There are no sad stories
So I was talking with a friend of mine tonight about things that happen in life that make us sad. Things like rejection, heartbreak, etc. Being honest, I’ve had to accept some rejection in my life that I’m not used to a few months ago and it was really hard for me. I applied to a few fellowships for graduate school and got the infamous “We regret to inform you that…” letters from both. I’m not trying to sound like an arrogant jerk or anything, but I’ve lived a pretty blessed life and if I work hard for something I usually get it. That being said, this was tough for me. I was basically told “Nice try, but you’re just not good enough”. Not good enough. I have an issue with pride (don’t we all to some extent?) and this humbled me. I worked my tail off to be good enough, but it wasn’t enough for them. I was happy with where I was, but being told I wasn’t good enough was hard on me. It, combined with a few other things, really made me sad for a little while. That was one of my more recent “sad stories” (ok I know it’s not that sad, but just go with me) but we all have had things in our lives that make us sad. Some things just upset us for a day, others longer, and others just break us down in a way we’ll never forget. Sometimes you feel like there’s no way to possibly get any lower. But keep your head up, I have some good news.
Ok first of all let’s be honest, if you’re reading this you are on a computer which means you are more fortunate that at least 95% of the world, so take a second to be thankful for all the things you take for granted and then continue reading. Let’s talk about some real sad stories. Two in particular come to mind, but I’ll save the second one for later. The first is about a lady who gives birth to a beautiful baby boy. She is then told to kill her baby. She knew if she kept him alive she would be punished, probably by death.(SPOILER ALERT: this is about Moses, if you hadn’t guessed) How terrible is that? I doubt if any of us have ever had to deal with something like that.
But the title of this post is “There are no sad stories”. I’m not saying that there aren’t things that make us sad, but there are no sad stories. Because stories have an ending. A story isn’t complete without an ending. And you can’t appreciate one part of the story without the other. So in our story about the lady and her baby, she decides that she won’t keep him but she won’t kill him. She puts Moses in a basket and sent him down the Nile river. Long story short- he grows up and becomes of the great religious figures of all time (who doesn’t know Moses?). I would say that the story of Moses wasn’t sad. I would actually say that no stories are sad. That’s a pretty bold claim, but one I’m willing to stand by. Why? The Bible. Here are a few verses, and then I will explain.
“That is what the Scriptures mean when they say, “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him.” – 2 Corinthians 2:9
“For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” – Jeremiah 29:11
“And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.” – Romans 8:28
What I get from these 3 verses is that God has a plan for those who love him and that plan is perfect and holy and bigger than we can ever imagine. So this is why I say that there are no sad stories. God has a plan for each and every one of us, a special plan. He knows every one of our hearts and knows what is best for us. It may not always be exactly what we want or when we want it. It may seem like the worst thing in the world to us, but like the verses above say, God has an awesome plan for us. We can’t even begin to realize the full extent of his plans, and we never will. We’ll never see the end of the story we are writing until we ascend into Heaven to be with Him. And that’s ok. You don’t have to see the positive outcome of a tragic situation to know in your heart that God will use it not only for His glory but for our benefit. Going back to Moses, his mother probably never got over the fact that she gave up her son never to see him again. That’s a heartbreaking thing for a person. And while on this planet she never got to see what the cause of so many of her tears ended up doing for the glory of the Lord and for a countless number of people. She carried that sadness with her to her grave, but it wasn’t a sad story because that was only a small part of it. The rest was pretty freakin awesome.
Before I go any further, let me say this. You may ask me why there is injustice in the world. Why do thousands of girls get sold into sex slavery? Why do the ones we love most get cancer and suffer for months or years before succumbing to a miserable death. Why do over 50% of marriages fail leaving countless children left in the wake of that disaster? Why do millions of people die each year from diseases that we have cures for? Or starvation? Why are young girls driven to eating disorders to try to fill an image portrayed by the media? And why are guys not man enough to tell a girl she’s beautiful no matter what? Why do some guys use those girls and then break their hearts? Let me be very clear: I do not know. Anyone that tells you they know the answers to all of those questions is either lying or God. Probably the first one. I ask these questions myself. I question God’s plan and sometimes wonder how there can be any good that comes out of it? The only thing I can do to keep me from going crazy is just be peaceful in the fact that God knows what He’s doing. His plans and his vision is not confined by our lifetimes and our world. I’ll never be able to see what he has in store until I ask him personally in Heaven. But that doesn’t mean His name won’t be glorified through it. I guarantee you it will.
The other story that comes to mind when I think of a really sad story is that of Jesus Christ. He was a man who was sinless, perfect in every way. He was falsely accused of a crime. Beaten within an inch of his life. Spit on. Mocked. Tortured in ways we can’t imagine. Nailed to a cross with spikes driven through his flesh. And left to hang on that cross until he suffocated from not being able to lift himself up to take a breath. The end. Ok just kidding not the end. He rose from the dead after 3 days. In dying and conquering death, he took our sins from us so that we could join our creator in Heaven if we believe in Him. Hey, things didn’t turn out so bad after all right? Yes, it makes me almost sick to my stomach to know what Jesus went through, but the story of Jesus is not a sad story. It is a story of God’s love for us and His plan to give us more than we deserve. God always wants to give us better than we deserve.
If I haven’t convinced you by now that God’s plan is perfect whether we like it or not, I don’t think I’ll be able to. All I can is for you to try something. Look at life through a different lens. Look at the things that happen around you knowing that God is in control of them. Know that God is using everything for His glory and for our good. Don’t make up some scenario that you hope might come out of a bad situation, just be still and know that God has more in store for us then we can imagine. Even in things like my rejection story. I don’t know what good will come out of me getting denied by the fellowship programs, but I don’t need to know. I do trust that it was supposed to happen, and I’m not sad any more. Think about it: God probably laughs at you when you dream about the things you wish you had. God wants to give you more than you dream up in your wildest dreams, but you have to believe in Him for it to happen.
So in summary, God’s plan is perfect. At times it will bring us pain and sadness, but we will never know how God uses things for His glory and our benefit. Yes, bad things happen to good people. Nobody knows why but God. All we need to focus on is that that there are no sad stories. Everything will have a good ending in God’s eyes. We won’t be around to see the endings, but be peaceful knowing that the ending of the stories of life are always perfect. So my challenge to you is that when you’re writing your own life story, don’t dwell on the fact that you may be in the middle of a depressing chapter, but know that God has a perfect ending for everything.
Disclaimer: It’s reallllly late and I have to work in the morning so I’m not going to proofread this before bed. Sorry in advance if I wasn’t coherent. I just went with it.
He won’t let go
First, listen to this song and read the lyrics as it’s playing. My best friend/ex-girlfriend/girlfriends sister (I promise it’s not weird) Molly and I were listening to this song today in the car and I decided to write about it. I’m in a writing mood. Weird. Anyway… listen to the song as if God was singing it to you.
I know we’ve all been in those places where we feel like the world is against us and nothing is going our way. Sometimes we don’t even want to get out of bed in the morning. Sometimes even the smallest things can bring us to tears. Of course, since I am a man I haven’t felt that way but my female friends have told me about it. Whether it be the loss of a loved one, not getting the job you wanted, ending a relationship with someone, not knowing what lies ahead, or even just feeling like you’re not good enough. We feel afraid and don’t know who to talk to or what to do. We all need somebody to lean on and be there for us. Sometimes it can be a best friend or a loved one, but what if they’re not around. I want you to know that God is there for you and He’ll never let go. No matter what is in your past or how you feel about God, he is always waiting for you with open arms. It doesn’t matter how many times you’ve turned your back on him or said, “No thanks, I think I’ll do it myself,” He’ll still be there for you. Through every trial and tribulation. As the song says, “When you’ve done all you can do and you can’t cope” He’ll be there for you. God doesn’t want to see us in pain, what kind of Father wants to see His children cry? He won’t let you fall. He won’t let you collapse if you run to Him. But don’t listen to me, listen to God speaking in the Bible.
“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” – John 16:33
“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. Selah.” – Psalm 46:1-3 (By the way, selah means to be still and listen, but don’t get that tattooed on your wrist because Molly already called dibs on that idea)
“O LORD my God, I called to you for help and you healed me.” – Psalm 30:2
God wants us to know that when it feels like you’re all alone in the world and everything and everybody is against you, He is there. And He is enough. God is enough for all of us if we let Him be. If you lost your home today, would God be enough? If you lost the one person who you love in this world more than anything, would God be enough? If you lost everything you owned, would God be enough? If you’ve never read through the book of Job, I would encourage you to do that. He loses everything he owns and all of his 10 children in a matter of moments, and he praises the Lord. God is enough for those who love Him. Know that. Feel comfort in that.
I’m going to finish with a story that is a favorite of mine. You may have read it, it’s called Footprints in the Sand.
One night I dreamed I was walking along the beach with the Lord. Many scenes from my life flashed across the sky. In each scene I noticed footprints in the sand. Sometimes there were two sets of footprints, other times there was one only. This bothered me because I noticed that during the low periods of my life, when I was suffering from anguish, sorrow or defeat, I could see only one set of footprints. So I said to the Lord,“You promised me Lord, that if I followed you, you would walk with me always. But I have noticed that during the most trying periods of my life there has only been one set of footprints in the sand. Why, when I needed you most, have you not been there for me?” The Lord replied, “The years when you have seen only one set of footprints, my child, is when I carried you.”I think, scratch that- I know God wants us to know that He will carry us through the hardest times in life. He doesn’t shield us from them for reasons we will never understand. All we need to know is that His plan is perfect and whatever happens to us is supposed to happen. No matter how trying it is or how much it kills us inside, God puts things in our lives so that we learn that He is enough and He will be there for us. He won’t let go. Ever.
I’m rusty..
Apologies to all for my rust in writing. I haven’t really written anything in non-scientific form in a while and I just re-read a few of my older posts and realize that this last one isn’t nearly as good as some of the others. Give me a few weeks to shake off the rust, regain my confidence, and start remembering how to insert subtle humor in otherwise serious posts. Love,
Matty-Ice
Repentance
Wow it’s been a long time since I blogged. I’m going to try to start doing it more this summer, but no promises. This post is inspired by something the speaker last night at FCA said. His message wasn’t really about this, but he said something that caught my attention. He said, “repentance means changing the way you think.” I had always thought that repentance was feeling bad or regretful about doing something sinful and asking for forgiveness. Well, it actually does. The dictionary says the word repent means “to feel sorry, self-reproachful, or contrite for past conduct; regret or be conscience-stricken about a past action, attitude, etc.” But let’s take a look at the Bible. That usually helps.
The Bible uses the word repent a lot. Let’s take a look at just a few:
“From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” – Matthew 4:17
“the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.” – Mark 1:15
“but unless you repent you will all likewise perish. ” – Luke 13:3
“Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.” – 2 Corinthians 7:10
“Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” – Acts 2:38
Looks to me like this is a pretty serious issue => Repent or die. Obviously it’s not a physical death, but a spiritual one. So let’s figure out how to repent. Like I said, I think a lot of people think repentance is feeling bad about doing something wrong. A lot of people think repentance involves not doing that past sin again (for example: I cheated once, but I promise I won’t do it again) But I don’t think that’s all God wants for us. A lot people would feel bad about doing something morally wrong like hurting an innocent child or committing adultery. It doesn’t take the Holy Spirit to cause that. But without Jesus, that is worldly sorrow which, as we see in 2 Corinthians above, brings about death. One example of this is when Judas turned Jesus over to the religious leaders.
Matthew 27:3-5 says “When Judas, who had betrayed him, saw that Jesus was condemned, he was seized with remorse and returned the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and the elders. “I have sinned,” he said, “for I have betrayed innocent blood.” “What is that to us?” they replied. “That’s your responsibility.” So Judas threw the money into the temple and left. Then he went away and hanged himself.”
Judas suffered from worldly sorrow about betraying someone who trusted him, but that lead to his death. So what makes Biblical sorrow and repentance different? Biblical sorrow is caused by a change of mind.
The word for repent in the Bible comes from the Greek word Metanoia which literally translates to “changing one’s mind”. Why is Jesus so zealous about getting us to change our minds? I think it’s because of what the change of mind represents. What brings about a change of mind? Something has to happen to make you change your mind. One of those things is a change in beliefs. If you go from living for yourself to believing in Jesus Christ and knowing that He is the son of God and our savior, I’d say that counts. That transformation leads to a change in your mind and your heart. This change in heart involves allowing Jesus to come in and live inside of us. Having Jesus inside of us leads to Godly sorrow. Sorrow shouldn’t be confused with depression or sadness; sorrow is healthy, for sorrow not only makes us appreciate happiness and joy even more but it leads to a change in actions. Godly sorrow is felt in the heart, and as Matthew 12:34 states “For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks.” This Godly sorrow naturally changes the way we act, speak, and live our lives.But don’t be discouraged if you have made that change of mind and still make mistakes and mess up with your actions. In Romans 7:15, John says “I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do.” John repented and he was one of the most Godly men ever to walk the Earth, but he still messed up a lot. Jesus has paid for our sins past, present, and future, and repentance is what He commands for your life.
So, in my opinion, repentance is not an act or a temporary feeling or sadness, but a lifestyle that you choose when you accept Jesus in your life. Repentance is the most important part of a Christian life. Repentance is God’s plan. Once you repent and have a radical change of mind, the rest of your life will never be the same. Your mind and heart are connected in the Bible, so when your mind changes, your heart changes, and your actions change. This is why repentance is so much more than guilt, regret, asking for forgiveness, or saying you won’t do something again. It’s a radical life change. If you haven’t made it yet, I encourage you to think about it. Maybe take that leap of faith. If you have made it, are you living like it? Do your actions reflect a changed mind and a changed heart? I have a lot of work to do myself, but I just wanted to write about what true repentance was in my opinion and how it applies to us in our everyday lives. I learned some stuff while writing this and I hope you did too.
The alarm is going off
Please let me run down a few events that happened this morning to me and quite a few others in the Ridge. I have a point in telling you this, but enjoy the story first.
6:10-ish AM~ Lightning strikes the Ridge
6:13 AM~ I wake up to the loudest fire alarm I’ve ever heard in my life. I try to go back to sleep but quickly realize that my attempts would be futile.
6:15 AM~I get out of bed and check the fire alarms in the apartment, they are working fine and not beeping. My head is ringing at this point.
6:16 AM~ I open my front door with Matt and Earnest behind me, and we find a group of about 15 people wondering the same thing as us: “What the heck is going on?”
6:20 AM~ Elizabeth Wall calls the police, who had no idea what was going on, and they call the fire department, who also had no idea what was going on. Bad sign? Maybe. They’re on their way.
6:22 AM~ Lightning strikes nearby and the thunder was so loud it nearly shook us. Well this is fun.
6:25 AM~ Everyone knows that there is no fire, but we also know that the fire alarm they installed at the Ridge is on steroids. Literally, I thought my ears were going to start bleeding.
6:32 AM~ All 15 of us are still wondering what is going on. I would tell you what everyone said, but I couldn’t hear them myself. Also, no fire truck yet has arrived. I realize that if there really were a fire, we would all be out of luck. Scary? Maybe.
6:35 AM~ The fire truck arrives! They walk around without really doing anything. Thanks..
6:36 AM~ The maintenance guy for the Ridge walks out of an electrical closet and says to us, “It is not working. I don’t know what to do. I called them and they’re coming. I don’t know what time. Sorry”
6:37 AM~ I decide to try to battle the piercing alarm and go back to sleep since there is nothing else I can do. I grab my noise-canceling headphones and my iPod. Hopeless? Maybe.
6:38 AM~ I realize that there are some sounds even the best headphones can’t block out.
6:39 AM~ God’s hand reaches out to the Ridge and turns off the alarm.
6:40 AM~ I lay down to go to back to sleep and experience the best silence of my life.
6:50 AM~ I realize that I am no longer tired. Apparently the throbbing in my head woke me up. I also realize something else that I will explain in a little bit.
7:00 AM~ I grab a cup of water and sit down to write this blog. Too early? Maybe.
So why did I write all that? Why did I attempt to explain a sound that can not be captured in words? Why in the world am I up at 7:30 writing? One reason: Silence is beautiful.
For a lot of us, my alarm story is our everyday lives. We have things going on around us all the time- people, TV, movies, music, texting, sports, class, phone calls, homework, . We never get a break from all of it. It’s a constant go-go-go mentality and we hardly get a chance to exhale, a chance to relax. Going crazy? Maybe. We never get a chance to hear the most beautiful sound of them all– silence.
The thing I realized in my bed was silence is necessary. I’m not talking just about not having any noise around you, I’m talking about pure silence- no distractions, no thoughts, no worries, no nothing. Why do we need this? Because Jesus did. Mark 1:35 says “Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.” Key word? Solitary. Solitary means alone. Solitary means remote from civilization. Solitary means he can actually hear himself think and have a conversation with God. Solitary means silent.
Jesus did not have one of the disciples texting him to see what he’s doing at night. Jesus was not playing video games. Jesus was not studying for his next big test worth 35% of his final grade. (Side note: I have a final exam today. Pray for me. I’m writing instead of studying. Sorry Mom.) Jesus was alone, he was silent. What was he doing? Praying, talking with God. What are we all doing when we have silence? For probably 90% of us it’s sleeping- I am included in that group. But Jesus got up early in the morning even before the birds started chirping. Maybe we should try that. Maybe we should sacrifice our time for God. Maybe we forget what he sacrificed for us. Too harsh? Maybe
All I’m saying is that a lot of times we can’t even hear from God because the alarms in our lives are going off. Our heads are filled with noise and clutter that we can’t seem to shake. I’m not saying it’s your fault, but we can work on trying to fix it. How? Well how about we follow the example of Jesus. Get up early, go to a silent place, and pray. Speak with God. I promise you it will be good for your soul. It’s not going to be easy. But just try it, see how it feels to really be in silence because silence is beautiful. Challenge? Yes. Worth it? Yes.
Who are we serving?
First of all I’d like to apologize for not writing much this summer. I was really slack and just didn’t feel motivated so I’m sorry.
Anyways, I learned a lot this summer. For those of you who don’t know, I stayed in Clemson almost all summer and did research because I got a grant from NASA that paid me to do so. It paid well, the hours were very flexible, and the work was pretty easy so it was an awesome deal. But let me tell you why I originally applied for this grant. My research adviser told me to. For the past year or two, I’ve had people telling me what to do. What to apply for, what to be involved in, how to strengthen my résumé, etc. My advisers and professors know that I have potential, and they want me to advance my career and eventually my salary by spending my time doing things that “look good” to employers or grad schools. I hadn’t thought much about it before this sumer, but I was doing everything I was doing for the wrong reasons.
I know a lot of my friends worked or volunteered at camps this summer serving God, and I personally would like to thank you for doing that. I know that my thanks isn’t what you did it for, but you really are servants and what you did was seen and will be rewarded. You saw an opportunity to serve our Creator, and you took it. I, on the other hand, saw an opportunity to serve myself and my future and took it. You expanded the Kingdom of Heaven, I tried to expand my wallet. I realized that this summer I did not serve God in the way I could have. And also (ok this may sound greedy but I promise it’s not), I know that God will provide for me financially whether I build my résumé or not. If you put your faith in God and serve him, he will bless you beyond all your imagination.
So what am I saying? We should never do anything other than volunteer and we should all go into ministry? False. Each and every one of us can serve every single day nomatter where we are or what we’re doing. I just didn’t take the opportunities in my work this summer I had to serve. I was more worried about doing work that maybe reaching people in my own lab or my own building that need Jesus. There is no picture of what serving God looks like- it changes from person to person. We are called to use the gifts that God has given us to reach people for Him. Just remember that everything we do should glofiry the Lord. It doesn’t matter if we’re at a Young Life camp or at home working as a waiter at a restaurant, we can glorify God in everything we do.
But wait! There’s a flip-side to my situation. For everyone that volunteers or gives time to serve God, I want to ask you a quick question? Why are you doing it? Serving our Lord should be about giving ourselves to Him completely and unconditionally. I think a lot of people get this one wrong, including myself. I know people that love to tell how much they serve God on a daily basis. I’m sorry, but do you really need to tell people you are serving? If you do something to glorify God, he knows about it and thanks you. I don’t need to thank or praise you. Trust me, I have no say on who gets into heaven or not. You may want to take that one up with Him. If you go out of your way to tell someone how awesome you are for serving the Lord, you probably aren’t serving the Lord. You are serving yourself. Nice try, but you should know that trying and good deeds and earthly thanks don’t get you into heaven. The appearance of serving gets you nowhere, even if you’re on stage in front of hundreds of people. Lastly, I would encourage you to talk with God about serving, because you need to know you are doing it for the right reasons. I know I get pushed a lot of times by peer pressure to volunteer here or help out there. We should not serve just to make our friends happy or because it is the cool thing to do. Again, we are serving ourselves and our friends before serving our Lord.
“Be careful not to do your ‘acts of righteousness’ before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 3But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.” -Matthew 6:1-4
I want to end with a little summary. We can all serve each and every day no matter where we are or what we are doing. But, just because we look like we are serving, we may not be. If you serve to be recognized or to get a “Thanks!” you need to re-examine your reasons for serving. God doesn’t care what our situations are, we are called to serve. Period. He will bless us beyond all of our wildest dreams if we please Him. We don’t need to worry about pleasing anybody but our Creator and King. I encourage all of you to serve, but make sure you know why you are serving and who you are serving. Are you serving God, yourself, society, or something else?
God Bless,
Matt
(I know some people will notice that I am writing this when I should be at FCA. I decided not to go because I didn’t want to take the seat of someone who may need to hear the message, and also I didn’t feel led to go. I felt led to write this. For those of you in FCA or another similar group, why do you go to your meetings every week or serve within the group? Do you serve and glorify God or do you do it just because everyone else does and there is pressure to? Think about it.)
Should we be afraid of God?
All throughout the Bible, it is said that we are to fear the Lord. I want to give a few examples, but there are plenty more that I do not mention. Here goes:
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction. -Proverbs 1:7
All who fear the Lord will hate evil. -Proverbs 8:13a
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. -Proverbs 9:10
The fear of the LORD is the instruction of wisdom, and before honor is humility. -Proverbs 15:33
The fear of the LORD leads to life, and he who has it will abide in satisfaction; he will not be visited with evil. -Proverbs 19:23
Praise the LORD! Blessed is the man who fears the LORD, Who delights greatly in His commandments. -Psalm 112:1
The LORD is close to all who call on him, yes, to all who call on him in truth. He grants the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cries for help and rescues them. -Psalm 145:18-19
The LORD takes pleasure in those who fear Him, In those who hope in His mercy. -Psalm 147:11
Serve only the LORD your God and fear Him alone. Obey his commands, listen to his voice, and cling to him. -Deuteronomy 13:4
Like I said, there are tons more times when the Bible mentions fearing God, but those are just some of the ones I wanted to throw out. So I never really grasped what that meant or why we are supposed to fear the Lord. I have always heard “fear the Lord” but I have also always heard “God loves you, he wants to be your friend, and he wants the best for you.” That doesn’t really sound like the kind of person I should fear, does it? So I started thinking about fear and reading more into fearing the Lord. Here’s what I came up with:
Most people talk about fears as being afraid of something. For instance, I know people that are afraid of snakes, and they will run away from a snake when they see one. Some people are afraid of heights. Some people are afraid of rejection. The list can go on and on. Some of these fears can be healthy, but some are irrational. But I really don’t think fear of the Lord is like any other fear. Fear of the Lord should not be the kind of fear where you are truly afraid of Him. God does not want us to run from him in fear like we would a snake or spider or whatever else. It is not that type of fear. It is a similar fear to the kind of “fear” we have of our parents when we are young. We know that they made us, they are in control of us, they are bigger than us, and they want us to the obey them for our own good. Now, God will never make mistakes like our parents so often do, and we will never grow up enough to start to know what’s best for ourselves more than He does, but I think a healthy fear of our parents is the closest thing to fearing the Lord. So, I’ve kind of focused in on three main things that I consider parts of fearing the Lord. Humility, awe, and obedience.
To truly obtain life, wisdom, knowledge, satisfaction and everything else that the Lord has promised us if we fear him, we need to be humble. We need to acknowledge and God made everything, owns everything, and governs everything. He alone is worthy of all worship and praise. Anything good we do in life is only because He has given us the strength to do so. We do not deserve any adoration or praise. We are so much smaller than we could ever imagine. We need to understand that God alone has permission to judge us, and he loves us so much that he chose to send his Son to wipe our sins away. None of us could ever be humble enough (those of you who know me know I am very guilty of this), but we need to understand how HUGE God is and how small we are to have a healthy fear of him.
Also, we have to have complete reverence for God and be in awe of Him. We need to be in awe of His creation, power, glory, mercy, grace, love, greatness, and the list could go on forever. I, personally, am completely blown away by how God has blessed me in life, and I am in awe of his blessings on me. We should all be in awe of how he loves us and blesses us each and every single day. He is our creator! We should be in awe that he brought every one of us into this world for a purpose, and he knows each one of us better than we know ourselves. We should be in awe of every single aspect of God. If you find something that God ever did that was just OK, please let me know.
Lastly, to have a healthy fear of God we need to be obedient to him. This obedience comes from not only hearing him, but doing what he commands. As I showed above, all those who fear the Lord hate evil. If we are in fear of the Lord, we will hate evil things, and live a more holy life. This obedience stems from the humility and awe because we should absolutely love to get to serve the creator of the universe. We should want to be obedient to Him because of his awesomeness and righteousness. Also, we should be obedient to our heavenly Father because he wants the best for us, and he will reward us for our obedience. He loves us more than we could ever imagine.
So that’s basically what I got from thinking and praying about it. We shouldn’t be afraid of God and run from him. We should be aware of his power and be aware of how awesome He is and be obedient to that. So think about it tonight. Do you really fear the Lord? Am I afraid of Him or am I in awe of Him?
Beloved
Ok so lately I’ve been listening to the band Tenth Avenue North like it’s my job. I really love all of their songs, but one has been on my mind more than the others lately. It’s called “Beloved” and it was written from Jesus’ point of view as a wedding vow. This is a love song from God. The vow is to us, showing us how much he loves us and that divorce is not an option in this marriage. So, take a listen and see what Christ’s vows would sound like to you or me. I think it’s pretty awesome to know how much he loves us and wants to be with us. I’m going to post the video andthe lyrics are shown on the video since there is not an actual music video for the song. Enjoy!
God is ALWAYS in control
My mom sent me this story and I wanted to share it with yall. It moved me and I hope it moves you as well.
A man from Norfolk, VA called a local radio station to share this on September 11, 2003 – two years after the attacks on the World Trade Centers. His name was Robert Matthews. These are his words:
A few weeks before Sept. 11th, my wife and I found out we were going to have our first child. She planned a trip out toCalifornia to visit her sister. On our way to the airport, we prayed that God would grant my wife a safe trip and be with her. Shortly after I said ‘amen,’ we both
Heard a loud pop and the car shook violently. We had blown out a tire. I replaced the tire as quickly as I could, but we still missed her flight. Both very upset, we drove home.
I received a call from my father who was retired NYFD. He asked what my wife’s flight number was, but I explained that we missed the flight.
My father informed me that her flight was the one that crashed into the southern tower. I was too shocked to speak. My father also had more news for me; he was going to help. ‘This is not something I can’t just sit by for; I have to do something.’
I was concerned for his safety, of course, but more because he had never given his life to Christ. After a brief debate, I knew his mind was made up.. Before he got off of the phone, he said, ‘take good care of my grandchild. Those were the last words I ever heard my father say; he died while helping in the rescue effort.
My joy that my prayer of safety for my wife had been answered quickly became anger. I was angry at God, at my father, and at myself. I had gone for nearly two years blaming God for taking my father away. My son would never know his grandfather, my father had never accepted Christ, and I never got to say good-bye.
Then something happened. About two months ago, I was sitting at home with my wife and my son, when there was a knock on the door. I looked at my wife, but I could tell she wasn’t expecting anyone. I opened the door to a couple with a small child.
The man looked at me and asked if my father’s name was Jake Matthews. I told him it was. He quickly grabbed my hand and said, ‘I never got the chance to meet your father, but it is an honor to meet his son.’
He explained to me that his wife had worked in the WorldTrade Center and had been caught inside after the attack. She was pregnant and had been caught under debris. He then explained that my father had been the one to find his wife and free her. My eyes welled up with tears as I thought of my father giving his life for people like this. He then said, ‘there is something else you need to know..’
His wife then told me that as my father worked to free her, she talked to him and led him to Christ. I began sobbing at the news..
Now I know that when I get to Heaven, my father will be standing beside Jesus to welcome me, and that this family would be able to thank him themselves ..
When their baby boy was born, they named him Jacob Matthew, in honor of the man who gave his life so that a mother and baby could live.
This story should help us to realize this: God is always in control.
We may not see the reason behind things, and we may never know this side of heaven, but God is ALWAYS in control.
“Give thanks to the Lord for He is good. His love endures Forever.” Psalm 136:1
What if…
I know we all say it a lot. What if this happens? What if that goes wrong? What if I don’t know what to do? We are all afraid of “What ifs”. Here’s another one. What if we didn’t get caught up in the possibility of something going wrong and just lived our lives? We always get caught up in what might happen next. What if I don’t get accepted? What if I’m not good enough? We always worry about the bad that could happen. What if I get my heart broken? What if I get hurt? We let these worries take control of our lives and affect the things that we do. What if i fail? I’m here to tell you not to worry about the “What ifs” in life and know that whatever happens will be God’s will, and it will be for the best.
To show this, I’m going to use an something I read in Wild at Heart. It says that “The ultimate risk anyone ever takes is to love.” I would agree with that. Putting your heart on the line, not knowing what might happen. Personally, I am not afraid of death, but I am afraid of losing loved ones. So I would agree that loving someone is a huge risk. Some of us are afraid to take that risk on some people. Not so much always our families, but other around us. I know of some people that are afraid of getting involved in serious dating relationships because they are afraid of the “What if”. What if we break up? What if he/she breaks my heart? What if I’ll never be the same? Do you really think you’re supposed to be the same the rest of your life? One thing I know is that we are supposed to learn from our experiences and mistakes. Being heartbroken is definitely an experience we all can grow from. Being rejected- same story; we can learn and grown from that.
Ok, so it sounds easy to say not to let “What ifs” control your decisions, but are we called to do that? Well, we are all called to live Godly lives, so let’s see what God does in a situaion like this. Let’s take the biggest risk of all- giving free will to mankind. Think about the whole thing. God had the choice to force Adam and Eve to love Him and obey Him. The other option? Let them decide for themselves. Think about what comes along with that for God- rejection, heartache, devastation, etc. Most of us try to avoid those things at all costs. God’s question was “What if I let them go, and they never come back? What if I allow them to choose, and they don’t choose me?” But oh wait! God is all knowing, and this includes past, present, and future. So, God KNEW that some of us would reject Him. God KNEW that He would pour out oceans of love only to get them thrown back into His face. God KNEW that His heart would constantly be bleeding for mankind. So God continually takes the biggest risk of all, knowing the doomed outcome for some, and He continues to let us have free will. So then, why are we afriad of the possibility of a bad outcome? Why should we let that affect the choices we make? So what if something bad happens? It is in God’s will for it to happen. God knew what was going to happen when He let us fly freely, and now His heart shatters every second of every day as billions reject Him. So don’t worry about what might happen. Trust in knowing that God’s will is perfect, and He will always help you through it.
“No test or temptation that comes your way is beyond the course of what others have had to face. All you need to remember is that God will never let you down; he’ll never let you be pushed past your limit; he’ll always be there to help you come through it.” -1 Corinthians 10:13
