Day 204: Comfortable With Who You Are?

1 Corinthians 13:11

When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways.

Today I want to talk about growth and maturity and how the society we live in has a huge impact on that. I grew up listening to this scripture, and from the very start I knew that it was about  growing up and being mature. At some point in our lives we will have to move on from being a child and become an adult. Not just physically but mentally.

We live in a world that teaches us to be comfortable with who we are, in every sense of the word. There is a problem with that, it also teaches us to be comfortable with who we are not without ever exploring who we are really supposed to be. I can speak for nearly everyone when I say, the person we are right now is not the person we were a year ago or maybe two years ago, maybe even a month ago. As humans we are constantly changing, constantly evolving, so why are we settling?  This new movement of comfortability has caused a generation to be stagnant. If we were always comfortable there would be no growth, we grow as people when we are pushed out of our comfort zones. However, I am afraid this society is teaching people to stay in the box they are comfortable in, in order to be happy. Sometimes reaching our highest potential means that there will be moments of sadness, bitterness, anger, frustration, confusion. We are not always going to be happy and that is okay. God gave us emotions and He gave us life, to feel and explore every part of it. Why are we stuck where we are comfortable and safe? Why are we content with being semi-good or semi-okay? Why are we okay with living a life we know could be better but we’re happy where we are so we aren’t going to go any further? Why are we pushing people to believe they are something they’re not when we know the truth?

We are conditioning people to live and accept a life of sin or a life unfulfilled because in the name of not offending anyone we want you to be comfortable with who you are. We have become more concerned with people’s emotions rather than their souls. It has caused a growing number of stagnation within the body of Christ and humanity as a whole. If Jesus was concerned about all the people who would be mad at Him for speaking truth and imparting wisdom, where would we be? If He was more concerned about hurting someone’s feelings rather than saving them from their sin where would we  be? If He was concerned about what people would think of Him, He would not have gone and died on that cross. Jesus had a bigger picture in mind, He wasn’t concerned that people were angry because He interrupted their corrupt and comfortable ways of living. No He was concerned with their soul, they’ll get over the anger eventually, but they couldn’t get over being condemned for all eternity. It was as if Jesus was saying, “If I have to take this cross so that you can see you are more than a sinner, and more than what you think you are, I’ll take it. Because where you are is not where you are supposed to be.” He loves us that  much.

All this to say, who we are at the present moment in  time is not who we are meant to be or who we are going to be. Yet due to the changes and conformities within this modern society and the sensitivity of a generation we’d rather you be semi-happy than uncomfortable. Somewhere along the line we stopped growing. Somewhere along the line the truth got a little too real for some people so we started to conform. People started getting angry and hostile so we started to retreat, and let them be. We, as the body of Christ cannot allow any of that stop us. If we want growth we have to be willing to change. We have to be willing to step out of old ways and walk where God wants us. That means that we even have to deny ourselves sometimes and claim our identity in Christ and not settle for who we think we are. But the goal is to really be the person God created us to be.  That will take a lot of moulding and shaping to do. Now don’t get me wrong, I am all about self-love and confidence, but I am against stagnating oneself. Yes I want to encourage people to love themselves but I also want you to know that growth is limitless.

Response/Prayer Time

Take the time to respond, however you feel led. There was a lot thrown at you today. Talk to God about what we discussed today, have a conversation with a friend or someone else, start a discussion. Just respond, however you respond is okay. Then pray about whatever is on your heart.

I love you and I hope you have an amazing day or evening. Be sure to share this with someone and come back tomorrow for Day 205!

Day 203: Those 3 Days

John 20: 19

On the evening of that day, the first day of the week the doors being locked where the disciples were  for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.”

I often wonder what those three days without Jesus were like. I wonder how the followers of Christ felt knowing that there Savior was gone. I wonder how the Jews and Pharisees boasted that they had killed the Messiah. I wonder what those 3 days were like. I’m not sure exactly but I can imagine they were filled with darkness and fear. We see this in the above scripture when the disciples were in a room together with the door locked because they were afraid of what the Jews might do. These men were afraid that the Jews would come after them because they were followers of Christ.

I imagine that those three days were sad for a couple of reasons, one being after His death people began to realize that He was the Savior they were waiting for all  along, Meaning in their eyes they might have missed their chance to have a true relationship with God. They had to live those three days knowing that the Savior they refused to accept was now dead and there was nothing they themselves could do about it. Another reason these three days were probably so sad is that their Savior had been killed. People were probably hurting, many were probably in a period of grief and guilt. Not knowing that Jesus was on His way back and that He had to defeat death by dying. We know that now, because we know the Gospel but it’s different to live through it.

I can imagine those three days without Jesus as what it’s like when we choose to walk away from Him and ignore Him. My mom used to always tells us, “Leading a life of sin is like nailing Jesus to the cross over and over again.” Our sin hurts Him, it was the reason He had to die. Someone had to pay the price for our sin,  and that someone was Jesus. So every time we decide to walk away it’s like we’re putting Him in that grave all over again. When we decide to live our life without Jesus it’s like we’re putting Him in a tomb and walking away.

I’m not sure how many of you have backslid or walked away from Christ after giving your life to Him so I can only speak for myself. I have, and those were some of the darkest times in my life, because I chose to walk away from a Savior who laid His life down for me and I walked away like it wasn’t that big of a deal. I chose to walk in darkness even though god gave me a light to lead the way, I chose the path of darkness. When I put it into perspective, I lived in fear that someone would expose me for my sin. I lived in fear because I knew what was right and yet I chose to turn away from it. I chose to live in the sin that my savior died to deliver me from. I was consciously choosing to live without Him. Jesus was gone for three days and when He rose He came back with life in His hands. The grave was where sin and death lay. But life was in the resurrection of Christ, so why had I chose to live my life in the grave? I had to realize how enormous this act of compassion was, Jesus laid down His life for me, even while I was still a sinner He laid down His life! for me, because He loves me that much. The kicker was that I couldn’t love Him enough to dedicate my life to Him after He saved it.

I know that if Jesus had to be nailed to that cross and die again He would do it because we mean that much to Him. He loves us that much.

Reflection

1. Are you living with a grave mentality?
2. How has your life changed since you’ve given your life to Christ?
3. Have you given your life to Christ?

Prayer Time

Allow you answers to the above questions guide your prayer today. Talk to god about following Him and living a life dedicated to Him. Thank Jesus for His wonderful sacrifice and live your life dedicated to Him, allowing the Holy Spirit to guide you every step of the way.

For those of you who answered yes to either question 1 or 3, I want to offer you a chance to choose Christ today. If you’ve never made the decision or maybe you have and you’ve walked away from God now is the time to come back to Him. To dedicate your life to Him and live with Him in eternity. I want to give you the opportunity, whether you are turning to Him for the first time, or rededicating your life back to Him. Know that His arms are wide open and He is accepting you as a mother takes in her lost child. Rest in that.

Take some time, if you feel the holy spirit tugging on your heart, respond to Him today.

If you made the choice to follow Christ, rededicate, or to submit your life to Him fully, Go to Romans 10:9-10

If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.

And repeat these few words,

Jesus I declare that you are my Lord and Saviour who died for my sin and was raised three days later. I repent of my sins and I give my life to you. I believe in my heart that you are the true living God. Thank you for saving me. In Jesus name, Amen.

I love you so much and I hope you have a wonder day or evening. If you made the decision to follow Christ today, congratulations! The angels in heaven are rejoicing! Take the next steps in getting plugged into a church and if you have any questions don’t hesitate to contact me. Be sure to share this with someone and come back tomorrow for Day 204!

Day 202: Check Yourself

Romans 2:21-24

Well then, if you teach others, why don’t you teach yourself? You tell others not to steal, but do you steal? You say it is wrong to commit adultery, but do you commit adultery? You condemn idolatry, but do you use items stolen from pagan temples? You are so proud of knowing the law, but you dishonor God by breaking it. No wonder the Scriptures say, “The Gentiles blaspheme the name of God because of you.

I’m sure we are all familiar with the statement, “Check yourself before you wreck yourself.” I especially remember my mom saying it to me whenever I was getting out of line. My mom would always tell us when we were younger, “charity starts at home”. Basically what she meant by that was, everything starts with us, before we can talk about anyone or lead anyone else we have to make sure that we have everything in order. I believe that the above scripture points directly to this statement. I think sometimes we can get caught up in what other people are doing that we don’t step back and take a look at ourselves. This is something I’ve seen happen so much in the church, especially towards the younger generation. We are judged for the lifestyle we lead by older people because they don’t approve. Even if we are leading a life dedicated to Christ, many times people will have a problem in they way that we do that as well.

I have been led by people who told me not to do something while they were doing that very thing, and it baffled me once I found out because I found so many of my elders were telling me what to do simply because they were my elders and apparently I’m required to listen to them. But if you are doing the very thing you're telling me not to do, how is that leadership. This is why many times the church is equated with hypocrisy. However I believe that we can change that and the way to do is highlighted in the scriptures. Check yourself before you check anyone else. There’s a couple of other scriptures I want to point to to drive this message home.

Matthew 7:3-5

“And why worry about a speck in your friend’s eye when you have a log in your own? How can you think of saying to your friend, ‘Let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,’ when you can’t see past the log in your own eye? Hypocrite! First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend’s eye.  

We are in no place to judge, we have to live our lives everyday for ourselves making sure that we are living right. We don’t have time to be judging other people. Yes, we can lead people to Christ and teach them about Christ but first we have to be taught, we have to be led. Many times people become Christians and overnight they turn into someone who all of sudden has the right to point out every sin in someone and let them know that they will be punished by God. I’ve been on both sides of that. We can’t be a Christian for all of two minutes and then think we have so much together that we can start telling other people how to live. We need to learn how to live like Christ first, before we can teach anyone else. We have some specks in our eyes that need to be removed before we can even start to see clearly.

John 8: 7-9

They kept demanding an answer, so he stood up again and said, “All right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone!”  Then he stooped down again and wrote in the dust. When the accusers heard this, they slipped away one by one, beginning with the oldest, until only Jesus was left in the middle of the crowd with the woman.

This is a familiar passage to many of us, and what amazes me the most is that no one was able to cast a stone. No one but Jesus, who was the only one left standing there. These men were all revved up with stones in hand ready to kill this woman, without realizing that they themselves are in the same position as her. The were all sinners as well. Jesus gave them permission to cast the stone but only if they were without sin. At that moment they had to stop and think. They had to examine themselves and see that they were sinners same as this woman.

How many times have we been ready to throw a stone at someone else without checking ourselves first?

All this to say, check yourself. Make sure that you are living the way you’re supposed to before judging anyone else. In order to make the world a better place and advance God’s kingdom we must start with ourselves.

Reflection

1. Do you find yourself judging other people for their lifestyle and choices?
2. Are you without sin?
3. What are some things you need to work on as a Christian?

Prayer Time

Allow your answers to the above questions guide your prayer. Talk to God about what we discussed today, ask Him to search your heart and help you change the things that need to be changed in your life.

I love you and I hope you have an amazing day or evening. Be sure to share this with someone and come back tomorrow for Day 203!

Day 201: Right In Front of You!

John 20:11-16

Mary was standing outside the tomb crying, and as she wept, she stooped and looked in. She saw two white-robed angels, one sitting at the head and the other at the foot of the place where the body of Jesus had been lying. “Dear woman, why are you crying?” the angels asked her. “Because they have taken away my Lord,” she replied, “and I don’t know where they have put him.” She turned to leave and saw someone standing there. It was Jesus, but she didn’t recognize him. “Dear woman, why are you crying?” Jesus asked her. “Who are you looking for?” She thought he was the gardener. “Sir,” she said, “if you have taken him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will go and get him.” “Mary!” Jesus said. She turned to him and cried out, “Rabboni!” (which is Hebrew for “Teacher”).

You ever looked for something and it’s right in front of your face but you didn’t see it the first time you looked? I used to get in trouble for this all the time when I was younger, in my defense my eyes are screwed. I have a lazy eye and astigmatism in one eye, and strain in the other. So when I say I can’t see something, i really cannot see it. However, that’s not the point, when I was younger my mom would send me to look for something, and after looking for about five seconds I would run back and be like, “Mom I don’t see it”. Then she would say, ‘If I go back here and find you’re in trouble.” So I’d frantically run and try to find it, When she came and looked, somehow someway it magically appeared. Sometimes I would go back and somehow my eyes would be opened and I would find it right in front of my face. I was looking but I wasn’t really seeing.

I tell this story because I feel like that’s what Mary is exhibiting in this passage. She comes looking for Jesus but she cannot find Him. He’s not there. She starts doing what all of us do when we can’t find something, we start accusing people of stealing. She starts saying they took Him. Here’s the kick, Jesus even comes to her, and she’s looking at Jesus not realizing she’s looking in the face of the risen Messiah, it’s amazing. The person she’s looking for is right in front of her face. He’s right there. She mistakes Him for a gardener and she’s like, “Where is He? Tell me where He is, and I’ll go get Him.”

There’s two things I want to point out here. Jesus calls her name, and immediately she realizes that Jesus is standing before her. There’s something about the call of Jesus. When God opens our eyes we start to see things that we have been overlooking for a long time. When Jesus opens our eyes we start to see things differently, we start to see the world differently. When Jesus opens our eyes we start to see what he sees. When Jesus opens our eyes we start to see Him, and we see Hs hand on our lives. Which brings me to my next point.

Are we overlooking Jesus? Are we searching for Him without realizing that He is right in front of us. He is standing right there and we are so overcome with our own personal troubles, and concerns that we don’t see that He is right there. He’s right there. I want to make sure that wherever I am in my life Jesus is there with me. I want to make sure that I am not overlooking Jesus. Realize that God is always there, He never leaves us. He’s always standing right there. Right in front of us.

Reflection

1. Are you overlooking God?

Prayer Time

Allow your answer to the above question guide your prayer. Talk to God about opening your eyes so that you see what He wants you to see. Ask God to give you vision, and to open you ears to hear His voice.

I love you and I hope you have an amazing day or evening. Be sure to share this with someone and come back tomorrow for Day 202!

Day 200: For God So Loved the World

John 3:16

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, so that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life.

Recently I watched a sermon by Rich Wilkerson Jr. where he said something that really resonated with me. To paraphrase it, he basically said don’t exclude yourself from God’s love. The scripture says God so loved the world, we are part of that world, you are part of that world, I am part of that it. Sometimes I feel like we exclude ourselves from the world when we talk about how much God loves us, we are under that umbrella too and no one is barely under it. It’s big enough for all of us to fit under it comfortably. He loves each and every one of us individually. He loves you so much. I want you to really know that today, get it in your spirit, know it, breathe it. Because His love is breathing in us, His love is pumping blood to our hearts. His love is allowing us to move freely and enjoy life.

I have had moments in my life where things have happened or I looked back over my past and just say, “God really loves me”. And he does, so much! My life is proof of that. Your life is proof of that. Sometimes we have to apply scriptures to ourselves personally and make sure we include ourselves in the word of God. God  loves you, yes He loves the world and you know that, but you need to know that He loves you. The person reading this devotional, that person. You. He loves you!

Another thing Pastor Rich said was, “If we didn’t get the message that Jesus loves us through His words, look at His body language.”

What he meant by that, is if Jesus telling us He loves us wasn’t enough. Look at what He did to prove it, to show it. Look at the cross, look at what He went through on behalf of love. God sent Him to die because He loves us. This seems like beginner’s teaching but it is so imperative that we go back to where it all started. It’s important that we constantly return to the cross because that’s where everything changed. We can get so caught up in the theological aspect of it all that we forget the simple yet profound aspect of it. Jesus loves us, so much that He took on our sin and died in our place. And you can take that and ascribe i to yourself personally. Jesus died for you, He died for me, He died for the world. Make it personal, we forget that a relationship with God is personal. Yes being a Christian is about community, and fellowship, and outreach. But the foundation of that is a personal relationship with God. That starts with understanding that God loves us, and then we can allow Him to lead us, and I’ll leave you with one quote.

“Until you understand how God loves you, you’ll never be able to let God lead you.”

-Rich Wilkerson Jr.

Reflection    

1. Do you tend to exclude yourself from God’s love?
2. Whatever your answer was to the above question, why? Explain.
3. Do you believe that God loves you?
4. Repeat to yourself, “God loves me.”

Prayer Time

Allow your answers to the above questions guide your prayer. Take the time to think about God’s love for you, think about how much He loves you and rest in that love. Talk to Him about it. He loves you so much. Just have a moment with Him.

I love you, I hope you have an amazing day or evening! Be sure to share this with someone and come back tomorrow for Day 201!

Day 199: If You Love Me...

John 14:15

If you love me, obey my commandments.

Today let’s talk about loving God. I’m not sure if I speak for everyone when I say this, but sometimes I question my love for God because it’s seems like I’m not doing enough to show Him how much I love Him. I often feel like I’m not doing it right. I think I sike myself out because  I want to love God so much and I do, but sometimes I’m just like, but how do you know? Like do you know His love language? Can I brings Him gifts? What is this crazy thing called love?

It’s a crazy concept because I know I love God, yet I question my love for Him. I want to love God perfectly if that makes sense. Loving God seems like such a complicated thing because we want to do it right? We want to make sure we are loving God the right way. We cannot see Him, so there’s no physical connection, which in my opinion is the best kind of love. The type of love that says I’ve never seen your face, but I know you and I love you. I love you just for who you are. That’s some real love.

I think Jesus telling us exactly how to love Him in the above scripture. You want to show me you love me, here’s how you do it, obey my commands. Listen to my voice, turn your heart to my way. That’s how I will know that you love me. I believe the bible is full of formulas telling us the secrets of life. He’s given us another one, quite simple, if you love me obey me. That simple, He doesn’t say anything else, just obey me. Now if we really love God this will not be a problem. Obeying God means giving some things up, sacrificing some things, turning away from our old ways, but if we love God it won’t be a problem. When I would hear this scripture it would be complicated or used to tell us that we are not living right, and tell us that we aren’t loving God the right way or at all. But that is not what I get from this scripture is Jesus telling us how to live. He’s telling us what to do to show Him our love. I do not think that this scripture is in any way berating the believer for not loving God the right way but instead saying, here’s how you live, here’s how you love.  All you have to do is obey me and I will know that you love me. Live how I have taught you to live and I will know that you love me. That’s how you show me.

Loving God is about obeying Him and following His commands. It’s not complicated or hard because like I said before if we really love God, doing whatever needs to be done to obey should be no problem.

Reflection

1. Do you love God?
2. Do you obey His commands?
3. Are you willing to sacrifice and do whatever you need to, to make sure that you are obeying Him?

Prayer Time

Allow you answers to the above questions guide your prayer. Talk to God about what it looks like to love Him by obeying His commands. Declare your love for God not just by saying it but by obeying His commands.

I love you and I hope you have an amazing day or evening. Be sure to share this with someone and come back tomorrow for Day 200!

Day 198: Recap! (Testimony)

What a week it has been. This has been a very emotional week for me, both mentally and emotionally. I've had a hard time this week, but it payed off in the end. I am grateful God has given me a platform such as this to encourage me when I need. This week god used my own words to speak to me. Many of this weeks posts came out of what I was experiencing and having faith in Him. So today I'd like to share a testimony with you all.

I have been struggling with my tuition for the past two years at school and it was even more of a struggle this year. With the financial aid office telling me there was nothing they could do to help me. I've been denied for every loan there is, from private loans, to payday loans. I am still paying off last semester and I go back to school in a month. I had no idea how I was going to come up with the eight thousand dollar needed to pay for school. I have been on the phones, the school has been so rude to me, no one was willing to help me. No one. So I prayed and I got to a point where I started to freak out, I was getting tired of fighting, and tired of trying and just ready to walk away from it all. However, deep down inside I knew that everything was going to be okay. When I was done freaking out, I found an ounce of hope. During this time I decided to email the president of my school, explaining the situation to him and asking for help. I was very honest in the email and I laid it all out on the table. Not knowing if he would respond or even help I sent the email because why not.  While I was expecting something from God, I was not expecting what He did. It reminds me of Ephesians 3:20,

"Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us,"

It amazes me how God can take good faith and make it great. He shows us what He can do when we have faith in Him. This testimony is a testament of both God's faithfulness, and what it looks like when you trust God. 

So yesterday, I checked my email yesterday to see if there would be a response from him and there was. Not only did they increase one of my grants by 1,000 dollars but they also gave me another grant to cover the remainder of my tuition for the entire year. I read the email and I broke down crying because I knew that that was God. He worked it out for me once again in a way I never expected. I don't have to worry about making payments or stressing about the people in financial aid sending me passive aggressive emails. My God is awesome. I cannot thank Him enough, I am still amazed by it. When God shows up, He truly shows out.