There's a Raging Sea Right in Front of Me

There is a story in Mark where Jesus calms the storm.  The disciples were afraid of the raging waves and the fierce wind.  They awoke Jesus from His slumber, questioning if He cared whether or not they drowned.  Jesus stands up, and commands the waves, "Quiet!  Be still!"  Then He asks why the disciples are afraid and still do not have faith.  The disciples were amazed that even the wind and waves obey Him.  (Mark 4:35-41)

This is one of my favorite miracles of Jesus, because, like the disciples said, even the wind and the waves obey Him.  It causes me to evaluate my "struggles."  If Jesus can calm a huge sea storm, then He can surely calm whatever I am going through and even calm myself.  I need only have faith that He will take care of me.  The Bible says He taught as one who has authority (Mark 1:22).  Jesus came to Earth with authority.  If He has authority over what He teaches, then He also has authority over His healings. 

Wherever you are in your life, allow Jesus to have authority over any and all struggles.  Jesus would never force His authority on you, because that isn't love.  But, I can promise you, He can and will change your life, but only if you allow Him to have the authority.   He will free you from this world.  Then you will be able to rest in His presence and in His grace.  "My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest"  (Exodus 33:14).  John 16:33 says,   “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace.  In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”  He has already overcome the world, and that includes your struggles.  Put your faith in Him, and He will calm your storm. 

                            

Just Two Days Ago...

I heard a song by Matthew West today called, "A Few More Days" (the link to it is at the bottom), and I was completely humbled by it. 

The line that got me was, "To You a day is like a thousand years" (Psalm 90:4).  Because Jesus died for our sins and rose to conquer them a little over 2000 years ago, that means it was only just a little over two days ago.  Is that not humbling?  We see 2000 years as sooo long, but it was only the day before yesterday.  His love is still fresh.  It will always be fresh.  The Bible says, "With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day" (2 Peter 3:8).  What gets me is the verse right after that:  "The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance."  His promise is Jesus.  We tend to complain on waiting on God, because we fail to understand His timing.  How long must I wait? When will God answer my prayer? Why is God taking so long?  But these two verses answer those questions.  He is not slow in keeping His promises.  It was only two days ago that He fulfilled them.  He is patient with us.  He knows we look at time differently than Him, but He is still patient and loving. 

This made me think of James writing to the early Jewish Christians.  He writes about life being a mist. 

"Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.”  Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow.  What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.  Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that.”  As it is, you boast and brag. All such boasting is evil.  Anyone, the, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins"  (James 4:13-17).

Therefore, if 2000 years ago was only two days ago, time is passing!  Let this verse be our prayer for God:  "Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom" (Psalm 90:12).  Trust that God has a plan for you in this short amount of time we are on Earth.  Trust that the miracle of Jesus is still fresh.  The beauty of His blood will never run dry.  After all, just two days ago, the world changed.  :]

http://youtu.be/OL6yGccXYzU

Be Optimistic...And Smile! :]

I choose not to be a pessimist.  >:( 

I choose not to be a realist.  :/  

I choose to be an optimist.  :D

During what we call "bad days," we lose sight of God.  We allow ourselves to only see the pain, the hurt, the anguish, the confusion, the discomfort, the feelings that aren't from God ("For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self‑discipline" (2 Tim. 1:7)).  Therefore, if we take the good days from God, why not also the bad days (Job 2:10)?  The Bible says, "Be joyful always, pray continually, gives thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ" (1 Thess. 5:16-18).  It says, "gives thanks in ALL circumstances."  God did not limit our thanks to the "good days."  He says, ALL circumstances.  So whenever you feel pain, hurt, anguish, confusion, discomfort, etc., gives thanks to God!  Be optimistic.  Change your outlook from seeing those ill feelings to seeing God's glory, God's faithfulness, God's grace, God's love... "For Great is his love toward us, and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever" (Psalm 117:2).  He is faithful.  There is absolutely nothing that He cannot handle.  Our God is greater; our God is higher; our God is higher than any other (Psalm 77:13).  Whatever it is that is holding you back from His love and faithfulness, give it to Him.  There is freedom in knowing that He is holding us.  His arms are wrapped around us. 

Remember, in ALL circumstances, give thanks!  And smile knowing He is love.  :]

 

 

Come to My Rescue

God gave me both the verse and the song.  I hope it speaks to your heart the way it spoke to mine.  He is just soooooo good!  :]

"In my anguish I cried to the Lord, and he answered me by setting me free. The Lord is with me; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me? The Lord is with me; he is my helper. I will look in triumph on my enemies." Psalm 118:5-7

Here is the link.  The song is called "Rescue" by Newsong. 

http://youtu.be/RXAN3l8jQDg

True Love Waits

I choose to wear a True Love Waits ring on my left ring finger, my wedding finger.  It represents the promise I made to God.  I promised Him that I would wait until marriage to "go all the way" with the man God has for me. 

But, more importantly, it represents the promise I made to God that I would be married to Him always.  When the man God has for me comes along, he'll have to ask for God's permission to marry me, because I am already married to God.

Well, I was just looking at my ring and thinking.  I've always just thought True Love meant that the guy for me would respect me and my relationship with God and also himself and his relationship with God to wait until we are married.  But I just realized, it's soooo much deeper than that.

Ya see, following Jesus is NOT a religion.  It is an alive and active relationship full of love and out of love because God is love.  I have nothing to offer, but He loves me anyway.  Whenever I make a mistake, He is not disappointed with me, because I belong to Him and I am His daughter.  Lamentations 3 verse 24 says this:  I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.”  Nothing else in this world can satisfy the body, the mind, or the spirit, but God.  He is our portion.  Because I am in a relationship with God and He is love, this is True Love.  I will wait for Him, because He waits for me.  True Love Waits. 

Experiencing God

People, whether they be followers or non-followers of Christ, claim that they have never experienced Him in profound ways.  Jesus has spoken to my heart in so many beautiful ways.  People long for this, but Jesus is also experienced just by our existence.   

We experience God by breathing.  For every breath we take in, He is constantly breathing out for us.  His hand is over us allowing us to breath out.  That is experiencing God. 

We also experience God just by walking outside.  Look around you.  All of this belongs to God.  He created the splendor of the trees.  He created the majesty of the mountains.  He created the serenity of a sunset. 

Look in the mirror.  He created the beauty of YOU.  By looking in the mirror, you can experience Christ.

We wait for Him to shout out to us, but, sometimes, God is loudest when He is not saying anything at all.  The Bible says to, "Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth" (Psalm 46:10).  We merely have to breathe.  We merely have to walk outside and look around us.  We merely have to look in the mirror.  Be still.  He is God.  He is exalted simply because you exist. 

 

I Should Be...

Because of my home life, I should be the kid who uses drugs to escape reality.

Because of the death of my grandmother, I should be the kid who remains depressed.

Because of the lack of a decent dad, I should be the kid who has numerous boyfriends to at least get a glimpse of feeling wanted.

However...

Because of my home life, I am the kid who chooses to trust that God is so much better than drugs.

Because of the death of my grandmother, I am the kid who chooses to trust that God brought His glory out of her death and that He healed her in beautiful ways. 

Because of the lack of a decent dad, I am the kid who rests in her Father's arms, instead, and trusts that He'll never let me go.

I should've been... But I'm not.

I should be... but I AM.

So Much Depends...

My favorite poem is called "The Red Wheelbarrow" by William Carlos Williams.  It goes like this...

so much depends

upon

a red wheel

barrow

glazed with rain

water

beside the white

chickens.

So much depends on this red wheelbarrow.  A wheelbarrow carries things inside it to transport it from one place to another.  Wheelbarrows don't always have the best terrain to cover, but they always make it to Point B.  The wheelbarrow represents Jesus.  Jesus is carrying us.  He is taking us from our old, sinful life to the beautiful eternity of righteousness. 

The wheelbarrow is also red.  So not only is Jesus carrying us, He is carrying our sin.  In fact, He is covered in it.  The Bible says that God's wrath was poured on Jesus the day He died the ultimate death.  But, Jesus also poured out His blood for us.  We are cleansed from our sin by His blood. 

The wheelbarrow is glazed with rain water.  Water is the holy water.  We are being purified from all sin because of what Jesus did.

This allows us to become like the white chickens.  White represents purity.  Because of Jesus' infinite love for us, the sinners, He carried ALL of our sin and allowed us to purify so we could one day spend eternity with Him.

So much depends on this wheelbarrow because a wheelbarrow cannot pick things up and put them inside to carry them.  Because Jesus does not force His love, WE.  MUST.  CHOOSE.  It is OUR CHOICE to place ourselves into Jesus' arms.  We have to trust Him and trust where He is leading us. 

So if so much depends...  What will you choose???

What Is Freedom Really?

"Or, if you want to go just a wee bit deeper, we could talk about the nature of freedom itself.  Does freedom mean that you are allowed to do whatever you want to do?  Or we could talk about all the limiting influences in your life that actively work against your freedom.  Your family genetic heritage, your specific DNA, your metabolic uniqueness, the quantum stuff that is going on at a subatonic level where only I am the always-present observer.  Or the intrusion of your soul's sickness that inhabits and binds you, or the social influences around you, or the habits that have created synaptic bonds and pathways in your brain.  And then there's advertising, propaganda, and paradigms.  Inside that confluence of multifaceted inhibitors, what is freedom really?"

"Only I can set you free, but freedom can never be forced."

[from The Shack, page 95]

We Will Rise

Jesus died for our sins.  He poured out His blood for us and over us.  However, sometimes we forget to remember that not only did He die for us, He also rose for us.

It gives me hope to know that He rose again.  He let everyone know that He would rebuild the temple within three days, and He did just as He said. 

Whenever I go through any sort of struggle, it is silly of me to lose my confidence in God.  Because He died for me, I know that He suffered whatever my "struggle" is.  But because He also rose for me, I know that He CONQUERED my "struggle."    

There is hope in knowing that whatever I go through, He has already overcome it.  He has risen and because of His promise, we will also rise, rise through our struggles.   

True Beauty

"God created beauty to draw our eyes and hearts to Him - the Giver of Life and the source of every living thing."

"They will speak of the glorious splendor of your majesty, and I will meditate on your wonderful works." Psalm 145:5

Take a walk outside.  What do you see?  What do you hear?  What do you smell?  What do you feel? 

God is the Creator of all things.  Did you read that correctly?  He is the Creator of ALL things!  He created the Earth, the ocean, the trees, the grass, the flowers, but, He also created me and YOU.  He took the time to craft you in the most glorious way.  There is only one me, and there is only one you.  Whenever you feel that you don't measure up to someone else or to something, remember that YOU are the ONLY person who is exactly YOU.

"You are a masterpiece.  Yes, you.  You are the pinnacle of the cration of the Master Artist.  You are exactly who God designed you to be, and you are infintely precious to Him, just the way you are.  Quit worrying about what other people see when they look at you.  Start seeing yourself as God sees you:  His beloved, priceless work of art."

Therefore, "God created beauty (i.e. Earth, the ocean, the trees, the grass, the flowers, and YOU) to draw our eyes and hearts to Him - the Giver of Life and the source of every living thing."

When you look in the mirror, you see the Creator of it all.  You see someone beautiful.  You see God.