Imperfect Pumpkins🎃

I went to look for a pumpkin to carve this weekend… and while there may be such things as perfect pumpkins at the Pumpkin Patch…. there were not any “Perfect Pumpkins” at the store… it got me thinking, God chooses us imperfections and all… I wanted to put out my pumpkin tonight and it had already begun the molding process.

If we don’t allow the light to shine within us and through us, the darkness sets in and eats away at our joy… just like my moldy pumpkin that is now outside in the trash, it sets in quickly and fills us with fear of the unknown and strikes us useless.

God put a dream in my heart a few months ago to begin writing more. I was so excited, I took a leap of faith, created a website, and then the whispers of doubt and fear set in. “Are you sure you can do this?” “That’s not really what God said”. “You should just forget it”. Well friend, those are lies – if God puts a dream in your heart- pursue it with all your might – do not allow the darkness to set in and open the door for mold. Let that light keep shining.

Pumpkins are messy and so are we – but we all have the opportunity to shine bright no matter what we have been through and sometimes even brighter because of what we’ve been through.

This will be my last official blog under ChelseaBelle- I will be moving to DesignedToShineBright.com in a few weeks and I am excited for this next adventure.

Stay tuned friends… and just keep shining!

~Chels

Ready or not…

So I googled “Guiness World Record for floating on water” and it turns out there is one – 54+ hours in 2005… I floated for 5 minutes this morning until I started getting splashed and then the waves began.

The truth is – as cheesy as this analogy may be – life is like a Wave Pool. You may have the opportunity to float for a little while… but sooner or later the waves always come – splashes or unexpected things will vie for your attention whether you’re ready or not.

How do we prepare for the unexpected? How do we battle the anxiety or worry about the unknown? I’ll be honest, sometimes the prayers, songs, and scriptures don’t seem to help right away – I’ll “cast all my cares upon Him” and then pick them right back up and keep worrying.

But why? Why does it take us so long to trust God when we know He’s got it under control? Why do the waves mess with our senses and try to pull us under when we’re trying to jump each moment to keep our heads above water? I don’t know what you’re going through… but I do know that the prayers, the songs, the scripture, and sometimes the tears are necessary to build our strength. At Wits End Corner this week the song: Masterpiece by Danny Gokey came on KLOVE and I was reminded that these waves- no matter how high, no matter how strong are part of the process to becoming God’s Masterpieces.

I know I can’t overcome any of these waves without God’s strength… and maybe I can’t float on my own in the midst of the storm but if I cling to my Savior He is the BEST Life Preserver I could ever ask for. And He’s always ready even when we’re not.

In the Waiting…

Today I’ve been thinking about those who walked with Jesus and how they must have been feeling today…I always feel great because I’m on this side of the story and I can see the whole picture of why He did what He did for us… they didn’t get it yet.

I’ve heard that people have to hear things 7-13 times on average before they get it…I just counted how many different times Jesus told them in John alone after chapter 11 and it was 7+ times!!!

I often joke about having to explain things sometimes in several different ways in order for people to understand and yet Jesus is the King of Kings and even those who walked with Him didn’t understand the words that were coming out of his mouth until later!

During this time He had not yet sent them the Holy Spirit… how completely confused they must have been. Here I am trying to compare how Jesus is with us in the Waiting but they were dealing with a situation where they had not yet seen His glory and did not have the Holy Spirit to comfort them or give them hope…

We have hope, we have peace… we know the ending of the greatest miracle, the red thread, WHO will win in the end and yet so many of us can’t see the clues, the explanations, the science, the miracles that represent what tomorrow’s resurrection represents… the little details of Folding his grave clothes that show us He is coming back!

My prayer is that if you’re reading this, if you’ve lost hope or of you’re in a season of waiting right now and you don’t know what or when the outcome will be, all you have to do is cry out to Jesus:

Romans 10:9 explains it best by saying: “that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved”

He’s waiting for you, let Him help you through your own season of waiting and trust in the greatest love story ever told!

Happy Easter Friends…He is Risen!!!

For the Love of Change…

Change can rattle our senses

It can bring us to our knees in prayer

It can shatter our defenses

It can tease us to despair

Change can fling us into glory

It can bring us close to tears

It can force us to write a new story

It can empower us to conquer our fears

Change can cause giddiness, bitterness, hope, or grief

It can cause our hearts to cry out

It can steal our joy like a thief

It can fill our minds with doubt

Change can happen in an instant

We’re never ready for it you see

It grabs all we know to be consistent

and shakes it up and throws it free

Change can defeat us or define us

The choice is ours to make

but as we strive to adjust

There’s Someone with us each step we take

~Chelsea Ramet

Pop That Thought Bubble🎈💭

Last Friday at our staff meeting two of my colleagues shared one of our Sanford Harmony lessons called “Pop That Thought Bubble”. We are going through different lessons throughout the 4th Grade lesson plan book in our staff meetings over the next few months and this was the first one.

This was the first question they asked: “If you were to take a guess into what that means what would you say?”

The first thing that “popped” into my head was that we can decide to change our thought patterns. When we recognize a negative thought we have the choice to “Pop that thought bubble” and move on.

1 Corinthians 10:5 states: “casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ,”

Peter Pan said to “Think happy thoughts”

Taylor Swift said to “Shake it off”

While this idea to “Pop a thought bubble” isn’t a new concept to us, it is always a good reminder to not allow those negative thoughts to fester or to take root in our hearts and minds. We can easily go down the rabbit trail of bitterness and self deprication that leaves us empty and hollow.

OR we can take those thoughts into captivity, replace them with “happy thoughts” and make a decision each and every time to consciously pop that thought bubble!

What thought bubble do you need to pop today?

~ChelseaBelle

I love the way…

Sometimes I wonder if the thoughts that bring me comfort and joy ever help anyone else… recently I found out that the fabulous Jamie Grace got engaged… and while I’m so excited for her next adventure in life – there was a small part of my heart and mind that struggled with the bitterness that can so easily take hold of my life. Younger, Earlier, Prettier, whatever descriptive adjective the enemy can use to make me feel inadequate or unworthy of my own love story he will try.  Each time I see or hear that news; relationship… engagement… marriage… I’m genuinely happy for them but there’s always that split second (or sometimes multiple moments) of genuine struggle where I consciously have to take those thoughts captive and remember that I’m trusting in God’s timing and His purpose for my life. The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly. John 10:10. Don’t allow the enemy to steal your joy – trust In the One Who knows the ending to the story He’s writing and have faith that its better than anything you could ever dream up. I’m preaching to the choir on this one – I need these reminders daily!

Tonight on my way home from work Jamie Grace’s first single came on KLOVE- I feel like I haven’t heard it in forever… and it grabbed a hold of my heart in the most precious way because no matter what comes next I love the way my Savior holds me each and every step of this life. He holds my heart and He holds my future in His hands. If you haven’t heard this song (or even if you have) please take a listen and be encouraged:

💖Happy Weekend Friends💖 Whatever season you find yourself in – let Him hold you each step of the way…

~ChelseaBelle

Ready.

I had breakfast with my dear friend Allie last week and she asked if I had chosen a word for 2018 yet. Anytime I make a New Year’s Resolution it usually falls through or I end up making excuses instead of progress.

But words are different… we can empower ourselves to write a different sentence for different aspects of our lives. I have been praying for God to put my “word for the year” on my heart and this morning on my way to work I got it…

Ready.

Ready to say yes

Ready to say no

Ready to let go

Ready to leap

Ready to give an answer

Ready for whatever comes my way

and the list goes on…

Whatever God has in store for me this year, at work, church, or in my personal life I want to be ready and willing to take it on in His strength and according to His will each step of the way.

I’m ready for what 2018 holds, are you?

~ChelseaBelle

Waiting on a Shooting Star…

Several times this past summer I have found myself staring up at the night sky praying to see a Shooting Star… whether it was up at camp or a moment stolen the last few months looking up.

I found myself bargaining with God… you know the drill, “Show me a Shooting Star so I know You heard my prayer Lord” or ” Show me a Shooting Star so I know you’ll answer this other important prayer of my heart”… all summer long no shooting stars.

Then a few weeks ago, I was walking down to get the mail, not even fully paying attention to the night sky and there it was, a shooting star across the night sky when I least expected it.

God doesn’t deal in bargaining with us. He already gave us the greatest gift we could ever imagine in sending His Son to die on the cross for our sins and conquering death so we could go to heaven to be with Him for all eternity.

And yet He gives us blessings, whether they be in the form of a work trip (Hawaii here I come🌺), a future love, a Shooting Star, a sunset, or a full time job with benefits…He answers in His time and according to His will.

I seem to forget all too often that His will is better than mine, His timing is better than mine, and His plan is better than anything I could ever hope for.

Keep the faith. Even when life throws you curve balls or you don’t know what is coming next, it’ll be okay. Keep praying and keep believing that He can work all things together for good to those who love Him and are called according to His purpose.

And next time you see a Shooting Star, don’t wish on it, pray to the God of the Universe who made the stars and knows them (and you) by name!

~Chelsea Belle

Oh the storms will come…

Foundations will rock in this life. I have witnessed some pretty life-altaring storms this year- friends and mentors going home to be with Jesus, cancer, pain, car accidents, all those storms we never see coming and those friendships we take for granted-just gone…in an instant. One phone call, one diagnosis, one split second decision can rock our worlds in ways we never imagined.

Honestly? I don’t know how the world can cope without Jesus…I know I can’t…

This weekend we talked about Foundations. I know I’ve talked about it before but its so fascinating to me how they work. I was watching Fixer Upper tonight and one of the houses they showed had cracks in its foundation that was going to cost $15,000+ to be fixed…do you think they chose that house? No. Because its foundation was unstable. They couldn’t count on it to hold steady in a storm. And it’s Texas, there will be storms.

And in life, there will be storms. I have met people in the past whose foundations crack and their houses fall when the storm hits. I’d like to think I will always stand firm but then look at Peter…so did he and he denied Jesus 3 times. The passage in Matthew 7 tells us to dig down deep to build a foundation. It doesn’t happen quickly. It takes preparation, prayer, fellowship, community, accountability, and patience. It takes hard work. We never know when the next storm may hit but we can prepare our foundation and make sure that it is secure and ready to weather the storms.

I am thankful for the people in my life who have prayed with me and for me during life’s storms- may I always be willing to share my umbrella, sing in the rain, and cling to my Savior in the midst of each storm.

For those of you within a storm, I’m praying with you and for you. For those of you who aren’t, prepare your foundation-build your house upon the rock so when the storm comes you will stand firm.

Keep Praying friends,

~ChelseaBelle

Thankful for Unanswered Prayers

I have had a few interesting weeks… we all pray for the things we think we want or need in our lives. In my case I have been strategically praying for the man that God has for me for a good 17 years.  There have been times in my life when I thought I met him or a man that possessed most if not all of those qualities and yet here I am 30 years young,  still waiting. And sometimes the waiting discourages my heart but today as I type I am overwhelmed by a thankfulness I’ve never experienced before.

I am thankful that God has answered those prayers by saying no to friendships, conversations, or any potential relationships that are contrary to His will to protect my heart. Guarding our hearts is crucial but not always easy. I am constantly taking thoughts captive and striving to think on things that are pure, holy, righteous, and lovely. I don’t want to get hurt – but I also want to listen and obey God’s Word in rejoicing always and praying without ceasing. I can only imagine Paul’s thought process when he wrote those verses in Thessalonians…he must have known how important prayer is to keep us in check… to keep us in fellowship with our Savior. 

The struggle is real friends. I know this saying is the cliche phrase these days but it’s true. I struggle and yet I’m thankful that I serve a Savior Who is only a prayer away and gives us joy unspeakable. 

Keep praying,

~Chelsea Belle