Christian blogging – Angela Joy

The Thief of Joy

comparison blog

More than 80% of women…

believe they’re not good enough.
feel they don’t measure up in some way.
are sure they fall short when it comes to their looks, success in business and relationships.

80% of us!

Yep. I am one of them. As a young woman, the comparison game is real. From real life to scrolling through my Instagram feed there’s always someone who appears happier than me, skinnier than me or more successful in their career than me.

Even the most confident of us still play the comparison game in our minds.

You have to let go of both “more than” and “less than” in order to be free. Easier said than done right?

We’re all here for a reason, we’re each moving along on our journeys with perfect timing, and you are meant to make a difference in this world like only you can.

When your ex starts a dating a girl that is just “so much prettier than you” (not possible), your boss mentions how the person before you did a better job, or you try on your new swimsuit and it doesn’t fit on you quite like the size 0 model online, remember you value simply because you exist.

Comparison is the thief of joy.

There are days that this could not feel further from the truth for me. Days I wake up and feel incomplete, crushed by the world and my own insecurities. I’ve found myself in those moments, where I believe I’m simply falling behind everyone else who appears to have it all figured out.

Why is it so easy for me to silence the inner knowing that I’m actually capable and great?

Because I’m human. And I’m pretty sure you are, too!

These ideas, that’s all they are CRAZY ideas, are ruining our lives.

Everyday we have a choice:

Will I make choices in my life from “not good enough” and “she’s better than me”?

When you’re struggling the most with shame and self-doubt, try to remember that you’re not alone, and that no matter what television ads, and your old high school bullies, and the mean voices in your head may say, you are enough as you are. Right now.

I am so much more than what they allowed themselves to see. I am more than they could see. And I’m probably more than they could handle. I am so much more than what I have been conditioned to believe. I am enough.

You are enough. You are a thousand times enough.

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Career, Life Seasons, What's New

The B Word

Featuredby Angela ThomasLeave a Comment

B Word

As many of you know, I recently entered the world of non-profit work. I have been with this organization for two whole months now. Time goes by quickly when you’ve got work to do and lives to change.

In the communications industry, people tend to shy away from nonprofit work. They tend to only focus on the amount of work, but never the impact of our work. As a staff of four amazing women currently, the workload can be intense as we set out to improve the quality of life for all children in the state of Alabama. But at the end of every day, I know the work I put in is for the greater good — and for that very reason it is all worth it.

In the organization I work in, we try not to say the word busy. We instead are diligently working, actively engaged in our work, engrossed in the issues our children are facing or just plain HUSTLIN’.

So, for the past two months, I have been trying to shy away from the word busy. We are so caught up in this lifestyle of being busy, heck, we even make it seem glamorous. We get so busy we don’t have time for the things that matter most — loved ones, our relationship with God, self care and a good night’s sleep.

Maybe you’re a type-A overachiever. Or maybe you inevitably end up with a to-do list that won’t end. These days, just about all of us accept our busyness with combination of pride and exhaustion.

Busyness brings worry. The more I worry, the less I look at Jesus and more and more at my situation. Instead of saying “God, I have a lot on my plate right now and I could use your strength to help me get through today,” I rely on my strength. Worldly strength that tends to get me nowhere but burnt out, tired and falling asleep on my laptop in bed (who am I kidding, I do this always).

Busy can beat upon us like a drum. When those closest to us have stopped asking for our time, it’s because they know we are too busy for them. That’s crushing to the heart. We all need “waiting” time, whether we think we do or not. Waiting time is when we say adamantly, “It can wait!” and we step back and do what is really important.

I’m here to remind you (and myself) not to get caught up in the kind of busy that edges out intentional living. Sometimes your busiest, hardest-working, least-restful periods of your life are not your most purposeful, or even most productive.

I know deep within my heart that being overloaded is a way for the enemy to distract me from those most precious to me. The storm that rages inside me is shouting, “Slow Down!” and demands my attention. But if I heed that call, the Creator of peace will shower me with a peace that surpasses all understanding if I just trust him. The fragrance of grace and mercy will overflow in me when I come to peace with being less busy.

One thing I have to remember on a daily basis is that wait is not an ugly word and “busy” is not a spiritual gift. After all, God says in Psalm 46:10, “Be still, and know that I am God.” Isn’t being still waiting? When you have a personality like mine, it’s hard to be still, but it is only during those moments alone with God that I can truly feel a peace that surpasses all understanding. Busy is the enemy of joy. Busy steals precious time. Busy robs my blessings.

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Fall, Life Seasons, What's New

#blessed

Featuredby Angela ThomasLeave a Comment

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Why is it we center all of our feelings of thankfulness and count our blessings only around this time of year? What happened to the rest of the year? All the other weeks, days, and seconds spent living here on Earth? Why is it only the holidays bring out those feelings and thoughts?

I’m sitting here guilty as charged. I spend life go, go going and rarely stopping to thank God for the blessings in my everyday life. The people, my job, a warm place to sleep at night, food in my fridge, my health, etc… When I think back on where my life was a year ago compared to now, I’m thankful for the progress and change that has happened. I’ve graduated college, almost spent an entire year with my current company, started dating an amazing man, and made some really wonderful friends along the way. Even through the bumps and the bruises, He has blessed me abundantly.

So why are we not counting our blessings daily? In between what we consider “big” miracles, a lot of good things are happening around us and to us daily. If we started counting our everyday, messy lives as blessings, what a different perspective we may have. A joyful perspective. If we started thanking God for the food in front of us, the car that gets us to our 9-5, and the moments just spent sitting around watching football with the ones we love while our favorite soup cooks away in the Crockpot in the kitchen, we’d see that every day, every moment is a miracle. Everyday should feel #blessed.

If our perspective changes and aligns this way, it makes the tough days much, much easier. When we start to see everything as a blessing, the days that the we can’t catch up on the emails or we get hit with an unexpected bill, you see the bigger picture versus getting caught up in that small “tragedy” all day.

I try not to get on any social media for the first hour or so after I wake up. This can be tricky, since social media is my job. If the first thing you do every morning is scroll through Facebook or check Snapchat and Instagram, it will have you feeling defeated about your day before you even roll out of bed. Someone or something will have you feeling like you’re job, house, family, significant other, or just yourself is not enough. This turns into feeling like you need something different or something more. By staying off my personal social media for a little while, I can focus on what’s really important. I recommend the first 5 app first thing in the morning- yes, that’s only FIVE minutes of your time to get your mind right for the day.

I challenge you to thank God for one thing every morning before you crank your car. Keep a sticky note on your steering wheel or dash to remind you. It will set the mood for your whole day and align your perspective with His.

Let’s be a generation of people who thank God every day for this life, not just the ones who do it once a year. Let’s be a generation of people who are thankful for the mess that life can be and never compare our blessings to the those around us.

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Books, Life Seasons

31 Prayers

November 2, 2017December 29, 2017by Angela ThomasLeave a Comment

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Some of y’all might think I’m silly. I’m not even engaged, but I’ve been praying for my future husband?! I stumbled across this book on Amazon. Amazon can be worse than shopping at Target sometimes. You click on one thing and they suggest something you might like, you decide you do like it and then all the sudden your cart exceeds $100 and you’re not even sure how it happened.

I started this devotional as soon as it came in. It’s not just any devotional-the prayers are written there for you. So if you’re someone who has trouble converting a daily devotional message into a prayer, then this is for you! I’ve been using it along side my Jesus Calling devotional.

31 Prayers for my Future Husband covers so many topics you would never even think of. Things you would want in a future spouse, but maybe never thought to pray over on your own. Topics like making wise decisions, keeping good company around him, and a compassionate heart. It also calls you, as a future wife, to say well if I want my future husband to embody these ideals, I should embody them as well. This turns into you praying for yourself and changing your heart along the way.

How beautiful is it to say you’re praying for your future spouse, whether you’re single, in a relationship, or engaged. You’re praying for his heart, for his mind, for protection and for the future together. Praying for your spouse while you’re married is obviously important as well (they make a devotional for that too), but becoming a prayer warrior before the wedding will make that transition so much easier. The world we are living in needs our generation of husbands and wives to joyfully pray for each other and their relationship.

If you are in a relationship, I encourage you to insert the name of your significant other in the prayer. Speak them out loud. Start writing prayer letters to your future spouse. It all may seem silly in the grand scheme of things, but what a difference it can make.

I am going to revisit this devotional soon, but for now I’m passing it on to sweet co-worker of mine. Pick a copy up for yourself or give it as a gift- it is well worth the $12 investment. Ladies, this isn’t just for you. The man in your life can read along with their version as well. This book will prepare, inspire, and cause a revelation in your life.

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grief, Life Seasons, What's New

Anonymous

Featuredby Angela ThomasLeave a Comment

anonymous

Do you ever feel hidden? Maybe you’ve moved to a new place, started a new school, accepted a new job. No one sees the extra hours you’re putting in at work or all the effort you put in around your house. Have you ever entered into a new season of life? Where you shifted from being recognized to feeling unknown. When we enter hidden seasons, we can be concealed for months or years and our potential seems to go into hibernation. We don’t know if spring will ever come and awaken us again. You may feel like you have so much more to give and be, but no one can see it but you.

There is one who can see it however. God himself. The beauty He sees in you doesn’t diminish by the season you’re in. Whether we enter hiddenness by our own deliberation (relocating for a new job) or unwillingly (grief following the loss of a loved one), we can spend years feeling that the greatest part of us is submerged in the unseen. Everyone can see only see the tip of the iceberg we really are.

We must remember the most influential person in all of history spent ninety percent of his life hidden. Only ten percent of His life was spent in the public eye. Yet all of his life He was and still is absolutely indestructible. We know practically nothing about Jesus’ first 29 chapters of His life. Eighteen years after Jesus gets in trouble for staying in the temple, Jesus emerges from his hiddenness by the Jordan River for chapter 30.

When we say we want to “live like Jesus” most of us don’t mean the hidden years. We don’t want to spend 90% of our lives living anonymously. But Jesus embraced a life of hiddenness. These years empowered Him to live an eternally fruitful life.

Let’s consider human conception. Our lives commence in the darkness of the womb. We are knitted together but concealed. Unseen? Yes. Unimportant? Absolutely not. If this hidden phase of development is prematurely interrupted, the results can be tragic. From God’s perspective, anonymous seasons are sacred spaces. They are to be rested in, not rushed through and most definitely never regretted. Not applauded but not unproductive: hidden years are the surprising birthplace of true spiritual greatness.

In moments where I am tempted to wait on the “main” course of this life. You know, the “when we get married” or “when we start a family” or “when I get my master’s degree,” I remember that my time is not some filler. God waste’s no man’s time. To Him, every “course” in our life is the main course.

Let’s imagine something for a second. Jesus had God’s divine power and calling within him every day. He woke up each morning and lived in his town unnoticed for a long time. He was not free to proclaim his mission or destiny. Everyone else was only seeing the tip of the iceberg of who He was. Most of us struggle if our callings or dreams are delayed a year, much less twenty! But in anonymous seasons, we must hold tightly to the truth that Jesus was strengthened through his hidden years. Father God is neither care-less or cause-less with how He spends our lives. When He calls us to greatness and obscurity at the same time-if we wait for it- we can change the world.

In hidden years, we may press the question of whom we will let hold the clock for the rest of our lives. When God’s timing is not our timing, whose timing will we choose? Ultimately the answer to that question depends on whom we really trust. You have to decide Father always knows best, God’s ways are perfect, and that He is never, ever late.

If you feel hidden, you are in excellent company. Savor the season and its potential. When graced with hidden years, wait because He is worth it. Keep the waters of your spirit joyful and be still while you grow.

Recently, I started doubting why I had started blogging in the first place. I felt I wasn’t reaching anyone with my words. I felt anonymous. Just a few days later, I received a letter in the mail from someone who had read my blog and appreciated the words I wrote. It reminded me when God places a calling and talent on you, He will be faithful to grow you right where you are.

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