Here is a random thought train when thinking about Luke 19:
Jesus come to Zacchaeus' house
Zacchaeus was a tax collector
Tax collectors were sinners
Sinners are lost from God
A sin is a sin as a sin is a sin
All of us are sinners --> ALL have fallen short of the Glory of God
Jesus wants to come to our house
Jesus lives in our hearts, we are a temple
We are like Zacchaeus
Luke 19:10 "For the Son of Man came to seek and save what was lost."
Jesus seeks us out
Jesus saves us, for we are lost
Jesus is my Superhero
And so it goes..
Monday, February 25, 2013
Monday, November 12, 2012
Super Vision
You know what this world needs? Jesus.
You know what this world doesn't need? Me.
This world does not need me. They don't need me to tell them that they need Jesus. They get enough of that every day. What they really need is to see Jesus. They need for me to stop talking, and start showing the love that knows no ends.
Only God can save the world, so why should my mouth get in the way? Instead, why don't I just show Jesus in whatever way I can? I am determined to stop talking about a savior who is merciful and just, and instead start showing Him in my every day life.
This means praying for loved ones, as well as for enemies.
This means reading my bible and searching for truth.
This means declaring the truth I find.
This means not judging others, for it is not my place to judge.
This means loving people who are unloveable.
This means reaching out to those who are in need.
This means praising God for the good AND the bad, for it is all according to His plan.
This means letting God do work in my life so that others can see Him shining through me.
This means recognizing when God is working in my life, and praising Him for it.
No this does not mean that I will stop talking. But it does mean I will strive to speak truth. When I tell the world that they are sinners and Jesus died for them, I can almost hear the world reply "Tell me something I don't know." Instead, why don't I embrace the love that God has for us, share that love, and tell the world that Jesus lives!? Isn't that a cool story?
People say "I gotta see it to believe it." So from now on, I'm going to strive to let people see Jesus in me, so that they can believe and be saved.
And so it goes..
You know what this world doesn't need? Me.
This world does not need me. They don't need me to tell them that they need Jesus. They get enough of that every day. What they really need is to see Jesus. They need for me to stop talking, and start showing the love that knows no ends.
Only God can save the world, so why should my mouth get in the way? Instead, why don't I just show Jesus in whatever way I can? I am determined to stop talking about a savior who is merciful and just, and instead start showing Him in my every day life.
This means praying for loved ones, as well as for enemies.
This means reading my bible and searching for truth.
This means declaring the truth I find.
This means not judging others, for it is not my place to judge.
This means loving people who are unloveable.
This means reaching out to those who are in need.
This means praising God for the good AND the bad, for it is all according to His plan.
This means letting God do work in my life so that others can see Him shining through me.
This means recognizing when God is working in my life, and praising Him for it.
No this does not mean that I will stop talking. But it does mean I will strive to speak truth. When I tell the world that they are sinners and Jesus died for them, I can almost hear the world reply "Tell me something I don't know." Instead, why don't I embrace the love that God has for us, share that love, and tell the world that Jesus lives!? Isn't that a cool story?
People say "I gotta see it to believe it." So from now on, I'm going to strive to let people see Jesus in me, so that they can believe and be saved.
And so it goes..
Sunday, October 7, 2012
Super Strength from a Super God
"I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength"- Philippians 4:13
I sometimes think that verse should be rearranged to say "All things I can only do through Christ who gives me strength." To me, helps show the strength and power of our God, and gives credit to the one who is all powerful. In case you are not playing at home, the verse mentions two people "I", and "Christ". I am not powerful, especially ALL Powerful, so that leaves Christ for that calling. And so rightly He is. God has Super Strength.
I can only do the things THROUGH Christ, who strengthens me. All the things. That doesn't mean that without Christ, I can do some of the things, but Christ adds on the rest that I lack. No. Everything that I have the ability to do is because of the Super Strength Christ gives me to do it. He is the one with all the power, and He is the one who deserves the Glory.
One of the most reassuring facts, at least to me, is that Jesus Christ doesn't need me. Christ is all powerful, wich means He has the strength and power to melt hearts of stone. He has the strength and power to reach out to the sinner. He can do it all on His own! He doesn't need me to reach out to the sinner. He doesn't need me to love the unloved. He doesn't need me to spread the Good News. He can do it all on His own. He doesn't need me- never has needed me, never will need me. And I love it! Why, you ask? BECAUSE GOD WANTS ME!!!
"I took you from the ends of the earth, from its farthest corners I called you. I said, 'You are my servant'; I have chosen you and have not rejected you." Isaiah 41:9
I sometimes think that verse should be rearranged to say "All things I can only do through Christ who gives me strength." To me, helps show the strength and power of our God, and gives credit to the one who is all powerful. In case you are not playing at home, the verse mentions two people "I", and "Christ". I am not powerful, especially ALL Powerful, so that leaves Christ for that calling. And so rightly He is. God has Super Strength.
I can only do the things THROUGH Christ, who strengthens me. All the things. That doesn't mean that without Christ, I can do some of the things, but Christ adds on the rest that I lack. No. Everything that I have the ability to do is because of the Super Strength Christ gives me to do it. He is the one with all the power, and He is the one who deserves the Glory.
One of the most reassuring facts, at least to me, is that Jesus Christ doesn't need me. Christ is all powerful, wich means He has the strength and power to melt hearts of stone. He has the strength and power to reach out to the sinner. He can do it all on His own! He doesn't need me to reach out to the sinner. He doesn't need me to love the unloved. He doesn't need me to spread the Good News. He can do it all on His own. He doesn't need me- never has needed me, never will need me. And I love it! Why, you ask? BECAUSE GOD WANTS ME!!!
"I took you from the ends of the earth, from its farthest corners I called you. I said, 'You are my servant'; I have chosen you and have not rejected you." Isaiah 41:9
I have been chosen by God to help further His kingdom. I have been Called by Christ to love the unloved. I have been selected by a Savior to reach out to the Sinner. Wow! How amazing! And the cooler thing is, even when I am being the Hands and Feet of God, it's still not my doing! Why? Because "All things I can only do through Christ who gives me Strength." God is giving me the strength to move. So in the end it's all God. I am a vessel for the Savior of the world! Praise be to God!
My God is a super hero.
And so it goes...
Monday, August 6, 2012
REAL love
Songs always seem to speak to me. Ya know, the whole face plant thing? Well.. It's because song's always seem to speak to me.. and whaddaya know? It happened again.
The song "Forever Reign"- by Hillsong has a chorus (as most pop songs do) and the lyrics go like this:
Oh!
I'm running to Your arms
I'm running to Your arms
The riches of Your love Will always be enough
Nothing compares to Your embrace
Light of the world Forever Reign
Yeah... that song has become my favorite as of right now. Which is saying something, because I generally can't pick a favorite song. But it is, because that line I have highlighted in red has been the biggest lesson of my summer.
This summer I had the opportunity to move up from a counselor at Camp to the role of Assistant Director for two of the weeks. It was an exciting transition, but let me tell ya, it was the scariest transition of my life. Suddenly having to be in charge of decisions made at camp? Suddenly having to give a talk in front of 30+ 2nd-5th graders (depending on the week)? Woah buddy. Scary stuff.
But God doesn't give me more than I can handle, and He always stretches me to become something better through Him.
Being a director gave me the ability to really watch other counselors and see how they interacted with the kids. It was amazing to see counselors play crazy games during free time, step up and lead during group time, and even go out of their comfort zone in many situations. The love that was poured out into these kids was astounding and abundant- and it brought me a lot of joy.
However, there were times when I struggled a lot determining whether the counselors loved the kids as much as I wanted them to. Why did the counselors group together and not spread themselves out amongst the kids at times? Why did the counselors sometimes tell a kid no when all the kid wanted to do was play an easy, sit-down game? It didn't make sense to me, and at times I thought that the counselors were there for the wrong reason, and none of them were meeting the "ideal counselor" image I had in my mind.
Suddenly, that song came into my life. "The riches of YOUR love will always be enough." It hit me.. it isn't our love that matters for these kids' lives, it's JESUS' love! And His love will ALWAYS be enough- always abundant, always sufficient, always there. And Jesus love pours out amongst our counselors in all ways, all shapes, all sizes. It was after much prayer and thought about this song that I realized it wasn't what us directors had in mind for the "Best counselor", but what Jesus called as the best counselor. God has a purposed for all of the counselors at camp, and it isn't my job to Judge them based on how I would've handled situations. All the kids love the counselors, and ultimately see Jesus in them. Isn't that the goal?
God didn't put together the group of counselors that Brice saw fit as good, but put together a group of counselors that HE saw fit as perfect for what HIS plan was.
And isn't that awesome? God really has taught me a lot this summer, but this lesson has really settled on my heart. REAL love isn't determined by one outlook, but is only seen through the Love of Jesus. I am so thankful for being moved to a director position this year, and can't wait to see what new lessons God teaches me as I take on this exciting role.
And so it goes...
The song "Forever Reign"- by Hillsong has a chorus (as most pop songs do) and the lyrics go like this:
Oh!
I'm running to Your arms
I'm running to Your arms
The riches of Your love Will always be enough
Nothing compares to Your embrace
Light of the world Forever Reign
Yeah... that song has become my favorite as of right now. Which is saying something, because I generally can't pick a favorite song. But it is, because that line I have highlighted in red has been the biggest lesson of my summer.
This summer I had the opportunity to move up from a counselor at Camp to the role of Assistant Director for two of the weeks. It was an exciting transition, but let me tell ya, it was the scariest transition of my life. Suddenly having to be in charge of decisions made at camp? Suddenly having to give a talk in front of 30+ 2nd-5th graders (depending on the week)? Woah buddy. Scary stuff.
But God doesn't give me more than I can handle, and He always stretches me to become something better through Him.
Being a director gave me the ability to really watch other counselors and see how they interacted with the kids. It was amazing to see counselors play crazy games during free time, step up and lead during group time, and even go out of their comfort zone in many situations. The love that was poured out into these kids was astounding and abundant- and it brought me a lot of joy.
However, there were times when I struggled a lot determining whether the counselors loved the kids as much as I wanted them to. Why did the counselors group together and not spread themselves out amongst the kids at times? Why did the counselors sometimes tell a kid no when all the kid wanted to do was play an easy, sit-down game? It didn't make sense to me, and at times I thought that the counselors were there for the wrong reason, and none of them were meeting the "ideal counselor" image I had in my mind.
Suddenly, that song came into my life. "The riches of YOUR love will always be enough." It hit me.. it isn't our love that matters for these kids' lives, it's JESUS' love! And His love will ALWAYS be enough- always abundant, always sufficient, always there. And Jesus love pours out amongst our counselors in all ways, all shapes, all sizes. It was after much prayer and thought about this song that I realized it wasn't what us directors had in mind for the "Best counselor", but what Jesus called as the best counselor. God has a purposed for all of the counselors at camp, and it isn't my job to Judge them based on how I would've handled situations. All the kids love the counselors, and ultimately see Jesus in them. Isn't that the goal?
God didn't put together the group of counselors that Brice saw fit as good, but put together a group of counselors that HE saw fit as perfect for what HIS plan was.
And isn't that awesome? God really has taught me a lot this summer, but this lesson has really settled on my heart. REAL love isn't determined by one outlook, but is only seen through the Love of Jesus. I am so thankful for being moved to a director position this year, and can't wait to see what new lessons God teaches me as I take on this exciting role.
And so it goes...
Monday, April 30, 2012
Jesus is REAL
Morning.
The sun rises, the birds sing
A new beginning, a new day, a new start
Awaken from slumber
Forgiven
Jesus is REAL
Midday.
The weather shifts, the people wander
Animals play, nature blossoms, sun shines
Life continues
Beauty
Jesus is REAL
Evening.
The sun sets, the air cools
A calm assurance, a comfort, a hope for tomorrow
Loved by a Savior
Peaceful
Jesus is REAL
And so it goes..
The colors of the morning are inside Your eyes
The world awakens in the light of the day
I look up to the sky and say
You’re beautiful"
Monday, April 2, 2012
Let's look at the present.
I sometimes think that we spend too much of our time worrying about the future outcome instead of focusing on the present situation.
I began feeling this way probably around the 7th Grade. This was when I realized that teachers were constantly preparing us for the next grade. In every grade, my teachers would inform us that "when you are in (insert grade above here), you won't be able to (write in print, use cheat sheets, etc.). Therefore, as it is my responsibility as your teacher to prepare you for the next grade, we will as well not (write in print, use cheat sheets, etc.)" This is all fine and dandy, except for the fact that instead of it being a preparation it actually becomes a set back. Because rather than focusing on whatever needs to be accomplished in that grade, the teachers decide to "prepare" us for things we don't really need to be prepared for. When I get to the third grade, I'm still allowed to write in print. When I get to 8th grade, certain teachers still allowed cheat sheets. I sometimes thought it would be nice to just simply "be" in the grade I was in, rather than acting like the grade above me.
And isn't that the case when we witness to other as well? We can be so impatient at times --always wanting the person to get it now--but really we just have to realize that Gods timing is perfect ( I think I discussed that in another blog) and that it's not our say when people will finally realize.
Real life example: I'm a church camp counselor. I love my job, and wouldn't spend my summers any other way. But I am really anxious when it comes to witnessing to my campers. During the first day I think "they will understand Jesus' love by the end of the day." Perhaps some do. Others don't. And I want them to understand NOW. Then we have the Salvation Message, and I declare "they will accept Jesus tonight. It will happen" Again- perhaps some do. Others don't. Why won't they get it now!? Aren't we witnessing to them?
The answer of course is yes. But alternatively, we should be look at their present situation and understand that maybe they're currently not ready. We've only planted a seed. A seed that will continue to grow each day, week, month, year. Who could ask for anything better? Sure they're not "getting it" right away, but they've got it. Deep down. And they will eventually bring it up out of them and shine the light that only one who knows Jesus can.
I guess what I'm trying to say is, the future outcome is VERY important, but it shouldn't be what we dwell on. Especially when witnessing to others. The future is under control if we plant that seed. God knows what he's doing. We can only keep focusing on each present moment that comes our way, and make sure that they are experiencing the REAL love of Jesus Christ at each of those occasions.
And so it goes..
I began feeling this way probably around the 7th Grade. This was when I realized that teachers were constantly preparing us for the next grade. In every grade, my teachers would inform us that "when you are in (insert grade above here), you won't be able to (write in print, use cheat sheets, etc.). Therefore, as it is my responsibility as your teacher to prepare you for the next grade, we will as well not (write in print, use cheat sheets, etc.)" This is all fine and dandy, except for the fact that instead of it being a preparation it actually becomes a set back. Because rather than focusing on whatever needs to be accomplished in that grade, the teachers decide to "prepare" us for things we don't really need to be prepared for. When I get to the third grade, I'm still allowed to write in print. When I get to 8th grade, certain teachers still allowed cheat sheets. I sometimes thought it would be nice to just simply "be" in the grade I was in, rather than acting like the grade above me.
And isn't that the case when we witness to other as well? We can be so impatient at times --always wanting the person to get it now--but really we just have to realize that Gods timing is perfect ( I think I discussed that in another blog) and that it's not our say when people will finally realize.
Real life example: I'm a church camp counselor. I love my job, and wouldn't spend my summers any other way. But I am really anxious when it comes to witnessing to my campers. During the first day I think "they will understand Jesus' love by the end of the day." Perhaps some do. Others don't. And I want them to understand NOW. Then we have the Salvation Message, and I declare "they will accept Jesus tonight. It will happen" Again- perhaps some do. Others don't. Why won't they get it now!? Aren't we witnessing to them?
The answer of course is yes. But alternatively, we should be look at their present situation and understand that maybe they're currently not ready. We've only planted a seed. A seed that will continue to grow each day, week, month, year. Who could ask for anything better? Sure they're not "getting it" right away, but they've got it. Deep down. And they will eventually bring it up out of them and shine the light that only one who knows Jesus can.
I guess what I'm trying to say is, the future outcome is VERY important, but it shouldn't be what we dwell on. Especially when witnessing to others. The future is under control if we plant that seed. God knows what he's doing. We can only keep focusing on each present moment that comes our way, and make sure that they are experiencing the REAL love of Jesus Christ at each of those occasions.
And so it goes..
Radical
John 17:3 "Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent."
I strive to live radically for Christ. It is my goal, my life process, my journey. I aim to have eternal life through knowing the one TRUE God. I plan to spread His message to others so that they too can know the AMAZING love that God has to offer them.
And so it goes...
I strive to live radically for Christ. It is my goal, my life process, my journey. I aim to have eternal life through knowing the one TRUE God. I plan to spread His message to others so that they too can know the AMAZING love that God has to offer them.
And so it goes...
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