Hey guys and welcome back to The Quoted Blog! It's been a while since I've written a regular blog post, so today I'm here to share with you 18 reminders for when you feel anxious. I believe Grace Valentine wrote these 18 reminders, so I'm not trying to take credit for anything I'm about to share with you. I read these reminders on the LO Sister app, and they're just so good! Everything you're about to read is so good! And I just wanted to share. Let's get into it!
1. "Life is crazy. Life will continue to be crazy. But God is always at work. And He is crazy, in a 'He can turn your mess into a miracle kind of way.' Find God in the crazy. Watch His crazy miracles. I promise He is there and He can make a way when there feels to be no way."
2. "Closure doesn't come from a text, a conversation, or from listening to a Taylor Swift song...closure is a choice only you can make when you trust that if a door closes, God has a better one. If you're waiting on closure and feel confused because a door closed and you don't know why...trust Christ. Trust that the story He is writing is good, even when the chapter today is hard."
3. "If it doesn't matter in 5 years, don't worry about it for more than 5 minutes. Present your requests to God. Pray about your thoughts. Prayer shows you the peace of God. This is a beautiful and comforting thing to feel. It can be felt while going through the hard. Give it to God and get some rest."
4. "Someone is currently praying for something you already have. Yes, your life isn't amazingly great, but someone somewhere needs something you have that you forgot to thank God for."
5. "If you're socially anxious and wondering if they are gossiping about you...remember their gossip and their sin reflects on their character, not yours. Their opinion isn't truth. And no matter what you did, God loves you and wants you. If they talk about you- let them."
6. "Work hard, strive to not be in debt, and to save, but always remember money is a tool to use on this Earth, not something you'll have with you in eternity. If money is making you anxious, please remember to stop idolizing it on this Earth. Money can't buy faith. I get that is annoying to hear when you have student loans and rent next month...but save your money, don't spend, and pray for God to help you in the hard or confusing times. I have three jobs and it's not always easy, but the one thing that takes away my stress more than working lots...is praying. Don't buy Starbucks four times a week and work towards being fruitful with your money, not being anxious about it."
7. "The breakup or failed 'talking' experience did not break you. It shook you. It sucked. But your tears are leading you to your purpose and blessing. Rejection is God's protection. Delete their number and delete the negative 'what if?' thoughts you have blaming yourself. It didn't work out because it wasn't meant to be. Stop being sad about what could've been and celebrate that when you follow God you'll be lead to where 'you're meant to be.'"
8. "Stop expecting your friends to help you through your anxious thoughts when you haven't even told them you're struggling. Be more open. Yes, some friends have betrayed you before, but hurt won't always be your story. God is doing something new with new people. Trust this."
9. "If your body makes you anxious remember your body was meant for something more important than being gawked at or serving looks during a 'revenge' era. Before you put on your outfit, speak truth in your mind. You are loved. Your body is good. Your body is meant to be used for God's glory. The cure to struggling with body image isn't being obsessed with your body and posting those pictures...the cure to a bad body image is to remember who your Creator is and why you were created. Eat healthy, do your squats, but stop playing the staring into a mirror for 1 hour and thinking bad thoughts about yourself game...speak to yourself like you would speak to a friend."
10. "You are not a disappointment. You are human. A human who has messed up but a human who can also live out their purpose. Peter denied Jesus three times. But then he lived for Jesus's name, [and that] is part of the reason we know about Jesus today, and [how] he died for his faith. God is your author and if you read the Bible you'll see He loves a comeback story. He loves your story. And He is not finished writing your story. You aren't too far gone for Him and anyone who doesn't help you see that isn't loving you like Jesus. So don't allow their opinion to be louder than God's truth."
11. "You can't change your circumstances, but you can change your playlist. On the hard days, look for a new song to jam to. You're not alone and music can remind you this."
12. "Some people will say your dream career or relationship happens when you 'least expect it,' and some will say it happens if you put yourself out there and work hard. Here's the truth: it happens when it's God's timing. So go on dates, edit that resume, pray, rest, and don't be afraid to meet someone new and tell them about your passions...but don't stress about hitting all your goals before a certain age. God's timing is better than yours. Trust that He is writing your story. And when you look back on your story when you have wrinkles and good memories, you'll see that God's provision is good."
13. "Yes, you've been hurt. But you've also been loved. You've been loved by strangers and you've been loved by your Savior who knows everything about you."
14. "You can eat the burger. You can get the ice cream. Don't become so anxious about your body that you stress about your food. Eat healthy but also eat dessert every now and then."
15. "You are not a product to be reviewed or a meal to be enjoyed. You're a child of God. Your audience is our ONE God, not the crowd the gossip's about potentially. Relax and find peace in the truth that only God's opinion of you matters."
16. "Tomorrow may be better and could be the best day ever. Tomorrow may suck. But tomorrow will always see a wiser you, a stronger you, and a you who has seen more and is prepared for more. Have your God on your team and you'll be prepared for anything. He gives wisdom and His protection."
17. "Your future you will one day look back on [at] where you are today and understand why. She'll (or he'll) understand why you had to experience that heartbreak and how you overcame that boss who drove you insane."
18. "Before Jesus died on the cross for us, He knew this was going to happen because He was God's son. When He knew this, He went to a garden and prayed to God. Luke was a disciple, and he wrote one of the gospels. He also was a physician. He noticed that during this prayer to God in the garden right before He was brought to be crucified, one of the most painful deaths...Jesus's sweat became like 'drops of blood.' Luke wrote this in the Bible. We now know this is a real and rare disease that happens under extreme stress. The only times this has happened has been when someone knew they would die a painful death. So, what does this show us? Jesus was scared too. But He didn't run away. He prayed and walked towards the betrayal, the hard day, and even His death. You too may be scared for Monday, this fall, to hear back from that job or school, or to see that ex when back home...your stress is normal. It's part of being human. But pray to be like Jesus and walk towards crazy and hard with full trust that God is worth trusting. God's ways are best. Rest in the truth that Jesus understands, but Jesus still confidently went towards the hard. You can do the same."
This took an hour to copy down, so if you made it this far, THANK YOU. Thank you so much for taking the time to read through this beautiful advice written by Grace Valentine! I hope you took something away from this blog post because I feel like you should. I took stuff away from this advice. It's so good!
Stay tuned for my reading wrap-up blog post at the end of the week, and have a great rest of your day! ~Ella
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