Footprints Dusted Over

Wow, so it’s not even 11 and today is definitely not the greatest day on the planet…but the Lord still lives and provides! Thank you Jesus! It is so incredibly easy to take advantage of what is given to you. Yesterday was a “perfect” day. I got up, went to set up an appointment to get my car smog checked, went to the college with one of my best friends, went to Starbucks and she surprised me and bought me my drink and a delicious bite to eat! Then went home, loaded my horse, got ready for the best trail ride of my life, went to country villa, an old people’s home, got to talk to some of them and it honestly made my day! The day ended really good! Then…today started. Got up, paid the bill for the smog check, and then paid the big fat bill for my car to get registered, now stress sets in, summer jobs ending, my other job is starting along with my school and soccer. Gee whiz!

It is so easy to forget about all the good that I didn’t even mention because negatives seem to always outweigh the positives. All the good things that I looked past today was waking up to the perfect horse when I look out the window, or the best dogs that greet me and are the happiest things ever, the wonderful texts I get from my best friends, the nice guy at Jacksons Auto Repair that bought donuts for everyone and offered me one too! The lady who I sat by and just gave me a little reminder of what I really do have and how blessed I am. There were plenty of good things that happened, but it is so hard to ignore the bad things.

The Lord has done so much for me, and here I am once again looking at the negatives. The Lord does provide, but when you’re in the middle of getting out of a rut, you don’t see it as clearly as you do once you’re out and having a “good” day. The Lord wants us to see Him in all situations, not just in the good. I believe that both, good times and bad, are both just as important times to acknowledge Him. I encourage you to search for those little things that look like footprints dusted over that may flip your day right side up when you’re trying to dig yourself out of a rut. The Lord will show Himself in the most amazing ways! Here is my favorite poem that really encourages me called Footprints by Carolyn Carty. Enjoy!

     One night a man had a dream. He dreamed He was walking along the beach with the LORD. Across the sky flashed scenes from His life. For each scene He noticed two sets of footprints in the sand. One belonging to Him and the other to the LORD.

When the last scene of His life flashed before Him, he looked back at the footprints in the sand. He noticed that many times along the path of His life there was only one set of footprints. He also noticed that it happened at the very lowest and saddest times of His life.

This really bothered Him and He questioned the LORD about it. LORD you said that once I decided to follow you, you'd walk with me all the way. But I have noticed that during the most troublesome times in my life there is only one set of footprints. I don't understand why when I needed you most you would leave me.

The LORD replied, my precious, precious child, I Love you and I would never leave you! During your times of trial and suffering when you see only one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you.

Wornout Passion

Well, I haven’t posted anything for a pretty long time…and I don’t want that to happen again, but with school starting and work continuing I know it will happen, but I am going to do my best to avoid it! My passion has been pretty low lately and it isn’t a very good feeling. I wish my passion was like the passion one builds when going to camp. That amazing fire for the Lord that builds up inside and you can’t do anything to contain it.

I have been constantly busy, by choice, and enjoying every second of it! Until…I realize none of that time was 100% focused on God. The God who created me, the God who loves me, the God who holds my hand and comforts me. And I know He still loves me even though I pushed Him to the side. It's hard to see what your doing until you step back, take a breath, and take a second to think about your day.

I got to thinkin what an amazing God He is to love me through anything, to always be there for me, and to always let me make my decisions, though sometimes I wish He wouldn’t. I think that is truly what makes Him an amazing God though, to give us free choice to come to Him. He meets us half way, He isn’t going to force us into anything, but He wants us to want Him. He wants us to grab onto the arms open wide. I love that about Him so much! What an amazing God He is, full of compassion to be there for us no matter what, He loves on us with unconditional love that only He can love with, and He understands EVERYTHING. He has truly made a point to be a trustworthy Father who can understand. The song “How He loves us” is a perfect example of how I feel. “…and I realized just how beautiful you are and how great your affections are for me. And oh, how he loves us. How he loves…We are His portion and He is our prize drawn to redemption by the grace in His eyes. If grace is an ocean were all sinking. So heaven meets earth like a sloppy wet kiss and my heart turns violently inside of my chest and I don’t have time to maintain these regrets when I think about the way He loves us.” I love how God speaks through songs, nature, or other people. He is my true Father who I can always go to even when I have those regrets I wish I could make disappear.

I encourage you to make some time, even if it’s only ten minutes out of your day to spend with God. He put in so much more time for you and here we are giving Him pretty much a second of our day. Make it count, live for Him because He died for you.

“...God So Loved the WORLD..."

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” I know the first thing you might be thinking is wow…this is so over used…but hey! That used to be my exact thought until I really looked into it and realized that this most definitely should be in the extremely used category. This verse has so much meaning, but unfortunately the more people hear it the more they tune it out.

John 3:16 has such a special meaning. It is a verse of love, an unconditional love no one can measure up to. It also doesn’t separate anyone, but it brings everyone into an equal unity. “For God so loved the WORLD…” How much more straight forward can that get? His love was so great that He GAVE His one and only Son. “…He gave His only begotten Son…” Just think about that for one moment. He CHOSE to give His ONLY son because His love for us was that great. Everyone knows that a parent would do anything to save the life of their child and here God was, choosing to GIVE His only son. Then He goes on to say that, “…whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” So after He gives His son for us, He makes a promise that says that anyone who believes in His son shall not perish but live eternally. I may not say, “I promise,” but we know it is a promise because in Matthew 5:37 it says, “But let your statement be, ‘Yes, yes’ or ‘No, no’; anything beyond these is of evil.” It also states that lying is wrong and against what God has taught many times throughout the Bible. Another way we will know God is making a true statement He will keep is because there is not one time in the Bible God goes back on His Words or is false about something. Otherwise the Bible would be dead, but it is living and active after being under attack for many many years.

I know that it is so easy to drown things out when you constantly hear something over and over. I know for me, the meaning of this verse was being drowned out because it began to be something I heard all the time. I encourage you to really search the meanings of Bible verses, each verse is so very important and helps you understand the other verses in such a deeper way. Remember that God so loved the WORLD, not just one person. He CHOSE to GIVE His one and only son, and then promised eternal life for those who believe in Him. Take some time, journal your thoughts, and dig deeper into the Words of the God who created you.

Christ In a Box

Who do you think Christ is? What do you think He looks like? We all have these different ways of viewing Christ, but do we really know what he looks like or who He is? So many people put Christ in a box and think He should be viewed in only one way. Why? One of my best friends said, when she went to India on an outreach program that the people there view and worship Christ in such a different way than we do here in the United States. Each person has their own personal way of how they really connect with Christ, whether it’s threw worship, prayer or just being out in nature, everyone is different. God reveals himself in so many different ways.

I grew up in the mind set of you go to church, learn things, do what mom and dad say without arguing, be nice, and repeat the same cycle. In the past couple of years I decided to stand on my own two feet and really live MY life and discover what following Christ really meant to me. I wanted to jump out of the ordinary box and dig deeper into His words to understand what Christ has to say in a new way. I thought I was doing good until I got hit really hard with the Bible.

I discovered it’s not just about going to church and respecting your parents, it is so much more than that. It was living each day out to the best of my ability for Christ. This meant changing how I talked, what I did, and going above and beyond respecting my parents. After I started reading more and more of God’s Word, I began to want more, and more, and more! It was like I couldn’t get enough. It was an amazing feeling. Every time I went out to go do something I prayed and sang Christian songs in the car. Yes, I sing in the car, really loud!!! It is such an amazing feeling to be in the presents of Jesus non-stop. It’s the feeling of being at camp worshiping Christ and only focusing on Him, but 24/7 in your daily walk. Once you are being filled with Christ’s love, you are filled with so much more mercy, love, compassion, and you begin to care for others in a much deeper way.

I encourage you to throw away the box for Jesus, let Him work in so many other ways in your life. He will bless you in a million different ways and it will be amazing as you see yourself growing more for Him and falling more and more in love with Him. 

Best Friend and Perfect Lover

So.. I know I just wrote, but I just want to write about how much of a blessing it is to have the people I have in my life and how much each of them means to me. God has truly blessed me with true friends and a family who cares. There may be times that are super hard, but we get through them, all of us. We hold each other’s hands and bull doze our way through. God has been showing me some incredible things and teaching me some amazing things. He has shown me His beauty in a new way and has blessed me by painting those incredible pictures for me to ponder on. He has been my strength and has carried me when I couldn’t walk. He is my man, my lover, my healer, my shelter, my helper, my all. He gives me perseverance and guides me on the path of righteousness. When I stray He speaks words of wisdom into my ears as I listen. He calms my spirit and makes me feel free. He has truly been my Best Friend. Okay, that’s it! I wanted to acknowledge God’s never ending beauty and love because I don’t think I do that enough. He is my Perfect Lover and Best Friend. “Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends.

Frustration in Patience and Compassion

  For the past month, I have been struggling a lot with patience and compassion and not going off the edge when opportunities to be those things come my way. I mostly struggle with patience, specifically with my family. It is so easy to get frustrated with your family because you know they aren’t going to just leave you. If you live with them, you are with them whenever you come home. They are a safe place to let your feelings out freely. I think I have been getting a little too comfortable doing this and I always realize it after the fact. It tends to eat at me, but it is hard to not let things get to you when you know things are coming and you try to avoid them, but they keep coming right at you.

  I have been praying for patience and compassion. I’m sure you have heard that when you pray for patience God gives you opportunities to be patient or when you ask for compassion, He gives you opportunities to be compassionate and so on… God has definitely been giving me an over amount of opportunities to be patient and compassionate. I know it says in 1 Corinthians 10:13: “No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to humanity. God is faithful, and He will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation He will also provide a way of escape so that you are able to bear it.” I know that it isn’t an over amount, but the right amount because God is giving me these opportunities and He won’t give me anything I cannot handle. This is sometimes hard to take in because I know I can handle it, but when will it end?

  It is so easy to be compassionate and patient towards others when you don’t have to deal with them all the time. God has given me a huge heart for Africa and God has called me to go there and one day I will. I do believe though that I have a lot of spiritual growing and learning to do. I consider the things I struggle with and learn only a preparation for what is laying in the path ahead of me. God has an amazing way of teaching people things, though hard at times…okay, maybe a lot of the time…He still sees us through it and we WILL come out alive!

  God is definitely teaching me something and I know I will live, but sometimes it feels like it is never ending. I also know that I will become stronger with the challenges put in front of me. The hurdles I jump will only prepare me for the hurdles to come. Even though it seems tough during the struggle, I need to constantly remind myself that I will only become stronger then when I began. And the strength comes from Christ alone. I encourage you to take the opportunities ahead and take them as challenges to become better equipped for the next time you have to face something that is a challenge to you. God has your back and He isn’t leaving anytime soon…in fact He is never leaving and you can always find strength in any situation from Him. “On the day I called, You answered me; You increased strength within me.” Psalm 138:3 “I am able to do all things through Him who strengthens me.” Philippians 4:13

A Cup of Tea, Just You and Jesus

   So...I’ve written a little bit before, but haven’t really used a blog page. And I do believe that Kyle is most definitely right when he said it is more beneficial to the writer than the reader, at least in most cases. So here I go!

   I have been putting a lot of thought into being selfless. It isn’t an easy thing to be when we are in a world that is constantly moving at a fast pace. It is so hard to sit down, relax and not think. Our minds are racing at a very fast pace as we are constantly thinking about “what’s next.” There are so many things to do and we want to do them all. The truth is, at least for me, is that I experience the most amazing things when I am sitting in silence listening to God and trying to focus on what He has to say and not what I want to say or do.

Have you ever sat back and watched someone talk to another person? Then start wondering what they are thinking when they are trying to get every word they can in while talking to someone?  I sure have…not trying to be creepy or anything, but really, how can someone take the time to listen and process things while they are trying to think about what to say next, and HAVE to make sure their input gets out there? I am guilty for this...in today’s society the world has become more selfish. It is the “normal thing.” We want what we want, when we want, and don’t seem to see anything wrong with it until someone says, “hey, why don’t you think about someone else for once.” It’s kinda a shocker when hearing that for the first time. We don’t realize what we are doing until someone calls us on it.

   As I was saying earlier, we are always running at a speed which we don’t have time to stop and focus on important things or listen to someone who needs listening to. When is the last time you stopped and listened to God? Once again, I am guilty for this one too. Sure when I am driving I listen and talk to God, but that is at my convenience. Where is the selflessness in this? Why is it so hard to stop and listen? Once again, we are so wrapped up in being places, we don’t acknowledge God most of the time.

I have been at a standstill with God, not exactly where I want to be. I want to be growing towards Him, not just hanging out in the same place. I know the first step in growing closer to Him is MAKING Jesus time. Set a time, whenever it is, to be with God. Take some time to pray, read the Bible, and listen. I started to view my time with Christ like a time with a friend. I meet up with Him with a cup of tea, you wouldn’t ditch out on a close friend that means a lot to you, would you? No…at least not all the time.

   Give yourself a challenge, meet up with Jesus and just hang out. Don’t put Him in a box, just listen, hear him out, read what He has to say in His Word, and maybe some answers you’ve been waiting for will be answered. Keep yourself accountable and don’t stray too far, His hand is always a reach away. Ecclesiastes 3:7 "...A time to be silent and a time to speak."