“You will…find Me when you seek Me with all your heart.” God (Jeremiah 29:13)
A lot in life works the same way.
Reflections Before Bedtime #58
“And the more I considered Christianity, the more I found that while it had established a rule and order, the chief aim of that order was to give room for good things to run wild.”
G.K. Chesterton
By: Gabriela Yareliz
I deal with people, day in and day out. I get to see the consequences of people’s choices, and sometimes, how crazy things can come out of nowhere– though it be no one’s fault. Usually, though, there was a choice made by someone somewhere along the way.
Things change, people change, and one decision can make life a burden. One decision can also bring you inexplicable joy you forgot was possible.
Simple things can be encouraging and inspiring. Change can happen quickly, and it’s not always bad. Change often means growth. It can also be well-deserved and providential, almost.
I have seen that one action can change the course of everything.
And a lot of things in life, believe it or not, are once-in-a-lifetime. The most important ones are.
Never forget to choose what matters most.
Make choices that “give room for good things to run wild.”
[Image from Tumblr]
Monday Inspiration: December 28, 2015
By: Gabriela Yareliz
A new week. New opportunities to be who we want to be. Every choice, every minute, every word, every gesture. Fresh, clean slate.
Recently, I have been enthralled with the beautiful nature I have witnessed. I saw clear skies, at times there were clouds that looked painted in, a glowing sun, a moon with a halo around it, flowers in full bloom– amazing stuff. All so inspiring.
God doesn’t just make things; He makes masterpieces.
The new year is coming this week. I am so excited. It’s fantastic to reflect on all that has been lived and realize that even more amazing times are coming. It’s amazing to reflect on all the pain endured and know that you are that much stronger.
There will be some hard work, some rest, some risks, some assurance, some tears, some laughter, some heartbreak, some love, and we will be filled with the fullness that is life when we pick up of the presence of God that is always near the heart that seeks it.
This week, I am wishing you: delicate beauty, walks at noon under a warm sun (even if it’s just a ten minute break), yummy food, deep rest, intoxicatingly good conversation and a bond with someone so special that the love you have for him or her makes you grow, and it inspires you to be extraordinary.
“One of the hardest things you will ever have to do, my dear, is to grieve the loss of a person who is still alive.”
My father’s advice #1 (via northern-proper)
“If you hesitate between me and another person, don’t choose me.”
(via bl-ossomed)
“You belong among the wildflowers. You belong in a boat out at sea. You belong with your love on your arm. You belong somewhere you feel free.” Tom Petty
“I will find you. No matter how long it takes, no matter how far–I will find you.” Nathaniel to Cora in The Last of the Mohicans
“Even to see her walk across the room is a liberal education.” C.S. Lewis
“Romance is the deepest thing in life. It is even deeper than reality.” G.K. Chesterton
“I have loved you with an everlasting love.” God (Jeremiah 31:3)
[Images from Tumblr]
Sunday Girl: December 27, 2015
By: Gabriela Yareliz
Just arrived to NYC. I am on a random bus. #adventure
I am in a Cheryl Strayed kind of mood.
“I knew that if I allowed fear to overtake me, my journey was doomed. Fear, to a great extent, is born of a story we tell ourselves, and so I chose to tell myself a different story from the one women are told. I decided I was safe. I was strong. I was brave.”
2016 on the mind
Inspired by the sermon “A Spiritual Vantage Point” by Pastor Dan Graham
By: Gabriela Yareliz
Hello friends,
First things first, the verses that inspired this long letter to you:
Philippians 3:13-14: Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead; I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
Our focus will be the part in verse 13 that says, “forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead.” I hope that in this new year you are inspired to keep pressing forward knowing that, as C.S. Lewis says, what lies ahead is better than what is behind us.
I think that what Paul is saying in Philippians as his death drew near was that it’s important to see how God has led us in the past, but we should leave the past exactly where it belongs as we move forward. The minister I heard speaking about these verses pointed out that this means our past “failures” and mistakes but also our past successes. There are many ways that we can remain stuck on what was or what we think should be or what we think should have been. We always have an idea of how things should work and unfold.
God wants us to see the present as the best moment, regardless of where we find ourselves, knowing that He has placed us and allowed us to reach the point where we find ourselves. That no matter what, when we let Him take control, He can make something out of what seems like nothing.
Failure, to me, is only when I stop trying. Hope is the most important thing of all. Life has a way of surprising us and being magical.
Recently, I heard about how Michael Jordan didn’t make varsity; Walt Disney was fired from a newspaper because he wasn’t “creative” enough; Steve Jobs and Bill Gates had their ups and downs before hitting it big, and Spielberg eventually got an honorary degree from a university that rejected him three times. Thomas Edison and Albert Einstein were called hopelessly unintelligent, and Fred Astaire was told he couldn’t sing or dance.
I am sure you know all of this, and I hope you continue striving in this new year for all of those dreams and hopes you have glowing in your heart. Your dreams coming true, that doesn’t depend on anyone but God. God knows all things, and He withholds nothing good from those who love Him.
Ephesians 3:20 says, “Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us…” While this has a context in reference to eternal life, I firmly believe God has a purpose for each one of us, and He delights in showing His glory and power through the fulfillment of our purpose and the fulfillment of the dreams He has placed in our hearts. I don’t think there is a defining moment where everything is fulfilled, but that life is an incredible journey, where our purpose is fulfilled moment by moment and day by day. You are living your purpose right now.
Through this building of a life, He wants us to expect more of Him so He can reveal more of Himself to us. He is constantly giving us His best as soon as we are able and ready to receive it.
And as always, in this new year, may you keep your eyes on the prize. Always looking to Him who is the author and finisher of our faith. He who can do more than you ask or think– He who holds the worlds in His hand. Nothing is too hard for Him.
You can do anything. You know that. But just a reminder–in case you ever forget.
I am looking forward to 2016! The best is yet to come. There is healing, hope, joy and miracles waiting. Of that, I am sure.
Merry Christmas
Dear friends,
I am wishing you a warm and beautiful Christmas. May you find the peace that only God can give.
I am sending you love from sunny Florida.
May your Christmas be all about Jesus, family, forgiveness, love, grace, truth and hope.
xoxo,
Gabriela Yareliz
May you embark on a beautiful journey where the awe and wonder never end.
Reflections Before Bedtime #57
“New beginnings tell the story of grace, mercy, and forgiveness—gifts from a loving Father who is worthy of our faith, even when we cannot see what lies ahead.”
Debbie Eaton , Advent Day 4 | She Reads Truth
Going Home
By: Gabriela Yareliz
I am cominggg…
It has not been the typical holiday travel whirlwind. Thank God. I took a train to where my shuttle was supposed to pick me up. It never came. Instead, a black car came to pick me up. A limo service. Jesus does it again. All right, I’ll take it, I thought.
The driver yelled at me from the limo window showing me my name and payment information. He asked me if my name was Ms. Ronaldo, despite the fact that he had my actual last name in front of him. He couldn’t even pronounce my name. Of course, Cristiano Ronaldo popped into my head. Nope, not his wife. Turns out the company got my last complaint and sent me a limo. Fabulous. And I am a soccer star’s wife. Double fabulous.
The driver was kind, and he was Indian and loved all of my favorite Indian film classics. Dil Chahta Hai, anyone? He commented on the fact that my parents should have given me an “easier” name and that it was a pity that I was unmarried. This is what happens when you engage in small talk and don’t wear jewelry. He did not miss a thing. He also pulled over twice when I thought for sure that I was going to decorate the interior of his limo with my stomach acid.
There was dizzying traffic. That was typical. The limo driver thought I was going to vomit in his car. I almost did. I could see his stressed out face in the rearview mirror. I am not sure if it was all the stress, the random limo, the long day at work– but when I saw the red lights of endless rows of cars, all I could do was bite my bottom lip. I never get car sick, so this was weird.
No line for bag drop-off and security. God bless LaGuardia. The news is on. A woman on CNN asked a commentator if the idea of Marco Rubio as president made him want to vomit. I laughed. It certainly makes me want to vomit, even on a regular day when I don’t feel like this.
By the way, how do they get these political poll numbers? No one has ever asked me my opinion…
Anyway, I am on my way. Soon, I’ll be in the state both Rubio and I call home.
Warm New Orleans Afternooon
By: Gabriela Yareliz
Last week was mild in New York City. It was filled with overcast skies and warm rain.
A classic man in a Stetson hat offered me his umbrella on one of the rainy days. He said he couldn’t stand to watch my beautiful hair get wet. It was a fresh blow dry I had spent a good amount of time on the night before. He was sweet. I always appreciate a man who knows how much work goes into having voluminous hair. I did a half curtsy and said thank you to him as I scurried away to the courthouse with a file under my cape.
On Friday and Saturday, the city was under an icy winded veil. The temperatures dropped, and the rain was cold and scattered.
I was filled with a longing for the New Orleans heat I experienced this past summer.
The July day we arrived to New Orleans, it was scorching hot. The sun was shining, and the city seemed deserted. It was almost as if the shutters were melting off of the beautiful old buildings.
In the tradition of my “come walk with me” posts, with music and photos, your soundtrack song can be found below. Enjoy some of my sunny shots from New Orleans. May they warm your spirit, wherever you may be.
I feel the need, the need for that Louisiana heat.
Reflections Before Bedtime #56
Compiled by: Gabriela Yareliz
Words are so lovely. They end up swimming in my head like alphabet soup, after a long day. Delicious.
“He wants to be the center, through Him alone all things shall come to pass. He is the Mediator, not only between God and man, but between man and man, between man and reality.”
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
“The world is indeed full of peril, and in it there are many dark places; but still there is much that is fair, and though in all lands love is now mingled with grief, it grows perhaps the greater.” J.R.R. Tolkien
“Does she scare you a little? Good. She should make you fear her love, so that when she lets you be apart of it, you won’t take it lightly. She should remind you of the power that beauty brings, that storms reside in her veins, and that she still wants you in the middle of it all. Do not take this soul for granted, for she is fierce, and she can take you places that you never thought you could go; but she is still loving in the midst of it all, like the calm rain after a storm, she can bring life. Learn her, and cherish her, respect her, and love her; for she is so much more than a pretty face, she is a soul on fire.”
T.B. LaBerge // Things I’m still learning at 25
“We have the opportunity every day to reach out and love someone, we have the chance to be kind and joyful, and yet, we seem to think that it’s the job of someone else to do that for us. It’s time we decide if we are going to be active in what we want, or destructive in what we will not do. You must be brave when it comes to initiating love, you must be willing to lay down your pride and say “I choose to extend the hand of peace first, I choose to show love in the way it was meant to be shown, with hands open and a willing heart.” Today is the day to take the opportunity to do something beautiful.” T.B. LaBerge // Go Now
“How beautiful it is to find someone who not only accepts who I am, but celebrates the things that have made me who I am. We find joy in being seen, to be known is what our hearts long for. How wonderful, to have someone who knows us, and extends the hand of promise and future growth. That is fuel for our souls, when someone makes the effort to love you for you.”
T.B. LaBerge // I love you and I miss you
“We may ignore, but we can nowhere evade, the presence of God. The world is crowded with Him. He walks everywhere incognito. And the incognito is not always hard to penetrate. The real labor is to remember, to attend. In fact, to come awake. Still more, to remain awake.”
C.S. Lewis
I hope you get some quiet minutes to yourself tonight; your very own reflections before bedtime. I hope you think about the season and all that it means. I hope you experience how God makes all things new. I hope you find Him in the unexpected, when you need Him the most. I hope you find rest in knowing you are in His hands. And always, expect miracles.
Goodnight, world. Goodnight, moon. Goodnight, pigeons. Goodnight, New York City.
GABRIELA YARELIZ 