Volunteer and Mentoring-make a difference in this world series

What I am going to share today is very personal.

A lot of us have done things in our lives that we might be ashamed of. 

Some are small things, and some of us have some pretty big and devastating things. 
Personal "junk" that we keep to ourselves so we don't have to deal with it. 

Mostly because we don't know how to deal with it. 
Do we? 

We are somewhat afraid that if we try it's just going to make everything worse. 
We are afraid of what others might think "if they only knew".

Truth is, no matter how big our junk is, no matter how much what we've done has impacted the way other people feel about us or how we feel about ourselves, it hasn't changed how 

God feels about us. 
God loves us, he always has and always will, and there's nothing we can do to change that!

So there goes the shame out of the door.
Now you are free.

I knew my past was going to bring others to freedom, it was going to be used to encourage and support many others.

And that's when volunteering with 

Mercy Ministries 

came along.

About 15 years ago I found freedom from a 7 years eating disorder addiction.

Now, you might think that people have to be "diagnose" to have certain addiction, 

but that is not true.

An alcoholic is simply a person who abuses alcohol, who cannot put limits on themselves and does not "know" when to stop...on a regular basis. 

You can be sober on weekdays and get smashed on the weekends...that is still an alcoholic path.

A person with eating disorder is anyone who does not have an healthy relationship with food, either by not eating or overeating. 

Self-hatred can manifest by physically cutting yourself and/or constantly making comments about not being pretty/good enough, aka low self esteem, comparing ourselves to others and worry what others might think about us or what we do.

So unfortunately, all this "addictions" and conditions are not as rare as someone might think.

When I started to volunteer with Mercy, 

I knew it had potential to make a big difference.

What I do is to mentor younger ladies (who have been through sexual abuse, eating disorders, cutting, addictions, unplanned pregnancy, sex trafficking and more) when they are back into the real world, by encouraging and supporting them.

I am there for them, I listen, I love, I hug, I cry, I pray, and I keep them accountable.

It does not cost me anything, but it truly is a great way to impact the world, one girl at a time.

And the truth is that when people experience unconditional love and acceptance, they will be the ones showing unconditional love and acceptance to others.

The snowball effect.

The key is to first love and accept yourself, your past.

I believe each one of us has a story to tell.

I believe that our culture has lost the "passing" down from older women.

I remember spending time with my grandmother, listening to her stories, her wisdom and her life.

So my goal in the last few years has been to really love and embrace younger women.

My desire is to speak life and truth into their lives. 
Bring the best out of them.

This is something we can all do.

It's never too late to start.

Money is not an issue.

Age is not an issue.

Time is not an issue.

The average American over the age of two spends more than 34 hours a week(5 hours a day) watching live television.
Meanwhile, the average person spends 3-5 hours a day trolling the Internet on a computer — though that number rises to more than 7 hours for people 35 to 49. source here

The real issue is: are we willing to?

Volunteer our time and invest in others.

It's free and it's life changing.
...and if people are "not your thing", how about volunteer at an animal shelter?

***there are many organizations and programs that you can find locally to your area, nursing homes, women shelters, after school programs, pregnancy centers (like Heartbeat Haven), sex trafficking rescue agencies (like End slavery TN)...there are also many other ways that do not involve a program, people are all around us.***

I love this quote:

"You don't get to control the story people tell about you, 
you only get to control the story you live." 
-Jon Acuff

So be encouraged, you have so much to give.
You are a world changer.
Yes, you.

Stay Frugal,

Daniela

These are local ministries that I personally know about:

Mercy Ministries

End Slavery TN
Heartbeat Haven