What are you looking for?

Everyday we are looking for something. Whether that is a specific individual thing, on different days, or multiple things in one day...our eyes are always searching.

We look to see if somebody saw that tear.

We look to see if anybody noticed us trip over that rock.

We look for attention.

We look for acceptance.

We look for our wallets or our phones.

We look at ourselves in the mirror to see if we  have something in our teeth or if our hair is set just right.

We look for what to wear.

We look at what other people are wearing.

We look at words written on a page or on the internet.

We look at facial expressions in reaction to things said or done.

We look for food.

...

This list could go on and on and on...I wonder if you have ever taken the time to think through all the things that your eyes take in and look at every single day...or even for an hour...what all you see and look at and for. I know I haven't. And thinking about it now, its quite overwhelming and fascinating at how much my eyes actually see...and yet it saddens me at what I truly am looking for half the time.

Because what I should be looking for, and what I want to be looking for, are glimpses of God.

I want to be looking for His love.

His beauty.

His peace.

His joy.

His grace.

His mercy.

His acceptance.

His movement.

His hands in everyday tasks.

His providence.

His way of pursueing me.

His friendship.

His forgiveness.

.... (this list could go on forever too)

For myself, and for others.

These are things that I don't look for enough, and that I don't often see on a normal basis. But I should. 99% of the time, I choose what I am looking at. What I don't often think about, is how what I am looking at effects me. What I am seeing...how it is effecting my thoughts and my emotions and my feelings and especially my relationship and intimacy with God.

I want to have purpose in my eyes, and in what I look at and am looking for every day. I want to see God more. I want to choose to see God more each hour, each minute. I want to be changed and drawn closer to God in what I am at. And in looking FOR Him, I will find Him. And there will be growth, and a change in attitude and perspective.

"'And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. I will be found by you, says the LORD and i will bring you back from your captivity; I will gather you from all the nations and from all the places where I have driven you, says the LORD, and I will bring you to the place from which I cause you to be carried away captive." Jeremiah 29:13-14

God stories

I really like the title of my last blog. It is something that has stayed in my head all weekend. And it is something to continue to think about, to do, and to blog about.

Celebrate Life.

This week, I had the great privilege of watching 2 people in need, who don't really have anything, celebrate what little they have. I got to play a role in that, I got to watch the joy in their faces and the tears roll down their faces. I got to be blessed, by their hope in God and excitement for the provision of the LORD. It was, to say the least, refreshing. 

It reminded me that I love to help people. Not just spiritually walking people through things, or in discipleship, or charachter things, I love doing that. But i also love to be able to help provide, or even be apart first hand of providing worldly needs, and physical needs. That ultimately isn't the goal, the goal is to show the of Christ and lead people to Him, but the hope is that through giving of what resources we have available, God uses it. And this week, I saw it. and I hope it happens more.

So here's the story.

A lady and her boyfriend have been camping off of the highway. She had a sign that said "need tent" and some lady stopped and prayed for her and told her to call OTW, that we would be able to help her. I ended up being the one to get back in contact with her after she left a message. And i am thrilled that I was that one. She told me the story of how her and her boyfriend got to this area, and that they have to stay here for a couple months until her boyfriend (who is missing an eye, and is almost blind in the other eye) can get social security. All that she asked for, was for a tent, a tarp, and socks. No money, no food, just a shelter from all the rain and wind, and warmth and protection for their feet because they walk a lot. So the church ended up getting these things for them and off Don and I went to meet this lady and her boyfriend. I pulled in the Mcdonald's driveway and we saw this man and woman, and i asked the lady her name, and it was them. We gave them the tent, tarp and socks, and the tears just rolled down the boyfriends face. And the ecitement and squeals from the woman were beautiful. I believe she loves Jesus, because she ended up writing down some verses for us before we arrived and gave it to us, and even prayed with us. She also asked to be picked up to come to church on Sunday. So hopefully, some of you possibly reading this, may meet this sweet couple. Don and I just fell in love with them. There is something so endearing about them. And what's funny is that we have no clue who the person is that told them to contact to OTW. Maybe an angel in disguise! We don't know, but either way, God provided. And We were, and are, extremely blessed to have been apart of what God had going on for that day.

It's changing my heart. Changing my perspective. Today i flew to Hawaii. I am currently on our last flight as I type this, and usually when I fly I make a point to not talk to anyone, to just mind my own business. But I have been beside two girls in peticular that have had really stressful days, and big changes/moves happening today. And all I wanted to do was talk more, but I didnt talk away because it also seemed like they wanted space. But i did pray. And continue to pray. Because life is worth celebrating. And you never know who God will put in your path to encourage, to bless, to pray for, to talk to, to notice....its just a matter of it we are paying attention or not, and if we are willing.

So i ask, are you willing to hear the gentle whisper of the Holy Spirit spurring you onto love and good deeds? 

Celebrate Life

Today I got to shower some love, along with plenty of other people, on one of my best friend's who is pregnant. It was a very joyous occasion, full of laughter and smiles, ooh's and aah's, excitement screeches, and even a few shed tears. 

It's really cool to watch the whole pregnancy process. To see the belly grow, and to feel the baby kick, and where she is inside the womb. The body is a truly amazing thing, that does things that blows my mind. Things that the majoirt of times, we aren't even aware that it is doing. The fact that a little human can grow inside a female body is insane (and that's just one thing among thousands...). Babies are sometimes 20 inches when they are born...that was inside a female body! HOW CAN YOU NOT BE AMAZED!! A life...a living being, is growing, and developing....and it is a beautiful, amazing, God ordained thing. That we celebrate. And we should.

And yet....i hear, i see, i experience, all to often, people not celebrating life. Not celebrating the life that God has given them. We were once little humans being grown in a womb. Little embryos. We had no life. We had no purpose, until God brought us to be and gave us life and breath. And then He gives us that privilege to care and nurture and carry a life. Yes, for some people that can be having a child, but for every single one of us, it is to actually live life. The life we have been given. I see too many people not living life. I see so much grumbling because of the past or expectations of the future, so much negativity and skepticism because things haven't turned out the way we expected or wanted...im sorry but GET OVER IT.

Life is a gift. Life is a privilege. Our bodies are amazing and do amazing things. Our minds and our hearts are a part of that body. Take care of it, celebrate it when it does things right. Our life in this body will not last forever. That's the even more amazing thing! Our souls are eternal! Our bodies will eventually fail us and stop working. But we will have new bodies in heaven, eternal, holy, purified bodies. Imagine what we could do with pure, completely holy bodies?! Even more things to celebrate, especially being in the presence of Jesus!

I challenge you, and especially myself, because I fall into complacency and discontentment all to often, to CELEBRATE life! Find things to be grateful for and rejoice! 

Rejoice always. Again i will say, rejoice!

Flesh vs. Spirit. Which one are you hungry for?

I have given myself goals for each week to accomplish. These goals are things that draw me closer to Christ. One of them in reading 2 chapters of a book each week. This morning as I was reading Ravi Zacharias I was struck by what I was reading about, and how pertinent this is for me, and for the people I surround myself with. And of course, it can tie in with the sermons from Sunday, and into what I have been reading in the Scriptures as well. How convenient eh?

First, a couple questions to challenge yourself with:

How do we view God? How do YOU view God?

Is He distant? Or is He near?

Is He All Powerful, or is He just powerful?

Is He Good, or is He just good enough?

Is He worth everything, or is He worth only some things?

...

What do you crave?

Do you crave things of the flesh, or things of the Spirit?

Do you crave Jesus, or do you crave men?

Do you crave freedom, or do you crave shackles?

Do you crave the world, or do you crave The Kingdom?

...

I see people not living. I see people wishing for things to be so different than they are. I see people not willing to live in the now, not being okay with God being LORD of their lives, but wanting to be lord of their lives instead. This looks like discontentment, lazyness, lack of trust and faith...And this is something we all must walk through, and learn from. And I admit, I still struggle with this more often than I would like to admit.

In chapter 4 in the book Jesus among other Gods, Ravi mentioned this play, where a woman asks "Do any human beings ever realize life while they live it?

The only way one can realize life while one lives it is if he or she realizes that life is not a matter of nutrition alone but of the greater hunger that is beyond words and food. We do not live so that we can eat, nor do we just eat so that we can live. Life is worth living in and of itself. Life cannot be satisfied when it is lived out as a consuming entity..."

I see people (myself included) living life very one-track minded. With one entity in mind. And that entity, being themselves. We forget, as believers especially, that there is a spiritual realm, something greater than us. Our lives are not just about us, or what we see here and now, what we feel here and now. There is a battle going on that we cannot see, but so often that we can feel, and cannot understand, and we dont seem to give any attention to it sometimes for that reason (lack of understanding).

Yesterday while flying to Boston, I was reading in Isaiah 6, quite a famous passage. But as I was reading it, i was struck by the beginning, and challenged by my view of God and how I worship, by the way that the seraphim worshiped the LORD.

     The seraphim has 6 wings, and in the presence of the LORD, 2 of those wings covered his face, and 2 covered his feet, and the other 2 he flew with. And there was more than 1 serpaphim, and in God's presence, one called out to another, 'Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory." (Isaiah 6:3)

      The presence of the LORD is always with me. And when I am with fellow believers, brothers and sisters, do I call out to another how Holy God is, and how the earth is full of His glory? Of all His goodness and the works that He has done? 

    I can say that sometimes I do, but I definately should be doing this more. And I definately should find more ways to do so, other than just on a  Sunday morning on the worship team. But on a daily basis, whether thats by words, or by actions, or however else the Spirit can lead me to worship and I can be obedient to share all He has done.

That is what we are unaware of. How the earth groans for the coming of the LORD. How these spiritual beings that we cannot see, worship the LORD, and how the angels fight for the LORD, often times on our behalf. How the Spirit is alive and at work in us and through us, calling out to us to come and be with Him because He is with us. We just have to do the work, that God has already given us and created for us. (Eph 2:10)

So i leave you with more questions to ponder. I dreamt that I wrote some of these the other night, so now I am doing it, and I hope and pray that you seriously consider what is more important to you, and if you are willing to do whatever it takes to love the LORD your God with all of your heart, mind, soul, and strength. Because it is not easy, but it is worth every effort. Every tear. Every act of rejoicing. Everything...that feels good and bad. Christ is worth it. Where is you focus? What is your perspective? Do you need to broaden it, to a kingdom focus rather than a worldly focus?

   I know I need to change, I need to grow, I need a shift in focus. So....

Is joy worth the sorrow?

Is freedom worth the shackles?

Is healing worth the pain?

Is suffering worth the turmoil?

Is understanding worth the confusion?

Is beauty worth the refineing?

Is completeness worth the work?

Is fulfillment worth the hunger?

Is safety worth the danger?

Is peace worth the chaos?

Is the outcome worth the wait?

Is the Eternal Kingdom of God, worth the fight?