My walk is the only one I know. I look at other people and see that I know God does not want me dealing with their issues, but with mine. He's given me specific things in my life. I shall handle them the best that I can.
Flee the evil desires of youth, and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart. Don't have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels. And the Lord's servant must not quarrel; instead, he must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful. Those who oppose him he must gently instruct, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth, and that they will come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will. 2 Timothy 2:22-26 NIV
God wants us to follow Him no matter what our trials are. He wants us to pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace together with other Christians. Be kind to everyone. Hmmm, ever have a difficult time with that? I know I do sometimes. I have to bite on my tongue so I do not start quarrels. This is what we've been taught as kids... think about what you're going to say before you say it. Putting this into practice is difficult. It's much easier to just say whatever comes to mind, not thinking or caring about the other person. This is now how God wants us to treat each other. We need to be nice and loving to everyone, even those we do not like and those that sin against us.
To do this we need to know God's love. It's not possible without it. The only way we can learn to forgive and love others is by reading God's word and learning how He wants us to live. Once we learn how we're forgiven, then we can truly forgive someone else. Forgiving is a difficult thing for some, but it's amazing when you are able to do that.
God forgives us for our sins. For all the bad things we do in our lives. He still loves us... no matter. Now get off your butt and follow Him. Read his word. Live your life for Him!
Today it's a difficult day for me to do these things as I'm completely exhausted. Wednesday nights are late nights for me and already having lack of sleep in my system makes it more difficult to feel rested in the mornings. So today I'm doing the best I can to focus on Him and do what I can for Him, not me alone.
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Monday, October 25, 2010
Putting on my Armor
The Armor of God
Eph 6:10Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. 12For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.
19Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, 20for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.
Have I put on my armor today? Not as well as I would like, but that will improve with time. Just like anything else, the more you practice the better you can become at something. When you fall down trying, pick yourself up and try it again. This is where I am. I'm picking myself up and starting again. Wonder what this means? Basically, I have not been the Christian that I expect myself to be. I believe that if I am going to make an impact on anyone for God, then I need to live the life He wants me to be living. I need to seek him out every day. I need to pray continusly. Over and over, living on the Word of my God. The one true God!
13Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.
Every day we need to do this. Put on your armor of God. Each piece has a special meaning and it will help you walk with Him daily. Defeating the satan when he attacks you... which he will do it often. Just when you least expect it, you'll be hit with something. This is when He wants you to see Him. He's here with me daily. I can see God walking with me. Helping me to learn more and grow.
THE ARMOR OF GOD:
14Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place,
Here are two pieces; the belt of truth and the breastplate of righteousness. TRUTH - be truthful with God and yourself as well as others. The breastplate will protect your heart and help keep you righteous.
15and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.
Reading the word will make you ready for your race, each day.
16In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.
Your faith will definately help you get through anything that God allows satan to throw at you. No matter what if you are faithful with God, He will be there with you. He will not leave you alone, never. Life is no way near perfect, however, if you allow yourself to stay faithful God will carry you through whatever comes your way.
17Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God
The helmet and sword.... which is the word. This is so simple. The word of God (the bible) tells us how to handle things, what should be important in our lives. If we are not reading the word, we loose sight of what He wants of us. We forget, start putting other things first, instead of Him. So grab that helmet to remember those scriptures, or at least read the word. Make sure you have that sword in your hand to fight off the world. The world will try to corrupt you and lead you away from the truth. God's word is the truth.
8And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.
Pray, pray and then pray some more. Praying doesn't have to be anything specific. When I'm praying, I talk to God just like I talk to people. God is my best friend. He knows every little bit of me. He knows the good and the bad. He knows what will get me through a day and what will bring me down. I know that satan knows those things as well. When I get pummeled by satan, I know that God will pull be through.
Today I start fresh. I began my day in worship with Him. Singing in the shower, yep... listening to some great music and singing to Him. I am looking at my day in a fresh way. Each day is new and amazing. God did so much to make it possible for me to be here, even for me to be able to blog my spiritual walk so that you can read this. Without Him we would have no heaven. Jesus is the way and the truth. He died on the cross so you and I could get to heaven. When I think about that, it just amazes me. Someone died for me, knowing I was going to sin even when I don't want to or tell myself I'm not going to do that again.
God is amazing. He made a beautiful day. He made such wonderful smells, colors for us to see, tastes, plants to create medicines, gave us the brains how to use these things and above all, he gave us His son.
Saturday, October 16, 2010
Quest Camp... continued
I know I haven't finished my discussion on my experience at camp this year. There is still so much to tell. Our days at camp were a meer 7. That's it! Seven days to see God... It was the God channel... God all day every day! It was awesome!
Each day started with our time with God, showers, breakfast, and clean up. Once the slow part of the morning was over, then it was time for Worship LIVE. This was always a wonderful time filled with music galore! What a way to wake up in the morning! The singing was amazing!
We had morning messages after that. Each day was different and given by a different person. We learned about: The Father, The Son, The Holy Spirit, Holiness and Who Am I? After each morning message we had a reflection time. Each day was a little different. The day we learned about The Son there were cross stations around camp. We would go together in groups and learn by visually seeing what Jesus went through as he was crucified. Can you even imagine what He went through?
This was an experience that moved hearts! This was not just for the teens... the counselors were moved just as much by the same teachings.
Each day after our reflection time we had lunch then free time. Our lunches... well, they were a blast! This would be an understatement. How do you control 180 hungry teens and 40+ counselors and workers that would like to eat? You have to answer a question to get your table excused for a meal. Yep! The questions could be anything. Name that tune was always a great one. Then there were the questions about West Virginia... how funny is that? None of us are from there, except the camp leader! So that's how you control a mob of hungry people!
We always had some great music with our meals as well. Fun thing was when people would break out and dance or sing along with the music. There are a couple of videos from these meals. One is a blast... from Footloose... Devon was so funny, dancing just like Kevin Bacon! It was so much fun!
So, this is the first half of the day! So much already! We've been fed spiritually, physically and just having a great time!
Each day started with our time with God, showers, breakfast, and clean up. Once the slow part of the morning was over, then it was time for Worship LIVE. This was always a wonderful time filled with music galore! What a way to wake up in the morning! The singing was amazing!
We had morning messages after that. Each day was different and given by a different person. We learned about: The Father, The Son, The Holy Spirit, Holiness and Who Am I? After each morning message we had a reflection time. Each day was a little different. The day we learned about The Son there were cross stations around camp. We would go together in groups and learn by visually seeing what Jesus went through as he was crucified. Can you even imagine what He went through?
This was an experience that moved hearts! This was not just for the teens... the counselors were moved just as much by the same teachings.
Each day after our reflection time we had lunch then free time. Our lunches... well, they were a blast! This would be an understatement. How do you control 180 hungry teens and 40+ counselors and workers that would like to eat? You have to answer a question to get your table excused for a meal. Yep! The questions could be anything. Name that tune was always a great one. Then there were the questions about West Virginia... how funny is that? None of us are from there, except the camp leader! So that's how you control a mob of hungry people!
We always had some great music with our meals as well. Fun thing was when people would break out and dance or sing along with the music. There are a couple of videos from these meals. One is a blast... from Footloose... Devon was so funny, dancing just like Kevin Bacon! It was so much fun!
So, this is the first half of the day! So much already! We've been fed spiritually, physically and just having a great time!
October
It's so amazing how it's already October. It is so true that as you get older time goes by quicker. I really think we can slow it down in our own mind's eye if we really want to. This is my way of doing that. I take a step out of my day and write. This is where it begins, even when it's in the evening like right now.
Tomorrow is BYND (bring your neighbor day) at church. This has always been a struggle with me, inviting people. I know that satan is going to try to find ways to stop us from inviting others to see God's truth. In all honesty, I had the perfect opportunity this Thursday and I blew it. I did however, return to the topic and ask the person via email. There's been no response, but that's ok.
It's so difficult for me to ask people near where I live to join me at church. This is due to my location. There is a church within walking distance of my house, but instead of going to a local church I go to one that I know teaches the truth about God and his Word. Where people are not interpreting the bible as they want to, but as it's written. So, I drive 35 miles to get there. Most times I also pick up a teen whose family does not go either. So, I leave my house around 8am for the 10am service. I don't mind the drive most times, I enjoy driving and I have my iPOD with me 99% of the time. I will listen to my music and worship God on my drive! I think it's a great way to start a morning worship. Jammin' to some great Christian music.
This year I've definately learned to like other music, even rap! That has to do with camp! That's something else I need to finish up... my camp blog! I can't wait for next year's camp already... but I'll wait.
Last Saturday I was thrilled to be a chaperon to the midwest churches homecoming dance. Oh my gosh! It was awesome! The music was great! The kids were great! The dancing was awesome! I took 196 pictures!
The best thing was that I didn't tell many of the teens that I was going to be there, I wanted to surprise a few. Boy did I! The best response was by one young lady that was in my cabin this year. She was in line waiting to get in and came running up to me. Yelling my name and gave me a great big hug. It made me feel so special, I almost cried.
The bonds you forge with other believers can be so tight! Yes, even from a younger generation. I still have such respect for the teens I've gotten to know over the last two years. They can be so inspiring. So loving. So fun! They know what the truth is from God. They live as best as they can as Christians and still have a blast in life. They are a wonderful example for everyone to see!
Well, now all I'm thinking about are the kids from camp! Trust me, it's not a bad thing one bit. The experiences I've had over those two weeks (2009 & 2010) have totally changed me. What these teens go through and still they stand firm in their beliefs... makes my driving 35 miles one way seem like NOTHING.
They are truly amazing and am so glad that I have had the opportunity to get to know so many.
Tomorrow is BYND (bring your neighbor day) at church. This has always been a struggle with me, inviting people. I know that satan is going to try to find ways to stop us from inviting others to see God's truth. In all honesty, I had the perfect opportunity this Thursday and I blew it. I did however, return to the topic and ask the person via email. There's been no response, but that's ok.
It's so difficult for me to ask people near where I live to join me at church. This is due to my location. There is a church within walking distance of my house, but instead of going to a local church I go to one that I know teaches the truth about God and his Word. Where people are not interpreting the bible as they want to, but as it's written. So, I drive 35 miles to get there. Most times I also pick up a teen whose family does not go either. So, I leave my house around 8am for the 10am service. I don't mind the drive most times, I enjoy driving and I have my iPOD with me 99% of the time. I will listen to my music and worship God on my drive! I think it's a great way to start a morning worship. Jammin' to some great Christian music.
This year I've definately learned to like other music, even rap! That has to do with camp! That's something else I need to finish up... my camp blog! I can't wait for next year's camp already... but I'll wait.
Last Saturday I was thrilled to be a chaperon to the midwest churches homecoming dance. Oh my gosh! It was awesome! The music was great! The kids were great! The dancing was awesome! I took 196 pictures!
The best thing was that I didn't tell many of the teens that I was going to be there, I wanted to surprise a few. Boy did I! The best response was by one young lady that was in my cabin this year. She was in line waiting to get in and came running up to me. Yelling my name and gave me a great big hug. It made me feel so special, I almost cried.
The bonds you forge with other believers can be so tight! Yes, even from a younger generation. I still have such respect for the teens I've gotten to know over the last two years. They can be so inspiring. So loving. So fun! They know what the truth is from God. They live as best as they can as Christians and still have a blast in life. They are a wonderful example for everyone to see!
Well, now all I'm thinking about are the kids from camp! Trust me, it's not a bad thing one bit. The experiences I've had over those two weeks (2009 & 2010) have totally changed me. What these teens go through and still they stand firm in their beliefs... makes my driving 35 miles one way seem like NOTHING.
They are truly amazing and am so glad that I have had the opportunity to get to know so many.
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