Pray

Pray in the Spirit at all times. Pray with all kinds of prayers, and ask for everything you need. To do this you must always be ready. Never give up. Always pray for all of God’s people. (Ephesians 6:18 ERV)

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Prayer is connects us directly to our creator.  It's a safe place where we can freely place all that's is in our hearts and minds before God without fear of rejection.  We don't have put on theatrics or come up with poetic words, we can simply come to the Lord as we are and express ourselves to the best of our abilities.  One of the great things about prayer is that nothing is too small to bring to God He cares about what's on our minds and desires to hear from us. He not only hears us but He also communicates to each of uniquely.  Spending time with God in this way creates an intimacy that fills every area of our lives.  It is vital that each day we don't neglect this time with God to lift others up in prayer, seek direction  and to simply say I love you  Lord and thank you. 

Love,

Change Is Good

Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but be a new and different person with a fresh newness in all you do and think. Romans 12:2 (TLB)

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As believers  we  are called to stand out,  but  standing out  isn't always  easy.  Sometimes it feels like  it  would be  easier to  just blend in and not  bring attention to yourself.  But ultimately  as you become  more mature in your faith the light of  Christ  within you will  begin  to  shine and  people cannot help but see the change  in you.  This change is important not  only for   your  growth  but also for  the people you may be  able  influence or  inspire to  see Gods  ability to renew and to restore us  no matter  where you are in your life.  So  don't  dim your light in order   make others  comfortable  but  continue to  reflect the work that God has done in you.

Love,

You Are Loved

 I’m convinced that nothing can separate us from God’s love in Christ Jesus our Lord Romans 8:38 (CEB)

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So often we  have this image of  God  being  disappointed in us.  You may be thinking  that  you haven't been  perfect  and  that you've made too many  mistakes.  How can  God possibly  see  past all of my short comings and  still love me  as I am?  What we  must keep in mind that God is  the author of our life and we were created by His hands.  Nothing you've done or will do  takes  Him  by surprise. Remember, God is not like man, people are fickle  and as quickly as you are  loved the next moment you can be rejected.  This is not the case with  God  He  has loved you longer than anyone, and deeper than you could even begin to wrap your mind around. So whenever a defeating, condemning  thought pops into your mind  make it submit to  God's declaration of  love for you.   "Nothing can separate us (you) from God's  love!"

Love,

Giving Up Isn't An Option

 No, in all these things we have complete victory through him who loved us! Romans 8:37(GNT)

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Sometimes  when  plans fall through  we  lose  confidence in ourselves and our abilities, especially  when you've put  a lot of time and efforts in to a project that  is unsuccessful.  You're first thought may be to give up  completely  give up on your dream but I want to encourage you to  keep going. You'll find in so many stories of successful  business owners that they have tried to launch  several projects that have not worked out  for one  reason of another  but in spite of those plans falling through giving up was not  a option.  God has given each of us  purpose in the earth and remember that  the  road to success is  a process that  may take some time.  So  keep going, if  God has given you this  dream then He will see it  through to it's completion.

Starting Over

15 What I say is true, and you should fully accept it: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the worst. 16 But I was given mercy so that in me, the worst of all sinners, Christ Jesus could show that he has patience without limit. His patience with me made me an example for those who would believe in him and have life forever. 1 Timothy 1:15-16 (NCV) 

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We have  all experienced  periods in our lives where we  felt like  we've  fallen too  far from the  will of God   and that there  are too many messy or  broken areas  in life to receive Gods grace.  But the  truth is  that  God  sent  Jesus to save  everyone ,we all  need  Christ on a  daily   basis to  sustain us. The  good news is that  the Lord is  not like man  His  patience is  something we  could never begin to measure  and I don't know about you but it  feels amazing to know that  with  Christ I will never  run out of  chances to get it  right.

God is  able  to   use  us  even when we  think  we have  nothing to offer.  It is  amazing how  He looks at us  and  see's a  useful vessel that He can pour into. In  spite of  how we feel  about ourselves  or  what  others  say about us, God  still chooses to  complete the works that  He has  started within us.  It is  such  a  privilege to serve a  God   that  will never  give up on us no  matter  where we are  in our walk ,  the  Lord  will never just  cast us aside.

6 Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the Lord your God, He is the One who goes with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you.”   Deuteronomy 31:6 (NKJV)

God  doesn't  seek  perfection in us,  He already  created perfection in  Christ.  What  the Lord  wants from us is to  seek Him with a  open heart , trust  Him  to  repair  any broken areas of  our lives.  Even as we fall  short  the    love and compassion  that  the Lord   has  for  us is  so  strong that there is nothing  that  we  can do  to lose His grace.  He  will  pick us  up and   dust us  off  and put us  back on the  right track.  

Think about it this way; Your  story could be the very thing that  gives  others  hope  in Christ.  They will see how   God  has changed your  heart  and   your  circumstances and  be inspired by your  testimony  to seek  the Lord  for themselves. So  don't despise the  test you  will face,everyone  has  their own set of  trials but with Christ you will never  be left  alone  to figure it  out  on your own.
 

Love,

There is No Fear in LOVE

1 John 4:18 (CEB) 18 There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear, because fear expects punishment. The person who is afraid has not been made perfect in love. 

All pictures are taken and edited by Lesli Allyn Blogs unless otherwise stated. 

Many of  us have experienced  defining moments  in our lives where we   can  pinpoint  the moment we were hurt  and how   it changed our  hearts  as well as  our perspective on love.  Let's be honest it can  be hard to recover from being hurt  by a significant other or a   family member especially when our  trust is  broken.

Sometimes we even convince  ourselves that the solution to avoid  being hurt again is to push others away.  The  truth is  isolating ourselves only makes  matters  worse because Instead of  trusting God to heal our broken heart we  choose to carry around  our broken pieces. 

Psalm 147:3 (NLT)3 He heals the brokenhearted and bandages their wounds.

God never  intended  for us to  bare the weight  of  pain alone; Truly  depending on God  means letting go of our  pride and  giving everything   to God that  makes us feel vulnerable  and all the pain that has hardened  our hearts over the years.   There is no one in this world that loves and cares for as deeply as the  Lord does, you can trust Him with  your pain.  So I encourage you to  lay  your broken pieces before God  heal and  bandage your heart.

Can you Relate?

1 Corinthians 9:22-23 (MSG)

19-23 Even though I am free of the demands and expectations of everyone, I have voluntarily become a servant to any and all in order to reach a wide range of people: religious, nonreligious, meticulous moralists, loose-living immoralists, the defeated, the demoralized—whoever. I didn’t take on their way of life. I kept my bearings in Christ—but I entered their world and tried to experience things from their point of view. I’ve become just about every sort of servant there is in my attempts to lead those I meet into a God-saved life. I did all this because of the Message. I didn’t just want to talk about it; I wanted to be in on it!   

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When you develop  a   friendship with someone you begin by finding somethings that you  both  have in  common.  But  what do you do when you discover that they indulge in behaviors  that don't line up with  Gods  will?  In that moment  it is  easy to become judgmental and view them in a harsh light. 

When you  find yourself in this situation I  encourage you to fight the  urge  to  treat them differently  based on their  sin.  Take  a  step back  to remember  who you  where before you grew  closer  to Christ.  You didn't have it  all  together and  to be honest we all have areas that we still presently  struggle with.

Try compassion use this  common ground  we all have  in our  imperfections  and  encourage them.    If you are  led to   continue in the friendship  this is your assignment so take it seriously. Pray that God  will help you to support your friend without    encouraging or indulging in their habits.  We all need a support system , someone to  pray with us and  over us.  

By extending the same  grace  God  has  extended to us we  bridge that gap and we create a safe place for them  to  see Christ through us.   Keep lifting up your  friend,  that family member or coworker until they  find  Christ for themselves and remain   obedient and patient to  what  God is leading you to  do in this situation.

Grieving : My Story

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.” - 2 Corinthians 1:3-4

Picture taken and  edited by Lesli Allyn 

If I can  be completely  honest with you all,  I've been avoiding this  subject matter  for awhile  partly  because I am in some way still grieving  but I felt  led to share so I hope  that in sharing my story that it will somehow help someone  else who is  dealing with  the passing of a loved one. 

Ok so here goes...

2004 was  was met with  a significant  amount of  loss within our family.   Between  April 2004- November 2004  my  Father, Grandfather and  aunt passed leaving my grandmother, mom, one cousin and myself.   To put things into perspective  my immediate family was very small to begin with  6 in all; So if you can imagine  losing  all of   people that  you loved and meant the most to you all within a year  it goes without saying that this period of time was THE   most  devastating experience of my life.  Fast forward to  about 2007  my Mother, grandmother and I moved from Jacksonville, Fl  to  Atlanta,  this a  huge  change  but ultimately the  best decision for each of us. 

My grandmother grew to really love it here in Atlanta and  she was the happiest  that we had seen her in quite some time it  meant the world to my mom and  I to see her smiling and happy again.  My grandmother later  passed  on  February 25th, 2008 and  in 2012 my  cousin passed suddenly. 


I  realize that this is  a lot to take in  trust me it was  even harder to live through but  I did live through it! Let's be clear it  was only the  grace  of God that got  me through the tremendous  weight of the  painful anxiety attacks and depression I was experiencing.  I found myself  relying on God  more than I ever had at the time we weren't actively  attending church but thankful a  great friend at the  time  introduced  my mom and I to our  current church  which  changed my life and  set the pace for my healing.

You may be wondering how I  got over all of this?  The truth is I haven't "gotten over it"  I've grown through it.  Moving forward  took time and  what I've learned is that  the grieving   process is  a necessary  part of  healing so don't skip it.  Seek  God  with all that you have; Don't try to fill the void with people , things or work you need to give yourself the time to process everything.  Trust me God  will mend the broken pieces of your heart  but glossing over the pain will do more harm than good  in the long  run. 

My advice would be to take each day as it comes because each day will be different. You will get through this season of your life; The good news  is that  the  heartache that you feel  right now wont always consume you.  Remember, it's ok  to move  forward; Moving forward with your life does not mean that you forget about your loved one and what they meant to you, you are allowed to be happy.   One of the things  that helped me with this is  writing out exactly how I was feeling and  pouring my heart out to God.  Some  books that I'd  recommend  are Life's Healing Choices and The  Purpose Driven life they helped me  tremendously. 

This was a difficult  post to write but very healing at the same time.  I hope that I've helped in some way. If  you're in a  place  where you are  completely  overwhelmed  please don't give up reach out to God  and  people that  will walk with you through this  time in your life.  You're life matters, you are loved and you will make it through this.   Share  your story could be the very thing someone else needs to hear to  help them in their time of grieving. 


Love,