Thank you for all your responses to Ginger’s post. I could say, “a-men” to all of them. In fact, I found comfort in knowing we all feel inadequate from time to time. This is a good reminder to be kind to oursleves and others.

THE WINNERS OF GUILTLESS LIVING ARE:

JUANITA @ ljhead93@yahoo.com

COURTNEY J @ courtney.d.jackson1@gmail.com

AMBER M @ txprincessamer@aol.com

Congratulations, ya’ll!!!

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Purpose. It’s a hot topic. Everybody is looking for his or her purpose in life. Some have found theirs, or they believe they have, others are still seeking. Wondering.  Praying.

I was the only child of my parents born without a talent. Or so it seemed. My brother was an all-star athlete, and my sister performed many musical plays in our living room. She also played the piano and sang in church as my parents looked on with pride. I burned with jealousy.

Although I was raised to believe God had a purpose for my life, and in His time would reveal it, I had the need to help God out. Anybody? Yet, anything you and I can do on our own is too small to be God’s purpose for our lives.

God makes us a promise such as, “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord” (Jere 29:11). Our only job is to trust in that promise.  Instead, we seek ways to help God out—as if He needed our help. Basically, we’re impatient. We get annoyed when God doesn’t set His watch with ours. Eventually, we run ahead of Him. That’s exactly what I did.

Green with envy, I decided to follow in my brothers footsteps and try my hand at softball. At first, my career looked promising. When I signed up to play softball, the coaches fought over me. Well, they fought over my last name. They assumed I was as good of an athlete as my brother. Boy, were they wrong. When my coach realized I couldn’t catch, throw, or hit a ball, he tried to trade me to another team. Can you believe that? How RUDE!

When sports fell through, I begged my mom for piano lessons so I could play like my sister. I was on my second month of lessons when my piano teacher informed my mother that instead of improving I was regressing. I actually knew less about playing the piano than I did the week before. Now, that’s a gift!

By this time, I had decided that my older siblings had taken all the good genes leaving me deplete of any talent at all. When in fact, God was teaching me a lesson in trust.

When God makes me a promise, it’s not my responsibility to make it happen. It’s His. He only asks me to trust, wait, and believe. That’s so stinking hard! It’s tough because we fear He’ll forget about us, or something like that. But God never forgets. He’s always at work for our good.

I learned over time that God is working to provide all I need to fulfill His calling on my life. He uses good times, bad times, and everything in between.

I had just turned thirty when I felt God tugging at my heart. While I didn’t know where He was leading, I followed. I obeyed. I walked through open doors and took risks that scared the bee-gee-bees out of me. Before I knew it, people were saying things like, “You have a real gift when you speak.”

“I can feel the Presence of the Lord, when you’re teaching.”

“I was at the conference where you spoke last weekend, and my life was forever changed.”

Who Knew? God did. And he knows the plans He has for you as invisible as they seem now. That’s a promise! God has not forgotten you. He’s preparing you. And when it’s time, He’ll come get you. It’s worth the wait, my friend.

Today, ask yourself, “I’m I running ahead of God?” If so, why?

“Do I believe He has a purpose for me—a plan to give me a hope and a future?” If you do, then you can be certain God will make the invisible visible in His time.

The winner of, Capture His/Her Heart,  is…. Amanda @ pcwoodworking@m33access.com Congratulations, Amanda!

If you didn’t win, don’t fret. Today, you could win a copy of Guiltess Living Read on…

I’m delighted to introduce you to my friend, Ginger Hubbard, today. I’ve known Ginger for 13 years. I love this girl! Our relationship started at Proverbs 31 Ministries where we both served on the Speaking Team. Although God’s call on her life took Ginger in a different direction, I still glean from her friendship and godly wisdom.

Ginger is serious about God’s Word and teaches it with humor, transparency, and conviction. If you want a real relationship with God, Ginger will take you there in her new book, Guiltless Living! That’s not all. She’s giving away 3 copies today!

Take it away, Ginger… 

For so long in my life, I struggled with trying to be a good Christian. Inevitably, I would blow it on a daily basis then proceed to beat myself up spiritually and emotionally.

In setting my standards high for being what I perceived the perfect wife and mom, I chose the woman described in Proverbs 31 as my role model. On one particular morning, I remember reading about her and making unfavorable comparisons. She got up before it was still dark. I had rolled out of bed around 8:30 am. She was well dressed in fine linen and purple. I was in a baggy, terrycloth robe with my hair pulled up in an orange chip clip. She held the distaff while grasping the spindle with her fingers (not sure what those things are, but I am certain they contributed to her noble character). I held the dust buster to the crumbs on my bed sheets while grasping the empty bag of Doritos. She provided good food for her family and was always on top of things. I offered a choice of Burger King or McDonalds and felt the weight of my unaccomplished to-do list crashing down on me.

In comparison, I did not measure up. I felt anxious, defeated and disappointed in myself.

I wanted to be the wife who was always cheerful, never irritable, and only said words that edified, encouraged and built up. I wanted to be the mom who never lost it and only spoke with kindness, wisdom and faithful instruction. But, as hard as I tried, I always wound up blowing it in some way.

I just could not achieve the “good Christian” status I desired.

Through prayer and studying God’s Word, I began to realize that no matter how hard I tried, I would never achieve being the perfect Christian. I learned that the battle of victorious Christian living could not be won by sheer willpower or by teeth-gritting determination, but by tucking myself underneath the full armor of God and trusting that God is not only fighting for me, but He has already won the battle.

In measuring our self-worth in accordance with our own performances, we not only become anxious, but we miss out on experiencing the peace and rest of who we truly are in Christ.

Our worth is not based on what we do or do not do. It is not based on our successes and failures. It is not even based on whether we sin a little or sin a lot.

Our worth is based solely on Christ and the atoning work He has done on our behalf. We are His children, purchased at a price, forgiven and fully redeemed.

Embracing this wonderful truth brings about freedom. It is the freedom to forget about ourselves and lay down our measuring rods of self-worth and ongoing scrutiny. It is the freedom to release the suffocating anxiety our weaknesses cause, and instead take hold of God’s grace given to us through the cross.

Join me today in letting go of performance-based worth and self-imposed expectations. May we purpose to rest in the victory Christ has already won and truly experience the rich and satisfying joy of Guiltless Living!

Give Away

Because I have struggled so much with the issue of performance-based self-worth, I have a great compassion for other struggling women. I can relate and understand the mental, spiritual and physical exhaustion that comes from this way of living. If you are one of these women, it is my deep desire that you lay down your measuring rod of self-worth and stop beating yourself up. I desire this so much that I’d like to give away three of my books in hopes that you might experience the freedom of Guiltless Living.

Thank you, Ginger!