MOVE Christian Counseling and Essential Oils

04/26/2024

The heart. It’s the only part in our body that doesn’t have an automatic healing mechanism. If we get cut, our blood clots, a scab forms, the skin heals back together. If we get sick, our body heats up and uses fevers to rid itself of infections and other things that don’t belong. Even our bones can join back together if broken.

But the heart, our emotional heart, does not heal on its own. Contrary to popular belief, time does NOT in fact, heal all wounds. It would be the same as putting a piece of tape over the check engine light of your vehicle and hoping something will miraculously fall back into place and repair itself. It doesn’t happen. If you keep driving the vehicle, ignoring the check engine light, you run the risk of more damage being done and causing possible injury.

When the heart is injured, ignoring the injury or avoiding the pain of the injury will not fix or heal the heart. Time will not heal the heart. What is done during that time will determine the likelihood of healing. There must be intentional steps taken to ensure healing takes place, and one of those steps is acknowledging the heart and the emotions God designed in the heart.

God designed emotions! Emotions are not good or bad, right or wrong. They are morally neutral. Emotions are just raw data that say something deeper needs to be explored.Everything we do or don’t do, everything we say or don’t say, is all driven by a heart that is full of deep fears, wounds, beliefs, longings.

If all we do is focus on the words and behaviors, we miss the heart. We miss an opportunity to learn and know something more deep within ourselves, and in the hearts of those we love. When we make and take the time to fully understand our own hearts, it is only then, when true healing can begin.

Do not leave your heart unattended for we know it is deceitful (Jeremiah 17:9). Our heart is also a wellspring and needs to be kept with all diligence (Proverbs 4:23).

When your heart is well cared for, life will pour out of it. 

01/26/2023

From our friends Boundless.org

Unfortunately, we are prone to forget God’s work in and for us. ⁠
But what better way to remember what God has done than to write it down? “God is always doing 10,000 things in your life, and you may be aware of three of them,” John Piper said. Even if we’re aware of three things, we’ll probably forget at least two of them within a few months. Unless we write them down.⁠
⁠
Check out Lauren Dunn's new blog, "Why You Should Keep a Journal This Year": https://bit.ly/3QyngEk

10/23/2020

When deleting old text messages and you find this gem on your phone. This can be applied to so many of us right now. I love when the Holy Spirit stirs good truth in us.

"Something I was thinking about recently and shared with ___________, the enemy knows exactly how to distract us. He gets us to focus on what we feel like we are lacking in life or from others. He gets us to compare ourselves to others. He knows how to inflict conflict between people and interfere with our thought life and belief systems. Everything we experience that he throws at us is a distraction to get us to forget about the big picture and what is really important. It is all just noise. God has given each of us gifts and abilities and if we are focused on the distraction, then we can't utilize our gifts to our fullest potential. Look at your life and where you are at now. See all the good, all the opportunities, everything that you can do with what you currently have. Look at the possible people you can witness to and interact with. There are so many lives you can enrich with the love of Jesus. But it's more difficult to inspire and show that love when we are fixated on the distraction. All the negative thoughts, emotions, memories from the past, see them for what they are-- the enemy's tools, the enemy's distraction. We can't change anything that has already happened. All we can do is thrive with where we are currently positioned. We can deal with the future when it gets here. Don't miss out on opportunities and possibilities that God has before you right now. 💜"

10/23/2020

05/06/2020

LAUNDRY— Who here gets excited with the thought of doing laundry? Certainly not me. (If you are someone who does get excited about laundry, please find my contact info and you are welcome to come and stay in my basement).

As I was folding laundry this evening, my brain was on autopilot while engaged in the mindless activity. One thought led to another and I found myself thinking about Marie Kondo and how she thanks her objects as she is folding them or boxing them up to be sent to the next family who may benefit from her items. I’m sure this concept is based on a cultural thing for her, but it got me to thinking about the individual items as I was folding them. I could thank those items for serving my family, but I know those items aren’t living things. Instead, while appreciating the sentiment, I took it a little deeper...

I began to thank God for the little legs that filled the well worn and well played in pants. I thanked God for the sweet and loving arms that fills each sleeve as I tucked them into the shirts. I thanked God for the little hearts He chose to give me that filled each top as I added them to their piles. I thanked God for the hardworking feet that filled the socks every day to provide for my family. I continued through the basket.

As parents and spouses and human people, we can oftentimes feel stuck in a daily routine and cycle that doesn’t really excite us, but it’s necessary for the functioning of our household. What if we were to take every task and as in scripture, serve the Lord with gladness? Take the dishes for instance, and thank God for providing the food that goes on each plate every day. Thank God for each mouth that drinks from the cups as you place them in the dishwasher or cabinet. Thank God for the imaginative minds and playful spirits that fill your home as you’re tripping over legos and eagerly searching for the marker that goes with the lid you just stumbled upon.

Every task that we GET to do each day is a gift. God chose us for our families. He chose us for our homes and for our pets and for our careers. We can be good stewards of those things while also being mindful and shifting our hearts and thoughts to those of gratitude while we shuffle through our routines. God loves a cheerful heart and He wants us to delight in Him in EVERYTHING we do.

So get some oils diffusing. Blast some worship music. Set an environment that matches a joyful heart and tackle your daily routine as a service and gratitude to the Lord. I encourage you to consider these random mom/counselor thoughts and apply them in a way that fits your current situation. I hope you enjoy your next basket of laundry. 🧺 💜

“And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.”
‭‭Colossians‬ ‭3:17‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”
‭‭I Thessalonians‬ ‭5:16-18‬ ‭NKJV‬‬