He Will Always Take Care of Us

Witnessing to Friends

When you meet someone who's not a Christian, your first thought is to witness to them so they can have the same hope as we do!

That's not always the best thing to do. 

When cultivating a new friendship with an unbeliever...

 You need to befriend them for the right reasons. Don't just be their friend so you can convert them, be their friend because you want to be friends with them, because you can relate with them, you find them to be a fun and interesting person!

People can tell when you have other motives for the friendship. Although wanting someone to go to Heaven is certainly good, you need to go about things the right way.

Pointing fingers at their religion or lifestyle is not a good way to win them over. 

If someone wanted to convert YOU and started poking holes in YOUR religion, how would that make you feel??? Would you want to listen to that person who is ripping apart that which is dearest to you? Or would you think more like this: that guy/girl is such a jerk. NO WAY would I want any part in anything he/she is involved in.

Instead of poking holes in their beliefs, how about pointing out how amazing your relationship with God is? After all, that IS the point you're trying to get across...right?

Also the Bible says to give an "answer for the hope that is within you..." (1 Peter 3:15). What comes before an answer? You got it, a question. Good deduction Sherlock. So...people should be asking us about our faith. Why would they do that? Because if we truly have salvation, and we love the Lord, we should be jumping up and down with happiness every day! We should be the most loving people on earth! If you saw someone acting so happy and loving and crazy, you'd probably ask them what's up too!

Before bringing up God, pray about it. 

Perhaps now isn't the right timing. God will let you know, you'll feel an uneasiness, or a peace in your heart. And if  you have a hard time telling whether it's you, or God saying "no" or "go," ask Him to bring up the opportunity to share: "God, if you want me to talk about you, have them bring it up, because I don't know if I should, and I don't know how to start this conversation!" 

That's all He wants, is a willing heart. You don't have to know all the answers, you just have to trust Him.

What I'm trying to say is that there's no "A,B&C" way to witness to people, but I think these are some pretty basic steps to at least avoid ruining that friendship! 

So...go make some new friends, be happy, and most importantly pray!

XOXOXO,

Random fact #16- Montpelier, Vermont, is the only state capital without a McDonalds......I'll bet the people there are so skinny! 

Feel free to share your thoughts on the subject in the comment box below, feedback is alwayyys appreciated! :)

Don't Give In

It's so tempting...

...to give into the lies when you're hurting, angry, afraid, depressed, or all of these at once.

Don't do it!! I understand, the heartache, feeling like...you're lost. Feeling useless.

These are lies, and you know it! If you have a hard time recognizing the lies, you need to spend more time with The Lord. Dig into the Bible, you will find that the King of kings says you are precious to Him, and He loves you oh so much, more than any mortal man can ever comprehend!

Here is truth: you are beautiful and kind, you are strong. You are important, you are loved. You will get through this. 

After you've spent some time with Him, go do things that you enjoy! Hang out with friends and family! Laugh again, laughter is the best medicine!

Alright, now that you've got a few ideas to get you out of your slump, here are a few verses to lift you up before I go:

"Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious."

~ 1 Peter 2:4

"Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid!"

~ John 14:27

"Let not your hands be weak. The Lord your God in your midst, the Mighty One, will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing."

~ Zephaniah 3:17

Go in peace and love, knowing you are important, and you make an impact on the people around you! 

XOXOXO,

Random fact #15- In 1567, the man said to have the longest beard in the world, died after he tripped over his beard, running away from a fire!

Feel free to share your thoughts in the comment box below! :)

Fruit of our Lips

Be careful what you say.

I have a tendency to blurt out whatever comes into my head...I've messed up a lot of stuff because of that.

In Proverbs 18:21 it says "Death and life are in the power of the tongue." It's true. See also Prov. 16:13, 29:11, Eccl. 10:11-14.

So before you say anything, wait.

Take some to to think.

Let that email or text sit for an hour, count to ten, or just ask yourself "even if I have a point...if I say this, what value does it have? Will this edify the other person?"

Will it build up...or tear down?

XOXOXO,

Random fact #8- Alexander the Great washed his hair in saffron, to keep it shiny and orange!

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A Heart for the Lost

How can I say this? Where do I start? At the beginning.

My heart is breaking.

No, it's broken.

I can't handle knowing that a dear friend is going to burn in the pit of Hell for eternity. I can't just let them suffer.

Can you? How can you stay quiet? Speak up! What's the worst that can happen?

A friend of mine wanted to talk about "religion." So I opened up and shared what I believe, at the end

 he said "I'm glad you're not one of those pushy people trying to convert me!"

 To which I replied "if I do seem pushy ever, it's not because I'm trying to 'convert' you, I'm not. But you know what I believe, do you honestly think that I'm ok with you burning in Hell forever?"

 He says "haha I'll live!" 

"No, you don't get it. You won't live. I am NOT ok with that."

I'm not saying go tell everyone you meet that unless they accept the gift of salvation that they're going to burn in Hell, probably not the best way to become friends! But if you already are friends, and they know that you're telling them this because you love them, usually they'll be ok with that.

The last thing he said was "this has been a good time of bonding."

It's the way you approach it! Do you always have to know exactly what you'll say? No. Do you have to know all the answers? No. Pride comes before the fall (Proverbs 16:18). It's when we lean on God (Proverbs 3:5-6) to do the real work, that we really have any results.

Did my friend come to the Lord at the end of the conversation? No he didn't, but you know what? I'm not giving up hope! I planted a seed, now it's God's job to water it and harvest it (1 Corinthians 3:5-9)!

After you've spoken, all you can do is pray, prayer works (James 5:16, Psalm 66:20).

Love, Speak up & Pray.

XOXOXO,

Random Fact #6- During famines that ravaged North Korea from 1955 to 1997, starving people commonly dug up bodies from fresh graves to eat the meat. (Grossest thing...ever.)

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Forgiveness

Forgiveness doesn't just happen. The bitterness and the hurt feelings don't just go away overnight.

Choose it! God already forgave them, by refusing to forgive, you're pretty much saying that your opinion and feelings are higher than God's.

And who are you really hurting with all this bitterness? The person that hurt you? Nope.

It really hit me the other day as I was listening to the radio, a Matthew West song came on called forgiveness. The lyrics went like this:

"Forgiveness; it'll clear the bitterness away,

it can even set a prisoner free,

there is no end to what its power can do.

So let it go and be amazed,

by what you see through eyes of grace.

The prisoner that it really frees is you."

Surprise!!

I know...such a little thing, yet it made a world of difference.

So remember, by choosing to forgive, you are only doing yourself a favor. And if you reaalllyyyy can't come to forgive them, ask God to be your forgiveness. Believe me, He comes through EVERY TIME. Where we are weak He is strong, and that's a promise. :)

"The Lord will give strength to His people; the Lord will bless His people with peace." 

Psalm 29:11

Go in peace and strength, with a smile on your face and forgiveness in your heart. Be a light to this world!

XOXOXO,

Random Fact #5- The first movie to gross over $100 million was Jaws.

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Leaning on Him

I was talking with a friend yesterday, who felt that her life was falling apart. She had lost everyone she loved, and she was heartbroken. She said to me "I don't understand why this is happening to me, why would God let this happen? It says in the Bible He won't give us any more than what we can handle, but it's wrong. I can't handle this anymore. I'm done."

She's right, we have way more than what we can handle. Us. You. Me. WE can't handle it!! Big newsflash there right? ;)

The good news is that WE don't have to handle it! We lean on Him, the Almighty, the Prince of Peace, our Father, lover, comforter, the Great I Am! He is strong where we are weak! If we lean on Him, and stop trying to handle it, He will pull us through!

You could almost see the light come into her face as she realized that! She had a new hope, where there was none before. He will pull you through. Lean on Him, call His name and He will be there!

XOXOXO,

Random fact #4-  The king of hearts is the only king without a mustache. 

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Lonely Valentine?

Feeling lonely on the day of love? 

I'll give you 7 reasons why being alone should make you happy!

#1-You can FINALLY give into those cravings for junk food that you've resisted for so long!

#2-Even if you have not resisted...well today is one day you don't need to feel guilty :D

#3-There is no need to share said junk food! Isn't that the best part?

#4-You can watch any movie you want tonight!

#5-It saves money, I'm all for that, even if I'm not Dutch!

#6-It's better to spend a few Valentines Day's alone then with the wrong man!

#7-Last but certainly not least: You get to spend it with the most devoted and tender man who ever lived; Jesus.

Here's some romance for you:

1 Peter 2:4 "Coming to Him as a living stone rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious!"

Psalm 139:17-18 "How precious also are Your thoughts to me, oh God! How great is the sum of them! If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand; When I awake, I am still with You!"

So here's what I want you to do:

          Stop feeling sorry for yourself! 

Go find some junk food! 

 Brew yourself some tea! 

                                      Open the living Bible to some of these romantic scriptures, and 

                                       Contemplate on the real meaning of romance!

Don't have any junk food? Make some, in a mug!!! Don't bother getting it out of the cup, it's more fun eating it right out of the mug!

With that I will say good night! Enjoy your "lonely" Valentines Day! You can bet on it I will!

XOXOXO,

Why not tell me how it went? Comment or Tweet me @elisewiddis

YOLO (the truth about it)

This made me laugh!!

Oh Dear. How many times have we heard that phrase? It is true though, we do live only once (on this earth anyway!). But should we let that little phrase be the excuse to cater to our every whim?

We have the wrong idea I think. What purpose did God create us for? To glorify Him! Not ourselves.

Instead of thinking "how can I live for myself today?", we need to be asking "what great (little) thing does God want me to accomplish today?". We need to be looking for opportunities to minister to others! We need to preach the whole gospel to every person we see, not in word but in deed! (1 John 3:18) Meaning: with the little things.

You don't have to know your theology perfectly (I certainly don't!!).You don't even have to be involved in a ministry at church! You don't need any talents. You only need the love of Jesus in you. 

Beautiful picture of Jesus by Akiane

I challenge you to step up and do the little things! If you work in a fast food place, ask the customer how their day went while you're waiting for the order, you'll be surprised the kinds of conversations that will start!

If you are the customer, ask your cashier how work is going! While you're walking past a neighbor, stop and have a little chat. 

If someone's having a rough time and you know it, offer to pray for them as God brings them to mind, especially if you don't know them! Be bold! Romans 8:28 "If God is with us, than who can be against us?" Don't be afraid to reach out and love someone. I promise they won't reject it (unless they think you're a creeper... ;D ), everyone craves love. And if they're grouchy, it just means they need it all the more! You could be the one that completely changes their perspective on well...life.

SMILING is a big one! A little smile will brighten anyone's day!

Awwwww <3

You've probably noticed my "little" theme by now! I have a few reasons: 

-I'm a little person..lol :D  

-It's much less daunting to start with the little stuff!  

-Luke 16:10 "If you are faithful in little, I will make you faithful in much!"  

-Sometimes the littlest things can have the largest impact!  

-1 Cor. 13:1-3 "Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love...it profits me nothing."

It's never too late to start, start now! (Go wash the dishes for your mom!!! :D ) Better yet, tell me about your stories, I want to hear them, all of them! Comment or Tweet me @elisewiddis, I would LOVE to hear from you!

XOXOXO,

Book Review: Fairest Beauty

Fairest Beauty

Story written by Melanie Dickerson

Published by Zondervan

Description:

A DARING RESCUE. A difficult choice. Sophie desperately wants to get away from her stepmother's jealousy, and believes escape is her only chance to be happy. Then a young man named Gabe arrives from Hagenheim Castle, claiming she is betrothed to his older brother, and everything twists upside down. This could be Sophie's one chance at freedom...but can she trust another person to keep her safe? Gabe defied his parents Rose and Wilhelm by going to find Sophie, and now he believes they had a right to worry: the girl's inner and outer beauty has enchanted him. Though romance is impossible,she is his brother's future wife, and Gabe himself is betrothed to someone else,he promises himself he will see the mission through, no matter what. When the pair flee to the Cottage of the Seven, they find help,but also find their feelings for each other have grown. Now both must not only protect each other from the dangers around them...they must also protect their hearts.

My Review:

I have always loved FAIRYTALES. Ever since I was a little girl I wanted to be a princess swept away by a dashing prince! The way Melanie writes, she makes me believe my dreams can become reality. 

This book was a thrill to read! I especially loved the tentative relationship between Sophie & Gabe, it was precious! All of the characters were amazing; the "good" characters are real and lovable, yet completely human (along with the flaws, but doesn't that make them all the better??). The "bad" characters are welll....EVIL. And terrifying! But they also show a redeeming quality. Unfortunately the evil queen did not turn from her wicked ways before reaching a dreadful end, though the choice of another lifestyle was always there waiting for her. Just like us, there's always an alternative, no matter how far we've gone we can still choose CHRIST. It says in Mark 2:17 "On hearing this, Jesus said to them, 'It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but the sinners.'" NIV Translation.

Was there anything I didn't like?? Not knowing what happens to Valten! Of course we'll find that out when we read the sequel: The Captive Maiden (CAN'T WAIT!!)

I rate this book a 9!

PLEASE feel free to leave a comment! I would love to hear what you have to say about this book, tweet me @elisewiddis.

XOXOXO,