Who does God say that I am? - His Child

For years I struggled with my identity and knowing who I was and where I came from. I was ignorant to the rich history behind both of my Latinx roots. I was created by my mother, a Peruvian and my father, a Puerto Ricans. Both were Latinx's and proud of their heritage, however neither shared my skin tone. Especially, not my "white", American [step]-dad.*** 

I grew up confused as to why I enjoyed hip-hop and not the rock my family enjoyed (although I do enjoy some alternative/pop-rock). Confused as to why my skin had melanin that made it a caramel complexion in the summer versus the lighter, reddish tones my family gained, etc. 

While I grew up in a Christian home, I didn't seek God until I became a mother and realized how much God had protected me; that even in the midst of the messiness and brokenness my life reflected, He loved me. He had been so kind to me throughout all of the years of my rebellion and when I FINALLY realized it, it was overwhelming. I still don't feel deserving of His love, but He gives it to me anyway and for that I will be FOREVER grateful. 

Anyway, I FINALLY discovered, who my worth lies in and where it comes from and that's our Lord! I hope that these next couple of posts reaffirm your worth and allow you to realize that the world doesn't determine it because the Lord did that before you were even thought of by any human being!  

***I refuse to call the man that raised me, and helped make me the woman I am today my step-dad, because I see it as an insult. However, to make it easier to understand the brief explanation of my childhood I've used the term here, very lightly because Neil is in fact my dad, daddy, father and always will be. 

- believers are God's children 

John 1:12 (NLT)

“but to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God.”

1 John 3:1 (NIV)

"See how very much our Father loves us, for He calls us His children, and that is what we are! . . . "

Galatians 3:26-29 (NIV)

"For you are all children (sons) of God through faith in Christ Jesus. And all who have been united with Christ in baptism have put on Christ, like putting on new clothes. There is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male and female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus. And now that you belong to Christ, you are the true children (seed) of Abraham. You are his heirs, and God's promise to Abraham belongs to you." (Genesis 12:3)

Ephesians 1:4-5 (MSG)

“How blessed is God! And what a blessing he is! He’s the Father of our Master, Jesus Christ, and takes us to the high places of blessing in Him. Long before He laid down earth’s foundations, He has us in mind, had settled on us as the focus of His love, to be made whole and holy by His love. Long, long ago he decided to adopt us into his family through Jesus Christ. . . “

Galatians 4:4-5 (NLT)

“but when the right time came, God sent His Son, born of a woman, subject to the law. God sent Him to buy freedom for us who were slaves to the law, so that He could adopt us as His very own children.”

- believers are God’s heirs

Romans 8:14-17 (NLT)

“For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call Him, Abba, Father.” For His Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God’s children. And since we are His children, we are His heirs. In fact, together with Christ we are heirs of God’s glory. But if we are to share His glory, we must also share His suffering.”

Galatians 4:6-7 (NLT)

“and because we are His children, God has sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, prompting us to call out, Abba, Father. Now you are no longer a slave but God’s own child. And since you are His child, God has made you His heir.”

- believers are a blessing from God

This section mainly talks to parents about who their children are in God’s eyes; however, we were all (or still are) our parents’ children and therefore should know and acknowledge that we are a gift to our parents from the Lord!

Psalms 127: 3 (NLT)

“Children are a gift from the Lord; they are a reward from Him.”

My prayer is that whatever identity issues you are struggling with currently that they are laid at the feet of Christ. Know that the thoughts of you feeling inadequate, unworthy, etc., are thoughts from the devil himself. He will forever try and guide you away from knowing your true value, which is in Christ Jesus, in order to keep you from your calling. Don’t let him!

Jesus loves you so much, so much so that He created you uniquely, fearfully, and wonderfully.  

Waiting...

Since I rededicated my life to Christ I've struggled with this term. Especially, because I hear it more often than not. What does "waiting" mean?

Everyone can come up with a different definition, applicable to them and their situation.

It's really bigger than that.

Today I finally realized that truth. Each and every time I've grown tired of waiting [for a spouse, a better job, a better relationship with my mother, etc.] it's been because I tried to set my own timeline, my own standards of what "better" is, rather than fully trusting Him; rather than truly waiting and being still.

Waiting is really harder than Christian's make it seem; i've been "single" for over 9 years, "waiting" for the right one. But during those 9 years I was never truly still. I was never truly "waiting." I took it upon myself to date whom I wanted; wanting, hoping, they might be the one. While I waited, "patiently" I allowed myself to grow weary, to feel lonely and seek the company of men that God never indicated were for me. I allowed it because I didn't [don't] fully trust God. I allowed it because I wanted attention, affection, joy, etc.

I've waited for an apology from my mother, my entire life, why? I have no idea. I've waited for our relationship to get better, I've prayed, asked God to changer her, to change me, to change us; and while we are a work in progress, our relationship is not where I want it to be and I find myself still waiting.

This [long] season has definitely been filled with waiting, waiting for the exact things I listed above as reference. However, I urge you to STOP waiting. I believe that waiting may only bring hopelessness. Instead focus on your current situation. Live in the now.

I realize this might sound corny or redundant to some of you but remember that God calls us to "be STILL and know that He is God." I'm convinced that this is impossible if while we're being still we are also setting our own worldly expectations, of who, what, when, where and how God is going to provide the things we are so eagerly "waiting" for. I understand that we live in a world where they've convinced us to set goals and have expectations, they've also convinced us that we must be realistic. The reality is that our God is greater; greater than your expectations, greater than their expectations, greater than everything.

Sis, God's got your EVERY wish and desire in His hands [so long as they coincide with His plan for you] and He's going to release them to you when you're ready to receive them; but in order to be ready you have to be hidden in Him.

Be SO hidden in Him, that you exude the term "Christ-Like" in every way. I think if you look closely at Jesus' life you'll notice that He didn't wait to die, even though He knew it was coming.  He lived in the present, focused on what was given to Him in that moment. We must live like He lived. He wasn't worried about where His next meal was coming from, whether He'd be rich, or marry. If those things came, great and if they didn't, great. He lived every day, FOR HIS FATHER, doing the will of His father; and most importantly for US. Such selfless love.

I write this because waiting is obviously something that we will all struggle with, myself included. You are not alone.

Grace and peace, fam.

Melizza

Love

I used to LOVE, love! I was so in love with the mere thought of love that I didn't realize all I was missing out on. Until the one day I found GOD and truly committed my life to him and built a relationship with him and realized that ". . . God is Love."

"But anyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love."
-‭‭1 John‬ ‭4:8‬‬

Let that sink in.....

God. Is. Love. God not only reflects love, gives us love, shows us love, etc., he IS LOVE! His son on that cross was the greatest kind of sacrificial, selfless LOVE. He's everything (as ladies) we're taught to fall in love with! His love is GREATER THAN the Will & Jada love, GREATER THAN Jack and Rose type love, GREATER THAN the Notebook love, GREATER THAN the Fault In Our Stars, type love!

“For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life."
- ‭‭John‬ ‭3:16‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Quit loving love if you don't love God!!!!!! Romanticism is part of this worlds capitalism (just read about how much money florists and Ghirardelli make on V-day), be a woman/man after God! When you love God whole-heartedly everything else falls into place, including the "love" you're looking and longing for in a significant other, parent, friend, etc.

L O V E G O D!

Paul really did not care for anyone's approval. He didn't care who he was or what his past looked like, instead he used that for the good of the kingdom! He knew that the approval of the precious blood of Jesus Christ was all he needed to go forth and preach the gospel and "they praised God because of me." Don't let Satan use your past as a crutch to hold against you, to keep you from preaching the gospel and bringing people to God because you feel inadequate or unholy! The second you gave your life to Christ your life became a new one and praise God for your past because with it now you can relate to those you will be sharing the gospel with. 👑❤️️

God is Love - Reminder to those spewing hate toward Orlando

Hi all,

I know it's late but I saw this on my seven [7] year old's desk just now and God put it on my heart to reach out to y'all.

My thoughts and prayers are with every family member going through hardship and loss due to the tragic event that unfolded at Pulse in Orlando, FL on Saturday night. I am writing this blog because I see an endless amount of support stemming from this tragedy, but with that I also see SO much hate. It HURTS my soul to see it because I know who my God is and what he represents and at the end of the day whether we [Christians] agree with homosexuality or not, the one thing I simply cannot tolerate is the blatant disrespect and misrepresentation of who our God is.

As the picture above states, God IS L O V E. It says so in the very bible!!!! 

1 John 4:7-8 "Dear friends, let us continue to LOVE one another, for LOVE comes from GOD. Anyone who LOVES is a child of GOD and knows GOD. But anyone who does not LOVE, does not know GOD, for GOD IS LOVE" [emphasis added] 

God is the very definition of what LOVE is or most importantly what it should be, it's selfless, merciful, gracious, faithful, kind, etc. it is NOT the hate portrayed by the people in the media. I am tired of seeing post after post about what a "Christian" said and how hateful it was, those retweets and reposts are shameful to the Christian's who know what and who God really is!!! 

John 3:17 "God sent his son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him."

Know that what happened in Orlando was an act of hatred and it's something I could NEVER agree with or side with due to the simple fact that MY brothers and sisters [in Christ] were killed. Fifty [50] of them were murdered, fifty [50] souls were lost!!!! This is something I cannot take lightly. I grieve and mourn with their family members and stand with them not because of their gender or sexual orientation but because they're my FAMILY!! 

I'd like to leave you with one last thing...Chick-fil-A employees were at work in Orlando, Sunday

Can I be lighthearted really quickly? How many of y'all have truthfully craved Chick-fil-A on a Sunday???? I know I have!! They ARE NEVER open on a Sunday, yet somehow employees from a Chick-fil-A in the Orlando area managed to get to work and feed "those who waited several hours in line to donate blood in addition to the hundreds of law enforcement officials who responded to the shooting scene." Chick-fil-A is a Christian organization and they have been criticized for their views on homosexuality, however, they managed to put those views and feelings aside in order to help in a time when Orlando needed them the most [even if it happened to be on a Sunday] because THAT is what God's L O V E is!

Faith

Recently, I was listening to a song by Bri aka Briana Babineaux called "Love You Forever" and as I was singing and worshipping I was allowing the words to just really sit on my tongue. The chorus to this song says "I will love You forever, in the good and bad times, I will love You forever, even if it never gets better, I will love You forever." Now of course the first thing that came to mind was, would I actually love God FOREVER even if that means my life will NEVER get better???????

My flesh immediately doubted my love for Christ, because I thought how can I love someone who isn't going to EVER better my situation? So guess what the Holy Spirit convicted me into reading? You guessed it, Job. 

So for those of you who don't know who Job is let me summarize the story for you. Job was basically one of the richest men of his time, he owned thousands of animals (sheep, goats, camels, etc.), he had a large family, many servants, and most important of all he loved God with every inch of his body. The sneaky devil wasn’t happy with this so of course, he went to God and told him that he knew that Job wouldn't love God as much as he did, if what he had was taken from him (yoooo the devil is a lie man). Anyway, God accepted the FIRST challenge and allowed satan to take Job’s wealth and children. After hearing that he had lost everything listen to what Job says:

“He said, ‘I came naked from my mother’s womb, and I will be naked when I leave. The Lord gave me what I had and the Lord has taken it away. Praise the name of the Lord!’” Job 1:21 NLT

Come on Job, are you really telling me that you just lost EVERYTHING and instead of cursing the Lord you’re praising Him? This can’t be real.

The SECOND challenge came right after, satan couldn’t be happy with Job’s praise, and so of course he told God take his health and I bet he’ll curse you then. God accepted the SECOND challenge allowing satan to do anything but take Job’s life. This is where it gets interesting, because Job literally went from having EVERYTHING to having NOTHING. He wasn’t even healthy enough to enjoy nothingness. On top of the pain from the loss of his wealth and children he had boils all over his body. Could you imagine the pain he was in, internally and externally? Even Job’s wife thought he was a fool, but Job responded with this:

“‘You talk like a foolish woman. Should we accept only good things from the hand of God and never anything bad?’” Job 2:10 NLT

Job finally sounds defeated, but even in that state of mind he NEVER curses God. Instead Job curses the day he was born, because in his mind he’d rather he was never born than fathom the thought of being forsaken by God. Then here come his so called “friends” and tell him, dude why are you complaining? It’s your fault this is happening just repent of whatever sin you’ve caused and everything will be good again, he’s looking at them like I haven’t done anything what are you talking about!? This part sticks out to me because I believe we’re all so quick to judge people and always think we have all of the answers when the truth of the matter is we don’t know squat about what’s really going on in that person’s life. 

What we must realize is that we may never have complete answers for whats going on in our lives because we never really know what God has planned. See our issues are that we have MAN size faith and a MAN size mentality therefore when we play out scenarios and possible outcomes in our minds they either don't make sense or they’re smaller than what God has planned for you. 

“Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell me, if you know so much. Who determined its dimensions and stretched out the surveying line? What supports its foundations, and who laid its cornerstone as the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for joy? Who keeps the sea inside its boundaries as it burst from the womb, and as I clothed it with clouds and wrapped it in thick darkness? . . .” Job 38:4-9 NLT

See what I mean, God at this point challenged Job and said, yo who created this entire world? Have you ever looked at the entire world in straight up AWE, the Lord created EVERYTHING on this thing called earth, could you have ever thought to create something so marvelous? No. Why? because we’re only human. God is justice, he is grace, love, mercy, he is everything we could never be, because of this we have to understand that whatever happens in life, good or bad, is fair even if we don’t understand the reasoning behind it. Our response should be simply to appeal to God. 

In the final chapter of Job, God restores him, but before that Job had to humble himself unto the Lord. The Lord challenged him in every way and still Job remained faithful; because of it the Lord blessed Job with even more than he had before including 7 more children and 140 years of life, enough to see four generations of his children and grandchildren. Job was a true testament of what FAITH is. Like if there’s a bible dictionary and you look up faith, the definition should be Job. 

So back to the song, will you, like Job, love God forever, even in the good and the bad? Really sit on that thought. Remain faithful through whatever season you’re going through and know that God has something so much bigger and better for you. If that means he has to remove people and things from your life, then let it be. God loves you so much, He sent His son to die for you. His Son loves you so much, He came in human form KNOWING He was going to die, only so that we could live. 

“Give your burdens to the Lord, and he will take care of you. He will not permit the godly to slip and fall.” Psalm 55:22 NLT

“We may through the dice, but the Lord determines how they fall.” Proverbs 16:33 NLT

Takeaways:

1. Job is the true definition of FAITH
2. satan had to seek permission from God to inflict pain on Job
3. Suffering isn’t always a direct result of personal sin.
4. Friends may give you advice, take it with a grain of salt and bring the advice and your worries before the Lord. He should be your only true counsel.
5. Stay read up and prayed up.

Love you all!

xoxo 

Mel

Our Hearts Are Yours - Intro

Family

Thank you for taking the time to click on the link and making your way to my page. I honestly never thought I'd be a blogger, I don't even like to write too much, I'd much rather READ, I am only being obedient in Christ and allowing him to speak. I whole heartedly pray that this blog will help you get through whatever season of grace you're going through. I am here only to speak God's truth and let the Holy Spirit do work in each and every one of us.

I love love love y'all!

xoxo

Mel