Author

Mel

Mel uses technology to create innovative faith-based platforms to spread the gospel, train and coach believers, and distribute faith-based content.

Today is the first day of Spring, and don’t we all love a good spring cleaning? Spring cleaning is when we go through our homes and get rid of all the junk…that we’ve been collecting since our last spring cleaning, but who’s judging? We go through our clothes and get rid of the clothes we can’t fit anymore. We switch around our furniture and maybe add a pop of color to our home decor. We make a trip to our personal storage to exchange our winter clothes for our spring clothes. We clean the tiny crevices of our homes and dust the areas we’ve neglected all this time. We prepare our homes to transition to a new season by cleaning and making room for the new.

What if we did the same preparation for our spiritual lives? What if we started doing a spiritual cleanse before entering a new season? What if we got rid of all our old ways of worship, prayers, study habits, and patterns of sin to receive the new thing God is doing in our lives? It sounds extreme, but seriously, what if? How can we expect to go into a new season with an old mindset? Doing a spiritual cleanse not only purifies you, but it helps you discern the voice of God for the season you’re entering into. Maybe you need a spiritual cleanse to help you transition into a new season. If so, I have a few cleaning tools for you to use 😉

Consecration – Maybe it’s time for a good ole’ consecration. When was the last time you disconnected from the world and connected with God? Consecration requires you to separate yourself in exchange for deeper intimacy with God. Set aside a day or a number of days to spend time with God, with no distractions.
Social Media Detox – A social media detox is essential. Sometimes, we just need a break from our apps. Uninstall your apps for however long you choose. Challenge yourself to be more present and enjoy the world around you. Exchange your social apps for biblical apps to help you study the word and feed your spirit.
Home Cleanse – It’s time for a deep cleaning. Go throughout your home, declutter your spaces, and get rid of the junk. Go from room to room and anoint it, and anoint your door posts. Open the windows and blinds to let the sun in. Pray throughout your home and give it a good cleanse.
Fast – Shed your flesh and stubborn fat by turning over your plate. Fasting is when you abstain from food for a period of time to pray. Fasting is a great way to cleanse your spirit and body. You can do a sun up to sun down fast, or a 1-3 liquid fast. If you need any ideas for a fasting meal plan, leave me a comment and I will share some with you. Remember, fasting is ONLY effective when you FAST AND PRAY! Fasting without prayer is a diet! Remember, you’re fasting to connect with God…losing weight is just the icing on the cake (that you can’t have because you’ll be fasting 😂).

A spiritual cleanse should be habitual for every believer. I just thought it would be a cute topic to talk about since we often think of spring cleaning around these times. I think it’s important to detox, disconnect, and cleanse ourselves from the junk and residue that we are left with on an everyday basis. I believe it’s a good habit to constantly check and correct ourselves by allowing the holy spirit to show us a reflection of our hearts. Any of these tools will allow the holy spirit to be our mirror and show us what we can’t see.

There is never a “perfect time” to have a spiritual cleanse, but if you find yourself consumed with the things of the world and your focus shifts from up above to down below, it’s time for a cleanse. But, if you want to be spiritually proactive, I would have moments of cleansing throughout the week. So, for me, that looks like restricted social media times, hours or days of consecration throughout the week, frequent fasts and prayer times, disconnecting and connecting with family and friends, and being present in my days. With social media, it feels like we live in two worlds; the real world and the world online. So when I mention being present, that means to be physically present and engaging with the world around me and not just online

I am praying that you have an amazing spring season, and I’ll be back in the summer with more tools.

Love,

Mel

March 20, 2023 3 comments

Lifestyle

Saved, Single, and Living!

by Mel February 13, 2023

written by Mel

I am single by choice. That means I voluntarily decided to be single. I’ve decided to surrender and give God every part of my life, including my desire to eventually marry. It’s easy for me to say this because I’ve never been a “dater,” casually dating just wasn’t my thing. I could go months or years without dating someone, and be content. My friends would often try to get me to meet people or try dating apps, but I never could get into it. I don’t know, I guess I wasn’t in a rush to find that special someone, but I was open to the idea of possibly meeting someone.

I’ve had my fair share of situations; situations that looked like something but turned out to be nothing. Yep, I’m not ashamed to admit I had a few of those. I’ve also had situations/relationships that became a stumbling block in my walk with Christ. As a Christian woman, a woman pursuing God daily wasn’t always understood in my relationships. I realized that it was easy for men to accept Mel, the woman, but it was hard for them to accept Mel, the woman of God. I honored God in my relationships, by creating safe boundaries that would prevent me from sinning against God and myself. I honored my convictions and the lifestyle I lived because of them, and that became a conflict with dating.

That’s when I learned everyone loves God, but not everyone obeys God…even professing Christians. The greatest mistake I made was thinking I could obey God and still be in a relationship with a person who didn’t obey God or a person who didn’t share those same convictions as me. Before I knew it, I began letting my guard down and making compromises little by little. I wanted to please God, but I also wanted to please the man that I was dating which ultimately led me to sin. The sin wasn’t necessarily what I did, but my disobedience. I knew this relationship was pulling me away from God and although it was happening subtly, I knew when it began but I didn’t remove myself from the relationship. I allowed my desire to be in a relationship and my insecurities about not being in one at my “old” age to become more important than obeying God.

The Single Life

After many mistakes, failures, rebukes, chastisements, and repentance, I finally decided to be single and remain single until God connects me with the man sent by him, a man after his own heart. I’ve been single for many years and honestly, I love it. I’ve been able to fully devote my time to God intimately and in ministry, I’ve been able to do a lot of soul-searching and inner healing, and most importantly, I get to spend time with myself, get to know myself, and enjoy myself. I get to accomplish personal goals without any emotional distractions. I get to work on becoming a better human, not just preparing to become a good wife.

My single season has been a busy, yet, very productive season. I’ve been able to accomplish so much during this time by being my primary focus. I’m not in a relationship and I don’t have any kids, which means I can maximize the time that I have to myself, but it’s also a bittersweet feeling. I do desire to have a mate and it does get lonely at times, but it doesn’t last for long. I’m surrounded by so much love, that it fills the void I feel by not having a mate. I’m not saying it’s equivalent to having a mate, but true love (from your loved ones), can and will provide comfort.

Living my Best and Blessed Life

I spend a lot of time creating some of the best memories. While being single, I’ve learned to enjoy my own company. Every month, I ask myself, “Mel, what do you want to do? What do you want to see? Where do you want to go? How do you want to feel?” Asking myself these questions always determines what restaurant I’m visiting, who I’m hanging out with, the next place I’m traveling to, or what activities or hobbies I’m going to do. When I ask myself how I want to feel, that determines what I want to look like. I explore different hairstyles and different fashion looks. You know what they say, ” when a woman looks good she feels good,” and that ain’t nothing but the truth!

I’ve learned to love myself, compliment myself, and feel secure about myself without needing it from a man. I’ve learned to go on solo dates and enjoy my own company without entertaining “some guy” all because I don’t want to go alone. I’ve learned to wine and dine myself, exposing myself to the finer things in life, so I won’t have to depend on a man to do it. I’ve learned to be content in my single season and enjoy it to the fullest. I trust that when it’s time, God will send that special someone.

Stay Saved and Single

I know you desire to be married someday, but I want to encourage you to wait on God. In most cases, casual dating leads to casualties, and many women let their guard down or compromise. If dating is going to cost your salvation, stay saved and single. If the person you’re dating is not leading you to God, they are leading you away from God, there is no in-between. Don’t try to dress it up, don’t make any excuses, just call a spade a spade and walk away from the relationship. You would rather inherit the kingdom as a single woman than be denied entry for living a disobedient life.

Also, remember, singlehood is a season and every season comes to an end. You may be single now, but if it’s God’s will for you to marry, you won’t be single forever. Enjoy this season because every season is from the Lord. Don’t be so caught up in your desire to marry that you miss what God wants you to have in your single season. Your single season is just as beautiful as your season of marriage.

With Love,

Mel

February 13, 2023 3 comments

Faith Lifestyle

Spiritual Habits you Need More of in 2023

by Mel January 17, 2023

written by Mel

When was the last time you gave your spiritual life an upgrade? We don’t always realize it, but we outgrow routines and disciplines when we’ve done something for so long. Maybe you’ve outgrown your daily devotional reading or praying for thirty minutes a day. Maybe you’ve outgrown only attending Sunday services or bible studies. Maybe you’ve outgrown the last revelation or the last spiritual experience you’ve had with God and you’re hungry for more. These spiritual disciplines will help upgrade your spiritual life, increase and fulfill your spiritual appetite, and stretch your capacity to retain more spiritual truths and revelations.

Before we get into spiritual habits, let’s talk about the signs that your spiritual life needs an upgrade.

Signs that you’re in Need of a Spiritual Upgrade

You spend time with God out of routine only
You no longer feel fulfilled
You’re not seeing any results in your life
You’re becoming bored with your routine
Your flesh is stronger than your spirit man
You have an inkling or feeling that there is more

Can you identify with either of these signs? Of course, there are more signs, but these are the top five that I’ve noticed personally and speaking with others. I’d like to also mention that you know yourself better than anyone else. You know when your spiritual life is declining. Pay attention to those signs and do something different to revive your spirit before you experience a spiritual death (the end of your pursuit of the things of God).

I always look for ways to upgrade my spiritual life! I love trying new things and stretching myself in the things of God. It helps me grow and it builds my spiritual stamina. So, I’ve put together a list of spiritual habits that will help you grow in 2023.

Spiritual Habits you Need More of in 2023

Pray early. Make it a habit to seek God early! We tend to be busy during the day and exhausted at night. Setting a prayer time before your day begins helps you spend uninterrupted time with God.
Actively listen to God. God is speaking, but we don’t always hear him because we’re talking. Make time to sit still after prayer or sit still during your prayer time to listen.
Call and pray for someone. Make it a habit to call and pray for a friend or loved one at least once a month. Intercession displays the heart of God while touching the heart of God’s children.
Exchange social media/web surfing time with reading the bible. We waste a lot of time on social media or the internet. We get lost in the scroll as we’re scrolling for hours, opening ourselves up to whatever our algorithm suggests to us. Instead of opening up your social media app, open your bible app instead.
Study the bible. Reading the bible and studying the bible are two different things. We read the bible without fully taking our time to understand what we’re reading. When you plan to study your bible, block out a designated time, bring a dictionary, concordance, and any study materials that will aid you in your studies.

If you start implementing these five habits in 2023, you’ll see significant changes in your spiritual life. As the saying goes, to get something you’ve never had, you have to do something you’ve never done. There’s another level waiting on you, but it’s going to take some changes to get there. You have to be willing to stretch yourself beyond the norm and comfort levels to obtain it.

January 17, 2023 1 comment