Here is an awesome graphic to go along with our verse! 

Can’t see the picture above? Click here to view on Pinterest and Pin it!

I Can Do It Myself…or Can I?

Being a mother, I know all too well how eager children are to gain independence. We hear a child say, “I can to it myself” and we kind of laugh to ourselves, realizing that they can’t do everything by themselves. However, don’t you and I do the exact same thing from time to time? Think back, a situation arises in your life and you try and figure out how you can fix it. You try first one thing and then the next, mentally checking off every possible solution until you resort to the last thing that comes to mind, God and prayer.

This idea is not only seen in the “big” issues of life, but even in the small things, like our quiet time. When we do not make the time to spend with God, we are in essence saying that we can “do” life day to day without God’s help. In other words, “I’ve got this taken care of. I will let you know if something major comes up, God, and I need your assistance.”

You and I were not created to go it on our own. God longs for us to come to Him and ask for His help and guidance.

Before we go any further, I would like you to take a moment and just let the words of this song wash over you today.

If you can’t see the video above, click here to view directly on You Tube.

Tracie has broken this chapter down into 4 parts:

• The Lion Never Sleeps
• Prepare for the Thief
• Prepped for Battle
• Rebel and Suffer the Consequences

After your have read all of Chapter 6, please complete the reflection questions on page 135-137. The reflection questions are a wonderful way of taking what you have learned in the chapter and begin to apply it to your life. I know that it takes time and effort, but our stress is not going to simply go away. You and I must not only read about what to do, but actually begin taking the steps to eliminate it. Trust me, it is worth it and God will bless your effort.

Your Turn to Share (in the comment section) ~

• Share your favorite quotes
• Scripture
• “Light bulb” moments from Chapter 6

*Your next assignment will not be until Friday, so you have 3 days to complete this. Be sure to come back Thursday for the Blog Hop.

***Click here to access the Week 6 Day 1 post

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Our reflection verse this week, Matthew 6:33, gives us a promise if we make the choice to have God first in our lives.

“But seek first his kingdom,” the first part of this verse plainly tells us to turn to God first. He needs to be our first choice and not our last resort. We are called to seek Him first. God demands first place in our lives. The word seek means, “to pursue, crave, go after with all your might.”

When one of my boys has lost a precious toy, he goes about with great determination to find the lost item. It is all he can think about, talk about and is willing to go to great lengths for it. My child is seeking the lost item just like you and I need to be seeking God. However, we do need to be mindful in seeking God that we are seeking His “presence” and not His “presents”. God delights when we choose to spend time with Him because of who He is and not what He can do for us. Think about it this way, do you want a person to be your friend simply because of what you can give them? Absolutely not, then let’s not do the same thing with God.

The next portion, “and his righteousness,” is talking about being filled with God’s desires and be willing to serve and obey Him in everything. The question we have to ask ourselves is “what is really important?”

In our fast-paced, crazy scheduled lives there is simply not time to do everything. This leads to feelings of being overwhelmed and stressed. The only answer is to prioritize and ask what’s important. You and I will make time in our lives for what is important. If God isn’t top priority – first place – other things will take His place and He will not have a place or time in our lives. Therefore, you and I will not feel true peace and the joy of living with less stress.

Matthew 6:33 is situated in a passage where Jesus is teaching about worry. Christ called his disciples to a life free from worry, a life that is defined by trusting God to provide for their daily needs. Like his disciples, Jesus wants us to focus our first energies and priorities on the Kingdom of God because He understood how burdensome and destructive worry and stress could be in our lives. The simple solution is to look at God’s faithful provision in our lives.

However, there are times in my own life that I simply feel weighed down and can’t see how I will make it through. There is just too much to do, too many bills to pay, too many places to go, too many people wanting a portion of me….but GOD. You and I must remember that God gives us enough grace to face each day’s challenges. He will see us through whatever circumstance we find ourselves in. In these times of feeling overwhelmed and drowning, it is a wonderful time to stop and think of how God has provided in the past.

Your Turn to Share –

• I  encourage you to not only look up the other stress busting scriptures at the end of Chapter 6, but to journal about them. Which one of these scriptures spoke to you today?
• Write out our reflection verse for the week, Matthew 6:33 and keep a copy with you or posted to remind you to stop and think about what is important and to strive to seek God first in all things. This would be a wonderful verse to try verse-mapping. I would love to see your photos of your verse-mapping or have you share what stuck out to you in this verse.

Be sure to comment throughout the week to be entered to win the stress relief goodies pictured.

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