Does life suck?

The older we get the more life can suck. The older we get we're dealing with stress, financial woes, marriage troubles, fertility issues, family problems, health scares and the list goes on. All of these things can do a number on our joy, peace and outlook on life.

What to do? Give up? Stop caring? Live like this life is the only one and just do what makes us feel good, no matter the consequences? I mean look at all these troubles I have to deal with, why can't I just say forget everyone and be selfish? Or why not indulge in what I enjoy to block out the pain?
If someone did something against me why I can't I hold grudges and forget people and just do what I need to do? Why can't I just block out the world and spend my days out of a big jar of nutella?

Because in trying to hurt others the only one that ends up truly hurt is ourselves. We waste our mental energy on negative thoughts that wear us down. We think we're hurting the other party but they've moved on and we're stuck on a treadmill of hatred, disappointments and grudges. Let go and Let God!

I first heard that saying when I was having relationship troubles with my boyfriend (now husband). We tried to put God on the back burner to justify what we were doing. No way, that was not going to fly with God and we could not have our cake and eat it too. I saw that when I let go and let God, that's when I was actually getting results I wanted in the first place.

Jesus said in Matthew 11:30 "For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." Why is Jesus' yoke so easy and light, well Jesus forgave everyone on the cross. He said father forgive them for they know not what they're doing. Of all people in the entire history of humanity, Jesus was the most justified to hold grudges and keep hatred in. But no! That's not God's way, forgiveness is God's way because that's how we'll truly be able to move on.

You won't be able to do it alone, otherwise we wouldn't need to take on Jesus' yoke. Take on his yoke, your shoulders will thank you for the ease. Tell Jesus of those life's stresses and problems and let him cleanse them away. His burden is indeed light because his burden is one of love. The best thing about love is that it's endless and is something you get more of as you're giving it away.

We will get hurt, we will be disappointed, we will even be depressed at times as to how our lives are going. Take the yoke of Jesus, tell him what's up and watch the burdens lighten. He can carry it all for you by helping you free yourself of all of them. Turn to Jesus, pray and let him know of every single thing you need from him and then take on what he says. His words are there for your benefit, don't carry your load alone anymore. Pray, read his word and trust in Jesus.

The Father pitieth

Psalm 103:13 talks about God pitying us the way a father pities their child. I really thought about this verse the other day when I was looking at my daughter on the couch and just how small and precious she is. A parent can't help but pity their children. When we look at them we feel compassion and almost a kind of sorrow because we know how hard life can get sometimes. We look at our children wanting the best for them, hoping they'd never cry, hurt themselves or be disappointed.

I want my daughter to realize all her potential, I want her to be happy and well at all times. I want my children to serve God with their whole hearts. I don't want the world to get to them as I've seen so many great parents lose their children to the world. I feel pity when I see her struggle to sit up, knowing she wants to so badly but is unable to do so right now. I look at her little hands and pity how they are unable to go exactly where she wants them to right now, or how she cannot communicate her needs as yet. And the reasons for pity goes on.

Now can we imagine what God thinks when he's looking at us? How great are his wishes and desires for our lives? That's easy to know because he says it so many times in his word.
God wants us to have:
Peace (Jeremiah 29:11)
All our needs met (Philippians 4:19)
Happiness (Psalm 144:15)
Good marriage (proverbs 18:22)
Eternal life (Titus 1:2)
Comfort (John 14:18)
And many, many more that are found throughout his word.

Now, Psalm 103:13 says this feeling of pity comes from the father for their child. It's a connection that not everyone can understand or will feel towards a child. If you have kids, you know the difference between how you feel about other people's children versus your own. I love other children who belong to my friends and family members but the feelings cannot come close to what I feel for my own. Not because I'm selfish but because God has designed it to be that way.
So in this verse we see that these feelings of pity are reserved for those who fear God. If we truly hold God in all reverence and in awe by our words and actions, we bring on his pity. If we have confessed and accepted Christ as our saviour and are walking on his narrow path, we will invoke the pity of the Lord upon us.

If there were anyone I wanted to pity me, it would be God. He has all ability and power to truly pity me. It just warmed my heart to think that the God of heaven looks at me the way I look at my children. Of course God's pity surpasses what I feel for my children. This is just another benefit of following God. Now don't think you can say you believe just to get the many blessings in store from God, it doesn't work like that. Just like you can't go to Donald Trump and say you're his child to get his riches, it doesn't work like that with God.

I hope you have accepted Jesus and I hope this verse brings comfort to your heart as to how amazing God is towards us, let us find joy in his pity towards us. If you have not accepted Jesus, it's simple and starts with confessing that you're a sinner that needs a saviour and that saviour is Jesus Christ. Romans 10:9 "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved."

Judgmental much?

I'm sure you've heard this quoted to you many a times..."Judge not" (I picture a finger wagging back and forth as that statement is being said). Yes, many love to play that card, and mainly play that card against Christians.
The verse they're sometimes unknowingly quoting is Matthew 7:1. And yes this verse leads into Jesus warning against hypocrisy, because of course no one likes a hypocrite. And we know ultimate judgment is up to God. Another saying people say "only God can judge me." That saying is not from the Bible in those exact words but it is true, God will be judging us all. It's funny how people use that statement to justify their actions instead of really understanding that one day they're going to stand before a righteous God to whom they will have to answer. If they truly understood what it meant that "only God can judge me", they would be more careful in their actions.

Anyways, can a Christian judge at all? Well John 7:24 says "Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment." So here we are being called to judge, so is there a contradiction?
I think not! God does not contradict his words, only those who do not study their scriptures well will think so. In Matthew it does say in verse 5 "Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye." We clearly see that in Matthew 7 the clause to judge is to fix the issue within yourself first so that you would be able to offer good judgement to others. If we've struggled with something and then went to God for help to fix it then notice someone else struggling with the same thing, at that point we'd be more qualified to offer help to our brethren.

Also, John 7 tells us to judge righteous judgment and not according to the appearance which is contrary to how the world judges and we can only exercise this with God's word. Righteous judgement comes from God's word as he is the only one that is righteous. So right judgement is based on what God has stated in his word and that would be why so many quote "judge not" because they don't want to hear God's word. But we must use righteous judgment to ensure we're living as we should and making ourselves more like Christ.

God is the one that will judge us to Heaven or Hell, but his words tells us how we send ourselves there by our decisions. If we believe, trust, accept and follow Jesus we will be in Heaven and any other decision will result in Hell. A Christian uttering that truth comes across as judgmental to those who hate that truth. But it's Gods word and us repeating what God says is not our judgement but Gods. If it is called for, we must stand for the word of God and if it comes across as judgmental that is an internal issue for the hearer and not the Christian. As with anything with God, our intention should be good and pure. If we're trying to spread the Gospel as Jesus commanded us, then press on (or judge on according to the naysayers).

Also we find in Matthew 12:33 we should be judging actions internally for our benefit. If we notice someone saying one thing but then producing negative fruits, for our spiritual state, we must stay clear. Discernment and wisdom to judge situations and people are tools for the Christian to use for themselves and their growth in God.

Judge not unless you're speaking Gods truth to further the Gospel to save souls. Or if you're judging a situation for the betterment of your spiritual state. Otherwise, God will be the ultimate judge of all.

Did you consult God?

Our lives can become so hectic and busy. It seems like we're always planning something. We plan for graduation when we're in school, then we plan for our career then for our marriages, kids and retirement. And in between those major plannings, there's everyday and minor plans. 

It can all get to be so time consuming and mind numbing at times. But plans are needed, because as that saying goes "if you fail to plan, you're planning to fail". So it is important for sure but as a Christian, when we're making these important plans, do we invite God? Do we consult Him?

I've been busy planning a new direction in my life, something I'm trying out and I realized yesterday that I didn't even take the time to talk to God about it. I jumped right in to action and forgot to just take a moment with my heavenly father. That thought alone made me remember the quote I placed in my yearbook, Proverbs 16:9-A man's heart deviseth his way: but the Lord directeth his steps.

This verse was the quote I gave when the yearbook committee asked us to leave behind some words of wisdom for the younger students. I was new in the Lord but saw just how God truly works things out for us.

This verse shows that yes, we plan all these things in our heart but it's truly God that will show us where to go and will be the one to lead us in our ways. God knows the best path and though our plans may not work out the way we want them to, God's plan always works out. We see in Jeremiah 29:11 that God's plan will bring us to a great place because God loves us. In the process of my past plannings, God took me to new heights that I couldn't have even imagined for myself. Looking at my yearbook I wrote that I wanted to be married and have 2 kids and by God's grace that came true but in such a different way than what I would have imagined. God is good. 

As my pastor used to say "Write your plans in pencil and give God the eraser." If God changes your direction, it won't be to bring pain but more joy than you could have planned for. So yes we must plan but let us not forget to invite God, to consult Him, to let Him know that we need Him to achieve our goals. As Proverbs 16:3 tells us, we should commit our ways to God and He will be the one to establish us.

An excellent spirit

There is an invaluable trait that many lack in today's society. It's easy to attain but pride and greed and everything selfish stands in the way. An excellent spirit can take a person to the greatest heights in life and in their spiritual journey.
Daniel the prophet is a great example of someone who maintained an excellent spirit regardless of their circumstances, as that should not matter anyways.
The book of Daniel gives us some extreme scenarios that Daniel faces yet he rises to the challenge every time.

But can you imagine being taken captive by an enemy of your country as a young person and taken to a strange land with new customs and a different language? How would you respond in such a scenario? Would you abandon God because he must have abandoned you for this to be happening? Would you beg for your enemies favour and give up your beliefs in order to appease the enemy?
Those would be viable responses as it would be the natural response to save yourself from punishment and torture.

However Daniel stood for his faith and kept living for God no matter the circumstances. He rejected the Kings meat (Daniel 1:8), found favour without compromising his beliefs (Daniel 1:9-10) and he praised and worshiped God no matter what (Daniel 2:20-23).
Daniel advanced under all the kings during his captivity, always holding great positions within those kingdoms. Even our enemies can recognize an excellent spirit; a hardworking and honest individual will always stand out.
God can give us an attitude that is quite remarkable in today's society. An attitude of gratitude, wisdom, knowledge, love, joy and diligence. In a time where everyone wants a quick fix and an easy way out, the hard worker who does not steal, cheat or lie to get ahead will be recognized.
God said in Proverbs 22:29 that the diligent will stand before great men and not before average people.

Having an excellent spirit should not only be hinged upon the desire to reach places of power but rather the main goal should be to honour God and serve him whole heartedly, the rest will follow. It does not apply only to the working world but most definitely to our personal lives. I will add this to my prayer list for sure as today I did not display an excellent spirit at all. After dropping my son off at school for the first day of third grade, the front wheel for my daughters stroller was acting up. There I was stranded in the middle of the school ground looking like my head was chopped off. I was popping wheelies with my daughters stroller to make it move as the front right wheel was stuck and was turning everywhere but where I wanted to go. I called my husband and accused him of bringing this stress upon me because he wanted to keep our 7 year old stroller instead of buying a fancy new one. After hanging up with him, I kept popping wheelies to move closer to my car. I decided to calm down, and approach the front wheel with a different demeanour. I realized the wheel was inverted and when I straightened it, it moved along easily. Like that wheel, I needed to straighten my attitude because that was such a minor issue yet it displaced my disposition so easily.

Daniel used prayer (Daniel 6:10), Gods word (Daniel 9:2) and godly friends (Daniel 1:17) around him to keep his excellent spirit and I must no doubt continue to strive to do the same in all areas of my life. The God we serve loves when we use our free will to please him, so let us have an excellent spirit to show the world just how excellent our God is.

God's perfect timing

Once again I forgot about this blog! But I am grateful that I found it again so I can write some updates from my last post.
I continued to struggle with having a second baby and was all over the place with various emotions towards God. I cried,  I was consoled,  I was numb and I was even angry. I kept praying though and just kept trying to ensure God was my number one and not the need for a second baby.
Well, God performs all things in its time,  and praise his mighty name,  my daughter was born 2 months ago!
We named her Selah and are so grateful for God's perfect timing. She has come into our lives at the right time.
Those who wait on the Lord will surely renew their strength. Don't fight any battles alone,  don't give up on God and don't place anything above him.
He truly deserves to be called good and no one else. I would still praise him even if he didn't answer my prayers because I had reached a place where he was enough and he still is enough.
Make your petitions known to God,  pray and wait on the Lord with a willing heart to accept his answer and whatever blessing he has in store.