Have you ever gone through a really hard trial that seems to go on, and on, and then it gets better for a while, then turns back rotten again? I've had one of these recently, and I sometimes am tempted to ask, "Where are you God? Don't you see what I'm going through? Why won't you help me through it, or just take it away?"
Today a friend shared a poem with me that I've heard of, but never really took the time to read it. The poem is called Footprints. I'd like to share it on here too, because it encouraged me SO much today.
One night a man dreamed he was walking along the beach with the Lord. Across the sky flashed scenes from his life. For each scene, he noticed two sets of footprints in the sand, on belonging to him, the other to the Lord.
When the last scene of his life flashed before him, he looked back at the footprints in the sand. He noticed that many times along the path of his life there was only one set of footprints. He also noticed that it happened in the very lowest and saddest times in his life.
This really bothered him and he questioned the Lord about it. "Lord, you said that once I decided to follow you, you'd walk with me all the way. But I have noticed that during the most troublesome times in my life, there is only one set of footprints. I don't understand why when I needed you most you would leave me!"
The Lord replied, "My son, my precious child, I love you and would never leave you. During your times of trial and suffering, when you only see one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you."
I don't know about you, but that last line almost put me in tears. It's amazing to me that I would think that God has abandoned me or left me in my trial by myself when really, He's the only way I'm going to make it through!
I've been thinking a lot today about Isaiah 61:3: To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified.
I didn't understand what the whole verse meant, so I did some research and study and what I found was amazing. The word rendered 'beauty' means properly a head-dress,
turban, tiara, or diadem; and the idea is, that the Redeemer would give to his mourning people such an ornament instead of the ashes they would put on their heads when they were grieving. It was common among the Orientals to put ashes or dust on their heads in time of mourning to show their grief.
The oil was symbolic to express joy. The garment of praise-a garment that would show joy instead of mourning. The trees of righteousness in the Hebrew are Oaks. Oaks are strong sturdy trees; so the mourning people of Zion were to be strong as Oak trees are, and were to be planted by the Lord.
I see this verse in a whole new way now! I love how God can use something like a poem, a song, or a verse to encourage me during a hard time!
To end this blog post, I'm going to put up the last verse of a favorite hymn. You should read the lyrics to the whole hymn when you have time, because they're just that good, but for now, I'll just put up the last verse.
The hymn is called "Day by Day" and I think it goes great with the theme of this blog post.
Day By Day
vs. 3
Help me then in every tribulation
So to trust Thy promises, O Lord,
That I lose not faith's sweet consolation
Offered me within Thy holy Word.
Help me, Lord, when toil and trouble meeting,
E'er to take, as from a father's hand,
One by one, the days, the moments fleeting,
Till I reach the promised land.
Deuteronomy 33:25 ...and as thy days, so shall thy strength be.
Sunday, July 15, 2012
Monday, May 21, 2012
Learning...Without Even Trying
WARNING: This blog post will contain a whole lot (and yes I mean a WHOLE lot) of random thoughts, mixed and jumbled together. Prepare yourself.
I've been feeling a bit uninspired lately...probably what people call "writer's block". Only problem is, I'm not a writer, so I'm not sure why I haven't been thinking of things to write about!
Well anyway, I went on vacation last week to Florida. It was a beautiful vacation! The ocean was sky blue, the sand incredibly white. The whole scene just reminded me of what a great God I serve and how vast His creation really is! Several times I would pick up a handful of sand and sift through it thinking, "Wow. God knows how may individual little grains of sand are in the entire world, whereas it would probably be impossible for me to count one tablespoon full."
Something I really enjoy to do while I'm on vacation is to sit out at the beach or the pool reading books. The book that I was reading this week was about a dog who his owner described as "The World's Worst Dog". The book was hilarious. The dog truly was terrible. The whole book long he would destroy something, and the owner would have to go behind him and clean everything up and replace what he messed up.
As I was reading I kept thinking about how much I am like that dog as a Christian. I go and mess things up, and frustrate God, yet He still loves me and He's willing to clean up after me. He'll never "get rid of" me when I mess up countless times.
Towards the end of the book, the dog starts to die. John (the owner) sums up the shortness of life and how we need to cherish it in a way I thought was pretty great. In this part of the book, he's sitting in his car on the anniversary of September 11, thinking through some things.
"In the lonely blackness, I could almost taste the finiteness of life, precarious, uncertain, able to cease at any instant without notice. I was reminded of what should be obvious but too often was not, that each day, each hour and minute, is worth cherishing.
I felt something else as well--an amazement at the boundless capacity of the human heart, at once big enough to absorb a tragedy of this magnitude (9/11) yet still find room for the little moments of personal pain and heartache that are part of an life. In my case, one of those little moments was my failing dog. With a tinge of shame, I realize that even amid the colossus of human heartbreak that was Flight 93, I could still feel the sharp pang of the loss I knew was coming."
This book was not written by a Christian, but he sums that up perfectly. Whenever I hear of things that I need to do (i.e. witnessing, doing things for God) I think, "oh I'll do it when I get older! I still have so much ahead of me!", when in reality, I could die instantly just because God wanted me to. As my pastor put it, "God doesn't just give you life when you're a baby and that's it. No, every breath you take, God just gave you life. He can take away that life just as fast as He gave it to you also."
I don't want this blog post to sound like doomsday and all depressing, but I want it just to get you thinking. What have I missed in life so far that I could have done for Christ? What can I do with the life that God so graciously gives me every day? How can I live each day, hour, minute, and second to the fullest?
So as you can see, I've been thinking a whole lot about life lately, and what I live for, and what my priorities are. It's amazing how much I've learned from my own dog about loving the simple things and living each day with energy, ready to find out what each and every day will bring. Live your life for God, and you'll have the most accomplished life you can have!
I've been feeling a bit uninspired lately...probably what people call "writer's block". Only problem is, I'm not a writer, so I'm not sure why I haven't been thinking of things to write about!
Well anyway, I went on vacation last week to Florida. It was a beautiful vacation! The ocean was sky blue, the sand incredibly white. The whole scene just reminded me of what a great God I serve and how vast His creation really is! Several times I would pick up a handful of sand and sift through it thinking, "Wow. God knows how may individual little grains of sand are in the entire world, whereas it would probably be impossible for me to count one tablespoon full."
Something I really enjoy to do while I'm on vacation is to sit out at the beach or the pool reading books. The book that I was reading this week was about a dog who his owner described as "The World's Worst Dog". The book was hilarious. The dog truly was terrible. The whole book long he would destroy something, and the owner would have to go behind him and clean everything up and replace what he messed up.
As I was reading I kept thinking about how much I am like that dog as a Christian. I go and mess things up, and frustrate God, yet He still loves me and He's willing to clean up after me. He'll never "get rid of" me when I mess up countless times.
Towards the end of the book, the dog starts to die. John (the owner) sums up the shortness of life and how we need to cherish it in a way I thought was pretty great. In this part of the book, he's sitting in his car on the anniversary of September 11, thinking through some things.
"In the lonely blackness, I could almost taste the finiteness of life, precarious, uncertain, able to cease at any instant without notice. I was reminded of what should be obvious but too often was not, that each day, each hour and minute, is worth cherishing.
I felt something else as well--an amazement at the boundless capacity of the human heart, at once big enough to absorb a tragedy of this magnitude (9/11) yet still find room for the little moments of personal pain and heartache that are part of an life. In my case, one of those little moments was my failing dog. With a tinge of shame, I realize that even amid the colossus of human heartbreak that was Flight 93, I could still feel the sharp pang of the loss I knew was coming."
This book was not written by a Christian, but he sums that up perfectly. Whenever I hear of things that I need to do (i.e. witnessing, doing things for God) I think, "oh I'll do it when I get older! I still have so much ahead of me!", when in reality, I could die instantly just because God wanted me to. As my pastor put it, "God doesn't just give you life when you're a baby and that's it. No, every breath you take, God just gave you life. He can take away that life just as fast as He gave it to you also."
I don't want this blog post to sound like doomsday and all depressing, but I want it just to get you thinking. What have I missed in life so far that I could have done for Christ? What can I do with the life that God so graciously gives me every day? How can I live each day, hour, minute, and second to the fullest?
So as you can see, I've been thinking a whole lot about life lately, and what I live for, and what my priorities are. It's amazing how much I've learned from my own dog about loving the simple things and living each day with energy, ready to find out what each and every day will bring. Live your life for God, and you'll have the most accomplished life you can have!
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
God's Great Faithfulness--Lamentations 3
My favorite chapter that I've practically been clinging to lately has been Lamentations 3. I read it at least once a week. It encourages me SO much, and I wanted to blog about it and share what it's all about to me!
I usually don't read the chapters in the Bible that aren't so "popular". A few months ago, I was reading through my Bible, and came across Lamentations 3 and the chapter was so unbelievably encouraging to me! I'd been going through some things, and felt like I had hit "rock bottom". This passage reminded me of God's purpose in sending us through trials, how to keep having faith and hope, and about God's great faithfulness.
In this chapter, the author Jeremiah is going through a really tough time. He feels cut off from God, and that God isn't listening to him. If you read the previous chapters of Lamentations, you could get a little depressed...just because it seems like all God is doing is putting this person through trial after trial. In verse 8 of chapter 3, he makes the statement: "though I call for help, He shuts out my prayer." Have you ever felt that God "shuts out" your prayers and just ignores you? Well, I have. It's not fun.
I went to a Sunday School class at church a few semesters ago called "Changed Into His Image" by Jim Berg. The illustration he uses to show why we go through trials came to mind as I was reading this chapter. He uses tea bags and hot water. When you dip a tea bag into hot water, what comes out? Whatever is inside. We are the tea bags, and the trials are the hot water. God "dips" us into hot water (trials) to see what flavor will come out of us.
God was dipping Jeremiah in some hot water to see what flavor would come out of him. When I'm facing a tough trial, what flavor comes out of me? If we don't like what comes out, we have to change what's inside. Why does God send us through hardships? You can find that answer in Hebrews 12. God chastens us (sends us through trials) because He loves us, and He wants us to become more and more like Him!
God doesn't send us through trials just for entertainment. Sometimes we need them! Jeremiah is about to give up hope. In verse 17 he says he doesn't know what happiness is anymore. In verse 18 he says that his endurance is gone, as well as his hope in the Lord. In verse 21 he remembers that he does have hope! This is my favorite part of the chapter. Jeremiah's tune changes in verse 22. He recalls the goodness of God, and His great faithfulness to see us through anything!
My favorite verses are 22 and 23. "The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness."
When you feel like you can't do it anymore, wait on God. He is still there. Keep hope. When your put through hot water, what flavor will come out of your tea bag?
"The LORD is good to those who will wait for him, to the soul who seeks him. It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the LORD." --Lamentations 3:25,26
I usually don't read the chapters in the Bible that aren't so "popular". A few months ago, I was reading through my Bible, and came across Lamentations 3 and the chapter was so unbelievably encouraging to me! I'd been going through some things, and felt like I had hit "rock bottom". This passage reminded me of God's purpose in sending us through trials, how to keep having faith and hope, and about God's great faithfulness.
In this chapter, the author Jeremiah is going through a really tough time. He feels cut off from God, and that God isn't listening to him. If you read the previous chapters of Lamentations, you could get a little depressed...just because it seems like all God is doing is putting this person through trial after trial. In verse 8 of chapter 3, he makes the statement: "though I call for help, He shuts out my prayer." Have you ever felt that God "shuts out" your prayers and just ignores you? Well, I have. It's not fun.
I went to a Sunday School class at church a few semesters ago called "Changed Into His Image" by Jim Berg. The illustration he uses to show why we go through trials came to mind as I was reading this chapter. He uses tea bags and hot water. When you dip a tea bag into hot water, what comes out? Whatever is inside. We are the tea bags, and the trials are the hot water. God "dips" us into hot water (trials) to see what flavor will come out of us.
God was dipping Jeremiah in some hot water to see what flavor would come out of him. When I'm facing a tough trial, what flavor comes out of me? If we don't like what comes out, we have to change what's inside. Why does God send us through hardships? You can find that answer in Hebrews 12. God chastens us (sends us through trials) because He loves us, and He wants us to become more and more like Him!
God doesn't send us through trials just for entertainment. Sometimes we need them! Jeremiah is about to give up hope. In verse 17 he says he doesn't know what happiness is anymore. In verse 18 he says that his endurance is gone, as well as his hope in the Lord. In verse 21 he remembers that he does have hope! This is my favorite part of the chapter. Jeremiah's tune changes in verse 22. He recalls the goodness of God, and His great faithfulness to see us through anything!
My favorite verses are 22 and 23. "The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness."
When you feel like you can't do it anymore, wait on God. He is still there. Keep hope. When your put through hot water, what flavor will come out of your tea bag?
"The LORD is good to those who will wait for him, to the soul who seeks him. It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the LORD." --Lamentations 3:25,26
Thursday, April 12, 2012
Whiter Than Snow
This is an old hymn that has always been my favorite. I was singing through my song book, came across this song, read the words very slowly, and fell in love with it all over again! I'm going to put the lyrics on here because I think they are very powerful!
Lord Jesus, I long to be perfectly whole;
I want thee forever to live in my soul;
Break down every idol, cast out every foe,
Now wash me and I shall be whiter than snow.
(CHORUS)
Whiter than snow, yes whiter than snow,
Now wash me and I shall be whiter than snow.
(VERSE 2)
Lord Jesus, look down from Thy throne in the skies.
And helm me to make a complete sacrifice;
I give up my self and whatever I know.
Now wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
(CHORUS)
(VERSE3 3)
Lord Jesus, for this I most humbly entreat,
I wait blessed Lord at Thy crucified feet;
By faith, for my cleansing I see Thy blood flow,
Now wash me and I shall be whiter than snow.
(CHORUS)
{This is my personal favorite verse}
(VERSE 4)
Lord Jesus, Thou seest, I patiently wait.
Come now and within me a new heart create.
To those who have sought Thee, Thou never saidst "no."
Now wash me and I shall be whiter than snow.
Lord Jesus, I long to be perfectly whole;
I want thee forever to live in my soul;
Break down every idol, cast out every foe,
Now wash me and I shall be whiter than snow.
(CHORUS)
Whiter than snow, yes whiter than snow,
Now wash me and I shall be whiter than snow.
(VERSE 2)
Lord Jesus, look down from Thy throne in the skies.
And helm me to make a complete sacrifice;
I give up my self and whatever I know.
Now wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
(CHORUS)
(VERSE3 3)
Lord Jesus, for this I most humbly entreat,
I wait blessed Lord at Thy crucified feet;
By faith, for my cleansing I see Thy blood flow,
Now wash me and I shall be whiter than snow.
(CHORUS)
{This is my personal favorite verse}
(VERSE 4)
Lord Jesus, Thou seest, I patiently wait.
Come now and within me a new heart create.
To those who have sought Thee, Thou never saidst "no."
Now wash me and I shall be whiter than snow.
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Loving, Trusting, Waiting.
Sorry for the lack of blog posts the past few weeks! Life has been busy and exciting! Just the way I like it! :)
So I've been thinking about God's love for the past few days. My blog is about me learning to love God more, but I've also been thinking about how He shows His love to me, and how valuable it is.
Ever since the Passion for Jesus conference last March at our church, my absolute favorite passage of the Bible has been Romans 8:35, 37-39. It says, "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? (37) No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. (38) For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers (39) nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord."
As I said in my last blog post, this year has had a lot (and yes I mean a lot!) of ups and downs. There have been times when I've felt so discouraged that I just wanted to give everything up. Living for Jesus isn't an easy thing to do...but then I remind myself that God didn't intend it to be easy...and it won't be! But it is possible. With Christ Jesus's help, all things are possible. (Philippians 4:13) God is there every step of the way, and NOTHING can separate me from His unconditional love!
When I was little, my mom used to say to me, "Jesus loves you more than anyone in the whole world ever could!" That was a lot for me to process. I didn't think anyone could love me more than my mom did. I also didn't really understand what kind of love that was. God has been teaching me more and more about loving and trusting. Those are two things that I don't do very easily. It's hard for me to love and trust Someone who I can't see or touch.
The more I read my Bible, the more I learn about God's love, and the more I question what makes me stop loving and trusting God. Do hardships, disasters, catastrophes, unexpected road blocks, etc. make me question God's love for me and cause me to stop loving Him?
Verses that have come to my head countless times recently are, "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not unto your own understanding. In all your ways, acknowledge Him and He will make straight your paths. Be not wise in your own eyes, fear the Lord and turn away from evil." Proverbs 3:5-7 I was trusting in what I felt was the right thing to do too often. That's why I wasn't getting anywhere! God has had to throw some things my way to wake me up out of that mind set!
When I put my trust fully in Christ, He provides answers for me! I am a babysitter, so jobs are pretty sporadic. I went through a month or so without a job, and there were a lot of things I needed to pay for. It was easy to get worried or anxious about money, or the lack thereof! I was reading through Psalms one morning, and God gave me a verse that encouraged me so much. (I love it when He does that!) "Wait on the LORD; be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart; wait, I say, on the Lord". Psalm 27:14 I had been worried the night before, but after I read that verse, I felt so at peace! I prayed, placing that need in His hands, and completely trusting Him to provide for me. Within two hours, I had gotten two babysitting jobs! It's so encouraging to see God answer prayers like that!
Loving, trusting, and waiting. Those are not my favorite things to do, but I'm so glad that God is teaching me more and more about how to do each one. God's love is everlasting. He will provide for me. He's faithful. I'll close with this verse:
Jeremiah 31:3 "...I have loved you with an everlasting love, therefore, I have continued My faithfulness to you."
So I've been thinking about God's love for the past few days. My blog is about me learning to love God more, but I've also been thinking about how He shows His love to me, and how valuable it is.
Ever since the Passion for Jesus conference last March at our church, my absolute favorite passage of the Bible has been Romans 8:35, 37-39. It says, "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? (37) No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. (38) For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers (39) nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord."
As I said in my last blog post, this year has had a lot (and yes I mean a lot!) of ups and downs. There have been times when I've felt so discouraged that I just wanted to give everything up. Living for Jesus isn't an easy thing to do...but then I remind myself that God didn't intend it to be easy...and it won't be! But it is possible. With Christ Jesus's help, all things are possible. (Philippians 4:13) God is there every step of the way, and NOTHING can separate me from His unconditional love!
When I was little, my mom used to say to me, "Jesus loves you more than anyone in the whole world ever could!" That was a lot for me to process. I didn't think anyone could love me more than my mom did. I also didn't really understand what kind of love that was. God has been teaching me more and more about loving and trusting. Those are two things that I don't do very easily. It's hard for me to love and trust Someone who I can't see or touch.
The more I read my Bible, the more I learn about God's love, and the more I question what makes me stop loving and trusting God. Do hardships, disasters, catastrophes, unexpected road blocks, etc. make me question God's love for me and cause me to stop loving Him?
Verses that have come to my head countless times recently are, "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not unto your own understanding. In all your ways, acknowledge Him and He will make straight your paths. Be not wise in your own eyes, fear the Lord and turn away from evil." Proverbs 3:5-7 I was trusting in what I felt was the right thing to do too often. That's why I wasn't getting anywhere! God has had to throw some things my way to wake me up out of that mind set!
When I put my trust fully in Christ, He provides answers for me! I am a babysitter, so jobs are pretty sporadic. I went through a month or so without a job, and there were a lot of things I needed to pay for. It was easy to get worried or anxious about money, or the lack thereof! I was reading through Psalms one morning, and God gave me a verse that encouraged me so much. (I love it when He does that!) "Wait on the LORD; be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart; wait, I say, on the Lord". Psalm 27:14 I had been worried the night before, but after I read that verse, I felt so at peace! I prayed, placing that need in His hands, and completely trusting Him to provide for me. Within two hours, I had gotten two babysitting jobs! It's so encouraging to see God answer prayers like that!
Loving, trusting, and waiting. Those are not my favorite things to do, but I'm so glad that God is teaching me more and more about how to do each one. God's love is everlasting. He will provide for me. He's faithful. I'll close with this verse:
Jeremiah 31:3 "...I have loved you with an everlasting love, therefore, I have continued My faithfulness to you."
Sunday, April 1, 2012
One Year Ago Today....
Today, most people are playing practical jokes on people. Why? Welllll, that would be because it's April 1st: April Fool's Day. For me, April 1st is now looked at as the day that changed my whole entire life around.
Last year, April 1st fell on a Friday. This Friday in particular, my sisters and I were going to go shopping, but as soon as we pulled into the parking lot, we got a call informing us that my dad was on his way to the hospital because of a heart attack. That day changed my life forever.
God was merciful and spared his life, and he's doing so well to this day. Sometimes I am wondering why God is doing certain things. Why does He let bad things happen? Why can't life just be peaches and cream?
This morning in church, Pastor preached from Amos 3. It was such a good sermon! It was about God ALWAYS doing the right thing. The part that really hit home for me, was when he was talking about Israel not listening to God, so He would send something to wake them up and show them He was still in control.
I was thinking, last year around this time, I was not listening to God. I was pretty much ignoring Him. Pastor made the statement, "God doesn't ever chasten someone who doesn't need it." Obviously I needed it. I look back on my dad's heart attack as God getting my attention. It's like He was saying, "You think you have everything figured out and that you're in control of your life. But guess what? I'm still in control of everything...including you."
Like most people, I don't like it when I feel like life is out of control and there's nothing I can do about it. In that time of my life, there was definitely nothing I could do about the situations that were taking place. I didn't like walking into the hospital room, seeing my dad hooked up to tons of machines and IV's and not being able to do anything about it. I had to trust God to be in control of everything!
I had heard my whole life that God uses everything for His purpose...no matter if it's good or bad. It's hard to believe that until something does actually happen and you see the good that comes out of it. Psalm 18:30 says, "As for God, his way is perfect: the word of the LORD proves true; he is a shield for all those who take refuge in him." (ESV)
God taught me so much by using one thing: my dad's heart attack. I can't say that I have everything all figured out now, and that I have the best attitude every time something bad happens...because I don't! God still has to send things my way to wake me up and to remind me that He's still in control.
I'm thankful for a God who will hear my cry and come to rescue me too! I couldn't have gotten through the past year without prayer! God became my best friend! :) My favorite verse right now: "In my distress, I called upon the LORD, and cried unto my God: he heard my voice out of his temple, and my cry came before him, even into his ears." Psalm 18:6
God put life into perspective for me last year. I was treating it too flippantly, and wasn't taking advantage of God's goodness. It's been a tough ride, but God's been there every step of the way.
Last year, April 1st fell on a Friday. This Friday in particular, my sisters and I were going to go shopping, but as soon as we pulled into the parking lot, we got a call informing us that my dad was on his way to the hospital because of a heart attack. That day changed my life forever.
God was merciful and spared his life, and he's doing so well to this day. Sometimes I am wondering why God is doing certain things. Why does He let bad things happen? Why can't life just be peaches and cream?
This morning in church, Pastor preached from Amos 3. It was such a good sermon! It was about God ALWAYS doing the right thing. The part that really hit home for me, was when he was talking about Israel not listening to God, so He would send something to wake them up and show them He was still in control.
I was thinking, last year around this time, I was not listening to God. I was pretty much ignoring Him. Pastor made the statement, "God doesn't ever chasten someone who doesn't need it." Obviously I needed it. I look back on my dad's heart attack as God getting my attention. It's like He was saying, "You think you have everything figured out and that you're in control of your life. But guess what? I'm still in control of everything...including you."
Like most people, I don't like it when I feel like life is out of control and there's nothing I can do about it. In that time of my life, there was definitely nothing I could do about the situations that were taking place. I didn't like walking into the hospital room, seeing my dad hooked up to tons of machines and IV's and not being able to do anything about it. I had to trust God to be in control of everything!
I had heard my whole life that God uses everything for His purpose...no matter if it's good or bad. It's hard to believe that until something does actually happen and you see the good that comes out of it. Psalm 18:30 says, "As for God, his way is perfect: the word of the LORD proves true; he is a shield for all those who take refuge in him." (ESV)
God taught me so much by using one thing: my dad's heart attack. I can't say that I have everything all figured out now, and that I have the best attitude every time something bad happens...because I don't! God still has to send things my way to wake me up and to remind me that He's still in control.
I'm thankful for a God who will hear my cry and come to rescue me too! I couldn't have gotten through the past year without prayer! God became my best friend! :) My favorite verse right now: "In my distress, I called upon the LORD, and cried unto my God: he heard my voice out of his temple, and my cry came before him, even into his ears." Psalm 18:6
God put life into perspective for me last year. I was treating it too flippantly, and wasn't taking advantage of God's goodness. It's been a tough ride, but God's been there every step of the way.
Romans 8:28: And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
Monday, March 26, 2012
Are You a Convenient Christian?
In America today, we are way too
focused on convenience. We pretty much won't do something if it's
inconvenient, or if we just don't feel like it. This is starting to
happen in church and in people's spiritual lives too.
On Saturday night, I was washing up some dishes after supper, and was thinking about devotions. Too often on Saturdays and Sundays I don't do my devotions. I make excuses like “oh they're just such busy days!” or “I slept in today so I don't really have time to do them. I'll do them later,” and I never end up doing them.
Why do I think this way? God is never too busy to extend His mercy and grace towards me! He never takes a day off from watching over me! I think this way because, it's inconvenient at the time.
I make time to do other stuff that I
enjoy. Why can't I make time for God? I understand that life gets
busy, we get tired, etc, but we always seem to find time to do things
that we “couldn't go a day without!”
Some people don't get up and come to
church on Sunday morning because they are either too tired, or they
haven't had enough “family time” because of the busy week. Cut
something out! God shouldn't be cut out of our lives. He gave us
those lives. Sunday is just one day. One small thing that we should
totally devote to God and not worry about it being convenient.
Sunday, our church had something called “Keeping Missions Alive”. It's a time where a few missionaries that our church supports will come and give the church an update. I enjoyed it so much! The Sunday night service completely encouraged and challenged my heart at the same time.
Too often I get discouraged when I look around and see the people of this world who just don't care about God. I find myself questioning where God really is, and if He is even working anymore. There are people around who are robotic Christians. They go through the motions, but don't feel anything. If you focus on this, it's very easy to get discouraged. Seeing what God was and is doing around the world completely set my heart on fire again! It encouraged me because I can still see God working.
It challenged me because I was always the one terrified of going to the mission field. I was the one who said, “I won't have to go because God can always use someone else. The food there is weird, it's dirty and dusty, and my friends and family aren't there.”
Last March, a group called “A Passion for Jesus” came to our church and did a girl's conference. One of the girls did a little talk on COMPLETELY surrendering your ALL, and yes I mean all, to Christ. She was in the same boat as I am. She was scared of the mission field. She said God could use her for anything, but He just couldn't send her to the mission field. God convicted her, and she told God that He could use her...anytime, anywhere, anyhow. Complete surrender. Sunday night, I was able to say truly from my heart, “Ok God. If you will use me, I will follow You anywhere.”
I was pretty much telling God He couldn't have that area of my life. Do you know how hard it is to resist God when He is clearly convicting you about something? Yea. No fun at all.
So is it convenient to be a missionary? Absolutely not. Is it convenient to support missionaries? Not necessarily. God isn't looking for comfortable Christians. He's looking for people who will step up and do the hard things because they love Him so much that they want to give their all and their best. God uses us when we are out of our comfort zone. I don't know about you, but the mission field is REALLY out of my comfort zone. I want to be an uncomfortable Christian, doing all I can for Christ.
I'm going to close this blog post (that's super long...sorry about that!) by just encouraging you in the ways you can give to missionaries. A loooong time ago, a missionary came to our church and told a story about two little African boys who wanted to support missionaries. They had no money. They asked God to provide for them. They sold eggs in their neighborhood and gave every bit of money they earned to the missionaries. The more they gave, the more God provided. These little boys had close to nothing, yet they gave everything they did have to God's work. Pretty convicting hu?
It's not convenient being a Christian sometimes. It's not convenient being a missionary, or supporting a missionary! It's not always convenient going to church. But that's ok! Do you think it was very convenient for Jesus to die on the cross to save us all from our sins? Not exactly. But He did it because He loved us. We should be able to make a few small sacrifices out of love for Him also.
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