometimes it's easy just to grab fast food, but a healthy diet is the basis for a well-functioning body. There are a variety of reasons why a healthy diet is important, including disease prevention, maintenance of a healthy weight and quality of life. Here is a quick healthy meal that you can eat for lunch or for dinner, but definitely very convenient for the girl on the go.
Salad in a Jar
1. Begin with the dressing on the bottom
2. Add a base layer (carrots, snap peas, tomatoes, etc...)
3. Layer salad with favorite ingredients (corn, cucumbers, radish etc...)
4. Top with Greens and Cheese
Here is a link with some great Salad in a Jar recipes.
Resurrected from Rejection
I have experienced rejection from several sources. I was rejected by my father before I was born. I have been rejected by family and friends. I have been rejected by leadership in the church. And during the first 10 years of marriage, I was rejected by my husband. Rejection is a pain I can closely relate to.
The pain of Rejection is something we all have experienced once in our lifetime. Rejection is a loss. Most experiences with a loss are associated with a time of grieving. The stages of grief can include: denial, isolation, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance. The stages of grief do not occur in any specific order, and can vary from person to person. The feelings of being rejected can also be accompanied with feelings of abandonment, betrayal, and being forsaken. Rejection can come through many sources of life. Regardless if we suffer rejection from professional relationships, social relationships, close friend relationships, family relationships or an intimate relationship. They all can cause pain and a negative effect on our life. Rejection is something that can cause deep internal pain to our soul. It can also cause a breach in our spirit. Rejection is not something that is easily recognized as a condition that needs to be healed. Rejection is a condition that can lead to other complications in our lives.
The spirit of rejection distorts self-image, value, and steals identity and vision. The spirit of rejection is associated with loneliness, false accusations, guilt, and shame.
After an event of being rejected. The spirit of rejection goes to work. The Spirit of Rejection starts in the mind and works its way into our heart. And if not recognized and dealt with it, it can cause further pain and issues in our life.
The Bible tells us in Proverbs 4:23 " keep thy heart with all diligence for out of it are the issues of life." (KJV) We are to keep our heart. The word keep here means to guard, to observe and preserve. As believers in Christ we have a responsibility to keep our heart regardless what happens to us. We can't change the negative things that have happened to us however, we can change or perception
and our response to the offense.
Jesus can sympathize with the pain of rejection:
Jesus was despised and rejected. Isaiah 53:3
He came to His own and they did not receive Him. 1 John 1: 11
He was rejected by his hometown Matthew 13: 57
Jesus was rejected by His brothers John 7:5
He was rejected by those that said they know and follow God. Luke 23: 20-21
He was rejected by His Heavenly Father before He died on the cross. Matthew 27: 46
One life event that Our Lord Jesus suffered that comes to my heart is when Jesus was rejected by the people that claimed that they followed God. This event led our savior to the cross where once again He suffered one of the greatest rejections ever. This was the rejection of His Father. This rejection was recorded in the Bible in Matthew 27:46 that when Jesus cried out “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? That is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?”
No matter what kind of rejection you have suffered, the Savior knows the depth of your pain. He has the power to resurrect the dead areas in you. I have personally witnessed His deliverance and healing power in my life. Through a time of worship, prayer, and devotion the perception of who I was, was changed into the image of who I am in Christ. I have come to understand and embrace the scripture Ephesians 1:6 that states “that you are loved and already accepted.” This truth compelled me to continue in worship and prayer. As I continued to yield to the Lord in prayer He showed me the areas of offense. He taught me the power of forgiveness, and he illuminated and healed those areas that were hid in darkness. This healing resurrected me back to life. If you are plagued with the pain or feelings of rejection:
Enter into a time of prayer and worship.
Pray and ask God to reveal those areas of rejection to you.
Ask God to help you forgive the person who hurt you.
Ask God to heal those wounded areas.
Take time to renew your mind with the word of God, focusing on confessions that affirm who you are in Christ.
Continue to pray and be led of the Lord.
Written by: Minister Georgette Brown
About Embrace Your Diva Ministries
Email: embraceyourdiva@gmail.com
Website: www.embraceyourdiva.org
Location: California, United States
Phone: (909) 697-5210
Facebook: facebook.com/embraceyourdiva/
Twitter: @embraceyourdiva
