Growth

Hey everyone, it has been so long!

So I've been back at University for a few weeks now. Time is flying by. This semester has felt a little different than normal. At first I thought it was because of some of the changes I was getting used to; some of my friends graduating and no longer being here, stuff like that. But, I think there is something more going on here.

This semester, I have felt way more open to God than I was before. I have been more excited to be reading the Bible, I listen more intently during chapel services; I just feel more eager to learn.

And boy, when you are eager to learn, the things you will learn are incredible.

I've been spending some time reading in Colossians. This is an amazing book of the Bible to read. It's a letter from Paul to a church in the city of Colosse. Paul wrote a lot of letters, as you find out when looking at the New Testament. This letter is just... it's so encouraging to read.

I feel like God has really wanted me to be closer and to grow more in Him. As I was thinking about that, guess what verse I saw? Colossians 2:7, which says, "Let your roots grow down into Him, and let your lives be built on him."(NLT)

I started at the beginning, and in chapter 1, I saw another verse about growth; "Then the way you live will always honor and please the Lord, and your lives will produce every kind of good fruit. All the while, you will grow as you learn to know God better and better." (Colossians 1:10)***

Growth isn't always fun, and it definitely is not easy. But God can place an excitement and a desire for growth in your heart; and He will if you really and truly want it. It will mean doing some hard things, like confessing you are wrong to God and maybe even to an accountability partner. But in the end, God will work some amazing things out and will be able to take your life, and help you "grow as you learn to know God better and better."

Taking time in silence with God is a way to grow. Reading the Scriptures is another. I have found value in reading the Scripture I am studying more than once. It helps me to digest the ideas more, and reveals new things to me. Reading our Bible is only boring if we make it boring.
Always go into your time of devotions open and ready to learn. You will come away feeling refreshed and energized and excited about what you are learning.

Keep learning.
Keep seeking.
Keep growing.

*** I have a side note about this verse that I want to include. Whenever something starts with the word "then," it means that you need to go back and look at the rest of the context. Paul is writing about how people had been praying for this church, and how this church had heard the Good News from Epaphras, who was a beloved co-worker (v.3-7). Paul continued on, saying that they have not stopped praying for the believers in Colosse since they had first heard about them. They asked God to give spiritual wisdom and understanding to these people so then they could live in a way that is honorable and pleasing to the Lord (v. 9-10).

Two things I want to point out:
1) Having people who pray for you is good and a necessary part of growth. Having someone who you know is praying for you is encouraging and helpful in your growth.
2) Praying for others is another part of growth. Praying for others helps them grow, and helps you grow too.

Overwhelmed?

Yep. It's that time of year. It is so busy, no matter what you are doing. It's time to start preparing for the holiday season; for students, it's exam time, aka time to cry endlessly, get little or no sleep, and begin feeling crazy for coming back to school. Maybe that's only me...

Something I have found... which I still have to work on.... is my attitude. My attitude when I get overwhelmed, when I get frustrated, sad, or annoyed determines how I will act/react. My attitude needs to change sometimes so that I can respond better and not react so snappily.

Being positive helps. Thinking about things in a positive way really helps you to better focus and be a better influence on your outlook.

Having friends who can snap you back into reality and be there to support you are important too. I'm thankful for the couple of friends I have who do this for me.

When you begin feeling overwhelmed, how do you cope?

Here are a couple of suggestions that may help you to not be so overwhelmed...

1. TAKE TIME WITH GOD: Be alone with God. This can be a great relaxation time. I like sitting down with my Bible, journal, and good devo book... lots of peace fills me when I take time to relax.

2. RELAX: Focus on things that you enjoy. Carve out time to be alone or be with others, whatever you want to do.

3. SLOW DOWN: Try to not be so busy. Get rid of some of the things that you do not have to do, and just focus on the things you need to.

4. ENJOY YOURSELF: Have fun once in a while! Schedule time to have fun. Do not let yourself always be bogged down in work.

5. PRAY, FIRST THING! It amazes me how when I pray in the morning, I feel better all through the day. I am more productive and am more focused. I enjoy my day more and I am more positive. Devotional time in the morning is hard, but it's worth it y'all!

I hope some of this helps ya. I'm not perfect. I'm not good at these things, but I am working on it. Hopefully someone is helped by this. Remember, God's got you! Love y'all!

Contentment in Discontent

The world today bombards us with all the newest things we should have. Media tells us we need this new product that has just come out in order for us to be stronger, thinner, more beautiful, more successful, etc. We are always on the lookout for the newest things instead of being content with what we have.

This is a problem that is not just with our things. It can be with our work, our home, our looks; you name it. Each one of us can be discontent with things at some point or another.

We often want to change things and be better at things, the do more, be more kind of attitude. But that is not always the best thing for us.

Sometimes we have to learn to be content with where we are. Sometimes we need to stop trying so hard to get where we think we want to be, and focus on being happy right where we are. God can't bless us in the way that He would if we are constantly searching for something else to fill the void, that empty spot inside us, instead of letting Him take it over.

We have to learn to be content in God's love, and trust in the plan that He has for us. We will never find contentment until we let God into our heart and let Him take over all our wants and desires. We need to lay down our wants and our desires for earthly things; our discontent with our earthly position in life, and learn to let God fill that discontent.

The one thing we can be discontent in is our relationship with Him. We need to always want to be learning, growing, studying, and disciplining ourselves to grow in Him, and have a fire to learn about Him.

Let's become more content with our position here on earth, and more discontent in our relationship with God.

Love?

Since I am getting to the age when I am starting to think about marriage, I started reading a book about preparing for marriage. And one of the things I am challenging myself to do as I read through this book, as part of my devotional time, is to look in the Bible and begin to understand what love really is.

Love is so misunderstood by our society. Honestly, I have found that I have fallen into this trap of love is a feeling, when it really is about a state of mind. We are told that love will fulfill all our needs, or that love is useless and stupid. But the reality is that love is a decision, it is not based on feeling. Granted, feelings can be part of what love is. But love should not be based solely on feelings.

According to 1 Corinthians 13, love is patient and kind. Love is never jealous, proud, boastful, rude, demanding of its way, irritable, etc. (To learn more, just read the passage. ;)

This type of love applies to all of our relationships... family relationships, friendships, and romantic relationships. Love is a decision to be patient and kind, not jealous, proud, rude, etc.

We as Christians have been given a high calling to live in love, all the time, with everyone we meet. (John 15:12) We are to be a living example; we are to live in love, showing love to others, just as Christ has showed love to us. Here is a question to reflect on... if we really loved others, genuinely, in real and perfect love, how many problems of our world would disappear?

ACTION

• Be an example of love to those you meet.
• Reflect on your understanding of love. Then think about what love really is, and study it.
• Look up passages of Scripture that talk about love, and its real meaning.

Making the Most of EVERY Opportunity

Ephesians 5:16 "Make the most of every opportunity in these evil days." (NLT)

Ephesians is an awesome book of the Bible. I have to say, most anything Paul writes in the Bible is super powerful. But that is because it was inspired by our Almighty, Great and Powerful God. However, I am getting off track.

This verse tells us to make the most of EVERY opportunity. Not just some opportunities. EVERY opportunity.

What on earth does that even mean?

Looking at the context of the chapter, Paul is addressing how a Christian is to live in this world that is overcome by darkness, sin, and just plain ol' evil. Paul is warning Christians to not participate in evil deeds, but expose them. (vs 11) He warns Christians to be careful in how they are living. (vs 15) In verse 17, we are also told to not act thoughtlessly, but know what the Lord wants us to do.

There is always a way to make the most of every opportunity. When we are faced with temptation of doing some evil deed (let's say party or drink) we can take that opportunity to reach out to Jesus, and maybe even teach those who are around us about Jesus, and not give in to the temptation to sin. We can learn to say no to the temptation, and do the right thing; aka, make the most of the opportunity.

When we are tempted to live and act in a thoughtless way, (talking behind people's backs, being mean to others, etc.) we can think, "Is this something the Lord would want me to do, or approve of me doing?" Answering this question honestly can give you an opportunity to really decide whether you are going to make the most of the opportunity before you, or if you are going to make a poor choice, and live in a thoughtless and careless manner.

Let's bring this closer to home now. You are at work, and everything seems to be going wrong. Nothing is working out the way it should, and everyone is grumpy. YOU have a choice. YOU can decide whether you are going to fall into this grumpy and negative state of mind, or you can do what you can to make things better. Keep a positive attitude. Encourage others. Be kind and helpful. Don't let the grumpiness spread, but try to bring smiles and laughter back.

Maybe this was something only I needed to realize. Maybe this post was just for me. But, I think it is a valuable lesson for all of us to learn...

GO OUT AND MAKE THE MOST OF EVERY OPPORTUNITY! :)

Seek & Find

Sometimes it is hard to remember that God is with us no matter what. It is easy to lose sight of that when we are going through hard times. Sometimes we feel like God doesn't care when we are in those hard times and hard situations, and feel alone and abandoned. However, those are the times when God can be closest to us.

God never leaves us. He never forsakes us. When we feel that there is distance between us and God, it is because we have put it there. We have walked away from God, or just put distance between Him and us. He doesn't give up on us. He loves us always, forever, no matter what. And He is willing to forgive you, if you will only ask.

Ask God to be with you in the midst of the hard times. He will be with you, helping you and guiding you. He will be with you regardless, but asking Him to be with you will help you to feel Him in a different way. Trust Him no matter what is going on, and seek Him with all your heart. You will find Him. He is faithful.

If we are unfaithful, He remains faithful, for He can't deny who He is.
- 2 Timothy 2:13 -

Hard Work

Life is a series of hard things that we have to endure. Almost anything you want in your life requires hard work.

It really bothers me when people say that my generation is so lazy, and is unwilling to work hard. I get bothered because I had parents who taught me the value of hard work, and the importance of working hard, and I do work hard.

Don't get the impression that I am on here to lift myself up. There are times I am lazy and do not want to work, and don't work nearly as hard as I should. Everyone has times like that. But just take a moment to evaluate your life; are you working as hard as you know you should, and quite easily could? That question is as much for me as anyone out there reading this.

If you want to see change, work for it. If you want to make a difference in the world, it requires work, same as anything else. It just matters how dedicated you are, and if you actually care. If you do, you will be willing to work hard to see things through, and desire to see the positive changes happen.

So it is up to you. Are you going to be a hard worker for the Lord, or are you going to accept the title of being lazy and a slacker? Our work and service to the Lord is hard work, and it is important to remember in all we do to work for Him, no matter whether we have a job in a church, as a waitress, a cashier, car salesman, lawyer, judge, doctor, nurse, etc.

Want to change the perceptions on our generation? STEP UP.

BE THE CHANGE. WORK HARD FOR THE LORD!

Colossians 3:23 - Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters. (NIV)

{For more verses on hard work, simply google verses about working for the Lord. You will find tons of verses and motivation to work for Him!}