Today is my 35th birthday! I remember when I was in my early 20's and I thought that 35 was old. Well I definitely don't agree with that anymore...I'm just getting started! I've made so many mistakes in my life and if I can help my younger sisters not go through the same things, then what I've been through wasn't in vain. I've gained so much wisdom the past 35 years so I want to share with you a few of my top life lessons.
1.) Don't follow your heart, follow the Holy Spirit.
The world would like you to believe that you should let your heart be your guide and that if you follow it, it will lead you to true happiness. This is not biblical! In fact, the bible says in Jeremiah 17:9 that the heart is deceitful above all things and desperately sick. As Christians, we should be led by the Holy Spirit. We should be using Him as our guide.
2.) Deliver yourself from people
You cannot please humans! Focus on pleasing God. If you are constantly worried about what people will say or think, then how can God effectively use you? You want to be in a position to say what the Lord leads you to say and move when the Lord tells you to move and not care about the opinions of people.
3.) Don't chase paper, chase purpose.
When you go after opportunities only for the money, you lose sight of your purpose. I remember when I would have to decide between what job opportunity I wanted to go with and I would always select the job with the most money. Then when I got the job I would tag God's name to it claiming that he "blessed me with it" even though I didn't even consult Him on whether or not I should accept the job. Then months later, I'm miserable and out there looking for the next opportunity. I've learned that it's so important to understand your purpose and only accept opportunities that are aligned with your purpose. When we are chasing the things of God, everything that we need will be provided. Matthew 6:33 says, "seek ye first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things will be added unto you."
4.) Don't lower your standards out of fear
Before I met Shawn, I remember meeting a guy who appeared to be Isaac but turned out to be Ishmael. He told me that I was going to end up a lonely old lady if I continued to practice abstinence. He told me that if I was lucky enough to find a man that would honor my purity, he would not be attractive. I let his comment go in one ear and out of the other. I was not about to lower my standards out of fear of being alone. I would rather be alone than disobey God because a man won't line up with my standards that lines up with the Word of God.
5.) Obey God the first time
So many times in my life I've gone around the same mountain over and over again because I wasn't passing the test. I think about how much time I've wasted by being disobedient. I would do it my way and not listen to the voice of God and end up in a mess over and over again only to end up doing it His way in the end. So pass the test the first time and obey God in the beginning. It will save you from going through unnecessary heart break and hard time. A lot of times we put ourselves through hardship that the Lord never intended for us to go through because of our disobedience.
There are more life lessons that I would love to share with you so I will do a part II later this week.
Love you guys!
- Jennifer Spears
