"And he kept on preaching in the synagogues of Judea" Luke 4:44. When i first read this verse, it didn't mean a whole lot to me...other than he kept on preaching. Then the words "He kept on" kept resonating with me. Jesus kept on preaching...he was pulled a million different ways and he never lost sight as to his job here on Earth.
I thought a lot about this the past few days. I have been feeling a little stale in my faith in terms of reading the word and devoting the time to God that he deserves. Then i realized that no matter what, there is ALWAYS time for God, and i need to make that a priority in my life, regardless of activities that may arise.
Jesus was pulled a million different ways; healing, teaching, rebuking...but he realized that everything was secondary to preaching the word of God. He made that his number one focus. Salvation is primary to everything else. So even though i sometimes feel like my life is too hectic, mine was not even close to his, and i need to make that a priority everyday. I need to make time for God EVERYDAY and share the good news EVERYDAY! Nothing takes priority over my relationship with him and enhancing his kindgom.
Thank you God for those words and getting me back on track.
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Friday, March 21, 2008
NC BABY!
I just got back from my long awaited and much anticipated trip to North Carolina. Let's just say that it was nothing short of amazing.
I flew into the Greensboro, NC airport on Saturday the 15th. I was so proud of myself for not freaking out about flying to the point of sickness...which is rare for me. So even though my flights didn't go as well as i had hoped, i had the goal in mind which made it that much easier...not to mention that i was didn't have to deal with work garbage while i was gone. Derik's parents came and picked me up from the airport and took me to get some dinner which was awesome...let me tell ya, if you want some good food, go to North Carolina...the food selection is phenomenal. When we got back to his house i not only got to look at a ton of baby pictures, but i also got welcomed with a gift basket full of goodies.
We went to the beach on Monday and got to pick up some seashells and have some amazing seafood. We left the beach and drove to his parents lake house and spent some time walking around the area and sitting out on the pier. It was such a beautiful day and i can't think of anyone i would have rather spent it with. Tuesday i got the privilege of going to Liberty University to see where he went to school and spent time in the mountains. I also learned a lot about him while we were there, i learned about his passion for God, how it started and how much he has done with ministry...i'm so blessed! When we were driving home i couldn't think of anything else to say but that i am so proud of him and i am so blessed to have met him. My life will forever be changed.
We spent much of the rest of the week hanging out with family and friends. I got to meet his grandfather and uncle, his aunt (who is a bit nutty at times) and his cousin...not to mention about 5000 friends. It was great and it was so awesome to get to see Derik in his life away from the Quad Cities.
I felt so at home with everyone that i met down there. They were so welcoming and loving. I have never met people like that before. Maybe it's the southern hospitality that i enjoyed so much. I loved my experience and i hope that there are so many more North Carolina trips to come!
I flew into the Greensboro, NC airport on Saturday the 15th. I was so proud of myself for not freaking out about flying to the point of sickness...which is rare for me. So even though my flights didn't go as well as i had hoped, i had the goal in mind which made it that much easier...not to mention that i was didn't have to deal with work garbage while i was gone. Derik's parents came and picked me up from the airport and took me to get some dinner which was awesome...let me tell ya, if you want some good food, go to North Carolina...the food selection is phenomenal. When we got back to his house i not only got to look at a ton of baby pictures, but i also got welcomed with a gift basket full of goodies.
We went to the beach on Monday and got to pick up some seashells and have some amazing seafood. We left the beach and drove to his parents lake house and spent some time walking around the area and sitting out on the pier. It was such a beautiful day and i can't think of anyone i would have rather spent it with. Tuesday i got the privilege of going to Liberty University to see where he went to school and spent time in the mountains. I also learned a lot about him while we were there, i learned about his passion for God, how it started and how much he has done with ministry...i'm so blessed! When we were driving home i couldn't think of anything else to say but that i am so proud of him and i am so blessed to have met him. My life will forever be changed.
We spent much of the rest of the week hanging out with family and friends. I got to meet his grandfather and uncle, his aunt (who is a bit nutty at times) and his cousin...not to mention about 5000 friends. It was great and it was so awesome to get to see Derik in his life away from the Quad Cities.
I felt so at home with everyone that i met down there. They were so welcoming and loving. I have never met people like that before. Maybe it's the southern hospitality that i enjoyed so much. I loved my experience and i hope that there are so many more North Carolina trips to come!
Wednesday, March 5, 2008
I never know...
I sometimes don't realize when God is talking to me...perhaps that is because of the busy-ness of my schedule, or the fact that i sometimes ignore it. It's strange. God has actually talked to me a lot over the past week or so, especially on some things that i didn't understand.
Last Monday night i had gotten home from work and was blessed by a UTI. I know, how exciting. And the funny part was everyone kept saying that it could be caused by being dehydrated or by having too much sex. Let's be serious, i'm dating a pastor and we don't have sex...so i'm thinking the fact that i was dehydrated or i was taking too many medications for the flu/cold thing i had contributed to it. Anyway...i got home from work and i decided to take a hot bath since i wasn't feeling too hot. I climb in the tub with my Bible...It's so peaceful in the bathtub sometimes. So i start reading and i was on 2 Peter 2...talking about false teachers and their destruction. It didn't make a bunch of sense at the time, but that was God preparing me for what was to come.
Tuesday night at Bible Study i found out some hurtful news and several shocking things actually. As many of you read this blog, you already know what it was...but someone that i love dearly and look up to is really lost right now in faith. And she has been going to a different Church that is a lot different in their beliefs than what I believe. When she was talking i kept thinking to myself "No no no, this isn't right!" And then i came back to that verse. God was letting me know that what she was believing isn't what i'm believing, and to just pray for her. So i've been doing that...a lot.
But the challenge has been amazing. I have been digging into the word and doing a lot of research, and really just been focusing on why i believe what i believe. I came to the conclusion that i have had many amazing teachers in my life. Some spiritually and others in terms of self destruction. I call these people great teachers because they help me to focus on growing myself. I learned, however, that no amount of teaching can make me believe what i believe unless i investigate it myself. And i believe what i believe because the Bible is God breathed and it speaks 110% truth into my life. What a blessing to be challenged and what i blessing to hear what God says!!!
On Sunday another dear friend came to me with struggles on being judgemental. She said that she is judgemental of people who aren't believers and asked me to pray with her. I did and she said she felt really good on trying to not be that way. What i realized in the process is God was telling me that i was being judgemental too!!! I was being judgemental about this whole situation with the other girl and her beliefs. God is telling me to stop being judgemental and continue to pray and to TRUST that he will do the right thing.
So for those of you who read this, please pray for that. I have been totally convicted by it and i praise God for that. It hurts but i understand that right now he is growing me in another area. And just praises that he speaks to us...sometimes when we don't really understand it at the time, but also that he uses other people to speak truth to our lives.
God is awesome.
"Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord, the Lord, is the Rock eternal" Isaiah 26:4
Last Monday night i had gotten home from work and was blessed by a UTI. I know, how exciting. And the funny part was everyone kept saying that it could be caused by being dehydrated or by having too much sex. Let's be serious, i'm dating a pastor and we don't have sex...so i'm thinking the fact that i was dehydrated or i was taking too many medications for the flu/cold thing i had contributed to it. Anyway...i got home from work and i decided to take a hot bath since i wasn't feeling too hot. I climb in the tub with my Bible...It's so peaceful in the bathtub sometimes. So i start reading and i was on 2 Peter 2...talking about false teachers and their destruction. It didn't make a bunch of sense at the time, but that was God preparing me for what was to come.
Tuesday night at Bible Study i found out some hurtful news and several shocking things actually. As many of you read this blog, you already know what it was...but someone that i love dearly and look up to is really lost right now in faith. And she has been going to a different Church that is a lot different in their beliefs than what I believe. When she was talking i kept thinking to myself "No no no, this isn't right!" And then i came back to that verse. God was letting me know that what she was believing isn't what i'm believing, and to just pray for her. So i've been doing that...a lot.
But the challenge has been amazing. I have been digging into the word and doing a lot of research, and really just been focusing on why i believe what i believe. I came to the conclusion that i have had many amazing teachers in my life. Some spiritually and others in terms of self destruction. I call these people great teachers because they help me to focus on growing myself. I learned, however, that no amount of teaching can make me believe what i believe unless i investigate it myself. And i believe what i believe because the Bible is God breathed and it speaks 110% truth into my life. What a blessing to be challenged and what i blessing to hear what God says!!!
On Sunday another dear friend came to me with struggles on being judgemental. She said that she is judgemental of people who aren't believers and asked me to pray with her. I did and she said she felt really good on trying to not be that way. What i realized in the process is God was telling me that i was being judgemental too!!! I was being judgemental about this whole situation with the other girl and her beliefs. God is telling me to stop being judgemental and continue to pray and to TRUST that he will do the right thing.
So for those of you who read this, please pray for that. I have been totally convicted by it and i praise God for that. It hurts but i understand that right now he is growing me in another area. And just praises that he speaks to us...sometimes when we don't really understand it at the time, but also that he uses other people to speak truth to our lives.
God is awesome.
"Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord, the Lord, is the Rock eternal" Isaiah 26:4
Monday, February 18, 2008
Amazing
I love God plans, I don't always understand what they mean and they are not always easy, but I love God plans.
Last night I shared my story with some teenagers and it was amazing. Sure, I was nervous and felt sick and wanted to get out of it numerous times...BUT...i kept reminding myself that sharing this story wasn't about it, it was God's plan for me. My amazing and wonderful boyfriend kept reiterating to me that i was going to reach so many people by sharing my story, and i didn't understand it.
I had an out of body experience, for lack of a better term, when i was up talking. It was almost as if i was watching myself, not really sure of what i was saying, but the Holy Spirit definitely took over. Everything flowed really well and sure i got choked up a few times, but i couldn't have asked for it to go any better.
I looked around and i noticed several people in tears and a lot of people just in disbelief that i could go through so much pain and still be the person i am. What happened afterwards was the most amazing of all. My story opened up a bunch of people. Derik got the opportunity to talk with many of the guys that are struggling with relationships and i sat down with three different girls while they shared their stories...many of them afraid to come out because they were concerned that they were the only ones struggling. They thanked me for my commitment to Christ and my obedience to him, and they thanked me for giving them hope. I felt as though i had actually completed one of those God plans...and that he was smiling.
I am just so blessed to have the life that i do and the opportunities that i do. I have been through a lot and i've had a lot of pain, but then again, who hasn't? I'm just glad that I recognized this God plan and i look forward to a lifetime full of them.
Last night I shared my story with some teenagers and it was amazing. Sure, I was nervous and felt sick and wanted to get out of it numerous times...BUT...i kept reminding myself that sharing this story wasn't about it, it was God's plan for me. My amazing and wonderful boyfriend kept reiterating to me that i was going to reach so many people by sharing my story, and i didn't understand it.
I had an out of body experience, for lack of a better term, when i was up talking. It was almost as if i was watching myself, not really sure of what i was saying, but the Holy Spirit definitely took over. Everything flowed really well and sure i got choked up a few times, but i couldn't have asked for it to go any better.
I looked around and i noticed several people in tears and a lot of people just in disbelief that i could go through so much pain and still be the person i am. What happened afterwards was the most amazing of all. My story opened up a bunch of people. Derik got the opportunity to talk with many of the guys that are struggling with relationships and i sat down with three different girls while they shared their stories...many of them afraid to come out because they were concerned that they were the only ones struggling. They thanked me for my commitment to Christ and my obedience to him, and they thanked me for giving them hope. I felt as though i had actually completed one of those God plans...and that he was smiling.
I am just so blessed to have the life that i do and the opportunities that i do. I have been through a lot and i've had a lot of pain, but then again, who hasn't? I'm just glad that I recognized this God plan and i look forward to a lifetime full of them.
Thursday, February 7, 2008
Winter AAAAARG
So it's winter...i mean the dead of and i am getting quite sick of it. Well i was getting quite sick of it until today. I realized something as i'm looking out into the white abyss that has become Davenport, IA. I realized that today is the perfect day to recognize that I am surrounded by God's love. All of this fluffy white stuff is God's way of showering his love over all of us, and what a blessing that it came in over 12 inches! "Look down on me with love; teach me all of your principles" Psalm 119:135. Although i know it's frustrating and difficult to drive in, I am no longer disgusted by it, I'm blessed by it. It's beautiful!
I am working on support letters for my Missions Trip to Manaus, Brazil. Perhaps that's why I'm just pondering God's work in the world and in my own life. I am so blessed by so many things and I sometimes get too busy to notice God and his work in my life. Today has called me out on that. I can't wait to travel halfway across the world to share what the love of Christ has done in my life and how much my life is different than it was before. "It's the miracle of Christ in me, it's the mystery that sets me free, I'm nothing like I used to be" My favorite lyrics from Counting on God by Jared Anderson. If any of you would like to receive a letter let me know!!!
I am working on support letters for my Missions Trip to Manaus, Brazil. Perhaps that's why I'm just pondering God's work in the world and in my own life. I am so blessed by so many things and I sometimes get too busy to notice God and his work in my life. Today has called me out on that. I can't wait to travel halfway across the world to share what the love of Christ has done in my life and how much my life is different than it was before. "It's the miracle of Christ in me, it's the mystery that sets me free, I'm nothing like I used to be" My favorite lyrics from Counting on God by Jared Anderson. If any of you would like to receive a letter let me know!!!
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
NC here I come!!!
I'm super pumped!!! This weekend will be my first trip to the fantastic state of North Carolina. I've never been there before and i cannot wait to go. For those of you who read this, which in all reality is probably three people (LOVE YOU GUYS!) my boyfriend is from Greensboro, North Carolina. He moved to the QCA to be a Youth Pastor and this weekend we are packing up his house to bring all his belongings here. I can't wait!
I found out some great information at Christmas time. My grandma and i were chatting about him (i think my grandma can sometimes be nosier than my mom but that's ok) and she asked where he was from. I told her and she got a huge smile on her face. She said that we had a bunch of family from that area...ancestors. She said that my great great great great grandma started a Moravian cookie factory there and they attended a Church called Jersey Baptist Church. She said I should ask Derik about it, so i did. Come to find out Moravian cookies are huge there. Not only that but they're his favorite cookie and his mom bought me some for Christmas! God works in such wonderful ways!!! So this weekend we are making the trip to see the cookie factory that i didn't know existed.
Please pray for a safe trip to North Carolina and just for us to have a great time with his family and friends. This is the first time i have traveled like this in several years and I am so looking forward to it!!!
I found out some great information at Christmas time. My grandma and i were chatting about him (i think my grandma can sometimes be nosier than my mom but that's ok) and she asked where he was from. I told her and she got a huge smile on her face. She said that we had a bunch of family from that area...ancestors. She said that my great great great great grandma started a Moravian cookie factory there and they attended a Church called Jersey Baptist Church. She said I should ask Derik about it, so i did. Come to find out Moravian cookies are huge there. Not only that but they're his favorite cookie and his mom bought me some for Christmas! God works in such wonderful ways!!! So this weekend we are making the trip to see the cookie factory that i didn't know existed.
Please pray for a safe trip to North Carolina and just for us to have a great time with his family and friends. This is the first time i have traveled like this in several years and I am so looking forward to it!!!
Friday, January 25, 2008
Reason, Season or a Lifetime...
I am pretty terrible about posting on this, but today, since it is FRRRRRRRIDAY and i'm not really doing a ton at work (other than watching intently for the clock to strike 5 bells) i decided, TADA! It's posting day! So here we go.
Over the past couple weeks i have really started to notice my life and how wonderful it truly is. I mean i have been through pain, but who hasn't, i have loved some and lost many, but I have realized what a true blessing friendship is. A lot of times i have noticed that i've taken some very special people in my life for granted, and it's time for me to stop the nonsense.
I was read this little poem at a roast for a couple that recently left our Church and moved to New York. As he was up reading this i realized that it is so true. Even the people that aren't in our lives for an extended period of time can have an impact that we might not comprehend at the moment, but it starts to make sense later on in life.
People come into your life for a reason, a season, or a lifetime. When you figure out which it is, you know exactly what to do.
When someone is in your life for a REASON, it is usually to meet a need you have expressed outwardly or inwardly. They have come to assist you through a difficulty, to provide you with guidance and support, to aid you physically, emotionally, or spiritually. They may seem like a godsend, and they are. They are there for the reason you need them to be. Then, without any wrong doing on your part or at an inconvenient time, this person will say or do something to bring the relationship to an end. Sometimes they die. Sometimes they walk away. Sometimes they act up or out and force you to take a stand. What we must realize is that our need has been met, our desire fulfilled; their work is done. The prayer you sent up has been answered and it is now time to move on.
When people come into your life for a SEASON, it is because your turn has come to share, grow, or learn. They may bring you an experience of peace or make you laugh. They may teach you something you have never done. They usually give you an unbelievable amount of joy. Believe it! It is real! But, only for a season.
LIFETIME relationships teach you lifetime lessons; those things you must build upon in order to have a solid emotional foundation. Your job is to accept the lesson, love the person/people (anyway); and put what you have learned to use in all other relationships and areas of your life. It is said that love is blind but friendship is clairvoyant.
Author Unknown
I just wanted to share this with some of my most special friends. You guys are all amazing and thank you for coming into my life. I love you!
Over the past couple weeks i have really started to notice my life and how wonderful it truly is. I mean i have been through pain, but who hasn't, i have loved some and lost many, but I have realized what a true blessing friendship is. A lot of times i have noticed that i've taken some very special people in my life for granted, and it's time for me to stop the nonsense.
I was read this little poem at a roast for a couple that recently left our Church and moved to New York. As he was up reading this i realized that it is so true. Even the people that aren't in our lives for an extended period of time can have an impact that we might not comprehend at the moment, but it starts to make sense later on in life.
People come into your life for a reason, a season, or a lifetime. When you figure out which it is, you know exactly what to do.
When someone is in your life for a REASON, it is usually to meet a need you have expressed outwardly or inwardly. They have come to assist you through a difficulty, to provide you with guidance and support, to aid you physically, emotionally, or spiritually. They may seem like a godsend, and they are. They are there for the reason you need them to be. Then, without any wrong doing on your part or at an inconvenient time, this person will say or do something to bring the relationship to an end. Sometimes they die. Sometimes they walk away. Sometimes they act up or out and force you to take a stand. What we must realize is that our need has been met, our desire fulfilled; their work is done. The prayer you sent up has been answered and it is now time to move on.
When people come into your life for a SEASON, it is because your turn has come to share, grow, or learn. They may bring you an experience of peace or make you laugh. They may teach you something you have never done. They usually give you an unbelievable amount of joy. Believe it! It is real! But, only for a season.
LIFETIME relationships teach you lifetime lessons; those things you must build upon in order to have a solid emotional foundation. Your job is to accept the lesson, love the person/people (anyway); and put what you have learned to use in all other relationships and areas of your life. It is said that love is blind but friendship is clairvoyant.
Author Unknown
I just wanted to share this with some of my most special friends. You guys are all amazing and thank you for coming into my life. I love you!
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