You know something's gone bad when the only reason you blog anymore is because you can't sleep and the King of the universe is actually commanding you to write. But nevertheless, here I am. I've had a slough of ideas over the past month, yet none of them are coming to me at present.
Why am I trying to go to sleep at 10pm rather than several hours later, as is my usual habit? Well I happen to be sick with a cold (again) and I figured some extra rest would do me good. Now just look where that got me. But since I feel the Lord calling me to write tonight, I figure there must be some purpose behind it.
I want to say at least two things about being sick.
Number one, it really stinks to be sick and to be a vocal major. And it's happening so often it feels like a routine now rather than a rarity. I've learned pretty well how to sing decently whilst being congested and coughing. The funny thing is though that this year I was determined not to get sick, and yet look what happened. But, I have a certain peace about it. Yeah, I hear Satan's lies about how in the world could I ever have a career in voice if I get sick every 2-3 months...but God's plan for me is bigger than Satan's trickery and my unbelief. God knows what He's doing, even if I don't. Getting sick gives me perspective. I fall in love with singing so much more because I don't get to do it. And I realize that my life is not my own, and my plans are not my own. Being sick is a blessing in disguise.
I want to touch on the passage in Matthew 9:12-13 that says, "But when He (Jesus) heard it, He said, 'Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. Go and learn what this means, 'I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.' For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners." Christ's mission was to save the flaw-filled, ugly, infected, diseased, evil, destitute, broken, and unholy souls. Praise God that He did!
After being sick so many times, I am beginning to recognize the symptoms and the causes. Do you recognize the symptoms of your soul sickness in your own life? If you are angry, unhappy, or bitter - do you realize the cause behind it? Only those who know they are sick will go see the Healer. Come to Him, and let Him heal your broken heart and bind up your wounds, and save your sin-stricken soul.
Tuesday, September 11, 2012
Thursday, August 2, 2012
Mortality
Pastor and gospel enthusiast Tullian Tchividjian says that "daily Christian living is daily Christian dying". He means this in that we should daily be dying to ourself and our sin, and living more and more for Christ and His kingdom. I have decided to take a slightly different turn with this idea. I think that Christians should not only die daily, but they should also think about dying daily. Hear me out.
A message given at a women's retreat that I listened to at the beginning of the summer was about thinking of death often. Not in a depressing way, but rather thinking of death in terms of what comes afterward: heaven. To live in light of eternity is to think about death, in a way. At any stage of life we should think about death, for it is what defines us. We are mortals. We are finite. We are not in control.
This evening I went somewhere I have been wanting to go for some time: a cemetery. I had absolutely no ties to anyone or anything there, but it was definitely an experience to remember. There were old and new gravestones, with names and dates and sayings inscribed upon them. Many were for those who had most likely died in old age, but a few were for unborn or stillborn babies. There was a bench made in honor of two kids whose mother had died at the age of 25. One I saw last that made my eyes sting was for a four year old little boy whose gravestone had a picture of his name in his own scribbly andwriting.
Why am I writing about all these morbid things? Death is a topic many people do not wish to discuss. Am I bringing it up in order to ask the question asked by motivational speakers, "What would you want your gravestone to say about you?" I think the better question is, "What are you going to do with your life before you are in need of a gravestone?" or, "What happens after the inscription?" Death comes to all, and we do not the day nor the hour. What are you doing today that matters in eternity? Do you think about death often enough?
This is not a speech in order to motivate you to "live every day as though it was your last", but rather to see life as a gift that can be taken away without our permission. C. T. Studd has a poem where the repeating line at the end of each stanza is, "Only one life, 'twill soon be past. Only what's done for Christ will last". Are you living with your eyes fixed on eternity? Do you see death as a very present reality?
The time of salvation is now. Not tomorrow, for who knows what that will bring? It is now that you need to come to Christ - believer or unbeliever. We all need Christ and His immeasurable grace! Let Him consume your life so that every day you wake up eager to bring more glory to His name and more saints to His kingdom!
Don't be afraid to look to the end of your life,for that is when your perfect bliss or damnation begins. It is of crucial importance to know to which one you are going. The end of your mortal life is just the beginning of eternity, and that date may not be as far away as you think.
A message given at a women's retreat that I listened to at the beginning of the summer was about thinking of death often. Not in a depressing way, but rather thinking of death in terms of what comes afterward: heaven. To live in light of eternity is to think about death, in a way. At any stage of life we should think about death, for it is what defines us. We are mortals. We are finite. We are not in control.
This evening I went somewhere I have been wanting to go for some time: a cemetery. I had absolutely no ties to anyone or anything there, but it was definitely an experience to remember. There were old and new gravestones, with names and dates and sayings inscribed upon them. Many were for those who had most likely died in old age, but a few were for unborn or stillborn babies. There was a bench made in honor of two kids whose mother had died at the age of 25. One I saw last that made my eyes sting was for a four year old little boy whose gravestone had a picture of his name in his own scribbly andwriting.
Why am I writing about all these morbid things? Death is a topic many people do not wish to discuss. Am I bringing it up in order to ask the question asked by motivational speakers, "What would you want your gravestone to say about you?" I think the better question is, "What are you going to do with your life before you are in need of a gravestone?" or, "What happens after the inscription?" Death comes to all, and we do not the day nor the hour. What are you doing today that matters in eternity? Do you think about death often enough?
This is not a speech in order to motivate you to "live every day as though it was your last", but rather to see life as a gift that can be taken away without our permission. C. T. Studd has a poem where the repeating line at the end of each stanza is, "Only one life, 'twill soon be past. Only what's done for Christ will last". Are you living with your eyes fixed on eternity? Do you see death as a very present reality?
The time of salvation is now. Not tomorrow, for who knows what that will bring? It is now that you need to come to Christ - believer or unbeliever. We all need Christ and His immeasurable grace! Let Him consume your life so that every day you wake up eager to bring more glory to His name and more saints to His kingdom!
Don't be afraid to look to the end of your life,for that is when your perfect bliss or damnation begins. It is of crucial importance to know to which one you are going. The end of your mortal life is just the beginning of eternity, and that date may not be as far away as you think.
Saturday, July 14, 2012
Of Trampolines and Turn of Events
As
the kids in our family have gotten older, we have begun getting rid of all of
our childhood toys. Not just the little dinky ones, but the big expensive ones
too. First my dad tore down the tree house that he had built when we were
little, because it was getting old and the wood was rotting. I was sad to see
that go, even though I didn’t really use it that much when I was younger. Funny
how you seem to miss things only once they’re gone, isn’t it?
A few weeks ago my younger brother
took apart our trampoline in the backyard, in order to give it to a family that
would put more use to it than we did now. That trampoline had seen a lot of
memories made in our family – such as broken wrists, birthday parties, and ice
storms. But now it’s gone, and there is only a bare patch of grass that
signifies where it once stood. I have included a picture, wonder of all
wonders.
The significance of this
illustration is that I noticed how the grass did not really grow under the
trampoline because it was not getting enough sunlight. Now that the trampoline
has been removed, we hope that the grass will grow and our backyard will be
more evenly green.
Sometimes God takes something out of
our life and we don’t really know why. Many times it may be something
inherently good, but for the sake of conforming us more to the image of His
Son, the Father has deemed that we have had enough of something. As I said
earlier, we do not usually realize the value of something until we don’t have
it anymore. I probably would not have thought about jumping on the trampoline
at all this summer if I had not known that we were going to be getting rid of
it.
In order that we might grow, God may
take away things in our lives so that we may see how much and why we really
value them. We will be able to see whether or not they have become idols in our
lives – and we will have a check-up as to where our God stands in our hearts.
God wants every part of our heart devoted to Him, and sometimes His removal of
certain things from our lives is simply a reminder of that.
Friday, July 13, 2012
Trees
A few of a tree's most basic needs are sunlight, water, and rich soil. Many hardy trees only need limited amounts of these needs - they can go for weeks without water, and the soil they grow in can be as useless as the Georgia red clay. But the one thing I believe all trees have to have to survive is their roots. These underground limbs are what gathers the nutrients and feeds them to the tree. If a tree is cut down or uprooted, it dies.
As a college student, I have experienced the phenomena of being "uprooted". I now have two homes: the place where I grew up in, and the place where I am going to school for the time being. For the last year I have frequently been going back and forth between these two places. Since I am in one place half the year and another place the other half, I sometimes feel like I can never be grounded or fully engaged in either one. Both have my heart, so I cannot wholly give it away to one or the other.
Not only college students experience this, but also kids that are tossed back and forth between broken homes. Orphans, the homeless, those in military service - they all may not know which place to call "home". To a certain degree we all experience this uprootedness. The ease of transportation has not only created a small world, but it allows us to get away from places we don't like. We can start over, we can be sent away, we can be uprooted.
All Christians will deal with this feeling all of their lives, for "our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ". We do not and will not ever truly belong in this world, but rather in the one to come. How then shall we live in a place which is not our home?
If a tree is constantly being uprooted and transplanted, how will it ever grow? How will it ever reach it's full growth and potential?
The answer lies in where we place our roots.
This past year at college, our verse of the year was Isaiah 61:3 - "They will be called great trees of righteousness, planted by the Lord for His glory." I never really thought deeply about this verse until now. The Lord will raise us up from the ashes to be great trees of righteousness, and it will all be for His glory! If He is the one that plants us, then He will place us where He wants us for His glory to be spread!
Psalm 1:1-3 says, "Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the instruction of the LORD, and on His law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers."
Trees that are planted next to streams of water will doubtless be the most healthy, for when the drought comes they will still have water for renewed strength. If we place our delight and our trust in the Lord, and obey His law, we will find that we can bear fruit anywhere, and we will not wither under the harshest weather!
Man's chief end is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. If we abide in His word and who He is, we can find joy in achieving our ultimate fulfillment no matter where we are placed physically.
As a college student, I have experienced the phenomena of being "uprooted". I now have two homes: the place where I grew up in, and the place where I am going to school for the time being. For the last year I have frequently been going back and forth between these two places. Since I am in one place half the year and another place the other half, I sometimes feel like I can never be grounded or fully engaged in either one. Both have my heart, so I cannot wholly give it away to one or the other.
Not only college students experience this, but also kids that are tossed back and forth between broken homes. Orphans, the homeless, those in military service - they all may not know which place to call "home". To a certain degree we all experience this uprootedness. The ease of transportation has not only created a small world, but it allows us to get away from places we don't like. We can start over, we can be sent away, we can be uprooted.
All Christians will deal with this feeling all of their lives, for "our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ". We do not and will not ever truly belong in this world, but rather in the one to come. How then shall we live in a place which is not our home?
If a tree is constantly being uprooted and transplanted, how will it ever grow? How will it ever reach it's full growth and potential?
The answer lies in where we place our roots.
This past year at college, our verse of the year was Isaiah 61:3 - "They will be called great trees of righteousness, planted by the Lord for His glory." I never really thought deeply about this verse until now. The Lord will raise us up from the ashes to be great trees of righteousness, and it will all be for His glory! If He is the one that plants us, then He will place us where He wants us for His glory to be spread!
Psalm 1:1-3 says, "Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the instruction of the LORD, and on His law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers."
Trees that are planted next to streams of water will doubtless be the most healthy, for when the drought comes they will still have water for renewed strength. If we place our delight and our trust in the Lord, and obey His law, we will find that we can bear fruit anywhere, and we will not wither under the harshest weather!
Man's chief end is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. If we abide in His word and who He is, we can find joy in achieving our ultimate fulfillment no matter where we are placed physically.
Monday, July 9, 2012
Why yes, I wallow in my own pigsty quite often, thank you
Hello, dear friends.
First of all, my apologies go out to you...for I have been negligent in creating new blog posts for quite some time. It is not because I have had a lack of creativity or inspiration, but merely because I lack the motivation to write them. I also have been working on a book lately and that has eaten up most of the time I would've spent on this blog else wise.
But back to my laziness. It is becoming grossly apparent to me all the day. I do not write posts because I feel as though I would not get anything out of them, and therefore would not be a sufficient use of my time. (this all goes along with the fantastical belief that I spend my time usefully otherwise). I am quite content to lay in my own pigsty - my own little world of selfish aspirations and dreams which are really only the leftovers of reality.
When I get on social websites such as Facebook, Google+, etc. I am only looking, waiting, for someone to interact with me. Waiting for someone to inquire about my life. Waiting for someone to be interested in me, to take time out of their day to converse with me. Me, me, me.
Although I hate to bring it up, Brian Regan's "me monster" is so true of me. It is a hungry monster, eating up any and all love I once had or intended to have towards other people. I am a pig, it's true. As far as I know, pigs are only interested in themselves. What they want (which is really not much to be said for), is the only thing that matters to them.
I am determined to not let my selfishness rule me, by the grace of God. His mercies are new every morning, and His faithfulness is great. My prayer is that by looking into the face of my Savior, all else would fall away, including my selfish pride which I so desperately cling. By looking upward may I forget to look inward.
And may I write a few more posts for the sake of others' benefit while I'm at it.
First of all, my apologies go out to you...for I have been negligent in creating new blog posts for quite some time. It is not because I have had a lack of creativity or inspiration, but merely because I lack the motivation to write them. I also have been working on a book lately and that has eaten up most of the time I would've spent on this blog else wise.
But back to my laziness. It is becoming grossly apparent to me all the day. I do not write posts because I feel as though I would not get anything out of them, and therefore would not be a sufficient use of my time. (this all goes along with the fantastical belief that I spend my time usefully otherwise). I am quite content to lay in my own pigsty - my own little world of selfish aspirations and dreams which are really only the leftovers of reality.
When I get on social websites such as Facebook, Google+, etc. I am only looking, waiting, for someone to interact with me. Waiting for someone to inquire about my life. Waiting for someone to be interested in me, to take time out of their day to converse with me. Me, me, me.
Although I hate to bring it up, Brian Regan's "me monster" is so true of me. It is a hungry monster, eating up any and all love I once had or intended to have towards other people. I am a pig, it's true. As far as I know, pigs are only interested in themselves. What they want (which is really not much to be said for), is the only thing that matters to them.
I am determined to not let my selfishness rule me, by the grace of God. His mercies are new every morning, and His faithfulness is great. My prayer is that by looking into the face of my Savior, all else would fall away, including my selfish pride which I so desperately cling. By looking upward may I forget to look inward.
And may I write a few more posts for the sake of others' benefit while I'm at it.
Thursday, June 14, 2012
Don't Get Mad, Get GLAD
Does anyone ever remember those annoying trash bag commercials? Where the family would all of a sudden try and stuff 700 styrofoam plates into their trash bag, and the trash bag would rip because there was nothing else it could do? And the family would get frustrated and angry at the trash bag, like it was his fault?
I do. What happens next is a monotone voice chimes in, "Don't get mad, get GLAD." 'Glad' was of course a specific brand of trash bags guranteed to not rip, no matter what or how much you put in it.
I remember chirping that phrase to my family members when I was younger and they were angry about something. But I never understood the simplistic truth behind it.
The way I see it now is that when circumstances arise, we can either get mad about it or we can get glad about it. Or better yet, we can laugh about it. It really is that simple. When we mess up in our favorite sport, we can either become angry and frustrated at our abilities, or we can laugh at our mistakes. When someone fails to give us the right directions somewhere and we get lost, we can either become furious at the person, or we can laugh at the fact that the directions led us straight to a cow pasture.
This phenomenon reminds me of a verse from Proverbs about the Woman who fears the Lord: "Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she laughs at the time to come." (Proverbs 31:25). Because her hope is in the Lord, she can laugh at the future providences that come her way.
I want to be a woman who can laugh always, about anything. Ecclesiastes 3:4 says that there is a time to laugh - so let us laugh when there truly is nothing to be angry or worried about because we are in Christ!!
I do. What happens next is a monotone voice chimes in, "Don't get mad, get GLAD." 'Glad' was of course a specific brand of trash bags guranteed to not rip, no matter what or how much you put in it.
I remember chirping that phrase to my family members when I was younger and they were angry about something. But I never understood the simplistic truth behind it.
The way I see it now is that when circumstances arise, we can either get mad about it or we can get glad about it. Or better yet, we can laugh about it. It really is that simple. When we mess up in our favorite sport, we can either become angry and frustrated at our abilities, or we can laugh at our mistakes. When someone fails to give us the right directions somewhere and we get lost, we can either become furious at the person, or we can laugh at the fact that the directions led us straight to a cow pasture.
This phenomenon reminds me of a verse from Proverbs about the Woman who fears the Lord: "Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she laughs at the time to come." (Proverbs 31:25). Because her hope is in the Lord, she can laugh at the future providences that come her way.
I want to be a woman who can laugh always, about anything. Ecclesiastes 3:4 says that there is a time to laugh - so let us laugh when there truly is nothing to be angry or worried about because we are in Christ!!
Monday, June 11, 2012
You Have Me
So first of all I want to say sorry for not posting up anything in the last few weeks or so, even though only those few but faithful avid readers of mine would have even noticed. I have been going through some pretty thick stuff lately that it's been rather hard to come out of the thick stuff (let's call it Jell-O, cause it's been sweet overall but rather annoying at times). The Jell-O has kept me bogged down so that I haven't been able to obtain a 3rd person perspective on life.
But anyways, today I did have quite a nice little rainbow amidst the storms, and I vowed that I would not let it go unposted! So here it is, all nicely jumbled as usual. ;)
There is a song. A beautiful song. It's called, "You Have Me". It's by the band called Gungor. If any of you readers know anything about me you know that I love Gungor, and you're probably sick of it right now (like Jell-O). But I absolutely do not care because they are a wonderful group of musicians that write songs from the Bible and that providentially are very applicable to my life. So, if you have not heard the song before, go look it up.
My thoughts on the song are this: Whether we fall and fail, rise and shine, rebel and fight, or love and rest, God our Father has us. He has all of us completely and forever. What a beautiful truth to know.
Let me back up now. Thinking about the song happened only after I had a revelation from God while walking today.
I have been sick (physically, emotionally, you name it, etc.) for some time now, and under intense spiritual attack as well. Yes, I know, it's terrible, whatever. Don't you dare feel sorry for me. I have enough pity for myself as it is, even though it's all completely unnecessary to begin with.
So I was wallowing in my own self-pity, as I do most often nowadays, and thinking how in the wooorllld could this be God's plan for me because I am not doing anything. Seriously, I'm not even spending quality time with my Father anymore (like I was back in May when I had nothing to do) - because I just don't feel good at all. I sleep like 12 hours a day, and when I'm awake I don't have energy enough to be a light or anything to those around me. Again, don't you dare feel sorry for me though.
So my question is, What is God's purpose behind sickness, if not to sanctify us? I really don't believe that there's some life lesson out of this particular trial I'm facing. And to tell you the truth, I don't have the answer to that question. That's not what I learned today.
What I learned today is that God always always always has us right where He wants us. We're not little children that can run away in our rebellion, and we're not sheep that can be stolen by the devil. God's never trying to get us into the right position - because we always ARE in the right position. Even though we do not understand it sometimes, God always has a plan for us even though we may be down spiritually, physically, emotionally - and we can't even get out of our own little bubble to see the light of Jesus. He is with us even when we do not feel Him.
So I have nothing to be downhearted about - and neither does anyone who is in Christ!! Our greatest need (salvation from the wrath to come) has already been taken care of, so will not the One who took care of that need also take care of every other need?
This brings us back to the song - "You Have Me". In every situation, every trial, every confusing circumstance...we are held by the LORD of the universe, if we are His children!!
When pondering more about this phenomenon, I discovered that at the root of this was a distrust in God. I did not believe that God was ultimately sovereign, over every part of my life. I do not know which trials I am going through are the of the Lord's direct hand, satan's attack, or my own sin and imperfection - but I know that the Lord is watching it all, directing it all, and has planned it all long before my time.
That gives me encouragement to keep fighting the good fight, and to keep running the race.
But anyways, today I did have quite a nice little rainbow amidst the storms, and I vowed that I would not let it go unposted! So here it is, all nicely jumbled as usual. ;)
There is a song. A beautiful song. It's called, "You Have Me". It's by the band called Gungor. If any of you readers know anything about me you know that I love Gungor, and you're probably sick of it right now (like Jell-O). But I absolutely do not care because they are a wonderful group of musicians that write songs from the Bible and that providentially are very applicable to my life. So, if you have not heard the song before, go look it up.
My thoughts on the song are this: Whether we fall and fail, rise and shine, rebel and fight, or love and rest, God our Father has us. He has all of us completely and forever. What a beautiful truth to know.
Let me back up now. Thinking about the song happened only after I had a revelation from God while walking today.
I have been sick (physically, emotionally, you name it, etc.) for some time now, and under intense spiritual attack as well. Yes, I know, it's terrible, whatever. Don't you dare feel sorry for me. I have enough pity for myself as it is, even though it's all completely unnecessary to begin with.
So I was wallowing in my own self-pity, as I do most often nowadays, and thinking how in the wooorllld could this be God's plan for me because I am not doing anything. Seriously, I'm not even spending quality time with my Father anymore (like I was back in May when I had nothing to do) - because I just don't feel good at all. I sleep like 12 hours a day, and when I'm awake I don't have energy enough to be a light or anything to those around me. Again, don't you dare feel sorry for me though.
So my question is, What is God's purpose behind sickness, if not to sanctify us? I really don't believe that there's some life lesson out of this particular trial I'm facing. And to tell you the truth, I don't have the answer to that question. That's not what I learned today.
What I learned today is that God always always always has us right where He wants us. We're not little children that can run away in our rebellion, and we're not sheep that can be stolen by the devil. God's never trying to get us into the right position - because we always ARE in the right position. Even though we do not understand it sometimes, God always has a plan for us even though we may be down spiritually, physically, emotionally - and we can't even get out of our own little bubble to see the light of Jesus. He is with us even when we do not feel Him.
So I have nothing to be downhearted about - and neither does anyone who is in Christ!! Our greatest need (salvation from the wrath to come) has already been taken care of, so will not the One who took care of that need also take care of every other need?
This brings us back to the song - "You Have Me". In every situation, every trial, every confusing circumstance...we are held by the LORD of the universe, if we are His children!!
When pondering more about this phenomenon, I discovered that at the root of this was a distrust in God. I did not believe that God was ultimately sovereign, over every part of my life. I do not know which trials I am going through are the of the Lord's direct hand, satan's attack, or my own sin and imperfection - but I know that the Lord is watching it all, directing it all, and has planned it all long before my time.
That gives me encouragement to keep fighting the good fight, and to keep running the race.
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