I can't get no...satisfaction...

Okay so you might be a little young to remember this song"Satisfaction" but if you do remember...take a minute and sing it at the top of your lungs right now!

I can't get no...satisfaction...
but I try, I try, I try
I TRY-uh eye
I can't get no satisfaction...
no no no

you ever feel this way?
Like you are spinning your wheels just trying to get some satisfaction in life? But you never really seem to feel it?
You work hard at going to college to get a good degree to land the best job ever, then you land the best job ever, you make lots of hard earned cash, you spend your hard earned cash, you get the man/woman of your choice, you get that car you've always wanted, you change your wardrobe with every new trend, you buy the bigger house-because well, why would you want a smaller one? You go to fancy restaurants, you take fun vacations...you marry that man/woman that you've always dreamed of, you work out to get that amazing body...

although all these things are nice...they just don't seem to fill the void deep inside your heart.

Ever feel this way?

Ever desire something more?

Ever wonder if there is something out there that will SATISFY your deepest longing? Something that is far different than anything you've ever achieved or earned?

Is there something out there?

I know for me, I longed for it. I spent a lot of my life searching for something or someone to fill my void in my life. So, I filled it with fashion, and friends, activities, material stuff, boys....

Never felt satisfied.

Never.

Because nothing here, on this earth will EVER satisfy your deepest desires.

Wow. That's pretty harsh, you say. You are more than welcome to call me an idiot if you want.

But I know. I searched. I've been there. But end your search for satisfaction right now. You just won't find it in the places this world is telling you that you'll find it. It's just not here.

Listen to this....

"Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things." Col. 2:2

"you are always with me, you uphold me with your right hand, you guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory. Whom have I in heaven but you...

"and EARTH has NOTHING I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail but GOD is the strength of my heart and my portion forever." Psalm 76:23-26

This are the words that I found. This is the same God who kept whispering my name my whole life to come back to Him. I finally listened and am satisfied in Him. He fills me in ways that nothing or NO ONE could ever do. Is life perfect? Heck no! I still need to be reminded...but now I have this hope.

Are you listening to His whisper?

He is calling out to you.

And just so you know...nothing could ever separate you from His love. No past failures, no life long mistakes...no current mistakes...NOTHINg can separate you from His love. He just simply loves you...

Fun in the Sun...

I just got back from sunny Florida where temperatures were a hot 90 degrees each day. I love the sun. I find joy closing my eyes and soaking it all it. Before leaving for vacation I had made an appointment with a dermatologist to take a look at a few moles on my body that I thought were of some concern. Turns out that they were of no concern at all, but she did tell me that my wearing 5o sunscreen did nothing for me at all-my Italian blood still tanned a little. She told me that the body's defense mechanism is to tan to let you know that you need to get out of the sun! Kind of like when you get goose bumps when your cold. Crazy! I thought it was just a fun way of expressing to everyone that I just got back from vacation. :)

Yes, I know that coming back tan is fun and it gives your skin such a fresh sun-kissed look but I think I need to reconsider my thoughts. I don't want cancer, I don't want my kids to get skin damage at a young age. So you'll be seeing me with hats, sunglasses, and fully covered at the beach to protect the skin that God gave me.

On that same note, (sorry not a great segway), as we were in the sunny state of Florida I noticed a lot about women.

One being that women love to compare themselves to other women. I'm guilty too. Very guilty. In fact, my hubby actually caught me in the act of comparing. Yep, he did. After we returned he asked me about it. I didn't remember the particular situation he was talking about (well, because I was doing ALOT of comparing-yikes). I go around speaking to young women about self image and here I was comparing myself to other women wondering why I was so weirdly shaped, or why my hair was so frizzy during hot temperatures, or why my face looked so blahhhh.....(I had time to think about these things while standing in line at Disneyworld and looking around at the half dressed girls around me).

So here's the question. How can we as women stop this? We are only hurting ourselves. I am a confident person & I'm pretty comfortable in my own skin(generally). But I STILL do this and it still hurts my heart. I've talked with lots of women (beautiful and ordinary) and they all tell me the same thing. They ALL struggle with it. Even gorgeous models who you'd think are perfect struggle with this.
Can't we just be happy with who we are and stop comparing ourselves to others?
I want this. I want this for my two daughters.
I want my INside to be so radiant that others want to know what it is that makes me that way. I want to focus on my Inward beauty more often than my outward beauty.
Yes, it is important to take good care of ourselves. Eat right, exercise...but spending too much time in front of the mirror and comparing our outward selves to others is so not good for our hearts.

I once heard a mom say, "take time to make yourself look pleasing, but as soon as you walk out the door focus on others"

I love this.

If our focus is on loving others and not comparing ourselves with others, I think our hearts begin to become so radiant that it makes our OUTside radiant too.

"Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others." I Corin. 10:24