Recognized Love

    "Be absolutely certain that our Lord loves you devotedly and individually loves you just as you are....Accustom yourself to the wonderful thought that God loves you with a tenderness, a generosity, and an intimacy that surpasses all your dreams."
                                                  ~Abbe Henri De Tourville 


    I found this interesting quote above in a little study book I got for Christmas. It is titled Extreme Love, it goes through and has little topics with verses and then it pretty much expands upon that. I just read the first couple pages and it came to me what this weeks lesson was to be about, which is gonna sound kind of weird. You might think throughout this lesson that this is not the mind of a Christian. That being this sure and worthy of something is not a good attribute in this case. Now it may be not as outrageous that I portraying it to be. The focus today is around the matter of putting ourselves into a mind set that we are able to have the abundant love and praise Christ has for us. We are to make ourselves sure that Christ loves us without a doubt with his whole heart. According to Abbe Tourville we are to be certain of the Lord's love for us. The word certain isn't always a word made of iron in our everyday sentences. The Free Dictionary website says that 'certain' means: fixed, sure to come or happen, inevitable, established beyond doubt or question, indisputable, capable of being relied on, having or showing confidence.

    That right there is a fantastic mindset that we need to set ourselves in when it comes to acknowledging the love that Christ inhabits. The clear objective is that Christ loves us. He looks at all the horrible, dirty, and unforgivable things we have done and are yet to do but he still persists to keep his arms wide open. If you are emotional like me, you have those times where you are so wore and just flat out done from all the mistakes in your life that you just fall into God's arms. It's that one tough day at work, or at school, or at practice, or taking the kids all over town, or in our relationships. We have all had those times were we cannot go any longer and the only way we can become undone is by taking a big ole trust fall into God's arms. You know, sometimes to me these are the best days out of all of them. The tough situations here on earth never measure up when I imagine myself in God's arms. It is such a beautiful image to think about being able to just fall into God's arms!

    God's love is something that words can't even pin down. His love is so mysterious yet lovely yet describable yet so...fulfilling. It is probably the only thing one this earth that has the true characteristics of being radically not of this world. Christ is physically dead and not here on earth. This would be the sad and horrible reality that we would have if God's love didn't exist. His love is what makes him here with us and in our motives everyday. His love and grace is what literally moves us! The sad part comes in when we don't recognize the experience we have with his love. He has so many trusts and promises with just his love that it is untouchable with the human mind. Of course we all know the story with the cross but do we really?

    The basic concept we hear is Christ died for us because he LOVES us. Christ came up from the dead because he LOVES us. Christ promised a return to us to bring us home because he LOVES us. There was not one action Christ did and still does that is without LOVE. Being able to show and even receive love may seem like and extremely simple concept but it's not. We could never be able to love like Christ did and still does. We would have to put aside all harsh feelings we have for others NO MATTER WHAT and love others for who they are beneath all the sin. The bottom line we all accept is Christ is the only one capable of the outstanding and indescribable love. And we miss out on a whole lot when we don't discover it. We might not experience his love if we are mad at him for unanswered prayers or even giving us more than we deserve. I would often get upset with Christ for not keeping me accountable for following him. That is a matter that is embarrassing to reveal because it's so hideous. In reality I knew that I was really upset with myself that I wasn't taking that obvious hand reaching out for me to come back to Christ.

    Like myself, thousands of people around the world deny the love of Christ because we often cover it up with worldly possessions and feelings. The sooner we realize that we are the precious treasure of the great price God paid the sooner we can be in God's arms. The least we can do for Christ is acknowledge the amazing effort that it took to succeed at making the whole world aware that he is the son of God. He has so much in store for us and it is possible to notice God without totally accepting his love. And his love is kind of like the glue that holds all of the pieces together. Our relationships with Christ are so dry and become nonexistent over time without his true love. It lies on us because God will give his love to anyone, we just need to accept it! Most of the time we don't accept his love because we feel as if we are not worth of it. Well yeah, Christ will ALWAYS be more than enough for our sinful nurtured hearts. But God calls us to feel and act that we deserve his love. As I was telling you about the study book consider this short passage from my readings today...

"Christian, believe this and think on it: You shalt be eternally embraced in the arms of that love which was from everlasting and will extend to everlasting. You will be embraced by that love which brought the Son of God's love from heaven to earth, from earth to the cross, from the cross to the grave, from the grave to glory. You will be in the arms of that love which was weary, hungry, tempted, scorned, scourged, buffeted, spit upon, crucified, and pierced; which did fast,pray, teach, heal, weep, sweat, bleed, and die. It will be loving and rejoicing, not loving and sorrowing." ("From Extreme Love, published by Barbour Publishing, Inc. Used by permission.")

    We need to live each day knowing that we have God's love and we have it with pride. One way to not think is that all (including God) should bow before us because of the great glory we have. Be sure with pride THROUGH Christ not above or beyond him because he will always be more than us. So I leave you with a challenge this week to believe in yourself. No, this is more than a cheesy inspirational message you hang around your house. Believe in the fact that you will be embraced by the same exact love that took Christ to and from earth. The very same. It is here for us. His love came for us. And we should want to be among the things it takes back home.

Word of the Day:  "All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work."

                                  ~2 Timothy 3:16-17





*This video was a little something I found throughout last week and it's just a little reminder of the love Christ truly has for us*

Nomads

    The 2013 science fiction, adventurous, and romantic movie The Host probably has to be one of my favorites. I will give you a little background here if you are unfamiliar with it. Warning though....it tends to be a little far fetched. So the world viewed through the whole plot is a world in the future where humans no longer live. You are probably picturing a bunch of green aliens running around acting as humans on earth....well, not quite. The human race is not "overtaken" but occupied with these host's of other planets, and the only thing that changes is there personality basically. Every human still stays on earth with there body and they have no physical harm done. But theses host's come from several planets and stars that are eons away from earth. They way you can tell that they have successfully been occupied by the host is the change or eye color to an ice blue. Now of course this is like killing off a persons mind and whole inside being to the point that they are literally not themselves anymore. You can guess that there were uprisings and people that escaped the host's and their leaders. They don't buy into the idea that the host are to bring peace to the earth and we are to be one with them. That is where the main characters come in which are against the host's and are still fully human. Of course their is romance to keep it interesting and action to add some flavor. But the whole lesson lies in the host's. They are sent to the bodies to occupy them and basically live the same life day to day without much variation. They tend to almost act like robots at times because they are always happy with what they already have. All they have is a body, mind, and happy life so they are just along for the journey as wandering nomads in another persons body.

    Well, I told you the plot might sound a little out there and crazy to buy into but it did get me thinking. Thinking about the matter of being wandering nomads. I am sure we often feel like nomads in our very own lives. Like we wake up in the morning and really question what our lives leading to? Where are we leading ourselves to? And do I really know where I am going and getting into? It is crazy to think that, no we are not occupied by host's from some far off planet but yet are hearts often tell us that. We can often take signs as guiding lights as direction just like the wise men. When Jesus was born to the virgin Mary I think she knew how special her son truly was when wise men and animals and angels gathered around him in a barn! I mean that has got to be pretty scary enough to be pregnant without any sexual relations with your soon to be husband but then to be told that you are to the birth the SON OF GOD! I mean talk about a gigantic privilege. They were informed by angels sent by God how truly amazing this child was to be but I don't that quite came into motion until that night Christ was born.

    As Christ was sent down to earth through the process of becoming fully human along with being fully God. The wise men were led straight to Christ to worship and praise his coming. Just imagine wandering along. But actually let's go back in time even before that to the very setting of the discovery of where Christ was born. During this time King Herod was in rule and we had heard of the birth from the wise men. They had asked the King to go see the king for due praises with gold, frankincense, and myrrh. The King was a little disturbed to where the Son of God was to be born in Bethlehem. So the wise men and the king sat down to talk about the exact time and place they saw the star rise symbolizing the King's birth. They then came to the conclusion that the wise men where to follow the star and find the Son of God their for worship. They were then to come back to the King so he can worship him as well. But as this turned out God had sent down a warning for Mary and Joseph to flew with the child because Herod was looking to find him and kill him.

    Here you have these wandering men and a well thought King. The ones that just saw the star wanted to go with their own will to praise the one to bring them salvation. Then you have the king that says he wants to "worship" the king but has the opposite in mind. The wise men wandered with themselves through the night looking for baby Jesus. They never stopped looking, well in fact they continually had their eyes on the star because that was their compass. That is so crazy to think that Christ made the star visible and important to the wise men so that the child would get his due praises. I mean the son of God was born into the world in a barn! Nobody would let them in for a safe delivery. But the shocking thing is that God would have it no other way. He did not ask to be brought in on a pearl carriage with his name carved on the side or to be wrapped in pure Egyptian silk. To be brought into the world like a King you will be raised and then praised like a King. And God was and is anything but a worldly King.

    We find ourselves wandering often through these questions and the true background of how Christ was born. It just baffles me in how amazing and divine it is to be asked for a part in this story. I may wander a little to much but Christ is what makes me be me through that wandering. I am truly glad I do not have the mind of those characters on The Host in that I am trapped inside my own body and I can't anything about it. Of course the host we would have occupy our bodies today would be sin and the devil. But I think just by looking at the Christmas story and the every being of the birth of Christ is a huge reminder that we can be above sin. We are to fill ourselves with Christ and let him be the host within us so that we are not just wanderers.




                      *Ruminate over the two choices we have as soon as we set foot on this earth:
1. We can allow sin and Satan to occupy ourselves to not be a part of this world. Being in our bodies but being silent for we are never worthy of being anything more. To die bound to sin with no way out.

2. Allow Christ to fill our every being and be a part of our lives. Have a relationship with the one person that occupies us but along with us. It is a partnership with the best partner in the world. To be born in sin but to have the chance to return to the arms of Christ for eternity because of his sacrifice.



    Think about if you are a wanderer through Satan or through Christ. Of course the second choice above is the one choice everyone would want but we need to stop to realize where are feet and heart are taking us daily. Do this daily and not just around Christmas time or when the New Year's resolutions are to come into play. Praise the Lord for he is good and he wants to share that with you! Refuse to be your own wanderer in your own body and let Christ set if free!




*I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a hopeful New Year for awesome comings of wisdom in the future*



Word of the Day: "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me."
                                         ~Revelation 3:20

One Gift

    We have all heard the saying that's Jesus is the reason for the season. And im sure you have all heard the controversial argument that people to to worry less about gift giving and start focusing on the true meaning if Christmas. I feel like this tends to be such a huge argument for people. If you walk I to a busy department store you will see those typical groups of people. You can look in one corner to see people buying a few things and not pushing the budget. But then you can look to see those crazy people that have their shopping carts filled to the rim with gifts and you can probably see there past receipts spilling all over the place. Now the level of the crazy shopper can vary but you know exactly what I am referring to. I laugh when I tell this because I'm pretty sure my whole family falls under the crazy shopper category. I have always been to used to being in a family that went overboard with the gifts. I guess because my family shows their love by just buying things for people.

    When it comes to the gift giving people have their own way around it. Some dont give at all and well some do. It seems as if the hustle and bustle of shopping veers our minds away from the true meaning. This isn't meant to say that people that buy everything don't find the true meaning in Christmas. No matter how long or how much we shop we can always loose sight of Christ. I guess the whole shopping thing got blown out of proportion when the whole black Friday thing started. I mean come on, what makes people more crazy than having a giant sale that you can only get if you come in at 3 am. But little does every shopper know....psstt the sales are always the same the next couple days! But unlike our chances with Christ...we might not get the same chance with his redemption the next day.

    Of course you can all see it coming what this lesson is leading to. Christ is the only gift we should be striving for. Now this might sound pointless to say that just because you buy Christmas gifts doesn't mean you won't receive the one real gift of Christ. It is the matter that we need to recognize how powerful and amazing the gift that Christ can bring not only during the Christmas season but every season.

    As we still have a week or so until Christmas...really take this to heart in what your one gift is. What one gift have you been making God as?

Word of the Day: "A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger."
               ~Proverbs 15:1

Rise and shine

    *Que scene*

Mom: "Get up its time! The school bus is about to leave! Your gonna miss it!"
Child: *groans*... "Just five more minutes"
Mom: "No now, they won't wait for you!"
Child: *sigh* "Fineeee"


    We all have been here and some worse than others. But really...no matter how young or old you are. Do you truly like to jump right out of your warm and cozy bed everyday to do things you don't always like to do? Yeah we all have those days but we have those days (well I do at least) when we are just so excited for something on our lives that we don't mind the unreasonable time that requires our eyes to be opened. And for those that love the 5 am wake up call,well...your not human.

    But in all seriousness, we can take this matter along with get psyched through Christ. Just to know the matter that Christ can beat out the darkness on any given day tells us that we should be running out of bed. Of course this would be a lot easier if we got to bed on time. So when I look at this passage below I think of how awesome our God is and how crazy we are for not wanting that all the time. I mean yeah we can still be on fire for God at 8 am without having to break our sleeping habits. But when you get up, take each morning by the horns and say that you are going to make the light shine through the darkness above all else. It is such an encouragement to know that nations will come to our light to our lights. It is said that those that bring the light can look above them and see others coming after them because that is the way. The best way to describe this is of course the actions of a true leader. But our hearts throb and swell with joy once we do this because the wealth from Christ will flow through us. But should we do it just for the riches of Christ?


"Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord rises upon you. See, darkness covers the earth and thick darkness is over the peoples, but the Lord rises upon you and his glory is over the peoples, but the Lord rises upon you and his glory appears over you. Nations will come your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn. Lift up your eyes and look about you: All assemble and come to you: your sons come afar, and your daughters are carried on the hip. Then you will look and be radiant, your heart will throb and swell with joy; the wealth on the seas will be brought to you, to you the riches of the nations will come. Herds of camels will cover your land young camels of Midian and Ephah."

    As the Isaiah passage moves on it talks about us being like flying clouds. We move constantly and as we move through great parts of our lives, we collect people onto our journey. The most interesting part I noticed was that foreigners will rebuild your walls and their kings will serve you. Like what does that really mean? That when you attract other people of the world by your light they will serve you? Maybe it is just that. It shows that even outsiders from us will contribute to the rebuilding of Zion. But we can use this as an example that everyone has and needs the spot of rebuilding the kingdom here on earth through evangelism. We are called to always keep out gates ( our hearts, minds, arms, homes) open because their is always a time that one is thinking of coming to serve along side of us.

 
“Who are these that fly along like clouds, like doves to their nests? Surely the islands look to me; in the lead are the ships of Tarshish, bringing your children from afar, with their silver and gold, to the honor of the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, for he has endowed you with splendor. Foreigners will rebuild your walls, and their kings will serve you. Though in anger I struck you, in favor I will show you compassion. Your gates will always stand open, they will never be shut, day or night, so that people may bring you the wealth of the nations—their kings led in triumphal procession. For the nation or kingdom that will not serve you will perish; it will be utterly ruined. The glory of Lebanon will come to you, the juniper, the fir and the cypress together, to adorn my sanctuary; and I will glorify the place for my feet. The children of your oppressors will come bowing before you; all who despise you will bow down at your feet and will call you the City of the Lord, Zion of the Holy One of Israel."

    Now the biggest thing that holds us back from the evangelism is the matter of not being accepted. I mean even God himself was denied several times while being on earth as GOD! Even when we go through this God will make us the everlasting pride and joy through generations because we are the living proof of Christ. I think we need more and more of that each day because God seems to be nothing but invisible to others. We might not be in tight with others because of the vast difference between us and others but Christ is one fire to see the effort. When we seek true love through things foreign we can know that our Lord is Lord. I saw this first hand when I was in the Dominican and it was such a huge smile on my face when I felt the Lord shedding his light on us through people we never met.


“Although you have been forsaken and hated, with no one traveling through, I will make you the everlasting pride and the joy of all generations.You will drink the milk of nations and be nursed at royal breasts. Then you will know that I, the Lord, am your Savior, your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob. Instead of bronze I will bring you gold, and silver in place of iron. Instead of wood I will bring you bronze, and iron in place of stones. I will make peace your governor and well-being your ruler. No longer will violence be heard in your land, nor ruin or destruction within your borders, but you will call your walls Salvation and your gates Praise. The sun will no more be your light by day, nor will the brightness of the moon shine on you, for the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory. Your sun will never set again, and your moon will wane no more; the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your days of sorrow will end. Then all your people will be righteous and they will possess the land forever. They are the shoot I have planted, the work of my hands, for the display of my splendor. The least of you will become a thousand, the smallest a mighty nation. I am the Lord; in its time I will do this swiftly.”



    I feel as if there wasn't one focus for today's message it was just a jump for joy saying get up and shine through your God because he has a whole lot of light for you to use for him. This is the passage of Isaiah 60. Take it to heart this week. Come back here throughout the week and ponder it, rip it apart, and think what it truly means to you and share it with someone. Tell yourself what it really means to "Rise and Shine" for Christ and are you really doing it?

Temple

    Our body. It can go through so much in a lifetime.... Birth. Death. Love. Abuse. Hunger. Thirst. Lust. Marriage. Heartbreaks. Loss. Withdraws. Depression. Hate. Religious battles. Sickness. Health. Memories. Family...and so much more.

    These are very few of the feelings and things that we all encounter in one lifetime. Sometimes we make it.... and other times we don't. The journeys we go through are not meant to break us but to save us. When we go through these battle fields we often drag ourselves out and we tell ourselves WE barely made and that WE are just that much stronger. But have you ever noticed that we never come out of a battle the same? I think we often focus on the matter that the hard times are what can change us and almost force us to move on. The good times are what work counter actively with that as well. No matter what we go through....it all leaves its mark on us.

    If we imagine our bodies and lives as empty canvases it makes so much sense. When we are born we have that empty canvas and what we go through and feel is what makes that first paint mark on our surface. It is just about impossible to get off or get rid of because our surface is something that molds to it's surroundings whether it is good or not. We then base our life and feelings off of what we go through. We let our earthly lives dictate. I often forget that this body and mind is not my own. Of course I know that I am here on a limit ticket and I was bought with a price of sin by Christ.

    You have heard the saying that our bodies were made in the image of Christ. And that we should keep our bodies pure for him and know that we are to reflect the kingdom of God. Of course we all strive to have the best of the best and be looked at without scorn. The first impression we make on others is how we look. We often care too much about the outside and not enough about what's on the inside.

    Christ calls us to such a great journey here on earth away from our true home. The way we dress and act reflects everything about us and ultimately the kingdom of heaven. Now this does not only apply for women. The bible does state,

"She is clothed with strength and dignity, and she laughs without fear of the future."
                   ~Proverbs 31:25

   Women are told traditionally that the way they are on the outside is what the men see. But what men dress themselves with is also how women perceive them. The bottom line is, it goes both ways. Our body is simply a temple for Christ and we need to take care of it. We need to always remember that whatever we do affects all of those around us and ultimately our kingdom. Let us be mindful that we are the temple of Christ.

"Don't you realize that all of you together are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God lives in you? God will destroy anyone who destroys this temple. For God's temple is holy, and you are that temple."

Reevaluate your actions, thoughts, putter appearance, and everything perceives of you. And ask yourself...am I the true temple for Christ or for me?

Baptism

    Sunday was the day. The day I stood up in front of my whole church congregation to profess my love for my Savior Jesus Christ. To some it might seem scary or just it of the box which it is. I remember thinking that this means something and I should take time to think about. When I thought back to when I originally was to be baptized. My family had been talking about me and my sister getting baptized at our home in our pool and it would be just a nice get together there after the baptisim. But it was that last Wednesday that really hit me. My one friend was talking about getting dunked but things came up that she didn't feel it was right. This was when my youth pastor went on a conversation about baptism and to not wait. Some people could I looked at it as it was being forced. But it gave me a whole new idea...and I ran with it.

    That night I was just on fire for God and I was singing and praying on my way home. I asked God to open and clear any obstacles for me to get baptized that Sunday on such short notice. Yeah sure I wouldn't have the big house celebration that my family planned but better. I called my grandparents in hopes of them being free in a few days. I explained to them that this was something I needed to do in my faith. And they were in! Here I got my grandparents ready to come and everything was panning out. This journey was an unexpected start of my new leaf.

    So I'll answer some questions that might be stirring up in your mind. I'm sure the number one question is...how could you jump into a huge step of your life just like that? I definitely asked myself that question right off the bat but God shot down those fears. I have always wanted to have that radical faith. I dream of leading a worship team and jumping up and down singing about Jesus. Just to be on fire for Him constantly! To take things by the horns and trust that God has the rest. I had that fire I had always wanted...I told myself that I loved my God and my life is to be lived for his glory so why am I holding back in my baptism? Now this makes me sound like some out going extremist that does anything off the fly. Ask anyone that knows me and they will tell you that I am a reserved person that needs to warm up to everyone I get to know.

    Baptism is no doubt something that needs to be thought over. But it is also something that shouldn't be put to the side. It is a part of your life that you transition from being a follower of Christ but it isn't exactly professed to the world. It is coming out saying "Hey I love Jesus Christ and I am going to follow Him for the rest of my life and I want the world to know."

"For in one Spirit we are all baptized into one body-Jews or Greeks, slaves or free-and all were made to drink of one spirit."
                ~1 Corinthians 12:13

    When we are all into to take that dunk...we are committing ourselves to become one with Christ. It doesn't matter who we are or the degree of which we live, we can all be born again and one with Christ. This is no separation meant to happen in a relationship with Christ. Even if a homesless man is a strong believer in Christ and wants to be baptized he can be because once he asked to be one with Christ he always will be.

    Baptism is such a wonderful thing to be a part of and I am glad I made that transition. I felt renewed and freshed. Of course I still appeared the same bit my heart will never be the same and my love will Christ will only continue to grow. If you or someone you know is contemplating baptism tell them to seriously think about it and you think about it as well. It takes everyone a different amount of time but God will poi t it out when he see's it as fit.

Word of the Day: " Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing. Anyone who does not not remain in me is thrown away like a useless branch and withers. Such branches are gathered into a pile to be burned."
              ~John 15:5-6

Well Done

    It is kind of crazy how it is the week before Thanksgiving and Christmas music is all over the place. As a matter of fact, I am listening to it as I write this. Of course that does not really help my point...but holiday cheer is forced so much more than it should be. The festive music is played to pretty much get people to open their wallets. We have all been through the fight of holidays not being about presents, and that is another issue in it's self. But let us hone in on the matter of timing. Next week as we all gather around the table with are family from all over we can smell the seasoned turkey soon brought out by our grandmothers, fathers, mothers which will soon fill the stomach's for a satisfying night with family. But let's all go back in time for a couple moments.

    Whoever is the designated meal preparer in your family for the holidays clearly has a lot of work and plan. My dad's side of the family four families alone plus friends of my grandparents that join for the dinner and my grandmother makes the majority of it happen. I couldn't imagine my mom's mom or my dad's mom never put in the turkey for the feast. When everyone would arrive we could have a whole spread of nice and yummy warm festive food but the center of the event wouldn't be ready. There would just be one cold turkey on Thanksgiving day. Of course our family members wouldn't go home and be upset for the rest of the holiday, but it sure wouldn't be the same without a turkey!

    Often we do this in life. Beyond the turkey analogy...this happens with our relationship with Christ daily. I'm sure you have heard the saying "In time God will give you to what he sees fit" or "Trust God he knows what he is doing." And I think a darn good majority of those around us including ourselves do not buy into this. There were so many people in the bible that waited for Christ to show his salvation. Sarah and Abraham waited several years for a child before God gave them their son. Joesph was in PRISON and remained faithful to Christ for 3 years! And even God himself endured the process of waiting until his death on the cross. I think the biggest mistake we make here is thinking that the actual thing we work towards is more important than the actually journey. Of course whatever you have earned has wonderful significance but how you got there describes all about it.

    Waiting is actually a wonderful thing because we learn and grow so much. In just about very journey there are steps in which we go through that can be exciting or just challenging. Aren't these the times that we grow the most? I mean really...think back to a time where you went through a challenge and waiting and then you got the thing you worked hard for. Through that time of waiting, did you grow more then approaching the thing you worked for? Or once you achieved? For me I found that I grew into someone new when I was going through any period of waiting. What God had shown me and what I showed myself changed the way I thought as well as acted. That change might come off as being a bad thing because we can change so drastically. But it was those times that I became ready to face what God so carefully put into my life.

    Just like the Thanksgiving turkey. If we never experience the waiting and struggles through our life we can never truly develop. In other words...we have to cook just right so we can be in the final stage for the potential we are made for. Of course it's hard and of course people will tell you it is worth it along the way. That is where the words faith, hope, and perseverance really come to life in our relationship with Christ. Things that really matter take time because they are done right. Have you ever cooked your Thanksgiving frozen turkey in a microwave? Of course not because it would never be done! As easy as things are to do the easy way doesn't pay off. You can do a lot more things when you go the easy way but why have a bunch of poorly done things than have a few things done right.

"For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he already has?  But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.  In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.  And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will.  And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.  For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.  And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified."    ~Romans 8:24-30

     This week find the hope in which you were saved and account that into the relationship you have with Christ. Hope for things that you do not have already and God will see as it is fit to you. Embrace the waiting and know that great things come out of long enduring times. Let yourself grow and not hinder then take that to allow yourself to become more like Christ daily.


Word of the Day: "But, as it is written, "What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him" 
                  ~1 Corinthians 2:9

Centered

    The other week I received one of those typical forwarded emails about God's glory. It had a bunch of pictures on it with little unique facts about the bible which made me really think. I have personally never thought of the simple things like what the longest or shortest book in the bible is. Of course that might not carry to much importance to it but what about which verse is in the center of the bible. You might see where this is going or already know the center verse of the bible. I am sure you know it is in the book of Psalms because well it is the longest book! Now you must be wondering what importance this lesson is really leading to because there seems to be none. Well let's read Psalms 118:8...

                             "It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in humans."  

    
    If you remember way back to when I first started this Rooted blog wrote a lesson about trusting God before trusting others. Now I don't mean for this to be a recap of that one. We are to look deeper into the irony of this verse. It's main point is to if we want to live the perfect will God has sent for our lives then we need to place him at the center of our will. I feel as if I have talked about this several times but this is one thing that can be talked about more than once. Let's put this into actual practice and take the most important thing to you and imagine if that was all did and thought about 24/7 (this might already be the case!). If you picture that thing at the center of a web that has branches coming off that hold other things in your life. In one bubble might be school, work, friends, family, and sadly....God. We tend to section of things in our lives that should go together and this becomes even more messed up when God isn't centered in it. It is just like taking  a picture but not centering it up, there would be not point to the picture because it wouldn't truly capture what we wanted in the first place.

    The thing that is going to make this not sound repetitive is the telling of an I Am Second story. If you are not familiar with these stories they can shortly be heard on word FM. But they actually have a website that is filled with these testimonies of people that found out that just putting God as one of the bubbles off of their webs wasn't enough. I think we wonder why things don't go our way or see themselves through fully. But I think we look at the wrong aspect to fix in our lives.

    For the longest time in my high school career I put my cheerleading and marching band career at the center of my life. Most people would look at that and say that that is normal because I only go through high school once but I also only get once chance at life with Christ. I would find myself staying up late to get homework done, get home real late, oversleep, feel stressed, and even injury myself from the weight of these things I loved so much. I would always wonder why praying to God never made these things better but that is when I realized I had God as a bubble off of the web. Today I still struggle with this and I feel that I always will but I know now that I can still be just as involved and lead in those things I love by having them off in a bubble to God being centered in my life.

    Those connections between the center and bubbles will be as strong as we make them. But the center root is what sets the stage of our lives and we should want to get that correct right off the bat. This week challenge yourself to look at your past, present, and future. Make the changes in order to have Christ as the strongest center of your life. Record your process through the good and the bad and you will be amazed at your transformation.





Word of the Day:  "Set your minds on the things that are above, not on the things that are on earth."
                                                                            ~Colossians 3:2

Not Goodbye

     The air was filled with tears of all the years passed. Letters of live and dedication were read aloud to bring on even more emotions. We knew deep down inside that this wasn't the last time we would see each other but goodbye for now and we will see each other later. This was the emotional reality for the senior that my cheer squad gave me and the other seniors. It was a time of happy and overwhelming tears that were long over due. This groups of girls have been together as a team over a span of several years through the good and bad. We got through harmful rants against the sport that we love and a team that dwindled due to lack of a agreement. Not matter what it was we stuck together and this is what made us so attached to the fact that this was it.

    Well it wasn't exactly the end due to the fact that our football team went undefeated for the season so we continue to cheer. I will always remember the Friday night though as of it was our last. I never noticed how funny it actually was though. We would look around the circle to see everyone blubbering but yet having a laughter that couldn't be controlled. It sounds crazy to say we found such laughter in this because little did everyone put into consideration...we are going to see each other throughout the whole winter season for winter cheer. But it was the ending of an amazing season that would never be forgotten but we all know that we must move on.

    In our life time we all have to move on from things that we love whether we like it or not. And of course we have gone over the aspect that God starts and ends things at the right time for our specific journey through him. But what really matters is what we do when we are in that journey. If I would of never put as much love into my cheerleading career throughout grade school then that senior night wouldn't of been as emotional. The hardest thing about letting go of something is the matter of leaving relationships. But if we really ruminate on this matter we would realize that those built relationships can continue. We often see this with Christ in our relationship with Christ. Ever since Christ left us by leaving his body on that cross but that was destined to be. 

    It might be the hardest thing you have to do saying goodbye to something that seems so right. Think about how people feel when their husband or wife or child goes into the military and says goodbye for a year. Do you think they come back and their loved ones aren't excited to see them and their relationship isn't as strong? Or does their relationship get stronger through the distance? I think that if your relationship is strong to begin with its gonna be unstoppable once they reunite over a period of time. Of course each relationship is different but God calls us to keep searching. When things stop right in their path we need to embrace where it is taking us. Yes good things comes to an end but only so they can continue on to something even better. If things never moved on then there would be no such thing as growing into a better person. 

    God calls us to not hold onto the good ole days because it isn't wise. That is because God calls us to dwell in the present and to keep running with that. Of course we can be sad at times but that is natural to come at these types of times. We need to reflect more on those times though because those are the times that shape us and that can be applied to our life daily. 

Word of the Day: " Consecrate yourselves, therefore, be holy,  for I am the Lord your God. Keep my statues and do them; I am the Lord who sanctifies you." 

             ~Leviticus 20:7-8

Selfish God

    If you sit down to really think about why most people do not give into religion or a relationship with Christ is because of Christ. Now that sounds just straight up absurd to say all the fault should be on Jesus. But if you took yourself out of your relationship with Christ you would see the other way non-believers see, which seems pretty terrifying. They see this man that walked through the biblical times calling himself God, claiming that he was worthy of all our praises. Then this man goes to die on a cross and does something with the sky to pretty much tell us that the heaven deems us all sinners. To make it even better unbelievers are then surrounded by us telling them this is true. And of course it is because we have seen the glory of God at work through our lives.

    This analogy might seem really harsh but I strongly believe this goes through the mind of some nonbelievers. And we might even picture God as this selfish person that "wants all the praise." I found myself thinking this in the times where I was upset with the Lord because I only thought that he wanted these things for himself. But when we look at God this way we make him the monster when he is anything but. It is such a horrible feeling to make God sound like the one that is worthy and we are trash. We think this way because we are always told that we aren't worth like God is and I think I can safely say that we automatically think that God doesn't really love us.

   

    The matter of the fact is this IS all for Christ. But why would we want it any other way. Could you imagine living life for yourself or someone on this earth? While we might think that would be so easy and fun because we would live however we want to, we wouldn't be satisfied in the proper way. We would be satisfied in sin. And of course anything that has to do with sin binds us to something beyond what we think is good. We need to have Christ as the center of our lives and give all the glory because he is the only one that deserves it. It is said in Colossians 1:15-16 "He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities- all things were created through him and for him." 

   

    Of course the bible is full of words that call God the "one and only".  He is the invisible and he is the firstborn of all creation. This alone is why he deserves to be the big man! It doesn't sound selfish to be the God the universe and act loving to every single person. This is because the Lord does it for us! God could act selfish and not even care for us or fess up to owning us. Imagine God existing (of course) BUT we did not know him at all because he never declared himself. We would be a total mess!! We wouldn't be able to function physically or mentally what so ever. I mean the man created everything so we should at least say we deserve to under his might hand. 

    There isn't much to say but the fact is God's love is covered by a horrible mask that he is a selfish man that only wants the best for him self. But fight it back with the fact that he gave it all and he continues to. God lives for loving and giving us what we need. Do not let these consuming feelings rule over you because they are full of lies. Christ is doing everything to make you a better you! And in do so he HOPES that you will choose to faithfully follow him. If anything we are the selfish ones because he died for US not the other way around. And yet we still think that we deserve so much better than what God gives us. But everything is just and right through the eyes and heart of Christ. 

Word of the Day: "For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith-that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God."

                                       ~Ephesians 3:14-19

    

    

Bottom of the Totem Pole

    If you look back to all the classical Disney movies you will notice one thing. All of the characters face adversity and normally come from settings that is anything but a fairy tale or they end up there. Cinderella was treated as a slave until her fairy godmother came and rescued her for a better life. Sleeping beauty feel into a deep sleep because of evil magic until her prince charming awakened her with the breath of life. Mulan fought her way through war as "man" to earn her right to be heard in several ways. And we can't forget about The Little Mermaid. Ariel was a mermaid wanting to living on land so she could live and better life and once she got what she wanted the evil side took her voice from her and any way she could make life one land successful. 

    Now granted, not every Disney character needed the things they wished for but you bought into it right? You felt bad for whatever damsel in distress was up on the big screen? Yeah, well we all did because most of them came from the bottom of the totem pole and succeeded at what was the desire in their heart. No matter what their life seemed to deem on them they always came out on top. And we see this through the heart of Christ. Think back to manger where Christ was sent to a virgin. Can you imagine being persecuted for being pregnant and not having had relations with your partner? 

    Mary heard several slurs that made her unsure of what God was really doing in her life. But this story changed at the manger without her knowing. Christ. The son of God. The center of our love. Our savior. The one person we can never measure up to. The king....was laid in a straw manger. It was a rough travel all the way to manger to just be born. He was refused by everyone and the inn was full before he was even out of the womb. Not only did that put stress on Mary and Joseph but it made them question the future of their chosen son. 

    God started at the bottom of the totem pole. He was a king born in a stable. Can you imagine the royal baby of the Middleton's being born in a barn? No because that would be absurd and disrespectful. A prince to later be a king is to be treated and look up to with high importance. But the exact opposite was used for Christ. Sure he had his followers on earth but there were several groups of people that rejected everything that he was. Can you also imagine a prince being treated like this now a days? It wouldn't happen because royalty is seen as important.

    So what is the importance of God starting at the bottom of the totem pole? It shows the possibility of what can be and what was. This is not only a boost of encouragement  but a key to show you what Christ has done for us. It is always a great time to marvel at how amazing Christ is and what he really did for us. So starting at the bottom of the line isn't so bad because you find yourself at the top in no time.

Word of the Day: "for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come."

                                       ~1 Timothy 4:8

Temptations

    Everyone has a temptation. And any time we partake in a temptation we realize that it fills us for moments, then it is gone. Temptations were created through sin to make us aware that we are capable of unworthy actions or even thoughts. They are a little connection that will slowly but surely lead us away from Christ. People like to put the wrath of temptation on Adam and Eve because of the apple. But we bring our temptation upon ourselves. Christ warned us of temptation and told us the matter that it is the true test to see if we follow him through it. If you think about your temptation all the way from food to lust...it only last for a second.

    Temptation was created to only last a second. Because something that good could not last for a long time because it was not created through the Lord. The whole idea of it lasting forever is knowing that it is simply not capable of fulfilling us for a period of time. Sin and Satan is simply not capable of fulfill us. I think that is one heck of a promise that is straight evidence that we should run to God. It is easy to harden your heart to the Lord during these times. If you have a guilty conscience this is where it is mostly helpful. The whole time you encounter your temptation...you feel guilty. When I think of this I imagine a little kid getting into something bad that their parents would yell at them for. Like playing in the mud with their good school clothes on. They know the whole time that their parents will be very angry and they shouldn't do it but they do any ways because as a child it is fun to just get outside and it's okay to play with mud then cause it is not exactly gross yet! But they know playing in the mud will do them no good...in fact it might ruin the shirt they very much like wearing at the time. The child wants to have fun so the messy temptation continues.

    This is very much like our faith. Talking about temptation much seem like a very inappropriate topic. But it is a part of our everyday life so we need to learn how to control it. Like the child playing in the mud.... the world is our playing field and we need to learn how to play the game carefully. Temptation is an art the can trap us in an instant and it can change our way of thinking. It is so deceiving in that the little temptations here and there pushes us deeper in until we are in over our heads. The clean shirt that the child wears while getting it dirty in the mud is the destroying of our mind and relationship with Christ. In most cases when you move closer to something you move that much farther away from something else. The sad reality is we move away from Christ daily due to temptations without even knowing it. Christ knows this before we even do it but the most liberating thing is running back to Christ. He waits for us to repent and be aware of it. 

    God puts the value in our relationships that he trust us to follow and trust him beyond temptation. Because temptation tricks us into thinking that certain action or thing is so much better than what we already have and it is a deceiving lie that wears a blindfold. The most famous bible passage is the Lord's prayer. There is a verse that is so prominent that is sticks with us as a reminder that needs to be carried out in our relationship with Christ. "And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one." Matthew 6:13 states the exact key to this lesson. The evil one is the temptation.....it is everything about the devil that screams temptation. We should be asking the Lord to deliver us from the evil one. The verse should really be flipped around because it makes it sound like do not allow the devil to take hold of us so we aren't led into temptation. This verse is often misunderstood because it makes it sound like God makes us tempted. The evil one leads us into the actual temptation but the Lord is the only one that can deliver us from it.


"No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it."
             ~1 Corinthians 10:13


      Temptations are hard to get out of  but the verse above gives us straight evidence that the Lord will not allow them to overtake us but we need to allow God to come into our lives in order to do that. He is faithful in all that he does and will not let us be tempted beyond our ability. But didn't we say that it's not God that tempts us but Satan does as well as ourselves? That is still true but like we also said earlier that God is the only one that can get us away from that. He will only get us away from it as much as we ask for because Christ doesn't force us to have a relationship with him we offers it because then it wouldn't be a relationship but a dictatorship.

    This week challenge yourself to be aware of your temptations and what causes them. They will keep coming along so you have to fulfill that temptation time needs to be filled with other activities. Try reading your bible or going outside or hanging out with friends. Something that gets you as far away from you temptation as possible.



Word of the Day: "But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction."
                                            ~1 Timothy 6:9

Revenge

    "Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good."   ~Romans 12:17-21

    God calls us to be calm and have it altogether when things go wrong. When revenge gets a hold of us it doesn't let go. The whole purpose of revenge is to be consumed with thoughts of getting back at someone because they did us wrong. No matter how small the hurt is it will consume us. If you really think about it why does being hurt bother us so much? I mean yeah, nobody likes heartbreak or disappointment but shouldn't we just brush it off? The only problem is...we care too much. Our conscience tells us that it needs to be kept straight even if the kinks are in the past. We always want to be treated right by others which we should be. But it becomes a problem when it rules our lives.

    We place revenge on others because we simply aren't happy. We take this period of being ticked at the person who hurt us in hopes of it bothering them. If the people that hurt us also hurt and are worried because of what they did to us, then nobody is happy. What is the point of nobody being happy? Really? There is no point. 

    Think back to a time when revenge took hold of your mind. I have let revenge eat me alive so many times I can't recall one specific incident. I know I have definitely done it to my parents when I argue with them and give them the silent treatment in hopes of them coming to me to reconcile. Not in every circumstance are we right as the hurt ones. But we are wrong when revenge takes us hostage. Really think of what this horrible mind set does to us ultimately.  This is not something God likes to see take sail in our heart so therefore it is the devils. Everything about sin screams revenge and Satan loves that. See revenge does no good for our hearts and our morals. It teaches us that hating others and constantly asking for more is a good thing. The filter that normally holds back all hateful thoughts doesn't exist in revenge. 

    We can't fully live our lives if revenge is in it because we will always strive to make that go away. We need to just fully cut off all feelings of revenge as soon as we encounter them because they only grow. It is like a disease that will continue to grow with the hopes of overtaking us and it becomes impossible to get rid of it. Know you might be thinking to yourself "well I don't have any revenge, so how does this pertain to me." Everyone has past hurts and will have future ones and there are several times where we think that we have let go of our revenge when we really haven't. Search your heart this week and find out if revenge is taking you captive if so free yourself of it so you can start living.

Word of the Day: "But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace."

                                      ~James 3:17-18

Against Ourselves

    We blame our failure on this world. In light of this we chase dreams that are not our own. We get so upset over things that we could prevent but dont realize the source. Often we work against ourselves when God calls us to work through him in order to live our life. So what do you think would happen if we took the responsibility for what we do and think? Now im not saying that we aren't responsible people. The focus is on discovery what it means to not be against ourselves. 

    God created us to work as a unit....but often in ourselves. It is weird to think of us working together within ourselves. When we don't work in our favor we create another opinion in our head that works against us. To explain this further...if you just picture our purpose to be fused with God. So technically here there is one mind, one heart, and one soul through Christ we live a fulfilling life. It's when we go against this that we allow a gap to form for the world to fill. Being unsteady with the components in our life seems so hard to grip. That is because the world fills in the cracks. 

    I remember as a kid I would love looking at the outside of a puzzle box to see what it's going to look like when I'm done in hopes that I can make that. Of course the puzzles were usually full of a gazillion pieces and it seemed impossible to complete. I would be able to start off with a clear mind of patience to out the outside together and I thought I was so good at puzzles. But soon I would start to get impatient and try to jam pieces together that didn't even remotely go together. So my sister or parents would join in and help me find the right pieces to make the beautiful scene. If someone else never looked at that puzzle when I got frustrated with myself then it would of taken a lot longer or not even of been finished. 

   Going against ourselves creates such a battle for us and delays us from living our lives. If you look back on your life I'm sure you can attest to this fact occurring. It's hard to not let this happen but let that be our focus this week. When you find yourself going against yourself stop and ask to be one with God because you can't afford to be anything else. 

Word of the Day: " But Jesus looked at them instead and said, " With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible." 

               ~Matthew 19:26

Ahead of the Game Plan

    Through times of suffering we hear the typical..."Everything is gonna be okay" bit. And part of us believe it but then in the back of our mind we tell ourselves that our lives just really stink. Most of the time when we confront God we buying into the fact that he has our back. Which he does have our 100% of the time but we don't jump in fully 100% of the time. If you really think about how horrible our life situations are and how God handles them, it is outstanding. He knows how bad they there are...even though he can overcome anything God does realize how horrible our situations are. In knowing that he tells us automatically tells us that we will encounter riches and wisdom.

    You would think that we should just take that as a relief statement but we don't. We just brush off God's wisdom as a little far-fetched and it is never going to happen. When we open up to God and give him the chance to actually evaluate our life situations while giving advice, he is all in. He already knows what is going to happen to us before we go to him on our knees. Plus he knows the ending to all of our troubles. So isn't that such an encouragement to know that God has the game plan in his hand? He can just look down on the whole outline and know what to do when and where. To me that's exciting because someone in this world has it down pat for me! What puts the icing on the cake is that he WANTS to do it all. He wants to hold the game plan and be the coach and give us motivation.

    The most famous verse for letting it all into the hands of God is Jeremiah 29:11." For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." This same verse has become my own personal life statement. I carry it around on a ring that I can always refer to as the big man upstairs has my back. This is a great verse for personal enlightenment and hope for the future when life just kicks us while were down. But surprisingly this verse is often taken out of context. If you go back a verse  you will see that God promises hopes for us over a period of time...
    "This is what the Lord says: "When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my good promise to bring you back to this place." The passage that 29:11 came out off is all about the exile of Babylon. People in exile were told that the Lord had hopes and plans for them. But let's look at verse ten first. God in fact did promise the suffering people a bunch of awesome things but after 70 YEARS!!! Can you imagine waiting through our own suffering for 70 years!? Some times we do need to wait for a long time through our suffering for God to give us things over time.

    The main point here is to show ourselves that God has it. We would never know that He has the game plan in hand if we didn't follow his teachings. He knows what is going to happen and how it is going to resolve it's self and what he needs to do in order for that to happen. But we need to realize that God takes these things out over time for the optimal support.



This lesson came out of a clip posted below...check it out.

Word of the Day: "And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ."
                      ~Philippians 1:6

Relentless

    The love that we receive from Christ seems so...graceful. God is just so amazing, he can whisper soft words in our ears to calm our every fear. He is seen as the man that has it altogether. He faces so many difficult things for just one person but he never blows up on someone or just says alright I am done with this whole God thing, anyone want it! God is a masterpiece with the softest touch. We always view God's love for us as simple and an everyday task. Well I imagine it is but I can guarantee it's not easy. I can't even fathom how hard it is to love every single person in this world, each in a unique way. Think of just your relationship with Christ and how big of a deal that is to you with how intense it is. Now imagine that times millions upon millions. I know we think there aren't many Christians out there but there is more than what meets the eye.

    Putting God in a box of  being safe and comforting is good until a certain point. Until the point where we no longer see the intensity God brings. If God fought like a true fighter of this world he wouldn't be the person we wanted him to be. With curse words flying out every 10 seconds and swinging his fist in hopes of knocking someone down all just so he could get a medal to hang around his neck so he could call himself a victor. This imagine is world generated by what we think a true champion should be like. From Joe Louis to Muhammad Ali to Sugar Ray Robinson...there titles tell them they won but God beats them all without every physically stepping into a boxing ring. So what makes a man that has died, before our time, that walks around us everyday as a spirit-like man in a white robe so much better than these legends? Grace.

    From Genesis all the way to Revelation God never once stopped fighting for us. HE WAS RELENTLESS. If God stop and put in the towel for a couple of battles so he could rest up for the next one there would be holes in the history of this world and who we are. If he didn't go as hard in the fights he fought, he wouldn't of won like he did. Jesus flipped the tables in the market place while people sold so frivolously so they could survive while Christ was standing there all along. In what appeared as anger was God showing that he was fighting for our lives. We get handed over to idols so easily that it just sucks us in and God holds on for dear life while we push his fingers right off the edge of our hearts. Relationships take the place holder for Christ in our hearts and we wonder why none of them ever pull through. GOD IS RELENTLESS. So your thinking, "how is he relentless if some things never change?" Things always change...for Christ. He faces a new day with every single one of us with a different situation he has to keep running with. It is just like writing a bazillion books that never stop.

    Seeing that God has grace and that feeling that he could just complete everything about us screams hero. He IS the unsung hero. He HAS fought the battle. He is MADE relentless. Christ sacrificed his nice comfy home in heaven to walk this earth with people that could never compare to him. He actually associated himself with them and acted as if he was one of them. He lived an earthly life with the thoughts of the heaven stream on continuous connection. He knew he had a duty to bring us to a better hope and future as a people. He knew he was going to be threatened. That he was going to be beaten. That he was going to be rejected. That people would look at him like he was crazy. That life on earth would get a lot more crazy with God on it. He didn't take a step back and say he wasn't ready that maybe he could try it next year. He jumped in with both feet and heart full of passion.

    God fought for our hearts. The world grips it while God ask for our hearts to be his so we can be free. Seeing how easy it sounds to hand our hearts over to a gentle feeling verses how the world takes it is so hard to believe it is true. But it is because God is RELENTLESS. He is relentless to love. Relentless to discover. Relentless to save us. Relentless to face disaster. He is so fond of not giving up because his scribe to love us beyond the edge of time is carved in his heart. A man that has breathed life into all of these sinful people like ourselves has to be so relentless with as much grace.

    No matter how many times we push God away he is back for more and more. And WE CRY, WE KICK, AND WE SCREAM because he just acts too perfect!!! He is perfect but that is not the nature that we see of God in here....his relentless nature is what makes us know that he is all knowing. We need to let God be relentless in our lives. Let us pursuit God. Let the desire be all knowing through God and our faith in him. Let it be relentless.



GET PSYCHED!  "Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn't he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it?" 
                                                  ~Luke 15:4

Hard to Please

    I am one of those people that wants to please everyone. When someone is mad or upset with me it just eats me alive because fighting is the worst. I always finding myself striving to make differences equaled out but it doesn't always work that way. There are so many different ways of thinking and personalities in this world that there is no way we could possibly please everyone in it. We can definitely try to please everyone that we want but that will stretch us beyond belief. The closest thing the bible says about this topic falls under the category of reconciliation. Pleasing others and reconciling with others are actually two different things. Your first have to be in an actual argument to need reconciliation while pleasing others is the unspoken war that mainly goes on in friendships where one seems to dominate. God actually calls us to please others but not in the way the world says to.

   It is quite confusing reading the bible at times because we are always told to please God and not others. But we are also told to put ourselves aside to please others for the good of Christ. You all know that it is extremely hard to submit our actions and self to people that do not deserve it or even take advantage of it. We also all know that God see's everyone's true motives...and this promise should be enough for us. Without God, pleasing others would be excessively hard but we aren't to do it without him. The discovery of Romans 15 led me to the thoughts that we are living to please others. This lesson kind of shows that doing that can be a good thing or a bad thing but let's see how.

    "We who are strong must be considerate of those who are sensitive about things like this. We must not just please ourselves. We should help others do what is right and build them up in the Lord. For even Christ didn't live to please himself. As the scripture say, "The insults of those who insult you, O God, have fallen on me." Such things were written in the scripture long ago to teach us. And the Scripture gives us hope and encouragement as we wait patiently for God's promises to be fulfilled."
                                            ~Romans 15:1-4

    Those that are strong through Christ Jesus are called to be considerate of the weak about things. Wow....that is definitely hard to not get irritated with people that seem to drag us down. But aren't to just please ourselves we need to do the hard thing in order to do the right thing so others can see the face of God. Even when Christ was on this earth he was the servant in order to be served and look at how stinking awesome God is!! Those times that we address slightly in the beginning of this lesson shows up in verses 3 and 4. Isn't it a little bit more assuring to know that Christ went through the same things that we are going through now. That is evidence right there that the impossible is possible but this is how we are ultimately taught.

    This week think to yourself....how can I please others so that it actually HELPS them? Make sure you are pleasing people but ask God about it first! 

The Theory of Keep

    Keep, Keeping, Keeps, Kept (v): to be faithful to; in control; to refrain from granting, giving, or allowing; to cause to remain in a given place, situation, or condition; to refrain from revealing; to maintain or preserve.

K...know
E...every
E...eternal
P...promise

Maintaining  or keeping things right can be a lot of work. We often don't recognize this in our relationships with Christ as well. In order to our unique connection with Christ going we all know that we have to continually seek him. In the bible definition above of to keep is clearly seen as a pivotal in the Christian faith. But instead of this being a long lesson of how I see keeping our words true through Christ lets have God do the talking and us do the thinking. Based on the brief definition above and the bible verses below think to yourself how it relates to you. Think of how such a simple and meaningless word like keep carries so much weight in our faith.



Exodus 31:13 tells us...
 “Tell the people of Israel: ‘Be careful to keep my Sabbath day, for the Sabbath is a sign of the covenant between me and you from generation to generation. It is given so you may know that I am the Lord, who makes you holy."


Deuteronomy 7:8 tells us...

^"But it is because the Lord loves you and is keeping the promise He made to your fathers. So the Lord brought you out by a strong hand. He set you free from the land where you were servants, and from the power of Pharaoh king of Egypt."

 

 

 

2 Chronicles 34:31 tells us...

^"Then the king stood in his place and made an agreement before the Lord. He agreed to follow the Lord, to obey His Laws with all his heart and soul, and to do what is written in the agreement in this book."

 

 

Psalm 15:4 tells us...

"He looks down upon a sinful person, but honors those who fear the Lord. He keeps his promises even if it may hurt him."

 

 

Ecclesiastes 3:6 tells us...

"There is a time to try to find, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to throw away. "

 

 

Romans 14:22 tells us...

"Keep the faith you have between yourself and God. A man is happy if he knows he is doing right."



    Take time to evaluate what needs to be kept safe and what needs to be thrown out for God, not yourself. Make sure you keep just the right amount of love of Christ in your heart so you can live for him.



Need Prayer? Message me at kaitlynsartori@yahoo.com and tell me what's on you're heart, in complete confidentially. Even if its prayer for someone else.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Habit of Powerful Prayer

    We have talked about how truly important prayer is. In the bible, prayer is a well known action on a wide scale. In most bibles there are dictionaries/concordances, this is where I found two huge sections jammed full with verses about prayer. So if it's in the bible pretty much 24/7 then you'd think that's when the red flag goes up. Prayer to most people is something you do every night before you go to bed to give yourself a good word with the big man upstairs. For the longest time this sad reality of prayer was being practiced through my life. I just saw prayer as one little piece of the puzzle to my relationship with Christ. I made prayer too small and I was made too small in return. When we rid of prayer we call it unimportant...we just stuff it into the back of our minds as fluff.

"I pray that you hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope he has given to those he called- his holy people who are his rich and glorious inheritance.       ~Ephesians 1:18

   

    Well pretty much anyone can pray. Anyone can think of a list of things they either need or don't need in their life. Anyone can then clasp their hands or bend their knees to speak to God...I like to think of these kind of prayers as costume prayers. The difference between a "costume prayer" and a "radical prayer" is passion. It takes a true Christian to pray with passion.....okay, hold the phone their Kaitlyn. So you're saying that if I don't put passion into my praying that I'm pretty much a horrible Christian? So when I pray I should speak or even think in a dramatic tone of voice and maybe even cry...alright I can do that.

"Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done."

   ~Philippians 4:6

 

    Nobody is a bad Christian by all means just for not praying with passion. It is hard finding that feel for passionate praying. Especially when you're praying at night it's hard to stay focused or even keep yourself from falling asleep half the time. When we take the time and effort to really prayer you can almost feel the automatic change. I don't know about you but when I finally get that one time to pray a really good prayer. The one you just have that much needed convo with God just life he is your best friend here. Those prayers are SO FREEING! It's something about just knowing that God is right there with you listening and just taking it all in but give you the answers right back! Passionate praying needs to become a habit in our lives because this shows that we have crossed that fine line where we openly admit to God what we need to happen and what other need through Christ.

    THE POWER OF PRAYER

"Are any of you suffering hardships? You should pray. Are any of you happy? You sing praises. Are any of you sick? You should call for elders of the church to come and pray over you, anointing you with oil in the name of the Lord. Such  a prayer offered in faith will heal the sick, and the Lord will make you well. And if you have committed any sins, you will be forgiven. Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results. Elijah was as human as we are, and yet when he prayer earnestly that no rain would fall, none fell for three and a half years! Then, when he prayed again, the sky sent down rain and the earth began to yield its crops."

~James 5:13

 

 

This week CHALLENGE YOURSELF to truly submit to powerful prayer. Open your eyes fully to everything around you. The people, the places, the times, the love, everything and anything! Pray for things you love and need and things you really don't care for either. God listens to any prayer that we pray so why not get in as may as we can. Pray on your way to work, pray in school, pray before bed, pray when you wake up. You can simply think the needs in your head or just worship the man! These things are so freeing and this is what keeps us as genuine followers. Keep it real and make your words powerful. Make it important to pray. Have the passion to everything through Christ for the rest of your life.

 

 

 

Stepping out: Ask at two people this week how you can pray for them this week and console them if desired and pray for them. But of course pray with power:) 

Living Stones for God's House

    "You are coming to Christ, who is the living cornerstone of God's temple. He was rejected by people, but he was chosen by God for great honor."
                                                               ~ 1 Peter 2:4

    According to Wikipedia a cornerstone is a stone that forms the base of a corner of a building, joining two walls. An important quality or feature on which a particular thing depends or is based. If you look back at the verses you will realize that Christ was described as the cornerstone. So Christ was consider the base of a building and not just any building but God's temple! Even though Christ was rejected so many times for simply being a part of a better kingdom. But despite others rejections Christ was made the most important part of the heavenly temple. I sure you have heard several times that you can't listen to the people that reject you because they obviously can't see your true awesomeness!

    Just like Christ we are destined for greatness. We are to be a piece of God's temple. The walls that are supported off of the cornerstone is what we are a part of. We are called the living stones of God's house. Now of course stones aren't alive but the metaphor for us being stones is very symbolic. Stones are very small but when is the last time you successfully crushed a stone. I don't mean with something else...just you and your bare hands. Unless your the Hulk I doubt you alone can crush a rock. Now if you had a hammer or a professional rock crusher I'm sure you could smash that one stone in a second. But if you had a bunch of stones together it would be a lot harder to crush all those stones especially with your bare hands.

    When we all put ourselves into the walls that are built off of Christ we find ourselves a lot stronger as a body. But that doesn't mean that we can't go outside of the wall to effect the rest. We need to build ourselves up through the body of Christ so we have the ability to go out and spread our knowledge. This analogy really explains the relationship of becoming rooted in Christ. We need to build strong foundations so we are stable in all of our ventures. We need to realize all of the duties we have for being built into God's temple. God himself built it...nobody else which shows so much love and commitment from the big guy. If you really think about it...the only reason we truly stumble is if we don't listen to God's words.

 

    "Once you had no identity as a people;

now you are God's people.

Once you received no mercy;

now you have received God's mercy."

~ 1 Peter 2:10

 

 

    Being a small stone of Christ's temple gives us an identity. We get our own identity as well as identity as the body of Christ. We don't just get any name we get the name of Christ and the least that we can do and represent that house the best that we can. Through this we would receive mercy but clearly not by our own standards but through the name of Christ. This week focus on being in the mind set of being a living stone for Christ and his house alone by crying out for spiritual nourishment.

 

 

 

Word of the Day: "This Book of the Law hall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, then you will have good success."

                                            ~ Joshua 1:8