As You Go

1. The Word
The other day, I was struggling with thoughts of insecurity. A negative thought entered into my head. And I believed that lie. Pretty soon, I couldn’t think about anything else. I thought everyone was judging me and thinking badly of me. I kept asking God to take away my negative thoughts and to give me peace. For a couple of days, I was stuck in my negative thoughts.
I finally sat down with my Bible and decided to start reading until God spoke to me through his scripture. I read for a while until I got to Matthew 5:15, which says not to put a light under a basket but to place it on a stand for everyone to see. In the moment, that verse came alive to me. It pierced me right in the heart. I knew that God was speaking to me. The reason why I was struggling was because I had preached at church and was worried I hadn’t said the right thing. When I got that word in my Bible, all of my negative thoughts broke, and all I cared about was that God was proud I had shined my light.
How about we treat the Bible as though it is actually God’s Word, ready to speak into our lives? Hebrews 4:12 says that the Word of God is alive and active. Many people treat the Bible like a nice history lesson instead of praying that God illuminate his words to speak straight to the heart. I like to sit down with a pen, waiting to underline and note what part of the reading is speaking to me. I’ll pray ahead of time for the Holy Spirit to encounter me as I read. I pray for God to speak to me through the Word.
When I first started growing as a Christian, I would just read a short devotional and the verse that went with it and then call it good while checking it off my list. That’s okay, but if you see the Bible as God’s actual Word, then you will be hungry for more. You will treat it as real food for your soul, which you can’t get enough of. So why not keep reading? Read until that verse stands out to you. The more you eat, the more you grow. Ask God for passion for his Word. Nothing brings more freedom than God’s Word spoken straight to your heart.

Father, I pray that your Word would come alive to me. I pray that you would give me a passion and desire to read the Bible. I thank you that it is alive, and I pray that the words will pop off the page for me. Help me to grow, to be strengthened, and to live a life of freedom. I pray that I will be able to hear clearly what you have for me. I thank you that your word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path. Amen.


2. Message to the Daughters
I was walking out the door this morning, juggling my coffee and my ultra-wiggly dog, and trying to put on a hooded coat. My hair was extra frizzy because there was no time to straighten it before school drop-off. I found a hood to squish down my afro and started walking down my stairs with half my hair contained and the rest bulging around my hood like a lion’s mane. As I was walking down the stairs, there was a girl walking down the street who stopped and took a picture of me when she saw me. I laughed inwardly at the thought that I must look pretty ridiculous.
I then I thought about a problem with social media that I never realized before. The girls must feel like they always have to look put together—hair and makeup done—because you never know when someone is going to take a picture of you. These kids are constantly taking pictures of everyone and everything. So you never know when you are going to be the star of their social media story. No more sweatpants and roll-out-of-bed days; every day you are a movie star. I just laughed this off, but it made me wonder how it might affect others who have zero self-confidence.
I had already noticed a lot of the other problems. One of the biggest issues I noticed was that every day the kids were continually taking pictures of their day and posting it to a story for all to see. If they were at a sleepover, then everyone knew it. And if you weren’t invited, you definitely knew it. I’m sure there is a constant battle in young girls’ heads saying, Why is their life so much better than mine? Why was I not invited? Do I even have friends? When I was a kid, and I was completely ditched—I didn’t know about it because it wasn’t shoved in my face.
I know that many other problems come with the social media craze. I know they are now comparing themselves with others enough to cause depression and much deeper emotional issues. This breaks my heart. The kids are looking for satisfaction in other people’s praises, such as the number of likes they get and the uplifting comments.
So I’m not looking to get rid of it. I’m not wanting to change it. I just want the daughters of this world to know this ….

You are beautiful. You are unique. You don’t need to be someone that you are not. You need to marry a boy who is obsessed with you. If you feel as if you need to send him nude pictures or he may break up with you, he is not the person for you. If he says that he will break up with you if you don’t sleep with him, he is not the one for you.
The person you choose had better treat you like a princess. You cannot settle with a loser guy because you are afraid of being alone. Believe me, it is better being alone than being with “that” guy. You should have sweatpants and afro hair days. You don’t always have to look social media ready. If you have a pimple, go to school anyway. If you are hurting, talk about it. Don’t ever cut yourself, it just makes the pain worse. And don’t ever listen to that voice that says, “Kill yourself; it will make everything better.” It’s a lie.
If it hurts you to look at someone’s story because you will feel left out, then don’t look at it. Unfollow such people. If there are people who cause you to make bad choices, don’t follow them. Learn self-control. Don’t become that person who has no life outside of social media and just becomes a vegetable on the couch. Exercise, daydream, go for a walk, be bored, get together with friends, and put your phone down. Don’t judge people; it’s just not nice. “Do to others what you would have them to do to you” (Luke 6:31). And lastly, you are so very loved—so, so much. God made you so special that you don’t need other people to tell you so; just know it!

Father help us navigate this generation of social media. I pray you will protect children from low self-esteem and rejection. I pray you will give parents wisdom in navigating this new world of parenting and social media. I pray you will encounter our kids and help them have their own relationship with you. Father, we dedicate our children to you, and we pray you will use them to do mighty things on this earth and that they will lay every distraction aside. Thank you for your faithfulness. Amen.