Tried Already…

I don’t know about you, but this has been a common theme in my life. If I can’t figure out how to accomplish something, I just avoid it.

Whether it be organizing something that I don’t quite understand how or whether it be a life situation, if I know I should do it, but don’t know how… I feel like I just can’t.

Anyone Else?

One good example of this is reading my Bible consistently.

Do you feel like that comes easy for you? Or do you struggle beyond reading a few verses here & there (if any)?

If you know my testimony, found HERE, you know I accepted Jesus’ grace when I was a child… & YET, I could never seem to be consistent reading my Bible beyond a few weeks or so of motivation.

Soo Many Reasons (AKA Obstacles)

It wasn’t that I didn’t care, it just seemed either boring, unrelatable, or that the many of life’s obstacles seemed to keep me from getting into it long-term.

Once I realized how much I could really gain from reading the Bible: eternal perspective, God’s Truths, hope, relatable stories of others failing or seeing how God came through for them, “boring & unrelatable” were no longer my opinion of Bible reading, & YET, it still seemed almost impossible to be consistent.

“I Promise I Love God, But…”

I often felt like I had to make excuses for it or defend how I loved God because it made me feel like either a bad Christian or a failure of one. I had tried COUNTLESS times to get into it & would always seem to be overwhelmed by an onslaught of obstacles that always got in the way.

I sort of kept that detail (of not reading my Bible regularly) on the downlow so no one would think poorly of me or doubt my salvation &/or love of God.

It was embarrassing & riddled me with guilt.

But I just could NOT seem to keep up with it.

SO MANY Obstacles!

Whenever I made effort, the obstacles seemed to overcome me instantly.

Either I would get sick, have a headache, forget, get distracted, be exhausted, feel stubborn/rebellious, or just flat out not do it.

Trying to read my Bible daily seemed like trying to run up a snowy/slick hill. I might make it up a bit, but then I would slide all the way back to the beginning.

It made me stop trying after a while, thinking I am just not good at it.

MAJOR Perspective Shift in Knowing God Can Help

But then I read Andrew Murray’s collection of writings on Prayer.

One thing he thoroughly emphasized is how the current church culture is training people to be burnt out, exhausted, & full of shame at not feeling like a good enough Christian.

The ingredient he stressed is missing from our training is the key to everything we’re missing in this equation: God’s help.

The Lie: If Christian, We Should Just Be Able to Do It on Our Own

I feel like oftentimes, it is sort of an understood lie that if we are Christian, therefore having God’s power to help us, that means we should automatically succeed at everything we try. Therefore, it is often thought that if we are NOT succeeding, we must not be believing hard enough or are maybe not a good enough Christian.

WRONG.

The Truth: We Need to Draw from Him in Order to Succeed

The truth is that if we are Christian, we have been forgiven & are allowed ACCESS to God’s power, but we must go to Him & draw from Him to receive it! And I don’t mean, read your Bible enough & prove your sincerity & then you can have it… NO. I mean ASK HIM FOR HELP.

We are allowed to ASK GOD FOR HELP in obeying Him & honoring Him with our lives!!

In fact, not only are we ALLOWED to ask Him for help, we SHOULD be asking for His help.

He Is the VINE… We Are Just Branches

He. Is. Our. VINE.

We are mere branches & without drawing FROM HIM, we are just a dead stick on the ground.

So, ask Him.

Ask Him to help you have courage. Ask Him to give you wisdom. Ask Him for help in setting aside time for Him. Ask Him for focus. Ask Him for clarity. Ask Him for the willpower to do it!

Not As an Excuse to Not Act

And I don’t mean, “God, please help me with this & until I feel helped to my liking, I just won’t do it. I’ll go do what I would rather do right now until you do all the work for me.”

NO.

I mean, “God, I am [stubborn & hard-hearted, lazy, distracted, or tired], please give me [clarity, willpower, strength, courage, peace, etc.] to do this & knowing this honors You, I know You will help me & that in my own strength, I will fail a million times. So, I will stay here & keep asking & act on the knowledge & faith that You are capable of & will help me to obey & follow You. I need You AS I DO IT. Amen.”

Be willing to ACT on FAITH that HE is your solution… that if there is ANY way for you to be consistent & faithful, God can accomplish filling in where you lack.

Leaning in Where I Lack… (AKA Everything)

Doing this… leaning into Him when I want to quit or just don’t feel like it physically, mentally, emotionally, whatever… is the ONLY way I am able to be consistent in reading my Bible EVERY DAY for THREE YEARS now.

Taking This Truth to Other Excuses/”Failures”

And now, my challenge rests in improving personal time with Him, talking with Him, sharing my burdens with Him, asking for His help with trauma of my past & my hurts in the midst of emotions, telling Him everything I am so grateful to Him for, & coming to Him to intercede on behalf of others I care about.

My new challenge is trusting Him to help me pray more frequently, deeply, & meaningfully.

And the same rule applies. I need to trust God with help in it versus saying, “I’m just not very good at setting aside time for or focusing on prayer.”

I may not be good at it, but where I am limited, He is limitless.

Because He Can

It’s time we stop focusing on where we end & instead, start leaning into the One who has all we need to accomplish what He asks of us & all that honors Him & brings Him glory in this hurting world that needs Him so much.

He’s worth it!

Shine HOPE by asking for His help in how to do it, when to do it, & help in what you need in order to do it. He has all you need, Lovely!

Coming Next Week

Join me every Monday morning, EST, for more encouragement.

As God grows me, may it encourage you to seek Him & know Him & love Him more every day.

Share with friends & Subscribe by Joining My Tribe, so you never miss a week!

A Note from Michelle:

If you would like to hear more of my story, check out the “About Me” page. And if you would like to hear how I found my lasting source of HOPE, read the “Hope Is Found” page, on this site. I hope they are an encouragement to you! <3

Also, make sure to “Join My Tribe” by adding your email to the top bar & clicking “Join My Tribe”. This gains you access to an extra weekly dose of encouragement from me in your inbox, along with the link to each week’s new post! I can’t wait to do this journey together!!

Weekly Special Spotlight:

Each week, I feature an item that is changing lives for women around the world. These hand-crafted pieces are offering job creation opportunities for women artisans in impoverished nations all around the world! Check out this week’s featured beauty!!

Restoring Hope Necklace

This versatile, reversible necklace features mother of pearl in hues of black on one side & off-white on the other, hanging from an antiqued brass chain.

Artisan Information:

In Asia, poverty leads many women to be sexually exploited in brothels. These women want to provide for their families but have so few options. But through your purchase, women are being rescued from these brothels & rehabilitated. Holistic care is given to these women, including a shelter, job training, healthcare, counseling, & educational grants for themselves & their children. You can help these women experience restoration for their future!

Purchase this piece & empower a woman in Asia!

SHOP Here, OR, Email me at michelle@michellehydeonline.com with any questions, & I will message you personally with more information!! Thank you for inspiring HOPE around the world, Lovely!

Saying All the Right Things

Growing up in a Christian home, I learned early how to speak faith, but it wasn’t until much later that I realized I didn’t really live like I believed what I was saying.

Have you ever felt that way?

It’s easy to repeat back what has been poured into us, but it’s a little more challenging to stop & put into practice those truths that we take for granted knowing all our lives.

Head Knowledge Vs. Taking Action

I can know with a head knowledge, the things of the Bible, but until I start asking God how I can live like they are true, I will not really benefit from knowing the truths I know.

You see, God’s Word is not meant to be used for us to just sound righteous… It is meant to show us how to LIVE righteously.

And to be clear, we are not meant to just do all of the “right” things, but to trust God & His Word so much that we are willing to live a life obedient to His Word.

Not with Eyeservice

God mentions this sort of thing in the Bible where it says, “not with eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but as bondservants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart, with goodwill doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men, knowing that whatever good anyone does, he will receive the same from the Lord, whether he is a slave or free.”

God doesn’t ask us to just look like good people on the outside.

He also doesn’t ask us to try to be good on our own, but as an outpouring of His goodness in our lives. We have to be actively trusting Him for Him to teach us & guide us in righteousness.

Not Natural, But Possible!

This of course does not come naturally to us. From birth, we feel the need to look out for ourselves & have life revolve around our needs. We may even feel cheated if life does not go our way. And sometimes we even feel panicked when life is out of our perceived control (hint, it’s never really in our control!)

Surrendering to God’s way is definitely not the easy way, but it is the best way.

The Best Way

And I don’t say this as a, “look what a great Christian I am to say that we should obviously believe God’s way is the best!” I am not even saying that because I always trust in it immediately above my own will/way.

No, I am saying His way is the best way because it simply is, whether we believe it or not.

I may not always understand it or want to obey it, but God is God & I am not.

His ways are higher than mine.

He Sees It ALL

We see the world in such a limited view, but He sees the vastness of time from beginning to end, how every piece fits together.

He sees the consequences of every mistaken or selfish choice & the ripples it creates.

He KNOWS.

I may THINK I know, but He KNOWS.

And because He knows, He knows that His way is best, whether we see it or not.

I Surrender All… One Piece at a Time

And the more of our life that we choose to surrender to His way, the more we see the benefits of trusting His way above our own.

One benefit of being a Christian is the opportunity to know God & to believe what He says.

But as I said, this isn’t a natural or instantaneous result of knowing Christ.

It comes with practice.

Every piece of our life that we choose to lay before His feet, exchanging our way for His, our eyes are opened to the beauty of His truth.

Don’t Just Talk the Talk, Learn to Trust & Live It

You see, it’s easy to talk like we believe & rehash things we learn, but until we start laying down our hearts & lives to doing & living out the truth of God’s Word, we will never see the benefits that come from trusting Him.

He doesn’t just want robots who blindly do whatever He says because He is God.

He doesn’t want slaves living a life of misery & subjection to Him as a harsh ruler.

He doesn’t aim to guilt or shame us into serving Him.

Rather, He calls us to a life of trust & action through His love for us. His fervent, lavish, never-ending love for us.

To Know & Love God MORE

Beth Moore stated in her study, “Breaking Free,” that one of the most life-changing things she has ever prayed regularly was that God help her to know & love Him more.

This is my prayer for us today, that we ask Him to teach us how to know & love Him more.

He doesn’t just want you to submit your life to Him because He has that right as King over all, but because you trust His love for you. You can obey because you can trust that His love for you is pure & His ways are good.

God IS love. It is not stated just as WHAT God does, to love us, but as a definition of WHO He is. He IS love.

That is how we can willingly surrender our all to Him & His ways, because we can trust His deep love for us.

Let His Love Wash Over Everything Else

So, take a moment to pause right now. Close your eyes. Take several slow, deep breaths in & out. And ask Him to teach you how to know & love Him more. Ask Him to help you see & trust His lavish love for you.

The more you know God, the more you will see His love for you, which will make your love for Him grow. And the more your love for Him grows, the more you will want to know Him.

Ask Him

Ask Him to help you to trust Him & to therefore obey Him out of your love for Him, because He first loved you.

If you don’t know how to live out your faith or how to live the commands that God asks in His Word, start by asking God to help you know & love Him more, because the more you know Him, the more you will love Him, leading to a willingness to give your all to His love.

Let His love rule your hearts & minds as you learn to trust & obey His truth.

Shine Hope. Live for His love. PRAY.

Coming Next Week

Make sure to check back next Monday morning EST for some more encouragement. Love you!

A Note from Michelle:

If you would like to hear more of my story, check out the “About Me” page. And if you would like to hear how I found my lasting source of HOPE, read the “Hope is Found” page, on this site. I hope they are an encouragement to you! <3

Also, make sure to “Join My Tribe” by adding your email to the top bar & clicking “Join My Tribe”. This gains you access to an extra weekly dose of encouragement from me in your inbox, along with the link to each week’s new post! I can’t wait to do this journey together!!

Weekly Special Spotlight:

Each week, I will feature an item that is changing lives. These pieces are offering job creation opportunities for women artisans in impoverished nations all around the world! Check out this week’s featured beauty!!

Northern Lights Studs

These studs hold labradorite stone, displaying multiple captivating colors that vary in different exposures to light, just like the Northern Lights themselves. Flash-plated posts.

Artisan Information:

The women we partner with in India do so much more than just create beautiful products. With every purchase, another woman is empowered out of poverty to be self-reliant & these women have the opportunity to earn an income, attend financial management classes, & receive education and healthcare. These women are now able to give their family a promising future because of your purchase!

Purchase this piece and empower a woman in India!

(*Also pictured: Jubilee Necklace & Jubilee Bracelet Set from Haiti!)

Shop Here, OR, Email me at michelle@michellehydeonline.com with any questions, & I will message you personally with more information!! Thank you for inspiring HOPE around the world, Lovely!