Blessed Be the Name of God

Blessed be the name of God forever and ever,

For wisdom and might are His.

And He changes the times and the seasons;

He removes kings and raises up kings;

He gives wisdom to the wise

and knowledge to those who have understanding.

He reveals deep and secret things;

He knows what is in the darkness,

and light dwells with Him.

(Daniel 2:20b-22)

So I Am Happy

"So I am happy, and I will continue to be happy. Because you are praying
for me and the Spirit of Jesus Christ is helping me, I know this trouble will
bring my freedom. I expect and hope that I will not fail Christ in anything but
that I will have the courage now, as always, to show the greatness of Christ in
my life here on earth, whether I live or die. To me the only important
thing about living is Christ." Paul in Philippians 1:18-21

Never Covered with Shame

I sought the Lord, and He answered me; He delivered me from all my fears. Those who look to Him are radiant; their faces are neve covered with shame. - Psalm 34:4-5

That's how I want to be. Verse 4 is very comforting -- when we seek God, he answers us and keeps us safe -- but today I want to focus on the last part, verse 5.
What does it mean to be radiant? Radiance is a bright light or glow, but what happens when radiance is found in people?
Have you ever met one of those people who just seem to shine? Whether they're attractive or not, their inner qualities seem to bubble to the surface and make you feel good. These are the people who we can learn from and grow in. Just from the simple things that person does, you can tell Christ is working through them. These people are radiant.
The truth is, no matter how ugly you think you are, you can be amazing. You can shine. You can be radiant. Deep down, it's what everyone wants. Everyone wants to live with purpose, to love and be loved, to work for a good cause.
Those who look to Him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame.
Sin and shame come hand in hand. Shame is like guilt, only worse, because people can see right through it. When you feel ashamed, you're never happy. When we ditch sin and strive for holiness instead, our sinful wordly shame is lifted from us and we are radiant.
That's what I want to be like. When people see me, I want them to see a radiant servant of the Lord, a girl worthy of respect. I never want my face to be covered with shame, instead I want to be radiant because I look to Him.

Eyes on the {Real} Prize

"Lord, You have been our dwelling place throughout all generations. Before the mountains were born or You brought forth the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting You are God." – Psalm 90:1-2

This is one of the verses I’m memorizing for a Bible Bee I’m participating in. I have to basically memorize the whole Bible. I know I can get pretty deep every now and then, but let’s face it – that’s a huge task! While there is a…um…cash prize for the winner, I’m trying not to get wrapped up in the money aspect and how many verses I can memorize in a day. It’s extremely difficult for me, because I want to just blow through all the verses and not give a care about what they say. Yet it forfeits the purpose.

Eyes on the {Real} Prize
I’m trying to keep my goal on God, not the cash prize, not the number of verses I blurt out, not my competition. I want my focus to be solely on God, and then – the cool part? – I can’t lose. Even if I don’t get the money and the trip to D.C., (although my joy may be of a slightly lower degree at first, let’s be honest), by the end of September I’ll be coming away with an amazing experience and the Truth to guide me.

Now I Know
I’ll be prepared wherever I go, "for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me" (Psalm 23:4).
When I’m seeking God, "surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever" (Psalm 23:6).
I know that, by carrying the Truth with me, "I have hidden Your Word in my heart that I might not sin against You" (Psalm 119:11) because "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path" (Psalm 119:105).
I know it’s important that I study the Bible because "The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us" (John 1:14) and because "whoever hears My Word and believes Him who sent Me has eternal life"(John 5:24).
Now I know that "faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the Word of Christ" (Romans 10:17).

A Child is Born

For unto us a Child is born,

Unto us a Son is given;

And the government will be upon His shoulder.

And His name will be called

Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God,

Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Of the increase of His government and peace

There will be no end,

Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom,

To order it and establish it with judgement and justice

From that time forward, even forever.

((Isaiah 9:6-7))

Lessons from a Cow

Lessons from a Cow
how to read your bible
&& how to give the phrase "chew on it" a whole new meaning

Ok, I must take a step down from my pride and admit that I can be taught something by, yes, a cow. Beloved bovines can show us how to apply God's word to our lives. No, this is not a zoology lesson.

Reading your bible is something you should do every day. But sometimes it's hard to grasp the true meaning of what God's trying to tell you.

My friend Maddy emailed me this idea.

Now, this is very unlike Maddy, because when you meet her you do not think of a country bumpkin or a cowgirl. No, Maddy is fashionable and fun, but this was very out of character.

Basically, she told me that a cow eats the grass, chews it slowly, swallows, and then, a moment later, chews the same piece again -- it is chewing its cud. Now, looking out the window, I can guarantee this is true, there's a fat white cow in our neighbor's pasture with legs as wide around as my waist, and he is chewing his cud.

So, where am I going with this? A cow chews its cud and so this is how we must read our bible. "Skimming" the page is not the way. Reading the page in a rush is not the way. Reading while bored or distracted is not the way. If you really want to soak up God's Word, we should read a verse or passage once, slowly, then think about it, then read it again. That was it really sinks into us.

Everyone please wish Maddy a happy 13th!

So, thanks again, Maddy!
.... Oh, alright, fine. Thanks, cows.

2 Thessalonians 3:3

"The Lord is faithful and will give you strength and will protect you from the
evil one." – 2 Thessalonians 3:3

Good at Doing Good

God is so good at doing good, he takes even the crummy stuff in your life and turns it into something great-- something that makes you stronger and brings you closer to him.

"They have treated me badly...but the Lord does what is right; he has set me free from those wicked people. - Psalm 129:2-4

Patience and Encouragement

Patience and encouragement come from God.

- Romans 15:5