destruction

What a week.

First, the Boston marathon bombing and then the West fertilizer plant explosion.

It's times like these where people wonder, "where is God in all of this?"

I say, God is here.

I say that with confidence because his Word tells us...

"Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.” Deuteronomy 31:6

What a beautiful truth that we should continually hold onto.

 

I've said before, we don't live in paradise.

Evil, pain, and sin entered the world when Adam and Eve turned away from God.

That doesn't mean that God has left us here to suffer.

God is here in the midst of everything.

 

We need to look for the light in the darkness.

We need to be the light in the darkness.

I see it in the helping hands of the West explosion.

I see it in the unity of prayer for Boston, our country and our world.

As much as it hurts us to see all the pain and destruction around us, I know it hurts God even more. This isn't how he wanted things to end up.

He intended us to live in paradise with Him, but we messed that up when we wanted the power in our own hands.

 

Thankfully, God has redeemed us and saved us from this fallen world

that we live in.

Times like these only intensify my excitement for Jesus to come back, set up His kingdom here on earth, and defeat evil once and for all.

 

So what can we do?

We can pray for God's will to be done.

We pray for God to raise up missionaries.

We can pray for God to give us the motivation & courage to be light in the darkness.

We can pray for God to intensify our hunger to grow in our faith.

We can pray for God to replace our fear with faithful excitement for the return of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

 

Also, don't forget to pray for the unreached people group of the day!

 

 

Update on my Lyme life: I saw my doctor this Wednesday and he wants me to take a break from my treatment for a week. I have mixed emotions- yay! because I get to have a break from A LOT of pills. Nay! because my body has already started feeling worse from the break. However, it just goes to show that my treatment has made me feel a lot better. Once this week is over, I'll start on a new treatment plan that will hopefully push me toward the finish line! OH and  more good news...he took me off an antibiotic that has kept me out of the sun for this past year so I'm SUPER excited that I can be out in the sun and not be afraid of being burnt to a crisp! Wohoo! Always trying to find the good in the bad :)

 

 

Got faith?

 

"Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen" (NASB), Hebrews 11:1, is the verse I'm memorizing this week. Read that again and think about it for a second. I think a lot of times we read things and don't take the time to really sit and figure it out what it means. When it comes to the Bible, we for sure don't want to miss out on the meaning! My college minister always encouraged us to refer back to the Bible's purest translation, the Hebrew and Greek language. Taking his advice, I decided to share with you the Greek translation of this verse. I've never taken a Greek class (I hope to one day), but www.blueletterbible.org helps me out a lot. So if you're ever intrested in finding the Greek translation, check out www.blueletterbible.org. This is what I use and it gives lots of good information.

Pistis is the greek word for faith which means "the conviction of truth of anything" or "belief".

Assurance, in the greek language, is hypostasis which means "that which has foundation, is firm" and "a substance, real being."

Finally, elegchos is the greek word for conviction which means "a proof, that by which a thing is proved or tested."

So if I am translating it correctly, it means our belief is our firm foundation of what we hope for and the proof of things we can't see. Our beliefs should be our foundation for our lives even if we cannot physically see them. My belief in God (something not seen) is my firm foundation for my life which then becomes proof that it is true.

I love how The Message interprets Hebrews 11:1 as, "The fundamental fact of existence is that this trust in God, this faith, is the firm foundation under everything that makes life worth living. It’s our handle on what we can’t see."

Here are a few things that I put my faith in...
I have faith that God has healed me. (Isaiah 53:5)
I have faith that God will never leave me. (Deuteronomy 31:6)
I have faith that God is strong, when I am weak. (2 Corinthians 12:9)
I have faith that God created me for a purpose. (Jeremiah 29:11)
I have faith that God loves me with an everlasting love. (Jeremiah 31:3)

All this talk about faith leads me to ask...

what do you believe in? What do you put your faith in?

Also, if you are memorizing scripture with me, it's time to pick out a new verse! 

I would love to hear what you put your faith in and the verse you are memorizing!

 

Check out this song...it's one of my favorites!

 

 

My own personal cheerleader

I know last post I said this time I was going to write about "finding God's specific will" from Gregg Matte's book, but as I was watching the Olympics tonight, that entry got pushed back to another time. Anyway, I just finished watching the All Around Women's final in Gymnastics. I've always enjoyed watching this event, especially this year. I think we had a lot of really good talent on the team and the girls seemed real down to earth. Another part of the event that I liked was watching the parents. Boy do they get into it or what?! I loved watching all the intense emotion from these supportive people. While I was watching Aly's parents squirm and Gabby's mom yell with joy, it made me wonder if that's what God is like up there in heaven. I wonder if He beams with pride when we reach a goal? Or does He feel our agony and pain that we go through? Or does He stand up and cheer us on when we're about to give up? Or does He give us advice when we ask Him for it? What about when we mess up, does He hang his head and whisper the words "it's okay...I still love you"? I think the answer to all of those questions is a simple "yes". I like to think of God as my own personal cheerleader. He may be far up in the stands sometimes, but I know He is always there. He never leaves. Deuteronomy 31:6 says, "Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you." On top of that, even when I lose or screw up, He's still there. He doesn't give up on me. He doesn't storm out on me, but instead, He forgives me. He truly forgives me...He remembers my sins no more (Hebrews 8:12). He doesn't continue to remind me what I messed up on (that's not cheerleader-like), but He moves on and guides me to a new playing field. Lastly, He encourages me and motivates me to do better. He reminds me that with His strength I can do anything. Philippians 4:13 says, "I can do all things through Him who gives me strength." I can't think of a better cheerleader than that, can you? Never forget that you have a cheerleader 24/7....ready to cheer for you, ready to be there when you mess up, and ready to encourage you to move on. Check out one of my favorite songs that reminds me of mine & your cheerleader! "Your Love Never Fails" by Jesus Culture.