Sunday Style

Hey everyone! Happy Sunday! I hope everyone has had a good week so far. My week has been extremely eventful and full of blessings. First I spent 4 days at Student Leadership University which was a amazing experience. I learned so much about what it means to be a servant of Christ and a leader of people (and I got to ride awesome roller coasters).  Then on Friday I turned 18! Yay! I think the coolest thing about turning 18 is looking at my life and being brought to tears because of how miraculous Jesus is and the amazing things He has done in my 18 years. All week I've had this scripture on my heart "Do not I fill heaven and earth?" declares the LORD. - Jeremiah 23:24. God is able to do more than we can imagine He is the giver of life and when we ask Him to fill us He does. God showed me this verse at the beginning of the week to show me how amazing He is and that the things I was getting ready to be experiencing were all by His power and grace. Which brings me to church today! I visited one of my best friends church today. I love visiting her church and today was so special. It was the last day of VBS for the kids and they put on skits and music for the whole church. The coolest thing though was seeing little kids passionately worship God and be filled with the Holy Spirit. It's amazing and breathtaking and Jesus is so awesome. So of course being at church with my friend we had to take some outfit pictures! Today I wore a dress I got from a website called clothingunder10.com it was $9.99! I know amazing. It's my favorite color and I loved the pleated skirt and loose back. It's my new favorite dress!  LaShonda wore a beautiful dress that she got at the thrift store!!! The cream colors, flower print, and waist belt are perfect. And she paired it with hot pink shoes that made the whole outfit pop.  I hope today's post inspires you to love Jesus and classy dressing!
~ Sofia

The Kingdom of God (lessons from women in the Bible)

Today I was reading in my study bible about the Kingdom of God and I looked at the side notes and it said something very interesting. "The kingdom of God is not for those who seldom pray or who compromise with the world, neglect the Word and have little spiritual hunger. It is for women like Deborah, Ruth, Esther, Mary, Anna, and Lydia." I'm familiar with some of these women but I decided to go ahead and study each of their stories individually. As I began to read each of their stories in the bible God placed these three words on my heart. Eagerness, Dedication and Offering. In each of these women lives there was an eagerness, dedication, and offering to and for God. They were all eager to have God's will be done, dedicated to Him and anything He gave for them to do, and offered there lives and worship to Him. Deborah was a prophetess, and judge of Israel (Judges 4:4). She was dedicated to judging and leading these people according to God. Her eagerness and authority came from God and He rewarded it. Ruth completely gave her self away to serve Naomi and Boaz, her selflessness and honoring lifestyle was an offering to God. Esther was eager "Go, gather together all the Jews who are in Susa, and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my maids will fast as you do. When this is done, I will go to the king even though it is against the law. And if I perish, I perish." (Esther 4:16) "If I perish, I perish." 'I and my maids will fast as you do." Wow! How I desire to have a eagerness like hers. She completely laid herself down for the benefit of others. She didn't parish, her eagerness and dedication was rewarded greatly by God. Mary, the mother of Jesus "I am the Lord's servant," Mary answered. "May it be to me as you have said." (Luke 1:38). She gave the offering of herself to the service of God. Anna was a prophetess and "she never left the temple but worshiped night and day fasting and praying." (Luke 2:37) Her life was an offering to God. She was dedicated to seeking Him and eager for His presence and Word. Lydia was a "worshiper of God" (Acts 16:14). Her worship gave her an open heart and allowed God to move in her and her families life (she and the members of her household were baptized ~ Acts 16:15). So you see all of these women have something in common. That is there eagerness, dedication, and offering to and for God. These women were seeking after God's will and heart. There lives were His. As I began to understand these things I realize that my life is not my own. Our lives should be full of eagerness, dedication, and offering to God. We should be eager for God's will and presence, dedicated to His word, prayer, and continually offer ourselves in worship, and in life. This isn't something we can accomplish on our own but something that can only take place trough the working of The Holy Spirit in our lives and through encountering the precious and mighty love of Jesus. It is a daily thing not just  a one time event. I want to see God's power manifested here, I want to see people healed, changed, miracles taken place, chains broken, evil spirits crushed. I hunger and thirst for Jesus. And here is the encouraging thing for all of us who hunger and thirst for the same things, God has promised that we will be filled "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled." (Matthew 5:6) Let these women of God be an example to all of us that eagerness, dedication, and offering that is pure and to God will manifest the kingdom of God here and as we do these things through Christ our lives and others will be greatly changed forever. ~Love Sofia




            

Hi everyone! Happy Sunday and Happy Father's Day!!! Today was such a blessed day with an awesome church service and a beautiful time spent with my dad and siblings. Today I wore my new pencil skirt that I got from Target (I'm obsessed with Target). It was only $11! I love pencil skirts, they have such a modest coverage and are super comfortable.  I paired it with a loose fitted top I got from Marshall's. The leather sleeves give the top an edge and I love it! My favorite part of these shoes are the ankle straps i think they give them such a polished and classy finish. Hope you guys enjoy today's outfit post as much as I do and Happy Father's Day to all of the wonderful Dad's including mine who has been the biggest supporter, friend, spiritual mentor, and everything in between. Love you dad!

No More Buts

Hey everyone! So today I was reading  in the book of John chapter 11 where Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead, and it spoke to my heart in a way that it hasn't before. I've known the story of Lazarus for as long as I can remember and any time I think about it or read it I think "wow Jesus is amazing." Today I thought the same thing but I paid closer attention to the words and through the Holy Spirit got some revelation. When Jesus goes to the tomb of Lazarus he stands in front and says "Take away the stone." John 11:39 When Jesus asks of this to be done Lazarus' sister Martha hesitates and says "But, Lord," said Martha,....."by this time there is a bad odor, for he has been there four days." (V 39). "But, Lord." Isn't that a phrase we use so many times? "But, Lord I don't like her, But Lord, I'm not able, But, Lord, I don't have enough money, time, patience, But, Lord, it's not possible, But Lord I'm sick or unworthy. But, Lord. Sometimes we can continuously keep saying but to God. But this, but that. The thing is though is that we don't serve a God of " buts" we serve a God of "it is finished." You see after Martha said "But Lord." Jesus said "Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God." (V 40). How powerful that declaration is!! Our God is not limited. He is not disabled by the things of this world. Our situations can seem impossible, they can stink like Lazarus' tomb. But that doesn't hinder the power of God. It doesn't hinder His glory being revealed! You see what He did with Lazarus stinky situation, He cleaned it up and brought Him back to life! Literally! The same God that brought Lazarus back is the same God living inside each and everyone one of us who have received Him. He's the same God working miracles and moving mountains in our lives. If your finding yourself saying "But, Lord," stop and remember a few things. God is not incapable, He can and will work everything together for your good. God is not hindered by your, what may seem to be impossible circumstances, deny yourself, your feelings, and your "impossible" situation and speak life. Allow God to take control and the enemy will be defeated. Most importantly remember what Jesus said "if you believed, you would see the glory of God." I'm a testimony that this is so true. There have been times when I wanted to give up and when I would question and say "But, Lord, I'm not ready, But, Lord, is this real?" But I stopped those thoughts and as I began to believe I have found myself experiencing God's glory like never before. So let's stop saying "But, Lord," and let's start saying "Yes, Lord."  He is able.
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Philippians 4:13

Hey everyone! Happy Wednesday. I hope everyone has had a good week so far. I posted my first vlog a few days ago and it was really exciting. The response was great and I can't wait to do more! So stay tuned for those :) Today's post is about my outfit that I wore on this past Sunday. I got this skirt from Target a few weeks ago for $8!!! I was so excited about that. I love flower print and the way these bright flowers looked against the white background of the skirts is perfect! I also love the high waist fit. High wasted skirts are my favorite. I paired it with a lace top that I've had for years and nude wedges. I didn't really dress it up with jewelry. I thought that the skirt was a statement enough and didn't really need anything extra. The skirt was also super comfortable I'll definitely have to invest in more just like it. If you wanted to dress up a skirt even more that's just like this one you could wear a brighter shirt that's a solid color that would bring out the colors of the flower seven more.
  ~Love Sofia

Heart of Worship Vlog.

Hey guys! So this is my first vlog and I'm so excited about it! Hopefully there will be more to come. Check it out and let me know what you think! God is so amazing and I am so thankful to Him for giving me an amazing best friend who can put together cool videos like this. thank you Courtney!! Fashionably Faithful Vlog: Heart of Worship:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pa8nr-90Ua0

Hi everyone! Happy Thursday. I hope everyone has had a good week so far. It's been a long week but one full of a lot of blessings. This week I've really just felt so thankful to God for the inner beauty that comes from knowing Him. I love to dress up, do my hair, nails, makeup and all of those things. I'm a major girly girl, but one thing that I know is that all of the beauty and dress up on the outside doesn't matter if you don't have that beauty coming from within. As we seek Jesus and allow Him to shine through us He will radiate a beauty from us that goes way further than the surface. Be confident in who you are and don't let your looks determine your value let Jesus do that and you will find your worth is endless. "Those who look to Him are radiant : their faces are never covered with shame." ~ Psalm 34:5

I love today's outfit for two reasons. 1. It's super comfortable (and cute). 2. It was all $6. I got the skirt at the thrift store for $1! It was really big and I wanted to make it high wasted so I whipped out my sewing machine and brought it in some to make it more fitted. Sewing machines are miracles. I got the top on sale at Target for $4! I love the pleats in both of the fabrics and the clashing watercolors in the maxi skirt. I felt like a boho princess. My recommendation is if you haven't been to the thrift store go! Don't let used clothes freak you out. And Target's sale rack is lovely,I always find something.Hope you guys are encouraged and inspired by today's post!~LoveSofia.

Sunday Stripes

Hey everyone I hope you all had a blessed and happy Sunday. I got to spend the day with my family and have my best friend come to my church with me! Another great part of my day besides an amazing church service was getting to wear this new dress. I got it on sale at Target for $11!!!  The sleeves, the fit, the length and the stripes, it's all just fabulous. I also love that it is really lightweight because it's not to hot to wear in this awful Summer heat. It's not too tight and not too loose and not too short. I love the modesty and classiness of it. Modest dresses are always the best :)  I decided to dress it down with wearing flats but if I wanted to dress it up more it's the perfect dress for heels. Overall this dress was an awesome find and I  can't wait to wear it again. Hope you all have a great week! Love, Sofia.