This world says that God is not bigger than the problems that we face. I believe that God is bigger than our problems and that He has made a way for each person to experience His love. It's time for this generation to rise up and be the light to a darkened world. Philippians 2:15 is my battle cry... will you join me?
What does a true friend consist of? That’s something I’ve been thinking about lately. For some reason one of the things that’s been on my mind is the fact that I’m halfway done with my undergraduate education, I’ll be 21 in January, and life is starting to come at me very quickly. Now, why does that bring up the subject of friendship? Well, I’ll be honest and say that I’ve been thinking about what I want in a wife; that thought process has got me thinking about the simple fact that a boyfriend, girlfriend, husband, or wife aught to be a friend before any of those other titles. At the end of the day, I want to be able to go home to a friend and not have to worry about any of the other garbage that’s going on in the world.
So, a friend. Well, to be a friend, a friendship is required. That’s something that I’m afraid most people in my generation don’t get. To them it’s as simple as following someone on Twitter, adding them on Facebook, or sending an occasional text to them. I would like to set the record straight: that is not a friendship.
If you want to have a friendship(which is a relationship), you have to be willing to dig deep and live life with someone. It requires mutual respect, trust, love, prayer, and most importantly… God.
Yes, to have a true and lasting friendship God is required. I know for a fact that God is the first aspect of most of my relationships that is missing. It’s not that I don’t see the value in having God involved with my relationships, it’s just a whole heck of a lot easier to not have Him involved. So, the solution to this problem is keeping Him involved. That’s going to be something that takes a lot of practice. It’s not easy to go from not having Him involved to wanting Him to be involved. But, it’s something that my generation, and myself, needs to start working on.
Prayer. I know, you’re probably asking yourself what does prayer have to do with a friendship. Well, I’m going to be honest and tell you that it has absolutely everything to do with a truly lasting and thriving friendship. Things change when we change. That’s a proven fact, at least for me it’s a proven fact. So, if your friendships are failing and there are issues… pray. It will help and it will bring change. If we learn to bring our issues before God and lay them down at His feet, then we are going to see amazing results.
Love and caring about someone. This is something that is a little harder to address. So often we look at love and think that it has to do with just being all cute, mushy, and spending lots of money. Now, I’ll be the first to say that the way you spend your money is a reflection of the things that you love, but that’s not the best way to truly love someone. Sure, you can spend money on someone, but if you’re not willing to sit down and say hard things to them, I don’t think you truly love them. Now, that’s what I’m going to define love as. Saying things that are hard, things that they might not like, and things that you just really would rather keep buried deep down inside of you. So, if you can love someone like that, I’m going to tell you that you’re well on your way to having a very good and healthy relationship.
The last two things that I’m going to address are trust and mutual respect. I think that these two items are the cornerstone to a good friendship/relationship. How is is that we think we can be friends with people if we aren’t willing to be vulnerable and put trust in someone? Well, the short answer is that we can’t. There’s no way to have a good friendship if you’re not going to put yourself in the position to get hurt and have your trust broken. But, when you start to trust someone and communicate with them in a deep and meaningful way, it starts to build mutual respect. The kind of respect that allows for you to speak to them in a real and meaningful way, and the kind of respect that allows for them to do the same thing to you.
So, form a friendship and be a friend. Don’t just add someone on Facebook, follow them on Twitter, or send them an occasional text. Be real. Be who God created you to be.
Today my mind was blown by the third chapter in the book of Romans. It amazes me that my God loves me even though I’m not a perfect person. I sin. Each and every day I sin. That means that I should never be allowed to be in the presence of God, have His blessing, receive the grace that He’s freely given to me, or know what His love truly means. Yet, in His infinite mercy, He has chosen to love me in ways that I will never be able to truly understand and has given me things that I will never be able deserve. What does it mean to have God be faithful to us, that’s the question that’s been going through my mind today, and maybe some of my thoughts will help you to understand how much God truly loves you.
The first step to realizing God’s faithfulness is to realize that we are not faithful at all. Humans never have been and never will be a faithful creation. Even though God created us, gave us a perfect place to live, and walked with us, our hearts were dead set on going our own way. We were unfaithful from the very beginning and that’s how we have continued to live our lives. I know that each day I do things that show my true self. That self is the one that I would much rather not talk about, and I’m sure that you have those places inside your heart as well. It’s the self that sins, even though I know it’s wrong. I go against what I know is right because it’s the easier thing to do and it seems like a good idea. Even though we do that, day in and day in and day out, God still chooses to love us and accept us as we are. It’s amazing to understand that we will not be judged based upon our sins, that’s how faithful my God is to us.
The next thing that we need to realize is that He is faithful to us even if our words do not line up with our actions. When we accept Christ and then go and sin, God still recognizes the fact that we have proclaimed God as the one who forgives us, the one who saves us, and the one who is the Lord of our lives. That’s what God does for us, He loves us unconditionally, even if we do not always show our love for Him.
Those two facts can clearly be seen in His word and in the death of His son on a cross. How can we not love a God that loves us no matter what? So many times I sin and realize that it’s not the sin that is the awful thing, but it’s the fact that I’ve disappointed the One who has always been faithful to me. God doesn’t want me to live in a box, He wants me to love Him with all I am and be faithful to Him. So, if I am unfaithful, how am I supposed to become faithful? Well, to me, that’s the number one questions.
There is only one way that I can be faithful to the One who is always faithful to me… that’s by the power of the Holy Spirit. On my own I have no ability to be faithful, and neither do you. No matter how hard we try, we will always fail. But, we must have hope in the power that the Holy Spirit has given to us. The spirit that had the power to Jesus Christ from the dead is the same spirit that lives inside of you and I. How awesome is that? So, if the Holy Spirit can raise Christ, I’m sure that He can teach and enable you and I to be faithful to our creator. That doesn’t mean that we aren’t going to fail, but we must learn to ask for forgiveness and get back up and keep trying.
God loves us, even if we are not faithful to Him. That’s amazing. That’s beautiful. That’s true love.
Romans 3:3-4…
“What if some were unfaithful? Does their faithlessness nullify the faithfulness of God?By no means! Let God be true though every one were a liar, as it is written,
‘That you may be justified in your words, and prevail when you are judged.’ “
So many times we talk about all kinds of addictions in church; but, we do not talk about the addictions of the heart. How often do we forget that not all addictions have physical manifestations? Sometimes we must have a reality check and make sure that we aren’t going down a road that will bring us down onto our knees with no where to go. This is my reality check.
All to often I put the opinions of others ahead of God. I know that this is the wrong thing to do; but, I can’t help but not too. It’s how I’ve been wired and I think, to some extent, it’s how all people have been wired. At least we have been that way since we fell from God’s original design for us. It’s a very difficult mindset to deal with and at some times it can become all consuming.
The thing that strikes me the most is that God knows that we cannot survive on the opinions of the people that surround us. He tells us that if we put the opinions of others above His opinions then we are not going to be His disciples/servants. This is something that we all must realize and we all must come to a place we we can put God’s voice ahead of the voice of the world.
One of the biggest issues for college ages students is dealing with the pressure of finding that perfect boy or girl. It’s all an acceptance game and a game is exactly what it is. We cannot help but put all of our effort and attention to dating, searching, and impressing. But, that’s not what we are supposed to be doing at all. In fact, if that’s how we live and continue to live, the end result will be nothing but a burned out, let down, and tired generation.
What we must do is learn that if we cannot be who we are at all times, that is the only way to truly find happiness and to truly be content. God designed each person in a beautiful and unique way, we must come to this realization. I must come to this realization. The biggest reminder is that God sent His son to die for all people. There was no differentiation between who Christ’s death was for. It’s for everyone and that’s what we must remember with dealing with people. This also comes into place when we judge how we look, act, behave, think, etc. Jesus died for me in just the same way as He died for every other person on the face of the planet.
I must come to the realization that Christ accepted me and I don’t need the acceptance of the whole world to be of value.
All to often in life I fear that I hold onto the concept that God is supposed to be waking me up and coming to me. It’s like the song… I gave Him my number and asked Him to maybe sometimes call me. That’s clearly not the way a relationship with Him is supposed to function.
In order for any relationship to truly function in a healthy way, it must be a two way street. If only one person is chasing after the other and putting in effort, the relationship is destined to fail. It’s a simple as that. We cannot expect a relationship to survive if there is no mutual activity. Sure, there can be a relationship, however, it is not going to be thriving and growing. If there is only one party that is pouring into the relationship, it’s on it’s way to death.
So, if we all realize that a relationship can only function if both parties are putting effort into the relationship, how is it that we expect God to be the one that is pouring into our relationship with Him? We cannot expect this of Him. It’s not how He wants to relate to us and it’s not how we were created to be. God is dead set on having communication and intimacy with us. If He wasn’t set on this principle, there would have been no reason for Him to send His son to make a way for us to be able to spend eternity with Him. But, there’s another part to this puzzle. By sending His son, God asked us to have faith in what Christ would and did do. That’s the beginning of the mutual relationship that our creator wants to have with us. So, we must pattern our relationship with Him of of that model.
What are some ways that we can have a two-way relationship with God, then? Well, the first thing that we must do is realize that we must call God. There is no reason for us to have a “call me maybe” mentality with Him. If we depend on Him to initiate conversations with Him, then we are missing out on something beautiful. We must learn to create environments where it’s possible for us to have intimate communication with God and for Him to talk back to us. There are several ways that we can do this: prayer, reading the Bible, meditation, and being in community with other believers.
The next major way that I believe that we can spend time with God is making an effort to serve others. I know that some of the most intimate and life changing experiences that I’ve had have been when I put myself in situations where I’m serving people who may or may not know God. It’s amazing what can happen when we follow the example that Christ set for us. There is one very clear idea that Christ communicated to us: love is all about serving and caring for others as we would want them to love and care for us. If we are able to do that and do it with the idea that we are going to receive nothing back from the people we are serving, then we are going to be able draw closer to the example that God, through Christ, has set for us and we are going to be able to draw near to God. It’s in those moments that we are going to be able to clearly hear from our creator and see a much more clear picture of who He is.
Asking God to call us is great, but, it’s very clear that God is asking us to call Him. If we solely rely on God to form a relationship with us, then we are not going to have a good or healthy relationship with Him. It’s as simple as that. If we started to treat God in the same way that we treat the girl/boy that we like, our relationship with Him would be so much different, and we wouldn’t be waiting for Him to call us… we would be taking the steps to call him.
Yes, God wants to get to know us; but, He wants us to be willing to put time and energy into getting to know Him. If we call Him, He will answer. I promise you that.
Call to me and I will answer you, and will tell you great and hidden things that you have not known. - Jeremiah 33:3, ESV
Repentance. Sometimes that word just doesn’t make sense to me. I’ve had it explained to me in so many different was and I’ve tried to wrap my head around the concept, but I don’t think that I’ve ever been truly able to understand it. It’s something that’s eluded me and it’s something that I wish Jesus would come and talk to me about.
It’s funny to me that sometimes there are words, concepts, and ideas that are so hard for me to grasp. Then, there are the other ideas, concepts, and words that I seem to pick up instantly. There’s no way for me to understand why somethings are like this for me; but, it’s how I’ve been made, so I’m going to embrace this and try to grasp what seems to be ungraspable.
What does it mean to repent? To tell you the truth, I honestly don’t know. But, I’m going to try and give myself an idea of what it means, and maybe by me writing my thoughts down you’ll be able to have a better understanding of this concept, as well. The best way that I can look at repentance is in the way of making a “u-turn.” I don’t know why this makes sense to me, but it just does.
I’ve gotten lost so many times in my life. In fact, I got lost today. The only way for me to get where I was going was for me to turn completely around and head in the opposite direction. That’s what repentance is. It’s turning around, away from who I am and what I desire, and going into the direction of God’s grace and mercy. One thing that God has made crystal clear to me is that when I make an effort to walk in His direction, He will walk towards me and meet me in the middle. The crazy thing is that God won’t just walk towards me… He will run towards me.
When we turn towards God, there is no fear. There is no judgement. There is no disgrace. There is no attitude from Him. Love is the only thing that we will find when we turn and face God.
It’s a beautiful sight to truly and unashamedly see what love truly is and the only way that you or I will ever be able to see love in all of it’s glory is to turn around from the way that we are walking.
I’ve learned that each day I walk my own way. No matter how much time I spend in prayer, bible reading, with other Christians, or by myself… I always go my own way. But, there’s a way to not go my own way and that’s relying on the power of the Holy Spirit that lives inside of me. It’s impossible for me to walk through this world and walk in God’s direction if I am not walking in the strength that the Holy Spirit give me. Where does that leave me, then? Well, there’s only one way that this leaves me… One very broken, imperfect, and in need of saving person. That’s where each person is. We are all the same person. Yes, we have differences and we’ve been through different situations, but, we are all in need of the saving grace that only true repentance brings.
So, we must make the turn around. We must walk away from our desires. We must seek out the love of God and let God run towards us.
All people go to God in need,
For help and calm and food they plead.
That sickness, guilt and death may cease,
All, Christians and Pagans, pray for peace.
But some turn to God in God’s need and dread,
A God poor, despised, without roof or bread.
By sin’s harm weakened and by death distressed,
Christians stand steadfast by their God oppressed.
God goes to all in their need and dread,
Their souls’ loving grace and their bodies’ bread.
By the crucified Lord who for them was slain,
Both Christian and Pagan God’s pardon gain.
"
—
Dietrich Bonhoeffer - Christians and Pagans
Translation of ‘Christen und Heiden,” from Widerstand und Ergenbung.
I’m sitting her in Florida and I’m absolutely exhausted; but, I’m still able to think and write down my thoughts. One idea that’s been resounding through my head lately is that there are very few things that God has given to each person on the face of the planet. One of those things is is our families. We all have families. Some are whole, some are split, some are gone, some are with us, some are just plain ‘ol weird. But, we all have them. There’s no way to get around that fact. It took two people to create us: our mom and dad. That’s the most basic part of what a family is & we all have those two pieces.
My family is a great family. I’ve been blessed with parents who care about me and who support me in all that I do. Some people are not so luck as I am. There are parents that don’t care about their children at all. What’s interesting to me is that no matter what kind of family someone comes from, the family dictates a part of that person’s personality.
Because I come from the kind of family that I come from there are certain parts of me that have become how they are. It’s not something that I can really control, I’m a product of the environment that I’ve come from. We all are. There are good things that have come from my family and there are some bad things; but, both sides of the spectrum come from my family.
God must have known that this is what was going to happen when He created us to be in family units. So, what does this mean for us? I’ve come to the conclusion that we need to learn to embrace the good and the bad things that our families have given to us. It does us no good to try and only embrace the good. When we do this, we put the bad in the closets of our minds and we do not deal with them. If we embrace just the bad, then we will never see that there is anything good that we’ve received from our families.
The key to this is to also know that we must deal with the bad habits, thoughts, and ideas that we’ve received from our families. If we cannot do this, then we will never become better and we will always be stuck in a rut. I have to believe that God intend us to learn from our environments, that would be the only reason for Him to put us in different environments. For if we don’t learn from what we are going through and we do not learn from where we come, how are we supposed to become who He intends us to be?
God has a plan and a purpose for each person on the face of this planet and that plan includes us coming from somewhere. He knows what that place will do to us and He knows what we will do to that place. I hope that my generation will start to embrace the fact that we do come from our families and stop running from the sometimes awful messes that come with them, as well as embracing the beautiful parts of them as well.
