As most of you may have noticed, my blog hasn't been updated in some time.
I could come up with a list of reasons; I had too much on my plate, classes were taking over, I needed time with friends.
But truthfully, this is the real reason: I couldn't find God.
I felt like God was no longer speaking to me; there was nothing being laid on my heart. All I found was silence. No huge revelation, no light bulb over my head. There was no 'still small voice.'
I'm surrounded, every day, by followers of Christ, yet I felt like I was the only one missing out on Him.
God, where are You?
I remember once in fourth grade, waiting outside on the curb after the final bell. My father was supposed to pick me and my sister up from school. Darkness would be coming soon; we still waited. Hours later, it was my mother who pulled up next to the curb, relieved to find us in the same spot that we had been for hours. In our minds, we were confident that our father would come. Somehow, we still had faith in him.
The Israelites wandered in the desert for 40 years, waiting.
The Jews waited, and are still waiting, for their Messiah.
Wrapped up in waiting is a sense of perceived abandonment, being forgotten, not feeling important enough to be remembered..we've all experienced and dealt with these kinds of feelings.
And it is during these times that God responds:
Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.
(Genesis 28:15, ESV)
Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the LORD your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.
(Deuteronomy 31:6, ESV)
That was the revelation that I was searching for, that my heart was seeking out. Sure, I've read those verses countless times, but it always seems that they take on new meaning when your heart needs to soak it in, when you're at the end of a road with no answers.
My revelation: these past two months, God has been closer than He has ever been.
He endures our struggles, our crazy schedules, our broken hearts, our times of rebellion, because He loves us.
We will not be forsaken in the wilderness, no matter how unstable and unsure things may seem. Our Messiah has come, and He is walking with us, step by step, holding us when we stumble and reassuring our hearts that we are not alone.
How badly I needed to hear these words.
I pray that they would root themselves in your heart and offer you encouragement and hope when you feel like you're walking through your wilderness, waiting. God is near, Christ is here. We will never walk alone.
As it is Make-A-Difference Monday, I thought I'd start off with a story.
This morning I walked into my local coffee shop, a place where I frequently spend my time during the summer months. As I sat down at a corner table, a man who I've been sitting across from the past few days, engaged me in conversation. When I arrived, I had no intention of speaking to anyone because I had assignments to complete, things to do..I had a plan: to lay my things out on the table, plug in my headphones and tune everything, and everyone, out.
Enter, divine intervention.
After sitting down, this man (let's call him Bob), asked me how I was doing. I answered back, not expecting the conversation to last more than a few minutes. Little did I know that it would lead to over an hour of discussion and him sharing his heart.
Bob is a man after God's own heart and his words spoke life to me.
Where did I "make a difference" you may ask? Other than hopefully allowing him to see into the world of my faith, I didn't. Bob made a difference in my life.
He caused me to evaluate how I respond to people, how I interact and engage with them. Ultimately, he planted a seed, beckoning me to examine how I love people.
Towards the end of the conversation, Bob told a story of woman he knows, who personally changed how he loves others. He described her as a woman who truly lives out the love of Christ in situations that the world would say are least deserving of love. It was in that moment that I realized why I woke up, drove to the coffee shop and chose that table.
God's voice was clear.
My love for those around me, in actions and in words, is nowhere near the standard that Christ calls me to. I am slow to listen, quick to speak and quick to get angry. I pass judgment unknowingly and treat people out of that judgment rather than from a place of love. I am impatient and at times hold grudges. I act self-righteously and my pride swells to attain glory that it's not due.
When all of these thoughts came rushing to me, I suddenly realized how human I really am.
I've regarded myself as a Christian; one who serves the Living God and has offered the throne of my heart to the King of Kings..but how can I say that, with honesty, when my life has somehow found its way onto the path paved with good intentions rather than the straight and narrow path?
This Scripture couldn't explain it any better:
He replied, "Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites;
as it is written: These people honor me with their lips, but their
hearts are far from me. (Mark 7:6 ESV)
It hit me like a ton of bricks! What a hypocrite I've been! My heart so easily strays from God, while my lips speak His name.
My takeaway from this experience? My life, but more importantly my heart, needs to operate out of love, rather than pride. When I learn to love, or rather be love, only then can Christ rightly be glorified through me. We each need to be an example of Christ to a lost and hurting world, but when honest and pure love is replaced by so many half-truths and false feelings, we're left with a bigger wound and hearts that have turned away.
Most of us are familiar with John 13:34-35:
A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.By this all people will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.
And Paul writes this in Ephesians 4:1-3:
I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
Every person, every life that I encounter should be done in a manner that breathes humility, gentleness and patience. How can I expect to truly love someone if I'm not willing to bear with, understand and accept them?
Harsh words need to be cast aside. Forgiveness needs to be extended. Ears need to be opened. Tongues need to be silenced. Anger and judgment need to be replaced with patience and humility.
Where does it start? A pure heart.
Love one another earnestly from a pure heart. (1 Peter 1:22 ESV)
Wrong intentions and personal gain will never give life to the righteous life that God has called us to. Love is born of God, and because of that, we must come to know Him and understand His heart so that our actions and words reflect His own.
Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. (1 John 4:7 ESV)
My heart rejoices at that thought. Each day that passes, and through interactions like the one I experienced this morning, I am coming to know God and understand His heart more and more.
Isaiah 40:31 -- But they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.
Property of Aysha Gerald
This morning, I woke up and turned on the Christian radio station, K-Love. I got online and stumbled upon their Encouraging Word of the Day: this verse from Isaiah. Soon, a song by Lincoln Brewster, "Everlasting God" came on, speaking of this same truth from Scripture.
As I was thinking about the title of this post, the words I will wait upon You, Lord, came to mind.
Last night I had a breakdown of sorts. My life has been lived with God at the forefront of my mind, but He wasn't receiving the attention that He rightly deserved. I remembered to honor Him when it was convenient for me, but much of the time I tried walking my own path. I understood what God expected of me, but I thought that I had the power to direct my own steps.
Let me tell you, it's exhausting. It is almost as if I could feel the strength that I did have, slipping away. Because of this, my relationship with God faltered. I stopped praying. I stopped reading my Bible. I became a Christian without Christ, without allowing God to truly work in me and through me. I was much too busy to take a break, re-evaluate my life.
And then last night came. There were tears and pleas for forgiveness. There was such a broken, raw and honest interaction with God.
I've heard it said that sometimes He breaks us down to our lowest so that He can build us back up. That has never been more true in my life.
Psalm 62:5 -- For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence, for my hope is from Him.
I want to be in a place where I can say: It is well with my soul. A place where I understand that every burden and worry has been lifted from me, as Christ says, "Here, let me carry that for you." A place where I can sit in the presence of God and feel more alive than ever, simply by listening to Him, rather than speaking at Him. A place where I hear the voice of God whispering, "Seek Me for the strength that you desire. It is only in Me that you will find rest. Rest in Me and I will give you strength."
Two days ago, on the 24th, it was my 21st birthday. While most people would be concerned with getting their new license at the DMV or trying to decide what their first legal alcoholic beverage was going to be, I spent my day making the conscious decision to be appreciative and thankful to my family members. Throughout the years, they have put up with a lot from me. I’ve been the cause of anger and tears, sometimes intentional, some just bad programming within myself. I was always the person that knew how to push buttons, and boy did I. Most of the things that I have, came at a price to my mother, but she never complained. My grandmother taps into reserved money so that she can see the way her money is spent, on things that I am passionate about. My grandfather spends the small amounts of money that he has, wishing and hoping for a better life on my sister and I.
I’ve taken so much of my life for granted. I haven’t been appreciative, when all they hoped for was a thank you. Most of the time, I felt that I was owed something, when the opposite was true. I was given anything that I asked for, but it still wasn’t enough. And on top of that, I treated them cruelly.
But yesterday was different. I woke up with a new sense of life. I felt like God was telling me, ‘Everything is going to be different from now on.’
This year, it’s not going to be about me, because it never has been, no matter how much I believed that at one time. My life has always been part of God’s greater plan, and although I didn’t always understand what that meant, I now realize something: I’ve done a lot of talking the talk, but I wasn’t very good at walking the walk. I talked about how important it was to be saved by Christ so that we could have a relationship with God, but my actions never really mirrored that. I talked about how love was the greatest thing we could do, and that we should be kind and compassionate, but in that same breath, I could tear someone down. Looking back on the person that I was, I’m ashamed. I know that I can’t do anything to change the past, but I can make a difference in the lives of people from here on out. Whether that is being kind and showing mercy to the people in my family, or hearing out a friend who had a bad day, things can be different. It’s not always about the big things that we do; sometimes it’s the small, seemingly inconsequential things that mean the most. It’s not always about saying something to someone, sometimes it’s the things that we don’t say; it’s our actions that speak out.
Francis of Assisi said:
Preach the Gospel at all times and when necessary use words.
For years, I never knew what that meant, but I finally understand. Everything that we do should be testifying the name of Christ and it’s not always about the words that we use. Anyone can stand up in front of a crowd and tell them about Jesus, but not many people preach the gospel within their daily lives. If nothing else, I think this is one of the most important things that we need to understand. Jesus didn’t preach and command everywhere He went. It was through His actions that He proved the love of His Father in heaven. This is what we should mirror. Using words, only when they are necessary.
Every day this year, I’m setting a challenge for myself. Each day on the sidebar (to the right), I will post what I’m challenging myself to do, whether it be a word of encouragement to someone, or giving a hug when it’s needed. If you’re interested in seeing what I’m up to, check it out. Everything that I do, I pray will be guided by the hand of God, so that people will see His light shining through me.
It’s important for me to make a difference in someone’s life, not only to discipline myself to be like Christ, but also for the benefit of those around me. Everyone needs a helping hand or a shoulder to cry on, and in being that person, the door is opened for Christ to enter in. We are called to be His hands and feet, and I want nothing more than to be His humbled servant.
As I make this commitment to live completely in the light of the Lord, I pray that my family will understand how much I love them. All those years of anger and hatred have now come to me at a price; I can’t take them back. I pray that through my actions, they will know that I appreciate them, more than they know. I know that everyone’s life has rough patches, but I’m blessed more than I could ever make known. I thank God for my family, and for the opportunity to be a part of their lives and stories. They have sacrificed so much for my sister and I, and it hurts me to know how badly I’ve hurt them in the past. They are such beautiful people, and I love them more than words can ever say; so now I will show them.
Jesus Christ made the biggest difference this world has ever, or will ever know; I want to make a difference, for Him.
Yesterday I was having a discussion with one of my friends about the way that Christ called us to live, and how society calls us to live. This lead me to question: Who defines me? Society or Christ?
In today’s society, we are told that it’s okay to drink before the legal age; that it’s okay to have sex before marriage; that it’s okay to slander and gossip about people; that it’s okay to lie, cheat and steal, as long as you aren’t caught.
What does this say about us as a world? I was raised in a family where these things were unacceptable, but I found myself breaking the rules. I’m not going to lessen the fact that I’m a sinner. Yes, I’ve had alcohol before the legal age of 21. Yes, I’ve lied, and cheated. I stole a pack of gum when I was two years old. I’ve slandered and gossiped, done intentionally and subconsciously. I know that at times I’ve told myself that all of that is okay to get away with once and a while because I’ve chosen to save myself for marriage. That’s what we’ve learned, isn’t it? We try to justify our sins by placing a weight on them.
“I’m better than her because I’ve only lied..she’s been with 10 people.”
“God will forgive my sins, because they aren’t as bad as his.”
This is such a wrong way of thinking. And Christ came to change that.
At the Sermon on the Mount, when He was speaking the Beatitudes (Matthew 3, and following chapters), He proposed a new way of doing things. Even thousands of years ago, people sinned the same sins that we do now. And Christ knew this. That’s why He came; to save us. We needed to be saved, and without Him, we would certainly be lost forever.
In my life right now, I feel like I’m letting the world define me. I feel burdened, downtrodden and lost. I go through periods when I feel like I don’t need God; where I’d rather live my life, my way, because I know that at the end of the day, He is still going to forgive me, or simply because I feel like I’ve fallen too far from His grace.
I’ve learned that even though I’ve been saved by the blood of Christ, I need to be continually washed by the cleansing power of the Holy Spirit. The blood cleaned us all, once and for all, but the Holy Spirit remains within us, now and forever. If I taught myself to listen more closely, and follow His guidance, then I could live the life that Christ called me to live.
Christ told us: above all, love your God and love your neighbors; don’t judge others; don’t slander; don’t pride ourselves on our own lives; pray in the quiet where no one can see us; think with pure thoughts; serve each other; pray for those who persecute us; if we are struck on one cheek, to present the other, etc.
This would be such a beautiful way to live.
My prayer is that I will open my eyes to the things that God is trying to do in my life; that I will try to live as righteously as Christ would want me to; that I would put other’s needs before my own; and that I would love God with my whole heart. I’m not interested in the things of this world, but it’s so easy to be consumed by them. I take heart in the fact that all of this is temporary, and that one day I will see the face of God. I want Him to be able to say, “Well done, my Good and Faithful Servant,” instead of, “Why did you choose the temporary, worldly, un-lasting things, rather than what is everlasting?”
I want to be defined by Christ; I will not be defined by this world.
Psalm 51:17 -- The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.
I've been struggling.
I feel like I've been talking (or writing) a lot, but in the depths of my heart, I feel myself drowning.
I read my posts. I re-read them. I find myself talking about things that are relevant, but once they become days old, I forget about the message that God has laid on my heart. I've always hoped that by writing, I'm touching someone's life, but I think I need to reevaluate my own life before trying to help others.
My walk with Christ is a daily struggle. He never promised that my life on earth would be easy. And believe me, it's not. But after thinking about it, I don't want it to be. What kind of life would that be, to have everything handed to me? There would be nothing to fight for. Nothing to have a passion for. And in these past few days, in the quiet of my heart, this revelation has come to me: I WANT to fight for Jesus. I WANT Jesus to be my passion. But more than those 'wants,' I NEED to fight for Jesus. I NEED Jesus to be my passion. I need to be so lost in Him that the world fades away, and He becomes my focus.
It's easy to 'put on a show,' so to speak. Read bits of the Bible. Pray when it's convenient. Go to church on Sundays. But once those 5 minutes, or that hour and a half is finished, life comes back into the picture.
I fight with my family. I use anger as my emotional outlet. I am easily irritated and annoyed. I look at people with scorn and disdain. This disease? Humanity. I've tried running from it. I've tricked myself into believing that I can escape the world, by labeling myself as a follower of Christ. But reality is that as long as I'm living, I will struggle.
I can recite Scripture, and teach people about the beauty inside of the Bible, but if I'm not living it behind closed doors, I've become nothing more than a hypocrite, a lukewarm follower of Christ.
That's not to say that I won't face problems, because as I said before, taking up my cross every day and dying to myself, is a daily struggle itself, but what I choose to do with those problems is what I need to look at.
I've made a small list of things that I need to improve on. I would greatly appreciate prayer from you guys, as I continue to pray for you as well.
1. I need to give more of my time to God. It is after all, His. When I wake up in the morning, I need to start my day by entering into His presence, asking Him to prepare my heart for the things that I will encounter, as well as ask Him to guide me throughout the day. I need to pray for strength and courage to be all that He asks of me. But more than all that, I need to sit in His presence, and listen. It's easy to pray for things that I want or need, but I rarely ever sit there and just listen to what He has to say.
2. I want my life behind closed doors, to be the life that Christ asks of me. I feel that what I portray isn't always how I am 'behind the scenes,' and I want my life to be transparent. I want people to see me exactly the way that I am at home. This means that I need to improve on different areas of my relationships with my family members, and friends as well. I don't want things to be hidden, because the things that I hide in my heart, are things that I'm ashamed of. I want people to see the real me, and through that, see Christ living through me. If I was living the life that Christ has laid out for me, I wouldn't need to feel shame and guilt.
3. I need to remember to love everyone. Love conquers all, and I really need to remember that. I do things out of fear. Fear of rejection, fear of failure, fear of loss, fear of disappointment and so much more. I have learned to guard my heart against people, so that I don't get hurt, but in doing so, I push them away and give myself reasons not to love them. Instead, I judge them, when Christ says to love. I think it's easy to point out other people's flaws and judge their actions as worse than my own, and in doing so, I am unconsciously attempting to exalt myself. If I'm not the one drinking, smoking, doing drugs or having sex, then it's easy to trick myself into thinking that my sins aren't as bad. But the fact is, sins are weighed the same. In judging others, I have no room to show them love. I critique, criticize, belittle, slander and down people; not out of my own selfish amusement, but because I want to see people succeed in their relationship with Jesus, so I try and correct them. The problem is, when I do that with judgment, I'm not honoring Christ, and therefore digging myself into a bigger hole. Pray that the love of Jesus would replace my fears and judgment.
John 13:34-35 -- A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.
I need improvement.
I don't want to be a hypocrite.
I want people to see Jesus in every area of my life.
I want my life behind closed doors, to be the life that I live in the world.
I don't want to be ashamed of Christ out in the streets.
I want to be an encouragement to people.
I can't tell people to live a certain way, if I, myself, am not doing the same.
I need to remember not to judge people, for the standard that I use to judge will be used against me.
Most of all, I need to remember to love. Love everyone. Those who love me. Those who hate me. Those who hurt me. Those I have never met. And those who don't want to know me.
If I use love as my main source of energy, rather than anger, resentment, hate, irritation and annoyance, then the life that I put on display (through this blog, Facebook, Bible study, etc.) can be the life that I live behind closed doors.
Father God,
I come to you as a broken spirit; humbled and in need of you. My life has become a routine, a mask to cover up my past regrets. I've tried so hard to make myself believe that what I show on the outside is good enough. But Lord, my heart is burdened. I feel as though my prayers have become nothing more than the desires of my own heart, rather than an honest cry to you. Change my heart Father. Let the life that people perceive of me, be the life that my heart lives. I want to be transparent; allowing people to see that I have nothing to hide. Let my life behind closed doors become the life that I so desperately want to live. Break me, Lord, into the person that you want me to be, inside and out. Mold me and use me for your purpose. Father, give the me strength to love. You say that love conquers all, and I believe that. Thank you for the sacrifice of your Son, who showed the greatest act of love ever known. Help me to walk in your light, and be a light to others.
Does that idea seem daunting? Scary? Or maybe you delight and take joy in it.
Over 2,000 years ago, our Savior came to earth and subjected Himself to death on a cross, so that He might save us.
All He asked in return is that we would share Him with others, love one another, and that we would believe and have faith in Him.
Seems like a simple task to me, but as I look around, I see that it's much more complicated than that. We are surrounded by arrogance, pride, slander and hate. Christ has been removed from the center of our lives.
These song lyrics, from Jonny Diaz describe what is happening in this world, and what we should do about it:
In a world that tries to water you down, where beliefs cannot be spoken out loud, I'll stand for truth. Where they claim your way isn't wide enough, and they do their best to cover you up, I'll stand up for you.
Isn't this true?
In our world, Jesus has been watered down. He has been plastered on walls and buildings and the backs of cars in forms of mockery. His Holy Name has been misused for years upon years. Places of worship are being defiled. We desecrate and defile our own bodies with sex before marriage. We change our image with makeup, hair color, contacts, implants, reductions. And for what?
Genesis 1:27 -- So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.
So when does it end?
When will His name get the glory it deserves?
When will His house be reclaimed?
When will His image be restored?
We only get one life to live, and one life to get it right.
If you're living a life ruled by fear of rejection, persecution and suffering, then take heart! Your reward in heaven will be that much greater. If we partake in the suffering of Christ, we will receive great things!
1 Peter 4:13 -- But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed.
Romans 8:18 -- I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.
So my challenge again: Stand up for Christ.
Matthew 10:32-33 -- Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven. But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven.
Why keep Him to yourself? Share Him. Stand up for Him.
I know that I will.
Lord Jesus, as I walk this road of life, give me the strength and courage to stand up for you. Let me not be ashamed of the name that brought me freedom, the name that opened the door of eternity for me. You said that if we are ashamed of you here on earth, that you will be ashamed of us in front of your Father in heaven, so Lord, I ask that you would take my fears and worries from me. I am not ashamed of you. For your name, I will stand up.
Bring me peace of mind, Father, and the courage to stand strong.
First of all, I just wanted to let you know that I continually pray for you, praying that this blog is touching each one of your lives.
Today, I wanted to talk about something that we all go through on a daily basis: selfishness.
What have you been selfish with? Your money? Your talents? Your time? Your very life?
A Christian rapper, by the name of Lecrae uses these lyrics in one of his songs:
"See your money, your singleness, marriage, talents, your time; they were loaned you to show the world that Christ is divine."
These words spoke to me.
What I've come to find is that people feel like their lives and the things in their lives, are theirs. When in reality, everything we have, down to each breath that we take, is God's. Every cent that we spend on our own selfish desires or wants, belongs to God. How can we expect be like Christ if we are trying so hard to hold onto what we have?
The entire point of this blog is explained in the Bible verse on the top of this page:
Luke 9:23 -- Then he said to the crowd, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross daily, and follow me."
We have to be willing to give up everything we have to follow Christ. Modern society tells us to hang on to what we have, keep things to ourselves, and hide things from other people.
Money is probably the most evident contributor to selfishness in our lives. We want to earn it, have more of it than the next guy, invest in it, or spend it on things that we want, but don't necessarily need. The Bible is clear about serving two masters.
Matthew 6:24 -- "No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money."
1 Timothy 6:10 -- For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.
There is a story in the Bible, where a man wanted to follow Jesus, but he was wealthy and his possessions were great. He asked Jesus what he must do, and in Matthew 19:21-22, Jesus told him:
“If you want to be perfect, go and sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” But when the young man heard this, he went away sad, for he had many possessions.
How are we supposed to give back to God what is rightfully His, if we hoard it and act as if it is our own? Better yet, if we are too busy holding onto it, how can we help those around us?
1 John 3:17 says, "If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him?"
That's true isn't it? Above all other things, we are supposed to love. And if that love of God is in us, then how can we be selfish and turn those away who are in need? As it states in Proverbs 28:27:
" He who gives to the poor will lack nothing, but he who closes his eyes to them receives many curses."
We, as Christians are called to do the work of God. We are supposed to help those who are less fortunate, because the things that we do to them, we are doing to Christ. Scary thought, huh? But in Matthew 25:45, Jesus says,
"‘I tell you the truth, when you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help me.’"
I don't know about you, but that makes me think about things in a different way. I know if Jesus were sitting on a street corner, in rags, with an empty stomach, I would give everything that I had and more.
Why would it have to come to that? Why can't we show compassion to those, just as Christ did. Aren't we supposed to be His hands and His feet? Aren't we supposed to preach to the ends of the earth, the Good News? Aren't we supposed to love with the love that He gave?
He didn't have much, but He gave everything. Down to His very life. He was selfish with nothing. He kept nothing hidden. Yet we try to keep everything and sustain ourselves.
I know as humans, we all struggle with selfishness, but it's not just about the money. We are selfish with our talents as well. If you're great at teaching, why not share the Good News and help others receive the love of Christ? If you can sing, why not reach a crowd of people with lyrics that will fill their souls? If you are giving with your time, why not visit a hospital or nursing home and make someone smile? Each one of us, was given a gift.
Romans 12:6-8 says: We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man's gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to hisfaith. If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach; if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.
What else are we selfish with? Our time. We wake up in the mornings already thinking about the things that we have to get done. We don't stop and give thanks to God for the very breath that we take. My challenge to you, and myself as well, is to wake up 10 minutes early, and spend it with God. He deserves it. Pray, read a verse, or just sit in silence and listen to Him.
Once our day gets started, it's hard to find time to think about God. I've been there. But lately, I find that if I'm not thinking about God, the things that I am thinking about are pointless. I'm thinking about my future, relationships and worrying about things, when God says:
"I know the plans that I have for you (Jeremiah 29:11)."
Give your time, your every breath, your every thought to God.
And even more than anything I just talked about (money, talents and time), I want you think about what we are most selfish with in our hearts. Our lives.
I consider myself a follower of Christ, and I've heard a lot of people use the same words. But what does that mean? It means that we are supposed to die to ourselves, each and every day.
Galatians 2:20 says, "I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who livesin me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God,who loved me and gave himself for me."
By living our lives like Christ, selfishness won't be an issue. This is a lesson that I have to be taught every day, but it's something that I love to learn.
I don't want to be selfish. I want to give, as Christ did. I want to serve others and let the light of Jesus shine through me. I know from experience that there are many people out there today, claiming to be Christians, but the light that was in Christ, is no where to be found in them. In 2 Timothy 3:2-5, it is written:
For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power.Avoid such people.
We are told to avoid these kinds of people! Their lives are spent on building up what they have, trying to make a name for themselves here on earth, but honestly, what's the point? Their name may be remembered on earth for fifteen minutes, but what good is that going to do when God turns them away? We count a lot of things here on earth as treasures, but what better treasure is there than knowing and giving the infinite love of Christ Jesus our Lord?
So I leave you with one final thought.
Matthew 6:19-21 -- Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal.Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.
I was flipping through the channels on TV, and came across a show called 'Antichrist' on the History Channel. Usually, I'm not one to watch things on that channel or TV in general, but something was gripping me to watch it. I know from experience that those things go against the Word of God, and the devil uses sources (like the media), to get into our minds.
While watching, I was looking through my Twitter feed, and this came up on Max Lucado's page:
"Happy are those who don't listen to the wicked" (Ps.1:1) monitor your media intake today. Watch programs that help you live God."
I didn't know if this was a sign that I shouldn't be watching the show, but still I continued.
About 20 minutes later, I logged onto Facebook, and noticed that K-Love (the Christian radio station) had posted something:
"Happy are those who don't listen to the wicked" (Ps.1:1) monitor your media intake today."
Now, I'm not sure if K-Love got their information from Max Lucado's Twitter page, but I got a weird feeling. Not only had I seen the verse once (when I was already wondering if I should be watching the show), but then again. It's almost as if God were reminding to beware the lure of the media.
Then I started thinking about the verse from Psalms. It's the first verse from the book of Psalms, and it's clear-cut. It tells us that those who do not listen to the wicked, will be happy.
Now going back to the television show concerning the Antichrist. A lot of the things being said were true, because they took passages directly from Scripture, but a lot of the things were left open-ended or didn't quite piece together. After I was finished watching it, I thought to myself: This is exactly how the devil is getting through to people.
The media is so incredibly warped. From the news that we watch in the mornings, to the scary movies that we watch at night; we are becoming disillusioned. Even down to the cartoons that children are watching, violence, blasphemy, slander, hate and ungodly things are being strung through the messages.
The Bible says that many false prophets will come, that there will be information that is grounded in the Word, but will eventually contradict itself. So the show, 'Antichrist' may have had Bible verses in it, which appealed to me, but I felt like there was a message in it that God didn't want me to hear.
If we want to be able to stand against the devil, and be used for the good that God intends, then shouldn't we be more careful with the things that we watch? Or the things that we listen to?
1 Peter 5:8-9 -- Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world.
James 4:7 -- Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
Ephesians 6:10-12 -- Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.
My warning to you? Beware the lure of the devil. There are many things that we do in our everyday lives that we don't realize is going against the Word of God, simply because they have become normal to us. We turn on the radio and listen to secular music, we turn on the TV and watch violent or degrading material, we read a book that changes our thoughts, etc. All of these are ways for the devil to try and trap us.
We must resist His temptations. That's not to say that we shouldn't use the media for good though. Christian radio stations such as K-Love are making a difference in the lives of people everywhere. Christian news channels and morning shows are allowing people to get in touch with God when they start their days. Christian books help keep us grounded in our faith, and the Bible is the best book out there.
Turn the media into a resource that can be used to glorify God. And together, with the help of our Christian brothers and sisters everywhere, we can strengthen our faith in the Lord, for He is good.
This past weekend, I've went through a lot. My emotions have been completely drained. I cried more in 5 hours than I have in years. My heart felt as if it had been thrown out and trampled on. I felt lost and alone.
It's not a good place to be.
The worst part is that I completely neglected God.
It's almost like I could hear Him saying, "Fall on me. I'm here for you." But I pushed away, and tried to deal with things on my own.
The reason for all of this distress? Another human being. I let someone else take hold of my emotions and use them against me. This person knows that they get under my skin, because they know me better than anyone else on earth. I don't think it's fair that someone should be allowed to hurt you like that, but it's life. It's going to happen.
People are always going to use us, misuse us, mistreat us, deceive us, manipulate us, break us, and hurt us. At times, we let those things try and define who we are. But God has called us to be something else. Something greater. He has called us to Him. He has called us His own.
He wants us to come to Him in our times of need. He wants us to fall before Him, broken.
This is my favorite Bible verse. I've used it before, and every time it applies, I will continue to use it. It proves Christ's love for me, and lets me know that He is always going to be with me:
Matthew 11:28-30 -- Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."
This man, who gave up His life for me, wants me to know that He is greater than anything I will ever endure on earth.
Yes, my heart will be broken. Yes, I will feel rejected and neglected by other people. But NEVER will I have to fear being forsaken by my Savior.
I have a friend who shared a Bible verse with me this morning, and it really helped me out, so I thought that I would share it with you guys.
Psalm 42:5-6 -- Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God. My soul is downcast within me; therefore I will remember you from the land of the Jordan, the heights of Hermon—from Mount Mizar.
This past weekend has taken its toll on me, but it has awakened me to a simple fact: People will fail. Friendships will fail. Human promises will fail. But God, He will never fail.
I now know that I can't survive through this life without God. Trying to push Him away was the worst possible thing that I could have done, and because of it, I had to suffer through emotions that have been foreign to me since God has been at the forefront of my life. God isn't going to make us run to Him; He wants us to, but we are never forced to. So because I chose to rely on myself, I was subject to experience humanity and its burdens.
My advice to you? ALWAYS fall of God. Don't ever trust yourself enough to think that you can get through this life alone.
I just wanted to share this story with you, because it really touched my heart.
Today I was at Bible study with my friend Briana. We met at my local coffee shop, and we were discussing Palm Sunday. When we finished that study, we decided to continue looking up the Old Testament prophesies that correlated to the New Testament, which Christ completed. While doing that, a man walked up to us and asked if we were doing a Bible study. We answered yes, and he let us know how special he thought that was.
It's nice to hear that people approve of things that we do from time to time in life.
After we talked to him, he went back to his table, but 10 minutes later, he walked back to the counter. When he finished purchasing his items, he walked back over to our table with his Bible, and he asked us if he could share a verse with us. We accepted.
He read Galatians 6:10, which says, "Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers."
And then he handed us each a gift card to this coffee shop.
He told us that with it being Palm Sunday, he wanted to do something nice for us. And he told us that he was proud of what we were doing. We thanked him as much as possible, and then he walked back to his table.
This man, this stranger, but a brother in Christ, gave from his heart.
How many times has something like that happened to you?
I was genuinely affected by what he did for us. We have never met him before, and here he was, extending love to us.
Isn't that what Christ wants each of us to do? Love one another? Reach out to those less fortunate? But even more than that, help those "who belong to the family of believers."
I didn't think I was worthy enough to receive this simple gift, this simple act of love. And now looking at my life, that's how I feel with Jesus.
His gift was so much greater. His love is far more expansive. But it's the same principle.
He gave us a gift when we least deserved it. I don't deserve His love and compassion, yet He extends it; for free.
Romans 5:8 -- "But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us."
I'm grateful for this man. I know nothing about him, but he has proven that the love of Jesus is still evident in this hate-filled world.
For all I know, He could have been an angel, seeing how we would respond.
Hebrews 13:2 -- Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it.
He made my day a little bit brighter :) And I thank God for Him.
