I've been thinking about resolutions lately. Ya know ... 'cause 2013 is almost over, and 2014 is just around the bend. Wow, isn't that crazy?! Life really IS a vapor! ....... I was thinking, recently, about what resolutions I want to set out to tackle this next year. But I got to thinking ... why make a bunch of resolutions that I'm just gonna end up forgetting about or giving up on in a couple of weeks? Now, I don't wanna be Miss Negativity, and I don't have anything against New Year's Resolutions. Actually, I think they're great! But to be honest, I've never followed through with a New Year's Resolution in my life. Mostly 'cause I, #1 - make too many resolutions to keep up with, and #2 - my expectations are too high.
As I grow in my relationship with Jesus more and more, I am learning that becoming more like Jesus is what God is most concerned about ... and becoming more like Jesus is really the key to a resolute life. Resolute means "firmly resolved or determined; set in purpose or opinion." And isn't that what making New Year's Resolutions is all about? We wanna be determined to accomplish a set purpose. "I'm gonna lose 30 pounds this year!" "I'm gonna read through my entire Bible this year!" "I'm gonna stop drinking soda this year!" "I'm gonna get a gym membership and workout everyday this year!" ... All of these are great purposes (or goals ... or resolutions), but what about living a purposeful life in Christ? :)
I definitely wanna try to lose some weight this year - I've gained 30 pounds since I've been married. :(
I definitely wanna try to take better care of my body this year by eating more veggies and exercising consistently and cutting back on the sweet tea and carbs and sweet treats.
I definitely wanna try to be more intentional in my relationships - sending encouragement cards and praying for others more often and just simply being available.
I guess those could be my New Year's Resolutions ... but really? I just wanna be more like Jesus. :)
And the more I think about it, resolutions are good ... they really are. But I don't wanna get so caught up in my resolutions that I forget to LIVE a resolute life. I wanna be determined to be more like Jesus this year. I want becoming more and more like Jesus to be my set purpose. I want to accomplish THAT. If that's all I accomplish this year, then guess what? I've succeeded. :) And really, the more like Jesus we become, the more everything else falls into place. Sure, it'll take time. But as I become more like Jesus and gain His perspective, I will be more motivated to take care of my body, and I will be more others-centered. And those are my goals (resolutions) for this year.
What purpose do you want to determine to accomplish this year? :)
. . . about life lessons, parenting lessons, and faith lessons learned and LEARNING!
Showing posts with label Amazing Thoughts. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Amazing Thoughts. Show all posts
Tuesday, December 10, 2013
Thursday, October 17, 2013
Dear Rick and Patti
Rick and Patti are my Bible study leaders, and they are amazing people of God. I recently wrote them this email .... and once I got done writing it, I thought how well it tells about what God has been teaching me lately and how I am growing in the Lord ... so I wanted to share this encouragement with all of you. :)
Dear, Rick and Patti,
Thank you so much for teaching us so much about thankfulness. Thank you for being a true example of thankfulness and sharing testimonies about how thankfulness has changed your perspective. Thank you for promoting an attitude of thankfulness week after week at Bible study. You guys are an amazing encouragement to me! I am so thankful for you both and for our 20somethings group. God is so good!
I have been learning so much about thankfulness AND practicing the presence of God over the past couple of months. For so long, I was so discontent with my job. I just felt like what I did meant nothing, and I had so much downtime that I was losing my mind. I was so physically and emotionally drained. And it was all because I was NOT practicing thankfulness. ... Well, I have been learning and living thankfulness, and wow! Thankfulness really does change everything! I really enjoy my job now. I feel purpose in it. I find joy in so many little things throughout the day. I am using my downtime more wisely. And I am sooo thankful for my job AND my season of life! And ya know what? I just got a 4.2% raise, and I found out that I have 2 personal days paid! I considered it a HUGE blessing, and through it, I believe God was telling me, "Hey, if you just chill out, I'll take care of you ... I wanna bless you and teach you at the same time!" And wow, does He take care of me! I am so grateful for His grace and love and the work of the Holy Spirit in my life. God is so incredibly good! I haven't been this content and excited since I was in high school.
Psalm 37:3 really is the key to life!
Trust in the Lord.
Do good.
Dwell in the land.
Befriend faithfulness.
(And I don't think God will mind if I add ...)
Be thankful.
Wow! And really ... add verses 4 and 5 .....
Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desire of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord, and He will act.
'Cause that's what trusting, doing good, enduring, faithfulness, and thankfulness do ... they are God's desire for us, which becomes OUR true desire which results in God acting in our lives! And hey, doesn't that sound like abundant life?? :D
Thank you, Jesus! And thank you, Rick and Patti, for being faithful, thankful, and a wonderful example of Jesus in my life.
Love you guys,
Mical :)
Dear, Rick and Patti,
Thank you so much for teaching us so much about thankfulness. Thank you for being a true example of thankfulness and sharing testimonies about how thankfulness has changed your perspective. Thank you for promoting an attitude of thankfulness week after week at Bible study. You guys are an amazing encouragement to me! I am so thankful for you both and for our 20somethings group. God is so good!
I have been learning so much about thankfulness AND practicing the presence of God over the past couple of months. For so long, I was so discontent with my job. I just felt like what I did meant nothing, and I had so much downtime that I was losing my mind. I was so physically and emotionally drained. And it was all because I was NOT practicing thankfulness. ... Well, I have been learning and living thankfulness, and wow! Thankfulness really does change everything! I really enjoy my job now. I feel purpose in it. I find joy in so many little things throughout the day. I am using my downtime more wisely. And I am sooo thankful for my job AND my season of life! And ya know what? I just got a 4.2% raise, and I found out that I have 2 personal days paid! I considered it a HUGE blessing, and through it, I believe God was telling me, "Hey, if you just chill out, I'll take care of you ... I wanna bless you and teach you at the same time!" And wow, does He take care of me! I am so grateful for His grace and love and the work of the Holy Spirit in my life. God is so incredibly good! I haven't been this content and excited since I was in high school.
Psalm 37:3 really is the key to life!
Trust in the Lord.
Do good.
Dwell in the land.
Befriend faithfulness.
(And I don't think God will mind if I add ...)
Be thankful.
Wow! And really ... add verses 4 and 5 .....
Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desire of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord, and He will act.
'Cause that's what trusting, doing good, enduring, faithfulness, and thankfulness do ... they are God's desire for us, which becomes OUR true desire which results in God acting in our lives! And hey, doesn't that sound like abundant life?? :D
Thank you, Jesus! And thank you, Rick and Patti, for being faithful, thankful, and a wonderful example of Jesus in my life.
Love you guys,
Mical :)
Thursday, July 11, 2013
Something I'm Learning ... and Learning ... and Learning :)
I totally understand the struggle in figuring out God's will. I've been trying to figure it out since I graduated from high school. Honestly, it's been incredibly discouraging at times ... but ya know, I'm learning that ultimately, God just wants our faithfulness. He wants us to be faithful where He's got us, even when we don't understand it, even when we don't like it, even when we ache for something more or something different.
Psalm 37:3 is my life verse ... "Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land, and befriend faithfulness." It's the key to life! Really, it is! God has a plan for our lives, yes. But really ... He just wants us to trust Him no matter where we are or what we're doing, do good to the people around us and in this crazy world, be all in (dwell in the land) where He's got us (or at the very least, endure where we are! haha!), and be faithful to Him, to our spouses, to our friends and families, and to the people and tasks He's called us to now.
This has been such a hard lesson for me to learn ... and I'm not done learning it! ... Sheesh, I'm crying as I'm typing this because God has just been so at work in me about this lately. I am so thankful! God is just so faithful ... and He NEVER leaves me. I am just so thankful. I have been learning this lesson even more so lately because God has not allowed me to pass my Praxis exam to become a teacher for several years now. I've nearly given up more than once. But I recently tried again ... and I passed (one of the two tests at least)!!! And I am taking steps toward becoming a teacher once again. But for a long time, I struggled with some bitterness, some frustration, and just some flat out discouragement because I couldn't have my dream job. I could never have what I believe God had promised me. But what I've found is that, over the past several years, God has been growing me! He has been growing me in HIS dream job for me (simply to be faithful no matter where I'm at or what I'm doing), and He has been growing me in trusting Him more.
I have my moments, but I can honestly and wholeheartedly say that no matter what happens with this Praxis exam, I'm cool. I'm not worried. Even if I don't get hired as a teacher right away ... or ever. Even if we can't afford the Transition to Teaching program that I have to finish before I can truly solidify a job. Even if I get pregnant and don't teach because I'm staying home with our baby (haha! Don't think about that one too hard ... I'm just saying ... it could happen. ;)). Even if I have to work in a job I'm not very excited about (I'm learning another lesson concerning this too - thankfulness!) No matter what. I'm good with whatever God wants to do. And I feel such peace. That is HUGE for me. Peace comes from trusting God. I have grown in my trust of God. And I think, in the end, that's the greatest lesson you can learn on this planet ... to trust God with all your heart. ... Things are gonna change. Finances are gonna be tight. You're gonna get pregnant when you least expect it (or at the very least, you aren't gonna have a clue how to raise the kid even if you knew he was coming!). You're gonna say something stupid to make your husband feel bad. He's gonna say something stupid to you too. You're gonna be selfish. You're gonna be dissatisfied with your job or your flabby belly or your attitude or your season of life. Your loved one is going to die. Things are gonna change. You're gonna like some of it, hate some of it, be unsure of some of it, love some of it .... But in the end, this life is crazy! And the greatest thing we can do is TRUST IN JESUS!
Every time I hear that phrase "Trust in Jesus," I think of the Third Day song ... here are the lyrics to the chorus ...
What I've done is ...
Trust in Jesus.
My great Deliverer,
My strong Defender,
The Son of God.
I trust in Jesus,
Blessed Redeemer,
My Lord forever.
The Holy One, the Holy One.
My advice? Pursue your dreams, and be faithful. I am learning that God's purpose and provision are perfect, and I just need to trust Him in it all. And believe me! It is a constant lesson! But God is so patient with me.
Psalm 37:3 ... I know you wanna read this precious verse again! So here it is ...
PSALM 37:3
TRUST IN THE LORD, AND DO GOOD; DWELL IN THE LAND, AND BEFRIEND FAITHFULNESS.
Psalm 37:3 is my life verse ... "Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land, and befriend faithfulness." It's the key to life! Really, it is! God has a plan for our lives, yes. But really ... He just wants us to trust Him no matter where we are or what we're doing, do good to the people around us and in this crazy world, be all in (dwell in the land) where He's got us (or at the very least, endure where we are! haha!), and be faithful to Him, to our spouses, to our friends and families, and to the people and tasks He's called us to now.
This has been such a hard lesson for me to learn ... and I'm not done learning it! ... Sheesh, I'm crying as I'm typing this because God has just been so at work in me about this lately. I am so thankful! God is just so faithful ... and He NEVER leaves me. I am just so thankful. I have been learning this lesson even more so lately because God has not allowed me to pass my Praxis exam to become a teacher for several years now. I've nearly given up more than once. But I recently tried again ... and I passed (one of the two tests at least)!!! And I am taking steps toward becoming a teacher once again. But for a long time, I struggled with some bitterness, some frustration, and just some flat out discouragement because I couldn't have my dream job. I could never have what I believe God had promised me. But what I've found is that, over the past several years, God has been growing me! He has been growing me in HIS dream job for me (simply to be faithful no matter where I'm at or what I'm doing), and He has been growing me in trusting Him more.
I have my moments, but I can honestly and wholeheartedly say that no matter what happens with this Praxis exam, I'm cool. I'm not worried. Even if I don't get hired as a teacher right away ... or ever. Even if we can't afford the Transition to Teaching program that I have to finish before I can truly solidify a job. Even if I get pregnant and don't teach because I'm staying home with our baby (haha! Don't think about that one too hard ... I'm just saying ... it could happen. ;)). Even if I have to work in a job I'm not very excited about (I'm learning another lesson concerning this too - thankfulness!) No matter what. I'm good with whatever God wants to do. And I feel such peace. That is HUGE for me. Peace comes from trusting God. I have grown in my trust of God. And I think, in the end, that's the greatest lesson you can learn on this planet ... to trust God with all your heart. ... Things are gonna change. Finances are gonna be tight. You're gonna get pregnant when you least expect it (or at the very least, you aren't gonna have a clue how to raise the kid even if you knew he was coming!). You're gonna say something stupid to make your husband feel bad. He's gonna say something stupid to you too. You're gonna be selfish. You're gonna be dissatisfied with your job or your flabby belly or your attitude or your season of life. Your loved one is going to die. Things are gonna change. You're gonna like some of it, hate some of it, be unsure of some of it, love some of it .... But in the end, this life is crazy! And the greatest thing we can do is TRUST IN JESUS!
Every time I hear that phrase "Trust in Jesus," I think of the Third Day song ... here are the lyrics to the chorus ...
What I've done is ...
Trust in Jesus.
My great Deliverer,
My strong Defender,
The Son of God.
I trust in Jesus,
Blessed Redeemer,
My Lord forever.
The Holy One, the Holy One.
My advice? Pursue your dreams, and be faithful. I am learning that God's purpose and provision are perfect, and I just need to trust Him in it all. And believe me! It is a constant lesson! But God is so patient with me.
Psalm 37:3 ... I know you wanna read this precious verse again! So here it is ...
PSALM 37:3
TRUST IN THE LORD, AND DO GOOD; DWELL IN THE LAND, AND BEFRIEND FAITHFULNESS.
Sunday, January 15, 2012
Depravity (Part 4): "Therefore, I will boast in my weaknesses!"
Why stop, when the brain juices are still a flowin'? :)
I've been reading through the book, So Long, Insecurity, by Beth Moore and working through a Bible study booklet that accompanies it. And a few weeks back, I was able to connect chapter 4 of Radical with So Long, Insecurity's Bible study questions. The Bible study had me read 2 Corinthians 12:6-10 and had me answer the questions, "What does it mean to boast about our weaknesses?" and "In what way are we strong when we are weak?" I think wrestling with this passage of Scripture and answering these questions is a great last step to wrapping up my thoughts on depravity because it sends us off with an application. How can we apply this Truth about depravity to our everyday lives?
"And [Jesus] has said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.' Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me" (2 Corinthians 12:9).
Because our depravity (weaknesses) brings glory to God, by requiring the power of His grace at work in our lives, we are able to boast about our weaknesses. For me, I think boasting about my weaknesses means not beating myself up for my sin, but instead, striving to comprehend that God is so big, so powerful, and so perfect, that even when I sin, He STILL gets the glory. How does He do it? He gets the glory no matter what. That's how awesome and holy our God is. ...Furthermore, I should strive not to sin so that my faithfulness brings Him even more glory than my sin. And so that glory, resulting from my weakness, makes me strong because it is the power of Christ living and working in me.
To God be the glory!
I've been reading through the book, So Long, Insecurity, by Beth Moore and working through a Bible study booklet that accompanies it. And a few weeks back, I was able to connect chapter 4 of Radical with So Long, Insecurity's Bible study questions. The Bible study had me read 2 Corinthians 12:6-10 and had me answer the questions, "What does it mean to boast about our weaknesses?" and "In what way are we strong when we are weak?" I think wrestling with this passage of Scripture and answering these questions is a great last step to wrapping up my thoughts on depravity because it sends us off with an application. How can we apply this Truth about depravity to our everyday lives?
"And [Jesus] has said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.' Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me" (2 Corinthians 12:9).
Because our depravity (weaknesses) brings glory to God, by requiring the power of His grace at work in our lives, we are able to boast about our weaknesses. For me, I think boasting about my weaknesses means not beating myself up for my sin, but instead, striving to comprehend that God is so big, so powerful, and so perfect, that even when I sin, He STILL gets the glory. How does He do it? He gets the glory no matter what. That's how awesome and holy our God is. ...Furthermore, I should strive not to sin so that my faithfulness brings Him even more glory than my sin. And so that glory, resulting from my weakness, makes me strong because it is the power of Christ living and working in me.
To God be the glory!
Depravity (Part 3): God's Glory, that's the point!
A couple of months ago, I wrote two posts about human depravity, specifically, my own depravity. In the first post, I asked the question "Why did God create us if He knew we were going to screw up all the time?" This question brought Galatians 5:16-26 and Romans 6 to mind. So I read and thought through these passages and came away closer to the answer to my question but not quite there. In my second post, I attempted to flesh out my thoughts about Galatians 5:16-26 and Romans 6 in reference to my question. I concluded that getting rid of my sin, or even striving to get rid of my sin, brings glory to God. And although I think this idea is mostly true, it doesn't quite answer the question I started with. It simply made me feel better, knowing I was a step closer to the answer I sought.
I received a super encouraging message yesterday from a friend I haven't talked to in several months. In the message, he mentioned that my depravity posts had got him thinking on his own sinfulness. And so I immediately went back to my posts and read them over again. And I (re-)realized that the ideas needed to be hashed out further. ... I've read a bit of the book, Radical, since I wrote those depravity posts a couple months ago, and part of chapter 4 really hits my question of "What's the point of my sin?" right on the head. So here I am again ... trying to figure out this complex, yet simple, reality of human depravity.
The simplicity of depravity comes from David Platt's (the author of Radical) popular phrase from chapter 4, "Enjoy His grace; extend His glory" (64). By enjoying and accepting God's grace, we bring Him glory. ... Cool, huh? The complexity of depravity is that God's grace is not about us; it's about Him. Really, that's not complex when you think about it 'cause "it's all about Him." Everything in this existence, this universe, is about Jesus. But in our finite minds, at least in mine, we have a hard time wrapping our mind around grace being about someone other than ourselves. ... When we think about grace being about Jesus instead of about us, we can start to glimpse the glory in it. I love what Platt says about God's grace ... "God blessed the human race, not because of any merit or inherent worth in us, but simply out of pure, unadulterated grace" (65). God didn't create us or enter into a relationship with us because we deserved it or earned it but because that "pure, unadulterated grace" brought glory to Himself. And because "God is at the center of His universe, everything He does ultimately revolves around Him" (Platt 71). So you see ... our depravity makes us entirely dependent on the grace of God, and the grace of God brings glory to God. And so, ultimately, our depravity brings glory to God. Therefore, the answer to my question is that God created us, depraved human beings, so that He could lavish His Self-glorifying grace upon our lives. His glory is the point. It's all about Him. The point of everything in our lives, on this planet, in this universe, in all that God created - ever - is HIS GLORY.
Which leads me into more thoughts ... haha! Part 4 to follow :)
I received a super encouraging message yesterday from a friend I haven't talked to in several months. In the message, he mentioned that my depravity posts had got him thinking on his own sinfulness. And so I immediately went back to my posts and read them over again. And I (re-)realized that the ideas needed to be hashed out further. ... I've read a bit of the book, Radical, since I wrote those depravity posts a couple months ago, and part of chapter 4 really hits my question of "What's the point of my sin?" right on the head. So here I am again ... trying to figure out this complex, yet simple, reality of human depravity.
The simplicity of depravity comes from David Platt's (the author of Radical) popular phrase from chapter 4, "Enjoy His grace; extend His glory" (64). By enjoying and accepting God's grace, we bring Him glory. ... Cool, huh? The complexity of depravity is that God's grace is not about us; it's about Him. Really, that's not complex when you think about it 'cause "it's all about Him." Everything in this existence, this universe, is about Jesus. But in our finite minds, at least in mine, we have a hard time wrapping our mind around grace being about someone other than ourselves. ... When we think about grace being about Jesus instead of about us, we can start to glimpse the glory in it. I love what Platt says about God's grace ... "God blessed the human race, not because of any merit or inherent worth in us, but simply out of pure, unadulterated grace" (65). God didn't create us or enter into a relationship with us because we deserved it or earned it but because that "pure, unadulterated grace" brought glory to Himself. And because "God is at the center of His universe, everything He does ultimately revolves around Him" (Platt 71). So you see ... our depravity makes us entirely dependent on the grace of God, and the grace of God brings glory to God. And so, ultimately, our depravity brings glory to God. Therefore, the answer to my question is that God created us, depraved human beings, so that He could lavish His Self-glorifying grace upon our lives. His glory is the point. It's all about Him. The point of everything in our lives, on this planet, in this universe, in all that God created - ever - is HIS GLORY.
Which leads me into more thoughts ... haha! Part 4 to follow :)
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
This Season
The seasons of life are pretty crazy, don't ya think? So many come and go in our lifetime. Long seasons. Short seasons. Seasons that are incredible and others that aren't so much. Seasons that are really awesome but really difficult. Seasons that are really awful and really difficult. All kinds of seasons. ... About the only thing I can consistently see in every single season of life is an opportunity for growth. Growth as a person, sure ... but even more importantly, growth as a follower of Jesus. ... Oh, yeah! :D
I don't know about you, but wow ... I wanna be more like Jesus than like myself. God has been teaching me so much in this season of my life. So much about Himself, about myself, about people in general. ... About my attitude, about my faith in Him, about my insecurities, about the way I handle situations that arise - both big and small, about not getting what I want or what I planned, about my calling ... and I'm sure I could keep going with this list of lessons. It's crazy. Crazy to think about all that can happen in your life in just one season.
The past year of my life has been the strangest, most difficult, and most incredible season of my life in my 24 years on this planet. Relationships not working out in the past was hard. Not passing the Praxis was hard. Graduating with a degree I may never "officially" use was hard. But in the past year, I have fought the deepest insecurities, and perhaps, secret sins, of my life. My overactive thyroid sure didn't help, but I don't think it was the entire cause of the battle I faced over this past year. And I thank God for seasons. That season has pretty much passed. And now, I am in a season of REAPING! Oh, to reap. God is so faithful ... even when I'm not. In just the past four months, God has pulled me out of a pit ... a very deep pit that was burying me alive. And in pulling me out, He has taught me so many lessons ... He is STILL teaching me many of them. I still have a long way to go with all of 'em, but wow ... to reap what I have sown, to reap what God has been sowing in me, to learn and to grow and to feel alive again! It had been a lot of months of drought and despair and inner turmoil. And I am finally free! Still growing and working through lessons that are a process to learn ... but FREE. Free to live a passionate, fulfilling, intentional calling. I have purpose. I have life. Because I have JESUS!
I am so thankful for the mighty lessons God teaches me all the time, everyday. The God of the universe loves me personally, intimately, and entirely ... enough to reach into my life and teach me and grow me up in Him and fulfill me. I am so thankful for Jesus and His shed blood. No matter how often I mess up, no matter how often God has to repeat His lessons, no matter what ... Jesus' sacrifice on the Cross is more than sufficient to make up the difference. And for that, I can only keep trying to stay on the straight and narrow path, keep trying to not make excuses for my sin but to make the right choices when I'm convicted and honor Jesus with my whole life. And I am so thankful for the Holy Spirit ... the part of God who lives in me, convicting me, encouraging me, enabling me not only to comprehend but to live out the lessons God teaches me. The Holy Spirit, the empowering part of God who enables me to worship God with my life song.
This season. Oh, this season. A time of growth and redemption and sanctification and joy. Whatever season of life you're in, take the opportunity to GROW. Don't miss this season. Grow. Live. Breathe it all in. God is at work. And He. Is. FAITHFUL. :)
Ephesians 2:10
We are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things He planned for us long ago.
I don't know about you, but wow ... I wanna be more like Jesus than like myself. God has been teaching me so much in this season of my life. So much about Himself, about myself, about people in general. ... About my attitude, about my faith in Him, about my insecurities, about the way I handle situations that arise - both big and small, about not getting what I want or what I planned, about my calling ... and I'm sure I could keep going with this list of lessons. It's crazy. Crazy to think about all that can happen in your life in just one season.
The past year of my life has been the strangest, most difficult, and most incredible season of my life in my 24 years on this planet. Relationships not working out in the past was hard. Not passing the Praxis was hard. Graduating with a degree I may never "officially" use was hard. But in the past year, I have fought the deepest insecurities, and perhaps, secret sins, of my life. My overactive thyroid sure didn't help, but I don't think it was the entire cause of the battle I faced over this past year. And I thank God for seasons. That season has pretty much passed. And now, I am in a season of REAPING! Oh, to reap. God is so faithful ... even when I'm not. In just the past four months, God has pulled me out of a pit ... a very deep pit that was burying me alive. And in pulling me out, He has taught me so many lessons ... He is STILL teaching me many of them. I still have a long way to go with all of 'em, but wow ... to reap what I have sown, to reap what God has been sowing in me, to learn and to grow and to feel alive again! It had been a lot of months of drought and despair and inner turmoil. And I am finally free! Still growing and working through lessons that are a process to learn ... but FREE. Free to live a passionate, fulfilling, intentional calling. I have purpose. I have life. Because I have JESUS!
I am so thankful for the mighty lessons God teaches me all the time, everyday. The God of the universe loves me personally, intimately, and entirely ... enough to reach into my life and teach me and grow me up in Him and fulfill me. I am so thankful for Jesus and His shed blood. No matter how often I mess up, no matter how often God has to repeat His lessons, no matter what ... Jesus' sacrifice on the Cross is more than sufficient to make up the difference. And for that, I can only keep trying to stay on the straight and narrow path, keep trying to not make excuses for my sin but to make the right choices when I'm convicted and honor Jesus with my whole life. And I am so thankful for the Holy Spirit ... the part of God who lives in me, convicting me, encouraging me, enabling me not only to comprehend but to live out the lessons God teaches me. The Holy Spirit, the empowering part of God who enables me to worship God with my life song.
This season. Oh, this season. A time of growth and redemption and sanctification and joy. Whatever season of life you're in, take the opportunity to GROW. Don't miss this season. Grow. Live. Breathe it all in. God is at work. And He. Is. FAITHFUL. :)
Ephesians 2:10
We are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things He planned for us long ago.
Saturday, November 5, 2011
Depravity (Part 2): What is the Point?
So what is the point? I bet you're wondering if I had a big epiphany while I was gone. Haha! And well, I think it's coming - slowly but surely. ... but I do have to say that I still don't know why God created us when He knew we were gonna be a bunch of sin bags. He knows His purposes. Obviously, there is more glory to come out of our lives than we will ever know - thank GOD for that!
But ... there is a big ... HUGE ... really IMPORTANT point to be taken away from these ramblings (and from Galatians 6:16-26 and Romans 6 - go read these passages if you haven't already). The answer is found all over these two passages, but I think it is best summed up in two little verses ...
Romans 6:1-2
"What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it?"
The point is really as simple as that ... in a phrase you might hear my dad use, "Knock it off, ya bozos!" Hahaha! ... That's right - STOP SINNING, YOU DEPRAVED PEOPLE!!!!
I know what you're thinking ... well, at least, I'M thinking it ... "That's NOT simple!!!" I just told you in the last post that I fall into so many sinful attitudes so easily - pride, ungratefulness, impatience, down-right meanness, and the list goes on - and all in 5 minutes too! ... But seriously ... why would Paul (or whoever the heck wrote this book) - who got it from God in the first place - give us this sixth chapter of Romans if he didn't intend for us to LIVE it??? God expects us to read this passage and then DO it!!! Man, that's a heavy order, huh? But it's turning my cringing and my cowering into thoughtfulness, which makes me fix my eyes on Jesus for direction and clarity, which will eventually help me LIVE out this passage - or at least attempt to - a little at a time, day by day. And that brings glory to God! Ha! And there we have it ... the point is bringing glory to God
"But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh." Galatians 6:16
... THAT is the point, my dear friends - to turn away from our sin, to stop it in its tracks, and not just walk, but run, after Jesus, which will, in turn, bring glory to God.
But ... there is a big ... HUGE ... really IMPORTANT point to be taken away from these ramblings (and from Galatians 6:16-26 and Romans 6 - go read these passages if you haven't already). The answer is found all over these two passages, but I think it is best summed up in two little verses ...
Romans 6:1-2
"What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it?"
The point is really as simple as that ... in a phrase you might hear my dad use, "Knock it off, ya bozos!" Hahaha! ... That's right - STOP SINNING, YOU DEPRAVED PEOPLE!!!!
I know what you're thinking ... well, at least, I'M thinking it ... "That's NOT simple!!!" I just told you in the last post that I fall into so many sinful attitudes so easily - pride, ungratefulness, impatience, down-right meanness, and the list goes on - and all in 5 minutes too! ... But seriously ... why would Paul (or whoever the heck wrote this book) - who got it from God in the first place - give us this sixth chapter of Romans if he didn't intend for us to LIVE it??? God expects us to read this passage and then DO it!!! Man, that's a heavy order, huh? But it's turning my cringing and my cowering into thoughtfulness, which makes me fix my eyes on Jesus for direction and clarity, which will eventually help me LIVE out this passage - or at least attempt to - a little at a time, day by day. And that brings glory to God! Ha! And there we have it ... the point is bringing glory to God
"But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh." Galatians 6:16
... THAT is the point, my dear friends - to turn away from our sin, to stop it in its tracks, and not just walk, but run, after Jesus, which will, in turn, bring glory to God.
Friday, November 4, 2011
Depravity (Part 1)
I've been thinking about my own depravity lately. Ugh. It makes me cringe. Literally. I am scrunching up my face and my body is cowering a little bit even now as I'm typing. And I want you to think about depravity too. If you can't think about your own 'cause, like me, it makes you sick, then just think about mine. Yes, think about Mical Masterson's depravity.
Have you read the definition of depravity lately? Yuck. I just did, and it makes me cower even more.
Depravity: "corrupt, wicked, or perverted."
*Big sigh and a sad face*
Man. This makes me really upset ... heartbroken, even. Heartbroken because my depravity ... my corrupt, wicked, and perverted nature hurts my Savior, my God, my Spirit - yes, the Three in One.
I don't know how you feel about this issue of TOTAL depravity or if you even have the slightest clue what I'm talking about. Some people do ... most people don't. It's worth looking into if you haven't. It can lead into crazy controversies involving the names John Calvin and John Wesley and all that they believed about God and His relationship with/to us. I'm not gonna get into all of that ... although, I am fascinated by these ideas. I'm not gonna go labeling myself a Calvinist or an Arminianist ... I don't much care about names. But! One thing I will not budge on is this idea of total depravity. Total depravity is this ... that we are totally and completely sinful (remember those ugly words from before? - corrupt, wicked, perverted? Yep, we're ALL of those), that we can do NOTHING good in our own strength - ONLY through God's working in our lives can we do, say, or think anything good at all (also known as giving us His GRACE - what we DON'T deserve).
And THAT is what I've been thinking about lately. People may argue this point, but for me, it's as easy as looking at my OWN life. Every SINGLE day ... and usually, several times a day ... I fall into sin after sin. A LOT of things qualify as sin. Sin, in itself, is "missing the mark." The "mark" is perfection (also known, and only known, as JESUS) ... and so if our hearts and minds are exuding anything but perfection, we are sinning. Whoa! Now, there's another blog post. Whew! Thank you, Jesus, for your grace! So when I think about sin that way, I KNOW I'm totally depraved! Man, oh man.
... Okay. Back to the point. Today, I was in a funk about something meaningless ... I was claiming my "rights" about something - ha, like I have any of those. And it made feel frustrated and irritable. It made me prideful and ungrateful and just mean in my heart. Otherwise known as ... I was wallowing in sin. And I got to thinking, and I voiced this to my mom ... I screw up all the time. I am totally corrupt and wicked and perverted, and I'm always going to be. Sure, God enables me to be pure and sanctified and holy, but in my depravity, 9 times out of 10, I chose to walk in the flesh instead of in the Spirit. I asked my mom, "So if God made us for His glory, and we screw up all the time, what's the point?" This question came from conviction. I was convicted because I was not only making excuses about my rights, being prideful, and ungrateful ... I was also being impatient and unkind about some demanding customers. And God was convicting me about all of these MANY sinful attitudes. So I was discouraged with myself. I told mom, "I'm so glad God is gracious 'cause if I were God, I woulda zapped all of us by at least the 3rd time ... heck, I wouldn't have created us at all!"
And when you think about this ... when you think about my question to my mom "If God made us for His GLORY, and we constantly SIN, then what's the point?", we get into some pretty convicting stuff.
So what is the point?
Galatians 5:16-26 and Romans 6 come to mind. Hold on. I'll be back in a bit. I need to go read these again ... hey, why don't you join me, and we'll meet back here for some more deep thoughts in, let's say, a half an hour? Just let me know if you need more time. ;)
BRB ...
Have you read the definition of depravity lately? Yuck. I just did, and it makes me cower even more.
Depravity: "corrupt, wicked, or perverted."
*Big sigh and a sad face*
Man. This makes me really upset ... heartbroken, even. Heartbroken because my depravity ... my corrupt, wicked, and perverted nature hurts my Savior, my God, my Spirit - yes, the Three in One.
I don't know how you feel about this issue of TOTAL depravity or if you even have the slightest clue what I'm talking about. Some people do ... most people don't. It's worth looking into if you haven't. It can lead into crazy controversies involving the names John Calvin and John Wesley and all that they believed about God and His relationship with/to us. I'm not gonna get into all of that ... although, I am fascinated by these ideas. I'm not gonna go labeling myself a Calvinist or an Arminianist ... I don't much care about names. But! One thing I will not budge on is this idea of total depravity. Total depravity is this ... that we are totally and completely sinful (remember those ugly words from before? - corrupt, wicked, perverted? Yep, we're ALL of those), that we can do NOTHING good in our own strength - ONLY through God's working in our lives can we do, say, or think anything good at all (also known as giving us His GRACE - what we DON'T deserve).
And THAT is what I've been thinking about lately. People may argue this point, but for me, it's as easy as looking at my OWN life. Every SINGLE day ... and usually, several times a day ... I fall into sin after sin. A LOT of things qualify as sin. Sin, in itself, is "missing the mark." The "mark" is perfection (also known, and only known, as JESUS) ... and so if our hearts and minds are exuding anything but perfection, we are sinning. Whoa! Now, there's another blog post. Whew! Thank you, Jesus, for your grace! So when I think about sin that way, I KNOW I'm totally depraved! Man, oh man.
... Okay. Back to the point. Today, I was in a funk about something meaningless ... I was claiming my "rights" about something - ha, like I have any of those. And it made feel frustrated and irritable. It made me prideful and ungrateful and just mean in my heart. Otherwise known as ... I was wallowing in sin. And I got to thinking, and I voiced this to my mom ... I screw up all the time. I am totally corrupt and wicked and perverted, and I'm always going to be. Sure, God enables me to be pure and sanctified and holy, but in my depravity, 9 times out of 10, I chose to walk in the flesh instead of in the Spirit. I asked my mom, "So if God made us for His glory, and we screw up all the time, what's the point?" This question came from conviction. I was convicted because I was not only making excuses about my rights, being prideful, and ungrateful ... I was also being impatient and unkind about some demanding customers. And God was convicting me about all of these MANY sinful attitudes. So I was discouraged with myself. I told mom, "I'm so glad God is gracious 'cause if I were God, I woulda zapped all of us by at least the 3rd time ... heck, I wouldn't have created us at all!"
And when you think about this ... when you think about my question to my mom "If God made us for His GLORY, and we constantly SIN, then what's the point?", we get into some pretty convicting stuff.
So what is the point?
Galatians 5:16-26 and Romans 6 come to mind. Hold on. I'll be back in a bit. I need to go read these again ... hey, why don't you join me, and we'll meet back here for some more deep thoughts in, let's say, a half an hour? Just let me know if you need more time. ;)
BRB ...
Saturday, July 23, 2011
"Kind words; Kind actions"
1 Peter 3:8-17
Wow. This is some good stuff right here. Go get your Bible, and read this passage.
God's been convicting me lately ... concerning a cheesy, little motto I use in SoZo all the time: "Kind words; Kind actions." Haha! I love this! I don't know what happened that made me think this up ... but I started saying it a couple years back, and it stuck. And I say it to the SoZo-ers all the time when they are being somewhat less than kind. It's a youth group motto of ours. And I've claimed it for myself too - at least in words. I found out recently that I only claimed it in words. ... Did you know that "Kind words; Kind actions" is not only a rule when you're with people, talking with them, interacting with them, and so on, but it's also a rule when you're not with them?
That's what God's been convicting me about. And 1 Peter 3:8-17 is more conviction. I've been struggling at The Porch lately. I've had some pretty demanding customers to wait on in the past few weeks. They cop a "tude" and ask for a million different things - most of them ridiculous. They are impatient and inconsiderate. Man, it's been driving me crazy. And I've been unkind, to say the least. I walk back into the kitchen to give my mom the order, and I'm complaining and saying mean things about them. Unkind. I cop a "tude" about them. Unkind. I talk about their shinanigans to my co-workers, Rene and Saya. Unkind. I've also been unkind in my heart about one of the instructors at Arthur Murray. I don't think he should be instructing ... much less trying to teach me to dance ... because he doesn't have much dance experience, can't keep a beat, and doesn't lead the steps right. So I've complained to my mom and to myself and to God about him many times. I need to be more patient ... more kind to him, even when he's not listening.
I've bought a few "signs" recently - at the Christian bookstore and Hobby Lobby - about kindness. "Kindness Matters" ... "Do the kindest things in the kindest ways" ... etc. And I'm reminded that I haven't been kind. ... It sounds like such a simple thing ... and to many people, maybe it doesn't sound very important, but kindness IS important. SO important. Not only 'cause it helps people like you and gives you a better reputation but because God wants us to be kind. Kindness is a fruit of the spirit. And 1 Peter 3:8-17 talks about it too. Well, it talks about "doing good" ... which means being kind.
"Whoever desires to love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit; let him turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it."
1 Peter 3:10-11
And verse 14 is incredible ...
"Now who is there to harm you if you are zealous for what is good?"
Doesn't that just hit you up side the head??
Mical, if you are passionate about being kind, then how can any one person's antics get to you?
We are called to be kind. Period.
So that's what I'm going to do.
Wow. This is some good stuff right here. Go get your Bible, and read this passage.
God's been convicting me lately ... concerning a cheesy, little motto I use in SoZo all the time: "Kind words; Kind actions." Haha! I love this! I don't know what happened that made me think this up ... but I started saying it a couple years back, and it stuck. And I say it to the SoZo-ers all the time when they are being somewhat less than kind. It's a youth group motto of ours. And I've claimed it for myself too - at least in words. I found out recently that I only claimed it in words. ... Did you know that "Kind words; Kind actions" is not only a rule when you're with people, talking with them, interacting with them, and so on, but it's also a rule when you're not with them?
That's what God's been convicting me about. And 1 Peter 3:8-17 is more conviction. I've been struggling at The Porch lately. I've had some pretty demanding customers to wait on in the past few weeks. They cop a "tude" and ask for a million different things - most of them ridiculous. They are impatient and inconsiderate. Man, it's been driving me crazy. And I've been unkind, to say the least. I walk back into the kitchen to give my mom the order, and I'm complaining and saying mean things about them. Unkind. I cop a "tude" about them. Unkind. I talk about their shinanigans to my co-workers, Rene and Saya. Unkind. I've also been unkind in my heart about one of the instructors at Arthur Murray. I don't think he should be instructing ... much less trying to teach me to dance ... because he doesn't have much dance experience, can't keep a beat, and doesn't lead the steps right. So I've complained to my mom and to myself and to God about him many times. I need to be more patient ... more kind to him, even when he's not listening.
I've bought a few "signs" recently - at the Christian bookstore and Hobby Lobby - about kindness. "Kindness Matters" ... "Do the kindest things in the kindest ways" ... etc. And I'm reminded that I haven't been kind. ... It sounds like such a simple thing ... and to many people, maybe it doesn't sound very important, but kindness IS important. SO important. Not only 'cause it helps people like you and gives you a better reputation but because God wants us to be kind. Kindness is a fruit of the spirit. And 1 Peter 3:8-17 talks about it too. Well, it talks about "doing good" ... which means being kind.
"Whoever desires to love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit; let him turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it."
1 Peter 3:10-11
And verse 14 is incredible ...
"Now who is there to harm you if you are zealous for what is good?"
Doesn't that just hit you up side the head??
Mical, if you are passionate about being kind, then how can any one person's antics get to you?
We are called to be kind. Period.
So that's what I'm going to do.
Friday, July 8, 2011
The Carpenter's Gift
I shared this story with my youth group at Sunday School last Sunday. It went along with the theme of the lesson - "Everything's Gonna Be Alright" - and with our key verse for the day - Romans 8:28 ... "And we know that God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose."
This story really touches my heart ... I almost cried in front of my kids when I read it to them. Who knows? I might cry by the time I get it all typed out here. :)
The Carpenter's Gift
Grandpa Nybakken loved life, especially, when he could play a trick on somebody. At those time, his large Norwegian frame would shake with laughter while he feigned innocent surprise, exclaiming, "Oh, forevermore!" But on a cold Saturday in downtown Chicago, God played a trick on him.
Grandpa Nybakken worked as a carpenter. On this particular day, he volunteered to build some crates to hold the clothes his church was sending to an orphanage in China. When he finished building the crates, he helped pack them full of clothing and load them on the trucks that would take them to the shipping docks. He felt good that he could contribute to the project, even in a small way.
On his way home, he reached into his shirt pocket to find his glasses. They were gone. He mentally replayed his earlier actions and realized what had happened. The glasses had slipped out of his pocket unnoticed and fallen into one of the crates. His brand new glasses were heading for China!
The old carpenter had very little money, certainly not enough to replace the glasses. He was upset at the thought of having to buy another pair. "It's not fair," he told God as he drove home in frustration. "I've been very faithful in giving of my time to your work, and now this happens."
Several months later, the director of the Chinese orphanage came to speak at the old carpenter's small church. He began by thanking the people for their faithfulness in supporting the orphanage. "But most of all," he said, "I must thank you for the glasses you sent last year. You see, the Communists had just swept through the orphanage, destroying everything, including my glasses. I was desperate. Even if I had the money, there was simply no way to replace those glasses. My coworkers and I were much in prayer about the situation. Then your crates arrived. When my staff removed one of the covers, they found a pair of glasses lying on top."
The missionary paused long enough to let his words sink in. Then, still gripped with the wonder of it all, he continued, "Folks, when I tried on the glasses, it was as thought they had been custom-made for me! I want to thank you for your thoughtfulness and generosity."
The congregation listened, pleased about the miraculous glasses. But the missionary surely must have confused their church with another, they thought. There were no eyeglasses on their list of items to be sent overseas.
But sitting quietly in the back, with tears streaming down his face, was an ordinary carpenter who on an ordinary day was used in an extraordinary way by the Master Carpenter Himself.
Oh! Isn't that just amazing!? Wow. I just love this story. It really helps remind me that GOD is at work ALL THE TIME! In those bummer situations ... during all those times that I failed the Praxis, in these 2 years that I've been working with the youth at Calvary and working other jobs here and there, wondering what the heck God is doing ... Wow. This story helps remind me that GOD is working in these situations in my life - I just don't know what He's doing. But I'm holding on to this story and claiming it as a PROMISE in my own life - that GOD is doing something big in the midst of my bummers. And He's doing it in YOUR life too! How incredible. Thank you, Jesus, for the ordinary carpenter's story.
This story really touches my heart ... I almost cried in front of my kids when I read it to them. Who knows? I might cry by the time I get it all typed out here. :)
The Carpenter's Gift
Grandpa Nybakken loved life, especially, when he could play a trick on somebody. At those time, his large Norwegian frame would shake with laughter while he feigned innocent surprise, exclaiming, "Oh, forevermore!" But on a cold Saturday in downtown Chicago, God played a trick on him.
Grandpa Nybakken worked as a carpenter. On this particular day, he volunteered to build some crates to hold the clothes his church was sending to an orphanage in China. When he finished building the crates, he helped pack them full of clothing and load them on the trucks that would take them to the shipping docks. He felt good that he could contribute to the project, even in a small way.
On his way home, he reached into his shirt pocket to find his glasses. They were gone. He mentally replayed his earlier actions and realized what had happened. The glasses had slipped out of his pocket unnoticed and fallen into one of the crates. His brand new glasses were heading for China!
The old carpenter had very little money, certainly not enough to replace the glasses. He was upset at the thought of having to buy another pair. "It's not fair," he told God as he drove home in frustration. "I've been very faithful in giving of my time to your work, and now this happens."
Several months later, the director of the Chinese orphanage came to speak at the old carpenter's small church. He began by thanking the people for their faithfulness in supporting the orphanage. "But most of all," he said, "I must thank you for the glasses you sent last year. You see, the Communists had just swept through the orphanage, destroying everything, including my glasses. I was desperate. Even if I had the money, there was simply no way to replace those glasses. My coworkers and I were much in prayer about the situation. Then your crates arrived. When my staff removed one of the covers, they found a pair of glasses lying on top."
The missionary paused long enough to let his words sink in. Then, still gripped with the wonder of it all, he continued, "Folks, when I tried on the glasses, it was as thought they had been custom-made for me! I want to thank you for your thoughtfulness and generosity."
The congregation listened, pleased about the miraculous glasses. But the missionary surely must have confused their church with another, they thought. There were no eyeglasses on their list of items to be sent overseas.
But sitting quietly in the back, with tears streaming down his face, was an ordinary carpenter who on an ordinary day was used in an extraordinary way by the Master Carpenter Himself.
Oh! Isn't that just amazing!? Wow. I just love this story. It really helps remind me that GOD is at work ALL THE TIME! In those bummer situations ... during all those times that I failed the Praxis, in these 2 years that I've been working with the youth at Calvary and working other jobs here and there, wondering what the heck God is doing ... Wow. This story helps remind me that GOD is working in these situations in my life - I just don't know what He's doing. But I'm holding on to this story and claiming it as a PROMISE in my own life - that GOD is doing something big in the midst of my bummers. And He's doing it in YOUR life too! How incredible. Thank you, Jesus, for the ordinary carpenter's story.
Monday, October 18, 2010
It'll Be (more than) Alright! (Posted once before, but SO good!)
Wow. I'm ready to give up.
Have you ever felt that way? Ever felt like life is just too much sometimes? Like you want to pull your hair out and burn all your school books and skip all your classes and ditch all your jobs and forget about all of your commitments and throw a temper tantrum and cry till your heart hurts worse than it already does and laugh at all of your "problems" and "pains" and dig yourself a hole and never come out? Yeah ... me neither. ................ Ha ha ha ha!
Well, my mind feels like ALL of these things at the moment, but my heart is telling me to chill out and rest in God's peace. Ya know, if God wasn't so incredibly and entirely faithful, I WOULD have given up by now! Life is hard sometimes, isn't? Whether you've had all of your heart's deepest longings put on hold (yep, I'm saying put on hold, instead of lost - aren't you proud of me?!) or you have lost a loved one or you're battling depression or you're feeling hopeless or any other countless things that seem to go wrong in this life. There is hope! Hope in God's MIGHTY faithfulness! ... God has been pouring on His faithfulness ... pouring it into my life for so long! And I find myself griping and complaining - like tonight - I got home from a super long day at school and work and just spilled it all out for my mom to hear. I'm sure she was tired of listening long before half way through, but thank God she just listened ... and then said "it'll be alright." .... "It'll be alright." ... Those are such simple words, but don't you want to hear that every now and then? ... I do!
Tonight, I want to shout out a message of God's faithfulness to you AND TO ME! IT'LL BE ALRIGHT! ... Actually, it'll be MORE than alright! God promises that He will take care of us. And His EVERYDAY, NEVER-ENDING faithfulness reveals that He DOES take care of us - each and every day - each and every moment - with each and every breath of our lives. Some verses that God's been using in my life lately to reveal and instill His faithfulness are the following. Read these now. Read these later. Soak 'em up! For they are LIFE to your whole self!!!!
Psalm 73:25-26 --- "Whom have I in heaven but You? And earth has nothing I desire besides You. My flesh and my heart may fail, but GOD is the STRENGTH of my heart and my PORTION FOREVER!"
Psalm 62:7 --- "My salvation and my honor DEPEND on GOD; He is MY MIGHTY ROCK, MY REFUGE!"
Psalm 32:8 & 32:10b --- "I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you. ... but the Lord's unfailing love surrounds the man who trusts in Him."
Proverbs 19:21 --- "Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails."
Proverbs 3:5-6 --- "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways, acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight."
Jeremiah 17:7-8 --- "But blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in Him. He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit."
Jeremiah 29:11 --- "'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.'"
2 Corinthians 4:16-18 --- "Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being RENEWED day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an ETERNAL GLORY that far outweighs them all. So we FIX OUR EYES not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is TEMPORARY, but what is unseen is ETERNAL."
I am writing this MORE as a comfort to myself! But ya'll might need some of this stuff too! :)
Keep trusting Jesus, Mical! Keep seeking Him and loving Him, Mical! Keep your eyes FIXED on Him, Mical! Keep at it, Mical! It'll be (MORE than) alright, Mical!
Have you ever felt that way? Ever felt like life is just too much sometimes? Like you want to pull your hair out and burn all your school books and skip all your classes and ditch all your jobs and forget about all of your commitments and throw a temper tantrum and cry till your heart hurts worse than it already does and laugh at all of your "problems" and "pains" and dig yourself a hole and never come out? Yeah ... me neither. ................ Ha ha ha ha!
Well, my mind feels like ALL of these things at the moment, but my heart is telling me to chill out and rest in God's peace. Ya know, if God wasn't so incredibly and entirely faithful, I WOULD have given up by now! Life is hard sometimes, isn't? Whether you've had all of your heart's deepest longings put on hold (yep, I'm saying put on hold, instead of lost - aren't you proud of me?!) or you have lost a loved one or you're battling depression or you're feeling hopeless or any other countless things that seem to go wrong in this life. There is hope! Hope in God's MIGHTY faithfulness! ... God has been pouring on His faithfulness ... pouring it into my life for so long! And I find myself griping and complaining - like tonight - I got home from a super long day at school and work and just spilled it all out for my mom to hear. I'm sure she was tired of listening long before half way through, but thank God she just listened ... and then said "it'll be alright." .... "It'll be alright." ... Those are such simple words, but don't you want to hear that every now and then? ... I do!
Tonight, I want to shout out a message of God's faithfulness to you AND TO ME! IT'LL BE ALRIGHT! ... Actually, it'll be MORE than alright! God promises that He will take care of us. And His EVERYDAY, NEVER-ENDING faithfulness reveals that He DOES take care of us - each and every day - each and every moment - with each and every breath of our lives. Some verses that God's been using in my life lately to reveal and instill His faithfulness are the following. Read these now. Read these later. Soak 'em up! For they are LIFE to your whole self!!!!
Psalm 73:25-26 --- "Whom have I in heaven but You? And earth has nothing I desire besides You. My flesh and my heart may fail, but GOD is the STRENGTH of my heart and my PORTION FOREVER!"
Psalm 62:7 --- "My salvation and my honor DEPEND on GOD; He is MY MIGHTY ROCK, MY REFUGE!"
Psalm 32:8 & 32:10b --- "I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you. ... but the Lord's unfailing love surrounds the man who trusts in Him."
Proverbs 19:21 --- "Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails."
Proverbs 3:5-6 --- "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways, acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight."
Jeremiah 17:7-8 --- "But blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in Him. He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit."
Jeremiah 29:11 --- "'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.'"
2 Corinthians 4:16-18 --- "Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being RENEWED day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an ETERNAL GLORY that far outweighs them all. So we FIX OUR EYES not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is TEMPORARY, but what is unseen is ETERNAL."
I am writing this MORE as a comfort to myself! But ya'll might need some of this stuff too! :)
Keep trusting Jesus, Mical! Keep seeking Him and loving Him, Mical! Keep your eyes FIXED on Him, Mical! Keep at it, Mical! It'll be (MORE than) alright, Mical!
Friday, October 1, 2010
Thankful at 1:27am :)
Well, it's another late night ... and I just don't want to go to bed. A night when the mind is goin' and the body won't stop movin' ... blah. I love to sleep, but I've been tossing and turning in bed more often lately ... and I find myself not wanting to go to bed at night a lot lately too.
Ha! It's probably all the sweet tea I drink, now that I think about it. ;)
But either way ... whether it be too much sugar and caffeine in my system or a mind constantly pondering my season of life ... I don't want to go to bed tonight.
I've been in an extra good mood the past couple of days. Since my chat with my dad and my "pruning," I've just been thinking UP. Excited about life. Thankful. And wow ... what better way to spend a late night than to thank God for my many blessings.
Yes, let's go! :)
God,
I thank you for my parents. I think I have the best parents ever! My dad is an encourager by nature, generous, slow to anger, passionate about You, always takes care of me and mom and Wes. My mom is a perseverer whether she thinks so or not, has a great sense of humor, goes out of her way to love me in light of my love language (receiving gifts), a great listener. I am excited to be living at home when most 20-somethings don't like, maybe even hate, living with their parents. I am incredibly blessed not only to have a great house to live in and a town I love but an awesome HOME.
Thank you for my friends. I struggle from time to time with my friends getting married, having kids, moving away, even just getting busy with school and work ... but I have amazing friends! They love me, get excited for me when I'm doing what I love, more than tolerate my shinanigans, pray for me, encourage me. Oh, they are great!
The list could go on and on, Lord, because you have blessed me with so much - far more than anything I could ask or imagine! So for now, lastly, I thank you for changing seasons - yes, the weather seasons (I'm lovin' the 50 degrees blowing through my open window right now!) - but more importantly, the seasons of life that you give me. This "single, 20-something, 'what the heck am I gonna do with my life!?'" season has been difficult, to say the least. But, God, I find so much grace in it - through Your provision of hope and excitement for what's to come, the focus I can have on YOU, the calling I can live out even more passionately and undistractedly (yes, I just made up a word), the time with my parents and brother and friends and church family and SoZo that I wouldn't have if I were married and having kids, the lessons I cannot learn in any other season. Lord Jesus, You are just AWESOME!!!! For growing me, loving me, teaching me, dying for me, giving me purpose. Thank you for Your hope and grace and strength and provision and joy and peace and lessons and Your word ... thank you for giving me courage to withstand the trials and disappointments ... and to face each new day. Your grace is more than sufficient and more than amazing. Your might is more than I can comprehend. Thank you, Lord God. Thank you, Jesus!
I love you.
Ha! It's probably all the sweet tea I drink, now that I think about it. ;)
But either way ... whether it be too much sugar and caffeine in my system or a mind constantly pondering my season of life ... I don't want to go to bed tonight.
I've been in an extra good mood the past couple of days. Since my chat with my dad and my "pruning," I've just been thinking UP. Excited about life. Thankful. And wow ... what better way to spend a late night than to thank God for my many blessings.
Yes, let's go! :)
God,
I thank you for my parents. I think I have the best parents ever! My dad is an encourager by nature, generous, slow to anger, passionate about You, always takes care of me and mom and Wes. My mom is a perseverer whether she thinks so or not, has a great sense of humor, goes out of her way to love me in light of my love language (receiving gifts), a great listener. I am excited to be living at home when most 20-somethings don't like, maybe even hate, living with their parents. I am incredibly blessed not only to have a great house to live in and a town I love but an awesome HOME.
Thank you for my friends. I struggle from time to time with my friends getting married, having kids, moving away, even just getting busy with school and work ... but I have amazing friends! They love me, get excited for me when I'm doing what I love, more than tolerate my shinanigans, pray for me, encourage me. Oh, they are great!
The list could go on and on, Lord, because you have blessed me with so much - far more than anything I could ask or imagine! So for now, lastly, I thank you for changing seasons - yes, the weather seasons (I'm lovin' the 50 degrees blowing through my open window right now!) - but more importantly, the seasons of life that you give me. This "single, 20-something, 'what the heck am I gonna do with my life!?'" season has been difficult, to say the least. But, God, I find so much grace in it - through Your provision of hope and excitement for what's to come, the focus I can have on YOU, the calling I can live out even more passionately and undistractedly (yes, I just made up a word), the time with my parents and brother and friends and church family and SoZo that I wouldn't have if I were married and having kids, the lessons I cannot learn in any other season. Lord Jesus, You are just AWESOME!!!! For growing me, loving me, teaching me, dying for me, giving me purpose. Thank you for Your hope and grace and strength and provision and joy and peace and lessons and Your word ... thank you for giving me courage to withstand the trials and disappointments ... and to face each new day. Your grace is more than sufficient and more than amazing. Your might is more than I can comprehend. Thank you, Lord God. Thank you, Jesus!
I love you.
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
The Pruning (Part 2)
Okay! Listen up! You must read my previous post first - "The Pruning (Part 1)" BEFORE you read this post!!! It's a preface to the great thoughts to come now ...
Why might God plant us in less than ideal circumstances?
Check out these verses, yo!!!
Deuteronomy 30:6
"And the Lord your God will circumcise your heart and the hearts of your offspring, so that you will love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, that you may live."
Circumcise: "to put off the sins of the flesh; to make holy"
Less than ideal circumstances = trials
God allows us to go through trials so that we will learn to run away from the sins that so easily trap us and to make us more like Him. The more we overcome sin, the more holy we become.
Jeremiah 29:12-14
"Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will hear you. You will seek Me and find Me when you seek Me with all your heart. I will be found by you, declares the Lord, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, declares the Lord, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile."
God allows us to go through trials so that He can teach us how to seek Him and allow us to experience the grace of His restoration in and of our lives.
Philippians 4:11-13
"Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me."
God allows us to go through trials so that we will learn to be content in every circumstance we face and and to learn that our strength not only comes from God but that we are utterly dependent on Him for all that we could want or need.
1 Timothy 6:6-8
"Now there is great gain in godliness with contentment, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content."
God allows us to go through trials so that we will understand that we are nothing without Him and to teach us contentment with what we have and where we are in our lives.
Awesome, right? .... Wow!
Well, let me leave you with some questions that my devotional had me answer for myself ....
What keeps you from being content within your present circumstances?
What might God want you to prune?
Prune: "to remove dead parts"
What might He want to heal, mend, or perfect in you?
How can you "bloom where you are planted" in your present circumstances?
Lamentations 3:25-26
"The Lord is good to those whose hope is in Him, to the one who seeks Him; it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord."
THE END :)
Why might God plant us in less than ideal circumstances?
Check out these verses, yo!!!
Deuteronomy 30:6
"And the Lord your God will circumcise your heart and the hearts of your offspring, so that you will love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, that you may live."
Circumcise: "to put off the sins of the flesh; to make holy"
Less than ideal circumstances = trials
God allows us to go through trials so that we will learn to run away from the sins that so easily trap us and to make us more like Him. The more we overcome sin, the more holy we become.
Jeremiah 29:12-14
"Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will hear you. You will seek Me and find Me when you seek Me with all your heart. I will be found by you, declares the Lord, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, declares the Lord, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile."
God allows us to go through trials so that He can teach us how to seek Him and allow us to experience the grace of His restoration in and of our lives.
Philippians 4:11-13
"Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me."
God allows us to go through trials so that we will learn to be content in every circumstance we face and and to learn that our strength not only comes from God but that we are utterly dependent on Him for all that we could want or need.
1 Timothy 6:6-8
"Now there is great gain in godliness with contentment, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content."
God allows us to go through trials so that we will understand that we are nothing without Him and to teach us contentment with what we have and where we are in our lives.
Awesome, right? .... Wow!
Well, let me leave you with some questions that my devotional had me answer for myself ....
What keeps you from being content within your present circumstances?
What might God want you to prune?
Prune: "to remove dead parts"
What might He want to heal, mend, or perfect in you?
How can you "bloom where you are planted" in your present circumstances?
Lamentations 3:25-26
"The Lord is good to those whose hope is in Him, to the one who seeks Him; it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord."
THE END :)
The Pruning (Part 1)
Well, it's true ... I am very behind with my grace posts again (surprise, surprise). I'll catch up with 'em later. Right now, I have some amazing thoughts to share with you. ... My devotions tonight are really awesome. "Are" being present tense because they continue here ... I just MUST share them with you all!!! :)
It amazes me how God works ... always and in perfect ways! Tonight, I talked with my dad about the season of life that I'm in right now. It's a rough season overall ... and it was a difficult conversation with my dad. Nearly tears ... almost. But I came away from it encouraged 'cause my dad is a great encourager, always keeps an eternal perspective, which I need to be constantly reminded of, and his words just simply gave me hope for my current circumstances.
The short version of my life-situation, or my "current season of life," is ...
1. Most my friends are leaving me either by marriage or kids or moving away or busyness.
2. I failed the Praxis 9 times. I still want to be a teacher, and I plan to take the test again. But I struggle with fear that is closer to the paralyzing kind than the healthy kind.
3. I want to find my future husband and work alongside him in ministry, but he's nowhere to be found. (And by the way, several of my friends have husbands!)
4. My insecurities have been nearly crippling me in my calling.
Without going into too much of a pity party, I will stop here. Wow! I'm finding hope in these circumstances, right? RIGHT! :D .... Oh, but first! In effort to keep this LONG post shorter, I'm gonna break it up into two posts. I really want y'all to hear this! And I wanna make sure my A.D.D. doesn't kick in too hard so that I can listen to it a second time ... 'cause this stuff is good! Straight from God. So ... read my next post.
This one is TO BE CONTINUED ...
It amazes me how God works ... always and in perfect ways! Tonight, I talked with my dad about the season of life that I'm in right now. It's a rough season overall ... and it was a difficult conversation with my dad. Nearly tears ... almost. But I came away from it encouraged 'cause my dad is a great encourager, always keeps an eternal perspective, which I need to be constantly reminded of, and his words just simply gave me hope for my current circumstances.
The short version of my life-situation, or my "current season of life," is ...
1. Most my friends are leaving me either by marriage or kids or moving away or busyness.
2. I failed the Praxis 9 times. I still want to be a teacher, and I plan to take the test again. But I struggle with fear that is closer to the paralyzing kind than the healthy kind.
3. I want to find my future husband and work alongside him in ministry, but he's nowhere to be found. (And by the way, several of my friends have husbands!)
4. My insecurities have been nearly crippling me in my calling.
Without going into too much of a pity party, I will stop here. Wow! I'm finding hope in these circumstances, right? RIGHT! :D .... Oh, but first! In effort to keep this LONG post shorter, I'm gonna break it up into two posts. I really want y'all to hear this! And I wanna make sure my A.D.D. doesn't kick in too hard so that I can listen to it a second time ... 'cause this stuff is good! Straight from God. So ... read my next post.
This one is TO BE CONTINUED ...
Friday, June 11, 2010
You HAVE to be called!!!
Well .... why do I have a blog? Everything I write is WAY better when I'm spilling my heart to someone specific ... most often, more so than on my blog anyway. Ha! Yet again, I'm gonna post something here that I've written to a friend, a new friend of mine - Jared Snyder. It's about my passion: youth ministry! So read on if you desire to hear my ramblings about the life of a single, 23-year-old girl in youth ministry in Danville, Indiana. I'll post a blurb of it here at least :) .....
Anyway ... I'm so excited for you! I know we've only met ... what? ... twice? But Emily told me about your heart for young people and about your internship in Evansville. I want to do the same thing! I AM doing it ... just feeling out some possible further training, etc. in ministry. But I hear about you being on and internship and think "Gosh, I'm jealous!" And "Gosh, that's awesome for him!" So I think about ya from time to time wondering how things are going. Thought I might as well ask. And NOW! You're challenging me to pray for ya! Good job! I have a paper on my desk now that says "Pray for Jared Snyder - internship in Evansville." :)
Keep at it! God is teaching me (over and over) :) to be faithful where I'm at (NOW! ... not worrying about the future) no matter how hard it gets ('cause it gets rough from time to time - whether apathetic kids, dysfunctional kids, low attendance, forgetful students and parents, etc.)! BUT! Like I said (and like I know you know!), it is MORE than rewarding! ... I know I'm going on and on (if Emily didn't tell you, I'm oober long-winded ... but of course, you know that by now!), but ... one last thing! I listened to a youth ministry cd about 4 months ago ... a speaker named Jeanne Mayo ... and something she said really stuck out to me. I've got it written in big letters above my office door at church ... and it's really helped me get through some of the toughest times in ministry over the past few months. Hope it fuels you a bit too! .... "Decide in advance that you're gonna keep abounding because your work is never in vain when it is in the Lord." ... No joke! This simple statement has been an anchor for me this year. We ARE CALLED by God! So let's love these kids, push them to Christ, and be consistent No. Matter. What. :D
Okay, I'm done. I'm impressed if you've read this far. Can you tell I love youth ministry? Can you tell it's not easy? Ha! Have fun this summer!!! God IS using you - I know it!
Praying for you, new friend!
Mical :)
Anyway ... I'm so excited for you! I know we've only met ... what? ... twice? But Emily told me about your heart for young people and about your internship in Evansville. I want to do the same thing! I AM doing it ... just feeling out some possible further training, etc. in ministry. But I hear about you being on and internship and think "Gosh, I'm jealous!" And "Gosh, that's awesome for him!" So I think about ya from time to time wondering how things are going. Thought I might as well ask. And NOW! You're challenging me to pray for ya! Good job! I have a paper on my desk now that says "Pray for Jared Snyder - internship in Evansville." :)
Keep at it! God is teaching me (over and over) :) to be faithful where I'm at (NOW! ... not worrying about the future) no matter how hard it gets ('cause it gets rough from time to time - whether apathetic kids, dysfunctional kids, low attendance, forgetful students and parents, etc.)! BUT! Like I said (and like I know you know!), it is MORE than rewarding! ... I know I'm going on and on (if Emily didn't tell you, I'm oober long-winded ... but of course, you know that by now!), but ... one last thing! I listened to a youth ministry cd about 4 months ago ... a speaker named Jeanne Mayo ... and something she said really stuck out to me. I've got it written in big letters above my office door at church ... and it's really helped me get through some of the toughest times in ministry over the past few months. Hope it fuels you a bit too! .... "Decide in advance that you're gonna keep abounding because your work is never in vain when it is in the Lord." ... No joke! This simple statement has been an anchor for me this year. We ARE CALLED by God! So let's love these kids, push them to Christ, and be consistent No. Matter. What. :D
Okay, I'm done. I'm impressed if you've read this far. Can you tell I love youth ministry? Can you tell it's not easy? Ha! Have fun this summer!!! God IS using you - I know it!
Praying for you, new friend!
Mical :)
Let us draw near to God ....
Hebrews 10:19-25 (New International Version)
Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.
Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.
Friday, December 4, 2009
Simple Joys: Part 2 :)
Joy is such an amazing gift from the Lord!
I wanna bask in it again tonight!
So here are some "simple joys" I've experienced this week ....
We'll call this Simple Joys: Part 2.
Sunday:
~ The humbling experience at the ice skating rink with friends ... not only can I not skate, but I fell down within the first 10 minutes! Josh and Alec were the only ones who got to see it too. Ha ha!
~ Little Barrett grabbing my hand and holding it during our entire walk to Monument Circle.
Tuesday:
~ Getting the best haircut of my life! And getting a hug from Kayla afterwards :)
~ Seeing that most of the shirts I bought at Old Navy said "Small" on the size tag.
~ Meeting with the Common Ground youth pastors and getting a hug from Jeremy Wright.
Wednesday:
~ Having Mathanael as my buddy at after school - piggy back rides, sitting on my lap while I helped him with his homework, him asking me to sit next to him during Bible time ... ah! Life is good :)
~ Getting hugs from Diazaun and KeAndre as I left after school.
~ Getting a "bye, Mical" from Mr. James as I headed out the door at after school.
Thursday:
~ Having a really good tutoring session in which I helped an English Composition student expand his ideas and narrow his thesis.
~ Helping Mathanael with his math homework.
~ Racing Diazuan with his math problems - he won.
Friday:
~ Lunch with Maggie and Hannah.
~ Getting an uplifting e-mail from Alex.
I wanna pay closer attention to the simple joys in my life!!!! God is so good! :)
Friday, October 30, 2009
Simple Joys :)
Yesterday, on my way to school, I saw a boy dancing while he was waiting for his bus to pick him up for school. It was the best thing I'd seen all week! And it got me thinking about simple things that bring me so much joy. So I decided to watch for simple joys throughout the day all day yesterday ... and here's what I observed. :)
On my way to school:
~ The boy dancing at the bus stop.
~ The way the sun and the clouds worked together to create another one of God's paintings in the sky! .... A piercing orange-colored sun beneath pink and purple clouds! Oh, it was gorgeous! A great way to start off the day! :)
~ Watching the leaves fall as I walked to class.
At after school:
~ Whishae grabbing my hand and holding it.
~ Whishae giving me a big smile.
~ Mathanael saying his Bible verse.
~ Helping little George with his math homework. He connected the dots to create his numbers, and after he finished, we raised our arms and shouted, "yeahhh!!!!"
~ Getting a huge hug from George.
~ Hearing the other leaders at after school say I was doing great things to help out with the crazy, little guy - George. He's a hyper, little 5-year-old who was new to after school this week.
At Kroger:
~ Standing and waiting for a hug from Emily when we met to pick up dinner and a movie.
~ Laughing with Emily.
None of these things are super extravagant or amazingly exciting to the everyday person, perhaps .... but they are most certainly simple joys that brought tremendous joy to my life yesterday!
Look for the simple joys in life! You will never go wrong!!!! Praise the Lord for His tremendous yet simple blessings! :)
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Flesh-Driven or Spirit-Led?
So ... like I often do ... I didn't mean to post that last post.
When I started it ... "So I finished reading Having a Mary Spirit ...." I meant to type out a powerful passage of the book and leave it at that.
Ha! I forgot .... I'm Mical Masterson.
When do I ever stay on topic ... even with myself?
Too funny!
Well, this post is all about a passage from Having a Mary Spirit.
It is amazing and speaks for itself, so get ready!
I must warn you though .... if you don't want any conviction at the moment, don't read this.
But then again ... if you don't want any conviction at the moment, then you need to read this!
So just do it! :)
"Remember the church building program I told you about in the first chapter of this book? Now, three years later, our new facility is almost complete. But even more exciting to me is the fact that we get to keep our existing church building for a youth and ministry outreach center. That means we will be able to fulfill the dreams and visions we had in the beginning, the very dreams and visions that had to be scaled back because of finances. In His mysterious and marvelous way, God has opened a door to more ministry opportunities for less money - and right in the middle of town rather than on our new, less accessible campus.
I had a dream, you see, but God had a better idea. Which is usually the case. So often we feel frustrated in our walk with God because of what seem like roadblocks and detours. We feel as though God has forsaken us - or, worse, that we somehow misinterpreted His will. One way or another, our joy is depleted, our passion runs dry, and we settle for motions rather than movements in our walk with God.
However, we have a choice. We always have a choice. Either we can trust the Spirit's leading, or we can insist on going our own way. But let me tell you - only one choice leads to life. The other marks a gradual descent toward spiritual death, for no one can refuse God's will and prosper.
When I finally - and grudgingly - surrendered my dreams for our church building to God, I was giving them up for good. I had no idea He would resurrect them - and in a way that would be better for everyone. God really did have a better idea, but I couldn't see it until I chose to obey and follow.
We miss so much when we insist on being flesh-driven rather than Spirit-led. When we power walk in a Martha spirit - pushing, striving, and conniving - rather than adopting a Mary spirit that says, 'Wherever You lead me, Lord. I just want to be close to You,' we miss out on so many of God's good ideas ... and our chance to be a part of them.
That is why I keep on praying, 'Lord, change me.'
I want to have a heart that ponders rather than fears.
A heart that believes that God will do what He says He will do, though everything around me shouts to the contrary.
I want a Mary spirit. Oh, I'm glad God understands my Martha-ness and that He is not put out with me when I dream big dreams and go full tilt. But I'm also glad He doesn't allow me to continually operate in Martha overdrive.
In His mercy, God confounds me. He reins me in and prunes me back. And He leads me on, often along paths I don't understand. For He has much more in mind for me and for His kingdom than I can see or even know.
So I'm learning not to get uptight when things don't go my way. For if I can, like the Marys we've studied, keep in step with the Spirit, He will show me which path to take. And, better yet, I'll receive what my spirit longs for.
A gentle, beautiful life, inside and out. A soul at rest and a body in motion. A life lived in the presence of my precious Lord.
And always, as I follow His footsteps, the promise of something astonishing and new."
Galatians 5:16
Walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.
When I started it ... "So I finished reading Having a Mary Spirit ...." I meant to type out a powerful passage of the book and leave it at that.
Ha! I forgot .... I'm Mical Masterson.
When do I ever stay on topic ... even with myself?
Too funny!
Well, this post is all about a passage from Having a Mary Spirit.
It is amazing and speaks for itself, so get ready!
I must warn you though .... if you don't want any conviction at the moment, don't read this.
But then again ... if you don't want any conviction at the moment, then you need to read this!
So just do it! :)
"Remember the church building program I told you about in the first chapter of this book? Now, three years later, our new facility is almost complete. But even more exciting to me is the fact that we get to keep our existing church building for a youth and ministry outreach center. That means we will be able to fulfill the dreams and visions we had in the beginning, the very dreams and visions that had to be scaled back because of finances. In His mysterious and marvelous way, God has opened a door to more ministry opportunities for less money - and right in the middle of town rather than on our new, less accessible campus.
I had a dream, you see, but God had a better idea. Which is usually the case. So often we feel frustrated in our walk with God because of what seem like roadblocks and detours. We feel as though God has forsaken us - or, worse, that we somehow misinterpreted His will. One way or another, our joy is depleted, our passion runs dry, and we settle for motions rather than movements in our walk with God.
However, we have a choice. We always have a choice. Either we can trust the Spirit's leading, or we can insist on going our own way. But let me tell you - only one choice leads to life. The other marks a gradual descent toward spiritual death, for no one can refuse God's will and prosper.
When I finally - and grudgingly - surrendered my dreams for our church building to God, I was giving them up for good. I had no idea He would resurrect them - and in a way that would be better for everyone. God really did have a better idea, but I couldn't see it until I chose to obey and follow.
We miss so much when we insist on being flesh-driven rather than Spirit-led. When we power walk in a Martha spirit - pushing, striving, and conniving - rather than adopting a Mary spirit that says, 'Wherever You lead me, Lord. I just want to be close to You,' we miss out on so many of God's good ideas ... and our chance to be a part of them.
That is why I keep on praying, 'Lord, change me.'
I want to have a heart that ponders rather than fears.
A heart that believes that God will do what He says He will do, though everything around me shouts to the contrary.
I want a Mary spirit. Oh, I'm glad God understands my Martha-ness and that He is not put out with me when I dream big dreams and go full tilt. But I'm also glad He doesn't allow me to continually operate in Martha overdrive.
In His mercy, God confounds me. He reins me in and prunes me back. And He leads me on, often along paths I don't understand. For He has much more in mind for me and for His kingdom than I can see or even know.
So I'm learning not to get uptight when things don't go my way. For if I can, like the Marys we've studied, keep in step with the Spirit, He will show me which path to take. And, better yet, I'll receive what my spirit longs for.
A gentle, beautiful life, inside and out. A soul at rest and a body in motion. A life lived in the presence of my precious Lord.
And always, as I follow His footsteps, the promise of something astonishing and new."
Galatians 5:16
Walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Condemnation vs. Conviction
So I meant to post this a while back ... I think on the same day as my talk about Colossians 3:3? ....... No .... but anyway ... a few weeks ago, I meant to post these thoughts and didn't .... so here they are now. :)
They are concerning Condemnation and Conviction.
God's been convicting me in mighty ways over the past year ... pushing me to change and let go and ultimately, become more like Him. ... Which is no easy task, as we all know very well. But anyway, from time to time, I feel condemned because I just can't get some things in this Christian walk right. Or I'm not consistent ... whatever the case may be. But recently, I was reminded that I was being selfish in this talking and feeling of condemnation because it was pointing my thoughts back to myself instead of Christ.
And I came to realize ... that's the HUGE difference between conviction and condemnation.
Conviction points us to CHRIST.
Condemnation makes us only think about ourselves.
So yeah! Good stuff!
I hope none of you are battling condemnation. It is AWFUL! I recently came out of the worst condemnation session of my life. It wasn't easy, but once I realized that my false humility (aka - condemnation) was sin in and of itself, my pity parties started to turn around. .... I was so bummed out because I wasn't living the way Jesus wanted me to live ... I was living in sin ... so when I figured out that wallowing in my sin IS A SIN, wow ... I started to change my act. I'm still working on it.
But God's grace is sufficient, and that's what my next post is about! :)
They are concerning Condemnation and Conviction.
God's been convicting me in mighty ways over the past year ... pushing me to change and let go and ultimately, become more like Him. ... Which is no easy task, as we all know very well. But anyway, from time to time, I feel condemned because I just can't get some things in this Christian walk right. Or I'm not consistent ... whatever the case may be. But recently, I was reminded that I was being selfish in this talking and feeling of condemnation because it was pointing my thoughts back to myself instead of Christ.
And I came to realize ... that's the HUGE difference between conviction and condemnation.
Conviction points us to CHRIST.
Condemnation makes us only think about ourselves.
So yeah! Good stuff!
I hope none of you are battling condemnation. It is AWFUL! I recently came out of the worst condemnation session of my life. It wasn't easy, but once I realized that my false humility (aka - condemnation) was sin in and of itself, my pity parties started to turn around. .... I was so bummed out because I wasn't living the way Jesus wanted me to live ... I was living in sin ... so when I figured out that wallowing in my sin IS A SIN, wow ... I started to change my act. I'm still working on it.
But God's grace is sufficient, and that's what my next post is about! :)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)