Posts by Kelly Balarie
Today’s Truth
To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.
Colossians 1:27
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There I was. People zoomed left and right around me, within this glorious city, glowing with foreign sparkle. A huge cathedral stood like a mountain, towering over my small frame. I observed everything, the people, speaking a different language, the hustle and the bustle, moving around me.
Would what I had in me – be enough? Would all that I contained inside me come out – and matter? I wasn’t so sure. I’d spent years, learning, studying and practicing “Hola’s” and “¿Cómo estás?” within the concrete walls of college, but here? Here in this place where people seem to talk a mile a minute?
What would happen if I unleashed the power within me? The idea scared me.
But still, I
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Today’s Truth
Jesus looked at them and said, ‘With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.’
Matthew 19:26
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Just yesterday, my son validated the heart of my issue. He drew a picture of Mommy. I was curious, so I asked him, “What is Mommy doing in that picture?”
He said, “She is thinking.”
He then drew the brain bubble that floats up in the sky like a hovering cloud of declaration. I said, “What is Mommy thinking about? What goes in that little bubble?” I was pretty certain I was just about to finally be crowned Super Mommy—the queen of peanut butter and jelly!
His answer? “She is thinking about herself.”
Boom! And there you have it. With the force of a busted salt shaker hitting an open wound, I was stung with truth: Mommy is thinking about herself
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Today’s Truth
While He was still speaking, a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud said, ‘This is my Son, whom I love; with Him I am well pleased. Listen to Him!’
Matthew 17:5
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It looked like an impossible task – a no way, no how kind of thing. I had no time, waning skills and hardly a resource to actually make it happen.
After all, I am not a star candidate. My follow-through record is usually pretty poor, my attitude often defeated and my belief in myself is hardly at mountaintop levels. How could I actually follow through on what I knew God wanted me to do?
Everything in me wanted to tell God to check the earth for another holy roller and remind Him that He had picked the wrong gal.
And, I nearly did.
I would have if it wasn’t for the other “still small voice” (1 Kings 19:12) I couldn’t seem
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Today’s Truth
I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.
Psalm 32:8
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My mind has been set on a future dream. I can almost see it coming to life. It will be fantastic, magnificent and more than I ever dreamed.
I assure myself of this.
I will sip an iced tea on a screened in porch. I will have the ability to lay back a bit easier. I will head to the beach within a split-second drive. The weather will make me warm both inside and out. Friends will be abundant and hospitable.
I assure myself of this. Now God, you need to come through.
But, He hasn’t. He hasn’t answered my request. He hasn’t run to my rescue to move my dwelling place somewhere warm and somewhere south. He has been silent.
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Today’s Truth
While He was still speaking, a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud said, ‘This is my Son, whom I love; with Him I am well pleased. Listen to Him!’
Matthew 17:5
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Often I feel like I am living ground hog day all over again. I go through the motions. Wake up. Coffee. Bible. Work. Kids. Husband. Dinner. TV. Sleep. Repeat.
Days just are what they are sometimes. We have tasks we have to do, roles we have to play and agendas that simply need to be followed.
Some days, half of me wants to run away from it all, saying, “Come back again tomorrow: I am on a long term retreat with God that lasts forever.” I just want to give up and give in because I feel that all my doing is making me miss the greatest being ever – Jesus.
Do you ever feel like your busy is stealing the
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Today’s Truth
For He chose us in Him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight
Ephesians 1:4
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I looked down at the empty box of cookies stashed in the trash. I just devoured them. The more I started at the box, the more it reminded me, if I left it there, I’d likely be caught red-handed. So, I did what any smart sweet-toothed woman would do – I dug deep into the yuck and hid the “evidence.” However, as I stepped back, to catch a glimpse of the trash bin from various angles, all I could see, taste and feel was guilt:
What if my husband hid “evidence” like I do?
What if I continue to eat and eat and eat?
What if I start to hide in other ways?
Anxiety feels not only like sweat, but also
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Today’s Truth
You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
Ephesians 4:22-24
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The girl looked in the mirror. She noticed her slumped shoulders, her lack of motivation and her tired eyes. Life was always letting her down. People were too.
Still, she got up and went to her closet. Before her, stood the garbs of gold, laced with jewels and vibrant colors, but as always, she was drawn to the clothes of old. She knew them well. They were comfortable.
I can never be more. I can never do more. For I see my past. I remember what I did, how I lived, and how I so horribly failed.
The girl was trapped in a way, but in another way she was free. The door was open to her, she could
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Today’s Truth
For sin shall no longer be your master, because you are not under the law, but under grace.
Romans 6:14
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I pulled my steaming hot coffee close and stared into the eyes of my five-year old son. “Do you feel like you’ve been doing a bad job, Son?”
For months, he’d been saying, “I am sorry. I am sorry I spilled milk. I am sorry I didn’t put my book bag in the closet.” Everything was I am sorry. It was his desperation cry: “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry … ”
Somewhere along the line, I knew I had gone wrong. Teaching grace to a toddler is like walking a tightrope above Mt. Kilimanjaro. Fall left, and the kid will be eating dinner foot-to-mouth like a native animal. Fall right, and he’ll live his life tiptoeing on legalism’s
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Today’s Truth
Unless the LORD builds the house, the builders labor in vain. Unless the LORD watches over the city, the guards stand watch in vain.
Psalm 127:1
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There are two ways champion athletes act. Consider the game of football. The guy who runs the winning touchdown either kneels on the ground, pounds his fists against his chest, and yells, “I’m Da’ Man!” or he runs to the 10-yard line, points up to God, and says, “All due credit goes to You, Jesus.”
May we do all things to the glory of God.
A girl can hope, right? Sometimes I misplace due-glory. It’s not that I don’t want to thank, praise or give credit to God. I do. It is just that I get busy, distracted, and focused on all that I need to do. All the people who need me. All the happenings around me.
Are you at all like
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Today’s Truth
The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: “God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector “ (Luke 18:11 NIV).
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In many ways, it is far easier to rely on works than it is to rely, by faith, on grace.
I’m coming to terms with this because I have had a works-based mentality, without even realizing it. I have used my works to benefit me when it is supposed to be all about God’s grace and glory.
For example, I’ve worked extra hard at church, really hoping to get compliments. I went above and beyond, not one hundred percent for God but, underneath, to merit my own significance, because I did such a great job! I have given compliments or encouragement to others, internally hoping that they would give the same thing back to me.
But, were these things for
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