I recently went to the house of a family in our church to hike with my youth group. We were invited to their house to go hiking around the giant "mountain" of these red rocks in the family's back yard. Several of the people in my youth group enthusiastically went on the hike; including a 16 year old boy named Matthew.
Matthew is a great kid. He's funny, loves music, is very organized, and doesn't ever get tired of drinking Pepsi. Matthew also has some physical disabilities. These disabilities mainly effect Matthew's speech and movement. Everyone was shocked and a little confused as to why Matthew was coming hiking with us. Matthew is really good about knowing his limits, and we were all skeptical about his ability to hike this massive rock formation. But to all of our complete amazement, he did it! Not only did Matthew complete the climb, but he did it without stopping for a break (like the rest of us), without the least bit of complaining (like the rest of us), and gave us all a clear picture of what faith really is.
As I've said, Matthew has some disabilities and is aware of his limits. Even though Matthew knew that he was not going to be able to complete the climb by himself, he knew that had a friend, Jason (our youth pastor, who is very close to Matthew), who was going to be willing and able to help him through the hike. Matthew put his complete trust and FAITH in Jason that day; and together, hand in hand, they made the trek. There were times when Jason had to leap over the large cracks in the rocks that we were all climbing cautiously over and then lift Matthew over . There were some vertical climbs that Jason helped Matthew through...all the while holding his hand. Matthew knew that he couldn't ever make it on his own, but he trusted Jason to get him through it. Even though it seemed dangerous sometimes, Matthew's faith in Jason never wavered. Matthew knew that Jason was right there, holding his hand. He knew that Jason was never going to let him fall through the cracks. He knew that Jason was going to get him through the very challenging course. Matthew trusted Jason completely.
How many of us have the kind of faith in our Savior that Matthew has in Jason? Do we trust that wherever our Almighty God leads us, it's going to be safe...no matter how scary it may seem? As we're being hoisted over giant cracks and holes, and pulled up to places so high that we don't want to look over the edge for fear of plummeting to the ground, are we trusting Jesus, who is holding our hand the whole way? If Matthew could put his faith in Jason, why is it so hard for us to put our faith in Christ? Why don't we realize that we just simply can't do it on our own? And when we DO realize that we can't do it on our own, do we back down and not try, or do we ask our Lord to lead us up the safe path...no matter how treacherous it seems to us?
Here's the challenge: Find something that we CAN'T do, but God CAN (and by the way: God can do ANYTHING and EVERYTHING!!!). Next, let's put our faith completely in Him. We, as people, often give up when we come to a "mountain" in our lives. Remember that Jesus Christ is there to hold your hand the whole way. Trust Him. He will never let you down.
Friday, November 27, 2009
Saturday, August 22, 2009
The Ministry Never Stops.
I spent 5 straight weeks at Christian camps this summer. The first week was a Leadership Camp. This camp trained hand-picked kids from different churches to become the councilors for the next few weeks. Not only did we learn the basic facts of counseling children, such as what to do if they become homesick, or who to tell if your campers confide in you about a tough situation at home, but we learned to serve by doing the work that needed to be done around the camp so that it would be ready for all the campers coming on and off the mountain. Most importantly, we spent time in the Word of God. Preparing ourselves to have faith in tough times during the coming weeks, pray continually, and to lead the kids that we were going to be around not just by the words of the devotions that we had to give every night, but by our actions. Something that we were told over and over again was, "Once you're a councilor, you're ALWAYS going to be a councilor." I understood what that meant...that your campers will always look up to you, so don't mess up. But I didn't realize the full of it until after I came back home from our busy summer.
The next week was Teen Camp. A time for all of us to just hang out, relax, have fun, and be the campers for the next week. The only problem was that the team that was supposed to come up down from a Bible college to be our councilors through Teen Camp we carriers of Swine Flu. They, of course, didn't come to Teen Camp. Those of us who had just gone through Leadership Camp had to step up and council. Some of us for the first time ever! We were going to be counseling our friends. We were going to be counseling kids that were older than us. We were going to be leaders.
Teen Camp went by almost too fast. I was a co-councilor with another girl my age, Bethanie, who has also never counseled before. I still thank God that we were put in the same cabin. We were the only ones who had 2 councilors in our cabin. During the week, Bethanie and I grew very close. We tease now that we were "forced to be friends." As awesome as it is to have a friend like her, the greatest thing that happened at Teen Camp was this: I was forced to rely on God. I had no idea what I was doing. When we got the word that we would be the councilors for Teen Camp, I acted like it would be no big deal and I was totally confident. I even got comments about how calm I was. But the reality is that I was scared. Sometimes it was almost like I was in a fog. Like I wouldn't really be counseling that next week. But other times I was totally panicked and would think, "can I really do this?" The answer: No. I couldn't do it. But God could. And He chose to do it through me.
I had to rely on God a lot that week. Without Him, I probably would have had a nervous breakdown right in the middle of camp. I also had to learn to trust God without questioning. This was something that was extremely hard for me. On one of the nights that I was supposed to give the devotion, I really felt like I needed to change what I had planned to do. I really didn't want to at first. I don't do things without planning first. Ever. My devotion was already planned...did God really want me to change it? I talked to Bethanie about it and she agreed that we should change the subject. She and I spent about an hour re-writing what we were going to say for that night. And God used it. We only had about an hour and a half to prepare, but God took it and used it in a way the other devotion couldn't be used. Our campers were blessed because we obeyed. And we were blessed because we obeyed. We had just learned to trust God on a whole new level.
I'm not saying at all that I have the whole trusting God completely all the time thing down, because I don't. But in the next 2 weeks, that new trust I had with my Savior helped so much. I loved counseling Junior and Middle School Camp. The little girls were so adorable and some of my Jr. campers even called me "Mommy" or "Camp Mommy"...that was a little strange, but I soaked it up.
After these camps were done, my brother and I hopped on a plane and went to Iowa for a camp there. We were actually campers there, but I know that I was in councilor mode. I made friends with all the really young kids that were the age of some of my Jr. Campers. I still keep in contact with one in particular, along with many other people at the camp. God used my experience as a councilor to help a slightly challenged guy in my "family" (kind of like a cabin group). And I was able to just sit and hold one girl who was going through some things with her parents. God totally blessed me that week and gave me so many opportunities!
Something really cool about going to this Iowa camp was that I had already been to 4 weeks of camp. You know that "loop" you go in every year? The one where you're on a "God-high" and want to live totally sold out for Him right after camp? You do okay the first few weeks, but then your fire dies when school starts and you're back to square one when camp comes around again. I was already on my "God-high," so I got to go one step further at camp. Not only did I want to live totally sold out for my Messiah, but I was convicted of things and given "ideas" on how to be a better witness for the True Gospel. I'm so excited for school to start this year because I'm overly-determined to "make the most of every opportunity!"
We went to CA for a week and a half for a family reunion after that. When I finally got back home to St. George, I was so excited to see everyone! I gave countless hugs to my friends and was "giddy," as someone put it, to be back at church. But the one thing that really hit me was when I stepped out of Sunday School and I instantly had little girls' arms tied around my waist. A few of my campers had come to church and were ecstatic to see me. One of the girls said that she would look for me every week, and then realized that I was still gone. I was talking to my girls both before and after the service. I felt like a celebrity. That's when I realized the full extent of what I was told at Leadership Camp: "Once you're a councilor, you're ALWAYS a councilor." The ministry will never stop. I've put a mark in these kid's lives and they will always look up to me no matter what. What I do won't effect just me. I'm going to effect a lot of people with every decision I make. That's quite a lot of pressure, but it's something I want to live up to.
I was given so many chances to minister to people throughout this summer. People both younger and older than me. And now the ministry will never stop. Every time I'm around my campers, or I text the little 7th grade boy from the Iowa camp, or e-mail people that I met at camp who weren't even in my cabin or "family," I'm going to be able to minister. People will always be watching me. I need to use every opportunity to share God's love with them. Not only by being nice to them and talking to them when they're around, but showing them through the things I do what it looks like to serve the Almighty God. I'm always going to be ministering to someone. Whether it's good or bad, people will be watching me to see if I'm all I say I am. My ministry will NEVER stop.
The next week was Teen Camp. A time for all of us to just hang out, relax, have fun, and be the campers for the next week. The only problem was that the team that was supposed to come up down from a Bible college to be our councilors through Teen Camp we carriers of Swine Flu. They, of course, didn't come to Teen Camp. Those of us who had just gone through Leadership Camp had to step up and council. Some of us for the first time ever! We were going to be counseling our friends. We were going to be counseling kids that were older than us. We were going to be leaders.
Teen Camp went by almost too fast. I was a co-councilor with another girl my age, Bethanie, who has also never counseled before. I still thank God that we were put in the same cabin. We were the only ones who had 2 councilors in our cabin. During the week, Bethanie and I grew very close. We tease now that we were "forced to be friends." As awesome as it is to have a friend like her, the greatest thing that happened at Teen Camp was this: I was forced to rely on God. I had no idea what I was doing. When we got the word that we would be the councilors for Teen Camp, I acted like it would be no big deal and I was totally confident. I even got comments about how calm I was. But the reality is that I was scared. Sometimes it was almost like I was in a fog. Like I wouldn't really be counseling that next week. But other times I was totally panicked and would think, "can I really do this?" The answer: No. I couldn't do it. But God could. And He chose to do it through me.
I had to rely on God a lot that week. Without Him, I probably would have had a nervous breakdown right in the middle of camp. I also had to learn to trust God without questioning. This was something that was extremely hard for me. On one of the nights that I was supposed to give the devotion, I really felt like I needed to change what I had planned to do. I really didn't want to at first. I don't do things without planning first. Ever. My devotion was already planned...did God really want me to change it? I talked to Bethanie about it and she agreed that we should change the subject. She and I spent about an hour re-writing what we were going to say for that night. And God used it. We only had about an hour and a half to prepare, but God took it and used it in a way the other devotion couldn't be used. Our campers were blessed because we obeyed. And we were blessed because we obeyed. We had just learned to trust God on a whole new level.
I'm not saying at all that I have the whole trusting God completely all the time thing down, because I don't. But in the next 2 weeks, that new trust I had with my Savior helped so much. I loved counseling Junior and Middle School Camp. The little girls were so adorable and some of my Jr. campers even called me "Mommy" or "Camp Mommy"...that was a little strange, but I soaked it up.
After these camps were done, my brother and I hopped on a plane and went to Iowa for a camp there. We were actually campers there, but I know that I was in councilor mode. I made friends with all the really young kids that were the age of some of my Jr. Campers. I still keep in contact with one in particular, along with many other people at the camp. God used my experience as a councilor to help a slightly challenged guy in my "family" (kind of like a cabin group). And I was able to just sit and hold one girl who was going through some things with her parents. God totally blessed me that week and gave me so many opportunities!
Something really cool about going to this Iowa camp was that I had already been to 4 weeks of camp. You know that "loop" you go in every year? The one where you're on a "God-high" and want to live totally sold out for Him right after camp? You do okay the first few weeks, but then your fire dies when school starts and you're back to square one when camp comes around again. I was already on my "God-high," so I got to go one step further at camp. Not only did I want to live totally sold out for my Messiah, but I was convicted of things and given "ideas" on how to be a better witness for the True Gospel. I'm so excited for school to start this year because I'm overly-determined to "make the most of every opportunity!"
We went to CA for a week and a half for a family reunion after that. When I finally got back home to St. George, I was so excited to see everyone! I gave countless hugs to my friends and was "giddy," as someone put it, to be back at church. But the one thing that really hit me was when I stepped out of Sunday School and I instantly had little girls' arms tied around my waist. A few of my campers had come to church and were ecstatic to see me. One of the girls said that she would look for me every week, and then realized that I was still gone. I was talking to my girls both before and after the service. I felt like a celebrity. That's when I realized the full extent of what I was told at Leadership Camp: "Once you're a councilor, you're ALWAYS a councilor." The ministry will never stop. I've put a mark in these kid's lives and they will always look up to me no matter what. What I do won't effect just me. I'm going to effect a lot of people with every decision I make. That's quite a lot of pressure, but it's something I want to live up to.
I was given so many chances to minister to people throughout this summer. People both younger and older than me. And now the ministry will never stop. Every time I'm around my campers, or I text the little 7th grade boy from the Iowa camp, or e-mail people that I met at camp who weren't even in my cabin or "family," I'm going to be able to minister. People will always be watching me. I need to use every opportunity to share God's love with them. Not only by being nice to them and talking to them when they're around, but showing them through the things I do what it looks like to serve the Almighty God. I'm always going to be ministering to someone. Whether it's good or bad, people will be watching me to see if I'm all I say I am. My ministry will NEVER stop.
Friday, March 20, 2009
The Power of Prayer
We all admit that there is power in prayer. We all say that there is nothing that is impossible with God. We all KNOW that God possesses the power to turn things around. So why is it that when most of us pray, we only pray half-hearted, as if nothing that we do (including prayer) is going to make a difference? Why do we have a mindset of "it's already going to happen" or "if it's God's will, it's going to happen with or without me"? We need to not only realize that prayer is powerful, but we need to believe that our petition to the Almighty God has enough power to change the course of this world. We've all heard stories about missionaries praying and receiving miracles from our Heavenly Father, so why don't we pray like we're going to receive a miracle too?
I will never forget the time that I fully realized the power that God has put in my hands. I was laying in my bed around 11 or 12 o'clock late Thursday night trying to sleep, when I really felt a burden to pray for a friend of mine. It didn't happen all of the sudden really...I had been praying for this friend for quite awhile on and off. I had recently committed him to more continuous and consistent prayer, so I was had been praying for him that night already. As I was praying, a sense of "urgency" came over me and I prayed for him like I had never prayed before. It was intense. I can't tell you how long I prayed like that, but I fell asleep praying.
I was a little shocked to see my friend in Sunday School that Sunday. He was a member of that church and came to services, but he hardly ever ventured into the youth Sunday School class. Being that we were good friends, I had no problem coming up to say "Hello," but before I got to where he was standing, he looked at me with a really strange look in his eyes and said four words that I'll never forget, "I almost died Thursday." I was shocked. As he was telling me what happened, I realized that his near death experience happened at the exact time that God laid it on my heart to pray so passionately for him. A drunk driver had somehow managed to get onto the wrong side of the freeway (on the other side of the big cement wall that separated the two sides). As my friend was driving back home, he almost got hit. He was passing another car and noticed some headlights that looked a little funny. When he realized that the truck was on the wrong side of the road, he jerked back into the other lane. Miraculously, the car that he was passing seems to have disappeared. God was with him that night, and the experience turned my friend's life around.
Another experience that's much more recent is with my friend Brandon. Some of you may know his story from all of the prayer chain text messages I sent out. Brandon was involved in a very bad car crash. He decided to street race with four other cars and lost control of his car. Brandon lost control as he was turning the corner at over 75mph. Brandon did have the sense to wear his seat belt, thank God! The car rolled about 50ft, hit a light post, and then began to roll back. Some cymbals that were in his car slit his head open from his hairline all the way back. He had a huge gash on the right side of his face, and fractured a vertebrae in his neck. Brandon had to be air-lifted to a large hospital after the doctors at the local hospital couldn't get the blood moving in his arm for over six hours. The doctors got the blood back into his left arm and hand, but were unsure if Brandon was ever going to have full function of his limb. The doctors, although already amazed that there was no damage to Brandon's spinal chord, were very sceptical.
There were (and still are) probably over 100 people praying for Brandon. Most of them don't even know who he is. There IS power in prayer! Brandon got to go home a lot sooner than anyone thought. He had to have numerous surgeries. Very often, the doctors would tell Brandon's parents that there was no way something could be done, and the very next day, a miracle happened and it COULD be done! The fractured vertebrae was all of a sudden not able to be found. Brandon wasn't supposed to be able to use his fingers, and now he can move them. There was a skin graph that needed to be done as well as some stitching up in his arm, and the doctors said that there was "0% chance that it can be dome on the same day." And it WAS done on the same day.
As much as the doctors want to think that it was them that made all these miracles happen, everyone that knew about what was happening around Brandon could see at a glance that God was the One at work. Why do we think that it's all up to fate, or that everything is going to happen the way it's already "planned out" no matter what? We can change history!! We need to spend some serious time on our knees. God is in the business of doing miracles, and all we have to do is ask for them. Just think of what we could do for our friends and family; our country; our church and neighborhood; our president! We can change lives with this power that God has given us. Why don't we? As a challenge to ourselves, let's commit to pray. I'm not talking about the "auto-pilot" prayers that we pray because we're "good Christians" before we eat or go to bed, but truly communicate with our Abba, Father and pray in a way that can change the world.
I will never forget the time that I fully realized the power that God has put in my hands. I was laying in my bed around 11 or 12 o'clock late Thursday night trying to sleep, when I really felt a burden to pray for a friend of mine. It didn't happen all of the sudden really...I had been praying for this friend for quite awhile on and off. I had recently committed him to more continuous and consistent prayer, so I was had been praying for him that night already. As I was praying, a sense of "urgency" came over me and I prayed for him like I had never prayed before. It was intense. I can't tell you how long I prayed like that, but I fell asleep praying.
I was a little shocked to see my friend in Sunday School that Sunday. He was a member of that church and came to services, but he hardly ever ventured into the youth Sunday School class. Being that we were good friends, I had no problem coming up to say "Hello," but before I got to where he was standing, he looked at me with a really strange look in his eyes and said four words that I'll never forget, "I almost died Thursday." I was shocked. As he was telling me what happened, I realized that his near death experience happened at the exact time that God laid it on my heart to pray so passionately for him. A drunk driver had somehow managed to get onto the wrong side of the freeway (on the other side of the big cement wall that separated the two sides). As my friend was driving back home, he almost got hit. He was passing another car and noticed some headlights that looked a little funny. When he realized that the truck was on the wrong side of the road, he jerked back into the other lane. Miraculously, the car that he was passing seems to have disappeared. God was with him that night, and the experience turned my friend's life around.
Another experience that's much more recent is with my friend Brandon. Some of you may know his story from all of the prayer chain text messages I sent out. Brandon was involved in a very bad car crash. He decided to street race with four other cars and lost control of his car. Brandon lost control as he was turning the corner at over 75mph. Brandon did have the sense to wear his seat belt, thank God! The car rolled about 50ft, hit a light post, and then began to roll back. Some cymbals that were in his car slit his head open from his hairline all the way back. He had a huge gash on the right side of his face, and fractured a vertebrae in his neck. Brandon had to be air-lifted to a large hospital after the doctors at the local hospital couldn't get the blood moving in his arm for over six hours. The doctors got the blood back into his left arm and hand, but were unsure if Brandon was ever going to have full function of his limb. The doctors, although already amazed that there was no damage to Brandon's spinal chord, were very sceptical.
There were (and still are) probably over 100 people praying for Brandon. Most of them don't even know who he is. There IS power in prayer! Brandon got to go home a lot sooner than anyone thought. He had to have numerous surgeries. Very often, the doctors would tell Brandon's parents that there was no way something could be done, and the very next day, a miracle happened and it COULD be done! The fractured vertebrae was all of a sudden not able to be found. Brandon wasn't supposed to be able to use his fingers, and now he can move them. There was a skin graph that needed to be done as well as some stitching up in his arm, and the doctors said that there was "0% chance that it can be dome on the same day." And it WAS done on the same day.
As much as the doctors want to think that it was them that made all these miracles happen, everyone that knew about what was happening around Brandon could see at a glance that God was the One at work. Why do we think that it's all up to fate, or that everything is going to happen the way it's already "planned out" no matter what? We can change history!! We need to spend some serious time on our knees. God is in the business of doing miracles, and all we have to do is ask for them. Just think of what we could do for our friends and family; our country; our church and neighborhood; our president! We can change lives with this power that God has given us. Why don't we? As a challenge to ourselves, let's commit to pray. I'm not talking about the "auto-pilot" prayers that we pray because we're "good Christians" before we eat or go to bed, but truly communicate with our Abba, Father and pray in a way that can change the world.
Saturday, January 31, 2009
A Teenage Inspiration
I met a kid this week that should be an inspiration to us all. His name is Colin. Colin turned 16 just weeks ago. A few months prior, Colin went in to have his tonsils removed and the doctors found a rare type of cancer in his throat. Colin has since had surgery on his throat, has lost all his hair, is undergoing chemotherapy, and doesn't know whether or not the doctors are getting all the cancer. This remarkable teen is facing death, and you would never know by talking to him.
I had the opportunity of talking with this home schooled teen for a little while while climbing over rocks and petrified sand dunes, and roasting hot dogs over a camp fire. I can honestly say that I forgot that he had cancer until he removed his hat; showing a bald head. Colin talked about everything from hunting to playing in the sand. He made reference to "...I had hair then..." like it was no big deal; as if he just up and decided to shave it all off. He loves to snowboard and do flips on the trampoline. Colin hardly ever lets the chemo slow him down. In fact, Colin had a chemo treatment just a couple days before we met up with him in Snow Canyon. After a day of sleeping off the intense treatments, he was ready to show us lava tubes and crawl around on his hands and knees in the dark on pointed rocks with flashlights as the only light source.
Meeting Colin was a real eye-opener for me. Just the morning before, I was feeling depressed and sorry for myself because I had to move recently and be ripped away from all my friends. I had a major attitude problem because I thought I was going through the worst thing I could ever experience. Wow...I was wrong!
We all have things in our lives that we wish weren't happening, or that we want to change; but not many of us are staring death in the face. And I'm willing to bet that if we were, most of us wouldn't be as joyful about it as Colin. I know I wouldn't be.
I've been challenged by Colin's outstanding testimony to see the good in life. To trust God in all circumstances...the good and the really bad. If Colin can be as happy as he is, after finding out that he has a rare cancer at the age of 15, I think I can deal with some of the "problems" in my life with a little more grace. I want to let the light of our Lord and Savior, Christ Jesus shine through me as brightly as it's shining through my new found friend, Colin.
I had the opportunity of talking with this home schooled teen for a little while while climbing over rocks and petrified sand dunes, and roasting hot dogs over a camp fire. I can honestly say that I forgot that he had cancer until he removed his hat; showing a bald head. Colin talked about everything from hunting to playing in the sand. He made reference to "...I had hair then..." like it was no big deal; as if he just up and decided to shave it all off. He loves to snowboard and do flips on the trampoline. Colin hardly ever lets the chemo slow him down. In fact, Colin had a chemo treatment just a couple days before we met up with him in Snow Canyon. After a day of sleeping off the intense treatments, he was ready to show us lava tubes and crawl around on his hands and knees in the dark on pointed rocks with flashlights as the only light source.
Meeting Colin was a real eye-opener for me. Just the morning before, I was feeling depressed and sorry for myself because I had to move recently and be ripped away from all my friends. I had a major attitude problem because I thought I was going through the worst thing I could ever experience. Wow...I was wrong!
We all have things in our lives that we wish weren't happening, or that we want to change; but not many of us are staring death in the face. And I'm willing to bet that if we were, most of us wouldn't be as joyful about it as Colin. I know I wouldn't be.
I've been challenged by Colin's outstanding testimony to see the good in life. To trust God in all circumstances...the good and the really bad. If Colin can be as happy as he is, after finding out that he has a rare cancer at the age of 15, I think I can deal with some of the "problems" in my life with a little more grace. I want to let the light of our Lord and Savior, Christ Jesus shine through me as brightly as it's shining through my new found friend, Colin.
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Road-Block!
We finally have a house. We'll actually get into the new house in a few days, but my parents signed the papers today! It's so exciting! This is offer number 10 on house number 6! Woot!
I've totally hit a "road-block!" I have 6 different sites on the bottom of my screen (2 e-mails, this blog, facebook, a different blog, and the Rebelution site), but I don't know what to do. My brain feels like mush. I'm having to type and re-type because my fingers won't "say" what I want them to "say" the first time they hit the computer keyboard. I think that sometimes our spiritual life, our walk with Christ, is like that. We know that there is a lot that we can do. We know that we have our "6 different sites on the bottom of our screens" (praying, reading the Bible, talking with someone about Christ, etc.), but we just don't know what to do. We can't think or feel, but yet somehow we manage to keep living life. There isn't always a reason for feeling numb, it just happens sometimes. We get busy with our lives, our friends, school, and all the things that "have to get done." We spend ourselves on what we think is important and totally exhaust and stress ourselves out, but totally forget to leave time for what and Who is truly the most important to spend our time on. Everyone says, "We need to find/make time for God," but I'm here to tell you that that statement is just not true!!! We don't need to make time for God, our almighty Creator who should be the most important in our lives, we need to make time for all the other things in life. We need to put God first and then worry about the other things that need to get done in our lives. When we "exhaust ourselves" and "spend all our time" on Christ, like we should, everything else is just going to fall into place. We're going to have time to study, read books, check our e-mail, do missions projects, and hang out with friends if we put Jesus first! That's a guarantee!!! But it's not guarantee that you'll "have time" for your Savior if you push Him to the end of your day. When you meet Him face to face, do you want to stand there knowing that you should and could have "made more time" for the One who died for you so that you could have everlasting life, or do you want to hear Jesus say, "Well done, my good and faithful servant"? Put Jesus first today!
I hope that this all makes sence to you, readers. I felt that I needed to blog what was on my heart...even if I'm not totally functioning mentally because of the busy day! I admit to you that I failed in putting Jesus Christ first in my life today, but I will tomorrow, and I hope you will too!
I've totally hit a "road-block!" I have 6 different sites on the bottom of my screen (2 e-mails, this blog, facebook, a different blog, and the Rebelution site), but I don't know what to do. My brain feels like mush. I'm having to type and re-type because my fingers won't "say" what I want them to "say" the first time they hit the computer keyboard. I think that sometimes our spiritual life, our walk with Christ, is like that. We know that there is a lot that we can do. We know that we have our "6 different sites on the bottom of our screens" (praying, reading the Bible, talking with someone about Christ, etc.), but we just don't know what to do. We can't think or feel, but yet somehow we manage to keep living life. There isn't always a reason for feeling numb, it just happens sometimes. We get busy with our lives, our friends, school, and all the things that "have to get done." We spend ourselves on what we think is important and totally exhaust and stress ourselves out, but totally forget to leave time for what and Who is truly the most important to spend our time on. Everyone says, "We need to find/make time for God," but I'm here to tell you that that statement is just not true!!! We don't need to make time for God, our almighty Creator who should be the most important in our lives, we need to make time for all the other things in life. We need to put God first and then worry about the other things that need to get done in our lives. When we "exhaust ourselves" and "spend all our time" on Christ, like we should, everything else is just going to fall into place. We're going to have time to study, read books, check our e-mail, do missions projects, and hang out with friends if we put Jesus first! That's a guarantee!!! But it's not guarantee that you'll "have time" for your Savior if you push Him to the end of your day. When you meet Him face to face, do you want to stand there knowing that you should and could have "made more time" for the One who died for you so that you could have everlasting life, or do you want to hear Jesus say, "Well done, my good and faithful servant"? Put Jesus first today!
I hope that this all makes sence to you, readers. I felt that I needed to blog what was on my heart...even if I'm not totally functioning mentally because of the busy day! I admit to you that I failed in putting Jesus Christ first in my life today, but I will tomorrow, and I hope you will too!
Saturday, November 8, 2008
Only the beginning
We found another house that we may put an offer on. This will be house number 5 and offer number 11 or 12 I think. Not having a house for over 3 months is pretty frustrating, but maybe it's God's way of teaching us patience. I hope we learn our lesson soon!!!
As far as my "journey as a Christian" goes, I guess I'll start with my testimony. It's pretty basic really. I live in a Christian family, and was told about Jesus Christ and that He died for me on the cross to save me from my sins so I can live in Heaven with Him forever. I accepted Him as my Savior and Lord when I was 3. I'm not sure I fully understood what it meant to be saved, but I have no doubt that I was...even at that young age! I decided when I was 4 or 5 that I wanted to be a missionary after hearing a good missionary friend of ours come and speak at our church. To this day, at 9 days away from being 17, I still long to be a missionary, and hope to someday run an orphanage.
We lived in California until I was 13. Our whole family was there and we knew everyone from the mayor of the city to the church and school janitors. We were very well connected. Then my dad got a job offer to work for a company in Iowa. That's when I think my faith grew the most. Although God gave me the great opportunity to be used by Him to bring one of my neighbor friends to The Lord while in California, my "religion" really turned into a relationship with my Heavenly Father after we moved. While in my cozy nest of friends and family in Visaila, California I had people to rely on. I didn't need to call to God and just talk to Him because someone else was always there. Being ripped away from life was a real wake-up call and a chance to see that He was my Ultimate Friend and that He was the only one in the world that would never leave me or forsake me.
My testimony isn't done yet, in fact, it's only the beginning! I hope that this blog will give you a glimpse into my life and show you how I'm growing in Christ. I'm FAR from perfect, but I'm striving for The Lord!
As far as my "journey as a Christian" goes, I guess I'll start with my testimony. It's pretty basic really. I live in a Christian family, and was told about Jesus Christ and that He died for me on the cross to save me from my sins so I can live in Heaven with Him forever. I accepted Him as my Savior and Lord when I was 3. I'm not sure I fully understood what it meant to be saved, but I have no doubt that I was...even at that young age! I decided when I was 4 or 5 that I wanted to be a missionary after hearing a good missionary friend of ours come and speak at our church. To this day, at 9 days away from being 17, I still long to be a missionary, and hope to someday run an orphanage.
We lived in California until I was 13. Our whole family was there and we knew everyone from the mayor of the city to the church and school janitors. We were very well connected. Then my dad got a job offer to work for a company in Iowa. That's when I think my faith grew the most. Although God gave me the great opportunity to be used by Him to bring one of my neighbor friends to The Lord while in California, my "religion" really turned into a relationship with my Heavenly Father after we moved. While in my cozy nest of friends and family in Visaila, California I had people to rely on. I didn't need to call to God and just talk to Him because someone else was always there. Being ripped away from life was a real wake-up call and a chance to see that He was my Ultimate Friend and that He was the only one in the world that would never leave me or forsake me.
My testimony isn't done yet, in fact, it's only the beginning! I hope that this blog will give you a glimpse into my life and show you how I'm growing in Christ. I'm FAR from perfect, but I'm striving for The Lord!
Friday, November 7, 2008
Thinking
So I'm sitting here at the computer thinking...I know, I know...you're probably thinking, "Oh no!! Nothing good could happen when she does that!! Don't hurt yourself, Kendra!" Well first let me assure you that so far I'm all in one piece, and my brain hasn't exploded yet. In fact, I'm feeling pretty good. Why? Because I know what I'm going to do with this blog! Well, duh! You're going to blog about life and what makes you smile and all that stuff! It's the purpose of blogging! I realize that, but why stop there? Yes, a lot of these posts will be about me and my life, and keeping up with friends, but some of these will be about my "journey as a Christian"...but I'll have to explain more about that later...we're gonna go look at houses now. :)
Hugs and Prayers!
Hugs and Prayers!
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