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Thursday, August 3, 2017

A Willing Follower of Christ

You know when you have a personal trainer, and you love/hate them because they are causing you to do things that are painful, but you KNOW they are helping you? Why is it that we want to deny that God (and this is according to His own words) wounds us, and heals us. We go to surgeons and have them cut us open (wound us) and let them sew us up, but we want to pretend that God would never, effectually cut us open, fix what is wrong and heal us up. We let a surgeon cut and sew, but we think God should be strictly for comfort and condolence.
Yes, there is a difference between a wound we cause by sin or one caused by sins against us. But, if we believe the scripture is God's word, we must admit that God DOES wound us, AND that he heals us.
I know I have been wounded by God, it is not always easy and comforting to hear his words, many times they sear through us, dividing our errors and fallacies from truth. There are wounds, we feel like we have been cut open and chunks cut out and we want to turn from HIm. But if we stay, if we turn INTO Him, we are healed, and we find that the missing chunks were never part of who we really are.....we were just very used to them.
We cling to our sins, our justifications, our will....but God often takes from us the very things we think elevate us, and reminds us that He is God. It's never for the sake of boasting, but because without relying on Him, there is no hope for us.
He wounds, and he heals, he kills and makes alive, and NO-ONE can take us from Him (except we choose to leave), and no-one can escape His judgements. But in the end, all will be revealed and when it is, we will all know that His was the right way.
I WANT Him to kill in me what is killing me, I want Him to heal in me what is sick-whether in sin or pain. I want Him to make me truly alive. I want Him to cling to me with all of HIS strength, because -as strong as I am- it is HIS strength that will carry my through this life and into His arms in the next.

Monday, July 17, 2017

Too Afraid to Live


When fear is your master, life is your prison.


Fear doesn't have to be the enemy, fear becomes the servant when you face it with truth and courage. So many of us live our lives either in the clutches of fear or in avoidance of it. The fear will come, become it's master and your progress is accelerated, avoid it and it is still YOUR master. Every time you face fear with the truth you grow stronger, more clear. FEAR can be your Servant instead of your enemy or your master.

Courage has the power to overcome fear, because courage comes from love.


Liz King Bradley

Sunday, July 16, 2017

In His Grace Confidence, for Life and Relationships

I have a grandfather, who is now departed, who taught me about in-His-grace confidence. He was a quiet man, and never said much about grace or confidence. I learned it from being in his presence. He never said much about what he believed, but you KNEW what he believed.

There is a deep and stabilizing power in a person who is founding their life in God. When you are in the presence of such a person, you may not be able to articulate what it is about them, but you feel comfortable with them and somehow see yourself better in their eyes. As they talk with you, the only discomfort is the realization that they see who you are and you are far more than you thought you were. However, the discomfort is overcome simultaneously by their easy love and acceptance.

These people are able to give such love because they have first obtained it. They not only know it and feel it, it is in them; part of them, it comes to us through them, but not from them. They have become purer conduits for God's love.

How? I think this is something we overcomplicate. They finally decide to accept the fulfillment of God's Word, let go of preconceived expectations, and let the Light dissolve the darkness. They chose to trust that God is in their life, guiding their steps, supporting their best interests, and making up for what they couldn't do, be , or overcome on their own. They let go of the need to "do it myself", "make it work", and learn to "do it in Him", and LET Him work.

I think that we get so consumed in being busy and working hard that we forget to calmly take steps and trust in His outcome. We can never accept that we are enough until we have checked everything off the social/religious checklist of the "perfect"...whatever. God can tell us it's enough, and we accept it only until we get on FaceBook and see what all the other people are doing...suddenly our "enough" seems NOT enough.

The In His Grace Confidence comes from allowing God to make us enough and LETTING our ENOUGHNESS flow from us. We can't help but spread goodness and truth when we have fully accepted it, but as long as we are seeking it in desperation we are pushing it away. (Think of the person in the water flailing around desperately who keeps the help they need away in their fear of not being safe.)

I loved this video today and thought it was a great bridge to In His Grace Confidence. :) (it won't embed, you have to go to the page...sorry)



Liz King Bradley

Resurrection and Rebirth

This is one of my favorite topics.  When we talk about the word resurrection, we usually think of the scriptural references to the resurrection of the body after death, the reunification of spirit and body.  Yet the power of resurrection is not limited to the resurrection from physical death.  Each of us have experienced a death of something possibly as difficult than physical death.  We have experienced the death of hopes, dreams, desires, relationships, etc.  

*Christ has said that if we come to him, he will heal us and that all things are possible for him.  


The death of our hopes and dreams comes not because the realization has become impossible, but because we believe them to have become so.    We stop turning to God for solutions, and instead seek consolation, and I believe that there are times He gives us what we ask for instead of what He could give us if we had the courage to seek it.  


Yet, when that flame of hope, love, faith, etc. has gone out, we still need a spark to relight it.  The fuel of possibilities is still there, but the light has gone out.....sometimes the fuel is burned up too and we need a total refill or recharge.  But most often what we need is that flicker or glimmer of hope that we get as we remember and are grateful for the many blessings we already have. As we remember these blessings space is created for the Savior to come in and resurrect our joy, and even to enlarge our capacity for it.

Friday, May 19, 2017

What is THE hardest Pit to Get out of?

Without a doubt the WORSTE predicament I have ever found myself in is SELF PITty.  It is that place where everything in life is happening to me, I am simply coping with what has come instead of actively using my ability and gift to chose to create things in my life.  It is that place where I am such a "good sport".  I can really "make due".  I am "doing my best with the hand I've been given".  There is a big difference between "I am using all the resources I posses to create the resources I lack and to further create what I want." and "Well, I just have to do the best with what I've got."  as if what I've got has nothing to do with my own choices, as if I have not choice or power to do something else.

  The idea of making the best of what I have is a GREAT place to start, it's WAY better than the idea that since I believe all my issues were thrust upon me I will do nothing to create a solution. Yet, it is a serious trap.  Isn't that what it really means to believe we are prewired genetically, and there is no epigenetic solution?

If I were only a body, that could be true, but since I am a spirit within a body, I have epigenetic control.  I don't have to be a slave to my biology.  That's why it matters that I am a daughter of God.  It means I have choices and I'm not stuck with all the hands I've been dealt.  Obviously, I do not know how to grow new limbs, etc.  But when it comes to many physical issues, I have a lot more control, just my making better choices for myself.


God has the keys that unlock the power to change my life. He uses them in my behalf, I have to ask, seek them out, and walk through the doors when He opens them.

Thursday, May 4, 2017

-Healing: It’s Not ONLY About Desire, It’s About Faith



Have you ever felt like....you didn't get an answer to prayer that you really needed? You felt like you should have gotten the answer, because the DESIRE was real? But God's requirement is not desire, but intent. Intent is what you are going to do with what you learn, if the answer He has for you requires you to do something you are not willing to do, you might not get the answer, not because He is not willing, but because you are not willing.


Healing is similar, healing requires more than desire, it requires faith. Faith means, whatever you have to do to get the healing, whatever God tells you, including just let go of the boundaries you've put on God's ability to heal, you'll do trusting that God will do for you what you cannot. Sometimes, getting healing means feeding faith and identifying the barriers that WE have put on healing that really have no relevance to what God can and WANTS to do.


The desire is necessary, it is part of the agency God doesn't violate. We need to identify the ways we are actually holding onto our weaknesses, pain, sickness, anger, etc. What are we using those things to excuse? (I may have mentioned this before.) But still, desire isn't enough. We need faith. What blocks us from getting the healing we want, we need, and God wants us to have?


Here's what I've found in me and in others I work with:


*I believe my sickness -or whatever you want to name it- is making me special, important, valued, remembered, etc.


*I believe I can only rest if I am sick in some way.


*I believe God can only heal me as far and as much as science, medicine, my psychologist, friends, etc. says I can.


*I have lived with it so long, I am afraid to live without it.


*I have made it my identity.


*I use it to excuse living courageously, passionately, or fully. I use it so I don't have to grow or to do hard things.


Accessing faith for healing often means getting to a level of amazing honesty that many have never It means feeding faith through immersing ourselves in the truth of the Gospel (the GOOD NEWS), and the reasons we CAN heal. It means that we sometimes do not believe in Christ as we think or say we do. It means coming to the place where we say "Lord, help THOU my unbelief". When miracles cease, it is because faith has ceased or because of wickedness. Biblical accounts of divinely ordained illness specified that it was SO they can be healed as a witness to the glory and power of God. (some examples)


Submitting to God's will often makes healing possible, it's the state of being that is most helpful to healing. Submitting to God is the state of being where we have let go of our own ideas about how it "ought" to be. There is a difference between assuming that YOUR illness, hardship, pain, etc. is God's will and finding out that it is. There is a difference between submitting to God and submitting to "illness". There are bitter cups that we have to drink, but those serve a purpose, they help us or others, they are not meant to be consignment to misery, a life sentence to suffering. Jesus suffered that we might not. His cross is not the suffering, but what that cross did, what it gave to us and taking it up means to take it to others and to deny ourselves of all ungodliness, only suffering for Christ's sake ....not for illness' not to suffer for the sake of suffering's sake.


In my own experience I have had things God healed directly, with no intermediate helper, and things He said I had to get healing from through other people's help and the skills He'd lead them to develop, like doctors, surgeon's, therapists. But if my trust had been in them, the healing could only go as far as those skills could take me, and with God's help I have been able to surpass it. My story includes a hysterectomy at 27 to remove a completely dead and prolapsed uterus AND a thriving happy sexlife with my husband having received the healing from sexual trauma that makes deep, loving connection possible despite sexual abuse. Interestingly, the "experts" and specialists in psychology said healing was impossible, but coping was available. In the case of my surgery, there were other issues besides my uterus that were healed and helped and further surgery was prevented. My healing in all these cases came from God, though at times it came through other people with training and skills God didn't bless me with or lead me to develop.


There were so many things I learned about trusting God and about who I really am, what defines me by NOT being healed without medical help. I learned that when I pray for it, God can get through to medical minds, any mind, the things they need in order to go the right direction for highest good. I learned that my ability to have children, though the most enriching part of my life, did not define me. I learned that my ability to "push through things" didn't define me or make me valuable, and worthwhile as a human being. I learned that singing didn't make me valuable, important, worthy, etc. I learned my value is inherent because I am God's daughter and Jesus Christ died for me. I learned that who I am is so much deeper than what I could or could not do for myself or others. I also learned that releasing emotional trauma released physical damage and sickness too, but most importantly I learned to be fully in tuned to God and His will for me, and that it ALWAYS works out better than my own plans.


Healing, the ability to heal and the purpose of it is not something any other person can define for you or tell you the limits of, it is a deeply personal intelligence between you and God, but DON'T give up!!!! Don't let it go! Don't SETTLE. (see my FB rant here) Submit to God, but not to "illness". Do what God says and trust Him. You may need a combination of science and spirit to heal. You may need to abstain from chemicals and cling to the promises given us based on our faith in order to heal. You may need psychologists and energy therapists. You may need any combination of things to assist you, or nothing but you and God! My invitation to you is: KEEP Hope, KEEP Faith, KEEP Trust, KEEP God and His promises, never settle or give up. Submit to God, not to limits.

Am I a Failure?



A Failure is someone who fails....so, I guess I am a failure. The good news is not that we are NOT failures but that God already planned for the times we'd fail. As a mom, I find two polar opposite reactions to my struggles. I find that people either want to criticize my parenting or they want to tell me that whatever I do is okay. The problem is that the criticism rarely comes with any real investigation into what I have actually done when they weren't watching and the justification goes against my knowledge of right and wrong. When you are SCREAMING at a toddler for doing a normal toddler thing, you are failing. When you slap your teenager, you are failing. When you are swearing at your kids you are failing. When you are too anxious to do things you feel you should, you are failing. I am a failure. I have done all of those things. But I'm not giving in and I'm not giving up.
The good news is that I am not judged by God on a permanent basis for what I am right now, but on what I am becoming and to what degree I trust Him and turn to Him in my failures.


I guess I am not all one thing, I want to be all good and all success, but I am not. The truth is that life is sometimes hard and sometimes I don't step up to it. I believe there is always a way to do it better, especially when you are failing. I don't need to believe that it was the only thing I could do or that it was even my best, I just need to know that I can change, be changed, and be forgiven. Experiencing failure is inevitable, remaining a failure is a choice.


Love for God and my family urges me to be better everyday. God's love for me makes it possible. Jesus sacrifice makes it attainable. The only way to fail permanently is to give up, and I get to make choices about that.

Don't you give up either!


Can *I* be Healed?



For over a year, since I had my breakdown (did you know that? It was in December of 2014) I have struggled and felt my very being was under attack. I've known for a long time that the thoughts and beliefs in my heart and mind cause me more pain than anything anyone could say or do to me. When the data that surfaces is the loathing you have for yourself, underneath all the positive affirmations, when you come to grips with the reality that YOU are your biggest threat....it's (well at least for me) crushing. I was never lieing to myself or to others, I did love myself...the parts I was conscious of..or I believed I did.


When it comes to a point where you realize that your ralationships are broken, all the ones that mean most because YOU are broken It’s..HARD… There can be shame associated with that idea, but really, that realization is the birthplace of the healing that you need. No one seeks The Healer until they recognise they need Him and what for. Coming to the end of your hope, the end of your personal ability to change is -sometimes- the only way to find The Healer. He is there all along, but it seems, we sometimes don't open our eyes until we are at the end of our understanding and when all our “tools" have seemed to fail. Love of self is important, but love of God is vital.


The tools I used before that time are and were effective for accessing His grace, the love that surrounds me, but when my little crack became a rift with added pressure of grief and single/married motherhood of teens.....the tools were trite patronizing answers to a fathomless pit of questions and despair. I felt as if my soul had been ripped apart and the very fabric of my eternal being was decimated. It wasn't really because my mother died, it was because I was already dying and in the moment I should have turned to God most, I turned my heart against Him....much like a child that doesn't get their way, I threw a tantrum.


I didn't dare to hope. You see, a religious conference talk that seemed to give so many people peace, really ripped my hope apart. As I listened to a man who I believe speaks as a mouthpiece for God, I heard a limited God, a limited promise, a limited Saviour. My emotional and spiritual life has been saved time and again by holding to the promise of scriptures that assure God's strength, power and desire to help me, and this talk seemed to me to say "You'll just have to tough it out until the next life...." I am not claiming that what I heard was the intended message of the speaker.



So, I'll be honest, if my only option in this life is to suffer through it, I'll take death...today. In the excruciating moments of torture of mind and soul, it is the promise of healing and comfort IN THIS LIFE that have kept me from the unthinkable. It has been devastating to me that when I have born a witness of that promise, I have been met with the hatred and judgement of people who told me that because of that conference talk I was apostate, or "unChristlike", judgemental, hateful, uncompassionate, etc. But really, having been in that deep despair, having been to the edge of the cliff of suicide, I know the forces that pull over the edge and the ones that bring back. The force that pulls to the cliff is the belief there is no way out except in death. The promise of Christ's Grace, of His love and healing, His sustaining power and influence in my life pulls me from the despair of pain and grief. I have healed from things my Christian psychologist said I could only hope to cope with. I have overcome things that many believe to be permanently damaging, I have been able to help others through their despair and grief too.


I have some things in my life that God chose not to heal. I had a hysterectomy instead of being healed. I understand that sometimes the healing comes in a direct way and sometimes in a way less appealing or pleasing. I had that hysterectomy after an answer from God that it was the path He wanted me to take. I am not adverse to going the medical route for healing, but I would have lost more than my uterus and more than my mind if I had not learned early on to seek healing and guidance from God. For those who need healing and hope, who are facing that despair of depression, anxiety, shame the answer may be a path through medical science and psychology, but the guidance of the Holy Ghost and the power of The Healer (Jesus Christ) is what will make the difference between the darkness overcoming you and the light of Christ enlivening you.


There is no compassion or Charity in validating an illness rather than validating a person. There is no kindness in reaffirming permanent brokenness rather than extending hope for healing. One thing I know for sure is that a person who gives up on healing gets less of it than the person who holds onto the hope for it. I’d rather extend a voice of hope than reaffirm the voice of fear and despair.


Jesus said over and over that with faith we could do all things, that even mountains could move, depression is a mountain, surely He can move it, anxiety is a mountain, surely He can move it. Pain is a mountain, He can move it. When He ministered on the earth, the record shows that He healed all that came to him with willingness and faith. Learning to assess to truth of my faith helped me to accept more healing into my life. Learning to recognize my lack of faith was the preparation I needed to put my heart and ind to strengthening my faith through prayer and study of scripture. So this is my witness: Jesus Lives and because He lives there is hope. He lives and because He lives there is healing. He took upon himself our sin and our anguish that we might not suffer if we turn to Him. He loves each of us just as much as He loved those He came into contact with in His ministry on earth and His power to heal has not diminished in as much as He is infinite and eternal as is His sacrifice and victory. In Him I trust. In Him I place my faith and my life. To Him I give my heart and all my pain, in Him I am healed.

Christ is the Way


There is a LIGHT in each of us, Re-ignite your SPARK!


>>> It' time to make changes that will make your life happy, fulfilling, and rewarding. It's time to learn how to find joy in any circumstance. It's time to break free!


I believe:

There is a God. In His hands we are powerful. He loves me, and everyone else. I am a messenger, He is the healer. He is the light, I am a torch. I am responsible for the life and all of the gifts He gave me. I am accountable for my life. I am a powerful creator in my own life as I follow God. Forgiveness is liberating. Change is beautiful. God can do for me what I cannot do for myself. I organize my life from my deepest beliefs and out of that comes my results. I chose to believe that God is working in life for my best good. The way I feel about what others say about me reflects my own beliefs back to me. When I am angry it is about me, not another person. A challenge is a great opportunity for growth. Everyone has a purpose for living.


My intention:

My intention is to show up as my whole self. When we coach together, there's something important for you to know: I will try always to focus on you. That means that when you start talking about another person I will turn the conversation back to you. We are going to work together most powerfully as we focus on the only people we can change: OURSELVES!

Through the principles and practices I apply with you, I've been able to recover from abuse, low self esteem, anxiety, suicidal thoughts, and emotional divorce. I have successfully helped others to do the same. Gratitude, Forgiveness, Love, Trust, and Acceptance are some of the tools I can teach you how to reclaim and how to use. Learn how to use the tools you were born with to overcome the problems you're hampered with.


True Power:

The day I decided to forgive myself and others for all mistakes of the past, present, or future was one of the most liberating of my life. EVERYTHING we have experienced in life IS for our best interest and will be to our great benefit if we shed the blinders of guilt, blame, resentment, and shame. The only thing holding us back from living free and full lives is our own beliefs.


Why It Works:


I believe that whether healing comes directly through prayer or through any type of practitioner it coms from Christ. Because of Christ all of us can be free of pain, because of Christ all of us can know and fulfill the purpose for our being, because of Christ ALL our wounds can heal. I’d like to help you clear out the “something” in your way, and help you access more of His healing, light, and guidance.

The Most Loving Mothers

The most loving mothers in the world....

INSIST kids do chores

because doing it themselves is easier, but teaching kids empowers them and builds within them the pattern of creation: taking chaos and bringing order.


...and because when life smacks you down and you feel like a failure, being able to return to the basic things and accomplish something reminds you that YOU CAN. (Conquering small things like cleaning the toilet, organizing a room, etc. can remind you your not the worthless piece of trash you feel like when something like unemployment or other major set backs occur. While being unable to do simple things without someone telling you step by step how to do them can lead to feeling utterly useless...feeling confident in basic skills can set the foundation for building complex ones that help you navigate adult life with competence and certainty.)


AND they are not just happy with whatever kids do, they do quality control because they believe in their BEST even when they want to do their least. They may say it kindly, but they will say "Go back and make it shine!" <3


Why are mom's with high expectations the greatest blessing there is?


Because moms' with high expectations are constantly saying "You are more than you think you are and I want to help you manifest your fullness, your greatness."


It's never been high expectations that have robed us of joy, only our lack of mercy when we fall short. High expectations + determination and mercy = The GREATEST Possible Fulfillment. Whereas low expectations + excuses = mediocrity, depression and unfulfillment...to say nothing of a predisposition toward addiction as they seek to fill the void left by the unmet potential.


I think the greatest thing we can do for our kids when they tell us their least is their best is remind them that they are more than they think they are by insisting they take it a step up. Is it really compassion to believe a persons excuse for failure? Or is that really just another way of saying "You're right, you're impotent and cannot possibly be expected to succeed."


Isn't it more empowering and LOVING to insist our children keep moving forward and not buy into their feelings of being less adequate?


Liz King Bradley

Lightening Our Burdens



I let go of the idea, years ago, that in oder to be beautiful I had to be skinny. I let go of the idea that in order to be lovable I had to weight a certain small weight. I let go of the idea that my happiness depended on a low weight. But the truth is that the exa weight I carry is an unnecessary and heavy burden on my organs. It is a form of self hatred and punishment to carry extra weight. It is a form of self muzzling to stuff emotions, feelings, thoughts, etc. with food. In some ways eating in ways that cause weight gain or the retention of extra weight are a slow suicide. No one needs to be thin to be loved, but removing excess weight is a LIBERATING form of self love and self respect.


One thing that has surprised me is the amount of things I had forgotten that I used to do before I was too heavy. I know that I could have more joy in my life and be a greater support to my family's joy if I shed the extra weight I am carrying. I also know that it will be a great blessing to myself..just to be free of the extra, unneeded mass.


I love the term, "releasing weight" or "releasing mass". I own the weight I carry right now, but I am re-leasing it to God. I am signing it over to Him. and now, my job is to be open to what He says is the best way for me to reclaim a healthy body and keep my thoughts and feelings clear of beliefs that will keep me from letting God empower me in this endeavor.


With that goal in mind I have created this audio of beliefs to integrate into myself to help me allow the weight and mass to leave me and embrace the joy and freedom of my healthy body.



If you want help tuning your mind, thoughts, feelings, and emotions into your success and freeing up your body for more activities, more joys and more possibilities, enjoy the following MP3!


Weight and Mass Re-Lease Declarations (Email rob_lizbradley@hotmail.com for the link)


Liz King Bradley

Money is One of God's Blessings

The love of money is the root of many evils, but the reverence for it as a gift from God is the key accepting it into your life. Gratitude to God for it is as important as gratitude for everything else He's blessed us with. But when we want money, don't we really want what money can provide?  The sentence to complete may be "I want money so I can........" If we look at the real goal that we want that is behind money it may be easier to recognize if/when God sends those blessings in some other way.


The ideas we have about money determine if and how much we allow of it into our lives. If we think we don't deserve it or think it is bad we will reject it on a continual basis and believe we are righteous for doing so. Yet, money, of itself is only a tool and throughout the bible there are stories of how God blessed his servants with richness, Job, Abraham, Israel as a nation.


Loving money as a gift from God is called : gratitude. If you are struggling with money, or success in business and life, consider the idea that you might be missing opportunities to bring abundance into your life and your family's life because you believe money is bad. Food, clothing, shelter, family vacations, charitable contributions, etc. are all good and money is usually the resource exchanged for these things, so money can be good. Money is as good or as bad as what we use it for.


Money, like a spoon, shovel, pencil, computer, freeway, vehicle, etc. is a tool and is as good or as bad as the person using it.

Allow God to bless you with abundance in your life and be a conduit for good.



Liz King Bradley

Strawberries and Mommies



I don't think I know any women who don't feel pulled in many directions.


Mother

Friend

Spouse

Coworker

Business woman,

Mentor

etc.


As I pulled weeds and dug around the strawberry plants in my dad's yard I thought how very like that plant we are.


If allowed to just grow and grow, without maintenance, the strawberry plant will put on lots of leaves and vines, and very little, if any, fruit....but FRUIT is what the plant is for. In order to produce fruit, the superfluous leaves and shoots must be cut back.


There are so many worthy things we must do. Sometimes, we need to allow our capacity to grow in order to accommodate everything.


Sometimes, in order to allow ourselves to increase in capacity we need to trim out the superfluous. How do we determine what is essential and what is superfluous? There is first and foremost: Prayer. Yet, there is also, knowing the purpose of your being.


When you know your purpose is to bear fruit, and not to grow as big as you can, you know what to cut and what to leave, or when to let grow and when to cut back. What is the purpose?


I am going to be bold and say the purpose is family. If I have a life filled with worthy persuits, but my family is not bearing fruit....my life is still unfulfilling and unfulfilled. What do I mean "bearing fruit"? In previous posts I have outlined the difference between checking off boxes, and making lasting connections. Building family ties takes more than the completion of tasks, it takes time, being still, eye contact, doing chores together-for the purpose of talking together, it takes kindness when kindness is inconvenient, etc.


Sometimes, don't we forget that we are here to bear fruit...not just to grow leaves and shoots? I know I do. I am trying SO hard to allow my heart and mind to be remodeled to more fully understand what this means for me personally. I know one thing, it means that if I sacrifice a career for my marriage and family, I'm still fulfilling my purpose. Yet, I know God has a purpose for me in serving other people too.


So, everyday, I am looking for guidance from God in what to prune, and what to grow because some what I do to help outside my family helps my family fruit too. I have been learning this and I know that when I feel pulled, it's good to chose home, and let God take care of some of those branches for me. I know this because He's been showing me that already. He's multiplied the amount of people I've been able to empower with tools for happiness in their relationships, while preserving my time with my family.


For more about embracing motherhood and ALL God has for you, try this MP3 download designed to reaffirm and empower you to make the best choices for you and your family.


Mom is a Mission Too (e-mail me for the link rob_lizbradley@hotmail.com)



Liz King Bradley

Loving Me, Loving You

The truth: each one of us is loved, beloved, unique, special, DIVINE! The more we see the truth in us, the easier it is to see the truth in others. Not only can we see how they are manifesting the divine truth in them, we can see if they are not. It places us in a better position to know how to best serve them, and God.


It's amazing to note that God sees in us the ability to do great things. He allows us to go through some pretty tough things, it must be that He knows we can do it. Knowing that God has that confidence in me, is uplifting and humbling at the same time.


I am so grateful for a God who sees good in me and expects me to keep working.


Liz King Bradley

The Community, The Water, and The Juice



by Liz King Bradley March 19, 2015


Once there was a town called Society. The people in the town had a well that flowed continuously and had great power to heal, to mend relationships, to cleanse from bodily sickness and lift the downtrodden spirit. The well was called Living Water. They drank from this well daily, and immersed themselves in it weekly. When someone was sick they would say, "Come, with me, I'll help you to the well." To those who were so sick they could not even remember the well they said, "Here, here is some of the water from that well." The town founder who placed the well before them had also written guidelines so they would know when they were sick and in need of healing.


As time went on, there were those who said "Who are you to tell me I am sick...or that I need that water. I am drinking juice of the stimuli plant, I'm fine." Over time, some of those who drank from the stimuli plant began to tell others that the water from the well wasn't really healing, and that the people who were bringing those to that well merely wanted power and influence over them. When they saw the people who drank the water from the well, they saw a brilliance and a light, but called it arrogance and deceit. The juice of the stimuli plant gave them a quick and short lived burst of energy that almost imitated the water, but soon after drinking it you would need more of it...it never satisfied, it only pacified. The guidelines came to be seen as restrictive. The founder? They questioned if he even existed.


The stimuli juice came in many flavors and colors. Some were more appealing to the eyes, others more appealing to the stomach, some appealing to the brain, and others to the sexual parts, but all of them carried a secret poison. The poison deactivated the part of their soul that knew and remembered the peace and joy of the water from the well, so that over time, they would forget true peace. Instead of seeing the hands that offered the water with a sense of the love and care of the person, they saw it as judgement and arrogance that they believed the water was better than the juice.


The water bringers were at first concerned for the well being of the juicers, but some of them forgot to drink the water to heal their hurts and began to return rejection for rejection and bitterness for bitterness. They didn't drink the juice, but they didn't drink the water either, they perceived that they were better than the juice drinkers and ceased to seek the healing and strengthening of the water. They still offered the water, but they never seemed to drink it for themselves, while congratulating themselves for being "water bearers", and "juice abstainers", they forgot the need to drink the water for themselves.


There began to be divisions. These divisions were fueled by labels like "Water drinkers", "Juicers", "Bearers", "judgers", etc. They were no more a community of individual people, they were groups and each individual was forgotten as the characteristics of the groups they were in became the only thing they saw in each other.


Some water bearers, thought the people who drank the juice were right, that to offer the water was offensive and began to discourage others from offering the water to heal. They thought that the pain and defensiveness felt by the people who drank juice was because of the offering of healing, rather than the natural effect of not drinking the water and of drinking juice that would never satisfy. Their intentions were good, they wanted to be accepting of others and respectful.


Fewer and fewer people received the healing waters, and even those who did not partake of the juice began to judge those who drank the water and blame them for the unhappiness of those drinking the juice because the light and happiness of those who drank the water reminded those drinking juice of the emptiness of their remedy. Drinking the juice began to be seen as an alternate to the water, instead of a harmful deterrent from the healing of the water.


People used the word "different" instead of better or worse. Some people even began to say that the well should be sealed up and those who offered the water should be banned from even mentioning it because of the discord that was growing in the population. Some of those who drank water began to say, the juice plants should all be burned, and those who drink juice expelled from the community. So retaliation and control seeped in and love, edification, and respect dwindled.


In the meantime, some of those drinking the juice had noticed their complete bondage to the juice and those who provided it, and to the opinions of those around them to feel good about it. They felt an unrest in their souls as the last sparks of peace were being closed out of them. Those who continued to drink the water saw, with clarity, the pain of those drinking the juice, and sought to help in the most loving way possible, they were often misunderstood.


Yet, those drinking juice who were blessed to meet up with a friend or loved one who still cared for their well-being and drank freely of the water, sometimes chose to try the water. The effects of the water went deeper and fuller, but also carried a revealing power that opened their minds to the things they were doing wrong when seeking for or under the influence of the stimuli juice. They would, sometimes, quit because of the pain and blame the water for it.


Others, though, saw the pain and drank the water more deeply, and allowed it to create the change and recovery from the social, emotional, and spiritual effects of the juice. The water healed their bodies too, but that was easy in comparison to the damage healed in their hearts, minds, spirits, and relationships with others. Having been healed, and understanding in a personal way, the effects of the juice and knowing the language of the people who drank the juice, they reached out to their friends and neighbors. Though not all of them accepted, more of them listened because they could not deny the former juice drinker knew the pain and joy of both sides and the journey it took to receive the joy.


Not everyone in the community came back together. However, those who continually drank the water and those who began to drink the water again continued bringing the opportunity to those who judged and those who drank the juice, healing began to happen and divisions began to be formed into unity as the water installed forgiveness, peace, and joy into the hearts of all who would receive it.


A miracle occurred and the labels began to disappear as people stopped being identified as those who drank or those who didn't, or those who judged and those who didn't. The drinking of the water and the pathway to receiving it opened their hearts and minds to see the many facets in each others being, to build on the common good, and allow the healing of the water to do for them what they now knew they could not do with the juice or on their own. They came to realize the wisdom of the founder.


What would have happened if they sealed the well?


What would have happened if the water drinkers had listened to those who told them to stop offering?


What would have happened if everyone believed there was nothing wrong with the juice?


Is the problem in acknowledging something wrong with the juice, or in not offering the water with enough conviction and love?


Was it kindness to tell those who were suffering the effects of the juice that there was nothing wrong with it?


What character in this story are you most like?


Which one do you want to be like?



****Note from the Author: This story is not about a particular spiritual ailment, it is about all of them in any of the many forms they take and how we need the Savior to heal us and create harmony between us. The juice could be addiction, it could be alternative lifestyles, it could be addiction to people approval, it is about anything we use in place of the Saving and Healing power of Jesus Christ in our lives.

I LOVE my Body...(gratitude for what I have and reality about "treating" myself)



If you've read my blog for a while, you'll notice I have written about body issues a few times. The following is a series of posts I have made on FB since I've been doing the #Ilovemybodydiet with Jennifer Lamprey


I Love my thighs!!!! When was the last time you thought that or said it..if ever?


I was just thinking today how grateful I am for my feet. Seriously. I think the feet may have the hardest job of all. They carry EVERYTHING anytime you're upright....then you add whatever you carry in your tummy and your arms, etc. Then, there's running. Wow. Feet.. I solute you and thank you!


So, I remember a trainer I had when I did Crossfit., I loved this trainer/gym because the emphasis was not on beating others, but on improving our own bests. This trainer was firm, but gentle. That's how I want to be with my body. I also want to get past apologizing and move on to just doing better. It occurs to me that I have already apologized, more than enough for letting my body get to the shape it's in, it's time to trust that my apology is accepted and move on. I am just gonna keep focussing on how it feels to be 6 pounds lighter in a week and really sinking into the gratitude and hope of that. AND when I am exercising and my legs hurt, I am going to say, "It's okay, if you need to stop, I can, and we can keep going, if that's okay.


When we think we are not enough, or that we do not matter we take on baggage emotionally, spiritually, mentally, and physically. I AM ENOUGH and I MATTER. Are two of the most powerful statements you can have running in your minds system. I believe the MOST powerful of all is "I love God and He loves me." Because God is the great magnifier and the love we send Him comes back to us magnified. When that happens we are no longer worried about whether we are enough or our efforts are enough, it is totally assumed that we are, it is just there. The key for me is always to stop worrying if I'm enough, focus on loving God, and then I just know that I am.


Ever notice how your mind can try to trick you into doing things that do not support your highest health......... It's that little voice that says "I'm TREATING myself." Thankfully today, my higher self said "Yeah, you are treating yourself to throwing a monkey wrench in your goals and feeling less healthy." "No thanks!" LOL I love me. I'll have a protein shake or bar or green smoothie with an almond buttered waffle instead of waffles covered in syrup or jam. tongue emoticon...oh, pray for me! That waffle sounds GOOD!


When I was a newlywed, my belief about my beauty may have been "I am as beautiful as my ability to sexually influence my husband, I am as beautiful as he thinks I am." My honeymoon was not like a movie. My husband was NOT overcome at the sight of me and, in fact was irritated by my spontaneity. The truth is that his being is constant, consistent and NOT spontaneous. BUT because I thought my beauty was based on my ability to distract him and what he thought of me, I felt ugly....outside.... and trapped because the one person on earth to whom I had given that power over me was not giving me what I thought he would. I have been taking back that power because even now that he is more spontaneous and susceptible to me, it doesn't fill me because it was never meant to. I get to chose, every day, to love myself the way I want to be loved, to nurture myself as I want to be nurtured and to give myself everything I can and get the rest form God. YET, still be open to receiving more when it's offered and just be grateful for it as a bonus, an extra gift, not an expectation.


"Still really loving my body. I don't think God gave me body, called it a temple, and then expected me to disregard it, disrespect it or hate it. I think God expects me to respect it, be grateful for it , and love it completely. I have to say I probably love my eyes the most of any part of me today because of what I can both take in and express with my eyes.


I shed another 6 lbs...in a week!!!! YAY me!!!!!!!!! My body is so AWESOME!!! Look at that weight fall away! smile emoticon Honestly and truly, all I have done is ask God to help, strive to drink more water, say kind and loving and honoring things about my body, eat more veggies and make sure I had enough protein (I have casually watched my calories). LOVE and GOD did it. I am totally serious! Love and God.


I finally put up my full length mirror..against a door I never use. tongue emoticon Come to find out it didn't come with anything to hang from so I need to put some on it...then put holes in the door" Hmm. Thinking about solutions for that. Anyway, I AM LOVING it. I had a really transformational experience doing one of the exercises with ‪#‎Ilovemybodydiet‬ and for the first time in a really long time (maybe ever) I am looking at my body, as it is, without pretending or imagining it different and really appreciating an loving it. I love how I look in my full length mirror. When was last time you heard that or said it to anyone?


I had the BEST breakthrough doing these pics. I could only see myself beautiful for the last many years by trying to feel what it's like to be thin. I absolutely LOVE my body! I have a smoking' hot body! I see every inch of me, every pound of me and I have a gorgeous body.






I came to an awareness that my years of being without my husband (he works away from home most of the time) have helped me be more whole in myself. I learned to give myself the things I'd want someone to give me..like taking myself out to eat, giving myself a gift of a massage, waxing, mani's and pedis, etc. When Selena Gomez came out with that song "Lovesong" I sang it to myself about myself. I am in love with myself. Then we could also soy that I've been a bit of an abusive companion because I have heaped a lot of shame, blame, and hatred on myself too. So, I'm becoming a better lover to myself.


Now, to get better at that all the time, not just when he's gone. I am happier in some ways when he's gone and it's because I honor me more.


I LOVE my body. There is creativity, beauty, happiness and compassion in it. These values flow through me, like a waterfall of light they enliven and envigorate me. They support the unfoldment of my greatest purpose.


I have had the privilege of being the creative passage for five children. Five human beings have been created and developed within me. My body still participates in the creation of their lives as I nurture and care for them each day.


I am beautiful. My body is a filter through which my spirit expresses itself. The beauty of my soul can be easily seen through my body, if I look to see it. It is most easily seen through my eyes, but also through my smile, the way I move and the things I say. My body was specifically designed and created by God as the perfect companion and helpmeet of my spirit. My body shows much of the experience of my life, a picture that through Christ is breathtakingly overwhelming. My body is beautiful and tells the story of my life.


I am happy. Happiness is my natural state, under all the baggage I’ve carried and masks I’ve worn. I have a sparkle and lightness in me that bubbles up and overflows. I was made to be happy and to laugh. Joy and laughter are the precious gifts of my mortal existance, in God I find them revealed and magnified.

I am compassionate. I feel in my heart, in my head and my solar plexus the heartache of others and am moved to help in the ways that are most loving. Compassion enables me to be present with God to know what is best to do in any situation. I am tender and merciful.

I love my body! There is creativity, beauty, happiness and compassion in it.


Adam & Eve, My Husband & I, God and Me, Me


I was talking to someone about symbols the other day, specifically about 11:11 it started as 11:56 and my brain quickly brought up that 11:56 was also 11:11 because 5-6 is 11. Anyway that led into some awesome discussion about god in earth, and how Christ on earth and God in us is the ultimate expression of God in Earth. 1= God and 4 = earth four ones is God in earth, in us, Christ in Earth. Then it lead to synchronicity. Christ creates synchronicity between God and us....


Also around the same few days, I have been thinking about spirit and body, Adam and Eve. When I studied women and their roles outlined in the bible I saw that what I THOUGHT was cultural was actually doctrinal, if it is doctrinal it is always bringing me closer to God and He wants me to do it. So, though I have always been strong-willed an stubborn and independent, I began to submit to my husband and really take on the role of being helpmeet (lest there be misunderstanding this did not make me a silent partner, just a more flexible and willing one...AND one who sometimes submitted when I knew I was right trusting in God to correct it because of my obedience.) Submitting to my husband was really about submitting to God. In order for me to submit to my husband I HAD to have faith that God would take care of me because sometimes my fabulous husband is imperfect (like me and everyone else). I noticed that I got much closer to God when I put myself into the space of submitting.


AWESOME! What does it have to do with 11:11, God in us, Adam and Eve and synchronicity? I'll tell you.


I have been pondering about the symbolism of Adam and Eve as it relates to each of us. I have been pondering, body and spirit, which one is represented by Adam, and which by Eve. I believe Adam represents the Sprit and Eve the body. As our spirits are obedient to God our body must submit, trusting that through God the outcome will be right because the body cannot see what the spirit sees, it can only feel the warmth or lack thereof of the Holy Ghost. First the spirit was created , then the body (first Adam and then Eve). Our relationship with our bodies is a relationship indeed. And the management of our bodies via our spirits is meant to be as Christ is with us, " By pureness, by knowledge, by longsuffering, by kindness, by the Holy Ghost, by love unfeigned,"(2 Corinthians 6:6) ALL the scriptures about how a husband should treat a wife are also about how we should treat our bodies. All the scriptures about how wives should treat husbands are also about how our bodies submit to our spirits. Our spirits and bodies are only temporarily united, only through the resurrection can they be made one. Only through Christ. 11:11 is Christ. Christ is the path to God in us and in making us ONE...or God.


Adam is also “Mankind” “Eve” is living. In some ways, though our spirit existed before, it was not fully living until it had that body, and the body without the spirit is not living either.


The rib, from which the body came signifies equality. I compared different types of equality. Different types of companionships. Soldiers have a great sense of brotherhood, they will lay down their lives for each other, but the companionship suggested by the rib(that which protects the inside, the core and heart of a person) indicates that he lays down not only his life, but his heart for her. That is much deeper than a sense of equality that merely garnets equal treatment. The intimacy of the rib signifies loving, intimate treatment and the deepest trust there is. There is incredible insight in this for both the spirit and body relationship and the male and female relationship according to God.

Common Phrases with Sinister Meanings



You're Only Human (mortal, flawed, etc.).... So...ONLY Human/ mortal eliminates any element of the divine, so I am NOT a child of God? "Only" is an exclusive that eliminates everything but it's object. The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God:" (Romans 8:16) Clearly, since God is not mortal or flawed and we are His children, we are not "only human". It's the number one justification for behaving below our true capability because it tells us that "we can't help it" (more on that below). God says I'm his child and promises that through Christ I can overcome all things, isn't it a bit satanic to say that I am only human and therefore cannot help myself. Instead of saying someone is only human, isn't it more supportive to say "You are a child of God, while you have slipped, fallen, or are struggling, God will not fail you, don't give up. Yes, you make mistakes, but Christ has already taken care of that. Keep trying!"


It's Who You are..Embrace it.... (My mistakes and temptations that God commanded me NOT to dwell on or participate in, are...who I am? I am not a child of God...I am, they dDEFINE ME? (gay, promiscuous, rude, debilitatingly shy, rage-aholic, overweight[to a point that it's truly unhealthy].....etc.[anything that gets in the way of our relationships with God])....that's WHO I AM? That, in essence, says, "Don't try to to things that are hard for you because the things that are easy are who you are. Give up on what you're reaching for." Rather than "It's okay that you are struggling, but don't give up. You are a child of God and He is helping you become all you can be by giving you high things to reach for. The atonement will make up the difference in the meantime, just don't quit!"


You Can't Help it..... Really...I am helpless and hopeless...like an automated machine, I can't overcome...wait, didn't the bible teach that " I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me."(Philippians 4:13)? So is Christ powerful to save or not? Am I a child of God, with a divine nature to help me overcome my natural limitations and Christ to make that possible? NO WHERE in scripture does it say that we must do as our nature or society dictates, but always we are commanded "Come unto Christ" which is the antithesis of doing what comes naturally as a mortal.


You Have No Choice... Again....I am helpless, a preprogrammed drone with no ability to overcome through the strengthening of Christ and the power of choice?


Validate divine nature, not mortal flaws, temptations, etc. Nurture divinity, not weakness, hardship, etc.


If God says it's bad, it cannot be who I am, it must be the temptation He knows I can overcome. He loves me no matter what, He wants me to obey the laws that help me become like Him, because He is perfect and as a perfect being would have perfect joy.

The Two Superpowers Everyone Has: Who We Are and the Power to Change .



Of all the tricks of the adversary, the most insideous is the ploy to dissolve our love for ourselves as God's children, the plot to create disdain and hatred for the body we have and ignorance for the divinity within. The messages "only human", "only that which we can use the five senses to identify are real", etc. Are some of the most evil messages that so many accept without question. It is interesting that he seeks to instill in us his hatred and have us own it as our own, pitting us against ourselves and God, disdaining the very things that he cannot ever have and that God gave us with the profoundest love and faith.


The act of creating us and giving us the power to chose was one of the greatest acts of faith, ever. Imagine the faith He has in us to give us all the power to co-create with him in the human family. Because of the massive numbers of people born everyday, we sometimes think it commonplace that we are able to have children. I had one doctor, in CA, that told me "Don't ever let anyone tell you that babies are a biological result. There are too many millions of things that can go wrong in the creation of each child. Each child born is a miracle." I believe that with all my heart.


If the adversary can denigrate the act of creation, if he can create doubt as to it's divine ordination (God created the pathway into this world, marriage, man and woman, etc.), if he can make that process vulgar, dark, ego/baser instinct driven, separate from creation itself he can denigrate the life of the being itself he can undermine our perception of self-worth and our worth to God. When the origin ceases to be seen as sacred, so does the result. Each person and each being is sacred and the way they enter or leave this world is also sacred. Additionally, when the result (human life) is treated lightly the process by which it is brought to pass is also treated lightly.


It seems to me that their are doorways in the eternal scheme of things and they are considered sacred to God. Entering this world, entering His kingdom, entering the level of creation in His kingdom (marriage; the divinely ordained doorway to creation of families), leaving this life and entering the next have all been carefully outlined as to their proper order and in some cases reserved to His omniscient discretion only (only He determines the time to leave this life and enter the next). Each of these laws can be broken because of our agency, but we feel the consequences of them most severely. Clearly there is something written even into our physical DNA that tells us these things are sacred. It seems throughout history that societies that ceased to hold these things sacred also ceased to thrive and eventually to exist.


The key to LIFE is holding life sacred. It is to hold sacred what God holds sacred, to protect what He holds sacred and adhere to His laws.

It is not to hold mortality sacred, but to hold life itself sacred, the eternal being, existence and divine destiny. (Destiny as in our divine potential, not as in a predetermined path we have no choice but to follow) In the scriptures we are given a pattern, an ideal, guidelines that help us while in this mortal state to position us in God's hands and keep us moving toward our divine potential, a greater result than we can comprehend in mortality.


In this sacred path we walk, called life, we have the sacred responsibility to love, serve, obey, and change when necessary (and pain gives us the clue when change is needed) always moving us closer to God (our destiny) unless we cease to walk that path and chose another. Miraculously, we are able to change paths at almost any time and return to follow the path of our divine destiny. If I were to draw a picture it would be where paths diverge and we may go miles away from the path of our divine inheritance, but the Savior creates bridges and connecting roads so we can return to the correct path. Sometimes, it has felt more like being lifelighted from the destructive path to the creative, progressive path (divine potential, inheritence, or destiny).


What a desceptive adversary we have that will sometimes use our intention to help and to nurture, accept, and unite as a means of pulling us to a path of spiritual destruction, effectually damning our progress on the right path. Though, a part of the miracle of the atonement is that the pain and wreckage of our journey in the wrong direction are sanctified through Him for our benefit and become our wings instead of our wounds. The same is true when we have remained on the path and yet suffered from the behaviors of others on destructive paths.


I have been privileged in my life to be able to witness the journey of two brothers who decidedly took paths of destruction and through truth and love were returned to the path of divine potential. I have been hurt by their actions while on the other path and simultaneously been blessed to avoid the turn-offs that they took. I have learned unconditional love by holding fast to God and His guidance while loving them completely (never denying the darkness of their actions, but loving the good and inherent divinity in them even while that divinity was burried by their choices). Having taken my own wrong turns I have learned the value of friends and family members who stood strong in convictions of truth, never justifying my actions or attitudes. They provided and anchor, even when it hurt. I have learned that the worste thing you can do to a person struggling against sin is provide the adversary with another voice by telling them it is okay, or that it is who they are, or that it isn't their fault (which also means they have no power to overcome it). I have learned that the best way to help is always the most truthful, the most accountable, and the most loving.


In holding me accountable for my choices (including the way I let others make me feel) and reminding me of the healing and saving power of the atonement, my friends and mentors have offended me at times, but have helped me remember who I REALLY am: a daughter of God, empowered to chose, to heal and to recover through the Savior. I pray in raising my children that God helps me to remember who they are so course corrections can be made without accidentally giving them the impression that what they've done (their moment(s) of weakness) are who they are. More than anything what we all need is to remember that we are God's children and Christ died for us. Nothing can be more empowering than the truth of our being and the strength and power of Christ to heal, to cleanse (which is honestly healing), and to resurrect, a power extended to each of us as we choose to accept it.


We are divine AND human and there is a GREAT deal of reality beyond what we can detect with the five senses. If the evidence we see, hear, taste, touch, and smell tells us otherwise, we have not looked far enough into it, we have not gotten all the facts. I invite you to seek further.




Liz King Bradley

(Side note: I truly believe that what empowered early scientists to discover what they did was their knowledge of God and their adherence to what they knew was true. In finding results that seemed contradictory, they kept going to find the truth that coincided with the truth they already knew, rather than the mistaken practice of our modern society to throw out divine doctrine if it doesn't align with the limited knowledge of scientific evidence.)

A Letter to my Children and a Reminder to Myself



I originally wrote the first draft of this in an answer to a question posted by a friend on a social media site. She was preparing to speak to a large group of young women and asked what any of us who read her post would say. Here's a refined and updated version of my response with more heart, soul and purpose than I could put into it while trying to fit it to a secular audience.


Our world passes out A LOT of scripts, be discerning and CHOOSE who you are and what you'll be. Forget the archetypes always seen in movies and books, and be who you are. Beware of anyone selling you a victim story, a story that paints you and those you relate most to as having been "put in a place or position" rather than always having a choice in what you do and the role you play. You are a son or daughter of God, He loves you and designed you for greatness.


You are both a spiritual and physical being. You were born enough because you were created in your mother's womb by a living and loving God and your spiritual ancestry is His. You were born fulfilled. What you learn, what you achieve, what you give and receive is an added bonus to the infinite value and worth you have always had and always will.


Always remember you are a child of God and manifest that in your appearance, achievements and goals, don't ever let anyone convince you that in order to fulfill yourself you must do as they say. You have the ability through your divine parentage to become a Heavenly Parent. All that God does and all that He is falls under the heading of Father. Don't believe the lie that success and fulfillment come from money, wealth, or recognition (even in a spiritually driven business) or that those types of success will make up for time missing from building an eternal family. Your primary purpose is to be like your Heavenly Father, the rest is just bonus and could become a distraction from your primary purpose.


Live in faith and listen for Heavenly Father's voice as he guides you with gentle persuasion, truth, and love unfeigned. Pay attention, if it is forbidden in scripture turn from it. If you can't see the reason something is forbidden, seek the truth by turning to God and seeking His answers. Don't mistake pain, resentment, fear, or shame for a guiding voice, do recognize that all such voices are voices of destruction and follow the voice of the Holy Ghost as it speaks peace, joy, and love to your soul.


Only you and Heavenly Father have a vote in your self-esteem, don't ever let anyone tell you how to feel about yourself. Learn to give people a place in your heart without giving them a seat on your jury. Listen and learn from those who criticize, measuring it against the voice of your Heavenly Father; don't soak it up like a sponge, but don't reject it without evaluation either.


Love with your whole heart. Expect to be treated well and accept nothing less and give nothing less, chose to be with those you can love wholeheartedly, and be kind to the rest and keep a safe distance. Be honest about how you feel and who you are at all times and those who see your divine radiance will be drawn to you. Be okay with letting go of those who don't see your divine nature and individual worth.


It's okay to make mistakes, it's part of the journey, yet don't be afraid to learn from the mistakes of others either. The Savior died so that the mistakes you made could become lessons instead of failures; He created the space for redemption. Be merciful and graceful to others, but allow yourself to see the pain their choices may cause and not make those same choices yourself. Don't listen to all the advice you're given, but don't be afraid to seek it when you need it.


Stand confidently in your eternal identity as a Child of God, but don't pretend to know everything and you'll learn a lot more a lot faster. Credibility doesn't come from never having questions, rather it comes from speaking with confidence about what you know and honestly seeking answers to what you don't. Base your confidence on truth and righteousness, rather than appearing smart, but don't be afraid to appear smart either.


Remember you have the power to chose what thoughts stay and what thoughts go, and by so doing to chose what you continue to feel. God has given you agency and you are free to chose whom you will follow. Feelings may come up that may lead you to pain and despair, but you don't have to keep them around by feeding them with fearful or hateful thoughts. Gratitude is a wonderful tool for overcoming persistent negativity.


Good things are meant for you and happiness is part of your purpose for living, allow yourself the gift of happiness by choosing to find the good, releasing the bad, and living in truth. “Happiness is the object and design of our existence; and will be the end thereof, if we pursue the path that leads to it; and this path is virtue, uprightness, faithfulness, holiness, and keeping all the commandments of God” (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, sel. Joseph Fielding Smith [1976], 255–56) Our purpose here is to have joy, the scriptures have given us the guidelines for finding the greatest joy. (If God forbids it it leads away from joy, no matter what anyone else says.)


A pattern of continual turning to God (repentance) guarantees success; the only way to fail is to give up. Keep taking steps, it works. The worste thing that could happen sometimes does, and then you realize you are stronger than you thought: you are as strong as God knows you are not as strong as you think you are. So keep going back to Him and you'll keep moving onward.


You are a child of God: you are enough. You were born amazing and have the power to manifest more of your divine nature as you gain more tools for production, expression, and dispensation (giving freely). Stand firmly in the ground of your divine nature as you walk through life in the path of your purpose. Seek to become a good companion and parent; discipline yourself, educate yourself, cling ever closer to God, rely on the atonement for forgiving, strengthening, and being forgiven, seek for what is right not what is easy, and find the solutions that are right instead of the person who is right.


God's love can find you in the deepest pit or the largest abyss and His light can guide you home. He is ALWAYS reaching out for you. I love you always, no matter what, and He loves even better than me, so you have no reason to fear.

Love,


Mom, Me

I Cracked It!


What is the big question we all want to know the answer to????
WHY will my children behave SO WELL for other people!?!?


***


So we all know that part of the equation is that people will filter their behavior more around people they don't know will love and accept them no matter what....but that doesn't seem like the whole answer! Isn't there something in your mind that says "There's more to it!"?

The rest of the story has to do with choices and the filter between the subconscious mind. When children are born, their is no filter between conscious and subconscious. The conscious mind isn't developed. The subconscious accepts everything that comes to it as true. It's not until later that our conscious develops, as well as our filter (Reticular Activation System).


The subconscious mind is in charge of running all the systems of the body that keep us alive. It's primary purpose is to keep us alive and comfortable. It's also running in the background to perpetuate the paths we've programmed into it as it's developed. The beliefs we have fully embraced and accepted into our subconscious programming are in the background creating our outside life to reflect our subconscious blueprint.


Our kids behave not only according to what we teach them, but according to what we've given their subconscious mind to work with. If we are unsure of ourselves and/or what we are doing and teaching, they will not be convinced. Additionally, if we harbor doubts about their ability to behave well, about their innate goodness, they will find it hard to behave well. They are sponges, remember they do not have strong filters. Sadly, if we don't feel good about ourselves, or ourselves as children they will feel that about themselves and will manifest it in their life. There will be a program running in the background that says "I'm not good kid." That subconscious program will direct and guide their behavior.

When they misbehave, they need to know that while they made a mistake THEY are good. They need to know that THEY are innately good and that the bad behavior doesn't measure up to who they are. We need to have enough faith in their innate goodness to overcome the evidence of their misbehavior in our minds. When we look at them, talk to them, or interact in any other way our subconscious mind is effecting the tone of our voice, the look in our eyes, all our body language and we are constantly emitting signals from our own subconscious mind. What we are teaching them with our beliefs is the filter they will use throughout their lives.


Strangers have the advantage of not having seen evidence of bad behavior, they are likely sending out messages of "good kid", " cute","adorable", etc. whereas parents are fighting the battle in their minds between the evidence of bad behavior and the faith they have that their kids are innately good. In their hearts, they are children of God and are good.



Deep inside we are all good, we are all divine, but we are experiencing a life that offers us choices. Children may do bad things, but it isn't because they are flawed, it's because they are innocent. They are learning from the way we rect to things what is bad or good and who they are. Most kids want to be good, but they are getting stimulus from all over the place, conflicting messages about what is good and what is bad.



Here are some of my successes:

I taught my son that he is good, but some of his behavior didn't match with who he is. I held up my hand and said, "This is like you, who you really are, it's whole, complete, clean, and good." I help up my other hand with some of my fingers down "This is like your behavior, it's not matching up to the other hand right now." I taught him that he can make his behavior match who he is. We are Christian, so I taught him that through Jesus Christ the difference between who he really is, and what his behavior shows can be reconciled as he is learning and growing.

My daughter was persistently getting in trouble. It seemed like she was compulsively misbehaving. I felt the distinct impression that she felt undeserving of happiness. I told her "You deserve to be happy, so you deserve to make the choices that will lead you to happiness."

When my oldest was an infant I read in a book or magazine (I don't know what book or magazine) that my emotions and mental state while caring for her or trying to calm her from being upset would help or hinder her calming. I learned to calm myself before I tried to calm her. I took deep breaths and reminded myself who I am and who she is. It worked as long as the needs were also met (fed, cleaned, warm, etc).

When my children were 6 and younger I had a friend who had teenagers. I asked her about what she did that worked (because here kids were really respectful, seemed happy, and heading in the direction I'd like my kids to go). She said, "I have a plaque that hangs on my wall that says "We get better with age." I don't talk about the teenage years as if they will be horrible, I remember we get better with age and it works." From a young age she instilled in them the program that they got better with age. I know there were issues from time to time, but it seemed there were less of the issues with disrespect and major rebellions we associate with having teens.

What we think and believe about our kids is contributing to their behavior more than what we say and do. Our tone, our body language, and our other actions are speaking thousands of words at a time, and they will override what we say.

How do I rescript negative programming?

Asking questions sets your mind to work finding the answers. Ask questions that lead to what you want, not what you don't.

Knowing that my child is good at heart, what should I do/say to help them correct their behavior?

How do I know my child is innately good?

What can I do to help my child understand the difference between being a bad person and being a good person who is learning?

Who am I, really?

Am I a good person, and a good parent? (Hint: if you are sending out the signal that you are a bad parent, your kids may be manifesting that. If they are telling you negative things about yourself, it may be because you and telling them that in an unconscious way.)



Ultimately children will behave according to the programming they have received from us. The words "Train up a child in the way he should go and when he is grown he will not depart from it." come to mind. (Bible, Proverbs, 22:6). I have seen this play out in the long term with two brothers who chose a path of pain, but ultimately have chosen that path of healing and light. Not that my parents were perfect, but they did train us up to make choices that lead to healing, love, and truth.



I believe we can shorten our children's learning curve by remembering in our hearts and minds that we and they are God's children, that we are good because we are His. A child who believes they are good is more likely to DO good.


~
Liz King Bradley

Do You Want To Be More?

Do you know that most of the time the desire to "be more" comes from the misunderstanding that you're not enough? I'm not actually saying that we are enough on our own, but by the merits of Christ we are, as long as we accept Him.


Take a moment.
Ask yourself more importantly, ask GOD: Am I enough with Christ? 


Isn't His grace sufficient for all of us who chose Him?

Let that sink in and STAY in that moment for as long as you can, but don't be surprised when yucky feelings attached to ideas come up to extinguish it. Be advised that every time you learn a truth, Satan with try to step in an corrupts it.  That's what gives you the CHOICE, you get to chose what voice to heed and what messages to believe in.

Recognize that you were not meant to be everything you have the potential to be on your own, God told us to be perfect so we would turn to Him, the only way perfection is possible.  God shows us our dependence on Him so we will ASK for the help he is already willing to give, He gives us the dignity of choice.

Believing Him, believing in His ability and willingness to help us, helps us to receive.  He wants us to remember that we are His children and He is a wise and generous father.


Growing into the person God created me to be requires that I know where I came from, the seed can grow into the kind of tree it sprang from.   Knowing WHO YOU ARE is the strongest, most stable and trustworthy motivation to DO GOOD and to succeed. When you know that YOU ARE GOOD it is EASY to DO good.  We come from God and through Jesus Christ we can be godly.


Ask yourself:
"Am I more powerful when I acknowledge my divine being?"

"Does God want me to know who I am?"

"Does knowing who I am help me to be both powerful and teachable?"



The world is full of people who are enough and are distracted from the beauty and purpose of life by trying to be "more"instead of seeking to manifest the greatness of God in them through Christ, allowing Him to fill us and being the overflowing fountain of His love and grace.

Instead of asking "What can I do to be more?"


Ask: "What do I have abundantly that I can share?"

You ARE the person you dream of being.

Acknowledge and Trust God so you can LIVE it.




Liz King Bradley

Savor The Moments


In a marriage there are moments.


Moments of sadness, moments of betrayal, moments of joy, moments of oneness, moments, of resentment.


The moment I had today was a moment of truth. I want to be seen for my whole self, so I need to be capable of the absolute vulnerability of showing it...at a moment of truth I heard my soul cry out "How can I show more, when what little I show is rejected, taken for granted, forgotten?" Isn't that the fear that keeps us living as a fragment of ourselves?


The pain of being rejected in only a fraction of ourselves is safer than the pain of being rejected in wholeness. But until we step out of the shell, reveal who we are we live in a cage whose lock is our fear and whose guard is our own rejection of that part we will not let out. What people reject is the puppet we project as ourselves when we are to afraid to come out.


The pain is not that others have rejected us, but that we have not yet accepted ourselves as a whole. This acceptance is a gift that the atonement gives us, it empowers us to forgive, love, and accept ourselves while we are in a very flawed state in our progress. When we accept and embrace ourselves through Jesus Christ and allow ourselves to shine, regardless of who else approves of us, we are free. We are then free to love, free to thrive, and free to live a whole life.


How do I know? Because of the moments, the moments of wholeness, and complete love and acceptance.



Liz King Bradley

Overcoming the Emptiness that Leads to Sexual Addiction

The number one need of every being on earth is to love and be loved. We seek connection. Connection is like understanding, but deeper, it says: I see and feel YOU, and I allow you to see and feel ME. This is where we reveal and receive something deeper than skin, deeper than the me I allow the world to see.
Why is there so much disconnection and so much craving of disconnected things that masquerade as connection? For instance: Pornography.
*Ask yourself, "Is this true about me, is it true about my family?"

A Poor Substitute

Pornography is a masquerade for connection, it is to sex what sugar is to energy. It provides a short term high, but no long term nourishment. It is not real satisfaction or fulfillment, indeed it is the emptiness of it that leads to crave more, because with porn, as with sugar, the high is very temporary. What are we missing that we are seeking?
***What is it that we are teaching or not teaching our kids when it comes to sex and sex-drive that is predisposing them to this addiction?
Have we taught and that Sex is “bad” instead of that it is too good to be trifled with and misused? In conversations with Christians, often, sex is in one category and spirituality is in another. Sex and the sex drive is treated as and unfortunate side effect to being a human; something to be controlled, or shut down completely instead of something to be enjoyed, nurtured, and guided as an essential and Godly part of who we are.
Christian boys and girls are taught that they should not look on a woman for the purpose of lusting. They are taught from an early age to abstain from sex until marriage. Both are correct. But WHY?
When we talk to boys and young men, and men about pornography, do we emphasize the importance of respecting women, and forget to emphasize respecting MEN AND WOMEN...and THEMSELVES? Loving and respecting ourselves as God's children (remembering our divine nature) predisposes us to make choices to honor our divinity and to recover from slip ups more quickly.
Sometimes we talk to boys and men like they would be total brutes by nature if not for our warning about their “dark side”. When I read scriptures I see God reminding us of our light, of our goodness, and our potential to overcome challenges and be like Him. God encourages us to remain clean by reminding us that we are His, that we are divine.
In teaching Christian girls and women about sex we make many similar mistakes as with boys. Sometimes we give the impression to girls that their entire value and worth are contained in the fact that they are less susceptible to certain types of temptation. We imply sometimes that the lower sex-drive in the teenage female as compared to the teenage male makes them more virtuous. Some grown women see their virtue and worth in being less interested in sex. (And some men hate themselves for being more interested than their wives.)
We are inundated with scenes of a sexual nature in advertising, movies, the news, and in almost every place we go. We are stimulated...and we know we are supposed to abstain. Instead of placing the shield of “I am a child of God” over ourselves, and our thoughts, feelings and actions, many disconnect themselves from or shut down their sexual feelings and drives in order to resist. We reject a part of ourselves because we do not understand that our ability to be stimulated is a gift from God and part of the sacred process of creating life.
The void left by this rejection of ourselves leaves us hungry, empty. We hunger for connection and the only thing society offers us is empty sex, much like the calories in sugar: devoid of nutrition and will leave us even hungrier when the energy spike wears off. We may act out sexually, or become austere to prove how good we are in attempting to fill the void with approval.
It must not be turned off or disconnected, it must be protected and nurtured by truth and love: the truth of God’s love of us and of chastity, and the love of ourselves and of God. Addiction is caused by seeking to fill holes, trying to fill holes with things that will never satisfy. Having rejected part of ourselves, shutting it out, shutting it down, or in any way disconnecting, we have holes.
Sex-education that is taught secularly teaches from a purely physiological perspective, neglecting the deep spiritual effects and connections of divinely implemented intercourse. It is taught from a disconnected and spiritually dysfunctional perspective. It is almost mechanical when approached from the perspective of naming parts and outlining reactions.
Sex, in the way most of us and our children are being exposed to it, is so contrary to the peace, joy, and love of God’s spirit, we very naturally separate sex from spirituality and righteousness. Yet, it is so inherently divine in the sphere in which it was designed that both spirituality and sex are incomplete without the other.

We Have Robbed Ourselves and our Children of Knowledge of Our Own Divinity

Throw into the mix that we and our kids are being taught from a young age that they/we evolved, that they/we are descended from animals. Divine parentage gives us power and responsibility. Knowing we are divine helps us recognize when things are not in harmony with who we are. Can’t you just hear Satan whisper to any of us facing temptation “You’re only human.” ?
Belief in being only human, only being mammals robs us of our power to chose divinely. Knowing we are divine changes the perspective from which we make our choices. If I know I am divine, I’m more likely to make choices in alignment with my divinity. If I think I’m an animal, I am more likely to make choices in line with being and animal: following instinct without inspiration or reason, following appetites and passions instead of filtering them according to the divine within me.
Satan, and evolution, says “Son of man, do as you will.” Whereas God says “Son of God, follow me.” God says “Follow me to happiness, peace, unity, joy, fulfillment, and connection. Become even as I am, and inherit all that I am and all that I have.”

We have downplayed the importance of family roles.

A woman who says she will support her husband in anything he wants to do is seen as a door mat, a man who says this is considered a hero. A person in our society is fed a steady script of a man supporting a woman, being sensative, kind and flexible, he’s supposed to back her up at all cost and give her anything she wants. If you don’t believe me take this idea into consideration with anything you have watched in the last 20 years and anything you watch for the next week. If a man expects these things from a woman, he is considered to be a cheauvanist. We talk about women not needing men, but we talk of the absolute indespensability of women.
We have downplayed the importance of family roles. Everything a person does outside a home is lauded above what is done within it. Men and women who have chosen to exert less time and energy in businesses to exert more time in home and family are accused of”selling themselves short”, “playing small”, “wasting their talents”, "being emotionally blocked" etc.
A woman in business is often seen as a hero, a woman who choses home is often seen as unmotivated, a door mat, naive, put upon by society, religion and her husband and children. Conversely we are strongly critical of a man who choses to spend a lot of time at work and less time at home in order to provide for his family. There’s a double standard there. When a woman does that it’s ambition, when a man does it it’s work-aholism and neglect.
When we downplay parenthood we take the divine out of sex and out of our kids. Isn’t God our Father? Isn’t that the name he has chosen for us to know him by? (“Our Father, which art in Heaven.....”) How can kids who have little or no respect for Motherhood and Fatherhood understand the sacredness and protect the passions and processes that lead to it? How can they possibly understand the sanctity of sex without understanding the importance of the result? How can they know their infinite worth and divinity if our roles as their parents are downplayed (if taking care of them is not that important..not as important as our business, hobby, or education, or if chosing parenting as our only focus is seen as a bad thing)?
Why did God think it was SO important for us to know we are His and that He is our Father? Jesus could have called him creator, inventor, teacher, mentor, tutor, builder, philosopher, etc., but He called him “Father” because that is what God prefers us to know him by. Wouldn’t He prefer to be called by the name which best describes Him and exalts Him the most?
I wonder what would happen if the emphasis on talks about sex was about the sacred nature of each person on earth and of the sacred power given to men and women to create offspring (a family) instead of resistance. What if we talked more about the truth of who each person is, and the capacity they have to create and the sacred trust given them by God? What if we reminded them that their chastity empowered them to create DIVINE connections that would fulfill and satisfy them beyond anything any filmmaker or author ever expressed and beyond anything their hearts and minds yet conceive?

Restore What Has Been Lost

I believe families are central to God’s plan. A family cannot be created without sex (if you adopt, someone still had to have participated in sex for a baby to be created). Sex is central to God’s plan, for it is the sacred doorway to human creation and unity. A man and woman literally join together and out of it comes something beautiful, divine, innocent, and FULL of promise.
When we are true to ourselves, when our aim is to serve God and be true to the divinity in ourselves we will naturally do good to others. What we focus on grows, so perhaps we need to focus on love, serving God, dignity, divine nature, personal strength, etc.
Men and women are not simply looking for pleasure in porn, they are seeking something in themselves that is lost. Truthfully, only God can help them find it, but we can help each other by understanding that Sex within marriage, like the family, is ordained of God.
What I want my son to know:
  • "It's safe for me to be a man."
  • "Masculinity is a necessary part of my divine being."
  • "It's ok for me to lead, I am a good leader and considerate and respectful partner."
  • “It’s ok for me to take input and advice from others.
  • "My sexuality and drive is a sacred and essential part of me."
  • "I am sexual and righteous."
  • "My sexual impulses are part of God's plan for creating families."
  • "God has endowed me with the power and strength to govern my sexual desires without extinguishing them."
  • "I am respectful of others and attract others who are respectful of me."
  • "I am accountable, responsible, and capable."
  • and of course:
  • “No means no, and people have a right to change their minds at any time.”
What I want my daughter to know:
  • "It's safe for me to be a woman."
  • "Femininity is a necessary part of my divine being."
  • "It's ok for me to lead, I am a good leader and considerate, respectful partner."
  • “It’s ok for me to take input and advice from others.”
  • "My sexuality and drive is a sacred and essential part of me."
  • "I am sexual and righteous."
  • "My sexual impulses are part of God's plan for creating families."
  • "God has endowed me with the power and strength to govern my sexual desires without extinguishing them."
  • "I am respectful of others and attract others who are respectful of me."
  • "I am accountable, responsible, and capable."
and of course:
  • “No means no, and people have a right to change their minds at any time.”
Some questions to ponder:
-Is it pleasing to God for me to be deeply attracted to my spouse?
-Do I want my child to be able to build close and loving relationships with their spouse (when they marry)?
-What is it like to recognize the divine connection between sex and creation?
-What is it like to have my sexual desires and inclinations aligned perfectly with my divine self (with my highest and best self)?
***We become open to receiving the fullness God wants to send us by restoring the sacred connection between our sexuality and our divine nature.

What do YOU know? Do YOU know the things that empower YOU to be connected to God?

~Liz King Bradley