My Three Basic Principles for a Happy Life

Recently, I reached out to a cousin that I haven't seen in over 20 years, maybe even 30. In the letter that he wrote me, he recalled looking at my life/family when he was a child and wondering why he didn't have what I had. He is much younger than me, so that could have been part of the problem, but he did have a difficult and troubled life. 

As I reflected on his words, I thought about what made my life so different. My childhood wasn't easy either, but I chose another path. I thought about how I did this and I realized that I chose to live by some simple principles. I had never really thought about this before, but as I wrote the letter I was easily able to narrow it down to three basic principles: 1) Put God first. 2) Always try to do what is right. 3) Work hard for the things you want in life. These are not always easy to follow, but I rely on God and know that with Him, all things are possible. 

I kept the letter simple and didn't expand on these principles, but as I thought more about them, I decided to share them in this post. I know that there are people hurting and struggling. People that don't know how to make their life better. People that don't know where to turn. My response is to turn to God, call on God, trust God, and allow God to work in and through you. How do you do this? You do this through prayer and trusting God's Word. 

This doesn't mean that your life will be easy, or that you will forever live in perfect happiness, but it is how I have found happiness. It is the happiness that my cousin, even at a very young age was able to see and want.

There are many scriptures that I have turned to and that have helped me in my life's journey. There are too many to list them all, but here are some that you might find helpful:

Matthew 22:37-39 (NKJV)

37 Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.'

Isaiah 41:10 (ESV)

Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. 

Proverbs 3:5-6 (NKJV)
5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding;  6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.

Matthew 19:26 (NKJV)
But Jesus looked at them and said to them, “With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

Jeremiah 29:11 (ESV)

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. 

Psalms 37:24 (NKJV)

Though he falls, he shall not be utterly cast down; for the Lord upholds him with His hand. 

This post isn't meant to be a life-changing experience, but I hope that in some way it is. It is simply a reflection of what I believe has made a difference in my life. I send out this post with love and with a prayer that you will fully and completely allow God into your life; allow Him to give you the life He wants you to have. I pray for blessings in your life beyond belief and a peace that has never before filled you with so much joy.

God bless you always!

Faith, Doubt, and God's Plan

Lately, I've been a little stressed out. I keep praying and hoping that a problem I have will be resolved. Logically, I know that it is not even a major problem and I know that God will take care of it, but I keep fighting the attack on my soul. 

The problem, for those of you who are wondering, is that I have some people who are basically squatters living in a property that my aunt was using. Because she allowed one person to come into her home and stay for a period of time (without paying rent, or having a lease), I now have to go through the eviction process. At this point, I am hoping that they will leave before the 30 days is up, but it is not looking hopeful. To add to the problem, I live 6 hours away from this property.  

Ok, so like I said, logically, I know that it is not a big deal. We will go through the process and someday, somehow the problem will be resolved. Unfortunately, I continue to fight the the feelings that go along with the process. I am fighting against the unknown. I can't even plan my visit to see my grandchildren, because I don't know when I will actually need to make the trip to deal with the house. 

As I continue to fight the feelings that are taking a toll on me, I find myself questioning my faith in God's plan. I know that He works all things for good. I know that He has plans for me. I know that He will never leave me nor forsake me. But, something is still not right. I am doubting. 

Today, I read an article, How to Overcome Doubt, by Andrew Wommack. Wow, it hit the spot! I realized that I was relying on the physical world. I needed to see God working. I needed to see God's plan. The funny thing is, if I was really looking, I would have been able to see it. God lead me to the eviction lawyer and realtor who have been helping with the process. When praying, God has been constantly telling me to "be still." God has lead me to scriptures, which when I read, are truly helpful. 

The other thing that I realized after reading the article, is that instead of relying on the physical world, I need to rely on God’s Word. I need to rely on God's truths, God's promises, the unseen abilities of God's supernatural power. We know this, right? But it is easy to forget. Andrew Womack says, "You must come from a place to where God's Word is more real to you than anything you can see, taste, hear, smell, or feel. When you doubt, refer back to the Word of God..." Well, that is what I am going to do. Heck with the physical world. I am going to trust in Gods' Word. 

Here are some scriptures that I have been turning to:

Jeremiah 29:11 ESV 
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.

Isaiah 41:10 ESV
Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

Romans 8:28 ESV

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

There are some others, but these are the ones I have been meditating on. I hope that you find them helpful as well. I pray that we all remember to be constantly in the Word and to rely on God and the spiritual realm, rather than the physical word. God has us in His hands, so I know that He will always be there for us. I don't want to ever doubt that. I don't want to give Satan that power over me. 

I pray for you and ask that God bless you always. 

Reference:

Overcoming Doubt, By Andrew Wommack

https://www.awmi.net/reading/teaching-articles/overcome_doubt/

Practicing God’s Presence

Lately, I’ve been coming across different reading and sermons that mention “Practicing the Presence of God.” After seeing it again yesterday, I decided to write a reflection about it. I tried to do some quick research, which of course means, I Googled it. What I found, placed most of the emphasis on seeing God in everything, and on doing everyday tasks for God. There were strategies mentioned such as, praying the first thing in the morning; surrendering to God; turning your complaints into praise; and more, but that really wasn’t what I felt God was impressing on me. 

What does it really mean to practice the presence of God? After reflecting on it for a bit, I decided that for me it meant really believing and realizing that God is truly with me. Yes, I do all the Christian things I should do (pray, church, bible, meditate, etc.), and I know that God is real, but do I truly believe that He is always with me? Do you truly believe it? What is the difference between knowing and believing? I would say that I know God is always with me, my mind knows this to be true, but what about my heart? What about my soul? What about the very deepest part of me? Do I truly believe? My answer could easily be “Yes!” But, as I reflect, I have to say that if this were really true, my actions and/or life would look a little different. Not that I think I’m a horrible person, or living a life displeasing to God, but I think that maybe I would do more, be more. 

These thought circle back to practicing the presence of God. In order to believe that God is truly in our life, we need to go back and see what He says about it in the bible. That makes it easier for me, because I trust in God’s promises. I believe His words. There are several scriptures that I found which make it clear that God is always with us. Here are some that I thought I would share. I’m sure there are plenty more, but this is a good start.

SCRIPTURES - God is with us always. 

Isaiah 41: 10 (ESV) - Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

Joshua 1:9 (ESV) - Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

Deuteronomy 31:6 (ESV)Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.”

Zephaniah 3:17 (ESV) - The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing. 

Matthew 28:20 (ESV) - Teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Hebrews 13:5 (ESV) - Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”

Psalm 23:4 (ESV) - 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.

Matthew 1:23 (ESV) - “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel” (which means, God with us).

SCRIPTURES - Don't forget about the Holy Spirit that dwells within us. 

John 14:16-17 (ESV) - And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.

 

1 Corinthians 3:16 (ESV) - Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you?

Now that I have read God’s word and have a better realization that God is with me, I need to acknowledge this in my daily life. I need to stop and talk to God; thank Him; ask Him for advice; trust Him; sit quietly with Him; and in all my ways acknowledging Him. This is not always easy to do. We are taught that seeing is believing, but we can't see God. How do we learn to believe? It can be done with practice. For me, this is called, “Practicing the Presence of God.” I can call out to God. I can think on all the times that had he not been with me, things could have gone horribly wrong. I can clearly and confidently say, “God is with me! He is right here! Right now!" I can trust! My hope is to truly, with every part of me, believe the fact that God is with me. My prayer is for it to be the same for you. 

Good Bless you always! 

*Resource: God Being With Us - Topical Bible - https://www.openbible.info/topics/god_being_with_us

Don't be so Afraid of Dying that You Stop Living

I was watching an old episode of Survivor the other day. One of the players mentioned that he had been so afraid of dying that he had stopped living. This comment really struck me. I reflected on it for some time. As I approach my 60th birthday, my immortality has been more on my mind. I think about how much longer I will live, as if I truly have any idea, or any control over this. This thought runs two ways. One way is to be prepared, making sure everything is in place, but this really holds true at any age. We don't know how long we are going to live, so having a Will; our wishes for a funeral; life support wishes; or any other desires made known, seems like a logical thing to do. 

My second thought runs towards the illogical. It kind of runs towards the being so afraid of dying that I stop living. Crazy, I know! My fear doesn't really come from being afraid to do things because I might die, or does it? Here is what I find happening. I start thinking that I'm not going to live much longer, so maybe I should start getting rid of some things. Why have a big house (my house is not big), or so much stuff that the kids will just have to get rid of, or deal with? Maybe, I should stay home, because I definitely don't want to get sick. Of course, many of us are staying home more because of COVID, but it is the worry behind it that can become extreme. 

Listening to the guy on Survivor made me realize that maybe, in a sense, I am living life the way he was. Maybe, I am thinking so much about dying that I am not living. That is not the way God wants us to live our life. First of all, God does not want us to be afraid. 

In Philippians 4:6-7 (NIV) we are told not to be afraid. 

6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Galatians 5:22-23 (NIV) tells us about the fruits of the Spirit that we as believers can have in our life. While the topic of this passage refers more to warding off the desires and passions of the heart, I can see that my fear has kept me from truly having the peace and joy that I pray for.

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. 

I realize that my feelings stem from fear and lack of control, so I cling to 2 Timothy 1:7 (ESV).

7 for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.

I don't want to stop living life because I am afraid of dying. I want to live each day to the fullest and appreciate the blessings that God has given me. And, when the day does come, I have the comfort of knowing I will be with my Father in heaven. 

I pray that you too will work on living life to the fullest. Live the life that God has planned for you. Don't give into those fears. 

God Bless! 

Christmas Envelope Boxes

 This year I wanted to do something a little different for Christmas. My children and grandchildren are all getting older, so it is getting more difficult to choose gifts for them. I wanted to find a way to have fun with the gifts, so I decided on Christmas pillow boxes and Santa bags. 

I came up with this idea after seeing some Christmas pillow boxes on Amazon. These boxes are small envelopes that kind of puff up when you push them together and fold in the ends. I went ahead and ordered them. They came in a set of 60 with 12 different designs. They were a great price at $7.99. I got them in about six days. I bought some candy, little gifts, and some Santa Christmas bags. Originally, I wasn't sure of the size bag I needed, so I bought two different sizes. The bag you need will really depend on how much you want to put in them. 

The next thing I did, was I went to the bank and got some bills in different denominations. This is going to be the main gift for my family, so I got enough $1's, $5's, $10s, and $20's. I already had some coins. 

It was important to me that my family not forget the true reason for Christmas, so I also wanted to include Christmas (Christian) messages. I typed some up and had planned on putting them in the pillow boxes on their own, but they kind of stuck to the inside of the box, so I decided to fold them in with the money. I've included the link below in case you are interested in using my Christmas messages, but you can probably think of some good ones on your own. You could also just handwrite a message or a special note. 

After I filled the Christmas Pillow Boxes with different items, I put them in a bag. I decided on the Santa bag because it was so cute. I was only able to fill it with eight pillow boxes, but that was enough. Each envelope had a fun surprise, so I'm sure my family will enjoy it. 

For this post, I only put together one gift bag, which is for my son. I want to pick up a couple more little things for my grandkids before I do their bags. I will need to remember to write their names on Santa's hat, or beard for the rest of my family. I had fun filling the Christmas pillow boxes and putting the Santa bag together. I am really happy that I was able to include a Christmas message.

I hope that you like this special gift idea. I wish you and your family a very Merry and Safe Christmas. May God bless you always! 

Here is the Google Link to Christmas Messages (PDF)

Christmas Messages PDF

Update: This is a post from a couple of years ago. The bags were a hit! This year I am doing Christmas Eve Pajama Boxes. I have a YouTube video that you can view if you are interested. 

Christmas Eve Pajama Boxes

Another cute idea that I did a few years ago is the Snowman Tower Boxes. They were really a fun project. Of course, my family loved them. I have included the link to the blog post and a couple others that you might like. 

Snowman Tower Boxes

Holiday Gift Idea for Co-workers, Friends, Teachers, Ect.

Cozy Christmas Gift Idea

Bible Resources for the Everyday Woman

Today, I was reflecting on my growth as a Christian. I truly believe it is a lifelong process. As I was reflecting on this I started thinking about the resources that I find most helpful. I rely on resources that truly speak to the everyday woman. You know, like me and you. My husband has a gift for being able to take complex readings, sermons, ideas, etc. and break them down to get the most out of them. I need things rather simple; right to the point; ideas that I can apply immediately. After thinking about the resources I use, I decided to write this post in hopes that you may benefit from my list.

My list is not in any particular order, but the Bible is, of course, number one in the area of importance. I love using the Bible Gateway website. One reason I love using this website is that I can open it up on my iPad and keep the tab opened to mark my spot. This makes it easy for me to pick it up and read (or listen to) anytime. There are many Bible apps that do the same thing, but I tend to ignore/forget about these apps. The opened tab serves as a reminder for me to be in the word. 

Bible Gateway Website
https://www.biblegateway.com/

I have a very difficult time memorizing scripture. I’ve tried, but it is just not something I have the gift for. I am familiar with scripture and God helps me call it to mind when I need it, which is really all that matters, but sometimes I want more. If I have a problem and I want to be in God’s word, I use the Topic Bible. I can look up a topic, such as “worry” and read lots of scriptures on the topic. I find this super helpful. The Topic Bible is a great website.

Topic Bible
http://www.openbible.info/topics/

Sometimes, I struggle with how I want/should spend time with God. My normal morning routine is prayer, devotions, and reading the Bible. I'm retired now, so I have some flexibility in my schedule, but even while I was working I made it a point to spend a half hour in the morning with God before getting ready. I'm a morning person, so this helps. My favorite devotional is Our Daily Bread. I have used this devotional for many, many years. I used to get it as a free booklet, but now I just use the website. I love the real life examples in this devotional. God often uses the stories to speak to my heart and help me grow.

Our Daily Bread
https://odb.org/

I won’t go into a description for each of the following resources, but each one serves as a tool that helps me in my walk with God.

K-WAVE (I actually use the app)
http://player.listenlive.co/28571

K-LOVE (Again, I use the app, or radio)
http://www.klove.com/listen/player.aspx

Joyce Meyers - I usually watch her on YouTube - She is super relatable and real!

Christian’s Secret to a Happy Life - (Available as a Kindle and paperback book)
When you first start reading this book it might seem a little difficult to read, but stick with it. There are some great insights.

I'm sure if I thought on this longer I would come up with more resources, but I don't want this post to be overwhelming. In this day and age, there are tons of Bible resources available, but these are the resources that I have found helpful. I hope that you will too. 

God bless you always! Anna 

Trust in the Lord

5 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. 6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. (Proverbs 3:5-6  KJV)

Lately, I’ve been reflecting on my trust in God. Yes, I say I trust Him, and I believe that I do, but am I truly living a life that reflects that trust? How often do I spend time worrying about things I have no control over? How often do I ask God for help, and then continue to worry about the problem? Do I not think God is powerful enough? Do I not trust that my God is faithful? I think that the answer is simply that I am flesh and blood. I am human. 

When I am having trouble trusting God, I meditate on Proverbs 3:5-6. It reminds me that I can lean on God. I can put my complete trust in Him. I just need to acknowledge Him and He will direct my path. I was reading from one of my favorite books, The Christian’s Secret to a Happy Life, the other day. The chapter I was reading focused on trusting God. The author points out that there are two jobs. Our job is the trusting. We are to trust God. That’s it! Totally and completely trust God. God’s job is the doing. Isn’t that wonderful? God has it in His power to take care of any problem, or situation that life can through at us. Thank you Lord! Thank you!

I pray that you always remember that God loves you and that you can trust Him. He will not fail you. Take your cares to the foot of the cross and leave them there. God Bless you always!