Well y'all, I'm fixin' to come home......
My darling brother Daniel is flying in tomorrow afternoon....I'm so excited! He has been in England this past semester, and will have many stories to tell I'm sure. We have quite a bit to catch up on....which is good, because we have a 15 hour drive to make. I'm leaving Sunday morning and I'll get into Michigan late Sunday evening.
These past few days have been full of reflections on my first year away from home. In many ways, I'm the same.....I still have the same likes and dislikes, the same goals, the same dreams....but as a person, my heart has changed. My thoughts have changed, the way I look at life has changed. The pains and trials that will seem trivial in twenty years, but for now seem very real and difficult, have given me a new depth of perspective, a new understanding of love, a new grasp of patience, and a new level of trust in the Lord.The Lord has blessed me SO much. I can't even put into words how thankful I am. The people he has placed in my life, the situations he has brought me through, the changes he has brought about in my walk with him are incredible.
I have tasted and seen first hand that the Lord IS good. His mercies are NEVER failing. His love is EVERLASTING. He DOES hear the prayers of a righteous man. Those who hope in the Lord WILL renew their strength. He is able to do MUCH more then all we ask or imagine. Jehovah Jireh is MY provider. The things of the Lord ARE foolishness to those who are perishing, but we have the mind of Christ.
The Word of the Lord has been proved true in real life situations over and over and over. The Spirit of the Lord has been my constant companion this last year. I am in awe of the grace of the Lord upon my life. He deserves the glory.
5/23/2008
5/21/2008
Last performance!
We have our last performance tomorrow :-(
It's bitter sweet....for sure....I really love it here....but I'm excited for all that summer will be. Overall, I'm just really thankful. The Lord has blessed me beyond anything I could ever ask or imagine!
Here are some pictures of our last rehearsal....I'm in the bright blue...
See those feet? Those are mine...and they are looking forward to having three months off! ;-)
It's bitter sweet....for sure....I really love it here....but I'm excited for all that summer will be. Overall, I'm just really thankful. The Lord has blessed me beyond anything I could ever ask or imagine!
Here are some pictures of our last rehearsal....I'm in the bright blue...
See those feet? Those are mine...and they are looking forward to having three months off! ;-)
5/17/2008
Grace, grace, grace, grace, grace??
I love these words by Shane and Shane, "An unfair deal on the part of Christ, he got my sin, I got eternal life."
A precious friend of mine was asking me what I believed....and we had a very good conversation. We were IMing, and my internet was being frustrating, so I just wrote her an email. Satan hated what I had to say. The whole internet not working was spiritual warfare, I have no doubt. Satan knows that she's in a battle, and that this battle is for her soul.
Anyway, she really made me think. Having to explain my views to someone who doesn't agree really put them in perspective. It really is all about Jesus' grace, not about what I have done/can do.
Here's what I wrote to her. She asked what I believed...and I also responded to a few questions like, "can't you have Jesus message of love and goodwill without the other stuff?" and "if that's true then Hitler could be in heaven."
"Okay, here's what I believe in a nutshell. Of course, there's more to it, but this is the essentials, k??
Sin was brought into God's perfect world when Adam and Eve chose to disobey. Because of their disobedience, sin entered the world, and it's consequence is death.
I was born into a world filled with pain, death and evil, just like you. As a baby the moment I chose to do something wrong (probably at just a few months old) I became stained with sin. As I got older, I got more and more stained as I did more bad things (lying, cheating, stealing, lusting, ect.) Even though I'm a pretty "good person" by the world's standards, even my small sins separate me from God. Like a white t-shirt with spaghetti sauce, I am stained beyond repair. None of the good deeds that I do can ever cover for my sin....I can not erase my bad deeds (big or small). However, Jesus came into the world and lived a perfect, sinless life, and because he loved me SO much, he took my sin and died for it. Jesus is "tide to go" and he is the only thing that takes the stain out of my white t-shirt. Nothing else works. He went to Hell, bearing your sin and mine, but because he was perfect, death(which is the consequence of sin) couldn't hold him down, so he came back to life! He rose from the dead.
Yes, Jesus preached love and goodwill, but that wasn't all. We can't just take part of his message, it's all or nothing. Just like any other leader (think Obama, Hillary, McCain...you can't take half of them, you either take their whole platform and you vote for them, or you don't). Jesus' main message was that he came to save us from our sins. Why do we need saving? Because the consequence of sin is death and death means Hell, eternal separation from God. Jesus came to spare us from that. It is for THAT reason that he preached love and goodwill (those are just the ways that we should act, they don't bring us salvation.) You can't take only half of his message.
Even Hitler could go to heaven. Isn't that amazing? Isn't it awesome to know that there is a God who would spare even Hitler from Hell? If Jesus' would forgive Hitler.....how much more can he forgive you and I? If Jesus' blood can wash away the HUGE spaghetti stains on Hitler's t-shirt, how much more can he wash away our sins?
It's not about what you do. It's not about living a good life. It's by the grace of Jesus Christ, a free gift that you cannot earn, that we are forgiven and given the chance to live in Heaven forever with God."
Wow. Thank you Lord. I learned a lot in that conversation. I'm learning more and more how UTTERLY helpless I am, and how completely powerful HE is. His grace covers me, I CAN't earn his salvation, love, approval or blessing! All that I have is by grace and his love for me, I don't deserve ANY of it. Amazing! The gospel is that much sweeter when put in those terms.
"An unfair deal on the part of Christ, he got my sin, I got eternal life."
A precious friend of mine was asking me what I believed....and we had a very good conversation. We were IMing, and my internet was being frustrating, so I just wrote her an email. Satan hated what I had to say. The whole internet not working was spiritual warfare, I have no doubt. Satan knows that she's in a battle, and that this battle is for her soul.
Anyway, she really made me think. Having to explain my views to someone who doesn't agree really put them in perspective. It really is all about Jesus' grace, not about what I have done/can do.
Here's what I wrote to her. She asked what I believed...and I also responded to a few questions like, "can't you have Jesus message of love and goodwill without the other stuff?" and "if that's true then Hitler could be in heaven."
"Okay, here's what I believe in a nutshell. Of course, there's more to it, but this is the essentials, k??
Sin was brought into God's perfect world when Adam and Eve chose to disobey. Because of their disobedience, sin entered the world, and it's consequence is death.
I was born into a world filled with pain, death and evil, just like you. As a baby the moment I chose to do something wrong (probably at just a few months old) I became stained with sin. As I got older, I got more and more stained as I did more bad things (lying, cheating, stealing, lusting, ect.) Even though I'm a pretty "good person" by the world's standards, even my small sins separate me from God. Like a white t-shirt with spaghetti sauce, I am stained beyond repair. None of the good deeds that I do can ever cover for my sin....I can not erase my bad deeds (big or small). However, Jesus came into the world and lived a perfect, sinless life, and because he loved me SO much, he took my sin and died for it. Jesus is "tide to go" and he is the only thing that takes the stain out of my white t-shirt. Nothing else works. He went to Hell, bearing your sin and mine, but because he was perfect, death(which is the consequence of sin) couldn't hold him down, so he came back to life! He rose from the dead.
Yes, Jesus preached love and goodwill, but that wasn't all. We can't just take part of his message, it's all or nothing. Just like any other leader (think Obama, Hillary, McCain...you can't take half of them, you either take their whole platform and you vote for them, or you don't). Jesus' main message was that he came to save us from our sins. Why do we need saving? Because the consequence of sin is death and death means Hell, eternal separation from God. Jesus came to spare us from that. It is for THAT reason that he preached love and goodwill (those are just the ways that we should act, they don't bring us salvation.) You can't take only half of his message.
Even Hitler could go to heaven. Isn't that amazing? Isn't it awesome to know that there is a God who would spare even Hitler from Hell? If Jesus' would forgive Hitler.....how much more can he forgive you and I? If Jesus' blood can wash away the HUGE spaghetti stains on Hitler's t-shirt, how much more can he wash away our sins?
It's not about what you do. It's not about living a good life. It's by the grace of Jesus Christ, a free gift that you cannot earn, that we are forgiven and given the chance to live in Heaven forever with God."
Wow. Thank you Lord. I learned a lot in that conversation. I'm learning more and more how UTTERLY helpless I am, and how completely powerful HE is. His grace covers me, I CAN't earn his salvation, love, approval or blessing! All that I have is by grace and his love for me, I don't deserve ANY of it. Amazing! The gospel is that much sweeter when put in those terms.
"An unfair deal on the part of Christ, he got my sin, I got eternal life."
5/12/2008
Surrender
So, I was thinking about the "stale state" of my Christianity....and I think these guys put into words what I've been beginning to realize.
"O to grace how great a debtor
Daily I’m constrained to be!
Let Thy goodness, like a fetter,
Bind my wandering heart to Thee.
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,
Prone to leave the God I love;
Here’s my heart, O take and seal it,
Seal it for Thy courts above." -Robert Robinson
"He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed." -Peter the Apostle
"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." -Jesus
"You can't do it. We can't draw closer to God by trying harder. "Pull it together" by letting it go...into the hands of God."-Jeremy
"Jeremy took the words right out of my mouth ... what he said ... and what He said."-Daddy
Thanks for the counsel. I am blessed to have wise men in my life.
I rely too much on my own ability to love the Lord....but it's His love that I need in order to love Him...you know? I have to surrender.
I LOVE being independent....I LOVE doing things on my own....it's partly my personality, and partly how I was raised. It can be a good thing, but in this situation it's not. I'm like the two year old trying to tie her own shoes. "I can do it myself Daddy!" But I can't. My shoes are on the wrong feet.....and the laces are dragging in the dirt.....I need His help.
So, I guess the task ahead is kind of a paradox. I must allow myself to be bound to Christ, and I have to let HIM be the one to do it. All my own striving won't work, only Jesus, only his mercy and grace will change me.
"O to grace how great a debtor
Daily I’m constrained to be!
Let Thy goodness, like a fetter,
Bind my wandering heart to Thee.
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,
Prone to leave the God I love;
Here’s my heart, O take and seal it,
Seal it for Thy courts above." -Robert Robinson
"He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed." -Peter the Apostle
"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." -Jesus
"You can't do it. We can't draw closer to God by trying harder. "Pull it together" by letting it go...into the hands of God."-Jeremy
"Jeremy took the words right out of my mouth ... what he said ... and what He said."-Daddy
Thanks for the counsel. I am blessed to have wise men in my life.
I rely too much on my own ability to love the Lord....but it's His love that I need in order to love Him...you know? I have to surrender.
I LOVE being independent....I LOVE doing things on my own....it's partly my personality, and partly how I was raised. It can be a good thing, but in this situation it's not. I'm like the two year old trying to tie her own shoes. "I can do it myself Daddy!" But I can't. My shoes are on the wrong feet.....and the laces are dragging in the dirt.....I need His help.
So, I guess the task ahead is kind of a paradox. I must allow myself to be bound to Christ, and I have to let HIM be the one to do it. All my own striving won't work, only Jesus, only his mercy and grace will change me.
5/11/2008
Stale
Can your Christianity become stale?? Has mine become such? Am I the salt that has lost it's saltiness? Sometimes I wonder. I have to be honest. As much as I would love to tell you that I am passionate about Jesus all the time, it's not always the case. This is not a "I'm beating myself over the head" entry, I just want to be real about what's going on.
It's not that anything is wrong, I'm not going through any hardships, I'm just stale. Is being "tired" or "busy" a good excuse....? I don't really think so. My prayers seem hollow....the Word seems dry.....Christianity is not a feeling....I know that....but what is the deal with this dry spot? The things that used to draw me to the Lord seem common place. My awe of the cross, my wonder at his goodness, my thankful heart, where is that? Where is the girl in love? Why is she replaced by a tired, stressed out woman who would rather kneel during worship then dance....not because she is broken, but simply because her feet hurt??
Have you ever sat down to pray, and so many thoughts are swirling in your head that the prayer becomes a to do list....and becomes frustrating rather then sweet, intimate time with Jesus?
Since when was it okay with me that Jesus is on a list, rather then in my heart?
In the words of Mr. Yuri, "Come on girl, pull it together." He was talking dance, but that's not the only area those words hit.
Psalm 42 is my prayer.
"As the deer pants for streams of water,
so my soul pants for you, O God.
My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.
When can I go and meet with God?
................................
Why are you downcast, O my soul?
Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
for I will yet praise him,
my Savior and my God."
I need Jesus to give me the strength to overcome. My heart's desire IS to serve him, and I need to live like that is the case.
"Come on girl, pull it together."
It's not that anything is wrong, I'm not going through any hardships, I'm just stale. Is being "tired" or "busy" a good excuse....? I don't really think so. My prayers seem hollow....the Word seems dry.....Christianity is not a feeling....I know that....but what is the deal with this dry spot? The things that used to draw me to the Lord seem common place. My awe of the cross, my wonder at his goodness, my thankful heart, where is that? Where is the girl in love? Why is she replaced by a tired, stressed out woman who would rather kneel during worship then dance....not because she is broken, but simply because her feet hurt??
Have you ever sat down to pray, and so many thoughts are swirling in your head that the prayer becomes a to do list....and becomes frustrating rather then sweet, intimate time with Jesus?
Since when was it okay with me that Jesus is on a list, rather then in my heart?
In the words of Mr. Yuri, "Come on girl, pull it together." He was talking dance, but that's not the only area those words hit.
Psalm 42 is my prayer.
"As the deer pants for streams of water,
so my soul pants for you, O God.
My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.
When can I go and meet with God?
................................
Why are you downcast, O my soul?
Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
for I will yet praise him,
my Savior and my God."
I need Jesus to give me the strength to overcome. My heart's desire IS to serve him, and I need to live like that is the case.
"Come on girl, pull it together."
5/05/2008
Two kinds of Christianity
Sorry it's been so long......I have had a thought forming in my mind for months now....and I've thought about it alot this week....so I had to finish thinking before I could write. Hopefully it makes sense....
There are not two kinds of Christians.......there are not different ways to live out your faith.....there are, in fact, two religions by the same name. We are NOT two different parts of the same religion. These two religions are radically different. One leads to life, the other to death. One is absolute truth, the other is the worst kind of deceit. Each group has its following. One walks the wide road, the other the narrow. Both do good works......both try to live good lives....both believe in heaven....but only one believes in hell. They both believe in Jesus....but they don't believe in the same one. This is not a new idea...it's talked about throughout the Bible....goats and sheep....wheat and chaff....they both dwell together, but only one group knows the truth.
Yes, there are two different religions. One is very evil, the other is pure good. It is hard to separate the two, they look very similar on the outside...but the shepherd knows his sheep, and the goats cannot fool him.
The kind of Christianity that is applauded by the world is the kind that is tolerant, open minded, updated, trendy, safe, it brings no controversy, it holds up no standard, it argues nothing, and to them, the Bible is a "good book." Don't be fooled, dear friends, they are trapped in the worst kind of hypocrisy. They claim to be more relevant, they claim to be more "forward" but what they are is deceived. Their doctrine claims that if you say, "the prayer" that you are now guaranteed heaven. That's a nice thought, but it fails to ring true. A prayer without repentance, without a true change of heart just hits the ceiling and falls back to earth....heaven knows it not. These Christians live the comfortable American life....they indulge in every sort of evil that the heathens do....without remorse they rest on the assurance that the "prayer" said in 3rd grade Sunday School will somehow magically save them from death and hell. They believe that they are their own standard, they believe that they can judge right and wrong for themselves. They do not believe the words of the Bible, after all, they're twenty one, or forty five, or sixty.....they must certainly know more then a book that has withstood two thousand years of controversy. The prophet Jeremiah hears from the Lord on this very subject, "This is what the LORD Almighty says: "Do not listen to what the prophets are prophesying to you;
they fill you with false hopes.
They speak visions from their own minds,
not from the mouth of the LORD.
They keep saying to those who despise me,
'The LORD says: You will have peace.'
And to all who follow the stubbornness of their hearts
they say, 'No harm will come to you.'
But which of them has stood in the council of the LORD
to see or to hear his word?
Who has listened and heard his word?
Jeremiah 23:16-18
The leaders of this cult promise false peace and security. They claim their destination to be heaven while sitting on a bus to hell.
This is the worst kind of religion. One that is so close to the original that it is hard to see a difference....but there is.....there is.
A real follower of Christ is that prays often....not just once. Those that are going to heaven are those that believe in Jesus Christ as Lord and savior....and because of that powerful realization their lives are COMPLETELY revolutionized. This Christianity is loving, but firm. It holds up the Word of the Lord as a standard, it does not back down from tough issues, it does not gloss over sin but slashes it out of existence. These are the people that preach about HELL and SIN, not to bring fear, but because that is the REALITY of humanity. They have no king but Yeshua. These people are the ones that live and die for the name of Jesus Christ, the son of God, and they know him personally. These are the people that don't just surrender, but abandon their lives to the cause for which they have been assigned. They hold no fear of death or hell, or poverty or disease, or hunger or hurt....they are few and far between. They know the real pain of their sin, and the real joy of their salvation.
Don't be deceived. There will come a day when we will stand before the Lord, and he will know his own. You cannot fool him. Either you know him, or you don't, so be prepared.
There are not two kinds of Christians.......there are not different ways to live out your faith.....there are, in fact, two religions by the same name. We are NOT two different parts of the same religion. These two religions are radically different. One leads to life, the other to death. One is absolute truth, the other is the worst kind of deceit. Each group has its following. One walks the wide road, the other the narrow. Both do good works......both try to live good lives....both believe in heaven....but only one believes in hell. They both believe in Jesus....but they don't believe in the same one. This is not a new idea...it's talked about throughout the Bible....goats and sheep....wheat and chaff....they both dwell together, but only one group knows the truth.
Yes, there are two different religions. One is very evil, the other is pure good. It is hard to separate the two, they look very similar on the outside...but the shepherd knows his sheep, and the goats cannot fool him.
The kind of Christianity that is applauded by the world is the kind that is tolerant, open minded, updated, trendy, safe, it brings no controversy, it holds up no standard, it argues nothing, and to them, the Bible is a "good book." Don't be fooled, dear friends, they are trapped in the worst kind of hypocrisy. They claim to be more relevant, they claim to be more "forward" but what they are is deceived. Their doctrine claims that if you say, "the prayer" that you are now guaranteed heaven. That's a nice thought, but it fails to ring true. A prayer without repentance, without a true change of heart just hits the ceiling and falls back to earth....heaven knows it not. These Christians live the comfortable American life....they indulge in every sort of evil that the heathens do....without remorse they rest on the assurance that the "prayer" said in 3rd grade Sunday School will somehow magically save them from death and hell. They believe that they are their own standard, they believe that they can judge right and wrong for themselves. They do not believe the words of the Bible, after all, they're twenty one, or forty five, or sixty.....they must certainly know more then a book that has withstood two thousand years of controversy. The prophet Jeremiah hears from the Lord on this very subject, "This is what the LORD Almighty says: "Do not listen to what the prophets are prophesying to you;
they fill you with false hopes.
They speak visions from their own minds,
not from the mouth of the LORD.
They keep saying to those who despise me,
'The LORD says: You will have peace.'
And to all who follow the stubbornness of their hearts
they say, 'No harm will come to you.'
But which of them has stood in the council of the LORD
to see or to hear his word?
Who has listened and heard his word?
Jeremiah 23:16-18
The leaders of this cult promise false peace and security. They claim their destination to be heaven while sitting on a bus to hell.
This is the worst kind of religion. One that is so close to the original that it is hard to see a difference....but there is.....there is.
A real follower of Christ is that prays often....not just once. Those that are going to heaven are those that believe in Jesus Christ as Lord and savior....and because of that powerful realization their lives are COMPLETELY revolutionized. This Christianity is loving, but firm. It holds up the Word of the Lord as a standard, it does not back down from tough issues, it does not gloss over sin but slashes it out of existence. These are the people that preach about HELL and SIN, not to bring fear, but because that is the REALITY of humanity. They have no king but Yeshua. These people are the ones that live and die for the name of Jesus Christ, the son of God, and they know him personally. These are the people that don't just surrender, but abandon their lives to the cause for which they have been assigned. They hold no fear of death or hell, or poverty or disease, or hunger or hurt....they are few and far between. They know the real pain of their sin, and the real joy of their salvation.
Don't be deceived. There will come a day when we will stand before the Lord, and he will know his own. You cannot fool him. Either you know him, or you don't, so be prepared.
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