God has been teaching me a lot about obedience lately. Let me share with you a little of what I've learned.
First of all, I'm learning that God's humble outlook looks a lot different that what I'm used to. He's been showing me how to see others in humility....yes, it's easy to see someone and say, "Well, they must not love God because they just ________." But God has been using others to show me how every person falls short of His standard--including myself. Suddenly, it's easier to love others, because I see myself in them. It's also easier for me to accept that I make mistakes and don't understand everything yet, either.
Of course, it's hard to obey when you're so aware that you don't understand everything and that no one can ever be perfect...which leads to the next point! :)
God has been teaching me that obedience to Him is something that, even when I don't completely understand it, is worth seeking after. I usually try to have everything figured out before I start obeying, but I'm learning that I don't have to "know it all" before I start out. I know enough to start in my journey of obedience, I can read my Bible and take God's cues each day, and pray for wisdom; and, hopefully, a month from now I'll be much closer to Jesus' plan for my life than I am today. But I don't have to have everything 100% figured out in every moment.
For example, I am still unsure as to how much Taylor Swift is okay for me to listen to in an effort to understand the things my friends value (while still using my time wisely and not falling into some of the less-than-godly attitudes expressed in her music). But I can take each moment and ask God how I can maximize it to His glory, whether that's learning about my friends' points of views or memorizing a Bible verse.
I'd like to finish with a passage from the NCV that really hit me today. Matthew 13 really spoke to me, and I think it could encourage you as well.
Enjoy your journey with God :) and thanks for reading!
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Is this all you have to give?
I take ballet. And it's hard.
Yesterday, ballet class was especially difficult. I hadn't danced since before Christmas, I was feeling under-the-weather (I hadn't eaten as much as usual either), and was just in general not wanting to give 100%. In fact, during the first part fifteen minutes or so, I was content to give 40% or 50% and just float through, enjoying the mild physical exercise, music, and social time.
After that, I started thinking about what it meant to give time to God. And I started praying, "God, this time is for you. This exercise is for you." I then proceeded to simply sort-of do the exercise--trying, of course, as hard as I could, without causing myself too much pain.
I felt like Jesus said to me, "I died for you. I gave you everything. And this is all you have to give me in return?"
I was shocked. Suddenly, I realized my error: Yes, my ability to dance, my dance classes, my love of dance, even the exercise we were doing were predestined, but God had given me the semblance of free will so that I could genuinely give Him everything. Not out of repayment, of course, since salvation is a gift, but out of gratitude. Shouldn't I be willing to go through a little pain so that I could perform better for my Savior, who was crucified for me? Since this is all I have to give, even though it is painful (and especially because it turns out to be), shouldn't I give it all?
After all, if your best friend saved your life from a man with a gun who was trying to kidnap you, wouldn't you want to give her your best? I'm pretty sure you would.
And if you suddenly found yourself in the golden courts of God in heaven, with thousands (or millions?) of angels all praising the Almighty Creator and millions (or billions?) of Christians joining in the praise, where everything is holy--and you were told that you would get to perform, on your own, for your King--wouldn't you do your absolute best?
Of course. And the same goes for our everyday lives. Performing arts, yes, but everything.
School.
Relationships.
Work.
Facebook.
How much effort would you put into these things if you were doing them in the presence and for the Lord Almighty?
Because you are, whether you realize it or not. Your chance is right now.....and it's real.
1 Corinthians 10:31 says, "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God."
Here's the divine paradox, however: As long as we are giving 100% and trying our best to do God's will, it's okay if we fall. He expects us to. We can never truly be perfect, but we must never be content with living in imperfection. We must learn to fight for God's best in every area of our lives, but remain constantly dependent on God's strength to do so. All along, we must be at peace with and overjoyed of the fact that God came to save us--that we could never, ever, ever attain perfection.
That's a lot to absorb.
Back to how this applies to giving 100%...
If you found yourself in God's heavenly courts, performing just for Him, and you made a glaring mistake, do you think He'd ask "Is this all you have to give Me?"
NO!
He would know that you were doing your best, and He would be overjoyed. He loves the "perfect" performance just as much as He loves the mistake-riddled, as long as both are equally earnest. The one shows His glory and holiness just as the other shows His grace and love.
So next time you do something (anything, according to Colossians 3:23), work at it "with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men."
And next time you make a mistake on something you've done your best to prepare for, remember that God's power "is made perfect in weakness." (1 Corinthians 12:9)
One final warning: an over-focus on perfection can lead to a worship of perfection instead of worship of God. Your motivation and driving thought should always be Jesus at the cross, because there it is near impossible to be imbalanced. At the same time you see Him on the cross and want to thank Him, you realize your inability to ever repay Him.
(for a good book on that, read The Cross-Centered Life by CJ Mahaney)
:)
Thanks for reading! God bless!
Yesterday, ballet class was especially difficult. I hadn't danced since before Christmas, I was feeling under-the-weather (I hadn't eaten as much as usual either), and was just in general not wanting to give 100%. In fact, during the first part fifteen minutes or so, I was content to give 40% or 50% and just float through, enjoying the mild physical exercise, music, and social time.
After that, I started thinking about what it meant to give time to God. And I started praying, "God, this time is for you. This exercise is for you." I then proceeded to simply sort-of do the exercise--trying, of course, as hard as I could, without causing myself too much pain.
I felt like Jesus said to me, "I died for you. I gave you everything. And this is all you have to give me in return?"
I was shocked. Suddenly, I realized my error: Yes, my ability to dance, my dance classes, my love of dance, even the exercise we were doing were predestined, but God had given me the semblance of free will so that I could genuinely give Him everything. Not out of repayment, of course, since salvation is a gift, but out of gratitude. Shouldn't I be willing to go through a little pain so that I could perform better for my Savior, who was crucified for me? Since this is all I have to give, even though it is painful (and especially because it turns out to be), shouldn't I give it all?
After all, if your best friend saved your life from a man with a gun who was trying to kidnap you, wouldn't you want to give her your best? I'm pretty sure you would.
And if you suddenly found yourself in the golden courts of God in heaven, with thousands (or millions?) of angels all praising the Almighty Creator and millions (or billions?) of Christians joining in the praise, where everything is holy--and you were told that you would get to perform, on your own, for your King--wouldn't you do your absolute best?
Of course. And the same goes for our everyday lives. Performing arts, yes, but everything.
School.
Relationships.
Work.
Facebook.
How much effort would you put into these things if you were doing them in the presence and for the Lord Almighty?
Because you are, whether you realize it or not. Your chance is right now.....and it's real.
1 Corinthians 10:31 says, "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God."
Here's the divine paradox, however: As long as we are giving 100% and trying our best to do God's will, it's okay if we fall. He expects us to. We can never truly be perfect, but we must never be content with living in imperfection. We must learn to fight for God's best in every area of our lives, but remain constantly dependent on God's strength to do so. All along, we must be at peace with and overjoyed of the fact that God came to save us--that we could never, ever, ever attain perfection.
That's a lot to absorb.
Back to how this applies to giving 100%...
If you found yourself in God's heavenly courts, performing just for Him, and you made a glaring mistake, do you think He'd ask "Is this all you have to give Me?"
NO!
He would know that you were doing your best, and He would be overjoyed. He loves the "perfect" performance just as much as He loves the mistake-riddled, as long as both are equally earnest. The one shows His glory and holiness just as the other shows His grace and love.
So next time you do something (anything, according to Colossians 3:23), work at it "with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men."
And next time you make a mistake on something you've done your best to prepare for, remember that God's power "is made perfect in weakness." (1 Corinthians 12:9)
One final warning: an over-focus on perfection can lead to a worship of perfection instead of worship of God. Your motivation and driving thought should always be Jesus at the cross, because there it is near impossible to be imbalanced. At the same time you see Him on the cross and want to thank Him, you realize your inability to ever repay Him.
(for a good book on that, read The Cross-Centered Life by CJ Mahaney)
:)
Thanks for reading! God bless!
Sunday, January 9, 2011
Focus
.Inside my head is a little voice.
And it never. shuts. up.
(for those of you who are already sick of my incessant talking...try living in my head for a day!)
Often, it's an autobiography voice (example: "When I stepped into my room that day, I was hoping to smell the sweet aroma of the candle I'd bought earlier that week."). Sometimes, it's a blogging voice (such as "Now, if any of you were thinking of buying candles from Wal-Mart, don't. You might expect to smell them, but at $1 apiece, they only look pretty...no good smells involved.")
I don't always think about what I'm doing at that moment, but many times I will. And trust me, this little voice never shuts up! I've tried talking to it, I've tried sitting quietly, I've tried ignoring it--everything you would do to get an annoying sibling to stop. Maybe I was meant to be a twin?
I don't know. I've tried to channel it into prayer, but the fact is that this little voice is pretty sub-consious. I still work at using the little autobiography/blogger voice to pray, of course, but often it's talking while I'm praying (very rude, by the way).
But there are two times that it cooperates: when I'm driving my myself and when I'm playing piano. It doesn't stop talking, but it willingly becomes my prayer voice. That is, by the way, a large part of why I love playing piano and driving myself places.
Well, anyway, guess what...I'm not the only one. I've heard it called having a two-track mind, (great for multitasking, by the way!) and to some extent (from what I heard) it may be a girl thing.
If you have that "issue," I have a study suggestion...
For Bible study, don't run music while you're trying to read your Bible or pray. Also, make sure you have a blog or some sort of outlet for your ramblings. If you start to process them by writing them down in a blog or journal, they can sometimes lead to study focus (that's what I've found).
Memorize verses! This is a great way to start controlling the annoying little voice. Start with 2 Corinthians 10:5: "...we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ." Recite these verses whenever the little voice starts talking. When you have something "scripted" that you give that little voice to say, especially a Bible verse, it's much easier to start focusing on God :)
And when you're studying for school, try running an old cartoon or movie in the background. Pick one you've seen a thousand times. Your little voice will happily sing along to the Lion King--while you get that seven-page essay polished up.
Hope these help :) Feel free to add suggestions in the comments!
And it never. shuts. up.
(for those of you who are already sick of my incessant talking...try living in my head for a day!)
Often, it's an autobiography voice (example: "When I stepped into my room that day, I was hoping to smell the sweet aroma of the candle I'd bought earlier that week."). Sometimes, it's a blogging voice (such as "Now, if any of you were thinking of buying candles from Wal-Mart, don't. You might expect to smell them, but at $1 apiece, they only look pretty...no good smells involved.")
I don't always think about what I'm doing at that moment, but many times I will. And trust me, this little voice never shuts up! I've tried talking to it, I've tried sitting quietly, I've tried ignoring it--everything you would do to get an annoying sibling to stop. Maybe I was meant to be a twin?
I don't know. I've tried to channel it into prayer, but the fact is that this little voice is pretty sub-consious. I still work at using the little autobiography/blogger voice to pray, of course, but often it's talking while I'm praying (very rude, by the way).
But there are two times that it cooperates: when I'm driving my myself and when I'm playing piano. It doesn't stop talking, but it willingly becomes my prayer voice. That is, by the way, a large part of why I love playing piano and driving myself places.
Well, anyway, guess what...I'm not the only one. I've heard it called having a two-track mind, (great for multitasking, by the way!) and to some extent (from what I heard) it may be a girl thing.
If you have that "issue," I have a study suggestion...
For Bible study, don't run music while you're trying to read your Bible or pray. Also, make sure you have a blog or some sort of outlet for your ramblings. If you start to process them by writing them down in a blog or journal, they can sometimes lead to study focus (that's what I've found).
Memorize verses! This is a great way to start controlling the annoying little voice. Start with 2 Corinthians 10:5: "...we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ." Recite these verses whenever the little voice starts talking. When you have something "scripted" that you give that little voice to say, especially a Bible verse, it's much easier to start focusing on God :)
And when you're studying for school, try running an old cartoon or movie in the background. Pick one you've seen a thousand times. Your little voice will happily sing along to the Lion King--while you get that seven-page essay polished up.
Hope these help :) Feel free to add suggestions in the comments!
Perfection
I was playing piano at church today and talking to God. As I plunked out my melody on the keyboard...well, more about that. The pieces just weren't "clicking" this week. I'd practiced, of course (perhaps not as much as I should have, considering the results), but at home I'd been fine. I'd even memorized my pieces! And now, my fingers were...well, plunking instead of gliding. To add to the issue, they often plunked out the wrong notes as I squinted at the music I thought I had memorized.
So. Talking to God. Well, I was getting kinda upset, to tell the truth. I was like, "God, why do you have me up here at all? Look at me! I tried. And I can't even play the notes. Everyone must be wishing I wasn't even up here. I'm here to help people worship, and I can't even play the right chords."
But you know what God helped me realize? If I were perfect, I wouldn't need to be at church. I wouldn't need God's saving. I was are supposed to be there, at church, playing piano, at that moment. God had picked me to be playing for church, as He had picked each member of the band. And no, I'm not perfect, especially not when I play like that. But that's okay--actually, it's on purpose. It's God's purpose. When God picked the band for that service, He'd known I would miss a lot of the chords. But it still brought Him glory, because "[God's] power is made perfect in weakness."
Now, don't take this the wrong way. Don't go lounge around on the couch, fail your next Calculus test, and tell your mom that you did it to glorify God. But do accept that, when you work for God and give Him your best, you will still sometimes make mistakes. You will fall. And it's okay! No matter what you're doing.
As long as your heart is pure and you've been seeking God (in day-to-day actions as well as daily reading your Bible and praying), you can be assured that mistakes are God's way of working sometimes.
They teach us humility.
They teach us that God is holy and perfect (and we are not).
They remind us to not take Christ's sacrifice for granted.
They remind us that we, on our own, are weak.
They bring us closer to God.
So. Talking to God. Well, I was getting kinda upset, to tell the truth. I was like, "God, why do you have me up here at all? Look at me! I tried. And I can't even play the notes. Everyone must be wishing I wasn't even up here. I'm here to help people worship, and I can't even play the right chords."
But you know what God helped me realize? If I were perfect, I wouldn't need to be at church. I wouldn't need God's saving. I was are supposed to be there, at church, playing piano, at that moment. God had picked me to be playing for church, as He had picked each member of the band. And no, I'm not perfect, especially not when I play like that. But that's okay--actually, it's on purpose. It's God's purpose. When God picked the band for that service, He'd known I would miss a lot of the chords. But it still brought Him glory, because "[God's] power is made perfect in weakness."
Now, don't take this the wrong way. Don't go lounge around on the couch, fail your next Calculus test, and tell your mom that you did it to glorify God. But do accept that, when you work for God and give Him your best, you will still sometimes make mistakes. You will fall. And it's okay! No matter what you're doing.
As long as your heart is pure and you've been seeking God (in day-to-day actions as well as daily reading your Bible and praying), you can be assured that mistakes are God's way of working sometimes.
They teach us humility.
They teach us that God is holy and perfect (and we are not).
They remind us to not take Christ's sacrifice for granted.
They remind us that we, on our own, are weak.
They bring us closer to God.
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Make a Difference or Hands and Feet?
You know, I'm beginning to see that there's a difference between saying "I want to make a difference in the world for God!" and saying "I would love for God to use me to be His hands and feet on this earth."
When we say "I want to make a difference for God," who are we subconsciously--even if it's just a little bit--crediting the work to? We are crediting ourselves. We're saying, "I will make a difference in the world for God. I will do it--it will be my work that I choose to give to Him."
And when we say "for God," we treat Him like a charity. We are act as if we are oh-so-nobly choosing to donate our time, money, and effort to Him, because He could not carry out His purposes without a certain amount of cooperation or charity on our part. We fail to realize that the only One who makes a difference in the world is God!
If we aren't treating Him like a charity, we're treating Him like a lender. We say, "I owe Jesus my everything," and so we try to pay Him back, do it because we owe it to Him, or make Him happy--even though we "realize" we never could pay Him back at all, even though we "realize" that we can't earn his love.
However, when we say that "I would love for God to use me to be His hands and feet on this earth," we gain a new perspective. Our service is not our own choice, but God's choice; it is not our work at all, but His work. We are unable to take credit for what someone else does--so if you see yourself as God's hands and feet, then it is not you doing the work at all, but God, and you cannot take credit for it. We also see God as the all-powerful, fully-self-sufficient Being that He is. We realize that He does not need our cooperation to do His will, but rather choses us. We could even take this a step further and say that God uses us whether we are willing or not! And finally, our relationship with God takes on a new dimension. Instead of owing Jesus something, we are both humbled and honored to follow Him.
There's also a difference in the work perspective of each phrase. For example, when Mother Teresa was holding dying babies in Calcutta, do you think that she was saying to herself "I'm making a difference in the world for God"? Probably not. Even if she was making a difference, that is not the point. Her attitude was not "Let me do the most productive things I can to make as big a difference as possible"--if that had been her attitude, she wouldn't have been holding babies that were going to die anyway! But do you think that she was saying "God is using me as His loving arms, and I am honored"? If she wasn't, she should have been!
So, what are you going to do? Are you going to be the one to make a difference? Or are you going to leave it up to the One who can work through you to make His difference?
When we say "I want to make a difference for God," who are we subconsciously--even if it's just a little bit--crediting the work to? We are crediting ourselves. We're saying, "I will make a difference in the world for God. I will do it--it will be my work that I choose to give to Him."
And when we say "for God," we treat Him like a charity. We are act as if we are oh-so-nobly choosing to donate our time, money, and effort to Him, because He could not carry out His purposes without a certain amount of cooperation or charity on our part. We fail to realize that the only One who makes a difference in the world is God!
If we aren't treating Him like a charity, we're treating Him like a lender. We say, "I owe Jesus my everything," and so we try to pay Him back, do it because we owe it to Him, or make Him happy--even though we "realize" we never could pay Him back at all, even though we "realize" that we can't earn his love.
However, when we say that "I would love for God to use me to be His hands and feet on this earth," we gain a new perspective. Our service is not our own choice, but God's choice; it is not our work at all, but His work. We are unable to take credit for what someone else does--so if you see yourself as God's hands and feet, then it is not you doing the work at all, but God, and you cannot take credit for it. We also see God as the all-powerful, fully-self-sufficient Being that He is. We realize that He does not need our cooperation to do His will, but rather choses us. We could even take this a step further and say that God uses us whether we are willing or not! And finally, our relationship with God takes on a new dimension. Instead of owing Jesus something, we are both humbled and honored to follow Him.
There's also a difference in the work perspective of each phrase. For example, when Mother Teresa was holding dying babies in Calcutta, do you think that she was saying to herself "I'm making a difference in the world for God"? Probably not. Even if she was making a difference, that is not the point. Her attitude was not "Let me do the most productive things I can to make as big a difference as possible"--if that had been her attitude, she wouldn't have been holding babies that were going to die anyway! But do you think that she was saying "God is using me as His loving arms, and I am honored"? If she wasn't, she should have been!
So, what are you going to do? Are you going to be the one to make a difference? Or are you going to leave it up to the One who can work through you to make His difference?
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Dear children...(a quick thought)
I was reading my devotional today, and I came across 1 John 5:21:
"Dear children, keep yourselves from idols."
Now, next time God tells you not to do something, or not to devote yourself to something other than Him, don't see him as a strict judge. Yes, He is a judge; He is also a father. He tells us to keep ourselves from idols because He loves us.
"Dear children, keep yourselves from idols."
Now, next time God tells you not to do something, or not to devote yourself to something other than Him, don't see him as a strict judge. Yes, He is a judge; He is also a father. He tells us to keep ourselves from idols because He loves us.
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Beauty II (A little clarification)
So, after my other post, you may be wondering..."Does she think I shouldn't wear make-up?" "Is it time to throw out the curling iron?" "Should I let my hair grow without cutting it?"
The answer? Never! I would be a hypocrite to tell you those things (just one glance in my bathroom cabinet reveals a ton of make-up, lotion, a few curling irons, and a straightener, among other so-called "beauty products.") God did make you beautiful, but He also gave you creativity and style. There are many Biblical examples of women using "beauty products" to enhance their natural, God-given beauty: the Proverbs 31 woman wears purple (Old Testament high-class fashion), the Song of Solomon woman uses olive oil (Old Testament lotion), and Esther spends months in a royal beauty parlor before meeting King Xerxes. Even Paul acknowledges that women can and will wear jewelry and style their hair! In 1 Peter 3:3-4, Paul says "What matters is not your outer appearance--the styling of your hair, the jewelry you wear, the cut of your clothes--but your inner disposition." If he thought that it was ungodly for women to style their hair, wear jewelry, or buy clothes they thought were flattering, he would have said so! (Paul was not known for mincing words--quite the opposite.) Instead, he said that, even if we wear those things, they aren't what makes us beautiful. Our inner beauty is still what matters. (Read about cultivating inner beauty here)
The difference is whether you let the culture around you tell you what's cute or beautiful or fabulous, or whether you decide for yourself what YOU think looks cute and beautiful and fabulous.
So don't eschew the make-up counter or throw out your hair styling products. Use the beautiful creativity God's given you to enhance the physical beauty He's given you.
And enjoy it.
The answer? Never! I would be a hypocrite to tell you those things (just one glance in my bathroom cabinet reveals a ton of make-up, lotion, a few curling irons, and a straightener, among other so-called "beauty products.") God did make you beautiful, but He also gave you creativity and style. There are many Biblical examples of women using "beauty products" to enhance their natural, God-given beauty: the Proverbs 31 woman wears purple (Old Testament high-class fashion), the Song of Solomon woman uses olive oil (Old Testament lotion), and Esther spends months in a royal beauty parlor before meeting King Xerxes. Even Paul acknowledges that women can and will wear jewelry and style their hair! In 1 Peter 3:3-4, Paul says "What matters is not your outer appearance--the styling of your hair, the jewelry you wear, the cut of your clothes--but your inner disposition." If he thought that it was ungodly for women to style their hair, wear jewelry, or buy clothes they thought were flattering, he would have said so! (Paul was not known for mincing words--quite the opposite.) Instead, he said that, even if we wear those things, they aren't what makes us beautiful. Our inner beauty is still what matters. (Read about cultivating inner beauty here)
The difference is whether you let the culture around you tell you what's cute or beautiful or fabulous, or whether you decide for yourself what YOU think looks cute and beautiful and fabulous.
So don't eschew the make-up counter or throw out your hair styling products. Use the beautiful creativity God's given you to enhance the physical beauty He's given you.
And enjoy it.
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