Priorities

Ugh, I know, I sound like a parent or something, right? Priorities are no fun! What we want to do isn't  isn't always what we need to do. But what if they could be the same thing? We should want to spend time with God and we certainly need to spend time with him. I know what you're thinking: "But I'm so busy! I'm already sleep deprived as it is."

Trust me, I get it. Like I said in my last post, I'm guilty of putting TV shows, Facebook, Twitter, my social life and my school work before my time with God. I bet if you evaluated your life you'd find some time wasting too.

It's easy to think that going to church is enough - especially if you're involved in additional church activities throughout the week - but to be honest, we're lying to ourselves and trying to ease our guilt. We should spend time with God every day, as much as possible, and we shouldn't dread it. Spending time with Him shouldn't be another thing to cross of the checklist (trust me, I love my checklists). We should look forward to that time like we look forward to spending time with our friends, family, or significant other. But that's usually not the case.

We have plenty of time, we just waste it. Before you freak out, I'm not suggesting you rid your life of electronics or anything drastic like that. I'm just suggesting you take a second to reflect.  Is there a time during your day you could use to spend with God? What about when you're in the car? I know you sing Taylor Swift or Miley Cyrus or whatever it is you listen to...what if just for one drive you shut the music off and spent that time praying? (Note: Make sure to pray with your eyes open...I don't want to be the reason for any car accidents!) You don't even have to shut the music off; flip the radio to your favorite Christian station and spend some time worshiping God on your daily commute.

If you look, there are plenty of instances in your day where God will fit. Think of all God sacrificed for you...can't you give him 5 minutes? That's exactly what I'm going to ask you to do. Take the 5 Minute Challenge. I wouldn't ask you to do this if I hadn't done it myself. I did it once in high school and I'm going to start again. It may seem inconvenient but I promise, it becomes routine very quickly and you may even find yourself adding time.  Take the 5 Minute Challenge for a week and share your experiences with the rest of us; I have faith God will be doing amazing things during this time!

If you're taking the 5 Minute Challenge pray this prayer that God will bless this time over the next week. If you don't feel led to take the challenge now, pray for those of us that are doing it.

Prayer:
"Lord, help me to find time for you. It's so easy to make excuses but you're worth my time! Help me stay motivated and to desire to spend time with you. Thank you for all you do for me; I know many of the blessings you've given me go unnoticed and unthanked every day. Thank you so much. You are awesome, Father!"

If you're still in school I wish you the best with the rest of the semester and any finals you may have...it's a crazy time of year! But that's still no excuse not to do the 5 Minute Challenge ;)

P.S. God loves you :)

Let's Try This Again

Wow, I am REALLY slacking at this blog thing. It's kind of embarrassing...but we all make mistakes. I'm in need of some major adjustments in my time management and this is going to get moved several spaces up on my list! Number one is going to be more quiet/prayer/devotion time with Jesus. It's easy to forget to make time for that isn't it? I had a huge movie marathon yesterday but somehow still couldn't make 5 minutes to even get into the Bible a little bit. Anyone else have that problem?

Anyways, I just wanted to tell you all to be looking for more posts in the near future and hopefully they will occur a LOT more frequently. Hope you all had a Happy Thanksgiving and are enjoying the kick off to the Christmas season...just remember the reason we celebrate and don't get TOO caught up in all of the shopping and festivities :)

Let's Give This A Try...

Hello there!

If you're reading this...congratulations! I truly believe you are here for a purpose and were sent here by someone who knows this could help you. 

This isn't my first try at blogging -- I've actually started two before this one -- but I hope to actually stick to this one. Everything you read here and in the future are things I believe God is laying on my heart to share. You may not always agree with me but I hope my words may bring support and encouragement for those who need it.

Since this is my first post I'll give you a brief little overview of who I am.  I moved around several times growing up but my family finally settled in a small country town in Indiana where everyone knows everyone -- I graduated in a class of 96 in a K-12 building. I'm a sophomore in college double majoring in elementary education and special education and I can't wait to finally have a class of my own. 

Now that I'm past the basics I'll briefly share my testimony (I'm sure there will be more to come in later posts).  I've grown up in the church my whole life; I was involved in youth group, campus life, helped in the nursery, and even taught a Sunday school class on summer. However, it wasn't until college, specifically the summer after my freshman year, that I really began to develop and define my personal relationship with God. I always turned to books and blogs like this one for encouragement and when I was looking for answers and a sign that I wasn't the only one struggling with my problems. Then it occurred to me that I could share my experiences and thoughts on here for other young women (or women of any age) who are just like me. 

Like I said before, my thoughts and opinions may not be the same as yours and they may not be right but I'm just going to share my thoughts honestly and bare my heart in hopes that I may help someone else. 

I hope you keep coming back and share your thoughts and comments - even I need a little feedback and encouragement!

Thanks for reading this and have a blessed day :)

P.S. God Loves You