Walking In Purpose - A Gift

 

 

As I enter this new year of life, I do so with a grateful heart.

I thank God for all He has done in me, to me, and through me. Every lesson, every challenge, every victory, and every moment of growth has helped shape the person I am becoming.

This year, my focus is Walking in Purpose.

I am no longer consumed by where I should be or how quickly I should arrive. I trust that God is ordering my steps and revealing His plan one day at a time.

I will continue to move forward with faith, courage, and gratitude.

I will honor the gifts God has placed within me and use them to serve others.

I will embrace opportunities for growth and remain open to divine guidance.

I will remember that purpose is not a destination but a journey.

One prayer.
One step.
One moment at a time.

As I walk with God, I trust that everything assigned to my life will unfold in its proper season.

I am grateful.
I am growing.
I am walking in purpose.

Thank you for being here, you are now a witness to the power of the true living God. 

May God help you and bless you, that you may bring glory and honor to His name.

 

Reciprocity Matters: Learning to Steward What God Has Given Me

 There was a time in my life when I gave freely without much thought about whether that giving was being reciprocated. I showed up for people. I listened. I encouraged. I supported. I poured into friendships and relationships because that was simply who I was.

But over time, I began to notice a pattern.

I was often the one reaching out.
I was often the one checking in.
I was often the one giving, encouraging, helping, and investing.

While there is nothing wrong with being generous, I eventually realized that constantly pouring without being replenished comes at a cost.

Reciprocity matters.

Healthy relationships are not about keeping score. They are not transactional. They are built on mutual care, respect, and investment. Both people contribute. Both people make an effort. Both people value the relationship enough to nurture it.

When only one person is invested, the relationship becomes unbalanced.

For many years, I continued giving even when I received very little in return. Part of that came from my desire to love people well. Part of it came from habits I developed while living in survival mode. I often believed it was my responsibility to hold relationships together, even when the other person was not doing their part.

Today, I see things differently.

I am learning that being a good steward over what God has given me means being mindful of where my energy goes. My time is valuable. My peace is valuable. My gifts are valuable. My compassion is valuable.

These are all resources entrusted to me by God.

Stewardship is not just about finances. It is also about protecting and wisely investing our emotional, physical, mental, and spiritual resources.

Jesus often withdrew to rest and pray. He served people with love and compassion, yet He also maintained boundaries. He understood that even while fulfilling His purpose, He could not respond to every demand placed upon Him.

That lesson has become increasingly important in my own life.

I have learned that I can be loving without overextending myself.

I can be generous without depleting myself.

I can care deeply about people without carrying responsibilities that belong to them.

Most importantly, I am learning that not everyone can have access to every part of me. Access should be earned through trust, consistency, respect, and mutual investment.

When a friendship or relationship becomes one-sided, it is worth paying attention. Sometimes the healthiest response is not to give more. Sometimes the healthiest response is to step back and evaluate whether the relationship is truly mutual.

This is not about becoming hardened or keeping people at a distance.

It is about wisdom.

It is about recognizing that God did not call us to pour endlessly from an empty cup.

As I continue my healing journey, I am embracing a new understanding of love—one that includes healthy boundaries, mutual respect, and intentional stewardship.

Because reciprocity matters.

And being a good steward means honoring what God has entrusted to me, including my energy, my gifts, my time, and my heart.

Reflection Question:
Are there relationships in your life where you are doing all the giving? What might change if you began viewing your time, energy, and emotional investment as gifts that deserve wise stewardship?

I Matter Community | Holistic Wellness Matters

What Part of Me Is Reawakening?

 

The part of me that wants more.

The part that remembers I am of royal kinship, created with purpose, dignity, and authority. The part that refuses to settle for merely existing when I was created to live fully and intentionally.

The part of me that rises when challenges come. The part that steps forward and does what needs to be done, even when the road is difficult. The part that understands resilience is not the absence of struggle but the courage to keep moving through it.

The part of me that knows there is more to this life than what can be seen with natural eyes. The part that believes in divine purpose, unseen possibilities, and promises yet to be fulfilled.

The part of me that longs for unity where there is division, peace where there is conflict, love where there is hatred, and prosperity where there has been lack. The part that dreams of communities restored, families healed, and people empowered to walk in their God-given purpose.

The part of me that knows there is no lack in the Kingdom of God. The part that understands abundance is not merely about possessions but about hope, wisdom, creativity, provision, and the capacity to bless others.

The part of me that will stand and fight for justice. The part that speaks when silence would be easier. The part that believes every person has value, worth, and a voice that deserves to be heard.

The part of me that stands firmly for truth, even when truth is unpopular. The part that seeks integrity over approval and conviction over convenience.

The part of me that loves beyond borders, beyond differences, beyond labels, beyond limitations. The part that sees humanity through the eyes of compassion and believes we are stronger when we walk together.

What is reawakening within me is not something new.

It is who I have always been.

Beneath the pain.
Beneath the waiting.
Beneath the survival.

Purpose is reawakening.

Faith is reawakening.

Vision is reawakening.

Love is reawakening.

And I am becoming everything I was created to be.

Choose Life: Dysfunction Can Be Healed

 

Coming from extreme dysfunction your perspective can be somewhat warped
(bent or twisted out of its true shape).

Not because there is something wrong with you, but because dysfunction has a way of teaching you things that were never meant to be normal. You learn to survive in environments that require constant adaptation. Over time, those adaptations can begin to feel like your identity.

You may mistake chaos for love.

You may confuse hypervigilance with wisdom.

You may believe that carrying everyone else's burdens is your responsibility.

You may think your worth is tied to what you do rather than who you are.

When dysfunction is all you've known, it becomes the lens through which you view yourself, others, and the world around you.

But it doesn't have to stay that way.

Healing begins when you realize that you have a choice.

A choice to question what you've always believed.

A choice to challenge unhealthy patterns.

A choice to stop normalizing what wounded you.

A choice to embrace truth instead of distortion.

A choice to pursue peace instead of chaos.

A choice to live instead of merely survive.

Every day presents an opportunity to choose differently.

Choose the light when darkness feels familiar.

Choose what is good for you and to you.

Choose healthy boundaries.

Choose truth.

Choose healing.

Choose peace.

Choose life.

Your past may explain how you got here, but it does not have to determine where you go next.

The dysfunction may have shaped your perspective, but healing can transform it.

And that transformation begins one choice at a time.

"I have set before you life and death... Now choose life." — Deuteronomy 30:19

The choice is yours.

Choose life.

Affirmation

I choose life. I choose truth over distortion, peace over chaos, and healing over survival. My past does not define me, and dysfunction does not determine my future. I am growing in wisdom, strength, and wholeness. Each day, I choose what is good for me and good to me. I walk forward in faith, hope, and purpose.

 

Pressed, Not Defeated

 

We just finished the Daniel Fast, and it seemed as though I was being pressed on every side. For a moment, I found myself becoming frustrated. Everything that mattered to me appeared to demand my attention all at once. The distractions felt relentless.

Then something shifted.

I believe it was something my nephew said that reminded me of Jesus' own experience. After fasting for forty days and forty nights, Satan came to tempt Him. The enemy didn't show up before the fast—he came afterward, attempting to weaken Jesus' resolve and redirect His focus.

In that moment, I began to see my own situation differently.

This wasn't simply a series of unfortunate events. It felt like another attempt by the enemy to pull my attention away from what matters most—to distract me from prayer, to weaken my faith, to consume my thoughts with the things closest to my heart until I lost sight of God's presence.

But I refuse to sink.

Like Peter stepping onto the water, I know what happens when our eyes leave Jesus. The wind and the waves may still be there, but they do not determine my destination. Christ does.

So today I make a choice.

I will keep my eyes fixed on the One who called me. I will not allow fear, frustration, or distraction to have the final word. My circumstances may compete for my attention, but they will not have my devotion.

God is calling for my undivided attention—not because He wants to take something from me, but because He wants to strengthen me for what lies ahead.

The battle for my focus is real.

So is the One who has already overcome it.

I choose to pray.
I choose to believe.
I choose to trust.
And I choose to keep my eyes on the Lord

Scripture:

 Isaiah 26:3 "You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You."

 Psalm 121:1–2 "I will lift up my eyes to the hills—from where comes my help? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth."

 

James 1:2-8 ² Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters,^[a] whenever you face trials of many kinds, ³ because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. ⁴ Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. ⁵ If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. ⁶ But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. ⁷ That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. ⁸ Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do.

Affirmation:

Today I declare:

My focus belongs to God.

I will not be distracted by fear, frustration, or the schemes of the enemy.

Every trial that comes my way is another opportunity to trust the One who called me.

I choose prayer over panic.
I choose faith over fear.
I choose peace over pressure.
I choose purpose over distraction.

My eyes remain fixed on Jesus, the Author and Finisher of my faith.

God is directing my steps, guarding my heart, and strengthening my spirit.

I will not sink because Christ is sustaining me.

No distraction is greater than God's calling on my life.

I am steadfast.
I am watchful.
I am victorious through Christ.

Today, I give God my undivided attention.

In Jesus' name, Amen.

 

I Am Called to Be Different

 

 

For most of my life, I felt different.

I don't compete with others, and I try not to compare myself to anyone because I've never felt like "most people." That has been true for as long as I can remember.

For many years, though, I fought against that reality. I tried to fit in. I tried to be accepted. After experiencing ridicule and rejection, I thought that if I could become more like everyone else, maybe I would finally belong.

But no matter how hard I tried, I was never truly accepted by the world.

Ironically, I spent years longing for the very people and things that could never satisfy the deepest needs of my heart.

Today, I can honestly say that has changed.

I no longer desire many of the things the world once promised me. My identity is no longer found in people's approval but in being a child of God.

I have learned that being different was never my weakness—it was part of God's design.

He was separating me for His purposes long before I understood what He was doing.

What once felt like rejection, I now see as redirection.

What once felt like isolation became preparation.

I no longer strive to fit into places God never intended for me. Instead, I desire to walk faithfully in the purpose He has for my life.

I don't need to be the best.
I don't need to compete.
I don't need to compare.

I simply want to pursue excellence as an offering to God, becoming more like Christ each day and faithfully stewarding the life He has entrusted to me.

"Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind." — Romans 12:2

Being set apart is not a punishment.

It is a calling.

And today, I embrace it with gratitude.

 Scriptures

John 15:19 "If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hates you."

Galatians 1:10 "Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God?... If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ."

1 Peter 2:9 "But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light."

 

Affirmations 

 Today, I choose to find my identity in Christ rather than in the opinions of others.

I am no longer striving for the world's acceptance because I have already been accepted by God through Jesus Christ.

I embrace the unique way God created me. 

I do not need to compare myself to anyone, compete with anyone, or become someone I was never created to be.

I am chosen.
I am loved.
I am set apart for God's purposes.

What once felt like rejection, God is using for redirection.
What once felt like isolation, God is using for preparation.

I will pursue excellence, not for recognition, but to honor the One who created me.

I walk confidently as a child of God, trusting His plan, His timing, and His purpose for my life.

Today I declare:

• I am accepted by God.
• I am secure in my identity in Christ.
• I will not conform to the world.
• I will walk in the purpose God has prepared for me.
• I choose faithfulness over comparison.
• I choose obedience over approval.
• I choose Christ over the world.

In Jesus' name, Amen.

I Remember When...

 I remember when I loved others more than I loved myself.

There was a time when I didn't consider my own needs. I spent my energy chasing after people—men, relationships, friendships, and even family—hoping that if I loved enough, gave enough, sacrificed enough, I would finally receive the love, acceptance, or security I was searching for.

I didn't realize that I mattered too.

I poured from an empty cup, often abandoning myself to keep others comfortable. I overlooked red flags, ignored my own pain, and settled for less than I deserved because I didn't yet understand my worth.

Looking back, it's painful to watch.

Not because I was foolish, but because I was searching for something outside of myself that only God could truly establish within me: my identity, my value, and my sense of belonging.

Nothing lasting came from chasing people. Chasing left me exhausted, disappointed, and disconnected from the person God created me to be.

Healing taught me a different way.

I learned that loving others should never require abandoning yourself. That healthy relationships are mutual, not one-sided. That boundaries are not rejection—they are stewardship. And that my life has value, not because of who chooses me, but because God already has.

Today, I no longer chase.

I choose peace over pursuit.
I choose wisdom over desperation.
I choose reciprocal relationships over one-sided ones.
Most importantly, I choose to remember that I matter.

The greatest shift in my life happened the day I stopped asking people to give me the worth that God had already placed within me.

Sometimes the hardest person to love is yourself after years of forgetting you existed.

But healing begins the moment you remember:

You matter too.

Scriptures

Ephesians 2:10 

"For we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do."

You were created with purpose—not to spend your life chasing acceptance.

Isaiah 43:1 

"Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are mine."

Your identity is not found in people choosing you, but in the One who created and redeemed you.

Psalm 139:13–14 

"For You created my inmost being; You knit me together in my mother's womb. I will praise You because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, And that my soul knows very well."

Your worth was established by God before anyone affirmed or rejected you.

 Affirmations

Today I choose to remember that I matter.

I no longer chase people to prove my worth.

My value comes from God, not from the approval of others.

I am worthy of love, respect, peace, and healthy relationships.

I release the need to pursue what God has not assigned to me.

I honor the woman God is shaping me to become.

I choose wisdom over desperation, peace over pursuit, and purpose over people-pleasing.

I will love others without abandoning myself.

I am God's beloved daughter.

I matter.

 

Heavenly Father,

Thank You for opening my eyes so I could see my worth through Your eyes. Forgive me for the times I sought my identity in people and things instead of in You. Heal the places in my heart that believed I had to earn love by sacrificing myself.

Teach me to love others with wisdom, grace, and healthy boundaries. Help me never again confuse chasing people with walking in love. Remind me each day that I am chosen, valued, and deeply loved by You. Lead me into relationships that reflect Your heart, and give me the courage to walk away from those that require me to abandon myself.

May my life be rooted in Your love, guided by Your truth, and filled with the peace that comes from knowing I belong to You.

In Jesus' name, Amen.