"We all sorely complain of the shortness of time, and yet have much more than we know what to do with. Our lives are either spent in doing nothing at all, or in doing nothing to the purpose, or in doing nothing that we ought to do. We are always complaining that our days are few, and acting as though there would be no end of them."
I made this list of things I'm hoping to get accomplished before my birthday. Very big things are on that list, it's kind of like a New Years resolution....we all know how those go. ;) Anyways, I started thinking about all the time I've wasted each and every day. How much people get accomplished when they have a drive behind their actions....how motivated people can get when they're on fire for the Lord. Many other reasons people get things accomplished, but those are a few.
I think about all those times I think to myself "Goodness, I'm bored!" What could I have done in those minutes...sometimes hours...? I could have finished all these books I've gotten a fourth of the way through. I could have my school done, I could have written letters, or simply prayed for awhile. My newest goal is to be productive. To not count my days, but make my days count. To make God look down and smile, knowing I'm at least attempting to honor Him with the time He's given me.
I have so many days behind me, Lord willing I will have many ahead of me as well, but each day needs to be lived to it's fullest. Not just moseying along going with the flow, or as Matthew West would say "I don't want to go through the motions." That is one of Satan's best weapons. To make us comfortable in our life so much, that we feel relaxed and no desire to get up and do anything.
We wish for that day when we get to hang out with friends, get that ice cream cone, finish our jobs so we can play. When we start putting our head into what we "wish" the future would be like, we don't put all of our attention on our jobs at hand. We don't do tasks God has given us with our whole heart. We do them with as little work as possible, just doing enough to get by.
My dad is always telling us kids when we're dong a job, whether it's cleaning a room, mowing the yard, or washing the car..."Do everything as if it were unto the Lord."
So the question is, are we doing everything we do, in a way that would please God? In a way that we would be doing it if God were standing right beside us. In a way, that we would do it FOR God.
Monday, August 30, 2010
Who do you listen to?
I was reading a book my friend let me borrow, and came across this sentence, which the author (A.W. Tozer,) heard during a sermon once in his life:
"Listen to no man who fails to listen to God."
There are so many things that could be said about that one short quote. But for the time being, I'll focus on one. The one which is clearly visible by a short glance at the words.
In I Kings 12, it talks of Rehoboam taking over his fathers throne. The elders, wise men, told him what they thought he should do, that he should be kind to the people, so they would not rise up against him. He discarded their advice, and went to the young men, his friends, and asked their opinion...he ended up using what they said to rule the people, instead of the elders. The people indeed were unhappy with the king, and rebelled.
How often do we go to stronger, wiser Christians for their opinion on a certain matter, then, because they didn't advise us to do what we "wanted" to do, we went to our friends, less mature, not as wise, and more likely to give advise we WANT to hear. Goodness, it's not excluding me either, I'm ashamed to say I've done things like that through my life. My point being, God gives wisdom to those who listen to Him, and obey Him. Those who forsake Him won't have that wisdom we need when problems arise.
God has set people above us, He has given us parents, grandparents, elders, pastors, etc as people to go to for advice in situations. We have so many people who are willing to take time and help us when we need it, but we MUST go to them first, and listen to their advice. That doesn't always mean follow it, but, definitely think long about what they've said. Take what you can learn from the conversation and pray about it. God will lead you in the right direction, even if, at the time, it seems difficult. He is there right behind you, and ready to keep you safe and going even in times of trouble.
"Listen to no man who fails to listen to God."
There are so many things that could be said about that one short quote. But for the time being, I'll focus on one. The one which is clearly visible by a short glance at the words.
In I Kings 12, it talks of Rehoboam taking over his fathers throne. The elders, wise men, told him what they thought he should do, that he should be kind to the people, so they would not rise up against him. He discarded their advice, and went to the young men, his friends, and asked their opinion...he ended up using what they said to rule the people, instead of the elders. The people indeed were unhappy with the king, and rebelled.
How often do we go to stronger, wiser Christians for their opinion on a certain matter, then, because they didn't advise us to do what we "wanted" to do, we went to our friends, less mature, not as wise, and more likely to give advise we WANT to hear. Goodness, it's not excluding me either, I'm ashamed to say I've done things like that through my life. My point being, God gives wisdom to those who listen to Him, and obey Him. Those who forsake Him won't have that wisdom we need when problems arise.
God has set people above us, He has given us parents, grandparents, elders, pastors, etc as people to go to for advice in situations. We have so many people who are willing to take time and help us when we need it, but we MUST go to them first, and listen to their advice. That doesn't always mean follow it, but, definitely think long about what they've said. Take what you can learn from the conversation and pray about it. God will lead you in the right direction, even if, at the time, it seems difficult. He is there right behind you, and ready to keep you safe and going even in times of trouble.
Friday, August 27, 2010
God is always there.
Over the years, I've been known to hold things (problems, worries, etc) inside, and not tell anyone what's bothering me. Very not healthy, because I get so stressed that I start losing sleep and all kinds of things. It's a big problem of mine.
I was thinking how similar this is to us, and our lack of talks with God. I mean, He is always there ready to listen, but we hold it inside. He knows our thoughts, but in OUR minds He doesn't know yet because we haven't told Him. We're afraid of crying, not having our problems solved the way we want, feeling inadequate of running our own life....whatever the reason may be, many times we just don't talk to God.
There's a song called "Let The Waters Rise" that has some amazing lyrics. Not just about talking with God, but with trusting Him with your life, and everything that happens, and is going to happen.
"Don't know where to begin, It's like my world's caving in. And I tried but i can't control my fear.
Where do I go from here? Sometimes it's so hard to pray, You feel so far away. I am willing to go where You want me to. God I trust You." (This would be by the group "Mikeschair")
Contrary to what some people may think, God isn't this big guy "upstairs" that just keeps watch over the animals and plants. He is there to talk to, to leave our problems and worries with. To be a comfort. He is alive, not an imaginary friend who's there until you're in trouble, then disappears.
I was thinking how similar this is to us, and our lack of talks with God. I mean, He is always there ready to listen, but we hold it inside. He knows our thoughts, but in OUR minds He doesn't know yet because we haven't told Him. We're afraid of crying, not having our problems solved the way we want, feeling inadequate of running our own life....whatever the reason may be, many times we just don't talk to God.
There's a song called "Let The Waters Rise" that has some amazing lyrics. Not just about talking with God, but with trusting Him with your life, and everything that happens, and is going to happen.
"Don't know where to begin, It's like my world's caving in. And I tried but i can't control my fear.
Where do I go from here? Sometimes it's so hard to pray, You feel so far away. I am willing to go where You want me to. God I trust You." (This would be by the group "Mikeschair")
Contrary to what some people may think, God isn't this big guy "upstairs" that just keeps watch over the animals and plants. He is there to talk to, to leave our problems and worries with. To be a comfort. He is alive, not an imaginary friend who's there until you're in trouble, then disappears.
Monday, August 23, 2010
Risk. Care. Dream. Expect.
"Risk more than others think is safe. Care more than others think is
wise. Dream more than others think is practical. Expect more than others
think is possible"
If we weren't to risk anything that people thought was dangerous, then we couldn't live for Christ. Doing that, we have strong possibilities of dying for Him, being beat, stoned, tortured. Risking everything for Christ, your family, people you love...or even something everyone else says will fail, but God is leading you to do it; always go where He leads you, even if it means risk.
Care for others more than anyone thinks you should. God cared more for us than we could EVER care for someone else. Even to care for people as much as we could, it wouldn't ever come close to how much Christ cared for us...even with us being rotten sinners. Why, then, should we not care for those around us, simply because they aren't as "good" or "righteous" as we THINK we are? There's no reason whatsoever. Just excuses.
Dreams aren't something that use up brain space, should make us stressed, or give us false hope. God gives people dreams. Not fairytale kind of dreams. But REAL dreams. The kind that are for happy, productive, helpful futures. Some dreams are as simple as wanting to build a house. Others might be to start a church in a foreign country. Who knows. But the thing to remember is this; never, ever, stop dreaming. Dream big, go past the sky!
People who set low expectations will always meet them. This is what you see in peoples lives everyday. Teachers don't expect much from their students. Parents don't expect much from their kids. Employers don't expect much from their employees. Even builders cut corners on large projects, doing the bare minimum so they don't have to do as much work. If you set your expectations high for yourself, and others, even if you don't reach it, as least you TRIED for more. Doing hard things is never easy. But as you do them more often, you start enjoying the feeling of accomplishment and fulfillment. It's amazing what expectations can do to a persons lifestyle.
wise. Dream more than others think is practical. Expect more than others
think is possible"
If we weren't to risk anything that people thought was dangerous, then we couldn't live for Christ. Doing that, we have strong possibilities of dying for Him, being beat, stoned, tortured. Risking everything for Christ, your family, people you love...or even something everyone else says will fail, but God is leading you to do it; always go where He leads you, even if it means risk.
Care for others more than anyone thinks you should. God cared more for us than we could EVER care for someone else. Even to care for people as much as we could, it wouldn't ever come close to how much Christ cared for us...even with us being rotten sinners. Why, then, should we not care for those around us, simply because they aren't as "good" or "righteous" as we THINK we are? There's no reason whatsoever. Just excuses.
Dreams aren't something that use up brain space, should make us stressed, or give us false hope. God gives people dreams. Not fairytale kind of dreams. But REAL dreams. The kind that are for happy, productive, helpful futures. Some dreams are as simple as wanting to build a house. Others might be to start a church in a foreign country. Who knows. But the thing to remember is this; never, ever, stop dreaming. Dream big, go past the sky!
People who set low expectations will always meet them. This is what you see in peoples lives everyday. Teachers don't expect much from their students. Parents don't expect much from their kids. Employers don't expect much from their employees. Even builders cut corners on large projects, doing the bare minimum so they don't have to do as much work. If you set your expectations high for yourself, and others, even if you don't reach it, as least you TRIED for more. Doing hard things is never easy. But as you do them more often, you start enjoying the feeling of accomplishment and fulfillment. It's amazing what expectations can do to a persons lifestyle.
Friday, August 20, 2010
Life: not so perfect.
Most people in this day and age who "become Christians" are told they'll have a great life. They're told they will be blessed with wealth, won't have any problems, or things will come easy. The thing is, if these people would do a little bit of research into the Bible, they'd see that God told people that, if they followed Him, they WOULD be persecuted, mocked, and possibly even be killed for taking Christ's name in our lives.
People don't understand that they NEED Christ, they're simply told they'll have a better life with Him, than without. Christians use this method, simply to add a number of people to their congregation, or another name on their "souls won for the Lord" list. Once someone is told to say a prayer to "receive a bountiful life" they believe it! There are so many other things out there that they've tried, so, why not this? If they don't like it, they can always ditch it like they have the others.
For people to understand that they NEED Christ, they MUST know "why." It's not to have a better life. It's not to get rich. It's not to make you feel good. People must be told they need Christ, because they've sinned against a Holy God; a God who is Righteous and Just. Alone, there will never be a way that fallen mankind can be good enough for such a God. THAT is when you tell, and remember how we can have a personal relationship with Christ. Because a loving Father died for the world, not just any world, but a fallen, sinful world.
THAT, is the good news of Christ. Not that everything will be perfect.
People buy into lies. The truth of God's word is becoming less and less powerful. It's like, taking pure tea concentrate, and diluting it over and over. Sooner or later, all you're going to have is water. If you don't keep the tea fresh in stock, and added to the water, your drink will become boring and bland. People will become uninterested.
More of the good news, however, is that even though we will have trials and hard times in our life, God has promised to NEVER leave us. Not for one single minute will you be alone; even when you think He seems so far away, He's right beside you. We're going to have problems and hard times, but His plan has never been to take them alone, we must put them in HIS hands, for, He is the only one that can heal the broken, fix problems, and bring peace.
People don't understand that they NEED Christ, they're simply told they'll have a better life with Him, than without. Christians use this method, simply to add a number of people to their congregation, or another name on their "souls won for the Lord" list. Once someone is told to say a prayer to "receive a bountiful life" they believe it! There are so many other things out there that they've tried, so, why not this? If they don't like it, they can always ditch it like they have the others.
For people to understand that they NEED Christ, they MUST know "why." It's not to have a better life. It's not to get rich. It's not to make you feel good. People must be told they need Christ, because they've sinned against a Holy God; a God who is Righteous and Just. Alone, there will never be a way that fallen mankind can be good enough for such a God. THAT is when you tell, and remember how we can have a personal relationship with Christ. Because a loving Father died for the world, not just any world, but a fallen, sinful world.
THAT, is the good news of Christ. Not that everything will be perfect.
People buy into lies. The truth of God's word is becoming less and less powerful. It's like, taking pure tea concentrate, and diluting it over and over. Sooner or later, all you're going to have is water. If you don't keep the tea fresh in stock, and added to the water, your drink will become boring and bland. People will become uninterested.
More of the good news, however, is that even though we will have trials and hard times in our life, God has promised to NEVER leave us. Not for one single minute will you be alone; even when you think He seems so far away, He's right beside you. We're going to have problems and hard times, but His plan has never been to take them alone, we must put them in HIS hands, for, He is the only one that can heal the broken, fix problems, and bring peace.
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
How strong is your faith?
Our value of wealth today is so different than that of the early churches and Christians.. People then gave all they had, sold EVERYTHING without hesitation for the cause of Christ. Today, if we don't get an item we want, if the money isn't coming in by the loads, or, at least enough to satisfy our wants, we panic and wonder what on earth we'll do. When things get tough, we don't go to God like we should, or trust that He will provide, we worry ourselves sick, wondering where the next paycheck will come from, where all of our activities will go since we don't have the money to pay for them. We stress over small things (though in our minds they're life threatening,) as if we don't truly believe God can take care of us.
When we work, and bring in a yearly income, we don't think much about it, but in our heads we're really thinking we are the ones providing for the family or ourselves. So it only makes sense that when we don't have that money coming in from our own work, we freak out, because there is nothing else WE can do. I truly believe when we become so self reliant that we stop thanking God for providing for us, THAT is when He slowly starts taking things away from us....to bring us back to the realization that HE provides all, and without HIM there are no blessings. Work, school, sports, or just regular activities...they can all become so important to us that we lose sight of the one that HE has given us these amazing blessings. To the one who complains about his work, it is something of a burden; it's stressful. For the one that barely has work, and gets a little for the work he is given, he feels truly grateful.
God sometimes sends us hardships to break us down, so He can build us back up. The potter has to work and work at the sculpture before it becomes what He wants it to be. We won't be where He wants us over night, life won't ever be easy, and sometimes, we may lose everything. But always remember: God is faithful. We cannot see the big picture, if we could, we would be like God. "Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." Just because you can't see what's going to happen, doesn't mean you have to fear over it. God told us, He knows every time a Sparrow falls, how much more then does He care fore us, His children?
Take every day as it comes. Plan for the future, but leave room for change, because you never know when God will come along and change your plans around. Always remember this: no matter what comes, God will ALWAYS be in control. When all seems lost, in confusion and turmoil, He will always be there.
Talk to Him, visit with Him, study His word. He may have put trials on the earth for us, but He never intended for us to go through them alone.
When we work, and bring in a yearly income, we don't think much about it, but in our heads we're really thinking we are the ones providing for the family or ourselves. So it only makes sense that when we don't have that money coming in from our own work, we freak out, because there is nothing else WE can do. I truly believe when we become so self reliant that we stop thanking God for providing for us, THAT is when He slowly starts taking things away from us....to bring us back to the realization that HE provides all, and without HIM there are no blessings. Work, school, sports, or just regular activities...they can all become so important to us that we lose sight of the one that HE has given us these amazing blessings. To the one who complains about his work, it is something of a burden; it's stressful. For the one that barely has work, and gets a little for the work he is given, he feels truly grateful.
God sometimes sends us hardships to break us down, so He can build us back up. The potter has to work and work at the sculpture before it becomes what He wants it to be. We won't be where He wants us over night, life won't ever be easy, and sometimes, we may lose everything. But always remember: God is faithful. We cannot see the big picture, if we could, we would be like God. "Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." Just because you can't see what's going to happen, doesn't mean you have to fear over it. God told us, He knows every time a Sparrow falls, how much more then does He care fore us, His children?
Take every day as it comes. Plan for the future, but leave room for change, because you never know when God will come along and change your plans around. Always remember this: no matter what comes, God will ALWAYS be in control. When all seems lost, in confusion and turmoil, He will always be there.
Talk to Him, visit with Him, study His word. He may have put trials on the earth for us, but He never intended for us to go through them alone.
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Go To God
Sometimes I wonder if Christians value God, even close to the amount that they value other things in their life.
There are so many things that take our attention and love away from Christ, but a few are:
-Money
-Cars
-Our house
-Shopping
-Items bought
-Family
-Friends
-Television
-Games
-Work
I could go on, but you get the gist.
The question that's come to my mind, is: where do we place God's value? Is it before, or after our house, car, and job? How many times a day do you stop and talk to God? Compare to how many times a day you clean your house, drive your car, and think of work...all without a single thought of your heavenly Father.
It has become so incredibly easy to just go with the flow of life. Someone wants to have you over? Sure! Your kids want to go hang out with friends? Sure! Your favorite movie is on? "Oh, we've GOT to watch that!" How many times a day do you see your Bible sitting on a table, your bed, or a shelf? Do you ever think "Goodness, I need to spend some time with the Father!"? When you're having a hard day, do you go straight to comfort of friends, TV, or a good snack? Or do you take your problems to the One who can 'really' fix them?
We say we have put Christ as the head of our lives, but dig deep; have we really? Is He REALLY who we call in our time of trouble, stress, and despair? Do we go to Him as a last resort, when everything else has failed us? I pray that is not the case. I know many times in my life I've done that. Thank the Lord I have friends who will actually point me TO Him instead of trying to comfort me on their own. If we could only keep in our minds the peace, comfort, and joy we get from talking with Christ. The feeling of fulfillment when we put Him as the head of our lives. Knowing we don't need to worry about our life when we have put everything in HIS hands.
I've heard an advertisement for a company that says, "Life comes at you fast." That's true, but God's reflexes are quick enough to catch life when it tries to hit us with all kinds of things that may cause us to worry or fear.
So, with all of that said, I will end with this. We shouldn't say "When all else fails, go to God" We should simply say "Go to God" and leave it at that.
There are so many things that take our attention and love away from Christ, but a few are:
-Money
-Cars
-Our house
-Shopping
-Items bought
-Family
-Friends
-Television
-Games
-Work
I could go on, but you get the gist.
The question that's come to my mind, is: where do we place God's value? Is it before, or after our house, car, and job? How many times a day do you stop and talk to God? Compare to how many times a day you clean your house, drive your car, and think of work...all without a single thought of your heavenly Father.
It has become so incredibly easy to just go with the flow of life. Someone wants to have you over? Sure! Your kids want to go hang out with friends? Sure! Your favorite movie is on? "Oh, we've GOT to watch that!" How many times a day do you see your Bible sitting on a table, your bed, or a shelf? Do you ever think "Goodness, I need to spend some time with the Father!"? When you're having a hard day, do you go straight to comfort of friends, TV, or a good snack? Or do you take your problems to the One who can 'really' fix them?
We say we have put Christ as the head of our lives, but dig deep; have we really? Is He REALLY who we call in our time of trouble, stress, and despair? Do we go to Him as a last resort, when everything else has failed us? I pray that is not the case. I know many times in my life I've done that. Thank the Lord I have friends who will actually point me TO Him instead of trying to comfort me on their own. If we could only keep in our minds the peace, comfort, and joy we get from talking with Christ. The feeling of fulfillment when we put Him as the head of our lives. Knowing we don't need to worry about our life when we have put everything in HIS hands.
I've heard an advertisement for a company that says, "Life comes at you fast." That's true, but God's reflexes are quick enough to catch life when it tries to hit us with all kinds of things that may cause us to worry or fear.
So, with all of that said, I will end with this. We shouldn't say "When all else fails, go to God" We should simply say "Go to God" and leave it at that.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)