Category: Faith

The Big Why…

I don’t know about you, but I have asked God “why did this happen?” or “Why am I going through this?”

It’s hard not to question him when a family member has cancer, or a friend passes away, or we constantly fail. All these reasons seem fair to question what God is doing and more specifically “Why”. There are moments when you can even question if God is even there.

A few years ago my mom underwent open heart surgery. We prepared for this months ahead of time. The day came when it was time for the surgery and we were all ready, we knew how long the surgery was going to be, we knew the recovery time after surgery, we knew what could go wrong, but we also knew what could go right.

We all had our trust in God and trusted that he had the surgeons ability to do this in his hands. What we all expected was an 8-10 hour surgery, one week recovery at the hospital and a few months at home. That 8 hour surgery turned into two more surgeries in one month, one month at the hospital, endless days and nights, months of recovery after. All because the outcome we didn’t expect, became the reality.

Yes, there was a point when I didn’t think she was going to make it. And I remember very clearly, one of the few hours I got to go home from the hospital to shower and recharge a little, I sat on my bed and asked God “WHY?”

My faith was so little by then..

At that moment I didn’t understand the why. Even after God healed my mom and she’s been healthy for a few years now, even then the why was still present.

Not directly but indirectly. I still wondered why she had to go through so much, why we had to go through so much. I felt like I never got the answer.

Until recently I was driving to work after a meeting and I was just listening to Music when I heard God say “The process is the why”. I sat in my car wondering what do you mean the process?

Well what God means is that we always have to go through that middle part in order to reach our destination. In order to see his mighty hand, in order to understand his plan.

Just like Abraham had to wait to have a son, just like Moses had to wait to get to the promised land, just like Joseph had to wait and be a slave, just like Jesus had to be sacrificed in order for you and me to be saved.

Just like that, we have to wait. We have to wait for the miracle. Because sometimes the biggest blessing is at the end of that why, because even when your faith is so small, God can work with that.

Love Always,

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Timeline

Where you’re at now is where you need to be.

Since the beginning of our lives, we are placed into a timeline. We are expected to accomplish things at a very specific age.

We are expected to graduate on time, start college right away, get a job, get married before “it’s too late”, have kids right away. What I am trying to say is that we are expected to be at a certain point in our life based on a timeline set by this world.

The thing is— Our plan doesn’t always align with God’s plan. That’s when we feel left behind. We begin to notice those around us moving at a faster speed; achieving goal after goal, finishing college before us, getting engaged, getting married, and we can’t help it but wish we were there already.

But it doesn’t mean that they are ahead of you.

We try to reach the end without going through the process. We rush what needs patience.

Today I want you to think of all that you are instead of all that you’re not, because all that you are now is who you’re supposed to be in this season of your life.

When God gives you authority to move forward, you will become who you’re supposed to be then. Enjoy where God has you right now, because you wont be here for long.

“We plan the way we want to live, but only God makes us able to live it.” -Proverbs 16:9 MSG

“In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps.” -Proverbs 16: 9 NIV

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Before The Pursue…

For the longest time I believed in pursuing. I believed in pursuing your dreams, pursuing the life that you want and even at some point pursuing that boy. How incredibly naïve have I been. Don’t get me wrong, you do need to pursue what you want, but before you do that, there’s a missing part that sometimes we forget. I know I have and still do sometimes.

That small, but very powerful part is PRAYING… We forget to ask God first.

“This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us” -1 John 5:14

My sister is younger than me, but I have learned something from her. Every time you ask her something or she’s about to do something she will say “I don’t know, let me pray about it”. After so many years, I have just gotten used to it. I already know that will be her answer for almost everything. And I had never thought about it, but then I realized that there’s not any other way to move forward but to rely solely on what that prayer will bring you. What that initial response will give you.

And I know, God doesn’t always answer at the moment you pray, but what I do know is that he answers at the right time.

“Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you”. -Jeremiah 29:12

Before you switch careers, pray. Before you start your day, pray. Before you get into that relationship, pray. Before you move forward, Pray. In the midst of the storm, pray. Because not only does prayer give you answers but it also gives you peace. It gives you peace when taking that leap of faith, when you’re feeling troubled, when ever there’s doubt, his peace will be there.

If you are feeling stuck and don’t know how to move forward, take a moment and tell God… “God, I don’t know where to go from here”. He’s there, he knows your struggle, he’s just waiting on you to ask. He’s waiting on you to put your trust, your life, your past, your present, your future and all that you are in his hands.

God will change your prayer to the right prayer. He will listen and answer those prayers. And my only pursue now, is to be more like him. I think it’s time that we stop pursuing before we start praying…

Love always,

Daisy

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The end can be the beginning…

The end of the year is always so hectic. There is so much to do. You know that by the time November gets here, the year is basically over. I usually start realizing that I didn’t finish half the things I wrote down at the beginning of the year. At this point I start to think that I shouldn’t even try anymore. I should just wait till the beginning of next year to start over. 

I’ll tell you this, this is NOT a good idea. It’s not ideal to just give in and decide to start doing what you said you would till next year. Why? Well because next year, when it’s the end of the year, you will be on the same boat. You’ll have the same excuses and you will delay beginning or finishing something till the beginning of next year. 

The thing is, we all fail. That doesn’t mean that we can stop where we are  and wait till the beginning of next year to start over. The beginning of something, should not be defined by a calendar, it should be defined the day you decide to make a change. 

You can stay right where you are or you can make a change. The option is yours. You can stay complaining about your weight your whole life, or you can do something about (I know I do complain, but I love those tacos). You can complain about your relationship all you want, but if that’s all you do then nothing will ever change. If someone doesn’t want to be with you, it’s okay. Move forward. Isn’t it better to be happy alone, than to try and be happy with someone who doesn’t want you. 

We all fail, I know I do. And I did in many ways this years. I said I was going to read 24 books, I read 12. I fell short, by a lot. Does that mean I should give up reading? Absolutely NOT. 

I said I wasn’t going to allow anyone to hurt me or to use me. Did I Allow it? Yes. Does that mean I will never know my value? No. I just believed in people and they let me down. I can’t go on and not trust people because certain people couldn’t appreciate me. 

The truth is, we set goals and dreams and we don’t consistently act on them. That’s why we fail. But failing only means you can try again, and this time you know what didn’t work last time and you can try it a different way. And if you fail again, then you try again. But you don’t have to wait till the beginning of next week, next month or next year. The beginning of something new starts right here, right now, at this moment. The moment when you say you want to do or change something. That’s the moment you should get up and say, this time around I will do everything I can to make a change. 

I know, it’s so easy to say it rather than do it. But every time you get discouraged, START again. There are no rules to how many times you can fail and how many times you can start over. 

As we are ending the year, let go of what is holding you back or who is holding you back. Write down the things you want to begin right now, so that when January 1st comes around, you are already ahead of where you want to be. Start right now, at the end of the year. Prove to yourself that you can do it, no matter the circumstances. I know that I am happy with what happened this year, but I know that in order to make a change for next year, there are some things that need to begin now! 

Don’t be so hard on yourself. We all make mistakes but we should learn from them too. You can still make this 2018 amazing. Whatever happened to you this year, take is as a learning experience as you finish this year the strongest possible. 

Love Always, 

Daisy

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Walk of Shame

There is a story in the bible called “The parable of the Lost Son.” You can find this story in Luke 15:11-32.

This story is about a father and two sons. The younger one asked his father for his inheritance, but that is not what fascinates me the most about the story. What I find the most attractive is the way the father responds to every request from his son. I have divided the verse into sections to fully describe and understand the fathers side of this story.

The younger one said to his Father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ so he divided his property between them. -Luke 15:12 NIV

In that verse it doesn’t say anything about the father asking the son why he wanted this. It just says that the father divided his property between them. This reminds me of all the times we go to God and ask  him to do something, and without questions he does it. He doesn’t sit there and say “Well Daisy, why would you want me to do that? What makes you think I am going to do that?” I don’t know but I think sometimes God answers those absurd requests to give us a lesson. I can be wrong, but sometimes we need that little shake in our lives to understand that we are asking for the wrong things.

The verse then goes on saying;

Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there he squandered his wealth in wild living. -Luke 15:13

Just like us, he grabbed what was “his” and left to live the life he thought was going to make him happy. We often grab all the blessings that the lord hands us, and just walk away. We walk away from him, we walk away from his love, his support, his care, because now we have what we wanted.  Then just like this son, we go and lose all we have for a moment of satisfaction, for a moment of “living life”, for a moment of party, for a moment of what this world offers. What amazes me the most is that never in the story, does it say that the father tried to stop him. It never mentions that the father questioned him, or asked him where he was going. The father allowed him to walk away and God does the same. We are not captive under him, we have the freedom to make our choices.

A few verses down, after he had LOST everything he had, the bible tells us that the son realized what he had done.

When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.’ So he got up and went to his father. -Luke 15:17-20

The son finally realized what he had done. He had given away all his blessings to this world. He had taken his father for granted and had lived the life he thought was best for him. He realized that living under his fathers household was better than living alone.

Time after time, we do the same. We go out into the world, full of strength provided by our father, we let his hand go and walk on our own. Until we discover that doing life on our own is not easy. It’s hard and its not rewarding.

In this verse we don’t know what the father was doing but in the next one, we will see the love and patience that this father had for his son.

But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him. The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ -Luke15:20-21

I just have to say WOW!! When I read this part of the story I can just imagine this father, day after day, going outside his home just waiting to see if his son was coming back. I can picture him with his hands close to his chest, full of patience and full of love for his son. The verse says that he saw him and he was still a long way off. Then it says that the father ‘threw his arms around him,’ before the son even said a word.

I think that after a few minutes of sobbing and hugging the son was finally able to apologize. However, not once does the father question him. Doesn’t ask him why he left, what he did with all the money, why he was back. The father just took him back and forgave him.

If I was the father, I would have a million questions and I would just make him feel so bad for doing what he did.

But just like that father, God awaits for us with open arms. No questions, just forgiveness and compassion. Without even saying a word, he knows our hearts and forgives us the moment we come back to him. The moment we take that “walk of shame” back to his arms.

Instead of scolding the son and teaching him a lesson and saying “I told you so,” the Father has a celebration. Believe it or not, he celebrated his son coming back.

But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate. -Luke 15:22-24

‘They began to celebrate.’ God celebrates the moment we walk back to him. No matter how many times we fail him, without questioning us, he takes our hearts back. That is the father we are blessed to have. We are blessed to have a father that shows us love, forgiveness and whole lot of patience.

He doesn’t need explanations, he doesn’t need an ‘I am sorry father’, he just needs for us to walk back to him. He is waiting with this abundant love for us, waiting for our return.

I know this story is a very well known story, but I think that most times we focus on the son and how he left and came back; but we don’t focus on the father and what he does. This story continues with the older sons reaction to the celebration. Which in most cases we fall into both categories. We are the son that leaves but we are also the son that stays. The fathers reaction to the older son is not very different, but that will be part of the next blog.

Love Always,

Daisy

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Life is a mess…

Recently I was having a conversation with a friend. We were talking about messes and how we felt about them. So thank you for inspiring me to write this. He said something that made me think of certain messes in our lives. He said he didn’t mind the mess but also didn’t mind cleaning and organizing after.

I personally like to paint, I’m not very good at it, but I enjoy it. I like to go into the kitchen and set up all my painting supplies there. I bring endless bottles of paint and brushes and lay them all on the table. I grab towels and napkins to wipe my brushes and start to paint. While I am painting, the mess doesn’t bother me, the paint on my hands just makes me feel like a talented artist.

But what happens when I finish painting and the cleaning begins? I start to get lazy and the mess seems to be bigger than what I started with. I start to throw my stuff back in the boxes not caring about the way they will fit. Sometimes, if I can get away with it, I just leave the mess there.

Then it made me realized how we are capable of making messes not only in our lives but in the lives of others! Then we clean up the mess without caring of the outcome or sometimes we don’t even clean it up. We leave it that way.

We walk into peoples lives, stir up a tornado and walk out without looking back.  We need to be more conscious of what we do or don’t do for others.  Sometimes I say things that I should not have said, but hardly ever do I go back and apologize.

The ability we have to change someone else’s life is extraordinary.

This world is full of hurting people. People that have gone through rough times. We can take a moment and offer our help. We can offer to help clean  the mess, and maybe in the process you’re able to clean some of your own messes.

We have to remember that little things make big changes

If you offend someone, go back and apologize. Take a minute to encourage someone. Learn to think before you act. Cause once you say something, you will never be able to take it back. If you have no future intentions with someone, don’t lead them into believe there will be. Be honest with people. Give and receive advise.

Messes are part of life. We can’t always avoid them, but we can try and fix them. We also need to understand that people will mess up and we will have to forgive.

Before you do anything, Always remember that a mess needs to be cleaned up!!!!

Blessings, Daisy

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Alone…

Loneliness approaches us even when we are filled with friendships and relationships. It can cause pain that we can’t identify and don’t know where it’s coming from because in reality, physically we are not alone; it’s just our inner self that’s alone, it’s our spirit that is missing something. Even when you’re surrounded by people, you can feel alone.

Sometimes we try to find happiness and wholeness in things that don’t last. We depend on relationships, on people, on work, on busyness, drugs, alcohol, tv, social media, books, anything  to keep us satisfied. Yes, those things fill up our emotional need temporary, but when it runs out we are right where we started.

There are many factors that cause loneliness within our hearts; The lack of connection with someone, social, mental, emotional, shame, sin. We isolate ourselves far away from the light to cover up the pain. We are afraid to let others know that we feel lonely because we fear that they will not understand. We create a boundary between what we are feeling and what is actually true.

But Jesus understands our loneliness. He lived it himself. If we look back at Jesus’ life on earth, he never committed sin. But just like you and me, he lived in this world full of sin, hate and rejection. He went through it all. He not only understands our loneliness; he destroyed it. He went before all of us and poured out his blood for us.

When loneliness attacks our lives, we pray but sometimes it Feels like we’re so far away from God that he can’t hear us. Sometimes words can’t explain what our heart is feeling, but it’s okay because [HE] understands our tears. He understands the pain, and listens as you just cry out to him.

It’s hard to silence that voice that tells you you’re alone. It’s so loud inside our  head that it doesn’t allow us to hear the voice of God. We feel like we are crying out so hard to God and he remains silent. We pray, and have no answers. But his voice is there, his pure and loving touch is there. We just have to fight through the pain, because he is fighting against it with you. We just have to be consistent with our fight.

Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. -Deuteronomy 34:6

When I read this verse, I like to replace the word “them” with whatever I am feeling. Giving that verse life to what I am experiencing at the moment. Helping me realize that no matter what my path looks like right now “the Lord My God goes with me.”

There are times when I have to push through layers of pain, to be able to hear him say that I am not Alone…

Simply Daisy

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Wonderfully Made…

Our need for acceptance– is a powerful feeling that affects our thoughts and feelings. We strive to be accepted by this world. We change our beliefs and our lives to fit into what is “normal”and we forget who we are.

Our view of who we should be is influenced by society. It’s manipulated and carved into what others expect us to be. Whether it’s you trying to create the perfect version of yourself to fit into the “vision” your parents have for your life, or to belong to a group of friends. Whatever it may be; we allow it to create a story of our lives and we start to believe that that is who we are.

Sometimes we get so lost in who we believe we should be, that we can’t find who we were created to be. We allow social media to tell us what the perfect version of us should be, we allow others to mold our personalities to fit theirs, we allow the comments of others  identify us. We see ourselves as objects to the world and allow it to narrate what is next.

We bash ourselves with negative words that become reality to us. We don’t accept our bodies the way they are and we constantly want to change it. We have self hatred and store it deep within us. We buy things to change our style to fit into the style of others and we don’t see ourselves as how much we are really worth.

Despite all this, and how you see yourself, or how others see you,  there is a greater love that see’s the real you. 

13For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. 14I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. 15My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. 16Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. -Psalm 139:13-16

There is a greater love who is waiting for you to hand him that pen and notebook to allow him to write your story. The true story of who you were created to be.

God created us with a purpose and a tremendous ability to make a difference. He created us in his own image and his Image is perfect.

We need to start leaning on God in order to be able to see ourselves the way he sees us. To be able to reflect his love and his true identity.

It all starts with giving your all to him, and allowing him to start molding you back into the person that he originally saw and created. Even though it’s hard not to allow the world to creep into our lives, God has the ability to keep you safe.

God can transform you back.

He can change and direct you.

He knows who you are even before you begin to figure it out. He knew who you were before you  were in your mothers womb. He is a perfect God and knew exactly what he was doing the moment he created you.

4The word of the LORD came to me, saying, 5″Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations. -Jeremiah 1:4-5

Never doubt who you are. Be yourself and allow the beauty of God show through you. Give this world a light through you, let his love reflect from you. Stop giving this world permission to change your heart. Your heart belongs to the creator.

Remember that you are loved! Even though your situation might sometimes make you believe that there will be no tomorrow. Know that the greatest Love came down to earth to die for you, know that there are people who love you, know that you are worth everything, know that your life matters!!

YOU MATTER AND YOU ARE LOVED!!! 

Love always, Daisy

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Suicide statistics

  • Suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in the US
  • Each year 44,965 Americans die by suicide
  • on average there are 125 suicides per day

Suicide Prevention Line

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A Dreamers Dream Pt 2

I just recently started writing about dreamers. I understood what they were going through and kind of knew what everything was about. But I wanted to go in a little more deep into it. I wanted to get answers and thoughts from Dreamers. After all, they are the ones who go through all of this and who have to live through it day after day.

In my last blog I talked about Alejandra. A Dreamers Dream Pt1 who is a college student and shared her story with me. I then created a post about her and shared her story with all of you.

This time I have another unique story about a young man, who came to the US as a child and who only knows this to be his home. Just like other dreamers, he wants to be able to live freely.

I have known this young man for many years. Seeing him grow up and become a servant at our church. He has amazing talents and he isn’t afraid to show them to the world. I not only get to see this from far but I get the opportunity to get to know a little more of him outside of church. He is always trying new things and is definitely not afraid to take risks. In my opinion, he is an entrepreneur and is never scared to fail.

This is true for all Dreamers, they take risks and are not afraid to go the extra mile to achieve their goals. They go day by day building staircase after staircase that will bring them to the top, they do it with all their heart and fight the biggest fight anyone can fight.

If something is important enough, even if the odds are against you, you should still do it. -Elon Musk

Please meet Tony. A twenty year old young man who was brought to this country at the age of two from Saltillo, Coahuila. Tony graduated from Atrisco Heritage Academy High School in 2016, and currently attends Central New Mexico Community College. His goal is to obtain his Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science and graduate by 2021. He currently works at Eat Streets Food Delivery and DirecTV Sales.

He strives to graduate from college, work in Tech, start a business and contribute to the community and the country in the most positive way possible.

Tony believes that being a Dreamer is “someone who has grown up their whole life in the United States. Most don’t remember the country they were born in because they were brought here at a very young age.”

  • What does it mean to be a Dreamer?

“Being a Dreamer is believing in your dreams even when you have all the odds stacked against you. Being undocumented is not easy and makes it harder to do things such as paying tuition, getting health insurance and many other things. For example, many scholarships for college are unavailable to undocumented students even if you have DACA, including FAFSA which makes paying for school a lot harder. A dreamer understands this and knows they will have to work even harder to achieve their dreams, but that is one of the best forms of encouragement and motivation to succeed.”

  • What are you hopes and dreams for ALL DREAMERS?

“My hope id that dreamers take every opportunity they could find to get an education, get into STEM/Healthcare jobs, start businesses and do their best for themselves and to show everyone why we should be given legalization for the good of the country.”

  • If you could sit and have a conversation with the people who are against the Dream Act, what would you tell them? WHY?

“I would tell them that the positives outweigh the negatives, for us staying in the country. Dreamers are not criminals, we pay taxes, and we contribute billions to the US economy. We are hardworking, intelligent and American grown individuals that want the best for this country. We want to stay here because this is the only place we know.”

  • What are the changes you would like to see in the future regarding this issue?

“A clean Dream Act that works as a permanent solution, and pathway to citizenship. Also, including protection for parent of Dreamers. We have always been used as a pawn by the democrats and the republicans for them politically. Democrats always run on the promise to pass legalization while republicans use us as a bargaining chip for border walls, and more deportations.”

Just for a minute, imagine waking up and living the life that Dreamer’s have to live. They live in fear of being separated from their families, in fear of seeing everything that they have worked for just taken away from them. Your whole life being stripped away from you and leaving you alone and with nothing.

It’s not an easy thought, but I believe that there will come a day when they will get to live a free life. A life that they came in search for, that WE ALL WANT, will be given to them.

After years of limbo, and fear of deportation, I do not have much faith in the government to solve this problem soon, but I do have faith in God and his plan for me is much greater than this situation. There’s always a plan for everything and I pray that he works in the hearts of every person who is against Dreamers, and that they forget about the politics of left and right in this issue, and see the humanity of it.

Thank You Tony for sharing this alongside with other Dreamers. 

This will include several parts where I will be sharing the story of different Dreamers. If you read this, and would like to share your story, please comment below and I will reach out to you! I am already working on the next one and I just want to say that this means a lot to me. It was placed in my heart a long time ago, and I have been working on it for a while. I want to make it as real as possible and with as much love and truthfulness as I can give.

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