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Writer's pictureA'Leeyah Ponder

Learning How to Shift Perspective

Updated: Jul 28

Hello Family,

I am on cloud 9 right now.

I spoke with a group of high school students today from my alma mater, South Cobb High School, and the experience was so transformative for me. After the speaking engagement I was left to practice introspection and reflection. Here is my heart and mind in the form of a blog post, now let me put some things in perspective for you:


Life is only as difficult as you perceive it to be.

  • Our perspective has an interesting way of shaping the world around us, how we consume it, inquire about it, and think about it. With everything going on from new COVID-19 variants, to the Voting Rights bill being blocked by the Senate, to an overall inflation of food prices due to the resource shortage across the country, there are so many things we could be pessimistic, sadistic and sad about. We have to choose to perceive things in a positive way in spite of the inevitable negativity available in the media today.

  • PHILIPPIANS 4:8-9 (NLT) — 8 And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.9 Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me—everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you.

YOU HAVE COME SO FAR FROM WHERE YOU’VE STARTED, DON’T TURN BACK NOW! + STOP WORRYING!

  • It’s normal to feel discouraged, burned out, and exhausted from giving your all in all you do. In our society, we’ve cultivated a culture of overworking ourselves until we have nothing else to give, and this is not the way we should be living our lives. You mean so much more than that deadline, so much more than that project, and so much more than the demands of community and organizational commitments. I’m not asking you to quit, I'm demanding that you bring BALANCE to your life and prioritize your mental, physical and spiritual health. YOU CAN NOT POUR FROM AN EMPTY CUP. Don’t WORRY about how things will get done, where your next meal will come from, and don’t worry about what people think about you bringing balance to your life.

  • Matthew 6:31-33 (NLT)— 31 “So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’32 These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. 33 Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.

HEAL, take all the time you need to HEAL, because you deserve to experience yourself WHOLE AGAIN and someone’s life will be transformed by the story (testimony).

  • I’m still learning what this means in its entirety, however the LORD saw fit to lead me to Matthew 8 last night and it’s a chapter full of HEALING. I’ve been sexually harassed, betrayed by close friends, and treated badly by loved ones and I am still healing from ALL OF IT. The most comforting thing about healing is it’s a JOURNEY not a destination. We have to be willing to surrender our hurt and pain to Jesus where He can help us heal PROPERLY.

  • Check out Matthew 8 (NLT) — If you are willing to be vulnerable enough to ask Jesus to HEAL you, know that He is always willing to Heal you


I love you. Jesus Loves you MOST! Stay Fruitful & Stay Encouraged. We are all doing the best we can with what we have. Give yourself and those around you the grace to be imperfect and in need of Jesus’ guidance, love and hope for a better tomorrow.


________________________

CITATION:

Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.



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