Thrive with E

 Love for me was not displayed by family. Love for me was not kind words or tons of affection. I saw more stuff take place; than in a Stephen King novel.   Yet, I thrived. I thrived to the point I maintain a marriage, I can love my son no matter what he has done. I can see him. I can go above and beyond for my husband not because it was shown to me; rather, it was taught by The Author of Love.   The Bible calls us over-comers of the world. Why? Love, His love, forces us beyond what was never taught.    The cycles of abuse can stop when we are bold enough to step out of the way and learn. Learn to live beyond the mediocre. Live huge to the point you walk into a room; and know exactly who is a Christian. To shine means to have people take notice. You are extraordinary in the way you speak, carry yourself, and hold people just by looking at them. This is what it means to literally put Christ on.  Just because your parents hated you, you remained in f...

When I was four and I got adopted we were staying at a five star hotel at the Riverwalk. I remember the bathrobe. Oversized, warm, and fluffy.   This is how we should make people who are hurting feel. We should make comfort be abundant, let our comfort take the chill off the hurts, and it needs to be soft words to let them sink into the comfort of Christ.   Far too often; it is not the case. We leave people shivering in the coldness of their pain, are words are like sandpaper to their parched skin, and being with us is more like them sinking unto a board with third degree burns.   Christ comforted Peter with bathrobe comfort. He never let Peter go on without knowing his identity and more importantly that he was completely loved.   To Thrive we must comfort people with bathrobe comfort. We must rely on the Holy Spirit to help us to know when to remain silent and when to talk. We must get into the habit of just holding people where they are.  ...

 Bullet holes are all different. You get grazed by them, they can fragment, they go deeply. Yet they all have the potential to kill.   They are like words. Right now a Youtuber named Angry Joe is being accused of sexual harassment. It is a lie. The victim could have left at any time. She had her phone with her.  She could have left at the hotel; at the dinner, not once did she contact her bf at anytime. This accuser contacted Angry Joe first. He was in the shower and she never left the hotel room. She had several hours to leave. Five hours to make a phone call. If someone takes your purse and phone you would tell someone and ask where it went. She stayed with him through a lunch a car ride, and a party. She claimed she was threatened but was drinking of her free will. She randomly found her phone. She had not spoken to her bf in eight hours. What!!!??? Eight hours without your phone. Yet claims Angry Joe was glued to you and making you uncomfortable and you lie again...

   We often think of set backs as horrific things in life. We often see them as signs that God the Father does not love us, and that we feel abandoned.  When I think of abandonment. it was when I was eleven and being left an airport with a complete stranger never to see my biological brother ever again.  A very huge set back. What I did not know is that was going to be God's set up for me to have empathy for people who feel alone and afraid.   If we look in the Bible, lots of people had set backs. So, let us look first at Abraham. He was old, and Sarah was was also old, yet God made it seem impossible for them to have children. Was it a set back, yes to them definitely. However, for God it was a set up so He could be glorified. A set up for the biggest illustration on patience, and faith.   Let us look at another example Ruth. I can identify a lot with Ruth.  I have lost three families in one lifetime. I always felt like an outcast. So, there...

So, I am in a FB group for writers. A young girl of thirteen is following her vision to write and illustrate. I was so thrilled on the adults who were encouraging her. This encouragement will last in her memory for years to come.   Encouragement, is buying Girl Guide Cookies because you know the young girls are trying to earn badges, go on that trip, and every time you buy one you are boosting her self -esteem.   It comes gently in the form of helping your teen navigate first job and pressures of school; and just being a cheerleader for them emotionally and spiritually.    The real issue in life is that we rarely have Barnabas, that encouraging spirit around us. We have the dream slayers, the doubt screamers, and lie tellers. Though the Bible is the dream slayer, doubt screaming, and lie telling conqueror, we need the cheerleader in physical form.   The Apostle Paul the faith giant himself who conquered PTSD like Hilary Swank in  Million Doll...

   War, it is costly, takes trust in your platoon and squad, it takes guts. My youngest brother did two tours in Iraq and it took a toll on him.  We all have a war we are facing. War makes heroes or it makes us wimps. Emotional, depression, suicidal ideation, and divorce. We all have invisible wars, how we handle the battle will determine if we win the war or lose the war.   The war we fight emotionally and spiritually are more vital than those that are fought in fox holes. Eventually, you will leave the fox hole, but you cannot leave your mind. People that fight in the fox holes understand if their mental state stays in the foxhole they will never have a thriving life.   Yes, God is with us but we have to do the battling. We are the ones that have to focus on our words, memorize scripture, stay focused on the cross, make the perfect choice to forgive, control our tempers by leaning into him. God gives us the battle plan to win the war if we follow His...

 To thrive we must kill our secrets. We must  become  vulnerable.   The Holy Spirit is feminine in nature. Like a woman, He is patient. He washes us gently and bandages our wounds.   Before, we get into the Healing Waters  we must shed the secrets buried into our hearts. We must become naked emotionally.   The human condition is used to hiding behind secrets. We refuse to tell anyone our secrets of shame  because of judgement, ridicule, pain, and anguish.   We have to be bold enough to shed our secrets if we want to thrive. We have to stand boldly when someone tells us something hard.   The Holy Spirit does not flinch or become awkward when we tell the truth; neither should we.   To thrive we must be able to peel the secrets back to reveal the new man God is forming.   Secrets are like sunburned skin, that needs to be peeled away to reveal healthy and undamaged skin.   What secrets a...