Sunday, December 14, 2014

Head in the Clouds


I know a lot of people won’t admit it, and I honestly don’t want to either, but there is a voice in my head that I constantly try to push back. I ignore it and order it to flee, however when the sun says its goodbyes for the day and my head reunites with the pillow after a long day of school, my mind runs away before I can catch it and cage it again.

No, I am not talking about dreams, this is something more harmful than that. I am talking about a weapon God gave me to wield for His kingdom, but instead I have handed it over the enemy to use against me however he pleases. This weapon I am talking about is my imagination.

I believe that a lot of people secretly hope to have an adventure and I’ll be first to admit that. We look at exciting television shows or read thrilling novels where the main character who had a previous dull life is spirited away into a world of adventure where they embark on an epic journey.

Even if we don’t admit it, we hope that one day we ourselves will also be spirited away from our mediocre lives. We want to be thrown into a story, an adventure where we are that one girl or boy who’s not the brightest, or the prettiest, or the bravest but will board an expedition all our own. We, however, don’t see that day coming soon so in the meantime we keep our heads in the clouds.


We squander all the precious time God blessed us with and run fantasies of that life through our minds. This is dangerous and it is a trap I have been tangled in many times.

Instead of focusing on where God has me now, I look to the future when I will be older, wiser, in college, and well on my way to vocational ministry. That however is a terrible place to live for so many reasons:

1.       Tomorrow isn’t promised to me

a.       I could die before I even finish writing this post and all my hope would have been in the future me, not the me God has right now.

2.       I look at that future and forget the fact that that future will take time

a.       A godly woman doesn’t just rise out of bed one day; she is grown. I long to be wiser but that’s not going to happen automatically, I must go through the growing process like everyone else.

3.       I neglect the now

a.       If my mind is always living in two years from now, I am not focusing on the mission field God has placed me in (my home, school, and church).

4.       It sets me up for disappointment

a.       Isaiah 55:8-9 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord.  For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.

b.      Proverbs 16:9 The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps.

c.       What I dream of is 99% likely not to happen.  That’s a fact I’ve learned the hard way these sixteen years on the earth. To borrow the proverbial term, my life never goes according to plan. (I have found that that is always best.) When I live in a fantasy world, I am always expecting something to happen (like I have the best first day of school) and when it doesn’t I am left in tears.

The last reason I feel is the most important:

5.       These fantasies, even if they’re good things, always focus on me. And I am not the star of the Story

a.       In the words of John the Baptist: John 3:30 He must increase, but I must decrease.

In reality, there is a story going on that is more exciting than anything I can make up in my mind or read in a book. It’s His story. The story of Jesus coming down to earth to die for my- our sins. I could live in a fantasy world all day, but would be missing the point of life: Jesus. There is nothing more exciting than living a story where my King is the main character, the hero.

The fact that my head usually lives in the clouds is a good thing. That’s where God wants it. (Colossians 3:2 Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.) He just wants my mind to be on Him because I am His.

Colossians 3:1 If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.

Monday, December 8, 2014

Music Monday: Born Is The King (It's Christmas)

Time for another Christmas Music Monday! Today's song is Born Is The King (It's Christmas) by Hillsong Worship. This newer Christmas song has really simple lyrics because it is a simple message: Our King was born, so rejoice! That is what a lot of Christmas songs are about: rejoicing. People often don't know or remember why they rejoice during Christmas however this song tells us simply: the King was born! Our Savior has come!

Thursday, December 4, 2014

Memory Verse of the Week: Psalm 116:10

Psalm 116:10 (NKJV)
10 I believed, therefore I spoke,
“I am greatly afflicted.”

One of my catch phrases I need to stop saying is "ignore it and it will go away". I try to ignore problems in my life and suppress my feelings so I don't have to deal with them. In this Psalm, the Psalmist was on the verge of death and so he did the only thing he could do: call out to God for help. And God saved him! 
When he was afflicted, he admitted it. I belive this is an important verse to learn because a lot of times Christians will try to pretend like they have no problems because they believe they should be perfect and their lives should be perfect. That is simply not true. It's impossible. The Psalmist  knew he was in trouble, and he shared it with God. This is an example we should follow. 

Monday, December 1, 2014

Music Monday: Ding Dong Merrily on High (The Celebration's Starting)

Thanksgiving is officially over so we can now move to the best time of the year: Christmas! The majority of America looks at Christmas as a time of joy, however a lot of them miss out on why it is so joyful. I don't know why that is because it's literally in the name: CHRISTmas! So for this wonderful month, all of our music Mondays will be featuring Christmas music!

This week's song is Ding Dong Merrily On High (The Celebration's Starting) by Rend Collective. This song is from their new album, Campfire Christmas, and it is my favorite thus far. The beat is just so uplifting and it puts me in the Christmas mood every morning.  I hope it does the same for you as well!

Thursday, November 27, 2014

Happy Thanksgiving!


No matter what your thanksgiving looks like, no matter what food is on the table or who sits around you, there is always a reason to give thanks.
 
Psalm 28:7- The Lord is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts, and I am helped; my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to him. (ESV)
 

Tuesday, September 2, 2014

Memory Verse of the Week: 1 Samuel 16:7

The full context of this verse was when God was telling Samuel that He was going to choose a new king. Some verses I feel can be taken out of context but this one is pretty clear cut:

1 Samuel 16:7 (ESV)
 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.”


This verse has popped up in my life recently so I was very excited when Ally suggested it for this week. There are so many situations when people, especially Christians judge someone based on how they look or their outside persona, but this shouldn't be. I notice that a lot of times "Christians" put on a church act, pretending like they love Jesus and we can look up to each other, thinking, "I wish I was like that" when really we couldn't give a hoot about God.
It is a very sticky line when we judge someone, in a positive or negative way, so something I am going to try to pray for is the will power not to label someone instantly, just by what they are showing the world.




Monday, September 1, 2014

Music Monday: Out of Hiding (Father's Song)

God has been teaching me about His love constantly. He is making me truly understand that He LOVES me. Not just a "I died for the world and you're part of it so you can be saved but I don't really like you that much". No. The Maker of Everything in existence loves me, He delights in me, He loves to see me happy! GOD LOVES ME! There is nothing like the love of God in the world. And not only does He love me, He loves you. At the start of tenth grade, I head someone say this: "God loves you because He loves you, because He loves you, because He loves you, because He loves you..." and it just went on and on.
I feel as if this song just explains God's love as good as we can explain it on Earth. It describes how God feels about us. My prayer for this week is that you will truly believe that God loves you.
The rest of Steffany Gretzinger's new album, The Undoing, is equally as wonderful as this song so I will probably do more music Mondays of those or you can check them out yourself: The Undoing Playlist.