The Mind of Christ

One of the songs that I listen to quite often on the way to work and back is called, "The Mind of Christ". It talks about living a life of sacrifice... putting others first regardless of what they do... to give grace... to never quit doing right... to give all without regret... to have the mind of Christ. It is one of my favorite songs to meditate on as I roll into work in the morning because it helps me focus on the things that matter. Honestly, today was not an easy day. It was one of those days where a coworker was trying to frustrate me (and succeeded, though I didn't show it). Usually during such days, I am able to refocus during lunch break, but I ended up not really taking a lunch break... and it was just a struggle to keep my heart fixed on Him. I am thankful for His grace and help in helping me to respond correctly, but I know that my heart wasn't matching my actions. I so much want to have the mind of Christ, so that it is not just my actions that are following Him, but my actions are following my heart... a heart that is fixed completely on Him. I was reading tonight in Romans 12 and found great encouragement in verses 14-21.

Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. Be of the same mind toward one another; do not be haughty in mind, but associate with the lowly. Do not be wise in your own estimation. Never pay back evil for evil to anyone. Respect what is right in the sight of all men. If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men. Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, "Vengeance is Mine, I will repay", says the Lord. "But if your enemy is hungry, feed him, and if he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in so doing you will heap burning coals on his head." Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

I don't think I'd call this "persecution"... or that he is my "enemy"... but it still very much applies. I am to have an understanding heart... rejoicing with him in his successes, bearing his burdens in his failures... to make peace, to overcome any bad intentions he has with giving of myself for his benefit. Oh, how little such an act of grace is compared to the grace of Him who died for the sin that I commit against Him every day. I need that constant reminder of the gospel so that my heart would be fixed on Him. These are such little things, but I so much need His help. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak. God, help me to live in the reality of the gospel. I want to love how You love. I want Your heart and your mind. Transform me more into the image of Your Son that others would see You through me. Strengthen me with Your Spirit and the joy that comes with true fellowship with You. Cause Your Word to run free in my heart, stripping me of my selfishness and pride and longing to see You glorified.

Fruit That Doesn't Hide

This last week, I had a bit of a change at work. I was asked to code several parts of one of our newest reports. I have also been given the responsibility to fix the bugs in our software as I find them. For some of you, this may sound like a bad thing, but I actually really enjoy it!

Thus far, my programming has been limited to mostly in-house programming and other tasks anything from running a huge printer and organizing thousands of test booklets into boxes to entering pages of numbers into databases to delivering boxes of tests to schools. I was just thinking today about the work that God has done in my heart over the last several months through these things. I love programming... really everything about it! The Lord saw fit for me to do very little of that in these first few months at work. He gave (through my boss) me many different jobs and responsibilities... many of which I would have said that I do not enjoy at all! Yet, through these things, He has showed me that the joy of the Lord is not based on circumstances. It is not based on my job, the people I work with, the tasks I'm asked to do, how my car is running, if life is going "as planned", etc. The joy of the Lord is based strictly on knowledge of His complete faithfulness and full contentment with what He has given. I am very thankful for His wisdom in not just giving me exactly what I wanted right away, but rather using these circumstances to make my joy a little bit more complete in Him.

True joy in the Lord is not something we can fake. It comes from the heart... and it just flows out in abundance. One of the days at work, I was "stuck" running the printer all day. This job is extremely boring... pressing "print", loading paper, and stacking test booklets. It ended up being one of my favorite days at work... I got to sing to Him almost all day (since no one else was in that office)... got to spend much time in prayer and thinking through things. When was the last time that you had 8 hrs to just think, pray and sing... and got paid to do it!?! The key to this joy is not "just trying harder"... it truly is a work of His grace in my heart to find lasting joy in Him regardless of the circumstances. It starts within the heart and from the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks! I see just a glimpse of what Paul was saying in Philippians 4:11.

Not that I speak from want, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am.

I wish that I could say that for myself, but He is constantly revealing to me areas in which I am not content. I need His continued work in my heart to give me lasting contentment in His grace and faithfulness so that the circumstances in which He places me don't matter when it comes to my joy. His joy will be my strength, for I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me!

His Temple

I was reading in Psalm 29 the other morning and the phrase at the end of verse 9 caught my attention.

And in His temple everything says, "Glory!"

Immediately, that well-known passage in 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 came to mind...

Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.

... and 1 Corintians 10:31...

Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

These passages served as a great challenge to me to really think through everything I do... is it saying, "Glory!"? If it is saying, "Glory!", is He the object of that glory? God, would you help me to live no longer for myself but for You who died and rose again on my behalf so that I would truly be Your temple, that everything within me would say, "Glory!" You are infinitely more deserving of the glory that I can give, but help me by Your grace to use all that is within me to glorify You. I want You to have joy dwelling here, in Your temple.

Moving Forward

I was reading in Joshua 1 this morning along with a few other passages and the phrase "be strong and courageous" is an obvious theme throughout Joshua 1. Something that I hadn't really noticed before is that when the Lord spoke to Joshua in verse 2-3...

Moses My servant is dead; now therefore arise, cross this Jordan, you and all this people, to the land which I am giving to them, to the sons of Israel. Every place on which the sole of your foot treads, I have given it to you, just as I spoke to Moses.

After telling him several times to be strong and courageous and promising to be with Joshua, it is really cool to see how Joshua responds.

Then Joshua commanded the officers of the people, saying, Pass through the midst of the camp and command the people, saying, Prepare provisions for yourselves, for within three days you are to cross this Jordan, to go in to possess the land which the Lord your God is giving you, to possess it.

He did not delay at all! He listened to the Lord speaking to him, had confidence that He never fails and proceeded with immediately following His direction and leading the others to do the same. Three days is pretty quick after waiting so many years... but when God says "go"... you go! It is also neat seeing how God had worked in the people's hearts in order to respond to Joshua correctly.

They answered Joshua, saying, "All that you have commanded us we will do, and wherever you send us we will go. "Just as we obeyed Moses in all things, so we will obey you; only may the Lord your God be with you as He was with Moses. "Anyone who rebels against your command and does not obey your words in all that you command him, shall be put to death; only be strong and courageous."

Talk about taking this seriously... to put to death anyone that was disobedient to his lead (knowing that ultimately it was the Lord leading). God also spoke through these people to Joshua to be strong and courageous. It is such a blessing that not only does God give us encouragement through His Word, but He speaks through people as well to spur us on to obedience and submission to His ways along with leading in the ways that He would have us lead.

God, may we be strong and courageous in following Your ways. Give us no peace and no courage to move outside of Your boundaries, but help us by Your grace to run boldly in the path that Your Word is lighting for us.

Manning Up

In the last post, I talked about Eli and his lack of taking responsibility as a father to his sons and how important it is that we take full responsibility when it comes to sin. Eli definitely messed up in a big way, but Eli also was willing to "man up" and take God's judgment for his lack of responsibility. Take a look at 1 Samuel 3:10-18.

Then the Lord came and stood and called as at other times, "Samuel! Samuel!" And Samuel said, "Speak, for Your servant is listening." The Lord said to Samuel, "Behold, I am about to do a thing in Israel at which both ears of everyone who hears it will tingle. "In that day I will carry out against Eli all that I have spoken concerning his house, from beginning to end. "For I have told him that I am about to judge his house forever for the iniquity which he knew, because his sons brought a curse on themselves and he did not rebuke them. "Therefore I have sworn to the house of Eli that the iniquity of Eli's house shall not be atoned for by sacrifice or offering forever." So Samuel lay down until morning. Then he opened the doors of the house of the Lord But Samuel was afraid to tell the vision to Eli. Then Eli called Samuel and said, "Samuel, my son." And he said, "Here I am." He said, "What is the word that He spoke to you? Please do not hide it from me. May God do so to you, and more also, if you hide anything from me of all the words that He spoke to you." So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him. And he said, "It is the Lord; let Him do what seems good to Him."

I was reading in Galatians 6 earlier today which talks about how we reap what we sow. Eli was no exception to this, he sowed irresponsibility and God severely punished him for it. At the same time, Eli humbly realized his fault and even though he did not do anything about it, he was willing to accept God's perfect will... which in this case was judgment. The first step is to take responsibility, but the reality is that we all will fail at times. In these times of failure, it is essential that we humbly confess our sin of irresponsibility to the Lord, start taking responsibility while accepting whatever punishment the Lord brings our way knowing that it is best for us.

David was called a man after God's own heart. Take a look at how he took recognized God's sovereign hand working through someone else in 2 Samuel 16:5-11.

When King David came to Bahurim, behold, there came out from there a man of the family of the house of Saul whose name was Shimei, the son of Gera; he came out cursing continually as he came. He threw stones at David and at all the servants of King David; and all the people and all the mighty men were at his right hand and at his left. Thus Shimei said when he cursed, "Get out, get out, you man of bloodshed, and worthless fellow! "The Lord has returned upon you all the bloodshed of the house of Saul, in whose place you have reigned; and the Lord has given the kingdom into the hand of your son Absalom. And behold, you are taken in your own evil, for you are a man of bloodshed!" Then Abishai the son of Zeruiah said to the king, "Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? Let me go over now and cut off his head." But the king said, "What have I to do with you, O sons of Zeruiah? If he curses, and if the Lord has told him, 'Curse David,' then who shall say, 'Why have you done so?'" Then David said to Abishai and to all his servants, "Behold, my son who came out from me seeks my life; how much more now this Benjamite? Let him alone and let him curse, for the Lord has told him.

God says that we are to honor the king, so this was clearly not something that Shimei should have been doing; however, David recognized the extent of his own sinfulness and that he was completely deserving of the things that Shimei was saying. Rather than having Abishai cut off his head (which he could have done), he spoke humbly, knowing the reality of his own sinfulness and that he was deserving of far more than just these insults being cast his way. David's sin was great, but he humbly "manned up" and took responsibility for his sin without shifting it to others (even if they were wrong in what they were doing). May God give us hearts of humility to "man up" or "woman up" and take responsibility for our own sin regardless of what others are doing. May our sin cause us to realize how great our savior is!

Taking Responsibility

This week has been a good one, but challenging as well. It felt like I was constantly battling to trust the Lord fully. That is not by any means a reflection on His faithfulness, because He is altogether faithful and has given me no reason to not trust Him; yet, I still struggle to do so fully. I am so thankful that He is not done working on me yet! Today was a good day of refocusing. I am ready for a new week!

A couple of my friends are leaving, one for school, the other off to the army. Both of these young men are guys that I care much about... and in some regards, it is hard to see them go, but I know that God does all things for His glory in His perfect timing. May God's faithfulness be their standing place regardless of where He puts them.

I was reading tonight in 1 Samuel 2 and was thinking through what it means to really take responsibility.

Now Eli was very old; and he heard all that his sons were doing to all Israel, and how they lay with the women who served at the doorway of the tent of meeting. He said to them, "Why do you do such things, the evil things that I hear from all these people? "No, my sons; for the report is not good which I hear the Lord's people circulating. "If one man sins against another, God will mediate for him; but if a man sins against the Lord, who can intercede for him?" But they would not listen to the voice of their father, for the Lord desired to put them to death. ... Then a man of God came to Eli and said to him, "Thus says the Lord, 'Did I not indeed reveal Myself to the house of your father when they were in Egypt in bondage to Pharaoh's house? 'Did I not choose them from all the tribes of Israel to be My priests, to go up to My altar, to burn incense, to carry an ephod before Me; and did I not give to the house of your father all the fire offerings of the sons of Israel? 'Why do you kick at My sacrifice and at My offering which I have commanded in My dwelling, and honor your sons above Me, by making yourselves fat with the choicest of every offering of My people Israel?' "Therefore the Lord God of Israel declares, 'I did indeed say that your house and the house of your father should walk before Me forever'; but now the Lord declares, 'Far be it from Me--for those who honor Me I will honor, and those who despise Me will be lightly esteemed. 'Behold, the days are coming when I will break your strength and the strength of your father's house so that there will not be an old man in your house. 'You will see the distress of My dwelling, in spite of all the good that I do for Israel; and an old man will not be in your house forever. 'Yet I will not cut off every man of yours from My altar so that your eyes will fail from weeping and your soul grieve, and all the increase of your house will die in the prime of life. 'This will be the sign to you which will come concerning your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas: on the same day both of them will die. 'But I will raise up for Myself a faithful priest who will do according to what is in My heart and in My soul; and I will build him an enduring house, and he will walk before My anointed always.

God used people to tell Eli that his sons were doing things that were very displeasing to the Lord. He did what most of us would do and went to his sons and confronted them about their actions. However, when his sons didn't respond, Eli obviously just let it slide. First off, Eli probably knew about his son's actions before people told him and had chosen to ignore those actions. Second, Eli didn't take his responsibility as their father and take action. God said that he honored his sons over God Himself! God will be glorified regardless of if you and I do it or not. I don't know about you, "but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord!" So often we like to ignore the sin of those around us to avoid conflict, but be careful that you are not honoring that person over God! Friendship with the world is enmity toward God. Light does not mix with darkness. We must take full responsibility for not only our actions, but also the actions of those God has placed within our sphere of influence. I am not advocating that you go point out every sin that anyone you know has ever committed, but I urge you to not ignore your sin nor excuse the sin of others, because God most definitely does not! He is a God full of compassion, but we must walk as His children in obedience!

Persevering in Prayer

We read Luke 11 this evening in family devotions and this isn't the usual account of the Lord's prayer that I read. I usually read Matthew, but the surrounding context caught my attention. Take a look at verses 1-13.

It happened that while Jesus was praying in a certain place, after He had finished, one of His disciples said to Him, "Lord, teach us to pray just as John also taught his disciples." And He said to them, "When you pray, say: 'Father, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. 'Give us each day our daily bread. 'And forgive us our sins, For we ourselves also forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation.'" Then He said to them, "Suppose one of you has a friend, and goes to him at midnight and says to him, 'Friend, lend me three loaves; for a friend of mine has come to me from a journey, and I have nothing to set before him'; and from inside he answers and says, 'Do not bother me; the door has already been shut and my children and I are in bed; I cannot get up and give you anything.' "I tell you, even though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence he will get up and give him as much as he needs. "So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. "For everyone who asks, receives; and he who seeks, finds; and to him who knocks, it will be opened. "Now suppose one of you fathers is asked by his son for a fish; he will not give him a snake instead of a fish, will he? "Or if he is asked for an egg, he will not give him a scorpion, will he? "If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?"

This is kind of a different blog post in that it is something that I don't really talk about, but it very much fits in with this passage. I don't really like to pray out loud in a group setting. I should rephrase that... I love to pray at any time, but I prefer to pray alone, out loud, with just me and the Lord. I was praying the other night and saying something to the effect of, "God, I feel like I am wearing You out with saying the same kinds of things over and over again. You know what I desire far more than I do, yet I ask again, not because You need to hear me ask again, but because it is good for my heart to keep asking You." I hadn't thought of this passage when I was praying, but I find it interesting that God wants us to not give up when it comes to praying for things that honor Him... the biggest of which is that He would fill us with His Spirit. Prayer is a mystery to me. I don't know exactly how it works... I can't comprehend how He is able to hear me and everyone else at the same time... and how His thoughts about me out-number the grains of sand... yet all these things are true. Prayer is extremely powerful. Do you ever pray for big and scary things? Perhaps things that you aren't even sure about, but you pray out of faith? The kinds of things where you literally tremble as you pray them? I do not always pray this way... in fact, far from it, but He is slowly teaching me to pray. For myself, I have found that praying starts with the knowledge of Him and His character... praising Him for those things and committing to fully believe Him and obey Him because of those things. From there, praying things that I know are His will with absolutely no doubt that He will answer because He has already said it's His will really builds my faith. They are things I know in my head, but with my lack of faith, I need to see it. I'm not saying that we should be the kinds of people that "ask for a sign" when we don't believe, but rather... believing what He has stated is true... for example, I know it's His will that I grow in the grace and knowledge of Him... so I pray specifically for that. I know it is His will for me to grow in humility and patience... so I pray that. I know it's His will that I love Him more... so I pray that. If you don't pray Biblical prayers, I'd challenge you to do so. There are more things than you could pray for in a life-time from scripture... so start now! Commit to be obedient... and pray these big things for His glory in your heart. After I pray these things, I generally bring my requests to Him... the things that I believe are within the boundaries of scripture... things that I believe would glorify Him, yet I do not know if they are part of His perfect plan. I bring these things to Him, "coming boldly before the throne of grace"... to a point that I am often scared to pray. Sometimes I even tell Him that I am scared of Him answering my prayer request... but I trust that He will provide the grace necessary to glorify Him in all things knowing that His plan is perfect and I want nothing other than THAT plan.

God, My Exceeding Joy

It's been a long day... woke up at 5:30 or so and decided to go back to bed until 6:30 but still felt tired. I'm thankful for the strength that He provides throughout the day. It was a great day... had a good time in the Word, had a good hard-working day, played some volleyball with the family, and now I'm here ready to hit the sack once again.

It looks like God may be re-opening the doors with team handball. When my team in LA started practicing on Sundays, I pretty much stopped playing. I figure if God wants me to continue, He is going to have to make it clear. They recently moved practices back to Saturdays (though it is like a solid 2 hrs away). Anyway, long story short, I am headed for a 4 day camp for preparation for the Pan American Games. The coach is my favorite coach... really neat encouraging but challenging guy. I love his coaching style. I don't know what God has planned, but He opened this door and so I am walking through it and trusting that He will lead either way. May He strip away any desire to make a name for myself and replace it with a desire to glorify Him alone.

I was reading in Psalm 43 this evening and verses 3 and 4 caught my attention.

O send out Your light and Your truth, let them lead me; Let them bring me to Your holy hill And to Your dwelling places. Then I will go to the altar of God, To God my exceeding joy; And upon the lyre I shall praise You, O God, my God.

It is so essential that we are spending time in His Word so that we are being lead by the truth. Emotions and feelings are not good things to go by... especially considering He has given us His Word to guide us along with every spiritual blessing in Christ! It is then that we can have confidence that we will be drawn toward Him. I love the phrase in verse 4, the commitment to go to the alter of God because God is my exceeding joy. I truly can say that God is my exceeding joy. He is everything that I need. I don't need another breath if I have Him! The hard part is living in the reality of that. It is so easy to distract myself with the things of the world when truly all my true joy is found in Him. In Him we live, move, and breathe! May all be done for His glory... out of joy!

The Lord Will Protect You From All Evil

Yesterday morning, I received an email from my handball coach (from the national team) and he said that he and his family were at the park by their hotel out in London and they got mugged. He, of course, had all their money on him... credit cards... cell phone... etc., but not passports, so basically, they were having trouble leaving the country because they had to pay for the hotel but had nothing to pay with. He was born in Europe, so it wasn't surprising that he was out there. Their plane was leaving in like 2 hrs, and I really didn't want to loan him $1,800, but was reminded of the verse in Psalm 112:5, "It is well with the man who is gracious and lends; He will maintain his cause in judgement."

I told God that it is His money and that I would go ahead and do it. I asked my coach to call me really quick... as I was headed out to work at that very moment. He said he couldn't call until he got to the airport. So, I tried to send him the money via westernunion or whatever it is. It failed for some reason. So, I told him... hey, sorry, but it didn't work and I'm at work... am the only one in the office at the moment and I just can't leave right now. (I usually don't check my normal email at work, but made an exception for this). He replied asking if I could perhaps send someone to do it for me.

So, after some more people got into the office... and thinking of James 2:16, "And one of you says to them, 'Go in peace, be warmed and be filled,' and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what is that?". I got permission to leave for a bit. I probably would have just not done it expect for the fact that I said I would pray for him... so I kind of locked myself in. haha Anyway, went to print his email, and the printer failed. Ended up having to print to a different printer. At this point, with everything not working, I was sensing... that perhaps it's not God's will for me to do this!

I called mom (should have done that way sooner), asked her to call the handball office and check into it... and I went to the bank to check some things with them. Both came to the conclusion that it indeed was a scam. I have seen these things many times before, but it is always from a junk email address... this was actually from his real address with his real signature. It annoyed me greatly that he couldn't call me, and looking back, I was pretty unwise, but so thankful for His grace and protection. I'm reminded of Psalm 121...

I will lift up my eyes to the mountains; From where shall my help come? My help comes from the Lord, Who made heaven and earth. He will not allow your foot to slip; He who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, He who keeps Israel Will neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord is your keeper; The Lord is your shade on your right hand. The sun will not smite you by day, Nor the moon by night. The Lord will protect you from all evil; He will keep your soul. The Lord will guard your going out and your coming in From this time forth and forever.

I am so thankful! :)

Wisdom From Above

I have neglected this blog far too long. Life has been so full these last several weeks... in a very good way... but full all the same. God has continually been working in my heart and I wish that I had written more here for my own sake (to remember everything), though I think it would challenge you all as well. Anyway, my Bible study has been exceedingly random these last several weeks, but very productive. I am continually amazed at how God can speak through really any part of His Word directly to my heart. One thing I have been focusing on is trusting Him. He has continually proved Himself faithful and trustworthy. As I pursue His wisdom in all the choices of life from the small day-to-day ones to the big life-changing ones, it is such a blessing knowing that not only does He know what is best... He created me and knows me better than I know myself, but He has promised not to withhold any good thing from those that walk uprightly. There is such security in trusting the Lord. The peace that comes with having absolutely no doubt that God's absolute best will indeed happen is a blessing beyond words.

I was reading tonight in James 3 and verses 17 and 18 stuck out to me.

But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy. And the seed whose fruit is righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.

Knowing that I am prone to seek my own will rather than God's, I love passages like this which differentiate between true wisdom from above and my wisdom... (or the lack thereof). This is down-to-earth and practical... "reasonable" is one of the characteristics of wisdom that comes from Him. Obviously, our reasoning can be off (and often is), but reasonable in combination with being without hypocrisy (meaning completely true and in no way fake), pure, full of mercy and good fruits (love, joy peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control) shows us what true wisdom from the Lord looks like. As I seek His wisdom daily (because I lack wisdom), I need His work of grace in my heart to truly differentiate between my "wisdom" and the true wisdom that comes only from Him producing these good fruits. May He show me the foolishness of my "wisdom" and plant within me His wisdom not to puff me up, but to help me pursue Him with all of my heart, soul, mind, and strength.

Taking Responsibility

Life has been busy with the new job, but I am greatly enjoying it. God has been very gracious to me. I am really starting to get into the swing of things at work and am getting to do some things that I really like a lot. God has been teaching me much about taking joy in the "not so fun" tasks at work... truly, those things can be enjoyed. There was probably 30 mins today where I was able to pray during work... and get a whole lot done at the same time. Those "mindless" tasks can be an incredible blessing.

My pastor mentioned Nehemiah 1 the other day and so I read it this evening and was blessed by Nehemiah's example of taking responsibility. Take a look at Nehemiah 1:5-9.

I said, "I beseech You, O Lord God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who preserves the covenant and lovingkindness for those who love Him and keep His commandments, let Your ear now be attentive and Your eyes open to hear the prayer of Your servant which I am praying before You now, day and night, on behalf of the sons of Israel Your servants, confessing the sins of the sons of Israel which we have sinned against You; I and my father's house have sinned. "We have acted very corruptly against You and have not kept the commandments, nor the statutes, nor the ordinances which You commanded Your servant Moses. "Remember the word which You commanded Your servant Moses, saying, 'If you are unfaithful I will scatter you among the peoples; but if you return to Me and keep My commandments and do them, though those of you who have been scattered were in the most remote part of the heavens, I will gather them from there and will bring them to the place where I have chosen to cause My name to dwell.'

This is a great example of how to pray... he comes humbly before God recognizing God's greatness and his position as God's servant... and he comes before God to take responsibility for not only his sin, but the sins of the people around him. He is praying God's Word back to Him with both the good promises of blessing and the consequences of living unfaithfully to God. God desires to be glorified in bringing His people to the place of His dwelling. To be honest, I can't remember the last time that I have come before God, taking responsibility for the sin of someone else. Yet, I truly believe that God is looking for men like Nehemiah to stand up and be men... take responsibility and action according to His will. I need Him so much to teach me to be a man of responsibility... that loves Him and desires others to do the same so much that I am willing to humbly come before the Lord confessing not only my sin, but the sin of others... pleading that God would strip it away and draw all men to Himself.

The Blessed Controller and Owner of All Things

God has been blessing abundantly these last few weeks. Work has been challenging in some regards, but God has been more than faithful. I am learning much about what it means to serve others unselfishly. Many of the tasks I'm assigned to do are not things that I enjoy doing necessarily. I am working hard at automating test processing and such so that I am more free to work in more enjoyable ways, but I have learned to take joy in the tedious tasks, realizing that I am working for the Lord and not for men. I could use prayer that God would continue to strengthen me and give me a heart to "do all things without complaining." He must be glorified in me every moment of every day.

I was reading in Mark 8 this evening and two things really caught my attention... verses 16-21 and 31-33. Take a look at 16-21.

They began to discuss with one another the fact that they had no bread. And Jesus, aware of this, said to them, "Why do you discuss the fact that you have no bread? Do you not yet see or understand? Do you have a hardened heart? "Having eyes, do you not see? And having ears, do you not hear? And do you not remember, when I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces you picked up?" They said to Him, "Twelve." "When I broke the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of broken pieces did you pick up?" And they said to Him, "Seven." And He was saying to them, "Do you not yet understand?"

It is so easy to lose sight of the fact that God is the creator and owner of all things and He lacks no power to provide for our needs, yet we so often are tempted to look elsewhere when things aren't as we expect them to be.

Also, take a look at verses 31-33.

And He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. And He was stating the matter plainly. And Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him. But turning around and seeing His disciples, He rebuked Peter and said, "Get behind Me, Satan; for you are not setting your mind on God's interests, but man's."

These things may seem a bit unrelated (and they are), but I think there are also many similarities. In this case, Peter expected Jesus to take up an earthly throne and was ready to fight to the death (as we saw at Jesus' crucifixion) in order for that to happen. Like Peter, we often have preconceived ideas as far as how things are going to happen, but God's ways are higher than our ways and His thoughts are higher than our thoughts (Isaiah 55:9). We must humbly come before Him knowing that He is the sovereign God... the One who owns and controls everything. We must have our minds and hearts fixed on Christ and His perfect plan regardless of what He calls us to do and trust that He will do what is best. We so much need Him to strip away our hearts that are prone to wanting things done in our way in our timing. We cry out to God because He isn't giving us what we want... yet, what would have happened if Jesus would have set up His earthly kingdom right then and there? We all (including Peter) would have died in our sins! God, give me a heart that not only is submissive to Your perfect plan, but one that desires it above all else. Help me by Your grace to trust You fully even when I don't see or understand what You are trying to do.

The First Week

The first week of work at my new job is now over. God certainly blessed the week... I learned a lot about different things I am/will be doing already, got a fair amount of things done, learned much about my coworkers, etc. It looks like it will be a position that will challenge me to continually learn new things... and where there are people, there are ministry opportunities, so I look forward to those as well. I was reading this last week: "A man's fingers should be accustomed to working in the soil of the human heart--the hearts of those he serves and loves--that he might accomplish some of the most valuable and important work of this life." Great things to be thinking about as I enter this new work environment. I was also reminded of Ephesians 6 earlier this week and it has been a great passage to meditate on during this first week of work (especially with my boss being on vacation). Verse 5-8 stood out to me.

Slaves, be obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in the sincerity of your heart, as to Christ; not by way of eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart. With good will render service, as to the Lord, and not to men, knowing that whatever good thing each one does, this he will receive back from the Lord, whether slave or free.

God, you have given me this job to honor You through my words and actions. I commit my time at work fully to You and ask that You would continually fill my heart with big Biblical thoughts about who You are and my practical day-to-day applications of that knowledge at work. Would You rob my heart of the desire to please men and fill me with the desire to please You above all else. Strip away the desires to be "cool" and make me into a humble but godly leader in this new work environment. Grant me wisdom and guidance. Help me be productive for the sake of those I am serving. Take away any hint of the "love of money" from my heart and help me to depend fully on You during these blessed times just as much as in the times where I had no choice but to trust You. Mold me into who You want me to be and glorify Yourself in my heart so as to make me a reflection of Your Son to those around me. Amen.

By His Grace

God has been good and faithful beyond what I can even express. He has opened the door for a good job developing software quite close to home. Thank you for your continued prayers and encouragement. It was a hard four months without work, but I wouldn't trade it for anything. God has done so much work in my heart through teaching me to trust Him more fully. I pray that learning to trust Him would not be a lesson that needs to be relearned all the time, but rather that I would continually trust Him more and more. He has never failed even once. I have no reason not to trust Him fully. Oh for grace to trust Him more!

I was reading in 1 Corinthians 15 this evening and I loved the example of Paul's heart in verse 10.

But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me did not prove vain; but I labored even more than all of them, yet not I, but the grace of God with me.

Whether we live in the reality of it or not, we are here only because of the grace of God. Any good in us is because of His grace. Oh for a heart that would work harder than anyone I know for Christ's sake and yet fully depend on Him knowing that it is only by His grace that I am able to do live, move, and breathe. I am so prone to take credit for things that only He has done. I pray that He would not allow me to depend on anyone or anything except for Him and His infinite grace. I can identify so much with those lyrics by Laura Story... "My heart is so proud. My mind is so unfocused. I see the things You do through me as great things I have done. And now You gently break me, and lovingly You take me, and hold me as my Father and mold me as my Maker. I ask You how many times will You pick me up, when I keep on letting You down. Each time I will fall short of Your glory, how far will forgiveness abound? And You answer child, "I love you, and as long as You're seeking My face, you'll walk in the power of My daily sufficient grace."

Setting Standards

It is looking like God may be opening a job opportunity for me in the near future. I am excited about this and yet trying to maximize the end of my pre-job time to be as prepared as possible to enter that job and live in light of 2 Corinthians 5:14-15.

For the love of Christ controls us, having concluded this, that one died for all, therefore all died; and He died for all, so that they who live might no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf.

To have the mind of Christ is my highest goal. I want His love to control me... and by His grace, I am free to live for Him because He died for me to do so. I know that when I get out there in the workplace, some of my standards will be pushed and probably broken. How I respond to that is dependent fully on how hard I am leaning on Him... through time in the Word and prayer, reflecting in my day-to-day decisions. The communication of my standards will be tough since we are aliens and strangers in the world (1 Peter 2:11-12). It will not make sense to others... it will probably sound legalistic. I am continually amazed at how God speaks through my pastor directly to my heart. He spoke on this very issue on Sunday. It is impossible to live in this world and be holy without having standards based on His Word. Our standards are not things that depend on who we are with... it defines who we are. These standards must be determined carefully, prayerfully, and Biblically... and yet we must be humble about our standards. It is a difficult balance to "stand firm in the faith" and yet be humble and listen to others, but if our standards are based on our view of God, they will be centered around His character. The goal of having "high standards" is not for attention or to look good in front of others, but because we must live holy and blameless before Him in a world full of perversion.

God, I desperately need You to control me with Your unending love. Help me be fully submissive to You. Give me the grace and wisdom needed to stand firm in Your ways with humility. Give me a passion for You that is so strong that the evil things of this world are not in any way attractive. Strip away any false humility that I have, show me the sin of my heart, and help me to live no longer for myself, but for You--every moment of every day.

Moving Forward!

I find it increasingly amazing just how busy you can be without a job! However, that is soon to change. :) The Lord opened the door for me to have an internship with a local city (in the city hall). I start tomorrow morning and am quite excited about it. It is not a paid internship, but I see it as great practical experience... plus they have lots of connections. I had a surprise interview yesterday. This was the first time that I had received a call from one of those job placement companies. I was beginning to think that they didn't actually exist... but apparently they do! Today I had the blessing of getting to help a friend out with an excel spreadsheet macro. I totally didn't expect to be paid, but that was a great blessing. I received another call today for a second interview for a company in the area on Friday. God has been so good!

Yesterday, my sister and I went out for a few hours and passed out fliers for the new church that our church is planting this fall. God opened several doors for me to talk with people. I have found it such a joy just to pray for the people in the houses that I am putting fliers on as I do so... praying for opportunities to talk with people about Christ... etc. He has a way of turning what could be a boring and somewhat uncomfortable task into sheer joy in serving Him.

I have been thinking a lot about the different areas of my life and how I can press forward in a Christ-like manner within those. It is a continual battle to not grow stale. I know that I gravitate toward the easy path and desperately need His continual grace in pushing me to continue to "learn what is pleasing to the Lord." He has been growing my faith a whole lot these last couple weeks especially... just seeing Him come through time and time again without fail as I have trusted Him. Oh how I wish that I would never again lean on my own understanding! I just finished studying 1 John and chapter 5, verse 3 really jumped out at me.

For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not burdensome.

As He has been gently teaching me to trust and obey Him, this verse has rung truer and truer in my heart. I long to obey Him fully... and it is not a burden, it is a joy to love Him in this manner! I think of how James talks about faith being dead without works... it is so true! The rubber meets the road when you are forced to get beyond talking about trusting Him... and actually being obedient when it's hard... and it feels like it's going to hurt you. His ways are always best, let's obey Him... it's not a burden, it's a joy!

His Compassion

It's been a full weekend! I had an interview Friday afternoon and got stuck in traffic forever... good time of worship! Saturday, we headed up into the mountains for the day to be with our church for the church camping trip. We played horse shoes, baseball with the kids, ultimate frisbee, etc. We also had a great time of worship... singing of Christ with one another and mixing that in with sharing what we want God to do in our heart. It was a wonderful time of fellowship. Sunday, we visited a friend's church because we had to be out by the beach for my cousin's graduation. It was fun to be part of a completely different church service. I find that we can get so stuck into the pattern of going to church and doing what we normally do that we lose sight of the One we do it for. It's always a refreshment to get away from the "normal church service" for a Sunday and remember that it is all about Him... and the specifics [most of the time] really don't matter that much. Having said this, I love my church and what we do, but it is good to remember that worship comes from the heart. We celebrated with my cousin for his college graduation and got home Sunday evening. Today, I applied for several more jobs, studied for the interview tomorrow, played volleyball with the family, enjoyed devotions with the family, etc. It has been a full weekend, but a good one.

I was reading this evening in Matthew 9 and verses 35-38 jumped out at me.

Jesus was going through all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every kind of disease and every kind of sickness. Seeing the people, He felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and dispirited like sheep without a shepherd. Then He said to His disciples, "The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. "Therefore beseech the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest."

So often we think about how we ought to be telling people about Christ but we just aren't. Perhaps we feel like the harvest is not plentiful... or fear rejection. God has been working in my heart to see people more how He sees them. I am not gifted in the area of evangelism... mom most definitely is. However, this does not free me from the responsibility of loving and having compassion on people. Look at the example of Christ! First of all, He saw these people... how often do we not even think about the people we "see". Once He saw them... He saw that they had no direction... no one to lead them... they were lost and desperate for help. When He saw them in need, He felt compassion for them.

I am reminded of those cars that I see every once in a while driving down the street about three or four times (going opposite ways each time)... and finally I walk outside figuring they are lost and will probably ask for help if I make myself available. How much more should I care about their eternal destiny? Am I so caught up in my life and what I am doing that I don't notice those that have no direction in life? In the least, I need to pray that God would be gracious to these people and send someone to do His work... to be His hands and feet to these individuals. While I feel that most of my personal ministry is in the area of ministering to Christians, I am still called to proclaim the gospel. I am called to have compassion on the lost. I believe that we must have compassion on the "lost"--saved or unsaved! For those of you wondering, I won't beat around the bush, I believe in eternal security. Having said that, there are some Christians out there that are very very lost! They lack godly people in their lives that are willing to go out of their way to have an impact on their life. I don't want to live my life and have no impact. God, give me eyes that are aware of the lost around me, give me a heart of compassion for them, give me a spirit of boldness to lead them as Christ would have me lead, and help me to point them to the ultimate Shepherd that leads them beside still waters and restores the soul.

What I Have, I Give You!

These last several days have been difficult ones. I am not one that likes to make huge decisions, but I know they are not to be avoided either. I was looking at the possibility of moving a long way from home and everything I am comfortable with. After many nights of prayer, God graciously worked in my heart to the point where I was willing to go if He made it clear that it was His will. I haven't sensed a strong leading in that direction although that may come. I eventually got to the point where it was occupying my life. I decided to take a day off of thinking about it and just focus on Him. There is nothing like the peace He offers in the midst of huge decisions. It was a process of once again releasing every aspect of life to Him. He is so faithful and patient with me.

I was reading this evening in Matthew 19, specifically verses 16-26.

And someone came to Him and said, "Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may obtain eternal life?" And He said to him, "Why are you asking Me about what is good? There is only One who is good; but if you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments." Then he said to Him, "Which ones?" And Jesus said, "You shall not commit murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness; Honor your father and mother; and You shall love your neighbor as yourself." The young man said to Him, "All these things I have kept; what am I still lacking?" Jesus said to him, "If you wish to be complete, go and sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me." But when the young man heard this statement, he went away grieving; for he was one who owned much property. And Jesus said to His disciples, "Truly I say to you, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. "Again I say to you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." When the disciples heard this, they were very astonished and said, "Then who can be saved?" And looking at them Jesus said to them, "With people this is impossible, but with God all things are possible."

As I was considering the events of the last couple weeks and my need to depend on Him for those big decisions, I was reminded of how much I have here. God has blessed me far beyond what I can even imagine. I often wonder why it is a continual process of releasing thing to Him. The easy conclusion is that I am not only tempted to grab hold of things that don't belong to me... I am actually doing it. I could identify with this young ruler... going away sadly. Jesus was referring to eternal life here, but sometimes we are called to "follow Him" where He leads... and that may mean leaving everything. Why was it a struggle for me? Because I am rich. God has blessed me... and rather than praising Him for those blessings, I grew close to them. I held on tightly. He needed to gently peel my fingers off the people and things that I had grown close to in order to be able to say with all my heart, what I have, I give You... where You lead, I will follow... no matter where that may be.

While I don't think He is going to lead me away soon, I am thankful for His work in my heart over these last weeks. He is so gracious and kind. He reminded me of the many blessings He has poured out continually on me. I pray that I will never take those for granted or grab hold of them with a death grip, but rather cling fully to Him thanking Him for those blessings but completely ready to let them go if He chooses to take them from me. His will be done.

I Trust in You

Preaching was a good experience. It was challenging. There were several times as I was preparing that I asked myself, "How do pastors do this every week?" There were many times where I was absolutely exhausted... times where things weren't coming together as I expected them to... times where I struggled to remember what chapter I was able to look up... times where I was absolutely not excited about the most exciting thing in the Bible--redemption... etc. But, God is so faithful! When He calls you to do something, He always provides the strength to do it. He graciously allowed me to see my physical weakness in preparing to preach the Word. I will say that I spent a lot of time pouring over the Word and thinking through things; however, it was His strength sustaining and His hand guiding. I am very thankful that I had the opportunity to preach the Word--it was good for me, good for my heart, good for my dependence on Him, etc. It gave me a whole new perspective on what a pastors job actually looks like. It gave me new insights into how I can be praying for my pastor during the week as he studies the Word. Thank you for praying for me.

As I am back to the "normal" things of life this week, I am continually reminded of that phrase in "How Deep the Father's Love for Us"--His faithfulness, my standing place. I am dependent on Him, yes. What I don't often realize is that I am much more dependent on Him than I seem to think. The moment I seem to think I don't need to depend on Him, He is faithful to show me just how quickly I can stand no longer. His faithfulness is my standing place--truly. I am reminded of Psalm 143:8.

Let me hear Your lovingkindness in the morning; for I trust in You; teach me the way in which I should walk; for to You I lift up my soul.

I am in a place where I really need His guidance... in a more specific sense. I am so thankful for His guidance through the Word and through the godly counsel of others, but I really could use some specific guidance. God, Your compassions never fail, your mercies are new every morning. I trust You! Your faithfulness is my standing place. I trust You! Show me where You want me to go. I trust You! I know without a shadow of a doubt that You do what is best and that You never fail. I trust You! But, I don't trust you like I should. I believe! Help my unbelief! Give me a tender heart for Your ways, a heart of full submission and obedience, a heart that needs only the slightest nudge to run in the direction You guide me without looking back, a heart that trusts You.

Preaching the Word

Over the last several days, I've been spending much time studying in Isaiah in preparation for preaching for the first time on Sunday. I didn't really imagine the time it takes to really study and understand the Word to a point where you feel "prepared". God must be the one speaking. That means lots of time and hard work trying to see what God is trying to say... why He inspired that part of scripture... and why did He put it where He did? I'm sad to say that I have never poured myself over scripture like I have in these weeks preparing to preach. It gives a whole new light to "being ready in season and out of season". It's hard work. I often found myself exhausted, but amazed by His sovereignty in that. I was at a point where I read the wrong chapter like three times... each time, the Lord had guided me to that passage that I accidentally read in order to be more clear on other parts of the message. I am so thankful for His lead.

I'm excited--thrilled really, to have the opportunity to teach the Word in church, but it's a sobering responsibility. Teaching His Word my way is not an option... it must be His Word speaking through me. I find myself even more thankful that He is the ultimate teacher and that He will speak through His Word regardless of "how well I do". I am simply an instrument to communicate His message. I still have much work to do in making it "flow", but I need to be careful to not make it flow so much that I miss what He wants me to say. Dependence on Him is a must! His ways are higher than mine and His thoughts are higher than my thoughts. I'd appreciate your prayer as I continue to work hard at communicating His message of Redemption in Isaiah.

Those Over-Used Verses

If you are like me, sometimes you'll receive that birthday card that has a verse in it... and quite honestly, just ignore it because you know what it says. I know that's really a dumb thing to do in that it is probably the most important part of the card, but I think it would be ignorant to assume that most of us actually take the time to look up what the verse says. I generally do if I don't know it, but if I do know it... I often don't even think about it. Lately, I have been trying to break that habit by reading passages that I "know so well" that I tend to ignore. Proverbs 3:5-6 is probably the most common graduation verse... and it's graduation time, so I figured I'd take a look at Proverbs 3:1-7.

My son, do not forget my teaching, but let your heart keep my commandments; for length of days and years of life and peace they will add to you. Do not let kindness and truth leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. So you will find favor and good repute In the sight of God and man. Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and turn away from evil.

What a great portion of scripture! Think of what you have learned (the good things that is)... the things you learn from the Word, the things you learn from your parents... from your pastor. Don't forget those! Keep them at the forefront of your mind. Apply them to your everyday life. Make them a reality in your heart. It will give you a good reputation first and foremost, in the sight of God, and secondly, in the sight of man. Remember how a good name is to be chosen over gold and silver? Ever wondered how to have a "good name"? Read those instructions again! Don't forget what He has taught you! Let Him mold you from the inside out through the instruction He gives us through the Word. Trust in the Lord with all your heart... everything within us must be continually pointing us to trust Him more fully. He is the only One that we can trust fully. Do not lean on your own understanding... we are prone to live out our sinful/selfish desires. We need to be constantly reminded just how sinful we are--desperately wicked (Jeremiah 17:9)! Are we going to put our trust in a desperately wicked heart, or are we going to trust the Lord? In all your ways acknowledge Him... everything we do must have Christ at the center. Think of the last time you consciously sinned... did you acknowledge Him as your judge? Your ruler? Your Lord? Your Savior? Your Redeemer? etc. right as you were sinning? I don't think so! We must keep Him at the center of our lives... we would avoid such a huge amount of harm. Our path would be straight! If we are finding ourselves confused by the path He is taking us on, perhaps we aren't acknowledging Him in all our ways! Again, we must humble ourselves realizing that the only wisdom we have comes from God. We must fear Him. We must turn from evil!

May I never grow cold to the truths of scripture no matter how many times I've read it! I need Him to pour out His grace and renew my Spirit with a stronger desire to listen to the truths of His Word... over and over again. Remember the beginning of Proverbs 3? We are commanded to not forget what we have learned. It doesn't matter how many times we've heard it. Let's dedicate ourselves to continually learning from Him so that we are not forgetful hearers. We must be doers of the Word!

When He Blesses

This week has been a full one... preparing to preach in another week or so... applying for jobs... following up with previous job applications... etc. To be honest, today didn't feel that profitable. I felt like I wasted hours looking for jobs that were not there. I wanted to get the lawn mowed, but it was raining. I'm sure I could have used my time a bit better today. I think I spent too much time "thinking" and not enough time "doing". Had a great time in the Word throughout the day today, but found myself frustrated by the lack of things that I actually got done. I'm thankful that His mercies are new every morning.

I was reading in Deuteronomy 6 earlier and verses 5 through 12 really caught my attention.

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. These words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand and they shall be as frontals on your forehead. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. Then it shall come about when the Lord your God brings you into the land which He swore to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, to give you, great and splendid cities which you did not build, and houses full of all good things which you did not fill, and hewn cisterns which you did not dig, vineyards and olive trees which you did not plant, and you eat and are satisfied, then watch yourself, that you do not forget the Lord who brought you from the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.

This command to love God with all our heart, soul, and might is well known. It's simple and straight forward, but is it reality? Are we letting those words slip by our minds and leaving them on the "to do someday" list, or are we striving to do it now. This command is to be central to everything we do. We are commanded to teach this command diligently to those we are responsible for. We ought to be considering this when we are hanging out at home, when we are in the car or walking around, when we go to bed and when we wake up. This command is to be so central to our daily living that we post it places where we will see it all the time. Do you know why it is so important? When He blesses us beyond what we can imagine, we naturally forget Him. We take the credit for the blessings... we love the creation rather than the creator... we forsake Him. God commands us to continually put reminders in front of us to love God with absolutely everything in us so that we live in a Christ-centered manner regardless of how much He blesses us. I am confident that this is one of the lessons He wants me to learn before He blesses me with a new job. I must love Him with with all my heart... no more battles between the things of this world and Him... He must win in my heart! With all my soul... every thought, attitude, action must be a reflection of my love for Him. With all my might... absolutely every ounce of strength I have must be used to love Him. I can live daily life, doing the normal daily tasks and still love Him in this way. It is completely do-able... He commands it! By His grace, I will love Him with all that is within me.

A Commitment

The last week has been an incredible one. The Lord has blessed me with getting to see many good friends that I hadn't seen in quite a while. It was a week that was filled with exhaustion, but also one filled with God's blessing. Time in the Word has been a continual refreshment to my soul. I was reading earlier this week in Psalm 101.

I will sing of lovingkindness and justice, to You, O Lord, I will sing praises. I will give heed to the blameless way when will You come to me? I will walk within my house in the integrity of my heart. I will set no worthless thing before my eyes; I hate the work of those who fall away; it shall not fasten its grip on me. A perverse heart shall depart from me; I will know no evil. Whoever secretly slanders his neighbor, him I will destroy; no one who has a haughty look and an arrogant heart will I endure. My eyes shall be upon the faithful of the land, that they may dwell with me; he who walks in a blameless way is the one who will minister to me. He who practices deceit shall not dwell within my house; he who speaks falsehood shall not maintain his position before me. Every morning I will destroy all the wicked of the land, So as to cut off from the city of the Lord all those who do iniquity.

I love David's commitment to the Lord in this Psalm. Walking with integrity "within my house"... in private, when no one else is around to see... that is true character... that is who I am. The reality is that only God sees those things, but He does promise that our sin will find us out. Setting no worthless thing before my eyes... this is far beyond our normal standard of "guarding our eyes"... this is taking it to the extent of not even thinking about worthless things. Do I want to fill my mind with things that don't matter for eternity? My mind is a gift from Him! What goes in comes out. Am I thinking about worthless things? Am I listening to worthless things? Am I looking at worthless things? How about the concept of knowing no evil? Am I filling my mind with things that are true, honorable, right, pure, lovely, etc.? How about the concept of having the blameless be the ones ministering to us? Who do I hang out with? Are they blameless before Him? Are they ministering to me or are they dragging me down? Do I find myself in a deeper relationship with Him because of their impact on my life or am I struggling to survive when I am with them? Are they faithful and obedient to His ways? Do they help me make excuses or do they challenge me to get up off the ground and pursue Him with my whole heart? Am I going as far as to cleanse myself of all wicked influences in my life? I'm not saying that we ought to not minister to anyone, but as far as the people I am getting council from... are they all blameless before Him? It is hard enough to live a life of faithful commitment to Him without the negative influences. We must turn fully to Him and let His people minister to us as we minister back to them.

God, give me wisdom in choosing who I go to for support and encouragement. Build strong, God-fearing people as a fortress around me so that when I fall, they pick me up. Give me strength to reject all forms of evil. Help me not to waste my life with the worthless things that this world is filled with. Strip away anyone or anything in my life that is not of You. Fill my heart with desires for You and You alone. Guard my eyes, my ears, my mind, my heart. Make me into a strong man who is able to be a source of stability and strength for those that are struggling. Grant me humility to love as You love. Give me compassion for the hurting. Give me wisdom for encouraging. Make me into who You want me to be no matter what it takes.

Why Do I Worry?

As some of you know, it's been hard for us financially in recent times. Basically, we had two very large bills due next month. Quite honestly, I didn't see where it would come from. I had an interview this morning 1.5 hrs away (yet another blessing)... so I was praying on the way there. I was praying through the following from Matthew 6:

For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? "Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they?

After praying through these things, I was asking Him about those that are starving to death... realizing that we have so much more than them. I was asking Him if He was truly glorified through the trials of His children... and asking Him why it wouldn't glorify Him even more for Him to provide for their needs just as He promised.

I got home from the interview and mom broke the news to me that she had received a letter in the mail and after calling about it... turned out that she and my sister had a large sum of money (basically matching the amount of the two bills) that they hadn't claimed for a minor car accident back in 2006. God has once again proven His faithfulness far beyond what I can imagine.

Study and Delight in His Works

I have been working on applying for jobs and taking an exam for one of the places I applied to. It's been a busy but good week. The Lord has continually encouraged and upheld me during this time of difficulty. He puts just the right people in my life at just the right time... opens up another place to apply for... speaks to me through His Word... etc. I am so thankful for His work in my heart. He is so good and faithful! I was reading in the Psalms this evening and read Psalm 111.

Praise the Lord! I will give thanks to the Lord with all my heart, In the company of the upright and in the assembly. Great are the works of the Lord; they are studied by all who delight in them. Splendid and majestic is His work, And His righteousness endures forever. He has made His wonders to be remembered; The Lord is gracious and compassionate. He has given food to those who fear Him; He will remember His covenant forever. He has made known to His people the power of His works, In giving them the heritage of the nations. The works of His hands are truth and justice; All His precepts are sure. They are upheld forever and ever; They are performed in truth and uprightness. He has sent redemption to His people; He has ordained His covenant forever; Holy and awesome is His name. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; A good understanding have all those who do His commandments; His praise endures forever.

Several things jumped out at me: giving thanks with all my heart, surrounding myself with the upright, studying His great works and delighting in them, the fact that He does these amazing things for us to remember them, he will not let those that fear Him go without anything they need, fear of Him is the beginning of wisdom, and true understanding is followed with complete obedience to His ways.

So many things to think through, but studying and delighting in His works is something that I really need to do more of. He has done so many incredible things and yet I am so prone to forget those things... to take them for granted because He is God and can do whatever He wants. While that is true, it should give me all the more reason to study His works... to try to understand His purpose behind what He is doing... to take the time to truly appreciate what He has done. The ultimate example of this is His work on the cross. In many ways the cross is not a delightful object. It is an object that reminds us of pain and grief... one that reminds us of Christ's ultimate sacrifice because of our sin. It is the true image of the consequence of our sin--not a delightful thing. Yet, the complete forgiveness that comes only through Christ's death and resurrection is the most delightful thing that mankind has ever known. To stand before the Holy Judge as completely righteous because His righteousness is credited to my account and my sin credited to His... what a gift! May His gift never grow so old that it ceases to bring tears to my eyes. Oh, to see my name written in the wounds, for through Your suffering I am free. Death is crushed to death; life is mine to live, Won through Your selfless love. This, the pow'r of the cross: Christ became sin for us; took the blame, bore the wrath--we stand forgiven at the cross. Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!

I Would Have Despaired...

God blessed in that while dad is working down in San Diego and has a hotel paid for by our tax dollars, my mom is able to join him for a couple days. :) These are hard financial times... and what an incredible blessing it is that they are able to spend this time together on a "vacation" without paying for it even! God's blessings are unending! After I dropped mom off to be with dad late this evening, I went for a walk on the beach for a good while... I honestly don't know how long I was there. I love being able to enjoy the beauty of His creation and being able to pray and sing to Him without the distractions of the world. It is so true that the things of earth grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace. I decided to read Psalm 27 to my siblings this evening. To be honest, this last week has been a bit of a struggle with waiting on Him. I really had my hopes up that I would have an interview on Monday and that didn't happen. In fact, I have yet to hear back. I was a bit worried even, but I am thankful for that time tonight where I was able to release that to Him. Psalm 27:13-14 rings so true in my heart.

I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord In the land of the living. Wait for the Lord; Be strong and let your heart take courage; Yes, wait for the Lord.

It is true--without Him, I have no hope. This morning, God blessed me with the opportunity to talk with a neighbor boy that had been kicked out of his house [for good reason]. It really served as a reminder to me of the fact that we really have no hope without Him. As I was praying this evening, I was thinking one by one through the fruits of the Spirit and how they are only because of Him. I tried to think of anything good in my life that didn't fit under one of those categories... just to prove to myself that He is indeed the source of every good and perfect thing. I'd challenge you to do the same.

All true love is from the Lord. All true joy is from the Lord. All true peace is from the Lord. All true patience is from the Lord. All true kindness is from the Lord. All true goodness is from the Lord. All true faithfulness is from the Lord. All true gentleness is from the Lord. All true self-control is from the Lord.

Can you think of anything good that doesn't fit in there? I don't even know why it is called "self-control". In reality, it is the Spirit controlling us when we have "self-control". Oh that God would humble us to see how short we come of His glory... that we would realize that the only good in us is because He is the One doing it! I would have despaired if I had not believed in the goodness of the Lord!

Give Me the Word!

You may or may not be surprised to know that I really don't like reading. For this reason, when I do read, I generally read the Word rather than some other resource. Don't get me wrong, there are a lot of good authors out there that have spent much time in the Word. Their insights are very helpful! At the same time, these people are not infallible. I have been challenging myself to read some of these resources. Some have been Word-filled and great... others seem to be more of mans wisdom with some scripture attempting to back it up. I have a couple pet peeves... teachers that choose different translations of the Bible to fit their purposes and teachers that try to cram God's Word into the box of their ideas. I was reading one of these resources tonight. While it frustrated me to read some of these things, it also served to push me more towards the Word. It is such a temptation when we have a good idea to try to make God's Word support it rather than reading God's Word and letting it shape our ideas. God, don't let us mar Your truth with our "good ideas". Let us communicate as You have written it. What can we add to Your Word that is not already there? He has given us the divine power for everything pertaining to life and godliness through the knowledge of Him which comes through His Word and the Holy Spirit! (2 Peter 1:2-3) May we not grow tired of His Word to the point that we spend more time listening to the "good ideas" of man than we do of the Creator wisdom and of man.

God has continually brought Ephesians 3:14-21 to mind as I work hard at waiting on His perfecting timing concerning many important aspects of life.

For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God. 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.

Oh that God would strengthen us with His Spirit so that Christ would be at the center of our attention. Oh that He would open our eyes to see how great His love is for us so that our love for one another would flow from the abundance of love He poured out on us at calvary. God, we need You to pull the blinders off our eyes to see that You are able to do far more than we can even think of! Help us by Your grace to cast our cares on You in full dependence on You, the One who is able to do far more than we can ask or think.

The Foremost of Sinners... Me?

Last week was an incredible blessing. Dad and I got to attend the Shepherds' Conference and listen to a lot of different godly men talk about a lot of different things. God definitely had some work to do in my heart and still has a whole lot more. I am thankful for my lack of a job right now because it is enabling me to spend more time seeking Him and taking the time to be quiet enough to hear His still small voice. I was reading in 1 Timothy 1:12-17 today and God needs to do much work in my heart with these things.

I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, because He considered me faithful, putting me into service, even though I was formerly a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent aggressor Yet I was shown mercy because I acted ignorantly in unbelief; and the grace of our Lord was more than abundant, with the faith and love which are found in Christ Jesus. It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all. Yet for this reason I found mercy, so that in me as the foremost, Jesus Christ might demonstrate His perfect patience as an example for those who would believe in Him for eternal life. Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.

I'll be honest, I have battled the concept of being the foremost of sinners for quite a while. I like to think of myself as a "good sinner". I sin, yes, but I am saved, and I truly want to please Him... so I like to make myself feel good about that. The reality is that when I actually look at the depths of my heart, it is impossible to see more sin in anyone else than there is in my own heart. This is why I can say with Paul, that I am the foremost of sinners. I really need God to do this work in my heart, because I am so self-righteous... and yet so sinful. I need to see my sin as deserving of death so that I value the cross how I ought to value it. I need God to reveal my sin and humble me before His throne so that I can approach boldly as a broken vessel, ready to be reformed into likeness of His Son.

Seeing as He Sees

This last week has been a wonderful blessing. While I want to be out working, earning money, saving for the future, etc., God knows what is best. I have been continually reminded of Psalm 84:11-12.

For the Lord God is a sun and shield. The Lord gives grace and glory; no good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly. O Lord of hosts, how blessed is the man who trusts in You!

David clearly knew what it meant to trust fully in Him. God has used several different circumstances over the last few weeks to really grab my heart and help me trust Him more fully. He has given a peace that is beyond comprehension... and I'm not just saying that! Truly, I find myself surprised by the fact that I have the peace and patience that I have... and it is obvious that is not from me--it is completely His doing. It is so true... we are the ones who are blessed when we trust in Him. Not only that, but the promise of God not withholding anything good from those who walk uprightly. God is the author of everything that is good. If it's good, He did it! It's really quite unimaginable to try to fathom what Him not withholding any good thing would look like... but I'll tell you this, I want to find out! ;) Talk about a reason to live in obedience to His ways... no other prompting needed!

This evening I read in James 2 and was challenged to look at and treat others through His eyes. I am prone to showing favor to those that I like... and yet, He calls us to not show favoritism. Take a look at verses 1-10.

My brethren, do not hold your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ with an attitude of personal favoritism. For if a man comes into your assembly with a gold ring and dressed in fine clothes, and there also comes in a poor man in dirty clothes, and you pay special attention to the one who is wearing the fine clothes, and say, "You sit here in a good place," and you say to the poor man, "You stand over there, or sit down by my footstool," have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil motives? Listen, my beloved brethren: did not God choose the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him? But you have dishonored the poor man. Is it not the rich who oppress you and personally drag you into court? Do they not blaspheme the fair name by which you have been called? If, however, you are fulfilling the royal law according to the Scripture, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself," you are doing well. 9 But if you show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors. For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles in one point, he has become guilty of all.

I really need Him to work in my heart in this area. I need to see people as He sees them. We are all just as much in need of a savior as anyone else. We all need encouragement and grace. We all need love and patience. Most of all, we all need our hearts to be patterned after His heart. God, would you not let me be one to pass by on the other side of the road? Would you give me a heart that loves what You love and hates what You hate? Would You sharpen my eyes and ears to be attentive to the needs of others... and would You, in Your grace, give me the desire to do what You would have me do? Thank You for your unending patience with me.

He Gives Freely

I can't begin to express all that God has been doing in my heart lately. Some of these things appear great from every angle... others, challenging... others, scary... etc. I do know that He has perfect plans and I intend to be obedient to Him so that I stay within those plans. I would really appreciate your prayers in this regard. God gave my job to me without me even asking for one. It has been far from perfect, but God used it to give me much experience. He also opened doors of opportunity to talk about Him. God has now taken this job from me without me asking. Actually, maybe I did ask. I had been praying that He would give me wisdom and guidance considering my work situation. He closed the door there, so He must have a better plan. I do not say this because I am just "that strong"... truly, I battle all the normal thoughts that anyone else would battle in such situations, but He has given abundant grace and peace within this whole situation. He provided the opportunity to talk with my boss about Him for about 20 minutes. It really was a great closure. He is all knowing and all wise. I come before Him with open arms saying the same words as Thomas, Lord, I don't know the way!

I find great encouragement in Psalm 86:11-12.

Teach me Your way, O Lord; I will walk in Your truth; unite my heart to fear Your name. I will give thanks to You, O Lord my God, with all my heart, and will glorify Your name forever.

I desperately need to be fully depending on Him during this time. At the same time, I need to be doing the "walking". Please pray that He would truly teach me to fear Him. I know that I don't (and probably will never) see Him as I ought to. I really want to have the reverence for Him that I ought to have. I want to love Him with all that is in me. I want Him to just take everything that is hindering His work... and throw it down and transform it. The builder of all things is God! Thank You for Your indescribable gift!

When We Give It Back

This morning I played basketball at 6 am for the first time in a very long time. It was much fun to get back on the court. This is very much random, but you'll see how it ties in eventually. At the church we play basketball at, there is a cement wall that goes from the lower level to the upper level. As I was pulling out of the church... all hot and sweaty with the windows down in the early morning, I could clearly hear my car rumbling under the hood. Random fact: I do like the sound of my car. I don't want to give you the impression that I absolutely love my car because in all reality, I have never been into the whole car thing. In fact, I decided when I was in like 7th grade that my first car would be a mini-van so that when I got married and had kids, I wouldn't have to get a new car. Okay, so I was thinking a bit in advance, but it makes me laugh now. All that to say, the sound of my car this morning was a reminder that it is an amazing blessing from the Lord to have a car... and to have a nice car is an added bonus. I am very thankful for it. I would not have picked it if I was going to purchase my own car, but God graciously blessed me with it through my parents. So, as I was pulling out of the driveway of the church, I was thinking back to some of my initial thoughts about the car. I was thinking about the fact that I'd likely have more opportunities to have an impact on some teenage boys because all of them (generally) are interested in cars. To be honest, I have seen very few opportunities in this regard. As I continued, I was thinking about the different things I have... computers, camera, car, phone, etc... and how I am or am not using these things for His glory. I was realizing that I really hadn't used my car all that much for His glory, so I again rededicated my car to Him... because it is His. If He wants to take it, so be it. It's His tool, for His glory, which He has put in my hands. So, I was praying that He would use it as such. About a minute later, I drove by a truck on the side of the road... and about 200 yards away from that, I saw a man walking (obviously in his work uniform) and it was like God said, "You asked for it... here it is!"... so, I stopped and found out that he was out of gas and gave him a ride to the gas station. I say this not to my credit... but completely to His. He did the work in my heart and dropped the opportunity right there in my lap. It was such an incredible blessing for me seeing how He answered that prayer so immediately. It was a real faith building experience. I'm going to try to take more time to analyze exactly how I am using the things He has given me... and see how I can use them to further His kingdom. He never ceases to amaze me in the way that He can work in my heart. He is so good and so faithful!

Ever since the mission trip, I have thought much about Philippians 2:3-4.

Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.

Down in Mexico, there is a huge focus on making people feel like they matter to you. It's really a culture based on relationships. We are so separated from each other... so self-serving. I don't want to live life in such a way that I can just ignore people. It's an easy thing to live my own life and not impact people... but that is not His plan. His plan is for us to redeem the time! I want people to matter to me because they matter to God. One of the things I challenged the team to do was to try to remember people's names. I'll be honest, I am very bad with names. I really have to make a point of trying hard to remember their names. If God knows the number of hairs on their head, I ought to be able to remember their name! If God cares that infinitely about them, I ought to at least give them my time of day. Oh, may I never be so caught up in myself that I can't even give a minute to someone that God cares infinitely about. I desperately need Him to take my heart and form it into His likeness.

In the Stillness

In these last couple weeks, I have had a whole lot to think through... the last year of challenges and blessings... how God continually provided the grace to do what was needed... how many doors He closed that I expected to open and how many doors He opened that I expected to be closed. Truly, His thoughts are higher than my thoughts and His ways, higher than mine.

Just to give you a little bit of an idea what God has been doing in my heart over these last couple weeks... when I came back from Mexico, I felt somewhat lost. Obviously, there is great joy in serving Him... especially with a bunch of people all seeking to honor Him in word and action. I was truly blessed throughout the whole trip by His amazing faithfulness, by the things He taught me, and by the people on the team that He used to build me up in Christ throughout the trip. Coming back, I really had to reevaluate my priorities. I can't stress how important it is to really sit down and take some time to think and pray. In the busy-ness of life, we can so easily lose track of His voice. We must be still and listen attentively as we seek Him with all of our heart. You would be shocked if I told you all the things that I had at least considered over the last couple weeks. After talking with a friend about these things and praying and thinking about all the different directions I could go from here, God graciously reminded me of many of the things that I have to work on during this "waiting" period. Alex and I concluded the trip with that study on waiting on Him... and I struggled until the other day to really understand how that looked on a practical level for me at this point. Thanks to His patience and guidance, I was reminded of a huge Bible study that I had been working on for several months now that really needs more attention. I was also reminded of the need to keep better records of my finances and be preparing for the future in that area. He also reminded me of the importance of spending time with my siblings and making a difference in their lives... not to mention that it will help me when I enter a relationship. He also reminded me that I need to be careful to take good care of the things He has given me. I have so much, yet the world is not my home... I must take care of these things and use them for His glory.

I have been studying Romans since I got back from Mexico and it has been a huge blessing to me. One passage that really stood out to me was Romans 12:10-16.

Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love; give preference to one another in honor; not lagging behind in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; rejoicing in hope, persevering in tribulation, devoted to prayer, contributing to the needs of the saints, practicing hospitality. Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. Be of the same mind toward one another; do not be haughty in mind, but associate with the lowly. Do not be wise in your own estimation.

We would be so well off if we just lived in accordance with this passage. I often pray that He would help me hate evil and cling to what is good. I really never noticed the first part of that verse explaining why we need to live that way. It really is hypocritical to love what is evil. Knowing that God is love and all good things come from Him... to use love as an expression toward something evil is to really mix God's character with evil... which is really hypocritical. Being devoted to one another is really an essential aspect of fellowship. God did not create us in our own little worlds for a reason. He created us to fellowship with one another... to truly love each other as He loved us... to put others before ourselves. In so doing, we are serving Him and blessing each other. We desperately need people to stand firm by us and keep us going in the right direction when we start to stray. We need to be praying for one another! I really struggle with the idea of weeping with those that weep. I am generally not an emotional person. I do cry when I feel I need to cry, but that is very rare. I generally think very realistically about things. For example, if someone dies and they know the Lord, that is something to celebrate... even if I will miss them. If they don't know the Lord, it is extremely sad, but I figure crying won't help that. I can focus on praying for the salvation of others... etc. While I don't think there is necessarily anything wrong with this, we are called to weep with those that weep... and that is something I need to work on. We are also called to have the same mind toward one another... and I believe that mind was specified in the verses above. We are to have a heart of humility modeled after Christ who came in human flesh--the ultimate humiliation for the Creator of the universe. I pray that my heart would be full of these things and that it would manifest itself in the way I live.

His Faithfulness - Mexico 2010

I can't express in words all that is going on in my heart. I think it will take months to process... and I think I want it to take a long time. I should be posting pictures in the near future. To at least give you an idea, here is the work crew with the almost completed roof.

Your prayers for us have been such an incredible blessing. We all arrived safe and sound back to our homes. Alex is probably still on the road headed to some relatives and will be on the road for the next week or so, so you can continue to uphold him in your prayers. I was telling the team the other night that I fully expected to have some sort of major issue on the trip and the only "major issue" we had was that we were given old versions of paperwork for our travlers permit and they wouldn't let us pay for it at the banks. This "major issue" saved each of us $30 and didn't hinder us from getting back to the US. He is so good!

Just to give you a glimse of His visible faithfulness to us on this trip:

-He supplied far above and beyond the necessary funds to complete the house while making it so that we could take no credit for it.
-He brought us safely down to AZ... Alex having spent like 40 hours driving with no issues whatsoever.
-He kept everyone well the entire trip other than one day where Alex was sick and God used that day in incredible ways in his heart.
-He kept us safe during the construction other than cuts, bumps and brusies.
-He gave us great times of fellowship from singing in the car to Bible studies on the beach.
-He truly did unite our hearts to sing His praise.
-He cleased the mission house of Satan's attacks on the Powell family... we literally saw Benny (one of the Powell's little boys) go from coughing non-stop to resting peacefully.
-He broke our hearts to tears and yet still abundantly supplied His grace and mercy.
-He opened doors of opportunity to speak the truth of the gospel to many.
-He displayed a glimse of His majesty through the ocean waves and the vastness of the stars.
-He graciously allowed the things of earth to grow strangly dim in the light of His glory and grace.
-He renewed the joy of our salvation.

Alex and I had a great Bible study in Lamentations 3, yesterday morning on the bus and it really brought great closure to the trip for me.

Lamentations 3:17-26

I have been deprived of peace; I have forgotten what prosperity is. So I say, "My splendor is gone and all that I had hoped from the LORD." I remember my affliction and my wandering, the bitterness and the gall. I well remember them, and my soul is downcast within me. Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, "The LORD is my portion; therefore I will wait for him." 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.

At the beginning of the week, we talked about Isaiah 40:28-31 which talks about waiting on the Lord. We often associate waiting with doing nothing. We came to the conclusion that this waiting is not an inactive waiting. The Word is full of instructions for our daily living. Let's take Romans 6:12 for example... "Let not sin reign in your mortal bodies...", or how about 2 Timothy 2:22, "...pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace..." This is not a time to wait inactively... we have so much to prepare for! Hebrews 11 clearly shows us that He is faithful when we trust Him and act based on the truth of His promises.

1 Thessalonians 5:23-24

May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it.

Waiting on Him is living for Him every moment of every day, trusting that His ways are best, and eagerly seeking to see Him do His part as He promises. We may not always be blessed with being able to see the results, but He will do it regardless, and we must trust Him.

Thank you all for your prayers. Pray that His work would continue in each of our hearts as this is prime time for Satan's fiery darts, and they must be quenched with with Spirit. Join me in thanking Him for His faithfulness.