peace – Journey to Dominican

You Create the Atmosphere

Have you ever walked into someone’s home and immediately felt a sense of peace rush over you? It is like you are walking into someone else’s home, and yet you feel at home.

Do you know why this is? It is because the Holy Spirit is present in that home.

I have LOVED being a homemaker. I truly do enjoy cleaning and creating a safe place for my husband and anyone that walks through our front door. My desire is that our home would be the Lord’s dwelling place. That every evil thing that dares to enter ends up running in every direction because Jesus is the ultimate authority and His presence is so thick and evident in our house. I pray that our home is a place where the fruits of the spirit are produced and it is our overflow as we walk out the door each day on our way to work. And I pray that as we host and invite others into our place, that they would feel their burdens fall when they enter. That they would feel heard, seen, refreshed, and leave craving more of Jesus.

Do you know that we, women, have the honor and responsibility to cultivate a healthy environment in our homes? Women, do you know that we have spiritual authority in our homes? We are the ones who allow what comes into our homes-whether it is through what we watch, listen to, even our conversations-because the enemy is always looking for an open door.

You may be reading and you’re like, “uh, what exactly does this mean?” It means that you get to set the tone in your home and for everyone in it. I want to share with you an example.

Growing up, my family loved to have people over. My parents hosted a small church group, we had families over for meals, we invited people that maybe didn’t have families or a place to go into our home for holidays, we had bonfires in our backyard, pool parties, game nights, you name it. Even my stubborn teenage friends or my cool, college friends enjoyed coming over. Our door was always open to whoever, and everyone felt welcomed and loved in our home. Do you want to know why? It was because my momma is a mighty woman of God. She would pray in the middle of the night, early in the morning, afternoon, literally every hour. Some of my favorite memories of living with her are waking up to her worshiping or speaking in tongues while doing her hair, and other mornings when I would walk downstairs to find her fast asleep with her Bible open wide on her lap. She fought in prayer for us and for everyone that came into our home, and it made the difference.

I aspire to be like my momma Linda. As my husband and I think about starting our own family soon, I think about the habits that I want to form or even work on in order to create an atmosphere that ushers in the presence of God in my home. Here are some things that I am working on:

–Praying through my home more. Seriously, there is so much power in this. I take my anointing oil, lay my hands on things, and I pray in every room. I pray over the conversations that will happen at our dining table, the things that we watch or listen to and that the Lord would give us conviction and discernment on what we allow in our home. I pray over our room and that the Lord guards us from any temptation and is the glue in our marriage. I pray over our office and finances that we are good stewards and that we recognize that Jesus is always our source. I cover every room in prayer and plead the blood of Jesus over every entrance.

–Play worship in our home more. I do this when cooking, cleaning, any chance I get really! I especially like to do this when people are coming over. Which leads me to the next one!

–Praying in our home right before people come over. I pray over the individuals, whatever they may be wrestling with, and that they would feel the presence of Jesus in our home.

–Changing my attitude about house chores. Okay, I know I said I love cleaning, and I truly do. However, there are times when the piles of laundry seem endless, and I want to scream. I heard someone say that they use cleaning as an opportunity to pray over their family or friends. For example, while they are folding their husband’s clothes, they pray for him. While they wash and put away dishes from having guests over, they pray for those people. I love this! And I think it really puts our hearts in a place of gratitude instead of grumbling.

I think I could keep going on for a while, but I will stop here. There are so many things that we can do to usher in the Lord’s presence in our homes. You can shift the atmosphere through prayer, adoration, and discerning what you allow in your home. Your home can be a place where the fruits of the spirit are produced and that draws others into a relationship with Christ. It all starts with us.

WORDS: 4 Things I Am Learning

It has been SO long since I have sat down to write. I have missed it so much. This new season of life has been a little more rushed than I would like. Alan and I have been working on finding our rhythm. I will be 100% real with you. After a long day of teaching 4th graders and lesson planning, the last thing I want to do is write. My brain is usually overstimulated or totally fried, and all I want to do is relax and not have to think.

Although I sometimes feel like I am running on a cup of cold coffee (because who am I kidding, the coffee get’s cold before I have time to drink it all), this new season of life has been a huge answer to prayers. The Lord has been really good to Alan and me. He has provided in ways we didn’t expect. And even though working with kids can be exhausting, man did I miss it.

Anyways, enough of an “intro,” let’s skip to the good stuff. I have been learning so much in this new stage of life. As I was organizing all my thoughts to write, I realized that the majority of the nuggets that I have been learning have to do with our words. So grab a cup of coffee (hopefully it doesn’t get cold like mine does), and let’s get into it!

People’s words only have power over you IF you let them. Proverbs 18:21 says that life and death are in the power of the tongue. When I was younger, my mouth often got the best of me. I was VERY sassy, and I let everyone know what was on my mind from my parents to my poor Kindergarten teacher. To discipline me, my mom would make me sit down and write Proverbs 12:18 a good 25 times. “Careless words cut like a knife, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.” I guess it worked because I still have this verse memorized (not sure which translation because I was about 5 years old), and now I am someone who wants to speak life and bring healing with my tongue. Sometimes people say careless things and it cuts deep. But no matter what is said, I encourage you to not let those words stir in your mind or heart. Let them roll off your shoulders, and you can even be the person to build them up and speak life into them.

Maturity and wisdom are knowing when to remain silent and listen instead of speaking your piece. James 3:13-18 talks about divine wisdom.“But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peace-loving, gentle, compliant, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without pretense. And the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who cultivate peace (James 3:17-18, CSB).” I know that this verse is not just talking about the way that we speak. But as disciples of Christ, our words should be seasoned with grace, tear down dividing walls, and demonstrate mercy and gentleness. I have learned that there is a time to speak up, and also a time to bite our tongues and just listen. When others are not open or able to receive truth, it is wise to be quiet and not try to prove your point. Talking in circles is not practicing wisdom from above or being a cultivator of peace. So, if saying your part doesn’t create unity, then what is the point? Let God be your Defender.

The words that come out of mouths reveal what is in our heart (Matthew 15:18). I want my heart to be full of grace, genuine love, and gratitude. I pray that my words reflect that.

Talk to Jesus before you talk to others. I have noticed that if something happens, I tend to pick up my phone and call on some of my prayer warriors right away. The thing is: I do this before I have even talked to God about it myself. Obviously it is vital to have your prayer warriors on speed dial. But the thing that I have been feeling convicted of is that I rather go talk to them and spill all the deets or spiral into gossip over what happened instead of running to Jesus with everything first. The Father should always be the first on our speed dial.

I have got to share with you that the Word of God seriously has helped guide me through some difficult situations. I think oftentimes people read the Bible because they know it is the right “Christian” thing to do (I have totally done this), but God’s Word truly is alive and active. I have been reading the Bible my whole life, and yet there is always something new jumping out at me. It is our guide to know how to walk the narrow path. During this new etapa as we say in Spanish (meaning period or season), I sure am glad that I have the Scriptures to go to.

I pray that as Christ followers in a really dark world, that we cultivate peace, use our mouths to speak life, and that our words show others that Jesus is the King of our hearts. That is it for now, friends!

DOES YOUR LIFE SHOW JESUS?

The other day I wrote out a list of things that I would like the Holy Spirit to help me change in my prayer journal. These are things that I have recognized about myself that I know are not from God. Things like:

-pride

-selfishness

-bitterness

-being easily offended

-and many more

My husband and I have been having so many conversations lately about the way that Christians do or do not reflect God through the way they live out their lives. We always come back to the fact that when we are full of the Holy Spirit, then we are producing the fruits of the Spirit.

In case you are asking, “What does she mean the fruits of the Holy Spirit? Like actual fruits?” The fruits of the Spirit are what we produce as Christ followers when we have died to ourselves and allowed Jesus to consume us and transform us so that we look more like Him. These are the fruits of the Spirit that can be found in Galatians 5:22-23:

LOVE

JOY

PEACE

PATIENCE

KINDNESS

GOODNESS

GENTLENESS

FAITHFULNESS

SELF CONTROL

Now, friends, I have to be frank with you…sometimes the way I respond or act does not reflect that I am full of the Holy Spirit. Especially when it comes to the lack of respect that I experience from men when I walk down the street or when people up the price and try to take advantage of me when they see my skin tone. These, sadly, are things that I experience often and really push me to gird my tongue.

But I want to be better. I want to be someone who oozes Jesus. Where my Bible is worn from studying the Word and my life is a testament to this. The kind of person who knows how to speak truth in love, keep her heart tender towards others, and who can let things roll off her shoulders.

That’s why I made this list. There are sins that I have been wrestling with for so long. There are some days where I feel like I have overcome some of these struggles listed above, but then something will happen and I respond in a not so loving way that brings me right back to my sin pattern. This is why I need the Holy Spirit.

Shoot, we all need the Holy Spirit, am I right?

Galatians 5:16 says, “I say then, walk by the Spirit and you will certainly not carry out the desire for the flesh.” I have this jotted down in the open column next to this verse, “If we walk by the Spirit, we crave what the Spirit craves and the desires of the flesh are less appealing as we have the Spirit’s lens.”

I want to be clear that the battle of our flesh does not just go away when we have the Holy Spirit in us. Unfortunately that is not how it works. BUT–the big BUT– the Holy Spirit gives us the conviction and strength to turn from temptation. When we live by the Spirit, we no longer want to gratify the flesh. But from the deepest parts of us, we long to honor Jesus in public and in private which is why we no longer crave the things of this world. We instead crave the things of the Kingdom. And as we write the Word of God on our hearts, ask God to forgive us our sins, and we seek to honor Him in all we do…then comes the fruits of the Spirit gushing out of us.

And so I ask you, when you look at your life, are you producing the fruits of the Spirit? Is your life led by your desires and emotions or by the Holy Spirit? Are your decisions made using your worldly lens or your eternal lens?

As disciples of Christ, the world looks to us. Sometimes for hope, sometimes for wisdom or guidance, sometimes to see how we respond in crisis, and also sometimes to see if we are real Christ followers or just people that say they are in order to make themselves appear as righteous.

So when people look to you, will they see Christ in you? Will they recognize that you are someone who is not just preaching Jesus but producing His fruit too? Does your life show Jesus?