Praying for Weakness

               

       I have a problem with consistency.

  Before you say, “Now, don’t go being down on yourself…” hear me out.

“And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness.  Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” (2nd Corinthians 12:9

 

Faith is only made strong when it is tested, and our personal downfalls are EXACTLY the kind of tests we need to become closer to God and his Love. We face tests and challenges from the world around us almost daily, and in those times it may be easy to be Faithful in God’s power in our lives. But what about when YOU are the test? I know from experience, it is very difficult to put YOU in God’s hand and ask him to change YOU.  That’s one of the strongest tests on our faith. I have to really think to myself, “Do I trust that God can fix me and am I willing to put in the hard work to be more like Christ?” Sometimes, it’s much easier to pray for others, and wash our hands thinking we have done our duty. Things will work out, God will fix it. Its easier because we don’t have to put in the work that God requires to fix the problems that you are praying for. When you pray for yourself, the only 2 who can work towards the fruition of that prayer are GOD and YOU. He will not just wave a magic wand of Deliverance and POOF! You’re healed, He will make you uncomfortable in your old ways, He will show you the consequences of your old ways, and He will CONVICT YOUR SPIRIT in the presence of your old ways!

  I have great intentions, I’m a master planner, and I have an amazing work ethic. I know my strengths and I use them to my advantage. But none of that changes the fact that I know I have a problem with being consistent, and following through with the things that I start. It’s not a desirable trait, and it isn’t something I am proud of, but it is a part of me nonetheless and I would be doing myself a great injustice if I didn’t acknowledge my own shortcomings. 

Someone once told me, a long time ago “If you know your weaknesses you can build your strengths around it”. I rediscovered this quote recently and it really convicted my spirit. How long have I been ignoring my weaknesses? Why have I been avoiding evaluating myself?

 It took a lot of praying and thinking for me to really see myself for who I am, but in my talks with God , I kept coming back to one thing that’s holding me from my full potential. My little habit of forgetting a task that I started, or sometimes deliberately ignoring some unpleasant task (yikes! Did I just admit that?), is the #1 thing that is seriously holding me back from getting were I want to be on my walk with God, in my marriage, in my children’s lives, and most of all, with my personal goals. This doesn’t make me a bad person, and it certainly doesn’t make me a failure at all. In fact, once I identified what it is about me that could possibly hold me back from realizing my full potential, I felt free. Now that I know my weakness, I can pray about it. I can put it on the altar, and ask God to help me with it.

  So I said all that to say, I am PUBLICLY and PROUDLY saying to all my readers, that GOD IS WORKING IN MY LIFE. He is working on me, and my inconsistencies. He can work with you for all of your weaknesses as well. So in addition to my other prayer requests, I am praying on my weaknesses and that they turn to my strengths.  I am also praying to find a home church that I can join with my family. We have gone to a few different churches in the past 2 years, so I am hoping that we can finally stop searching and join a beautiful church family. Will you pray with us?

What are your own shortcomings? What are some things you can do to remain accountable throughout your prayers?

The Elections are Over, God’s work is not

With the elections finally over, I feel like I can finally exhale.  I am totally still “Feeling the Bern”! While this election’s outcome may not be what we hoped for, it may not be what we want, but it is what was chosen. Social media is an explosion of opinions on both sides of the political sphere and you have to have a very strong stomach to make it through some of these comment sections. But at the end of the day, we have no choice but to live!

Sunrise Chia Drink

Back again with an awesome detox drink! Since it’s fall, and as ya’ll know,  I LOVE FALL,  I thought I would start a detox! 
Sunrise Chia Detox Drink
I usually make a big batch that will last me the week.
3 tea bags of Green Detox tea (whichever brand, and it doesn’t have to say detox just green tea is fine)

3 tea bags ginger or peppermint tea

3 bags hibiscus tea

3 bags ballerina tea  (Three Ballerina tea or dieters tea)
Boil about 3 to 5 cups of water in a pot. Pour boiling water in a container and steep all tea bags at once. Let this steep for AT LEAST 2 hours. I try to let it sleep for about 8hrs, I do this in the morning and go grocery shopping and church abs all of that. 

Remove all the tea bags and squeeze them out. Mix in the juice of one lemon and set aside. 

At this point, I re-use water bottles from the previous week.Fill your bottle a little less then 50% full of water, add three tablespoons of Chia seeds, and then fill the rest of the way with our tea mixture. 
The mixture of tea used helps me get some good morning energy, helps with my digestion, and is packed full of nutrients and protein to help me power through my day! This is much better than coffee to me! 

What do you drink to start your day? If you try the recipe, let me know how you like it! 

Big Plans for this Winter!

Proverbs 19:21

Many are the plans in a person’s heart,
but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.

 

I am so excited for the future that I am bubbling over with joy and gratitude. For now, All I will say is that Our God is an  Awesome God, and I am praying and praising him for the opportunities that He will send our way. Sometimes we forget the blessings because we are so focused with the burden. Well today, I am vowing to praise My God for the blessings that have been given to us, and to thank Him for the blessings yet to come! Amen!

Psalm 74:17

You have established all the boundaries of the earth; You have made summer and winter.

 

I have to LIVE

 

Somedays,

I am terrified. I wake up in the morning, take my first breath and immediately feel the ball in pit of my stomach signifying the day has begun. I have become a slave to my anxiety from sunrise to sunset. The news is a constant reminder that my son has a target on his back, not only from police and other law enforcement, but from other young boys and men that look like him. My daughter could one day be dead under mysterious circumstances in the custody of police because of a traffic stop. I am terrified, morning noon and night.

But I have to LIVE.

The past week has been emotionally draining and anxiety ridden for me. I can’t log on social media without seeing a post about the recent murders of innocent black men by police, the murder of police by a sniper, protests, rallies, hate, violence….. It’s all too much. I continue to force myself to open my eyes, stating that it is in my best interest to know what is really happening before I step into the world.

But I have to LIVE.

So today, I am making a choice to live without apology, as much as I possibly can in the times that we live in. I am not sure how to do that. In all my 20-something years, I can’t remember a time when I have truly been FREE. When I was in highschool, I would lay on my mother and cry, begging to be “carefree” like my cousins and friends. I would worry myself sick about the best way to be “carefree” and “fun-loving” until I just ended up staying in the house and not putting in any effort into anything.(If you can’t see the irony in that well…..) But as of today, I want to be FREE. I want to be able to deal with everything that is reality, and be free with the things that I can control.

When I step out into the world, I don’t want to be so terrified of things that I have absolutely no control over. I make my anxieties worse by focusing so much on things that I see in the news or in my comings and goings, that I try to force every single modicum of control on things that make no difference on reality. Perfect example, I don’t wear lipstick anymore (or makeup really), because most days I overthink the reaction that I MIGHT get on my choice of makeup. Not that it would make any difference at all what I wore on my face, or my hair, or my body, but I analyze it to the point that I become apathetic and don’t do anything at all.

 

No more of that. No more fear. I will put myself in a position every single day to take on the world that I have no choice but to live in. I will put on the armour of God before I step out of my bed, with a prayer wall around me to protect me from things that only He can control. I will put on whatever war paint I think will allow ME to be FREE. I will find FREEDOM in the knowledge that the only one who can control these perilous times is God and it won’t matter what color lipstick I am wearing, or if this pattern matches with the other, or If my children took their vitamins this morning, or if I put too much salt in my husbae’s mashed potatoes or if I have to call out of work because I am in pain….

I will not allow my medical issues, my anxiety, my empathetic nature, or my fear to stop me from living. I will not allow it to stop my children from living. I will not allow my freedom to pass me by while I am scared of how to be free.

Afterall, what quality is a life lived without experiencing the very freedom we fight for?

 

 

How I learned Grace under Fire was not a Personality Trait

 

Grace Under Fire

 

I haven’t been around much, and for that I am truly sorry. There are not very many people who currently subscribe to my blog right now, but for the people who do:

  I first off want to say THANK YOU. I am a very overwhelmed mama. I am a mother to two beautiful amazing children. My 7 (almost 8) year old is heading into 3^rd grade, which in our state means he will be doing into mandatory state testing to determine if he will be sent to the 4^th grade. My almost 2-year-old (20 months) has had a few health issue this year, but thankfully she is growing into a healthy capable little girl whose spunk and curiosity means that I am always trying to stay one step ahead of her toddler shenanigans. I am the wife of an amazing husband, who is in the process of launching his new business, and I work full time. I say this not to make excuses, but to help myself understand the reasons I write in the first place.  Thank you, for watching my process even if you didn’t know you were doing that for me in the first place. Thank you for subscribing to my blog, and leaving your feedback on my posts. Thank you for joining in my journey! With that being said, LETS READ!

                –Humbly Yours

Emmylee

 

Chia Fresca!

I found this wonderful gem online.  I’ve been trying to find new ways to use my chia seeds since I have alot of them now. I’ve done alot of different chia pudding recipes, and added them to several foods but I really wanted to have a way to drink them without blending them.

Thankfully I’m obsessed with Pinterest.com and I found several Chia Fresca recipes!I adapted them into my own tastes and I present to you *drumroll please*

Chia FrescaMia!

WINDS AND WATER CHIA FRESCA

Not the best name but hey it is MY chia fresca recipe!

So here it is:

1/2 cup chia seeds
Juice of 3 limes (I cut one in quarters and put it in the bottle)
2tbsp honey
Raw sugar/Stevia to taste

Combine ingredients in a bottle that holds at least 16oz. Fill to the top with filtered/purified water and chill for at least 2hrs. I prefer to leave it over night. The seeds sink to the bottom, so shake well before drinking.

Mmmm yum! Now I can sip on my protein packed, cancer fighting, calcium building super seeds all day, and it even helps keep me full!

Happy Holidays!

It’s finally FALL!

Ok I know I took a LONG hiatus, and I KNOW you guys thought I disappeared. Let’s just call it Summer Break ? Anywho…. I’m back!

Fall is finally here and I am overly excited!

Scared

Hi Guys
My name is Emmylee and. ….

I’m a Scaredy Cat.
And a hypochondriac.
And a memory hoarder.
And an anxious mess.

So yeah, now that I have admitted it, it’s real. I literally have no idea how to fix this!
But before you go on about “just do it”
Let me explain first..

Neuzugänge

This post is so ridiculously late but I’m still writing it!  My mom went to Germany in late April and brought us all things from Germany. The post title (a la GoogleTranslate) literally means new items! I will post pictures !

She got tons of chocolate from our fave store Aldi. Aldi is a German grocery store that is also here in the US. They have amazing discount items and all of the generic foods are the same quality or better than name brands.

My sister and I both got some fashion nails. I love the bold designs! I got a new face wash and a cream. I hav’t opened it yet because I want to really make sure it will work with my skin. I’m thinking of doing a whole post on just those because I really love them!
She also got my younger sister and I some boots! (I forgot to take pictures)

She got some teething gel for my daughter,  and I am convinced that the Dentinox is what made her little teeth come out!  They came about 2days after I started using it after 8 months of teething!

And my favorite!

This dress is going to be Baby Bears first bday dress.  I want to add a hot pink tutu under it and some ribbon as her shoelaces. The sandals are wayyy too big but so pretty!

So anyways,  just sharing the joy!
German chocolate is LEGIT btw!