Tag: bible

Misplaced Faith

Have you ever lost track of your faith?

 

I recall those times when I was heavily into reading my bible on a regular basis along with attending church every Sunday. At what point did it change for you?

Attending school while being a mother took a lot of my time and energy. I started to feel the constant demand of everything that I started searching for “things” I could cut off from my normal schedule.

 

At the time, cutting out attending church was the most “logical” to do. My home church I attended was about 35 minutes away from my home. Being a student, I didn’t have the means to constantly fill up my car to make it to bible study and church on Sundays. My thoughts were that “of course you don’t have to attend church to be within God’s word, so I’ll just read my bible on my own.” I did a good job at it, until slowly the time I dedicated to it diminished tremendously. Making excuses for myself, “school & family are taking up most of my time”, soon I was no longer reading my bible & other things filled up my time.

 

Have you ever pulled away from the good Lord’s word and immediately started feeling that disconnection? I don’t know about you, but it took me some time to really figure out that I NEEDED that connection with Jesus.

 

Having gone through an ugly divorce a couple of years back at that time, Jesus & my church people truly paved the way to strengthen my foundation as a newly single mother. I relied on that needed gathering time to be in a room of individuals that struggled with similar situations as I did. Listening to others conquer their fears provided me with hope that the future would be better & brighter.  After I had done some healing, I decided it was time to look for a relationship.

 

Once I had disconnected from the word of God, I noticed I was looking for love in all the wrong places. I came across individuals whose intentions seemed good on the outside, but once I started looking for a deeper connection, our hearts were no longer aligned. It took a good 6 months of trying to work alone in my search that I desperately KNEW I was in need of God’s word & God’s people. I felt that tugging happening to my heart that caused an instant shift in gears.

 

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. “ – Proverbs 3:5-6

 

That’s one of my favorite verses since I was given my very first bible at the age of 18.

 

I stopped searching for love and I let go of the hurt I had endured. Having several conversations with my loved ones and close friends, I knew the right choice was for me to dive into my work and Jesus’s word and let events occur.

 

A few months later, I came across an individual that respected my faith, accepted my current circumstances, & was willing to dive into a deeper stimulating conversation with me. We began dating shortly after, married a year later & had a beautiful baby girl. Many of you probably think, “Wow, that was pretty fast girl!” Truth is, I honestly felt as if I had known him my entire life.

 

Things you could possibly learn from:

 

I had to learn that someone’s faith did not need to be EXACTLY like mine. Sure, having this in common with your significant other can make things easier on your relationship, but as long as they are not trying to pull you away from your faith, I personally think you’re fine. Who knows, you may make an impression on them and get them to start joining you at church!

 

My home church that is far away from me is indeed one of the places that has made me feel so welcomed over the last 4 years. I believe that I may begin looking for another place to call my home that does not require traveling a far distance. It hurts to leave a place that I love, but as a loved one once told me, “The important thing is to be able to consistently get Jesus’s word on a regular basis. And if this church is just too far away causing you to not attend regularly, then you should look into finding another home with more of God’s people.”

At that time, I was in denial of doing so. We are stubborn as humans, but once again I feel God tugging at my heart and as a mother to 3 beautiful, fast growing girls, it’s time that I start recognizing that I should be establishing a foundation for them as well, not just my own selfish needs.

 

So today I leave you with some of my favorite scriptures that always cause me to think. This weekend I will make an attempt to visit a church that is closer to my home. If you’re experiencing similar circumstances, I suggest you grab ahold of that fear that’s driving you away and push it to drive you TOWARDS your next destination.

 

Take care guys. Until next time,

B. Settegast

 

“Be on your guard, stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong.” – 1 Corinthians 16:13

 

“For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.” – 2 Corinthians 4:17

 

 

High School Dropout to Nursing School Graduate

Be A Leader

      Have you ever felt you needed to make a decision you were not prepared to make, but no longer had other options? That’s how I felt when I had to walk into my high school and withdraw from all my courses. I remember going through every hall, getting my form signed by my teachers. Algebra was a course I struggled with, and my instructor Mrs. Johnson was ALWAYS giving me such a hard time. As I regretted approaching her class, I put my big girl panties on and proceeded to knock on her door. She stepped outside and I handed her my form. Before I could open my mouth, she instantly began telling me I was making a big mistake; dropping out of high school was not the only option I had. Tears just started falling because little did she know, I didn’t want to give up on my education; From a young age I knew that my schooling would be the only thing that would save me from bad financial situations in my adulthood. I walked away with my head down, said my goodbye’s and never looked back.
      A few months later, I was thanking God for the angel he had brought into my life. She welcomed me into her home with open arms regardless if I was not her blood relative. She provided me with myFIRST bible ( which I still have till this day), and she pushed me to get my GED. I didn’t know where to begin, or how even to study for this. I felt completely unprepared, so I did the best I could do with the circumstances. I began studying the material I collected within the years I was in high school. Once I felt I was comfortable, I scheduled my test, paid my $100 dollar fee. I sat outside in Downtown Dallas with the sun blazing in the end of May. June rolled by, and I picked up the mail, my results had come in-I passed my GED with high scores. That feeling of RELIEF came over me. To be very honest with you I never felt that I had what it took to get my GED. Half of the time through school I was having so many family issues that it was difficult to focus on my studies. 
    Immediately I began applying for jobs that required me to either have a diploma or a GED. I felt accomplished for once in my life. It didn’t take long for that feeling to suddenly disappear and begin having a feeling of emptiness watching all my prior classmates heading off to college. 
    Fast forward a few years, a lot of working, a lot of sacrifice. I came to a point in my life where I had reached the “Cap” for the job I was doing at the time and I knew that I didn’t want to be a lab tech forever. I began researching how to pursue my dreams (getting into nursing school and progressing in life), and it was HARD! I had so much fear and to be honest, luck had never really been on my side, so I felt that my dreams were just not possible. Maybe I’m just meant to be an average person, nothing wrong with that right? 
   I worked 3rd shift at the hospital. In order to study while I was working when the hours were dead, I would push my cart with my book in front of me. I studied and hardly ever slept between needing income for my daughters, and needing to study to get accepted into nursing school. I took my test twice and FAILED! I felt so defeated and thoughts were rushing through my head that maybe I am just not cut out for this type of stuff. BUT every time I was assigned to cover ER when a trauma would come in, I felt this rush that I belonged there. I bought one more book (on top of the 5 I already had) and decided to give it one more shot. A few hours later after testing, it was confirmed that I indeed had passed my test and now I just needed to interview with the board of directors to determine whether I was an individual they wanted in there school. 
    I WAS ACCEPTED! I made a commitment to myself that I would study my behind off, focus on making sure school came first. I had many failures throughout the 3 years of nursing school, but the time finally came to where I was able to walk across THAT STAGE and have all 3 of my DAUGHTERS present and my husband! 
    
        This brings me to tell you to: NEVER GIVE UP! 
I made many mistakes along the way, but I learned a few things that I feel could be beneficial to others. 

1. Surround yourself with like-minded people that are pushing towards their goals and SUPPORT your dreams.

2. Eliminate any distractions; sometimes this means we have to stop going to family events so we can use those valuable hours for study time. 

3. Create a list of GOALS & continuously review it to remind yourself of what you are attempting to accomplish.

4. Create a schedule and do your BEST to stick to it. I have an iPhone and use the Calendar to load my study hours along with my daily mother duties that I need to complete before the end of the day.

5. Lastly, BREATHE! You will have some SETBACKS, but like my family used to tell me all the time, “Dios aprieta, per nunca ahorca”. Learn from your mistakes and create a plan on how you will begin to work on improving those mistakes. 

Much love my lovely people. I hope you can find some of this information useful. 
Weigh in on it and let me know what YOU think! Comment! Give me your feedback. 
Until next time. 🙂