Scripture I'm reflecting on: 2 Corinthians 5:21
"For God made Christ who never sinned, to be the offering of our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ."
What a powerful verse! Paul basically sums up the foundation of our belief in one line, and what an amazing line it is.
Reflection:
It never ceases to touch and inspire me any time I think generally about the story of Jesus. Think about it in its simplest form. God took Jesus, His son, and a man who lived without a single sin, and sent him to the cross....for us. Sinful fallen us.
It takes an even greater meaning to me when I try to compare decisions in my own life, or sacrifices I would make in my life, to what Jesus did for us. It's almost comical to even compare. I'm not sure I would even be willing to take on the consequences of something small like a speeding ticket for a friend; yet Jesus gave His life for all of us, people he didn't know, and people who He owed no favors too. Forget about sacrificing your life for someone. How many people would you take a punch for? Go to jail for? Shoot, even give up some of your time and resources too? The answer for most of us, is probably far fewer than we'd like to admit.
Final Thought:
I've quoted the Shawshank Redemption several times in past blog posts, and I think I'll do so again to close this blog. "Hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things. And no good thing ever dies." How could any Christian not have hope when reflecting on what Jesus did for us? We have a God willing to give up His own son, in the manner he did, to forgive us of our sins. Remembering this gives me all the hope I need. Remembering this should inspire our faith. And remembering this should give us all of the peace of mind we need to live our lives in all of His glory.
Saturday, January 26, 2013
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
Trust Him, it shouldn't be that hard...right?
Scripture I'm Reflecting on: 2 Kings 5:11
"But Naaman became angry and stalked away, "I thought he would certainly come out to meet me!" he said. "I expected him to wave his hand over the leprosy and call on the name of the Lord his God and heal me!..."
Naaman wasn't pleased with God's plan for curing his disease. He wanted it done his way. He wanted a personal appearance from Elisha. Essentially, he wanted to tell God how to cure him. Fortunately his men talked some sense into him, or he would have gone on living a life with his disease because of his ignorance and lack of faith.
Reflection:
Have you ever told God how you want your prayer answered? Have you ever thought that God should use this person to answer your prayer, give you that promotion, or fix that problem in a certain way? I have. I don't say it out loud, but I can't deny that I think it, regularly. This is a habit we all have to try and avoid. By telling God how to answer our prayers, we are limiting God. God doesn't have limits. He can answer your prayer any way He wants. And if we trust God's way, we will surely find that His way is in our best interets.
When we get this idea in our head that we know how God should answer our prayers, it only leads to negative results. It will lead us to thinking that our prayers haven't been answered, when in reality they may have already been answered, or are in the process of being answered. It will also lead us to have reasons to think we have heard God wrong. I can certainly attest to this, as I am currently seriously questioning everything I think I've heard from God. Simply trusting God to do it His way, is a cure to all of these problems, and the ticket to a happier, and more fulfilled heart. I am hopeful that by finding this trust, I can put an end to the questioning I am finding myself going through.
Final Thought:
This post almost makes me chuckle as I write it by how common sense the message is. Don't limit God. Let God do it His way, its better than our way. Despite this very simple message, I find myself fighting it, fighting against God's way, when I think He is not answering my prayers. I find myself disbelieving things I thought He has put on my heart when they don't work out the way I had envisioned. If you can relate to this, join me in trying to change your attitude. Join me in trying to just do one simple thing, Trust God's way.
The Bible is rich with stories of how God used unconventional ways and surprising people to achieve his goals. God has used prositutues, servants, and even the Pharoah's daughter to answer the prayers of His people. Don't let what seems like a closed door or an unconventional answer to a prayer cloud your faith. Trust God. All prayers will be answered when we do this.
"But Naaman became angry and stalked away, "I thought he would certainly come out to meet me!" he said. "I expected him to wave his hand over the leprosy and call on the name of the Lord his God and heal me!..."
Naaman wasn't pleased with God's plan for curing his disease. He wanted it done his way. He wanted a personal appearance from Elisha. Essentially, he wanted to tell God how to cure him. Fortunately his men talked some sense into him, or he would have gone on living a life with his disease because of his ignorance and lack of faith.
Reflection:
Have you ever told God how you want your prayer answered? Have you ever thought that God should use this person to answer your prayer, give you that promotion, or fix that problem in a certain way? I have. I don't say it out loud, but I can't deny that I think it, regularly. This is a habit we all have to try and avoid. By telling God how to answer our prayers, we are limiting God. God doesn't have limits. He can answer your prayer any way He wants. And if we trust God's way, we will surely find that His way is in our best interets.
When we get this idea in our head that we know how God should answer our prayers, it only leads to negative results. It will lead us to thinking that our prayers haven't been answered, when in reality they may have already been answered, or are in the process of being answered. It will also lead us to have reasons to think we have heard God wrong. I can certainly attest to this, as I am currently seriously questioning everything I think I've heard from God. Simply trusting God to do it His way, is a cure to all of these problems, and the ticket to a happier, and more fulfilled heart. I am hopeful that by finding this trust, I can put an end to the questioning I am finding myself going through.
Final Thought:
This post almost makes me chuckle as I write it by how common sense the message is. Don't limit God. Let God do it His way, its better than our way. Despite this very simple message, I find myself fighting it, fighting against God's way, when I think He is not answering my prayers. I find myself disbelieving things I thought He has put on my heart when they don't work out the way I had envisioned. If you can relate to this, join me in trying to change your attitude. Join me in trying to just do one simple thing, Trust God's way.
The Bible is rich with stories of how God used unconventional ways and surprising people to achieve his goals. God has used prositutues, servants, and even the Pharoah's daughter to answer the prayers of His people. Don't let what seems like a closed door or an unconventional answer to a prayer cloud your faith. Trust God. All prayers will be answered when we do this.
Tuesday, January 8, 2013
Find your passion on a daily basis
Scripture I'm reflecting on: Ecclesiastes 9:10
Whatever you do, do well. For when you go to the grave, there will be no work or planning or knowledge or wisdom.
As the start of my spring semester came closer and closer, I've prayed for tinspiration and passion for the work that is upcoming. After finishing off the best semester of my educational career, a semester I was extremely excited to perform well on and put a lot of effort into, I am finding myself now in somewhat of a lull. The excitement for this semester isn't there like it was before. The passion has faded a little.
Thankfully, He shot me to this page of the Word recently, which was what I was looking for.
Reflection:
Possibly my favorite movie quote of all time comes from the Shawshank Redemption: "I guess it comes down to a simple choice really, get busy living, or get busy dying." (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7tkzc983aE0). Our society has become, for lack of a better word, more and more robotic. More people each day are just "going through the motions", "following a routine" to get them through the day. Wake up, watch tv, go to work, come home, fire up a microwave meal, surf the net, sleep, repeat. More and more marriages become stale, with one or either spouse showing any passion, any spntaneity in the relationship (to the point a movie has even been made about it...see Hope Springs). These routines, this idea of "getting through the day", is us making a choice to get busy dying, rather then getting busy living....the way God intended.
God doesn't give us all of the blessings in our life to "go through the motions." We have to find joy in the blessings we have. We have to find passion in the things we do on a daily basis, whether it be something really exciting, or something we do everyday. All of us have a tendency to let things become ordinary. Seeing your wife. Seeing your kids. Seeing your girlfriend. Being healthy. Having a job. Going to school. Taking a shower. Eating. Breathing clean air. On and on....When these things become ordinary to us, we start "going through the motions". We start, not "doing well", as we are told to do in this verse.
Everyday is a blessing, and everyday there is something to be thankful. Show God your thankful with your passion that day. When you see your girlfriend that day, show God your thankful by being excited to see her, passionate, and do everything in your power to make her smile and keep the relationship fun and exciting. When you go to work that day, show God your thankful by doing all of your work as if the company depends on you doing every single task to perfection, whether it actually be something important or just doing your "ordinary" day to day work. When you go to class that day, show God your thankful with your passion to learn and desire to perform at a high level. There is no doubt in my mind, that if we do these things, we will not only please God, but we will see great rewards in our own lives as well.
Final Thought:
I spent an embarrasing amount of years taking things in my life for granted. Family, education, athletics, you name it, I took it for granted. Attending family functions was something I dreaded doing, and my attitude certainly reflected it. My effort from high school through most of my undergraduate years was pitiful. I gave up on numerous athletic gifts I had due to a bad attitude. Through renewed faith I have been able to change this attitude, and I can personally attest to the rewards that come with it. I do my best to make every second count at family functions, and I can assure you my "happiness" meter is way up. I put forth my best effort in school, and the results (as well as just general enjoyment in going to school) are way up. I promise these results will happen to anyone who can make this attitude change.
The challenge for all of us is to find passion in our lives. The verse says Whatever you do, do well. Whatever you do = everything you do. By finding passion in whatever we do, we will ultimately do it well. Spouses who are passionate about seeing each other and passionate about being married are almost certainly going to be among the happiest couples. Employees who are passionate about the work they are doing are almost certainly going to be the top performers, and the workers who receive the greatest rewards and promotions. And people who are passionate throughout the day, passionate when taking in God's blessings, are absolutely certain to be the ones who receive the ultimate gifts from God in the long run.
Whatever you do, do well. For when you go to the grave, there will be no work or planning or knowledge or wisdom.
As the start of my spring semester came closer and closer, I've prayed for tinspiration and passion for the work that is upcoming. After finishing off the best semester of my educational career, a semester I was extremely excited to perform well on and put a lot of effort into, I am finding myself now in somewhat of a lull. The excitement for this semester isn't there like it was before. The passion has faded a little.
Thankfully, He shot me to this page of the Word recently, which was what I was looking for.
Reflection:
Possibly my favorite movie quote of all time comes from the Shawshank Redemption: "I guess it comes down to a simple choice really, get busy living, or get busy dying." (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7tkzc983aE0). Our society has become, for lack of a better word, more and more robotic. More people each day are just "going through the motions", "following a routine" to get them through the day. Wake up, watch tv, go to work, come home, fire up a microwave meal, surf the net, sleep, repeat. More and more marriages become stale, with one or either spouse showing any passion, any spntaneity in the relationship (to the point a movie has even been made about it...see Hope Springs). These routines, this idea of "getting through the day", is us making a choice to get busy dying, rather then getting busy living....the way God intended.
God doesn't give us all of the blessings in our life to "go through the motions." We have to find joy in the blessings we have. We have to find passion in the things we do on a daily basis, whether it be something really exciting, or something we do everyday. All of us have a tendency to let things become ordinary. Seeing your wife. Seeing your kids. Seeing your girlfriend. Being healthy. Having a job. Going to school. Taking a shower. Eating. Breathing clean air. On and on....When these things become ordinary to us, we start "going through the motions". We start, not "doing well", as we are told to do in this verse.
Everyday is a blessing, and everyday there is something to be thankful. Show God your thankful with your passion that day. When you see your girlfriend that day, show God your thankful by being excited to see her, passionate, and do everything in your power to make her smile and keep the relationship fun and exciting. When you go to work that day, show God your thankful by doing all of your work as if the company depends on you doing every single task to perfection, whether it actually be something important or just doing your "ordinary" day to day work. When you go to class that day, show God your thankful with your passion to learn and desire to perform at a high level. There is no doubt in my mind, that if we do these things, we will not only please God, but we will see great rewards in our own lives as well.
Final Thought:
I spent an embarrasing amount of years taking things in my life for granted. Family, education, athletics, you name it, I took it for granted. Attending family functions was something I dreaded doing, and my attitude certainly reflected it. My effort from high school through most of my undergraduate years was pitiful. I gave up on numerous athletic gifts I had due to a bad attitude. Through renewed faith I have been able to change this attitude, and I can personally attest to the rewards that come with it. I do my best to make every second count at family functions, and I can assure you my "happiness" meter is way up. I put forth my best effort in school, and the results (as well as just general enjoyment in going to school) are way up. I promise these results will happen to anyone who can make this attitude change.
The challenge for all of us is to find passion in our lives. The verse says Whatever you do, do well. Whatever you do = everything you do. By finding passion in whatever we do, we will ultimately do it well. Spouses who are passionate about seeing each other and passionate about being married are almost certainly going to be among the happiest couples. Employees who are passionate about the work they are doing are almost certainly going to be the top performers, and the workers who receive the greatest rewards and promotions. And people who are passionate throughout the day, passionate when taking in God's blessings, are absolutely certain to be the ones who receive the ultimate gifts from God in the long run.
Thursday, January 3, 2013
Humble Pie
Scripture I'm reflecting on: Matthew 6:1
"Watch out! Don't do your good deeds publicly, to be admited by others, for you will lose the reward from your Father in heaven."
Reflection:
This is a shorter writing than usual, as Jesus' command here is self-explanatory. I however find this to be one of the hardest tasks we face as Christians, at least for myself personally, so I make sure to re-read this section as much as I can remember to do so.
When we do something good, it is natural to want to tell people about it. It's natural to be proud. It's even natural to want to impress those important to you by telling them of your act. And I don't think doing any of those things is a grave wrong. But it is something we should try to avoid. The Bible is ripe with teachings of humbleness and humility, and this verse is as clear a teaching on this principle as it gets.
While humbleness is very difficult, it is also a great opportunity. This is our chance to take one step closer to living as Jesus lived. How easily could Jesus have impressed the masses by showing off his miracles and prophecies. But He didn't, and we should strive to do the same in our own lives. It feels great to be recognized for the good things we do. Whether its a good deed, charity donation, or something of the like, no one can claim that they don't get a warm feeling when their good acts are recognized by others. But Jesus warns us against tooting our own horn and broadcasting our deeds to those around us....and not without good reason. By tooting our own horn, our motives for doing the good deed come into question. Did we do a good deed because we are walking in the God's glory, or did we do so (even if just partially), for acknowledgement, or to impress someone?
I always come back to a question I heard in a sermon to remind myself of this principle. Of the two scenarios, who do you think God is more impressed by? Someone donating a million dollars to charity to lower their tax bracket, or someone giving their last dollar to someone in need on the street corner?
Final Thought:
I spent a good majority of my life making sure people knew anytime I did something good. This went as far as including little things like making sure people knew I cleaned the dishes or picked up a piece of garbage. I realize now however that there was no real gratification in doing this. Doing things just to impress someone doesn't provide you with any "reward" in the long run.
I have done a few things over the last month that I would love to broadcast to certain people in my life, certain people I would so desperately like to impress, and who I believe would be impressed if they knew. It's been a difficult thing not to revert back to my old ways of "slipping into conversation" these acts I've done. But reading this verse makes it easier for me to remain humble, as we are commanded to do and keep my acts to myself. And by doing so, I've proven to myself that my motives were good and pure, which I have found far more rewarding than announcing my good deeds to others.
Jesus closes this teaching by saying by saying "Give your gifts in private, and your Father, who sees everything, will reward you." This alone should be enough for us. God's reward is what we all seek. And I have found through changing my own behavior that this reward is so much more gratifying than any "reward" I would've gotten from trying to impress people in my life.
By following this verse, we ensure that our motives for doing things... whether it be charity work, helping out others, sacrificing something for the benefit of the other, or something similar... are the right motives that God expects and rewards. And knowing that God rewards humbleness should be all the motivation we need to be inspried to keep our motives for doing good pure, and to not feel the need to announce our deeds for our own gratification.
"Watch out! Don't do your good deeds publicly, to be admited by others, for you will lose the reward from your Father in heaven."
Reflection:
This is a shorter writing than usual, as Jesus' command here is self-explanatory. I however find this to be one of the hardest tasks we face as Christians, at least for myself personally, so I make sure to re-read this section as much as I can remember to do so.
When we do something good, it is natural to want to tell people about it. It's natural to be proud. It's even natural to want to impress those important to you by telling them of your act. And I don't think doing any of those things is a grave wrong. But it is something we should try to avoid. The Bible is ripe with teachings of humbleness and humility, and this verse is as clear a teaching on this principle as it gets.
While humbleness is very difficult, it is also a great opportunity. This is our chance to take one step closer to living as Jesus lived. How easily could Jesus have impressed the masses by showing off his miracles and prophecies. But He didn't, and we should strive to do the same in our own lives. It feels great to be recognized for the good things we do. Whether its a good deed, charity donation, or something of the like, no one can claim that they don't get a warm feeling when their good acts are recognized by others. But Jesus warns us against tooting our own horn and broadcasting our deeds to those around us....and not without good reason. By tooting our own horn, our motives for doing the good deed come into question. Did we do a good deed because we are walking in the God's glory, or did we do so (even if just partially), for acknowledgement, or to impress someone?
I always come back to a question I heard in a sermon to remind myself of this principle. Of the two scenarios, who do you think God is more impressed by? Someone donating a million dollars to charity to lower their tax bracket, or someone giving their last dollar to someone in need on the street corner?
Final Thought:
I spent a good majority of my life making sure people knew anytime I did something good. This went as far as including little things like making sure people knew I cleaned the dishes or picked up a piece of garbage. I realize now however that there was no real gratification in doing this. Doing things just to impress someone doesn't provide you with any "reward" in the long run.
I have done a few things over the last month that I would love to broadcast to certain people in my life, certain people I would so desperately like to impress, and who I believe would be impressed if they knew. It's been a difficult thing not to revert back to my old ways of "slipping into conversation" these acts I've done. But reading this verse makes it easier for me to remain humble, as we are commanded to do and keep my acts to myself. And by doing so, I've proven to myself that my motives were good and pure, which I have found far more rewarding than announcing my good deeds to others.
Jesus closes this teaching by saying by saying "Give your gifts in private, and your Father, who sees everything, will reward you." This alone should be enough for us. God's reward is what we all seek. And I have found through changing my own behavior that this reward is so much more gratifying than any "reward" I would've gotten from trying to impress people in my life.
By following this verse, we ensure that our motives for doing things... whether it be charity work, helping out others, sacrificing something for the benefit of the other, or something similar... are the right motives that God expects and rewards. And knowing that God rewards humbleness should be all the motivation we need to be inspried to keep our motives for doing good pure, and to not feel the need to announce our deeds for our own gratification.
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