Aug 11 Sod or Seed

Affirmation: My feelings deserve to be expressed.

Be aware of your emotions. Be honest with yourself about what you are feeling. A safe way to express your emotions is to journal. Ask yourself what emotion you are feeling, then ask yourself why you are feeling that way. Write your response. Then ask yourself “why?” 5 times.~~~~Happy Birthday to our youngest, Bethany! 🎂🎉❤️❤️❤️🎉💕🎊❤️🎉💕🎊🎈❤️🎉💕🎊🎈❤️🎉🎊
Our students and teachers start the new school year today. Praying for them.

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Ponder, Personalize, Practice: Continue to practice these verses each day. Recognize the power that is at work within you and thank God for His immeasurable power. Sit and talk with God about it. Listen. Carry this verse with you.

“Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.”Ephesians 3:20-21 NIV
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Wholehearted Guidepost from Brené Brown

Cultivate Self-Compassion. Let go of Perfectionism.

“Perfectionism is a self destructive and addictive belief system that fuels this primary thought: If I look perfect, and do everything perfectly, I can avoid or minimize the painful feelings of shame,

judgment, and blame.” (This is an inaccurate thought process. Let go of perfection and recognize that you are enough.)

BRENE BROWN

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Mastering the 7 Decisions from Andy Andrews: The Certain Decision 

I have a decided heart.

It’s not about what it IS…

It’s about what it can BECOME!

“What you decide in your heart will be done and the light of God will shine on your ways.” Job 22:28

The Certain Decision for personal success is what fuels your actions from the active decision. The clarity of vision you maintain in your mind is directly proportional to the effectiveness of your actions. A decided heart is unwavering in the face of continual challenges and setbacks and that ensures victory and a lifetime of greater fulfillment.

HOPE, DREAMS, ANTICIPATION…DECIDE.

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Reading for Today

Walk in Grace. Live in Love by Bob Goff

                             AUGUST 11 

DON’T ROLL OUT SOD WHERE GOD WANTS TO PLANT SEED. HE’S MORE INTERESTED IN HELPING US GROW THAN HAVING US LOOK FINISHED. 

Just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness. COLOSSIANS 2:6–7 

Southern California where I live is a desert, so it’s difficult to maintain a lawn with actual grass. What’s a popular workaround to getting that envious green lawn in the dry desert? You might be thinking of sod, but think weirder. Roll out artificial turf across the yard, of course. The only problem is sometimes you wind up having a house that looks like it belongs at a miniature golf course. If that’s your thing, maybe it’s not such a bad idea. If it isn’t your thing, it is. (Cultivate Athenticity. Let go of what other people think or see)

Our lives can feel like a desert sometimes, like nothing’s coming easy and we’re just parched and dried up. We scramble for ways to look like we’re the finished product, so we start improvising ways to look like we have things figured out. We throw a fresh coat of paint over our rusted and busted frames, roll out the fake turf, and hope nobody notices the difference. 

But God isn’t asking us to look like the finished article in our lives. He said Jesus was enough for that. Rather, He’s hoping to change us from start to finish, from our insides to our outsides. 

He’s invested in us for the long haul. He wants us to ditch the act of being complete, and He wants to help us grow more desperate for Him. The miracle is this: when we stop trying to look pristine and perfect, the soil of our hearts becomes healthier and more fertile. Love and grace start sprouting in us, and the desert starts to green up with the real thing. Is it going to take some time? You bet. Will we always get it right? Of course not. 

Here’s the point. Don’t roll out astroturf where God’s planting seed. He’s more interested in helping us grow than having us look finished. 

In what ways is God growing you today, even if it feels slow?