#emilypinkposts

What can you find to celebrate today? There has to be something to celebrate!!💗🎉 . . Celebrate you have a roof over your head Celebrate you have food to eat Celebrate you have a pillow to rest your head on each night Celebrate you have clothes to cover your body Celebrate you have fresh water to drink and bathe in Celebrate your health Celebrate your family Celebrate the beauty of God’s creation . . Celebrate that with each passing day we are one day closer to the end of the lockdown and quarantine. . . Celebrate that we are one day closer to hugging our relatives who don’t live with us . . Celebrate we are one day closer that small businesses will open. . . Celebrate we are one day closer to traveling again . . Celebrate we are one day closer to being in community in person with our church families. . . But what’s the biggest thing we celebrate each day? We are one day closer with each passing day of the return of Jesus. Just think . .today we are one day closer than we were yesterday when we get to see Him face to face. Now, that’s something to celebrate. 💗🎉💗 Have a wonderful Sunday and find something to celebrate today. 💗🎉💗 . . Psalm 145:7 They shall eagerly utter the memory of Your abundant goodness And will shout joyfully of Your righteousness. . . Psalm 126:3 The Lord has done great things for us! We are glad! . . Psalm 150 Praise the Lord! Praise God in his Temple! Praise his strength in heaven! 2 Praise him for the mighty things he has done. Praise his supreme greatness. 3 Praise him with trumpets. Praise him with harps and lyres. 4 Praise him with drums and dancing. Praise him with harps and flutes. 5 Praise him with cymbals. Praise him with loud cymbals. 6 Praise the Lord, all living creatures! Praise the Lord! #EmilyPinkPosts (at Orlando, Florida) https://www.instagram.com/p/B_utFuXnHrU/?igshid=13uunrmth88xc

I’ve always been someone who prays and who reads the Bible. . . I pray in the good times and in the bad times. To be honest, what we are going though now has me on my knees even more. . . One thing I do when I pray is to pray the Word. Did you know there are over 3000 promises God gives us. The promise that He will never leave us nor forsake us. The promise that He strengthens the weary. The promise He will be with us wherever we go. The promise that no weapon formed against us shall prosper. The list goes on and on. These promises are promises I stand on with faith knowing that the Lord keeps His promises. . . Reading and meditating on the Word and praying the Word brings such peace and hope during times exactly like these. . . I want to encourage you to look to the Lord, read the Word and talk to the Lord daily. Voice your concerns to Him and remind Him of the many promises He has made. . . As you can in this picture I have a prayer journal. If you need prayer for anything please let me know. I would love to pray for you. . . Stay safe! Have hope! Know God is still in control and keep the faith. 💗#EmilyPinkPosts (at Orlando, Florida) https://www.instagram.com/p/B-DgmSpH271/?igshid=1hklt0todrn7u

One thing the Bible makes very clear is that we are called to pray. . . He tells us all in His Word to "Call Upon Me." I challenge you to go through the Bible and see just how many times He says those words, "Call Upon Me." . . So often we give the world our best, and the leftover time for prayer which is just talking to God. I want to encourage you to pray daily. Talk to God . . .He asks us to call upon Him and He promises to answer us. . . I read this the other day: Are you troubled? Call upon God. Are you disturbed by men? Call upon God. Are you at your wits' end and you see now no way out? Call upon God. Are you lonely? Call upon God. Do your friends or family fail you? Call upon God. Are you depressed, worried or filled with anxiety? Call upon God. . . Bring those things to God in prayer and watch and see how He moves in your life. . . Maybe you are angry with God? Pray! Do you feel that God is far from you today? Pray! Are you in a situation that feels hopeless. Pray! . . The Bible tells us to .... “Cast your burden upon the Lord and He will sustain you.” Psalm 55:22 . . Prayer doesn’t have to be complicated. Pray like you are talking to a friend. He’s there. He’s listening. He will sustain you through whatever you are facing or going through. And remember, our timing is not always His timing. So in the waiting keep the faith, don’t stop believing and hold on to His promises. . . Matthew 18:20 says, “For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them." . . If I can pray for you please dm me. It be an honor to pray for whatever you are dealing with or going through. Even if you just say “please pray”. You don’t even have to share what’s going on. It just helps to have someone agreeing with you. . . Have a blessed day and remember Jesus loves you and He cares about you. 💗 #EmilyPinkPosts (at Orlando, Florida) https://www.instagram.com/p/B86a3ZfnYtJ/?igshid=1usingmzaofcg

Today marks one week since the world learned the news of the horrific helicopter crash that took the lives of 9 precious humans including Kobe Bryant & his daughter Gianna. . Last Sunday I happened to have the news on right when the news broke about the crash. They hadn’t even confirmed yet that Kobe had been on there. As I sat down on my couch in unbelief it soon became a reality that not only Kobe had been on the helicopter but also his precious daughter. Later we would find out that there were 7 others who perished in the crash too. . As I sat there that day and days after I found it hard to wrap around my brain that Kobe was gone. I think most of the nation felt the same way. Many tears have been shed this last week including many of my own. Tears at the reality of what happened. Tears shed for all those who are now no longer with us. Tears shed for the families who lost their loved ones. . I think this was also a wakeup call too many. It brought to reality that none of us are guaranteed a long life. We never know when our last day will be! I can just imagine how many phone calls were made to family and friends. Calls that were made just to say I love you & I’m thinking of you. I also saw this Bible verse repeated many times this past week on social media: "To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: 2 A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;"Eph 1-2 . We don’t know when our last day will be but we need to live like it’s the last. I want to encourage you not to get so busy that you forget to stay in communication with your family. Give them a call or shoot them a text. Let them know how much you value them & love them. Also, if you are in conflict with any family member go ahead & go low & reach out to them & apologize even if you don’t think that you are in the wrong. Is it really worth it to give up precious time with your family? I don’t think so. . My prayer this week is for the Lord to continue bring comfort & peace to all the family members who lost their loved ones. May He fill them with His continued love. #EmilyPinkPosts 💗 (at Orlando, Florida) https://www.instagram.com/p/B8E669SHtvx/?igshid=e7sdxw0cj3vu

I have always loved Christmas! Growing up I always looked forward to all the traditions that my parents started with me and my siblings. I continued some of those same traditions and started new ones with my husband and five children. . I am the person who would always start listening to Christmas music early, wearing my Christmas plaid clothes early, baking Christmas cookies as soon as Thanksgiving was over and start planning all the Christmas things. . It’s easy to get caught up in all the excitement, beauty, wonder and joy of the Christmas season but I always tried each year with our children to keep Jesus as our focus. One way we did they was approaching the Christmas season by observing the season of Advent. . The meaning of the word Advent is “arrival” or “coming into view”. Advent helps us to keep in mind that between that first coming of Christ on Christmas and His final coming at the end of time, Jesus comes to us as we live our lives daily to love Him and serve Him. . I have found throughout the years that taking the time to focus on Jesus even more during the month of December really cuts back on the stress and anxiety that can come with all the preparation and getting ready for Christmas Day. . I know that the weeks leading up to Christmas day can be very busy, but the month will be much less stressful when we are intentional to find a few moments each day to set aside time for Bible study or devotional time to reflect on Christ’s coming and what it really means to us. 💗 . Try taking just a couple minutes a day and I promise you it will bring you peace and joy. I hope you have a beautiful Sunday and a wonderful Christmas season. #EmilyPinkPosts 💗 (at Orlando, Florida) https://www.instagram.com/p/B50NHvGHwhp/?igshid=eq3m0mue7uf9

Over the last 3 1/2 years I found myself struggling with a negative attitude and loss of joy. I often thought, “What in the world Lord? Why is this happening?” 💗 Problems seem to arise in so many areas of my life. Relationships fell apart, dreams were crushed, our ministry seemed to be dwindling, and personally it took a toll on me. 💗 Then there finally came a day that I didn’t know how much more I could take and that’s when God led me to James 1:2 which says, “Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy.” James 1:2.💗 Can I be totally honest and transparent? The last thing I felt like doing was considering all of my troubles “an opportunity for great joy.” 💗 I remember saying to the Lord, “Are you serious God? How is that even really possible?” As I read that verse over and over I said, “How can we be going through all these things leave me feeling joyful? How can that even happen?" 💗 But then I went on to read the rest of the text in James. He wrote that verse during a time where the Christians had allowed the frustrations and hardships of life to steal their joy. 💗 What were the Christians going through then? They were facing huge trials,major suffering and persecution and even murder and being put in prison just for being a Christian. 💗 I can’t even imagine what must have been going through their minds or how they were feeling because some of them had to flee their homes in fear for their lives, they had little food and they were just sick and tired. 💗 I can totally see why they had lost their joy, had negative or frustrated attitudes and even possibly started to lose faith. 💗 James acknowledged everything they were going through but he also wanted to encourage them and give them hope in a time when they were in great distress. 💗 His message to them was that joy could still be theirs. All they had to do was to change the way they were thinking, change their negative attitude and refocus their faith. 💗 Continued in comments. 💗 #EmilyPinkPosts http://liketk.it/2CiLT #liketkit https://www.instagram.com/p/BzDkrqKnq5p/?igshid=1ql3i2ydfmf1x