//God is Always Near//Christ in the Single Life//

      Sunrise to sunset to sunrise again, God's faithfulness is evident in every moment of our lives. We may not feel his presence, but scripture is clear that He is always near. We are given glimpses of His nearness during the Children of Israel's dessert wanderings when he lead them by pillar of cloud by day and pillar of fire by night.

"And the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead them along the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, that they might travel by day and by night. The pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night did not depart from before the people." Exodus 13:21-22

We see Him walking in the garden with Adam and Eve. Again when the Holy Spirit came upon the believers at Pentecost in Acts 2 we see Christ's nearness to His children. The most physical time we ever see God's nearness to us is when He sent His pure unblemished son, Jesus, into our sinful impure world. He walked, taught, ate, slept and lived amongst His created beings and bridged the separation between God and man....forever. Oh how thankful I am for His desire to see those whom He's chosen come into His presence and be eternally near under His protective arm. 

    As I was driving to the gym today, thinking over the past few weeks of my life, I realized that without God as my savior, none of the crazy messes I make as a human would ever make sense. Relationships with people would be pointless (other than for self gratification, which would soon become unfulfilling), I would be unable to find contentment in my job, and the ability to look beyond what is happening in our government would no longer be present. His presence in my life is the most satisfying thing and I am happy to be able to run to Him 24/7 365.

   The last month as been one of the most unique times in my life when I've come face to face with my singleness. God placed me in some unique situations where I would be tested on how strong I would stand for His truth and what scripture says concerning guy-girl relationships. During this month, I would be asked what my opinion was on dating a non-believer. When asked by a non-believer if I'd dated much, I would be given a blank stare when I replied unashamedly "No, I haven't." (Many non-believers don't get why you'd save yourself for marriage thus it's okay to date around and play around). I was approached by an older gentleman from my church who without even knowing what my month had looked like, encouraged me to wait patiently on the Lord for God to bring the right man (if your a single girl in a church, I'm sure you've had this happen to you before, if not...it will come :P ). I  made//mistakes// and lived through them. I showed brashness in certain situations when patience and time would have been better. It was a month of learning. A time to grow in my ability to relate to others in my God given situation in life. Overall, it was a unique month full of growth in learning about my single life and how strong my most important relationship that I do have (with Christ) is. 

   Of course, hind sight is always 20/20, but I know God had/has a plan in it all. I have felt God's presence more in my life during the past couple months than I have ever before. I have become more grateful for Christ's work on the cross that wipes out all our mistakes, covers our blemishes, and leads us through relationship qualms. Christ is the father to the fatherless, the ultimate comforter, and the shoulder to lean on. I am truly grateful for my Main Man, Jesus. <3  May you find comfort in His tenderness as well, seek His face, daily commune with Him....blessings will abound.

   Because I have felt God's closeness more so the past few months, I can also say that I have grown by leaps and bounds in contentment. Though I look forward to the day when God calls me to stand side by side a man as his helpmate, I am also glad for this time in my life as a single person to pursue God, my ultimate groom, and learn more about His character and desire for my life. He is always there, standing by me, pursuing me, and ever forgiving me when mistakes are made. He is there for you as well, and will not let you fall out of His grasp. Praise Him!

  

  
  

Transformed From Rebel Slave to Joyful Servant

“Everybody can be great...because anybody can serve. You don't have to have a college degree to serve. You don't have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love.”
― Martin Luther King Jr.

 Martin Luther King Day....what does it make you think of? Perhaps your mind might wander to //slavery//, African Americans, cruelty, injustice, racism and a whole slew of other things. In all that this day stands for, and against, my mind takes me to the cross and the //freedom// from sin I found there in Jesus Christ.

//“There was a day when I died, utterly died, died to George Müller and his opinions, preferences, tastes and will; died to the world, its approval or censure; died to the approval or blame of even my brethren and friends; and since then I have studied only to show myself approved unto God” (cited in Slave, 153).//

 
   Called out of the bondage of our sin, we are //freed// from the shackles of all that held us to Satan. No longer do we shake our week fist at God and turn away from all that is pure; rather, we bow down to a strong and mighty King, ruler of all. Yet there remains a unique situation, under Christ we are still a //slave (Gr. doulos)//. How can this be? Haven't we been //freed//? Previous to our changed hearts under Christ, we were in forced //bondage//, living the life of a miserable renegade with a master who cared nothing for our well being. Now, our wild past is behind us and b Christ's saving power, we have enlisted into His army. Like the //slaves// in the New Testament who would sign himself over to his master after //freedom// had been given him, so is our new life in Christ. We are singularly devoted to Christ and have total dependence on Him.  We are joy filled, hope filled, and Christ filled! We are clothed in the best garment there is to offer, our Master's righteousness! We are His heirs, "...being justified by His grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life." - Titus 3:7.

   So, as we remember Martin Luther King Jr. on this relaxing day of vacation, remember even more Jesus Christ, the One who //freed// all form //slavery//...the greek, jew, blacks, whites...ALL are allowed to enter His Rest!

   I found the way Cripplegate explains this unique new life we are now apart of very helpful.

~Grace and Peace~

Our Plans Are Not Our Own

Gospel Filled {Love} - Loving Your Brother

 Hebrews 13:1-2 

  
1 Let brotherly love continue. 2 Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.

    As I look at my life - all the way back through middle school and beyond - I can remember specific people in my life who I consciously struggled to {love}. Maybe it's my personality (ultimately I know it's sin), but loving others is potentially one of my biggest struggles and to do so in a way that strives to be selfless is a double whammy. These people's names and faces will always be etched on my memory and I will always wonder how their lives or outlook on the Gospel would be different had I been a {loving} friend to them. As I encourage myself to take every moment captive, to {love} others from here on out, may you be encouraged that in Christ there is forgiveness and that there is no time like the present to start actively pursuing and {loving} others...even those who are hard to {love}. 

   As I was reading Hebrews 13 today, the first two verses stuck out to me and made me think more deeply on this topic that I've been wrestling with other the last couple months. Am I more apt to {love} the newcomer in church rather than {loving }those who are continually in my church body? Yes, we are extorted to {love} and show hospitality(a topic that I love), to strangers, but how can I {love} the way God commands if I'm not already {loving} those He's placed into my life. 

   Christ is our ultimate example of {love}. Imagine what He did to show us {love} from His perspective. Before coming to earth He was in //perfect// holy communion with God the Father. He was completely satisfied and took joy from just being able to look into His Father's eyes. As Sinclair Ferguson states in the book Holy Holy Holy , "Pure and intense {love} has more power to effect awe, even gracious fear, thank all terror." So, how did Christ show us ultimate {love}? By allowing Himself to be taken out of His face to face intimate relationship with God, He became flesh so that by His life, death, burial, and resurrection He could bring us into the same relationship He shared with God in the weakness of His(Jesus) flesh. Even in His weakness, the {love} he experienced with the Father is greater than any love we could know here on earth. Christ fave up all He had and enjoyed in order to show us unselfish {love}... not only that, He was willing to share that which He had given up. 

   With this at the forefront of our minds, can we honestly say that we {love} others? If we do not {love}, then the {love} Christ showed us which would ultimately bring us into union with Him and the Father, is dead to our life -null, void, not able to cause change, useless- 1 John 4:8 says we do not know God (share in an intimate relationship with Him) if we do not {love}. 

   So, if your wondering how to {love} in a Christlike manner, look up 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 which states...

4 Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it his not arrogant 5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; 6 it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. 7 Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 

      Here's a physical show of of {love} between two brothers.....multiply this {love} times an innumerable amount and then you'll have a grasp of how GREAT our Father's {love} is for us.