He is the Ultimate Love Story

Think and be thankful :)

2012-01-31T21:31:00.001-08:00

We spend our whole lives wishing we were someone else.
When we're little, we want to be grown up; when we're older, we wish we were young again.
If we have straight hair, we wish we had curly hair; if we have curly hair, we wish we have straight hair.
No matter how much stuff we have, we always wish we had more.
People wish they had different siblings or parents, but I bet if they had those different siblings or parents they'd want the original ones (It's all about your attitude).
Some people wish they had a job, others complain about theirs.
On and on it goes. Think about what you have before you wish for something else. If you wish you were someone else or were like something else, just realize that if you could change lives (or whatever) you most likely wouldn't be content there either.
Be thankful :)

I'm sorry

2011-10-24T21:09:00.001-07:00

I don't even know how to be sorry for being me, and not knowing how to fix it. I'm too serious. I'm too awkward. I have a poor me attitude because I don't feel like hardly anyone ever really wants me around, and the people that do don't have time for me. I'm sorry I'm like this. I'm just trying to glorify God and do my best... Why must it be so painful and lonely?

Judas

2011-06-11T22:48:00.001-07:00

Sometimes there's so many little chunks you could take out of the Bible and expand on them SO MUCH. Have you ever seen how huge commentaries are?? Big. Colossal (for a fun word).
Ok so I definitely feel like I could go on and on about little things in the Bible. "Little" used loosely... But anyway, this is about Matthew 26:47-56 or more specifically, verses 49 and 50, "Going at once to Jesus , Judas said, 'Greetings Rabbi!' and kissed him. Jesus replied, 'Friend, do what you came for.'"
Now Judas has a mob of people looking to kill Jesus behind him. And he has the audacity to come up to him, kiss him, and act like he loves him? Then Jesus calls him "friend."
Have you ever had a really close friend totally stab you in the back? Yea. Jesus had ONLY loved Judas. But enough people were jealous of him and hated him that they wanted to kill him. And Judas really liked money. So they bribed him. "Sure, I'll take 30 silver coins to show you where Jesus is. Nevermind the fact that you're going to kill the only person who has ever loved me unconditionally. Oh, and did I mention that He's GOD?" ...no.
And Jesus called him FRIEND? If someone did that to us we'd either punch them or leave. If someone hurts us, we hurt them back or leave them. Right? (But Jesus didn't!) it's just something to think about.
Ok, so another perspective: you are Judas. YOUR sins are why He came here in the first place. Risked His life. Because you lied, because you did whatever you did, you can no longer be with God. And He HATES that! He wants to be with you as much as someone who's in love wants to be with the beloved (actually, more)! So...He came here. He totally cleaned all sins you've ever done. EVERYTHING. Because He's just that powerful.
But again, think about the fact that it's our faults that He had to die. Had to be betrayed. Can you IMAGINE walking up to our LORD and GOD and BETRAYING Him? Well...we've probably done it. At least at some point in our lives. But He's willing to take the blame with His own blood so we can be with Him.
He loves us so much! Sometimes it's hard to believe. But if you just THINK about what He DID. He wouldn't have done that for anyone else but someone who He passionately loved!
He loves you.
You are loved.
Always.
:)

Things I Think

2011-06-02T21:03:00.001-07:00

I haven't written anything lately...well, here's one. And I guess it's not completely about God, but I just wanted to write it and get it out there.
Is it weird that when I'm getting a snack out of the pantry I wonder who wrote the stuff on the box, wonder about their story, and pray for them?
At dance I look at each individual person sometimes and am AMAZED that they all have such a detailed story...that no one knows every part of it but God, and that He knows ALL of theirs down to the last detail. And loves them ALL so powerfully...it blows me away.
I constantly wonder what it's like to see something from a different perspective. I only have my own. But if I'm in a group with two others, they see things SO much more differently than me. Even you, right now, whoever might read this...you have your own life. I have no idea where you are, what you're thinking, feeling, or seeing. And you have no idea from me either. Even as I write this I'm thinking so much more than I'm writing. What's it like to be you?
Sometimes I'll look at a car next to us and pray for the people and wonder how they're doing...
I constantly replay conversations in my head. Even from years ago. Sometimes I realize that when I was talking to the person something I said hit home and I had never noticed it. Sometimes I wish I could change what I said or how I said it. Sometimes I learn something new about them. Sometimes I realize that they were really agitated or worn out. Etc...
And sometimes I make up whole new convos with people. I use something they or I said, change what one of us replied, and go off on a whole new convo with them. In my mind of course.
Sometimes I'll smile for no apparent reason. It's because I'll be thinking about a memory and what the person said or did made me smile...sometimes just thinking about the person makes me smile. :)
Whenever I see a unlikely or strange picture I will look it over to see if it was edited and how well it was. Sometimes the shadows are off, sometimes the cutting isn't right or too sharp...and sometimes it's just because I don't see water moving around where a horse is supposedly standing like it would be if it really was there.
I think about how we all have a million different feelings, reactions, and memories tied to certain things. I just say "someone special" and you're thinking something COMPLETELY different from me...or maybe not so different, but definitely not the same.
"Stressful" soundtracks make me feel happy. Why? I don't know. I've been trying to figure it out. But I think it might be because I can be in my own little world...or because I can "control" how I'm feeling? But it's probably just cuz I really like the music...
When I see a dying petal, I want to know EXTREMELY DETAILED what is going on inside that petal. What's dying first, what chemical reactions are happening...
I analyze songs and figure out what the artist's worldview is...kinda. I more just figure out if this person really is morally straight, or if there's an icky hidden message in the song...then I normally won't listen to it.
I wonder how things work. How in the world does the Internet work? I think I've kinda figured it out...I think?
Oh there's so much more...if you actually read through it, I'm amazed. And impressed. Thanks :)

Easter

2011-04-26T10:09:00.001-07:00

All through the week before Easter I knew that I should be thinking about what Jesus did for me and that it should be affecting me, but it wasn't. I felt cold to it, even though I saw and heard others talking about it. Friday affected me none, I hardly thought about the cross; I felt bad, but wasn't willing to open myself up and take the time to think about it...
Then Sunday morning came. I still wasn't really thinking about it. But when we got to church and started singing...it changed. I was like, "Oh my goodness! The message of the cross is just SEEPED in HOPE and LOVE for us!"
So many of us are feeling hopeless. No one cares, we don't care, and there's nothing to live for; there's no hope. But when we take time to THINK about what Jesus did on the cross MEANS (which I encourage you to do)... Jesus —God— came down from the perfect life in heaven. He took on flesh that is limiting, especially compared to what he's used to. He became a baby who can do nothing and has to rely on others (people HE created!) to help it with the basics of life. Then He spent His life being loved and ridiculed, only to be stabbed in the back by His own friend, go through a mock trial, be neared beyond recognition (yikes) and spit upon, and be put through the most excruciating death. Because HE. LOVED. YOU. We know what it's like to not be loved! And hopefully you also know what it's like to love and be loved. It's a POWERFUL thing, and He loves YOU more than you can imagine. He CHOSE you. He made you exactly how He wanted and loves every little bit of you. Yes, even what you're thinking of right now. I know you're probably not taking this in or really believing it, but I really really hope you will... Because this is a message of HOPE. He has a plan for you. Everything you've gone through has brought you or will bring you closer to Him and has or will be used for good. Don't keep Him in a box and limit what He can do or how much He can love you. Open up and let Him in...enjoy His presence as much as He enjoys yours. For this is why He died. For YOU.

Lessons from a sprout

2011-04-11T10:59:00.000-07:00

I'm growing plants. Because I want a bunch on my deck. Yep.
And I've noticed something about them. They grow fast, but as soon as they get even a little bit off the ground, they fall over...and just kinda lay on the ground... :(
I was thinking about why they did this and realized that they didn't have any wind blowing on them or anything. They were growing fast, but they had nothing to make them stronger, so they just fell to the ground.
This illustrates a point. I'm forever getting impatient, wanting to grow faster. Grow to be more like Christ. And I get so discouraged when things come and I feel like I'm not growing at all.
But what if I grew? And I grew and grew and...fell. On the ground. And just stayed there. Because I had no strength to hold me up. I'd envy the other sprouts who were shorter but still standing up!
God sends trials in our lives to make us stronger. He sends wind, pouring water, no water, etc to strengthen us so that we can stand. Without those things, we'd eventually just fall.
Count your blessings, even the hard ones :)

Believe outside the box

2011-04-11T08:32:00.000-07:00

Do you put God in a box?
Probably.
Have you ever thought you weren't good enough, He couldn't possibly love you?
Have you ever thought that He couldn't forgive you because you've done too many things against Him?
Have you ever thought that even He thinks you're ugly?
Have you ever thought that you needed to do something to make Him fall head over heels for you?
You're putting Him in a box. I've put Him in a box. You're not the only one who's thought those things. Those are lies.
Have you ever realized that God isn't human? That He doesn't think like us? The more you look in the Bible, the more you realize that God doesn't do things how we do them.
The Israelites, His chosen people, the ones He rescued from Egypt, constantly backslid and did things against God. Gross things. They at some points even sacrificed their kids to a "god" named Baal. They, who had known many miracles to come from His hands, had deliberately disobeyed Him time and time again. So, He'd send prophets to warn them that if they didn't shape up, He'd punish them. Well, they never shaped up. But after they had been taken captive by one country or another, if they cried out to Him, He would ALWAYS rescue them. No matter what they had done. The point of the punishment was so that they would realize that they needed to cry out for Him, and He would save them.
What would a person do in that situation? They would probably just be done with the Israelites. They've disobeyed far too many times! Maybe even smoke them.
But that's NOT what God DOES! He always took them back! Even while they were in captivity Ge still took care of them! They may not have noticed, but looking back it is clearly seen.
So what does this have to do with you?
You have messed up, haven't you? You have lied to others, and to yourself. You have been nasty to people. You maybe have even done something "worse" (by the way, sleeping with someone is just as bad as a little white lie and vice versa). I bet you've even thought that He'd never want you. You're too dirty for Him to take. You're the one exception to His forgiveness.
Those. are. lies.
God isn't human! He gets over things. He forgives. He took care of everything on the cross before you were born! He knew you'd mess up, and He still made you. He's still wooing you. He has already forgiven you. Just run into His arms, beloved! You are loved. By God. The Creator of the stars. Don't put Him in a box by thinking He could never love you. Don't humanize Him by believing the lies that you could never be forgiven. Rebuke it. And run to Him.

The grass is always greener...

2011-04-11T08:06:00.000-07:00

So...have you ever wished you could be lazy like a cat or dog? Just lie around all day long...not caring about anything...I think a lot of us have. But do you ever think...what IF I really WAS like that? What would that actually be like?
I think we assume something else is better, and don't take time to realize that it's not all it's cracked up to be, and turn to God and THANK HIM for making us, well, us!
Do you realize that if we were—let's say a cat. Do you realize if you were a cat, you'd probably be bored? They don't normally go out of the house, and if they do, not very far from it to explore. No trips. No going to new places. Can they read? Nope, so they can't learn. That would annoy me. What you know is simply what you can figure out on your own without anyone else's knowledge to help out. People normally associate "learn" with "school" and turn their noses up on it but do you realize that cats also can't learn about other people (or cats)? They can't know their stories, or have chats and talk to the other one about their own. They just sit around and sleep. Relaxing? Boring. We find it such a novelty because we only get to on rare occasions. They find playing and using their energy and skill a novelty because they only can on rare occasions. They can't design a room, pick out a birthday card, plant flowers, brush their teeth, or even carry a book.
Why do we assume it'd be so great?
We need to think about what we say and believe. We so quickly assume something and don't even think that maybe it's not right. We always think the grass is greener over there and don't realize God put us over here for a REASON. Why? Because it's better right here! Even if the grass IS greener over there, maybe God's keeping us on a diet of some kind. It's not that crazy!
How did I get on this subject in the first place?
Because I looked at my cat sleeping on my bed and was jealous because I wanted to just sleep.
But God tapped me on the shoulder and made me realize that it's a blessing to be able to learn.
So my challenge: whenever you think the grass is greener over there, take a step back and realize that the grass is just fine where you are.

Psalm 107 &thoughts :)

2011-04-10T21:36:00.000-07:00

" 1 Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good;
   his love endures forever.
2 Let the redeemed of the LORD tell their story—
   those he redeemed from the hand of the foe,
3 those he gathered from the lands,
   from east and west, from north and south.[a]

4 Some wandered in desert wastelands,
   finding no way to a city where they could settle.
5 They were hungry and thirsty,
   and their lives ebbed away.
6 Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble,
   and he delivered them from their distress.
7 He led them by a straight way
   to a city where they could settle.
8 Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing love
   and his wonderful deeds for mankind,
9 for he satisfies the thirsty
   and fills the hungry with good things.

10 Some sat in darkness, in utter darkness,
   prisoners suffering in iron chains,
11 because they rebelled against God’s commands
   and despised the plans of the Most High.
12 So he subjected them to bitter labor;
   they stumbled, and there was no one to help.
13 Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble,
   and he saved them from their distress.
14 He brought them out of darkness, the utter darkness,
   and broke away their chains.
15 Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing love
   and his wonderful deeds for mankind,
16 for he breaks down gates of bronze
   and cuts through bars of iron.

17 Some became fools through their rebellious ways
   and suffered affliction because of their iniquities.
18 They loathed all food
   and drew near the gates of death.
19 Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble,
   and he saved them from their distress.
20 He sent out his word and healed them;
   he rescued them from the grave.
21 Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing love
   and his wonderful deeds for mankind.
22 Let them sacrifice thank offerings
   and tell of his works with songs of joy.

23 Some went out on the sea in ships;
   they were merchants on the mighty waters.
24 They saw the works of the LORD,
   his wonderful deeds in the deep.
25 For he spoke and stirred up a tempest
   that lifted high the waves.
26 They mounted up to the heavens and went down to the depths;
   in their peril their courage melted away.
27 They reeled and staggered like drunkards;
   they were at their wits’ end.
28 Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble,
   and he brought them out of their distress.
29 He stilled the storm to a whisper;
   the waves of the sea[b] were hushed.
30 They were glad when it grew calm,
   and he guided them to their desired haven.
31 Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing love
   and his wonderful deeds for mankind.
32 Let them exalt him in the assembly of the people
   and praise him in the council of the elders.

33 He turned rivers into a desert,
   flowing springs into thirsty ground,
34 and fruitful land into a salt waste,
   because of the wickedness of those who lived there.
35 He turned the desert into pools of water
   and the parched ground into flowing springs;
36 there he brought the hungry to live,
   and they founded a city where they could settle.
37 They sowed fields and planted vineyards
   that yielded a fruitful harvest;
38 he blessed them, and their numbers greatly increased,
   and he did not let their herds diminish.

39 Then their numbers decreased, and they were humbled
   by oppression, calamity and sorrow;
40 he who pours contempt on nobles
   made them wander in a trackless waste.
41 But he lifted the needy out of their affliction
   and increased their families like flocks.
42 The upright see and rejoice,
   but all the wicked shut their mouths.

43 Let the one who is wise heed these things
   and ponder the loving deeds of the LORD."
-Psalm 107

Do you see this? God saves. God loves. God goes out of His way to rescue the lost, His beloved. You might have completely gone against Him, you might honestly be terrible. But if you call out to Him with a humble heart, He will break open heaven to save you. If you trust Him He will do anything to get you out of the pit. Because no matter what you do, He loves you. He loves YOU. And when you let Him, He cleanses you and makes you spotless, pure, radiant, holy, righteous, perfect, unblemished, whole, white, HIS. His beautiful, beloved bride. Don't you see? He will never push you away. The only thing holding you back from Him is you...

"Surrender"

2011-04-05T21:45:00.000-07:00

This song was kind of a turning point in my faith a few years ago...not many people know that actually. Listened to it on the father/child retreat at covenant pines one night...and gave Him my dreams of owning a horse. I'd serve Him however He wanted, even if I couldn't have a horse...and He is faithful :) for now He has given me a new dream...a God-breathed dream to heal both horses and His children, and by His love and faithfulness it will happen someday. But whatever happens...I really hope I can honor Him in what I do.

"Surrender"

My hands hold safly to my dreams
Clutching tightly not one has fallen
So many years I've shaped each one
Reflecting my heart showing who I am
Now you're asking me to show
What I'm holding oh so tightly
Can't open my hands can't let go
Does it matter?
Should I show you?
Can't you let me go?

Surrender, surrender you whisper gently
You say I will be free
I know but can't you see?
My dreams are me. My dreams are me

You say you have a plan for me
And that you want the best for my life
Told me the world had yet to see
What you can do with one
That's committed to Your calling
I know of course what I should do
That I can't hold these dreams forever
If I give them now to You
Will You take them away forever?
Or can I dream again?

Rose

2011-03-29T21:54:00.000-07:00

Yea...I've been thinking of the rose analogy (Consider the Rose) quite a bit since wednesday... Especially with my white rose opening up and looking absolutely amazing. God keeps whispering...reminding me that I am even more beautiful than the rose...inside and out. Regardless of the thorns. But no one will see that or benefit from that if I don't open up...when a rose is closed, you only see a portion of the beauty. I want to open up...for His sake. I want to show people what He is like rather than keep hiding because of the fear of being unwanted, rejected—found to be of little value or annoying. So yes...with the encouragement from my little rose and from God, I'm going to try to open up more. Because so few people know the real me. And hopefully, through it, they can at least catch a glimpse of the love of my God.

In His Presence

2011-03-29T13:15:00.000-07:00

When we're in the presence of God...
We come as merely human. Merely flesh and bone. Imagine...a body. Your body. The skin is formed of our "glories": the good things we've done. The things we think we've done on our own. But in the presence of God...it is so small. It just blows away. The mask blows away...and reveals the ugliness within us. The charred bones, and all the grossness of our sins and mistakes...but we are still in the presence of God, and He reaches out and asks to take it all away. We're terrified, what would be left of us? We don't want to change... But if we trust Him and willingly give it to Him...it goes away. Our sins are taken away. And as we stand in His presence we realize...He starts transforming us. Making us anew. Can you imagine? We start to glow in His glory. Our hearts reflect Him who we stand before and they are absolute, pure gold. But we don't revel in ourselves, we revel in the majesty of He who can transform people like us! He who loves us and cares for us even when we leave Him! He chose us so that He could bring us peace, joy, love... All we did was trust and have faith.

Come...

2011-03-21T21:32:00.001-07:00

Come to Me, My child. This love is joyous, wont you dance with Me? I will do anything to bring you close to Me. I will woo you, I will scare you, whatever it takes to draw you to Me because of My huge love for you. Come, walk in step with Me. Be in my presence; heaven starts here. Let the worries of life, the choking of religion, the weight of sin roll off your back. Rest in the shade with Me and just drink in My overwhelming love for you. I will never let you go. You are Mine, and I love you. Talk to Me, and listen to Me speak to you; I have so much to tell you. Don't wander from Me, you will not find the satisfaction you are searching for. Come...I am here

Grace; forgiveness; love; trust

2011-03-15T21:33:00.000-07:00

So today I got home and was all excited because I wanted to go on a walk with my little sister and was pretty sure she'd be excited too. Well, she has some work pages to do and I go into my room to grab her some gum that I know she likes for her to chew on while she finishes. I open the container...and half of it's already gone. Only about 3 pieces should have been missing. So I asked her about it. She said she didn't do it. There has been many times when she's come in my room and eaten things, used things, moved things, etc, and I've told her again and again not to. Apparently it hasn't worked. I figured out she was lying, and my parents said that she had to write sentences; so she did. Needless to say I was disappointed in her for not only stealing from me again, but lying about it- again. I told her that God didn't want her to do that, that her friends wouldn't be able to trust her if she lied even just to people in her family, and that we do what is right because we love God, and we love our family. Stealing and lying doesn't show people that you love them.
In any case, we didn't go on a walk, to my disappointment. She wrote me a note though, under Mom's instruction, and asked if I'd forgive her and that she was sorry. She was asleep by the time I got home to see it on my bed, so I'll talk to her about it tomorrow :)
...What is the point of all this? Well, I realized what God feels like when His children lie and cheat and steal. He loves them —us—; He's disappointed in us, especially with how many other times He's forgiven us. It hurts Him...He knows it's not good for us. But same as I've forgiven my sister (praise God; I'm thankful He helped me to forgive her so easily), He forgives us- over and over again. GLADLY. Our sins pull us away from Him, and He doesn't want that. He wants us to be close. He loves us. And there is nothing we can do to make Him stop loving us. He will always forgive us. Is there something(s) you think are impossible for Him to forgive? You've messed up too much, He won't take you back now; it's not worth it. I've seen this mindset eat away at my friend, and myself at times. It is a LIE. There is NOTHING my little sister could do to make me refuse to forgive her if she asked; and even if she didn't ask. There is NOTHING you can do that His sacrifice cannot cover: that is demeaning His power. I think a lot of times we're just afraid to really fess up to it. To give it over to Him and go on; to let go. The guilt becomes part of us, and we don't want to change. But is it worth it? Is separation from your King, possibly for eternity, worth holding on to guilt that causes you pain anyway, when He could take it all away? Let go. He will remove it from you as far as the east is from the west. He's got you, and He'll never let go. He loves you :)

Ps. If you ever need to talk about something, let me know. I'm here, and I love to listen and just be a friend. :)

Job IX-XV

2011-03-14T21:37:00.001-07:00

"Though He slay me, yet I will hope in Him"
You read through these chapters...and you're just torn. What? God isn't like this. Satan is doing this to you, not God. You make God sound terrible. And although at the end God says Job is wrong about it, it's still incredible that Job can say all this, and then say, "Though He slay me, yet I will hope in Him." And although I could go on saying how amazing Job is, all the glory really belongs to God. You hear that you cannot do anything without Him, but I admit that for a long time I was like, "God didn't make me or help me eat, God didn't move my hands to play piano," etc and I knew that I was probably missing something, but I couldn't find an answer so I arrogantly thought that I could do things on my own. Well, turns out I'm wrong and that hey, God could take away the air, and I wouldn't breath anymore, much less run. And hey, if He let the earth crumbled in for some reason, I would be no more: no more eating as well. So I really can't do anything apart from Him, and neither could Job. Because God is amazing :) and in control of absolutely everything, even though we like to think we can be in control.

"I am God"

2011-03-09T20:52:00.000-08:00

Be still and know that I am God.
Who is this God, that we should be still before Him?
He is the God who makes mountains bow. He is the God who can speak something into existence. He is the God who can shatter waves with a breath, who carries birds in the air, who pulls the waves back into the sea. He is the God to whom all creation cries out to, to whom the stars sing for, to whom hearts bloom. He clothes lilies in finery and holds every sparrow in His hands. He holds hands steady and the moon in place. He is the God who is holy, beyond what we can comprehend. He is the God that is love, with absolutely limitless bounds. He is the author of history, the changer of hearts. The is the God who closed the door of the ark and opens the doors of opportunity for us. He has no beginning and no end, He sustains the very breath of life. He wraps Himself in light while darkness trembles at His voice. How great is He? Everything made by Him sings His praises. From the stalk of grass with intricate cells to the ocean waves which only the moon can control. HE can hold a moon beam and catch a wave. HE can spin the earth and fire the sun. He has made galaxies for us to wonder over and has made only our planet absolutely perfect for life. He knows what is written in every book in all of time before it is written, and so, so much more. In His imagination He created every fish of the sea. In His power He created the whale that spouts torrents of water out of it's head. Oh what a God we serve. Oh what a God that has made Himself known to us. OH what a GOD who would LOVE us so much as to DIE in our place, though we deserved the very punishment He received. Oh what a glorious God. No words could ever begin to properly describe Him. I really hope there's another language in heaven, that we can properly express what we feel with. But then, maybe that'd be too easy. Maybe God was never meant to be captured by human words, but was rather meant to capture human hearts. He loves you. Just sayin'. This God of the universe loves you. I really hope you know that...

Love letter

2011-03-09T18:16:00.000-08:00

You know, I kinda wish that God would write me a letter. Like, to me. You know, to Batya, love God? I know the Bible has been called God's love letter, but it's not exactly in the traditional form of a letter.
...But isn't that kind of the point? God doesn't do things how we do. He does things way cooler. When was the last time your lover wrote HISTORY to tell you how much they love you? When was the last time your friend, the person you like, your bf/gf or spouse wrote a huge book that spanned a couple thousand years to tell you how much they love you, and lovingly show you what's best for you by examples of others? Oh, by the way, they've been planning this out for you since before you were born. Since before the WORLD was made. They were thinking of you.
Ps. They also made the flowers and the sunrise to show you how much they love you.
Oh, and pps. you've rejected them, spurned them, and are COMPLETELY and UTTERLY unworthy of them.
And yet He pursues you.
THIS is the ultimate love letter.
Or better yet, the ultimate love story.

Lamentations 3:22-23

2011-03-06T20:12:00.000-08:00

"Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness." -Lamentations 3:22-23

This is written by a guy who has spent 40 years warning his people that they needed to turn towards God. This is written by a guy who has seen the destruction of his city and the captivity of his entire people.

"Because of the Lord's great love we are NOT consumed, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness."

This is written by the prophet Jeremiah who was abused, threatened, and jeered at because of his courage to tell his people they needed to repent. This is written by the prophet Jeremiah who has seen everything he predicted happen all around him; destruction, chaos, defeat.

"Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for His compassions NEVER fail. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness."

This is written by a man who has spent the last week weeping. This is written by a man who has been sobbing as he's been writing.

"Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail. They are new EVERY morning; great is Your faithfulness."

This is written by someone who has found his joy in God. This is written by someone who knows that God heals and restores, and that He only punishes because it is the only way to bring His sheep back to Him.

"Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; GREAT is Your faithfulness."

And fifty years later under Zerubbabel, led by the hand of God, they were restored to their land.

"Because of the Lord's great love we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness."

Terrible, tragic, painful things happen in our lives, but we are not consumed because of God's love for us. His GREAT love. But He is there in the struggles; we are not alone. Turn to Him, for great is His faithfulness.

"Pain is real, but God can heal."

Job VI-VIII

2011-02-28T22:13:00.001-08:00

What I'm starting to understand is that people don't seem to be in line with the Bible about a couple things...one major one is shown in Job. He is upright; so much so that God is showing him off to satan. And yet calamity strikes him. It's a huge blow, and all his friends say it's because he did something wrong, when in fact, something quite opposite has occurred.
Depending on the person, people still conclude that if you're upright and walking how God wants you to, good things happen. And if you're not, bad things happen. But not only does Job disprove this, but Psalms often does as well.
That doesn't mean that if you're wicked life will be great and if you're righteous life will be terrible. I think both things happen to both people. God uses trials for a variety of things: to test us, to grow us, and to bring us closer to Him are just a few. I'm sure He has more reasons. But whatever the reason, it is always good. God wants what is best for us.
Another thing that doesn't exactly go with Job, but still something I've been learning is that God does send the hard times sometimes... I've grown up hearing that God doesn't make bad things happen, but rather, let's them happen. I'd like to argue that while sometimes that's the case, as in Job, I do believe that He causes bad things to occur occasionally... This is not to say He does evil or bad things. By no means. But if you read through the prophets and other such old testament books, God does bring judgement. He makes the things happen. But what you must realize is that He always does it for good. He wants His children to cry out for Him and to be saved, and they need to not live in comfort for that to happen generally. Another thing is that He is a just God, and before Jesus, He often dealt with punishment for sins while someone was on earth. Now...this seems contradictory to what I said earlier...but the thing is that we have to be purged of our sins to be close to Him. And therefore things need to be dealt with. He wants to know us, be friends with us. But He is also our Father, and as a loving father has to correct his son, though it pains him to, God punishes His children with just as much pain as a father would.
I realize I'm treading on thin ice with all this, because I'm not very articulate with words and getting my point across as well as say, a theologian might be. But maybe it'll make sense to someone and help them. And if it does, I have one more thing to mention before I fall asleep: people look around and see bad things and conclude that if there is a God, He cannot be loving. And while I have a whole lot to say about that, and I may cover it another time, what I want to say now is this: we don't deserve anything but hell. We cannot demand or expect the royalty treatment by God. But rather than scorn us all and send us sinners to hell, God forgives, and loves, and is continually patient and faithful. Bad things happen, but many times it is the bad that makes us search for the good.

Proverbs

2011-02-26T20:58:00.000-08:00

He who covers over an offense promotes love. -Prov. 17:9

A friend loves at all times. Prov. 17:17

The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe. Prov. 18:10

A man's wisdom gives him patience; it is to his glory to overlook an offense. Prov. 19:11

What a man desires is unfailing love. Prov. 19:22

The purpose of a man's heart are deep waters, but the man of understanding draws them out. Prov. 20:5

Better is open rebuke than hidden love. Prov. 27:5

Wounds from a friend can be trusted. Prov. 27:6

As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another. Prov. 27:17

Job VII-V

2011-02-22T21:10:00.000-08:00

You know...I don't really know what to think of this. Job is definitely hurting. But he's wrong when he says the grave is rest...though, maybe before Christ came people's souls WERE dead- 'til He came anyway. But, after Him now we either go to heaven or hell.
What Eliphaz says is shown to be wrong when you get to the end of Job and God says they were all wrong. But what confuses me is that he sounds like what Solomon and others say in Proverbs...and those are right, right?
I suppose it depends on the situation. And clearly in Job's he WAS blameless and things came to test him. But there are natural consequences for the wicked.
I guess these chapters have more questions than I have answers for...but we'll keep reading, and see what we find :)

Ancient Israel and Modern America

2011-02-21T11:06:00.000-08:00

In the Old Testament God asked His people to be holy. Set apart. Different from the other nations around them. He told them not to offer their babies to Baal. He told them not to be sexually immoral. He told them to love others. He told them to take care of the poor.
Many times in Israel's history they got distracted by other cultures and turned away from God. Their faith was weak. They were not holy and blameless in His sight. They didn't even try. Rather, they did what was "right in their own eyes."
What has our culture become? The pilgrims landed here and even said they felt like Moses looking at the Promise Land. Our country was based on God and honoring Him. Being holy.
What is our country like now? God's "New Israel" is sacrificing babies to the God of self-image. We have become sexually immoral in countless ways. We have no regard for the poor or widows and instead expect other people to take care of them, if we think about it at all. We are self-centered. We lack self-control and wisdom. We get drunk and high and ruin God's temple by smoking. We have turned away from God. Christians follow the trends of the culture around us, being concerned with how we look more than how He sees us. We turn a blind eye to the hurting people who cut and starve themselves because we're too concerned about getting new things, passing tests, worshipping sports, and pleasing ourselves- even though we never seem to be pleased.
Why have we abandoned our God? He is slow to anger, abounding in faithfulness and love, and we repay Him by saying He doesn't exist, He didn't create the world, He didn't raise from the dead to save us, and even if He does exist, He must not be a loving God because He let's these things happen. Who's fault are these things? They're our own. All of us. For abandoning Him. He promises joy and peace when we love Him but we're not willing to love an invisible Creator. Even when He became flesh we wouldn't accept Him because He was humble and was born in a cave with stinky animals. We mocked Him. We ourselves, even in this day in age, put Him on the cross with every single one of our sins. But He did it willingly. Because He loves us. He still does. No matter what we do.
No matter how many times Israel turned away from God He always took them back and blessed them.
No matter how far our country goes away from Him He will always take us back. And He will take us back individually too. Because His love is real. He proved that with the nails that went through His hands and feet.
Will you love Him too?

Job II

2011-02-19T20:49:00.000-08:00

Hello again :)
So on to Job two... The beginning of it starts out the same as the first chapter. Job is STILL blameless and God still says "have you seen My servant Job?" Satan replies, and you can tell he's agitated from being wrong, that of course Job is still blameless, you haven't done anything to his body! I think many of us would have cursed God from taking everything from us...but Job didn't. And so Satan has to try harder. He goes and gives Job sores all over his body. And on top of that, he has to listen to his wife who tells him to curse God and die.
I think this guy is going through a lot.
But then he says yet another profound thing. He says, "Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?"
Do you realize what he's saying here? What he's not only saying, but living out? He trusts God. That God knows what He's doing. And he knows that God has a plan, and therefore Job is going to stick it out and love God anyway.
Who does that? Not many people. Our culture tells us, even from a young age, "if this person doesn't benefit you anymore, or is hurting you, you shouldn't be friends with them [much less love them.]" That's not what God says! God loves us even though we constantly hurt Him. And He asks us to do the same for His beloved children that we encounter. We aren't here for ourselves, we're here to serve and bring God glory. And boy did Job bring God glory in all this!
Another thing I think is cool is Job's friends. Even though they eventually start saying that he did things wrong and almost get kind of nasty tirades him, they travel a ling way to comfort him. I think they were wise when they offered their silent comfort most though; it's nice to be around friends and have a comfortable silence. Sometimes things don't need to be said. But, there's always times when things do.

Job I

2011-02-18T21:17:00.000-08:00

I'm reading through Job, and have had quite a lot of thoughts on it, so I figured I'd blog about it :)

In the first chapter of Job, a lot happens. Read it for yourself (maybe you could read along with me)! It starts out telling how Job was blameless, and really rich. All his animals and kids showed that back then he had a LOT of wealth. As it says, he was the greatest man of all the eastern people.
But one day Satan comes to God and God's like, "Haven't you noticed Job? He would do anything for me; he is blameless." Can you imagine God saying something like that to you? And yet someday He will! In fact, I bet He already does, for we have been purified by the blood.
But so Satan doesn't believe God (not a good place to be. You're always going to lose) and God suggests that they see who is right and let's Satan do whatever he wishes to everything but Job. So, four servants run up breathless to Job reporting that everything is gone from one way or another and they are the only ones left. Can you IMAGINE? EVERYTHING being taken away, including all your kids. And yet Job says, "The Lord has given and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised."
Wow. He just had everything taken away from him, and he still praises God. That's incredible. I mean really, you might be going "yea, whatever" but REALLY. Do you want to have everything taken away from you and see if you still praise God? I pray that you could. But it'd sure be hard.
More coming :)

Our Great God

2011-01-31T21:30:00.000-08:00

If you were a king with absolute authority and power, would you step down to become weak, powerless, spit on, and tortured, for people that didn't know you, and wanted you dead? I don't think I would.
Think about this. God is wholly in charge of EVERYTHING (not just a kingdom, not just a country, a continent, or even just the world, but the UNIVERSE), can do whatever He wants, has the most absolute power... And He became human. A baby. He went from being more powerful than we can imagine, to a baby that could do nothing, but required it's mother and father to keep it alive. THINK ABOUT THAT. If you were that powerful, would you want to be hindered by being a human, and what's more, a baby? But that's not all. (By the way, you really should STOP reading, and think about that...)

That's not all. He was mocked. Jeered at. Called a liar. Called SATAN. Spit on. Ignored. Abandoned by His twelve best friends. Betrayed by one for money. Had his skin ripped open. His body bruised. And eventually hung naked on a cross and died.
This is GOD we're talking about. And He took it willingly.
And who did this to Him? The very ones who He came to save. The ones who condemned Him were the ones worshipping in HIS house. The ones who said they were praying to Him. And they condemned Him to die?! And He took it?? He didn't just smite them and make everyone believe that He is God then and there?
No, He loved us so much that He finished what He came to do, and died.
For us.
In our place.
Do you realize what happened there? We should have that done to us and worse because of our sin. We willingly go against what God lovingly says is best for us, and He takes the punishment for us? Do you understand? He went through all that because He loved you. Even before you loved Him. Even if you absolutely hate Him. He still loves you. Even when you mess up. You can't mess up so badly that what He did on the cross is void and doesn't work for you anymore. His sacrifice covers everything, and He keeps loving you. Did I mention that He rose from the dead? Until the last year or so I was all "whoop-de-do, He's God, of course He rose from the dead, shouldn't we focus more on the death that He died for us?" And then it struck me, that if He hadn't risen again, He wouldn't really be the God that we serve. He would be...well, not nearly as awesome. Our God is a GREAT God.

What should we do?

2011-01-25T08:02:00.000-08:00

God doesn't want us to just "do good"! For the letter kills (2 Cor 3:6) and mans righteousness is like filthy rags to God (Isaiah 64:6). So what does He want? If we can't do anything to be "better," if it's all Christ's power in us (2 Cor 12:9), if we are NOTHING without Him (John 15:5), what do we have to give God? to honor Him? What could we possibly do, if even our very righteousness is like filthy rags to the Lord and if everything we do is counted as garbage (Phil 3:8)??
Well, what did Jesus do?
He didn't follow the law how the Jews thought the law was, for one. For two, He went around ministering to people. Simply loving them. Creating a relationship with them. Healing their hearts as well as their bodies.
What else did Jesus do? (For that is why He came, to show us how to live)
Jesus had a relationship with the Father. Did you catch that? Jesus had a RELATIONSHIP with God the Father. Didn't He say that the greatest commandment was to "love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your mind, and with all your strength" (Matthew 22:37)? What would you do for someone that you loved with EVERYTHING in you?! Well, that's something to think about. Honestly, we all express our love differently. But I would write them notes, I would probably draw them things, I might give them flowers, give them a hug, listen to them... How do I give God a hug then? Well... "whatever you do for the least of these, you do for Me" (Matt. 25:40). So someone who isn't really liked by everyone, or isn't really high up on the social status, would probably be “the least of these.” You might be friends with those people; you might even feel like you're one of those people. He also said, "And whoever welcomes a child in My name welcomes Me" (Matt. 18:5).
What does God want from us? Why did He Himself willingly die on a cross for sinful humans?
Because He wants a relationship with us. He so desperately wants to get to know us, be our friend (John 15:15)! He would die for us to let that happen.
Focus on Him. Don't worry so much about "doing things right." Focus on getting to know Him; serving others in His name. The more we get to know Him, the more we are like Him, and will smell of Christ's aroma to Him (2 Cor. 2:15).
Get to know Him, He's waiting with His arms wide open :) and He'll never let you go (Deut. 31:6).

What is love?

2011-01-02T22:06:00.001-08:00

What is love?
Love is the antonym of selfishness. Love is going the extra mile for someone even when they've done nothing but hurt or harm you. Love is not only putting up with someone, but valuing them for who God made them. Love is caring about details the other person cares about. Love is total selflessness in the eye of a selfish world. Love is compassion working itself out in actions. Love is protecting the weak, and even sometimes the strong. Love is trusting, even when it hurts. Love is giving of yourself to raise another up. Love is the heartbeat of God working itself through our souls, minds, and hands. Love is the power that all things live on. Love is the overwhelming emotion of forgiveness, acceptance, peace, and gentleness. Love doesn't fade with age, nor does it die with the body. Love does not weaken in the face of adversity, rather it grows stronger, blooming ever more with each breath. Love is the verb that heals hearts, binds up wounds, restores souls, and builds up the beaten down. Love is the force that breaks down walls. Love is the flame that melts stone hearts. Love doesn't have anything to do with boasting, being rude or proud, thinking better of oneself, or complaining. Love asks everything of oneself without expecting anything in return. Love never, ever fails. What is love? Love is God Himself in motion.

Blessed be the name...

2010-12-29T20:11:00.000-08:00

Why do I ever doubt Him? Doubt that He loves me? Doubt that He's there for me? Doubt that He'll pull through?
Today was just an off day. I felt blah and eh and...yep, that pretty much describes it. I wished bed time could come sooner because I didn't want to sit around all night feeling sorry for myself. And to add onto that, I realized afresh how much I wanted a horse and how far away I was from ever leasing, owning, or riding one. Nothing BAD actually happened. I went shopping this morning, had nothing to stress me out, and got to go to see The Voyage of the Dawn Treader as well. But yea, I was still having a bad day.
ANYWAY, why didn't I even consider the possibility that He'd pull through? I think He likes surprises just as much as my four friends do :)
I'm playing piano and my whole family is looking at me (odd) and I can FEEL someone next to me. I finally give up playing the song (after making a good amount of blunders) and turn around and there are four of my good friends! So we had a really awesome night together playing reverse apples to apples and just hanging out.
Again, why did I doubt God?
He WANTS us to be happy. He created enjoyment.
Even when I'm pissing and moaning to Him about how bad my day is going, He loves me so much that He gives me a night I never would have expected.
Praise God, who knows love as a verb :)

Why can't we see God?

2010-12-18T20:58:00.000-08:00

Why can't we see God?
First thing that pops to mind is the fact that we would die if we saw Him. So, He's really doing what's best for us by not letting us see Him...
Why would we die if we saw Him? Because we have sinned. God meant for us to see Him, but with sin in our DNA, we simply can't. God can not be defiled even by the sight of sinful eyes. And we are all responsible for our sin, it is impossible to say that it's not our fault. So because of this, we can't see God.
If God made us to see Him, that implies that to see Him is good. And if it is good, it's what God wants. So contrary to what we might think, God WANTS us to see Him. It pains Him that we can't.
So, we cant see God because we are sinful. But He wants us to be able to... So much so, that He came to earth in the humblest of ways (He, who has all the power in the world) and died to atone for our sinfulness. Because of this, we can accept His gift. And when we do, He promises that we will be able to see Him. Not in this life, with our still sinful eyes, but in the life to come, when He has made us pure.
Kinda makes up for not being able to see Him now, even if it is hard right now. :)

What a lie.

2010-10-24T17:48:00.000-07:00

So, I went to camp this weekend. It was a total blast. I LOVE camp. But I realized some things about myself and about God this weekend that hopefully will get my relationship with Him back on track...
I went to camp bitter. Towards people, life, and God. I had been pushing God away. Deciding that He wasn't helping, so I didn't want to try.
What a lie.
Over the summer I started believing that I wasn't someone that people actually enjoyed being around. I didn't think people thought I was worth listening to. At least not most people; there were those few amazing people that I was amazed would talk to me. But still, I had been treated like I didn't matter, and I believed it.
What a lie.
But God got through to me during worship at camp... He DID care. He DID love me. And I WAS wanted and appreciated. And He didn't even have to think twice about it, He just DID. So much that He DIED for me so that I didn't have to. So much that He rose again to show me that He had power over ALL things, even the power of death; even all the stuff going on in my life. What had I been doing in response to this passionate, real love towards me?
Believing the lie that it wasn't real, and even if it was, it didn't matter.
So I realized how crazy I was. How messed up my thinking was. How bitter I had become.
And how pure, and full, and passionate, and real His love was for me.
And how so very much I wanted Him to control my life again, how much I wanted Him to love me, how much I wanted to love Him back.
It was freeing. Realizing that He loved me as me. Realizing I was spotless in His eyes. Realizing how much He wanted me. Realizing how much I wanted to give Him glory and live for Him.

Satan will always be throwing lies at us. John 10:10 says that he's out to kill us. Don't let that miserable piece of junk get to your head. He'll always try. But you are not junk. You are not ugly. You're not unwanted. You are Gods child who He paid the price to get. You. Are. Loved.

Sometimes...

2010-10-12T21:20:00.001-07:00

Sometimes confusion reigns, and we can't move a single step for fear of going the wrong way. It takes over, creating fear and pain in our lives... Or do pain and fear create confusion? Or do they all come together?
And sometimes, we become numb, because to be numb is better than to feel pain. But to become numb to pain also numbs us to love... And love is something we can't heal without.
So we cry out. We cry out to God, to anyone, to love us. To save us. To protect us. Because we can't do it alone. We can't do it at all.
And He listens, as tears fill His holy eyes. He cries for us, because He felt that pain... He knows what it's like. To feel unwanted, to feel unloved, to feel unworthy... He knows. He, the King of everything, who had an unfathomably better life than we, came to earth. He endured the pain. And why?
To show us that we're loved
To be there for us
To listen
To cry with us
To hold us in His tender arms and whisper that you are everything He ever wanted...
To get into the dirtiness of our lives and offer to take it away, free of charge; though it cost Him His very life.
That is how much He loves you
He always listens. He always cares. But He does not always take away the hurt; not yet. Because He knows...He knows that we need hurt to grow. He knows when we are broken, that is when we are truely beautiful. That when we are weak is when we are strong.
Sometimes...
Winter. Hard, cold, cruel. Even what appears to be beautiful can prove to be cold. But winter never lasts... No, first there is a thaw. And the thaw can look even worse than the winter itself. But wait, wait child. God knows what He's doing. For after the thaw, green starts to spring up. And not only green, but other colors as well. Winter does not last forever. It may come again, but there is always spring, and summer will always follow.
Sometimes... God brings about an unexpected spring. And it is just FULL of joy, and love, and peace... Full of who He is.
Sometimes... We're so wrapped up in winter that we despair that spring will come again. But it will, for look child, God knows what He is doing.

"Simple"

2010-09-18T21:14:00.001-07:00

Even just the "simplest" things God created (light, water, etc) are so complex. If you know anything about light and water (or anything else He's created) it's just... Amazing to think about. I apologize if you know nothing about light, water, or anything like that, but you should look it up if you don't. Because it's amazing. And puts me in utter awe of who God is and how much detail He has put into everything that we never even think about.

No matter what

2010-09-18T21:06:00.001-07:00

I'm not going to leave you. No matter how hard you tried to get rid of me, no matter how you messed up, no matter how badly you wanted me to stop loving you, I wouldn't. If you don't know that, you don't know me. As far as I know, it is impossible for me to be able to stop loving you.
This is all very true of me. But what I just realized, is that God is telling me the same thing! (And obviously this means that He's telling you this as well)
So when I have friends that are like, "WHY do you keep loving me?" and such, I'm just like, "Duh I love you! It's pretty much impossible for me not to!" regardless of what they've done/are doing or whatever.
Well, I've said to God before, "Why do You love me? I don't get it. I hurt You over and over again as well as Your children and You're crazy enough to still love me?!" I can only imagine what His reaction is to me. He, who loves far more than I am ever able to.

Hurt and anger

2010-09-15T21:23:00.001-07:00

Correct me if you think I'm wrong, but I'm really starting to think that anger covers up hurt. Whenever someones mad or just talking rudely, it has seemed to me like they're doing it because they're hurt. Now not always is this the case; I realize that. But really, most people would rather get mad and potentially hurt the other person rather than feel vulnerable and admit to being hurt. Or, it's a way to express that your hurt. Depending on the situation and such... But what do you think? Ever gotten mad at someone and if you look back it was because you were hurt or to protect yourself from getting hurt? Let me know.

All His

2010-09-08T20:52:00.001-07:00

Something I figured out today...well, everything is God's right? So then if I'm given a compliment... That's really a compliment to God. All praise goes straight to Him really (which is pretty sweet). But the thing is, if I don't give Him credit, I'm just a fool. I'm fooling myself to think that any praise is really for me. But at the same time, whatever He is mirrors in me, and therefore it's not that I'm terrible and can't do anything, but I can do that because of God, and showing how great God is in a way shows who I am.
Simplified: all praise is His. If I don't give Him credit, I am only fooling myself.
That's pretty cool to me.

Praise God...

2010-09-07T20:40:00.001-07:00

Praise God...

He is

2010-09-05T19:50:00.001-07:00

His face and stature is not explained by how large His eyes nor the positioning of His chin. He is described by the power etched in His stillness, the gentleness flowing from His touch, His majesty cried from the earth, the love pouring for His eyes... His feet show the swiftness of youth; His words the wisdom of old. His lips sing love songs to His people, and His hands lovingly reach out to them. His arms embrace us; His grace surrounds us. He cannot be explained by comparisons to earthly things. He is God, the beginning and the end. He always was, always is, and always will be.
And He has chosen you to be His beloved.
Do you accept?

Eyes

2010-09-03T21:11:00.001-07:00

When we get to heaven...what will it be like?
We talked a lot about this in my youth groups Bible study for a couple of weeks. And one topic that popped up is how people would look in heaven... Would our glorified bodies look different? Would we all look beautiful to our standards?
I think that instead of our whole bodies looking different I think that our eyes will be different... So that we see everyone as God does: beautiful.

Love

2010-08-27T06:17:00.001-07:00

I've been worrying a lot. Wondering if I'll ever find someone who's in love with me, not just someone that I'm in love with. Seeing my friend be totally in love with his girlfriend and it changing him. I worry that I won't want to deal with it a few years into the marraige. I've been viewing it without the joy and affection that God has designed to accompany it. I've been dreading marrying, but dreading being single. I've become apprehensive of this thing called love. Not knowing if it exists. All I hear is love stories and perfect endings; I'm far too realistic to accept that idea. So then without realizing it I go to the other extreme; taking for granted there won't be affection and love.
This is WRONG. This is not how God designed it to be! But one of the major problems is our culture's use of the phrase being "in love." What is it to be in love? To have all those feelings for the other person and have them returned? That's an infatuation. That's affection. Neither lasts... But after all this time of saying love and Love are two different things, I propose that they are not. That they might possibly be the same thing... Loving someone so much that you do crazy things for them. So that you act. It's not simply a feeling: it's an action. It's what you'll do, and refrain doing for someone. A friend loves at all times... I want to marry my best friend. If infatuation comes along with it, MAJOR bonus. If it doesn't, love is plenty enough. But infatuation and affection seems to come along with love... And when love is before the affection, the affection becomes more realistic and wise. When you love someone, and they love you back, you can just smile knowing that they're there. You can smile doing things for them. You can smile when you are about to make a nasty comment, stop, and realize that you love them too much to hurt them with the poison of the tongue. THIS is true love. When it becomes more about the other person and less about yourself. When you can just rest in their presence knowing you can let all your walls down and trust them completely and that they will ALWAYS love you. Regardless of the petty or not so petty fights you get in. When trials come, you have an opportunity to grow closer to God. Because trials will come. Happy endings don't mean the road to the end is happy. But with your best friend at your side to have your back and walk through the rough stuff the end is glorious. When life on earth ends and His world begins, it is glorious. And you got to enjoy the ride with the love of your life and your best friend.
This makes me REALLY happy :)

God is the center

2010-08-25T19:01:00.001-07:00

Something I want to bring up is how life is all about God. But while I've been thinking about it, I've decided there's (at least) two parts to it. The first is that God is more important than us, He is the focal point of the entire universe. The second is that even when we mess up (over and over again) His sacrifice for us and He Himself is who the focus should be on, not how terrible we are and on what we've done.
I'm going to cover the second point first because I've got more thoughts already prepared in my mind for it... When we sin, mess up, or really just anything bad happens, we tend to focus on how terrible we are or whatever we did was. Thoughts plauge us like, "I always mess everything up," "I'm not ever going to be good enough," "I ruin people's lives," "How can anyone Love me?" "No one should be around me or I'll mess them up too," it goes on and on... Realize, that's satan. When you or I let those thoughts stay in our heads and hearts, we are giving satan a major foothold and shoving God out of the way. We're also saying we know better than God. I'm not pointing fingers, I do this as well... But He died to save us from our sins. He went through all that, and we think that we can say He won't forgive us? Can't? That's an insult... He is looking at you with Love pouring from His eyes and forgiveness laced in the blood flowing from His hands and side... And you think that He can't or won't forgive you or Love you? That you're not good enough? Well, I suppose that the point of what I'm saying is that it doesn't matter if you're good enough. The focal point is that He IS good. And He is powerful and Loving. It's not about what you've done, it's who He is. It's not about who you are, but what He's done. The law -which shows us what sin is- is death Paul says to the Galations. Sin is death. But God has died FOR US. So we no longer have to live in fear and guilt! HE has set you free. It's about Him, because He is bigger than your sins, your mistakes, your guilt, your problems, and your life. He is bigger.
Ok so the second point which was really the first...is that He is the center of life in the world and the universe; we are incredibly blessed that He cares about us... And sometimes I honestly don't understand it. I don't understand why He would spend time on me. But I just have to trust Him to know best, let Him Love me, and Love Him back for it... But anyway, He obviously is the center. Not you. Not me. If we're too busy thinking about how terrible we are, or how we've gotten in the way of God's plans (uh, hello, don't think He can be hindered by us... But I've had that thought before.), we're not giving Him the praise, honor, and credit due to Him. We're too busy thinking about ourselves! Yes, I really do know what it's like to be in that situation and think only of myself. I do it. But I'm telling you (and myself) that we need to focus on Him... That's when the joy happens. That's how He designed our lives to be, and when we get priorities out of order, of course we feel messed up and overwhelmingly confused. But He's still there. his arms are open wide for you to run back to Him. He's not going to point out everything wrong you ever did; that was taken care of on the cross. He Loves you.He's worth your trust. And He's never going to leave you.
...Wish I could end it right there. But I just want to say a few more things. What I just wrote about is... Well, I wrote about God, and how He's the center. In the same way, this belief is a core belief when we follow Him... It will change how you think; if you allow it to. It will also change how you face trials, and pretty much every aspect of your life. God is the center. He makes everything work out for the good of those who Love Him.

See-Saw

2010-08-22T16:56:00.001-07:00

He never means for us to feel comfortable...
When I'm going through a rough spot I feel and know I need to get closer to God... Be able to rely on and trust Him...
When I get to the top of a hill and get a break from outright trials, I start to get comfortable and within a day or two realize that I think I have it under control and don't rely on God as much... It's such a see-saw. And while I'm going through stuff that's hard, I cry out for Him to help me. But when He does, and I get a breather, I realize I need something to get me to focus on Him again... And I hesitantly ask Him for trials once more. I'm scared to, but I know I can face them with Him, and if trials are when I'm closest to Him, then I'll go through anything just to know Him more...

Everything

2010-08-19T21:25:00.001-07:00

"In Him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of Him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of His will," is what Ephesians 1:11 says. He works out EVERYTHING according to His will. So even all those mistakes of yours that you think get in the way of His will and plan? Are worked into it. If you hadn't been there, even if it was messing up, God's will would not have been achieved... I'm not saying this as an excuse to sin and not care (Paul has to explain this in one of his letters too. I feel like I'm copying him...), but to show you that no matter what you have done, God works it out. I'm not just preaching at you... I'm telling you something I've learned, and something I've had to deal with... And hoping this can either help you right now, or down the road if you ever have problems with these thoughts...

Ephesians 1:7-8

2010-08-18T21:49:00.001-07:00

Ephesians 1:7-8 says, "In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace that He lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding."
Let that sink in for a moment before I go on... Notice all the different parts that have a profound impact.
But what I noticed about these verses is that it says, "He lavished [it] on us with all wisdom and understanding." What I understand here is that while sometimes we think He made a mistake in forgiving us because we're not worth it, in truth He forgave us when He was thinking clearly. And what's more, He forgave us with ALL wisdom and understanding! He knew and knows everything and He lavished us with all the riches of grace. Clearly He knows more than us. Clearly He is wiser. Clearly He knows best. And yet He says even if only you were to accept forgiveness, it'd still be worth it. You alone are worth Him dying on a cross! Dying on a cross sounds cliche in the Christian community but let that reach you! And we can't rightly deny the fact that He did it with all of His wisdom... He claims we're worth it. And who are we to deny it? Who are we to say we know better? That we're not really worth it and it can't be true? He says it IS. Not for everyone but you... But everyone. He Loved you so much that He gave up His life so that you may live "to the fullest" (I'm pretty sure that's in Galations...)
THAT is a pretty epic Love story if you ask me...

Answers

2010-08-18T21:17:00.001-07:00

One thing I know that we all want is answers. There is something we want answers about or someone we want an answer from. For me, I've really been wanting answers about God and the Bible... But it just seems that the more I think, the more questions I have, and the fewer the answers are. Bad mentality to have... Because then you just ignore things and try not to think at all. Which is going against what God asks us to do (Eph 4:17-18).
But what I've discovered lately is that when I trust God, and have faith that HE is the answer and truth, and just rest in Him...the answers flow. Not that they flood my mind, but when I think back to a subject I had doubts or questions about, the answer is right there. And it makes me realize... That it was always there in the first place. But I was so wrapped up within myself to notice... To just trust Him that He has an answer to satisfy me.

You

2010-08-13T20:15:00.001-07:00

The wisp of Your brush paints a bright pink sky
The touch of Your finger lights a firefly
With a word from Your mouth the tide holds back
With a look from Your eyes the lightning cracks
In the still of the night You're still awake
In the wind of a storm You never shake
At the rushing crowd You healed the blind
At the ninth hour You saved mankind

Love God. Love people.

2010-08-12T21:03:00.001-07:00

As a random little tangent, I want to say this: I had no idea anyone looked at my blog til two days ago I saw all the comments :P but thanks guys :) I appreciate it all.

Anyway.

Today was both a struggle and a joy. Just because I act all perfect does not mean I have a very close reltionship with God. You can know everything there is to know about a person, but if you don't spend time with them you'll never really know them...
I've always wanted to want to know God. I've desired to desire a deeper relationship with Him as long as I can remember. More recently, I have said I'm in love with Him, but looking back it wasn't hardly anything...
On the way back from our mission trip our bus broke down and we got to go to a church service while we waited. Well lo and behold, while I'm singing and later sitting there, I think about something. I had felt ignored on my mission trip honestly... It probably was more my fault than others, but up til this point I was bitter and wondered what was so wrong with me to make it so that no one cared... But anyway I'm thinking and realize: I'm asked to Love people even when they don't actively Love me. I'm sure there were people on the trip in pain like I was —actually, I knew that from the stories some of them had told one night. But that thought process led onto me thinking... What about God? Does He get actively included in those peoples' lives? Does He get actively included in MY life? Not often enough... But it made me have compassion for Him. Feeling for Him. Maybe (honestly, I don't know for sure) but maybe He feels hurt too... But regardless, why wouldn't I Love Him? Dang, it's a priviledge that I all too often take for granted... Best part of the whole week.
What does that have to do with my day today?... Well, I have some emotional stuff going on with friends and such and knew I had to get God first in my life... I had to... So all day I have talked to Him. I have relied on Him. I also was like, "I better read the Bible. But I don't want to hear stuff I've read so often that it doesn't impact me... But I also want it to be relevent to me right now. I want to learn about GOD, not about what I should do as a Christian..." I didn't think there'd be anything. But here I flip open the Bible to a letter from Paul and what do you know? Ephesians is about God! Jackpot. So, one of the highlights of my day. You should read through it too.

"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, and to know this Love that surpasses knowledge —that you may be filled with the measure of all the fullness of God."

He Loves me so incredibly much, how hard can it be to Love Him back, honestly?

Horses, people, and walls

2010-08-10T20:54:00.001-07:00

I am realizing more and more that horses are simular to people; in their reactions, thought processes, etc.
Trust for example. In order to get a horse to trust you —especially an abused horse— it takes a lot of patience. You have to do little things slowly and then back off and try it the next day. It takes a long time. And after a while you will realize that the horse trusts you a little more. But day by day you must be gentle, patient, and only take little steps. If you push too hard or too fast, the horse will only react badly and you will be set back. All is true with people who have been emotionally or physically abused. It is very slow steps to get a horse or person to trust you... And it is easy to have a set back by pushing too hard.
Another area is alike. Both horses and humans can have walls. Treat a horse as worthless and unappreciated and you will get an unresponsive horse. Even if the horse is obliging enough to let you ride it, handle it, etc, there are still walls that generally no one takes the time to penetrate. Like I said, people are the same. Some people grow up believing they're worthless and unappreciated. They build up walls against the pain. And in turn, they wall out peace, joy, and love as well. Equine and humans alike will fight with everything within them to protect those walls. They are terrified of the pain. But what neither realize is that the walls are made of pain. The floor is soaked with tears. And they gained nothing but lost the most important thing: the ability to love and be loved. No matter how much attention you give to that horse, they might take forever to realize that it's actually real. No matter how much you love on some people...they don't dare allow themselves to believe that it might stick around.
Maybe that's why places like Crystal Peaks Youth Ranch are so vital to some people... They need someone to relate to them. And some horses can but those same horses will never up and walk away. They will never abuse your trust. And so it teaches kids, teens, and I'm sure some adults, how to trust again. It takes the honest eye, gentle face, and soft hide of a horse to tear the walls down. It takes the God of heaven and earth's majestic creation to penetrate to the heart He loves so deeply.

That Much

2010-07-23T20:53:00.001-07:00

i didnt cry... much...
that would prove that i was like everyone else.
had done the exact thing i'd condemned.
unacceptable.
so even when i wanted to
needed to
i wouldnt cry.
it was plain unacceptable to cry and prove that i was like everyone else.
i wouldnt accept it.
too much pride.
so i let it out a little at a time
but mostly let it build up
but the thing about healing is that you have to admit you were wrong.
you have to admit you messed up.
tried to take care of it on your own
the thing about true healing is that you have to abandon yourself
let the anaesthetic take over while the Doctor makes some cuts to ultimately heal
He will heal
but the thing about Him
is that He needed no school to learn
rather, He taught stars how to shine
He taught the tide to stay in its place
and He wants to show you the ultimate joy of being madly in love with Him
because He is so madly in love with you that before you even knew Him, He knew you and died in your place
yeah, He loves you that much.

Parts of the Body

2010-07-12T05:28:00.001-07:00

I've been struggling with not feeling needed sometimes and like I should just get out of God's way and stop messing up what He's doing... I suppose I can't really mess Him up, being God, and it's pretty stupid to think I could, but I'm just being honest here. But anyway, I heard the verse about being part of the body of Christ and that really impacted me... That the body needs me. God made me, and gave me a part in His plan no one else can fill. That I can't say I'm not part of the Body because I'm not a different part of it. The Body still needs me to function how God designed it to. That's pretty amazing to think about...

Violin Lessons

2010-07-01T06:30:00.001-07:00

I got this violin about a year ago, wanting to learn to play. Well, we have since learned that the pegs wont stay therefore it can't be tuned. Great.
Well tonight, as I am once again trying to tune my violin, I realize that I can relate to it. While the violin cannot be tuned, I would not be changed. I was stubborn and even if I wanted to, couldn't produce more than a feeble attempt at music/life.
This violin just won't be tuned, and I pretty much need a new one. My life was out of wack and I needed it renewed. Pretty much the only way to fix my violin dilemma is to buy a new one. Which corresponds to Christ paying a tall price to give me new life.... He gave me new life through His blood. If I really were the violin, no one would take any time on me personally and would just discard me from their lives. I'm worthless. But He... He made me new... He cared enough about a messed up, broken, worthless me to give up His life so that I could live to the fullest. Wow.

Faith

2010-06-07T20:29:00.001-07:00

"Because of your faith," "Your faith has healed you," "He was appalled at their lack of faith," "Have faith." Look anywhere in the gospels and one of the major themes is faith. "Even if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can tell this mountain to move from here to there and it will obey you." Wow. It's really something amazing to ponder... Faith seems to me like a choice, but one that you can always balk out of. When we choose to have faith in Him and trust, it is "just" a choice, but it's so much harder than that if you're letting your human nature rule you. It is always a constant battle...but one we can not let our guard down on. All I can really say though, is think about it, and examine yourself to see if you could use even just a mustard seed.

How great is the Love

2010-06-05T08:59:00.001-07:00

Everyone is searching for love... those who aren't seem to have given up on it. Yes, I realize that maybe not EVERYONE is, but a good majority of people are, regardless whether they realize it. But the thing is, they're -we're- all looking for love, and Love is right here, knocking. Really. God IS Love. And He is knocking on our hearts, asking to be let in. Asking to show you His Love. We're searching, finding "love" in all the wrong places while the King of the universe is pursuing us, He died to show us how much He Loves us! Every blade of grass, every cloud, every star shows His Love for us. And yet we still try to find Love in other sources. I'm not saying I don't, because many times I do as well. But it's crazy! Utter insanity to spurn the God of everything visible and invisible! Can we really afford to ignore Someone who died to save us from eternal pain? And yet we do... over and over again... if we as people died for someone, and they spit at us and spurned us, we would have a hard time not regretting the choice to die for them! I realize that we would be dead... but the thing is that Jesus didn't just die, He came back to life. He stinkin rose from the dead, because He didn't only Love us enough to die, but He Loved us so much that He defeated death so He could come back to us and live with us eternally! How can He keep Loving us after we ignore Him over and over? It's fantastic! There is no word to describe it. Why do we still search in other sources? I think there are many reasons... but none justify it... I'm not condemning you, far from it. I want you to realize "how great is the Love the Father has lavished on us, that we are called children of God, for that is what we are!"

Never Fails

2010-06-02T21:55:00.001-07:00

I had something going on today with a really good friend where I just wanted to scream "go away" at them and yet desperately wanted them to never leave... anyway, it started in the morning and my first reaction was to freak out, stress out, all that fun stuff. But... I just gave it to Him... I would get emotional and frustrated and He would whisper "Love..." I would want to vent someone which in all honestness would have been gossip, but He reminded me "I am all you need..." Later in the day I was getting stressed because a friend wasnt showing up when they were supposed to and I needed to leave. I wanted to get mad and spit nasty comments at them... and I didn't handle it as well as I would habe liked to, but He was always there and totally helped... Tonight, stuff with the friend got worse again and I just really wanted it to stop... But He was right there... "Love" He said. "Trust" He said. And He did not fail me! Oh the joy of giving it to Him... Letting Him control me... My thoughts were not pure, but I did not go off at the person and I'm SO thankful to God for that... I pray I can give Him my thoughts as well so that I may be spotless before Him... But in any case, He came through, exactly like He says He will. Shocker huh? But in case you were wondering, my friend and I are fine. Thanks to Him. Neither of us could do it without Him.

Guy + Girl

2010-06-01T21:27:00.001-07:00

Theres the male, and theres the female. When a guy and girl are together, they're not fully guy, or fully girl, but rather compensate for how the other is wired. So when the same girl sees the same guy playing with a bunch of guys, she notices that he acts very much different, while he is still very much the same. And yet, were she to be with a group of girls, the same thing would happen. She would still be herself, but not the same as how she is one on one with another guy. When done right, its a partnership, harmony, where both people compensate for the others wiring. Apart, they can be rash, foolish, and selfish. Together, they can be invincible. The relationship for the two shows God ultimate design- marraige. Though it also shows how amazing He is to have made two people to balance each other out so perfectly. Humans (or chance for that matter) could never even be compared to Him.

God plans more

2010-05-27T20:38:00.001-07:00

I just started volunteering at a place cuz I've been wanting to for quite a while. Little did I know that not only did God give me that opportunity because I love who/what it's with, but also because I need that "down time" away from the house... I didn't realize it until I left, and it just shows how amazing His plans are. If anyone is reading this...can you pray that He can use me at this place? I really want to show His never failing Love there...

Seen Perfectly

2010-05-26T06:53:00.001-07:00

I've kind of been having a debate with myself as to whether people are made perfect, exactly how He wants us regardless of what the world views as "ugly" or "disformed," or if since we live in a fallen world if we aren't how He wants us. Well, I think I have an answer... I think He designed us perfectly, exactly how He wants us. But since we were born of a human, who has sinned, and we ourselves now sin, we are physically defected by that and other various causes of sin in the world. BUT, when we accept Him and ask Him to forgive us, He sees us as white as snow: perfect! Beautiful. Regardless how we or the world sees us, to Him we are perfect, and we will be perfect to everyone we see when we live eternally in heaven with no more sin.

Beloved

2010-05-25T19:51:00.001-07:00

I'm reading through Jeremiah and came upon two verses of interest. 11:15 says "What is My beloved doing in My temple as she works out her evil schemes with many?..." (NIV) even when we are diliberately disobeying God, He still calls us His beloved! Wow. The other says "I will forsake My house, abandon My inheritance; I will give the one I love into the hands of her enemies." (Jer. 12:7, NIV) So although He is being just and abandoning them after they didn't keep the covenant, He never stops loving them. Another interesting thing I thought was that both refered to "she" and "her." I am not feminist, but after reading the Bible a bit you realize that most pronouns are he, him, his, etc. Guys. Men. But these verses speak specifically to us girls/women. Girls! He values us! He loves us! He will never leave us. This most definately goes for guys as well, but I wanted to point out that God calls us women "beloved." (Not that men arent!) but anyway, that's just what He's shown me today, along with much more. God bless you!

The Authenticity and Reliability of the Bible

2010-05-23T14:28:00.000-07:00

The Authenticity and Reliability of the Bible

Hi, my name is Batya Aire and through confirmation and other school related things that I have done in the last two years, one thing that has really impacted me is the reliability and authenticity of the Bible.

People will say that the Bible is not reliable, yet there are over five-thousand Greek manuscripts of the New Testament while the Iliad –which is considered reliable-- has only about six-hundred; over eight times more.

About two years ago I was more or less starting to doubt the Bible and wonder if God really did exist. I didn’t have anyone to give me good reasons to believe in Him, but I still believed it mostly because that’s how I’ve been raised. My problem was that I’m also someone who needs facts to really fully believe in something and if I didn’t have them soon, I would stop believing that the Bible is true.

The way I get to know God better is mostly through knowledge- while some peoples’ can be service, nature, etc. So in science and confirmation when I heard that the distortion rate when people were copying the New Testament was .2%, and the Iliad is 4.9%, that made a big impact on me.

Further evidence that the Bible is reliable and accurate is that no archaeological discovery has ever refuted a historical Biblical reference. Actually, many archaeological discoveries have verified specific Biblical references and have provided additional understanding of Biblical records.

Scholars in the 19^th century said that Hittites did not exist, but modern archeology confirms that they did exist in turkey.

The Bible talks about Pontius Pilate overseeing Judea during part of the gospels and the Roman historian Tacitus, Jewish historian Josephus and cornerstones confirm that Pilate did oversee Judea at that time.

Remember how I previously mentioned how many Greek manuscripts there are of the New Testament verses the Iliad? Well, to go more in depth, there are more than twenty-four thousand six-hundred copies of the New Testament total, and only seven Plato manuscripts which were written about twelve-hundred years after him. New Testament copies were made within one-hundred years of the original writings. And as far as how many manuscripts there were, the New Testament has over thirty-five-hundred times more than Plato!

All this and much, much more has given me a firm Biblical foundation on which I can now stand. I have had some rocky stuff going on same as I will my entire life, but even when I don’t think I can be sure of anything, I don’t doubt that God came to earth and died for me because of His everlasting Love for me. It has brought me closer to Him, and helped me to understand who He really is.

Prayer

2010-05-21T21:33:00.001-07:00

I normally don't ask God for material or things or...I guess a lot of different stuff. I don't have any idea how to explain how much or little but in anycase, I really want to trust Him more with stuff. Have you ever heard prayer answered stories? They're the best! Well if I pray about more things specifically then it will totally help me realize what God has done. So I'm going to start doing that! I know I've already had some amazing things happen that I've prayed for and it has been amazing to see.

Trust = peace

2010-05-19T20:48:00.001-07:00

When you trust Him, you gain a peace... a peace that only He can give... it completely overrides any worry and anxiety... but you have to trust Him. Sometimes I know I have to trust Him but I push it away. Why should I push away what will give me freedom?? And yet sometimes I willingly do and I'm not quite sure why. But when I can overcome it... hallelujah to He who gives peace! Hallelujah to He who I cannot hide from! Hallelujah...

Ask and you shall recieve

2010-05-18T21:07:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I had a bunch of friends over and I didn't want it to be about me... So I asked God to use that day to help them and work in their lives. Well, it was an amazing day, and I had tons of fun, but I was wondering if it had been a blessing or help for anyone. Later that night though, one of my really good friends thanked me because them coming over had helped create margin in their life. So yeah, pretty awesome of Him. It was really cool because I didn't think it had really been all that good for anyone other than just having some fun. And today, I told God that I was doing what I was doing for Him, and I have asked before that He enable me to do things good for His glory. Well, I got pointed out as doing something good and it was right after I had told Him that I was doing it for Him. So that was pretty awesome of Him too. Thats it for today... but I still hope that He can use these blogs of mine in some way...

Chaff burning fire

2010-05-16T21:21:00.001-07:00

Today at church my pastor was briefly talking about the chaff in our life being burned by fire. The chaff being junk and unnecissary things we hold on to or do, and the fire is trials we face. I haven't gone through anything big really recently...but even the little things have been hard. So it's incredibly comforting to know that it will burn the chaff in my life...and I can see trials doing just that. But a lot of times when I'm having a hard time I look down on myself and I'm disappointed that I can't handle the trials better and give it up to Him more fully...but today I just really realized that He is totally using it to get rid of stuff that shouldn't be in my life.

More than anything else

2010-05-14T22:24:00.001-07:00

Today has been...well...yeah. But anyway, this will be short because I really need to go to sleep. But more than anything else in this world, I need and want Him. More than the incredible husband, more than an amazing relationship with my family, more than the best girl friend anyone could ever have I. want. Him. I need Him. I can not do it alone. And I know He's there for me...I know He Loves me...I know that He is my ultimate Love story...and more than anything else, I want a real, strong relationship with Him.

Someone to love HER

2010-05-13T22:12:00.001-07:00

I love my friends, can I just say that? Thanks. Anyway, so I'm at this Bible/book study tonight where they're reading the book Captivating. I just went tonight, so I haven't been, but that's not the point. Tonight we were talking about our relationships with our moms...lots of interesting stories. But one of my friends said that her mom one day came in my friend's room and was just telling my friend how heart broken she was over something. This had apparently been after my friend had been mad at her mom (if I can remember the story right?...). But it hit her, "my mom needs someone to love HER." I thought that was profound! Yeah, I'm sorry I hadn't fully thought about this before now... but at least I know it now! My mom, and all other parents out there, are still His beLoved children. We are still called to be Loving to them and treat them how Christ treats us. That means being patient and forgiving and selfless, to name a few... Don't worry, I'm not preaching to you, I want to work on this too. But yeah, I really hope this might be able to help some relationships...and also? I want to remind you that you are unconditionally Loved by the King. There is nothing you can do to lose His Love. And His Love is far far FAR more satisfying than any human's could possibly be.

Not worse, just different

2010-05-12T21:35:00.001-07:00

More recently I've tried to have a genuine relationship with God. A friendship, where I really get to know who He is. It's been hard for me because it's not hardly anything like a friendship with a person. With a friend, you can hug them and talk to them face to face and joke around and everything else. Not so with God... so I've been trying to figure out how I can know His personality. Well, yeah, reading the Bible but that's just... not the same as seeing someone's body language and tone of voice! It's been hard for me to figure out and understand... But tonight while laying in bed I'm thanking Him for my amazing friends and for forgiving me over and over again and that I have friends that do the same... But I realized, why can't I have a friendship like what I want with Him? Sure, He doesn't do the same things as my human friends, but what He does is even more amazing! Think about it! He gives us so so many blessings in so many forms and we don't even see them all. He always listens to us, always Loves us, always forgives us... dang, He's BETTER than any of my friends! (And I have some pretty amazing friends!) So...yeah...there's my little rant. Hope you enjoyed it, if anyone is reading it at all, but more importantly, I really genuinely hope that God could use me in your life so that you could have a better relationship with Him... our Ultimate Love Story.

He can use you anywhere

2010-05-12T10:09:00.001-07:00

This morning after I had been awake for a while I asked God to show me how He wanted to use me today... I've asked before, and normally it ends up that I forget about it and therefore don't pay attention when He trys to show me things. Well, I went to clean this morning and almost as soon as I walked in the door the lady (I love her by the way) started venting to me and telling me all that was going on. It was a lot. But anyway, I just really hope that me listening helped her... never would have thought that He would use me some place like that! So it's pretty cool and I'm happy.

He is alive

2010-05-11T12:25:00.001-07:00

The same guy who said the words in the gospels and the beginning of Acts is still alive. That's pretty cool... 'cause I read the Bible, and I want to get to know this guy, and I think that I wasn't born at the right time and will just have to deal with it. But then... I have to remember that He IS alive! I CAN know Him! And He has blessed me with this amazing book as one way to get to know Him.

God can read me

2010-05-10T21:26:00.001-07:00

I think God has given me the ability to read people... so I can tell if they're really not ok, even if they're acting like they are (with exceptions, like I failed at that with one person I know of today). But it makes me realize... that even when I don't know how I am, God totally does. He is the One who knows me better than anyone else. He knows me better than I do. Heck, He can remember every moment of my life; that's a lot more than I can say! But it's nice to know that I don't have to explain to Him how I am either, He just...knows.

Finding His Peace

2010-05-09T20:24:00.001-07:00

So, I heard from someone that you find freedom in God's fences. When you cross the fence and go outside of it, you lose your peace. Today I gained back my peace in an area that formerly I had gone outside of His fence on. It's an amazing thing... and also makes me a lot more at peace with others as well.

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. -John 14:27