Sorry the font is so small, but this is good stuff!
Monday, October 25, 2010
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Why are you here?
Why are you here?
I got some of this from another blog. It is supposed to be for single people waiting for the right person, but I think this relates to anyone that worries. Anyone that feels like their life is out of control. Anyone that wonders why they are here on earth.
Today I was running with a friend and we were talking about how so many times, we plan for the future.But we forget about today. We forget that God gave us today for a reason. If we are not dead, there is a reason for today. God gives us each day to fulfill His purpose.
Think about it: Would God give you one more day if He did not have a specific plan for You that day?
And He only guarantees us one day at a time. Remember the prayer? Give us this day our DAILY BREAD? Jesus didn't ask for 2 weeks supply of bread. He didn't ask for a year's worth of bread.. He asked for a day. That's it. Why? Because that is all we are guaranteed at a time. That is all we need at a time.
Think about it:If we asked for a month's worth of bread, what would happen to it?
It would go to waste.
It would be heavy to carry.
It would be burdensome.
It would be frozen for goodness sakes!
So, why do we ask to know the future more than a day at a time? Yes, I think it is good to plan for the future.
But, it is NEVER good to worry about the future. Why?
It is wasted time and thoughts.
It is heavy to carry around.
It is burdensome.
It is frozen in future, until God gives you another day.
The Holy Spirit has convicted me and grown me in how I steward my time.
Each time I start to struggle,worry,think about my waiting, I have to ask myself the following questions:
Do I trust that he has ordained my days? (Psalm 139: 5, 6, 16)
Do I trust that he supplies all I need? (Matthew 6:32)
Do I trust that never will he leave me or forsake me? (Joshua 1:5)
Do I trust that who I am in Christ defines me? (Colossians 2:10)
Do I trust that God always has a plan in everything? (Jeremiah 29:11)
If I am trying to just hang on until I get married, or until I get that job, or until I have kids, or until I get over this certain struggle, and don’t accept this season, then I am saying that these days that God has ordained are not enough, that he made a mistake and is a liar.
The simple truth is that he takes care of my every need and provides all that I need—if I don’t have it, I don’t need it. And I can rest in this because I know he is a loving God.
God does not look at me as a mistake but through the work Jesus did on the cross. Who I am in Jesus is what defines me, and that is where I am to look for my identity. I know I need to be in loving community. I need to spend time in God’s word to know his promises and his truth: that God is perfect, loving, wise, and sovereign, and I am his daughter. The daughter of a King.
“I know nothing more effective for quieting a Christian soul and getting contentment than this: setting your heart to work in the duties of the immediate circumstances that you are in now, and taking hold of your thoughts about other conditions as mere temptations.” • Jeremiah Burroughs
“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” • Romans 15:13
So why are you here? To serve and worship God with every day! Don't focus on the past.Don't focus on the negative. Don't focus on the worries. Focus on God. Focus on today. What opportunity has God given you TODAY? How can God use you TODAY? Remember if He didn't have a plan for you today, you would be dead! So, don't waste today worrying about tomorrow! Live for today.
Check out CrossPointeChurch.tv!
I got some of this from another blog. It is supposed to be for single people waiting for the right person, but I think this relates to anyone that worries. Anyone that feels like their life is out of control. Anyone that wonders why they are here on earth.
Today I was running with a friend and we were talking about how so many times, we plan for the future.But we forget about today. We forget that God gave us today for a reason. If we are not dead, there is a reason for today. God gives us each day to fulfill His purpose.
Think about it: Would God give you one more day if He did not have a specific plan for You that day?
And He only guarantees us one day at a time. Remember the prayer? Give us this day our DAILY BREAD? Jesus didn't ask for 2 weeks supply of bread. He didn't ask for a year's worth of bread.. He asked for a day. That's it. Why? Because that is all we are guaranteed at a time. That is all we need at a time.
Think about it:If we asked for a month's worth of bread, what would happen to it?
It would go to waste.
It would be heavy to carry.
It would be burdensome.
It would be frozen for goodness sakes!
So, why do we ask to know the future more than a day at a time? Yes, I think it is good to plan for the future.
But, it is NEVER good to worry about the future. Why?
It is wasted time and thoughts.
It is heavy to carry around.
It is burdensome.
It is frozen in future, until God gives you another day.
The Holy Spirit has convicted me and grown me in how I steward my time.
Each time I start to struggle,worry,think about my waiting, I have to ask myself the following questions:
Do I trust that he has ordained my days? (Psalm 139: 5, 6, 16)
Do I trust that he supplies all I need? (Matthew 6:32)
Do I trust that never will he leave me or forsake me? (Joshua 1:5)
Do I trust that who I am in Christ defines me? (Colossians 2:10)
Do I trust that God always has a plan in everything? (Jeremiah 29:11)
If I am trying to just hang on until I get married, or until I get that job, or until I have kids, or until I get over this certain struggle, and don’t accept this season, then I am saying that these days that God has ordained are not enough, that he made a mistake and is a liar.
The simple truth is that he takes care of my every need and provides all that I need—if I don’t have it, I don’t need it. And I can rest in this because I know he is a loving God.
God does not look at me as a mistake but through the work Jesus did on the cross. Who I am in Jesus is what defines me, and that is where I am to look for my identity. I know I need to be in loving community. I need to spend time in God’s word to know his promises and his truth: that God is perfect, loving, wise, and sovereign, and I am his daughter. The daughter of a King.
“I know nothing more effective for quieting a Christian soul and getting contentment than this: setting your heart to work in the duties of the immediate circumstances that you are in now, and taking hold of your thoughts about other conditions as mere temptations.” • Jeremiah Burroughs
“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” • Romans 15:13
So why are you here? To serve and worship God with every day! Don't focus on the past.Don't focus on the negative. Don't focus on the worries. Focus on God. Focus on today. What opportunity has God given you TODAY? How can God use you TODAY? Remember if He didn't have a plan for you today, you would be dead! So, don't waste today worrying about tomorrow! Live for today.
Check out CrossPointeChurch.tv!
Monday, October 4, 2010
Dare to Hope
"Yet I still dare to hope when I remember this."
Lamentations 3:21 (NLT)
Ask yourself:
1.Have you ever cried until the tears would no longer come and your heart was broken in tiny pieces?
2.Have you ever uttered, "Everything I hope for from the Lord is lost?" Then you, me and Jeremiah make three.
I am sure all of us have stories of regret. Stories of disappointment. Stories of hurt. Whether it is relationships, jobs, family, or the lack of something, everyone has a story.
(From Christianitytoday.com)Jeremiah, also known as the weeping prophet, found himself in a hopeless situation as he watched the Temple of the Lord being burned to the ground by the Babylonians. His heart broke. The elements of the Temple such as the water basin and lamp snuffers were stolen, taken to Babylon to be used to worship false gods.
Jeremiah cried until no more tears would come (Lamentations 2:11, NLT). His heart was broken for Jerusalem and for God's people, his people. In anguish he lamented the words, "Everything I had hoped for from the Lord is lost" (Lamentations 3:18, NLT).
Then, out of the midst of his despair, he dared. He dared to hope in what he remembered.
He Remembered
The remembrance changed his perspective on his present situation. Jeremiah dared to hope. So can we,regardless of our circumstances. Jeremiah remembered this about his covenant Lord:
• His unfailing love for him
• His new mercies meant for him
• His never ending faithfulness toward him
God's Word is alive and active.
It is designed to transform us from the inside out. Reading God's Word brings you back to truth. Scripture is truer than anything we think or feel. During my desperate nights I longed for my circumstances to be different. But when I remembered God's faithfulness and mercies to me, my expression changed. My hope was back.
Did the circumstances surrounding my sorrows change because I remembered? No.
What changed was my outlook.
Hope means to wait with expectation, and this is what I chose to do during those hard nights.
Are you in need of hope today?
Will you choose to remember His faithfulness, love, and mercy despite the despair and destruction around you?
Will you dare to hope?
Check out http://www.crosspointechurch.tv/ministries.html
Lamentations 3:21 (NLT)
Ask yourself:
1.Have you ever cried until the tears would no longer come and your heart was broken in tiny pieces?
2.Have you ever uttered, "Everything I hope for from the Lord is lost?" Then you, me and Jeremiah make three.
I am sure all of us have stories of regret. Stories of disappointment. Stories of hurt. Whether it is relationships, jobs, family, or the lack of something, everyone has a story.
(From Christianitytoday.com)Jeremiah, also known as the weeping prophet, found himself in a hopeless situation as he watched the Temple of the Lord being burned to the ground by the Babylonians. His heart broke. The elements of the Temple such as the water basin and lamp snuffers were stolen, taken to Babylon to be used to worship false gods.
Jeremiah cried until no more tears would come (Lamentations 2:11, NLT). His heart was broken for Jerusalem and for God's people, his people. In anguish he lamented the words, "Everything I had hoped for from the Lord is lost" (Lamentations 3:18, NLT).
Then, out of the midst of his despair, he dared. He dared to hope in what he remembered.
He Remembered
The remembrance changed his perspective on his present situation. Jeremiah dared to hope. So can we,regardless of our circumstances. Jeremiah remembered this about his covenant Lord:
• His unfailing love for him
• His new mercies meant for him
• His never ending faithfulness toward him
God's Word is alive and active.
It is designed to transform us from the inside out. Reading God's Word brings you back to truth. Scripture is truer than anything we think or feel. During my desperate nights I longed for my circumstances to be different. But when I remembered God's faithfulness and mercies to me, my expression changed. My hope was back.
Did the circumstances surrounding my sorrows change because I remembered? No.
What changed was my outlook.
Hope means to wait with expectation, and this is what I chose to do during those hard nights.
Are you in need of hope today?
Will you choose to remember His faithfulness, love, and mercy despite the despair and destruction around you?
Will you dare to hope?
Check out http://www.crosspointechurch.tv/ministries.html
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