On a day like this...

"On a day like this...

clap, clap,

On a day like this...

clap, clap

On a day like this..

clap

I need the Lord to help me..."

This goofy camp song sums up my day today.

It's a song where you add goofy sound effects each round and end with a a good ole' soulful lyric,

"I need the Lord to help me". 

Multiple times today, I felt like another goofy sound effect was coming my way.

Things were just not going right.

It seemed to me that the world might be falling apart.

A few times I reached to the hair on my head, ready to pull it out  [but thankfully, I settled with just gripping the strands as to grip a stress ball].

Even a couple times, my frustration made me say a couple choice words to myself [just being real].

 

Things like...

losing a well thought out email that was ready to send [and of course, did not automatically save]..

dropping my already prepared lunch on the floor,

hearing sad news about a friend, 

stubbing my toe,

receiving zero phone calls for a job I so desperately want,

running out of toilet paper,

 waiting 30 minutes for water to boil but realizing that the stove top wasn't even working...

[and a bunch more silly things]

left me finishing my day off with a couple rounds of...

"On a day like this

clap, clap, snap, snap, boing, boing, woo, woo, bam, bam

On a day like this

clap, clap, snap, snap, boing, boing, woo, woo, bam, bam

ON a day like this

CLAP, SNAP, BOING, WOO, BAM

I need the Lord to help me."

My frustration meter was off the charts and an island far, far away from here was calling my name.

Today felt like a chain reaction of Dominoes and the end seemed no where in sight.

It left me downright discouraged and exhausted, looking up to the sky saying, "Seriously?!"

Do you ever have days like this?! 

Was today that day for you?!

As I look at the clock in front of me, 8:21 pm never looked so good.

At the same time, I feel terrible for whining about "this terrible, horrible, no good, rotten day" [side note- I actually found out that they made a movie based on the book, 'Alexander and the Terrible, 

Horrible, No good, Very Bad Day' & it's coming out soon!]

Things could've been worse...way worse.

A lot of today's mishaps were just silly [yet frustrating still] and sure, a few things were legitimately discouraging, but my perspective was "OH my gosh, this day is NEVER going to end!"

Maybe I need to work on just laughing at those silly things more, instead of kicking and screaming.

Maybe I need to say to myself "Woosaww" like in the movie, Anger Management.

Better yet, as I sit here at the end of this pooey day, all I can think is...

"Thank you Jesus, that your mercies are new each day". 

That's a beautiful truth, because through all of my silly, frustrating events today, I kept feeling worse because of the way I was reacting to everything!

Knowing that Jesus extends His grace and mercy to me each and everyday lightens my load a TON.

Knowing that I can wake up tomorrow morning refreshed and renewed, makes tomorrow EVEN better since this "no good day" will be in the past!

We're going to have days when things don't go our way.

We can be reminded that life goes on even if the toast burns, or we don't receive a phone call with a job offer, or the printer jams.

On days like these we should actively remind ourselves of Lamentations 3:22-23-

“The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning, great is your faithfulness.”

Perhaps we get so wrapped up in all the mess, that we can't even think of that truth...[because today it clearly took me awhile to remember] 

at least we can go to bed saying, "Thank you God that your mercies are new each day and I can start over-give me strength for tomorrow!"

Maybe even tomorrow morning, before our feet hit the ground, we can remind ourselves,

"Your mercies are new each day!" 

Perhaps we'd go throughout the day with a tad bit different perspective...

a better perspective.

There you have it folks, Jesus just spoke to me through my own blog...

I hope it spoke to you, too.  

Dear God, thank you for speaking to me. Thank you for extending Your grace to me each and everyday. Thank you for my husband, family and friends that extend your compassion to me, making my load a tad bit lighter. 

Help us all to remember the love, hope, and mercy you have for us and may we rest in it daily even during our difficult days.

Amen.

 

 

 

 

Music Monday: I Need You

This week's song is one of my all time favorites..."Lord, I Need You"

 by Matt Maher and Audrey Assad.

There are times when I'm overwhelmed. Times when I'm weak. Times when I can't see the light. In these times, all I can say is, "I need You, Lord." 

A cry out to God that centers my everything around Him, because He is my everything.

I feel like sometimes we can get wrapped up in the world and forget how badly we need God. 

When we are reminded how badly we need God, I believe our faith naturally becomes stronger. 

"Lord, I come, I confess
Bowing here I find my rest
Without You I fall apart
You're the One that guides my heart

Lord, I need You, oh, I need You
Every hour I need You
My one defense, my righteousness
Oh God, how I need You

Where sin runs deep Your grace is more
Where grace is found is where You are
And where You are, Lord, I am free
Holiness is Christ in me

Teach my song to rise to You
When temptation comes my way
And when I cannot stand I'll fall on You
Jesus, you're my hope and stay."

This whole song is meaningful to me, but I especially love this verse...

"Where sin runs deep Your grace is more

Where grace is found is where You are

And where You are, Lord, I am free

Holiness is Christ in me." 

It's such a wonderful realization of knowing that God's grace

 is more than my sin instead of vice versa. 

Also, understanding that when we focus on what Christ has done for us and what He is doing in us, it's very difficult to feel overwhelmed, weak, and hopeless. 

What speaks to you in this song?

changed His mind

Do you think that God changes His mind?

Plenty of places in the Bible tell us that God had planned to do something but then decided not to.

In the book of Amos, it tells us a few times that God changed His mind.

Weird to think about, right? 

I think we or I, have grown accustomed to the idea that God has everything planned out and doesn't change His plans. 

So what do we do when we come across verses like...

 "So the Lord changed His mind about the harm which He said He would do to His people." Exodus 32:14 (He was going to destroy the Israelites, but Moses interceded and God granted them mercy.)

"The Lord changed His mind about this. “It shall not be,” said the Lord." Amos 7:3

"The Lord changed His mind about this. “This too shall not be,” said the Lord God." Amos 7:6

On the contrary, there are other verses say that He will not change His mind. Perhaps in the context He didn't, but that doesn't mean He won't ever change His mind like in Amos.

In the book of Amos, the Israelites were living recklessly. Their arrogance took over and therefore, caused them to live selfishly. All that mattered to them were their desires. It was a time of war. A time of power. A time of violence. A time of greed. 

So of course, God was upset. He was disappointed that His people weren't living the way He wanted them to. They weren't living in peace. They weren't taking care of the poor. 

They were craving power.

Therefore, Amos was trying to warn them of God's judgment. He was saying, "Hey, you've been warned...don't you want to change your ways! God is not happy."

Side note: Do you ever think of God as happy? Sad? Joyous? Mad?

Often, I think we picture God is a blank slate with no emotions, but I argue that.

Throughout the Bible, emotions are portrayed.

Anyway, Amos becomes so desperate for the people. He yearns for redemption and salvation from the locusts God would send. So guess what he does?

He prays. He asks for forgiveness. He cries out to God (chapter 7, verse 2).

You know what happens?

Because of Amos' petition and God's grace, God changed His mind.

"This will not happen," the Lord said (verse 3). 

Side note #2: Clearly, God hears our prayers. Our petitions can make a difference. Good thing, we aren't puppets on a string for God or our prayers would mean nothing to Him, but clearly they do. There is power in prayer.

Just like Jonah 3:10, "When God saw their deeds, that they turned from their wicked way, then God relented concerning the calamity which He had declared He would [a]bring upon them. And He did not do it." God has planned to act upon His anger, but decided not to.

Continuing on in verse 5, Amos again tells God to stop and not send the fire that would destroy everything. God follows with, "This too will not happen." He had changed His mind once again (verse 6).  I don't think God would ever plan something good, and then decide to do something bad instead, because He isn't bad! 

The book of Amos ends with hope. It foreshadows Christ's coming and proves God's lovingkindness and grace can overpower our mistakes.

Chapter 9: v13 ‘There is a time coming’, says the *Lord.

‘A person will be ploughing a field.

He will catch up with a person who is harvesting the crops.

A person will walk on *grapes.

He will catch up with the person who was planting the *grapes.

New wine will run down from the mountains.

It will flow from all the hills.

v14 I will bring back my people, Israel, from *exile.

They will build again the cities that people have ruined.

And they will live in those cities.

They will plant fields of *grapes.

And they will drink the wine that comes from them.

They will make gardens and eat the fruit.

v15 I will plant my people on their own land.

I will not pull them out again.

This is the land that I gave them.’ This is what the *Lord your God says.

It reminds me of times when I get upset or disappointed and I may say things that are not in my character. Later on, I realize that I was emotional and my real character would not act that way.

God was disappointed in His people. He wanted so much more for them. If only they would listen, things would work out. He was upset and rightfully so, but thank God, His grace is unstoppable. All throughout the Bible, we read about God's judgment, but it seems to me that His grace always win, because He is good. He is loving. He is gracious. He is redemptive.

Like I've said many times before, His grace shouldn't be an excuse for us to live the way we want to live, but His grace should move us toward the love He wants us to live out. 

Jesus is the prime and BEST example, that although we were still sinners, He still died for us. 

Gosh, how amazing?! Redemption is a beautiful thing. We see it played out through the pages of the Bible. 

In the stories where God changed His mind, it shows us that prayer is meaningful and that He is good.
 His grace wins.

It definitely doesn't mean that He is not faithful or loyal because He changed His mind.

He is faithful all the time and He could have changed His mind about sending Jesus, but He didn't. 

Praise God for that!

This week we finish our reading plan by  reading through Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi.

 

Following in Your Footsteps: And the answer is...

I've been wanting to write this post for awhile, but for some reason, it seemed to continually be put on the backburner. You know what? I'm glad it did!

 Raise your hand if you know the answers for...
How do we gain world peace?
How do I love my sibling who annoys me?
How do I forgive?
How do I see eye to eye with someone who I disagree with?
 

I just started a new book and as I read the intro  I realized that it could be a huge tool in opening my eyes even wider to what the answer is in terms of being a better Christian.

 Each page turned in Red Letter Revolution, my eyes watered and my heart stretched.

It dawned on me that my attempt of being a Christian hasn't earned me a gold star or an A+. I have failed to really follow what Jesus has taught me. My eyes have skimmed over the red letters in the New Testament (the red letters being Jesus' words). Yes, I may have read His teachings but my reaction most likely resembled, "Wow, I wouldn't be able to do/say that" or "Aw, how nice...Jesus sure is an amazing guy!" Instead, I should have reacted in a way of, "That's the answer...that's how I reach my hurting sisters and brothers...thank you Jesus for showing me the way to their hearts...I can't wait to go out and serve them, just like You have served us."

 

The Gospel is all about love, service, and redemption. I believe that Jesus didn't serve those people just so we could read about it and adore Him. [Yes, we should definitely adore Him for who He is because He is amazing!] Instead, we should take one step farther and not only adore Him, but follow in His footsteps. He has shown us how to reach people. He wants to use us to represent the kingdom of God. Jeremiah 29:11 says that He has great plans for us and I believe that the number one plan He has is that we embody the kingdom of God.

You know those questions I asked in the beginning of the post?

Jesus has given us the answer.

Jesus is the answer.

 

When deciding what to do for the homeless & poor...Jesus is the answer.

When talking about war...Jesus is the answer.

When fighting with a friend...Jesus is the answer.

When in contact with someone different than us (whether it be color, orientation, religion)...Jesus is the answer.

 

Love, service & grace is who I see Jesus as. That's what He was and is about. So many times I have chosen the wrong answer. I have answered in a way that religion and legalism (not Gospel based) would have me answer or I have acted out of own self-interest, but guess what? Jesus would have never answered in that way. More times than not, I think we answer to situations based on our comfort level, pocket book, and traditions that have been passed down. We fail when we do that.
We aren't representing the kingdom of God when we find our answer apart from Jesus.

 

Now, the last thing I want to do is to make us feel like failures in our attempt to be Christ-like. I'm writing this as motivation, as a reminder of what our motives should be. We talk so much about what we should do and search for the answers, when all along the answer has been standing right in front of us...Jesus.
Thank God for His loving-kindness and forgiveness towards us. Now we can step forward and follow in Jesus' footsteps, rather than walking in the opposite direction.
 

1 John 4:7-12 says, "⁷ Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. ⁸ The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love. ⁹ By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him. ¹⁰ In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. ¹¹ Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. ¹² No one has seen God at any time; if we love one another, God abides in us, and His love is perfected in us."

 

 Friends, if we know that God is love and that when we love one another, God abides in us, that should give us the motivation and confidence to live our lives in the shadow of who Jesus is. He loved the down and out. He even loved the people who nailed Him to the cross.

Do we have enough faith to turn the other cheek?
Do we have enough faith to give the coat off our backs?
Do we have enough faith to love our enemies?

 Tony Campolo has asked himself and I think we can ask the same question...
"Do we have enough faith to live this radical lifestyle?"

I challenge you to read the red letters of the Bible (Jesus' words) not as a story, but as a lifestyle...as an answer to change the world.

 

 

 Will you join me in following in Jesus' footsteps?

Check out www.redletterchristians.org or read the book Red Letter Revolution by Shane Claiborne & Tony Campolo about the many controversial issues that the church faces today.

pursuing me

 

A lot of people have this preconceived idea that God is distant and we have to work to reach Him. That He is looking down, watching and waiting for us to serve Him, giving nothing in return.

If you feel this way, I hope that I can change your mind.

 

You see, God made us to be in relationship with us.

He didn't make us only so that we can serve Him so that He can do nothing.

It's not a one way relationship. It's a two way relationship.

First, God loved us. Because He loves us, we love Him.

Since He loves us, He provides for us so that His glory shall be revealed.

Because He provides for us, we in turn should serve Him.

 

Yesterday, I read Joshua 22-24. I'd like to share with you what stood out to me.

"Then Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem, and called for the elders of Israel and for their heads and their judges and their officers; and they presented themselves before God. Joshua said to all the people, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘From ancient times your fathers lived beyond the River, namely, Terah, the father of Abraham and the father of Nahor, and they served other gods.  Then I took your father Abraham from beyond the River, and led him through all the land of Canaan, and multiplied his descendants and gave him Isaac.  To Isaac I gave Jacob and Esau, and to Esau I gave Mount Seir to possess it; but Jacob and his sons went down to Egypt. Then I sent Moses and Aaron, and I plagued Egypt by what I did in its midst; and afterward I brought you out.  I brought your fathers out of Egypt, and you came to the sea; and Egypt pursued your fathers with chariots and horsemen to the Red Sea.  But when they cried out to the Lord, He put darkness between you and the Egyptians, and brought the sea upon them and covered them; and your own eyes saw what I did in Egypt. And you lived in the wilderness for a long time.  Then I brought you into the land of the Amorites who lived beyond the Jordan, and they fought with you; and I gave them into your hand, and you took possession of their land when I destroyed them before you.  Then Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, arose and fought against Israel, and he sent and summoned Balaam the son of Beor to curse you.  But I was not willing to listen to Balaam. So he had to bless you, and I delivered you from his hand. You crossed the Jordan and came to Jericho; and the citizens of Jericho fought against you, and the Amorite and the Perizzite and the Canaanite and the Hittite and the Girgashite, the Hivite and the Jebusite. Thus I gave them into your hand. Then I sent the hornet before you and it drove out the two kings of the Amorites from before you, but not by your sword or your bow.  I gave you a land on which you had not labored, and cities which you had not built, and you have lived in them; you are eating of vineyards and olive groves which you did not plant.’“Now, therefore, fear the Lord and serve Him in sincerity and truth; and put away the gods which your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord." ~Joshua 24:1-14

 

Did you catch the theme of the passage?

God was basically saying to the people of Israel, "See what I've done for you?!"

Clearly, God pursues.

He is the ultimate pursuer. No one pursues like He does.

He is not a selfish God, but He is a selfless God.

He didn't have to do any of that. The people definitely didn't deserve it, but He did it anyway! His grace and mercy never ceases to amaze me.

 

Ladies, I'm sure you could agree with me that it's a nice feeling to be pursued. Knowing that a guy is willing to go out of his way to make you feel special is affirming.

 

Let me say it again, God pursues us.

It's not that we are pursuing God, but He pursued us first.

Isn't that amazing?!

The creator of the Universe is always pursuing you.

 

He proves this to us by...

1. Creating us

2. Providing for us

3. Most importantly, sending His son, Jesus, as a sacrifice to save us and, through that, offering us eternal life if we believe in Him.

 

If that isn't pursuing us, then I don't know what is!

In believing this truth, we feel special, loved and excited.  In response, we desire to return the love that He has proven us.

 

Any other religion would disagree with me.

They would say that God is far and distant, but I say...

He is near and pursuing us.

 

Look around you and see that God has pursued you.

He has pursued you through the rising of the sun.

He has pursued you through your newborn baby.

He has pursued you through the cross.

 

Thank Him for all that He has done for you, and let that be the motivation to give your life in service to God.

 

Check out this song, "He Knows My Name" by Paul Baloche.

 

 

Don't forget to pray for the unreached people group of the day!

Day 27 In Him we find...

 

There are people who don't like change, and there are people who do like change. I am the latter. I've always been really good with change. When I was a kid, I had no problem changing schools, extracirricular activities, or hairstyles. Change has never been a fear of mine. However, there is something that I would not want to change...Jesus.

 

Thank goodness, I don't have to worry about Jesus changing. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. People change. Our beliefs may change. Our attitudes may change. Our actions may change. It can be for the good or the bad. Let's face it, we, human beings, aren't exactly stable. We're pretty wishy-washy. We may like our job one day and hate it the next or we may love pizza one year and the next year hate it. Jesus, on the other hand, is the most stable person. He isn't wishy-washy at all. I'm so thankful that His love, faithfulness, and grace doesn't change like the style of my hair does.

 

He loves me the same yesterday, today, and forever.

His grace stays the same yesterday, today, and forever.

His mercy stays the same yesterday, today, and forever.

His strength stays the same yesterday, today, and forever.

This list continues.

 

In Him we find stability.

 

 

Today's scripture for read-your-Bible-in-a-year plan is Acts 18 & 19.

Day 21 In Him we find...

Tomorrow is the big, Thanksgiving day where we will spend hours in the kitchen (if we haven't already), run around like mad women (or men) with multiple tasks, eat, watch football, eat, sleep, clean, eat, more football and sleep. That's a lot of eating, a lot of football, and a lot of sleep. An abundance of good things, if you ask me.

I'll talk about this a little bit tomorrow, but it seems to me that our God is abundant. Like I've said before, He is a BIG God, so of course, He would give abundantly, because He is able. Most of the time, however, we don't realize it. I'll talk about material things another time, but let's think about what we've found so far during this 30 day series.

God doesn't just give us a little love, He gives it abundantly. God doesn't just give us a little grace, He gives it abundantly. God doesn't just give us a little freedom, He gives it abundantly. I could go on, but you get the point. He gives us the things we need, in abundance. In fact, we don't need or for that matter deserve those things in abundance, but He gives it to us anyway. I would be happy if I just recieved a percentage of His love, but He loves me to His full capacity just like He loves you.

Ephesians 3:20-21 says, "Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us,  to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen." Did you catch that? It says , "far more abundantly beyond". Woa. Far more. Abundantly. Beyond. I don't know what else to say. That's how much He loves...forgives...protects...and so on. John 10:10 says, "The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly." Praise God!

In Him we find abundance.

Today's scripture was Acts 6-7.



Day 5 In Him we find...

Grace. What a beautiful thing. Getting something you don't deserve. Many people have shown grace to me, but the person who shows the most grace to me is God.

 

I don't deserve to be saved. I deserve walking up that hill with the cross on my back and being nailed to the cross, BUT I have been saved from that. I don't deserve eternal life, BUT (don't you just love those BUTs) I have received it. You can find a lot of BUTs in the Bible, mainly because God is so gracious towards us. You would think that there would be a certain point where God's grace ends, BUT (ha there's another one!) it doesn't! That's crazy to me! I did nothing to deserve that. Romans 5:20 says, "The law was brought in so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more..." Wait...let me get this straight...no matter how much we sin, He is going to top us with His grace. That's a lot of grace if you ask me! Then it continues in verse 21, "so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." What can get better than grace?! I mean, seriously! Jesus brought grace which gives us eternal life when we believe in Him. Ephesians 2:4-5 says, "But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved."

 

So what does this mean to us? Well yeah, we are saved by grace through faith, but what should we do with it? We should praise God and let it change us. Just like Tenth Avenue North's song, "Grace" says, "Grace, only grace, can move us to a rhythm that will change our ways." I know, another Tenth Avenue North song, but I just love their album...such great lyrics!

His grace should push us to live our life to the fullest...make Him proud.

In Him we find grace.

 

Another great song is "Grace" by Caleb Chapman-I couldn't NOT mention this song, check it out too!

 

Today's scripture is Luke 19-20 of the year-long-Bible-reading plan!

Flying with Intention

So this morning I was sitting on the deck and something caught my eye...a butterfly. I know you are probably thinking, "Gosh, she keeps on talking about butterflies!" I don't know why, but maybe I'm supposed to learn a thing or two from butterflies. So I'm watching this one big, orange butterfly and I notice it keeps flying back to the same flower. It would fly to others, but it would consistently come back to this same pink flower. Obviously butterflies don't have much to do, other than fly and collect nectar. Sounds kind of boring, if you ask me, but anyway, I'm digressing. In order for a butterfly to live, they must eat (just like us) nectar from flowers, pollen, and other different things. Therefore, the source of their life is nectar. They have to go back to it to keep living. We as humans also live off of food, however, there is a deeper source of life...God. Yes, food keeps me noursihed, but I really believe that I have life because of Jesus Christ. In the Bible, John 14:6 says, "Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." So my nectar is God. (I really hope this makes sense.) In order to live I must always go back to God, just like the butterfly kept going back to that one flower. Do I always go to God? No, I don't. I try my hardest and I will fail at times, but I should always remember that He is the source of my life. My intention should always be to turn to God. It may not be easy, but that should always be our intention. I also realized that not only was the nectar that butterfly's lifeline, it was also the lifeline for many other insects and plants. That butterfly was getting the nectar/pollen from that one flower and then spreading that pollen to other flowers. Through this process of pollination, flowers grow and insects feed on them in order to stay alive. So how does that relate to us? When we go back to God, He nourishes us so that we may be able to spread His love, grace and forgiveness to others. The trick is always going back to Him just like the butterfly was flying with intention. So think about it....who is your source of life? What are your intentions with life? Are you flying with intention or are you just flying for the sake of it? I hope this made sense to you. My explanation might have been a little flawed, but I thought it was a good analogy. This "aha" moment was just a good reminder of what I'm supposed to do and it made me realize how intricately God made this world. Desperation Band sings a great song called "Rescue". It talks about God being the source of life. I love it! Be blessed!