Psalm 84:10 says: "For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere..." If I were given one day to live how would I spend it? What would my attitude be? Do I really believe one day in the presence of the Lord is better than a thousand here on Earth? I would like to think I would have the same attitude as David, but in all honesty, I would probably spend my last day enjoying the things this world has to offer, but why!?
I should be living a life so in awe of God that I look forward to the day I meet Him face to face, yet I feel like I have so much I want to accomplish here first. I want to graduate from college, get a full time job, get married, have kids...I could go on and on. That entire list is about what I want. What does God want for my life? It doesn't matter what I want. Proverbs 19:21 states: "Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand." If God calls me home tomorrow, will I be ready?
My prayer is that I would view just one day in the presence of the Lord as more precious than a thousand anywhere else. More precious than time spent with loved ones, more precious than time spent preparing for my future, more precious than the greatest things this world has to offer because this world is nothing compared to the greatness in store for those who have trusted Christ as Savior. This life is temporary. James 4:14 "yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? for you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes." I want to live my life in preparation for the day that I will meet the Lord face to face.
If you were given just one day to live how would you spend it?
Friday, September 20, 2013
Thursday, September 12, 2013
A Whole New Perspective
My devotions today were on the subject of marriage. My first reaction was: I am not married, so how can I possibly learn anything from this? However, despite my negative attitude God softened my heart and gave me a whole new perspective on marriage.
The passage I read today was from Ephesians 5:21-33. This passage discusses the roles of husbands and wives. Any woman who has grown up in the church knows that the woman's role in a marriage is to submit. I have heard it a thousand times. However, God totally changed the way I view submission. I have always just thought of it as something that I will have to do someday when (Lord willing) I get married. It is so much more than that! Ephesians 5:22 says "Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. This doesn't mean that women are supposed to view their husbands as Lord, but that when a woman submits to her husband, she is serving the Lord. It's not just something I will have to do someday, it's another way that I can live my life to glorify God!
The passage also discusses the role of husbands. While it is easy for me to think: okay this is yet another thing that doesn't apply to me, that's not true at all! I need to make sure that whoever I will someday marry is capable of carrying out his role according to God's word. I need to be sure that he is someone who will love me sacrificially and in a way that will encourage purity. Ephesians 5:25-27 says "Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish."
While it is important for the husband and the wife to carry out their roles in a marriage, it all means nothing if they do not have Christ as their foundation. I don't know when I will get married, but I want the purpose of my marriage to be to bring glory to God by showing the love of Christ.
The passage I read today was from Ephesians 5:21-33. This passage discusses the roles of husbands and wives. Any woman who has grown up in the church knows that the woman's role in a marriage is to submit. I have heard it a thousand times. However, God totally changed the way I view submission. I have always just thought of it as something that I will have to do someday when (Lord willing) I get married. It is so much more than that! Ephesians 5:22 says "Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. This doesn't mean that women are supposed to view their husbands as Lord, but that when a woman submits to her husband, she is serving the Lord. It's not just something I will have to do someday, it's another way that I can live my life to glorify God!
The passage also discusses the role of husbands. While it is easy for me to think: okay this is yet another thing that doesn't apply to me, that's not true at all! I need to make sure that whoever I will someday marry is capable of carrying out his role according to God's word. I need to be sure that he is someone who will love me sacrificially and in a way that will encourage purity. Ephesians 5:25-27 says "Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish."
While it is important for the husband and the wife to carry out their roles in a marriage, it all means nothing if they do not have Christ as their foundation. I don't know when I will get married, but I want the purpose of my marriage to be to bring glory to God by showing the love of Christ.
Thursday, September 5, 2013
Overwhelmed
With school having started back up a week and a half ago, I find myself feeling very overwhelmed. Besides school, I have a practicum that requires 54 hours in a classroom this semester, a part time job, and church activities. Maybe that doesn't sound like much, but trying to find time to keep up on homework, maintain relationships, and have time for a social life is proving to be a challenge. I am not sharing all of this to complain about how hard my life is, but because I have learned something through the struggle.
I am not relying on God nearly enough. Here are a few verses that have convicted me of this truth:
Philippians 4:5-7 Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:19 And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.
2 Corinthians 4:17 For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison.
1 Peter 5:7 casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.
These verses make it very clear that God cares about me and is going to take care of me. When I worry, I am essentially believing the lie that God is not enough. God is enough! He is big enough, strong enough, and loving enough to take care of me no matter how overwhelmed I feel or what I am going through. When I trust in Him, He will bring me a sense of peace that I can't even begin to fathom! What a blessing to experience peace in a time of chaos! I may feel overwhelmed now, but God is preparing me for something much bigger than my worries. Give it to God! You will be glad you did :)
I am not relying on God nearly enough. Here are a few verses that have convicted me of this truth:
Philippians 4:5-7 Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:19 And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.
2 Corinthians 4:17 For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison.
1 Peter 5:7 casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.
These verses make it very clear that God cares about me and is going to take care of me. When I worry, I am essentially believing the lie that God is not enough. God is enough! He is big enough, strong enough, and loving enough to take care of me no matter how overwhelmed I feel or what I am going through. When I trust in Him, He will bring me a sense of peace that I can't even begin to fathom! What a blessing to experience peace in a time of chaos! I may feel overwhelmed now, but God is preparing me for something much bigger than my worries. Give it to God! You will be glad you did :)
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