Browsing tag: trust

  • July 30, 2020

    RISE UP!

    July 30th is such a special day is my sister in Law’s bday a special women of God that has been a blessing to my family.

    It is also the World Day Against Sex Trafficking but… did you see it on google? I mean, every time I search for something there is a sign with a national day reminder, donut day, hot dog day and other none relevant national days but something as REAL and CLEAR as sex trafficking was not even mentioned and that is just one quick example that I kept on thinking about today as I meditated on this truth. KIDS ARE BEING SOLD AND ABUSED, PEOPLE ARE PAYING FOR THEM AND ABUSING THEM.

    1 out of 5 pornographic images is of a child, pornography is a 3 BILLION dollar industry and THE U.S. is the #1 both consumer and producer of child pornography and why is this not being shared EVERYDAY in the news?

    Ask yourself and please research why.

    It breaks my heart, I get a knot in my stomach and Gosh! I feel so impotent because this is happening everyday at every hour and in every state. Honestly this is a real pandemic, a big elephant in the room that very few are willing to speak about.

    I am a mom, a Kid’s and youth Pastor and I feel responsible to speak about this subject, why? because research shows that 34% of children ages 10 to 17 have received unwanted exposure to sexual material in their own homes! and in 82% of online sex crimes, the offender used the victims social networking site to gain information about the victims and their whereabouts at specific times.

    kids are being groomed and exposed to pornography and the predators inside our own homes, with our own electronic devices and the wi-fi we pay for.

    Parents, Leaders, Adults: We need to do something, we cannot stay quiet scrolling to social media posts and documentaries while our kids are being abandoned in their own electronic devices while being entertained by the media, YouTube videos and online games that based in all of those documentaries are proven to be the #1 method predators are using today to hurt our children.

    This is real and it can happen in our homes. KIDS ARE BEING EXPOSED and in some cases the first image, a video or conversation happened through the internet while searching for something or an unsupervised online game.

    WE NEED TO WAKE UP!

    Little lives (including my own) are today depending on a voice to raise up, speak up, search for ways to speak the truth to our own kids and create change in the circle of influence that we have.

    It is not a coincidence that about 3 months ago I read the book of Elizabeth Smart . I came across an interview she did where she explained that she was kidnapped from her own home, her parents were sleeping, she was in her room with her sister and her kidnappers took her from her own home and was held captive for 9 months.  I couldn’t help but buy the book that same day and read it in a week. (It is worth the read)  Her story opened my eyes to Pedophilia which is a disorder as the DSM 5 defines it and studies show that an estimated 20 percent of American children have been sexually molested, making pedophilia a common paraphilia (Abnormal sexual desires) and the  offenders are usually family friends or relatives.

    PEDOPHILIA IS NOT A SEXUAL ORIENTATION and the offenders need to be held accountable.

    Let’s stop pretending that sexual exploitation is happening rarely or that it doesn’t exist at all. Let’s commit and use our voices AT HOME and in our circle of influence to raise up, open our eyes, ask uncomfortable questions, speak up if you see anything inappropriate and get informed.

    Here is a video https://youtu.be/YK3bcZMwQxU  I saw that was recorded on February of this year, their stories wrecked me and the reality is that it can be someone we know! Please do me a favor and watch it until the end; their stories are extraordinary.

    Lastly take all of this to God and ask him for clear instructions. SEX TRAFFICKING should matter to all of us and I pray God uses you to bring awareness and make the difference in your circle.

    Here are some accounts on IG that I am following for information and support:

    @ourrescue , @A21, @enditmovement, @Fightthenewdrug

    Parents, Leaders and Adults: It is time to RAISE UP!

    -Stephany

     

     

  • July 15, 2020

    Today is a good day to start over!

    Nothing better than a slow morning! I cannot believe I am writing it with so much joy and excitement.  I was addicted to rush, busyness and efficency and a “slow morning” was not an option in my mind but today I can truly say that I love my slow in solitude mornings!

    That is why everyday a Holiday has changed my life forever it has become a daily practice, a lifestyle that has allowed me to enjoy my days and live one day at a time. Is it easy? NO!!! But I am committed to make it a DAILY PRACTICE and that is exactly what I want to share with you.

    We are surrounded by information, anything we want to know is literally at the palm of our hands but let’s be honest if we measure the amount of information vs. what we put into practice, we can all agree in one reality: We lack Action! I have been meditating about this and Mathew 7:24 came to my mind “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice”

    What are you putting to practice?

    The reality is that the tie between information and action has been severed. Neil Postman said: “Information is now a commodity that can be bought and sold, or used as a form of entertainment, or worn like a garment to enhance one’s status. It comes indiscriminately, directed at no one in particular, disconnected from usefulness; we are glutted with information, drowning in information, have no control over it, don’t know what to do with it.”

    I have learned, that God’s mercies are renewed every morning which means that everyday we can start over. Less information more practice, Less talking and more doing, less sharing on social media and more talking to God.

    Start small.  (I’ll share some of mine but I encourage you to make your own list)

    • Look up, look at, look in.
    • Listen, absorb, ask questions.
    • Pay attention, take time to see and appreciate the people in front of you.
    • Choose to be present, breath in and out, appreciate what is around you.
    • Forgive, accept and dream, dream big.

    Despite everything that is going on around us, we can choose what we practice and those practices will influence our lives in a dramatic way!

    Today is a beautiful opportunity to start over, to start re-building our daily practices and not allow the amount of information paralyzed and accustomed us to live by default.  What have you been reading or learning lately?

    Put it into practice!  Today is a good day as any to begin again.

    Stephany

  • October 8, 2018

    The beauty of changes in seasons

    The month of October is a very special month, not only is the month of cancer awareness, but is also the anniversary of a woman I love and admired deeply.

    Irene was a women of faith that lived what she preached, loved unconditionally and served selflessly to anyone that will cross her path,  she had a heart of Gold and I am sure anyone can say that easily.

    There is no one better than one of her beautiful daughters to share her experience and honor her on this special day. She was a warrior, a beautiful women inside and out, she left a Legacy and She will  live in our hearts and minds forever!

    God is going to speak to you!  Enjoy.

     

     

    There are months or seasons in the year that one looks forward to and prepares for with anticipation. Personally, I think Christmas is the best time of the year and I bet for many others as well. When November 1st comes around, my Christmas tree will be up and running (say Amen, if you’re with me). For others, it may be Spring or Summer where the changes in temperature, scenery, and seasons start transitioning and coming to life. Oh, the beauty of the changes in seasons!

    When thinking about the changes in seasons, October has somewhat of a different effect on me compared to what I described above. Many emotions, thoughts, and memories surface at a heightened level every year. Many good and others not so great. October 7th, 2015 was the day that changed everything for me when my beloved mother was called to our promised heavenly home. After fervent prayers, three surgeries, many rounds of chemotherapy, radiation sessions, countless hospitalizations, sleepless nights, inexplicable pain, and eventually the inability to walk or eat, she was called to rest in peace.

    For those of you who didn’t get the privilege to meet my mom Irene, you would have loved this amazing human being. Just so you have an idea: she was the friend who would fill your refrigerator when you didn’t have money for groceries; she was the woman who would put her kids to sleep in the same room for months at a time to open up a room for someone in need; she was the daughter who would call her parents consistently and honor them with actions and words despite whatever happened in the past; she was the mother who was not always present, but when she was, she was intentional; she was the wife who supported, motivated, and complemented my dad; she was the sister who knitted the family together and who was a best friend to each sibling; she was an exceptional servant of the Lord and of others no matter the request; she was the patient who when asked by doctors or friends how she was feeling, she would say “I’m doing well thank God”; and one of the most memorable qualities was her great sense of humor that made everyone chuckle with her sayings, imitations of people, and different accents. She would seriously make me laugh even when she was mad and venting with me. Writing all this makes me miss her even more.

    Despite the belief of seeing our loved ones again in Heaven, as we go through these moments of loss, people are often quick to respond with “everything happens for a reason” or “it’s the Lord’s will.” The fact of the matter is that loss IS loss, and not one person experiencing this cares for the reason why their loved one has been taken. They only care that the person they are losing, is not going to physically be there on birthdays, holidays, in life’s celebratory moments, on family vacations, or be a phone call away. Singing “Holy, Holy is our God almighty” is not always going to make things feel better in those times, and that IS ok because grief is a real thing and the Lord is walking us through it – even though it may not feel like it at the moment. There is a season for everything as we have learned through Ecclesiastes 3: 1-8 (ESV), and we must learn how to navigate each and every one of those seasons.

    Before my mom’s passing, I firmly believed and declared my mom’s miracle was around the corner while praying tirelessly for victory over the cancer that was in her body. Little did I know, there would be a shift in me that led to a spiritual dry season after she was called home. The unanswered questions, anger, frustration, feelings of betrayal, and doubts that I experienced were constantly battling with my rooted faith in Christ. I would ask: “Why did a woman of God like my mom have to go through all this pain and suffering?”, “Lord, if by your stripes we are healed, why didn’t you heal my mom who had so much faith and love for you?”, and last “Why my mom Lord?” These are all questions that come to mind at times, yet, as time passes the Lord continues to work and bring about healing. People say that things will get easier, but, that is not necessarily true. The Lord equips us to better handle living life without our loved ones as He begins replacing negative memories that tend to overwhelm our minds, with happy moments we had before the illness struck or the loss occurred. One of these beautiful memories include me taking road trips with her to Tampa to see family and go outlet-shopping (a mother-daughter tradition I didn’t know we had until now).

    In the past few weeks I have been reading the books of Timothy where we see how Paul was facing imminent death. All the while, Paul was preparing the terrain, encouraging, and affirming Timothy to carry on the ministry and faithfully guard the gospel Jesus left. The words legacy, contentment, and gratitude kept popping up as I meditated and prayed in my quiet times with God. In 2 Timothy 1:5, after Paul opens his letter with a greeting to Timothy, he writes: “I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, dwells in you as well.”(ESV) This simple verse that may not have meant anything to me four or five years ago, meant the world to me and broke me down into tears. The Lord was revealing to me the power a legacy has in transcending, impacting, and influencing future generations. He was reminding me that just as Jesus left a legacy for Paul to follow and pass along to Timothy, my mother also left a legacy that inevitably dwells in me for me to continue living and sharing with others. The legacy my mom left of loving your neighbor, honoring your parents, being a virtuous woman, forgiving others, being grateful, and being joyful are all ones that I saw and experienced firsthand while growing up. He then led me back to 1 Timothy 6:6-7 where Paul wrote: “But godliness with contentment is great gain, 7 for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world.”(ESV)  I was once again reminded that:

    legacy is not just the inheritance of material things, but most importantly, the impact they left on this earth and passed along to us so that we may continue the deed.

    All this to say, although we will each enter, come across, and journey through different seasons in life, every season is an opportunity for us to be refined in order to ultimately glorify our Father and become more like Christ. Whatever the legacy you’re left with (good or bad), remember that God gives us the option to transform it, improve it, and/or carry it along.

    Oh, the beauty of the changes in seasons!

    Joann Jackson

     

  • June 8, 2018

    I did it! Finally…

    Wow you finally did it! Yes, lately a lot of my close friends have said this to me! and yes, I finally did it… but what did I do? You might ask… well, I finally dare to share my thoughts and expose them for anyone to read… see, I love to read and write, and I have lots of diaries filled with thoughts, tears, crazy stories and testimonies but every time someone will suggest me to put it in a blog my answer was always No way! That’s way to personal… but deep inside I knew that it was deeper than that, and If you read my first blog entry then you can understand why.

    This might not be relevant for you, but for me someone who deals with perfectionism; there was never an appropriate time, a good enough picture to reflect what I meant to say or a perfect day to do this, and just like that, 5 years passed…  5 years since I wrote my first blog but it was never published, why? Because I am me… ha! And the ones that know me might be giggling right now… because without the Holy Spirit I am a control freak, A doer, a driven and type A personality kind of girl… and no, I am not proud of it, this has actually cause me a lot of tears and learning lessons. The thing with me is that if I don’t feel like is the appropriate time, the right day or the right season to do it, I just don’t do, say, or act… and like I mentioned above dealing with perfectionism and activism made me believe that it was never the right time, that everything and everyone had to be 100%  to make it happen, and that is such a big lie that freezes you! Just like fear, perfectionism has the same power it elevates you in some areas but freezes you in others!

    oh, so is this the right time you might ask? No, maybe not lol but what I’ve learned on this journey of “letting go & letting God” Is not about finding an appropriate time but being obedient to Gods time and just act upon it and walk by faith.

    I am so thankful for this season, what I’ve learn about my self and God has been the propeller to everything that is coming.

    If there is anything I have learned, and I have been impacted by is that God is a God of seasons and we must be smart to quiet our noisy minds, identify our season, accept it and jump, sometimes with fear and doubt other times with confidence, but with an obedient heart. When you hear Gods voice you need to jump! Obedience is an act of faith and if you believe him you need to act!

    I don’t know if there are undone areas in your life where God today is telling you go! And your mind tells you no, not yet… it might be insignificant for others but huge for you like learning to dance, learn a new language, exercise, start a business, start a family, quit, change majors, buy a plane ticket, write a book… I don’t know what it is but today on the other side of just “waiting for the perfect time” to do it and actually doing it, I can tell you, It feels so good!

    God has given you the capability, the talent but most important a dream that beats inside of you, so dare to act.  But first believe that the God you believe in, has believed in you all along. He knows the desires of you heart and when you delight in him and do everything for his glory He will give you what you desire.

    What are you doing today on the other side of you comfort zone? it might not be perfectionism, it might be fear or procrastination what ever it is deal with it, ask for help but don’t give up!

    What is it that you need to do or act upon that you left sitting in the back of your mind and heart? Quiet your mind and listen to God’s voice saying: what are you waiting for?… do it! …. Nope no buts, just do it!  😊 You can do it!