Everyday MattersThere's a reason for everyday.
Despite the bad and the good, everyday matters. |
7/17/2019
Making ConnectionsWednesday Matters-July 17, 2019
Everyday Hair Stylist My hair is a big part of my life so how great it is that the relationship I have with my hair also spills over to the relationship I have with my hair stylist. Each time I have an appointment I’ve been able to tell my hairdresser what God is doing in my life. And sometimes I’m so surprised at how open my hair-person is in listening to me talk about God. In the past there were times I felt fearful, embarrassed or even defensive when sharing my faith but now I get excited because I’m sharing my relationship and not a religion. Sharing my relationship and the power of God’s love is fun because everything just seems to flow and come out naturally. Without love we really can’t communicate the freedom and peace God has for us. But by knowing 1 Corinthians 13:8; “Love never fails” we can actually have success and the style of communication is win-win for all involved…everyday. 7/16/2019
SelfishnessTuesday Matters-July 16, 2019
Everyday Recovering Addict As a recovering self-addict I try and focus on what God needs to change in me rather than asking Him to change everyone else and my circumstances that bother me. You see the self-involved person is always seeking a way to avoid pain whereas the God involved person embraces pain and they actually go to the Word of God to guide them through life. Instead of becoming bitter they become better. 1 Peter 5:10 really offers us hope and encouragement because it tells us that after we’ve suffered a little while, the God of all grace Who imparts all blessings and favor, Who has called us to His eternal glory will complete and make us what we ought to be. He’ll ground us securely, and strengthen, and settle us. That’s a great promise. And I want it! So ever so slowly I’m able to praise Him in the pain for I know that’s His will for me. Think about it. There are blessings and favor from Him in our trials…everyday. 7/15/2019
You are Beautiful just being YOU!Monday Matters-July 15, 2019
Everyday Backbone I don’t sew, bake or volunteer for craft projects at school. I could feel like a lousy mom because don’t the good moms have all of those skills? But let’s try and remember that God doesn’t make mistakes and He created us uniquely and for a specific purpose. Sure we get stuck wishing we were someone else or had their skills but how productive is that? How about we try this: If you experience a setback or failure don’t fall apart but believe God will use the experience to train you for the next step. Look at Ephesians 3:12 and we read that through faith in God we can approach Him with freedom and confidence. He loves us. “Plenty of people have wishbone but there are too few with not enough backbone.” Once we’re rooted and established in His love, we can have the backbone to step out and be the very best of who He created use to be…everyday. 7/12/2019
Loved and RedeemedFriday Matters-July 12, 2019
Everyday Accepting Who You Are Sometimes I get disgusted with myself. It’s when I’m in this place of self-pity and I feel stuck. The way to peace begins with accepting the truth of myself—the whole truth. My struggle to cope with certain people has a simple explanation: they represent to me precisely those things that I have refused to acknowledge and accept in myself. To accept the truth of my brokenness is unbearable if not impossible, without turning to Jesus. If my vision of myself is not purified by the mercy and compassion of Jesus, I have to get dishonest, camouflage my warts, and present to you a self that is mostly admirable, fault free, and superficially happy. When I accept the truth of me, shipwrecked and saved, and give it over to the person of Jesus, I am at peace even if I don’t feel it. The peace that comes from God and surpasses all understanding, (Philippians 4:7) was provided by Christ on the cross and doesn’t depend on our shifting feelings …everyday. 7/11/2019
What Does God Think?Thursday Matters-July 11, 2019
Everyday Acknowledge God Wouldn’t it be nice if every time we asked God a question we could just randomly open our Bibles and there’d be our answer? Hey this is Debbie Griffith with Everyday Matters. But the thing is, our answers are in the Bible and when we spend time there everyday we begin to learn the ways of God. We also begin to trust God knowing from Proverbs 3:6 that if we acknowledge God in all of our ways, He will direct our paths. Acknowledging God really means to care about what He thinks. In the Bible in I Chronicles Prophet Nathan told David that he could go ahead and build a house for God. But the next day Nathan got word that one of David’s sons would build instead. What’s cool is that because David had a heart for God he could praise God for this answer even though he might have been a little bummed. Caring what God thinks makes a huge difference in how we respond to things…everyday. 7/10/2019
God is Alive!Wednesday Matters-July 10, 2019
Everyday The Real Question I know Jesus lives. He died and rose again. I can say it and I believe it. But the real question is; “Do I live my life as evidence that I believe Jesus is alive in me? Jesus died and He rose again and from His greatest act of love, His greatest power flows. The living Christ is then certainly not a dead hero. The Christian lives in Christ and Christ lives in the Christian by the power of the Holy Spirit. Think about it; we are empowered to lead a new life where sin has no place and if we don’t really believe or live this way then where is our faith? When I woke up today I was worrying about our son’s college tuition and then I was stressing about the choices of our surly teen. But I certainly wasn’t acknowledging the power of the resurrected Christ who lives in me. How often are we unwilling to believe that we have been transformed and that the impossible has become possible …everyday. 7/9/2019
Listening to GodTuesday Matters-July 9, 2019
Everyday Advice from God Should I do it? What do you think? Maybe I should put a poll out on social media? Sure, it is wise to ask advice from others and in Proverbs 15 we can read that plans fail for lack of counsel but with many advisers they succeed. But it’s also important to care most about what God thinks. Often when we pray we make all these requests but then fail to wait and LISTEN. God knows your heart and loves you. He has the best advice. In the Bible when Paul was talking to the Colossians, he told them that they could have a peace in their heart when a decision was made. It’s important that we aren’t seeking the approval of others or just relying on our feelings. God does answer us. Sometimes the answer is “no” and sometimes we can’t hear because we tell God what we want and ask Him to bless it rather than asking Him if it’s a direction He even wants us to take. Feelings come and go but the peace of God will remain…everyday. 7/8/2019
Perfectionism #nothappeningMonday Matters-July 8, 2019
Everyday Perfection Addict It’s exhausting trying to run the treadmill to perfection. I got off it. It goes nowhere. Most of us, to some extent, need to be delivered from the fear of people and from caring too much about what others think. People who always need the approval of others desperately want everyone to look at them from head to toe and say, “Perfect.” In everything they do-the way they look, the things they say, every action they take—they want people to say, “Perfect.” If we try to be perfect, we’ll be disappointed. You and I are imperfect human beings. Attitude change is where change happens even though I told my husband earlier; “Today I feel like complaining and blaming someone else.” THAT’S always easier than taking personal responsibility but certainly not healthier. We need to be confident that God accepts us with our imperfections. He will continue to work in us but we don’t have to struggle to win His approval or the approval of others. God is for us…everyday. 7/5/2019
Real FriendshipFriday Matters-July 5, 2019
Everyday Dead Body Friend Do you have a dead body friend? You know… a friend you can call at 2:00am and say, “I’ve got a dead body at my house. Come help me.” And that person will come over and help you-no questions asked. It’s great to have friends who encourage and help us carry our burdens through difficult times and it’s especially great to have at least one “dead body friend.” The Greek translation of Galatians 6:2 lived out is that when someone is burdened with difficult circumstances, which are too much for one person to carry all alone, then crawl up under that burden and help carry it. People need your help and not necessarily your words or another scripture verse. They don’t need a reprimand that they’re not representing Jesus well but INSTEAD share God’s grace and how He represents them well. Helping someone with their load is following Jesus and its manageable even with a 2:00 a.m. phone call to carry the load that is needed…everyday. 7/4/2019
There’s Always HopeThursday Matters-July 4, 2019
Everyday Hope Ahead Life is hard. An unexpected death of someone you love is hard. Yep. I’m a Christian because I am convinced that only in Jesus Himself is there any adequate, calming useful, clear explanation of any of life’s tragedies. When a friend loses the life of a loved one, what can we offer? I’ve found simply sitting beside them to grieve the loss, the shortness of life or perhaps how it all feels unfair, is best. But surely our Savior can say to us in our loss, “Let not your hearts be troubled.” The Savior who has been there and back safely, who died and rose again and now can fully assure us. To say a loved one died because of some sin in our lives is not only unrealistic, distorted thinking for a Christian, in whom “the light of the world” lives, but is an insult to the forgiving heart of the Father. Love others as He does. Share the hope…everyday. |
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