James

        Today I began a one-week study of the book of James.
        James is all about self-control. If he came back to life and followed me around for a day and did an analysis of my habits, I'm pretty sure the recap would go something like this:

        James: Girl, you need some control!
        Me: *flashes large smile* What do you mean? I'm controlled.
         James: I mean, you need to stop freaking out at every tiny thing. I mean, that episode with your brother? You thopped him over the head with your Bible because he wouldn't quiet down during your morning devotion. And what about when Emma came in your room? You screamed at her to get out before she even stepped in the door. Oh, and what about the..."
         Me: Oh. Yeah. But they have been bugging me all day long!
         James: What's that got to do with anything? And what about saying all those little words that your mother disapproves of? You know, gosh and sucks and stuff like that?"
        Me: *ducks head* You heard that, too, huh?
        James: I'll graciously not get into what you probably think in your head.
        Me: *cringes*

         So, I guess I've got a lot to learn.
         Self-control goes beyond simple actions. Self-control manifests itself in your actions, your body-language, your speech, your tone, your thoughts, everything.
        One verse that struck me especially was James 1:26-27, which says, "If anyone thinks of himself as religious, and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, his religion is worthless. Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit the orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.
In other words, "If you think you're a good person, but you don't control what comes out of your mouth, you're lying to yourself and therefor to your heavenly Father. We are commanded to defy the world and show mercy." That is the fruit of religion.
         That is a good way, also, to know if you've truly put your trust in Christ as Lord.
It is not enough to sit on our rear ends and be lazy. That's another thing that James calls us to think on. James 1:22 &25 But be doers of the Word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.
          Friends, it is not enough to hear only. We are called to action. What better way to prepare for Spiritual Warfare than to carry out God's commands? This is our defense. Our preparation is our training in Righteousness. A man (or woman) cannot go into battle if he's out of practice. It would be foolish to try. What good is armor if you can't use the weapons. The Shield of Faith, Belt of Truth, Breastplate of Righteousness, and the Helmet of Salvation don't do much good if you don't know how to put the Sword of the Spirit to proper use.
        Battle terminology and tactics do not come naturally. We have to learn them. Practice makes perfect, right? Not always. You will never reach perfection on this earth, but this is the process of sanctification. Gloryfication can't occur without sanctification, just as justification must come before sanctification.
I'd definitely recommend working through James, though, I'll warn you: he's not afraid of stepping on toes. :) 

Bible Studies

So, I have  been studying through Psalm 51 over the past few days. I do not have a bible-devotional book that I am going through at the moment, so I looked over some of my notes from ATF this past spring, and found a note mentioning Psalm 51.

If you aren't familiar with this psalm, it is basically David's response in prayer to the Lord after he had been confronted by Nathan after David had taken Bathsheba and killed her husband.
This Psalm sings confession, repentance, and restoration. It starts out with David....well, I'll post it here, and then dive into it.
PSALM 51
Have mercy on me, O God,
    according to your unfailing love;
according to your great compassion
    blot out my transgressions.
² Wash away all my iniquity
    and cleanse me from my sin.

³ For I know my transgressions,
    and my sin is always before me.
⁴ Against you, you only, have I sinned
    and done what is evil in your sight;
so you are right in your verdict
    and justified when you judge.
⁵ Surely I was sinful at birth,
    sinful from the time my mother conceived me.
⁶ Yet you desired faithfulness even in the womb;
    you taught me wisdom in that secret place.

⁷ Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean;
    wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
⁸ Let me hear joy and gladness;
    let the bones you have crushed rejoice.
⁹ Hide your face from my sins
    and blot out all my iniquity.

¹⁰ Create in me a pure heart, O God,
    and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
¹¹ Do not cast me from your presence  
  or take your Holy Spirit from me.
¹² Restore to me the joy of your salvation
    and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.

¹³ Then I will teach transgressors your ways,
    so that sinners will turn back to you.¹⁴ Deliver me from the guilt of bloodshed, O God,
    you who are God my Savior,
    and my tongue will sing of your righteousness.
¹⁵ Open my lips, Lord,
    and my mouth will declare your praise.
¹⁶ You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it;
    you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.
¹⁷ My sacrifice, O God, is^[b] a broken spirit;
    a broken and contrite heart
    you, God, will not despise.

¹⁸ May it please you to prosper Zion,
    to build up the walls of Jerusalem.
¹⁹ Then you will delight in the sacrifices of the righteous,
    in burnt offerings offered whole;
    then bulls will be offered on your altar.

So, it basically begins with David begging God's forgiveness. He admits his wrongdoing, and acknowledges the fact that he is a sinner. He then repents. 

Repentance is not just saying " I'm sorry. " Repentance is admitting that you were wrong, apologizing for that wrong, and TURNING from that wrong to pursue Christ.
David says, "Cleanse me with Hyssop". Hyssop was a type of mint-y plant that was used for making something clean/presentable. 

He then goes on to say that God is good. He acknowleges that God is Soveriegn and Merciful. The Lord delights in praise and adoration. "Restore me to the Joy of your Salvation, and grant me a willing Spirit, to sustain me."

As far as the offering goes, that can simply be an offering of yourself! Christ paid your debts. All you have to do is accept the forgiveness. But that also means you are offering yourself to the Lord for all eternity. This is the best thing you will ever do. Ever. :)

I'd like to also mention that David mentions the Holy Spirit

 Do not cast me from your presence
    or take your Holy Spirit from me.

"Do not...take your Holy Spirit from me" does NOT refer to loosing one's salvation. Once you are in Christ's hands, he will not let you go. Ever. But when you are in sin, your "conscience", as some may say, will "guide you". Your guilt will stand. But if you ignore that long enough, you will become "immune" to it. You will get so used to it, or OK with it, that it will no longer affect you. (see my post from ATF 2014) I am speaking from personal experience. I am sure you all can relate with your own experiences.

Just like with the Israelites when Samson "messed with their peace" with sin, you may just need someone to mess with your comfort.  

I would highly encourage you all to take time to pray through Psalm 51. Any time you need a prayer for repentance, this is definitely a good one to go to! It is not the only one, but it is a very good place to start! :-)

P.S. The participation outcome of the 1-K Word Dash was minimal. The contest is canceled. :D

Against The Flow.

   I just had the best weekend of my life. I went to a youth retreat at Twin Lakes.
   It was a gorgeous place. I have a six-page summary on notebook paper. I will pick out the most interesting stuff to put on my blog. (ATF is a group of Presbyterian Church youth groups that get together every spring for a weekend retreat.)

      Friday Evening

   Got to Twin Lakes. Settled in. Planned to hang out with Rebecca and Kennedy (Kennedy is a girl:)) Went to worship. Shortly after worship met Collin. Collin was the only person in his Youth group and didn't know anyone. Made plans to  meet him at breakfast Saturday morning. Added another friend to our group. Went to bed. The girls in my cabin played truth or dare. I didn't get involved after the first girl picked "truth." Went to sleep.

Saturday 

  Woke up and took a shower. Met Collin and Kennedy at breakfast. Talked about morning plans over eggs, hash-browns and sausage. Went to worship and small groups. Went to the Swings which went like 30 feet into the air... or higher. We decided to go Canoeing. Piled 4 people into one canoe built for no more than 3 people. Got sick of that within 10 minutes. Went to the tree-house. Talked about big rifles and the Navy and Marines. Played volleyball. Lost the ball in the lake. Got the ball out of the lake for the second time and gave up. Went to the pavilion. Too loud there. Made plans to play spotlight tag that evening with another friend. Crossed the bridge to hammock Island. We all rolled down the Hill. Went to the tree-house again. Went Kayaking. Talked about hunting... which only Collin and Kennedy knew what we were talking about. Rebecca and her friend had no idea what we were talking about so we changed the subject. :)  Me and Kennedy and Collin talked about dreading highschool next year. Went to lunch. Talked about afternoon plans over burgers. Got a soda.Went to swing again. Almost threw up from going so fast. Went to the pier. Stuck my feet in.... my feet were numb within 10 seconds. The water was COLD!!!! Talked about preachers' kids. Collin's dad is a (preacher) and high expectations. Went back to the tree-house. Went to "happy hill" which should really be "UN happy hill". It started raining. Got wet. Went to the worship room. Talked about favorite Scripture and Prayed for a nice night. It stopped raining. Went to supper. Went to evening worship. Went to small groups. Went to put my Bible up. Decided that this had been the best day of my life. Went to the talent show thing-a-ma-jigger. 8th grade boys won 1st place. my group (8th grade girls won 2nd place. and 7th grade boys won 3rd place. Went outside. it was raining and we got all wet. The rain stopped, but it was too wet to play spotlight tag. We were just walking along talking about the day when 3 freaked-out girls ran up to us saying that one of the guys from my Sunday school class was hurt pretty badly. When we got to the basket ball court, he was for the most part ok... possibly a slight concussion... thankfully no stitches were needed.This got the conversation about personal injuries started..... rather an interesting topic. Talked about Marines and the Navy and the Airforce and World War II again. Said goodnight and went to bed. Thought about the day and prayed that everyone I met would be back next year.

Sunday Morning

  Went to breakfast. Went to worship. Hung around till it was time to leave. Said goodbye to all the people I met. Hoping everyone would be back next year.  Rode home... if you know me personally, you probably know that I am never quiet. Well, I was silent on the way back to our church. Had too much to process and think about I guess. Got back to the church. Went home and took a very much needed nap.  

   Maybe you can see why this was the best weekend of my life. Gotta run... Blog later! :-)

Plagues in Egypt... Something to think about...

Ok, for those of you who read my previous blog, My Little World, you may remember this post from there. I am "reposting" it on this blog for any new readers.
 
You know when God sent all those horrible plagues to Pharaoh in Egypt, in the Bible, in Exodus? Did you ever wonder why God choose those plagues? Well....it is because God was proving himself higher than the Egyptian gods. Here are a few examples:

plague#1-- bloody water--Hopi (the spirit of the Nile) supposedly gave Egyptians life through water.

plague#2 --frogs --Heqt (goddess who had the head and body of a frog) was supposed to help women have babies (frogs were sacred in Egypt) and when the frogs attacked Egypt they had to be destroyed somehow.

plague#5-- livestock-- Hathor, Mnevis, and Apis were the gods of livestock, so when all livestock    started dying God "defied" their god.
   
  -So you see, God had a purpose for all those plagues! The list goes on and on, but as you can see: Each one sent down a false god or goddess! So in the end, all the gods and goddesses went down!

A few thoughts about Creation.

• So God created the great and lesser creatures of the sea. This scripture can be found in Genesis 1:20. 
•  And God said,"Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: livestock, creatures that move along the ground, and wild animals, each according to its own kind. Genesis 1:24

•  And God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And their was evening and there was morning the sixth day....Genesis 1:31 

I love these Scripture verses.  Any time I think of a small animal, like lizards, or an arthropod (like a bug) or amphibian, I think of the part in the second verse:  "and creatures that move along the ground".  I love how God makes mention to even his tiniest creations. :-)