I am noticing that more and more we as women are making some of the same mistakes over and over again. I know that I too have made some choices repeatedly with different people and the more and more I see this younger generation make these same mistakes and I see ‘women’ sit back on their butts and not say anything and condone this I get IRRITATED all over again. God is calling for us to be a people of transparency and authenticity yet we become so locked up in our fear that we say nothing to them, but choose to gossip about them. If we continue in this mindset then how can we expect anything to change?
With that being said, as I look at some of the statuses on Facebook and the countless conversations that I have more often than I care too with some friend and acquaintances to, I am saddened and upset because of the way we as women view ourselves and what we accept from the men we come in contact with. And the labels we chose to wear in order fit in or gain acceptance from other man or woman. Even after learning that God has so much more in store for us and a plan that is way better than the one we set out to accomplish. In Jeremiah 29:10-11 God tells the Babylonians after their years of bondage was over “I'll show up and take care of you as I promised and bring you back home. I know what I'm doing. I have it all planned out—plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for.” (MSG) Ladies this word still applies we just need believe it and stand on it. I asked myself and God “why is it that we talk ourselves out of what you say about us and what you have in store for us?”
It is because we didn’t truly believe it in the first place, our faith is lined with a thin layer of fear, we become so impatient that we don’t wanna wait and we allow the enemy (sometimes loved ones, friends) to tell us that we don’t deserve His best. Ok maybe you don’t or haven’t its just me. I believe that God has spoken and shown some things about where I am going and upon sharing this with some others, I have allowed their disbelief to cloud and short circuit my own. Often times with doubt/fear comes disobedience. Walking in disobedience is not a fun journey it leads to many encounters that had you, I/we been obedient, stood still, or moved when He said so you, I/we would not have been traveled.
I am learning that we have to sometimes have our Lazarus moments in life. We have to die in order to be restored. To have restoration and to be revived in Christ is to become better that before. I do not have much knowledge of cars other than putting some fluids in and if it looks good. But when you restore and antique you must remove those parts that don’t work properly or have lost its luster with a more up to date parts to get the desired look and usefulness that is was once created to do. But due to some natural and unnatural wear and tear it has died. Time for that moment of restoration in that moment Jesus is cry out to you and me to rise a come forth “he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth.” Luke 11:43 (MSG)
In Him Alone,
Chavela (Restored) Garrett
Friday, October 22, 2010
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Love Lost/Lost Love
Love Lost/Lost Love…when think of love you both smile and cry or you are scream and cry. No matter how the thought of love makes you feel, it is what we all desire to give and receive most in life.
I loved you then and I love you now. Even though you have lied to me even if by omission, used me, abused me (yes, I knew this too) It never changed my love for you. You have chosen others over me (sometimes I’m like really WOW). Though I have been angry and hurt to the point of unforgiveness (and often times asked why what did, I do to deserve this, the love never changed). Yet because of the love, I have for you I chose to forgive (eventually). Yet here we are at a cross and you have yet to be completely honest, you have yet to return even a measure of the love I have for you. Yes you occasionally whisper those 3 words I long to hear, but it is not from a place of sincerity.
Here I am writing you this just to let you know I am waiting, waiting for honesty, sincerity.
When I sat down to write this I was writing from my heart a place of pain a place of confusion. (Don’t judge me, at some point you have been there) But in my writing, I began to wonder if this was in fact what I was doing to God? And if I were to be completely honest, my answer would be without a doubt ‘YES’. Not just once or twice but quite a few times. Yet and still He has loved me through it all. Frankly, I am amazed at how much He loves me unlike any other in my life. God has told me very plainly time and time again “Chavela, I love you and there is nothing you can do about it”. Of all the other people and things that I have put before Him and His call on my life He still loves me. All I can say is Hallelujah, Thank you God.
Once again thank you for going with me on this journey. As I pray for you remember to pray for me.
In Him Alone,
Chavela (Movement) Garrett
I loved you then and I love you now. Even though you have lied to me even if by omission, used me, abused me (yes, I knew this too) It never changed my love for you. You have chosen others over me (sometimes I’m like really WOW). Though I have been angry and hurt to the point of unforgiveness (and often times asked why what did, I do to deserve this, the love never changed). Yet because of the love, I have for you I chose to forgive (eventually). Yet here we are at a cross and you have yet to be completely honest, you have yet to return even a measure of the love I have for you. Yes you occasionally whisper those 3 words I long to hear, but it is not from a place of sincerity.
Here I am writing you this just to let you know I am waiting, waiting for honesty, sincerity.
When I sat down to write this I was writing from my heart a place of pain a place of confusion. (Don’t judge me, at some point you have been there) But in my writing, I began to wonder if this was in fact what I was doing to God? And if I were to be completely honest, my answer would be without a doubt ‘YES’. Not just once or twice but quite a few times. Yet and still He has loved me through it all. Frankly, I am amazed at how much He loves me unlike any other in my life. God has told me very plainly time and time again “Chavela, I love you and there is nothing you can do about it”. Of all the other people and things that I have put before Him and His call on my life He still loves me. All I can say is Hallelujah, Thank you God.
Once again thank you for going with me on this journey. As I pray for you remember to pray for me.
In Him Alone,
Chavela (Movement) Garrett
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Broken
Broken…out of order…wrecked…chipped…cracked~~ either way you put it, it is not good when you want to be in a different place. A few weeks ago, God told me ‘Once you face your fears you can walk in freedom’. My initial thought was ‘ok’ let’s see I don’t like heights, elevators, on the fence about learning to swim (childhood issue), and I am claustrophobic…ok yes I may be a little broken. However, this was only the tip of it all. It wasn’t until a week or so later that God revealed to me what He meant.
Misuse can and will chip away at our character and worth, our ability of love and trust not just in one another. But most importantly in God, our Father, our Daddy, the One who breathed into us the breath of life, the one who provides for us even when we know we don’t deserve it, the One who has never lied to us or misused us for any purpose.
You see I have a fear of loving others and accepting their love. People have and innate way of hurting those that they say they love. I don’t trust people especially those that say, “I love you”. I begin to ask what do you want; I really have nothing to offer you it was all given to the last one I thought LOVEd me. My choices have been limited by those that say, “I love you”. By that, I mean the half-truth scenario you know where they leave out the most important part that will alter how you may or may not respond to a situation. This whole love/trust issue has caused me to push people away just because I knew at some point they would do what they have always done lie and leave.
A few years ago when someone I love was going through something God showed me that each time we go through something rather than seeking Him out to heal and restore us we ourselves place duct tape or band aids on our wounds expecting that they would do the job. However, in our limited understanding, duct tape does not fix everything and band-aids are not stylish. There is great news in that He is the Potter and we are the clay. One is that He knows how we are to function, what we are supposed to look like.
Our brokenness is but temporary if we allow it to be. We must go through that transformation stage though it is uncomfortable it is necessary to reach our fullest potential. Transformation is the art of becoming completely different from what we use to be your looks have changed as well your functions are different.
Transformation is going on,
Chavela (Movement) Garrett
Misuse can and will chip away at our character and worth, our ability of love and trust not just in one another. But most importantly in God, our Father, our Daddy, the One who breathed into us the breath of life, the one who provides for us even when we know we don’t deserve it, the One who has never lied to us or misused us for any purpose.
You see I have a fear of loving others and accepting their love. People have and innate way of hurting those that they say they love. I don’t trust people especially those that say, “I love you”. I begin to ask what do you want; I really have nothing to offer you it was all given to the last one I thought LOVEd me. My choices have been limited by those that say, “I love you”. By that, I mean the half-truth scenario you know where they leave out the most important part that will alter how you may or may not respond to a situation. This whole love/trust issue has caused me to push people away just because I knew at some point they would do what they have always done lie and leave.
A few years ago when someone I love was going through something God showed me that each time we go through something rather than seeking Him out to heal and restore us we ourselves place duct tape or band aids on our wounds expecting that they would do the job. However, in our limited understanding, duct tape does not fix everything and band-aids are not stylish. There is great news in that He is the Potter and we are the clay. One is that He knows how we are to function, what we are supposed to look like.
Our brokenness is but temporary if we allow it to be. We must go through that transformation stage though it is uncomfortable it is necessary to reach our fullest potential. Transformation is the art of becoming completely different from what we use to be your looks have changed as well your functions are different.
Transformation is going on,
Chavela (Movement) Garrett
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Singleness...
Singleness…. one, alone, separate, individual,
By NO means is this an easy thing to walk in. This was made even more apparent to me this afternoon while having a conversation with my aunt, affectionately known as Aunt Sugar. You see Aunt Sugar is somewhat recently separated began telling me about the disillusion of her marriage. She began telling how she had been unhappy for many years, but chose to stay married because of her son’s love for his father. I must admit I have never been a fan of his and thought for many years that my Aunt could do so much better.
Well, in this conversation today she began to tell me that after three months of dating, and many burdens she felt were placed on her within the family she asked him to marry her. I was like WOW, what? ok… Already starting this thing out wrong God says, “A man who finds a wife finds a good thing and obtains favor from the LORD”. (Pr 18:22) In this conversation she also stated that he lived with his mother and could not really support himself, her being a single mother at the time of this ‘union’ her child did not bond with this man. This conversation left me asking ‘what is wrong with us that we cannot stand to be single for a season?’
In singleness we are suppose to be able to do great things for the Kingdom of God. However so many of want to united with someone else that we forgo out passions and our gifts in one way or another to be joined with someone who may or may not have the same drive, goals, passions, and desires for the Kingdom as us. I suppose essentially we are telling God in our own way He doesn’t know what He’s doing. How is it a fix to leave some temporary issues for life changing one, when God has a way out?
I went to church tonight and God was talking directly to me not only tonight, all week really, but tonight really brought it home for me. Text was Matthew 17:14-20: 14 -16At the bottom of the mountain, they were met by a crowd of waiting people. As they approached, a man came out of the crowd and fell to his knees begging, "Master, have mercy on my son. He goes out of his mind and suffers terribly, falling into seizures. Frequently he is pitched into the fire, other times into the river. I brought him to your disciples, but they could do nothing for him." 17 -18Jesus said, "What a generation! No sense of God! No focus to your lives! How many times do I have to go over these things? How much longer do I have to put up with this? Bring the boy here." He ordered the afflicting demon out—and it was out, gone. From that moment on the boy was well. 19When the disciples had Jesus off to themselves, they asked, "Why couldn't we throw it out?" 20"Because you're not yet taking God seriously," said Jesus. "The simple truth is that if you had a mere kernel of faith, a poppy seed, say, you would tell this mountain, 'Move!' and it would move. There is nothing you wouldn't be able to tackle." (Msg) It was the first part of verse 20 that made me say ouch. Being so caught up in my selfish desires wanting to be united wanting to have someone to take this journey with was fine and good until I wanted it done in my time frame and in the way I thought it should be done that God said to me ‘Chavela, you are not taking me serious and its getting old’… Really not wanting to be outside of the will of God and on the other hand not wanting to walk TOTALLY in His will either has brought me to this place where I all I want to do is lay in His lap and let Him love me cause let’s face it I have sucked at loving myself fully.
In talking to my Aunt I have learned this Not to the my flesh and the thing I see in this physical world cloud my judgment of what God has ordained in the spiritual for me and my life and all those attached to me.
It is my prayer that whoever reads what I write and my thoughts as I go through this journey will take God seriously and hear Him say, “Well done, my child”
In Him Alone,
Chavela (Movement) Garrett
By NO means is this an easy thing to walk in. This was made even more apparent to me this afternoon while having a conversation with my aunt, affectionately known as Aunt Sugar. You see Aunt Sugar is somewhat recently separated began telling me about the disillusion of her marriage. She began telling how she had been unhappy for many years, but chose to stay married because of her son’s love for his father. I must admit I have never been a fan of his and thought for many years that my Aunt could do so much better.
Well, in this conversation today she began to tell me that after three months of dating, and many burdens she felt were placed on her within the family she asked him to marry her. I was like WOW, what? ok… Already starting this thing out wrong God says, “A man who finds a wife finds a good thing and obtains favor from the LORD”. (Pr 18:22) In this conversation she also stated that he lived with his mother and could not really support himself, her being a single mother at the time of this ‘union’ her child did not bond with this man. This conversation left me asking ‘what is wrong with us that we cannot stand to be single for a season?’
In singleness we are suppose to be able to do great things for the Kingdom of God. However so many of want to united with someone else that we forgo out passions and our gifts in one way or another to be joined with someone who may or may not have the same drive, goals, passions, and desires for the Kingdom as us. I suppose essentially we are telling God in our own way He doesn’t know what He’s doing. How is it a fix to leave some temporary issues for life changing one, when God has a way out?
I went to church tonight and God was talking directly to me not only tonight, all week really, but tonight really brought it home for me. Text was Matthew 17:14-20: 14 -16At the bottom of the mountain, they were met by a crowd of waiting people. As they approached, a man came out of the crowd and fell to his knees begging, "Master, have mercy on my son. He goes out of his mind and suffers terribly, falling into seizures. Frequently he is pitched into the fire, other times into the river. I brought him to your disciples, but they could do nothing for him." 17 -18Jesus said, "What a generation! No sense of God! No focus to your lives! How many times do I have to go over these things? How much longer do I have to put up with this? Bring the boy here." He ordered the afflicting demon out—and it was out, gone. From that moment on the boy was well. 19When the disciples had Jesus off to themselves, they asked, "Why couldn't we throw it out?" 20"Because you're not yet taking God seriously," said Jesus. "The simple truth is that if you had a mere kernel of faith, a poppy seed, say, you would tell this mountain, 'Move!' and it would move. There is nothing you wouldn't be able to tackle." (Msg) It was the first part of verse 20 that made me say ouch. Being so caught up in my selfish desires wanting to be united wanting to have someone to take this journey with was fine and good until I wanted it done in my time frame and in the way I thought it should be done that God said to me ‘Chavela, you are not taking me serious and its getting old’… Really not wanting to be outside of the will of God and on the other hand not wanting to walk TOTALLY in His will either has brought me to this place where I all I want to do is lay in His lap and let Him love me cause let’s face it I have sucked at loving myself fully.
In talking to my Aunt I have learned this Not to the my flesh and the thing I see in this physical world cloud my judgment of what God has ordained in the spiritual for me and my life and all those attached to me.
It is my prayer that whoever reads what I write and my thoughts as I go through this journey will take God seriously and hear Him say, “Well done, my child”
In Him Alone,
Chavela (Movement) Garrett
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