Friday, August 28, 2015

How to Heal a Broken Heart

Hey, Gabriel Girls!  Has you heart ever been broken?  Mine has, and, as you well know, it isn’t any fun.


File: #75460561 | Author: pathdoc

First of all, what is a broken heart? A broken heart is a heart that has been shattered by disappointment. It could be any kind of disappointment: a broken relationship, the loss of a loved one, the failure to see a dream fulfilled, a wrong decision you made, a betrayal by someone you trusted. The list could go on and on.

 So, what should you do when your heart has been broken? 

 First of all, realize you are not alone in your pain. Jesus is right there with you. Listen to what His Word says about broken hearts: “The LORD is close to the broken-hearted and saves the crushed in spirit" (Psalm 34:18).  What a promise! 

 You may feel as though your heart can never be healed, but I promise you, it can. 

 In another place, the Word says this: "He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds” (Psalm 147:3).

 Who better to go to when your heart has been broken than Jesus Christ? Why? Because He created your heart, and He alone can fix it.

 No matter how your heart has been broken, Jesus will heal it. I promise you. How do I know? Because He healed my broken heart, and He will do the same for you.
____________________________________________________
If you enjoyed this post, please tell your teenage girlfriends about the Gabriel Girls. Thanks!
_______________________________________________
Copyright 2015 by Dr. MaryAnn Diorio. All Rights Reserved.

To Become a Gabriel Girl, you need to qualify as follows:
  • You need to be born again. This means that you have accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Savior and the Lord of your life.If you don't know how to do this, click here.
  • You need to have a desire to tell others about Jesus wherever you go and whenever you can.
  • You need to commit to following Jesus by reading the Bible and praying every day and by obeying Jesus' command to love Him and to love your neighbor.
    ____________________________________________________
You can find me on the following Social Media Venues:
Amazon Author Central: www.amazon.com/author/maryanndiorio
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Tuesday, August 25, 2015

How to Win the Guy Game

Hey, Gabriel Girls! I read an article the other day that more and more teen girls are becoming gamers. The article defined a “gamer” as someone who likes to play video games and other kinds of games on her cell phone, tablet, or computer.

Photo Source: File: #88734696 | Author: Luis Louro

My husband (of 45 years, I might add :) and I both have Sudoku on our cell phones. We love the game and help each other solve the puzzles when they get especially hard.

But there’s a game I want to talk about today that is much more serious than the games we play on our phones or computers. It's called the Guy Game, and at some point in your life, you may have to play it.

 So, what’s the Guy Game? 

 Let me start by saying it really isn’t a game at all. It’s a pretty serious part of life. So serious, in fact, that, if you don’t learn how to play it by God’s rules at the beginning, it could cause you a lot of heartache later on in life.

 As you well know, guys are a pretty interesting part of being a teen girl. That’s the way God designed it. God created both male and female, and the first step in playing the Guy Game is to know which is which and to honor that. (We’ll discuss more about gender in a future post).

 The next step in playing the Guy Game is to understand that God has designed guys and gals to desire each other. This desire is not just physical; it’s actually a desire on the soul level and the spirit level. It’s a desire that God has created so that a man and a woman who love each other will eventually marry and create a family that will grow up to love and honor God. Ultimately, God wants human souls for His eternal family in Heaven.

The problem with the Guy Game today is that most teen girls play the game wrong. They play it by the world's rules and not by God's rules. 

So, what's the difference?

Here are a few big ones:

1) God says that a girl and a guy must not engage in sex until they are married. Period. The world says this is a stupid rule. If a girl loves a guy, why shouldn't she have sex with him? God is old-fashioned. He just doesn't want me to have fun.

 Let's think about this line of reasoning. First of all, God created sex, so He knows all about it. He put boundaries around the sexual relationship, limiting it to marriage, in order to protect both the girl and the guy from heartache.  When we don't follow God's rules for relationships with guys, we ALWAYS--and I mean ALWAYS--end up being hurt.

 2) God says that true love is unselfish. A guy who loves God will never tell you that you would have sex with him outside of marriage if you really loved him. Any guy who tells you that you would have sex with him if you loved him is a hugely selfish guy.  He doesn’t love you at all. If he did love you, he would not ask you to disobey God’s rule. 

 And remember, if a guy can get sex from you outside of marriage, chances are he will never marry you. Why should he make a lifetime commitment to you when he can get what he wants from you without a commitment?

 3) God tells you not to get into a relationship with a guy who is not a follower of Jesus. Why? Because doing so will cause you a lot of heartache later on. The world tells you to marry a guy who is cute, or smart, or athletic, or whatever. The world never mentions anything about the guy's relationship to Jesus.

You see, when a girl marries a guy, they are not united only on the physical level. More importantly, they are united on the spiritual level. If your spirit has Jesus in it and the guy's spirit doesn't, you will never be truly married. You will have many problems, and you will suffer a great deal.

Bottom line, the only way to win the Guy Game is to play the game according to God's rules. When you do, you'll marry the guy God chooses for you, and you won't live a life of regret.

The gift of a Godly husband is well worth the wait, no matter how long it takes.

____________________________________________________
If you enjoyed this post, please tell your teenage girlfriends about the Gabriel Girls. Thanks!
_______________________________________________
Copyright 2015 by Dr. MaryAnn Diorio. All Rights Reserved.
To Become a Gabriel Girl, you need to qualify as follows:
  • You need to be born again. This means that you have accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Savior and the Lord of your life.If you don't know how to do this, click here.
  • You need to have a desire to tell others about Jesus wherever you go and whenever you can.
  • You need to commit to following Jesus by reading the Bible and praying every day and by obeying Jesus' command to love Him and to love your neighbor.
    ____________________________________________________
You can find me on the following Social Media Venues:
Amazon Author Central: www.amazon.com/author/maryanndiorio
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Friday, August 21, 2015

How to Win from Your Heart

Hey, Gabriel Girls!

 If you’re like me, you like to win.  Whether it’s sports, academics, or relationships, we all want to succeed.
Fotolia_50916410_S.jpg


 Did you now that God has given us the secret to success? It’s found in Joshua 1:8: "Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do.”

 WOW! How cool is that? God tells us exactly what to do in order to succeed in life.

 Now let’s look at God’s words closely. First of all, what is the Book of Instruction He’s talking about? It’s the Bible, God’s manual for life. When you buy a car, you get a manual to go with it. When you buy a computer, you get a manual to go with it.

 And when you’re born into this world, you get a manual to go with you! It’s called the Bible. 

 In the Bible, you will find directions regarding how God put you together, how you function, and what to do if something breaks in your heart, mind, or body.


When you’re born into this world, you get a manual
to go with you! It’s called the Bible.


Okay, now what does “meditate” mean? To meditate comes from a Latin word that means to chew. When you meditate on God’s Word, you chew on it. In other words, you mull it over in your mind. You think about it. You figure out how to apply it to your life.

 God says to meditate on His Word day and night. That means we need to be thinking about it all the time as we face decisions, emotions, and all the problems that go along with being a human being, especially a teenage human being.

 The Bible is sometimes called God’s Word. Why does God instruct us to meditate on His Word? So that we will obey everything written in it. 

 But why do we need to obey everything that is written in the Bible? 

 DRUM ROLL!  Here is the answer: We need to obey everything written in the Bible so that we will prosper and succeed in all we do! 

 Do you see the connection? Obeying God’s Word leads to success. More than that, it is the only way that leads to success. God says so when He uses the words “only then.”  Only when we meditate on the Word and obey it will we succeed in every area of life.

 Okay. Let’s get practical. Is there an area in your life where you are not succeeding? Maybe in a subject in school, like English or Math or Science?  Maybe in sports? Maybe in a relationship with your parents, your siblings, your boyfriend, your teacher, or your best friend? 

 If so, I encourage you to try this experiment. Start reading through the Book of Proverbs, one of the books of the Bible. Read until a verse “jumps off the page” at you--until something really resonates with you and strikes a chord in your heart. Then start meditating on that verse. Ask God what it means in your life and how you can apply it to your life. 

 As He begins to show you what the verse means and how you can apply it to your life, start doing what God has shown you to do. Soon you will notice that the difficult situation is working itself out successfully, simply because you meditated on the Word and you obeyed what God told you to do through His Word.

 Remember this: The Word always works when you work the Word! 

 If you’d like to share your story of success by meditating on and applying the Word, we would love to hear from you. Just leave a comment in the box below.
_______________________________________________
Copyright 2015 by Dr. MaryAnn Diorio. All Rights Reserved.
To Become a Gabriel Girl, you need to qualify as follows:

  • You need to be born again. This means that you have accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Savior and the Lord of your life.If you don't know how to do this, click here.
  • You need to have a desire to tell others about Jesus wherever you go and whenever you can.
  • You need to commit to following Jesus by reading the Bible and praying every day and by obeying Jesus' command to love Him and to love your neighbor.
    ____________________________________________________
You can find me on the following Social Media Venues:
Amazon Author Central: www.amazon.com/author/maryanndiorio
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Tuesday, August 18, 2015

How to Handle a Bully in Your Life

Hey, Gabriel Girls!

Is there a bully in your life? Like someone who tries to intimidate you or make you feel like a zero? If so, listen up.


File: #86560244 | Author: Syda Productions

 There’s something you need to know about a bully.  Underneath all that pseudo (false) power is someone who feels like a zero herself. That’s the reason she has to try to make you think she is better than you are.

The only power a bully has is the power you give her by being afraid of her. So, don’t be afraid. Even if you feel afraid, don’t act afraid in front of a bully.



The only power a bully has is
the power you give her. 


When a bully realizes she can’t make you afraid, she’ll stop trying to.

But what if she doesn’t?

Here are a few strategies you can use to handle a bully:

1) Recognize bullying for what it really is: a selfish attempt to gain something by attempting to hurt someone else through intimidation. For this reason, we must confront a bully. We must take a stand against all acts of bullying, acknowledging that it is wrong and disrespectful. But we must always take a stand in love. In other words, when someone tries to bully us, we must confront the bully in love and with a desire to bring healing to him or her. We must never allow ourselves to be bullied out of fear. Our fear is the bully’s fuel to continue bullying us.

2) Ask Holy Spirit for wisdom in dealing with this particular bully. Ask the Lord what you may have done to allow this bully to harass you. Were you afraid to report the bully? Were you afraid to talk to your parents about the bully? Were you afraid of what your friends would say if you confronted the bully?

3) Rejoice in the midst of this trial in your life.  The Bible says, “when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy” (James 1:2). This doesn’t mean to sit back and do nothing. It means to praise God because we trust Him to lead us through the trial. 

4) Pray for the girl who is bullying you and find ways to show her the love of Christ. Yes, you read that right. The Bible says this about those who treat us badly: “But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven.”  When you are kind to a bully who treats you badly, she is thrown off her guard and doesn’t know how to respond. Your kindness confuses her and disarms her. Remember that a bully needs Jesus, so pray for her salvation.

5) Do not ignore a bully and hope she’ll go away.  She won’t. Do not give in to a bully, hoping you can get her to change her mind by appeasing her. The more you ignore a bully or the more you try to appease her, the more you will motivate her to keep bullying.  

6) Get help from your parents, teachers, police officers, or other wise adults. They can tell when a bully is just letting out a lot of hot air or is really dangerous to your well-being. Some bullies are bent on destruction, and you will need adult help in dealing with them. 

7) Learn all you can about bullying. You will discover that bullies are hurting people, and hurting people hurt people. This does not mean you should let the bully off the hook, but you must forgive her. Forgiving puts the bully on God’s hook, and that is not a place anyone wants to be. So pray that the bully will grasp in her heart that Jesus loves her and that she doesn’t need to be a bully in order to feel important.  She is already important just because God made her.

There’s a box below for you to enter your thoughts on bullying. Have you ever been bullied? If so, how did you handle the situation? Are you being bullied now? Have these tips given you some good strategies for handling the bully in your life?  Please share your thoughts, insights, and opinions. They are valuable. :)

_______________________________________________
Copyright 2015 by Dr. MaryAnn Diorio. All Rights Reserved.

To Become a Gabriel Girl, you need to qualify as follows:

  • You need to be born again. This means that you have accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Savior and the Lord of your life.If you don't know how to do this, click here.
  • You need to have a desire to tell others about Jesus wherever you go and whenever you can.
  • You need to commit to following Jesus by reading the Bible and praying every day and by obeying Jesus' command to love Him and to love your neighbor.
    ____________________________________________________
You can find me on the following Social Media Venues:
Amazon Author Central: www.amazon.com/author/maryanndiorio





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Thursday, August 13, 2015

How to Make Smart Choices for Your Life

Hey, Gabriel Girls!

 It’s decision time. Time to take a look at how to make smart choices for your life.
Fotolia File: #53965260 | Author: Elenarts

Most of you reading this are between the ages of 12 and 18.  Except for me, lol!  It’s been almost 52 years since I was 18 and 58 years since I was 12.  But I still remember what it was like to be 12 and 13 and 14 and 15 and 16 and 17 and 18.

 Anyway, for most of you, the next 10 to 15 years of your life will be years during which you will face the most important decisions of your life. Here are some of them:

  • Should I finish high school or should I drop out?
  • Should I go to college?
  • If yes, what college should I go to?
  • What should I major in?
  • If I choose not to go to college, should I get a job or some other kind of training?
  • If a job, what kind of job should I get?
  • Should I look for a job in my hometown, or should I move away?
  • Should I get married?
  • If yes, whom should I marry?
  • If no, should I get my own apartment or should I live at home with my parents? (If you’re thinking about this latter choice, ask your parents first. :)
These are only a few of the choices you will be making in the next few years that will affect the entire rest of your life. So, wouldn’t you agree that it’s very important to make smart choices?

Since I’ve already made all of these choices for my own life, I would be happy to let you in on some tips for making smart choices:

1) Consult God before making any choice. Even a choice like should you eat that third piece of pizza. :) Making choices without consulting God is a sure recipe for disaster. The way you consult God is by praying and reading the Bible. God will speak to you through His Word and through His still, small voice deep inside you.

2) Consult your parents before making any choice. Although your parents may seem old-fashioned at times, truth is they’ve traveled down the road of choices and know where the potholes are, so they can warn you ahead of time. 

3) Consult your pastor if you attend a church or an older person you know who loves God and lives according to His Word.  They will give you an objective view of your situation and offer you wise advice. If you don’t have a pastor or you don’t know a wise older person, ask your parents to suggest someone who can offer you good counsel. 

Talking to your friends about your choices is fine, but remember that your friends are at about the same place in the road of life that you are, so they don’t know what lies ahead either.

Making smart choices is both scary and fun. When you have the right guides--God, the Bible, your parents, and a wise older person--you will feel confident that you are making a smart choice every time.

_______________________________________________
Copyright 2015 by Dr. MaryAnn Diorio. All Rights Reserved.


To Become a Gabriel Girl, you need to qualify as follows:

  • You need to be born again. This means that you have accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Savior and the Lord of your life.If you don't know how to do this, click here.
  • You need to have a desire to tell others about Jesus wherever you go and whenever you can.
  • You need to commit to following Jesus by reading the Bible and praying every day and by obeying Jesus' command to love Him and to love your neighbor.
    ____________________________________________________
You can find me on the following Social Media Venues:
Amazon Author Central: www.amazon.com/author/maryanndiorio
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