It's been a really long time since I last posted. My life has been very crazy lately and its taken me awhile to process everything that has happened.
I just completed my first semester of college. I don't think I've ever grown so much in one period of time as I did these past 4 months. I've learned many valuable things, but the biggest one on my heart right now that I want to write about is identity.
In high school, I always felt a little bit trapped. I always felt like I could never truly be who I wanted to be. Some of this was because of things that had happened to me that hurt me deeply, but most of it was out of fear. I've always been a fearful person, and by last May, I decided that I would no longer be that fearful person. Because of my fear I wasn't truly being myself. I made the decision that with this new beginning at college I would truly open up and be myself.
At first I didn't relate this revelation to anything spiritual. I thought it was just a moment of myself getting fed up with my life. But, as I started college and began to act truly myself, I found there were mountains of differences than high school.
(Before I go on anymore, I should put out there that in high school I was really quiet, I mostly kept to myself and I didn't do many things out of fear)
I began to notice that by being my true self, God was able to do more work through me. When I'm being my true self, I'm I guess what you call a "nut". I do weird things, I'm a little more outgoing, and I have too much energy all the time. But, by being that weirdo that I am, it helps other people to open up a little bit more, and feel more relaxed.
God is able to use us as tools for His kingdom most when we are being our true selves.
Here is the thing though- the devil does not, at all, want us to be who we were made to be. The devil comes to lie, steal and destroy our lives. He does not want us to do good work for the Kingdom. The devil will try to sneak in and destroy our God given identities. Satan did this to me about half way through the semester. I had gone 1 1/2 months without even feeling a care in world about what people thought of my new found self, when all of a sudden, I began to feel self conscious. I had constant thoughts such as, "I'm too weird", "I'm too hyper", "people think I'm annoying". Thankfully, because of my relationship with Jesus Christ, I was able to identify what these thoughts were and work on ridding myself of them with the help of Him.
Not everyone out there though has this strength that Jesus Christ gives, and as Christians we have to remember to try and help others find their God given identity in Christ and to also be there to encourage others to keep living out their true selves .
We must also remember that the world, as it is so heavily influenced by Satan, will try to influence us that to have an acceptable identity, we need to be just like everyone else. The world wants us to be "cool". The world wants us to "be tough". The world wants us, in most cases, to have an identity opposite of what the Lord instilled in us at birth. Always strive to go against that. Strive to live in the direction of God and not the world, that way He can constantly reinforce your personality.
So, saying all this, I challenge everyone who reads this to sit and really think, "Am I revealing my true God given identity?"
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
What You Do is Being Watched
My sobriety date is November 10th. 3 years ago was the date of the last time I got drunk. I'll be honest, I've drank and relasped a few times since then, but I still consider that date the day Jesus protected me, woke me up and saved me.
What caused me to stumble those few times though? Well everytime it was completely my fault because of lack of self control, but the most common thing that triggered my urge to drink again was finding out that someone I looked up to secretly partied. People who I believed to be leaders, strong Christians devoting their life to the Lord. It made me self concious of my own christianity. I desperatly wanted to be the best Christian I could be, but when I saw that others were not even trying to not fall, I felt like I needed to fall too.
1 Corinthians 10:32 tells Christians "Do not cause anyone to stumble..." Paul wrote this to the Church of Corinth because he wanted the Christians to be aware of non-christians and that their actions were being watched. The non-christians looked into the lives of Christians, and said well I thought this was considered bad. Paul used the example that if someone told you a certain meat was offered to an idol, even though they would have known it is fine to eat that meat, eating it in front of that person(the non-believer) would possibly cause them to stumble. (1 Corinthians 28-29) A good example of this now a days would be, say someone drinks casually and say they still love and obey God, well first off, if you are drinking underage you are disobeying God directly by not obeying authority, second, you are setting a bad example for new christians, or even christians who just look up to you, old or new. People over the age who are legally allowed to drink have to ask themselves this, "Am I causing someone to stumble?"
The problem that also occurs is that the drink becomes an idol and it is not glorifying God. Everything you do should be for the glory of God, as 1 Corinthians 10:31 says. 1 Cor. 10:23 says that, "We are allowed to do all things, but not all things are good for us to do. We are allowed to do all things, but not all things help others grow stronger." Some of these things also cause us to not grow. Verse 24 goes on to say, "Do not look out for only yourselves. Look out for the good of others." As Christians, our sole purpose should be to serve the Lord, and part of that serving includes bringing others to Christ. Therefore, if our actions, such as drinking, sex, or even cussing, are causing confusion and stumbling in new Christians or non-believers, are we truly serving God? The answer is simply no.
Even if our sinful actions are done secretly Luke 8:17 (NIV) says, "For there is nothing hidden that will not be disclosed, and nothing concealed that will not be known or brought out into the open." God always knows our hearts, but what we do in the dark, will come out for all to see. Eventually, the ones that look up to us, will see our transgressions and possibly fall because of them.
One might say, "Well God forgives our trangressions because of the blood shed on the cross" and explain this to a person looking up to them. Yes, this is very true but the problem is, we have people who look up to us that we don't know about. They watch from afar. We cannot go to them and say, "God has forgiven me" and if we know what we did was wrong and sinful, we cannot go up to them and tell them that either. They may not know our guilt.
As I grew in my faith, and I became stronger, I realized all this. I realized that I possibly had someone looking up to me as an example, and that I needed to end the viscous cycle of falling because of others. I have always been very open about my past, and I do not want to hide what I have done in the dark. The Lord has saved me and continues to save me everyday. I no longer drink at all. I do this for myself, but mostly for others. I want to bring people to Christ, not turn them away or cause sadness in them.
I hope this means something to someone. If this doesn't make sense, try reading 1 Corinthians 10:23-33. This is where I based this off of.
What caused me to stumble those few times though? Well everytime it was completely my fault because of lack of self control, but the most common thing that triggered my urge to drink again was finding out that someone I looked up to secretly partied. People who I believed to be leaders, strong Christians devoting their life to the Lord. It made me self concious of my own christianity. I desperatly wanted to be the best Christian I could be, but when I saw that others were not even trying to not fall, I felt like I needed to fall too.
1 Corinthians 10:32 tells Christians "Do not cause anyone to stumble..." Paul wrote this to the Church of Corinth because he wanted the Christians to be aware of non-christians and that their actions were being watched. The non-christians looked into the lives of Christians, and said well I thought this was considered bad. Paul used the example that if someone told you a certain meat was offered to an idol, even though they would have known it is fine to eat that meat, eating it in front of that person(the non-believer) would possibly cause them to stumble. (1 Corinthians 28-29) A good example of this now a days would be, say someone drinks casually and say they still love and obey God, well first off, if you are drinking underage you are disobeying God directly by not obeying authority, second, you are setting a bad example for new christians, or even christians who just look up to you, old or new. People over the age who are legally allowed to drink have to ask themselves this, "Am I causing someone to stumble?"
The problem that also occurs is that the drink becomes an idol and it is not glorifying God. Everything you do should be for the glory of God, as 1 Corinthians 10:31 says. 1 Cor. 10:23 says that, "We are allowed to do all things, but not all things are good for us to do. We are allowed to do all things, but not all things help others grow stronger." Some of these things also cause us to not grow. Verse 24 goes on to say, "Do not look out for only yourselves. Look out for the good of others." As Christians, our sole purpose should be to serve the Lord, and part of that serving includes bringing others to Christ. Therefore, if our actions, such as drinking, sex, or even cussing, are causing confusion and stumbling in new Christians or non-believers, are we truly serving God? The answer is simply no.
Even if our sinful actions are done secretly Luke 8:17 (NIV) says, "For there is nothing hidden that will not be disclosed, and nothing concealed that will not be known or brought out into the open." God always knows our hearts, but what we do in the dark, will come out for all to see. Eventually, the ones that look up to us, will see our transgressions and possibly fall because of them.
One might say, "Well God forgives our trangressions because of the blood shed on the cross" and explain this to a person looking up to them. Yes, this is very true but the problem is, we have people who look up to us that we don't know about. They watch from afar. We cannot go to them and say, "God has forgiven me" and if we know what we did was wrong and sinful, we cannot go up to them and tell them that either. They may not know our guilt.
As I grew in my faith, and I became stronger, I realized all this. I realized that I possibly had someone looking up to me as an example, and that I needed to end the viscous cycle of falling because of others. I have always been very open about my past, and I do not want to hide what I have done in the dark. The Lord has saved me and continues to save me everyday. I no longer drink at all. I do this for myself, but mostly for others. I want to bring people to Christ, not turn them away or cause sadness in them.
I hope this means something to someone. If this doesn't make sense, try reading 1 Corinthians 10:23-33. This is where I based this off of.
Saturday, October 15, 2011
Matthew 25:14-30
I'm reading through the book of Matthew right now, and a couple of days ago I read the story about the three servants. I've heard about this story since I was really little, but for some reason, it just now really opened up in meaning to me.
A master gives three servants bags of gold. "He gave one servant five bags of gold, another servant two bags of gold, and a third servant one bag of gold." (Matthew 25:15 NCV) The first servant invested his gold and reaped 5 more bags of gold. The servant with two bags of gold also doubled his gold. However, the third servant buried his bag of gold in the ground and in return reaped nothing.
God used this story to show me that our faith is like the gold. When we accept Jesus into our hearts and start on our path of Christianity, that's like God giving us His gold. We can take our new life and just live it quietly, keeping it to ourselves like the third servant. Or, we can take it like the first and second servant and invest it for our Father.
God wants us to share His gift. How selfish would it be of us to not want to share the great gift God has given us of salvation?
Jesus ends his parable by telling his disciples, "...Take the bag of gold from that servant and give it to the servant who has ten bags of gold. Those who have much will get more, and they will have much more than they need. But those who do not have much will have everything taken away from them." (Matthew 25: 28-29 NCV) Jesus was saying, faith becomes more abundant when it is invested into the lives of others. Because one invests their faith into the lives of others, the kingdom grows, and it return, faith also grows. But, hiding faith under a rock does not put anything into the kingdom, and in return faith is squandered and halted from growing.
Sharing and living faith out loud is not always easy in today's world. It has moments where it is frightening. But, if we never take the chance to invest our faith, what will we reap for the Lord's kingdom? Jesus did command, "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." (Matthew 28:19 NIV)
A master gives three servants bags of gold. "He gave one servant five bags of gold, another servant two bags of gold, and a third servant one bag of gold." (Matthew 25:15 NCV) The first servant invested his gold and reaped 5 more bags of gold. The servant with two bags of gold also doubled his gold. However, the third servant buried his bag of gold in the ground and in return reaped nothing.
God used this story to show me that our faith is like the gold. When we accept Jesus into our hearts and start on our path of Christianity, that's like God giving us His gold. We can take our new life and just live it quietly, keeping it to ourselves like the third servant. Or, we can take it like the first and second servant and invest it for our Father.
God wants us to share His gift. How selfish would it be of us to not want to share the great gift God has given us of salvation?
Jesus ends his parable by telling his disciples, "...Take the bag of gold from that servant and give it to the servant who has ten bags of gold. Those who have much will get more, and they will have much more than they need. But those who do not have much will have everything taken away from them." (Matthew 25: 28-29 NCV) Jesus was saying, faith becomes more abundant when it is invested into the lives of others. Because one invests their faith into the lives of others, the kingdom grows, and it return, faith also grows. But, hiding faith under a rock does not put anything into the kingdom, and in return faith is squandered and halted from growing.
Sharing and living faith out loud is not always easy in today's world. It has moments where it is frightening. But, if we never take the chance to invest our faith, what will we reap for the Lord's kingdom? Jesus did command, "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." (Matthew 28:19 NIV)
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
"Thank the Lord because He is good"
God is such a beautiful, loving, caring and good God. I forget that, all the time. So, I really want to just write a post thanking God.
Thank you God for my family.
Thank you for providing a way for me to do what I love and attend the college I do.
Thank you for the friends You have placed in my life.
Thank you for giving me the opportunities You have given me.
Thank you for relentlessly chasing me until I fell to my knees and surrendered to You.
Thank you for loving me even when I'm a wreck and do everything in my power to go against You.
Thank you for the blue sky.
Thank you for giving me two healthy legs to run with.
Thank you for creating people who can make beautiful music, especially music that is used to praise You.
Thank you for giving the gift of the holy spirit.
Thank you for forgiving me for everything.
Thank you for loving me.
Thank you for always reminding me what life is truly about when my center becomes off focus.
Thank you for the desires You have placed in my heart.
Thank you for creating people who's laugh makes others laugh.
Thank you for creating animals.
Thank you for giving me joy when joy is the farthest emotion I felt I could actually feel.
Thank you for watching over me, always.
Thank you for giving the ability to smile to us.
Thank you for comforting me when I feel all alone in life.
Thank you for the strength You give me.
Thank you for giving Your wisdom.
Thank you for taking my hand and leading me.
Thank you for being the caring God that You are.
"Thank the Lord because He is good. His love endures forever." Psalm 118:1
Thank you God for my family.
Thank you for providing a way for me to do what I love and attend the college I do.
Thank you for the friends You have placed in my life.
Thank you for giving me the opportunities You have given me.
Thank you for relentlessly chasing me until I fell to my knees and surrendered to You.
Thank you for loving me even when I'm a wreck and do everything in my power to go against You.
Thank you for the blue sky.
Thank you for giving me two healthy legs to run with.
Thank you for creating people who can make beautiful music, especially music that is used to praise You.
Thank you for giving the gift of the holy spirit.
Thank you for forgiving me for everything.
Thank you for loving me.
Thank you for always reminding me what life is truly about when my center becomes off focus.
Thank you for the desires You have placed in my heart.
Thank you for creating people who's laugh makes others laugh.
Thank you for creating animals.
Thank you for giving me joy when joy is the farthest emotion I felt I could actually feel.
Thank you for watching over me, always.
Thank you for giving the ability to smile to us.
Thank you for comforting me when I feel all alone in life.
Thank you for the strength You give me.
Thank you for giving Your wisdom.
Thank you for taking my hand and leading me.
Thank you for being the caring God that You are.
"Thank the Lord because He is good. His love endures forever." Psalm 118:1
Friday, September 30, 2011
Give It All
I recently interned at a gym and twice a week I did the yoga classes. It was my first time to ever do yoga moves (I ignored the eastern jumble, no worries) and the instructor had to help me the first few times. She told me, "The body always looks for the easiest way to accomplish what you're trying to do, but you won't reap the benefits if you're not pushing your body to it's limits." It was painful doing it the correct way. Yoga requires total concentration and awareness of your body. After 8 weeks of doing it the correct way every time though, the pain decreased and my body was more flexible. Because I stuck with doing it the right way, I reaped benefits that made me happy and also increased my overall well being.
Hillsong United sings a song called "Go". The opening verse of the song states "Were giving it all away, away. Giving it all to go Your way." So how does this connect with the yoga class I just talked about? Well- In yoga, I had to push out of my comfort zone. The song "Go" gives the perfect example of giving everything to God. A situation that may seem easy when just thinking about, but actually when it practice, it's difficult, and just like yoga, it takes pushing of yourself.
God wants us to completely place everything in His hands. He wants our burdens, He wants our hurt. God wants our happiness, our joy, He wants everything.
Giving Him everything though is hard. Just like when first starting yoga, or really any new thing, most are going to look for the easiest way to do something. In the case of giving everything up to God, it's as simple as fooling yourself. It is so easy to just say, "I'm giving Him everything, I know I am." For the first few days, maybe even just within hours of saying, "Okay, I'm releasing this situation", it can really seem like you have given it all to Him. But of course, the devil does not want us at all to give everything to the Lord, because then what does he have to work with to use to destroy our lives?
For example, the lie the devil likes to use on me is that something is wrong with me, I'm inadequate, and that I'm weird. I'll go through moments where I will honestly say to God, "Okay Lord take this away! I'm giving this to You! Help me to not believe this!" I feel great right after I say that, but as time goes on, the devil starts chipping away at my release to God. Because I am not putting the work in to keep everything in God's hands, the devil is able to do that. I am simply taking the easy way out. Listening to and believing that lie that says I'm inadequate is much easier than taking a stand and saying "No. This is not true, I am a child of God and no one is broken to the Lord." So just like the yoga, I need to begin to push myself, it may be painful at times, but in order for me to be able to give everything, and I mean everything up to the Lord, I need to endure that pain and difficulty. In the end, taking the difficult road will reap its benefits.
The Lord has really been speaking to my heart about this lately because, like I said earlier, He wants everything. He gave me this great image for when I'm struggling to really just give it all. He told me to picture, wherever I am, myself throwing my hands in the air and saying to Him "Take it all God! I put all that I am into Your hands."
So for anyone reading this, I really challenge you to make a conscious effort to give everything to the Lord. Just like in yoga where awareness of the body is required, always be aware of spiritual warfare and what is going on in your life. Are you trying to deal with it yourself, or are you releasing it all to God?
Hillsong United sings a song called "Go". The opening verse of the song states "Were giving it all away, away. Giving it all to go Your way." So how does this connect with the yoga class I just talked about? Well- In yoga, I had to push out of my comfort zone. The song "Go" gives the perfect example of giving everything to God. A situation that may seem easy when just thinking about, but actually when it practice, it's difficult, and just like yoga, it takes pushing of yourself.
God wants us to completely place everything in His hands. He wants our burdens, He wants our hurt. God wants our happiness, our joy, He wants everything.
Giving Him everything though is hard. Just like when first starting yoga, or really any new thing, most are going to look for the easiest way to do something. In the case of giving everything up to God, it's as simple as fooling yourself. It is so easy to just say, "I'm giving Him everything, I know I am." For the first few days, maybe even just within hours of saying, "Okay, I'm releasing this situation", it can really seem like you have given it all to Him. But of course, the devil does not want us at all to give everything to the Lord, because then what does he have to work with to use to destroy our lives?
For example, the lie the devil likes to use on me is that something is wrong with me, I'm inadequate, and that I'm weird. I'll go through moments where I will honestly say to God, "Okay Lord take this away! I'm giving this to You! Help me to not believe this!" I feel great right after I say that, but as time goes on, the devil starts chipping away at my release to God. Because I am not putting the work in to keep everything in God's hands, the devil is able to do that. I am simply taking the easy way out. Listening to and believing that lie that says I'm inadequate is much easier than taking a stand and saying "No. This is not true, I am a child of God and no one is broken to the Lord." So just like the yoga, I need to begin to push myself, it may be painful at times, but in order for me to be able to give everything, and I mean everything up to the Lord, I need to endure that pain and difficulty. In the end, taking the difficult road will reap its benefits.
The Lord has really been speaking to my heart about this lately because, like I said earlier, He wants everything. He gave me this great image for when I'm struggling to really just give it all. He told me to picture, wherever I am, myself throwing my hands in the air and saying to Him "Take it all God! I put all that I am into Your hands."
So for anyone reading this, I really challenge you to make a conscious effort to give everything to the Lord. Just like in yoga where awareness of the body is required, always be aware of spiritual warfare and what is going on in your life. Are you trying to deal with it yourself, or are you releasing it all to God?
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
ICantThinkofATitle
I don't know how to start this off, so I'm just going to get straight to the point.
I am tired of the competition for who's life is the hardest.
I am tired of the world being a huge comparing palace.
In no way has my life been traditionally hard. My parents are still together, my family loves me, my parents are able to pay for my college, etc.
But, just because I have those things doesn't mean my life is perfectly together.
I have struggled with depression since the summer before 9th grade. Sometimes, I'm not sure what causes it. I used to just wake up some mornings and not want to continue on. I physically couldn't do anything. Now, the things I used to do in no way helped out my situation, but still, I was very depressed.
The thing is, I didn't tell anyone that I was depressed. No one knew just how much I was hurting. I could go to school, church, wherever and no one would have a clue how much sadness and hurt I was carrying on my shoulders.
I'm not saying all this to try and gain "Oh, I'm so sorry's", I'm saying this because -- Everyone has a story, and most likely everyone is going through something.
Life in America has become such a competition in everything, that now society isn't just competing for who has the most money, who's the prettiest, nicest house, etc, its gotten to the point that the world we live in is competing for the worst sob story.
So instead of being selfish and continuelly thinking how much worse life is than someone elses, how about taking a moment to look around and think about what that person who just walked by could be going through.
Taking the time to sit down and care about another person, and not compare your life to their's is actually quite healing. Maybe the way they deal with their problems could be a great way for you to deal with yours, or vice versa.
In God's eyes, every human is equal. He cares about every single problem each of us face. So, no sadness is too small for Him. No feelings of depression, anger, guilt or whatever someone is going through is too little, or too grand for Him. If all of these things are able to be taken to Him and viewed equally, than us Christians here on earth must look at everyones problems as equal too.
So in conclusion, take time to listen to other people, and be aware that your neighbor could be going through hard times! Also, never forget that your story is just as valueble as the next person and that you should never have any guilt about sharing your life. If you are taking the time to have kindness toward others, you'll find others who will gladly give kindness and compassion back to you.
I am tired of the competition for who's life is the hardest.
I am tired of the world being a huge comparing palace.
In no way has my life been traditionally hard. My parents are still together, my family loves me, my parents are able to pay for my college, etc.
But, just because I have those things doesn't mean my life is perfectly together.
I have struggled with depression since the summer before 9th grade. Sometimes, I'm not sure what causes it. I used to just wake up some mornings and not want to continue on. I physically couldn't do anything. Now, the things I used to do in no way helped out my situation, but still, I was very depressed.
The thing is, I didn't tell anyone that I was depressed. No one knew just how much I was hurting. I could go to school, church, wherever and no one would have a clue how much sadness and hurt I was carrying on my shoulders.
I'm not saying all this to try and gain "Oh, I'm so sorry's", I'm saying this because -- Everyone has a story, and most likely everyone is going through something.
Life in America has become such a competition in everything, that now society isn't just competing for who has the most money, who's the prettiest, nicest house, etc, its gotten to the point that the world we live in is competing for the worst sob story.
So instead of being selfish and continuelly thinking how much worse life is than someone elses, how about taking a moment to look around and think about what that person who just walked by could be going through.
Taking the time to sit down and care about another person, and not compare your life to their's is actually quite healing. Maybe the way they deal with their problems could be a great way for you to deal with yours, or vice versa.
In God's eyes, every human is equal. He cares about every single problem each of us face. So, no sadness is too small for Him. No feelings of depression, anger, guilt or whatever someone is going through is too little, or too grand for Him. If all of these things are able to be taken to Him and viewed equally, than us Christians here on earth must look at everyones problems as equal too.
So in conclusion, take time to listen to other people, and be aware that your neighbor could be going through hard times! Also, never forget that your story is just as valueble as the next person and that you should never have any guilt about sharing your life. If you are taking the time to have kindness toward others, you'll find others who will gladly give kindness and compassion back to you.
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Side Stitches and Weary Spirits
Although I'm not the best, I like to call myself a runner. I run almost everyday, and I enjoy it. Without it, I would probably be a miserable, grumpy jerk.
I compare running to the Christian faith. Just like running, when I began my journey with the Lord, I started at zip, nothing. I started both out thinking though, "hey this isn't so bad". Of course, anyone who has ran even two steps will tell you though that at some point, it does get bad. The side cramps kick in, the feeling like your lungs are going to explode show up, and your legs suddenly morph into bricks that have trouble picking themselves up. The same thing happens with faith. We are going along the faith course smoothly when suddenly we run out of fuel for our spirit. We feel lost, our internal flame has dimmed and our desire to live righteously is small. With running, our bodies haven't built up the endurance yet, and with the spirit, we haven't built are solid foundation yet.
Getting to a point of stability in each area, such as gaining the ability to run long distances and a solid foundation to build faith on, takes time.
To become a better runner, we train our bodies to be more efficient. We eat the right foods, we work on the right stride and most importantly - we run almost everyday to build up our endurance.
Growing in faith is the same. God has given us the living bible to provide us with guidelines for life, which we should read everyday. He's given us the gift of being able to communicate to Him through prayer, which 1 Thessalonians 5:17 says we should do continuously, and He provides fellowship for us which provides a place to grow with others.
I used to keep my running and faith separate, but as I've grown, both in running and spiritually, the Lord has shown that these two things can go hand in hand.
When I feel weak when running, I tell myself, "Think of this as your faith. You are going to keep going for God." While on the other side, when I feel dry in my faith and weary of being in the world but not of it, I tell myself "This is a race for God. Keep running for Him."
Hope this all makes sense! Blogging from an iPhone is difficult!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
I compare running to the Christian faith. Just like running, when I began my journey with the Lord, I started at zip, nothing. I started both out thinking though, "hey this isn't so bad". Of course, anyone who has ran even two steps will tell you though that at some point, it does get bad. The side cramps kick in, the feeling like your lungs are going to explode show up, and your legs suddenly morph into bricks that have trouble picking themselves up. The same thing happens with faith. We are going along the faith course smoothly when suddenly we run out of fuel for our spirit. We feel lost, our internal flame has dimmed and our desire to live righteously is small. With running, our bodies haven't built up the endurance yet, and with the spirit, we haven't built are solid foundation yet.
Getting to a point of stability in each area, such as gaining the ability to run long distances and a solid foundation to build faith on, takes time.
To become a better runner, we train our bodies to be more efficient. We eat the right foods, we work on the right stride and most importantly - we run almost everyday to build up our endurance.
Growing in faith is the same. God has given us the living bible to provide us with guidelines for life, which we should read everyday. He's given us the gift of being able to communicate to Him through prayer, which 1 Thessalonians 5:17 says we should do continuously, and He provides fellowship for us which provides a place to grow with others.
I used to keep my running and faith separate, but as I've grown, both in running and spiritually, the Lord has shown that these two things can go hand in hand.
When I feel weak when running, I tell myself, "Think of this as your faith. You are going to keep going for God." While on the other side, when I feel dry in my faith and weary of being in the world but not of it, I tell myself "This is a race for God. Keep running for Him."
Hope this all makes sense! Blogging from an iPhone is difficult!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
I should be at college - But I'm laying in bed at home sick.
I'm not feeling very good at all right now, and I'm also very bored. So, I decided to do that "40 Facts About Me" thing.
Here I go-
1.I was saved in 10th grade and I live my life for Christ now.
2.I want to be a medical missionary.
3.For the most part I'm pretty quiet.
4.I'm not afraid to talk though- I just only speak when I have something to say.
5.I love animals, all kinds.
6.I love adventure.
7. California is my absolute favorite place and I've been going there since I was itty bitty.
8.I love to run.
9.I'm working very hard right now to become a better runner.
10.I am a marvel comics superfan.
11. My bible is super glued together. Be careful with it if you ever touch it.
12. I love make up and clothes.
13. I journal stuff.
14. I have a bad hip, I'm hoping someday it will heal up.
15. I like watching sports.
16. I'm working on getting my personal training license.
17. I want to be a mom more than anything. (when I'm older!)
18. I have never had a real relationship.
19. Holes that are close together like wasps nest make me want to throw up.
20. I love to ski.
21. I pretty much love all things outdoors.
22. I got made fun of for being so white in the 7th grade. It still effects me.
23. I used to be super insecure.
24. My relationship with the Lord fixed that. In Christ I found my identity.
25. I like to paint my nails.
26. I love to paint pictures.
27. I get along with almost everybody. There are only a handful of people I cannot stand.
28. I have witnessed the weirdest stuff happen at the craft store I work at.
29. I want to go to Australia, Greece, Italy and Spain.
30. I like to do other people's makeup and hair.
31. My house in Wisconsin was haunted.
32. I'm super weird.
33. I like Texas and OSU. Don't hate. I root for OSU when they play each other.
34. I want to try long boarding.
35. My favorite artist/bands are Jack Johnson, Hillsong United, Foo Fighters and Shania Twain.
36. I like macaroni and cheese..alot.
37. I like having pictures for memories, but I hate looking at myself in them.
38. I had my pinky broken by my old dentist.
39. I wish I could talk to animals.
40. I want to have lots of grand babies running around my house when I'm that age.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Here I go-
1.I was saved in 10th grade and I live my life for Christ now.
2.I want to be a medical missionary.
3.For the most part I'm pretty quiet.
4.I'm not afraid to talk though- I just only speak when I have something to say.
5.I love animals, all kinds.
6.I love adventure.
7. California is my absolute favorite place and I've been going there since I was itty bitty.
8.I love to run.
9.I'm working very hard right now to become a better runner.
10.I am a marvel comics superfan.
11. My bible is super glued together. Be careful with it if you ever touch it.
12. I love make up and clothes.
13. I journal stuff.
14. I have a bad hip, I'm hoping someday it will heal up.
15. I like watching sports.
16. I'm working on getting my personal training license.
17. I want to be a mom more than anything. (when I'm older!)
18. I have never had a real relationship.
19. Holes that are close together like wasps nest make me want to throw up.
20. I love to ski.
21. I pretty much love all things outdoors.
22. I got made fun of for being so white in the 7th grade. It still effects me.
23. I used to be super insecure.
24. My relationship with the Lord fixed that. In Christ I found my identity.
25. I like to paint my nails.
26. I love to paint pictures.
27. I get along with almost everybody. There are only a handful of people I cannot stand.
28. I have witnessed the weirdest stuff happen at the craft store I work at.
29. I want to go to Australia, Greece, Italy and Spain.
30. I like to do other people's makeup and hair.
31. My house in Wisconsin was haunted.
32. I'm super weird.
33. I like Texas and OSU. Don't hate. I root for OSU when they play each other.
34. I want to try long boarding.
35. My favorite artist/bands are Jack Johnson, Hillsong United, Foo Fighters and Shania Twain.
36. I like macaroni and cheese..alot.
37. I like having pictures for memories, but I hate looking at myself in them.
38. I had my pinky broken by my old dentist.
39. I wish I could talk to animals.
40. I want to have lots of grand babies running around my house when I'm that age.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Graduated, but still immature.
I graduated high school one month ago.
Although high school was an amazing experience, I didn't leave feeling the best. I absolutely love the school I went to, I will forever be proud of my high school. But, I left with big feelings of immaturity.
The cliques in high school are no where like middle school. There wasn't a either your in, or your out, but they still existed. The really sad thing for me is, there were christian cliques that closed themselves off to some people that could have used their wonderful influence.
I have heard so many people say they are totally AGAINST Christian faith because of the actions of Christians themselves. Now, when I first hear things like this, the stereo typical two lives thing comes into my head, the "the bible beater during the day, partier during the night" persona. While obviously that persona truly does turn people against God, there's also another situation lurking out there that's causing people to turn their face from the glory of God.
While feeling rejected and alone can turn people to God, it can also turn people against God. Unconsciously, some Christians, including me, are turning others away from the Lord by our secluded actions. We grow in Christ with our friends, and in that we become very close to our friends, but in the process, we cut ourselves off from the world around us. Some of us also become so obsessed with the rest of the world and it's need for salvation, that we forget that their are hurting people sitting right next to us. A person does not have to be poor, homeless, or speak a language we don't know to need Jesus.
I cringe at all the opportunities I missed to share the love of Jesus, just by my actions. It's a shame how selfish I was. (Thank goodness I don't have to live in that shame..)
People first believed in Jesus because of His actions. His words were backed up by His actions.
To fix this feeling of immaturity that I left high school with, I believe I'm going to have to start a conscious effort to be aware of everyone around me . I want the love of Jesus to shine from my actions! "Actions speak louder than words." Duh.
My goal for this summer and college is to never view myself higher than others ("Do not think how smart you are" Romans 12:16), ALWAYS be willing to listen to someone,( everyone has a story) and to always be willing to make a new friend!
Although high school was an amazing experience, I didn't leave feeling the best. I absolutely love the school I went to, I will forever be proud of my high school. But, I left with big feelings of immaturity.
The cliques in high school are no where like middle school. There wasn't a either your in, or your out, but they still existed. The really sad thing for me is, there were christian cliques that closed themselves off to some people that could have used their wonderful influence.
I have heard so many people say they are totally AGAINST Christian faith because of the actions of Christians themselves. Now, when I first hear things like this, the stereo typical two lives thing comes into my head, the "the bible beater during the day, partier during the night" persona. While obviously that persona truly does turn people against God, there's also another situation lurking out there that's causing people to turn their face from the glory of God.
While feeling rejected and alone can turn people to God, it can also turn people against God. Unconsciously, some Christians, including me, are turning others away from the Lord by our secluded actions. We grow in Christ with our friends, and in that we become very close to our friends, but in the process, we cut ourselves off from the world around us. Some of us also become so obsessed with the rest of the world and it's need for salvation, that we forget that their are hurting people sitting right next to us. A person does not have to be poor, homeless, or speak a language we don't know to need Jesus.
I cringe at all the opportunities I missed to share the love of Jesus, just by my actions. It's a shame how selfish I was. (Thank goodness I don't have to live in that shame..)
People first believed in Jesus because of His actions. His words were backed up by His actions.
To fix this feeling of immaturity that I left high school with, I believe I'm going to have to start a conscious effort to be aware of everyone around me . I want the love of Jesus to shine from my actions! "Actions speak louder than words." Duh.
My goal for this summer and college is to never view myself higher than others ("Do not think how smart you are" Romans 12:16), ALWAYS be willing to listen to someone,( everyone has a story) and to always be willing to make a new friend!
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Live to the FULLEST
I'm naturally a reserved person. I'm that person who has to think everything through before I do something. I'm that wierdo who thinks about the risks of things and who is almost always cautious in everything. I remember being that little kid who wouldn't swim til at least 30 minutes had passed after I ate, or always watching the sky for lightning...even when it wasn't raining. (I promise I'm not THAT reserved anymore..)
Most of the time, I'm not too ashamed of being reserved. It's my personality, it can help in situations, etc. BUT- When it gets into the way of my serving the Lord, it's a trait that is a burden to me. Thankfully though, the Lord has a way of breaking burdens and creating glorious things from them.
I never used to worship freely. I wouldn't raise my hands as much as I wanted. I wouldn't tune others around me out like I wanted. I was always conscious of what was around me. My mind was constantly processing everything around me and I never focused totally on God. I was reserved in worship. The Lord put a conviction in my heart each time though and always asked me something like "What are you holding back?" Sometimes I felt like I was holding back everything. I desired so much more. (most likely a desire the Lord placed in my heart) I'm happy to say that, even though I still have my moments of being a wimp, the Lord has broken this problem and helped me to worship Him with all my heart. It's a great feeling...anyone out there who is holding back in worship, STOP HOLDING BACK!!! I promise, your missing a beautiful thing! Don't be a fool like me! I thank the Lord every time I praise Him for giving the world such a great emotion to experience. (worshiping Him)
Another issue I have dealt with is that I have had several opportunities to go on missions trips this summer. Every time one was brought up, I found a reason not to be able to go. I came up with excuses like, "My faith isn't strong enough", "I don't have enough time to raise the money", or "I'm just not mature enough." These are all LIES! At the time, I believed each one. I really thought I was doing the best thing for myself and what was right. A friend recently told me "Mission trips are your next step in growing, they make your faith stronger", and she is right. The truth is, the devil doesn't want my faith to grow at all, he wants it to diminish. He wants my faith to grow smaller and smaller everyday. He used my personality trait of being reserved and a thorough thinker to put those thoughts in my head. The LORD is stronger and overcomes all though and He has helped me realize the reality of what has happened and the truth. He has helped me realize, when He commands me to do something, like a missions trip, there are NO reservations and where there is a will there is a way.
These situations have really made me think about how I serve the Lord. They have helped me decide that I want to live my FULLEST for God. I will never ever be FEARFUL.
"For God did not give us a spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind"
-2 Timothy 1:7
Live life your life to its fullest, all for God!!
Most of the time, I'm not too ashamed of being reserved. It's my personality, it can help in situations, etc. BUT- When it gets into the way of my serving the Lord, it's a trait that is a burden to me. Thankfully though, the Lord has a way of breaking burdens and creating glorious things from them.
I never used to worship freely. I wouldn't raise my hands as much as I wanted. I wouldn't tune others around me out like I wanted. I was always conscious of what was around me. My mind was constantly processing everything around me and I never focused totally on God. I was reserved in worship. The Lord put a conviction in my heart each time though and always asked me something like "What are you holding back?" Sometimes I felt like I was holding back everything. I desired so much more. (most likely a desire the Lord placed in my heart) I'm happy to say that, even though I still have my moments of being a wimp, the Lord has broken this problem and helped me to worship Him with all my heart. It's a great feeling...anyone out there who is holding back in worship, STOP HOLDING BACK!!! I promise, your missing a beautiful thing! Don't be a fool like me! I thank the Lord every time I praise Him for giving the world such a great emotion to experience. (worshiping Him)
Another issue I have dealt with is that I have had several opportunities to go on missions trips this summer. Every time one was brought up, I found a reason not to be able to go. I came up with excuses like, "My faith isn't strong enough", "I don't have enough time to raise the money", or "I'm just not mature enough." These are all LIES! At the time, I believed each one. I really thought I was doing the best thing for myself and what was right. A friend recently told me "Mission trips are your next step in growing, they make your faith stronger", and she is right. The truth is, the devil doesn't want my faith to grow at all, he wants it to diminish. He wants my faith to grow smaller and smaller everyday. He used my personality trait of being reserved and a thorough thinker to put those thoughts in my head. The LORD is stronger and overcomes all though and He has helped me realize the reality of what has happened and the truth. He has helped me realize, when He commands me to do something, like a missions trip, there are NO reservations and where there is a will there is a way.
These situations have really made me think about how I serve the Lord. They have helped me decide that I want to live my FULLEST for God. I will never ever be FEARFUL.
"For God did not give us a spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind"
-2 Timothy 1:7
Live life your life to its fullest, all for God!!
Sunday, March 6, 2011
Its been awhile...
I haven't wrote on this in forever. I'm not good at this kind of thing.
ANYWAYS..
I had a major dry spell in my faith. I loved God and believed in Him, but I had absolutely no motivation to do anything for Him, or to grow at all. I was starting to believe that whole, "Well I'm a teenager, I only have a little bit left, shouldn't I just mess around and have fun?" Well the big fat answer to that is..N O. Tried that, and it didn't quite work out. Every time I did something dumb, I had a conviction before, and a conviction after. When I accepted the Lord into my heart, I didn't tell Him, "Well, I'm going to love you, but I'm going to do dumb things all the time, and you can just forgive me after." When I made this change, I meant for it to be a change of my whole life. I'm going to keep it that way. The Lord's way is the ONLY way for me.
I can't imagine ever changing back. I love God. He's my father and my best friend.
I'm glad I kept pushing through.
I'm back on the right path, and I feel so much better.
"Show me your ways, O LORD, teach me your paths; guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long. Remember, O LORD, your great mercy and love, for they are from of old. Remember not the sins of my youth and my rebellious ways; according to your love remember me, for you are good, O LORD."
Psalm 25:4-7
Have a blessed day..whoever reads this!
ANYWAYS..
I had a major dry spell in my faith. I loved God and believed in Him, but I had absolutely no motivation to do anything for Him, or to grow at all. I was starting to believe that whole, "Well I'm a teenager, I only have a little bit left, shouldn't I just mess around and have fun?" Well the big fat answer to that is..N O. Tried that, and it didn't quite work out. Every time I did something dumb, I had a conviction before, and a conviction after. When I accepted the Lord into my heart, I didn't tell Him, "Well, I'm going to love you, but I'm going to do dumb things all the time, and you can just forgive me after." When I made this change, I meant for it to be a change of my whole life. I'm going to keep it that way. The Lord's way is the ONLY way for me.
I can't imagine ever changing back. I love God. He's my father and my best friend.
I'm glad I kept pushing through.
I'm back on the right path, and I feel so much better.
"Show me your ways, O LORD, teach me your paths; guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long. Remember, O LORD, your great mercy and love, for they are from of old. Remember not the sins of my youth and my rebellious ways; according to your love remember me, for you are good, O LORD."
Psalm 25:4-7
Have a blessed day..whoever reads this!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)