Post #39 - Why You Lose

I recently heard someone say that God gives and God takes away. This is true, but sometimes we are blaming God for something He did not do. Sometimes, we are the causes of our own loss. 

God may ALLOW the loss to happen. But it is often our pride, arrogance, selfishness, and stubbornness that is the culprit. It is our emotional state that causes us to lose. 

We hear that still, small voice of God telling us the right thing to do, the right way to go, and the right thing to say. But, we let our feelings override Him and we act according to our emotions anyways.

We know that we should not do or say a certain thing, but we do or say it anyways out of anger and spite - out of the emotion of the moment. 

We promise to never hurt the one we love, but they end up getting hurt because we react in our anger. Or we allow our loneliness and vulnerability to drive us to a place where we should not be. 

Many of us lack self control and we lose what we love, not because God took it, but because we failed to control ourselves and pushed what we loved away. 

Too many times we blame God, or even the devil, for our losses and the situations we get ourselves into. When it's ourselves that we need to blame. 

It's convenient to blame someone else for what we're going through or what we've lost. But, ultimately, we've got to take a hard look in the mirror. We've got to take responsibility for ourselves and our own actions. 

And until we take responsibility, we're going to keep finding ourselves lost... and without that which we love the most. 

Post #38 - Leveraging Your Past

We've heard it said that we have to let go of our past in order to move forward. I agree with that... to an extent.

We can let the events of our past hold us or help us.

When we allow ourselves to see only the negatives of the past and we let them 

turn into bitterness and resentment, we are letting the past hold us. We are letting it keep us from the blessings of the future and the fulfillment we could be experiencing if we had used our pasts correctly. 

However, when we learn from our past experiences and let them show us what we are lacking or what we need to change, we leverage our pasts and use them for our good. 

We can take the positive things about our past selves, or the things we learned in our past and use them to complete who we are today. 

For example, when I was a young adult, I was confident and laid back mixed with a bit of arrogance and anger. 

I can take my confident coolness and combine it with my growing spirituality to be a well rounded person - confident in my abilities, trusting in God for all that I need, and worried about nothing. 

Of course, I would leave the arrogance and anger in the past.

We can learn from our past to help us move forward. 

We can take the lessons we learned from our failures and use them to help us succeed in the next attempt. We can take the skills we picked up along the way and use them to help us perform better. We just have to remember to seek out the positives - the silver linings - in each situation.

We have to remember to let go of the hurtful things from our past and not let them wound our spirits. 

This will allow us to love again after being hurt. To try again after closing that business. And to live again after losing someone we loved. 

Yes, we should let go of the past... let go of the things that don't serve us and keep us bound and scared to move forward. 

But we should leverage those things of the past that can help us to be stronger today and in the future. We can learn from them and use them to make us complete. 

With wisdom, we can use our past. Use it to help us have a better tomorrow. 

Post #37 - The Aftermath

I was doing some cleaning the other day and found myself in deep thought. I was thinking about my situation and the things I have been enduring.

I found myself complaining... to myself. Complaining about what I don't have, what I've gone through recently, about being misunderstood, about love and loss.

I found myself listing them and thinking deeply on them. I made a mental note (out loud) of all the things that need to be fixed in my life. Everything that has been going wrong.

Then, I caught myself. What was I doing??!

I was so focused on the problems that I forgot that they were already solved. God has already worked them out in my favor!

I had to change my focus and what I allowed myself to concentrate on.

Instead of thinking about the problems, I began to think about the promises that God had made me. The promise that I don't have to worry, because what I was concerned about is already done.

So, I immediately changed my focus. And I started thinking about all the amazing things God had already done for me, as well as those things He has promised.

I started thinking about the aftermath. And I started PRAISING GOD for it.

For those things that are about to happen... all the blessings AFTER the struggle. AFTER the trouble.

What I know for a fact is that what I am dealing with right now will not last forever. Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning.

What I know is that I won't have to look forward to these hard times for long.

God has made me promises of deliverance and prosperity. He has prophesied freedom and victory!

So, instead of focusing on the bigness of my problems, I am choosing to focus on my God, who is BIGGER THAN MY PROBLEMS.

He has already set forth a plan that has me living the life of my dreams. A life of freedom, wealth, faith, happiness, obedience, and purpose.

I can see it in the distance.

So, I'm no longer complaining about my problems...

I'M PRAISING GOD FOR THE AFTERMATH.


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Until tomorrow.... -Erika!

Post #36 - Happy Veterans Day!! 🇺🇸🎂🥂

Happy Veterans Day to all who have served and Happy birthday to my beloved Marine Corps!

Every day I feel proud to be a Marine and a part of such a coveted brother and sisterhood. 

My years in the Marine Corps were some of the most outstanding years of my life. Everything was not perfect and I definitely had my complaints (and my fair share of trouble) but it was an amazing and exciting time. 

My time in the Marine Corps molded and shaped me in ways that still shine through today. I still say words like scuttlebutt and side straddle hops. I still share stories of my experiences. And I still eat like it's the first meal I have had in months! 

I still strive to hold on to the discipline, leadership skills, and work ethic that I learned and valued so highly. 

And that invincible, killer spirit still comes out of me from time to time.

I often regret not making the Marines my career. There were many things I wanted to do and many countries I wanted to visit. 

I've seen my peers' successful careers and subsequent retirements, and it reminded me of what I could have had. What could have been...

I guess it just wasn't meant to be for me. But I am still proud to have served. And I still love my beloved Corps! 

Post #35 - Fearless!! (Poem)

Fear used to have a hold on me; it slipped up and lost its grip! 

Post # 34 - A Little About Me

In an attempt to shake things up a little, I want to tell you a bit about myself. The problem is, I have no idea what to tell you. 

So, to help us get too now each other better, I want you to ask me whatever you might want to know about me. 

I will answer as many questions as I can and will be as open and transparent with my answers as possible (within reason). 

All I ask is that everyone stays positive and respectful. 

I will start by sharing that my favorite color is red and my sign is Aries.

Red definitely matches my personality. And though I'm not into astrology, everything I've read about an Aries pretty much matches me as well. I am fun and fiery once I get to know you and feel completely comfortable around you. I am also very determined and can be quite aggressive when I need to be. 

Is there anything else you want to know about me? Ask me down in the comments and I will answer. And if your question requires an extensive response, I will dedicate an entire post to you and your question. 

Yay! I'm excited!

Thank you for following me and I look forward to your questions. 

Reading other posts in this blog will help you get to know more about me and what I am passionate about. To read more, click here! 

Post #33 - You Still On That??

I have a question... 

How long are you going to hang on to that?? How long are you going to let it take over your life?

Some people don't know how to handle hard times. They don't know how to cope with life's difficulties. And when something happens, no matter how small, they fall apart.

To some, hard times could just be a petty argument, a disappointment, or an innocent mistake. These people are unable to see those things for what they are and they totally take them to heart. 

They treat small infractions as if they are tragedies and they just can't seem to get past them. They allow these issues to ruin relationships and cause divisions. 

Why?? 

Are we really that weak of mind and spirit that we can't let small things go and move forward with our lives? 

What if something REALLY tragic happens?

How are we EVER going to cope with the real tragedies of life if we can't handle small arguments and disappointments? How can we face our real trials if we fall apart when someone disagrees with us? Or when things don't go the way we want or expect them to?

We've got to grow up and get a backbone!

We've got to build some spiritual fortitude to know that we can endure anything that comes our way. To know that the weapons that are formed against us will NOT prosper! 

How will we ever have successful relationships and marriages if we fall apart every time we have an argument? To be successful, we have to forgive, let it go, and move forward. 

Only those who are weak and immature hold on to small infractions and treat them like mountains. 

Only the weak hold grudges and treat people they love like enemies. 

Those of us who are strong in will and mind see life for what it really is - a series of ups and downs that are meant to strengthen and refine us. 

We take responsibility for ourselves instead of constantly pointing fingers at others. We own up to our mistakes and we apologize for them. We forgive those who have hurt us. 

We make amends and we proceed with our lives - the little bit of time we have been given to spend with those we love.

So, how long are you going to hold on to it? When are you going to let it go? 

Because you're missing out on life and love while dwelling in your pettiness and self pity.

And you're only hurting yourself.