Royalty

Royalty - the rank, status, power or authority of a monarch; people of royal rank, plus their families.

When one thinks of royalty images of kings, queens, knights and princess' come to mind. Someone who is of high status, very wealthy, enjoys the finer things in life, is taken care of, but also someone who has great authority, makes decisions that impact multitudes, public figures. Kings and queens are not treated like "common people", they don't marry just anyone, they are heavily guarded and protected. They're treated differently.

You and I as sons and daughters of the most high God are royalty. We may live in the world but we are not of the world. We can't act like the world does, we don't date like the world dates, we don't speak like the world speaks, we are set apart.

Tonight as I spoke to a very dear girlfriend of mine we talked about dating and how it's different for children of God. She was very freaked out at the thought of dating and thought she was maybe just acting crazy. But in that moment the Lord reminded me that no, she wasn't freaking out but that we are His children, we are daughters of the most high God. You aren't just anybody, you are His precious daughter and He heavily guards you and protects you.

2 Corinthians 6:18 says:
"I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters."

Furthermore, 2 Corinthians 6:14 says:
"Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness?

We need to always be reminded of who's we are, children of God. And as a child of God you have status, power and authority...you are royalty. This is not so that we may boast that we are better than anyone because we are all His children. But so that you will never sell yourself short, you will never settle or anything less than His best for you.

1 Peter 2:9
"But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness and into his wonderful light."

Jesus,

Thank you that you watch over me, that you guard me and that you chose me to be your precious daughter. I love you daddy.

Love,
Michelle Nicole.

Relationships are a Gift

Relationships are a gift from God. The friends He surrounds you with that help you get through the rough times. The family He gives you to be born into that loves you unconditionally, although they can work your nerves at times, family is what we call "home", its the people that truly know you and love you in spite of you. The man or woman He places in your life as your partner to do life with, as your helper, as His reflection of himself in that person towards you and vice versa. All of these relationships are a gift from God.

When someone you love gives you a gift what do you do with it. Do you tear the wrapping to shreds, not even reading the card but just opening the gift and then discard it as if though it doesn't matter? Do you forget to say thank you? No, you open it with excitement, gently, opening the card first because you know that person who loves you and gave it to you put a lot of thought into what to say in that card, you say thank you and are genuinly grateful for the gift, you treasure it, you put it on display and take care of it.

When God, the creator of the universe, the father of all creation, the lover of your soul blesses you with a relationship it is His gift to you. A gift that we are to treasure, handle with care and are ever thankful for.

Am I writing this because I'm such an expert at this... no not at all. By no means am I an expert at relationships but by His grace He is teaching me. Because left to my own actions I truly suck at relationships.

About two years ago the Lord blessed me with an amazing relationship. But the story doesn't start there. God had been working on both of us seperately for some time before presenting us to eachother. In the years leading up to that, God had saved us, He had changed us, molded us and prepared us for this moment. This relationship wasn't one that was birthed out of a drunken night of partying and exchanging phone numbers. It was one that was birthed out of a friendship, a love for Jesus, lots of prayer and His perfect timing.

When God brings that special person into your life, it's not a coincidence, it's His working, it's a masterpiece that He has created especially for you. Because you see that person is His child, His baby and He is entrusting that person to you. That person is a gift to you. A gift that is to be handled with care, with respect, with love and with an attitude of gratefullness.

So many times I have wondered if I could go back in time would I have done it all over again. Would I have changed anything? In the begining I thought no, definitely not, that was so much heartache and pain but now after having time to think about it and having Him deal with my heart I would definitely do it all over again. But would I change things? Yes, most definitely yes. Would I change him? No. I would have changed the way I viewed the relationship. Because in the begining yes I saw it as this beautiful gift but somewhere in the middle I lost sight of that and therefore stopped handling it with care. We both did.

A relationship, one created by God can be equated to fine dining at an upscale restaurant. You can't show up for dinner whenever you want, it's not open 24 hours, they usually have specific hours of operation, and usually require a reservation. They require you to dress up, you can't just show up in whatever you want. They use fresh, nutritious ingredients not some mystery meat and grease fried everything. There is a huge difference between McDonald's and Ruth Chris Steakhouse. Huge difference. With Ruth Chris you have a little more respect for the establishment, you adhere to their standards but are left feeling as if though it was so incredibly worth it. Where as with McDonald's you treat it just like it is, fast food. You don't dress up, you don't make reservations, you can have it whenever you want and usually although it may taste good (at times lol) it definitely never leaves you feeling as if though it was worth it.

That's how relationships are. If you treat your relationship like McDonald's you show up however you feel, you don't have an awe, respect or appretiation for the amazing gift that God has blessed you with. You take the person for granted. McDonald's are usually open 24 hours but Ruth Chris is not. So when planning to go to dinner for either, one will require you to make better use of your time if you plan on arriving before it closes where as the other you can show up whenever you feel like it. Do you really treasure the time you spend with that person that God has blessed you with or do you view it as eh whatever, I'll call him/her when I feel like it, I will hang out with them when I feel like it, I've got things to do, they can wait. Or do you value that person, do you make them a priority, do you spend time with them.

What about the nutritional value of each? While McDonald's may seem tasty and super yummy at first, it will leave you feeling gross afterwards. And if you have it everyday it will cause you to gain weight, have serious health issues and leave you feeling worse than you started out. In a relationship when you compromise the boundaries that God has put, when you don't respect His design for a relationship, when you have sex outside of marriage it leaves you feeling just like McDonald's does. At first it feels amazing but in the end it leaves you feeling empty, gross and feeling like a complete failure. Yet if you have Ruth Chris everyday the ingredients will be fresh, healthy and organic, therefore adding nutrients to your body, making you feel stronger. A relationship that is fed by His love, His guidance, and a genuine care for eachother will leave you feeling stronger and better than you ever have before.

Doing a relationship the right way is difficult, it requires discipline, denying the flesh but it's also so incredibly do-able and worth it.
"And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it." 1 Corinthians 10:13

When that time comes, remember to treat it as the precious gift that it is. He has put a lot of work into prepairing the both of you. And always have a heart of thanksgiving and appreciation for the amazing responsiblity He has entrusted to you.


Jesus,

Forgive me for not treating the amazing gift that you placed in my life with the respect and appreciation that it deserved. Forgive me for failing you. He was amazing. I'm sorry.

Love,
Michelle Nicole.