5 Tips to Being Battle Ready Guest Post with Kelly Balarie…{#GraceMoments Link Up}
One of the best parts of writing words about authentic faith and whole-hearted living is meeting people on the same journey, going the same direction, praying the same prayers. For years I have told my children that they need to be so far deep in their pursuit of Jesus that only when they recognize someone else is on the same path will they start to then know who they are meant to be walking beside. This of course is my gentle admonition to wait for the right person to share their life-journey with, but I think it is significantly true in many stages of our journey. Mostly, what I have told them is that prayer is the active tool in our pursuit of His goodness…the spark that kindles the flame of our faith…and the fuel that gives us the endurance to finish our race.
Kelly Balarie is one of those people. The one that is running hard after Jesus and longs to love others because she has known what it is like to be loved on by God. Truly… this lady loves God and because of it she loves others. She lives Matthew 12:30-31 out in real life and she shares it with us like a deposit of grace into our souls with this latest book, Battle Ready. Because that is the greatest part of knowing about His love… knowing that we are loved… knowing that we have the power and the tools and the wherewithal to access heaven and bring it down to earth… we have the permission to approach God and to ask for the wonder that comes with being loved by Him. Kelly believes that, too. That’s why she shares pieces of her own journey in this power-packed book that not only leads us into freedom from the burdens we allow to break us, but also teaches us how to speak right to the mountains in our lives with the power of His Word and the promise of His peace.
I am blessed to have her sharing words here this week…enjoy.
5 Tips to Being Battle Ready
By: Kelly Balarie
If a baby bird never moves out of the nest, she’ll never fly. If a toddler never takes that one inch forward, fearing falling, she’ll never walk. If a woman never takes a small step, she’ll continually stay, nowhere.
A small step out of move-out faith is mission-critical. Why? Faith brings to life what we cannot see, but desperately hope for.
Where do you stand on the faith-scale? 1-10? Do you see new life arising from your hopes, hunger, and hardships, or are you simply staying stuck, where you are?
You know, my life has lived as a big struggle. I’ve gone through an eating disorder, depression, a health scare that threatened to take my walking legs, financial debt struggles, heart-breaking, joy-stealing relational problems, companies going under and constant self-doubt. The list goes on-and-on…
Nearly everytime, in these situations, I thought: There’s no way out. This is impossible. I don’t know what to do. I am going under. I don’t have the (time, ability, resources or wisdom) to get through this. God won’t really be there for me; He’s got better things to do. I am stupid for letting this happen. No one understands. I’m all alone.
If faith is hope in what we cannot see, I’ve lived hopelessness. If it’s “impossible to please God without faith,” no wonder I felt so displeased with myself. If God says, “everything is possible for those who believe”, I suppose I haven’t believed.
The inclination here is to be angry at myself saying, You always mess up. You always fall short. You never do anything, right.
But this is not how God speaks to me. This is not being Battle Ready.
Instead, God restores me by saying, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.” (2 Cor. 12:9)
Knowing this prepares my mind to walk into fearlessness, boldness, and purpose.
God’s grace welcomes in new faith. This is a vital, because faith is our greatest battle weapon. It takes us places, it tames our trials and it forges us ahead, like doubt never can.
So, how do you walk out life-changing faith? Here are a couple tips from my vast arsenal of faith-building, doubt-reducing, and life-changing thought-strategies I’ve discovered on my many battlefields of hardship…
5 Small Steps To Building Battle Ready Faith
- Envision Jesus one step ahead of you. If you know God is at the place you’re afraid of, how much more can you trust He’s preparing it for your arrival?
- Hear in your mind, continually: God really cares for me. The more we believe God sees us, the more we’ll believe He’ll see us through.
- Taste His victory history. If you remember how you felt when God came through last time, you can almost taste him doing the same thing again. Let your mouth water for His “new thing.”
- Inhalethe reality, God is with you. Sure, there may be bumps in the boat. This doesn’t mean Jesus is sleeping. He’s fully aware of all your going through, the path He has you on, and your perfect escape with Him.
- Holda light schedule. If you clear way in your schedule, you’ll make room to experience God’s Word in such a way where it can begin to dwell in you.
Pick up your shield of faith. When the enemy throws an arrow at you, like a random email that makes you feel sad, a rejection from a friend that leaves you disappointed, remember: God is with you, for you and He is on your side. He is working out something in you and for you, that’s even better than you expected.
You can become battle ready and live victoriously. You can prepare in advance rather than emotionally responding and reacting to the hardships that you face. God will give you peace as you learn His wisdom and strategies.
Kelly Balarie, an author and national speaker, is on a mission to encourage others not to give up. Through times of extreme testing, Kelly believes there is hope for every woman, every battle and in every circumstance. She shares this hope on her blog, Purposeful Faith, and on many writing publications such as Relevant, Crosswalk, and Today’s Christian Woman. Kelly’s work has been featured on The Today Show, 700 Club Interactive, Moody Radio and other television and radio broadcasts. When Kelly is not writing, she is chilling at the beach with her husband, a latte, and 2-toddlers who rightfully demand she build them awesome castles.
About Battle Ready: Train Your Mind to Conquer Challenges, Defeat Doubt & Live Victoriously
“The best time to be strengthened against the Enemy’s tactics of doubt, disappointment, and devastation is before he makes his first move toward us. We all desperately need the biblical guidance and preparation found in Battle Ready!”
LysaTerKeurst, New York Times bestselling author and president of Proverbs 31 Ministries
Battle Ready is a hands-on scriptural plan that teaches you twelve easy-to-implement, confidence-building mind-sets designed to transform your thoughts and, therefore, your life. You’ll gain practical wisdom, like how to
· make new habits stick in just five steps
· disarm the seven most common attacks that plague women
· exchange self-limiting thoughts for purpose-driven, love-releasing thoughts
· implement thirty-second mind-lifters that deliver peace
· create boundaries so you live life full of what matters
Buy Battle Ready here: https://amzn.to/2l5qQrw
To get Battle Ready freebies – printables, devotional reminders, a customizable daily Battle Plan and the “Find Your Battle Style” quiz, visit:www.iambattleready.com
To order the companion Battle Ready Daily Prayer Journal that will help you practically change your thoughts, then your life, you can find it here.
IT’S YOUR TURN TO BE A GRACE COUNTER! SHARE YOUR GRACE MOMENT IN THE COMMENTS BELOW AND THEN COUNT GRACE WITH A FRIEND WITH COMMENT ON A BLOG OR TWO.
If you are a blogger, link up here with a post about finding grace moments in your life or one of your favorite inspiring and encouraging posts from this week. Share your thoughts in the comment section telling me about the #Grace Moments you experienced this week. *(only 1 post per link please)*
Take time to visit your neighbor next to you, and if you want visit a few more friends on the journey. We all need a little encouragement and affirmation as we travel together.
If you don’t have a blog, you can connect with me via my Journeys in Grace FB page by sharing a photo or a comment. Or you can join the party by sharing your images on Instagram with #Gracemoments hashtag.
Each week I will try visit as many of your amazing posts as I can.This is a safe place to sit and dwell in grace together, friends. I can’t wait to pour a cup of friendship with you and take in the grace moments you have to share. Don’t forget to leave a comment below, I love to hear from you.
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