GABRIELA YARELIZ

Remembering Thursday: February 12, 2015

By: Gabriela Yareliz

It really was a Goliath of a Wednesday. Life changes in an instant. Today, some walked in victory like David before Goliath; others sat innocently in a prison of life as Joseph once did before God fulfilled his dreams; others were in pain surrendering their greatest blessing in order to reap the greatest reward like Abraham; some of us laughed like Sarah when God promised to do the impossible for us; some brought life into the lives of others as did Elijah. Living is truly for the brave. It’s a challenge to live honorably; to live with a standard that is elevated above ourselves.

Despite the craziness of life, God never forsakes. His sovereignty is constant; His intentions good, beyond all we ask or think.

Remember that.

When you look around and maybe feel like you don’t have what you expected you would have by now, or you compare– remember the dreams that have brought you to where you are. Remember you are a fighter. Remember God is taking you places. Remember that.

When you aren’t exactly “normal” in the eyes of others, remind yourself that God wants you to be extraordinary and different. Remember that.

When all else fails, remember that God is love, and love never fails. Remember that.

Live life acknowledging that God does not lie. Live life not looking at what man can do, but instead live looking at what God can do (without any of your help).

Love is patient, and it’s waiting for us. Let’s remember that.

“In fact, God shows much more of Himself
to some people than to others – not because
He has favourites, but because it is impossible
for Him to show Himself to a man whose
whole mind and character are in the wrong condition.
Just as sunlight, though it has no favourites,
cannot be reflected in a dusty mirror
as clearly as a clean one.”

C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

“Never run from a dream; it was put in your mind for a reason.”

William Chapman

I am celebrating my journey through 2 Kings! Ninety-day Bible Challenge (day 25).

“And then her heart changed, or at least she understood it; and the winter passed, and the sun shone upon her.”

J. R. R. Tolkien

“When you really matter to someone, that person will always make time for you…No excuses, no lies.” Unknown

Remember.

[Images from Tumblr]

Wednesday Musings: February 11, 2015

By: Gabriela Yareliz

Hello fellow survivors of this world. I hope your week is going splendidly. This week, I have been so impressed with how God orchestrates paths to cross for people to help each other. It’s weird how in a person’s most desperate time, he or she might stumble upon another who wants to walk alongside them. I am seeing this in the professional sense, but truly, it happens in every aspect of life. We just need to catch it when it smiles upon us, offering us hope instead of despair.

Here in NYC, we are like little ants, keeping busy in our ant piles, waiting for spring. The longing is there, but the groundhog has declared 6 more weeks of winter. I only believe the groundhog when he says spring will come soon. Now, he is just mean.

Anyway, I digress. Job applications are being filled out in daily doses, like vitamins. Life continues. I am painfully self-aware, growing, weeding, making mistakes, accepting grace, and once in a while, I am stopping to admire the garden. It’s tough. Gardening makes your hands dirty. It makes your hands bleed. But, when all is said and done, you end up with fruit and a bloom that graces those around it.

Why do we subject ourselves to other’s standards? I have realized I need to make a more conscious effort to allow only God’s opinion to count. Everyone else has plenty to say, but they are not the standard.

Life is full of surprises. This week, I learned that life can vindicate you in sweet ways, without you even trying. It’s a curious thing.

I hope that this week, you continue to be inspired by the dreams that make your heart soar. It’s good to remember what has brought you thus far. Never stop dreaming. Never stop growing. Never stop trusting God’s plan for your life.

I am off to catch some sleep. But when I awaken, I plan to be right there beside you, conquering this Goliath of a Wednesday.

“A pretty sight, a lady with a book.” Shirley Jackson, We Have Always Lived in a Castle

“Have enough courage to trust love one more time and always one more time.” Maya Angelou

[Images from Tumblr]

Condolences to Kayla Mueller’s Family

This post is to honor Kayla Mueller’s extraordinary life. Ms. Mueller was a bright American aid worker who was held hostage and killed by ISIS.

She wrote a letter to her family that said:

“Just the thought of you sends me into fits of tears; all in all in the end the only one you really have is God.”

According to CNN, she also wrote:

“I am not breaking down + I will not give in no matter how long it takes.”

CNN wrote:

“The message […] showed that even in prison, Mueller continued to be free. Others held captive with her told her family and friends Mueller stood on her head as prisoners tried to exercise in a small space. And she tried to teach the guards to make crafts, showing them how to make origami peace cranes.”

She was and remains a light in a dark world.

Mueller family, you are in my prayers.

[CNN article is linked]

Mejor Momento de Los Goya 2015

Felicidades a Dani Rovira y Clara Lago. ¡Enhorabuena!

Zidane

“I once cried because I had no shoes to play football with my friends, but one day I saw a man who had no feet, and I realized how rich I am.” Zinedine Zidane

Monday Inspiration: February 9, 2015

By: Gabriela Yareliz

Greetings! It’s a Wintry-Mix Sunday/Monday. Let’s get pumped for an awesome week! Ready?

“They tried to bury us. They didn’t know we were seeds.” Mexican Proverb

“If you wear the wrong glasses, you won’t see things correctly.” Dr. Tony Evans

“Yet one thing secures us whatever betide, the scriptures assure us that the Lord will provide.” Isaac Newton

“There is an inner beauty about a woman who believes in herself, who knows she is capable of anything she puts her mind to. There is a beauty and strength and determination of a woman who follows her own path, who isn’t thrown off by obstacles along the way. There is a beauty about a woman whose confidence comes from experiences–who knows she can fall, pick herself up, and keep going.” Unknown

“Yes, we could have been great, but I find a strange comfort in knowing you aren’t going to be my best.” Best (Tumblr)

“Every idea we form, He must in mercy shatter. The most blessed result of prayer would be to rise thinking, ‘But I never knew before. I never dreamed…'” C.S. Lewis, Letters to Malcolm

“Truth has been relegated to subjectivity; beauty has been subjugated to the beholder; and as millions are idiotized night after night, a global commune has been constructed with the arts enjoying totalitarian rule.” Ravi Zacharias

“The female doesn’t want a rich man, or a handsome man, or even a poet. She wants a man who understands her eyes if she gets sad, and points to his chest and says, ‘Here is your home country.'” Nizar Qabbani

“You may fear the Lord has passed you by, but it is not so: He who counts the stars, and calls them by their names, is in no danger of forgetting his own children. He knows your case as thoroughly as if you were the only creature He ever made, or the only saint He ever loved. Approach Him and be at peace.” Charles Spurgeon

“He is always doing something–the very best thing, the thing we ourselves would certainly choose if we knew the end from the beginning. He is at work to bring us to our full glory.” Elisabeth Elliot

“She asked, ‘You are in love, what does love look like?’ To which I replied, ‘Like everything I’ve ever lost came back to me.'” Nayyirah Waheed

May the next few months be a period of magnificent transformation.

This is cute:

Throwback to December 2014; We are like different countries with our own foreign policy and culture, but when it’s time for war, state dinners, changing the world, etc. we are and will always be allies.

This dress:

“When it all seems so numb and bleak, may your Spirit remind me gently that I am to burn with love and hope. I am falling, teach me to stand back up. I am drowning, teach me to kick and never stop. I am bound to heartbreak, teach me to love again. You are calling me, and I have grown deaf, so come to me and hold me; I need you Lord, I need you, and only you.” T.B. LaBerge, Thy Will Be Done

An old Nicole Richie Madden family portrait.

“Don’t worry about having the right words; worry more about having the right heart. It’s not eloquence He seeks, just honesty.” Max Lucado

“You belong to a patient God. Not to a hurry up and fix yourself God, but a be still and let me heal you God. Not a why do you keep doing this God, but a God who gives you the keys to break the cycle. God is patient, and He is pleased to take His time with you.” Unka Glen

Love is patient. Let’s live it out this week.

[Photos from Tumblr]

If You Are Going To Shop…

“For you say I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see.” Revelation 3:18-19

“The gold here recommended as having been tried in the fire is faith and love…the white raiment (garment) is purity of character, the righteousness of Christ imparted to the sinner…the eyesalve is that wisdom and grace which enables us to discern between good and evil, and to detect sin under any guise. He says: ‘Buy of Me.'” Testimonies for the Church, vol. 4, pg. 88, 89

Thursday Brain Dump: February 5, 2015

INSANITY. INSANITY. INSANITY. So, I thought I would post some of my favorite things.

That tree reminds me of home.

Sleep for 4 hours, and then waking up feeling like this:

Another snow storm on Monday? Wintry mix, you say?

Agreed.

Photo below from @soylavalverde. I love this. We need one in the clinic.

I am going to find a pile of melting snow, and make it my little stream.

Someday, my kids and I will say:

Continue. Being. Fierce. &. Unstoppable.

Jordanian Retribution

After the insanely brutal, scarring execution of Jordanian pilot Moaz al-Kasasbe, King Abdullah II has decided to hit ISIS, and hit it hard. Now that tragedy has touched home so directly (we must keep in mind Jordan is also home to more than 640,000 Syrian refugees; another crisis the country is dealing with), King Abdullah II has sent ISIS forces a message, You will be destroyed.

[Badass photos from: The Royal Hashemite Court Instagram]