My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood and righteousness;
I dare not trust the sweetest frame but wholly lean on Jesus' name.
On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand; All other ground is sinking sand.
When darkness veils His lovely face, I rest on His unchanging grace;
In every high and stormy gale my anchor holds within the veil.
On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand; All other ground is sinking sand.
His oath, His covenant, and blood support me in the whelming flood;
When every earthly prop gives way, He then is all my Hope and Stay.
On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand; All other ground is sinking sand.
When He shall come with trumpet sound, Oh, may I then in Him be found-
Clothed in His righteousness alone, faultless to stand before the throne!
On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand; All other ground is sinking sand.
All other ground is sinking sand.
All other ground is sinking sand.
All other ground is sinking sand.
Monday, December 29, 2008
Sunday, December 21, 2008
perspective.
I had a small, hopeful thought that life after graduation was a glamorous, fun-filled adventure. I'm positive my life will have these moments, and I'm excited for those. For now, life is very ho-hum, daily routine, eat-sleep-work. I used to think my life is not going to end up like that- I will be so much more motivated and decisive and not monotonous. But that's just life. It happens- and it's not necessarily a bad thing, as long as lethargy/apathy don't sneek in with it. Self-control and patience are prized possessions.
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
offense.
For months I've been writing and pondering about the idea of being on offense as opposed to being on defense in living the Christian life. I've mentioned it to friends, only to receive strange and confused looks. But after reading Romans 6, I hope to make it make sense now.
As a Christian, you're going to sin. It's inevitable, and unrealistic to think you won't. Romans 6 tells us not to sin so that grace may abound, but to live a new life in Christ, no longer slaves to sin. There have been several times when I've felt the need to change an area of my life, whether something simple like the amount of time spent watching TV (not that this habit is necessarily a sin...) or more complex things.
So, if you have the sincere desire to change an area in your life, what do you do? I will use an example: watching too much football (again, not necessarily a sin, unless you make it an idol...which it's probably been a few times in my life.) I know what I'd do; I would research the issue and read up about it, talk to others about it, get advice from my friends, probably blog about it, etc. I would consider my motives in watching so much football. When I feel the need to watch it, I would think long and hard about the reprecussions of watching a game. Do I need to watch it? What are my motives?
While these actions are not necessarily bad in and of themselves, soon I find myself spending all my extra time devoted to micro-managing my Vikings obession.
Wendy Horger Alsup writes "many Christians focus so much on the minute details of their problems that they lose sight of the fundamental concepts that govern life for a believer in Christ."
When all you think about is overcoming a specific issue/area of sin, you run the risk of micro-managing your life. This is playing defense. You are constantly consumed by something else. You are being controlled by something you don't want to be controling you.
Instead, be on offense. Love God. So simple, yet so difficult sometimes. You may sin along the path of following God- but focus on loving Him, walking closely with Him, and depending on Him. You'll find it's much easier to have control of your thoughts and actions when you are right with God. And offense is much more fun!
A wise woman once told me that I would be able to be more productive and useful if I worked on perfecting my strengths instead of harping on my weaknesses. While I think it's important to address weaknesses and evaluate them, I agree with her. Perfect your biggest strength- trust in Christ- and you are on to something.
*Disclaimer: I know defense wins games, but that doesn't apply to this example!! :)
PS here's Romans 6:1-23 in the NLT version. so good!
"Well then, should we keep on sinning so that God can show us more and more of his wonderful grace? Of course not! Since we have died to sin, how can we continue to live in it? Or have you forgotten that when we were joined with Christ Jesus in baptism, we joined him in his death? For we died and were buried with Christ by baptism. And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives.
Since we have been united with him in his death, we will also be raised to life as he was. We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin. For when we died with Christ we were set free from the power of sin. And since we died with Christ, we know we will also live with him. We are sure of this because Christ was raised from the dead, and he will never die again. Death no longer has any power over him. When he died, he died once to break the power of sin. But now that he lives, he lives for the glory of God. So you also should consider yourselves to be dead to the power of sin and alive to God through Christ Jesus.
Do not let sin control the way you live; do not give in to sinful desires. Do not let any part of your body become an instrument of evil to serve sin. Instead, give yourselves completely to God, for you were dead, but now you have new life. So use your whole body as an instrument to do what is right for the glory of God. Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the requirements of the law. Instead, you live under the freedom of God's grace.
Well then, since God's grace has set us free from the law, does that mean we can go on sinning? Of course not! Don't you realize that you become the slave of whatever you choose to obey? You can be a slave to sin, which leads to death, or you can choose to obey God, which leads to righteous living. Thank God! Once you were slaves of sin, but now you wholeheartedly obey this teaching we have given you. Now you are free from your slavery to sin, and you have become slaves to righteous living.
Because of the weakness of your human nature, I am using the illustration of slavery to help you understand all this. Previously, you let yourselves be slaves to impurity and lawlessness, which led ever deeper into sin. Now you must give yourselves to be slaves to righteous living so that you will become holy.
When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the obligation to do right. And what was the result? You are now ashamed of the things you used to do, things that end in eternal doom. But now you are free from the power of sin and have become slaves of God. Now you do those things that lead to holiness and result in eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord."
As a Christian, you're going to sin. It's inevitable, and unrealistic to think you won't. Romans 6 tells us not to sin so that grace may abound, but to live a new life in Christ, no longer slaves to sin. There have been several times when I've felt the need to change an area of my life, whether something simple like the amount of time spent watching TV (not that this habit is necessarily a sin...) or more complex things.
So, if you have the sincere desire to change an area in your life, what do you do? I will use an example: watching too much football (again, not necessarily a sin, unless you make it an idol...which it's probably been a few times in my life.) I know what I'd do; I would research the issue and read up about it, talk to others about it, get advice from my friends, probably blog about it, etc. I would consider my motives in watching so much football. When I feel the need to watch it, I would think long and hard about the reprecussions of watching a game. Do I need to watch it? What are my motives?
While these actions are not necessarily bad in and of themselves, soon I find myself spending all my extra time devoted to micro-managing my Vikings obession.
Wendy Horger Alsup writes "many Christians focus so much on the minute details of their problems that they lose sight of the fundamental concepts that govern life for a believer in Christ."
When all you think about is overcoming a specific issue/area of sin, you run the risk of micro-managing your life. This is playing defense. You are constantly consumed by something else. You are being controlled by something you don't want to be controling you.
Instead, be on offense. Love God. So simple, yet so difficult sometimes. You may sin along the path of following God- but focus on loving Him, walking closely with Him, and depending on Him. You'll find it's much easier to have control of your thoughts and actions when you are right with God. And offense is much more fun!
A wise woman once told me that I would be able to be more productive and useful if I worked on perfecting my strengths instead of harping on my weaknesses. While I think it's important to address weaknesses and evaluate them, I agree with her. Perfect your biggest strength- trust in Christ- and you are on to something.
*Disclaimer: I know defense wins games, but that doesn't apply to this example!! :)
PS here's Romans 6:1-23 in the NLT version. so good!
"Well then, should we keep on sinning so that God can show us more and more of his wonderful grace? Of course not! Since we have died to sin, how can we continue to live in it? Or have you forgotten that when we were joined with Christ Jesus in baptism, we joined him in his death? For we died and were buried with Christ by baptism. And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives.
Since we have been united with him in his death, we will also be raised to life as he was. We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin. For when we died with Christ we were set free from the power of sin. And since we died with Christ, we know we will also live with him. We are sure of this because Christ was raised from the dead, and he will never die again. Death no longer has any power over him. When he died, he died once to break the power of sin. But now that he lives, he lives for the glory of God. So you also should consider yourselves to be dead to the power of sin and alive to God through Christ Jesus.
Do not let sin control the way you live; do not give in to sinful desires. Do not let any part of your body become an instrument of evil to serve sin. Instead, give yourselves completely to God, for you were dead, but now you have new life. So use your whole body as an instrument to do what is right for the glory of God. Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the requirements of the law. Instead, you live under the freedom of God's grace.
Well then, since God's grace has set us free from the law, does that mean we can go on sinning? Of course not! Don't you realize that you become the slave of whatever you choose to obey? You can be a slave to sin, which leads to death, or you can choose to obey God, which leads to righteous living. Thank God! Once you were slaves of sin, but now you wholeheartedly obey this teaching we have given you. Now you are free from your slavery to sin, and you have become slaves to righteous living.
Because of the weakness of your human nature, I am using the illustration of slavery to help you understand all this. Previously, you let yourselves be slaves to impurity and lawlessness, which led ever deeper into sin. Now you must give yourselves to be slaves to righteous living so that you will become holy.
When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the obligation to do right. And what was the result? You are now ashamed of the things you used to do, things that end in eternal doom. But now you are free from the power of sin and have become slaves of God. Now you do those things that lead to holiness and result in eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord."
Saturday, November 29, 2008
the twenty-first time.
Nowhere to live, nowhere to fall
He used to have money, but he’s wasted it all.
His face is a photograph burned in my mind,
but I pretend not to see him for the twenty-first time
He sleeps under stars, that’s all he can afford
His blanket’s an old coat he’s had since the war
He stands on the corner of Carter and Vine
But I pretend not to see him for the twenty-first time
He may be a drifter, he’s grown old and gray
But what if he’s Jesus and I walk away?
I say I’m the body and drink of the wine
But I pretend not to see him for the twenty-first time
She’s twenty-nine but she feels forty-eight
She can’t raise three kids on minimum wage
She’s cryin’ in back of the welfare line
But I pretend not to see her for the twenty-first time
She may be a stranger tryin’ to get through the day
But what if it’s Jesus and I walk away?
I say I’m the body and drink of the wine
But I pretend not to see her for the twenty-first time
This is a call for a change in my heart
I realize that I’ve not been doin’ my part
When I needed a Savior, I found it in Him
He gave to me, now I’ll give back to them
Drifter or stranger, father or son
I’ll look for Jesus in every one
'Cause I am the body and drink of the wine
And I’m thankful there’s more than the twenty-first time
Monk & Neagle // twenty-first time
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PvqwHGH3Tlw&feature=related
reminds me of Crazy Love, thought I'd share it with ya'll
He used to have money, but he’s wasted it all.
His face is a photograph burned in my mind,
but I pretend not to see him for the twenty-first time
He sleeps under stars, that’s all he can afford
His blanket’s an old coat he’s had since the war
He stands on the corner of Carter and Vine
But I pretend not to see him for the twenty-first time
He may be a drifter, he’s grown old and gray
But what if he’s Jesus and I walk away?
I say I’m the body and drink of the wine
But I pretend not to see him for the twenty-first time
She’s twenty-nine but she feels forty-eight
She can’t raise three kids on minimum wage
She’s cryin’ in back of the welfare line
But I pretend not to see her for the twenty-first time
She may be a stranger tryin’ to get through the day
But what if it’s Jesus and I walk away?
I say I’m the body and drink of the wine
But I pretend not to see her for the twenty-first time
This is a call for a change in my heart
I realize that I’ve not been doin’ my part
When I needed a Savior, I found it in Him
He gave to me, now I’ll give back to them
Drifter or stranger, father or son
I’ll look for Jesus in every one
'Cause I am the body and drink of the wine
And I’m thankful there’s more than the twenty-first time
Monk & Neagle // twenty-first time
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PvqwHGH3Tlw&feature=related
reminds me of Crazy Love, thought I'd share it with ya'll
Wednesday, November 05, 2008
"A normal life is a wasted life."
Picture a husband and wife who are attenting a good church that preaches the Gospel- that provides chances to serve the congregation and community, along with the chance to join a small group and grow in faith. They tithe, they spend time in the Word daily, and they talk to others about God. They read popular Christian books. They have kind children, a great marriage, and dream jobs.
Of this example, Will Walker says, "Does that sound like the life you're planning? If so, you may well be on your way to the Christian good life, which amounts to slapping a Christian label on the same old earth-life pursuits. You don't have to die to yourself, you just have to spiritualize your pursuit of things like importance and comfort and ease. The only problem is that the Christian good life is also not very good.
Jesus said that if we hold on to our idea of life-- in this case, "the good life" or "the Christian good life" -- we will lose it. I think He means that we will end up holding on to a mere idea while real life passes us by. In other words, we will have to pretend that normal life is really what we want in order to think we are doing okay. According to Jesus, the way to discover real life-- a life interactive with God, alive to the reality of His kingdom- is to repent of our desires for a normal life. That is, we need to make better plans and want different things. In Jesus' words exactly: 'Whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it.'
I assume that this is what you really want when you think about it-- a life given to Jesus. I think this is what a lot of people in your shoes want. So, how do authentic, energetic Christian students end up settling for a normal life, Christian or otherwise?"
These are my thoughts:
Are a 'normal life' (in the author's words) and a life honestly surrendered to God mutually exclusive? Maybe no one who truly dies to their own desires ends up with a 'normal life.' I don't think we can judge that though...maybe it all comes down to motives. If I'm pursuing God the best I can, if I've given my life to Jesus, I should not work for material goods or a hefty savings account- I should work for God. So what if I do that and he blesses me financially any way? I give more away, but I do not do so to gain attention or praise from others- I try not to worry what others think about me.
One day a year or two ago, I was talking w/a friend about the verse "It is easier for a camel to pass thru an eye of a needle than it is for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." I remember attempting to stick up for the rich man. I didn't put up a very good fight but I did think I was right. Since, my thoughts have definitely changed. I don't think it's impossible for the rich man, but yes I do think it's very hard. Money and power corrupt, (love of money is the root of all evil, etc). It's so much harder to remain a humble, willing servant who trusts God when you have lots of money.
I'm interested in your opinion, because for some reason I am not getting that a 'normal life' is bad if you have an honest, sincere heart.
[the multiple paragraph quote is an excerpt from the article "Cellular" by Will Walker, page 56 from the CRU2 In Transistion Magazine].
Of this example, Will Walker says, "Does that sound like the life you're planning? If so, you may well be on your way to the Christian good life, which amounts to slapping a Christian label on the same old earth-life pursuits. You don't have to die to yourself, you just have to spiritualize your pursuit of things like importance and comfort and ease. The only problem is that the Christian good life is also not very good.
Jesus said that if we hold on to our idea of life-- in this case, "the good life" or "the Christian good life" -- we will lose it. I think He means that we will end up holding on to a mere idea while real life passes us by. In other words, we will have to pretend that normal life is really what we want in order to think we are doing okay. According to Jesus, the way to discover real life-- a life interactive with God, alive to the reality of His kingdom- is to repent of our desires for a normal life. That is, we need to make better plans and want different things. In Jesus' words exactly: 'Whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it.'
I assume that this is what you really want when you think about it-- a life given to Jesus. I think this is what a lot of people in your shoes want. So, how do authentic, energetic Christian students end up settling for a normal life, Christian or otherwise?"
These are my thoughts:
Are a 'normal life' (in the author's words) and a life honestly surrendered to God mutually exclusive? Maybe no one who truly dies to their own desires ends up with a 'normal life.' I don't think we can judge that though...maybe it all comes down to motives. If I'm pursuing God the best I can, if I've given my life to Jesus, I should not work for material goods or a hefty savings account- I should work for God. So what if I do that and he blesses me financially any way? I give more away, but I do not do so to gain attention or praise from others- I try not to worry what others think about me.
One day a year or two ago, I was talking w/a friend about the verse "It is easier for a camel to pass thru an eye of a needle than it is for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." I remember attempting to stick up for the rich man. I didn't put up a very good fight but I did think I was right. Since, my thoughts have definitely changed. I don't think it's impossible for the rich man, but yes I do think it's very hard. Money and power corrupt, (love of money is the root of all evil, etc). It's so much harder to remain a humble, willing servant who trusts God when you have lots of money.
I'm interested in your opinion, because for some reason I am not getting that a 'normal life' is bad if you have an honest, sincere heart.
[the multiple paragraph quote is an excerpt from the article "Cellular" by Will Walker, page 56 from the CRU2 In Transistion Magazine].
Sunday, August 31, 2008
memories.
I spent the weekend at home. To celebrate the labor day holiday, I decided to be fairly ambitious and clean out my closet, which mainly held a ton of old clothes, and a bookcase, which held a bunch of stuff from high school I haven't looked at in 4 years. Treasures included my Junior and Senior yearbooks, some Earth Science notes from Freshman year at USD, and a hilarious graduation card that Mindy made me. I also found the copies of the websites that I made in BPA (Business Professionals of America) with a few friends; Junior year we made a how-to guide to learning bass guitar (which is hilarious because I'm probably going to learn to play one this year); Senior year we made a guide to preparing for the future- choosing a career, interviewing tips, and resume do's and don'ts. Hilarious!!! It's so funny to me that two huge interests of mine in high school still matter to me, in different ways: serving as a worship leader, and (hopefully) working in HR.
Sunday, July 13, 2008
life. [what a vague title]
I am in a very serious sort of mood tonight. Probably from realizing life is so much more than the latest iphone, kitchen techonology, art to hang on the wall, song to download. the struggle w/materialism is one so many fight. but that is only one line on a list of everything I work for that I shouldn't. Even if God never gave me a single thing - if he never gave me my dream job, dream house, dream husband and dream children, He'd still be good. I know I'd have a hard time glorifying Him with my life...but that should be what I strive for no matter the circumstances.