When God Sleeps

How good is it to know that we serve a God who never sleeps? I mean, that's pretty awesome! We can rest, we can have peace because the One who controls the universe never sleeps, He is constantly watching over us.

However, there have definitely been times in my life when I have felt like God was sleeping, like He didn't care about my situation, or that He was ignoring me. If you read in the fourth chapter of the book of Mark, you will find a story where Jesus was actually sleeping. He had spent a long day preaching to the multitudes and He was on a ship with His disciples. He had gone to the bottom of the ship to rest when a great storm came. The winds were fierce and the waves were crashing into the ship and Jesus was no where to be found. Basically, the disciples were freaking out.

So they went and found Jesus asleep in the bottom of the ship and woke him up. They asked Him why he hadn't stopped the storm. Did He not care that they were all going to die? You know what Jesus said? He said "Peace be still" and the wind ceased. The waves stopped crashing. Everything was calm. Then He asked His disciples a simple question: Why did you have no faith in me?

Seriously, how many times do we find ourselves in the middle of life's storms questioning God, worrying that He is asleep, that He isn't going to take care of us, when in reality, even if He was asleep He still has everything under control. All He has to do is say "Peace" to our situation and it will be over! EVEN WHEN HE WAS ASLEEP HE WAS IN CONTROL!!! What on earth would make us think He is not looking out for us?

So the story goes on and there the disciples are and Jesus, God of the universe, has just calmed the storm and kind of threw it back in their face. Who were they to doubt Him? And you know what the disciples said? They said, "what manner of man is this that even the wind and sea obey Him?"

Sometimes I would like to go back in time and really get inside the disciples head. I mean what were they thinking when they asked that question? You would think they would know who God was I mean they had seen him calm the storm, heal lepers, raise the dead, cast demons out of people, and all manner of things. And they still asked who He was.
Isn't it great to know who God is!!!! To know that He is Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last, the Healer of the sick, the One who calms our every storm! The disciples couldn't really seem to get that fact in their head, but we can! And when we do not trust God that He will take care of our situations then we are acting as though we do not know who He is! My challenge to everyone who reads this post is to live as though you know who God is, because He is exactly who we think He is! Trust Him that He always has our every situation under control!

Picture This: God

Several months ago, before I started teaching Sunday School, my Sunday School teacher taught a lesson that has stuck with me ever since then. She had those of us in class do an activity in which we painted a picture, in words, of who God was in our lives at that time. Everyone in the class had different perspectives and it was really cool to hear how each person pictured God. One person described God as their father, the protector, the dad who sits by the door watching out for trouble. One girl said she felt like she was the rebellious teenager and God was her father. She thought she could sneak around, but really God, her father, knew exactly what she was doing.

At the time, my view of God was very different from the rest of the people in the class. I was going through several different situations in my life and my picture of God was this: He was my psychologist. I pictured myself lying on a couch, telling God all my problems, and listening as He told me what to do about them.

But that changed.

This is a lesson I have learned in just the past few days. As our lives change, so does our perception of God. My youth pastor Bro. Josh preached a message once about the way we see God when we pray. Do we picture him on the cross? In heaven on the throne? Sitting next to us?
Around the time he preached this God had changed from my psych to my comforter. I was through the time in my life where I needed to make decisions and I was into living in the decisions I had made. At this time I just pictured God sitting on the throne and myself crawling up in his lap to be comforted.

But that changed too.

Can I just be brutally honest right now? Lately I feel like I have not been listening to God very well at all. I listen to my friends, I listen to my family, I listen to music, I get on facebook too much, I talk too much, and at night when I go to bed I fall straight asleep. Now where is God in all of this? Nowhere. And last night I really felt it, because for the first time in a long time I couldn't picture what God should look like in my life right now. I'm not facing any major decisions, I am happy with my life right now, so where does God fit? What does he look like?

Initially, after having this thought, I thought to myself, "you know, the only thing I'm missing in my life right now is my 'significant other' so yeah, God right now is the love of my life, yeah that's it." Which is a great thing for God to be, but just as I was writing this blog, it hit me that through every single situation in my life God remains constantly one thing: My Savior.

So this is my challenge to you, the reader, and to myself also. When you don't know where you fit in this life, when you don't know how God fits into your life, know that he is your savior. Picture this: Jesus, the God of the universe, hanging on the cross, dying to save your soul. Because at the end of the day, he saves us. HE SAVES US. Over and over and over and over and over and over, HE SAVES US!!!!

II Samuel 22:1-4 says God is our Rock, Fortress, Deliverer, Shield, Salvation, High Tower, Refuge, but most of all, HE SAVES US!!!!

Another Beautiful Day

This week has been absolutely fantastic as far as the weather is concerned (and as far as other things are concerned too, I'm sure, but I don't want to talk about those right now). I mean, the sun is shining, and I had almost started to forget what it looked like. There are birds chirping outside my windows (which are open by the way) and there is just enough of a breeze to blow the curtains away from the window. Its beautiful. It looked this way Monday too, however on Monday I made much better use of my time out of doors. Around noon I decided to go for a run around our property, which was ah-mazing, then I sat in the bed of my truck, feet dangling, allowing the sun to warm my dry, used-to-cold-weather-skin. I got out my journal and began to just write about the beauty of the nature around me and suddenly I was consumed by God's greatness, demonstrated to us through his creation. Suddenly, I no longer felt just as though God was living inside of me, or sitting next to me, but that I, in the midst of all his glorious creation, was in Him. And it was pretty revelating, (if that is even a word).

It also made me wonder why on earth I hadn't spent more time out of doors before then. My entire life I have not been an out-of-doors kind of gal. I prefer air conditioning to sweating and the cleanliness of a house rather than the dirt and germs of outside. But on Monday, I do believe I had a change of heart.

I live way out in the country. As far as I can see there are just fields and barns and gravel roads. I grew up running barefoot down these very gravel roads and rolling around in these fields, so you would think I would have more of an appreciation for them, but I am very sad (and a bit ashamed) to say I have not, until now that is. As I sat outside on Monday I realized that this land I live on, every hill, every blade of grass and speck of dirt is God's very own handiwork. No amount of beautiful words I could use, nor the paint and pen of the greatest artist could capture what He has created. It is absolutely magnificent. I didn't want to leave.

So I have had this revelation that nature itself is a very spiritual thing, and I like it!

For Those Who Wait

I just heard the greatest song!!!
It is called "For those who wait" by Fireflight, and honestly, I haven't been the biggest fan of theirs in the past but this song is great, watch a random video of it here and check out the lyrics!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TJKtWFtuY3M&feature=related

This is for those who wait
Another day another waiting game
A little different but it’s still the same
I am here but wheres the One I’m longing for
I’m having troubles feeling all alone
When my heart find a home
I want to hope but sometimes I just don’t know
I know I’m not the only one

So you sing a lullaby
To the lonely hearts tonight
Let it set Your heart on fire
Let it set You free
When you’re fighting to believe in a love that you can’t see
Just know there is a purpose
For those who wait

I want to open up my eyes
I know that I’m in need is time
I’m growing stronger every single day
God, I’m gonna lead them to You now
Letting go all of my fear and doubt
I can’t do this on my own so I’ll give You control
I know I’m not the only one

The pressure makes us stronger
The struggle makes us hunger
The hard lessons make the difference
The pressure makes us stronger
The struggle makes us hunger
The hard lessons make the difference
And the difference makes it worth it

My Pet: Jonah

Well my pet fish, Jonah, just died. I'm not really sad about it, actually it creeped me out seeing him all belly-up and white-ish looking in the bowl, but I feel some sort of grieving should be done on my part. So this is it, you all get to hear the story of how my fish Jonah came to be (and came to not be haha).



I had wanted a gold fish for about a year, I had made subtle hints to my then-boyfriend that I wanted a goldfish and he never got me one.... So I dumped him (haha just kidding, that's not the reason... well not all of it). So around Christmas I hinted to my family that I wanted a goldfish, they didn't get me one either ( I must not be a very good hinter). But my sister and her boyfriend got the hint, and they promised to get me one. JJ (the boyfriend) lives in Michigan and he was going to mail the fish to me, but didn't think that would work out. When he came to visit on New Years he and Rebekah went out on a little date and when they returned they surprised me by bringing me a goldfish.



*Note: Rebekah would like for me to add in here that she and JJ looked at goldfish for almost an hour trying to pick the perfect one.... obviously (and this is me speaking) it wasn't the perfect goldfish because now he is dead.



I was so excited. I put him in a cute little bowl with a plant and colorful rocks, I even cleaned his water out every other day and kept the cat from drinking out of the bowl. When I went back to school Rebekah took care of him for me. But today, on the first day of spring break I cleaned out his bowl, fed him some good food, and what did he do? He died on me. Ungrateful little fishy.



Oh well, I suppose if any kinda lesson could be learned from this situation it is: "The Lord gives and the Lord takes away."



So yeah, Jonah's swimming in that crystal river in fishy heaven right now... and its ok with me, I'm sure its much cleaner :)

The Best Rest

Ah, spring break, its here again.... Now that I'm in college a whole new connotation comes along with the phrase. Panama City, Cancun, Aruba, partying, and drinking, these are all things that come along with the first week of March. However, I will not be joining other college students around the United States in the average festivities of Spring Break.

No, I'm not much in to the party scene. I prefer books to drinks and church to parties. But its all good! I prefer a life that follows the pattern of how Christ would have us live to the life of the world any day. The question is, what am I going to do over spring break if not party it up? The answer: I'm gonna rest! and its about time!

When I was in high school I seriously went to bed by nine o'clock every night. It was the best. I got a full eight hours of sleep every night and felt good in the mornings when I woke up. Since I've gone to college however, my sleep patterns have.... changed. I go to bed around midnight (at the earliest) each night and wake up on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays for 8 a.m. classes. So yeah, I don't get any sleep. So spring break is going to be good for my physical health; I am definitely going to get the rest my body needs. But spring break is going to be good for more than resting my body. I plan on getting some spiritual rest.

When a person spends so much time running, from class to work to church, and not only that, but adding in all extra things like eating and working out (haha) and spending time with friends, doing homework, and as Christians, witnessing and reading our Bibles and spending time in prayer, our spirits get worn out. We grow tired and need desperately to be renewed in spirit.

The greatest thing we can do for ourselves is take some time off, allow God to move in our lives and restore our spirits. We should bury ourselves in the Word even more than usual and spend lots of time in prayer, in turn God will give us the best rest available.