Aaaand....

I am alive.  I am at home with my family.  I am working and studying.  I am looking forward to Christmas.  I am excited to see Isaac in just a little more than two weeks.  I've been pondering a variety of things lately.  I am thankful that Christ is sufficient for every area of life.  [Sometime] I will write something more meaningful.

 (How is that for a less-than-five-minutes post, Bethanne? :])

Counting

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving, a time to give thanks for the many ways God has so freely blessed us!  With that said, here are a few things for which I am thankful:

Many of the small things like laughter, weekends, coffee, texting, music, and fall colors bring with them some of the simplest joys in life and make me smile. I think one really misses out on a lot in life if they cannot recognize blessings that some wrapped in papers called ‘ordinary’ and ‘familiar.’

Often, some things are not truly appreciated until they are no longer readily available at our fingertips. That includes the encouragement of godly friends who love the Lord, the time spent with a family who loves me, a wonderful boyfriend. These things can be taken away. I am so blessed to have all of these in my life!!

Perhaps the greatest level of thankfulness happens on the spiritual level, for blessings that are spiritual are the greatest blessings of all, are they not? What anticipation can compare to the hope of eternal life that I have through Christ? What greater physical treasure do I have in my possession than the inspired Word of God—God’s Message revealed to man? What other power should I desire to have controlling me than the indwelling presence of the Spirit? Who cares more about me than God Himself? What greater privilege do I have than to be among those called “the sons of God” and to have direct access to the Father through prayer? The list really could go on…and on…and on…for the spiritual blessings of the believer are endless. However, it really boils down to one thing: I am thankful to be “in Christ” through the blood of Christ shed on the cross for my sins.

Count your many blessings

name them one by one,

and it will surprise you

what the Lord hath done. 

The End…or the Beginning?

Death.  To the unbeliever, the very word strikes fear to the very core of his being.  To the believer, it holds incredible promise of so much more!  To be honest, no, I do not anticipate the day I die and physically leave behind this life on earth.  However, it will be a glorious day when I meet my Savior face to face!  How wonderful beyond my finite human comprehension it will be to be in the presence of the One Who died for me, Who paid my debt so that my account could be declared “Paid in Full”; to behold the One who, out of love, spared not His Son on behalf of a miserable wretch like me, the One who, at this very moment is interceding in heaven for me before the Father. 
Christ conquered death: He had to.  Death—physical and spiritual--was a part of the punishment for sin, way back in the Garden of Eden. Provision for the forgiveness of sins demanded a victory over the punishment of sin and captor of the sinner—the Devil. 
1 Corinthians 15 is a beautiful chapter for the believer.  It not only clearly states a confirmation of Christ’s personal past victory over death through His resurrection from the dead, but it also affirms the certainty of the future event of the resurrection of the believer!  Christ’s resurrection is the very foundation for the Gospel, for the believer’s salvation and hope for the future,  for my personal salvation and hope for the future!  Paul, being inspired by God, puts it incredibly clear and plain: “And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins” (1 Corinthians 15:17).  Yes, Christ’s divine blood that was shed on the cross is the complete satisfaction for the righteous demands of our holy and just God. Hallelujah!  What a Savior! Christ did not stay dead, lying in the tomb, wrapped in grave cloths!  He is risen again!  Praise the Lord!  He has triumphed over death.  He had guaranteed the believer’s future resurrection.  He has guaranteed my resurrection!
The verse preceding 1 Corinthians 15:17 ties together these two events: “For if the dead rise not, then is not Christ raised.”  What a comfort to know that God’s Word is sure and true because it was written by the One Who Himself is the very embodiment of Truth!  He will bring to pass all that is written in It.  More specifically: One day yet to come He will raise from the dead every believer, for Christ Himself rose from the dead. 
Death, as we know it, is merely the end of our human life that is marked by sin.  It is then the beginning of everlasting life marked by the ultimate salvation from the presence of sin.  Death is leaving behind a finite knowledge and understanding of God and entering into His very presence to bow down and worship Him for all eternity.
How wonderful to have such an incredible hope!

Still Learning

Why does it seem like almost every lesson God brings into my life involves trusting Him?   I have been thinking about that question and here are a few conclusions I have came to (not necessarily in the order of importance and not necessarily with chapter and verse to back them up) regarding why God continues to place "Learn to Trust" on my daily list of spiritual homework. 

1.  Learning to trust the Lord demands a continual dependence on Him.  If I were to master trusting in the Lord, where would that place humility and dependence on the all-sufficiency of the Lord in the life of the believer?

2.  The continual need to trust in the Lord results in a constant reminder of who I am in comparison to Who God is:  God is the One who remains the same.  He is the One Who is faithful to His never-changing Word.  He is the One Who has promised and will fulfill His promises.  In contrast, however, I am the one who constantly doubts.  I am the one who is fickle in my relationship with Him.  I am the one who may say one things one minute, and then do something totally contrary to what I just said the next minute.  God is the One Who is never-changing.  I can trust Him. 

3.  Learning to trust the Lord is not something unique to my life:  Trusting is a part of my spiritual walk with the Lord.  All throughout the Bible, we find account after account of individuals who struggled with understanding and following God's plan...and God had to remind them of Who He is-- that they could trust Him.  Way back in Genesis, Abraham and Sarah, both mentioned in the famous chapter of faith, had to learn to trust the Lord.  The wandering Israelites, and then the conquering Israelites, produced countless incidences in areas where they trusted (or failed to trust) the Lord. The Apostle Paul gives testimony of when he really did not understand why God would allow the "thorn in his flesh", but even in not fully understanding, Paul  had the deep-seated trust and confidence in God's grace and strength: He could continue to trust the Lord. 

No, I don't think I will ever hand in my final exam for the course "Trusting God 101." But...as each test comes and goes, it is wonderful to be able to testify of God's incredible faithfulness and then to grow in a confidence that not only could I trust Him in the past, but I can continue to trust Him in the future! 

No…but YES!

Do I always understand why?  No.
Do things always end up the way they’re expected to end? No.
Does it always make reasonable sense?  No.
Is life always easy?  No.

Is God in control?  Yes! 

Is God good?  Yes! 

Is He faithful to His Word?  Yes!

Because God is in control…
Because  He is good…
Because He is faithful…

Can I trust Him, even when I may not understand?  Yes! 

Can I be confident that He will accomplish His best through the events of life?  Yes!

Can I have the expectation that He will keep His promises?  Yes!

Can I be at peace that He will lead each step of the way and make His perfect will clear as I obey Him?  Yes! 

---

Don’t we serve an awesome God? 

It’s about people!

“What defines ministry?”  This question has been rolling around in my head off and on over the last year or so, but particularly  so during the last few weeks while I was on choir tour. Is ministry always about being in some kind of position of leadership? Is it just about having an organized program that takes place on a regular basis? Is it just for those who go into “full-time ministry”?    I don’t think so.

As I already mentioned, choir tour brought this question to the forefront of my mind.  Travelling to almost twenty churches scattered throughout four different states with twenty-three other people to sing and share the Word is ultimately about ministry, is it not?  But while we were on tour, was the ministry of the team only through song and preaching? What about the time spent visiting with host families after the service? What about those times of simply being polite and making conversation with person standing all alone in the back of the church? Is it really just about being polite? 

I struggled with wanting to be sincere and genuinely interested when asking a complete stranger about her grandchildren or career, yet at the same time, knowing that I probably wouldn’t ever see her again after I left a few hours later. “What is the point in it all if it is so ‘short-term’?” “Is it really worth it?” ”I’m here to minister, not just to have fun.” These statements bounced around in my head like a tennis ball on a tennis court.  

I’m thankful, however, that I to see a little glimpse of the reality of the potential for ministry beyond the “planned program.”  I never would have imagined that simply introducing myself to a retirement-aged couple sitting in the sanctuary, and then talking with them for less than ten minutes, would result in that same couple then expressing several times how much they appreciated my coming to talk with them! I was taken aback and inwardly astounded. Here I thought I was just being polite. 

Little by little, I am beginning to see and perhaps, slowly understand, that life is about people, and people equal ministry.  The possibilities of how that specifically plays out are endless. Yes, “ministry” does include the formal aspect that is often thought of when the very word is mentioned, but it also consists of what we might call the “mundane” things as well. God can use the simplest actions to be a blessing and encouragement to others in ways that we’ll probably never know until we all get to  heaven.

Don’t pass up opportunities to be a blessing to someone in your life.  God may use even though you yourself don’t realize it!  

=)

This picture makes me laugh...

  The guy in this picture makes me smile...his name is Isaac and I like him a lot!
And yes, in case you were wondering, he's my boyfriend!

I like quotes :)

“In no way does man reveal his littleness more effectively than when he exhibits surprise over the fact that there are realities in the universe which he cannot understand.”

Lewis S. Chafer

I was recently reminded that I am to "give thanks always for all things."

What does that mean? "All things" means everything. No exceptions. No "if's" or "buts" about it. It is a command, and it is in the Word. It is directed to me!

My conclusion? I am to give thanks for all things. This means it is to happen during times when everything is going along smoothly. It also applies to when life couldn't seem to get more stressful, and then I discover that it is possible! :)

God is good.

On my mind right now...

It is so easy to become apathetic and complacent in the Christian life. We're afraid to be the extreme one in the group so we ignore the symptoms of something being wrong. But God demands a life of holiness, a life separated from the world. He desires His children to be lights in a world of darkness.

Galatians 2:20 says that "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me."

Romans 12:1-2 challenges the believer concerning his everyday walk before the Lord: "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.

2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God."

Galatians 5:16 declares the key to having victory over living a life in the flesh: "This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh."

I am thankful for my teachers here at school who desire to see us students living the Christian walk the way God intended it to be lived.

Life is so full of things I could write about here on my blog:
homework, the challenge of "what am I doing after Cornerstone" decisions, the incredible truths that God is teaching me through His Word, RA-hood, friends in general and friends in more specific terms, Christmas break, the delightful experience of surprising the rest of the student-body with senior sneak, the multiple opportunities to grow that God has placed in my life recently, my opinion about a variety of things, and on the list could go.

Maybe one of these days I will get around to posting about some of these things...