Category: Encouragement

What do you stand for Today and Forever?

Standing Firm in your beliefs into todays world.

  “Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.” Hebrews 10:22-24

I have been very silent these past few weeks as I watch my world changing rapidly before my very own eyes. I have woken up with painful knots in my stomach accompanied with unsettling feelings and paralyzing fear that has knocked the breath out of me. You see I always have an opinion, but I wanted to sit back and let my aggressive anger towards the news settle before I spoke out. I will not keep you wading in my thoughts on gay marriage or the race wars going on in our country, instead I would like to bring you to a standing halt inside your own heart, your own mind, your own opinion with this very question.

What beliefs do you stand firm in?

Have you waivered from what you once knew to be true? (if so) What circumstances or people have influenced your change?

This question has opened my eyes and encouraged me to dive deep into my heart to uncover the hidden truths of my own beliefs.

What do you believe? What would you fight for? Will you sit back blinded by this so called acceptance of evil and hate in our world? Do you truly believe in this new age “equality for all” and “ALL goes attitude!?” This doesn’t seem to be true between all the opinions between us all, because we still fight, argue, and debate until we are blue in the face about every single thing that is outside the lines of our comfort.

I want to spur you in love today to cling to your faith and the truth that you know. What does it mean to you to really live by faith? How does the life you live reflect your love for Christ? Have you lost your way? Have you been tossing around like a ship lost at sea to and fro believing one thing one day and another the next? I urge you to dig deep, pray for more faith, and cling to and stand firm on the Word of God! Now more then ever we will need to believe and not waiver from our trust and hope in Christ.

This equality for all that the World is seeking is nothing less then the seduction of Satan…playing on our own fleshly desires to have the freedom to believe what we want. He is using our own selfishness to be right and our pride to rebel against our very own creator. We want to play God and make our own Laws. It’s his oldest trick in the book he used on Eve way back in the day in the Garden. God doesn’t want you to know as much as he does. Surely he doesn’t care about you….

There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death. Proverbs 14:12

If equality goes against God’s best for us his children, then it is not the right kind of equality we should strive to obtain.

Matthew 24:10 Jesus is warning us of things to come in the last days. He says, “At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.”

Pray that you will not be deceived. Pray that truth and discernment prevails in your heart and your mind. Pray for your children’s hearts and minds to not turn cold or be deceived as well.

God has no favorites, he holds no human any higher then the other. He loves us all the same and his free grace and mercy if for who so ever will believe and receive Jesus as their Lord and Savior. He wants us to love one another with brotherly love. He wants us to encourage and build up each other, esteem each other, help hold each other accountable. I think if we spent more time focusing on how he treats us and mirror his love for us onto each other, all this hate would cancel out. There would be no time to build divisions amongst each other. No living by comparisons.

We don’t truly love! We tear each other down with our words and our actions as we bury our own pride and insecurities that are living inside of our souls. We gossip, and secretly curse each other. We mock and ridicule one another. We think we are better then each other, and we even actually believe we are more deserving of attention, power, and care over others. Could this possibly all steam from our disbelief in who we are as Children of God? I think the answer to that question is YES!

What do you stand for? What do you believe?

9 And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, 10 so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, 11 filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God. Philippians 1:9-11

God Bless You and Keep You!

Leigh Leigh

How is your summer vacation going?

Summer vacation is under way and WOW has it been a BUSY ONE!

My step kids usually go spend half of their summer with their mom but their involvement in sports with school has changed our normal summer routine. Making this Momma crazy busy with four kids at home all day!

We have been staying busy with swimming, splash parks, play dates, doctors appointments, driving tests, cheer camp, cheer competition, Women’s Bible Study, Work outs, Summer strength and conditioning camps, baby showers, and the list just goes on and on!

I just happened to look back at my calendar on my phone and pretty much every day we have had something going on!

I hope my children and I find a way to just take a break from all the chaos and just enjoy some down time.

How is your summer vacation going so far?

Leigh Leigh

Break my Heart

I am feeling bipolar and a bit lost these days.

I have been wracking my brain trying to figure out how I am going to spend my summer vacation. (Sounds bratty right?) I am so blessed to even have a summer vacation! I wanted it to be productive and meaningful.

I wanted to take my blog to a new level. I wanted to start crocheting on the side for a possible Etsy shop. I keep wrestling in my mind as if I am trying to figure out WHAT it is. Why am I so discontent lately? Why am I constantly trying find something out there to achieve? To be honest I am frustrated, I am restless, and I am puzzled.

I had a vision for this blog to be an ENCOURAGEMENT to others, and quite frankly I feel as if I am the one in need of encouragement.

I literally had this conversation with my husband last night, pillow talk before we shut our eyes, about how I feel like something is just missing. I want to achieve this whatever it is I can’t seem to see clearly. This desire in my heart for something that I haven’t a clue what it even is. I have been praying about this feeling for over a month now.

I pray and I ask God and I try to be content on waiting….

I pray and I wait…

I pray and I wait….

Today our Summer Women’s Bible study started up. YEA! I love Women’s Summer Bible Study! This year we are Studying Kelly Minster’s Nehemiah- A Heart that can break.

Right out of the first video Session I hear lady giving her story about how she prayed to God to give her a tender heart so that she could love like Jesus, and she felt overwhelmed with compassion to help this village in the Amazon that she would pass as she gave tour guides. She told us she prayed for compassion for others. I could feel my heart fill up and my throat become tight when she said that if you are feeling discontent with life, help others. There it was plain as day, the answer I had been praying for. She said,” Get back to Jesus! Go to him with a humble heart asking him what you should do. Here I am God to do the best for you. God will open the door, He will direct your path. You ARE ENOUGH! Blessed are those who serve.”

I couldn’t help but hold back my tears, reminding myself to KEEP IT TOGETHER MAN! I am not much for public crying.

To gain composer I glanced at the older women sitting at the table in front of us. They were just as filled up with encouragement at that moment as I was. I don’t want to be super old on this journey here before I really make my mind up to live for others. This life really isn’t about me. The reality is THIS LIFE ISN’T ABOUT ME! God is real and we do have a duty, a reason we are all here on Earth. We are called to be the hands and feet of Jesus, and to love others like he does while we wait for him to come back. He is coming back. That is the reality.

He is coming back…that is the reality.

When I put this in perspective everything else I am chasing that isn’t for him doesn’t matter.

So then What God, who have you put in my heart to help? What will break my heart the way it breaks yours.

I really feel vulnerable for even sharing such intimate thoughts. I usually just journal this and keep it to myself, but I can’t help but wonder if there is someone else out there that is feeling this discontentment, this arrival of something big, but you can’t put your finger it.

I want to encourage you to pray and wait…pray and wait. Ask God to give you a compassionate heart for others, and then ask him to direct you to the right people to help. Keep your faith. Be patient. Now that I know for sure what it is, I will be diligently praying for revelation, compassion, and a tender heart that can break. I will also be praying for God to examine my heart and point out the cold parts so that I can warm those back up!

heart break

I have dropped off the FACEBOOK MAP..so please scroll down and follow my blog via email subscription, or Twitter, or now INSTAGRAM! LEIGHLEIGHSPEAKS

As always I would love to hear what you have to say! Please feel free to comment!

xoxo

Leigh Leigh

Get out of the way fear

PASSION NEVER DIES! FEAR JUST GETS IN THE WAY!

I for one HATE feeling FEARFUL! Fear for me would be failure, or worse wasting my time, my life, my years on something that fails.

I find it amazing that no mater how fearful I get, the fear never kills my passion, my drive, my love for something, it just makes me hesitant, afraid to pursue, and afraid to be brave or courageous enough to see it through.

What if we ignore fear? What if we tell those heavy fear frightening feelings to take a hike? What if everyone actually lived up to their own potential?

I can’t help today but to think about a life lived without fear! How would we live each day differently?

When I am left with a huge obstacle standing in my way I go to the scriptures of the Bible to find the answers. When you search fear over and over you will read…”fear not”, “do not be afraid”, “I am with you”, “I will not leave you, nor forsake you”, “Peace I give you”, “be strong”, “be courageous”, “trust me”. I find it fascinating that God is asking us to not be afraid. It has to be a very conscious effort on our own part to not allow fear to over take us. Sure we can pray and ask God to help us to not be afraid, and of course he will, but we must first take the first step out in faith trusting in him that he will always have our back, and not shrink back and become paralyzed in our own fear.

So let’s go forward and even if we are still feeling afraid, be bold enough and brave enough to do what ever it is that scares the day lights out of us, knowing God is with us every step of the way helping us push through that fear!

strong, brave, bold, fear not

❤

Leigh Leigh

Be sure to follow my blog via email subscription (scroll all the way down), or like me on FACEBOOK HERE or TWITTER HERE!

 

 

 

 

20 Things I would go back and tell 20 year old Me

I turn 30 in 4 days! EEEEEK!!

I have been really not looking forward to this milestone in my adult life, well since the day I turned 29! Why is 30 such a pinnacle moment to us women? Maybe because 30 sounds so sophisticated!

I think of a woman who has it all together and is classy and well respected. I don’t think of the word youthful at all. I still feel youthful! I don’t want to not be youthful just yet! Youthful to me still gives the illusion of an automatic understanding of being young and dumb when you make a mistake here or there. I don’t want to be taken super serious just yet!!

For fun, I compiled a list of things I would go back and tell my younger 20 year old self if I could! What would you add to the list? Comment below!

turning 30

1. Soul Search! Fresh out from under your parents wings, your faith in God may have steemed from them. I was 25 before I fully decided for myself what my beliefs were, and my faith blossomed ten fold from there. If I could go back, I wouldn’t have procrastinated for as long as I did to take my relationship with Christ serious.

2. Girl you are filled with youth, imagination, adventure, curiosity, and beauty! You can’t grasp all of this right now because you are too busy feeling insecure and worried you are going to screw your life up some how! You wont! Do something that scares you, take a leap of faith!

 4. Learn to let go of any offense and start forgiving people who have hurt you in your life. Move on! We don’t ever know what lies ahead tomorrow, life is too short to not love one another and forgive one another TODAY.

5. Forgive yourself for any wrongs you did to others along the way. Learn from your mistakes now, and don’t repeat them.

6. Don’t stop believing in true love! You are about to marry the man of your dreams, and he will love you fiercely and teach you how to truly trust and love some one. You will compliment each other, and encourage each other to be the best you can be. You will finally have your BEST FRIEND FOREVER!

7. You think you know what selfless love means, you have no clue! You will soon become a mom and it will change you forever for the better. You will become a person you so desperately want your children to look up to, learn from, and be proud of! You will also experience unconditional love for another human being! There are no words to describe it!

8. Stepping into a role of Stepmom at the rip age of 20 will be the most challenging thing you will ever experience. Don’t fret dear girl, each year, you start to overcome your own obstacles and it will get better! I promise! Hang in there because you are going to mature and learn and grow so much from this experience.

9. Enjoy your babies being babies! My 30s will now include preteen and teen years, and even young adult years with dear step kids! (WOW)

10. Don’t stop moving! Thankfully at almost 30 I haven’t suffered from a knee problem, but as we grow older, those sneaky pains are going to sneak up on us and bite us in the booty. Stay active! This helps your body feel young! I have been in the gym for the past 5 years, and I do feel better physically then I did in my mid 20s.

11. Wear whatever makes you feel comfortable and happy. Dress youthful! There will come a day when you will have to start covering up areas on purpose, because well, lets face it, aging or said gravity does and will effect us all in different areas of our bodies! 😉

12. Take advantage of grandparents, and family to watch your kids! Enjoy every moment you get extra spending with your husband away from the little’s! (I didn’t do this enough at first!) Go an adventures with your husband while you are young!

13. Take care of your skin, moisturize daily!

14. Don’t fret over not being able to cook as good as your mother in law. You will learn to develop your own chief talent with your own tasty dishes over time! These delicious dishes will scare your future daughter in law into believing she will never make your son as satisfied at the dinner table as you. 😉

15. Find a few good friends that will stick with you! Trust them, confide in them, and be a proactive friend back. These relationships don’t just happen. You learn every relationship in your life will require some time and effort on your part.

16. Stop worrying, it solves nothing.

17. STOP BEING A PEOPLE PLEASER!

18. Don’t put too much pressure on yourself to measure up to societies opinion of what defines a successful woman.

19. NEVER STOP just LIVING in the PRESENT!

20. Enjoy not having to own a push up bra, a good pair of tweezers, toning gel, and a real face washing regimen every single night that includes anti aging creams for pimples and wrinkles! (Although you may want to get a jump-start on the whole face washing regimen thing!)

Life is too short to be unhappy and living in a state of mind that isn’t healthy for you. I accomplished a lot in my 20s. If my life has to be cut short, I can honestly say in this moment I am completely satisfied! I have an amazing Husband of 9 years, 4 beautiful and healthy children, great friends, and a wonderful family.

I am going to coast into my 30s with wisdom learned from my 20s. I actually do feel more mature, and more at ease with the future. Wait a minuet! I even do feel a little sophisticated and classy!

Maybe 30 isn’t sounding so TERRIBLE after all!

30 and fabulous

XOXO

LEIGH LEIGH

 

 

 

 

Afraid/Hopeless/Selfish, It’s never too late to Change

 

*Please pardon my absence! We are now T minus 3 days from being out of Preschool! I will have one week to maintain order in my home before the children are out of school for summer!
lovefran.com
lovefran.com

I sit here in a reminiscing mood. I don’t think I have shared with you the inspiration for this blog. Have you heard of a music group called For King & Country? They released a song on the radio last year called Fix my Eyes. Every time I would hear the words “Fight for the weak ones, Speak out for Freedom” my heart would beat fast and hard. There was a passion growing inside of my heart to share with others the love of Christ. I am just yet one voice of millions, billions, and if you know me personally a very soft-spoken voice at that, so it would only make sense that I would write and not speak out loud! Amazingly enough God doesn’t care how loud or quiet we are he can still speak through us all.

Let me share the Chorus so you can see what I am talking about:

I’d Love like I’m not scared
Give when it’s not fair
Live life for another
Take time for a brother
Fight for the weak ones
Speak out for freedom
Find faith in the battle
Stand tall but above it all
Fix my eyes on You
On You

Today as I am reflecting on the words of this song I can’t help but feel insecure. My blog tends to be an accountability for me. It helps hold me accountable to living a healthy life style from the inside out! It would not benefit you or me the least bit if I didn’t live out the topics and advice I give here on this blog!

Sometimes I feel like a fraud because I can get my feathers ruffled in a jiffy, I can have the don’t want to’s to get up and go work out, and there are days I don’t pick up my Bible.. I am so far from perfect it is pathetic, and sharing my walk with Jesus makes me feel vulnerable of harsh judgments. These feelings also make me hesitant to continue to write.

The truth is………..sometimes…………some days……

To love like I am not scared seems impossible. I am scared! I am scared that I am going to get hurt! I am scared that someone will take advantage of me or worse not accept my love as true or genuine.

Give when it’s not fair.. how many times have I shouted out loud, this isn’t fair!!!! How many times have I been angry, while smiling and bearing that big fake grin, trying to convince myself that as a women of faith I’m doing the right thing, the “Christian” thing by trying to be my friendliest! Meanwhile I am not taking the root problem to God so he can do a work in my heart, which is breeding resentment, anger, and lots worse.

Live life for another, take time for a brother… there are days I am pumped to be a blessing to someone, but I would be lying to you if I told you I never have days where I would rather lock myself in my bedroom and watch chick flicks on Netflix all day! There are days where I wish I could rush motherhood, rush work, rush life, etc.

Fight for the weak ones, speak out for freedom….how many times have I gone mute in a situation I should have been courageous enough to take a stand for someone who was too afraid to speak up for themselves! How many times have I been too afraid to stand up for myself! Those moments leave me empty inside. How many opportunities have I wasted sharing the gospel with a stranger, a friend?

Find faith in the battle…the battles that come in short spurts, or torrential downpours in my every day life. I have to admit some days I lose hope in battles I have been fighting while praying for grace to get me through. I doubt in faith when I need it the most. Why? I don’t know why! I think it has something to do with being human. Battles of being a Mom, a friend, a co-worker. I find my biggest battles usually are the ones I wage within myself in my mind. Am I doing this whole Jesus loving thing right? Am I being a light in a dark place? Salt in the world?

And the worst part of it all is some days I don’t have my eyes fixed on Jesus, I have my eyes fixed on other things like worrying about drama, attractions this world offers us, or just distractions that show up and stay a while.

Just thinking about how imperfect I am leaves me craving his love and grace more. Knowing that He knows I am imperfect , but still chose to die for me so that I would be covered in his grace, forgiveness, and love makes me love Him more. On my worst days, He still loves me the same!

We are all imperfect, no matter what calling we have on our lives. Everyone just have bad days here and there. Everyone falls short of his glory,  but everyone can still receive his forgiveness in the areas we fall short in, and everyone can receive Christ power to over come any obstacle they are facing on any given day!

So today I admit my short comings, my distractions, my desires of wanting my own control and my own way in life.

I don’t have it all together, but I know and have the One who knows how to keep me all together, and His grace is sufficient for me!

If you listen to all the words of Fix my Eyes, you learn that the song is about going back to a younger version of yourself and living a more selfless and brave life! It is never to late for you or for me to …

Love like WE ARE not scared
Give when it’s not fair
Live life for another
Take time for a brother
Fight for the weak ones
Speak out for freedom
Find faith in the battle
Stand tall but above it all
Fix OUR eyes on CHRIST

I challenge you on this Monday to live Fearlessly, Recklessly, and Radically for Christ!

 

Here is the song on Youtube!

<iframe width=”560″ height=”315″ src=”https://www.youtube.com/embed/Yd2we03Sy4I&#8221; frameborder=”0″ allowfullscreen>

Hugs,

Leigh Leigh

Be sure to Follow Leigh Leigh speaks via email or on Facebook or Twitter!

Monday Motivation- I am crazy enough not to give up

 

photo (10)

Well the count down begins! I have 25 days until my 30th Birthday!

Do you remember my FLEX IT FRIDAY post with my before picture? You can read the Flex it Friday post HERE! I was weighing in at 137 lbs, I am now currently down to 132 lbs. That puts me 5 pounds lighter.

I fell off my 14 week accountability tracker. Whoops! It happens. But I have been sticking with a cardio regimen 3-4 days a week with my weight lifting, which I did share one of my treadmill 500 calorie busting work outs that you can find HERE!

I also was sick a good three weeks due to a bad experience with some prescription antibiotics I was taking for acne! 😦 If you missed that miserable story it’s right here. I seriously didn’t eat much for a full week. NOT COOL!

I am still not as lean as I was hoping to be, but I do have a few more weeks to go! I am happy to report that I didn’t gain anymore weight or slack off to the point of losing all control of myself! Yea for that!

It is time to post another flexing photo (sigh) to let you know I am still fighting hard to reach my goal!

don't give up, motivation, work out

I guess I could have taken the five seconds to clean the mirror, but this is real life people, and I do have 4 children! LOL As you can tell by the traffic light toothbrush in the picture, and all the water marks on the mirror! (I will miss dirty bathroom mirrors when they are grown, I just know it!)

I have learned that no matter how much support or encouragement I get from others, I HAVE TO BELIEVE IN MYSELF, and so do you! Your weight loss journey is yours to take control of. Be Crazy! Think Crazy! Just don’t lose faith in what you are capable of doing!

I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength!    Philippians 4:13

What’s your favorite cardio exercise?

xOxO

Leigh Leigh

Let’s stay connected! Follow Leigh Leigh Speaks via Facebook or Twitter, and don’t forget to sign up to my email subscription! Sharing is caring, so please share anything you find helpful! Pin away!

A dose of Monday Motivation- Your OWN WORST BATTLE

 

photo (7)

Can I get an AMEN from the crowd!? This very statement resonates deep into my heart with great conviction.

For a woman who struggles with actions sprinting after her feelings, this quote speaks so much truth to me this morning. It is such a great reminder to keep on keeping on doing what is right!

We all struggle with something raging inside of our souls. The battle within our selves are REAL. This War inside of us is called good and evil, right and wrong.

This quote reminds me of the importance of TRUTH and how it will help me win ANY BATTLE I may have within my soul!

My battles could be anything from fighting negative body image, getting along with others, laziness, discontentment, the list goes on…

There will always be what feels right and what actually is right.

There will always be what feels wrong that may actually be right. (Don’t think this is possible? Then go bless some one who despises you!)

When your battle is based on what you know and what you feel, you should always trust what you know to be TRUE! Always follow TRUTH!

Feelings are fickle, they lie, they can be a false sense of security, they can play on your emotions, they can be lifted up by others, or shut down and become numb. They put too much dependence on other people’s actions or words, and your own circumstances. Never trust your feelings, always trust the TRUTH!

What is TRUTH?

JESUS answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. John 14:6

And you will know the Truth, and it will set you free. John 8:32

What happens when you practice Truth?

But he who practices truth (Who does what is right) comes out into the Light; so that his works may be plainly shown to be what they are-wrought with God (Divinely prompted, done with God’s help, in dependence upon Him). John 3:21

And let us not lose heart and grow weary and faint in acting nobly and doing right, for in due time and at the appointed season we shall reap, if we do not loosen and relax our courage and faint. Galatians 6:9

Peace and Mercy be upon all who walk by this rule….Galatians 6:16

So no matter WHAT may come today, or this week, remember the battle will be between what you know is right and what feels right. How will you react to life in the present? Will you pursue/chase after peace and mercy by following truth, or will you trip yourself up on your feelings and land into a pit of self pity?

It all lies in your hands my friend!

Choose TRUTH!

*photo found on pinterest

xoxo

Leigh Leigh

Follow Leigh Leigh Speaks on Twitter or Facebook!

Be sure to subscribe by email so you don’t miss a beat!

 

 

Talking back to your husband is a NO NO!

That’s Right….but hear me out why!

This is how I personally view our family dynamics in our Jesus loving home, my dear husband is the commander in charge, leaving me secondary commander in charge. We have four children as follows big brother who is 16, big sister who is 13, little brother who is 8, and little sister who is 5. If you have a five your old or younger child in your family then you really know who “runs” the household! 😉 Just kidding!

I respect my husband’s authority as the leader in our home, and everyone is very clear on who has the ultimate say. It’s comical to me, when the little children want something they always ask their Daddy, but when the big kids want something they usually ask me in hopes to charm their Dad into letting them get what they want. When they want something really bad, they charm me. Kids learn how to be master manipulators I think straight out of the womb! I always tell them we will see, but first I have to ask your father. Often times I just make them ask him. I can see their excitement turn quickly into fear when they realize I will not budge with out my husbands say so.

I love that I can trust my husband to have the final say in our home. It takes a lot of pressure off of myself to be honest. It also makes me feel loved, safe, and secure under his authority as my husband in my life. My husband is very thoughtful to listen to my views, respects my opinions, and suggestions as we co-parent our children together. Ultimately though, I understand he does have the final say, even if I don’t always full heartily agree with him. He is never harsh, hard, pressing, criticizing, rude, oppressive, inconsiderate, abusive, or control starved. He does give me the freedom to make my own choices, but is honest when I ask him for his opinion on any topic. To be a God-fearing leader of your family, you must love God and love your wife.

If you are a woman who wears the pants in your house hold, this post was not intended to offend you in any way or bring judgment against how you run your home. We are all given the same free will to choose what works best for us.

I was at the gym today on the treadmill, cardio day, for one full hour. Who ever says that running frees your mind, has never entered mine! If I am going to be running on a treadmill for an hour, I have got to be thinking of anything that will make me feel like that hour just flew by! Cardio is just straight up BRUTAL!

My thoughts are like a ping-pong balls bouncing to and fro all over the place up there. I think about things I am thankful for, things that I need room to improve on, conversations I have had, or conversations I listened to over the past week.

For example, I was thinking about how I was cleaning my room on Monday and over heard in the back ground a speaker on the Joyce Meyer Tv show explain how parents are the shepherds of their children. That phrase blasted my ear drums like the sound of a new-born baby crying three rooms down. It stood out very clear and left an impression on my heart.

We as mothers have such a great responsibility shepherding our little baby sheep, with endless opportunities to reflect Christ’s love and obedience in all areas of life.

I did try to drowned my thoughts out with some Skrillex music as I ran my little heart out.

I ended my cardio with a cool down walk and turned on my Joyce Meyer Podcast. If you can’t tell I really love that woman! She was cracking me up today because she was sharing how it has taken her over ten yearsbut she finally is getting over not talking back to her husband. She made it seem all giggles but conviction struck my heart, and wouldn’t let me forget how I had acted the night before.

I have been brainstorming for some fun posts to blog about in the future that are on the topic of marriage, so I have been doing my bible studying on the topic. Ironically enough I read over 1 Peter 3 for like the 20th time in my marriage a few days ago. It’s funny how God will leave a trail of bread crumbs for you to follow when he is teaching you something.

We as Jesus loving wives are called to be submissive to our husbands.

When I heard her talk about not talking back to your husband the inner diva inside of me blurted out, “What!! Why!? He is not my father, he is my Husband! This makes me feel like a little child, and I am not a CHILD!” That of course was the flesh me, but as I took into consideration the benefits of being submissive they out weighed my prideful heart. So please don’t throw something at the screen when I tell you, we should not talk back to our husbands! Before you get all GIRL POWER on me, read for yourself!

1 peter 3, wives, godlyActing like a spoiled little brat has always rubbed my heart the wrong way. Sure if feels good to throw a fit the size of Texas, but I feel like If I don’t want my kids acting like spoiled little brats, then I shouldn’t either.

I was quickly reminded of my actions and what resembled how my five-year old would act over not getting her way. I threw a fit in our car last night in front of our 3 children. We were heading to the Middle School to watch big daughter perform her dance at The Night of the Arts. There were absolutely no parking spots available and we were running late. After circling the parking lot my husband tells me to park where they keep the dumpsters. I thought about it for a second then continued to storm off. He just laughed at me and told me to park else where. I don’t like when people laugh at me, so in my anger, fear of possibly missing her dance, and frustration of not finding a parking spot, I yelled, “I AM GOING TO PARK WHERE I WANT TO PARK!!” I was upset because I had trusted him to direct me to a good parking place and here he was suggesting I park by the dumpsters where we were sure to be boxed in! I murmured off some more words, ones which I can’t even remember right now, but I know I was upset. I don’t lose it often, but every now and then the inner diva well she can’t keep her mouth shut! I had an awful attitude for a few minuets to follow. All the while my 16 yr old was in the back seat laughing at the free entertainment of Mom acting like a child. (shame)

We are the shepherds of our children. Our actions, our words, they listen and they watch. If you have teenagers, believe it or not, yes they too are watching, and listening to how you talk and treat others you interact with every second of the day. I believe that the teenagers are actually hoping we slip up so they can use it as an excuse to enforce their own sense of independence when they are being reprimanded.

Talking back to our husbands teach our children these things:

1. It’s okay to act like a spoiled brat, and lose all self-control of our emotions.

2. Disobedience to Authority.

3. Disrespect to Authority.

4. How to be Defiant.

5. How to have a proud and prideful heart and attitude.

6. Rebellion.

7. It is okay to argue until we get our way.

8. How to speak out of anger and not out of love.

If mom doesn’t respect my dad, then why should I? If he always has the finally say, then why is she trying to buck the system? We are leading by example to our children how to be under submission to authority in our lives. Our babies are only our babies for a very brief moment in their lives. They will soon be under the authority of God, Teachers, Coaches, Bosses, the Law, etc..

I pray right now for you and me to take the weakness of being hard-headed and defiant and rely on Jesus’s strength when we want to lash out in anger to our husbands when we don’t get our way, so that we may be quick to respond in love.  I pray that we are reminded by the Holy Spirit to ask for help in this area that we struggle with, having a prideful heart. I pray that God would give us a measure of faith in our husband to trust his authority as the head of our household. I pray that we rise up to the challenge God has called for us as wives to love our husband and submit to them.

By being a submissive wife, our husbands, our children, our marriages, and ourselves will be blessed for it!

Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry. James 1:19

 Likewise, you who are younger, be subject to the elders. Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” 1 Peter 5:5

Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands. Ephesians 5:24

LOVE

Leigh Leigh

Absorbing_Grace on instagram

Please follow my blog! Let’s connect on Facebook and Twitter!

Related Post on Marriage and Submission HERE!!!!

Starbucks and Journals (GIVE AWAY) {CLOSED}

blog giveaway

WINNER IS SHELLSEA RUDEN!!! Congratulations SHELLSEA!! Thanks to all who entered! Follow my blog so you don’t miss the chance to enter in future Give Aways!!

I am so excited to be finally hosting my first BLOG GIVE AWAY!

As I am nearing my 1 year anniversary to the whole Blogging World, I really want to express my gratitude to all my readers who have stopped by, read my blog posts, shared posts on social media, and left comments! This give away is for you!! I have also connected with some very sweet Blogger Mommas out there who have helped me get through this first year.

I have received over 6,333 Web views, and this will be my 95th Post! I look forward to what’s to come for this new year!

I love keeping a journal and I love coffee so I thought why not just give away two of my loves!

I am using the Rafflecopter App to host this Give Away, so please follow the instructions below!

Sharing is caring! If you know of a friend that would love to get in on this give away please feel free to share this blog post via Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Email, Pinterest, however you would like! If you are a blogger, please re-blog!

CLICK HERE TO ENTER my Rafflecopter Giveaway

1 Winner will be randomly selected and announced on my Blog http://www.leighleighspeaks.com on April 20, 2015 by 12:00pm. The winner will receive a winner confirmation email and will have 24 hours to respond. If the winner fails to respond, I will announce a new Winner on my blog and send them a winner confirmation email.

*The chevron print journal will be wrapped in its original packaging as you see the polka dot one is in the photo above. The journals and Starbucks gift card are NEW! The give away bundle is valued at $45.

Hope you Win! Thanks for entering! 🙂

XOXO

Leigh Leigh

Be sure to connect with me via Facebook and Twitter! Instagram coming soon!