Relax

I've been in a wonderful mood lately, and it's no wonder!  It is beautiful outside today!!  After sweating for hours while cleaning and taking a bike ride, I took a relaxing shower, and now I'm constantly thanking God for the wonderful day he has made.

It is on days like today when I get to see God in nearly everything.  So it's interesting that I opened to Matthew 4:10-11.  It says,
Jesus said to him, "Away from me Satan!  For it is written: 'Worship the Lord, your God, and serve him only.' "  Then the devil left him, and angels attended him.

 If you've followed my Twitter or read my last posts, I've struggled with my faith a lot.  Today has been like a break through for me:  finally, loving God is easy!
Immediately when I read this verse, I read, "Then the devil left him, and angels attended him."  So it is possible for Satan to leave us, I thought.  But what caused him to leave?  Both in my life and in Jesus', the answer is found in the verse before it:
  "Worship the Lord, and serve him only."  

 When you are only reading it, this passage seems to say that when Jesus spoke scripture against Satan--specifically saying "I won't serve you, I'll serve God only"--he went away; but that is only half of it.  The other half is what is first mentioned: Worship the Lord.  It doesn't give a specific time nor a specific way, it just says worship him.  All the time, constantly, in everything you do, worship God.  For forty days and nights, Jesus was learning how to worship God with his life, while he fasted.  I'm sure all of that time he spent with God is the real reason behind Satan's departing.  Once Jesus said those words, Satan could tell that he was tied to God, and so he left him.

I think this is a wonderful example of what loving God looks like when the devil attacks us.  He can come with our worries, like Jesus' upcoming death, and try to promise the world as an escape; yet, because we trust God's plan, we say, "Away from me Satan!" and cling to our Lord.

How is your love story?  If you're like me, maybe you need to relax and let God.

"Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."
-1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Washed

John 13:1-17

 Many people refer to this passage to talk about serving others. We all know the story: Jesus did the job of a servant and washed his disciples feet, then told us all to do likewise.  It is a very powerful story when it comes to how a leader should act, but there is a deeper message here that John shows us.

When John introduces this foot-washing scene, he says, "Having loved his own who were in the world, he now showed them the full extent of his love."
Washing their feet was Jesus' way of showing the full extent of his love?  Really? That is a pretty small act for such a big statement.
But the next two verses have three very important details:
1. Judas was already prompted to betray Jesus
2. Jesus knew he came from God and had power over everything
3. Jesus knew he was leaving
Jesus had to consider all of these things.  He knew that one person here truly did not deserve to be served, and he knew that he had the power to control anything--he could wipe Judas of the face of the earth!
But, because this is his last chance to show God's love to them, he decides instead to take off his outer clothing, wrap a towel around his waist, and wash their feet.

When you walk around for days in flip flops, it is easy to see how dirty our feet can get, especially if you are walking on dirt roads.  Add a month or two or three onto that, and your feet can get really disgusting!  Dirt piles up on our feet wherever we go, naturally, because we are humans.
  The same thing happens with our sins.
Every day, everywhere we go, we mess up.  We could be at a friends house, at church even, maybe just up late at night, and our hearts, our minds lose focus on God.  It is so easy to be distracted! Especially now that we have TV, the internet, cell phones, etc.  'Everything we need' is right at our fingertips and it keeps us so busy, we forget to spend our time with God.

Why do you think that Jesus said, "Unless I wash you, you have no part with me"?  He knew all people sin, and he knew God cannot be with sin.  He wanted us to realize that we must accept his sacrifice or else we can't be with him.

When Jesus washed their feet, he was showing them what he was about to do on the cross.
This was the full extent of his love: that in his death, he would clean them, even though they did not deserve it, so that they could be with him forever.  Jesus wrapped the towel around his own waist; he carried our sins on his side.

Look at verses 11-17.
Jesus knew.
He knew Judas, although he was just washed, was going to betray him.
He knew that many, like Judas, claim to accept his gift, yet ignore it and choose to sin anyways. 

"I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you."

This is the challenge of Jesus.
You should love one another--even those who kill and murder--just as I have loved Judas.


What a powerful love Christ had to willingly wash the feet of the one who would lead him to die!


"Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them."
-John 13:17

Praise the Lord

Today, I am really tired, but I opened my Bible in the semi-quietness of my living room, and here's what I found:

Psalm 146

"Praise the Lord.
Praise the Lord, O my soul.
I will praise the Lord all my life;
I will sing praise to my God as long as I live.

Do not put your trust in princes,
in mortal men, who cannot save.
When their spirit departs, they return to the ground;
on that very day their plans come to nothing.

Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob,
whose hope is in the Lord his God,
the Maker of heaven and earth,
the sea, and everything in them--
the Lord, who remains faithful forever.
He upholds the cause of the oppressed
and gives food to the hungry.
The Lord sets prisoners free,
the Lord gives sight to the blind,
the Lord lifts up those who are bowed down,
the Lord loves the righteous.
The Lord watches over the alien
and sustains the fatherless and the widow,
but he frustrates the ways of the wicked.

The Lord reigns forever,
your God, O Zion, for all generations.
Praise the Lord."

Praise the Lord, with all of me, and for all of my life! How awesome is it to think of that? Praising God not just now, not just yesterday, but for your whole life?!
Look at this scale and find where you are in life now:


How long do you have still to praise Him? How many opportunities do you think you'll still get to praise Him? How many triumphs will he bring you to? How many joys, sorrows, and lessons will you be able to thank Him for still?
Be joyful always. :)

Do not trust princes and mortal men, who can't actually save. --Listen up girls!!!
How many times will we all fall into this trap that guys are all we need in life and are our heros???
I was watching a movie last night called Mighty Macs, and in it, a man was flirting with a lady and her friend who was a nun(but not dressed as one in this scene). When he asked if the nun was taken, she said, "Well, sort of." He asked what the special guy does and she responded, "He's a carpenter." To this the man replied, "Oh, so he's good with his hands?" and she threw out with a smile, "He works miracles." Haha, I hope you laughed at that! But how awesome is it to think that way! That Jesus is "The One", our Hero, the love of our lives, who fascinates us more than any other man!
What man can work miracles? What man knows what you need at every second of every minute and is there to provide exactly that for you as long as you're willing to accept it?
If you haven't noticed yet, no guy can do that for you, ladies. Yes, you may find a good faithful husband one day(if you aren't married yet), but remember always that no one is like Jesus.
No, Jesus is the only man who can fulfill your life.

Jesus upholds the cause of the oppressed.
Jesus gives food to the hungry.
Jesus sets prisoners free.
Jesus gives sight to the blind. (Amazing!)
Jesus lifts up those who are bowed down.
Jesus loves the righteous.
Jesus watches the alien, sustains the orphan, and the widow...

Don't you see? Jesus cares for all of us more than any man ever will, AND he CAN fulfill his word!

Imagine being married to a King, but not just a King: a humble King. A humble guy who was given power to be ruler over the World not because of the wealth or what people wanted, but because he outright deserved it from his character and his life.

If your younger, imagine being the daughter of this King. Imagine running around with a little tiara on your head, having the ability to show yourself to others as a princess and earn respect. Imagine as a child, running into his throne room and jumping up on his lap to give him a bigg hug, shouting "Daddy!" ("Abba!") Now imagine having that same relationship as you got older, as you started being hurt by friends, meeting boys and them not acting the way Daddy says they should treat you, and finding yourself crying looking for somewhere to go where there is love; now, this time when you enter Daddy's throne room, you're embarrassed, hurt, sad, lonely, in pain. This time, you walk slowly in, trying to hide the look on your face as you walk towards the throne. This time, when you shakily say, "Dad, can I talk to you?" he tells the others in the room to go while you come forward, unsure of where to start. He sees your face, and says, " Come here" and pulls you up onto his lap, where you curl up and start crying.

God loves you.

He makes a promise to you that day. He says, "I don't want you to be hurt anymore. There is a guy who won't hurt you. He's kind, humble, gentle, and strong, and I think you'll like him a lot. But you need to make me a promise. You've got to stop doing what you are doing. Act like my princess; show the world that you are MINE, not theirs. Listen to me: you are beautiful and lovely and worth more than the most precious thing the world has to offer. Do not forget that! Don't forget that I love you, and that I am always here for you. It doesn't matter how far you've fallen off the beaten path; if you come to me, I will be here for you."


God won't let them win. Wickedness is a matter of a person's heart; they can choose to reject God. You might not see it, but those who are oppressing others won't always win. In the Old Testament, even when God raised up an nation against Israel to punish them, later he would punish that same nation for not following His ways (usually because they were oppressing others).

God will always reign. He will always be on that throne. Jesus is at his right hand, waiting for us. His bride is the church, and we are the church. He died because he loves us, because we are worth this. We are worth waiting for. He already paid the price; live a life 'pleasing to God'. Life a life that says, "I'm HIS." because, he's already done everything for you. (:

"Praise the Lord."

Faded Vision

It's been a while since I've written something for here, and I think I know the problem.
I've been losing sight of Jesus.

At the end of last summer, I had fallen heads over heels for His love and for Jesus, my amazing Savior who loved me even though I was a sinner. Now, that love has faded slowly away into maybe a liking of some sort that is by no means what God wants from me...

I can see everyday how I try slightly to worship God and be good, but I've been lukewarm and I simply don't live up to his standards. I wonder if it is because I don't suffer, or because I haven't fallen into sin recently, but I know that Paul says we should never sin just to receive grace more.

I've taken a closer look at my prayer life with God, and it's not very strong, I must sadly say.
I think maybe a couple times a week, when I'm noticing the distance between me and God, I'll pray to Him before I go to sleep, and if I'm awake enough and my Bible is close at hand, I'll read a random passage, think about it for a minute, pray, then sleep.
I seriously wonder how I got this way, when I used to fall asleep with the Bible in my hands or under my head every night because I was reading and fell asleep, and when I used to read chapters and books at a time rather than verses and sections.


Today in Chapel, my wonderful friend, Kristian, spoke on God's love for us.
He spoke from the heart about how we don't consider what love God has for us often enough. How Jesus, someone God truly treasured, came down and was torn apart, beaten, spat on, nailed to a cross, and murdered, so that we, the murderers and criminals, could walk free.
How crazy is that?!
He also said that sometimes we think of God and Jesus as separate, with different loves--Jesus's seemingly more caring and compassionate--when in reality, Jesus came to show God's love for us. The love that we see Jesus give, THAT is God's love he has for us!
Kristian pointed out that all Jesus did was show people love. He showed love to people whom in our day would be the emo kids and goths... but all we did was try to kill him for it!



Then he referred to this video that the school watched back in November on God's love.
I have only gotten the chance to see this once(with bad quality--I could hardly see or hear it!), so I'm posting it here and watching it again to try to renew my faith in Christ.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BjSio8jur2Y

We are the ones on this train, going by, living our short lives, and most of us never even realizing what God did for us, to save us, to keep us alive.

"For God So Loved the World that He Gave His One and Only Son, that Whoever Believes in Him Shall Not Perish, but have Eternal Life."
- John 3:16 (NIV)

♥♥♥

Praise Him, Not Me

You may see me,

And you may think

'She is holy'

But that's not me.

Some say I have it good with Christ

But that's not what I see.

I am weak.

I have sin.

We all do.

Like Paul,

the older I am

the worse it gets.

Do I need God?

Y E S.

So this is me

After I was freed:

Still slipping in sin

Stuck in mud

I couldn't see.

Something needed to change.

I gave up.

I cried.

I died

To myself and my ways

And I became His

So that He

Could work through me.

When I gave in to sin

He overcame

When I fell

He took over my life

and became my strength.

You see,

I am a sinner

Jesus saved me

I have no muscle

Jesus was my victory

When He declared

"You shall sin no more"

Fighting the devil

Was no longer a chore

So when you see me

Don't say,

"Oh how good is she"

Because there is no way

I could do a thing without God

For He is the strength

That you see in me.

Praise Him alone

--not me.

"Let them praise the name of the LORD, for His name alone is exalted; His splendor is above the earth and the heavens."

-Psalm 148:13 (NIV)

Strength in God

This is what makes Christianity so much more real and better than anything else.

Excerpt from How Should We Then Live? by Francis A. Schaeffer:

"It is important to realize what a difference a people's worldview makes in their strength as they are exposed to the pressure of life. That it was the Christians who were able to resist religious mixtures, syncretism, and the effects of the weaknesses of Roman culture speaks of the strength of the Christian worldview. This strength rested on God's being an infinite-personal God and his speaking in the Old Testament, in the life and teaching of Jesus Christ, and in the gradually growing New Testament. He had spoken in ways people could understand. Thus the Christians not only had the knowledge about the universe and mankind that people themselves cannot find out by themselves, but they had absolute, universal values by which to live and by which to judge the society and the political state in which they lived. And they had the grounds for the basic dignity and value of the individual as unique in being made in the image of God."

(Schaeffer, Francis A. How Should We Then Live? Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway, 1976.)

It's true how Christians are able to battle through life much stronger than other people are. And why is that? Jesus.

There's something about this religion that sets it apart from any other religion or theory out there today. From the outside, it looks crazy to believe that some guy fed 5,000 people with five loaves of bread and two fish, that he made blind people see by rubbing mud in their eyes, and that he was raised from the dead after dying on a cross; but we understand that there is an all-powerful, loving God with a deeper plan working behind all of life. He gives us this hope that Paul talks about; hope in something unseen, something we are still waiting for. What other people do not have that Christians have is that hope for a future with God, in a place where there is no more evil.

How is all of this possible?

Well, here's the run through:

Jesus is God. He came to earth as a man, born to a virgin woman. As he grew up, he lived as a Jew, learning the Old Testament, and living a perfect life for God. He became a teacher and choose everyday Jews to be the ones to learn all about God and his plan for them. He healed people who showed faith in him, taught them about heaven using everyday language, and fulfilled all of the prophesies made about him in the ancient scriptures. Then, Jesus-although he was perfect-let guards arrest him for claiming to be the Son of God, King of the Jews, was beaten and then crucified on a cross with robbers on either side of him. He died in the same day, was buried in a tomb before the Sabbath started, but then when Sabbath was over, was missing from the grave. The large stone that had been rolled by men to seal his tomb shut was rolled away, and his linen cloth was left inside-Jesus was ALIVE. He was witnessed by thousands of people after his death, and then was watched as he ascended into heaven, leaving the task of spreading the word to his twelve apostles, whom he had taught everything he knew.

The important part that Jesus explained about this is that when Jesus died, since he was perfect as a man and as God, he himself became a "guilt offering" for everyone. You could think of it as he was the newly-bought, perfectly-clean dishrag that wiped off every single dirty plate so that they shone spotless and could be used again. Just like that, Jesus took all of our dirty nasty wrong-doings away forever, so that we could be used by God for good. If you're a dirty plate, you're not going to get used again unless you're clean, right? And if you're a plate, you can't exactly clean yourself; nor, once you're clean, should you just sit on a shelf, not being used?

So what does this have to do with strength? Well, Paul seems to have explained it better than I could, so here's what he has to say. Hebrews 12:1-3 (after a long passage about men who had Faith):

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart."

To pull it altogether, Jesus lived and died for you, to give you strength, so that God could use you, all because God loves you. Our strength is in Jesus; take heart, my friend.

♥

(P.S. If you actually read all of this, I applaud you!)

Holy King

Lord, my heart cries out to you now!
I hear your voice whisper to me;
It tells me who I am.
You say to me, "You are mine;
The princess of the Holy King,
The daughter of the One who saves the World!"
I fall down before you and praise Your name!

As I worship You,
I hear the serpent slither by;
He spits out lies,
Bribing me with fruit,
Telling me I'll never die.
But as I turn to fall away,
I catch a glimpse of your face.
My hand reaches out for just one bite,
But then I see your eyes, full of love and sorrow
While on the cross you die.
I shout "No!" but it's too late,
You give up one last sigh;
Then you fall forward and hang there,
And I begin to cry.
"No! Take me instead;
He is innocent!
I deserve to be killed
And hung in pain,
For he was crucified
When he was without sin."
But then three days later
He rose again:

After a day of rest,
I looked in
On an empty tomb where
I thought I would find Him.
I came to say goodbyes,
But now he is gone again!
And I cried more and more,
Until a man walked in.
"Why are you crying?"
He asked me then;
But I thought it was the gardener,
Not the one who died for my sin.
"He's gone! He's gone!
I think they took him!"
Then the man opened my eyes,
And I saw his face, alive again.

Hallelujah, praise the Lord!
Jesus Christ has arisen!
He's alive and here today;
For he could not be kept in death's prison!
Let us sing and dance for years and years
To celebrate His grace;
And when we die, we'll just sing some more,
Because we shall see His face!