I started a lengthy process the other day.  I began organizing my closet.  It went as expected: I found articles of clothing I forgot I even had-some with tags, I found some clothing that was too small, I found some I am sure I will never wear again, and lastly I found some that were donated but were not for me to begin with.  What the last three points all have in common is this: they never would have been considered or removed if I had not initiated the task.  Like my closet, I noticed some things in my life as of late that were in need of some dire and thorough consideration.

This “reorganization” process mirrors what any person seeking growth experiences.  Take for instance the clothing I forgot I had.  There are some Christians who may be aware that God loves them and wants his best for them but have forgotten the power they have by the authority in the Name of Jesus.  In my experience I forgot that there are some issues that I don’t have to deal with- all I have to do is take authority over them in Jesus’ name and move forward. Just like the clothes with the tags on them, we don’t always know what we already have.

As a freshman I came to NC Central a size 3, 115 pounds.  Ten years later I’m about four sizes larger, x lbs heavier.  I’ll be frank: there’s nothing I can do with a size 3 other than look at it and flashback.  Therefore, imagine my surprise when I noticed a size 4 skirt in my closet.  I literally laughed.  That should have been either disposed of or given away several years ago but somehow it managed to make it into my closet after moving from dorm to dorm and apartment to apartment.  Consider the parallel: there are some things in our lives that should not still be here, and I dare add “some people.”  We have outgrown some ways of doing things, we have outgrown some people but for some reason we look up and these persons and things are still in our lives.  They are not beneficial in anyway, just taking up space from some article that actually belongs there.  Depending on the context of our experiences it may or may not be fun to flashback to those people or things but there is nothing else we can do with those articles but “flashback.” Very much like clothes, some things and people are seasonal.  They are not appropriate for where we are or may be headed.  A tank top is not adequate in the winter, and a sweater is a hindrance in the summer.

Another fact about me as a NCCU freshman is this: I was a party girl.  If the club was open I was there; it didn’t matter the time, the club location, or the theme.  I take that back, the only time I did not club was on New Year’s Eve.  That was only because my religious self would not allow me to be in a club when I knew that God kept me safe for a whole year (how foolish).  So, in my closet I found a few halter tops and cat suits.  Now, how in the world they managed to make it this long is beyond me.  I’m sure that I will never, ever need them again so why was I holding on to them?  Unlike the clothes I mentioned in the previous paragraph, these clothes weren’t even good for flashing back.  They served absolutely no purpose in my closet.  They were only a reminder of who I was and will never be again.  Kind of like old CD’s, old photos, or old habits.  Case and point.

Lastly, and my personal favorite:  the clothes that I should have never taken.  The clothes were never for me.  These clothes were given to me by others who believed it was a nice gesture, or that they would look nice on me, some I honestly believe, just wanted to get the clothing out of their own closets (No pun intended).  I did not have to accept them. Even more importantly, I did not have to keep them.  This idea is probably one of the most liberating to me.  There is an old adage: “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.”  I personally like the remix of it: “when life gives you lemons, throw them back.”   There may have been times that you have been handed situations beyond your control, situations you would not have picked for yourself, specifically things you did not deserve.  Whatever the case, you don’t have to keep those things in your closet.  Have an open conversation with God and let him have those things.  Will to forgive others and move on. 

“Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us,..(Hebrews 12:1)” Do not continue to hold on to things that are not for you, things that hinder your progress or growth.  Check your closet.  Assess where you are spiritually and decide what needs to be moved out, replaced, or trashed.

About the Author: Marisha Mathis is a spoken word poet, blogger and writer; just like every one

else, a product of grace with a story to tell.   After several years and transitions she has looked within herself to find who she truly is. So far, its she’s been established to be a plain Jane that has a passion for God, art, and helping others.  As a result, God has given her the gift of writing to use all three to sow hope, healing, and encouragement. You can read  more from Marisha at www.loveverbage.tumblr.com 

Most, if not all ladies want to get married someday. I for one dream of getting old with the love of my life and retire in a nice, quiet neighborhood near the sea.
         

The reality however, not all women will walk down the aisle or have the privilege of bearing children. Sadly we live in a fallen world. Some might wake up and find themselves in the shoes of Leah, trying so hard to please a man who is in love with another woman. Some like Anna find themselves single and devoted and serving God all the days of their lives or maybe you find yourself 16 and pregnant like Mary. Maybe you have never found validation from within, you have a deep void and thirst that you have tried quenching by hopping from relationship to relationship like the woman at the well and you are still thirsty. Just maybe you have decided marriage ruins things and you live with a boyfriend. The woman at the well did that too.

Just maybe sex is just a game you can relate to Rahab the prostitute, every man knew the way to her house even the Israelites locked outside the walls of Jericho knew how to find her. Some are like the woman with the issue of blood, a disease or physical disability has pushed you out of the courtship scene and you have no hope for marriage. Maybe like Tamar you are a victim of rape, a greedy and selfish man took your most valuable gift and your dreams and energy were shattered. Let us not forget Rebecca humble, beautiful and loved by Isaac, when it comes to dating and marriage you are blessed in every way. Good news is there is redemption and hope for everyone despite who you are in Jesus. All broken vessels can be beautiful vessels, when mended by the delicate hands of Jesus.

Our lives are different, we run different races. I don’t expect you to live the way I live but I can certainly tell you in whatever you do, in whatever season you might be may the grace and the will of God abide. May you find fulfillment and joy. All these women, their lives were different whether tragedy or happiness they were used by God for His purposes. They were part of God’s master plan to redeem the world. Whether it’s the desert or promised land praise Him, there is purpose in pain. May your pain serve Him, may your challenges minister to a sister, may your blessings empower the young and may there be joy and contentment in every heart. He is faithful. You are His heartbeat, His love is steadfast, gentle and sweet and He loves you profusely and He wants to use you, yes even you. You are a vessel of honour! 

About the Author: Constance Mutekeri is a  23-year-old pharmacy student and blogger at Scarlet Romance| Deeply Loved by Jesus. She enjoys writing and teaching the word of God . Constance is also the president of Reading University Bible Study Society.

Would you spend the whole day without eating? We all know how it feels when we miss breakfast. Even if its a glass of water or juice in the morning before you head out the door. Breakfast is such an

important part of the day because it is what fuels you to start your day. Breakfast keeps you focused and energized. Reading the word of God is a lot like breakfast.

Jesus said "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God." Matthew 4:4.   

Without seeking God first daily in his word, will leave you famished.  You will spend the day spiritually thirsty/hungry, and when you are weak you fall into traps.  The word of God is imperative to seeking Gods face and knowing his heart.  

Reflection: Examine your life and see where you can improve on putting God first in every area of your life.  

Prayer: Father God we come to you humbly.  We will never measure up.  But thanks be you through your son Jesus we have a new life, a new chance.  Forgive us for putting you last LORD.  We ask you now to put zeal and desire in our hearts for you LORD.  Let us continually thirst for you.  In Jesus name we pray, amen.  

About the Author: Andreana Barfield, loves the LORD.  She is married and has a 2-year-old

daughter.  Andreana is also a first generation Haitian American.  Born and raised in Brooklyn, NY, she currently works as an activities coordinator in a Social Adult Day Center.  Andreana enjoys reading, writing and seeing where the LORD takes her next.

Isaiah 54:1

God instructs the woman, who is unable to bare children, to rejoice, sing, shout for joy and worship! Now why would He say that? Sometimes we ask God the same question. How can I worship when the very thing that I want, I can not have?

The barren women of that time were considered useless, basically not women at all. If a woman could not bare children for her husband they were considered of no value, but Inspite of all that God instructs the woman to rejoice. Why? "More are the children of the desolate woman than of her who has a husband."

We may go through the unimaginable, even, the unspeakable, yet God says to rejoice. Why? To worship is to be obedient, and people are attached to our very obedience to Him. The barren woman, of whose name we do not know, would raise more soldiers for the Kingdom of Heaven than she could ever naturally bare. She could spiritually bore children of God by showing and teaching them how to overcome such pain and rejection. We can not teach what we do not know.

In the bible it says that Jesus became flesh. (John 1:14). He endured all that we have to endured, yet He did it without sinning. (Hebrews 4:15). Jesus is our ultimate example, our spiritual Teacher. I personally would not be able to trust the words of advice or guidance of someone who has never experienced what I've been through.

Growing up, I experienced immeasurable amounts of rejection, which I carried on into my adulthood. Those feelings of rejection would often times become too heavy and unbearable. Yet now when those feelings arise, I know I can go to Jesus.

The very God of our existence turned His back on Jesus as He hung there on the cross for our salvation. (Matthew 27:45-46). So, Jesus was the ultimate reject! He endured. He is victorious, and if He can do it, by His grace and strength, so can I (Phil. 4:13).

Don't sulk, become weary, or be embarrassed of your story

                                                                Oh! How I've there! 

You go through the fire to assist the ones, some of whose names you do not know, to glorious victory and freedom! Rejoice, burst into song because God has hand selected you to reach others for His glory.  

About the Author: Chelsea Hill is from Adairsville, GA and currently resides in Atlanta, GA. The Lord found her at the age of 16 and enhanced her passion for writing and for people. Now at 23, Chelsea will be returning to school in the fall of 2015 to pursue a degree in Communications for Psychology."The Barren Woman"  is from her blog "Signature of the Redeemer. Read more of Chelsea's words at http://www.signatureoftheredeemer.blogspot.com/,

From time to time, you may

read me referencing to my late father and that's because, even though my time with him was limited, I learned important things that every little girl should learn from her father.

Another memory of him, is in 6th grade as he drove me to school, we saw a girl a little older than me all alone on a bench to herself with her head down reading. The other crowds of kids were far from her. To some it may seem like she didn't have any friends but to others like my father, it may have meant sometimes its good to stay to yourself instead of being surrounded by a big circle of friends whom may mean you harm. I remember him saying, "See, ain't nothing wrong with being by yourself sometimes. Its good to be different. Its good to be set apart."

Those words bring me to this post. Being set apart. But are you missing out if you do? Are you missing out on the latest gossip or drama? Are you missing out on weekend plans in clubs or bars? I will confidently answer questions with absolutely not.

If you're a young lady in Christ reading this, I want you to know there is nothing wrong with being different. Being different to some may mean you're weird. But remember your worth in Christ. Remember you're striving for a crown of life and that crown is far more precious than anything on this earth. Yes, anything! Careers, relationships, friendships, material possessions. Remember this world will pass away. These things are only temporary. Earthly titles and achievements don't matter. There won't be a celebration in heaven for those, but instead a meeting around the throne to meet the King. Also, if you're a young lady that's not in the body of Christ I encourage you to seek others walking the narrow path. Be encouraged that being a Christian doesn't mean you're missing out.  Be encouraged that our souls are not a game and be reminded of where your soul may be if Christ returns and you're in the middle of sin.

Ladies I encourage you to be an example to other young women. You may be the only bible someone reads which may have a great impact on their lives. You have the ability to lead another young woman to Christ by your words and actions. So be content in your decisions to be set apart and about your heavenly father's business on a Friday or Saturday night versus being in someone's club, asking for that next drink or feigning for that next ounce of drugs. Romans 12:2 reminds us not to be conformed to this world. Its simply not worth it. Its not worth the pain or tears the world offers and its certainly not worth eternal separation from our Lord and Savior.

Where are you the most beautiful?

That was the question of an article I chose this blog topic from titled, "Words from a Father to His Daughter from the Makeup Aisle."

So, where are you the most beautiful? On the inside? Or on the outside? What has society made you believe about the essence of true beauty? Is it bound within the self-conscious makeup aisles or within the strands of your latest extensions?

Prayerfully, I hope its deep within your soul. A soul submitted to Christ rather than the desires of the world. There have been quite a few times, that I've heard from the mouths of young women how they just weren't happy physically with themselves so they spend hours in the mirror, painting a canvas of beauty on their face overlooking the reflection of what God has already blessed them with. Or other young ladies that have it embedded in their minds that longer hair with do society justice as well as themselves.

Yes, I wear makeup myself but not to an extent where it defines me. Ladies, when will there become a time when you're comfortable with yourself whether it be the skin you're in or the roots of our hair?

As I write this, I'm reminded of 1 Peter 3:4 that says, "Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sight."

Ladies if you're reading this as woman in the body of Christ but still dealing with insecurities physically, I encourage you to remember your goal is to turn the hearts of others to Christ with your beautiful spirit, rather than turn heads with materialistic desires for yourself. Someone that you may call plain Jane may have the best spirit in the world versus a young lady with a horrible attitude with a face of model. Of course, everyone wants look and feel nice, but those things are only temporary, just as the things of this earth. Make-up shouldn't define who you are. The best concealer in the world for a woman is her soul, redeemed and bound in Christ.

Pursue God's kind of beauty. Stay encouraged ladies.~Danielle

How many times have you heard a woman mention she's a Proverbs 31 woman? Whether on social

media or from your closest friends? But, how many of these women really understand the portrait of the Proverbs 31 woman? Better yet, how many of these women, know that her journey doesn't stop there, instead its just beginning and should flourish into the portrait of the Titus 2 woman. It amazes me how I see so many quotes about being a virtuous woman, yet no actual knowledge of the concept if you ask a young lady.


I began thinking about this post when I entered one of the classrooms at Girls Inc. to teach my creative writing workshop. For the most part, the experience teaching these girls has been great. I'm definitely using a gift I've been blessed with for the right purpose.

Before entering the classroom, I noticed several scriptures arranged creatively and bright on the door. Of course, that made me smile. Because obviously, its not everyday you see scriptures in the same vicinity as students. I already admired this organization for what it stands for, as a place outside of school, where girls can continue learning educationally and referring to our Lord and Savior makes it all the better! While teaching the class, I noticed a scripture on the board from 1 Peter 1:25, but the word of the Lord endures forever. And this is the word that has been preached to you." While helping one of the girls with their activities, I referred back to this scripture to show her the meaning of the word endure. You're probably wondering what does this have to do with Titus 2. Well for me, these classes are more than just a creative writing class, teaching the elements of poetry and storytelling. Its teaching with a PURPOSE. A purpose of leading these girls into women of far beyond confidence, but of faith.

Honestly, before beginning my lessons, I was thinking how can I ease my faith into my lessons. After all, my Lord goes with me everywhere, how could I not include him into an opportunity he's blessed me with? (Matt 10:33) It wasn't hard, because my faith was already welcomed at the door.

And the purpose of this post is to inform those that may not know, that being a Titus 2 woman is training younger women unto biblical standards. As we get older, we learn and its only right to lead by example and teach the path for our younger generations.  You may say, "Oh you're still young. How can you teach in the manner of Titus 2?" Well, the answer to that is, I may not be old but with anything you're striving for, you conduct yourself as if you already are in "that" position. For example, when attending a job interview of course you want to walk and talk the part as if you have the part. The same applies to Titus 2-Walk It. Live It. Teach It. The journey within the pages of Proverbs 31 are leading you there. Start your transformation now. There are many young girls and women out there that need your wisdom. Open up and mentor the teenager that may mimic Proverbs 7, whose trying to forget her past and live up to the expectations of the virtuous woman of Proverbs 31. Mentor the young believer, that has just accepted Christ. Encourage the young lady in high school or college, in the midst of many trials and tests of life.  There are many older women that have done the same for us and its only right to set our selves aside and get on our knees to pray for our youth and reach out into our families and communities to help a young lady, facing the same things we've faced.  The Titus 2 woman deserves a pedestal alongside the Proverbs 31 woman, showing just how great generations of women can be, if we continue to teach by being. And by teach, I mean teach from a biblical perspective.

Stay encouraged and remember the Proverbs 31 women of today are the Titus 2 women of tomorrow.

As far as I can remember I've always been a light sleeper, but a heavy dreamer. What exactly does that mean? Simply, that I've believed whole heartedly that anything that I've had my mind on achieving was worth striving after. In my world, there's no "can't, if, should, or could." Instead, there's only "PRAY, FAITH, AND JUST DO."

Back-up plans never existed for me. Never once throughout college or afterwards did I have the mentality of thinking what would happen if nothing worked out for me with my degree. First of all, God didn't bring me that far to fail on my dreams that I'd prayed to him about since I was a kid and secondly education is too expensive to not actually run after your goals. Why settle? Why not put your best foot forward?

 In everything you have a purpose-a vision. Have faith in yourself and claim it! I can remember one of the simplest things I can give you as an example. During my sophomore year of high school, I was asked to tryout for an all-star competition at a UCA cheer camp we attended each year. I knew in my heart that I would definitely succeed.  Besides the obvious, of practicing and preparing for the day of tryouts, I completely envisioned myself and the whole routine perfectly in my head. I'd already claimed my victory in my mind and talking to God about it course made the upcoming day much better. There wasn't a thought that filtered through my mind of "what if." Why live on thoughts what you could have done when you could have just did it in the first place. In everything remind yourself to do your absolute best! No the road won't be easy, but don't give up! Press on! Don't stray off the plan A and take the easy way out with plan B. Your plans weren't meant to be easy. Why? Because they're God's plan instead and trust me, his plan is much better. Stay encouraged!

"I give myself away
 So You can use me
 Take my heart
 Take my life
As a living sacrifice
All my dreams, all my plans
Lord I place them in your hands"