Daily in the Word

Every day we are faced with a battle. It is a battle between the spirit and the flesh which leaves us with a choice to either walk with God, or please the flesh. It can be hard to resist the temptation of doing whatever you want to do, and have fun the way you want to have fun instead of doing God's will.

More times than one, the devotional I get in my e-mail called Daily in the Word, has helped me overcome the flesh and get my eyes back on God. Dr. Paul Chapell does a great job at bringing scriptures into perspective with good examples from our everyday lives. Visit his web site or check out his blog. His devotions will definately help you if you have a heart that is turned towards God.

A Word on Modesty

Today I came upon a short, but great post on modest at Lauren's blog. Her husband brought out 5 good points about modesty that everyone should consider before they go shopping for new clothes . . . including swim wear! Please stop by and read the post. It wont take but a few minutes of your time, and it will be well worth it!

Great job Lauren and David!

Yes, I am Finally a Graduate

Friday I took my last few tests and said goodbye to the college world with rejoicing and gladness. Now everyone wont have to hear me go on and on about my shoolwork. : )

Saturday we invited some friends over for a cookout and Christian fun. We played "corn hole", lasso golf, volley ball, and shot water baloons down our long drive way with our 3-man sling shot. The whole day was a lot of fun!

Ryan had been planning a scheme against me for the past two weeks and has finally got to pull it off. He, along with some help, soaked me with a whole bucket of water and then dumped a whole bowl of flour on me! I was one stickey mess! If I knew he wouldn't get me back again, I would do something in return to him . . . but I don't think it's worth it. The older ones always come out on top! (Ryan, my brother, is the one in the ball cap.)

Below is a picture of the 3-man sling shot in action.

First the water . . .

. . . then the flour!

Despite being caked with flour, I did have a great party!

Reality Check #1

Reality. It is the act of portraying or living in the real. Not what we want to be, know we should be, or want others to think we are, but the plain old truth. Reality is admitting a down fall or wrong doing without giving hundreds of excuses. True reality is not watered down.

How often do we actually portray reality? Do we ourselves give truthful answers to the heart questions asked by our Sunday School teachers, pastors, parents, or others? Are we honest with ourselves?

Most of the time we are not. A lot of times I have not been honest. I don't always like the truth . . . especially about myself. For a while I can happily live in denial, convinced of what I want to be. But after a while I can no longer get by with such an act of contradiction. If I want to become a better Christian then I must face reality.

Perhaps you face the same problem. I believe we all ignore the facts to some degree, so I have decided to post Reality Checks once in a while that will require us all to search the deepest corners of our heart for truthful answers. You do not have to post your answer to the question, but if you like you can join the discussion in the comment section.

Here's the first question:

What have you saught after this week? Have you saught after happiness? Have you tried to please yourself? Are you looking for acceptance among your peers? Are you looking for a soul mate? Maybe money is your goal.

We should seek after Christ, to be closer to and more like Him. But even that can sometimes be distorted. If we seek after Christ so we can boast of the Christian we think we are then our searching is doing no good. Christ was not prideful, so we shouldn't be either.

Lastly, I will leave you with a scripture that we should all keep in mind.

"But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you." Matthew 6:33

The first step to seeking God with all your heart is to find what you are really seeking after and eliminate that "weight and the sin which doth so easily beset us."

The Writer Within

My mind is buzzing with a multitude of writing ideas! My busy brain can not seem to focus on anything but the desire that is in my heart. I believe the writer in me is coming back out! For a while it was hid among the numerous other things I had to do, but now that those things are starting to clear away I am eager to get back to the old pleasure of expressing the thoughts God has given me - but this time with even more vigor.

However, I still have a few days left of college and additional studying. So please be patient for a little while longer while I finish up a few more things that are preventing me from diving into the writing tasks that await me. Right now I must think college.

Suffering

"There's nothing wrong in suffering, if you suffer for a purpose. Our revolution didn't abolish danger or death. It simply made danger and death worthwhile." ~ H. G. Wells

"For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake;" Philippians 1:29

YIPEE!!!

I only have ONE more week of college!!!!!

Treasures From The Old Testament

I've always heard that no matter how many times you read the Bible you will always find something new. The more I read it the more I realize how true this is. I do believe it is the only book ever written that will never become old or boring to me.

For years I have preferred the New Testament over the Old Testament. Since times are so different I never really knew how to apply the Old Testament scriptures to my life. We are not commanded to give sacrifices or keep the feast days as the Israelites were in the days before Christ. Thus I always read more of the New Testament.

Recently however, God has opened my eyes and has let me see those old stories in a new light. Now they seem full of spiritual values that I can try to obtain myself. So many of the things they went through are similar to those I have. Why didn't I see this before? Perhaps I didn't seek to understand. But now I do, and I am thoroughly enjoying it!

Worth a Thought