Monday, May 23, 2011
I'm New to this whole Blogging thing :)
Well it seems that when you are a follower, unless you have a blog or gmail account and check your "dashboard", you are really not able to follow me without coming to my blog. So I have now added the gadget to "follow by email". So let's give that a shot and I'll cross my finger that it helps. The email option will send an email with my new entries on the day that I update my blog. Thanks for being patient with me!
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Thanks for Reading
Thank you to everyone that has taken the time to read my reflections as I journey through this journey of faith and growth. I would love any comments or input about my insight.
Also I would absolutely love if you could become a follower of my blog... I will not lie it really brightens my day to know that there are people that appreciate my writing.
Also I would absolutely love if you could become a follower of my blog... I will not lie it really brightens my day to know that there are people that appreciate my writing.
A Humble Heart
During the challenges of life I have been able to learn who I am with a much more humble heart. I have learned to push aside my ego for the sake of bringing glory to God. It was during these challenges that God revealed to me the passion of writing, speaking and ministering to others as they encounter their very own challenges. I thank God for every revelation about who I am and who I hope to become.
As a woman originally convinced that the challenges in my marriage were related to our differences, God has humbled me to the truth that I was overlooking so much in my husband. It has been through the challenges of my marriage that I have learned the most humbling experience of truly putting someone (other than my children) before me. As I continue to discover my weaknesses, I am enlightened to my husband's strengths. These are strengths that he may have even forgotten about.
If it were not for the wisdom & leading of God, I would have surrendered to the defeat within my marriage. But by God's grace I continue to learn to accept that the beauty of our marriage is within those differences. The strength in the unfamiliar is what challenges me to be the best wife and woman, without the expectation that my husband fulfill my happiness. It seems that it is in those moments that I question most where I must change, I receive the most clear answers.
If it were not for God's grace & wisdom, I would not have had my husband's silent strength by my side during the most difficult times of my life. If it were not for God's forgiveness on me for taking a gift for granted, I would not be the woman I am today.
Every relationship has challenges; whether friendship, family or children, but when we humble ourselves enough to accept that God has brought us together for a reason beyond our own happiness - we ourselves are blessed with a "peace that surpasses all understanding". We learn to patiently pray for peace and understanding, we grow in our faith, and most importantly we begin to remove the responsibility of another person to make us happy. We are then able to look at a person with the simple understanding that we are all God's children, everyone of us - and God has entrusted us with each other so that we may learn to be the example of Christ that we have been called to be.
“And so, dear brothers and sisters I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us.” Romans 12:1-3
© 2011 by Christina Valdez. All rights reserved
As a woman originally convinced that the challenges in my marriage were related to our differences, God has humbled me to the truth that I was overlooking so much in my husband. It has been through the challenges of my marriage that I have learned the most humbling experience of truly putting someone (other than my children) before me. As I continue to discover my weaknesses, I am enlightened to my husband's strengths. These are strengths that he may have even forgotten about.
If it were not for the wisdom & leading of God, I would have surrendered to the defeat within my marriage. But by God's grace I continue to learn to accept that the beauty of our marriage is within those differences. The strength in the unfamiliar is what challenges me to be the best wife and woman, without the expectation that my husband fulfill my happiness. It seems that it is in those moments that I question most where I must change, I receive the most clear answers.
If it were not for God's grace & wisdom, I would not have had my husband's silent strength by my side during the most difficult times of my life. If it were not for God's forgiveness on me for taking a gift for granted, I would not be the woman I am today.
Every relationship has challenges; whether friendship, family or children, but when we humble ourselves enough to accept that God has brought us together for a reason beyond our own happiness - we ourselves are blessed with a "peace that surpasses all understanding". We learn to patiently pray for peace and understanding, we grow in our faith, and most importantly we begin to remove the responsibility of another person to make us happy. We are then able to look at a person with the simple understanding that we are all God's children, everyone of us - and God has entrusted us with each other so that we may learn to be the example of Christ that we have been called to be.
“And so, dear brothers and sisters I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us.” Romans 12:1-3
© 2011 by Christina Valdez. All rights reserved
Saturday, May 14, 2011
Being Bold......It's No Longer A Curse
As I reflect on the past month and a half full of challenges I rest in one truth, my God has been by my side day by day. This has been a season that has challenged who I am, how faithful I truly am and how I survive day by day without worry. At a time when my father & son have experienced major health challenges, I have learned how to wait on my Lord and find peace in Him..... I've experienced the beauty in all the pain.
During a time when stress levels where high, I solely focused on the promises that God has given me. I now know God never gives me more than I can handle, but amazingly I realized I can handle so much more with God's grace than I realized. I would have never come to this realization without experiencing the intensity of these trials simultaneously.
God desires that I rest in him, not worry, not try to figure out my next step or next week, but wait on Him and trust that He is working and arranging my life and my blessings even while chaos seems to be breaking out all around me. When I rest in Him and trust in Him and not my own understanding, I'm not consumed by worry, therefore I am able to wait on Him with a grateful heart. While it may seem that waiting without a plan is irresponsible, it leaves me energy, hope and the opportunity to be lead by God to an outcome greater than what I may have planned.
As I begin to recover from the emotional toll that brain surgery on my 8 year old son has had on our family, I now have the opportunity to reflect on the existence of God's power during our journey. There continues to be revelation about seeds planted months ago or even years ago that have become blessings in the present.
It was 8 years ago that I began to truly understand the concept of surrender. As my son was born 2 full months early and I was unable to see him for 2 days because of my own health issues, I knew all I could do was put my helpless baby into God's hands. After a 4 day hospital stay there was no emotional energy to worry about the reality of my son's condition. He began his life with a machine taking his first breaths for him. While at the time it seemed as though this was such a traumatic experience, it truly was a blessing in so many ways. I was able to see the beauty of others reaching out with concern, the strength and dependability of my parents visiting my son daily for a month and a half, my father's faith grew daily and my husband was able to be strengthened in his role as father - a silent strength was resurrected within him. These are just a handful of the blessings, but the fact that my son's Hydrocephalus and Chiari Malformation were detected years before severe symptoms were able to begin, MRI testing was done purely for the fact that he was premature.
After 5 years of monitoring my son's conditions and surgeries for my son's Hydrocephalus, his Chiari Malformation began causing spinal fluid to seep into his spinal cord. So at the age of 6, he had a partial Chiari Decompression surgery. A week ago he had the remaining surgery which our surgeon had optimistically hoped would not be necessary.
In all honesty, one blog entry cannot even begin to bring justice to the intensity of this past month and a half. But one thing that can be said about this journey, I WAS BOLD. I spoke truth over every situation. Not my understanding of truth, but God's truth, even when others did not understand me or challenged who I truly am. My conversations & revelations from God are not a luxury, but a necessity for survival, for peace. I do not like the feelings of anxiety or fear, to me I feel that when I am controlled by those emotions I am not able to experience the full greatness of God's lessons. I've learned that when my lesson has been learned, I'm allowed to move forward - I do not have to return to this same lesson over and over, God smiles upon me and says "Well done, you have accepted the peace I have offered."
During this really tough season, that lead to the temptation of surrendering to depression, loneliness & stepping off the lighted path God has given me - I refused to conform to the world. In a season that I was misunderstood and attempts were made to persuade me to change who I am or who I am becoming, I have learned with confidence to accept that I am exactly who God has called me to be. I speak words of truth and hope. I learn from everyone who has the courage to teach me without shame or embarrassment. I take no blessing for granted. I put no limits on my journey, no limits on my understanding as to who my God is. When I was not receiving the spiritual insight and inspiration that I was seeking I refused to accept that I was to stop the search. I WAS BOLD - I refused to conform to a human's understanding of what God has waiting for me or the lessons he is teaching me.
My boldness has been frequently misunderstood by many in my lifetime. It felt as though it was a curse for many of my adult years. But now, I accept it as an amazing blessing from God. If it were not for my Boldness in faith, I would have allowed others define how I am to grow in my faith and how to live out my faith, I would have allowed this world to subtly put out the fire that lies within my heart to share God's love, power and healing on us all. The Bilble says "lean not on your own understanding", so because I am Bold I am confident in making decisions that may not make sense to other because that is where God has lead me. I am able to Boldly proclaim that God speaks to me in his subtle and gentle ways so that I may be that example of faith that plants a seed into others when they are tempted to worry, feel defeated or deny God's power. I have been able to Boldly accept these trials to allow others to see God in every instance of my life, this has not been by my own strength or understanding, but by the leading of God's gentle hand.
"So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most." Hebrews 4:16
© 2011 by Christina Valdez. All rights reserved
During a time when stress levels where high, I solely focused on the promises that God has given me. I now know God never gives me more than I can handle, but amazingly I realized I can handle so much more with God's grace than I realized. I would have never come to this realization without experiencing the intensity of these trials simultaneously.
God desires that I rest in him, not worry, not try to figure out my next step or next week, but wait on Him and trust that He is working and arranging my life and my blessings even while chaos seems to be breaking out all around me. When I rest in Him and trust in Him and not my own understanding, I'm not consumed by worry, therefore I am able to wait on Him with a grateful heart. While it may seem that waiting without a plan is irresponsible, it leaves me energy, hope and the opportunity to be lead by God to an outcome greater than what I may have planned.
As I begin to recover from the emotional toll that brain surgery on my 8 year old son has had on our family, I now have the opportunity to reflect on the existence of God's power during our journey. There continues to be revelation about seeds planted months ago or even years ago that have become blessings in the present.
It was 8 years ago that I began to truly understand the concept of surrender. As my son was born 2 full months early and I was unable to see him for 2 days because of my own health issues, I knew all I could do was put my helpless baby into God's hands. After a 4 day hospital stay there was no emotional energy to worry about the reality of my son's condition. He began his life with a machine taking his first breaths for him. While at the time it seemed as though this was such a traumatic experience, it truly was a blessing in so many ways. I was able to see the beauty of others reaching out with concern, the strength and dependability of my parents visiting my son daily for a month and a half, my father's faith grew daily and my husband was able to be strengthened in his role as father - a silent strength was resurrected within him. These are just a handful of the blessings, but the fact that my son's Hydrocephalus and Chiari Malformation were detected years before severe symptoms were able to begin, MRI testing was done purely for the fact that he was premature.
After 5 years of monitoring my son's conditions and surgeries for my son's Hydrocephalus, his Chiari Malformation began causing spinal fluid to seep into his spinal cord. So at the age of 6, he had a partial Chiari Decompression surgery. A week ago he had the remaining surgery which our surgeon had optimistically hoped would not be necessary.
In all honesty, one blog entry cannot even begin to bring justice to the intensity of this past month and a half. But one thing that can be said about this journey, I WAS BOLD. I spoke truth over every situation. Not my understanding of truth, but God's truth, even when others did not understand me or challenged who I truly am. My conversations & revelations from God are not a luxury, but a necessity for survival, for peace. I do not like the feelings of anxiety or fear, to me I feel that when I am controlled by those emotions I am not able to experience the full greatness of God's lessons. I've learned that when my lesson has been learned, I'm allowed to move forward - I do not have to return to this same lesson over and over, God smiles upon me and says "Well done, you have accepted the peace I have offered."
During this really tough season, that lead to the temptation of surrendering to depression, loneliness & stepping off the lighted path God has given me - I refused to conform to the world. In a season that I was misunderstood and attempts were made to persuade me to change who I am or who I am becoming, I have learned with confidence to accept that I am exactly who God has called me to be. I speak words of truth and hope. I learn from everyone who has the courage to teach me without shame or embarrassment. I take no blessing for granted. I put no limits on my journey, no limits on my understanding as to who my God is. When I was not receiving the spiritual insight and inspiration that I was seeking I refused to accept that I was to stop the search. I WAS BOLD - I refused to conform to a human's understanding of what God has waiting for me or the lessons he is teaching me.
My boldness has been frequently misunderstood by many in my lifetime. It felt as though it was a curse for many of my adult years. But now, I accept it as an amazing blessing from God. If it were not for my Boldness in faith, I would have allowed others define how I am to grow in my faith and how to live out my faith, I would have allowed this world to subtly put out the fire that lies within my heart to share God's love, power and healing on us all. The Bilble says "lean not on your own understanding", so because I am Bold I am confident in making decisions that may not make sense to other because that is where God has lead me. I am able to Boldly proclaim that God speaks to me in his subtle and gentle ways so that I may be that example of faith that plants a seed into others when they are tempted to worry, feel defeated or deny God's power. I have been able to Boldly accept these trials to allow others to see God in every instance of my life, this has not been by my own strength or understanding, but by the leading of God's gentle hand.
"So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most." Hebrews 4:16
© 2011 by Christina Valdez. All rights reserved
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
I choose not to live life by fear but by truth and promises. I do not have energy to worry since my body and mind are tired. I must surrender to God’s leading since I am not wise enough or strong enough to make my own decisions. I am a flawed human with a view of life based on my own experiences. I cannot grow weary. I cannot be worried. I must stay in God’s presence or I will be blind to my blessings.
© 2011 by Christina Valdez. All rights reserved
© 2011 by Christina Valdez. All rights reserved
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