faith – Page 2 – Renew Inspiration Mind Body Spirit

Grace Changes Everything

LaPorterApril 16, 20183 Replies

He who loves purity of heart and has grace on his lips, the king will be his friend. Proverbs 22:11

Grace changes everything. Grace has been defined as “the free and unmerited favor of God, as manifested in the salvation of sinners and the bestowal of blessings”. Simply put, grace is “undeserved favor from God.” God’s grace is adequate for anything and everything that you experience in this life. Despite what prompted the hurt you’ve experienced in life, know that God’s grace can bring peace, hope, and healing. One beautiful thing about grace is that God does not withdraw His grace when you stumble or fall. Now, let’s pause here and give God some praise for His sincere love for us. Instead, acting with grace, God gently picks you up and enables you to take the next step. You can always find at God’s throne of grace whatever help you need whenever you need it. You can run to the Lord in times of trouble, when your heart is breaking, at life’s crossroads, and during the darkest and loneliest nights. Remember, God is waiting for you with open arms.

By grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. Ephesians 2:8-9

God offers us an extravagant gift: His grace. The best thing about that, it cost Him everything, but it costs us nothing. The only payback God asks is that we reach out and take the gift and then rest in it with guilt-free comfort knowing that you are saved through faith. If you find yourself in a small place, God knows you’re there. He’s with you, and He can do something mighty big. Trust his amazing grace. One thought I often meditate on is that when you trust in the Lord, you will never be disappointed.

I don’t know exactly what’s next but I’m stepping forward with grit, anchored in grace. -Julie Graham

Let’s pray:
Heavenly Father, Master Grace Giver, thank you for giving me grace each and every day. Help me to become an extender of grace to others even when they don’t deserve it. I will never forget the price you paid to set me free, and for this I want to say thank you. Amen

Here are some Prayer Prompts to encourage, strengthen, and inspire you as you journal your prayers.

• Heavenly Father, you are…
• Heavenly Father, I thank you for…
• Prayer for peace when it comes to…
• Prayer for moments when I am….
• Heavenly Father, please give me patience to…
• Heavenly Father, I pray healing over…
• Heavenly Father, I love you because…

Destined for Greatness

LaPorterMarch 24, 20185 Replies

Be the greatness God intended you to be. -Unknown

Welcome back to Renew Inspiration! Despite what is happening in your life, right now in this very moment, you are destined for greatness. Do you believe that? I’ll give you a moment to think about it, but as you are thinking, why don’t we start our journey.

Let’s depart from this place and begin to visualize our journey to greatness. When it seems like you will not make it, take some time to reflect on positive thoughts and some of your personal accomplishments. Always remembering that storms may come in your life, but what matters most is that you make it through the storm without wavering your faith. Similarly, negative thoughts may come, but you must believe in your heart that you are destined for greatness no matter what.

Believe deep down in your heart that you are destined to do great things. You are greatness. -Unknown

sitting, alone, thinking, meditation — pexels

Since you had a moment to think about where you are right now, do you believe you are destined for greatness? Remembering that we are human and when negative thoughts show up make sure that you tell yourself that negative thoughts have no place in your mind and believe it. We have to start conditioning our thought patterns differently so we can regain control of our inner being. Because our inner being defines who we really are.

Surround yourself with those who see greatness within you, even when you don’t see it in yourself. -Unknown

Here’s another thought to think about while on your journey to greatness. People may come and go throughout your life time, but always remember that you are destined for greatness no matter how that person or people may treat you.

Don’t allow the world to define your greatness because most of this world is blind. -Unknown

Unfortunately, we live in a mean and cruel world these days. People can be harsh and say unkind words to you, but you have to shake it off and keep it moving in order to make it to that special place called acceptance. Yes, to be destined for greatness is to not only accept yourself, but to believe in yourself no if ands or buts about it.

The most defining moment in a woman’s life is when she discovers her own greatness! -Unknown

If you are struggling in this area along your journey, just begin to write down your thoughts (positive or negative) in your journal or in a notebook. It’s important to be honest and to focus on what matters most to you in your life right now, in this very moment. Keeping in mind that the enemy always fight the hardest when he knows God has something great in store for you. Before you know it, you will begin to take charge of your life again and know in your heart that I AM DESTINED FOR GREATNESS!

Greatness is not found in possessions, power, position, or prestige. It is discovered in goodness, humility, service, and character. -Unknown

JOURNALING TO GREATNESS

journal, writing, reflections, thoughts, feelings — pexels

Did you know that journaling can help you along your journey to greatness? Journaling is a positive way to help release what’s held captive inside you. Journaling allows you to say things that you would probably never say out loud. People cannot define journaling the same way because it is a personal written journey. You are the author who writes the beginning, the middle, and the ending.

Positive benefits of journaling:

• Helps us make space for our hearts
• Turns memories into reality
• Gives us time to process our personal experiences
• Helps to create an energetic and visual level of comfort
• We are allowed to fully express ourselves
• There are no boundaries and no limits set to what we can write
• There is no set format, just write, write, write
• We are able to be creative with no set criteria or instructions
• We are free to write until our mind, body, and spirit are one

dream, courage, inspire, harmony, stones — pexels

• Define your biggest dream.
• Share a vivid dream.
• How do you see the world?
• What is your vision for the next year?
• Discuss one way you would like to grow in the next year.
• What is your goal/goals for next week?
• What were your highs and lows this week?
• What did you do today that brought you closer to your dream?
• Discuss at least one lesson you learned today.
• What are your strengths? What are your weaknesses?
• What behavior you need to let go?
• What makes you proud?
• What is my proudest accomplishment?
• What is my biggest failure?
• What do I do to show myself self-compassion and self-care?
• What new activities am I interested in or willing to try?

Hope Is

LaPorterMarch 18, 201812 Replies

May integrity and uprightness protect me, because my hope is in you -Psalm 25:21

Happy Sunday and greetings to you! Let’s talk about hope on today. Hope is another one of those words that can be defined on a personal level and may change from situation to situation; or person to person. According to the Webster Dictionary, hope is defined as a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen; a feeling of trust.

But what does hope mean to you? Do you hope for anything great on today or in the near future? When I think of hope, I think of beauty and positive vibes. Hope is like a beautiful flower that thrives on sunlight and water. In a spiritual sense, hope relies on your daily commitment to God’s Word, meditation, and prayer.

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. -Romans 15:13

Now, the flip side of this conversation is how pain can bring about hopelessness in our lives as the enemy relentlessly attempts to destroy us. But God holds His hand out to us every day. The wonderful hope of God’s good plans for our lives, hope that is rooted in God’s amazing love for us. My hope for you today is that you will work on building and strengthening your relationship with God for the rest of your life. This process will increase your confidence in God’s love for you and will nurture your hope in Him, hope for this life as well as for life eternal.

When the world says, “give up.” Hope whispers “try it one more time.” -Unknown

Did you know that having hope will give you courage in the midst of a storm? Despite what you may be experiencing in your life right now, never stop believing in hope because miracles happen every day. The importance of hope is immeasurable. Many of us need to look forward to the future. Hope is what helps us deal with grief, find positives in our current situation, help us continue searching for something better, and to have faith that everything will work out.

A good teacher can inspire hope, ignite the imagination, and instill a love of learning. -Unknown

Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.
-Winston Churchill

Reflections:
Hope is seeing light in spite of being surrounded by darkness.

Hope is the only thing stronger than fear.

Hope is the ability to hear the melody of the future. Faith is the courage to dance to it today.

Journal Prompts:
• How do you define hope?
• What do you hope for each day?
• I feel hopeful/hopeless because…
• Name at least 5 things you are hopeful for. Then, take a moment and reflect upon each thing.

Hope Journal:
A Hope Journal is a small binder full of cards, notes, prayers, inspirational quotes, bible verses, songs, or photos that is meant to cheer someone up during hard times.

Recommended Hope Journaling Supplies:
• View Binder
• Sheet Protectors
• Section Dividers
• Note Paper
• Stickers
• Scissors
• Glue

Where there is hope, there is faith. Where there is faith, miracles happen.

Overcome by Grief / Faith Explosion

LaPorterMarch 4, 20184 Replies

When I first started the Renew Inspiration blog, my thought process was to write inspirational pieces that would not only inspire you, but also would keep you thinking of ways to overcome life changing events, such as the death of a loved one. Honestly, I would love to have a real dialogue with you concerning this topic. Do you think that it is possible to overcome grief in your life time? Now, I know that’s a deep question and I am sure that everyone reading this blog would probably give a different answer. For me, I often ask myself if I would ever overcome the grief that I feel each and every day. I do realize that everyone handles grief differently, but the pain of losing someone you dearly love can be overwhelming for most people. Would you agree?

The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower. Psalm 18:2

When you are broken in pieces and experiencing so much pain, God can seem distant and even uncaring while you are in this vulnerable, yet lonely place. But before you throw in the towel or choose to give up on living life to the fullest, know that God promises in His Word to be with you always and to give you comfort in the midst of your storm, so whatever your feelings are suggesting to you in this very dark moment, know that God is with you always.

For this God is our God for ever and ever: he will be our guide even unto death. Psalm 48:14

Here’s another twist to an already complicated situation, but it is something for you to think about. While you are trying to overcome grief and wondering if God still loves you, then comes the faith concept to help put everything in total perspective. As we venture through our lives on Earth, we have faith in a God that we cannot see. I have always been taught to have faith in God, to read my Bible, and to say my faith-based prayers, but deep down inside I have always wondered how strong my faith really was in a God that I could not see. When my mom passed away in December 2015, my faith in God was tested to the fullest! I read my Bible, prayed and meditated until I received my break through. Then, I started writing in my journal constantly and that’s how Renew Inspiration was created.

For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God. Ephesians 2:8

So, what is faith and how do you define it?

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. Hebrews 11:1
Faith can be defined as confidence, trust, assurance, conviction, and belief. Faith means trusting that God is in control, even when our faith is put to the test. In other words, faith is not just what we believe in our hearts, our religious doctrine or denominational creed, but also and more importantly, faith is a solid conviction within that what we believe and whom we believe in are worth staking our lives on. Would you agree?

For we walk by faith, not by sight. II Corinthians 5:7

Along this journey called life, we have to open our hearts and minds to a true understanding of life’s many challenges and faith, of what it is and what it is not, in our lives and abroad. It’s important to know that faith is something to be experienced and exercised, not defined, categorized, and neatly packaged on a shelf. Faith rests on a solid foundation. The evidence is everywhere before our eyes. Go ahead, look around you right now, in this very moment. God is able to persuade our hearts and our minds to put our trust in Him. When we find faith, we will know it because God will open our spiritual eyes to see that faith is our loyalty and devotion to God. So, when you are wondering how strong your faith is, just look up, smile, and say that I have faith in God that everything will be okay!

I choose faith over anxiety hope over worry love over fear -Mary Davis

God has a purpose for your pain, a reason for your struggle and a reward for your faithfulness. Trust Him and don’t give up -Dave Willis

Let your faith be bigger than your fear -Unknown

Those we love don’t go away, they walk beside us every day. Unseen, unheard, but always near, so loved, so missed, so very dear -Kay Berry

Journal Prompts:
• The area where I need to put more trust in God is …
• I find I feel God’s presence most when …
• God is leading me to make the following changes …
• Sometimes I get angry with God about …
• I feel most distant from God when …

Step Out on Faith

LaPorterJanuary 14, 20184 Replies

Have you ever just stopped to listen to your mind, body, and spirit? Now, come on I need you to be honest with me. Sometimes we have to take a moment to reflect on our lives and those individuals who surround us day to day. It is also important to think about what really makes us happy as we approach our personal goals in life. Do we wake up each day to strive to be better than yesterday or just to be mediocre? Do we strive to help others achieve his or her goals or are we selfish? Do we always put the needs of others (family and friends) before our own? If you answered YES to any of these questions it is not uncommon.

I have come to a point in my life where I want to do something that I have never done before. Believe it or not, you are reading it right now, this very moment. I have decided to step out on faith to pursue a blogging career. I have always enjoyed writing in my journal, but I recently began writing to comfort my soul when my mother passed away in December 2015. This was a dark time for me, but writing allowed me to capture my feelings on paper and allowed my tears to flow freely. Writing offered me a new way of looking at life. Yes, I am sad and I will truly miss my mother’s presence here on Earth, but I have a new inner strength that is scratching to get out in order to help others overcome his or her fears.

Now, don’t get me wrong. I am nervous about the new venture, but I am determined to succeed in all that I do in life. Yes, that means my new blogging career as well. I love to learn new things and I cannot wait to see what my new passion has in store for me. I hope you are ready for the fun and motivational adventure that we are off to explore. Come on, don’t be shy. I would love to have you stop by and visit often so we can encourage one another throughout this journey, we call life. Until next time, live…love…laugh…CELEBRATE life every day!