Queen Jen's Gems

24 hours. That's how much time we are all given in a day. I know sometimes it doesn't feel like it's that much time! About 7 or 8 of those hours should be spent sleeping. Another 7-8 hours are spent at work or school. What about the rest of the hours though? How are you using that time? Watching television, on social media, cooking, spending time with family or outdoors? Each day we live to see is special and should not be taken for granted. The way we use our time is important. Seeing and talking to the people we see every day is important. We should take advantage of having conversation with others as much as possible. We never know if this will be the last conversation we will have with them. Once the opportunity is gone, we may not be able to get that opportunity back again. Once a day is gone, we can't get that day back again. At some point of our day, we need to take an opportunity to rest and relax. We need to get those moments while we can, so we can be refreshe...

Have you ever watched or played in a game where one team was way behind the other team in points? It didn't look good for the losing team! But, then all of a sudden, points on the losing team's side of the scoreboard start to go up and up. Before you know it, they have caught up with the other team in points or even passed them. That didn't just happen randomly. The team had to come up with a plan. They had to take time outs and regroup. They had to start working harder and better together. Perhaps they had lost the last game and didn't want another defeat. Perhaps they were tired of being down. Perhaps they started to see possibilities and not problems. Just when the spectators in the crowd thought the other team had sealed the deal, here comes the other team making a comeback! That's how it has to be in our lives. I know some situations look like a total loss with no hope left. I know there are goals and dreams that you have that look like they will never be accom...

When we're in the midst of something, we're in the middle of it. We're surrounded by it. In our world, we are surrounded by news and social media at every turn. We are surrounded by the pandemic and panic it has brought. Even though that's what we're surrounded by, we can still have the right attitude while going through. Yes, it has affected all of our lives in some way. Yes, we need to acknowledge what's happening. But, we also need to know we can get through it. We can have the right attitude when we know that God surrounds us. While we see what's surrounding us globally and as a nation, what about our personal lives? I want us to take a minute and evaluate and look at ourselves. What have we been surrounding ourselves with? What has become bigger than God in our lives? Is it negativity? Drama? Unhealthy relationships? Unhealthy habits? Comparing ourselves with others? Past mistakes God has already forgiven us for?  In Zephaniah 3:17, it talks about how o...

Have you ever seen confetti or thrown confetti around? Confetti are small pieces of colored paper that are usually scattered during special occasions. It goes everywhere and sticks on everything. The pieces of colored paper are usually shiny and noticeable. Kindness should be the same way. Kindness should be noticeable and shown to everyone regardless of their race or background. How one looks on the outside shouldn't determine how we treat them. Ephesians 4:32 says, "And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you." While we might wait for a special occasion to throw the confetti, we don't need a special occasion to be kind. We should be kind to all people at all times. Being kind means being warm-hearted, willing to listen, sympathetic and understanding. Being kind means using good manners- "Thank you," "You're welcome," "Please," and "Excuse me." These words seem to be...