Righteously Redeemed

DRESS APPROPRIATELY!!!  by: Brandi Bell  I have been walking a little in the mornings.  I love the fall with its crisp cool air and changing leaves.      It lends to the opportunity of needing to change my wardrobe for the adjusting temperatures.  I wouldn't dare go out without warmer clothes on.  A long sleeved shirt and a jacket.  It's what reasonable people do to protect their body from the elements.   So why do we ONLY seem to care about protecting our body?  We are told to Put on the WHOLE armor of God.   13  Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm.   14  Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness.   15  For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared. 16  In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil.  17  Put on sa

Follower of Christ Friday  November 11, 2020 Ever been looking for a specific themed video on YouTube, instead find something totally unrelated but something you still needed to see? That was me a few years ago when I stumbled upon Author and Speaker, Christine Caine telling some of her testimony.  (warning this may be a lot of parphrase)  She was talking about when she was in seminary how one of her preaching professors pretty much told her that she did terrible, and that she should never teach / preach to an audience again!!  I expected to next hear how it made her mad, and how she vowed to him that she would "show him."   I mean she is Christine Caine, this great motivating woman who currently speaks internationally to thousands of people.  She overcame it somehow.  However, what I wasn't expecting was to to hear what really happened.  She said it absolutely DEFEATED her.  She felt shame!  She questioned her worth! She didn't want to and in fact didn't speak fo

Follower of Christ Friday  by Brandi Bell  I have back surgery in 5 days as I write this.   I have had surgery before, 3 c-sections for my babies, but never anything like this.   Over the past 2 months you know what I have determined?  I don't have any control over this situation.      I can't medicate myself.  I can't exercise to be better.  I have been to different types of health care providers, and unfortunately they can only offer temporary fixes.  No, nothing I can personally do will make my back better. I have to have this surgery.  Before the news that I would need this, I had in my mind if I could do blank, or if they could do that, then I could handle it.  Really what I was saying is that I could CONTROL it!                 When the surgeon said "You have done everything else, surgery is the only option now."    A sense of peace came over me.  I would normally have been upset at the thought of someone needing to cut me open, yet God had given me a sense

 A Follower of Christ Friday Blog Post  As I write this, I find myself in the midst of a storm, one concerning my health with my back.  A dear friend of mine was taking me to my appointment with a Physical Therapist yesterday when I expressed concerns I had about several areas regarding treatments.  Who should I choose as a doctor? What medicines, if any should I take?  How to pay for these services etc?  You know the typical stuff you think about when you are dealing with health stuff.  She then pulls out the verse that I have quoted numerous times while ministering to others.   And my God  shall supply all your needs according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:19  How many times do we remind ourselves or others of this truth when we are in need of something?   It's definitely a favorite verse of mine, but when she quoted it to me right in the midst of my thought process it flicked a light on in my brain.   How many of those times are they NEEDS, and how many t

August 28, 2020 Getting a glow stick when I was younger was a rare treat.  There wasn't a dollar tree around the corner.    Amazon and the internet didn't yet exist either.  The only place that I can remember they were readily available was at concert type events or at the local skating rink.   I loved them!  To open the package and know you are about to see it miraculously glow a neon green, pink or blue, was such fun anticipation.   I think everyone knows how to use them, but just in case. You open up the package, break it in 1-2 places and then you shake it up!  It's at this moment, and ONLY then will it light up. Brightly, the light shines and can be seen from across the room.   Y'all, We are glow sticks!  I know that sounds crazy, but it's true.   We, like a glow stick, have great potential to shine our light to the world by reflecting the light of Jesus.  What we don't always or even want to realize is that in order to do that shining, just like the glow s

Whew!  We have tons of things going on right now, don't we?   So many things we need to think about, so many things that are concerning or needing our attention!   Magnify :  make (something) appear larger  The other day, my husband was talking about how we need to magnify our God.  That HE is already big, but we need to make him larger for our own eyes, for our own problems!   I thought to myself—if that’s what it means, then you can magnify anything.    Candidly, I realize I do this with lots of areas in my life. Sometimes the things that I magnify or "make larger" are my problems, my hurts, my insecurities etc.  The fact that I sit and think about them is exactly like putting a magnifying glass on them. Because in all truth, I am making a choice to make them appear larger.  Notice I didn't say make them larger in reality.  No!  I said appear larger.  That's what a magnifying glass does.  It makes things appear larger for the one that's looking at them.   S