I set a goal for myself to go to bed by 10:30pm. That way I could get up earlier. This is hard for me as I am a night person and definitely don't like morning! If morning came later in the day, it would be fine! I would like it better. I love sunsets, not really sunrises...
My body apparently thinks it needs 9 hours of sleep to be happy. If I turn my alarm off, I will sleep 9 hours. If I go to bed too late, I will get up later unless I force myself to listen to the alarm. I am trying to get up early enough to exercise 30 minutes and to read my Bible before I start with Janaya's school. Of course, I also have to eat breakfast and shower before that. Sometimes I tell her to go ahead and start Math and I will be there soon! Her Math is on the computer, so not specifically taught by me. She can do it without much input fom me.
I really do try to meet this goal. I try to go to bed earlier. I pack my husband's lunch right after supper. I get Janaya to bed, but then I need to feed the dog, let the dog out, start the dishwasher(after loading the final dishes), shut the lights out, turn off the computer and whatever else is on, brush my teeth, and get ready for bed. It's finally quiet in the house. So I might sit down for a few minutes and sometimes I get distracted by a book or magazine or my Kindle. I'll just read a little bit... Just a little bit more...One more page or one more chapter...And next thing I know, it's later than I planned. I missed my goal again.
I will keep working on it, but this one is tough for me. What do you think? How do I fix this one? Or do I give up and just let it be the way it is? I am not sure if meeting this goal will give me more joy for the heart or if missing it will!? :-)
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
Monday, January 14, 2013
A Resolution to Keep- Date Your Spouse
My husband was pleased to hear he made my resolution list! We were joking about resolutions and how hard so many of them are hard to keep- like diets, exercise, etc... I told him I made one that I was looking forward to keeping and that was to make dates with him a priority. He didn't say a lot, but I know he liked it because they have become a priority for him, too.
We enjoy each other's company and have always looked for ways to spend time together. After the kids were old enough to be left alone, we went out for Saturday breakfast because they didn't want to get up anyway. They rarely knew we were gone! I often will just ride along when he has to go somewhere for his job or to pick something up. We like to be together.
We did brainstorm a bit about things we would like to do and he even made a list in his smart phone! I wrote down my ideas and then I went online and found even more. I looked for fun ideas and for ideas that were not too expensive so they could just happen if we had the time. Some ideas cost and have to be budgeted for though.
We like to get away a couple of times a year to a hotel and we have found it pays to join the hotels' "club" of ones we like. You get emails, notices of special deals and events, and sometimes rewards. Most give you points and even though it takes time to get enough points, they keep them until you use them. We have had a few free or reduced nights that way and sometimes they upgrade your room when you check in. We also get free water or snacks at some!
We like to go out to eat, but it doesn't always have to be expensive. We like to try smaller off the beaten path restaurants, too. We like to pack a picnic with a few special things and go to a park or to a lake, too. We love motorcycle rides to anywhere and camping and canoeing! Outdoor activities are great together. We will do what each other enjoys to just spend time together. Loren will go with me to antique stores and flea markets, and I will go with him to motorcycle events and things like that. Be creative and share your spouse's interests. You just might find you like it, too.
Try something new together, too. We are excited that a shooting and archery range is opening near us. We have gone horseback riding, to amusement parks, water parks, zoos, fairs, and festivals. Our state has a great tourism newspaper that lists events and we go to local events we find there. Many are free and a chance to explore your home area. We get a historical membership or state park sticker occasionally and use them to go to events. Even my membership to the historical society was at a reduced rate because I bought it on the internet through Groupon. If you are creative, you can get some good deals.
I don't like winter very much and since I live in Minnesota, that is tough sometimes. This is when we will go to a movie or a play or some kind of expo. We have gone to a camping show, a home show, and a motorcycle show. Check what your local civic centers offer. I also check local radio stations' community calendars for events. We may go to a local charity's fundraiser or dinner.We have found concerts and seminars that way. You would be surprised at what activities are out there.
Dating my spouse is definitely one resolution we both are enjoying, and it is good for our marriage. It gives us something to look forward to and to anticipate. It is part of my bigger goal to celebrate! We are celebrating our relationship and life! It is good to just have fun and to make memories! It will put a smile on your face and joy in your heart!
We enjoy each other's company and have always looked for ways to spend time together. After the kids were old enough to be left alone, we went out for Saturday breakfast because they didn't want to get up anyway. They rarely knew we were gone! I often will just ride along when he has to go somewhere for his job or to pick something up. We like to be together.
We did brainstorm a bit about things we would like to do and he even made a list in his smart phone! I wrote down my ideas and then I went online and found even more. I looked for fun ideas and for ideas that were not too expensive so they could just happen if we had the time. Some ideas cost and have to be budgeted for though.
We like to get away a couple of times a year to a hotel and we have found it pays to join the hotels' "club" of ones we like. You get emails, notices of special deals and events, and sometimes rewards. Most give you points and even though it takes time to get enough points, they keep them until you use them. We have had a few free or reduced nights that way and sometimes they upgrade your room when you check in. We also get free water or snacks at some!
We like to go out to eat, but it doesn't always have to be expensive. We like to try smaller off the beaten path restaurants, too. We like to pack a picnic with a few special things and go to a park or to a lake, too. We love motorcycle rides to anywhere and camping and canoeing! Outdoor activities are great together. We will do what each other enjoys to just spend time together. Loren will go with me to antique stores and flea markets, and I will go with him to motorcycle events and things like that. Be creative and share your spouse's interests. You just might find you like it, too.
Try something new together, too. We are excited that a shooting and archery range is opening near us. We have gone horseback riding, to amusement parks, water parks, zoos, fairs, and festivals. Our state has a great tourism newspaper that lists events and we go to local events we find there. Many are free and a chance to explore your home area. We get a historical membership or state park sticker occasionally and use them to go to events. Even my membership to the historical society was at a reduced rate because I bought it on the internet through Groupon. If you are creative, you can get some good deals.
I don't like winter very much and since I live in Minnesota, that is tough sometimes. This is when we will go to a movie or a play or some kind of expo. We have gone to a camping show, a home show, and a motorcycle show. Check what your local civic centers offer. I also check local radio stations' community calendars for events. We may go to a local charity's fundraiser or dinner.We have found concerts and seminars that way. You would be surprised at what activities are out there.
Dating my spouse is definitely one resolution we both are enjoying, and it is good for our marriage. It gives us something to look forward to and to anticipate. It is part of my bigger goal to celebrate! We are celebrating our relationship and life! It is good to just have fun and to make memories! It will put a smile on your face and joy in your heart!
Thursday, January 10, 2013
2013- The New Year-Celebrate!
I wrote on resolutions last year and woefully broke even the easiest ones. I had hoped others would challenge me to do what I said I would. It didn't work that way. Life got busy and I did whatever was most urgent, whatever was before me. I did meet some goals and had some successes. It wasn't that life was stagnant. It was so busy with everyone's demands. 2012 wasn't what I had hoped it to be. I didn't enjoy it like I should have. Even though I did what I felt I was called to do and did have some success, I lost some of the joy. I let my activities consume me.
This year in 2013 as I was reflecting and thinking about the new year ahead, I decided to think on a few words and to let them guide my year. My first word was Challenge. I don't know what that means. As I figure that out, I will write about it. I am not sure if I will be challenged or I will challenge myself or if life will be a challenge in general. Whatever, whichever it will be will be interesting. I anticipate it.
The second word that came to me was Celebrate! That sounds more fun! It came to me that so much of life is going from crisis to crisis surviving whatever loss, hurt, or sadness comes our way. And they will come our way. But rather than wallow in despair when faced with those things, I want to find the other good things in life and celebrate! There is so much in life worth celebrating. God continually told people in the Bible to celebrate, to have feasts, to comemorate things. God delights in us finding joy. When we celebrate, we remember things that are important to us. We celebrate with family, friends, and others. We share our joy. I look forward to finding ways to celebrate.
Celebrating, finding joy can be so simple. We have played games in the evening. We have challenged each other with WII. We have enjoyed sharing our days at a good sit-down meal. We lit candles at the dinner table. We sipped sparkling apple cider in the evening. We listened to old tapes by Ronald Reagan. We made plans to remodel, rebuild. We prayed together. Some celebrating will be more elaborate. We will have a party. We will cook special foods and have guests over. We will travel somewhere. However it happens, we will celebrate life, love, relationships. Crisises will come, but they will not overshadow the celebrating. We will find the joys of our hearts no matter what the new year brings.
This year in 2013 as I was reflecting and thinking about the new year ahead, I decided to think on a few words and to let them guide my year. My first word was Challenge. I don't know what that means. As I figure that out, I will write about it. I am not sure if I will be challenged or I will challenge myself or if life will be a challenge in general. Whatever, whichever it will be will be interesting. I anticipate it.
The second word that came to me was Celebrate! That sounds more fun! It came to me that so much of life is going from crisis to crisis surviving whatever loss, hurt, or sadness comes our way. And they will come our way. But rather than wallow in despair when faced with those things, I want to find the other good things in life and celebrate! There is so much in life worth celebrating. God continually told people in the Bible to celebrate, to have feasts, to comemorate things. God delights in us finding joy. When we celebrate, we remember things that are important to us. We celebrate with family, friends, and others. We share our joy. I look forward to finding ways to celebrate.
Celebrating, finding joy can be so simple. We have played games in the evening. We have challenged each other with WII. We have enjoyed sharing our days at a good sit-down meal. We lit candles at the dinner table. We sipped sparkling apple cider in the evening. We listened to old tapes by Ronald Reagan. We made plans to remodel, rebuild. We prayed together. Some celebrating will be more elaborate. We will have a party. We will cook special foods and have guests over. We will travel somewhere. However it happens, we will celebrate life, love, relationships. Crisises will come, but they will not overshadow the celebrating. We will find the joys of our hearts no matter what the new year brings.
Thursday, December 27, 2012
Getting Past Failing
Have you ever failed someone? I don't mean once or twice, but consistently, in that you are not the person they want or need in their lives. No matter what you do or how much you love them, it is never enough. They rarely see what you have done for them or what you are willing to do for them. They are stuck in a world of their own choosing, expecting only bad and not seeing what is right before them.
Their perception of you can begin to affect your own. It is so easy to start to see yourself as inadequate or lacking, when that is not the reality. You start to see what is projected on you from the other person. You believe you are what they say you are or are not- even though no one else sees you that way.
You begin to live in their pain instead of living in the place God has called you to. He wants us to live in His light and not in someone else's darkness. When you love somone who is living in darkness, it is hard not to get pulled in to it, too. It's not because you want to join them in it, but because you know no other way to pull them out. But many times we want to pull them out before they are ready or want to be rescued. This only causes more conflict.
The conflicts take on a life of their own and you can lose sight of the good things in life. When this happens, evil has taken root in both lives. It is often a whole family affected by all of it. Everyone reacts differently, but the effects are not good.
So what do you do? I have had to to realize that I am not the person some people see me as. I am a child of God who is loved and who has done all I can to love and care for them. I had to stop believing others' negative perceptions of me so that it didn't cripple me to do and be who I am. I had to let go of the hurts they intentionally and unintentionally inflict.These hurts come from the core of who they are and from the wounds they have in their souls and hearts and lives. I have to choose to forgive. I will choose to ask forgiveness if that will help whether I belive it is warranted or not. I will work at loving unconditionally.
None of my responses come easily. With hurt comes hopelessness and apathy. Only through Christ's work in me and His love in me can I ever respond correctly. I will fail again. But I will try again and again to hope, to love, because He does, and the joys of my heart remain when I remain in Him and walk in obedience.
Monday, December 24, 2012
Christmas
Christmas Day is almost here! As I write late on Christmas Eve, I am contemplating Christmas Past and Christmas Present with an eye on Christmas Future. I have some great memories of Christmases from the past. I think about all those that were part of them that are no longer with us or are no longer part of our lives for one reason or another. I miss many of them. They remain in my heart even if they are no longer here physically.
This year was different, too. It had some wonderful moments when the grandchildren squealed excitedly over something or quietly commented at church when the pastor asked,"What child is this?"
"Jesus...", she whispered. Some parts were disappointments because I always want peace and joy for all my family and it doesn't happen. I give those disappointments to God or I would be truly brokenhearted. And there is too much joy in so much of the celebration to let the disappointments overshadow it.
As much as we would like to plan for the Christmas future, we don't know what is in store for us. Some of us talked about doing something totally different next year. Maybe a trip or a missions experience or gifts to someone needy or... Who knows??? The important thing is to keep Christ in Christmas. I want to whisper quietly and shout loudly with my life that it's all about Jesus. He is the real reason for the season and the joy of my heart no matter what else is happening.
This year was different, too. It had some wonderful moments when the grandchildren squealed excitedly over something or quietly commented at church when the pastor asked,"What child is this?"
"Jesus...", she whispered. Some parts were disappointments because I always want peace and joy for all my family and it doesn't happen. I give those disappointments to God or I would be truly brokenhearted. And there is too much joy in so much of the celebration to let the disappointments overshadow it.
As much as we would like to plan for the Christmas future, we don't know what is in store for us. Some of us talked about doing something totally different next year. Maybe a trip or a missions experience or gifts to someone needy or... Who knows??? The important thing is to keep Christ in Christmas. I want to whisper quietly and shout loudly with my life that it's all about Jesus. He is the real reason for the season and the joy of my heart no matter what else is happening.
Monday, November 19, 2012
A Thankful Heart
Thanksgiving is this week! We have so much to be thankful for, but often we don't realize it or we forget our many blessings. We take them for granted. Today I want to begin to count my blessings...
1. My husband- the love of my life. We have had our difficulties (neither of us is perfect, but we are forgiven and forgiving!)
2. My children- God gives us children to teach us about life, love, and perseverance!
3. My grandchildren- They are a do-over and sweet revenge on my children. They make me smile!
4. Family and friends- You know who you are...
5. A home in the country
6. Food! And almost always I enjoy cooking.
7. Books- I love to read, maybe more than eating :-)
8. Homeschooling- I enjoy teaching my children and I enjoy continually learning!
9. Writing- I need to write and I have the tools to do it.
10. My computer and my i-phone
11. A van to take me places
12. Motorcycles
13. Vacations
14. My husband's job
15. Hope- because of faith in Jesus
16. And so much more... I could never say all the things I am thankful for. It is so healing to count blessings and to see how much we have. A grateful heart is rarely a discontent heart. I will choose gratitude because it brings joy and I love to have joy in my heart!
1. My husband- the love of my life. We have had our difficulties (neither of us is perfect, but we are forgiven and forgiving!)
2. My children- God gives us children to teach us about life, love, and perseverance!
3. My grandchildren- They are a do-over and sweet revenge on my children. They make me smile!
4. Family and friends- You know who you are...
5. A home in the country
6. Food! And almost always I enjoy cooking.
7. Books- I love to read, maybe more than eating :-)
8. Homeschooling- I enjoy teaching my children and I enjoy continually learning!
9. Writing- I need to write and I have the tools to do it.
10. My computer and my i-phone
11. A van to take me places
12. Motorcycles
13. Vacations
14. My husband's job
15. Hope- because of faith in Jesus
16. And so much more... I could never say all the things I am thankful for. It is so healing to count blessings and to see how much we have. A grateful heart is rarely a discontent heart. I will choose gratitude because it brings joy and I love to have joy in my heart!
Monday, November 12, 2012
A Weary Win
The election is over. The candidate I worked for won! Other things didn't go as I had hoped. So disappointment was mixed with the joy of victory. It was an exhausting, fullfilling, overwhelming task and now it is done...
Now what? I don't know. My summer and fall are gone. Winter is upon us here in Minnesota. And I feel lost. I so poured my heart, soul, and life into the campaign that I feel like I lost a part of myself now that it is finished. I can only hope my friends and family will forgive me for my neglect as I focused so intently on what was before me. It is not that I have regrets about doing it. I felt called to do it and felt sure God was pleased for me to work on this campaign. But I may have become over zealous in my pursuit of excellence and my hope of victory.
I know I neglected my faith journey. I got lost on it. We were not attending church and I did not worship. I prayed, but I did not take time to listen to God. I just moved on. I am sure some of my friends that are not into politics moved away from me or think I moved away from them. Now I need to work at repairing those relationships. More than one family crisis happened this summer and I gave them only what was necessary; no more. I had no more to give. I had no extra time to do anything, by my choice. I liked what I was doing. I blame no one, but me.
Only now I feel depleted, empty. I don't know where to get to the place of being where God wants me. I am sorely lacking in energy. As other situations have come up, I feel like withdrawing instead of working them through. I need some space to regroup, refocus, and relax. I need to move to a different place and find the next step. I always tell my daughter to "Do the next thing." She doesn't like hearing it and I understand, especially when you don't know what the next thing is.
So life goes on, and though the characters in it may change as as the circumstances change, God is faithful and I can trust Him. He never changes and He is there for me, even when I neglected Him. Oh, the grace He offers me and each of us. I will rest in that today.
Now what? I don't know. My summer and fall are gone. Winter is upon us here in Minnesota. And I feel lost. I so poured my heart, soul, and life into the campaign that I feel like I lost a part of myself now that it is finished. I can only hope my friends and family will forgive me for my neglect as I focused so intently on what was before me. It is not that I have regrets about doing it. I felt called to do it and felt sure God was pleased for me to work on this campaign. But I may have become over zealous in my pursuit of excellence and my hope of victory.
I know I neglected my faith journey. I got lost on it. We were not attending church and I did not worship. I prayed, but I did not take time to listen to God. I just moved on. I am sure some of my friends that are not into politics moved away from me or think I moved away from them. Now I need to work at repairing those relationships. More than one family crisis happened this summer and I gave them only what was necessary; no more. I had no more to give. I had no extra time to do anything, by my choice. I liked what I was doing. I blame no one, but me.
Only now I feel depleted, empty. I don't know where to get to the place of being where God wants me. I am sorely lacking in energy. As other situations have come up, I feel like withdrawing instead of working them through. I need some space to regroup, refocus, and relax. I need to move to a different place and find the next step. I always tell my daughter to "Do the next thing." She doesn't like hearing it and I understand, especially when you don't know what the next thing is.
So life goes on, and though the characters in it may change as as the circumstances change, God is faithful and I can trust Him. He never changes and He is there for me, even when I neglected Him. Oh, the grace He offers me and each of us. I will rest in that today.
Monday, October 1, 2012
Focus- Be in the Moment!
This morning as I was reading and thinking about life, the thought that kept coming to my mind was to focus. Focus. Be in the moment. Yesterday I talked about being too busy to hear God, and then I realized sometimes I am too busy to be in the moment. I am too busy to really hear what the people around me are saying, feeling, needing... I give a hug, but keep doing, thinking, or talking without really enjoying the hug. I hold a child and keep going with my activities. I take a motorcycle ride with my husband to see the fall colors and I take notes on what needs to be done.
I multitask on things that need my full concentration and I think I am so efficient. But in reality, I do things not as well when I am not fully in the moment. Nothing gets my full attention. Don't you hate it when you are having a conversation with someone and they keep looking past you or around you like you are not even there? Or worse yet, doesn't it drive you crazy when someone is texting the whole time you are trying to have a conversation with them? I get so frustrated with those things, but I am sure I do them, too. Or similar things.
A Facebook quote that came to me today said,"Learn to appreciate what you have, before time makes you appreciate what you had." Wow! Instead of multitasking and trying to do everything at once, I need to learn to appreciate what is in the moment now. I need to truly "see" the people in front of me. I want to hug with abandon and love freely. I want to focus on the beauty around me. I want to be fully alive, experiencing all God is opening me up to.
So as I am "still" before God, I am to focus. I am to be in the moment and experience life to the fullest, bit by bit, not just in chunks missing the details. I'm already smiling because the joys from my heart are expanding already.
I multitask on things that need my full concentration and I think I am so efficient. But in reality, I do things not as well when I am not fully in the moment. Nothing gets my full attention. Don't you hate it when you are having a conversation with someone and they keep looking past you or around you like you are not even there? Or worse yet, doesn't it drive you crazy when someone is texting the whole time you are trying to have a conversation with them? I get so frustrated with those things, but I am sure I do them, too. Or similar things.
A Facebook quote that came to me today said,"Learn to appreciate what you have, before time makes you appreciate what you had." Wow! Instead of multitasking and trying to do everything at once, I need to learn to appreciate what is in the moment now. I need to truly "see" the people in front of me. I want to hug with abandon and love freely. I want to focus on the beauty around me. I want to be fully alive, experiencing all God is opening me up to.
So as I am "still" before God, I am to focus. I am to be in the moment and experience life to the fullest, bit by bit, not just in chunks missing the details. I'm already smiling because the joys from my heart are expanding already.
Sunday, September 30, 2012
"Be Still"
Do you ever wonder if what you are doing is enough? Is it important enough? Is it worth your time and effort? Sometimes I feel like I am coasting through life, doing what others expect and want, but not trusting myself to even know if I am doing what I should be doing. Am I doing what my life is here to do? Am I touching lives in the way I was meant to?
Our busy-ness sometimes gets in the way of thinking, dreaming, planning, anticipating... Instead we fill our hours with the urgent, not always the important.
I just had a conversation with a friend about all of this and we both agreed that life gets in the way of our prayer life. While we both pray and pray a lot, we talked about how we don't take time to listen to God. We shoot our prayers Heaven-ward and just keep going. We are just too busy.
I long to listen to God. I know I have neglected that lately. I desperately need to attune myself to Him and His still, small voice.
Because when I am listening to Him, I am more likely to be in the right place, doing the right thing, the thing He has called me to do. I am less likely to waste time on the unimportant, the urgent things that were not meant for me. I will make better decisions and I will see those that God wants me to touch.
God's Word says,"Be still and know that I am God." I need to figure out how to be still and when to be still. That is so hard in today's fast-paced world with so many things and people pulling at us. Yet God asks this of me and I need to obey.
If others have mastered this, please share. We can do this with God's help. We can find our way and be secure in who we are and what we are doing, after we seek Him. And that will fill my heart with joy again and again.
Our busy-ness sometimes gets in the way of thinking, dreaming, planning, anticipating... Instead we fill our hours with the urgent, not always the important.
I just had a conversation with a friend about all of this and we both agreed that life gets in the way of our prayer life. While we both pray and pray a lot, we talked about how we don't take time to listen to God. We shoot our prayers Heaven-ward and just keep going. We are just too busy.
I long to listen to God. I know I have neglected that lately. I desperately need to attune myself to Him and His still, small voice.
Because when I am listening to Him, I am more likely to be in the right place, doing the right thing, the thing He has called me to do. I am less likely to waste time on the unimportant, the urgent things that were not meant for me. I will make better decisions and I will see those that God wants me to touch.
God's Word says,"Be still and know that I am God." I need to figure out how to be still and when to be still. That is so hard in today's fast-paced world with so many things and people pulling at us. Yet God asks this of me and I need to obey.
If others have mastered this, please share. We can do this with God's help. We can find our way and be secure in who we are and what we are doing, after we seek Him. And that will fill my heart with joy again and again.
Tuesday, September 4, 2012
The Christian Life
What does it mean to be a Christian? What do you think? Are you a Christ follower? Most people I talk to would say they are a Christian. They don't all know if that means they are going to Heaven or not. They hope so. They believe in 'God'. Some of them go to church and think that is what makes them a Christian. Some rarely go to church, but occasionally pray. Some think that a decision to be a Christian at some time previous in their life has them covered. I have been thinking a lot about this as I have observed people, including myself.
What Christians Are NOT:
They are not perfect people.They make mistakes. Yet they are saved by grace. They are forgiven.
They are not always happy, but they have a deep joy that God is with them in everything.
They do not have all the answers, but they have God's Word and His Spirit to guide them.
So what are Christians? They are people who have chosen to follow Christ, to be His disciples.They live in His love and grace, guided by His Spirit. They look and talk differently than others. It isn't their language or their clothes. It is in their being. They care about others. They reach out to others. They listen to others. They meet needs. They are the hands and feet of Jesus.They stand for truth and may offend to take that stand. They are bold in their walk with God, holding fast to faith. They are all these things and more. God gifts each of his children uniquely so they can make a difference in the world He has placed them in.
It isn't enough to just go to church or to occasionally pray. It isn't just believing in God. Being a Christian should transform your life. You should be different, set apart, called.to serve. It should change what you think about entertainment, how you spend your leisure time and your money. God never asks us to not have fun, but He does ask us to refrain fom immoral behavior, drunkeness, and things that pull us from a right relationship with Him and others. He asks us to consider if what we are doing glorifies Him or not. We must live in a way different from the rest of the world. If we conform to the world's ways, we have no message of what Jesus is in our lives. People will not see Him in us.
I know I am not always the kind of person I should be as a Christian. I don't always act in love or forgive as easily as I should. I am one of those Christians who is not perfect. Nor will I ever be. But who I am in Christ affects every decision I make and how I act more often than not. I do read His Word and that is my guide for living. Hopefully people see me as different. I don't want to be like everyone else. Even if that makes me odd, or goofy, or wierd. That's OK. I want to belong to Jesus. I want to do His will, even if it doesn't make sense to the rest of the world.
How about you? Do you want to be different? Or do you want to be like everyone else? How do you want to have fun? How do you want to spend your days? It's up to you. You get to choose how you want to live. You can live for Him or for yourself. I constantly ask these questions of myself because it helps me to stay on track. What will you choose? Will you choose God's way for your life? I hope so. His way leads to life, abundant life, eternal life. And choosing His way will put joy in your heart as it has in mine!
What Christians Are NOT:
They are not perfect people.They make mistakes. Yet they are saved by grace. They are forgiven.
They are not always happy, but they have a deep joy that God is with them in everything.
They do not have all the answers, but they have God's Word and His Spirit to guide them.
So what are Christians? They are people who have chosen to follow Christ, to be His disciples.They live in His love and grace, guided by His Spirit. They look and talk differently than others. It isn't their language or their clothes. It is in their being. They care about others. They reach out to others. They listen to others. They meet needs. They are the hands and feet of Jesus.They stand for truth and may offend to take that stand. They are bold in their walk with God, holding fast to faith. They are all these things and more. God gifts each of his children uniquely so they can make a difference in the world He has placed them in.
It isn't enough to just go to church or to occasionally pray. It isn't just believing in God. Being a Christian should transform your life. You should be different, set apart, called.to serve. It should change what you think about entertainment, how you spend your leisure time and your money. God never asks us to not have fun, but He does ask us to refrain fom immoral behavior, drunkeness, and things that pull us from a right relationship with Him and others. He asks us to consider if what we are doing glorifies Him or not. We must live in a way different from the rest of the world. If we conform to the world's ways, we have no message of what Jesus is in our lives. People will not see Him in us.
I know I am not always the kind of person I should be as a Christian. I don't always act in love or forgive as easily as I should. I am one of those Christians who is not perfect. Nor will I ever be. But who I am in Christ affects every decision I make and how I act more often than not. I do read His Word and that is my guide for living. Hopefully people see me as different. I don't want to be like everyone else. Even if that makes me odd, or goofy, or wierd. That's OK. I want to belong to Jesus. I want to do His will, even if it doesn't make sense to the rest of the world.
How about you? Do you want to be different? Or do you want to be like everyone else? How do you want to have fun? How do you want to spend your days? It's up to you. You get to choose how you want to live. You can live for Him or for yourself. I constantly ask these questions of myself because it helps me to stay on track. What will you choose? Will you choose God's way for your life? I hope so. His way leads to life, abundant life, eternal life. And choosing His way will put joy in your heart as it has in mine!
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