Maintain confident hope—even if it looks hopeless

Thoughts from Mommy Duck…
Live Purple is a life style full of Hope, and hope is a beautiful thing. It fills us with joy and expectancy, even when the circumstances around us look bleak. Hope isn’t something that can be manufactured. We cannot create it ourselves. Hope must come from the One who created us and sustains.

This Hope that shines from us as children of God is what makes us different. It’s the epitome of Live Purple. This Hope, it is everything – because it comes from God the Father through Jesus Christ. When you are filled with His Hope nothing is impossible.

#livepurple

Until tomorrow,
‘Carrow💜

Hebrews 11:1
Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see.

Romans 5:2-4
2 Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into this place of undeserved privilege where we now stand, and we confidently and joyfully look forward to sharing God’s glory. 3 We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. 4 And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation.

Psalm 147:11
No, the Lord’s delight is in those who fear him, those who put their hope in his unfailing love.

Jeremiah 29:11
For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.

Romans 15:13
I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Experience Supernatural Strength

Thoughts from Mommy Duck…

Sometimes we get so busy we forget who we are. We allow the everyday grind to wear us down and we become oh so weary. I know I’ve been there on more than one occasion.

Maybe that’s where you are right now… weary.

Well my friend, if that is where you are, lift your eyes up – our strength comes from the Lord. You don’t have to keep powering through under your own steam, allow God to be your strength. You are a child of the Most High God, His strength is your birthright.

Choose to walk with Him and His strength will sustain you in ways you cannot imagine.

Until tomorrow,
‘Carrow💜

Psalm 46:1-3
1 God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble. 2 So we will not fear when earthquakes come and the mountains crumble into the sea. 3 Let the oceans roar and foam. Let the mountains tremble as the waters surge!

Nehemiah 8:10b
“ …Don’t be dejected and sad, for the joy of the Lord is your strength!”

Isaiah 12:2
See, God has come to save me. I will trust in him and not be afraid. The Lord God is my strength and my song; he has given me victory.”

Isaiah 40:29-31
29 He gives power to the weak and strength to the powerless. 30 Even youths will become weak and tired, and young men will fall in exhaustion. 31 But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint.

Deuteronomy 31:6
So be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid and do not panic before them. For the Lord your God will personally go ahead of you.

Enjoy Peace in the Storm

Thoughts from Mommy Duck…

One of my favorite quotes that came along this journey was…

“God never said it would be easy, He said you would never do it alone.”

I’m not even sure who sent it to me, but it has stayed with me, and that knowledge is one of the foundations of His beautiful peace. No matter what the storm looks like, or how bad things are, I know my God is there, and He will not allow me to fall.

Don’t get me wrong – the storms can be pretty scary. And if we make the mistake of looking at them through our own eyes, they are impossible. In my own life I have discovered peace comes from perspective. Storms viewed through human eyes seem like hurricanes, but storms viewed through God’s eyes are more like a tropical breezes.

Is it hard to see our circumstances through God’s eyes? Often times, yes. It takes practice and discipline. It requires that we hold tight to what we know to be true through the scripture, not how we feel looking at our circumstances. But I can tell you from experience, it is worth it. I don’t know about you, but I much prefer to enjoy the breeze than worry about the storm.

Until tomorrow,
‘Carrow💜

Psalm 29:11
The Lord gives his people strength. The Lord blesses them with peace.

Isaiah 26:3
You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you!

John 14:27
“I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.

John 16:33
I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.”

Numbers 6:24-26
24 ‘May the Lord bless you and protect you. 25 May the Lord smile on you and be gracious to you. 26 May the Lord show you his favor and give you his peace.’

Seek God’s Wisdom Every Day

Colossians 3:16
Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom he gives. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts.

James 1:5
If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking.

James 3:17
But the wisdom from above is first of all pure. It is also peace loving, gentle at all times, and willing to yield to others. It is full of mercy and the fruit of good deeds. It shows no favoritism and is always sincere.

Ephesians 5:15-16 NIV
15 Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.

Colossians 4:5-6
5 Live wisely among those who are not believers, and make the most of every opportunity. 6 Let your conversation be gracious and attractive so that you will have the right response for everyone.

Find joy in every circumstance

James 1:2-4
2 Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. 3 For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. 4 So let it grow, for when your
endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.

Psalm 30:5
For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime! Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning.

John 16:22
So you have sorrow now, but I will see you again; then you will rejoice, and no one can rob you of that joy.

Love everyone—including the unlovable

Thoughts from Mommy Duck

Tonight I had the joy of sharing a concert with my oldest duckling. In the middle of the show the lights dimmed and these words care across the Jumbotron…
Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that.
Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.

Such true words. And as Christians, we have been called to love. Not just when it is convenient, not just the beautiful people, we have been called to love everyone without reservation. That kind of love is impossible to maintain on our own. But thankfully, God doesn’t expect us to sustain it on our own. He expects us to come to Him so He can give us the strength to carry on each day. New promises each day.

Until tomorrow,
‘Carrow💜

Romans 5:8
But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.

Mark 12:29-31
29 Jesus replied, ͞The most important commandment is this: ͚Listen, O Israel! The Lord our God is the one and only Lord. 30 And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your
strength.͛ 31 The second is equally important: ͚Love your neighbor as yourself.͛ No other commandment is greater
than these.

1 John 4:7-8
7 Dear friends, let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God. Anyone who loves is a child of God and knows God. 8 But anyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love.

Ephesians 4:15
Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the
head of his body, the church.

1 Corinthians 13:13
Three things will last forever—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love.

This Duck makes loving easy 💜💜💜

Thoughts from Mommy Duck

To have unshakable faith we must first be shaken.

That’s a rather unpleasant thought isn’t it? No one wants storms or trials – no one wants to be shaken – it’s hard, gut-wrenching, and heart-breaking… but it is also necessary. You see, everything that we learn and store up inside of us is just knowledge and knowledge without implementation is useless. Much like tools sitting in a shed, if the tools are never bought out to be used, what good are they? If the scriptures we store away in our hearts and the sermons we hear are never put into practice, what good is our faith?

The storms that rock our world are more than just trials, they are opportunities. Opportunities to use what we have heard about God, to put scripture into action, and to see God’s word prove true. I can tell you from personal experience, once you put God’s word into practice, weather the storm with His guidance, and watch His word prove true – your faith changes. It’s no longer just head knowledge, it’s heart knowledge. It is YOURS. It’s faith that can been seen, felt, and touched. It’s faith that no matter what anyone says to you, it will not be shaken. Why? Because you have lived it, breathed it, and experienced it on the most personal level.

If you have walked this path and come out on the other side, you know this to be true. If you are in the middle of the storm now, hang tight my friend, God’s promises always prove true – often times it’s just in ways you would never expect. And if you have never found yourself being shaken, keep storing away God’s word in you heart. Don’t get lazy. Because the time will come when you are tested and you want to make sure you have the best and sharpest tools.

Until tomorrow,
‘Carrow💜

Col 2:6-7
6 And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow him. 7 Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.

Hebrews 12:1-2
1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. 2 We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith.[a] Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne.

Hebrews 12:28
Since we are receiving a Kingdom that is unshakable, let us be thankful and please God by worshiping him with holy fear and awe.

Psalm 16:8
I know the Lord is always with me. I will not be shaken, for he is right beside me

1 John 5:5
And who can win this battle against the world? Only those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God.

Make thankfulness your attitude of choice

Thoughts from Mommy Duck
Thankfulness is my go to attitude booster. If I find myself having a bad day, feeling stressed, or battling a bad attitude my system requires a hard reset to get back on track. And the most effective way for me to change my thought process is to redirect my thoughts to all the reasons I have to be thankful. Even on my worst days I have abundant reasons to give thanks, we all do.

Now I can tell you, some days being thankful is easier than others. On some occasions I have made it through the day and the only thing I found to be thankful for was that tomorrow would be a new day. Yet even on those days, I can say God is good. Thanks to the crummy days, the good days are so much sweeter.

So if you find yourself in a funk or you need an attitude reset, try counting your blessings. It’s hard to stay blue when you realize all the amazing things God has done for you!

Until tomorrow,
‘Carrow💜

Philippians 4:6-7
6 Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. 7 Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

Hebrews 12:28
Since we are receiving a Kingdom that is unshakable, let us be thankful and please God by worshiping him with holy fear and awe.

Colossians 3:17
And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father.

1 Chronicles 16:34
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever.

2 Corinthians 4:15-16
15 All of this is for your benefit. And as God’s grace reaches more and more people, there will be great thanksgiving, and God will receive more and more glory. 16 That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day.

Exhibit self-control

Thoughts from Mommy Duck
Practicing what we preach is so very important. Nothing makes us stand out more than handling difficult situations with grace, dignity, and self-control. If we tell the world we are Christians, yet act the same as everyone else when hard times hit, how can anyone tell we are different? Why would anyone want this relationship with Jesus if it doesn’t make a difference when we need it most?

Self-control can be difficult, but thankfully we don’t have to practice that trait on our own. God is good to give us the strength we need to get through each day. It’s our job to remember to ask for that strength and make the choice to walk with Him.

Until tomorrow,
‘Carrow💜

2 Timothy 1:7
For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.

Titus 2:6-8
6 In the same way, encourage the young men to live wisely. 7 And you yourself must be an example to them by doing good works of every kind. Let everything you do reflect the integrity and seriousness of your teaching. 8 Teach the truth so that your teaching can’t be criticized. Then those who oppose us will be ashamed and have nothing bad to say about us.

James 1:19
Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry.