The Devil is on attack of your life EVERY DAY!
It hit me last night, after watching the movie War Room for the first time (great movie btw if you haven’t yet seen it!) that I have not been recognizing the Devil’s workings in my thoughts and in my heart because they’re so SUBTLE!
And that’s just the way he likes it!
Our brains are AMAZING. The most incredible creations on the face of the planet if you ask me. One of the many reasons I went into healthcare and got my Doctorate in physical therapy because I wanted to know all I could about our amazing bodies, and especially our brain.
But since we have free will and we have control of our minds, the Devil can find clever ways to begin to seep in and start chipping away at God’s truths and our thoughts around God in hopes of creating a divide and keeping us timid, scared and distrusting of God’s ability and intimacy that He wants to have with us.
NO MORE! I’m calling B.S. on the Devil!
He will NO LONGER convince me that I’m not good enough, not pretty enough, not smart enough, not capable enough, not special enough, that God is distant, can’t hear me, doesn’t care, wants to punish me, wants to hold back from me, doesn’t want to bless me. That’s he’s blinding me to see the beauty, the good, the grace, the mercy, the love, the humanity that’s all around me.
“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” James 1:17
It’s time for you to do the same.
Start digging into God’s word. His promises of love, provision, beauty, abundance, grace and mercy. Use God’s word for the tool that it is–to guard and protect and defend and repel the forces of darkness and the enemy from slithering his way into your mind, thoughts and actions.
Jesus has already defeated him on the cross! The battle is WON!
Will you claim it for yourself? Will you claim that truth over your life and no longer be a slave to negativity, pessimism, self-condemnation, guilt and shame? God has such beauty, love, life and joy for you, if you only would dispel the Devil’s influences over you and your family in Jesus’ name.
You can do it. And let me know when you do. I’d love to join with you and the angels in rejoicing victory that you’re reclaiming God’s reign in your heart and that you’ve cast the Devil out for good!!
Your sister in Christ,
~Dr. Melody
P.S. If you’re needing help and guidance in reclaiming your beautiful and joy-filled life, it’s my ultimate pleasure to be that avenue for you. Book a free strategy session with me and we’ll flesh out the areas that have been holding you back and give you options on how I might be able to help facilitate you stepping into the life you’ve been missing.
Sunday afternoon, shopping list in hand, errands needing to be done, time is quickly going by, gotta get out the door.
Get into my car…and it won’t start. Confusion.
Who do I call? AAA? My husband? Find a neighbor for a jump? Stress.
Finally ask a neighbor I’ve never met, but no jumper cables. Disappointment.
Ask another neighbor–success! Jump the car. But nothing. Frustration.
Amazingly my neighbor knew how to remove the battery and was generous enough to drive me to the auto parts store to get a new one.
We return home confident we have the answer, and I’m happy to only be an hour behind on running my errands. The end is in sight!
Replace the battery. Still no ignition. What??! Double frustration.
Guess I’ll have to call the tow company and get it towed first thing Monday morning. Added stress about unexpected expenses for a new battery and potentially hundreds of more dollars at the repair shop. Let alone I’ll have to rearrange my patients and appointments. Annoyed.
But as I sat back to replay the events of the day, what good would any of those negative emotions do me? Only add to my level of anxiety, stress, worry and doubt. Who does that serve? How does that make me more productive? It doesn’t. In fact, it detracts from my ability to think clearly, be thankful, to see the flip side and make the situation better in whatever ways are in my control.
I chose to very quickly get out of negative emotions and to problem solve.
If I couldn’t drive to the stores I wanted to, I was within quick walking distance of alternate stores to get the basics I needed. Realizing this was my best and only solution, I chose to enjoy the time on my walk because it gave me more one-on-one time with my thoughts, to talk to God and to use that time as an added bonus to my day, get some exercise and to raise my spirits.
If I had to rearrange tomorrow’s schedule and I had to move my patient appointments around, that actually gave me more free time to work on things I have not had time to attend to (such as writing this post and planning future offers and programs in my business).
If we had to spend extra money on car services what good would stressing over it be? I had no control over the outcome, the price or the time it would take, so no use worrying until I had concrete data to work with. And in the end, I could use the car expenses as a tax write-off for my business because I use my vehicle primarily for work.
Feeling good about the solutions I came up with and nothing more I can do. Off to bed.
So this morning, the plan ensues. Call the tow truck company and they’re estimated to take almost 90 minutes to get to me. Bummer, but nothing I can do about it. But I get a call within 10 minutes that they’ll be there in 15 minutes. Awesome! Already ahead of schedule.
As the tow truck man is loading up my car, he comments that a blinking light on my alarm system (which I never use) could indicate that the alarm is triggered and possibly disabling the car from starting. “But I haven’t use that alarm in over a year and I have no idea what the codes are!” I feel perplexed, but with a glimmer of hope.
Call the car dealership and ask how to reset the alarm. Follow the instructions and the car starts right up! Just as the tow truck was about to haul my car away, I’m able to get it restarted and no longer have to take it to the auto body shop for diagnostics. Hooray!
Therefore the only money we had to pay was for a new battery, and the insurance covers our use of the tow truck. I didn’t end up needing to cancel or reschedule any of my patients because all was said and done before 9am! And thanks to a willing and generous neighbor we were able to handle removing and replacing a new battery yesterday without paying anyone to do it for us.
So what good would any of my stress, frustration and anger have done anyone or anything?
All it would have done was consume my energy, thoughts and outlook on the rest of the day. Most likely leading to less restful sleep leaving me tired and groggy in the morning and already starting my day off on the wrong foot.
Here’s the point. When you choose to be THANKFUL for every situation, whether it’s perceived to be good or bad, you no longer rob yourself of joy and a sense of security.
The only part you’re in control of is your thoughts and emotions.
The sooner you can switch from negative to positive, you see the opportunities that were then created (i.e. my quiet time during my walk and the added bonus of getting more exercise) and you’re able to be thankful in all things (i.e. the fact that my neighbor so willingly helped me, that the tow truck came early, that I was able to troubleshoot the problem before going to the car repair shop, I didn’t have to cancel my patients etc.)
The next time you’re faced with a circumstance that you were not prepared for or you feel is an inconvenience to you, flip your perspective and wait to see what new opportunities arise from it. Keep yourself level-headed so you don’t suffer the unnecessary consequences of stress–all of which is being created and held in your mind.
You are the master and controller of your mind. Not the other way around. Take control of the things which are in your control. Not the things you’re allowing to steal your peace and that you cannot change.
~Dr. Melody
#healthandhopemotivator #christcenteredcoaching #youhavethepowertochoose
P.S. Thinking about the stresses and unpredictable nature of the holiday season, it can be the perfect storm for a whole miriad of negative emotions–they can be cause by many factors outside of your control. Christmas shopping, crowded malls, difficult family members, unmet expectations, too many obligations and the list goes on.
It’s in these more stressful times that having someone in your corner can do you the most good. A sounding board. A clear and calming voice. Someone to see the sides you cannot and who can help you navigate and be more in control.
Instead of turning to unhealthy food or poor coping mechanisms that do more harm than good, I’d like you to consider having your own personal coach. I’m opening additional slots for the next 8 weeks (Christmas is only 8 weeks from now!) and can help you with 1:1 coaching packages for 4, 6 or 8 weekly sessions to help you through this holiday season more smoothly and clear headed than you’ve been in years.
Email me at melody@fitplusfaith.com subject line: Holiday Coaching, and we can see which package is right for you. It’s better to start now to help us prepare for what’s ahead for you and to actually increase your joy this holiday season! Looking forward to a prosperous and beautiful holiday season. <3
It’s so easy to get caught up in the coming holiday season that we forget the importance of taking time for ourselves, let alone quality time with God.
I wrapped up a personal 30 day self-improvement challenge almost 2 weeks ago. My goal was not only weight loss (Goal: lose 10 pound;. Result: 9.5 pounds lost!) but also a commitment to developing personal habits for a morning routine as well as an eating cleanse to break my sugar addiction.
It was very successful and I posted daily videos to my Facebook page documenting daily exercises, tips or insights as I went through that journey. (Btw I share ongoing encouragement, tips and discussion in my free Facebook community, Worthy to Be Me. I’d love you to be a part of it and join here).
What I learned is how important it is for our personal well being to have habits and routines in place that regularly allow for the nurturing of our spirits and psyche, but also regular intentional daily time with God. Being a Christian I actively talk to God and pray all throughout the day, but I had not set in place regular time for reflection, quiet time and dialoguing with God without multi-tasking or other distractions.
In the few weeks that have followed I’ve found that if that daily time is no longer nurtured or attended to daily, I feel more disconnected and ungrounded. I feel as though something is missing, and I’m glad I feel this way because it means my goals for the 30 day personal challenge worked. They’re successfully created a routine that fed my soul, spirit, dreams and provided an outlet for intentional “me” time outside the hustle and bustle of everyday life…let alone the craziness that is on it’s way the closer we get to Christmas.
Currently I’ve just taken a 2 day road trip from California to New Mexico and am thrilled for almost 10 days of family time! But in just the few days of schedules being different, not having my regular snacks and healthy meals lined up, sleeping in different beds, time zone changes etc. I’ve really been more affected from this shift in my “new normal” I had just created only 2 weeks prior, and the effects were surprisingly challenging.
Not just challenging to continue to carve out the time for my newly created routines and habits, but challenging on an emotional level of how I felt internally from not having that precious time of cultivating my thoughts, productivity and intentional quiet time with God.
I was journaling yesterday after at least 3 days of missing it, and the realization came to me that not only was I missing the emotional and energetic outlet to feel my best, or at least to feel more like myself while in a different environment, but I realized that no matter what life brings us we MUST have our identity in Christ.
This is a MUST that if we do not realize how God views us and his unending love and admiration for us as His children, we will NEVER be satisfied in this life. We will always be looking for acceptance in the eyes of our peers, family, friends, co-workers, society and the like. This ultimately leads to feeling inadequate, lonely, unwanted, invaluable and leads us in a never-ending quest for perfection and acceptance that we will never fully gain.
In the eyes of our Savior, Jesus, we are already enough. We are already beautiful, loved, talented, gifted, treasured and precious. No matter what we do, say, create or become, we will never be more valuable, more loveable, more worthy of God’s love. He already loves us to the highest degree imaginable….exactly as we are!
Right now. This moment. Yesterday. Before you were born! As we begin to realize the immensity of our value in the eyes of God, we truly are “more than conquerors” as the apostle Paul writes.
Praise be to God who loves us more than we can imagine and nothing we can say or do can make Him love us more! So stop trying to please Him, others or yourself in a quest for perfection that is unnecessary to obtain. Yes it’s good to feel good about ourselves, both inside and out, and to treat ourselves and others with respect, but even before you pursue that, God already loves you.
Let that sink in and encourage you. God’s love already proves how amazing you are. <3
~Melody
P.S. On a side note, I want to make sure you don’t miss out on an upcoming Healthy Holiday Domination 31 Day Challenge, kicking off December 1st! Learn how to join here.
