12.14.12. May We Never Forget

I have been glued to the TV as many Americans have been since last Friday morning. For some reason, this tragedy has hit me hard. No, I haven't been crying my eyes out all day everyday in mourning over the loss of 20 young lives and 7 (yes, I included the killer's mom) adult lives. But to an extent this tragedy hits home. I'm not from CT or a teacher or a parent. But I have been a teacher in a first grade classroom; I taught PE to elementary kids. I did that my last two years of high school. During those two years of PEPI (Physical Education Pupil Instructor) I was responsible for those students during my hour or so being in charge of them for their PE period everyday or every other day depending on their elective schedule. I naturally have a protective nature and would have done just as the 6 heroines in Sandy Hook Elementary did. In the elementary building at EWA the two classrooms I taught in were the first on the right and on the left. Had some psycho came into the school, he or she would have had easy access to the students that I taught, including when I could have been in there with them. Kids have a very close place in my heart. I am broken over this tragedy and am praying for the families and community involved.

But I don't want to end this post on such a sad note. There is hope in the middle of this madness. Jesus Christ is only where this hope can be found. Did you know that America is ranked third out of the whole world as far as percentages in the number of lost people? This tragedy shows how desperate America is for the Gospel. I know that God will use this for His glory. Does it make sense? Clearly it does not. But those 20 kids are with Him. They get to celebrate Christmas with the "birthday boy" Himself.

Brothers & sisters in Christ, pray. Pray for the families. Pray for the other students, teachers and staff at Sandy Hook. Pray for Newtown, CT. Pray for our legislatures and representatives who will be making some tough decisions as far as gun control. I know this may sound so small, but the sermon at my church this past weekend was ironically about prayer. And no, my pastor did not plan it that way. God did. Prayer is our biggest tool. It is direct communication with God. I know that if we as a body come together to pray (since most of us cannot make a pilgrimage to CT) God will answer us and He will provide healing for all the hurting hearts in this tragedy.

Use this as an opportunity for the Gospel. America needs the Gospel. This was our wake-up call.

Think Twice, Before Suicide

Video I made that deals with suicide... and how it is never necessary and everyone needs to think twice before they consider it. Life is too beautiful to end it before it's truly your time to go...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4IVzT-6WyUQ&feature=g-upl

Take risks, have adventures, & make the most of each day

"If the clouds are full of rain, they empty themselves on the earth, and if a tree falls to the south or to the north, in the place where the tree falls, there it will lie. He who observes the wind will not sow, and he who regards the clouds will not reap. As you do not know the way the spirit comes to the bones in the womb of a woman with child, so you do not know the work of God who makes everything. In the morning sow your seed, and at evening withhold not your hand, for you do not know which will prosper, this or that, or whether both alike will be good." -Ecclesiastes 11:3-6

I've been studying through Ecclesiastes since the beginning of the summer. These were the verses I spent time studying today. God has really taught me a lot through this book and these verses have extreme relevance in everyday living, especially in my life right now.

Solomon tells us that life is absolutely uncertain. We are not promised anything. But we can know and trust the Creator who is ultimately and always in complete control. We must not wait for perfect conditions in life to do everything. We must take risks.

I'm graduating in 7 months. Whoa! I have to let that sink in for a moment. I know God wants me to give my summer to SWO. SWO13 is my immediate post-MC plans. And after that I'm drawing a blank right now. Only the good Lord knows what's gonna happen and right now He's telling me to be obedient and go back to SWO and then trust Him and what He's gonna direct me to do after the summer.

God's ways are much higher than our ways. Solomon reiterates that in v.5. We must trust God. Do I? Yep. He has proved Himself to me many times that now I know to simply trust Him.

v. 6 sticks out to me. I like to keep busy most of the time- unless like today it was storming all day and I needed a mental health day and literally slept til 5pm! Solomon tells us to "sow our seed in the morning" that means a 9-5 job (or whatever your full time job schedule looks like) and "withhold not your hand in the evening" so keep busy after work. Why? "For ou do not know which will prosper, this or that, or whether both alike will be good."

Solomon tells us to keep busy because only good will ultimately come from it. I don't think God wants us working 2+ jobs but He wants us to make the most of our time. Parents, spend time investing in your kids after work. Kids, spend time learning from your folks and deepening friendships for the Gospel. And don't waste evenings watching TV all them. Spend time with God or find a hobby you can use for His glory.

Life App: We need a spirit of trust and adventure facing life's risks and opportunities with God-directed enthusiasm and faith.

Quality Time... not just a "Quiet Time"

"We have adopted a Christianity consumed with little devotional thoughts from God for the day, supplemented by teaching in the church filled with entertaining stories and trite opinions on how to be a better person and live a better life in the twenty-first century." ~David Platt, Radical 

This is a very true statement. In America today, Christians have busy lives. Being busy I don't think is a sin in itself. Busyness that causes us to be distracted from our relationship with God and place idols in front of Him is what is sin. Many people have a daily quiet time in which they read a little devotional book or a chapter in the Bible to spend some time with God and may say a prayer for a few minutes. But honestly, is that truly enough spiritual food for our souls?

I mean think about it... physically we are to eat 3 big meals a day, or 6 small meals a day in order to survive on a healthy diet. And eating is something 99.9% of the human population take seriously. What about feeding ourselves spiritually? Do we chew on God's Word in big chunks 3 times a day? Or do we take time to talk to Him a few minutes every few hours or so? I'm not trying to make you think that we need to have a daily check list for our relationship with God or that there are certain rituals that we must do in order to gain acceptance. But what I am saying is that we really need to take a close, in-depth look into how important God and our relationship with Him is to us.

God is available to us 24/7/365 (366 on leap year ;) ). But how often do we make ourselves available to Him? We always want God to be there for us, and no doubt He is, but we never want to be there for Him. God made us for Him. He didn't make us for us. Most of us believe that if we give God 5-10 minutes a day then we are doing Him a favor. That's not the case. In fact, we need to spend time with God (whether it's by reading the Bible, praying, listening to a podcast, personal worship, etc) many times a day. And I just gave multiple options for us to use/do.

Find things that work for you. I enjoy reading the Bible, journaling about what I learned, praying, listening to a podcast, reading a faith-based book, and listening to Christian music as ways of spending time with God each day and feeding my soul so that the Holy Spirit will be strengthened in me to fight and make war against my sinful nature.

"If you and I are going to penetrate our culture and the cultures of the world with the Gospel, we desperately need minds saturated with God's Word." ~David Platt, Radical

Jesus + Nothing = Everything

"I have a confession to make: I'm addicted to the Gospel. It burns inside of me. And it seems to get hotter every day. I can't stop thinking about it, talking about it, writing about it, reading about it, wrestling with it, reveling in it, standing on it, and thanking God for it. For better or for worse, my focus has become myopic. My passion has become singular. Lesser things don't distract me as easily. I'm not anxious as I used to be. I don't fret over things as much. I'm more relaxed. What others think of me (either good or bad) doesn't matter as much as it used to. I'm enjoying life more. The pressure's off. I'm beginning to understand the length and breadth of the freedom Jesus purchased for me. I'm beginning to realize that the Gospel is way more radical, offensive, liberating, shocking, and counter-intuitive than any of us realize. And that's beginning to be okay with me."   ~Tullian Tchividjian, Jesus + Nothing = Everything

This quote was revealed to me today in my Sunday School class today at church. It rocked me. The Gospel is something that I have prayed becomes my passion. It is after all the thing that gives me life. Jesus and what He did for me, you and everyone else gives us all life if we accept it as a gift from Him. The Gospel is what our lives should be lived for. Not a car, house, fat bank account, etc. There is no American Dream in the Bible. But Christ did promise to give us a fulfilling life and through Him that life can be lived to its fullest (John 10:10).

Many people don't want to live for Jesus because it requires us to reject ourselves and everything that we want  (Luke 9:23-27; 14:25-33). But honestly, when we live life our way, are we truly satisfied? Have we REALLY attained that level of true happiness? Chances are, your answer is no. Life is not about you, it's not about me, it's not about our economy or gas prices. It's about Jesus.

"You were created by Jesus, for Jesus. And you know that that gives you? Purpose." ~Brody Holloway

Walk the walk

Colossians 1:10

“So as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to Him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.”

ESV: “so as” the wisdom and understanding (v.9) would then lead to changed lives, for it would enable Christians “to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord”. “to walk” is a Jewish metaphor for conducting or behaving oneself. It corresponds to the Hebrew term halak. The rabbis had an entire al tradition, later written down, called Hlakah, that guided them in their behavior. As a former rabbi, Paul calls believers “to walk” not according to oral traditions of Judaism but in a way that is fully pleasing to the Lord JC. Although Christians are completely justified from the moment of initial saving faith, they are not fully sanctified and they can do things that either please or displease God each day. Every good work is here viewed as the fruit of salvation in the life of a Christian, not as a prerequisite for entering a relationship with Christ. Paul’s reference to bearing fruit…and increasing brings to mind the parable of the sower (Mark 4:1-9, 13-20). The seed sown on the good soil bore fruit 30, 60 and 100 fold.

What does it mean to please God? Following the 10 commandments? Well, yeah. I mean those are good “rules to live by” but I mean that’s not all that God wants us to do. Walking in a manner worthy of the Lord is what pleases God. Conforming to the image of His Son on a daily basis is what pleases Him. Bearing fruit in every good work is about not just saying you know Jesus but actually living Jesus. Living Jesus is not easy, especially in this day in time. But as believers we are called to do it. So pull yourself up by the bootstrap and be like Nike and just do it. Increasing in the knowledge of God just means to pursue Christ and pursue Him hard. He’s pursuing you hard, so you should do the same for Him. 

Never stop praying. Never stop pursuing.

Colossians 1:9a

“For this reason, since the day we heard about you we have not stopped praying for you…”

                This is so important. We are a body of believers and in order for this body to work we have to pray for one another and build each other up. I pray daily for the man God has called me to marry. I also pray daily for my sisters in Christ that are with me here at Meredith. I pray for my bros and sistas in Christ around the world so that they can have the strength and support to reach the unreached and fulfill God’s call on their lives. Never cease to pray for the body of Christ, it helps keep it going.

Colossians 1:9b

“…and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of His will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding.”

                ESV: Knowledge and wisom were offered by the false teachers in Colossae. Paul prays that the Colossians will have the wisdom and understanding that comes only from God. “Spiritual” means given by the Holy Spirit.

                LifeApp: Sometimes we wonder how to pray for missionaries and other leaders we have never met. Paul had never met the Colossians, but he faithfully prayed for them. His prayers teach us how to pray for others, whether we know them or not. We can request that they 1. Understand God’s will, 2. Gain spiritual wisdom

                Spiritual growth is key in any believer’s life. It’s crucial to grow in Christ so that God can use you more for the furthering of His kingdom. If you want to know Christ intimately then you have to spend time with Him. God gives us written revelation through His word so that we can gain knowledge about Him. God also reveals Himself in other ways as well. You just have to be listening to Him close enough so that you don’t miss it.

                If you pursue Christ then He’ll reveal Himself and His plan for  you in His timing which will be perfect for you. Just trust and pursue Christ. 

Love unconditionally and Preach the Gospel

Colossians 1:7-8

“just as you learned it from Epaphras our beloved fellow servant. He is a faithful minister of Christ on your behalf and has made known to us your love in the Spirit.”

v.7- Life App: Epaphras had founded the church at Colosse while Paul was living in Ephesus (Acts 19:10). Epaphras may have been converted in Ephesus, and then he returned to Colosse, his hometown. For some reason, he visited Rome and, while there, told Paul about the problem within the Colossian heresy. This prompted Paul to write this letter. Epaphras is also mentioned in Philemon 23 (the Colossian church met at Philemon’s house)

ESV: ‘you learned it from Epaphras’ makes it clear that Paul did not plant the church at Colosse. The people heard the gospel from Epaphras who is a fellow Colossian. The term “learned” is closely related to the term “disciple”. More than merely listening to a simple gospel presentation Paul makes it clear that the gospel involves systematic instruction in the faith and how to live as a Christian.

                ‘on your behalf’- The ESV Footnote indicates that some manuscripts read “on our behalf”. If this is the original reading, this would mean that Epaphras has been a faithful ambassador in place of Paul among the Colossians.

HRM: So in v.7 we finally get to find out how the church in Colosse got started. This makes me think about how God has given all of His children certain skills and abilities to reach certain groups of people with the Gospel. He’s also made us to be from certain areas so that we can relate to those people, share the gospel and disciple them. Just like how Epaphras has done in his hometown. I can apply this by reaching people of JoCo; Zebulon; NC; etc. And even the MC community as well.

v.8 Life App: Because of their love for one another, Christians can have an impact that goes far beyond their neighborhoods and communities. Christian love comes from the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5:22). The Bible speaks of it as an action, attitude, not just an emotion. Love is a by-product of our new life in Christ (Romans 5:5, 1 Corinthians 13). Christians have NO excuse for not loving, because Christian love is a decision to act in the best interest of others.

This past week has been a hard week. Loving those around me unconditionally like Christ has been so difficult. Cornhuskin’ is bringing trial after trial after trial. It’s getting ridiculous to be honest. This verse and explanation is good to me. It’s a good reminder that no matter how much someone pisses me off or screws me over, I’m called to love them; even if they don’t seem lovable at that point in time. ‘in the spirit’ my strength to love the unlovable comes from the Holy Spirit. I can’t do it on my own. Christ gives me the strength to do this.

The Gospel is Spreading!

Colossians 1:6

“…that has come to you. All over the world the Gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God’s grace in all its truth.”

Life App: wherever Paul went, he preached the Gospel- to Gentile audiences, to hostile Jewish leaders, and even to his Roman guards. Whenever people believed in the message that Paul spoke, they were changed. God’s word is not just for our information but for our transformation! Becoming a Christian means beginning a whole new relationship with God, not just turning a new leaf or determining to do right. New believers have a changed purpose, direction, attitude and behavior. They are no longer seeking to serve themselves but are bearing fruit for God. How is the gospel reaching others through your life?

ESV: In the whole world, it has been roughly 30 years since Christ’s death and resurrection & Pentecost. The Gospel has indeed spread from Jerusalem into Syria, Asia Minor, Greece, Italy, and likely into Egypt, North Africa, and Persia as well.

This verse is so encouraging. Missions has been on my mind a lot this week and in the past as well. I find myself constantly looking at YWAM and other mission opportunities when I’m not facebooking, playing games or doing homework. The Gospel has consumed me. God has laid all age groups on my heart and even the entertainment industry. The desire to go to grad school is in me as well, but idk I’m just taking it day by day doing little and big things for the glory of God and the sake of the Gospel. Then sometimes I just want to stay in America, work a normal job and share the Gospel that way and go on mission trips when I can. Of course a lot of this will become more clear in God’s perfect timing. I refuse to waste my life by not living/sharing Jesus to people whether I’m here or abroad. Everywhere you go there are lost people so always be willing to share Christ, here, even if at times it could be awkward and not PC.

HOPE!

Colossians 1:5

“Because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in the word of truth, the gospel.”

Life App: In his intro comments, therefore, Paul commended the Colossians for their faith, love and hope- 3 main emphases of Christianity. He deliberately omitted the word knowledge because of the ‘special knowledge’ aspect of heresy. It is not what we know that brings Salvation, but whom we know. Knowing Christ is knowing God. We can hope for what God has for us in heaven because we know that our future destination and salvation are sure (1 Peter 1:3-4). We are free to live for Christ and love others. When you find yourself doubting or wavering in your faith/love, remember your destination-heaven.

ESV: In this passage faith and love are based on hope, which is presented not as the action of hoping but as something objective-in the sense of “the thing hoped for”-that Christians can anticipate with confidence (Colossians 3:4). Because it is laid up for you in heaven no earthly ruler or demonic power can rob believers of the reality of this hope. The word of the truth this contrasts with the false teaching Paul later describes ‘empty deciet’ (2:8).

This verse goes along with the two previous verses that are also encouraging. We know that our faith in Christ, our love for Him and others is not in vain because of the promise of the hope we have that is waiting for us in Heaven. Christ is at the right hand of the Father preparing heaven for us because we are anxiously awaiting what our true home holds for us. We know about the hope we have because it is laid out plan and simple in the Gospel. Reading in “Jesus Freaks: Martyrs” you hear all about those who are dying for their faith in Christ. They die for Him because they love Him and have hope that they will see Him when they enter heaven. The hope is a promise from Christ that we’ll dwell with Him for Eternity and all pain and junk will be no more. That’s the hope we have in Christ that is promised to us in the Gospel. 

As Iron Sharpens Iron...

Colossians 1:3

“We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you.”

What an encouragement huh? This makes me think of SWO and the body of believers that I was a part of there. It made me think about small group in the mornings when we would prayer for each other and the SWO missionaries. The past few days the SWO homesickness has started to creep its way in. But that’s not to say that God hasn’t been at work here at MC since yesterday afternoon. I’ve already had 3 convos with MCGs (all in my class) about their relationships with Christ. One is definitely seeking Christ and becoming more and more like Him, the other 2 I would say are half-way, not wholeheartedly seeking Christ. But still it’s been really encouraging. To me this one little verse shows the importance of working together as a body and encouraging and praying for each other. Edification in the body of Christ is key, very important so that the Great Commission can be fulfilled. What’s funny is that neither one of my study Bibles mentioned what the Holy Spirit was showing me. This is definitely God comforting me in this time of homesickness but eagerness for ministry at MC.

We need to EDIFY, ENCOURAGE, and PRAY for our brothers and sisters in Christ.

Colossians 1:4

“…because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love you have for all the saints.”

Ok, so this is really a continuation of v.3. However, what I got out of v.3 was about us praying for one another as brothers and sisters in Christ. And something that has struck me here in v.4 is that we need to live a life that shows our relationship with Christ-- A life that is very evident of a daily pursuit of Him and intimacy with Him. Paul prayed for this group of believers because he had HEARD of their faith and of their love. We need to shine so bright that other believers not within our closest borders will know of us or the work that God is doing so that they can pray. And also that more lost people will see Christ in our lives and seek Him out so that they can come and known Him personally.

Faith and love are two out of the 3 main Christian virtues (according to my 2 study Bibles). Faith is very important b/c it is the basis of everything that we do. It is why we can love each other and have the hope that Christ gives.

Loving people can be hard, trust me. Excuse me, let me rephrase that… loving people on our own strength and based on our own standards can be hard. But if we love people the way Christ did, relying on His strength, we can love people unconditionally the way He did.

Now there are some Christians out there who believe that we should share Christ through our actions. To an extent that is correct. But we don’t just do that. We talk about Christ. A way to show our love to somebody is to have a lil cuppa coffee and chat about life and through the time of the chit-chat bring up the things that matter… the Eternal things. That’s a way to love somebody. Sharing Christ with them so that they have the opportunity to turn to Him and be saved from the bondage of sin and hell.

Now, here, in this verse it mentions saints. So it’s not referring to the lost, but I just felt that I should go on that little soap box for a minute. The work “saint” means “set apart” that is referring to Christians. God has set us apart to do His work, through us. Isn’t that cool? That God would choose somebody like me and you, ordinary people to do extraordinary things. An extraordinary thing that God wants us to do is to love the others that He has set apart. By loving each other and building community then we can continue to further the kingdom and increase the number of those who are set apart. 

Hello. My name is...

Intro to Colossians

Author(s): Paul and Timothy

Purpose: To combat errors in the church and to show that believers have everything they need in Christ. Paul writes this letter to respond to this situation (false teaching) and to encourage these believers in their growth toward Christian maturity. Paul takes this opportunity to encourage these believers to press on to maturity in Christ by continuing in their battle against sin, pursing holiness in Christ, and learning to live as distinctively Christian households.

Colossians 1:1-2: The Greeting

Paul starts off by introducing himself and Timothy as the writers of this letter. Paul wrote this letter while he was in prison in Rome. Paul mentions that he is an apostle by the will of God. I think it is interesting how he tells them just how important his message is. He states this b/c Paul was not one of the original 12 that walked with Christ during His time here on earth.

Apostle- chosen and sent by God as a missionary or ambassador

By the will of God- that he was appointed; this was not just a matter of his own personal aspirations.

Colossae was a trading center and was a crossroads for many ideas and religions. The church of Colossae was founded by Epaphras (one of Paul’s converts). Paul was writing to this church to refute heretical teachings about Christ that had been causing confusion among the Christians there. Many cults and other religions had gone through it which I think is the reason why the heresy was so prominent and b/c all of the believers were young in their faith and didn’t necessarily know what was what. This is why it is so important to study the Bible so that you do know what is what and can defend your faith and also grow as well. 

Sorry for the delay....

I have not been on here in a long time! But it's all good... I'm doing alright and excited for what I am going to be doing with this blog now! During winter break (which is still going on) God laid it on my heart to start  back on my blog and since my Colossians study is coming to a close to post the notes I took in my journals on here for more discipleship for whoever reads this. So I am working on chapter one and will start posting those soon!

Stay tuned! :)