I was writing my friend a letter today and I got to thinking about the love letter that God has written to us- the Bible. I always get excited to get letters from my friends from afar and seem to want to read them as soon as I get them. I will pour over the words for a good time and laugh and smile and sometimes even cry...I will lift up my voice in prayer for the writer and then will send back a response as soon as I am able to. So it got me wondering why I am not so excited to read the best letter of all- the one that God wrote through time and made available to us to show us He loves us and is with us. It also gives us guidance and direction for living the Christian life. It is like our road map. Without it we are lost. Failing to read it is like failing to get any directions for a road trip going to Washington, and end up in Arizona. It's just ridiculous! Yet, how many times do we fail to acknowledge the importance of being in that Book?
I should be pouring over the words with the same zeal as I would with a letter from my friend, because in fact Jesus is my best friend; the best one I could ever have. And He's done something that none of my other friends have done. He has laid down His life for mine. In John 15:13 it says "Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for His friends." I should also be lifting up my voice in prayer and responding to God, the One who longs to be my friend and to hear from me. I mean He actually desires to have a personal relationship with us, and that goes far beyond religion! He needs to hear my feedback, my questions, my ponderings. Because when I am truly digging in the Word and asking the Lord to reveal His truth, having a pure heart, the Holy Spirit will allow me to be enlightened with the knowledge God wishes to impart with us through His Scripture.
Like gems in a quarry are God's words in His Bible. They are beautiful and precious, and there for the taking-but we have to go looking for them. The Lord has promised to us who go looking "Ask, and it will be given to you, seek and you WILL find; knock, and it will be opened to you". (Matthew 7:7) The guidebook of how to live the Christian life is found within His Word and without regularly being in it- we will fail at living a life pleasing to Christ.
Friday, June 18, 2010
Thursday, June 17, 2010
Hello Blogging World!
This is my first time I have ever had a blog and my first entry. So I suppose I am telling myself welcome to the blogging world and hello to all of you out there! I hope that I can use this blog to glorify my Heavenly Father by writing about what the Lord is teaching me and what I perceive from His holy and living Word. About 5 or so years ago at a church youth camp during the summer the Lord revealed to me my life verse (which is by the way, something in the Bible that connects with you personally and encourages you in the faith)...ok so it's more like a passage, but it's found in 1 Corinthians 1:26-29.
"For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble are called. But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty, and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, that no flesh should glory in His presence."
God used this passage to reveal to me many things over the course of my life as of yet. At first it encouraged me, because I did not consider myself to have that good of a past and I always looked at all these people who seemed to have it all and thinking just with how messed up I am that the Lord could never use me. Oh but when I saw this, my eyes were opened and I was blind no more. I was able to see that the Lord called for people like me. Someone who is made to nothing so that they can broadcast that God is everything! This is my calling-not to be wise in the world's eyes or chase after wordly possesions or knowledge-but to come to the point where I realize I am nothing but a fool without Christ and even all my foolish behaviors, my wicked words, and my flaming sinful flesh God can turn around for His glory and use even me for the furtherance of His kingdom.
Over time I also realized how this passage showed me that God brings me to a place of brokenness and realizing that "having it all" in the world's standards is to gain nothing at all in the light of eternity. I am called and chosen by Him, even though I am weak and despised and foolish. Furthermore, I am called for this purpose to share the light of the gospel to the world not that my flesh should glory in His presence, but that He gets all the glory! To God alone be the glory, for He is the only One who deserves it.
Our one sole purpose in life is to live our lives a pleasing sacrifice to further His kingdom (Romans 12:1) and in everything we say and do to glorify God. ( 1 Corinthians 6:20 & 1 Corinthians 10:31).
"For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble are called. But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty, and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, that no flesh should glory in His presence."
God used this passage to reveal to me many things over the course of my life as of yet. At first it encouraged me, because I did not consider myself to have that good of a past and I always looked at all these people who seemed to have it all and thinking just with how messed up I am that the Lord could never use me. Oh but when I saw this, my eyes were opened and I was blind no more. I was able to see that the Lord called for people like me. Someone who is made to nothing so that they can broadcast that God is everything! This is my calling-not to be wise in the world's eyes or chase after wordly possesions or knowledge-but to come to the point where I realize I am nothing but a fool without Christ and even all my foolish behaviors, my wicked words, and my flaming sinful flesh God can turn around for His glory and use even me for the furtherance of His kingdom.
Over time I also realized how this passage showed me that God brings me to a place of brokenness and realizing that "having it all" in the world's standards is to gain nothing at all in the light of eternity. I am called and chosen by Him, even though I am weak and despised and foolish. Furthermore, I am called for this purpose to share the light of the gospel to the world not that my flesh should glory in His presence, but that He gets all the glory! To God alone be the glory, for He is the only One who deserves it.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)