Wednesday, September 15, 2010

How Can I? I Can't.

"Waiting does not mean sitting and soaking, but faithfully serving until God gives a new direction."

This is a quote that I have on a bright, lime green index card tacked on my bulletin board behind my desk. 
I heard it at church one night from my college minister. 
I do not remember all that we talked about that night, but this obviously stuck with me and I wrote it down.
As a daily reminder.
That whatever next step God has in my life,
should just be a continuation of my life now.
A continuation of me serving him.
Faithfully.

There are always things that I want right now that God decided to either give me or to not.
But, as I wait for those things, I should not just be sitting around.
Because if I just sat around and waited, I may be there for a long time.
God works on His own timing, not mine.
Waiting for a new direction could be only minutes away or years away.
I do not want to waste that time. 
Also, as I continue to learn and grow in Christ, I should not hold that in just for me.
During my waiting time, I should not only soak up everything the Lord is showing me, 
but reach out to others. 
And show them also what the Lord is doing for me. 
In the hope and prayer that they will feel and see Christ as well.

My prayer for awhile now has been that people will not see me.
That they will not see me for who I am on the outside by the clothes that I wear or the car I drive or the material possessions that I have.
But, I pray that people will see Christ. 
That when they look at me they will see something different and wonder what it is.

I pray that they will be drawn to me, not because of me, but because of Christ.
Because He is everything about me. 
Without Him, I would not be who I am. 
My identity is now found in Chirst. 
My old self is dead and gone. 
Lost completely in Christ.
That is what I strive for.
That is what I pray for.
That is what I want others to see.

But, dear friends.
I fail.
There are days that I do not die to myself.
There are days that I do not take up my cross and follow Christ fully.
There are days when my tongue gets the best of me and I say things that I should not.
There are days when I think things I should not.
There are days when I do things I should not. 
There are days where I completely forget who Christ is and
days where I never let Him into my day.
There are days when I am selfish,
conceited,
stupid, 
arrogant, 
controlling,
and 
mean. 
Because I am human. 
And my flesh constantly battles the Spirit inside of me. 

But, dear friends, I do have a weapon. 
I have the weapon that is sharper than anything and that can completely turn your life upside down.
I have Christ.
Christ is in me.
He is so powerful and mighty that sin can not touch Him.
His Spirit is in me.
And because of that, I have the power to overcome sin.
I have the power to strive and be like Christ.
To be sinless.

But friends.
Me declaring this on my blog does not make me a better Christian. 
It does not save me or count as a good work. 
Yes, this is a part of my life and an area where I am declaring to believe and trust in Christ.
But, if I am not doing this in my daily life, 
on my campus and in my classes.
What am I doing?

Who is going to know?
How are they going to know if I do not tell them?
There have been so many days that I have wasted. 
Days that I have thrown away and shoved them back in His face.
All because I did not feel like doing it that day.

I say that I so badly want people to know the Christ that I do.
To have the love of a Father that is greater than gold or anything else in this world.
But, if I just sit there silent.
How are they going to know?
How will they experience this?
How will they know Him?

I am here for a reason.
To proclaim Him to everyone that I meet. 
To extend His kingdom.
To glorify Him.
And if I just sit by and go about my daily life, they will not know.
My day is not about me, but about Him.
The day is His given to me as a gift to glorify and serve Him.
To faithfully serve until God calls me somewhere else.
How can I be silent?

I can't.

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

I'm Still Here

Hey Everyone! 
I promise that I am still here! 
I have many blog ideas written down in my iTouch and I look at them constantly.
I just have to find some time to write them! 

School is going good. 
Classes are busy 
and
there is all the homework.
But, they are going well.

So, I promise that I'm still here and there are blogs coming soon! 
Please be on the lookout! 
And if I post more than one a day....sorry about that too. 
It's me getting caught up! 

Happy Tuesday!!

:-)

Friday, August 27, 2010

Only One by Mainstay

This is another song that has been speaking to me. I love it when God shows Himself to you in different ways. Lately, He has been drawing me to His word and then to a song that usually goes with His word. He is so amazing. This song is called Only One and it is by the band Mainstay.
They are amazing and have many, many wonderful songs, but for now, here it is. 
Enjoy. 

When I can’t walk, will You carry me?
When I can’t stand, will You take me by the hand
And pick me up right where I am

You are the only One for me

The look in Your eyes is all that I need
This world could offer anything, but they can keep it all
Because You’re the only One for me,
You’re the only One for me

When I feel lost, will You stay with me?

When I can’t go on Your grace it picks me up and makes me strong
I know this is Love
You are the only One for me
The look in Your eyes is all that I need
This world could offer anything, but they can keep it all

If You asked me to give up everything that I have You know I would

I would go to the ends of the earth
Just to show You that You are the only One for me

This world could offer anything, but they can keep it all

Because You're the only One for me
The look in Your eyes is all that I need
This world could offer anything, but they can keep it all
Because You’re the only One for me
You’re the only One for me

The More I Seek You -- Kari Jobe

 This post and the next post are both lyrics to a song. If you haven't heard them, I strongly encourage you to go to Google or YouTube and look them up. They have spoken so much to me lately and I wanted to share them with you all. 
This first one is The More I Seek You by Kari Jobe.
It is very simple and repeats a lot, but it is so true and beautiful. 
Enjoy! 


 The more I seek You,
The more I find You.

The more I find You,

The more I love You

I wanna sit at Your feet

Drink from the cup in Your hand.
Lay back against You and breath,
Hear Your heart beat

This Love is so deep, 
It's more than I can stand.
I melt in your peace, it's overwhelming

The more I seek You,

The more I find You.

The more I find You,

The more I love You

I wanna sit at Your feet

Drink from the cup in Your hand.
Lay back against You and breath,
Hear Your heart beat

This Love is so deep,

It's more than I can stand.
I melt in Your peace, it's overwhelming

I wanna sit at Your feet

Drink from the cup in Your hand.
Lay back against You and breath,
Hear Your heart beat

This Love is so deep,

It's more than I can stand.
I melt in Your peace, it's overwhelming

I wanna sit at Your feet

Drink from the cup in Your hand.
Lay back against You and breath,
Hear Your heart beat

This Love is so deep,

It's more than I can stand.
I melt in Your peace...

Thursday, August 19, 2010

A New Post Coming Soon

Hey everyone! 
So, I'm going to start working on a new post, but I don't know how long it is going to take to get it finished with school and everything now going on. 
But, here is a tiny sneak peek at what it is going to be about. 

Displacement -- "to move something from its natural environment"
I want to follow Jesus into displacement. But, to actually change something, we have to be willing to sacrifice wholly. Which requires action. 

"Christ knew that unless He fully embraced humanity and displacement, redemption was impossible. 
Displacement is action. It is choosing to do more than talk, learn, or lecture about change. It is the literal removal of yourself from your natural environment and actually becoming that which you are seeking to redeem."

-- Adam Thompson, Red Revolution


I went to a conference once and we got goody bags with different stuff in it. Well, everyone also got a bible study book. The one that I received was Red Revolution by Adam Thompson. 
The book sat on my shelf for a long time. I never picked it up. (How familiar is that?) 
But, I recently opened it and have begun to do the study...and it is changing my life and changing how I see things. The subtitle on the cover of the book says, "Seeing the world through the Lens of Christ."
That is all that I want to do!
But, it is hard.
Very, hard. 

So, as I go through this book there will probably be some posts about it. Posts about how I am going to change things about myself and grow more into the servant that Christ wants me to be. 

So, stay tuned! It's going to be a great ride!! 
Because, 
following Christ is the greatest adventure there is! 

:-)


Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Back to School!

New students.
More students.
More traffic.
More cars.
Construction.
Remodeling.
Classes.
Professors.
Syllabi.
Dining Halls.
"Fake Money"
School books.
TCBY.
Hamburger Hangouts.
Pencils.
Pens.
iTouch.
Cell phone.
Facebook.
myBama.
Church events.
Friends.
Dorms.
Dorm elevators.
Dorm beds.
Lights.
Movies.
Action.

It's back to school and with it comes all that that entails! 
There is so much going on right now it is crazy! But, I'm just trying to organize my life for another semester of school here at the University of Alabama.
So far I like all of my classes, even though all we did was go over the syllabus for each class. 
It's going to be a great semester.
I have a feeling. 
:-)

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

Happy Birthday, Ethan!

Happy 7th Birthday, Ethan! 

You are one of the coolest little kids I know and one of the best nephews anyone could ask for! 

I hope you have a great birthday and have lots of fun! 
I love you! 

Aunt Jessica