Be-YOU-tiful

According to Glamour's "Shocking Body-Image News" article written by Shaun Dreisbach,

 

"...on average, women have 13 negative body thoughts daily—nearly one for every waking hour. And a disturbing number of women confess to having 35, 50 or even 100 hateful thoughts about their own shapes each day...A whopping 97 percent admitted to having at least one “I hate my body” moment." ( Read more here! At www.Glamour.com)

I find it truly upsetting how many people would like to change their appearances...  why can't you just LOVE your body and shape the way it is?

 

Society has imprinted this "perfect body" image on us, and it's almost IMPOSSIBLE to attain! God made YOU, that makes you BEAUTIFUL; why would you try to change the BEAUTY that is YOU? 

 

Everything about you is beautiful--curves and all! God doesn't make mistakes, so you were meant to be, well, YOU! If everyone looked exactly the same, what fun would that be? I think it would be pretty boring... So, love  every aspect of yourself and it will show to everyone around you ! Let your confidence and your smile SHINE... it's the best makeup in the world. 

 



 

Act

When was the last time you ACTED? I don't mean on TV or anything... I mean when was the last time you DID something--like an act of kindness, witnessing to someone, etc? I believe that all of us--including me-- ACT a lot less than we should. Why? Maybe because we think it's pointless, and meaningless, but....

 



 

Every single thing you do, every ACT you make, has an impact on someone or something. You make a difference; YOU matter!  

 

The real question is, are you making a true difference? Are you ACTING for God, or for yourself?



 

 

God has our lives PLANNED out for us! If we stop thinking about our selfish desires--like becoming rich or famous-- and focus on ACTING for God, we can make a MAJOR impact! Listen to this song, Set the World on Fire, by Britt Nicole, I find it very inpirational...

 



 

If you ACT for God and allow Him to work through you, there is NOTHING you can't do! You can accomplish ANYTHING.

 

Another reason that I believe that people don't ACT all that often, is because they try to do EVERYTHING! Yes, God can empower us to make a difference, but one person alone cannot do everything.



 

Don't forget that you can always do SOMETHING! Focus on one dream. Work for God. ACT. Because YOU matter and YOU can make a difference!



Seek God

Who do you live for? Is it for yourself, your family, your friends, or your boyfriend? Who do you try to impress the most? I think the answer should be God! We need to SEEK Him in all that we do and strive to please Him.  



Life is a constant struggle--against disease, evil, danger,ect-- and it can be hard to get through. When we SEEK God, He will provide us with everything that we need to make it through this life--remember that that isn't always what we think of as good; we need turmoil and pain to GROW. 

Even believing in God we will face pain, and struggle, but He will make sure we are taken care of! If we SEEK God, we will be bombarded with GOOD! I'm not saying life will be easy or anything, but God will give us good feelings, thoughts, relationships and a whole lot of LOVE! He will put us through struggles, but He will also ensure that there is a GOOD outcome!

 

Check out this song by ZOEgirl...

 

 

 

This is all about turning towards God, SEEKING Him! When we turn away from our own selfish dreams, goals, and desires and do what God wants, we will be rewarded. This isn't some "become rich and famous now" scheme. That's not the type of reward I'm talking about. It means that you will be filled with joy and happiness and you will have someone to live for! When you SEEK God, be prepared to be INTERNALLY REWARDED.

 

SEEK God in all you do. Make your life about Him and not about you!

Optimism II

Optimism can be extremely hard to achieve sometimes. Life gets tough, and we get negative; it happens! 

 

 

Optimism begins in your head! If you THINK POSITIVELY you will be happier! Is it a scientific law? No, it's never been officially tested or anything... but YOU can test it! Try POSITIVE thinking for a week--even 2 days-- and see how you feel at the end of it. My guess is you will feel A LOT better!

 

In my opinion, when you have God in your life it's not that hard to be OPTIMISTIC. His love and grace FILLS you with JOY! When you have God it's a lot easier to see past the bad and have a POSITIVE ATTITUDE--knowing He has a plan and seeing His immense amount of love is enough to make anyone happy!





When you THINK with a positive attitude, you will ACT with a positive attitude. When you have the faith that you will succeed, you will not only act POSITIVELY, you will act more. When you ACT more, you will ACHIEVE more!

 

I'm not trying to say that being optimistic will be easy-- because that would be a lie! Life is hard, but you can enjoy it all. If you're optimistic there is ALWAYS fun to be found, and--with a little determination-- there isn't a thing you won't be able to accomplish!

 

Think. Act. Achieve.Through OPTIMISM and FAITH.

Prayer

Quick question... if you stop talking to your friends do you think they would be mad? That you would grow apart? In my personal--and very non-expert-- opinion, I think the answer is yes. The same thing can happen with God. PRAYER is our contact with Him, it strengthens our relationship with God!

 

 

We all have a friend that we talk to about EVERYTHING. If you can tell a friend all that, why can't you tell God? He's more trustworthy than any friend--because we're human, not because you have bad friends or anything. I don't know about you, but I talk a lot more than I pray; I'm busy and I don't always think about God, but....

 



 

Don't put anything before God; He wants a STRONG relationship with us! He wants us to pray continually, be strong, and to praise Him...

 



 

Never stop PRAYING. That's not easy to do. We all have our lives and we get caught up in personal issues, friends, work, etc. Often we forget how IMPORTANT it is to PRAY!

 

Personally, I'm making a conscious effort to PRAY throughout the day--during whatever I'm doing-- and you know what? It's getting easier! I've been praying more and reading the Bible frequently, and let me tell you, it makes ALL the difference!!



 

When you pray, you're handing your fears, troubles, praises, anything and everything over to God! It takes a HUGE weight off your shoulders.

 Make sure you PRAY throughout the day; you will strengthen your relationship with God, and you will feel joyous, happy and wonderful! You'll ALWAYS have someone to talk to, someone you can DEPEND on! 

 

Purity

Ever wonder about purity? I mean we have all sinned (obviously, right?), so how can we be pure?

The only way to TRUE PURITY is through God. We need to turn our backs on the evil of the world and cling to Christ! We need to be focused on LOVE, PEACE, and PURITY. Once we repent of our sins, God washes us clean.

A lot of times it can be HARD to be PURE. Why? Because doing what's pure is NOT what the world is doing. Generally, PURITY is considered "uncool" and it can be really hard to stay true to God! The thing is though...

The world is WRONG!

God tells us what's right. We need to seek out all of the pure things and go to God! That way we will have PURE HEARTS. You're going to mess up and be impure--lucky for you, our God FORGIVES! If God is proud of us, what do we have to be ashamed of? NOTHING! So...






Do what's RIGHT even if the world thinks it's wrong. You won't be alone--you will have God and other Christians-- so BAND TOGETHER and show the world what true PURITY is!

Weakness

Each and every one of us has weaknesses. If you are struggling, or something bad has happened to you, you may wonder WHY? Why is God doing this to you? Why, if He is all powerful, doesn't He take your weaknesses away? This verse really sums it all up:

God puts us through hardships and gives us weaknesses to make us STRONGER. He could take away any bad thing He wanted, but it's the bad things that shape who we are. If we never went through hard times we would never have to depend on God and we wouldn't understand how much we really need Him!

God will deliver us and help us through anything! His GRACE is all we really need.

When we are weak, God is strong.

He wants us to DELIGHT in the difficulties we face, because He wants us to become STRONGER! We need to embrace our WEAKNESS and realize that God has our back; He wouldn't put us through something, unless it would have a positive outcome. 

Out of your pain God WILL give you strength! Love you WEAKNESS, it will allow you to GROW! 

Heros

What words would you use to describe yourself? Pretty, Handsome, Kind, Sweet, Nice... the list goes on and on. I'm guessing that the word HERO wasn't part of that list but, it could be!

Today I came across this really inspiring story. It's about an unexpected HERO. It's the story of Rahab--found in Joshua 2. You may not know the story, so let me sum it up for you:

Way back in the time of Moses and Joshua (Old Testament times), the Israelites were planning to attack Jericho, so Joshua sent in two spies. The spies stayed with Rahab. She was definitely not the best person-- a serious sinner and prostitute--but she saved the spies' lives!

The king of Jericho sent soldiers out to arrest the foreign spies. In a courageous act, Rahab mislead the soldiers and hid the spies. She SAVED their lives and in return she and her family were spared when the Israelites attacked Jericho.

 God used Rahab, an imperfect sinner, and turned her into a HERO! Rahab was far from pure or perfect, but God still had plans for her, and she made a DIFFERENCE.  

If God can use a person like Rahab for good imagine what He can do with someone like you? Sure, you're not perfect, but no one is! Lucky for you, God uses IMPERFECT people!!
No matter what you've done in your life, no matter how bad you may think you are, God CAN use you; He can turn YOU into a HERO.

Being a HERO doesn't mean flying around in capes (no matter how fun it would be). It means making a difference, and doing what God calls you to do--that could be something as small as listening to a friend, doing community service or bringing someone to your church!

God has amazing things in store for you. No matter how bad, or terrible your past is, God can help you move past it. He can turn YOU into a HERO! 

Opportunity

Everyday is an OPPORTUNITY. Everyday we face different situations. Everyday we have the chance to DO something! God puts us through a lot--sometimes it seems good, other times bad! I believe that God works for GOOD!

Every bad situation is an OPPORTUNITY for something POSITIVE to occur!



If you knew that you couldn't fail, what would you do? If every single day--in ANY situation-- we lived FEARLESSLY and looked for OPPORTUNITIES-- to better ourselves, spread God's Word or achieve our goals--think about how much we could ACCOMPLISH; how much we would GROW!



If you are going through a troublesome stretch, don't view it as punishment or suffering, view it as an OPPORTUNITY! You have a chance to GROW. You have a chance to RESTART! If your life begins to fall apart, put your faith in GOD! He will help you REBUILD yourself--spiritually, mentally, and emotionally--for the better! God knows what He's doing, so we just have to TRUST Him.

This song--Come Alive, by BarlowGirl-- really talks about utilizing OPPORTUNITIES! It's about COMING ALIVE, following what God wants for us and DOING something! It's exciting and inspiring to think that if we all embrace an OPPORTUNITY--no matter how small-- we could cause CHANGE and GROWTH!

Every second of every day we are faced with OPPORTUNITIES---there's no time to waste-- Every one of us needs to COME ALIVE and embrace each OPPORTUNITY that God throws our way! We ALL have a chance to:

 STAND UP. REBUILD. GROW. DO. CHANGE. 



Stand Up

This morning in my daily devotionals, I came across a passage that really inspired me:

"Lord,

I used to think taking a stand for you

meant arguing with people who didn't

believe in you or in your Word

or who mocked your name.

But lately, Lord, I realize

if I want people to see

how great you are,

I need to let your greatness

shine in and through me.

By loving the unlovable,

being kind to the unkind,

and blessing those who

curse me (and you),

I'm taking a stand for you.

By doing what you've call me

to do (no matter what criticism

or callousness I face),

I'm battling against

the lies of Satan.

Taking a stand starts with

embracing this truth:

If I want you to be real to others

I must allow you to be real in me.

Then I'm truly standing up

for you-not just with words,

but with my life."

-Elaine, from Campus Life's Ignite Your Faith

Actions speak louder than words, so act for God; let his love, grace and joy flow through you! If we devote our lives to Christ and let him work through us, STANDING UP becomes a lot easier. God is always on our side, so we are never truly alone. Sure, sometimes the world can be against us, but as Christians that's the trouble we face. The Bible tells us:

"Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good."
Romans 12:21

This isn't always an easy task...In many situations, the right thing to do isn't the "popular" thing to do.

Sometimes, in order to do good in this world you have to STAND ALONE and STAND UP for what you believe in! People sin and they do wrong. Don't let yourself follow blindly. This has been happening for years-- all the way back to Old Testament times (Read about how Joshua and Caleb took a stand in Numbers 13-14).

ACT. STAND UP. MAKE A DIFFERENCE. Do right even when the world is doing wrong, because that is what God has called us to do!

Optimism

Is the glass half full or half empty?

I'm sure you've been asked this question before. So, what's your answer? This is a question about how you view the world--through a POSITIVE light or a negative one. In my opinion it's always better to look at things positively,because your attitude directly effects your performance,drive, and efficiency. 



Internally, optimism can really effect you're outlook on life, determination and attitude. You can either go through life cranky and negative, or you can choose to be positive and happy! 

I don't know about you, but I would be singing--just for FUN! Why be angry when you can be HAPPY? God has this really awesome thing that He does--He can look at bad situations and see what GOOD will come from them! God can see the positive outcome from any situation, and I believe that He wants all of us to do the same!

"Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things."
Philippians 4:8

Aren't those two verses inspirational? God wants us to think about things that are PURE, LOVELY, and EXCELLENT. He wants us to REJOICE and give thanks for everything! He wants us to be OPTIMISTIC!

Optimism can get you started; if you believe in yourself you are more likely to DO something! Having a POSITIVE outlook effects you and everyone around you. When you are OPTIMISTIC everyone can tell --you will become more relatable, attractive and wonderful-- because you will make people believe that there is always GOOD to be found.  

Go into the world and be OPTIMISTIC! You won't believe what you can accomplish!!

Healed

Have you been HEALED by God? I'm not talking about sickness--even though He does that too!--I'm talking about spiritually. We have all sinned, each and every one of us, but God has this awesome plan. Through Jesus, we can all be HEALED. FORGIVEN. CLEANSED.

“He himself bore our sins” in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by his wounds you have been healed.”

1 Peter 2:24

 Jesus died on the cross so all of us--undeserving sinners-- could be SAVED and HEALED. If you have accepted Jesus, your sins are wiped clean, and you have truly been HEALED of something worse than disease--evil and sin!

God never promised us that our lives would be easy... and a lot of times we know that first hand. Life can be hard, but God uses hard situations to teach us and to draw us to Him. If we never went through trials, we would never know what it is like to NEED Christ! Without that need, we may never give our lives over to the Lord. God uses trial and tribulation to bring us to Him and to allow us to be FORGIVEN, CLEANSED, and HEALED.

We've all done things we regret--at least I know I have-- but through Christ we can move past all of the terrible things. We can live our lives freely because we have been FORGIVEN. We can start over, begin anew, because we have been HEALED. 



Be Bold

Ever hear the song Dead Serious by Zoegirl? I think they're onto something... 





When people look at you, what do they see? Do they see someone who blends in-- not worth a second glance-- or do they see someone who shines? I like to think that they see someone confident, happy and joyous. I also like to think that that image is because you have God in your life! Having God fills you with joy! Are you going to hide that joy inside or share it with the world?

"Watch her as she goes, there's something different and she knows it
Ask her why, and she'll flash that silly smile
She says she's got a purpose and she's done with all the games
Jesus saved her soul and she'll never be the same"

-Dead Serious, Zoegirl

Those are some powerful lyrics! When was the last time you shared something--your story, a bible verse, a prayer, even a SMILE? Simply saying...





...can have an unbelievable affect on someone! Be BOLD. Be CORAGEOUS. Be BRAVE. Share your faith! Don't be a silent Christian, instead do what God call's all of us believers to do, be BOLD!

The Christian faith almost acts like a virus--only it does good instead of bad! When one person tells their story, they "infect" the person they talked to. If every single Christian "infected "1 other person, just think how quickly the "disease" could spread? Pretty soon everyone would be "sick" with CHRIST! 

Nobody can do everything, but everyone can do SOMETHING! We can't spread the "virus" of Christianity single handedly! If each and every person makes an effort to be BOLD and to share their story... imagine what could happen!? Together we could start an epidemic!

So get out there-- be BOLD! Start an EPIDEMIC OF CHRISTIANITY! 

His

Most people spend their whole lives trying to figure out who they are. Well, I'm more concerned about WHOSE I am, and I am His, God's! That means a whole lot, because God is wonderful! The song Everything Glorious, by David Crowder sums it up really well:

"You make everything glorious

And I am Yours

What does that make me?"
To read more David Crowder-Everything Glorious lyrics CLICK HERE

God truly does make everything glorious, and He made you-- meaning...

YOU ARE GLORIOUS!



Personally, I tend to forget that. People can be mean and they can tear anyone down, but if you remember to HOPE and that you are HIS, you should remember that you are GLORIOUS! If you know that, and God knows that, then does it really matter what anyone else thinks?

Everyone goes through challenges--be it heart-break, death, money problems, anything!--and sometimes it can be hard to make it through. But you are HIS! Not only that, but you are HIS SOLDIER! In other words you're tough, and you can make it through anything, because God wouldn't give you a battle that you couldn't win.

"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9

Being His means that you are loved and accepted and that God will never leave you! If you ask me, being HIS is pretty great!

HOPE

You may be wondering, "Why the name Helpful Hope?" Well, the word HOPE is significant, and it's a very powerful word. The dictionary definition is:

The feeling that what is wanted can be had or that events will turn out for the best.

 Well isn't that a mouthful? In my opinion, HOPE is the driving force behind all of our actions. We always have HOPE that what we attempt will turn out to be a success! We HOPE that we'll get that job, that our dreams will come true, or that our favorite song will come on the radio, but most importantly we have HOPE in God!

Not only is HOPE a very strong word, it also serves as a reminder, because I made each letter stands for something that I need to remember.  

H: His and Healed

O: Optimism and Opportunity

P: Purity and Prayer

E: Enrich and Encourage

Those 8 little words explain how I live my life, and I urge everyone to use those words to guide them, or to find inspiring words of their own!