Another semester is in the books and I only have one more left for my undergraduate work! I'm pretty excited about this because I know that a bunch of questions will be answered in regards to my future once I get into my graduate work and I can't wait to see what future God has planned for me.
Christmas Break is really special for a college student and is drastically different than summer break. You have a much longer time for summer break, but you are usually doing something like more classes, an internship, or serving somewhere. Winter break is the college student's dream of being a complete bum, eating lots of food, sleeping forever, and being around friends and family. Christmas break is also a special time, for me personally, in that it's when I celebrate the birth of my King (Not that you shouldn't always celebrate, but this is a special time and you get the point).
The holiday season is always filled with busyness for some reason. Everything has to be a "certain" way at this time of the year because it's either A) How we've always done it or B) We have a fanciful view that everything has to be PERFECT for the holidays. I love the decorations and the music and the food. Oh my goodness, yes, the food haha. Many times we try and buy the perfect gift for someone and I'm not usually a very good gift giver. I think practically for the most part and it's difficult for me to get gifts that people will actually use. Everything mixed together can add a lot of stress though, especially if you're preparing for lots of family/company to come over. Often, we miss one of the most important aspects of this time of the year though, rejoicing.
I just finished reading a book titled "Praise Habit" by David Crowder and I love the way he reads the Psalms. He rewrites certain chapters in Psalms using grammar the way he thinks (which is awesome btw) and relates them to things about his life. You get the point really quickly that there is so much Christians have to be thankful for. We serve a powerful God and I don't mean just barely more powerful than the things around us, I mean POWERFUL. Stop for a moment and just think and pray on how big God is (seriously, do it). We get so wrapped up in the now, temporary things and they don't even begin to compare to the scheme of eternity and the plans that God has for us. That's something I've always kind of struggled with is the plans God has for me.
Many Christians could give you a reference of some sort to Jeremiah 29:11 "'For I know the plans I have for you'--this is the Lord's declaration 'plans for your welfare, not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.'" This is something that's easy for us to find comfort and security in knowing that God has something planned that we could never imagine. We often skip over the next couple of verses though which are just as important. "You will call to Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart. I will be found by you..." Jeremiah 29:12-14a In order to experience the full joy that God has to offer us, there is a bit of searching on our part that is required. He isn't trying to hide from us though! He says "I will be found by you." What an incredible promise from someone who is so powerful!
Maybe you're in a place right now where you are wondering where God wants to lead you. I often wonder about the plans God has for me. I wonder when God will place my future spouse in my life and how that relationship will blossom. Something that God's really taught me is that His timing is always perfect and I can't wait for Him to work out whatever He has planned. I remember in 8th grade at M-Fuge I really felt God telling me to play guitar. I had no clue why, but I knew He wanted me to do it. I picked it up off and on for a couple of years, never really being that serious about it. I tried picking it back up before I went off to college. When I got to the U of A and involved with Thrive I finally understood why. He opened up an opportunity for me to help lead worship and it has been an absolute joy for me to do so the past 3 years of my life as I've grown with my friends. I also know that God wants me to play in a worship band later on in my life when I settle down somewhere for my career. God's plans are perfect and we don't have to understand everything that's going on, but we can find joy in knowing God is in control.
Rejoice my friends for the time we've been given on earth. It will be short-lived and then we will go to be with our Father in heaven for eternity. That is, if you've accepted Him as Lord of your life. If you haven't and you're reading this, please contact me and I would love to share with you the reason I have joy and the reason I can give praise to something that is far greater and bigger than I will ever be. Accepting Christ as my Lord has been the greatest decision of my life and my relationship with Him is a constant work-in-progress. Whatever you're going through right now, know that God is there. He is fighting fiercely for us with His furious love and He is always faithful. "If we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself." 2 Timothy 2:13
In Love,
Bill
Saturday, December 21, 2013
Tuesday, November 19, 2013
Rejoicing in the Face of an Enemy
Hey guys, just wanted to give a general life update before I begin sharing what's been on my heart. I recently found out that I have been accepted into Graduate School at the University of Arkansas Fayetteville so I will be here for another two years working on my Master's in Computer Engineering. I'm pretty excited about this opportunity and I get to focus on some research which will be cool. Hopefully some topic just really catches my attention and I can pursue a career in that area one day. I also got placed in Glorieta, NM to be an M-Fuge staffer this upcoming summer! I can't tell you how excited I am to get to work camp again and be a part of something that God really used to shape my life through.
One thing that amazes me about being a Christian is that no matter how long you've been one or how "strong" you think you are, there is still SO much more room to grow daily. The moment we become complacent is when the Enemy will slip in and feed us a lie or cause us to stumble in some way. A few Scriptures have been running through my head recently and a passage from John 10:10 really sticks out. "A thief comes only to steal and to kill and to destroy. I have come that they may have life and have it in abundance." One thing I never really thought about before I got to college was spiritual warfare and how vicious it is. What exactly do I mean by that though? I mean that there is something in this world set against us, whether you are a Christian or not. Satan, demons, etc are real and if you fail to recognize that then you've already lost the battle. They are the enemy of our souls because they are the thief described in John 10:10 that has come to "steal, kill, and destroy." They are hellbent on doing anything they can to stop God's will from occurring because they are jealous of God and know that their time is limited before He completely seals them away.
This isn't very fun to think about, but it's true and unless you recognize the Enemy for what it is you can't fight back. The second half of John 10:10 is why I love this verse so much though. "I have come that they may have life and have it in abundance." That is why Jesus came. God Himself came as a man and did more for me than I could ever do for myself. He offers us LIFE and not just any life at that, a life full of abundance. Christians are the worst at times about walking around like we have the weight of the world on our shoulders, myself included. We have more reason to rejoice than anybody else though!
"4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your graciousness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. 6 Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses every thought, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. 8 Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable—if there is any moral excellence and if there is any praise—dwell on these things. 9 Do what you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you." Philippians 4:4-9
This is what the Enemy doesn't want you to do. He wants us to believe the lies that we aren't worth it. We are not worthy of the gift we have received, but Jesus has made us worth it. God has taken away our guilt and shame. "For godly grief produces a repentance not to be regretted and leading to salvation, but worldly grief produces death." 2 Cor. 7:10 We are loved far more than we could ever ask, forgiven far more than we ever deserve, and we have a future that Christ has destined for us specifically. He wanted us in our sin and calls us back to Him daily when we turn our backs on Him.
I don't know where this hits you, but one lie I refuse to believe is that God desires anything less than life for me. My future is taken care of whether that be my career, a relationship, or my family. Rest in that security He has to offer you. I like to blog because it's easier for me to get my thoughts out this way and I want the conversation to go on. We can't grow if we don't talk about what God has been doing in our lives and I would love to hear how He's working in yours!
In Love,
Bill
One thing that amazes me about being a Christian is that no matter how long you've been one or how "strong" you think you are, there is still SO much more room to grow daily. The moment we become complacent is when the Enemy will slip in and feed us a lie or cause us to stumble in some way. A few Scriptures have been running through my head recently and a passage from John 10:10 really sticks out. "A thief comes only to steal and to kill and to destroy. I have come that they may have life and have it in abundance." One thing I never really thought about before I got to college was spiritual warfare and how vicious it is. What exactly do I mean by that though? I mean that there is something in this world set against us, whether you are a Christian or not. Satan, demons, etc are real and if you fail to recognize that then you've already lost the battle. They are the enemy of our souls because they are the thief described in John 10:10 that has come to "steal, kill, and destroy." They are hellbent on doing anything they can to stop God's will from occurring because they are jealous of God and know that their time is limited before He completely seals them away.
This isn't very fun to think about, but it's true and unless you recognize the Enemy for what it is you can't fight back. The second half of John 10:10 is why I love this verse so much though. "I have come that they may have life and have it in abundance." That is why Jesus came. God Himself came as a man and did more for me than I could ever do for myself. He offers us LIFE and not just any life at that, a life full of abundance. Christians are the worst at times about walking around like we have the weight of the world on our shoulders, myself included. We have more reason to rejoice than anybody else though!
"4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your graciousness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. 6 Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses every thought, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. 8 Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable—if there is any moral excellence and if there is any praise—dwell on these things. 9 Do what you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you." Philippians 4:4-9
This is what the Enemy doesn't want you to do. He wants us to believe the lies that we aren't worth it. We are not worthy of the gift we have received, but Jesus has made us worth it. God has taken away our guilt and shame. "For godly grief produces a repentance not to be regretted and leading to salvation, but worldly grief produces death." 2 Cor. 7:10 We are loved far more than we could ever ask, forgiven far more than we ever deserve, and we have a future that Christ has destined for us specifically. He wanted us in our sin and calls us back to Him daily when we turn our backs on Him.
I don't know where this hits you, but one lie I refuse to believe is that God desires anything less than life for me. My future is taken care of whether that be my career, a relationship, or my family. Rest in that security He has to offer you. I like to blog because it's easier for me to get my thoughts out this way and I want the conversation to go on. We can't grow if we don't talk about what God has been doing in our lives and I would love to hear how He's working in yours!
In Love,
Bill
Sunday, August 25, 2013
The Beginning Of The End...Kind Of
Tomorrow marks the beginning of the end...kind of. I start my senior year of college and I figured it would be a good time to write before I head off to sleep and awake for my 8:30 class. This only kind of marks the end of college for me because I plan on attending graduate school and earning my Master's Degree in Computer Engineering which just so happens to be my undergraduate degree as well!
I lasted throughout the summer that included an internship which I am extremely lucky to have had. I learned a lot about programming and the business world. I also learned how annoying construction can be and that commuting to work for an hourish kinda sucks haha. I was talking to a friend recently about how I feel like I've aged a couple years over this past summer. You know how you have those times in your life where you think you have everything figured out, but then God says "No, no, no. Not today!"? Well He didn't exactly say that to me but you get the picture.
Thrive is about to go through some growing experiences with Captain Jack Cross at the helm and I couldn't be more excited. I'm excited to see a bit of growth number-wise, but more importantly I'm ready to see this campus that I love be changed for eternity. Over the past 3 years I've come to love the University of Arkansas. I love calling the Hogs. I love the burn I get in my legs from walking up these giant hills. I love going to school at a place with so many opportunities open to me. Most importantly I love the students on this campus. It took me awhile to figure out why I didn't get into Vanderbilt when I was younger. I asked God to make it blatantly clear where He wanted me to go to school and He definitely made that clear. I am glad to call this place my home and future alma mater.
Some things have been on my heart that I just need to share though. Recently, God has been making clear to me that I need to live every moment from the time I wake up to the time I fall asleep about eternity. This means serving where needed and having lots of awkward conversations with strangers (sorry if you've had to endure one of those with me). I've seen God move in some awesome ways and it all starts with obedience. I will constantly come up short but the one thing I can always strive for is obedience. I don't know what that may look like in your life because at times I barely know what it looks like in mine. It's that constant searching and seeking God's heart that will lead you to God's will though. How can we receive something we haven't been asking about or looking for?
Another thing has been made abundantly clear to me and it's that I don't have to understand everything that happens in my life and that's OK. If you know me well, you know I like to plan everything in advance and stick pretty closely to that plan. Life doesn't line up for you nicely at times though and it can be quite confusing. What's important though is that we have to trust God in whatever the situation may be. It may not make sense to you. You may not like it. At the end of the day though, God is still God and He is Sovereign. His ways are infinitely higher than ours. Caleb and Joshua from the Old Testament made it up in their minds that they were going to trust God when it didn't make sense to them. When they saw everything that was in the way of the Israelites entering the promised land, their response was to go and claim it because God had promised it.
That's what God is offering us, the promised land. We could be like the Israelites and wonder the wilderness for 40 years or we can go and claim what God has already promised us. His promises have a tendency to work out too in case you've forgotten. I don't know if that hits home or not, but it's been on my heart recently. Obey and trust when it doesn't make sense. If you could be praying for me as I get back into the swing of things I would appreciate it. Worship, Bible Study, and discipleship will hopefully begin to consume my time along with school and cheering on the Hogs of course! Please let me know if I can be praying for you for something. Thanks for taking the time to read also. My friends are the best!
In Love,
Bill
I lasted throughout the summer that included an internship which I am extremely lucky to have had. I learned a lot about programming and the business world. I also learned how annoying construction can be and that commuting to work for an hourish kinda sucks haha. I was talking to a friend recently about how I feel like I've aged a couple years over this past summer. You know how you have those times in your life where you think you have everything figured out, but then God says "No, no, no. Not today!"? Well He didn't exactly say that to me but you get the picture.
Thrive is about to go through some growing experiences with Captain Jack Cross at the helm and I couldn't be more excited. I'm excited to see a bit of growth number-wise, but more importantly I'm ready to see this campus that I love be changed for eternity. Over the past 3 years I've come to love the University of Arkansas. I love calling the Hogs. I love the burn I get in my legs from walking up these giant hills. I love going to school at a place with so many opportunities open to me. Most importantly I love the students on this campus. It took me awhile to figure out why I didn't get into Vanderbilt when I was younger. I asked God to make it blatantly clear where He wanted me to go to school and He definitely made that clear. I am glad to call this place my home and future alma mater.
Some things have been on my heart that I just need to share though. Recently, God has been making clear to me that I need to live every moment from the time I wake up to the time I fall asleep about eternity. This means serving where needed and having lots of awkward conversations with strangers (sorry if you've had to endure one of those with me). I've seen God move in some awesome ways and it all starts with obedience. I will constantly come up short but the one thing I can always strive for is obedience. I don't know what that may look like in your life because at times I barely know what it looks like in mine. It's that constant searching and seeking God's heart that will lead you to God's will though. How can we receive something we haven't been asking about or looking for?
Another thing has been made abundantly clear to me and it's that I don't have to understand everything that happens in my life and that's OK. If you know me well, you know I like to plan everything in advance and stick pretty closely to that plan. Life doesn't line up for you nicely at times though and it can be quite confusing. What's important though is that we have to trust God in whatever the situation may be. It may not make sense to you. You may not like it. At the end of the day though, God is still God and He is Sovereign. His ways are infinitely higher than ours. Caleb and Joshua from the Old Testament made it up in their minds that they were going to trust God when it didn't make sense to them. When they saw everything that was in the way of the Israelites entering the promised land, their response was to go and claim it because God had promised it.
That's what God is offering us, the promised land. We could be like the Israelites and wonder the wilderness for 40 years or we can go and claim what God has already promised us. His promises have a tendency to work out too in case you've forgotten. I don't know if that hits home or not, but it's been on my heart recently. Obey and trust when it doesn't make sense. If you could be praying for me as I get back into the swing of things I would appreciate it. Worship, Bible Study, and discipleship will hopefully begin to consume my time along with school and cheering on the Hogs of course! Please let me know if I can be praying for you for something. Thanks for taking the time to read also. My friends are the best!
In Love,
Bill
Sunday, June 9, 2013
Not Just Another Year
Well this is my first post as a "real" adult aka I am 21 years old now. It's so crazy for me to think that I only have one more year left of my undergraduate career. Thankfully God has shown me that I should go to graduate school so I get to play college for another 2 years and procrastinate the "real world" even longer. I will get a taste of that this summer with my internship at Data-Tronics in Ft. Smith, Arkansas though and I am thrilled for the opportunity.
I titled this post "Not Just Another Year" because I now have 21 years to reflect on. I can't really remember the first couple, so we'll go with about 17ish years that I can actually think back on and see how God has been moving in my life. One thing I always wondered about was if I would ever reach a "plateau" if you will. I wondered if my spiritual growth would ever just flatline because maybe I would figure everything out and just get it so there wouldn't really be room for growth. Boy was I foolish to ever think that haha. God keeps speaking and moving and I am so thankful for that.
One thing I've noticed more-so recently is that I have truly amazing friends. I'm really lucky in that I'm surrounded by such encouraging and Godly people that want others to know Christ as badly as I do. I have several friends who are overseas sharing God's love and I am grateful for their service so please continue to pray for our missionaries who are overseas because they are doing a good work and need our prayers. I also have many friends who are working some kind of church camp this summer and that is not a pushover job. It can be a drain physically and emotionally because you have to constantly be active to get your kids motivated and you grow attached to some people and the pain that they have to go through. Please pray for the staffers at awesome camps such as Fuge, Camp War Eagle, and Camp Kanakuk.
Something that God has made extremely clear to me over the past couple of weeks is that nothing else can possibly satisfy the deepest desires of our hearts except Him. We try time and time again to fill up our lives with money, relationships, sex, alcohol, drugs, or whatever we can find to fill the void that is in our hearts. This goes for Christians as well. I've been guilty of trying to find joy and happiness in other things besides Christ. It just makes me feel empty because all of these things will perish one day and I know that God wants to hold me tightly and give me life. If you're trying to find joy in one of the things I mentioned above, or even didn't mention, then my prayer for you is that you STOP. True joy will only be found in Jesus because He is the Author of all creation. He is Lord and until we make Him the ultimate Lord in our lives we will never be truly happy. All else will fade, but one day we will bow before the Creator of the universe and these things won't matter. Do you think God cares how much money you've made? Do you think God cares how long you've been in a relationship? Do you think God cares how much alcohol you can consume? What God cares about is us and He cares deeply. This is why we should love the people in our lives compassionately because of how God has loved us.
I heard a sermon from a friend recently and he said we should daily consider how lost we were before we knew Christ to kind of put us in check. The reality is that everyone of us was dead in our sin and separated from Christ. Jesus came down and died for us and once we accept that gift we have been given a new heart. Ezekiel 36:26 "I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh." Why do we try to fill this new heart with anything else other than God!? I understand we're still sinners, but sometimes we are so DUMB. God has made us new and we act like we carry the weight of the world on our shoulders sometimes!
Maybe you're in a different place than that though. Maybe you understand that God has made you new but you just can't get over that one thing. We all struggle with something, myself definitely included in that. Sometimes you try to fight it and beat it in the ground and it'll work, for awhile. Other times it may sneak up on you and you stumble and fall. First off, know that true Christian friends will still love you and more importantly God loves you. God knew He was getting His clean hands messy with us. Sometimes when we can't beat something on our own we have to lean on the strength of other Christians. This could take place in an accountability parter or sharing your struggle with your small group. This could be the trick to holding you accountable, but sometimes even that isn't enough. What are we supposed to do then? My answer to you is to look to Jesus. When the soldiers came to take Jesus from Gethsemane they said they were looking for Him. What happened when Jesus revealed Himself? John 18:6 "When He told them, 'I am He', they stepped back and fell to the ground." This is the power of Christ. When He reveals Himself every knee will tremble and bow and I can't wait for that day. This is the power of God and the power we should rely on when we're struggling. Instead of fighting, we may have to just step back and allow God to do the incredible work that He alone can do.
I really felt like God wanted me to write this so if you read this and need to talk to me about something please contact me. This is the start of (hopefully) a conversation because the worst thing we can do as Christians is be silent about how God is working in our lives. I don't ever want the conversation to end when it comes to my faith. We must be bold in sharing and unconditional with our love.
In Love,
Bill
I titled this post "Not Just Another Year" because I now have 21 years to reflect on. I can't really remember the first couple, so we'll go with about 17ish years that I can actually think back on and see how God has been moving in my life. One thing I always wondered about was if I would ever reach a "plateau" if you will. I wondered if my spiritual growth would ever just flatline because maybe I would figure everything out and just get it so there wouldn't really be room for growth. Boy was I foolish to ever think that haha. God keeps speaking and moving and I am so thankful for that.
One thing I've noticed more-so recently is that I have truly amazing friends. I'm really lucky in that I'm surrounded by such encouraging and Godly people that want others to know Christ as badly as I do. I have several friends who are overseas sharing God's love and I am grateful for their service so please continue to pray for our missionaries who are overseas because they are doing a good work and need our prayers. I also have many friends who are working some kind of church camp this summer and that is not a pushover job. It can be a drain physically and emotionally because you have to constantly be active to get your kids motivated and you grow attached to some people and the pain that they have to go through. Please pray for the staffers at awesome camps such as Fuge, Camp War Eagle, and Camp Kanakuk.
Something that God has made extremely clear to me over the past couple of weeks is that nothing else can possibly satisfy the deepest desires of our hearts except Him. We try time and time again to fill up our lives with money, relationships, sex, alcohol, drugs, or whatever we can find to fill the void that is in our hearts. This goes for Christians as well. I've been guilty of trying to find joy and happiness in other things besides Christ. It just makes me feel empty because all of these things will perish one day and I know that God wants to hold me tightly and give me life. If you're trying to find joy in one of the things I mentioned above, or even didn't mention, then my prayer for you is that you STOP. True joy will only be found in Jesus because He is the Author of all creation. He is Lord and until we make Him the ultimate Lord in our lives we will never be truly happy. All else will fade, but one day we will bow before the Creator of the universe and these things won't matter. Do you think God cares how much money you've made? Do you think God cares how long you've been in a relationship? Do you think God cares how much alcohol you can consume? What God cares about is us and He cares deeply. This is why we should love the people in our lives compassionately because of how God has loved us.
I heard a sermon from a friend recently and he said we should daily consider how lost we were before we knew Christ to kind of put us in check. The reality is that everyone of us was dead in our sin and separated from Christ. Jesus came down and died for us and once we accept that gift we have been given a new heart. Ezekiel 36:26 "I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh." Why do we try to fill this new heart with anything else other than God!? I understand we're still sinners, but sometimes we are so DUMB. God has made us new and we act like we carry the weight of the world on our shoulders sometimes!
Maybe you're in a different place than that though. Maybe you understand that God has made you new but you just can't get over that one thing. We all struggle with something, myself definitely included in that. Sometimes you try to fight it and beat it in the ground and it'll work, for awhile. Other times it may sneak up on you and you stumble and fall. First off, know that true Christian friends will still love you and more importantly God loves you. God knew He was getting His clean hands messy with us. Sometimes when we can't beat something on our own we have to lean on the strength of other Christians. This could take place in an accountability parter or sharing your struggle with your small group. This could be the trick to holding you accountable, but sometimes even that isn't enough. What are we supposed to do then? My answer to you is to look to Jesus. When the soldiers came to take Jesus from Gethsemane they said they were looking for Him. What happened when Jesus revealed Himself? John 18:6 "When He told them, 'I am He', they stepped back and fell to the ground." This is the power of Christ. When He reveals Himself every knee will tremble and bow and I can't wait for that day. This is the power of God and the power we should rely on when we're struggling. Instead of fighting, we may have to just step back and allow God to do the incredible work that He alone can do.
I really felt like God wanted me to write this so if you read this and need to talk to me about something please contact me. This is the start of (hopefully) a conversation because the worst thing we can do as Christians is be silent about how God is working in our lives. I don't ever want the conversation to end when it comes to my faith. We must be bold in sharing and unconditional with our love.
In Love,
Bill
Sunday, January 6, 2013
Passion
Passion. What comes to mind when you hear that
word? Maybe you think about love or a
fierce desire for something. I think
everyone desires passion of some sort. I
had the privilege to finally go to the Passion Conference in Atlanta, Georgia
this year and it was incredible. It so
enlightening to get to see our generation rise up for Christ and hear our cries
to help end slavery in the world. Fun
fact of the day, there are over 27,000,000 slaves in the world today. Not really that fun, but something we need to
be aware of. We have a part to play in
ending slavery when there are more slaves now than there have ever been
before. I’ll rant more on that on a
later day, but be aware. What I want to
talk about now is the incredible longing I have.
I
honestly hope that someone that reads this doesn’t know the love of Christ
because I am here to tell you that it is real and it is alive. Religion in today’s society is screwed
up. We make such a big deal out of who
goes to church where, different theologies, or how to worship. I just want to tell you right now to
STOP. There’s only one thing that
matters: I was dead and now I am alive.
Jesus has this same desire for you too!
I am not a follower of some code, concept, or set of rules. I am a follower of Jesus Christ who I believe
is God incarnate, came to this earth, died for my sins, and rose again. If you would like to talk anything about
that, you’re confused, or you think I’m a complete idiot (for my beliefs, not
smarts here haha) feel free to message me because I would love the chance to
talk with you.
One
thing that God has really been laying on my heart this past week is that He is
FAITHFUL. We will never be able to
comprehend His ways, but He always gives us exactly what we need. The God we serve is a God who can do immeasurably
more than we can possibly imagine. I’ve
seen God move in incredible ways. The
darkest places in the world such as sex slavery or drug abuse have been rocked
by our Savior. I heard a story about a
girl named Rachel who was rescued from sex slavery and found Jesus. She stood proudly before 60,000 people as her
story was shared and you will not be able to convince me that anything other
than an all-powerful God is behind that.
HE IS FAITHFUL. (all caps for emphasis so picture me being loud and
slowing down my speech a bit)
If
you could take out your Bible and read Ezekiel 37:1-14 before you read this
next section I would appreciate it. Don’t
be that guy (or girl), actually read it.
Such an incredible passage here.
Ezekiel, a prophet, has a vision that God wanted to share with him. He’s taken to this valley, notice that God
brought him to this point, and he’s surrounded by bones. (a tad bit creepy I
know) The bones of a body aren’t really that useful by themselves if they aren’t
alive. God tells him to prophesy to the
bones that God will give them breath and they will come to life. At first Ezekiel just prophesies for them to
come to life. The bones and tendons and
muscles attach themselves and they have a body.
Cool and freaky. What good is
that body without the breath of life though?
After
God breathed life into them they STOOD UP and it was like an army out
there. I saw an army this past
week. I saw 60,000+ students take a
stand to fight slavery just like God fights for our hearts. You know the cool thing about becoming a
Christian? Verse 14 says, “I will put my
Spirit in you and you will live…” It’s
like God opens up our chest, takes out our dead/cold heart, and puts a new one
in. A heart that has the Holy Spirit
also known as GOD HIMSELF is given in return.
Christ takes this piece of crap heart and gives us the ultimate
gift. We don’t have to live in the sin
anymore. We don’t have to fear. We don’t have to live in shame. The old scars we still feel sometimes from
our past are a witness to how faithful God is now and where He has brought
us. God is FAITHFUL.
I’m
so moved when I think of the sin in my life and how God loves me and will use
me anyway. I am not worthy of this, but
He is FAITHFUL. He can use you no matter
where you’re at in your walk with Him.
If you don’t know Him then you should because I can’t imagine living
life with God. He’s the author of the
universe so He’s kind of a big deal.
Heaven and hell are too real a place for me to not share this message
with you. Hell isn’t some place with
fire everywhere with the devil hitting you with a pitchfork either. Hell is separation from Christ and the pain
of it is more nightmarish than you will ever imagine. God is offering us this new heart though!
I
don’t know where you’re at in your walk right now. Maybe you’re in a place where you feel
comfortable. If you are then I’m sorry
to be the one to tell you that you’re doing it wrong. God didn’t call us to be comfortable. We aren’t called to just make enough money
for our family to survive and enjoy a couple of hobbies and be a “good person”. We are called to give EVERYTHING to Him. When is the last time you can remember giving
absolutely everything? The universe was
created to display God’s glory because He deserves our full attention. He deserves our obedience. He deserves our love. The question is, “Will we give it?” He’s there waiting for us and we have to
respond.
In
Love,
Bill
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