Ch. 737 - A Transition

Love and be loved.
Annnd that's all I've got.


'... I love you, O Lord, my strength.'
[Psalm 18:1]

......

Click here to revisit Chapter 210.

Ch. 733 - Roots

I have a difficult time accepting... well... many things.
Friend requests on Facebook from people I don't know...
Criticism.
Truths.
Compliments.
Encouragement.
Kindness.
Care.
Love.

I appreciate all these things. Even criticism, if it is constructive. And the truths, too, which could - more often than not - be classified as "hard-to-handle". Oh, okay... maybe not the first item mentioned...

Anyway, I do. Appreciate these things, I mean. But it's like I don't know how to manage them. Want to know the best part? It's pretty obvious to me that I am not exactly a "pro" at giving these things out to others.

Why is this?

... I try. I really do.
I actually think there has been improvement on the giving side of things over the past couple of years. Bible college will do that to you.

But seriously.
Why do I have to work so hard at doing so?

Do I think people are not "worthy" of these things?
Not that my love or friendship is any better or more important than those of another... but perhaps I am convinced that they wouldn't appreciate it. And thus they are not deserving. Of course, then I am not being obedient to the commands of God: '" 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' "' [Mark 12:31a] And if I cannot obey the second greatest commandment, surely I am not following the first: '" 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' "' [Mark 12:30]

After all, to obey is to love.
[1 John 5:3]

Is that the root of my problem?
Could it be that I simply do not love God?
At least, not enough?
But then it must be asked again... Why?

Am I unable to accept the aforementioned things from people because I cannot even accept them from the Lord God Himself? Am I unable to give these things out, namely love, because I cannot even give them - it - to Him?

If I can't even accept His love, the only love that truly matters, how can I expect to gain a greater capacity to love Him? Or truly love Him at all? I mean, despite all that I have read and heard, sung and been told, how greatly do I believe that it is true? But how could I not fully believe? For one, I wouldn't be where I am or who I am right now. I wouldn't be going to Central Christian College of the Bible... would I? Would I still be out in Utah, desiring to gain worldly things such as wealth and political power? Or would I be celebrating my third Ramadan, a slave to Islam? And secondly, not fully believing would be like slapping God in the face... why would I ever want to do that? What an image, eh? A finite sinner slapping the face of God... how absurd.

I put myself in chains of doubt and anxiety.
Why?
"It's not true."

I am loved.
I am His joy and delight.

And with that... with nine, simple words... this post is meaningless.

After all, I "know" these things.
I need to entirely embrace this knowledge, though. I need to return that love unto Him, and His beloved people, too. Be loved. Love. Be loved. And then love some more. Stop pushing Him away. Stop building walls. Seek Him and strive to be loved "more". To know Him and the perfect love that He has for me... what a beautiful mission.

......

Click here to revisit Chapter 187.

Ch. 704 - In Love

Sometimes it is absolutely wonderful to spend time alone.

Today I went on a walk.
Alone.
And it was lovely. Just lovely.
The sun was shining, a slight breeze cooled the air.
Tree leaves have budded.
Grass is lush and green.
Flowers are blooming.

[I love spring.]

I was completely captivated by God's beautiful creation.
Romanced.

I may have been physically alone.
But I was walking with my Lord God, and I was so glad for His company... His presence. It was simply pleasant. A comfort.

He loves me.
And I love Him.
But more than that, I am in love with Him.

He delights in me.

" 'See! The winter is past;
the rains are over and gone.
Flowers appear on the earth;
the season of singing has come,
the cooing of doves
is heard in our land.
The fig tree forms its early fruit;
the blossoming vines spread their
fragrance.
Arise, come, my darling;
my beautiful one, come with me." '
[Song of Songs, 2:11-13]

......

Ch. 704, Part Two:

So. Kind of random, but... if you've followed this blog at all, you'll know that I have, at times, used Bible verses as a post.

That's it.
Words from the Bible.
No thoughts.
Insights.
Revelations.
Just words.
I figure, 'Sometimes that's all you need, you know?'

But I myself call those posts "cop-outs".

There have been multiple days in a row, even, where I do this. And the reasons as to why vary. I used to simply not care. Yet as I look back on random posts, I realize how greatly it bothers me...

Three cheers for OCD!

Thus, I have decided to go back throughout the blog and edit those posts. I will add to them whatever comes to mind as I read those verses which I had [usually] hurriedly typed down as I played catch-up or whatever.

I'm totally stoked to do this, actually, because it'll be good to have one more interjection in my day to get into God's word.

For each day I write a new post - no more simple Bible verse posts from here on out - I will go back and edit one post, until there are no more posts with only Bible verses. What a fabulous plan. I'm so great. And humble.

Click here to revisit Chapter 29.

Ch. 697 - Shame

I tend to withdraw from people whom I feel I have wronged in any way. If I begin to feel humiliated or ashamed by my words or actions towards someone, I do not desire to spend time with them, even if they don't realize how I feel... if they think nothing of it... or if they immediately say something along the lines of, "Hey it's okay... No big deal. I forgive you!"

It's even worse when I feel ashamed because of my words or actions toward my Lord God... what a terrible feeling. Yet He is even quicker to say, "I forgive you!" than those around me. He loves me so greatly. And letting myself feel ashamed only distances me from God and that love. Guilt and shame are destructive. Feeling loved and worthy of Him builds me up and encourages me to deepen my relationship with Him.

God is so good.


' "Even now," declares the Lord, "return to me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning." Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity.'
[Joel 2:12-13]

Again, context... see what Bible college does to you?
Whatever. I'm over it.

Ch. 691 - Capacity

Before class this morning I began my day by praying in the gym.

Lord God.

Chapel.
People.
Hearts.
Change.

Jesus Christ.

Peace.
Fruit.
Power.

Holy Spirit.

Hope.
Time.

The Church.

Joy.

Me.

My mind was racing, my heart was pounding.

Even though I felt as if a million and one thoughts were running through my mind, I felt as if they all centered around a single theme: love.

My love for God.
My love for others.
God's love for me.
God's love for others.
The body's love for God.
The body's love for others.
And so it goes on...

I've come to realize that sometimes, throughout the day, all I pray for is love.
More love.

What I really desire is for us to love God more.

'Jesus replied: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment."
[Matthew 22:37-38]

How often are we asked, "Do you truly obey the greatest commandment?"

Or how often do we hear, "You know... it all comes down to love. That's what it's all about!"

So this morning, as I'm praying and "love" recycles itself through my thoughts, I hear the following line from the song All Consuming Fire by Misty Edwards:

'Let us fall more in love with You.'

Oh, the joys of putting the iPod on shuffle: what a pleasant surprise...

When I heard that line, I just stopped.
I was overcome with the weight of the Presence.
I doubled over.
['Whoa.']

Unexpected.
But welcomed.

That's a heaviness on your heart that you should never want lifted.

No restraint.
Freedom in the Spirit.
All out of love, and the desire of love for God from others.

Desires from within that I'm not even fully aware of, made known to God.

Is that truly such a terrible thing?
[What are people so afraid of?]

God is listening.
"It's not time.
... They're not ready."
But He is listening.

Before all else, we need to increase our capacity to love.

Devotion.
Adoration.

Ask for more.
Love God.

Acceptance of self.
Love of self.

Ask for more.
Love God.

Acceptance of others.
Love of others.

Ask for more.
Love God.
Ask for more.

Ch. 652 - Reality Check

What a night...

I know I've said this before, but: I think often we get too caught up in what's going on in the 'here and now' with ME, ME, ME... so we forget about the big picture. And how it should be about GOD, GOD, GOD... and THEM, THEM, THEM.

Life is good.
Life is great.
God is good.
God is great.

Joy.
Hope.
Clarity.
Renewal.
Blessings.

God-highs... gah.
I've been on a definite God-high for about a month now.
And it's been fantastic. I've loved every minute of it.

I've done my best to not focus entirely inwards. And while I have spent time thinking and praying about other people, I feel that it's not enough. I've tried to share what God has given me. But sometimes I feel like an absolute failure. Do people know I truly care about them? Are my spoken words empty? Meaningless? Do I ask God for an awareness of the needs and feelings of others? Am I following the Holy Spirit's promptings towards my brothers and sisters? Or the promptings towards nonbelievers? Do I even want to be aware or sensitive?

Each day I pass people who put a smile on their face, while on the inside their hearts are breaking. Each day I pass people who are leading a group in laughter, but they'd rather weep or cry out in anger. We see joy, they feel bitterness. But they want to seem strong. "Okay." "Fine." Even "Good!" or "Great!" And just to ward off possible questions of greater depth, they tack on the exclamation that "God is so good, man!" But they can't really expound on why He is "so good" because they've got homework [or so they say...] and they'll have to catch you later.

Sad.

Sometimes we have no idea.
For one thing, they aren't willing to let people in.
And another, we aren't willing to chip away at their walls.
It would be done with gentleness and respect, of course.
But if we don't work at it, no progress will be made.

They'll remain shut up, surrounded by numerous defenses that sometimes they don't even mean to construct. So how do they get there? The world puts them there.

The world says this is a cold, hard place.
The world says nobody really cares.
The world says we can't get from here to there with merely an unseen God.

The world is wrong. How can we let ourselves be so greatly deceived? Oh, well... "the great deceiver", the devil, can have a stronghold on us [if we let him]. But in contrast to God, he has nothing. The power of God greatly surpasses the power of our enemy. And he is not loving, or just, or kind, or merciful... and he truly has no authority in our lives.

The world should not dictate whether we reach out to our brothers and sisters in Christ's love - or, as someone being reached out to, whether we grasp their outstretched hands. We can't assume that just because someone is a fellow believer everything is fine. We all have our battles. There's nothing wrong with asking if someone would be willing to be an ally. Trust in God, yes. But trust people, too. Man is not entirely evil. I know that I have always struggled with thinking other people are heartless. I've always been very critical and hard on people. That is changing more and more each day, it seems. Some days I learn more than others, and those are the days I deem "bad" or "difficult" - yet when I sit down at the end of the day and reflect, I see God was at work throughout the day. And that makes each bad day a good day in the end.

I think we sometimes focus outwards to such a far extent that we miss the people standing right next to us. Or walking down the hall towards us between classes...

But don't take this as a challenge to simply ask people more questions the next time you see them or get a "feeling" that someone's not doing too great. Don't make someone your pet project. Don't talk to people because you feel like you have to. Talk to people because you want to. Because you genuinely care about them, and are interested in their lives. Just remember that Christ lives in them... would you give Him the cold shoulder or brush Him off like a pesky mosquito?

... I hope not.

You can't love God without loving others.
And you can't love others without loving God.


'If anyone says, "I love God," yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen. And he has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother.'
[1 John 4:20-21]

By the way: I apologize if this was difficult to follow. I feel like I was kind of all over the place, jumping from one thing to another. There is simply so much on my mind right now. I'm finding it difficult to think straight and organize my thoughts. So when I'm just writing down raw thought, it's just as jumbled as it is in my mind. Blech.

Ch. 651 - Listen and Love

I feel content. And joyful. Beautiful. I woke up this afternoon [I was really tired, okay?!] full of praise for God. He is just so faithful. He is constantly listening and I love that. If you know me somewhat well, you'll know that I really enjoy listening to people. But sometimes I wonder if I just settled into that, because that's simply how it's always been. I don't feel like people are always willing to listen to me. We live in an age of constant noise, for one thing. People are always going on and on and on, sometimes without taking a breath and I worry that I'm actually going to have to use my CPR training one day just because people won't stop talking! Another thing: I'm not very assertive, and I don't like to talk just to talk. I like to contribute something if I feel that it will be beneficial for those I'm around at that time. There's also the fear of man that's always inhibited me from speaking up, but those chains are being loosened and soon I'll be completely free. Of course, none of this usually goes for people I feel very comfortable around. And there are always exceptions. Just saying... Well. To sum it up - I don't talk a lot and I assume that people don't want to listen. Because I am ridiculous.

So. God. Listening. It's wonderful. When I come to the realization again and again that He doesn't merely hear me, but listens to me, I am floored. This personal belief is backed up by all the answers to prayers God has given me, especially during the past month. I can't go into too great of detail in regards to this, just because I like that my hands function. And I feel that if I were to type everything out right now, my fingers and wrists would probably hurt or simply not work tomorrow. Thus, you will simply have to trust me in saying that God is faithful and listens to every word we speak. Every thought in our mind. Every cry of our soul. He could choose not to. But He is a loving, compassionate, and gracious God. And I shouldn't have to remind you that all glory goes to Him when our prayers are answered.

I would like to challenge you; remind yourself that there are more people than you may think that are willing to listen. So if you usually do the listening, take a step out and seek others who will listen to you. And if you usually do the talking, close your mouth and open your ears. Show love to one another in doing these things. By asking someone to listen, you are saying that you trust them. By listening to someone, you are saying that you care about them enough to do so. We hear it so often: "God loves you." It is truth. God loves all of His created children. And even though not every child will receive eternal life, wouldn't you say they are still worthy of it because they are loved by God? Look around you each day as you go about living your life and remember that the people you see are all beloved children of God. They all are worthy of being reached out to. It is not a single group of people that "deserve" or "need" to be reached. There are people who have questions and are seeking, but don't know who will listen to them. And there are people who could answer a lot of those questions, but they don't stop to actually listen to the questions. The greatness of God could be revealed more and more if we took the time to listen and let ourselves be used by God, letting Him speak through us to His people He loves.


'On the next Sabbath almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord. When the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy and talked abusively against what Paul was saying. Then Paul and Barnabas answered them boldly: "We had to speak the word of God to you first. Since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles. For this is what the Lord has commanded us: " 'I have made you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.' " When the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and honored the word of the Lord; and all who were appointed for eternal life believed.'
[Acts 13:44-48]

Ch. 270 - The 'Aha!'

"There's nothing that you could ever do to make me love you less."

This is a quote from a Rob Bell NOOMA video [Lump]. Now, I'm not going to lie: I am not a fan of Rob Bell. However, this single line had quite the impact on me. It is the only line I remember from all the NOOMA videos we watched in our Christian Discipleship class.

"There's nothing that you could ever do to make me love you less."

Rob Bell is telling a story of how his son had taken a little, white ball. Soon his actions and somewhat peculiar behavior catches up to him. His mom asks a simple question and he runs upstairs, hiding under the covers of his parent's bed for two hours. Bell comes home from work and finds him there.
But he doesn't yell at his son.
He doesn't punish him.
He doesn't condemn him.
He simply pulls back the covers and then says, "There's nothing that you could ever do to make me love you less."

This is completely relatable to how God loves us, even with our sin and guilt and shame.

Today my devotional spoke of the same thing. It focused on God's love for us. Midway through I read, 'There is nothing you can do that will make God stop loving you.' I just stopped and read that sentence over and over and over. Aha! I mean, here is something that probably seems so simple to understand, but it had never truly clicked with me until then.

Goodness.

God will never love us less.
God will never stop loving us.

Astounding.


'I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.'
[Galatians 2:20]

Ch. 263 - 'Guard Your Heart'

'Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.'
[Proverbs 4:23]

Alright, I'm getting to the bottom of this. Everyone always thinks that this verse means you should protect your heart in regards to others breaking it and whatnot. Don't let yourself get hurt, basically. But that's not the only thing it means. If you continue after this verse, you will read this:

'Put away perversity from your mouth; keep corrupt talk far from your lips. Let your eyes look straight ahead, fix your gaze directly before you. Make level paths for your feet and take only ways that are firm. Do not swerve to the right or the left, keep your foot from evil.'
[Proverbs 4:24-27]

I believe these verses are telling you to guard your heart from sin. 'Do not swerve to the right or the left, keep your foot from evil.' Stay on the straight and narrow. Don't turn away. Don't let your guard down.

After all, God lives in our heart.
Do we want the dwelling place of God to be in shambles?

Our heart is where He does His work on us.
Do we want all of His hard work to be diminished?

Our heart represents our nature, our character.
Do we want to be turned into characters of sin?

However, I think it does have to do with love as well. I mean, you don't give your heart to just anyone, right? You give it to the one you love. So you should guard your heart in that regard. However, as Christians we give our hearts to God, because it is Him whom we love. So when we have done this, when we have accepted Christ as our Savior, and when we are found to be walking with the Spirit, we can say that we are guarding our hearts. We are guarding them because we have died to sin and are thus protecting them from the enemy and being tainted by the outside world.

Ch. 259 - Habitual Love

I want to love so much that it becomes habit.
But I want that love to not be shallow and meaningless.
I want it to be purposeful and true.


' "If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even 'sinners' love those who love them." '
[Luke 6:32]

Ch. 210 - Born of God

'Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God - children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God.'
[John 1:12-13]

25. August 2010 Edit:

I am a child of God.
A beloved daughter.

I love my parents. A lot. And I know they love me. A lot. So it truly fascinates me to think of how greatly my Lord God loves me. Because I know that His love surpasses my parents' love to an entirely incomprehensible degree. I also think it is interesting that it is our right to become children of God. It is not a privilege, which can be taken away. It is not a reward that we must earn by doing something worthwhile or good. God loves us that much. I have nothing else to say. I am simply that awestruck.

Ch. 198 - Talking to Learn

I don't talk a whole lot. I mean, I do when I'm comfortable with people. But even then - as I've said many times before - I like to listen more than talk. But I'm finding out that the more I do talk, the more I learn about myself. I hope that makes sense. It's kind of like as I say something, I have to slow down because I'm hearing it for the first time myself. And it makes me think. 'Did I really just say that? Wow, do I mean this? Is that how I really feel? Hm. That makes sense... Ok, yeah! Yeah, I'll go with that! Great!'

As I speak up more and talk to people about faith and God and journeys, I'm learning more about my relationship with God and where I am at certain points in time. And I'm really grateful for this. I'm also glad that God knows me better than I do. He knows where I'm coming from, where I am, where I'm going. He knows the depths of my heart and I love the fact that He loves me for who I am, no matter what.

God is good.


'My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.'
[Psalm 139:15-16]

Ch. 194 - Not Worth It

' "But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you." '
[Luke 6:27-28]

I really need to do just this. It's not even that I have enemies or people who hate me or curse me - or I at least hope I don't! Eh, mistreat me, maybe. But seriously - I have it good compared to a lot of people. However, I can still become discouraged or upset based on what people do or say, even if something's not exactly directed towards me.

I just pray that God will lay what Christ said in Luke 6:27-28 on my heart all the more, no matter what situation I am in. Big deal, not a big deal... serious matter, light matter... it's important to truly love everybody for who they are and to meet them where they are.

Ch. 181 - Feel the Presence

You are never alone.

Never.


'... so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ.'
[Ephesians 3:16-18]

Ch. 147 - Jesus Has Your Back

This was today's devotional. It was really encouraging for me and I wanted to share it.

Jesus Prays for You

' "My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message..." '
[John 17:20]

During the Last Supper, Jesus prayed for himself and then he prayed for the disciples. And then, with the hour of his death approaching, he took time to pray for you. He prayed for all those who would believe through the ministry of the disciples, and that means you.

This is what he told God:

"My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.

I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.

Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world."
[John 17:20-24]

Jesus prays for you still.
"Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them."
[Hebrews 7:25]

Jesus wants you with him.
"Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory..."
[John 17:24]

Ch. 109 - I like people...

I'll admit it. When I get frustrated with someone, usually a stranger, I'll mutter "I hate people..." Is it true? Of course not. But when there's a mom with seven kids running circles around her in the middle of the sidewalk, blocking any possible way to walk around them, sometimes I can't help but be seized with a flash of anger. I may have gained some patience lately, but there's still a lot to learn and attain.

Anyway, the truth is, I like people. I love people. I like to give everyone benefit of the doubt and believe that they all have some good in them - or at least good intentions. So when I hear about people who are truly good people, it makes me love people in general even more. It gives me hope for mankind, as ominous as that may sound.

Today in service our youth pastor told the congregation how the folks from VIM (Volunteers in Mission, I believe) up in Minnesota, where the senior-hi was supposed to go on their mission trip, have decided to come down and help Phil (our youth pastor) out by organizing the off-site details for the senior-hi "trip". Phil has decided to stay here in Cedar Rapids for the mission trip so that they can help out with the flood relief and clean-up. However, he wants a traditional, off-site mission trip experience for the kids, so they'll be spending the nights and worship experiences out at Camp Hitaga. This is a huge relief for Phil and the other youth leaders, because they've been so busy lately with trying to figure out mission teams and what they're going to be doing throughout the summer for the people of Cedar Rapids. The team in Minnesota didn't have to come down and help out. They could have simply stayed up there and felt sorry for us and said, "Oh well. Nothing we can do. We have to deal with you not being here to help us with our camp." They're even donating the money the kids paid to go on the trip back to Cedar Rapids and the flood relief. So helpful.

So yes. I like people. A lot. I love people. A lot. It just goes to show that because God loves us, we can love as well. Maybe not as perfectly as He can, but it's worth trying to. 'Love thy neighbor' has never meant so much to me. This is going to be huge.


' "... but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord." '
[Leviticus 19:18]

Ch. 106 - All the Time

God is good.
All the time.

It may be difficult to see or realize some of the time.
But it's always true, regardless of how apparent it is.

You can turn away all you want.

He is always going to be there.
He is so real.
His love is always going to be there.
His love is so real.


'Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!'
[Philippians 4:4]

Ch. 102 - Faaather

I like to call my dad 'father' sometimes. For example, I'll greet him when he comes in the door from work with a simple "Hello father," and he'll respond with "Hello daughter."

I like this.

Mostly I just call him dad, though. I've never been one to call him 'daddy'. He keeps saying that when my sister has her baby and he becomes a 'Grandaddy' or a 'Papa' that he will be called 'Grandfather.' And not just 'grandfather' - but 'grandfaaather' with a slight English accent. He can be so silly sometimes, I don't know what to do with him!

My dad's a great guy. At times he's a man of few words, but he makes them count. He's quiet. Not shy, really. Just quiet. And gentle! Yet he's not a gentle giant, exactly. I mean, he's not imposing, but he's not meek either. I think one of the things I like most about my dad is that he makes you feel comfortable when you're around him. There's something about his presence that makes you feel at home, wherever you are.

He always wants what is best for you, and only you. He cares for your well-being. I know that he will do anything to ensure our family's health, safety, security, and happiness.

'Father' is very intelligent. He's got one of those math and science brains that I would kill to have a piece of, but he's creative, too. He's got a good job at Rockwell Collins, but I worry about him sometimes because I think he's taken advantage of. He's dependable. Reliable. Quick-thinking. Hard-working. A problem-solver. In short, he'll get the job done, whatever the assignment is, and he'll get it done really well.

This world - and especially Rockwell Collins - could use more Kevin Keenes, that's for sure.

My dad has a beautiful heart and a good head on his shoulders. He is a man of integrity. He's down-to-earth, humble, patient, and a good servant and disciple of Christ. I am so lucky to have him in my life.


'Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.'
[Ephesians 6:4]

I believe my dad has done this and I am thankful for all he has done in his 19 years of raising me.

Ch. 98 - It's a Lifestyle

Christianity is a beautiful gift. God's grace, mercy and love - His giving us His Son to die for our sins... it's all a gift. And while it's nice to read the Bible and pray and go to church on Sunday, we shouldn't be constricted, in a sense, by merely going through the motions.

Don't take what you have for granted.
Don't live in a box created by others around you.

Branch out.
Reach out.

Love is not merely an emotion or a feeling. It's an action. People should know you're a Christian not by the cross necklace or WWJD? bracelet you wear, but instead by how you act and what you do - or even do not - say. Christianity should never be a commodity, an accessory put on to look good around certain people. In my opinion it really should be more along the lines of an absolute lifestyle. Live your life through Christianity. Live your life through Christ.


'... and to know this love that surpasses knowledge - that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.'
[Ephesians 3:16-19]

Ch. 94 - Love HIM

'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.'
[Deuteronomy 6:5]

6. May 2010 Edit:

This is the greatest command we are to obey.
It has been given to us by our Lord God.

Love Him.

Love Him with all your heart.
Love Him with all your soul.
Love Him with all your strength.
Even with all your mind [Matthew 22:37].

Sometimes I find it hard to believe that we are at all capable of doing this. I mean... that's a lotta lovin'. But I don't think that God would give us a command that we are unable to follow. I believe that, at the very least, attempting to obey this command is what He desires. We're not perfect. We're not going to get it all right. We don't always have everything together. And God knows that. He is an understanding God. A good God. A loving God. A giving God. He is the easiest Being to love, really, because of all these things. He will take any bit of love that we give Him and cherish it. We don't need to be afraid that our love is not sufficient for Him.