Glory and Glam: christian

Find & Seek

Hello fam! Long time no chat! I know it's been light years since I've written a post, but, as always, life got the better of me. Also, to be honest, I really haven't been inspired as much as I used to. It's like I have ideas, but they just don't transfer well. I guess I lost my "groove" for a while.

Today, however, I feel like God is showing me a new beginning. A new chapter of my relationship with Him that I never really got down entirely. I'll be real with you all and say I haven't been reading as much as I used to, and I felt as though each and everyday I would get somewhat weaker. It's like as if I wasn't getting nourished enough because I wasn't on my devo game everyday. I felt... stoic. I felt like I either had way too much emotion (aka fury, in my case), or none at all. I felt numb to the things happening around me, not really feeling anything at all.

Today, I decided it was going to be different, considering I had a lot of time to do so. I took out my bible, and I felt the Lord calling me to Isaiah 55. I opened it up, and I knew from the first few verses that this was something I needed to hear. When I got to verses 6 & 7, I felt tears, actual tears, stinging in my eyes. It says,

Seek the Lord while He may be found. Call upon him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, and He will have mercy on him; and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon.

When it comes to people that either A) start to slowly drift away from Him [me], or B) literally leave Him behind and never look back, we tend to change in the way we act because we think we can do it all, and when we stray God will smite us. But that's not the case at all. The Lord wants us to come to Him with problems, with our struggles... with everything. He doesn't want us straying away for any reason, he just wants us to know that no matter what we do or have done, He loves us. He wants us to be on the side of eternal victory! He doesn't want us craving materialistic things, He wants us to crave Him! No matter what, He loves us and wants to have and continue a relationship with us. How many people can do that?

For all of those who are struggling today in whatever areas that you do, know this: He knows your struggle, and He wants you to come to him with a humbled heart and lean & trust in Him. When you do that, your life will be changed from sorrow and weeping to joy and peace. Rest in that each and everyday!

Yours truly,

Leighan

9:51 AM
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Being Content in Your Season of Singleness

being content in your Season of singleness

photo cred: Pinterest

In our culture, we see relationships being romanticized as some sort of necessity. We constantly see celebrities get in and out of them in the blink of an eye. We are told that if you aren't in one, you're going to be forever alone and that you're weird for doing so.

For me, seeing everyone I know in a relationship can really pressure me. People I went to high school with are tying the knot. People I grew up with are settling down. Even those closest to me are sort of getting into one.

To be honest, it bums me out. It makes me wonder when I will get that chance. It's thoughts like this that is the devil's playground to truly get you. It's the thoughts that say, you'll never be in a relationship, you'll never be loved, no one cares that can really wreck you.

This is why it is so important to realize that whenever we have these thoughts, we need to continually press into God. These thoughts are put there because you're putting your trust in relationships and finding that love that we all need. We need to realize that the love you're searching for? It can only be found in Him. He loved us so much that He sent His son to die for us! That's a love that can't be compared with what the world has brought us to believe is "love".

What we also need to remember is that even when we see people, even our believer friends, get into relationships, we are not forgotten. Whenever I get into my little funk, I always feel as though the Lord has forgotten about me altogether. In Isaiah 49, the Lord says,

Can a woman forget her nursing child,that she should have no compassion on the son of her womb?Even these may forget,yet I will not forget you.

This verse is one that's really important in my struggle with being content with being single. It's so easy to feel forgotten, but to realize that the Lord hasn't and that He always has you in mind is really comforting. He has our entire lives planned out. He knows that this season of singleness is really hard when you see everyone around you not in the same position as you. He wants you to realize that He knows your every thought, and that His timing is perfect. Jeremiah 29:11 says that his plans for your future are still to prosper, and in this, He wants you to know that He has the perfect someone planned for you and is preparing you and that person for that moment.

When it all comes down to it, we need to remember that this season of singleness isn't just brought about for no reason. It's a time to really focus in on God, to know that He loves you and has not forgotten about you. He hears every want and need you ask for, and He will provide at the right moment in time. When will that time be, you ask? I don't know. Be encouraged that the Lord has all of that planned out for you at the perfect moment, and that you have a love that cannot be compared to this world with Him.

Yours truly,

Leighan

8:45 AM
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Recognizing the Poem

Christ

(via rootedandestablished)

Being a female in today's world stinks, to be honest. You are constantly bombarded with unrealistic expectations on how to look, how to dress, what to say, what to do... the list goes on. You see magazines with women who are probably not even close to your size all glammed up, and headlines screaming, "This is how you're supposed to look!!". Articles are splashed all over with talking points on how to win over that cute guy you like, or how to talk properly in an interview. I'll admit that I even fall victim to what the world says is the right thing to do as a woman, every one does.

What I sometimes forget to acknowledge is that what the world is telling you is not what you should be focusing on. God has so much more planned for you than you could ever imagine. He doesn't care that you spent 3 hours on your hair and makeup for church, or that you're still single in a pool of people your age already getting hitched and having kids. He doesn't care that you're not as thin as the women in magazines. He cares about you for who you are. He loves you in a way that you can't find in someone or something. In church this past Sunday, our pastor was listing things that we find ourselves filling that void where the Lord should be: money, cars, relationships, etc. We should never forget the wonder and beauty and overwhelming love that God has in our lives.

I was doing my devotional today, and this verse really made all of this clear to me. Ephesians 2:10 says that,

"We are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do."

In my devotions, I read that workmanship in Greek is poiema, and that's where we get the word poem. When you think about a poem, you think about how carefully crafted each word is before it is put together into one perfect sonnet. That's how God has our lives planned. He created you in His image, carefully and full of love, and it all blends together beautifully. Whenever you read a regular poem, sometimes you can appreciate its beauty, sometimes not. God wants us to show others what great things He can do for them, for us to show them the poem He has written for us. There will be naysayers, but there will be people who will appreciate that poem and will want what you have.

However, before you can go and show others the poem God has written for you, it is important that you love the poem first. God has so much in store for your life, and whenever you aren't appreciating what He has in store for you, it most likely upsets Him. If you let the things of this world, the things that Satan whispers in your ear about you not being good enough for anything, take over your life, you'll forget about what a wonderful, graceful Savior and Lord you have.

That's just Satan's trick: for you to forget about Him and get yourself lost in the desires of this world. Don't let that happen! Whenever you start to feel that way, read through Psalms 139. Don't lose sight on the poem God has written for you. Don't ever forget that no matter what this world may tell you, the only true way to find happiness is through Christ. And when you find it, let others know, so that way they, too, will find that peace and love and grace that everyone else is still searching for.

Yours truly,

Leighan

8:07 AM
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Gathering the Reigns

1 peter

Photo cred: h-o-r-n-g-r-y.tumblr.com

Hello, friends! I am so sorry it has been so long since I've been on here! Life got the hold of me, both for the better and the worse. There have been so much going on that I have lost a lot of focus and energy to write anything. Also, I was fresh out of ideas as well.

However, something came to me recently (aka, about 5 minutes ago). I have had a lot of things going on in my life, unfortunately not all that great. I'm struggling financially, productively, and emotionally. I cannot really accurately describe what exactly has been going on, but so many things have hit the fan that I felt like I was slowly losing control. I felt like all of a sudden, this massive storm cloud just came over my life, with one little one hanging over my head.

Most people didn't really see it, but those close to me really noticed it. I am usually not very open when it comes to things going on in my life, but I do turn to my sister. She is younger than me, but she is wise beyond her years. She and I talked, and she instilled in me something that I knew I was struggling with, but didn't want to admit: I wasn't fully committing myself to God, only focusing on letting myself handle everything in my life and not giving it all to Him.

I was trusting myself and others to get whatever I needed done, and I wasn't letting God handle it. I was somewhat slipping, and God was taking things away from me and putting me through this hardship in order for me to fully recommit my life. Now, this was not like when I officially recommitted to God back in my freshman year of college, but this was more of a, "stop thinking you're gonna have everything handled out your way, let me do what I have planned for you".

So, that night, I sat in my room, and cried out to God, asking him to take full control of everything going on in my life. I asked him to build in me strength to face my struggles, and to let me not forget that He will always be there for me, and that these trials are here for a reason that I do not even fully comprehend why yet. I promise you, I felt God's hand of protection over me that night, comforting me, letting me know that He wasn't going anywhere.

This season in my life has taught me so much. What can really be summed up by my experience these past few weeks is in 1 Peter. It says,

"...you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith - more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire - may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ." - 1 Peter 1:6-7

I have so many trials that I have faced in this short period of time, but I know now that: 1) I have to fully let go of trials in my life and let God take the reigns, and 2) God has put these trials in my life for a reason. He knows what's going to happen tomorrow, next week, and within these next years of my life. I just have to stop being a stubborn bum and just let God work in my life.

Have you guys ever let God handle a situation you originally wanted to on your own? How did that turn out? I love hearing about how God is working through people's lives! It's such a blessing!

Yours truly,

Leighan

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7:43 PM
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Getting Accepted

accepted

Hey friends!

So, if you guys have been following me on Twitter and Instagram, you will know that I recently got that pretty little piece of mail called an acceptance letter to the University of South Carolina. For all of my college people out there, you know how huge of a deal it is to get accepted into the school you wanted to get into. It is such an amazing feeling, words cannot describe!

I have been working so hard for this for the past year now. I originally was at another college that I realized I did not feel comfortable at. At first, I didn't want to leave because that would mean "wimping out" or quitting. I didn't want to end up messing things up for me, and hurting my parents' feelings by doing so. However, for me, it was kind of like God was calling me to go back home and review my options.

At the time, I was so lost. I was lost in the world, at school... basically, I was just lost in life. I was caught up in the college lifestyle, where drinking to get drunk was the "thing" and parties were an everyday necessity. I remember sneaking drinks in between apartment rooms in order for myself and my friends at the time to not get in trouble by the security at the housing development we were in. I had the mouth of a sailor, and was just an angry, lost individual. I remember calling my sister, trying to hold it all together even though I was breaking.

That last phone call I made to my sister about a pretty big falling out with my roommate was the final straw. God was definitely saying, This is not what I planned for you. This is not where you are supposed to be. After that, I called up my dad and told him I was leaving as soon as winter break started.

Coming home permanently from my previous education caused a lot of concern from people that I knew. They believed I was simply chickening out and not sucking it up. The thing is that they don't realize that it wasn't by my own will, but God's. It also made me really start falling back in love with God and strengthening my faith. Before, I was only just living in my parent's faith, When I came back, I started going back to church and befriending more people who were God's people and who would hold me accountable if I ever slipped up. I started reading more, started taking time out of my day to spend it with God. I'm still trying to better myself as a woman of God, and I am far from perfect, but I am farther away from sin than I was before.

Putting my trust in God has led me to so many great things. At first, I was at this job where I had a horrible boss who would belittle you for every bad mistake. When I started letting Him take control, I was presented with a better job opportunity, and the Lord has blessed me so much. I now have a great, understanding boss and I actually like going into work. In regards to school, I am doing so much better than I was at my previous school. I'm at a technical school and will transfer to USC next fall. I have a 3.2 average and am still holding onto it.

Looking back at it all, if I didn't listen to God calling me home, I would have never gotten this opportunity to go to a school that is closer to my family (and better for my major) and be closer to Him. My favorite verse that can probably best describe this post is from James, and it says,

"For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, 'If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.'" - James 4:14-15

I hope that this post will inspire you guys to listen to the call of God and listen to what he has planned for you. I know that if I wasn't as broken down as I was that night, I would have never heard God saying that where I was wasn't the place for me to be at, and I would have been still stuck in this rut of sin and debauchery. Break down your walls. Shut the world out. Just take some time to hear what the Lord has to say today, and you will be glad you did.

Yours truly,

Leighan

3:11 PM
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Find & Seek

Being Content in Your Season of Singleness

Recognizing the Poem

Gathering the Reigns

Getting Accepted

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