More of Jesus

“Now godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content.” – 1 Timothy 6:6-8

Honestly, I don’t know when I’m ever satisfied. I always want more. Whether it’s more time in the day, more people to talk to, or more candy to last me these three months away from home (ridiculous I know)- I am never satisfied.

For me, I am not a person who is easily stressed or anxious- it’s simply not an issue for me with majority of things. However, one thing that does bring me worry is this idea of running out. Running out of time, or things, or even running out of like shampoo for crying out loud. And honestly, I feel like an idiot for typing this all out because that’s such a small and foolish thing to let my mind be troubled by. Psalm 23:1 lays it out perfectly- “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.” He provides. That’s a fact. The Lord is my shepherd and He is a good one. So why do I continually waste my time trying to gain more of the things of this world when the only thing I truly need more of is Jesus? Or why would I stress over fear of running out when I know He will give me exactly what I need and with that I must be content. I need more of Him and less of myself, my thoughts, my desires, my pride, and my wants. And more of His will, His heart, His peace, and His desires for me. Jesus is the only thing I need in abundance. The Great I Am. He is so much larger than my petty wants and worries for more material things. I must learn to be content with exactly what He has given me, which always comes in the perfect timing and the perfect amount. I shall not want. Lord, strip it all away.

Application: as a small step to stopping hording all my candy away from my team in fear of running out, I’m going to bring chocolate to give my team when we have class later.

A Worm, Not A Slug

“that you do not become sluggish, but imitate those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.” -Hebrews 6:12

Oh man. Complacency. This has been one of my biggest struggles throughout my life, however its one that is never in your face about it. It’s being okay with little things and being okay with not growing. It’s one of those things that just creeps up on you until one day you look around and have no clue how you got where you are. For me, I had turned Christianity into a habitual thing rather than the fresh and active pursuit that it should be. I’ve believed in Jesus for as long as I can remember and due to the natural human tendency to create routine, that’s what I did. You go to church, sing the songs, do your devotions- but was it real? This is what we do because this is what we have always done. I wasn’t counting His mercies as new every morning- it was just the same old same old, been there done that. I grew sluggish without ever realizing it and found myself rooted in a complacent routine of living.

 The Lord didn’t call me to a stagnant faith and my God is so much bigger than a simple routine. He calls me to always go deeper still. My God went to the grave for me, but yet he didn’t stay there. He rose again and He is LIVING. If He is active and moving in my life, why would my life, lived for Him not be the same? I don’t ever want to be okay with having a habit based faith rather than a heart based one. I don’t ever want to grow tired of doing what is good. A part of staying uncomplacent is staying encouraged and in my life, I’ve been super blessed to have so many incredible examples of what it looks like to be someone who is seeking the heart of the Lord with their whole heart. I need to look to those who kept the faith and were never okay with the “good life” but desired only the great one that the Lord had for them. That’s what I want my life to look like- that every day I would be filled with the spirit and live accordingly, never being okay with a stagnant heart.

A United Pursuit of Jesus

"I, John, both your brother and companion in the tribulation and kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was on the island that is called Patmos for the word of God and for the testimony of Jesus Christ” – Revelation 1:9

 I am so thankful that God created humans. We are so sinful, so difficult, and so unworthy of the breath in our lungs, however the Lord still made us and made many of us saying that it’s not good for man to be alone- praise the Lord! For me, I am an extrovert to the MAX. People, no matter how difficult or sinful, are so important to me. Having a faith that is so interconnected with other believers is the most beautiful thing to me. He created us to be in communion with one another. As believers, we have a built-in family to walk through and do life with. Ephesians 4:3-6 tells us that there is one body, one faith, and one God who is above all and in us all. If that doesn’t stir up a need for unity I don’t know what does. We are so much stronger together.

Here in Revelation, John is referring to himself as our brother and companion in the tribulation and to me that sounds like such a comforting thing. We are promised that life will be so full of trials but yet we were never told we had to face it all alone. First and foremost, we have the Lord to lean on in trying times and second of all we have our spiritual family.  

Sadly, the devil knows this and he loves to divide. He knows that we are stronger as one. We have to fight for the unity because he does and will continue to try and separate us. In Christ, we are one seamless and adopted family by the Lord and when we walk out these trials hand in hand, looking to Jesus, nothing can stand against us. May we all march side by side in brotherhood in the name of Jesus pressing onward for His Kingdom.

Application: Tonight, I am going to leave little notes on all my roommates beds telling them how thankful for them in this season of my life. We are all in this together and we must stay united.

The True Source of Joy

“strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power, for all patience and long suffering with joy” -Colossians 1:11

All week the theme has been endurance and we know that looks like being patient, waiting, and walking with the Lord. But how do I actually do that? If I’ve never been able to endure in the past how do you expect me to now all of a sudden endure? Is it really just one of those set your mind to it type of things? Wrong. As humans, we may be able to endure a trial for a little while but on our own eventually we grow weary and literally cannot go on- no matter how hard your mind is set at some point we are emotionally and physically drained. We. Do. Not. Posess. The. Strength. On. Our. Own. However, it’s in our weakness that we can clearly see He is the strong one. This verse is laying out for us that endurance isn’t something we can do in our flesh and on our own. In order to be longsuffering and endure all with a true spirit of joy, we have to be doing it in His strength. Endurance comes through HIS power- not my own because we literally do not possess the power. Sure, I could make it a little while “on my own” but I would never have joy. We may be able to find a fleeting happiness for but a season but a true joy in trial only comes from Him. James 1:2-3 tells us to “count it all as joy, when you fall into various trials knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience.” That spirit of infectious joy is only something found in the Lord and even more so having that Joy in the midst of hardship only comes when we are trusting in His power, not our own. I think a struggle for me is that sometimes I try to muster up my own joy and try to be longsuffering but all without Jesus. I have to make sure I'm leaning on Jesus for my joy because He is the only true source of it.

By His Strength, We Endure

By your endurance, you will gain your lives” - Luke 21:19

Whenever I look at verses like this, it all seems so backwards. How can enduring through pain produce life? How can something that seems so bad become such a good thing? Philippians 1:21 tells us that to live is Christ and to die is gain. It’s the endurance that brings life. It’s the sorrow that produces joy. And it’s the struggle that brings peace. These things to the plain eye don’t seem to make sense yet when you see it lived out, it’s so powerful.

 This world is bound to come to an end. Our God is coming back for His faithful followers. We have been promised hardship, struggle, and pain all for the sake of His name. But we are also told that the burden of the Lord is light. Yes, we must endure all He has called us to yet when we lean on Him and continue to chase after Him- it’s not as hard to be patient and endure.

However, these principles are in no way easy to actually apply and live out. Yesterday I hiked a 12,000 foot volcano in Guatemala and that experience can definitely bear witness to this. It was so difficult and enduring was so trying- I honestly thought I was going to die about ten million times. Nevertheless, the joy that comes at the top of that mountain is indescribable. Same goes for Jesus. The joy always comes in the morning. Endurance is no easy task, but it’s a task He has asked us to walk through and eventually conquer. And when we do it all looking and seeking first His face- somehow that ginormous beast of a volcano doesn’t look so scary anymore. It’s in His strength we make it over our mountains not our own. And it’s only by Him that we can endure with a confident hope because He has already won.

Bloom Where You are Planted

“Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. Those by the wayside are the ones who hear; then the devil comes and takes away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved. But the ones on the rock are the ones who, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no roots, who believe for a while and in time of temptation fall away. Now the ones that fell among thorns are those who, when they have heard go out and are choked with cares, riches, and pleasures of life, and bring no fruit to maturity. But the ones who fell on the good ground are the ones who, having heard the word with a noble and good heart, keep it and bear fruit with patience.” – Luke 8:11-15

What a picture is painted for us here- four extremely different people groups are laid out for us. Those who hear yet never get the chance to grow, those who take no root, those who are choked out by pleasure, and lastly those who grow, keep, and eventually bear fruit. They all need the same thing- they need the seed. They need Jesus. Yet only one receives the seed with the correct heart that enables it to grow.

Following the Lord isn’t a onetime thing. We are told to walk with the Lord daily; one step at a time. Those on the good soil heard the word, accepted it, and then continued to grow it. That seed is laid out however the process cannot end there. It must be watered and cared for in order to take root and bloom right where it has been planted. Ephesians 3:17-18 tells us that when we are rooted in love and it is there that we may be able to comprehend the width, length, depth, and height of the Father’s love for us. In this world, there will be a constant wind trying to blow the seed in your heart off of the good soil and into the thorns. But it’s the man who keeps the seed, stays rooted, and endures it all with patience who will grow into exactly what God had intended Him to be. In every season, He is still God. In the rain and in the drought- He is still sovereign and He is still looking to grow us.

For me, I think it’s so easy to give the Lord certain parts of the heart to water and care for but then the rest of it I try and keep in the drought and thorns. I have to be willing to surrender ALL to him, allowing him to grow me into whatever He sees fit. I must flourish where He has planted me and stay rooted in His abounding love.

Not A Moment Wasted

“See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time because days are evil. Therefore, do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is.” – Ephesians 5:15-17

       We are told time and time again in the Bible that as Christians, we are going to face persecution, temptation, and trials, yet when these things come we always act shocked and find ourselves unprepared. It’s like somehow, despite the fact we have been fairly warned, we never expected these things to happen. That word “circumspectly” is being expectant of a circumstance or situation. It’s to be watchful and in turn be alert and ready for whatever would come your way. If someone told you they were planning on breaking into your house, you wouldn’t take that lightly. You would prepare. The Lord tells us that the devil comes like a thief in the night seeking to steal, kill, and destroy. The enemy is prepared to attack you and this world is prepared to beat you down, but am I prepared to combat it? I have been warned so now it’s on me to be wise and ready.

         For me, time is something the devil can so easily use against me if I am not being watchful. It’s not that what I am spending my time on is necessarily “sinful” but that it is still pulling me away from spending time and getting to know my Savior on a deeper level. It’s simply wasted time and at the end of it I’m not where I need to be- at the feet of Jesus.

      I have to walk circumspectly on a daily basis, expecting trial and temptation. The days are evil and they are numbered. The Lord did His part- He warned me. Now I must do my part in being aware of this and making a conscious decision to redeem the wicked days and wasted time for His glory. What the devil tries to use for evil, the Lord can always turn around and use for His glory. The days may be evil in nature but if we seek to understand the Lord’s will and walk in that, then not a moment of it will be wasted time.

Application: Tomorrow morning I am going to get ready in half the time I usually do that way I can spend more time in the word and in prayer seeking the Lord’s face and will for me. #timeredeemed