Redemption...

Today Marked my Second Sunday Going to Church.

There were certain aspects about this weekend that were hard for me.

You know how you know in your heart you shouldn’t do something, but it’s just so hard NOT to do it?

I face that all the time!

Christians call that “denying your flesh.”

I face those moments where I have to tell myself “NO” and that is not first nature for me to deny myself of something I REALLY want at the time.

I am used to indulging and thinking about the consequences later.

The issue with that is if you are sincerely trying to change, indulgences lead to a pattern of behavior.

And once you adapt to a pattern behavior, it’s hard to do the opposite.

Plus, it’s hard for me not to reach for what’s available because of a fear that nothing else will come along.

…That things won’t get better, so why even TRY to change.

Today in church we learned about the impact of Jesus’s act of redemption on our behalf.

“He was wounded for our transgressions

He was bruised for our iniquities

The chastisement of our peace was upon him

And by his stripes we are healed.”

-Isaiah 53:5

That last line is one thing the pastor REALLY touched on.

He focused on the fact that when Jesus was whipped on his back for us,

 He did so, so that we could be healed…Not just from sickness and ailments, but internal hurts as well…

Hurt caused by others…

And hurt caused by ourselves.

He also touched on the fact that Christianity is the only religion where God takes on our suffering and offers us redemption in return.

In other religions if you do, this, & this, & this; then you are redeemed or become a better version of yourself.

Of course you have to have Faith and act on that Faith when you are a Christian.

But God offers His forgiveness for FREE.

He offers His grace for FREE.

He offers His love for FREE.

You don’t even have to do anything to deserve it or earn it.

It felt good to be reminded of that.

But if you want CHANGE, just like in any other area of your life, you have to make steps to make change happen.

And if you believe He will, God will help you to change.

Before I stepped out this morning, I snapped some pics.

I felt like my last shoot was very BLAH and I wanted to put up some better pics…

Yes, they are back on my patio…but to me they came out beautiful.

I bought this dress a few years back to attend a function my friend hosted for her mom.

I wanted something slimming & versatile that I could use accessories to make pop…

A blank canvas, so to speak.

This dress was perfect.

I did notice a little wear in the knit fabric, but I still love this dress.

And the brown accessories were a welcomed addition to this outfit.

Before today, I thought black and brown looked sort of cheesy together…like the colors clashed or something.

After seeing the blogs of a few fashionitas that I frequent, I found this to be so not true.

So, I came up with this look after playing around in my clothes one weekend.

I was going to wear another dress today, but I thought the blue polish would pop out against the dark color combo.

I felt fabulous!

[Even though the cage detail on the shoes were KILLING my feet by the end of service]

And my Hair…

Effortless.

I finger-combed the front to pull it back off my face and retouched some of the curls in the back.

I’ve been “sleeping pretty” to maintain my style and I don’t know what I’m gonna do when I start back working out…DANG!

Black Wrap Dress: AGX (a plus sized-clothing store)

Earrings and Necklace Set: Melrose (an urban clothing store)

Metallic Brown Peep-toe Heels: Charlotte Russe

Brown Metal-Rimmed Shades: The Avenue (plus-sized store)

Faux Louie Handbag: Sam Moon (accessory warehouse store)