Time, time, time!!!

  This is a thought that I found sitting in "drafts". I thought I'd go ahead and post it....

Time....I'm sure we can all agree we don't use it as wisely as possible!

Here lately it seems like I have a church function on the calendar almost every night...whether it be Bible study, soul winning, or church. I'm excited that I have those opportunities....but in reality I usually make excuses that I'm to busy or tired.

I don't think you have to do EVERYTHING...in fact, sometimes it's just not healthy...physically or spiritually. You can wear yourself down or get so busy your not having your quiet time and building your relationship with Christ. But...I know being to busy for Him is not my problem right now, sadly :( I think I probably did more for Him while on vacation this past summer!

God has been showing me that I need to get more involved in His work instead of being consumed only with what I want to do. Sometimes that might mean giving up things I had planned...but you know, just like in other areas, if I give God my time....He will provide the right times for me to hang out with friends, go shopping, work on crafts....or do whatever "it" may be.

Christ wants all of me! He doesn't always want me to DO....He just wants me to be willing to do! (Like Abraham and Issac.) Our life is short and I need to not pass up opportunities to witness to others, serve, grow with my Christian family. I've been created for God, He sacrificed His only begotten Son for me, there's no reason why I shouldn't live for Him!

 Here is a poem I found that I thought was good.

 

A Relationship with God

     I recently went through a Bible study with a group of girls using the book "Authentic Beauty" by Leslie Ludy. It talked a lot about how to really have a relationship with God. I've grown up knowing that living the christian life is about not only that day you accepted Christ into your heart, but having a personal relationship with God day to day. I haven't always had the relationship I should though....and I'm still growing and learning. God has used this Bible study along with some other things over the past couple years to teach me better what that relationship looks like and how to live it out. This year I've become so content in Christ my Saviour. It's SO exciting and refreshing! I could say more about that, but I'll save it for later. I do hope and pray though that you experience this peace as well!

     A friend of mine recently posted a little something regarding this relationship with God. I'd like to share it with you now....

"A relationship with God is a relationship with God! It is a growing developing unity with the creator of all things. It is a relationship on all levels. It is intimate, loving, respectful, honoring and unifying. It is personal, it is enduring, and it is honest. It is giving over self to gain Jesus. It Is a relationship of creator and created, father and child, husband and wife. It is passionate, compassionate, rich, uplifting, healing, strengthening and satisfying. A relationship with God builds unity with God. Oneness with the creator, where an exchange takes one into the divine life. We exchange our weakness for his strength, our sorrow for his joy, our loneliness for his unity and belonging, our ignorance for his knowing, our foolishness for his wisdom, our anxiety for his peace, our frustration for his completion, our hopelessness for his hope, our brokenness for his togetherness, our problems for his solutions, our slavery for His Freedom, our pain for his love."

 

      If you're reading this and you're not a born-again Christian (Romans 10:9-13), I encourage you to become one this moment. A life without Jesus is no life at all! It might be great for now, but one day you will regret it. Will you let Him be Lord of your life? He's paid the price for your sin and is now waiting to forgive and adopt you into His family! If you have questions, please feel free to ask me! :D

     As I said, I'm still growing in my relationship with the Lord. I pray I will stay on the straight and narrow path, living in my Father's will, and not give into the temptations of Satan. If I stay, I won't ever be perfect (Either way, I won't be), but that's okay with me! Christ is willing to forgive if I'm willing to let go and let Him take control of my life! Growing in Christ is so rewarding and exciting. Life with Him gives me purpose! I don't know what I would do if He wasn't Lord of my life, my Father, my Healer, my Redeemer! 

     Even as Christians we can get stagnant....there are also those that get saved and then go try to live like the world ("fire insurance"). Both aren't pleasing to God. If you've only "purchased fire insurance"....I would do a self check and make sure you're even saved ("Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them." - Matt 7:20). But those of you who are Christians, I hope you will seek and pray (prayer is key) to have a true relationship with Christ. It's a growing process, sometimes painful, but well worth it!

Should I or should I not? What does the Bible say?

  It's always been a touchy topic...most people think it's a pretty "grey" area. What am I talking about? Alcohol....beer, wine, whatever....but alcohol none the less. I think you could tie drugs in with it as well.
  Now that me and a lot of my friends are becoming "legal" I decided to post a short little something about the issue.
  Proverbs 31:4-5 says "It is not for kings, O Lemuel, it is not for kings to drink wine; nor for princes strong drink: Lest they drink, and forget the law, and pervert the judgment of any of the afflicted."
Then in Revelation 1:6 God says that all His children are Kings and Priests: " And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen."
 There are many other verses in the Bible that talk about the issue. I think if you really dig into it and seek God's wisdom, you'll find that it's something to stay away from....and that it's not such a "grey" area after all.

 Along with the topic of alcohol is the question of going into bars/pubs/night clubs. I've had some people say It's fun, who cares?...."I don't drink, I just go for the fun and dancing"..."I go to witness to people".  Here's something to think about though, if you saw a person going into one of those places would you think they were a Christian? No, most likely you would group them with the world. What if you ran into someone who's backslidden away from your church or someone you've been trying to witness to? They wouldn't know if you were drinking or not...just there to "share the Gospel"....or if you're enjoying all it has to offer. What would they see in you that's different? Would it make them want to become a Child of God like you? Sure it's fun, but sin usually is. You could be the turning point in someones life....and that applies to all of us weather in this situation or anywhere else...even on Facebook! I know we're not suppose to judge. But God even says "man looketh on the outward appearance". Your walk talks louder than your talk talks!    1 Timothy 4:12 " Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity."

 I hope this has been a good reminder for some of you. I would encourage you to go read 1 Timothy 4 and also seek God's wisdom on the issue. He's willing to give it if you're willing to listen! :)    
 James 1:5-7 "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord.
"
 James 3:17 "But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy."
  

"If you're not sure, don't!" 

Prayer Request

It's bitter sweet to see new Christians saved out of a bad past, but still have to pay the consequences for their actions here on earth. There are a couple brothers in my mind this morning that I truly believe God has changed, but are currently facing hard jail time from their previous life. Please be in prayer for them if you would! If they go, pray they will become even closer to our Heavenly Father and use this time as a mission field!

Galatians 6:7-9 "Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not."

What we do will ALWAYS have an effect. Most of the time it effects those around us too.

 The Lord's been speaking to me about dwelling more on the positive things of life. In thought, conversation, and action.
 He says in Philippians 4:8 "Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things."
 I've never really found this to be one of those "life verses" for me...but lately it's really been clicking. If things aren't going our way, if we're just in a bad mood, or if we're "all good", whatever the case may be....we should always follow this verse and think on the positive. It makes you feel better too!

 Here's a good song to go along with this :)

Jehovah's Witness

A friend of mine posted something I thought was good enough to share with you! Here it is... 

"Just had two fourteen year old "Jehovah's Witnesses" come to the door...poor kids.

Just a glimpse:

Jehovah’s Witnesses say the doctrine of the Trinity is pagan teachings. They actually believe in three separate gods...God the Father and the two little gods, Jesus and the Holy Spirit (which they actually believe was just a force of God). They say:

1. Jesus was created
2. Jesus was Michael the archangel
3. Jesus’ body was not resurrected; it simply disappeared
4. He rose as a spirit creature They say
5. The Holy Spirit is not a person but is Jehovah’s active force or energy.

This is just one of many heretical claims of "Jehovah's Witnesses." Be careful when witnessing to them because they use a lot of the same terminology, but it is radically different from the true teachings of Scripture.

An easy reference and aid: http://www.gotquestions.org/witnessing-Jehovahs-Witnesses.html "

I haven't really looked at the link myself yet, but knowing the source that posted it, I'd say it is a good one.

From the heart -

  The past couple years I've learned more about not judging...particularly "Sinners will be sinners, so don't be surprised when they sin". But, it's easy to assume and judge when you see a "Christian" with tattoos, excessive body piercings, gauges, not acting the way you think they should, etc.  I recently joined a new church and I have quickly learned not to be quick to judge Christians either! (That being said....I think we should follow the Bible and be "set apart" - be a light for Him.) God is moving in a GREAT way at this church and I get so excited watching it! That includes however, worshiping next to a Christian who, because of past choices still sort of looks like the world and maybe is even a baby that's still learning not to act like the world. Some are just your simple everyday sad stories, but others came out of a hard life of drug dealings, gangs, and whatnot. I'm learning..and praying God will help me, to love like He loves, see through His eyes, reach out through His arms. It's exciting enough to see your "everyday Joe" come to know Jesus as his Saviour....but to see a case that the world deemed hopeless...that blows me away! 
 I also love how as a child of God, the "richest" person can fellowship and serve the Lord with the "lowest"! :D
 I just wanted to share my excitement with you! Let's pray for ourselves - each other - the lost, get out there and witness, and thank God for His goodness! :D
 Have a wonderful week everyone!

Memverse

If you're like me you have a hard time memorizing scripture for one reason or another! :(
My problem is I just forget to take time and work on them during the day...sadly. I know this because when there would be competitions at church or something I would would usually be able to memorize the selected verses by or before the deadline.
So...me and my friend were recently talking and she shared this website with me - www.MemVerse.com. It's an interactive way to learn verses of God's word! :D Maybe it will be a blessing to some of you...I know I like it so far! :)

Keep on Talkin'...

 So the Super Bowl is now over...and we have a winner! The Baltimore Ravens! How many of you will make this your hot topic of conversation the next couple days...maybe even weeks?
 Let me ask another question. Once they've one, are they always a winner? How long will it take for this victory to fade away? You see, although this victory is great in the worlds eyes, it's is temporal. The memory of this night will soon fade, metals and awards will get old, the men who made this night will retire. Maybe not tomorrow, but I'm sure in the next couple days the Ravens will start preparing to win Super Bowl 2014!
 Now, think about this.... Wouldn't it be cool to have a victory no one EVER forgot for all of eternity!? Something that would make an eternal impact, something no one ever stopped talking about? A man did such a thing about 2,000 years ago! Yes, Jesus! After dieing to pay for ALL my sins and yours, He defeated death and Satan!
 Those of us who have accepted Christ into our hearts can be a  part of this celebration! We should want to tell the world about the GREAT thing He did! If someone paid all your bills off, wouldn't you be a little excited? You'd probably be telling a few people too, huh? So why do we find it so hard to tell others about this victory?... About Jesus paying for our sins? If it's rejection you fear, don't! It's Him they are rejecting!
 Lets get out there and be a joyful, excited light for Him! Proclaim the wondrous things God's done! What do ya say? :D

The Narrow Road

This thought came to me tonight at church. The narrow road of the Christian walk is like a narrow country road. It looks simple enough...pretty easy to walk. So we start down the road and soon find it's full of  twists and turns, hills and valleys, and maybe a few things jumping out or blocking our way.
So many people think they can walk it alone...but in reality, we need each other... and of course God. He placed people in our lives for a reason. We are to bare one another's burdens. Look at David and Jonathan (1 Samuel 18)...they are a great example of what Godly friendships should be.
One of my goals this year is to honor Christ in my friendships and relationships with family. I believe they represent what our relationship is to Christ....so am I honoring God???

Happy New Year!

 I haven't been on in awhile! Sorry about that! I hope you all had a blessed Christmas celebrating Christ Jesus' birth!
 So much has happened this past year...good and bad. I was reading today and came across this verse found in Ezekiel 23:35 "Therefore thus saith the Lord God; Because thou hast forgotten me, and cast me behind thy back, therefore bear thou also thy lewdness and thy whoredoms." There were a lot of people asking "why" last year....especially during the shootings and election. I believe this verse answers it quite nicely. We reap what we sow...ever heard that one? :) We've kicked God out of our schools and a bunch of other places....so why should we be surprised when He's not there to protect and help us in those areas?
 This new year I hope we will all examine our own lives to see where we may have "kicked" God out, then open the door and let Him back in. If we ask Him, He will show us the areas to work on. I don't know about you, but one of my goals is to grow more in Him this New Year! Are you with me? :)

 You've probably figured out that I like music by now! So, here's a song to leave you with :)