More than Unbroken

This week, as I have battled in the spirit and in the flesh (my body is fighting against me through a series of migraines), I have no profound words or revelations. But I am reminded that God has already sent me what I need, so as I read back though some of my works to encourage myself in the Lord, these two posts-so close together-were brought to my attention. Today, I’m just going to allow my Abba Father to show me His face of grace. I pray these word encourage you as they did me. The Reason for Grace Unmerited, Undeserved, Unconditional © Jill Cook and Unbroken & Undone Ministries.  All rights reserved.

I am a firm believer in self-fulfilling prophecies. What I mean by that is, if you are determined to find flaws with something, you will. On the flip side, if you choose to see the positive potential in a situation, you will inevitably find it. It’s frustrating to live in a world with so much negativity. We are constantly surrounded by bad news. As an encourager and an optimist, it’s exhausting to be positive for people who seem to have made up their mind that no good is in their situation. The fact is, we have a choice. Yet I will rejoice in the Lord! I will be joyful in the God of my salvation! Habakkuk‬ ‭3‬:‭18‬ ‭NLT‬‬ A little backstory: Habakkuk is one of the minor prophets through whom God spoke. As the people of Judah and Israel live in depravity and corruption, Habakkuk openly asks God why there is no punishment. The Lord reveals to the prophet that Babylon will eventually overtake the people, and they will live in exile for seventy years. Habakkuk is frustrated with the darkne...

So often, I am guilty of measuring success with numbers. For example, I can look back at the statistics of this blog and see how the post visits have dwindled over time. Many people associate success with the number of dollars on a paycheck. I was ecstatic when my Facebook page reached over one thousand followers (another number). As a teacher, I-along with my colleagues-are measured by the number of students who achieve success in our classroom. And here’s where the enemy comes in and causes me to question. Did I really hear from God when I felt the call to write? Am I being effective in my encouragement? Lately, I have felt conflicted over the numbers. It’s so important that we don’t allow the numbers to define our personal value. Sociologists are now seeing a trend in teenagers and young adults that they associate their number of “friends” or “likes” with their self-worth. This is a tragedy. Countless times, I have told my children and my students that these arbitrary digits don’t d...

I never believed the old wives’ tale about crazy behaviors during a full moon until I became a teacher. People who work in public schools or in emergency rooms can attest that this is a fact. I don’t know if there is a secret chat among students to plan out just how far they can push their teachers or if they really are being affected by the unknown gravitational force of the full phase of the moon.  In addition to the lunar abnormalities at school, our area was once again plagued with a hurricane. This caused the postponement of normal life as our region held its collective breath waiting to see where the most damage would occur. Our county was spared severe damage, but counties to our east were affected. After surviving Hurricane Michael in 2018, every storm in the tropics has us on full alert. It goes without saying that it was definitely “one of those weeks.” Emotions run high. So do frustrations. In my flesh, I become exhausted and overly sensitive. A simple phone call is enou...