On the Bike Ride of Life

consider these statements spiritually.

The Bike Ride of Life.

What will you do on it?

How fast will you "roll," or should I say, how much time will you take to gather in the beautiful sights?

Why are you riding? What is your purpose? What do you STRIVE for?

Who or what will you run over?

Who or what will you lift up?

Do you simply push the people in front of you, or do you pull the people behind you?

What path are you on?

What paths will you turn on to?

What trail will you leave?

Do you give up the up-hills?

Do you free your hair to tangle in the breeze down-hill?

Or do you hold yourself back to be sure your hair looks okay?

Do you fill those tires with air?

Do you cruise?

Do you sweat?

Are you balanced?

Do you stop at the stop sign?

Do you go at the green light?

WHO AM I????

Who am I?

We've all asked that question at least once in our lives, and I stumbled across it this week. And while thinking it over, I kept saying, I am.... I am....

And then it hit me. I kept saying, "I am" and it reminded me of a song......

"Not because of who I am,
But because of what You've done.
Not because of what I've done,
But because of Who You are!"

Who is God?

Well, so many words pop into our minds, one of which is the great "I am."

Did you catch that?

God is the great I am.

As a Christian, I belong to God.

So I don't really have to wonder who I AM because I am the child of the GREAT I AM THAT I AM.

Keep On Keepin' On {3 easy steps}

Wherefore seeing we are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us,

Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. 

For consider him who endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be weary and faint in your minds.

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THIS POST IS PART TWO OF ANOTHER POST, KEEP ON KEEPIN' ON {ONLY} PRT. 1. IF YOU HAVE NOT READ THE PREVIOUS POST, PLEASE FOLLOW THE LINK TO READ IT.

Keep on keepin' on. Just keep swimming, just keep swimming, just keep swimming, swimming, swimming! what do we do? We swim! swim! Don't give up! you can do it! Run! Bear with it. Keep at it. Hang in there. Stick to it.

Keep going. Persevere. Don't stop. Persist. Continue. Carry on. Endure. Abide. Press on.

okay, okay, you know what I'm talking about now :)

So let's see how to run a successful, persevering race in 3 easy, Biblical steps. (and one pre-requisite.)

Pre-Step:  Recognize that people are watching you. They are witnesses of your actions and attitude, and that will affect them. If you persevere, the souls of those eyes will want to persevere.

STEP 1)  Drop the baggage. No pro runner starts a pro race with a backpack full of rocks. If sin is a burden on your back, hand it over to the Lord, and He will take care of it. He is your coach. Hand the backpack of rocks to Him. Also, throw the deceptive sin away. It may seem refreshing, but it will only make you more thirsty. Always drink the Living Water.

                   "let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us..."

STEP 2)  Be patient. This race is going to seem long, but you need patience. Remember the One you are running for.

                   "... and let us run with patience the race that is set before us."

STEP 3)  Look to Christ. Keep your eyes on the One who ran the hardest race of all. He is the Author and Finisher of this race of faith. Turn your eyes upon Jesus, and He will strengthen your aching muscles.

"Looking unto Jesus the Author and Finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider him who endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be weary and faint in your minds."

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You are tired. You are weary.

You are surrounded by witnesses. Drop the baggage. Be patient. Look to Christ. 

And you will be refreshed!

Keep On Keepin' On {only} prt. 1

Wherefore seeing we are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us,

Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. 

For consider him who endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be weary and faint in your minds.

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Lord, why do I have to go through all this?!? I'm trying to do the right thing, but noone seems to want that. They are treating me so badly; I can't seem to see what good this is doing me. Maybe I should just give up on this; I'm tired and don't want to be around these people anymore. Could I just walk away and give up now?

Maybe these are your thoughts. Maybe you are trying so hard; maybe you are doing your best. And, probably, you are tired {okay, exhausted}. You just might be ready to GIVE UP. I've got news for you:

You're trying too hard.

Guess what? YOU CAN'T DO IT. At least, you can't do it... on your own. Take a look:

"I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me."

Phillipians 4:13

I want to clarify this before I move on {to prt. 2} of this post: 

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Note from author: This post is part of a series; if I included everything that I wanted to say in this post then it would be loooooooooooooooooooooooooong. So I'm spreading it out; hope it's not too confusing. You can definitely look forward to part two!!!

Stop and Smell the Roses

If your life has been like mine has lately, it's been busy. It's been discouraging to see time kinda slip out of my hands. While I was preparing a lesson for girls' group, I learned something about growing faith. That when you're going through something tough, sit down and read your Bible; that's the greatest thing that you can do! And, oftentimes when we read God's Word it contains stories of victories God has provided in the past.

Let me put it this way:

You may have just gone through a trial, and are coming out of one.

Stop and smell the roses.

You may be in a trial now.

Stop and smell the roses.

 Remember the time...

...when God worked that out?

         ...when God answered that prayer?

         {most of all}... when God saved your soul through His amazing grace?


Those events, those victories of God are beautiful gems, fragrant roses. But, their fragrance continues. We can still smell them, and they smell beautiful.

You may be pretty busy now, but take a moment to look back and find a specific instance where God had the victory. Have faith. Stop and smell the roses!

Valentine's Day

It's Valentine's Day.

Some of you reading this are married; some may be in a relationship; some are single. I fall into the last category, and yes, I am celebrating Valentine's Day; because, even though the background of it may not have to do with singles, love does.

I do not have to be in a relationship or be married to love. The Bible says that love is a fruit of the Spirit, not a result of romance.

That means that I, as a Christian, can love, even if I don't have a significant other.

Enough about what love is not; let's talk about what love is.

Today, I am celebrating Valentine's Day by choosing to be loving through the strength of Christ.

I will choose to be patient, waiting on God's timing for romance.

I will choose to be kind, especially to my parents, who introduced me to singleness.

I will choose to reject envy, especially envy of couples.

I will choose humility, not boasting or prideful of a loving heart.

I will choose to suppress rudeness, especially to those who treat me differently because of my singleness.

I will choose to be a servant, even to those who have a significant other.

I will choose to reject anger, even towards my situation.

I will choose to reject a record of wrongs, especially those wrongs done due to my singleness.

I will choose not to delight in evil, especially lies that would tear me down.

I will choose to rejoice in truth, the truth that God's timing is best.

I will choose to protect my heart and others' hearts from lies.

I will choose to trust, especially in the Lord of my life.

I will choose to hope, especially in God's Word.

I will choose to presevere, even through this time of my life.

For then, I will love!



A re-definition of Valentine's Day:

This Valentine's Day, I dedicate my heart to the Lord of my life, Jesus Christ. Let His strength prevail, for I am fallen and weak, and cannot love on my own. May He work through me as He molds me and purifies me. I surrender my life to Christ, the Author of my life, and the Author of love!

When You Can't See God (or you just don't recognize Him)

Sometimes (like very recently), I get in a mode where I am either bored of God or I just don't see Him working. Or sometimes I just kinda ignore God.

Hebrews 11:1
Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

This was one of our memory verses for Sunday School. Even when we don't see God working, our faith is evidence of His work, because He works through our faith.

The hard part, though, is having the faith when you don't see God.

Do you hope for a better relationship with God? Do you hope for better family relationships? And, by hope, I mean an earnest expectation. Do you earnestly expect a full life? I know I do, especially as a teenager.

And the substance of those things hoped for is faith.

The hard part, though, is having faith when the things you hoped for aren't turning out the way you wanted.

:D

The picture above ill because faith is the evidence of things not seen. When we look up into the sky, we are not actually looking at the sun, but the tremendous light produced by it. Even so, faith is the substance of things hoped for, and the evidence of things not seen

So, what'll it be? For me, I want to have faith even when God seems boring, even when the things I hoped for aren't coming out the way I want them to. I will have faith that He is going to make something great out of my situation. I will have faith that He is doing something. By faith, I will allow God to use me, even when the use doesn't seem like a big deal. I want to live out my faith so that it is evident to those around me.

The Fifth Day of Christmas: The Snowstorm (prt. 2)

So, yesterday we started on the snowstorm. We talked about God as our refuge in the storm of a trial or emotional distress. But today, I have a different application.

A snowstorm isn't new; it's happened before, right? Just like a trial or emotional tragedy! It's happened before to someone else; maybe the same person who is going through the trial has been there before.

My point is, we have a Book full of true stories of real people who have gone through the same kinda stuff we go through. Okay, so maybe the culture was different, but didn't God know that when He wrote His sufficient Word? The stories in the Bible are entirely applicable to our lives.

1 Corinthians 10:11
Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.

1 Corinthians 10:13
There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that you are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.

Another circumstance that requires action is when we have gone through the storm already. We are to recognize God's hand in the past storms, and praise Him and thank Him for it.

Psalm 105:5
Remember his marvelous works that he hath done; His wonders, and the judgments of his mouth;

*Psalms are full of passages like these. Look some up for yourself!

_________________________________________________________________________________

Now, for another metaphor. A snowstorm is storm of snow. So you know how complex one snowflake is??? and they are all different!

Yes, we are like snowflakes. Unique and beautiful, in figure and soul, we display the Creator's handiwork.

Psalm 139:14
I will praise thee: for I am fearfully and wonderfully make: marvelous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.

We are unique. God did not create us all the same; if He had, this earth would be filled will robots! No, He made us each individually. He has an individual plan for each of us. I know I need to learn this, but this is why we can't compare ourselves to others. As I write this post, I think that point is clicking in my brain.

Did you know that God's snow is so beautiful and complex, but man-made snow is just plain blob-like? Take a look!

In the same way, when we try to create the plans for our life, it won't come out pretty. But when we let God take control and do it, our lives will be beautiful.

So, remember this Christmas season, as you may be going through the storm, that we have examples of people who have gone through it. (Don't forget your parents and godly counselors!) And remember the times that God carried you through in the past. You are unique; God has a unique plan for you; don't attempt to build your life. Instead, hand it over to Him!

It's not the end; it's only the beginning of something more beautiful.

The Third Day of Christmas: The Candle

*sniff* mmmmm... smells good! Have you ever had a really great candle that just smelled lovely? Or maybe a Scentsy flavor that just, well, pleased your nose? Well, as I learned today in church, we can be a sweet-smelling savour to our Lord.

Ephesians 5:1-2 says, "Be ye therefore followers of God as dear children; And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling savour." So, from verse 1, we understand that we are to follow God as His dear children. And then, in verse 2, we are told to walk in love, as Christ did, and this includes offering ourselves as a sacrifice to God as Christ did. And when we do that, our sacrifice produces a sweet-smelling savour.

There are plenty of verses that speak of our sacrificing of ourselves, and also the sacrifice of praise. Romans 12:1 says, "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service." We are to present ourselves a sacrifice unto God, holy and acceptably. In the Old Testament, Israelites had to go to the temple to have the priests sacrifice for them. I don't think that God was looking for the lamb's death, although it was a symbol of Christ. I do think that God was looking for the sacrifice of obedience. But just think... God has made us priests, in that we can sacrifice our lives for our Lord!

Another sacrifice is the sacrifice of praise. Really, the sacrifice of our lives is a sacrifice of praise, and it produces that sweet-smelling savour, as a candle. Hebrews 13:15-16 says, "By whom therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name. But to do good and to communicate forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased." Our praise is a sweet-smelling savour to God. There is so much more in these verses, why don't you read them over again?

We should attribute to God the glory that is due to Him. A great example of this is in the Model {Lord's} Prayer. At the end of His prayer, Jesus says, "For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory for ever." Another example of praise and giving glory to God I Psalm 29. Take the time to read it now! God is the One who lights us as candles!

A candle not only smells good, but it also produces light! Matt. 5:14-16 says, "Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works. and glorify your Father which is in heaven." Well, there's a handful {or much more!} of meaning in these verses! We are candles to the world, set on a candlestick for everyone to see. When they do see us, and our good works {the fruit that we talked about yesterday}, they will glorify God! Weren't we just talking about that?!?

Well, alot was packed into this little post! But I pray that it spoke to your heart. We are to be a living sacrifice to God, praise and glorify Him, and be radiant about it!

The Second Day of Christmas: The Christmas Tree {prt. 2}

So, yesterday I posted about how a Christmas tree represents the body of Christ, and I also mentioned the consequences of not bearing fruit, or being an empty branch. {Hosea 10:1; John 15:2} As we are branches of Christ {John 15:5}, we can represent Him by bearing fruit. But there's alot more to it than that.

Bearing fruit requires some prerequisites: we must be filled with the Holy Spirit and abide in Christ. Galatians 5:21 says, "But the fruit of the Spirit..." (we will come back to this verse) It is the Spirit that fills us that allows us to bear fruit, or else we are empty, as Israel was in Hosea 10. Also, we must abide in Christ. John 15:4 says, "Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; mo more can ye, except ye abide in me." We cannot do anything without Christ, but Philippians 4:13 says, "I can do all things through Christ which strenghtheneth me." That includes bearing fruit!

What fruit does a branch filled with the Spirit and abiding in Christ bear? Well, Galatians 5:21-22 says, "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance; against such there is no law." The fruit we bear is a major part of this study, for it helps us examine ourselves to see what we really are bearing. Galatians 5:19-20 says, "Now the the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God." Maybe you are not a murderer; maybe you have not committed adultery; maybe you have. But you've probably stirred up strife, or had bitterness in your heart. Things like this do not give us rewards in eternity, and they are the fruits of the flesh... rotten and slimy and definitely not beautiful! What is beautiful is the fruit of the Spirit! Let us desire to bear such fruit, and let our hearts, those ornaments on the Christmas tree, be radiant in Christ!

A branch that produces good fruit must be purged. We have talked about the Spirit and Son, but here's the part where the Father comes in. John 15:1 says, "I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman." The Father is the One who purges the fruitful branches. John 15:2-3 says, "Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it , that it may bring forth more fruit. Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you." We are purged through God's Word, the Bible. The Bible is like a cleanser, to get all the yucky stuff out and the good stuff in!

There is even more action to be taken! A few verses after teaching on bearing fruit, Christ discusses love. Verses 9-10 tell us to continue in Christ's love. Wow! what a challenge! He also says in verse 11, "These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full." Then He again commands us to love one another. He really makes His point in this chapter, and I do not have the time to discuss all of it, so please read it through, letting it sink in. :-)

So remind yourself to be radiant every time you see those beautiful ornaments hanging on your Christmas tree, and remember the little simile mentioned in prt. 1. Your heart is the ornament hanging on the branch, which represents you as a branch of Christ.

Help Me Be Unshaken

I pray that this poem would encourage you!

Help me be Unshaken
by Ana, 15, Kiefer, Oklahoma

One, two, three, four.
There I still lie on the floor, 
bruised and shaken from blow after blow.
I will soon hear the rejoicing of foes.
 
How long, O Lord, will this last?
Things keep coming back from my past.
How long must I wrestle with my thoughts? 
There's sorrow in my heart from battles I've fought. 

How long will my enemy triumph over me?
Answer, Lord, help my eyes to see,
Give them light, when it gets tough,
for I trust in Your unfailing love.

My heart rejoices in Your salvation,
You, The Almighty God of creation.
You are so good to me, still,
I want to always do Your will.

Help me to be blameless,
and do what is righteous,
To speak the truth from my heart,
and not to let lies start.

Help me, to my neighbor, do no wrong, 
and cast no insults at anyone.
Help me to keep promises even if its hard, 
and honor those who fear the Lord.

I will not stop until I go Home, 
but until then, I can't do this alone. 
So five, six, I'm up again. 
with your help, i will be unshaken.

A Prayer about bubblegum

Lord, thank you for giving me friends and people in my life. You know, sometimes I'm not the nicest to them; forgive me of that. Help me to think wwjd.

Sometimes I get discouraged because others don't treat me the way I'd like to be treated... I'm sure You know what that feels like! In these times, I feel as if I am a piece of bubblegum that someone is chewing up and spitting out. It seems as though they chew me all up, and stick me underneath some obscure bench, forgetting about me. And then I don't know what to do. I guess I can feed the flies.

Feeding the flies, at least I'm doing something. At least I'm serving my purpose right where I am put, huh? But, seriously, at least I'm not choking the birds like some pieces of gum.

Anyways, it's kinda hard to forgive that person that probably had good intentions, but left me under this bench to rot. Help me forgive them, even when they're not sorry. I know You know how to do this, 'cuz You did! On the cross, You forgave those people who were literally spitting on You! Ya, You know more than anybody what being hurt is. Hurt isn't even the word for what You went through!

So, Lord, help me forgive them. It's what You would do. And help me serve my purpose even when people shove me under the bench. 'Cuz even then, I can focus on the positive~ feeding the flies, not choking the birds. :)

Thanks! Thy will be done.

<3 In Jesus' precious name,
Amen!

The Path under my Feet (prt. 2)

The path under my feet... In the last post we talked about How God guides us moment by moment, and we must trust Him because He knows the way.

Well, God showed me another thruth about where I am right now. Ecclesiastes 3:1~

To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven.

So, God doesn't make mistakes with plopping us right where we are.We can be assured of this; for me, it's quite comforting :)

But that's not all! Ecclesiastes 3:11~

He hath made every thing beautiful in his time: also he hath set the world in their heart, so that no man can find out the work that God maketh from beginning to the end.

(Emphasis mine)

When my Pastor pointed this out this afternoon, I certainly felt the piercing of the double-edged Sword of the Lord. I have been going through some things that just don't seem right, but it is all in God's plan of molding and making me. It is an amazing experience when the Creator the universe ~not to mention, yourself~ is shaping your soul to prepare for the future of your life on earth, and, ultimately, eternity. And it is even more amazing when you realize that the Potter knows exactly what your future as a vessel holds, and knows that the stage you are in now is the stage that He meant for you. And you make not think that the fiery testing you are going through now is very pretty, but God says it's beautiful. And, being the Creator of beauty, HE knows!

Remember that God's timing is perfect, and that it is beautiful. And remember that the path under your feet is the spot that God has plopped you on :)

The path under my feet

I believe that God wants me to share this with you. Many resources have fallen into my lap in the last 24 hours, I don't think I can resist writing this lesson here. :)

First off, I'd like to share the first item I read on this topic: Psalm 119:105.

Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.

I know that it's a commonly said verse, but read it again and really think about it.

Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.

So, what is the point I am trying to get across? Well, as odd as it may be, imagine driving through some really thick fog. All you can capture with your eye is the road a few feet in front of you and under you.

In both of the pictures above, you can't really see far ahead of you, but you can see what you are standing on. This is what the Bible means in Psalm 119:105. In those times, a "light" didn't mean a flourescent light bulb. No, it meant a lamp such as the lamp pictured above. God's Word, while It does prophesy, doesn't exactly say, "Cosette, you will take Physics and Geometry in eleventh grade, and by then you will have met so and so, who you will develop a friendship with and court when you turn 20, and then you will go to ______ College together, and have eight kids...." Have you read that in there? (If so, let me know... jk ;) See, God usually doesn't reveal to us twenty years in the future, and He sometimes He doesn't tell us how He will take us through till tomorrow! But He does guide us moment by moment, and, when we follow His guidance, WOW! The results are amazing!

About following guidance... Is it that surprising that the results of following God's leading are incredible? 

Picture this: you are driving through this thick fog; you can't see anything but what is in front of you: a car that has a GPS. This car knows where he's going;  he knows what twists and turns are coming up on the road. God is that car. He knows what lies ahead, even when you can't see five feet in front of you. And that's what's important. That you follow God and the guidance He gives you through His Word.

This post was inspired by Abigail Rogers' post on "a girl with wings." Read it here.

Again, this video spoke to my heart and it applies to this post...

Four things

       Well, homeschooling has started! The changes have been an adventure! For those who don't know the entire scenario, I have been attending a Christian school (Open Door Christian Academy) since first grade. It's a great school and a great education. God led my parents to homeschool me this year. Now, It was heart-breaking to me that I would not be going back to the school. I knew I would miss my teachers, friends, principal, and pastor. To be honest, I was angry at my parents for thinking God's will could possibly include homeschooling. After all, God's will is supposed to be what's best for us, right? So, I was mad at my parents and starting to have a pity party for myself. I was being attacked by Satan and I knew it. But I kept going, thinking that somehow, if I complained enough or cried enough, I might prove to my parents that they were wrong.
        Then I realized how ridiculous I had been, how many things I was way wrong about.

1. I limited God's will.
2. I thought that "the best" would mean the fulfillment of my selfish desires.
3. I assumed that my parents weren't really listening to God's direction.
4. I felt bad for myself. But do you know what many other people are going through that's way worse?!?

I turned to God, discouraged at myself. And He gave me a big bear hug! [Remember His faithful love in my last post? :) ] He taught me that He gave me the exact parents that He intended for me, and then He taught me how I can love them more by honoring their decisions. He also re-taught me that His will is the best, no matter what I think; His will does not depend on me. Another lesson I had to review is that God's will for my life is better than what I can imagine.

        So here I am, on a homeshooling adventure. Mark, my only sibling, and I are larning about the relationships of life together in Bible class. ["Coincidentally" corresponding to the lessons God just taught me :) ] I am using ABeka curriculum for most other subjects, other than math. So far, our p.e. has been both fun and crazy!
        Whether you are starting another school year or are out of that stage in your life, remember these:

1. God's will is beyond your imagination.
2. God's will is the best, whether it seems like it is now or not.
3. Honor and trust the authority God has out in your life. He gave you those specific people for a reason.
4. "There hath no temptation taken you, but such as common to man; but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able, but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it." ~1 Corinthians 10:13