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Author Archive for Priscilla

Remedy for Spiritual Neglect

Posted by Priscilla on Wednesday, March 30th, 2011 in Prayer | Comments (1)

What are you struggling with? Deployment? Children? Marriage? Your relationship with God? The list can be rather endless at times. When life is rough, I find that I tend to run to the prayer closet. Getting down on my knees becomes a survival strategy.

But, there are moments in life when everything is wonderful. Newly married and fairly carefree, I have nothing to complain about right now.

. . . and I’ve forgotten about God.

It seems in all the wonderfulness of life, I’ve begun neglecting the One who really made it wonderful.

That is not my only problem. See, I also can’t seem to keep plants alive. Something about living in close proximity to me causes them to turn all brown and ugly,

and wilt

and look very dejected.

I have almost always managed to kill (not on purpose, I promise) flowers that have had the ill luck of falling into my hands.

My family wanted to treat me special for my birthday this past weekend. They gave me a beautiful little tropical plant. It’s gorgeous, and I desperately want to keep it alive . . . despite the odds. I’ve already apologized (very sincerely too, I might add) for it being unlucky enough to end up with me.

“sniffle” Sorry, I got choked up thinking about this poor, solitary plant’s chance at survival with me. Gets to me every time.

So, I started off my relationship with this plant trying to figure out what I could do this time to give it a better chance at life.

And . . . after much pondering, I think I’ve landed on it.

You see, plants need attention (water, sunlight, etc.). They don’t cry like babies, and they don’t whine like dogs. They don’t even wrap themselves around our feet and trip us like cats. There’s really nothing that they use to demand our attention.

God is like that. He doesn’t cry or whine at us. (Sometimes He’ll trip us to catch our attention, but that’s a story for another day.) He’s a gentleman. He waits for us to come to Him and to seek Him out. And in many cases, he suffers neglect, like my plant.

I find myself, more often than not, walking by my plant and thinking, “Oh, it should be watered. I’ll get to it later.” And, sadly, I’ll do the same thing with my relationship with God. “Oh, I should spend some time with God. I’ll get to it later.”

“tears” Now, I really am crying. How can I do that to my Savior?! How can I do that to myself?

We need that relationship with God far more than anything we’ve needed before. If we spend our life “waiting till later” what will we have? Nothing. Even worse, during those times of struggle (deployments, family struggles, etc.) our relationship with God will be as dry and wilted as all those plants that died on me. Where will that leave us? Where will that leave you?

Well,  I’m not willing to settle for a wilted, dead relationship with God.

As I renew my walk with God, my little plant is going to become more than just another plant that perishes in record time. As I try to keep my tropical miracle alive, I’m going to use it as a reminder for me not to neglect my relationship with God.

Would you join me? If you’re in a slow time in your relationship with God, then renew and rededicate with me right now. Just take a minute and tell God you want more. Begin there and allow yourself and God freedom to truly build a relationship together. You don’t have to be perfect now, just start afresh. He’s dying to be a part of your life again. Then leave a comment here letting us all know!

If you’re going strong in your Christian walk, share with me ways that you keep your relationship with God alive and vibrant. I’m all ears!

Perhaps even grab your own personal prayer plant reminder. Get something simple, small and pretty, like mine.

Priscilla is an avid blogger, writer, and Christian military wife. Her passion for life, marriage and God are displayed at her blog, www.pinkcombatboots.wordpress.com, where she chronicles her personal story, as well as shares helpful suggestions, newsy bits, and more!

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But I Don’t Feel Beautiful Today

Posted by Priscilla on Friday, February 11th, 2011 in Faith | Comments (3)

What is it about the soul of a woman that desires to be beautiful? I know it is something deeply ingrained in me. I look at myself in the mirror and wonder, “Am I pretty today?” I pick my clothes and hairstyle for the day on whether they mirror my spirit. If I’m happy, I’ll pick something that is cheery and eye-catching. If I’m sad or depressed, I’ll usually end up picking something drab or frumpy (often without realizing that I’m doing so). I’ve heard of the “bad hair day” syndrome countless times. It’s not that I am necessarily frustrated with my hair (though that is part of it), as much as I do not feel pretty at my core on that particular day. Feeling this way affects me more than I would like to admit. I grumble and complain more, become moody more easily, and fail to see the special blessings my husband and others show and give to me. It seems that if I’m cheerful, then I feel pretty, and if I feel pretty then I’m cheerful. Frankly, I have started to wonder what I can do about this feeling beautiful/being cheerful, feeling plain/being grumpy circle.

There are two steps that I’m taking:

Step #1 – Choosing to claim and believe God’s view of me. Psalm 139:13 (“For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb” NIV) speaks of God’s infinite care in creating me. The awesome and powerful God of the Universe put precious thought into making me who I am. He created me and loved me. There is something beautiful, precious, and amazingly freeing in that. My worth is not dependent on me, my family, my success, my ability to cope and survive, or whether I’m having a “bad hair day” or not. My worth is firmly held in the loving arms of God.

Step #2 – Choosing to be cheerful regardless of how I’m “feeling” on a particular day. Sometimes, I think that half the battle is me being gutsy enough to not get swept around by my moods or feelings. Yes, my emotions are powerful (and often they feed off of how I view myself); I’m a woman after all! But my emotions do not rule me. Choosing to be cheerful, claiming that God is in control and that He adores me and loves me so much, should lift me up even in the moodiest of times. My feelings may change, but these truths do not. God loves me and created me beautiful. They are the sails that make the difference between me being cheerful and confident on the waves of life, or me being mercilessly tossed around on the currents of my emotions.

Final Truths:

Listen to me, ladies, God made women beautiful. I’m not referring to Hollywood’s version of beauty or to all the other changing definitions of beauty that have been put forth down through the centuries and across the many cultures of our world. Beauty is something God instilled in each of us as a woman. Our spirits are what govern the display of this beauty. If our hearts are alive in Christ, we will not be able to, nor want to, contain our beauty. But we have an adversary, an enemy. Satan knows how crucial a woman’s beauty is to her and those around her. Her beauty brings a refreshing fragrance to a needy, sin-stricken world. Satan cannot stand this. He knows he can’t destroy what God has made, so he tries to distract us, depress us, and demotivate us. Take your thoughts captive and engage your emotions (as something precious given to us women by God), but do not let your emotions rule. When you are feeling low, grab a quick minute with God and ask Him to show you how He sees you. Let him bathe you in His love and adoration and comfort. He wants to, but often waits for our invitation. Come as you are, because you are beautiful and your God adores you!

Priscilla Cash is a central Pennsylvania National Guard Wife. She loves to blog, write, reach out to other women, enjoy God’s creation and seek to be all that she can for Him. She chronicles much of her life and passion for these on her personal blog at www.pinkcombatboots.wordpress.com.

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