Lifestyle

There Is A Time for Resting and A Time for Blooming

February 24, 2019February 23, 2019 LauraJoli LookingJoliGoodLeave a comment

There is nothing in nature that blooms all year long. So don’t expect yourself to do so either.

I’m a bit of a perfectionist. I like to do everything I can the absolute best I can. Sometimes I need a break! Recently I have allowed myself to be in a time of winter. A time to reflect and plan and grow roots instead of flowers. It hasn’t been a fun time for me. I haven’t enjoyed it, I hate winter, I prefer spring and summer, but it’s been a necessary time. Winter will end soon and it’ll be spring again and then the warm days of summer.

The lows of winter are necessary in order to truly enjoy the highs of spring and summer. ❄️🌷☀️🍃

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

1 To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:

²A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;

³A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;

⁴A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;

⁵A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;

⁶A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away;

⁷A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;

⁸A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.

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Lifestyle

I Choose Happiness

January 27, 2019January 21, 2019 LauraJoli LookingJoliGoodLeave a comment

Psalm 34:8 Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who trusts in Him!

Proverbs 10:28 The hope of the righteous will be gladness, but the expectation of the wicked will perish.

Hebrews 12:1-2 Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Philippians 4:8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.

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The Greatest Gift- Eternal Life

December 25, 2018December 16, 2018 LauraJoli LookingJoliGood1 Comment

Today I want to share with you what I believe to be the purpose of our lives here on earth. I believe that God gave us life so that we can love and glorify Him.

Many people believe that eternal life in Heaven is something that we earn through good works, or something we inherit because our parents are religious, or possibly we can attain it through good intentions. While all these things sound good, the Bible tells us that eternal life is not something we can earn or buy, but instead, it is a gift.

God’s gift is eternal life with Him.

The thing about this gift is that before you can get it, you first have to realize that you need this it. Romans 3:23 tells us that “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.”

All of us have sinned by breaking God’s rules. Some of the rules are broken by things that we have been doing, and some of the rules have been broken by things that we haven’t been doing. We have all sinned in one way or another.

Romans 6:23 tells us that the price for those broken rules is death. That death isn’t just talking about our physical body dying, but about our spiritual body as well.

Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

When our physical body dies, our spiritual body will go to one of two places, either an eternity in Heaven or an eternal death apart from God in Hell.

God doesn’t want to be separated from us! Romans 5:8 says “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”

The price of our sin is death, but Jesus Christ already paid the price for our sins when he died on the cross.

Jesus came to earth as God in the flesh. He lived a perfect life and voluntarily took our place on the cross, all because He loves us! He took your place, He took my place, He paid your price with His life. He loves you!

The Bible tells us in 2 Peter 3:9 that “The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.”

Any time you get a gift you have to accept it in order to own it. It is no different with the gift of eternal life, you have to turn to Christ and place our full trust in Him alone.

Romans 10:13 tells us that “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

If you have never trusted in Jesus Christ to be your personal savior, you can do it right now! It is as simple as believing in your heart that Christ is the only way to have eternal life in Heaven and saying a prayer that is something like this…

“Dear Lord God,
Thank you for the sacrifice you made in sending your only perfect son to die on the cross for my sins! It should have been me sentenced to that horrible death, but you Lord, gave Jesus to save me from the punishment that I deserve. Thank you for this free gift of salvation! Amen!”

You will never regret that decision! I know how much this decision has changed my life! If you have just trusted Christ and received the gift of eternal life, I would love for you to tell me!

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Lifestyle

Glory in the Highest by Meredith Andrews

December 23, 2018December 17, 2018 LauraJoli LookingJoliGoodLeave a comment

Hear the quiet of the starry night
Scattered shepherds watch the sky
Suddenly the dark gives way to light
The angel speaks of the Messiah

Be of good courage
See the star hovering above
Today a Savior is born to us

Glory, glory in the highest
We sing glory to His name
Peace on Earth to all who come
To worship Christ the King
We sing, glory in the highest
In the highest

See the God who spoke the earth to be
Take a break as a baby
Look beyond the child and see the King
Come to rescue and redeem

Glory, glory in the highest
We sing glory to His name
Peace on Earth to all who come
To worship Christ the King
We sing, glory in the highest
In the highest

Gloria, gloria, in excelsis Deo
Gloria, gloria, in excelsis Deo

Glory, glory in the highest
We sing glory to His name
Peace on Earth to all who come
To worship Christ the King
We sing, glory…
Glory, glory in the highest
We sing glory to His name
Peace on Earth to all who come
To worship Christ the King
We sing, glory in the highest
Glory, in the highest
In the highest

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Lifestyle

Bitter Sweet

December 22, 2018December 22, 2018 LauraJoli LookingJoliGoodLeave a comment

I’ve had times in my life that I have struggled with bitterness. I can tell you that during those times I was miserable! There was no sweetness in my life, everything was consumed with that bitterness.

I don’t want to ruin the sweetness of my life with bitterness.

Hebrews 12:15 Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled;

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Lifestyle

Thy Will by Hillary Scott

September 23, 2018September 1, 2018 LauraJoli LookingJoliGoodLeave a comment

I love the word to the song The Will by Hillary Scott! One of my favorite lines is “It’s hard to count it all joy distracted by the noise”

Too often I let the noise of what is happening around me take away my joy.

Thy Will by Hillary Scott

I’m so confused
I know I heard you loud and clear
So I’ll follow through
Somehow I ended up here

I don’t wanna think
I may never understand
That my broken heart is a part of your plan
When I try to pray
All I got is hurt
And these four words
Thy will be done
Thy will be done
Thy will be done

I know you’re good
But this don’t feel good right now
And I know you think
Of things I could never think about

It’s hard to count it all joy
Distracted by the noise
Just trying to make sense of all your promises
Sometimes I gotta stop
Remember that you’re God
And I am not

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Lifestyle

A Seemingly Perfect Life

September 19, 2018September 1, 2018 LauraJoli LookingJoliGood3 Comments

I say it all the time, social media is only the very best snapshots of the life we want to show the world. Don’t wish for someone else’s seemingly perfect life. We all have fears and tears and struggles. Be an encouragement to someone today, you never know what might be happening behind the filter.

I read this post on Facebook by a page I follow called Encouragement from Women Who Have Been There.

I have been encouraged by several of the posts that I have read there. This one in particular from Becki Rogers founder of Not Quite SuperMoms was especially interesting to me.

Biblical Abigail in a Modern-Day Setting

“If you read 1 Samuel 25, you’ll meet a lady who seems like a superwoman.
Humor me while I describe Abigail in a modern setting: she’s got a college education. Her hair is perfectly styled and her roots never show. She’s fit, hitting the home gym every morning without fail. Her Bible is well-worn, and her prayer journal is opened daily. Her home is decorated like the pages of a magazine, and her weekly shopping trips include stops at all the best boutiques. Her personal cook and housekeeper adore her, and her Instagram account has 450k followers. You might know her. Or, you might follow her Instagram account. You might secretly wish you could be her. I can’t blame you. I would want to be her too! But beyond those pristine photo filters, her marriage is a mess. Her husband is a drunken, incorrigible man, and she silently wipes tears as she fixes his messes. She is a peacemaker on his behalf, carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders day after day.

I know, I know. The Bible doesn’t say all that about Abigail, but it DOES say that she was wise, and peacekeeping, and wealthy (at least, her husband was). It also mentions that she was pretty. In today’s world, she could have been everything described above.

However, her home life was miserable, to put it mildly. The Bible describes Nabal, her husband, as a cruel and brutal man in all his dealings. And yet, despite being married to such a man, she didn’t waver in her faithfulness to her loathsome husband.

The story takes an unexpected turn when the future king, David, came along. Her husband was rude to David and his men, and David planned retaliation. Abigail secretly defied her husband and humbly approached David with food and an offer of peace, taking the blame for her husband. Sadly, she’d probably had to do this many times before.

Instagram filters can hide a host of heartache. Don’t assume another mom isn’t struggling just because her social media looks good.

I love how Abigail wisely approaches David —first with food, and then with reason. There’s very little that a good meal can’t pacify! In addition to the food offering, she humbly suggested to David that to avenge himself by killing her husband (as well as their entire household—including Abigail herself) would not be in his best interests. She de-escalated the situation by appealing to his conscience: she reminded him of who he was—the Lord’s soldier, fighting His battles. She gently suggested that he would later regret having this bloodshed on his hands, and she prophesied that all of his enemies would be as cursed as her husband was. Talk about a crisis negotiator! I need some of that wisdom in refereeing my kids’ bickering!

***(Challenge)
The bottom line is, I don’t have a clue what struggles you’re facing based on your social media posts. I can imagine that those pretty filters hide a lot of tears. You don’t know what another mom is facing either. Don’t wish for her life, no matter how good it looks. Instead, we need to pray for each other. Call a friend today and ask if there’s anything you can pray about. It may look like she’s got it all together, but she may be silently begging God for a friend. Be that one. And if you’re the one struggling behind closed doors, reach out. Ask your Father to bring you a trusted confidant who may be able to give you wise, godly counsel.”

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Lifestyle

Lies, Misinformation, and Perception

September 9, 2018September 1, 2018 LauraJoli LookingJoliGood1 Comment

I recently read a quote “When truth is blurred by lies and misinformation, perception becomes reality and all is lost.”

I’ve been thinking about this for a little while. It’s absolutely true that what we perceive to be true is what becomes our personal reality. Whether or not it is true, due to the perception of the situation, it becomes real in our minds.

The Bible clearly states in Philippians 4:8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

Philippians 4:8.

I constantly have to redirect my thoughts and prayers to the things that are true, honest, just, lovely, and pure. It’s all too easy to let my thoughts get the better of me. When I return to the things that are true my perception will line up with reality.

I don’t want all to be lost, I want to base my thoughts on the correct things!

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No Gym No Problem

No Gym? No Problem! #32 Popsugar 30-Minute No-Equipment Barre Sculpting Workout

August 6, 2018May 13, 2018 LauraJoli LookingJoliGoodLeave a comment

For more from Marnie, visit:

http://www.labarrebelle.com/

https://www.instagram.com/marniealton/

https://www.instagram.com/labarrebelle/

Are you enjoying these “No Gym? No Problem!” posts? If so, you can check out the rest by clicking HERE!

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Lifestyle

Joy is a Choice

July 19, 2018July 13, 2018 LauraJoli LookingJoliGoodLeave a comment

If I’ve learned anything in these last several months it’s that joy and contentment are a choice.

Today I will choose to have contentment and be joyful!

Thou hast turned for me my mourning into dancing: thou hast put off my sackcloth, and girded me with gladness; To the end that my glory may sing praise to thee, and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks unto thee for ever.
Psalms 30:11‭-‬12

Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.
1 Thessalonians 5:16‭-‬18

Joy is a choice! | lookingjoligood.blog

Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost.
Romans 15:13

Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.
Philippians 4:11

At my LOWEST God is my HOPE.
At my DARKEST God is my LIGHT.
At my WEAKEST God is my STRENGTH.
At my SADDEST God is my COMFORT.

Today I choose JOY!

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Looking Joli Good

Kindness is beautiful!

Tag: work

There Is A Time for Resting and A Time for Blooming

There is nothing in nature that blooms all year long. So don’t expect yourself to do so either.

I Choose Happiness