We can sometimes get so tied up in “knowing” the Word that we forget how to be an example of It.  I can say this because I am so guilty of it! I’ve been hard pressed the last couple years to really know God.  Which is a great thing! But somedays I have gotten so lost in my studies that I have stopped applying what I already know.

A couple weeks ago, a friend of mine did a heart check quiz on her Instagram and oh what a heart check it was! (Her IG handle is @running_redeemed. You should give her a follow if you don’t already :))

She asked these following questions:

1. Do you have a tendency to grumble and complain?
2. Do you let circumstances dictate your happiness?
3. Do you easily forget the good and focus on the bad?
4.  Do you find yourself “venting” a lot?

Ladies, I could have answered “yes” to every single one of those questions. And here I am, finally living a life I prayed for, and I was focused on everything that I could find wrong with it. This is when I realized, “Jill, what good is reading the Bible, if you’re acting like a person who has no joy in the Lord?”  

I prayed each morning after that and I asked God for His help and wisdom.  Without fail, each morning since, He has handed me something new and I want to share them with you.

Here are the 5 things He has reminded me to embody as a godly woman:

1. Joy- “The joy of the Lord is our strength.” Nehemiah 8:10.  We must have a spirit of joy! Joy isn’t dependent on what’s happening to us.  Our joy depends on Christ.  Joy makes us strong and helps us to bear all things. And to cultivate joy we have to focus on the positive aspects of our lives.  Joy is a choice and we can decide to be joyful at all times.  Remember that whatever we focus on is what we will see, so see joy!
2. Peace- “Peace I leave you, my peace I give to you, not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled or afraid.” John 14:27.  Peace was a gift Jesus left for us. It is a part of our inheritance as believers.  It is also a fruit of the spirit.  Peace is something we have to pursue.  If something doesn’t bring us peace, we have to be discerning and ask God to lead us on how to let go of the thing that is causing us turmoil in our heart.  Letting “peace rule our hearts” settles every issue that needs a decision. The answer to your question is “what brings you peace?”
3. Hope– “Hope in God and wait expectantly for Him” Psalm 42:5. Tonight I was at church and they were singing a song called “Living Hope” and the words God put into my head when I was singing was “Jill, if I’m really your hope, then act like it!” It was like a punch to the gut. God knows what we need to hear and I needed to hear that.  Hope is turned on by our faith and positive attitudes.  Our attitudes have to go beyond what we are feeling and instead be based on the fact that we know God is good! Do you really believe that?  Do you believe His Word when it says “For I know the plans I have for you says the Lord, plans to prosper you, not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:1.  If we really believe what God says is true then we can live with hope!
4. Positive Thinking- “Whatever is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent or praiseworthy, think about such things.” Philippians 4:8. Being a positive person starts in our minds.  Scripture literally spells out how we should think and so often we focus on the opposite.  We have to always remember that our thoughts shape our lives. Proverbs 23:7 says that we become what we think. And Paul tells us  in 2 Corinthians to take every thought captive and make them obedient to Christ. God clearly has shown us in scripture time and time again that what we think about matters. A lot! Negative thoughts can ruin our relationships and eventually our whole life turns into a mess.
5. Positive Words-  “Our tongue has the power of life an death.” Provers 18:21. I remember early on in my Christian walk I read a book by Joyce Meyer and she said “We can not have a negative mouth and a positive life!”  That made so much sense to me and it really stuck with me. The bible says that positive words bring life where as negative ones can bring death! That’s how powerful our words are. For this reason we should be very discerning when we speak.  This is why it is so important to think positive because it would be almost impossible for a positive person to easily speak negative words that would bring death.

This is a work in progress for all of us! But I have really enjoyed pursuing each of these daily as they have been handed to me.  I pray that you will join me in this worthy pursuit.  Let’s be the light in a world that needs it!

Tell me, was this a good heart check and reminder for you? I’d love to hear from you.