Thankful that God gives me a hunger for his Word.
This is my source. This is my life. This is my strength.
Sunday, April 29, 2012
Saturday, April 28, 2012
Mr Right vs. Mr Right NOW
Have you ever noticed how many unmarried, college graduated, serious-about-Christ, committed-to-the-church, put-together young women there are, who haven’t found a groom? Do you ever wonder where all the “good, Christian men” are? Okay, maybe that is just me....
As a single, almost 23 year old, my dating life often becomes the most common question I get asked about.
“Are you dating anyone...?”
“When are you going to get married...?”
“Why don’t you have a boyfriend..?”
Bla. Bla. Bla.
So to combat all the noise and static from the outside world, I decided to come up with a list of all the qualities I want for my future husband. These character traits that I find in godly men throughout the Bible inspire me to hope and wait for the man of my dreams. THIS is the man I am praying for. THIS is the man that will capture my heart.
The man who has the purity of Joseph: There is no telling exactly how beautiful and exotic Potipher’s wife was. She was obviously spoiled and demanding. Her fixation on Joseph was first aroused by his beauty and youth, but was enflamed by him remaining steadfastly pure. Solomon’s advice to his son was quite blunt, “drink water from your own cistern… let your fountain be blessed and rejoice with your wife you married in your youth… always be enraptured with her love…” But what if you are not married, young man? Then “don’t let your fountain be dispersed abroad like streams in the street.” Proverbs 5. Potipher’s wife wanted Joseph most likely because she couldn’t have him. From Joseph’s point of view it was unholy so he ran away from the sin. No matter what the world says, purity of heart and body is a quality highly treasured by God. When a man honors God with his heart and body, the Windows of Heaven are opened and blessings are poured out. That is priceless.
I am praying for the man with the wisdom of Josiah: It would be easy to say “the wisdom of Solomon,” but frankly he may have been very wise in worldly matters, but when it came to godly things, Solomon got a “D” for disobedience. God went to him twice to exhort him to turn from the foreign wives and foreign idol worship and both times Solomon refused. Because King Solomon allowed so much foreign idolatry, Israel fell apart. The people turned from worshiping the one, true God, to worshiping wood and stone fashioned by their own hands. Josiah was eight years old when he ascended to the throne of Judah. He succeeded his grandfather, Manasseh, who was the bloodiest monarch of Judah and who the Bible says filled the streets of Jerusalem with the blood of children because he worshiped and caused the people to worship the god Molech, who was the god of child sacrifices. Josiah turned his face from the prevailing wickedness of Judah. He crushed idolatry, sorcery, and put away all mediums. God said in 2 Kings 22:19, “because your heart is tender and you humbled yourself before the LORD… and because you wept before Me, I have heard you.” To have reverential awe, to fear the one whose justice will pour forth burning wrath against the wicked is wisdom beyond comprehension.
The man who has the responsibility of Boaz: What a sweet love story we find in Ruth who is one of only four women listed in the lineage of Christ. Boaz has more godly qualities than just about any other man. He has compassion for a widow. He wanted her to stay close to his men, to eat with his people, and caused his reapers to leave enough behind for her to glean. He cared about Ruth’s reputation and had her on her way before his people awoke after the harvest feast. He made himself responsible for her and for his cousin Naomi by marrying Ruth and bringing them into his household. He took his duty as head of his clan seriously and with great wisdom he earned his place in the royal lineage of Jesus.
I am praying for the man who has the honesty of Job: One of the bravest requests of a man to God is spoken by Job in chapter 31:5-6: “If I have walked with falsehood, or if my foot has hastened to deceit, let me be weighed on honest scales, that God may know my integrity.” Being weighed on honest scales is asking our heart to be weighed by God’s heart. We all fall short of the glory of God, therefore man can never come up balanced when weighed with honest scales. God said in all these things, Job did not sin. His faith never wavered. His responses to his friends, his responses to his wife, his responses to his circumstance, and his responses to God Himself remained pure of heart. No greed, no deceit was ever found in him. That is a remarkable character trait.
The man who has the courage of Paul: No man other than Jesus suffered continually for his faith like Paul did. Certainly every disciple suffered death and hardships, but the Bible doesn’t record in depth their trials and tribulations except in the case of Paul. Paul was flogged with thirty-nine lashes by the Jews five times, thrashed three times with Roman rods, he was stoned and he was left for dead once. Paul often was in dangers of rivers, in danger of robbers, in danger from the Jews, in danger from the nations, in danger in the city, in danger in the wilderness, in danger in the sea, and in danger among false brothers (2 Corinthians 11:27). He endured hardship and toil, sleeplessness, hunger, thirst, cold and nakedness. Yet, he faced each day with joy in the LORD, he rejoiced and encouraged all to rejoice with him. It takes courage to fight lions and bears, but it takes monumental courage to stand firm in the faith.
I am praying for the man who has a heart and compassion like Jesus: In Mark 10 there is a story about the rich young ruler who asks Jesus what must he do to be saved. When Jesus tells him that he must follow the commandments, the young man said, “Teacher I have done all these things, I have kept them from my youth.” Every person who has tried to be good has realized sooner or later that it is impossible to obey the Law without slipping sideways once in a while. The arrogance and pride this young man exhibited was like a puffy balloon. Jesus could have pointed out each and every slip the young man had committed; and He could have literally sliced him to the core for his arrogance. But He looked at the young man and loved him. Jesus knew he would walk away, still full of his pride, and full of his love of money plus secure in his own wealth. Jesus knew it, but loved him anyway. Jesus loved us while we were yet sinners. Jesus commanded us to love one another, and that the world would come to know Him by our love for one another.
These are just some of the traits of Godly men throughout the Bible. Though we will never be perfect, I am praying for you, men of Christ. Fight the good fight, stand firm, be courageous and man up.
“Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day....So we fix our eyes not what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” 2 Corinthians 4:16, 18
As a single, almost 23 year old, my dating life often becomes the most common question I get asked about.
“Are you dating anyone...?”
“When are you going to get married...?”
“Why don’t you have a boyfriend..?”
Bla. Bla. Bla.
So to combat all the noise and static from the outside world, I decided to come up with a list of all the qualities I want for my future husband. These character traits that I find in godly men throughout the Bible inspire me to hope and wait for the man of my dreams. THIS is the man I am praying for. THIS is the man that will capture my heart.
The man who has the purity of Joseph: There is no telling exactly how beautiful and exotic Potipher’s wife was. She was obviously spoiled and demanding. Her fixation on Joseph was first aroused by his beauty and youth, but was enflamed by him remaining steadfastly pure. Solomon’s advice to his son was quite blunt, “drink water from your own cistern… let your fountain be blessed and rejoice with your wife you married in your youth… always be enraptured with her love…” But what if you are not married, young man? Then “don’t let your fountain be dispersed abroad like streams in the street.” Proverbs 5. Potipher’s wife wanted Joseph most likely because she couldn’t have him. From Joseph’s point of view it was unholy so he ran away from the sin. No matter what the world says, purity of heart and body is a quality highly treasured by God. When a man honors God with his heart and body, the Windows of Heaven are opened and blessings are poured out. That is priceless.
I am praying for the man with the wisdom of Josiah: It would be easy to say “the wisdom of Solomon,” but frankly he may have been very wise in worldly matters, but when it came to godly things, Solomon got a “D” for disobedience. God went to him twice to exhort him to turn from the foreign wives and foreign idol worship and both times Solomon refused. Because King Solomon allowed so much foreign idolatry, Israel fell apart. The people turned from worshiping the one, true God, to worshiping wood and stone fashioned by their own hands. Josiah was eight years old when he ascended to the throne of Judah. He succeeded his grandfather, Manasseh, who was the bloodiest monarch of Judah and who the Bible says filled the streets of Jerusalem with the blood of children because he worshiped and caused the people to worship the god Molech, who was the god of child sacrifices. Josiah turned his face from the prevailing wickedness of Judah. He crushed idolatry, sorcery, and put away all mediums. God said in 2 Kings 22:19, “because your heart is tender and you humbled yourself before the LORD… and because you wept before Me, I have heard you.” To have reverential awe, to fear the one whose justice will pour forth burning wrath against the wicked is wisdom beyond comprehension.
The man who has the responsibility of Boaz: What a sweet love story we find in Ruth who is one of only four women listed in the lineage of Christ. Boaz has more godly qualities than just about any other man. He has compassion for a widow. He wanted her to stay close to his men, to eat with his people, and caused his reapers to leave enough behind for her to glean. He cared about Ruth’s reputation and had her on her way before his people awoke after the harvest feast. He made himself responsible for her and for his cousin Naomi by marrying Ruth and bringing them into his household. He took his duty as head of his clan seriously and with great wisdom he earned his place in the royal lineage of Jesus.
I am praying for the man who has the honesty of Job: One of the bravest requests of a man to God is spoken by Job in chapter 31:5-6: “If I have walked with falsehood, or if my foot has hastened to deceit, let me be weighed on honest scales, that God may know my integrity.” Being weighed on honest scales is asking our heart to be weighed by God’s heart. We all fall short of the glory of God, therefore man can never come up balanced when weighed with honest scales. God said in all these things, Job did not sin. His faith never wavered. His responses to his friends, his responses to his wife, his responses to his circumstance, and his responses to God Himself remained pure of heart. No greed, no deceit was ever found in him. That is a remarkable character trait.
The man who has the courage of Paul: No man other than Jesus suffered continually for his faith like Paul did. Certainly every disciple suffered death and hardships, but the Bible doesn’t record in depth their trials and tribulations except in the case of Paul. Paul was flogged with thirty-nine lashes by the Jews five times, thrashed three times with Roman rods, he was stoned and he was left for dead once. Paul often was in dangers of rivers, in danger of robbers, in danger from the Jews, in danger from the nations, in danger in the city, in danger in the wilderness, in danger in the sea, and in danger among false brothers (2 Corinthians 11:27). He endured hardship and toil, sleeplessness, hunger, thirst, cold and nakedness. Yet, he faced each day with joy in the LORD, he rejoiced and encouraged all to rejoice with him. It takes courage to fight lions and bears, but it takes monumental courage to stand firm in the faith.
I am praying for the man who has a heart and compassion like Jesus: In Mark 10 there is a story about the rich young ruler who asks Jesus what must he do to be saved. When Jesus tells him that he must follow the commandments, the young man said, “Teacher I have done all these things, I have kept them from my youth.” Every person who has tried to be good has realized sooner or later that it is impossible to obey the Law without slipping sideways once in a while. The arrogance and pride this young man exhibited was like a puffy balloon. Jesus could have pointed out each and every slip the young man had committed; and He could have literally sliced him to the core for his arrogance. But He looked at the young man and loved him. Jesus knew he would walk away, still full of his pride, and full of his love of money plus secure in his own wealth. Jesus knew it, but loved him anyway. Jesus loved us while we were yet sinners. Jesus commanded us to love one another, and that the world would come to know Him by our love for one another.
These are just some of the traits of Godly men throughout the Bible. Though we will never be perfect, I am praying for you, men of Christ. Fight the good fight, stand firm, be courageous and man up.
“Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day....So we fix our eyes not what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” 2 Corinthians 4:16, 18
Tuesday, April 24, 2012
Surrender All
Hello Bloggers,
Have you ever had moments in your life when God stops you cold in your tracks and challenges you with an idea, concept, direction or vision? Moments when you are going about your day, minding your own business and God gives you a gut-check?
For me this happens often. And to be honest I LOVEEEEEE these moments. The other day I was driving to work, blasting some Christian tunes and thinking about all the things on my to-do list, when God gave me a gut check.
I was subconsciously singing a song called “Surrender All,” when the Lord challenged me with the tough question; do I really surrender ALL? Do I give all of me? Do I lay down my life? Do I defend the cross? Or do I let those words fly out of my mouth without really understanding the depth, the sacrifice, and the demand that I promise when I declare it.
This may be blunt but God demands all from us. There isn’t one area of our lives that we are to exclude from his Lordship. He wants in to every corner and every closet. God wants to be involved in every detail of who we are.
This is the kingdom of God: Death for Life; Giving for Receiving; Losing for Gaining. Those are his principles. And God is never requiring something of us he did not FIRST do, for “He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all..”(Romans 8:34) He demonstrated to us first what it means to truly sacrifice and give.
For God did not just merely give any sacrifice, he did not surrender any cheap thing, but gave his best; his only begotten son as a sacrifice for us, the highest act of love. He set the example for us to follow. For he requires nothing less than our utmost for him. He asks for ALL.
Surrendering our lives to God is not just giving up sinful habits or our former sinful lives, God does not just require surrender of what is bad, he wants a deeper surrender, giving of all the good we have, giving our desires, dreams, ambitions, all the things and people we treasure, our very lives at his feet as a living sacrifice. It’s called death. To die costs everything. It is easy to try to hold on to who we are, what we want, what we desire, what we know and give God only what is convenient or easy. But he is not satisfied with less than our very lives. Jesus said,“whosoever would save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake, shall preserve it.”
There is no shortcuts with God. He asks for our lives as a living sacrifice and out of the ashes of that sacrifice he brings forth resurrection life birthed of him. With every act of surrender God is silently asking us what he asked Simon Peter,“Simon, son of Jonas, do you love me more than these?”(John 21:15)
Such a heart, wholly given to him, desires him alone and would do anything for the lover of its soul. The cry of such heart is described in David’s hearts cry to the Lord is PSALM 63,“ O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you, in a dry and weary land where there is no water. I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory. Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you.”
Surrender is only possible when we truly TRUST in the Lord and KNOW that he has everything under control and his plans and purposes are always best. True surrender has no room for DOUBT and DOUBLE MINDEDNESS, only TRUST and FAITH that all does work together for good!
He gives all, he asks all! Are you willing to surrender all?
Love you all,
Jenna
Have you ever had moments in your life when God stops you cold in your tracks and challenges you with an idea, concept, direction or vision? Moments when you are going about your day, minding your own business and God gives you a gut-check?
For me this happens often. And to be honest I LOVEEEEEE these moments. The other day I was driving to work, blasting some Christian tunes and thinking about all the things on my to-do list, when God gave me a gut check.
I was subconsciously singing a song called “Surrender All,” when the Lord challenged me with the tough question; do I really surrender ALL? Do I give all of me? Do I lay down my life? Do I defend the cross? Or do I let those words fly out of my mouth without really understanding the depth, the sacrifice, and the demand that I promise when I declare it.
This may be blunt but God demands all from us. There isn’t one area of our lives that we are to exclude from his Lordship. He wants in to every corner and every closet. God wants to be involved in every detail of who we are.
This is the kingdom of God: Death for Life; Giving for Receiving; Losing for Gaining. Those are his principles. And God is never requiring something of us he did not FIRST do, for “He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all..”(Romans 8:34) He demonstrated to us first what it means to truly sacrifice and give.
For God did not just merely give any sacrifice, he did not surrender any cheap thing, but gave his best; his only begotten son as a sacrifice for us, the highest act of love. He set the example for us to follow. For he requires nothing less than our utmost for him. He asks for ALL.
Surrendering our lives to God is not just giving up sinful habits or our former sinful lives, God does not just require surrender of what is bad, he wants a deeper surrender, giving of all the good we have, giving our desires, dreams, ambitions, all the things and people we treasure, our very lives at his feet as a living sacrifice. It’s called death. To die costs everything. It is easy to try to hold on to who we are, what we want, what we desire, what we know and give God only what is convenient or easy. But he is not satisfied with less than our very lives. Jesus said,“whosoever would save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake, shall preserve it.”
There is no shortcuts with God. He asks for our lives as a living sacrifice and out of the ashes of that sacrifice he brings forth resurrection life birthed of him. With every act of surrender God is silently asking us what he asked Simon Peter,“Simon, son of Jonas, do you love me more than these?”(John 21:15)
Such a heart, wholly given to him, desires him alone and would do anything for the lover of its soul. The cry of such heart is described in David’s hearts cry to the Lord is PSALM 63,“ O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you, in a dry and weary land where there is no water. I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory. Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you.”
Surrender is only possible when we truly TRUST in the Lord and KNOW that he has everything under control and his plans and purposes are always best. True surrender has no room for DOUBT and DOUBLE MINDEDNESS, only TRUST and FAITH that all does work together for good!
He gives all, he asks all! Are you willing to surrender all?
Love you all,
Jenna
"Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you." Deuteronomy 31:6
“I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.” – Psalm 27:13-14
Tuesday, April 3, 2012
Monday, April 2, 2012
My praise goes on...
"Oh LORD, you are my God;
I will exalt you and praise your name
for in perfect faithfulness
you have done marvelous things"
Isaiah 25:1
I will exalt you and praise your name
for in perfect faithfulness
you have done marvelous things"
Isaiah 25:1
Friday, February 17, 2012
Shaken.
Hello fellow bloggers,
I like to believe that I am a strong women. I like to believe that I am an incredibly independent, self-sufficient, bold, fearless women who can take on the world. But last night I had a breaking moment. An experience that shook me to my core. An experience that knocked me to my knees.
As you may imagine, I was pretty restless last night and as I tossed and turned throughout the night all I could keep thinking was “I can’t handle this. God this is too much.” Sometimes my heart feels like this world is too much to handle. Sometimes I feel like the hurt of the world seems to heavy for my heart. In 2 Chronicles 20:12, Jehoshaphat prayed, “We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you.” And last night that was the cry of my heart. I came to a point where all I could say was “I don’t know what to do.” And the Lord responded by saying, “just keep your eyes on me.”
As I looked through the Bible, I read where at times God allowed more trials, more pressure, than His children could bear. Elijah, the powerful prophet of God who held back the rain had a time when the trial must have been bigger than his ability to handle it. Once Paul wrote to the people at Corinth (2 Corinthians 1:8), that him and his followers faces trials “far beyond our ability to endure.” David, the great war hero and man after God’s own heart, told the Lord that “troubles without number surround me” and “I cannot see.” Another time David said, “save me, O God, for the water has come up to my neck.”
So what do we do when we feel like the world is to much to handle? What do we do when we feel like this is to much to bear? We trust Jesus. We rely on God. After Paul wrote that his trial was bigger than his ability to endure, he offered this solution: “But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead. (2 Corinthians 1:9). Paul recognized that during this overwhelming time of trouble, that he couldn’t handle it alone. His trial forced him to focus more on the power of God, and trust that God would be his redeemer, his rescuer.
Last night, as I feel to my knees, all I could do was fix my eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of my faith. All I could do was trust that when I am weak, he is strong. All I could do was admit that apart from Him, I can do nothing.
Our God is so good. Will you take a moment today to trust that when you are weak, He is strong. Will you take a moment to stop and say thank you. To stand still and rest in his presence. To take time and just BE.
Love you all,
Jenna
I like to believe that I am a strong women. I like to believe that I am an incredibly independent, self-sufficient, bold, fearless women who can take on the world. But last night I had a breaking moment. An experience that shook me to my core. An experience that knocked me to my knees.
As you may imagine, I was pretty restless last night and as I tossed and turned throughout the night all I could keep thinking was “I can’t handle this. God this is too much.” Sometimes my heart feels like this world is too much to handle. Sometimes I feel like the hurt of the world seems to heavy for my heart. In 2 Chronicles 20:12, Jehoshaphat prayed, “We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you.” And last night that was the cry of my heart. I came to a point where all I could say was “I don’t know what to do.” And the Lord responded by saying, “just keep your eyes on me.”
As I looked through the Bible, I read where at times God allowed more trials, more pressure, than His children could bear. Elijah, the powerful prophet of God who held back the rain had a time when the trial must have been bigger than his ability to handle it. Once Paul wrote to the people at Corinth (2 Corinthians 1:8), that him and his followers faces trials “far beyond our ability to endure.” David, the great war hero and man after God’s own heart, told the Lord that “troubles without number surround me” and “I cannot see.” Another time David said, “save me, O God, for the water has come up to my neck.”
So what do we do when we feel like the world is to much to handle? What do we do when we feel like this is to much to bear? We trust Jesus. We rely on God. After Paul wrote that his trial was bigger than his ability to endure, he offered this solution: “But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead. (2 Corinthians 1:9). Paul recognized that during this overwhelming time of trouble, that he couldn’t handle it alone. His trial forced him to focus more on the power of God, and trust that God would be his redeemer, his rescuer.
Last night, as I feel to my knees, all I could do was fix my eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of my faith. All I could do was trust that when I am weak, he is strong. All I could do was admit that apart from Him, I can do nothing.
Our God is so good. Will you take a moment today to trust that when you are weak, He is strong. Will you take a moment to stop and say thank you. To stand still and rest in his presence. To take time and just BE.
Love you all,
Jenna
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)