Another Grammar Funny

The Reason I Sing

The Lord is my song! This post is going to be a testimony of the Lord's faithfulness in my life. I do not know how many people read this blog, but I want to proclaim to all of you that today I discovered that I am deeply in love with someone. That someone is my Jesus! I have been a Christian for as long as I can remember, but for most of my life I have treated the one who made and loves me as if he were a member of my family. Let me explain that statement. I love my family, but, sadly, because I know that they will always be there for me and love me unconditionally, I often think about myself before them. I live for myself, and my love for them does not impact the way I live towards or treat them. That is how I treated God.

I had a hard day today. (As a side note, I want you all to realize that this is somewhat monumental because I have always, until this point in my life, hated being vulnerable and telling people when I am having a hard day. This too has changed) I had a hard night last night. I had a hard semester honestly, but it came to a crucial point over the last two days. I had been depending on something other than God to make me happy. My hopes and dreams were based around this thing. Boy, did I have a lesson to learn!

Last night when I was struggling, God knew the thing I needed most was to be able to sleep in peace. It says somewhere in the Bible that he grants sleep to the ones that he loves. I went home, got in bed, and within ten minutes I was asleep. For those of you who do not know my strange sleep patterns, I am going to tell you that this was a small miracle because I never can fall asleep in such a short amount of time. But God knew that if I did not get to sleep soon, I would stay up all night dwelling on my misery. This morning, I woke up in the same mood, and still aching inside myself. I pretended that I was the usual happy me, but then more miseries happened, and there could be no more pretending.

As a general rule, I do not cry in front of people. I do not tell my heart or say, "I am struggling with such and such." I had so much pride. After the last hard thing happened, my friend, who has been a god-send to me, called me. We have both been struggling with similar things, and she had gotten an answer to prayer today. I was genuinely happy for her, but, like any good friend would, she saw right through my smiles and said, "Girl, we need to talk." Yes, we did. (Can just take another side note, and say that friends like that are the best things in life!)

So we talked. Oh, the advice I got! And, the funny thing is that even while we were talking about the peace that comes from loving God before anything else, I was still loving this thing more. We prayed, and then I felt this amazing peace and joy come over my heart, when, from no earthly perspective, should I have felt any. The facts in the situation had not changed, except perhaps for the worse, but the Lord did a major love transfer for me. And, it was none of my doing!

Let this post also be a testimony for the controversial truth of predestination. I have faced trials and temptations throughout my life. By any human standard, I ought to have been well along on the road to Hell by now because of the horrible habits I developed as a child and teenager. Had I been the one who was running my life, making my own life-changing decisions, and ultimately choosing to follow God and become a Christian (or not), I would have picked the worst course possible. There is NO way I would have made any good choice. But throughout my life, I have seen the hand of God drawing my heart and affections to himself. I have wanted to rebel, I have come along kicking and screaming, but he saved my soul! Even now, as a Christian, I continually choose the wrong path. This past semester, and up until today, was the worst it has ever been. I am telling all of you, I was well on my way to becoming a useless tool for God - a Christian who makes it to Heaven with no life of faith to show on the Day of Judgement. I would be crying on my bed tonight, not writing this and doing my homework. God has plans for his precious child. I can say that with no pride in my heart - I do not deserve a second chance of living my life for Jesus, but I got one. And when I say "through no merit of my own," I mean it with all of my heart!

So, yes, I am in love with my Savior, Redeemer, Bridegroom, and Best Friend - Jesus! By the grace of God, I will always love him more than I will ever love anything else in the world! By the way, he is the best and most selfless kind of lover. You think you have something to boast about your lover? Well, my lover died for me! Yeah, he DIED! You think I want to do anything for him? You bet I do! I never want to drift back into the kind of shallow Christian life I was living. Any hurt that has been caused me is more than forgiven, because I realized that it gave me the best gift I could ask for - a closer walk with my Jesus. Any misery through which I suffered, I am thankful for.

As I mentioned at the beginning of this post, the Lord is my song! That phrase has a whole new meaning for me. I am a voice major, and even before tonight I loved to sing worship music to my Lord, but now I do not just sing to him, he is the one who validates and causes the words I sing. My mouth and words belong to him. Speaking of that, I hope that this wordy post shows you the way the Lord has worked in my life, and can be of some benefit to anyone who may be struggling with letting God be first in his or her life. And I hope that you can see that this is not me pridefully saying, "I am so wonderful that I learned to love God first. You can be as wonderful as me if you just listen to me." I am saying nothing of the kind! I am proclaiming the love and grace of my Savior and telling you that he is the solution to every problem. Please pray for me to always love my Lord first!

JJ Heller - What Love Really Means (Official Music Video)

In a World of Uncertainty, God's Hand will Hold Me

In my hoverings in a place between two decisions, two courses, or two equally life-changing events - a place that is called uncertainty, I have discovered that I can still feel secure. "Why?" You may ask. Because I am resting in the safe and loving hand of God. Sometimes I am blind to the path on which I ought to be treading. Then I hear the Holy Spirit whisper,"My child, reach out your hand." And as I hold out my tremulous hand in trepidation, I feel the unwavering hand of my Lord surround me, pick me up, and hold me close to his heart. I feel the beat of his heart, and it soothes me, saying, "I love you my child; I love you!"

Sometimes the significance of the title, "Father," which I give God is lost on me. "Dear Father...blahblahblah." In my earthly father, I see a strong man who loves me unconditionally, who leads me with kindness, and who tries his best to set an example of the godly Christian life for me. However wonderful my father on earth is, my Father in Heaven is perfect. I am struck, right now, by the amazing love a perfect God has shown me. Yes, even me who has despised his law, and often lived my life as though he never existed! May his gracious, compassionate, just, and holy name be eternally praised. I just put that in the passive voice. Christianity does not call for that! Let me re-phrase; may I always, forever and ever and ever, praise the name of my gracious Redeemer. And no, you did not just intrude on a love-letter between me and my beloved (even though that is what this is). I want the world to know that my Savior is the love of my life!!!

James 1:22-27

"But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing."

"If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person's religion is worthless. Religion that is pure and undefiled before God is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world."

Monday Morning Humor

Monday Morning Humor

This made me laugh!!!

The Room by Joshua Harris

Delight

"Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart." Psalm 37:4 I have found a new way of looking at this verse: when your delight is in the Lord, the desires of your heart will be for his will, and that makes everything easy. John Paton, a missionary to cannibals, was being chased by the tribe he had been living among. He spent the night in a tree, and during the time when he ought to have felt most anxious, he felt this peace that came from delighting in the Lord. For, he knew that whatever happened that night, whether he lived or died, he would be in God's will. And that, my friends, is the safest and happiest place to be. "As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God." Psalm 42:1

Everyone Against Abortion Raise Your Hand

http://www.abort73.com/abortion_facts/us_abortion_statistics/ Be sad, be angry, but don't just sit there and feel that way. Do something! If just reading statistics does nothing for your sense of justice, then go look up abortion videos on youtube. They are graphic; they can make you sick, feel uncomfortable, and cry. They should. Satan knows that the most effective way of keeping Christians from changing the world is by keeping them oblivious to the evils of it. Go immerse yourself in a culture that thinks nothing of killing unwanted children. Go find ways to actively love unwed mothers. Go make a difference. Making a difference is about the first step. Go take a step, don't just think about it. Go stop abortion!

My 5-year-old sister drew a picture of Jesus feeding the 5000. It reads: "Once upon a time Jesus was talkeying wite 5 1000 peple. wen it was evneng Jesus was stile talkeyn. o They were geteng hugery." My little sis is so special! (actually my whole family is, but today she was pretty cute.)

Give Me Jesus-Fernando Ortega

"You can have all this world, but give me Jesus." He alone can satisfy. Why do I keep forgetting that? When I feel alone, hurt, worthless, or just discontent, I need to realize that the things for which I keep striving will never satisfy me anyway. He will.

I Love You, Tomorrow!

I am looking forward to starting my second semester of my freshman year tomorrow! I am taking 8 classes! (Five of which are music classes.) Lord, help me to glorify you in my usage of the time you have so graciously given me this semester. And because I have to wake up excessively early tomorrow, I am going to bed. Goodnight, world!

Trusting God with My Affections

Years ago, when I became a Christian, I gave my heart to Christ. Every day, I renew my commitment to that, but I wonder if I have given my whole heart to him. I act like my affections are mine to give, when in truth I gave that part of my character to God, too. It is he who made the heavens and earth, who fashioned each microscopic organism, each strand of DNA, each star, planet, or galaxy (many of which have probably not been discovered yet), who created every human being that was ever conceived, who planned their destinies, and prepared a wonderful place for Christians when they die. He, who made all these things by the mere word of his mouth, is infinite. Why would I have so much trouble trusting every area of my life to him? Cannot he, who created all these amazing things without any strain to himself, and who has proven his love for me by taking upon himself all of the wrath that I deserved, can he not have the best plan for every aspect of my life, including what I love? This is the most comforting thought imaginable! So I say, "Lord, make me love the things that you would have me love. Help me to not make idols out of my affinities. Amen"

10 Basic Principles on the Sanctity of Human Life

As previously mentioned, this morning my dad preached on the sanctity of human life. His sermon, entitled "Pro-life Hearers Only?" can be found here http://www.fbcdurham.org/sermon/sermonArchive.php

The ten principles on the sanctity of human life are as follows:

1. God is Creator, King, and Judge of all the earth.
2. All human beings are made in the image of God.
3. Human beings are commanded to be fruitful and multiply.
4. Human life begins at conception.
5. All children are a blessing from God.
6. Satan hates all human beings and wants to murder them.
7. Human beings are forbidden from taking life.
8. God's people are commanded to rescue the perishing and the broken.
9. Judgement Day, when we will have to given an account for everything we have said and done, is coming.
10. Grace is available through Jesus Christ for all who have sinned and repent.

I know that it is sometimes hard to find time to listen to sermons, and it is even harder to put God's word into practice, but it is worth it. Living a completely God-focused and sacrificial life is not above and beyond the call of duty, it is the least a person should ever do for their Creator, Redeemer, and Father. I was very convicted this morning, and am praying that I would be able to live God's word out in every area of my life, particularly in the issue of abortion. I want to use the gifts he has given me to show his love to those who are in such a great need of it.

The Sanctity of Human Life

It has been nearly 38 years since our country legalized abortion on January 22, 1973 in the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision. An estimated 50 million babies have been legally murdered since that decision. Tomorrow, my church is having what we call "Sanctity of Human Life" Sunday. My dad is going to preach God's word into a dark topic. Please pray for abortion to become illegal (with God all things are possible), and that the Lord will work through my dad tomorrow as he preaches a message of hope and forgiveness, but also speaks out against the heinous crime about which few Christians feel urgent to act.

A Cluttered Life Keeps You from the Joys of Simplicity

One of my friends always finds me cleaning my room, whenever we text each other. We laugh about this, but when I contemplate my habit of disorderliness, I find that this shows a lot about my character. I have often used my artistic personality as a excuse for having clutter and chaos in my habitat. My real reason, which I am not very keen to admit, is my laziness. I have, with the help of my parents and others, focused on this for the past few years as a matter of spiritual concern. My friends, I am still struggling and often failing at my endeavours in this regard. However, I have learned a few things.

10 Reasons Why Clutter is Unbeneficial: in No Particular Order

1. Cluttered people are (whether they know it or not) worshipping their possessions above God. This is idolatry.
2. Clutter is dangerous for your health.
3. Cluttered people want more things constantly, and are therefore discontent.
4. Clutter makes finding important items difficult, and is a waste of time.
5. Clutter prohibits or greatly limits hospitality. No one feels truly welcome at a home that is filled with dust-catchers and screams, "GERMS!!!"
6. Cluttered people are stressed because they cannot be blessed with God's peace. "God is a God of order."
7. Cluttered students lose school assignments, make worse grades than had they done otherwise, and limit their future options thereby.
8. (For the artists) I have learned that clutter increases the time and clean-up, while painting or doing some other form of art, by about double.
9. Cluttered people struggle with keeping other areas of their lives, such as their thoughts, events, or schedules, organized as well.
10. Cluttered people are a poor witness for Christ, because all of these things are very visible to onlookers, and do not accurately depict the true nature of Christ.

This (somewhat scathing) list has, sadly, been taught to me the hard way. And, sadly again, I still am so far from arriving to the place where I should be in this matter. I shared this because I am still learning and have found the reasons on that list to be quite motivating for me.

It is well with my soul

When Peace, Like a River....

"It is Well with my Soul" has long been my favorite hymn. I think it was the first hymn for which I understood the lyrics, and thought about what I was singing. Perhaps what is most touching about it, however, is the story behind it. (Rather than write my own version, I will link one that always brings tears to my eyes.)
http://www.biblestudycharts.com/A_Daily_Hymn.html