~Be gracious in your speech~

It's very important to learn to control your words, after all the words you speak will reveal to people around you what's really in your heart..that's something that you need to realize and you need to focus on getting better when it comes to your "people skills"

you need to learn how to show kindness in your speaking and also pay attention to the tone of voice you use around others, and sometimes we just need to learn to keep our mouths shut and realize that at times it's none of our business unless that person invites us into the conversation..learn to hold back your words as well as speaking up when you must..that can make the difference in someone else's situation by the timing and the choice of your words, our words have an impact on others and they can make or break someone's day so be mindful of that at all times!

Here's a verse that I want to share with you today that I always try to keep in mind when it comes to the words I speak..

Proverbs 22:11

"He who loves purity of heart,

and whose speech is gracious, will have the king as his friend."

The king has a very important job and in many ways it's much like our jobs as Christians! 

The kings duty is to keep peace in his kingdom by being fair to all sides and listening to the needs of his people and with a good heart seeking the wisdom to address the situation placed before him, in many ways that's what we should be doing as Christians! We should go to our friends with a good heart, listen to their problem, pray to God to find the answer that they seek to find and address their problem the best to your ability..That's how we should act! We should be gracious and slow to speak but at the same time bold enough to say what needs to be said to solve the problem!

God can help us to know the difference and he can give us the wisdom and understanding to help others in their lives!

On our own it's hard to know what to say or what to think..But when we choose to listen to God..we have a whole new perspective and a better attitude toward others who are trying to find a kind soul who will simply listen and help them in the situation or address the issues that seem difficult to them, with God's help and your counsel..they can find the answers and the help that they need and those problems can then be resolved!

Be mindful of your words and always be gracious in your speech because you are making a difference in this world..whether it be for the good or for the bad..choose wisely what kind of person you want people to portray you as!

Job 33:2-3

"Behold, I open my mouth;

the tongue in my mouth speaks.

My words declare the uprightness of my heart, and what my lips know they speak sincerely."

Keep these verses in mind today and this week, pay mind to your thoughts, words, actions and your attitude..because you will bring death or live by the words you speak and you may destroy someone else's life along the way if you aren't careful so pay mind to your words and be Christ-like in all areas of your life!

Matthew 12:33-37

"A Tree Is Known by Its Fruit

 “Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad, for the tree is known by its fruit. You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil. I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned."

Be gracious to others because Christ was gracious to you when he died on the cross..It's important for us all to remember that!

~Dani

~How to be Confident~

In this life it can be difficult at times to be confident in who you are or to even see the value in yourself.

Why is it that so many of us struggle with this? I think it's because Satan knows that if he can somehow get our minds on constantly trying to measure up to others and trying to be perfect physically that he can use that so our minds are mainly focused on ourselves instead of discovering what makes us special and what we are gifted to do to help others out there! If Satan can somehow corrupt our minds in that way.. it can suddenly become a constant battle against no one but ourselves!

But I'm here to tell you that it doesn't have to be that way! You can discover the value that you already  possess and you can escape that battle that you constantly fight within yourself to come to realize that you are a diamond and a precious child of God!

You don't have to worry if you're good enough, you don't have to try to look like a model, you don't have to worry if you're too fat or too skinny..BECAUSE YOU ARE PERFECT JUST THE WAY THAT GOD MADE YOU! You don't have to change for the ones that claim that they are your friends or that they know best for you..God made you unique and special, you have your own talents and gifting that's different from all others and you are indeed the only "YOU" out there!

God made us all different even though we may share some of the same interests or we may even have a gift or two that is similar but one thing is for sure..YOU ARE ONE OF A KIND AND GOD LOVES YOU JUST THE WAY THAT HE CREATED YOU!!

Lift up your head today and leave all doubts behind and realize just how wonderful you really are in God's eyes and to your true friends! 

Be around the friends who will benefit your life..not the ones who will bring you down and leave you low in your life! Be confident in knowing that you are a special child of God and you are loved unconditionally..which means that you can't do anything or go anywhere to escape or fall from that love! 

I've noticed that a lot of people try to talk down on themselves as if they want to push others away, if that person is you I want you to know that you don't have to push everyone away, there are good people out there even though you've been hurt by a few before, you need to learn to trust people but also learn to not be so naive firsthand with the people you have just met, be wise and don't allow yourself to be taken advantage of..don't allow yourself to go through that kind of pain in your life and allow God to heal you today! Allow God to give you wisdom so you won't go through that kind of pain anymore! God can heal your shattered heart and any other issues that you may have that you've been carrying around too long!

God has much better things in store for you and he wants to heal you and make you feel more confident in yourself! Believe in yourself and speak highly of yourself..say this with me.."I am a child of God so that means that I am someone!"

~Dani

~Stress can become Less!~

As humans we are anything but perfect and with that being said we can easily become overwhelmed at times but that's okay because we know who is indeed perfect and we can rest in knowing that God will relieve us of our heavy load!

I can't tell you enough just how great it feels to have a mighty God who can carry the heavy load that stress can hold on us! It feels amazing to just put it all in his hands and simply let go of all the worry that sometimes the world can burden us with!

We don't need to feel like we're in this alone or that God doesn't care about the fact that we're stressed out but I assure you that God really does care about the tough spot that you're in right now in your life, he sees your burden and he cares about the pain that you're going through! God wants us to always know that he is there to lift the load off our shoulders!

We can breathe easy in knowing that he deeply cares for us no matter how small it may seem in our own minds but find peace in knowing that God cares about that stress you are under and he wants to take that load off your shoulders today!

When stress leaves you so low you feel as though you can't carry on..give it to God and he will lighten your load! Give your stress and your worry to God today..trust me when I tell you that God can handle it for you! Know that you're not alone in that stressful situation..God is with you!

~Dani

~Put a silence to frustration~

Are you tired of the wa your life is going lately? Have you just about had it with this world?

 It's just so frustrating trying to keep up with this world all the time, you can never satisfy this world and they seem to question who you are and they even judge you harshly..

sometimes behind your back but mostly they say it to your face almost as if they're proud of their opinion of you!

Whatever your frustrations are there is someone who can give you peace of mind and put a silence to your worry! Give all your frustrations to God and allow him to give you the perfect peace in your life!

Worry and stress has no place in your life once God is in your life, when you let God be your center..everything in your world can then be placed in his hands and he gives you strength to let go of all frustrations of this world!

Don't allow stressful situations and worry to take over your life! Give it all to God today and allow his plan to take it's course in all areas of your life! God knows all of us better than we know ourselves, he knows what we dream of and even who we dream of being with someday..even before we know what we want in our own lives! God knows us so very well that he even knows our deepest secrets and our secret dreams that we don't ever speak of to anyone else..but those dreams are there just the same and God knows about those dreams and he believes in us that we can someday make those dreams happen in our lives!

God believes in YOU..so there's no need to believe what the world may say about you, that doesn't even matter anymore because the maker of the universe is in control of your life now and he is the one who will give you peace today and everyday!

Don't worry cause God's got this too!

Psalms 25:1-3

"To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul.

O my God, in you I trust;

 let me not be put to shame;

 let not my enemies exult over me.

Indeed, none who wait for you shall be put to shame;

they shall be ashamed who are wantonly treacherous."

I pray for God's perfect peace in your life today..believe that it's all going to be okay as long as you keep the faith! To God be the glory!

~D

~Show some respect!~

It seems like nowadays there are a lot more families that are so dysfunctional, you see Parents not spending enough valuable time with their kids, you see kids showing no respect for their parents and in result they don't have respect for any other adults..such as their teachers! Marriages aren't lasting mostly because there isn't mutual respect and they weren't taught by their parents what love and respect really is and how valuable it is in a marriage! And when there's no respect how can there be trust?

It's so hard to watch and it's something that is destroying mankind! It's tearing apart families, marriages, friendships, it's even ruining chances of a successful future for individuals!

There's more than just lack of respect but also people just don't take life seriously anymore, when that happens no one makes plans anymore and people become careless and there's nothing that gets finished..all their hopes, dreams, and goals are wasted because they never give themselves a chance in life!

They fail to realize just how valuable they really are and how important they are in this world..they could change the world if only they knew just how valuable they really are! If people would respect others more and take life seriously then maybe marriages would last like they used to, maybe families wouldn't breakup, maybe true friendship could be molded, and maybe we could make this world a better place for our future children and our future grandchildren!

The opportunity is in our hands daily to do with it what we will, it all comes down to this..Respect, Honesty, Trust, and it all starts with a dream that we go after without ceasing..that we make happen because we believe in something that can change the world back to the good place that it used to be!

Respect yourself enough to follow your dreams and what makes you happy, Respect others and they will help you make those dreams become reality! Respect your parents and your teachers and they will always be there when you need counsel, Respect every stranger that you meet by showing kindness and it won't be long until you have an honest, good group of friends that respect you and support your goals in life! 

Don't cheat yourself out of a good life just because you've been hurt by people you've trusted and they failed you..instead move on and keep respecting others until the right people find their way to you! You are valuable so don't waste precious time with people who don't value you!

You should want to be around people that lift you up when you're down, people who talk you back up to the top when you're down in the dumps of life, you want to be around people who take the time to listen to you even when you don't know what words to say! People who will straighten you out when you need it! That's who you want to be around! Someone who asks how you're doing instead of you just asking them, That's what true friends are like and anything less than that isn't a true friend..because friends deeply care about your well being and they want to see you happy! Respect others like you'd like to be respected!

~Dani

~Today is the day!~

Forgiveness doesn't keep reminding you of your past mistakes.. forgiveness whispers.."today is a new day!" That's the beauty of grace! Accept it and forgive yourself! Stop trying to explain yourself all the time and get on with the rest of your life!

Jesus died for you so that you could get past the burden of sin! Stand up and make the choice today to follow him and leave the worries of this world behind! It seems like all we do in this world is try to fit in somewhere in it..when clearly all this world wants to do is judge us and push us away from our relationship to God! 

When you're standing face to face to God someday..there won't be anyone standing beside you, you will stand alone responsible for what you've done in your life, when you go along with your friend's mistakes..you are just as guilty because you didn't try to stop your friend, don't allow those mistakes to ruin your life..you are better than that and you could be so much more happy if you'd turn away from those mistakes and never go back to that place!

 Move on and accept grace, it's already been given we just have to reach out and take it and never go back to the old person that we were yesterday!

Stop playing games in life..you're the one that ends up losing, don't keep going down that road..be real and true in your life and everything good will follow after that!

If you'll surrender your whole life to God you'll be able to do much more with your life! You'll have joy when you wake up, you'll get your passion back, you'll be able to make trustworthy friends, you'll be more driven to help people and even be able to go after your dreams!

You can do all of these things when you put your whole life in his hands..your heart will be kept safe in God's hands and you'll make much wiser choices even in that area of your life! 

Put yourself in better hands by trusting in God's plan and you will be much happier in life! I promise you.. it's always worth it when it comes to serving God!

~Dani

~I must go through the valley~

Psalms 23:1-4

"The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

He makes me lie down in green pastures.

He leads me beside still waters.

He restores my soul.

He leads me in paths of righteousness

for his name's sake.

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,

I will fear no evil,

for you are with me;

your rod and your staff,

they comfort me."

There's a time in our lives that we all go through at some point..it's called going through the valley's!

There are so many stories in the bible that we can read about their valley's..But today the valley that we're going to talk about is when Moses lead God's people to the promise land, although they were eager to travel to the promise land they still faced the valley's along the way! They still had hard times that they faced..they even had to endure forty years trying to find the promise land! They had even lost their first leader and had to be lead by a new leader but they got to the promise land!

You may be feeling as though you're not going to make it through your valley but I'm here to tell you that you're going to get through it! If the children of Israel can make it through their valley..THEN SO CAN YOU!

You're going to make it out of that valley and you're going to make it to the top of the highest mountain in life! Reach for the stars and don't give up on your goals! If God brought you to it..he'll bring you through it!

There's a song by Third Day that says.."Even though the journey's long, and I know the road is hard, you're the one who's gone before me, you will help me carry on, after all that I've been through now I realize the truth,  I must go through the valley to stand upon the mountain of God!"

Let this encourage you today in all that you do and all the places you go to! God is always with you so don't become discouraged! You must go through the valley to stand upon the mountain of God!

~Dani