Read this: Only if you need a HUG today. :)

Sometimes, I just want to climb up to heaven & hug Jesus. I love how for NO reason whatsoever, God's presences surrounds & overwhelms me randomly throughout the day. It's nothing I did to earn..but it's so comforting to know that GOD loves me so much that He wants me to know that He's with me.

When we get hurt in life, we can tend to look at God the way we look at humans. With a side eye.. kinda sorta not trusting God because of all of the people that hurt or betrayed us. God formed you together in your mother's womb & pre-planned every day before you even existed. The promises that God spoke into your heart while you were in your mother's womb are the same promises that He speaks into your heart today. God cannot lie and whatever He promises will come to pass in your life. But it just can't be about all of the promises you want to happen in your life. It's got to be about HIM. It's got to be about this undying, relentless, determination to seek JESUS with all of your heart because you know that you are so lost, so broken, so sad without HIM. Of COURSE God is going to do what He promised, so get your eyes off of your life, your circumstances, your depression and anything else that is making you sad. Lift your eyes up to HIM. He loves you so much. He loves you so much that HE sent His only son to the world so that He can have a relationship with you. So you can't quit and get tired & turn away from God thinking that He doesn't work. He is the ONLY thing that works in this world. And I promise you that all of these earthly troubles will mean NOTHING one day when you are laying at the feet of Jesus...and there's no more tears..heartache or troubles.
How amazing is it that 100 billion people are bowing down to worship Jesus and 100 million angels are calling out to HIM and He wants YOU. He wants every part of YOU. YOUR life will come together in HIS time--not yours. SO rest, trust Him. He has your back.

He loves you like crazy,

Heather

For the SINGLE Woman

Thanksgiving just came & went and if you're around family.. they most likely asked you these questions: When are you getting married?! Have you met anyone?! Your clock is ticking...what about your ex? What happen to him.."

We all want to be loved. To be affirmed & cared for. For MOST women, they want to get married. Even if they tell you they don't, it's because they have been hurt in the past and they would rather be by themselves then to deal with some loser for the rest of their life. So they put this guard up. OR they've been dating their man for a while and in order to save face, they'll tell you they aren't ready because they are tired of him taking forever to propose to them. MOST women would jump at the chance to marry an amazing man that had a relationship with Jesus and standards. This is NOT a bad thing but I believe that God places this desire on the inside of every woman to be a help meet. Genesis 3:16- "Thy desire shall be to thy husband." That husband doesn't include your boyfriend or your friend with benefits. Sometimes, as women--we do anything to get a man to like us. We want to fill that empty void in our heart so we'll give gifts, cook, clean, be available, have a couple babies, give up sex, give money or anything else to get him to stay. If that MAN has no standards, he is only taking what you are willing to offer him. So our DESIRES will be to please our husbands--so if you are dating a random who hasn't become your husband and his desires don't line up with God's word.. then your desires may become polluted to match his.

I want to encourage each & every person reading these words to NEVER SETTLE! Don't keep playing house with a man that refuses to commit to you. HE has not paid the price for your body & your body belongs to Jesus, who died for YOU. Boyfriends don't get the same privileges as a husband--so do what you have to do but the more you place that man in the wrong position.. you will find yourself further & further away from fellowship with God. A man should NEVER take the place of God. "...You shall have no other gods before me." Exodus 20:3. You may think I'm being extreme by saying your man is your god or an idol. An idol can be anything we place ahead of God in our lives, anything that tugs at our heart more that God does, such as: possessions, careers, relationships, hobbies, sports, entertainment, goals, greed, addictions to alcohol/ drugs/ gambling/ pornography, etc. Unfortunately, God is often nowhere to be found as we zealously pursue our idols. Worse yet, the significant amount of time we often spend in these idolatrous pursuits, leaves us with little or no time to spend with the Lord. ..thus, our relationship with God dissolves & then all hell breaks loose & we turn away from the only ONE who can really help you. And His name is Jesus.

So don't get frustrated if you're only meeting a bunch of men that have no relationship with Jesus. Your standard will re-affirm to you that that PERSON is not the one. WE shouldn't be leading our men to Jesus, they should already have a relationship with HIM. How can they lead us--if they don't know how to lead themselves by hearing from the one & only LEADER. So set your time-calendar down and all of those dumb fantasies. Move all of the clutter away and stand before God, naked, honest, broken & ready to lay down your life for Him all over again. POUR out your heart to God & He will pour back into you.

HE is the only one that can make us whole. NOT a man, job, money, cars or anything else. I am screaming from the rooftops.. GOD wants your HEART. So stop giving it away to all of those people & things that constantly hurt you over & over again. God desires to heal every part of you. LET Him in for real & start now. When you start turning away these men that have no standards it will become CLEAR to you who really has a standard. Rest & trust God's timing. He holds your whole world in HIS hands. The MORE you spend time with GOD, the less you will focus on your circumstances & they will shrink down to nothing.

So I am praying for every woman and man that is desiring a mate. That they will get before God, exposed & honest as God uproots all of their pain & heals them from the inside out. That you will never, ever settle & that you will always trust God's timing. That you will run to God when you are lonely or down instead of running to a person's arms, that you'll stop comparing your life to others and rest in the truth that God created & woven you together in your mother's womb & set your days out before you were born. There will be a DAY that you'll meet your one-day mate. But your focus should never be that DAY. It should always be HIM. #Jesus. In Jesus name, Amen.


He loves you like crazy.

Love,
Heather

Wow! What a busy week!

So sorry that I haven't posted anything in about a week. I was in New York for work for a full week. I had such a blast! Although I was there for work and I worked my TAIL off everyday, I was able to sneak in attending my best friend's baby shower, a few dinners and shopping trips (I love NYC sample sales!) with friends. Out of all the places that I've traveled I still stand by the fact that I think that NYC has the BEST shopping.

Some of the girls from the shower! One of my dearest friends is 8 months pregnant in Purple! She looks great!

I landed at midnight last night and I had to turn around and take my husband to the airport at 6AM! Crazy, right? He's on his way to Dubai and Africa to share Jesus.

          (the group of men that are going with my hubby- at the airport)


 Reminds me of Mark 16:15 "which tells us to go into ALL the Earth & preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ to all." I get convicted when I read that scripture because it says ALL. All includes those that are forgotten, broken, of other religions, the downcast, the "rich", the "poor" the ones that you think are better "than" you based on some worldly reason, it also includes those that you think are "below" you. It just challenges me because sometimes I would like to think that I'm humble, but I'm really not. I am constantly working on this area. Sometimes, I get so busy it becomes a distraction that I'm ripping and running here & there and not slowing down. Sometimes I don't "feel like slowing" down and talking to someone. I'm tired, way too wrapped up in "me" or whatever other reason. I recall this past week, I was in Philadelphia and I saw a man asking for donors to support a fundraiser for the land in some random country. I was in a rush to get my smoothie, go to the bathroom and was planning to meet a friend. So I grabbed my smoothie and started to walk past the young man I passed. The Lord told me to stop. So I asked the young man to give me the real deal about what he's doing. I ended up giving him some cash I had on me. NOT because I believed in his project, but because GOD told me to stop and do it. I could have easily brushed it off, rushing off here & there but I'm so tired of saying I REALLY love God but refuse to obey Him when He instructs me. Outside of that..So many people are broken, sad, depressed and down. We can tend to get so wrapped up in our life that we forget that we are made to glorify HIM. It's never about US. It's always about HIM. Not your job, your career, gettin' you a husband, that house or six figure salary. Everything comes out of Him. So SLOW down, obey Him immediately and remember that when you confess your undying love for Jesus Christ on twitter and facebook, it's gonna get tested. So pass it.

When I was on the plane at about 30,000 feet in the air, I looked down on earth. It's amazing to me that there's SO many people but God STILL knows me by my name. The hairs on our head our numbered and no matter what is going on in my life, I feel like God's eyes are directly on me. His LOVE amazes me. It challenges me. Sometimes, out of nowhere, His love just surrounds and overwhelms me. His presence is so refreshing. Even just typing this makes me want to bow down & worship Him. Just remember that no matter what you're going through, God is with you. He hears you, He Loves you, He will NEVER leave you or forsake you. Even if everybody else leaves you, HE still remains. So don't worry about your life. It's cupped in His beautiful hands. He's with you.

So thanks for letting me vent my thoughts. Make sure you're praying for my hubby and the men traveling to Dubai and Africa. Also, follow my hubby's blog as he blogs the entire experience.

Love you all,
Heather

3,000 subscriber giveaway!

hey everyone! i have just passed 3,000 subscribers, which is incredible :)

so, to say a massive thankyou to each and every one of you, i have decided to hold a giveaway of some special things that i bought in australia, as well as give you the opportunity to be part of my upcoming book!

for more info and to see the prizes that are available, check out the video:

to enter, all you have to do is:

♥ leave a comment on Youtube, or on Facebook or Twitter, telling me the best thing you've learnt from my channel - perhaps a tip about acne, skincare or healthy living, or maybe you've learnt something about positivity or inner beauty?

rules:
- this is open internationally!
- you must be a subscriber
- the deadline is a month before Christmas, on the 25th November at 9am GMT
- you should be over 16, or have parental permission to give me your postal address if you win
- by entering, you give me permission to use your comments as part of my upcoming beauty tips book

for extra chances to win, leave another comment on:

http://www.twitter.com/alissaloves

http://www.facebook.com/alissaevelyn1

you can also leave a comment on this post to enter, if you like! 

for more info on the beauty tips book, have a look at my introductory post here...

My Top FIVE Secret Beauty Tips!!

(One of my real-life sleepovers! There used to be about 30 girls in my 2 bedroom apt!)

Sooooo, I am ALL about sharing my ladies tips!! I LOVE finding new remedies, new shampoos, beauty tips & everything else! So I figured I would share a few of them with my ladies! (and men too! :)) I look at life as a HUGE sleepover with everyone invited, with pure hearts, sharing secrets, tips and encouragement. Although this isn't always "reality" as my husband would say.. I still love my bubble. lol

                                                    My bubble. :)

Tip #1. Wen Shampoo.
 Ok so you know that creepy infomercial that comes out at night?! Yup, that's it. I actually purchased the product and I LOVE it! I noticed a huge difference in my hair RIGHT away. Its a "cleanser" for your hair. It shampoo/conditioner combined and it leaves your hair super soft and manageable. Sometimes, I leave it on overnight and I wake up and wash it out and it's amazingggg! You can purchase it directly from the website or just purchase via amazon. If you go through the website, they will set you up for automatic billing and ship it out to you every other month. I don't like automatic anything so I shut that down. I just order it from amazon. Any "scent" is fine- I use Mint Almond.
Here's the link:
http://www.amazon.com/WEN%C2%AE-Sweet-Almond-Cleansing-Conditioner/dp/B0048O2R1E/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1320245063&sr=8-3

Tip #2 Heutiful Hair Steamer!

Soo, I used to be a blond. I was blond for about 7-8 years until I got married and I decided that I needed a different look! I love my natural hair color but I wanted to restore my healthy hair!! For those of you going "natural" or for those of you that are trying to increase shine, health of your hair and growth..(who doesn't?!) THIS is the product! I came across this page on Facebook and figured I would try it out. I paid about $150 with the steamer, the conditioner, shampoo and the Heutiful headband. It was a GREAT purchase. It's like having my own mini' hair salon in my bathroom. :) I highly recommend!

http://www.behuetiful.com/

Tip #3 AMAZING Natural Hair Mask!

If you really know me, you know I LOVE avocado. Since I've gone Vegan (and before!) it's been my "meat" in my meals and such a yummy snack. Who would have thought that you can use it on your hair as a deep conditioner?! It is vital to keep the hair conditioned and moisturized. Conditioners bring the cuticles and the shaft back together, adding lubrication to the shaft of the hair and creating healthier and more vibrant hair. (Who doesn't want that?!)

So do this: Add 1 Avocado, a cup of water, some raw honey, olive oil, 1/2 a banana, an egg some of your current conditioner. (The more riper the banana/avocado, the better!). Leave it on for 20 minutes with a plastic cap, then rise!! I left mine on for about an hour and I was SHOCKED at how soft & shiny my hair was!

Tip #4 The most amazing face lotion: La Mer

Ok, so I usually try to stick to cost  efficient options, but I had to throw this one in. Expensive? Yes. I try not to splurge often, but, when you find a product that actually lives up to its claim it is no longer a splurge in my mind. (well, my hubby doesn't seem to think so, but what do you do?) This is definitely an area that I'm still working on. haha! Anyway! After 1-2 days of use you will see a CHANGE in your skin. It will feel refreshed, it will glow, any wrinkles you had will begin to diminish. I highly recommend this product in the winter though as a "winter" lotion. The 1 oz will cost $135. So if you CAN splurge every now & then, it's def. worth a try! I was a bit hesitent when my girlfriend told me about it so I went to Saks and got samples first to make sure that I would love it! Remember that a little goes a long way, so it should last you a couple months! Other places you can purchase it for cheaper: Ebay, Amazon.com

http://www.cremedelamer.com/templates/products/spp.tmpl?CATEGORY_ID=CATEGORY5778&PRODUCT_ID=PROD2459&cm_vc=XCATEGORY5778

Tip #5 MAC Bronzing Loose Powder

This is ONE item I will never leave home without!! Do you know how much I love a bronzy-glowing look?! Espectially if I'm super tired? If I'm running out the door, it gives me a natural, warm glow that lasts throughout the day! $23

http://www.maccosmetics.com/product/shaded/159/595/Iridescent-PowderLoose/index.tmpl

Other fun tips:

•  I ALWAYS use baby oil to remove makeup. Then pat it dry with a cotton pad. Quick, easy & inexpensive!
• Fragrance rises, so spritz it on your ankles or behind your knees to help your scent last longer.
• Never to rub moisturizer into my face, pat it on. Rubbing actually takes it off your skin and disperses it in different places. Patting it on helps the skin soak it up.
• Swap your usual black or brown eyeliner for purple because it's a subtle way to make the color of your eyes pop. I use also use purple eye shadow and apply it with a eyeliner brush to my upper lash line.
• You can use your eyebrows to make dark under eye circles less noticeable. Just tweeze your brows so they're more straight-across than arched. When they're arched you get a complete circle effect (your brows and the dark circles below) and that exaggerates the dark circles, but if your brows are straight across, it breaks up that shape and de-emphasizes the circles
• I use a primer to make my skin smooth, help my makeup in tact and keep my face looking matte instead of shiny.

Thanks for checking out my tips! Be sure to post any tips if you have some to share! Remember that no matter how many remedies you do to take care of yourself physcially, it means NOTHING if you don't have Christ in the center of your heart. HE is the true meaning of BEAUTY. Without HIM we are nothing. So don't spend hours doing the above..if you haven't spent hours with Him.

Love you all!

Heather