The Legend Of Cauliflower (By Mar Bear)

Once upon a time there a flower named Cauli!

 Cauli was a plain, simple, white flower that most people did not pay attention to. Cauli lived amongst a variety of other veggies, but although Cauli was very healthy and beneficial to one's body, Cauli usually got over looked. If there was a veggie tray, Cauli only got taken after all the other veggies were taken and even then, only by those that were really hungry. If there was a mixed medley veggie on people's plates, Cauli usually got picked out and scooted to the side while all the other veggies got eaten. At the grocery store, Cauli neary always got over looked by it's popular friend sitting next to it, Broc...everyone just loved that Broccoli fellow over Cauli and Cauli could never understand why. Broc had a stronger taste and let out a foul smell when cooked, unlike Cauli.

.

However, Cauli just kept being Cauli! Cauli didn't try lifting weights, changing it's color or do anything to get people to like it, it just kept being Cauli. Cauli knew it's value was not dependent on what others thought of it, but on it's creator who made it. Cauli was full of fiber, magnesium, potassium and vitamins, even cancer-preventing ones, that were good for you. Cauli was low in calories and sugar, yet still had protein to strengthen and fill you. Cauli was awesome and didn't really matter if the whole world saw it or not, Cauli would just keep being CAULI!!!

.

Then one day, without trying, people suddenly began to notice Cauli! Cauli was being used so rapidly should hardly even knew what to do! Cauli was being used to help people lose weight. Cauli was made into rice, Cauli was mashed like taters, Cauli was made into pizza crust, Cauli this and Cauli that! Cauli here and Cauli there...FINALLY everyone noticed Cauli...Finally everyone saw Cauli's value, buuuuuuuut there was nothing different about Cauli! Cauli was still, JUST CAULI!!!!

.

Cauli determined that no matter how popular, well known and well liked it got, it still had the same value as it did when no one wanted it and Cauli also determined that when some other vegetable replaced it and became the newest popular healthy rave, Cauli wasn't going to let it get it down, it's value was still the same, if the whole world loved it, if only a few people loved it, or if ONLY GOD, it's creator loved it, no matter what, Cauli's value was still the same. The value of Cauli was NOT dependent on those around it, but on the one that created it!!!

.

THE END!!!

.

You guys, I know this may seem like a silly story, buuuuuuuut I wanna tell you all something, sometimes you just may know how it feels to be CAULIFLOWER!!! Maybe you feel like a lump of cold cauliflower on somebody's plate. The leftover that no body even bothers to put in the fridge with the rest of the leftovers. Buuuuuuut can I tell you something, YOU HAVE VALUE!!! YOU HAVE PURPOSE!!! Nobody else may notice or see you, BUUUUUUUT GOD DOES!!! Annnnnnd you just keep on being YOU!!! The best YOU, you can possibly be! Don't make yourself into something your not to try and get noticed and liked, just be YOU!!!

.

You know, growing up, I was that lump of cauliflower!!! I was timid!  I was quiet! I was shy! I lived happily in my own little imaginative world with my stuffed animals, baby dolls and Barbies. I usually sat alone at lunch and often played alone on the playground at school. I had my few friends at church but never got noticed much when we went other places, churches or conferences. I was timid, quiet and shy. 

.

BUUUUUT, I still new I had value. My mom ingrained in me that I was special, BECAUSE JESUS LOVED ME! My mom taught me ALWAYS to live my life to be pleasing to God, NOT man!!!

.

As I got older in life,  all of the sudden I was like the newest vegetable on the block!!! I was fun and happy, I could tell the best stories and make everyone laugh! Everyone wanted to be my friend! (Minus a few haters!;) Buuuuuuuuut can I tell you all something???

I was still JUST MARY!!!

The Mary that no one had noticed…

I'm still just ME!!!

I have the same value now that I had when  no one looked my way… I’m JUST ME!!!

.

Sometimes, I'm quiet, sometimes I'm loud. Sometimes I make everyone laugh, sometimes i keep my mouth shut, BUT occasionally i don’t! sometimes I just sit back and watch. Sometimes I'm witty and occasionally I'm wise! Sometimes I'm thoughtful, sometimes I lose all my thoughts. And most of the time, I'm still living happily in my own little world. You can like me, you can dislike me! You can take me or leave me, I don't even care...I mean, I care, buuuuuut I really don't care!!!! My value is NOT dependent on being well known, or well liked, my value comes from God, my creator!!!

.

You guys, it's nice to be liked, buuuuuuut it's more important to be Godly!!!  Popularity is fleeting, everyone will love you till they find someone else. BUUUUUUT your God-given value is the same no matter what. Your value from God is not dependent on people or circumstances, it is not fleeting and it is not passing. Stop putting so much value on what people think of you, and focus what is what GOD THINKS OF YOU!

.

The truth is that a person that lives their life striving to be pleasing to God, is usually pretty well liked. I mean think about it, if you live to please God, you’re going to have a pretty strong character, you will do what’s right with kindness and speak the truth in love. 

.

So you guys, like the cauliflower, know your value, stay the same, be pleasing to your creator and know that your God sees you, whether the whole world does or does not. As my mom would always tell me, "Mary, you can't please ALL the people, ALL the time,  so LIVE TO PLEASE GOD, NOT MAN!!!

.

"When a man's ways please the LORD, he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him." (Proverbs 16:7)

 

♥Mary Frances :)

The Highest Peak

The first time I hiked my big mountain, one of the specific things I remember is the further I hiked, the better the view was. I remember when I wasn't too far from the top, I stopped a lady coming down to ask her how much further the hike up was. She told me that it wasn't to much more and that before to long I would basically come to the top of the mountain and that the view was beautiful there, no need to try and go to the peak, she never did, it was just a waste of time since there was already a beautiful view.

.

However, when I got to the spot that I knew the lady had described to me, I looked at the Phoenix Valley below me and it was indeed BEAUTIFUL, buuuuuuuut, I couldn't help but wonder what it would look like, from THE VERY TOP OF THE HIGHEST MOUNTAIN PEAK!!!

.

So of course, I couldn't help but push myself for 15 more torturous moments UP the very steepest part of that mountain, till FINALLY I was on the peak!!! It was stunning!!! It was SOOOOO worth that extra hike up!!! I couldn't help but wonder about that lady coming down, WHY hadn't she ever gone ALL THE WAY UP??? WHY not to THE HIGHEST PEAK????

.

As usual, I couldn't help but see the similarities between this and our walk with God! How often do we come to a place in our relationship with Jesus, where things are so good, that we don't push ourselves to go to the next level with him?! Think about those moments, those times in life, when we've come SO FAR in our walk with God, that when we look, the view with him is SO AMAZING, we think, HOW in the world could it get any better than this???

.

BUT what if there's a higher peak that God wants to take you to? What if He has something MORE for you than what you already have? The last time I hiked this particular mountain, on my way up stopped to talk with a man who was resting with his young daughter. We got to talking and he was telling me how he's from Chicago, and there are NO MOUNTAINS THERE, everything was just flat. He was in such awe of the mountain and of hiking. He said that he had never done anything like this at all. He said that his wife and his older daughter had kept hiking up but that this daughter had enough and so he was just waiting with her. He was like, I mean, this right here is still so high and the view is so great, he'd never done anything like  this before and was still so thrilled with what they'd done.

.

In my mind that man reminds me of how we are when we're first starting out in our walk with God. Everything we've done is SO NEW, and EVERY STEP TOWARDS GOD is indeed a GOOD THING!!! It's like how the view for this man was already so amazing and that's how it is living for God. Its like in Acts 19 when Paul talked to disciples, men that were ALREADY followers of Christ, "He said unto them, Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed? And they said unto him, We have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost." (Acts 19:2) These followers of Christ OBEYED and went that step further in their relationship with Jesus. They went to a higher peak!!

.

What IF there is a higher peak that God wants to take you to in your walk with him? What if God has something more for you than what you already have? What if there is something you need to do or change or give up in your life that will bring you to that highest peak? I encourage you today to go further with Jesus. Make the sacrifice, PUSH yourself up the steep climb!!! Sure its ok, to be like that man and his daughter, to rest and take a moment to enjoy the view , BUUUUT DON'T STAY THERE!!! 

."Wherefore I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the gift of God, which is in thee ..." (2 Timothy 1:6) " 

Go my friends...

 GO to THE HIGHEST PEAK!!!!

.

And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart." (Jeremiah 29:13)

.

The Place Between!!!

A few weeks ago, my pastor was preaching about faith and belief in what God can do and it got me to thinking about hope. How we hope for things in this life, for hearts desires to come true. How despite circumstances, we still hope, despite the odds, despite the unlikely chance of something coming to pass, we still hope it will happen because God IS ABLE.

.

BUT, what about REALITY??? 

The truth is that sometimes we don't always get our every heart's desire. Sometimes really hard things happen to God's people. Reality is that sometimes-loved ones do end up dying young. Reality is that accidents happen. Reality is that cancer is real. Reality is that babies are stillborn. Reality is that sometimes people lose their job. Reality is that parents' babies die. Reality is that children's parents die. Reality is that spouses die. Reality is that death is real. Reality is that some people never do get healed from infertility. Reality is that ABUSE is happens. Reality is that broken homes are very real. Reality is that broken hearts happen. Reality is that dreams get shattered. 

.

WE HOPE-but there is still REALITY!!!

.

I love to dream of wonderful things happening. I'm that crazy girl that dreams about it raining fluffy puppies. I have a wild imagination that can take me and anyone I'm with anywhere. I take people on an adventure through my words spoken or written.  BUT I also know REALITY. 

.

I know what it's like to think all my dreams are FINALLY coming true but everything falls apart. AND I know what it's like to wait and wait and wait and wait and wait and WAIT AGAIN and to think that maybe, just maybe, after years and years of being best friends with someone, FINALLY they're going to go for you and you and FINALLY everything is coming together BUT instead that person chooses to backslide-THAT'S REALITY!

.

It's not just a matter of not believing. It's knowing how many times before you've believed and still been wrong. Reality rages against hope. Reality mocks hope in the face. Reality says your little brother just died. Reality says remember what happened before? Reality says, every other time has been a failure. Reality says every other time you believed and where did that get you? Reality says where has all your prayers gotten you? 

.

AND yet I still HOPE!!! I still believe even when doubt whispers facts of reality in my ears. Maaaaaaaaaaybe one day you will get married buuuuuuuuuut your already 40, even if you do get married, you think you're going to have a baby? You still want to be a mom? Even if you have a baby RIGHT NOW, you'll be 60 by the time your baby is an adult, you want that? And the answer is STILL YES. 

.

 Hope and Reality are on opposite sides of the globe of my life. What is that place between the two??? What's the place in the middle of living in reality, yet still hoping but also not living in your own fantasy world of make believe??? 

.

What is the place between HOPE AND REALITY???

.

I pondered this thought in my mind for several days, then it hit me...

The place between hope and reality is- TRUSTING IN GOD! Despite everything that happens, we can still trust in God. He said I know that thoughts that I think toward you, not to harm you, but to give you an expected end. God has GOOD in store for us even if it hurts. There are times in my life that I have been so hurt, so disappointed, that I have literally felt a spirit if cynicism trying to take over my heart BUT GOD told me I could still trust Him. 

.

I have refused to become a cynic without hope. I would rather have a soft heart that is disappointed over and over again, than a hardened cynical heart that is never disappointed because it dares not to hope. Hope is found in our brokenness when we take the road of trust. 

"The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart..." (Psalm 34:18)

Why is hope found in the middle of brokenness? Because GOD IS there and where God is, THERE IS ALWAYS HOPE!!!

.

Trusting in God is that place between hope and reality, it's that place in between our dreams and God's dreams for us. Trusting in God is the surrendering of our will to His will. We don't know what the future holds, but we can trust in God.  We can hope and know that if we're disappointed again, that God is still in control, and we can trust Him. God knows what He is doing. We can trust Him.

.

We can't see the future but when we trust God, we show God that our ultimate hope is in Him. "...Christ in you, the hope of glory." (Colassians 1:27) At the end of our lives, I don't believe our last thought will be aww man, I wish i had done things my own way. We can trust God because the outcome of fulfilling His will in our lives will always be greater than the fulfilling of our own will. God's will for our lives will not leave us disappointed in the end.  God's ending will always leave us astounded. When we take the road of trust, our hope will become our reality. 

"but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for? But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it.." (Romans 824-25)

♥Mary Frances :)

No rear view mirrors!!!

"I'm shootin for the moon, an I'm in a spaceship, an this spaceship don't even have rear view mirrors, so that means I ain't even tryin to look back." 

*

My friend said this to me a while ago. It was a slightly ODD statement to say and yet, the AWESOMEST quote ever. I just loved it!!! Its like soooo ghetto, yet sooo profound. "...An this spaceship don't even have rear veiw mirrors..." <----- SOOO Ghetto...BUT sometimes I think we need to GET GHETTO!!!

.

Often times its the luxurious things in life that are holding us back in the kingdom of God! We have everything figured out just right. We're still in our comfort zone. We know all of our surroundings, we have our seat belts on, our seats just right, and our mirrors adjust perfectly. We're moving forward but we can still see behind us.

*

You don't need to see what's behind. Leave your past and just go. In the Bible, before destroying the City  in Genesis 19, God tells lot and his family, "...Escape for thy life; look not behind thee..." However, Lot's wife did look back and she was turned to a pillar of salt. 

*

What did lots wife need that she looked back? The WHOLE city was being consumed by fire, what did she need??? NOTHING!!! When your buried in the name of Jesus, THERE IS NOTHING in your past that you need to look back too. Looking back to this old world will ONLY destroy you. 

*

" But Jesus said to him, “No one, after putting his hand to the plow and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.” (Luke 9:62) 

*

We need to leave behind the things that are holding us back. You don't need to look behind you living for God. There's NO REARVIEW MIRRORS on your way to heaven. Who cares if your spaceship is a little ghetto?! You don't need the fanciest transportation, as you travel this journey, you just need to GET TO HEAVEN!!!

*

All you need to do is get on the straight path, rip off those rearview mirrors and make up your mind...

I'm on my way to heaven and...

 "I ain't EVEN TRYIN to look back!!!" 

"I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 3:14)

♥Mary Frances :)

Why'd the hiker fall???

So I was hiking 🥾 a mountain near our house and there was another girl with her dog and they were hiking way faster in front of me as we hiked up the steep mountain! All of the sudden the girl slipped, fell to her bottom and started sliding down the mountain on the dirt and gravel. She was really embarrassed but quickly got control of the situation, got up and kept going.

.

Buuuuuuut I remember looking at the girl and being surprised she had fallen. She was physically fit, obviously a lot more than me, there's NO WAY I'd be able to handle hiking WITH A DOG. She seemed an experienced hiker, she looked athletic, she'd probably hiked this trail a 100 times before, it just seemed like she wasn't really the falling down type.

WHY'D THE HIKER FALL???

 As she walked away, I glanced back once more at her and noticed her shoes...AHA!!!

.

Her shoes were WHY she had fallen down so badly!!! She wasn't wearing the proper shoes to hike the slippery dirt slopes of the Arizona mountains. She was just wearing regular old Nike sneakers, not hiking boots. It doesn't matter how many mountains you've hiked, IF your wearing the wrong shoes, eventually, YOU WILL SLIP!!!

.

Spiritually speaking, the SAME concept applies in our own lives. It doesn't matter HOW LONG we've been living for God, if we're NOT wearing the right shoes, we're going to slip. I've seen it happen to people and I just look in shock, what happened? I thought they were so strong in the Lord! I thought they were experienced well in the things of God and living for him! I looked up to them spiritually as role model! How could they have slipped? 

.

But then you glance back a moment and you really look, and you see their spiritual hiking boots were replaced with just good old, comfortable sneakers! Somewhere along the way, without you ever seeing it, they stopped praying, they stopped reading their Bible, they stopped seeking wholeheartedly after the things of God.

.

We can't do that. We don't have time to get comfortable in our walks with God. We have to put on those hiking boots everyday and prepare ourselves for the hike.

Pray, read your Bible, go to church and don't stop!!! And if you do slip, JUST GET UP , put the right shoes back on and keep hiking!!!

"Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil."                                                                                                                                 Ephesians 6:11

        We've GOT TO MAKE 

        THE HIKE TO HEAVEN!!!

♥Mary Frances :)

How to see a rainbow...

I was reading in Woman's World magazine( I LOVE this magazine!!!) that there is a way to see MORE rainbows. It said that rainbows appear when the sun is directly behind you and the rain is directly in front of you. So if you want to see more rainbows you gotta look in the right direction.

Of course I couldn't help but see how this relates to us in our own lives. Even in the hardest, toughest trials of life, I believe it is possible to see beauty. With the all sunshine of life behind you and the storms of life in front of you, it is possible see a rainbow. It was after Noah built and alter unto the Lord that God gave him the covenant of the rainbow. You just have to have the right perspective to see the promise. You have to stand in the right direction for The sun Son to reflect His beauty.

You wanna see more rainbows???

WORSHIP the Lord in the middle of your storm.

"Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee." (Isaiah 26:3)

God your my...

So the other day I was praying, and I was trying to think something really awesome to tell God he was, that was also REALLY accurate in my life. Liiiiiiiiiike, you know you can say stuff like, your the lily of the valley, or my bright and morning star, buuuuuuuuut how often, if ever, have we even seen a lily in the valley or a bright and morning star???

.

I was thinking about how David would pray, the things he would say, his rock, his shelter, his mighty strong tower, his hiding place, his deliverer, his shelter, I'm like Hmmmm...Of course God IS all those things to me, buuuuuuuuuuuut I wanted to think of something he was to me that wasn't just something David said, so I'm thinking, and I'm thinking...OKAAAAAAY what really is just something that I just need and am sooooooo thankful for that God can be to me???

.

Then it hit, me I'm like, "God your my, my, my, my"...AM I REALLY GONNA SAY THIS??? Yes, I will...

.

"God your my, my, my...

MY AC!!!

AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAA!!!

Yes, I REALLY said that, and I meant it too!!!And God knows just how high of a compliment that is coming from an AZ girl!!! 

"As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God. My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God..." 

(Psalm 42:1-2)

♥Mary Frances :)
P.S. Sooooooooo what is God to YOU??? maryfranceswriting@gmail.com

Seeing through Love...

Sooooooo the other day I was at Fry's getting out of my car, when I heard a couple talking to each other about a car. They were like, OH look at THAT CAR, that's a beautiful car!!! And in my head I thought, who cares about some fancy shmancy car!!! I LOOOOOVE MY CAR!!! I love my Honda Element! I don't care if it's not the latest, greatest, thing!!!  It's high off the ground, but compact and it has THE COLDEST AC annnnd it's really cute and reliable!!!! Sooooooo what if it has some scrapes and a dent on the bumper!!!! Those things just give it character!!!! It's THE BEST car I've everrrrr owned and I LOOOOOOOOVE my Orange Blossom Orange Crush, scrapes, bumps, DENTS AND ALL!!! 

.

Weeeeeeeellll when the couple saw me as they walked by they stopped said, OH we were just talking about your car, it's a BEAUTY!!! I was liiiiiiiiiiiiike... OH THAAAAAAANK YOU!!!! They were like, yeah we love Honda Elements, we used to have one and really miss it!!! I was like, Oh totally agree!!! This is my favorite car i've ever owned!

.

And we parted ways smiling! 

.

Annnnnnd I thought, that must be what it's like to see through the eyes of love. When you love someone, you don't stay focused on all their flaws and imperfections. Yeah, you know they're there, buuuuuut you LOVE them!!!

.

God sees us through the eyes of love So often we compare ourselves to others. We want to be like them! (ok just to be really honest, I don't struggle with this a WHOLE LOT....buuuuuut occasionally...every ONCE IN A BLUE MOON!!!;) If only I was more like this or like so and so! Buuuuuuut God sees us the way I saw my car and was defending it in my head. He hears us or knows what we're thinking inside and he's LIKE, whaaaaaat??? That's MY GIRL and I think she is AWESOME!!! She's just the best thing everrrrrr. That's MY CHILD!!! I took EXTRA time to make him the way he is. 

.

God's LIKE, no I'm NOT talking about someone else, THAT'S YOU I'M TALKING ABOUT!!!! You don't need to try and be like someone else!!! Bumps, scratches, imperfections, flaws and all, 

GOD THINKS YOUR AMAZING!!!

♥

"I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: Marvellous are thy works; And that my soul knoweth right well."

♥Mary Frances :)

When there's still roots (Part 2)

Last week, I talked with you all about how our grapefruit tree was blown over in a rainstorm but how BECAUSE there was still roots in the ground from the tree, a new tree has begun to grow in place of the old one. Refresh your memory with When There's Still Roots Part 1, today I want to talk to you all about part 2 of this aspect. Last week we saw the positive aspect of what can happen when you still have roots in a good thing, something new will begin to grow from it. 

.

However, while roots in something that is good will bring forth something new that is good, when something bad is cut out of your life, if you have roots in something bad, something new, that is bad will once again begin to grow. It's good to cut out bad things in our life. Ungodly influences, worldly lusts, carnal desires, but check yourself, you have to do more than just cut down the tree, you have to get down to the heart of the issue. You may have cut the item out of your life, buuuuuuut did you also dig out the roots? 

.

If you find yourself struggling over and over again with the same thing, perhaps its because you never dug out the roots. The roots of the issue must be completely dug out and destroyed, never to grow back again in another form. Search your heart today, ask God to show you if there are any roots in your heart that need to be dug out! 

If there is something, 

GET THE SHOVEL,

 it's time to start digging!!! 

"“Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled;” (Hebrews 12:15)

♥Mary Frances :)

When there's still roots (Part 1)

So we've always had a grapefruit tree in our front yard. Weeeeeeeeeellll, a few years ago, after some recent heavy rain storms, it fell to the ground and we had to have it carried away. In the front yard there was a huge bare spot where the tree had once been. Buuuuuuut one day, when my brother was over, he noticed that there was a small green plant growing where the big grapefruit tree had been. He asked me, is that a new grape fruit tree growing there? I was like, I have no idea!

.

 I went over and smelled one of the leaves and was greeted with a beautiful, strong and refreshing citrus smell...it WAS a NEW TREE!!! We were sooooooo excited!!! Apparently, the roots from our tree were still deep in the ground and with all the rain, it began to grow a tree again!! 

Sometimes, in life, there are things in our lives that fall down and are taken out of our lives, we are left with a bare and empty space that we are not sure what to do with. 

.

Buuuuuuuuuuuuuut when we have roots in Christ, something new will grow from Him. When an old tree in your life dies, Be patient, trust in God and wait to see what God is going to put into the bareness of your life!! The tree may be gone, but you still have your roots, something new will begin to grow again!!!

.

"For there is hope for a tree, When it is cut down, that it will sprout again, And its shoots will not fail. "Though its roots grow old in the ground And its stump dies in the dry soil, At the scent of water it will flourish And put forth sprigs like a plant." (Job 14:7-9)

.

"Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit." (John 12:24)

♥Mary Frances :)

Just a candy wrapper!!!

Soooooo quite a few years back, my good friends Joe and Anali Velez were here with their little baby girl, Alina! Like most babies, Alina loves playing with anything that makes noise, like wrapping paper, MORE that what is ACTUALLY inside the wrapping paper!!!

Weeeeeeeeellllll one of the days she was here just crawling around and she found a candy wrapper, she was just having the time of her life with it when once of her parent's saw it in her and took it away from her. You should have seen the look on her face when they took it from her, ABSOLUTE DEVESTATION!!!!

.

That lil baby girl threw the biggest lil fit ever. We all tried to console her with other toys, I had just given her this really cool toy from a yard sale, a dancing swan, that lights up, sings, and swirls that carousal ANNNNND walks all over the floor...I mean, talk about a COOL TOY...from an even COOLER AUNTIE ;)...

I'm like,

looooook Alina, you want your Swan????

BUUUUT NOOOOO, she wanted her CANDY WRAPPER!!!

There she was, surrounded by other toys to play with, just crying her eyes out, meanie O parents had taken her candy wrapper away. It was just a little piece of trash, buuuuut for Alina, it was THE BEST THING EVERRRR!!!

.

She had no way of knowing or understanding that her parent's were just being GOOD parent's, taking it away from her. Her parent's were looking out for her, they saw that it was small and despite her fascination in it, it could be harmful for her. She had know way of comprehending the danger, for her, it was her beloved little toy, it was HER CANDY WRAPPER!!! 

.

This got me to thinking, how often are we THE SAME WAY with God??? The world has littered our lives with little pieces of trash and every so often, something catches our eye...

Oooooh look, IT'S SHINY!

and we pick it up and start to play with it! Oh wow, this is pretty cool, it crinkles and makes a funny noise too...I LIIIIIIIKE IT!!! 

.

It could be anything, internet surfing, video games, influences, friendships, relationships, social media, etc...a thought or an idea an activity or place or person or just a thing, buuuuuut God sees the danger in it even when we don't, so, like a good and loving parent, he simply takes it out of our hands. And there we are, like a little baby, we throw a FIT!!! How DARE YOU GOD!!! How could you take that away from me??? It was just a little piece of trash but there you are, MAD at God because he was looking out for you! How can you do this to me God??? It was shiny and it crinkled, that was MY CANDY WRAPPER!

.

And all we can do is focus on that little piece of trash that God took away from us, when meanwhile, like Alina was surrounded by nice toys she didn't want, we are surrounded by the blessings of God all around us. The goodness of God surrounds us. God has done SO MUCH for us, buuuuut ALL we can focus on is what he hasn't given us or what he took away, OUR CANDY WRAPPER! 

.

You guys, if God NEVERRRR does one more thing for us, He died on a cross for our sins, he took our place, he forgave us, he washed away our sins, he saved our souls from a burning hell, I think we can surrender a few candy wrappers that the devil has left littered on the ground so we can make it to heaven.  And when God takes it away from us, instead of being a baby about it, THANK GOD, for being a good, protective parent that is looking out for you! We don't know better than God. We are just little children that a loving father is protecting from harm.

.

Don't hang on to your candy wrapper,

it's  a piece of trash!

Just let it go!!!

"If iniquity be in thine hand, put it far away, and let not wickedness dwell in thy tabernacles." (Job 11:14)

♥Mary Frances :)

The python 🐍 of Godly dreams…

What is your dream in life?

That was the question I asked my newest friend. He was a quiet and reserved person and A LOT younger than me, but I kinda felt sorry for him. He was always so shy at conferences, often standing all alone if someone didn't go over to him and then even if he was standing there with you in the group, you often forgot he was there and left him behind, not on purpose, just because he was so quiet. I figured he needed a Mar Bear as a friend to take him around and meet people. At first it was just me being nice to him, but I managed to find an actual personality in there and soon we became actual friends.

.

We had been friends for a little while and I got curious to know his life ambitions. He was a good guy and aspiring to be in the ministry, he had just finished up two years at a community college and had decided to take a break from it because he said he wanted to have more time for the things of God-which I thought that was pretty cool, especially since his family wasn't even in church. Now I wanted to know...

.

What is your dream in life???

.

My friend's response was so surprising to me. He was aspiring into the ministry, and he was anointed when he preached, it was pretty amazing to see this quiet, shy person, completely change under the anointing of God. Knowing this, I had figured he would say something along the lines of becoming a preacher, evangelist, etc... what he said was completely different, he said that his dream in life was simply... to start his own Godly legacy. I had never and still have never heard anyone so plainly state a simple, yet profound life dream. 

.

 Although younger than me, I began to really look up to him. He had a lot of strong Biblical knowledge and could explain doctrine so profoundly. He was a strength to me spiritually, someone ready with a scripture when I was down, he pointed me in the right direction when I struggled with doubts and trusting in God. There was a time I told him I was unsure of God keeping his promises in my life. My friend called me up on his work break with every scripture in the Bible he could find on God fulfilling his promises, then he gave me a very unique word of encouragement from God, that I had never heard put in such away before.  The same unique word he had given me was reaffirmed that same week by the conference speaker. My friend indeed had the hand of God on his life. 

.

He pushed me to develop my Christian character, most of my friends already thought I was the nicest person, but he would gently, but firmly tell me I could still become more Christ-like. There was a time that he called me out on my desire to get married so badly, he said it was a good desire, but to make sure I was not making marriage an idol in my life. Not to desire marriage more than God, not to make it bigger than Him.

.

 I remember one time I was telling him about this 5k run I really wanted to do, "The Fluffy Unicorn Run" of course he laughed as I told him, it's not just a unicorn run, it's a THE FLUFFY UNICORN RUN, liiiiiiike it was designed literally for me! The only little glitch I told him, is that I may have to be like 30 minutes late for prayer, but I'll still be there, just late. He just kinda looked at me, then said, I don't know about that sis! I was liiiiiiiike, buuuuuuut it's THE FLUFFY UNICORN run....but I knew it was true, I shouldn't miss or be late for church for anything, EVEN THE FLUFFY UNICORN 5k run!!!! 

,

For 8 years we remained the best of friends, I won't deny to you all that YES, feelings for him did develop on my part, but there was never anything romantic that happened between us, truly we were best friends. 

.

AND THEN THE PYTHON CAME AROUND...

I still can't put my finger on when exactly things began to change. All I could remember was all the good things and the Godly way he had always been. He began developing his career, moving up in the job market. He went back to college, he got one degree, then another, then a special certification and his career began to thrive. Yes, there had been the nights he had missed for schoolwork, but I figured, I guess if you have to study, you have to study. I've never been a scholar, so I didn't say to much, I figured what do I know, I'm a college dropout, so it's easy for me to not see the importance in studying for big exams instead of being in the house of God.

.

Then his career took flight and he really had to miss a lot during busy seasons, once again, it bothered me, but I didn't know how much I should say, my career as a glorified babysitter would never get in the way of church, so once again I would think, it's easy for me to never have to miss church, but something worrisome began to flicker in my heart. Was it really ok to miss this much church during busy seasons???

.

Don't worry, I would tell myself, this is the kid that started coming to church at age 4. This is the guy that began to live for God on his own at age 12. This is the 14-year-old that sat alone at the dinner table because he didn't want to watch TV with his family. This is the person that told you HIS ONLY DREAM IN LIFE WAS TO START HIS OWN GODLY LEGACY, your overthinking this Mary. 

.

WHAT IS A PYTHON????

A python is a snake that wrap their bodies around their prey and squeeze until their victim stops breathing or its heart stops beating. Then they swallow their prey whole, usually without ever even physically deforming what they just swallowed.

.

Then my friend, who usually only got sick about once or twice a year, randomly began getting sick at least once a month. Then maybe twice a month, I questioned him if he was making healthy eating choices, if his immune system was ok. He assured me it was just a coincidence and that he was being extra careful with so much sickness going around to look out for other people and not spread more around. It sounded good, but something inside of me didn't feel right.

The python had begun wrapping 

his body around my friend...

.

Then busy season began to start a month earlier this year. My spirit felt heavier and heavier. But when I questioned him, he said he was just trying to figure things out in his new career. But the more he missed the more I felt I needed to say something, I would tell him I have such a heavy burden for you, he would just say, oh I'm sorry I'm causing you to be burdened, I'm just trying to figure things out.  "I know you've worked a long time and really hard on your career and I'm really proud of you for your accomplishments, but you've worked even longer and harder to live for God and the devil wants to steal that away from you. I thought I would anger him with my directness, but he just thanked me for my encouragement. 

.

And the python began his constriction...

.

See, I would tell myself, he's not mad at you, so everything must be ok, but my spirit knew. It was like my humanity was in denial, but the Holy Ghost inside of me knew the truth and would not let the burden leave me. 

 I prayed and I prayed, and I prayed. I could hardly sleep at night, and when I did, I would soon wake up and begin praying for my friend. I did everything I could spiritually do for my friend to stop what was happening. I prayed and I fasted and I prayed and fasted, I interceded for him, I wept and cried till there were no tears left in me and then I would weep in prayer for him again. 

.

And the python squeezed and squeezed...

.

I'm ok, everything is ok he kept reassuring me. Then busy season was officially over and still he wasn't at church. Where are you? I'd text. Oh, sorry Mary, I just need to catch my breath I'm so tired from everything. Then Sunday came and once again he wasn't there. As soon as church was over, I called him, no answer of course. I texted him, where are you? You said everything is ok, but it's NOT! What is wrong? You have to tell me what is wrong! Then I finally got a text back, I'm sorry Mary, I have some decisions I have to make, that only I can make, there's nothing you've done wrong, you've been a good friend, but I have to make my own decisions.

.

What did he mean he had some decisions to make? Hadn't he already decided to live for God on his own accord years and years ago? I texted him, "You mean you don't want to live for God anymore?????" I never got a text back to that question.

.

THE PYTHON HAD SWALLOWED HIS GODLY DREAM WHOLE...

My friend's dream to start a Godly legacy, the python constricted, squeezed and swallowed it whole, replacing it with worldly ambitions.

.

Now don't get me wrong, God is more powerful than the pythons in this world and IF YOU ASK HIM TO, he can restore to you anything that devil has taken from you. He is the restorer of hopes and dreams. I pray still for my friend that he will return, that he will ask God to restore back to him with the devil stole, but he has to ask God to get it back for him and do what it takes to get it back, nobody can repent for someone else.

.

BUUUUUUUUUUT...

friends, young people, old people, I don't care who you are, THE PYTHON is after your Godly ambitions and dreams. There is NOTHING more he would like to do than to take away your dreams in the kingdom of God and replace them with education and careers. 

.

Don't let homework constrict your Bible reading. Don't let studying constrict your prayer life. Don't let work squeeze out church time. Don't let money come before the work of God. 

"And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you.."

What do you know Mary? I know i'm not a college graduate, I've NEVERRRRR even been tempted to miss church for HOMEWORK or STUDYING...BAHAHHAHAAAAA...but there are things I've had to put aside, for my walk with God. Fluffy Unicorn runs, being a social media influencer, people LOVE ME, my following on Facebook was massive, but God said get off.  In my writing, I could write anything I wanted but I have chosen to use it for God, there are things that even people like me have to put aside and choose the things of God first and foremost. 

" But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren." (Luke 22:32)

.

Look out for your friends. Call them out when they miss church. Beware of sickness. Beware of excuses. Don't let them out of it. Pray and fast for each other. Go to your pastor with your concerns. It's ok if they get mad, it's worth the risk of their anger if it saves them from the python. And even if they don't get mad, that doesn't mean everything is ok, numbness begins when the python is constricting.

. 

“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:” (1Peter 5:8)

.

WHAT IS YOUR GODLY DREAM???

Think about it, right now. Write it down in your Bible and in your heart and don't let the python of Godly dreams swallow your dream. Ask God what his dream for your life is. Seek Godly council. 

God has a plan for your life,

buuuuuut so does the devil. 

.

He is watching and waiting for a chance to swallow your Godly dream. Don't give him a chance. It does not matter how much you have put God first in the past, the python is waiting for the one moment you don't to pounce. Continually reevaluate where you are in your walk with God. Put the things of God first ALWAYS. Pray, Read your Bible and Go to church, NO MATTER WHAT. The python has NO POWER over God, so stay close to Him ALWAYS!!! God will bring your dream to pass if you stay in His will. 

.

"But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you." (Mathew 6:33)

♥Mary Frances :)