Right now I have no laptop and, funnily enough, this is when I most want to write blogs. So, on a Sunday night at exactly 10:23 pm I am sitting in a computer lab writing this; aaah, the woes of your intrepid blogger.
So, to return to that little detail I told you at the start: I currently don't have a laptop. My little friend and sidekick is currently being wiped. He was apparently massively overheating, a problem I probably could've fixed with a can of compressed air for around £5, but that will now cost me £135. Yes; £135. It decided to go kapoot only a week before one of my last dissertation deadlines so, naturally, this week has been a little stressful.
To put it lightly, I've been freaking out. I wasn't eating properly, I was dehydrating, I was beginning to get pretty whiney and I don't think I was too pleasant to be around. However, last night a good friend let me borrow his laptop and, somehow, in the space of what was, collectively, around six hours, I managed to write enough words to do what I'm pretty sure was finish my dissertation. I have lots of editing to do, but I can cover that in the labs over the next two days. So firstly, praise Jesus for friends who trust me to look after their laptops, even when mine has just gone in for repairs.
But, secondly, I have a bit of an issue to sort out; an issue with me and my best friend, Jesus. I got incredibly distracted, so much so that I totally forgot about Him and was horribly anxious all the time. Tonight at church we sang 'Indescribable' and this line stuck out to me:
"You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name,
You are amazing God."
For most of my life, at least the reasonably lengthy portion I can remember, I have adored the stars and the moon. I have glow-in-the-dark stars stuck to my ceiling and every time the moon's out I have a little freak out. But this evening I realised I'd genuinely stopped caring about the stars and the moon. I was so horribly focused on this broken laptop and how it was hindering me and how awful the timing was that all I could think about was me, and my problems, and how tough my life was. This semester has been so good up until now but I was letting a laptop setback get to me.
Like I said above, I don't think I've exactly been a joy to be around this past week, and I apologise to anyone who had to listen to me whine or freak out. I know I always ended with "but it'll be fine, God is good", but if I truly believed that I wouldn't have to whine about it. I've become pretty internally ugly, pretty self-centred, and generally pretty uncool.
Philippians 4:6
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God."
(NIV)
I might be anxious and stressed out but there is no point because God has got this. He has all of it, and when I focus on that, when I focus on the beauty that is the truth of Jesus Christ, I shine so brightly, I reflect His beauty. And I'm not being conceited, this is just something that happens when anyone focuses on God. I like when I'm that person, when I reflect my Saviour. The awesomeness of life is generally amplified about ten times and I'm my chilled out self.
I suggest you try it out for yourself.
x
Showing posts with label Bible. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Bible. Show all posts
Sunday, 22 April 2012
Tuesday, 10 April 2012
Personal Effort, and Why It's Useless.
I've said this before and I'll say it again: being a Christian is not about our own efforts.
I frequently mess up and do things that I know break God's heart. I say I'll never do something again and then, oh, so easily, I slip up and everything once again comes crashing down on top of me.
But today it was different.
After some crying, praying, and general being annoyed at myself it hit me that it isn't about me. It never has been, not even a little bit. I'm struggling with something at the minute, something I'm not ready to share with the world but, after having discussed it with a friend last week I was on such a "God high". I was so ready to be this perfect, sorted person again, someone who had no problems and was just in a great place with God, completely forgetting, of course, that as long as I live in this human skin I'll never be "perfect" or "sorted".
But, as the week went on, I gradually spent less time with God each day which has led me to messing up again today.
But I can only be annoyed with myself for so long. Forgiveness isn't a "get out of jail free" card; God sent his Son to die for me on a cross so I could be forgiven. If I think that's getting out free then I'm crazy.
Making mistakes doesn't make me any less of a person. I'm still covered in God's fingerprints, still made in His image, and nothing will ever change that. He still loves me and will continue to grow me until I finish the race.
The first thing I opened my Bible to after I'd messed up was this:
1 John 4:16-18
"God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment." (NIV)
I think we forget that all that matters, the one thing that can truely change us, is the love of God. Without His love we are nothing, we were made out of love. If it wasn't for Him we wouldn't know how to love (1 John 4:19). He loves me through all my mistakes, all my screw ups, all my mishaps, and all the times I mess up. I am His creation and the outward actions aren't important; my heart is what matters to Him.
I want to spend more time with God, on a daily basis. And not because I want to act out what I think my heart should be doing, but because I know I need Him more than ever. Without Him I become weak and weary and stop caring about the things that need to be important to me. I'd appreciate any prayers that I can remain strong in the Lord, and that I can put on His armour every day (Ephesians 6:10-18).
x
I frequently mess up and do things that I know break God's heart. I say I'll never do something again and then, oh, so easily, I slip up and everything once again comes crashing down on top of me.
But today it was different.
After some crying, praying, and general being annoyed at myself it hit me that it isn't about me. It never has been, not even a little bit. I'm struggling with something at the minute, something I'm not ready to share with the world but, after having discussed it with a friend last week I was on such a "God high". I was so ready to be this perfect, sorted person again, someone who had no problems and was just in a great place with God, completely forgetting, of course, that as long as I live in this human skin I'll never be "perfect" or "sorted".
But, as the week went on, I gradually spent less time with God each day which has led me to messing up again today.
But I can only be annoyed with myself for so long. Forgiveness isn't a "get out of jail free" card; God sent his Son to die for me on a cross so I could be forgiven. If I think that's getting out free then I'm crazy.
Making mistakes doesn't make me any less of a person. I'm still covered in God's fingerprints, still made in His image, and nothing will ever change that. He still loves me and will continue to grow me until I finish the race.
The first thing I opened my Bible to after I'd messed up was this:
1 John 4:16-18
"God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment." (NIV)
I think we forget that all that matters, the one thing that can truely change us, is the love of God. Without His love we are nothing, we were made out of love. If it wasn't for Him we wouldn't know how to love (1 John 4:19). He loves me through all my mistakes, all my screw ups, all my mishaps, and all the times I mess up. I am His creation and the outward actions aren't important; my heart is what matters to Him.
I want to spend more time with God, on a daily basis. And not because I want to act out what I think my heart should be doing, but because I know I need Him more than ever. Without Him I become weak and weary and stop caring about the things that need to be important to me. I'd appreciate any prayers that I can remain strong in the Lord, and that I can put on His armour every day (Ephesians 6:10-18).
x
Sunday, 8 April 2012
Sunday, and Why We Have Hope
I've just come home from my church's sunrise service on Yellowhill in Stirling; it was a beautiful way to start off Easter Sunday, and it's the first sunrise service I've ever been to. After the service we went back to the church and sat down together to eat bacon rolls and drink juice, tea, and coffee.
I really felt like part of a great community this morning. I felt welcome and loved; I felt like an important part of the Body of Christ and, praise Jesus, that's exactly what I am. I hope that on this Easter Sunday everyone can feel like part of a family, even if that isn't a church family, and for those who don't I hope and pray that God will bring that to you.
However, on the way home, at around 8:00 am, we drove past a girl who was doing what is known as "the walk of shame". She was wearing what I can only assume were last nights clothes and was carrying her shoes; but this wasn't the saddest part. The saddest part was that this girl looked completely heart broken. And I'm not making that up or over emphasising it for some sort of dramatic affect; she genuinely looked incredibly upset as we drove past and she continued to slowly amble on home.
For a long time in my life I felt insignificant. I felt small and alone and like not a single soul in the world cared about me or thought I was worth anything. Last night I was browsing through some photos that a friend had taken on a recent trip to San Francisco and there were some amazing snaps of the Golden Gate Bridge. Suddenly it hit me that even though this bridge is absolutely enormous, in the eyes of Jesus, God, the Creator of the Universe, I am immeasurably more significant than the Golden Gate Bridge will ever be. I am more significant to the Lord than any of these grand statements made by man, I'm more significant than the beasts of the field and the birds of the air that He Himself created.
Jesus died on the cross for all of us, so that we could all understand how significant we are to God. He didn't come for the righteous, those above their station, the strong, the mighty; as it says in the Beatitudes, "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven" (Matt. 5:3), "Blessed are the meek for they will inherit the earth, blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. " (Matt. 5:5-6).
And, as Luke puts it perfectly:
"For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost." (Luke 19:10)
However, to return to the girl I talked about above, I think it's easy to just drive past people like this and make sweeping judgements. But I used to drink and party on a regular basis. Fortunately I never did "the walk of shame", I never went home with a guy, but what if I had? Would that mean Jesus would love me any less, would He be angry with me, would He feel less forgiving? No. Not at all. In fact it would break His heart to have seen me in that situation, to be looking for affection and love in one of many places where I would never find it. It would break His heart because He loved me so much that He died for me, and proved to death that even it wasn't strong enough to stand in His way.
My Lord is stronger than death, His love is stronger than any I could find any where else, so why would I try and find that in anything but Him?
These days I sometimes sit and think about how lucky I am to know Jesus, to have chosen to follow Him and allow Him to take control of my life. I have never felt so safe, so worry free, so content. I have my struggles, yes, life as a Christian isn't life lived through rose-tinted glasses, but I always have Jesus to help me, to carry me through the tough times. I was once blind, but now I see, I see what the world is longing for, in fact I have what the world is longing for, because God has given me the ability to have faith in Him; He has given me so many reasons to believe and I'll never stop.
So on this Easter Sunday I hope you can realise your significance. You are loved, you are important, you are more than enough, the Creator of this Universe, our God, the Lord Jesus Christ, wants you to know that.
x
I really felt like part of a great community this morning. I felt welcome and loved; I felt like an important part of the Body of Christ and, praise Jesus, that's exactly what I am. I hope that on this Easter Sunday everyone can feel like part of a family, even if that isn't a church family, and for those who don't I hope and pray that God will bring that to you.
However, on the way home, at around 8:00 am, we drove past a girl who was doing what is known as "the walk of shame". She was wearing what I can only assume were last nights clothes and was carrying her shoes; but this wasn't the saddest part. The saddest part was that this girl looked completely heart broken. And I'm not making that up or over emphasising it for some sort of dramatic affect; she genuinely looked incredibly upset as we drove past and she continued to slowly amble on home.
For a long time in my life I felt insignificant. I felt small and alone and like not a single soul in the world cared about me or thought I was worth anything. Last night I was browsing through some photos that a friend had taken on a recent trip to San Francisco and there were some amazing snaps of the Golden Gate Bridge. Suddenly it hit me that even though this bridge is absolutely enormous, in the eyes of Jesus, God, the Creator of the Universe, I am immeasurably more significant than the Golden Gate Bridge will ever be. I am more significant to the Lord than any of these grand statements made by man, I'm more significant than the beasts of the field and the birds of the air that He Himself created.
Jesus died on the cross for all of us, so that we could all understand how significant we are to God. He didn't come for the righteous, those above their station, the strong, the mighty; as it says in the Beatitudes, "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven" (Matt. 5:3), "Blessed are the meek for they will inherit the earth, blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. " (Matt. 5:5-6).
And, as Luke puts it perfectly:
"For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost." (Luke 19:10)
However, to return to the girl I talked about above, I think it's easy to just drive past people like this and make sweeping judgements. But I used to drink and party on a regular basis. Fortunately I never did "the walk of shame", I never went home with a guy, but what if I had? Would that mean Jesus would love me any less, would He be angry with me, would He feel less forgiving? No. Not at all. In fact it would break His heart to have seen me in that situation, to be looking for affection and love in one of many places where I would never find it. It would break His heart because He loved me so much that He died for me, and proved to death that even it wasn't strong enough to stand in His way.
My Lord is stronger than death, His love is stronger than any I could find any where else, so why would I try and find that in anything but Him?
These days I sometimes sit and think about how lucky I am to know Jesus, to have chosen to follow Him and allow Him to take control of my life. I have never felt so safe, so worry free, so content. I have my struggles, yes, life as a Christian isn't life lived through rose-tinted glasses, but I always have Jesus to help me, to carry me through the tough times. I was once blind, but now I see, I see what the world is longing for, in fact I have what the world is longing for, because God has given me the ability to have faith in Him; He has given me so many reasons to believe and I'll never stop.
So on this Easter Sunday I hope you can realise your significance. You are loved, you are important, you are more than enough, the Creator of this Universe, our God, the Lord Jesus Christ, wants you to know that.
x
Sunrise over the Ochils on Easter Sunday morning at Yellow Hill, Stirling, Scotland.
Tuesday, 20 March 2012
Jason Russell, and Why We Need to Stop Judging
I didn't write about it on here because I don't like mixing Jesus with global movements represented by rich white men but, after jumping on the Good Ship Kony 2012 for all of twenty-four hours, I gladly stepped off it, back on to dry land and, to be quite frank, a bit of sanity. I wrote on my second blog about how "a rich white man" won't do much for the economic and political situation in Uganda, how quickly the hype would "fizzle out", and how Jason Russell is a damn good filmmaker.
And, as it turns out, Mr Russell ended up acting a little bit crazy and managed to find himself in the news; but for all the wrong reasons.
At first I found it pretty funny. I felt pretty clever for not having fallen for Russell's tricks (for too long, anyway), and that he had had this crazy mental breakdown which proved me right. But, after a few hours, this didn't really sit with me anymore. It's all well and good for me to be happy that Kony 2012 will probably disappear from the Internet completely soon enough, but for me to be happy about the meltdown of a fellow human being? That's not right.
Jason Russell represents to me how broken this world is. First of all, he uses good film making abilities, scandal and his cute five year old son to get people to care about the thousands of Ugandan children who suffered at the hands of Joseph Kony and the LRA, to which most of us give into instantly. Twenty-four hours later, we've changed our minds. Then, within the space of two weeks, Russell becomes so overwhelmed by this project that he ends up running around naked and masturbating in public. And then those of us who thought he was a bit of a shady character in the first place decide it's our place to make a mockery of him.
Jason Russell has a family. He is a husband, a father. Putting aside Invisible Children, he has a life. He has a big influence on his son. His son who is going to hear all about this and probably become ashamed of it when he grows up and realises what it all means. His wife will have to deal with questions, the sheer humiliating consequences of the way her husband acted.
It is not our job to mock Jason Russell when he is probably already hanging his head in shame.
Matthew 7:1-2
“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you."
(NIV)
This is a scary concept. To think that the way I judged Jason Russell (instantly and harshly) is the way God could judge me. I judge people all the time, the world tells me it's okay, that it's normal; but it's not. We happily gossip about others and make judgements but when we think about others judging us does it make us happy? Are we okay with it? I doubt it. I'm not saying that I don't make judgements, but I want to try not to, I want to just love people and try my hardest to see the good in them.
It might not be the easiest thing to do, but Jesus never promised it would be easy.
x
And, as it turns out, Mr Russell ended up acting a little bit crazy and managed to find himself in the news; but for all the wrong reasons.
At first I found it pretty funny. I felt pretty clever for not having fallen for Russell's tricks (for too long, anyway), and that he had had this crazy mental breakdown which proved me right. But, after a few hours, this didn't really sit with me anymore. It's all well and good for me to be happy that Kony 2012 will probably disappear from the Internet completely soon enough, but for me to be happy about the meltdown of a fellow human being? That's not right.
Jason Russell represents to me how broken this world is. First of all, he uses good film making abilities, scandal and his cute five year old son to get people to care about the thousands of Ugandan children who suffered at the hands of Joseph Kony and the LRA, to which most of us give into instantly. Twenty-four hours later, we've changed our minds. Then, within the space of two weeks, Russell becomes so overwhelmed by this project that he ends up running around naked and masturbating in public. And then those of us who thought he was a bit of a shady character in the first place decide it's our place to make a mockery of him.
Jason Russell has a family. He is a husband, a father. Putting aside Invisible Children, he has a life. He has a big influence on his son. His son who is going to hear all about this and probably become ashamed of it when he grows up and realises what it all means. His wife will have to deal with questions, the sheer humiliating consequences of the way her husband acted.
It is not our job to mock Jason Russell when he is probably already hanging his head in shame.
Matthew 7:1-2
“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you."
(NIV)
This is a scary concept. To think that the way I judged Jason Russell (instantly and harshly) is the way God could judge me. I judge people all the time, the world tells me it's okay, that it's normal; but it's not. We happily gossip about others and make judgements but when we think about others judging us does it make us happy? Are we okay with it? I doubt it. I'm not saying that I don't make judgements, but I want to try not to, I want to just love people and try my hardest to see the good in them.
It might not be the easiest thing to do, but Jesus never promised it would be easy.
x
Monday, 5 March 2012
The Only Important Decision
Sometimes we think the decision that's right in front of us is the most trying thing we've ever dealt with. Somehow it completely takes over our life and makes us think that nothing else is important, that if we mess this up, if we choose the wrong path, everything is going to fall to pieces. We forget that our decisions are so trivial when it comes to God.
I can't write a post about decision making this morning, that's not the point in this. But I want to write about the love of Jesus and how that is far more important than any decision we ever make. Maybe some of you will see it as a cop-out, but as someone who frequently thinks certain choices will make her happy, I know this is what I need.
I'm really liking the book of Isaiah at the minute and this morning I found this verse:
Isaiah 54:10
"'Though the mountains be shaken
and the hills be removed,
yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken
nor my covenant of peace be removed.'
Says the Lord, who has compassion on you."
(NIV)
I read Genesis back in January and one thing that kept reappearing was God's promise of His covenant to His people, and once again in Isaiah He reminds us of this. God, who sent ten plagues on Egypt, who "rained down burning sulfur" (Genesis 19:24) on the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, who could have done anything to make us love Him, has compassion upon me.
Compassion so strong that He gave up all heavenly powers and came to earth as a tiny, helpless baby who had to depend on humans for even the simplest of things. Compassion so strong that He sent His Son to die an incredibly painful death, to be crucified, for me.
I don't have children yet, but I am a child to two amazing parents, and I know how much they worry about me when I'm at university. I can't even begin to imagine what it must have been like for the Father to let His Son experience pain like that.
It doesn't really matter to God which path I choose. I don't mean He doesn't care, what I do mean is that no matter what I decide He will be with me either way. He doesn't ever leave our sides and, even if I do fall away from Him for a while, He will always guide me back to Him. In 2008 I chose to move to Scotland for university and I definitely did fall away from God for a while, but I think this blog is proof enough that He never let go of me.
If God truly wants us to choose one path more than another He will move mountains to make that happen (I stole this quote from a friend, so props to Rhea Wilms). But I think that right now God is saying the decision is up to me, He'll work with whatever choice I make, that part isn't overly important to Him.
So friends, I'll leave you with something beautiful:
Ephesians 1:3-8
"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For He chose us in Him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight. In love He predestined us to be adopted as sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with His pleasure and will - to the praise of His glorious grace, which He has freely given us in the One He loves. In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace that He lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding."
(NIV)
I encourage you to decide to fall more in love with Jesus than ever before.
x
I can't write a post about decision making this morning, that's not the point in this. But I want to write about the love of Jesus and how that is far more important than any decision we ever make. Maybe some of you will see it as a cop-out, but as someone who frequently thinks certain choices will make her happy, I know this is what I need.
I'm really liking the book of Isaiah at the minute and this morning I found this verse:
Isaiah 54:10
"'Though the mountains be shaken
and the hills be removed,
yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken
nor my covenant of peace be removed.'
Says the Lord, who has compassion on you."
(NIV)
I read Genesis back in January and one thing that kept reappearing was God's promise of His covenant to His people, and once again in Isaiah He reminds us of this. God, who sent ten plagues on Egypt, who "rained down burning sulfur" (Genesis 19:24) on the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, who could have done anything to make us love Him, has compassion upon me.
Compassion so strong that He gave up all heavenly powers and came to earth as a tiny, helpless baby who had to depend on humans for even the simplest of things. Compassion so strong that He sent His Son to die an incredibly painful death, to be crucified, for me.
I don't have children yet, but I am a child to two amazing parents, and I know how much they worry about me when I'm at university. I can't even begin to imagine what it must have been like for the Father to let His Son experience pain like that.
It doesn't really matter to God which path I choose. I don't mean He doesn't care, what I do mean is that no matter what I decide He will be with me either way. He doesn't ever leave our sides and, even if I do fall away from Him for a while, He will always guide me back to Him. In 2008 I chose to move to Scotland for university and I definitely did fall away from God for a while, but I think this blog is proof enough that He never let go of me.
If God truly wants us to choose one path more than another He will move mountains to make that happen (I stole this quote from a friend, so props to Rhea Wilms). But I think that right now God is saying the decision is up to me, He'll work with whatever choice I make, that part isn't overly important to Him.
So friends, I'll leave you with something beautiful:
Ephesians 1:3-8
"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For He chose us in Him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight. In love He predestined us to be adopted as sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with His pleasure and will - to the praise of His glorious grace, which He has freely given us in the One He loves. In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace that He lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding."
(NIV)
I encourage you to decide to fall more in love with Jesus than ever before.
x
Tuesday, 10 January 2012
The Kingdom of Heaven, Human Logic, and Truth
All too often do I hear about people who try to spread the word of God through violence and aggression. It's been happening for hundreds of years and it saddens me to think that someone's mistakes push so many people away from coming to know Jesus every single day. No were in the Bible does it say that God believed this was right, and nothing in the Gospels tells us of Jesus doing anything but love, but it's easier to trust in the things that we can see before our eyes. Why would someone choose to believe in a God whose followers are so violent and hateful?
After finishing Genesis last night I moved on to Matthew and today I read the Beatitudes.
Matthew 5:3-9
“Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the earth.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.
Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called children of God."
The Beatitudes used to confuse me a little. I mean, who was Jesus referring to? What was He trying to say? So I found a commentary on biblegateway and something really stood out to me. God never intended His Kingdom for the violent, for the aggressive, for the hateful.
The Kingdom of Heaven is for the poor in spirit, for the meek, for the merciful, for the pure in heart, for the peacemakers.
It's easy to trust in what's right in front of our eyes because it's just that, it's right in front of us, staring us straight in the face. It makes sense to trust in what we see.
But God doesn't call us to do what makes sense, and that's one of the many beautiful things about following Christ.
If our bank balance tells us we can't pay the rent, have faith and God will provide. If we've lost our keys, have faith and God will open our eyes. If we're looking for a place to stay for a night, God will find us one. If we have to travel but funds are low, God will give us what we need. If we need to eat but the cupboard's are bare, He'll feed us.
These are all things that have happened to me or that I have seen happen. And they're crazy, aren't they? All through prayer and petition, God laughs at our idea of "common sense" and does it His way.
Philippians 4:6-7
"Do not be anxious about anything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."
I can't begin to count the number of times I've sat down, full of fear and worry, and brought it all to God, trusting Him with all of it, and by the time I'd finished praying I literally feel like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders. I feel lighter, more free, I can smile again, I can laugh!
Some of you will say I'm too simple, but in a world full of darkness and broken hearts and pain, the joy I experience through my Jesus is something too perfect and wonderful for words.
One of my favourite parts of the bible is 1 Corinthians 1:18-31. I would write out the whole passage for you here but I feel like you might get a little bored (If you want to read the whole thing check it out here), so here's a little extract:
1 Corinthians 1:18-19
"For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written: 'I will destroy the wisdom of the wise; the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate'."
God doesn't use human logic. A while ago I was struggling with belief and a friend told me I needed to keep pushing through the logic that was strangling me. The only times I have feared the truth of Jesus, that He loves me, that I'm forgiven, are when I've sat and considered it all in relation to society and the world. We need to stop doing that. We need to stop thinking we don't deserve forgiveness or love because those things are there for us whether or not we want them. Our logic tells us it's wrong because society doesn't want us to know love or forgiveness until we've earned it, but God loved us from the dawn of time.
It's hard to grasp, isn't it? I still struggle with it, with accepting that my forgiveness isn't a "get out of jail free" card, but that it's given to me by the One who can give it to me, because He wants to, because He loves me so much. But, slowly but surely, I'm beginning to know and accept the truth more and more every day.
And this is why, to return to my first point, we shouldn't listen to the people who aggressively shove their beliefs down our throats, because that isn't love and that isn't God. I encourage you to open your Bibles today and find the truth of Jesus Christ, the person who I'm constantly chasing after.
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After finishing Genesis last night I moved on to Matthew and today I read the Beatitudes.
Matthew 5:3-9
“Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the earth.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.
Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called children of God."
The Beatitudes used to confuse me a little. I mean, who was Jesus referring to? What was He trying to say? So I found a commentary on biblegateway and something really stood out to me. God never intended His Kingdom for the violent, for the aggressive, for the hateful.
The Kingdom of Heaven is for the poor in spirit, for the meek, for the merciful, for the pure in heart, for the peacemakers.
It's easy to trust in what's right in front of our eyes because it's just that, it's right in front of us, staring us straight in the face. It makes sense to trust in what we see.
But God doesn't call us to do what makes sense, and that's one of the many beautiful things about following Christ.
If our bank balance tells us we can't pay the rent, have faith and God will provide. If we've lost our keys, have faith and God will open our eyes. If we're looking for a place to stay for a night, God will find us one. If we have to travel but funds are low, God will give us what we need. If we need to eat but the cupboard's are bare, He'll feed us.
These are all things that have happened to me or that I have seen happen. And they're crazy, aren't they? All through prayer and petition, God laughs at our idea of "common sense" and does it His way.
Philippians 4:6-7
"Do not be anxious about anything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."
I can't begin to count the number of times I've sat down, full of fear and worry, and brought it all to God, trusting Him with all of it, and by the time I'd finished praying I literally feel like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders. I feel lighter, more free, I can smile again, I can laugh!
Some of you will say I'm too simple, but in a world full of darkness and broken hearts and pain, the joy I experience through my Jesus is something too perfect and wonderful for words.
One of my favourite parts of the bible is 1 Corinthians 1:18-31. I would write out the whole passage for you here but I feel like you might get a little bored (If you want to read the whole thing check it out here), so here's a little extract:
1 Corinthians 1:18-19
"For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written: 'I will destroy the wisdom of the wise; the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate'."
God doesn't use human logic. A while ago I was struggling with belief and a friend told me I needed to keep pushing through the logic that was strangling me. The only times I have feared the truth of Jesus, that He loves me, that I'm forgiven, are when I've sat and considered it all in relation to society and the world. We need to stop doing that. We need to stop thinking we don't deserve forgiveness or love because those things are there for us whether or not we want them. Our logic tells us it's wrong because society doesn't want us to know love or forgiveness until we've earned it, but God loved us from the dawn of time.
It's hard to grasp, isn't it? I still struggle with it, with accepting that my forgiveness isn't a "get out of jail free" card, but that it's given to me by the One who can give it to me, because He wants to, because He loves me so much. But, slowly but surely, I'm beginning to know and accept the truth more and more every day.
And this is why, to return to my first point, we shouldn't listen to the people who aggressively shove their beliefs down our throats, because that isn't love and that isn't God. I encourage you to open your Bibles today and find the truth of Jesus Christ, the person who I'm constantly chasing after.
x
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