EVERY END IS A NEW BEGINNING

If you are reading this, we are coming closely to the final stretch of 2022!

 The year has not been easy, and it has been filled with a lot of ups and downs, but you are so close to making it out. Often, the end of the year brings about a of different emotions for a multitude of different reasons but typically a lot of us feel like we didn’t accomplish enough, or we do not have anything to show. That may not be you of course, but I’ll be honest and say this has been me.

 In the bible it talks about how comparison is the thief of joy, and it’s one of the truest statements. Outside of me being super hard on myself, I’ve found myself comparing my success to another individual’s success resulting in me picking apart who I am and second guessing all the strides I have made this year. And I want to remind you that we all are on different journeys and our paths will not look the same. Just as everyone has a different DNA make up, we all have different stories and paths, and depending on what you are called to do, it will look completely different. A healthy question I had to ask myself is, how do I measure success, and who am I measuring mine to.

 You cannot have an end without a beginning. So, as we transition out of one year into another one, I encourage you to change the narrative and celebrate every big and small win. Do not compare those to anyone else but be PROUD of yourself because you are not where you used to be.

 For some people, this year was a year of takeoff and acceleration, while for others it was a building time, growing time, spiritual elevation, and so much more. All of these, though different helped you achieve your goals in one way or another. Do not lose your momentum right now, keep going and set yourself up for even more with the new beginning headed your way.

 You’ve done a good job this year!

LIFE'S PRIORITIES

Priorities are things that we set in place that take high precedence in our lives such as family, friends, a job, routines, or whatever the case may be. Sometimes we prioritize the things we do daily as more important than others and we let some things fall by the wayside, and often that becomes our relationship with God.

 We get consumed with the many things that are grasping for our immediate attention, and everything else not considered or valued as immediate attention gets put off. But time and time again I have learned that my number one priority should always be God, regardless of what I have going on in my life.

 A life apart from God is something that I absolutely do not want to take part in. The moments where I have fallen off with God and put things before him have done no good for me. The feeling I usually get feels like a fish being out of water, there is no life without it. I need God, day in and day out, as if my life depended on it because it does.

 So, I’m giving you this reminder as I remind myself to get back connected to the life source. When you put him first, he allows all things to fall into place or drop away, which both are essential. Don’t wait or put off another moment you’ve been given to spend time in his presence. He loves you beyond what human words can express and wants to abide in you as you abide in him.

 Stay focused on the things that matter MOST!

DOWN IN THE DUMPS

I had another post written for you all but being over the past few days I’ve been feeling a little discouraged, I thought I’d share my own moment with you all, so you know you’re not alone.

 I was working one evening and felt a wave of different emotions come over me, the general feeling was one of discouragement because I began to feel like I was not doing enough, or I’m not where I want to be in life at this very moment. The thoughts in my head became louder than what I know to be true, so it was a very conflicting moment for me.

 I began to discredit all the work I’ve done this far and the accomplishments I have been able to achieve. My mind was literally in a battlefield, and I had to come against every negative thought with truth that I know about myself. One thing I am learning in this “birthing” season is that what I am birthing will look different compared to the next person, and that is not a bad thing.

 One individual may be birthing businesses, while you on the other hand are birthing the woman inside of you or the man inside of you. You may be birthing patience, consistency, or whatever is specific to you. But just because your birthing looks different, does not mean you aren’t still birthing or evolving. Once I was able to realize that my mind began to shift, and I was able to look at all the things that I am doing right now, that are literally propelling me into the next version of myself.

 I am exactly where I am supposed to be, and I cannot miss this season because it’s giving me everything, I will need for the next level approaching. I also had to remind myself that, what we see portrayed is almost never an accurate depiction of reality. We see the feel-good moments, and glitz and glam, but we don’t see the behind-the-scenes work of another person’s life. So, while I’m second guessing my current destination and comparing myself to another, I must remember that my journey is specific to me, and God trusts me with it. I may not be where I want to be, but I am still making daily progress in going after those desires and dreams.

 So, if you’ve been feeling a little overwhelmed or discouraged, I’m here to tell you to keep going. I know you may not feel like you are not where you are supposed to be, but trust that God is still moving on your behalf, and all these steps you are taking is needed. We cannot afford to miss any steps; your life depends on it.

 Hold your head up high because you are going to WIN!

BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU ASK FOR

It’s been a minute but welcome back to Chasing After Zion!! I’ve been on a slight hiatus and while being on that, I had some time to reflect on some things that have occurred in my life. One of thing I’ve been able to reflect on is the prayers I have prayed and the questions I have found myself asking God.

I noticed that while growing up in the church, no one ever gave me a warning on being careful what I prayed and asked God for, and what to do when God starts to answer those prayers. But in my answered prayers I figured it out and I want to share with you all.

For starters, don’t pray big if you do not want God to move in a big way. Because as soon as you open your mouth you better believe he’s going to stir up things in your life. For example, I asked God to help me grow into having a “crazy faith” and then BOOM! When I said that prayer, I was not ready for the things to come that would push me into having to exercise my faith in a crazy way. I know you’re probably thinking in what way Alisa, well I’ll tell you; my car was stolen. I had been praying that prayer to God about increasing my faith for a while but right before my car was stolen, I had been praying about it more fervently.

Obviously in the moment of finding out my car had been stolen, I had so many emotions but after, I was able to quiet my mind and spirit and I began to say okay God, I trust you, and if you allowed this to happen, I know you knew that I would get through it and trust you. My heart posture after became one of thanksgiving and worship because it could’ve been worse but more importantly, I was at peace because I truly believed the words, I said out loud to him and I reminded myself of all the other times he’s kept me and delivered.

I say all of that to say, I believe God wants all of us to see him in bigger ways than what would be considered normal for us. He has so much he wants to show us and do in us and through us, but we must operate from a place of FAITH. If you truly trust him like you say you do, be prepared to stand on that, and allow him to show you just who He is.

Out With the Old, In With the New

If you are reading this, you have graciously made it to the year of 2022, and I’m excited for all of us!

Last year was a year where everyone’s back was pressed up against the wall in some way shape or form, and we all know that it was far from easy. I think it’s safe to say that as a nation we hadn't seen a death toll like what we saw in years. Not only did we see people dying left and right, but people were losing their jobs, became homeless, sick, crime increased, racial discrimination, the true hearts of people were revealed, just to name a few.

So as this new year has quickly ushered in, a lot of us are holding our breath right now expecting some major discord to shake the table again similar to how our bestie 2021 did. And honestly, I don’t blame us for feeling that way because at this point, we all have suffered trauma and are looking for a fresh start, a new beginning, anything that will be different from our last.

I want to let you all know that it’s okay to breathe now. What you thought would break you, did not, and we are STILL here. You’ve come out of the fire stronger and the good book says that righteousness is forged by the fire, its a refining process. So we thank you Lord.

I declare that this will be your best year yet. I speak life into every soul reading this, and my prayer is that you will see God move in a mighty way in your life. Remember to keep God as your focus and do your very best to make all you do count.

As always, God loves you, I love you, and there’s nothing you can do about it!

XOXO,

Alisa

YOU WERE NOT BUILT TO BREAK

Welcome back!!!!!

Typically before I leave work, I sit down and look out the window to catch the sunrise, and on this particular day, as I was sitting down looking out of the window, I noticed something. I found myself lost in a trance watching the palm trees sway back and forth as the wind blew. I know it sounds like something simple, but as I watched the trees I felt God begin to drop something in my spirit.

For one, I noticed that no matter how hard the wind blew the trees simply adjusted and went the same way the wind blew. I also began to think about how many times I saw palm trees in extreme weather conditions and they all simply swayed back and forth. THEY WOULD ALWAYS BEND BUT NEVER BREAK.

When the wind blows hard against palm trees, it actually strengthens the roots of the tree. They always come out of every storm stronger than before.

So I want to leave you with something on today. No matter what we go through in life, we are built to withstand every storm we face. Granted, we may bend, but we are absolutely not meant to break. Everything that the Lord brings us to, is set up for us to win and come out stronger in the end. God literally wants us to be victorious in everything that we do, so if that’s the case, why would he not create us in such a way to be able to withstand tough times?

The next time you are in the middle of a storm, I want you to remind yourself of these four things:

-God wants you to win

-God paid a heavy price to make you victorious

-You have an advantage in battle

-God gives you authority to win

“So we take comfort and are encouraged and confidently and boldly say, The Lord is my Helper; I will not be seized with alarm [I will not fear or dread or be terrified]. What can man do to me?”  Hebrews 13:6 (AMP)

Until next time, have a blessed and prosperous week!

FAITH OVER FEAR

Faith is defined as having complete trust or confidence in someone or something. Fear is defined as an unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous likely to cause pain or a threat. So my question is, which one do you operate out of?

What I find interesting with both faith and fear is that, they both require you to believe in something you can’t see. Now when I put it into this context and started thinking about all the times I was fearful, I realized I was believing in something that was literally not even there. Crazy right?

I cannot tell you all how many times fear has stopped me from going after things that I’ve wanted for myself or what the Lord was pushing me into. And when I say fear, I’m talking about the kind of fear that starts from the soles of your feet and then slowly goes throughout your entire body almost making it impossible to breathe. I know I’m not the only one that has experienced this, and if you haven’t, I’m telling you it’s nothing to play with, it’ll have you walking around with a tight chest.

But when I started to really understand the word of God deeper and who he is, I began to understand that you cannot have faith and fear, they can’t coexist together, and furthermore God’s word tells me that he isn’t a god of fear. So let me provide you with some armor (scripture);

2 Timothy 1:7 ESV

“For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.”

Psalm 27:1 ESV

“Of David. The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?”

Psalm 23:1-6 ESV

“A Psalm of David. The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. ...”

I say all this to say, when we find ourselves afraid, take a moment and think about the nature of God. He is a God who is concerned about every aspect of our lives, and his word tells us he will be with us in all we do and all the places we go. And this I do believe because God does not lie.

If you take one step, you can be sure that the Lord will take another one with you, you can trust him, and he’s letting you know today that he can handle it all, no matter what it is. So when you see and feel fear starting creep in, I’m charging you to bind that up and cast it down immediately. You are strong, powerful, and you have been given God’s authority to walk boldly and confidently in all you do.

Let’s declare all together right now that, OUR FAITH WILL BE BIGGER THAN OUR FEAR!

LET YOUR LIGHT SHINE

Hey, welcome back! Today will be short and sweet and my prayer is as always that you are encouraged in some way.

We live in a world full of darkness and it’s easier to be consumed by it. But this week I challenge you to be bold and let your light shine. It’s easy to pick up offenses throughout the day, or walk around being irritable from something that only lasted five minutes, or even being quick to have a negative rebuttal towards the person who walked in the room and did not speak.

When you let your light shine, you walk with a different attitude, your speech becomes different, and the way you live becomes different too. Letting your light shine is simply allowing the Lord to abide in you, and you abide in him. And one thing is for sure, you lose absolutely nothing by letting you light shine. You begin to uplift yourself and others and that’s what life is all about.

So continue to live out the gospel daily in front of the world as they watch so that God may receive all of the glory.

Ephesians 5:8 ESV

“For at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light.”

Matthew 5:16 ESV

“In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”

GOD BLOCKED IT

As I sit here writing this post for you all, I’m reminded of all the times I continued to chase after what the Lord was blocking me from. Looking back now, I have to laugh because the things I was chasing after then, I ABSOLUTELY don’t want them now, and had I just trusted in what God was doing I wouldn’t have wasted so much time.

When things don’t work out the way we planned, or that significant other leaves, we didn't get the promotion, we didn’t finish school in time, we got rejected, so on and so forth, for some strange reason, we tend to go after those same things even harder. A lot of it is because we set goals for ourselves and we are adamant about achieving them, we like to prove to others and ourselves that we are the better fit for whatever and whomever, along with that, as humans we want what we want. But over the years I’ve grown to learn and understand that the Lord was protecting me from what I could not see.

Instead of fighting so hard to hold on to those things, had I just released them, I would’ve come to see that what I really wanted would eventually hurt me later on down the line. What we all have to understand is that the very thing you are holding on tightly to is the very thing causing you pain, and once you let it go the tension leaves. I say all that to say, God, knows all and sees all. I've never left a situation that lead me to another situation that was similar. Everything that was blocked from me, worked out for my good and it will for you too.

Let me give you some insight, every job that turned me away had underlying issues that I didn’t find out until after I was hired somewhere else, when I was fired without explanation from some jobs I didn’t know that the environment was really stunting my growth, when friends would leave I didn’t know or hear about the conversations that were had behind my back, when dating went completely left lol I didn’t see how those people would leave a mark on me and not in a good way, or not finishing school in my timing but not seeing how God was going shake the table so I could fully understand and see what He can do in the blink of an eye, I’ll take it a step further and say when I was rushing on the highway trying to get somewhere and hit traffic not knowing that up ahead there was a bad accident and had I been a minute off that wouldv’ve been me.

We may not understand everything that happens in our lives, but one thing I can firmly say is, what God wants for me is far better than what I want for myself.

So if you are struggling right now because things did not go as planned and you feel discouraged, trust that God has you, and thank him for protecting you from the things you couldn’t see.

Until next time, yall be blessed!

DEAR 2021

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Dear Lord,

We have made it to a brand new year and I thank you for the lives of those that are still here to see it. As we enter this year, I speak life into every person that comes across this blog and reads, and I pray this prayer will touch the hearts of many.

As we embark on this journey ahead, I pray that this year will bring about a new level of focus in all areas of our life. Help us to walk boldly and confidently into all that you have for us. Give us a fresh set of eyes to look into our lives with a heavenly perspective as we go from day to day. Give us strength to leave any thing behind that is stunting our growth and keeping us from truly having a relationship with you.As we abide in you, and you in us, help us to keep our hearts centered on you, and live in a way that pleases you.

I ask that you will cover us in all that we do and all the places that we go, and allow us to rest in you and trust in you fully and wholeheartedly. Prepeare us in whatever ways you see fit, so that we may reah our next level and full potential. We know that you are a God that sits high and looks low and you are very concerned about your people. You know exactly what we need and when to give it to us.

We thank you in advance for everything that you will do in us and through us this year, and we believe its already done.

In Jesus name I pray,

Amen

Be Blessed yall, and i’ll see you next week!