As a young girl, you develop "crushes" on boys. Yep. With this crush, you find out everything you can about that boy. You want to know what his favorite color is, what he likes to eat, where he likes to go, what his hobbies are... and so on ... you get the picture.
Eventually, you find yourself liking things he likes, and wanting to be where he is, just so you can see him and hope he notices you. When you don't get noticed, you end up crushed.
Then you grow up and date. You find out what your guy likes and how to make him like you. When it doesn't work out the way you want, you feel crushed.
Finally, you get married. You learn what your husband needs, how to make him happy, and how to show him love. You learn what to say and what not to say. You completely invest in this relationship, because it will last until death. You give it all you got. And still sometimes end up crushed.
Then there's Jesus. He's over there waiting on you to invest all you've got in Him. That's the relationship that will last forever. That one should be the priority. We get so wrapped up in trying to perfect our physical relationships, that we neglect the eternal spiritual one.
When you fall in love with Jesus, and I mean truly, deeply, more than any crush you've ever had, you want to know more about Him. You can't read His Word enough. You can't talk to Him enough. You want to hear His voice. You want to share your fears and your joys with Him.
When you fall in love with Jesus, when you realize that HE is the One you will spend forever with, you want to know what makes Him happy. You want to know what makes Him proud. You study His ways, and learn His laws with great excitement. He's your Crush. Then you get excited about what you find, and you want others to feel Him and know Him.
I used to think "witnessing" was a job, a task that you do in God's Kingdom. But, the deal is, if you know Him, if you are really in love with Jesus, it's like telling everyone about your best friend. Things like, "God is so good to me," roll off your tongue with actual meaning.
When you are deeply in love with Jesus, things of this world actually fade while you focus on Him. Nothing is as important as spending time with your Crush. I'm not sure why I always thought Jesus was so Powerful and Almighty that I couldn't get to Him. I'm not sure why I thought I had to respect Him in a reverent "just look, don't touch" sort of way, but I'm so glad that I figured out He's not like that.
He waits for me with open arms when my heart is breaking. He holds me with His love when my mind is overwhelmed. He listens when I pour out my darkest secrets and offers His mercy when I've done wrong. He doesn't judge and condemn. He loves and forgives. Every single time.
I don't talk to Him with some well organized theological prayer rhetoric. I talk to Him like I'm writing this blog...in my plain old words. I talk to Him like He's sitting next to me. Because I found out that when I talk to Him like this, He shows up. Always. He sits right down next to me and never gets tired of hearing my voice.
This Crush I have now is indescribable. Learning about Him is invigorating!
And I just figure, if I'm gonna spend eternity with this Crush, I want to know everything I can about Him!
I dare you to fall in love with Jesus. He won't ever crush your heart. ...He's just into crushing your fears for you. He's into crushing your pain. He's into crushing your enemy. He's into crushing your mental or physical illness. I'm not bragging, but I'm just saying, my Crush is pretty awesome. (:
Tuesday, March 29, 2016
Sunday, March 20, 2016
Wilderness Wandering
The wilderness is a lonely place. The good thing about lonely is that you have nothing and no one to focus on, but the Lord. That's where He shows you His power.
For the children of Israel, Deuteronomy 8:2 says that the wilderness was, to "humble thee", and to "prove thee", and to "know what was in thine heart."
It is humbling to be alone. There is no one to validate your feelings, no one to listen to your pity party cries, no one to congratulate the little victories. It's humbling to stumble through your wilderness with people questioning your deliverance from Egypt. In the wilderness, you have to completely shut out the loud lies of the world and listen to the victorious voice of the Lord.
He will show you what is in your heart, not because He needs to know (He is God and He already knows!), but because He wants you to know so that you can rid yourself of ungodly things hiding deep within you.
This was the problem with the children of Israel: Idols. When they didn't get an immediate response from the Lord or they wanted to do things their way, they started worshiping idols.
Growing up reading that, I always thought, "this is so irrelevant to today. No one worships idols anymore." What an immature perspective! EVERYONE is worshiping idols! If you are not worshiping God and putting Him first, you are worshiping something else...that is your idol. You are not physically bowing down to your career or your work-out routine, but if you are not spending the first fruits of your time, energy, and finances on the One True God, then you are putting other gods before Him.
So you find yourself in this wilderness. Maybe you are dealing with depression. Maybe you are dealing with divorce. Maybe you are dealing with anger. Maybe you are dealing with the loss of a dear loved one. Maybe you have been hurt deeply by your spouse.
Whatever your wilderness is, there is only one way out. My pastor, Rev. Wayne Huntley, preached a powerful message about how to get out of the wilderness recently: According to Song of Solomon 8:5, the way out is to lean on the Beloved. Leaning of Jesus.
Here's the thing about leaning on Jesus. It's not easy. You have put aside the idols you are preoccupied with and focus completely on Him. It's easier to try to stay busy with other things occupying your mind, or focus on trying to figure things out. It's easier to justify your feelings related to your trial. BUT, when you lean on Jesus, surrender your feelings, fears, and future, He will humble you, prove you, and show you what is in your heart. And then you will be free to move on to the Promised Land, the place of prosperity that God has promised you.
He will not leave you in the wilderness to figure it out all on your own. Exodus 13:18 says that God was leading the children of Israel through the wilderness, and Deuteronomy 31:6 reminds us that God will never leave us or forsake us.
Quit wandering through your wilderness, wasting time on self pity. Let Him lead you away from the idols of this world that are holding you captive to the wilderness of your trial. Lean on your Beloved, Jesus, to teach you the lesson you must learn and move you on to the next chapter of your life.
I mentioned it in the last blog, and I think it's worth mentioning again: All through Exodus, God tells the children of Israel to have no other gods before Him. He wanted them to worship Him. I wonder what would have happened if they had worshiped Him alone through the wilderness.
Make it your goal to worship Him alone through the wilderness. Let me tell you this: Wilderness worship is powerful worship. It makes the enemy mad. It brings you great joy and peace. If you want joy and peace in your wilderness: worship!
Worship means to give God glory for things to come, things you can not see happening. Wilderness worship is powerful because you are completely trusting God and worshiping based on faith, not feelings. You are worshiping based on what you know God will do, not what you can see at the present moment.
So, when you are sick of the wilderness, you must first lean on Jesus. Let Him work on humbling your spirit, proving your mind, and purifying your heart. Then, and only then, can you offer wilderness worship! ...and watch the walls of Jericho fall!
For the children of Israel, Deuteronomy 8:2 says that the wilderness was, to "humble thee", and to "prove thee", and to "know what was in thine heart."
It is humbling to be alone. There is no one to validate your feelings, no one to listen to your pity party cries, no one to congratulate the little victories. It's humbling to stumble through your wilderness with people questioning your deliverance from Egypt. In the wilderness, you have to completely shut out the loud lies of the world and listen to the victorious voice of the Lord.
He will show you what is in your heart, not because He needs to know (He is God and He already knows!), but because He wants you to know so that you can rid yourself of ungodly things hiding deep within you.
This was the problem with the children of Israel: Idols. When they didn't get an immediate response from the Lord or they wanted to do things their way, they started worshiping idols.
Growing up reading that, I always thought, "this is so irrelevant to today. No one worships idols anymore." What an immature perspective! EVERYONE is worshiping idols! If you are not worshiping God and putting Him first, you are worshiping something else...that is your idol. You are not physically bowing down to your career or your work-out routine, but if you are not spending the first fruits of your time, energy, and finances on the One True God, then you are putting other gods before Him.
So you find yourself in this wilderness. Maybe you are dealing with depression. Maybe you are dealing with divorce. Maybe you are dealing with anger. Maybe you are dealing with the loss of a dear loved one. Maybe you have been hurt deeply by your spouse.
Whatever your wilderness is, there is only one way out. My pastor, Rev. Wayne Huntley, preached a powerful message about how to get out of the wilderness recently: According to Song of Solomon 8:5, the way out is to lean on the Beloved. Leaning of Jesus.
Here's the thing about leaning on Jesus. It's not easy. You have put aside the idols you are preoccupied with and focus completely on Him. It's easier to try to stay busy with other things occupying your mind, or focus on trying to figure things out. It's easier to justify your feelings related to your trial. BUT, when you lean on Jesus, surrender your feelings, fears, and future, He will humble you, prove you, and show you what is in your heart. And then you will be free to move on to the Promised Land, the place of prosperity that God has promised you.
He will not leave you in the wilderness to figure it out all on your own. Exodus 13:18 says that God was leading the children of Israel through the wilderness, and Deuteronomy 31:6 reminds us that God will never leave us or forsake us.
Quit wandering through your wilderness, wasting time on self pity. Let Him lead you away from the idols of this world that are holding you captive to the wilderness of your trial. Lean on your Beloved, Jesus, to teach you the lesson you must learn and move you on to the next chapter of your life.
I mentioned it in the last blog, and I think it's worth mentioning again: All through Exodus, God tells the children of Israel to have no other gods before Him. He wanted them to worship Him. I wonder what would have happened if they had worshiped Him alone through the wilderness.
Make it your goal to worship Him alone through the wilderness. Let me tell you this: Wilderness worship is powerful worship. It makes the enemy mad. It brings you great joy and peace. If you want joy and peace in your wilderness: worship!
Worship means to give God glory for things to come, things you can not see happening. Wilderness worship is powerful because you are completely trusting God and worshiping based on faith, not feelings. You are worshiping based on what you know God will do, not what you can see at the present moment.
So, when you are sick of the wilderness, you must first lean on Jesus. Let Him work on humbling your spirit, proving your mind, and purifying your heart. Then, and only then, can you offer wilderness worship! ...and watch the walls of Jericho fall!
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