A man, a rock, and a prayer.

There is a story told of a young man in a cabin who prays to God and asks God what He wants him to do with his life. God tells him to look at the massive rock that is in a valley beneath him and every day for the rest of his life he is to push that rock. The young man does as he is told by God and does so for about twenty years. After twenty years of frustration, the man then prays to God again and says to God, "I've done what you've told me to do and I haven't even moved that rock one millimeter." God answers him and says, "I didn't tell you to move that rock. I told you to push it. Look at your hands and arms and how strong they are. Look at the strength of your body that you obtained by pushing on that rock all of these years."

God has been telling me a lot these last couple weeks as I have asked for something, cause I was drowning. I prayed out to God, “Help me, I need something different!” Well now I see a possible answer to that prayer. (I only say possible because I wish I truly knew the voice of God, but for now I see a shadow and I am seeking to see if I find God attached to the shadow’s feet) Over time, I don’t know how long, I have been hearing sermons, reading verses, and hear people talking about the power of prayer. There are so many verses in the Bible on the power of prayer and the promises God has given us on prayer; so now how do I put that into action? Just like the story above has the main character asking God for something new, I was asking God the same thing. I needed something different then what I was doing before and God brought me prayer. For a long time now I have not used prayer in my spiritual life, not saying that I didn’t pray, just that I never used it to what the Bible says it can do. All I ever used it for was just a vehicle to send MY requests to God, but never to really lift up the church or ask for Him to move. Now, through people and His word, I feel like God is asking me to do something special for lent. I feel that he wants me to commit to prayer for his body, prayer for a fire to be started and revival to come. I am not saying that He will do it, and I don’t care if He does (I mean I want Him to so bad, but I am not going to be struck down if He doesn’t). But just like the man in the story, I am going to do what my God has called me to do. Day by day I know that I will grow stronger in Christ and learn how to really pray. I may not be awesome at prayin, but I know that I am doing what God has called me to do. That, my friends, is what I am going to do; even if that means that I am going to seek God alone, I will do it!

Are you Lukewarm?

I wrote this when I was suppose to be sleeping for clinicals, but I couldn’t I felt this is what God would rather have me write, cause the last one was only tearing them down and God has been telling me edify… edify…. There is too much put downs and we need encouragement…
With what has happened this last week, there has been a lot of talk.

Crown we have become lukewarm Christians! We are neither hot nor cold and God will soon spit us out if we do not do something to change. The events of the past week have shown me that there is a lack of integrity in our walks, and please understand that I am just as much to blame as the next guy. So when you read this don’t be thinking about the log that I need to take out my own eye, I am asking Crown to help each other, help me, and help yourselves to take the crap out of our eyes so that we can see Christ. The sins of the flesh are not what I am talking about, for the simple fact that when we focus on Christ all worldly things will lose their glory and fade away as that focus becomes more constant. So Crown what I am talking about here is our walk with Christ. Our walks have strayed from the narrow path that leads to life, it has strayed to the “wide is the gate, and broad is the way” of destruction and that has already happened for a couple of us. Not saying that getting kicked out of Crown means your going to Hell, but it has destroyed so much that some have tried to build up. So what are we doing Crown? Let’s take heart and, “since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.” (Hebrews 12:1-3) The directions are clear but just to make sure we don’t miss the point let me give you one more example of why fixing our eyes on Jesus is the most important; Peter walks on water. But Jesus immediately said to them: "Take courage! It is I. Don't be afraid."
"Lord, if it's you," Peter replied, "tell me to come to you on the water."
"Come," he said.
Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. 30But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, "Lord, save me!"
Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. "You of little faith," he said, "why did you doubt?”
“I'm not trying to be a nuisance I just think we can do better than this That was simply my two cents You can, you can take it or leave it.”

Nuisance

To people who call themselves Christians:

I am a hypocrite, will you join with me and say that you are too? We are in a fallen world striving to be something more, we are striving to be Christ-like. I mean that is what the name Christian means right? We are followers of Christ right? But we are not, we are all being hypocrites, saying one thing and doing another. That is why the world hates us! Jesus was suppose to be the stumbling block, but not us! Myself included, I have been struggling for 21 years trying to get my life on track with what God has called me too, but I am no closer then I was back then... We have all fallen from the fire and have become lukewarm, and God doesn't want lukewarm, he wants hot! So what are we doing?

Come together with me! Please let us put off all the things that hinder and run the race with endurance. The race that was set out before us. Remember that the road that leads to destruction is wide and many find it, but the way to the kingdom of heaven is strait and the door is narrow, few find it. So why are we running this way or that, or stopping here and there? The Bible says to keep our eye on Jesus and the things of this world will fade away. What happened to Peter on the lake!? He took his eyes off the glory of Christ Jesus and he began to sink under the waves. The things of this world parish so why are we stopping our race to pick them up? They only hold us down from the race, but the Bible tells us to store up treasures in heaven and not here where moth and rust destroy! Finally the Bible says that friendship with the world puts a wall between you and God! So why would you want that?!

"I am not trying to be a nuisance, but I think that we can do better then this. That was simply my two cents, you can take it or leave it"

I know I am where I should be

Tonight, for the first time in a long time, I felt like I was where I should be. There was nothing that could have fit better then the events that lined up tonight. The last couple months I have been discourages again and again, there are three blogs that testify to that fact in my blog alone. I have felt like "a fish out of water" or as my friend said, "a piece waiting to fit in the puzzle" for so long, and in the back of my mind I have always wondered if I should even be here. Tonight told me that I am where I should be.

After class I went to the coffee shop for no reason, but to just see who was around, I ended up pick up a couple of Jones before I headed out. I looked down the hall and I notices that my best friend was walking down the hall toward me. I stopped and waited for her and I said something, to which she replied, would it be ok if we didn't talk? To this I was like, "oh, she is just got done with Chapel and wanted to take it in or pray to God alittle." So I was like ok, that is all cool.

As we walked she then opened up and started talking to me, she talked about something that were pressing hard on her and how she really needed to get them out. So we walked up to faith and talked. We got to her destination only to find that no one was there and she couldn't reach anyone about it. So I just invited her to continue to talk and come back to my apartment while she waited out of the cold night air. As we waited, we talked. Both of us were able to talk freely about what they were feeling and the weight was just lifted off both of our chests. The weight of our spiritual lives were lifted and freed. The burden of our secrets were gone, because they were no longer secrets. It was amazing that the time that we finished, the majority of our feelings and conversation, that she decided to check and see if they were home.

They were home and thus I walked her to the house and together we went into the house to chat with the family we both are getting to know pretty well. As we talked I to him and her to his wife, it became more and more apparent that God really set this night up long before my crappy months or the heaps of her burdens. For again the right place and right time came out. The wife asked me if I wanted to check out their daughter's ankle, because she rolled it the night before. So I after I was able to assess and give my nursing opinion I just felt so wanted/needed and complete. That I was in that hour of time or more, I was in God's will and there was no denying that fact.

So after I said my good-byes I headed home to finish my homework and right after I finished the more difficult of my two assignments, my roommate asked me if I wanted to watch a movie with him. This was cool cause I rarely get to see him if at all because he is always spending time with his gf. So I was like ok... I can handle two things at once. So together we watched Signs. A movie about God's hand in everything, that nothing is by chance but every word and event is there for a reason. There was this peace there that i have not had in a long time, that I was where I was suppose to be, cause I even got my last assignment in on time!

So Thank you God! I thank you that you are in control of my life, that I really don't have it all together, but you hold me in your hands. That you guide my every step, that in my trials you are there with me and have a plan for it. That the trails and snares that the devil throws at me, you use them for good. I thank you that the flaming arrows that are shot at me, are taking down by the shield of faith that you have given to me. That when I look at the armor I have not been wearing, it says property of God, and I know that it is perfect because it is yours! Bless me Father, for I am your son. Keep me Father in your arms and never let me go.