"Love God
Learning about God brings us closer to understanding how he acts. Worshiping God allows us to discover his presence. But loving God with our whole being brings us closer to his heart.
"Nothing compares to your love
There is nothing that will ever compare to Gods love. It’s so great that it can lift you up at your lowest moments, strengthen you at your weakest times, and encourage you when your full of doubt. It’s deeper than any ocean, impossible to measure and more beautiful than any diamond. His love has power to restore, grace to redeem, and unending faithfulness. His love will cover you, embrace you and be with you wherever you go. It’s in his love we can always find peace for todays trials and hope for tomorrows dreams!
you are the most valuable creation
Take a moment, close your eyes and picture the universe. There are thousands of galaxies and billions of stars all propped in its perfect place. A shooting star flies beautifully across the semi dark terrain.
There is no elevator to success. You have to climb the stairs. - Zig Ziglar
We are in times where we want everything fast. Where we want to see achievements, miracles, to have our prayer answered instantly without having to go through the process. If we take time to admire and contemplate how beautiful and necessary the process is, we will not waste the lessons, nor the cries, nor the discomforts we go through in life. It is better to go through the WHOLE process and get to the goal, than to arrive and have to start from scratch for not having taken all the necessary steps. The goal is to arrive, not to be the first. The goal is not to compete with others but to be the best version of ourselves. Let us go through the process recognizing that we are not alone. The Holy Spirit guides us to reach our fullness and fulfill our purpose.
"It always seems impossible until it is done" - Nelson Mandela
Sometimes we remember past failures or dreams that never came true and we think that today will be like last time. What we fail to remember is that we are no longer the same people we were the day before. We have learned from our mistakes. We have more experience and strength that we did not have before. Ideas are new. Now they come with wisdom. Let us not minimize what we have lived and learned on this journey. It may seem impossible to reach our goals but let's remember we are not starting from zero and the first thing you have to do is to take the first step. Everything is possible; maybe not in the way we expect but the goal should always be the same: to reach new goals in God and to recognize Him in everything we undertake. Let us fulfill our purpose.
"Nobody is perfect, that's why pencils have erasers." Wolfgang Riebe
We try and get up again to do it all over again. Sometimes we succeed the first time or the second time, but sometimes it takes longer than we would like. At times like this, we have to stop and ask God what He is teaching us. The Great I AM wants to show us something; God is equipping us. Let us recognize God in all our walk and in all that we accomplish and try to accomplish. Part of our growth is recognizing that I depend on Him and need Him. God in His infinite love molds us day by day. Let us not expect to become perfect but to do God's will; to do what we have been set apart to do. Knowing that there is still much to learn and we have not achieved everything. When one understands this then we learn what "Grace" is.... Not only for others but also for oneself.
"If you're going through hell, keep walking" - Winston Churchill
I don't know if it has happened to you, but in this walk sometimes it feels very overwhelming. That one runs out of strength. It feels like we are giving the last attempts to move forward. As if everything is going wrong. As if everything is against us. As if the universe is against us.
"Always find time to do the things that make you feel happy to be alive."
"You'll never have this day again, so make it count."
All we have is today. Think about what you have accomplished today. With all your ups and downs we have learned something new, reached a new goal, seen something beautiful, heard something tender, but something beautiful no matter how small and insignificant something you did today counted. We are important to God and what we undertake God is exalted. That is why today counts. Remember to spend your time today doing something you will be proud of when you look back on it.
"Procrastination is the thief of time."
It is very easy to get busy with things that keep us from reaching the goal we have set for ourselves, but we also procrastinate by missing opportunities to achieve goals that are attainable. We are responsible for our time and how we spend it. As my mom says, "Let's not put off until tomorrow what we can do today." Let's make the most of the day we have because tomorrow is not promised to us.
There is no secret to success. It is the result of preparation, hard work and learning from failure. - General Colin Powell
Sometimes we complicate our lives so much by comparing ourselves with others and we try to be who we are not. Having the wrong definition of success. In reality, we need to be experts at being ourselves. Every day is a new opportunity to be a better person than we were yesterday. It takes courage to accept our mistakes, to confront our weaknesses, and to learn from what we have experienced. That's why we must prepare ourselves, keep working without losing heart, and learn something new every day. To be the best we can be with our eyes fixed on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith.
Striving for success without working hard is like trying to reap where you haven't planted. - David Bly
Life has taught us so much that we cannot ignore that doing has made us learn. How much more do we not have to apply ourselves to something that interests us. If we want to keep reaching new goals we have to apply ourselves if not life will teach us the same way. How beautiful it is to learn and focus on the spiritual realm. We always have to remember that we have a divine purpose and we are here to improve and do with excellence daily our assignment for God. Keep harvesting in the spiritual in private and public and God will always be exalted. Our fruits will be seen and will be a blessing to others.
"If it doesn't challenge you, it won't change you."
It's hard to be challenged. People like to know exactly what they are doing and stay within their comfort zone. But we need a challenge to learn and grow. Challenge does not have to be bad, even if it is out of your comfort zone, remember that it will help you grow. It is of utmost importance to look for opportunities where we can see God glorify Himself in our lives. We cannot allow fears or doubts to keep us stuck where God wants us to grow and mature. Say yes to the challenge and you will see abilities in you that you never thought you had. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me (Philippians 4:13).
"Never stop doing something just because someone doesn't give you credit."
Whoever you are, whether people are watching or not. Don't do something for someone to notice. Be the best "you" when people are paying attention, and even when they're not. You'll thank yourself later. In this walk we have to remember that everything we do is to glorify God and because we are being obedient to what He is entrusting us to do. There will always be people who will doubt or not understand God's calling for your life. Do what God has given you to do because He sees beyond our ability. Fulfill His purpose for your life for God so that God will be exalted and not so that someone will give us credit.
"It doesn't matter what others are doing; It matters what you are doing."
There is a thought that is infiltrating the church is "if they are doing it I can do it too." With this thinking, one gets caught up in what other people are doing. If people are slacking off, you feel justified in not trying as hard as you should. Or you can justify everything you do with "at least I'm not doing what that person is doing." The truth is that all we have control over is our own actions. We have the ability to do great things if we don't get caught up in other people and what they are doing. We don't see or achieve all that we are capable of doing or what God has for us if we are still focused on others and not on the goals we set out to achieve. Let God exceed all your expectations and keep taking the necessary steps to glorify God in everything you undertake.
"No matter the situation, never let your emotions dominate your intelligence."
Emotions are powerful. Our emotions can convince us of virtually anything. That said, it is so important to our well-being that we do not operate solely on our emotions. We have the power to look beyond a bad day or to think beyond how we feel. God guides us if we allow Him to be first in our lives. In the midst of the ups and downs of our life if we allow our emotions to dominate us then we lose focus of why we started certain goals. Remember that the goals that glorify God are God Himself who put them in our hearts. By wanting to succeed, He Himself gives us the strength, the wisdom, and the opportunities to achieve it. Let's not allow our emotions, doubts, and fears to take us away from the goals we have projected to achieve.
"His secret to success is that he did everything with passion."
True success is achieved only through passion. If we choose to invest our time where our passions lie, we will find success. If we bring passion to everything we do, we can also be successful. I think it's easy to get caught up in what other people think we should do or who they think we should be. To find satisfying success in what we do, we have to do what we love while trusting God to guide our steps. If we do everything in front of us with desire, interest, dedication, we achieve success because we do it with excellence for God and we see His favor and mercy in what we undertake. Doing things half-heartedly or without passion remains a good idea that never came to fruition. Let us do everything with love because God is LOVE.
"The moment you change your perception, that's the moment you rewrite your body chemistry."
Perception is everything. When we become obsessed with the problems of the semester, of everyday life, we can easily get sucked into negativity. A positive outlook can completely change how we feel about the semester, about assignments and where we are in our lives. Stay positive, with a goal of getting to the end, and don't settle for looking at everything from a negative lens when the going gets tough. Victory comes when you don't give up and achieve what you set out to do. We keep taking one step at a time to one more goal we have to conquer.
"Be courageous in the pursuit of what sets your soul on fire."
Throughout the semester, fear or doubt infiltrates our lives. We start to feel unmotivated or even a little discouraged to move forward. Whether it's a long project, a difficult assignment, a challenging subject, or we've just had a long day with the to-do's of home and the routine of our daily work, there are many discouraging days in our study life. But that can't stop us from moving forward to achieve our goals and pursue our dreams. We have to live for the things that make us feel alive.
Today!
Today is the perfect day to do what you need to do. Today is the day to do what you need to do, do what you must do, do what you are afraid to do, and do what you are hesitant to do. Today is the day to do that assignment you are contemplating, clean up what you keep procrastinating on, empty what you know you have stuff to throw away. Today is the day to write that poem, that book, that preaching. Sometimes we have time to do things that do not edify us. Doing things that don't get us to the goal. We do everything that occupies us, robs us of the opportunities to fulfill our purpose. Today is the perfect day to accomplish one more goal, take another step of faith, and fulfill our divine purpose. Let's put the things of God first and we will see how God is glorified in whatever we undertake. As the well-known saying goes, "Don't put off until tomorrow what you can do TODAY."
"It always seems impossible until it is done" - Nelson Mandela
Sometimes we remember past failures or dreams that never came true and we think that today will be like last time. What we fail to remember is that we are no longer the same people we were the day before. We have learned from our mistakes. We have more experience and strength that we did not have before. Ideas are new. Now they come with wisdom. Let us not minimize what we have lived and learned on this journey. It may seem impossible to reach our goals but let's remember we are not starting from zero and the first thing you have to do is to take the first step. Everything is possible; maybe not in the way we expect but the goal should always be the same: to reach new goals in God and to recognize Him in everything we undertake. Let us fulfill our purpose.