The Heart (part 1)

In today's society the heart is often associated with those warm fuzzy feelings we get when we are around the person we like/love or really anything that has to do with our emotions and what we are feeling inside. However as Christians we need to remember what the biblical definition of the heart is. Here are a few verses that might help you understand more accurately the way God looks at the heart of man:

-Genesis 6:5 The LORD saw how great man's wickedness on the earth had become, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time.

-Psalm 14:1 The fool says in his heart, "There is no God." They are corrupt, their deeds are vile; there is no one who does good.

-Psalm 55:21 His speech is smooth as butter, yet war is in his heart; his words are more soothing than oil, yet they are drawn swords.

-Psalm 73:7 From their callous hearts comes iniquity ; the evil conceits of their minds know no limits.


-Psalm 101:5 Whoever slanders his neighbor in secret, him will I put to silence; whoever has haughty eyes and a proud heart, him will I not endure.

-Psalm 139:23 Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.

-Psalm 141:4 Let not my heart be drawn to what is evil, to take part in wicked deeds with men who are evildoers; let me not eat of their delicacies.


And the list could go on for a while...

Prior to our being purchased with the blood of Christ we were utterly depraved men and women. We were destined for eternal separation from our Creator and eternal punishment and torment. However in His goodness, love, and mercy He has rescued us. Until we receive our perfect bodies we will be faced with an internal struggle and battle within our hearts against the flesh and the Spirit. In our old nature we did whatever pleased ourselves yet now that we have been saved we are faced with a dilemma that goes on day after day...dying to ourselves and serving the Lord! It is only in His strength that we are capable of pleasing and glorifying Him and saying no to sin, and we must ask for that strength and ability daily.

In the high school ministry at my home church we often refer to our hearts as 'cesspools of wickedness'. I love this illustration! It is so true. Apart from Christ and His power we are evil and maligned and desire nothing of holiness or godliness, but as 2 Peter 1:3 reminds us,"His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness." What a reassuring promise for the believer. May the condition of our fleshly hearts humble us and may that sadness motivate us to examine ourselves daily and to pick up our cross daily and surrender our hearts to the Lord!

Living for God's Glory

So yes I am officially gone and into my first few days at The Master's College and I couldn't be more blessed. God has shown Himself faithful once again and I am overjoyed to see Him work and look forward to the upcoming year.

Yesterday we had the privilege of attending Grace Community Church and during the college service I was compelled to action and to write this as I heard Rick Holland speak on what I have to say is on of my passions and I guarantee each Christian's as well...the glory of God!

Rick took us to 1 Corinthians 10:23-11:1
23"Everything is permissible"—but not everything is beneficial. "Everything is permissible"—but not everything is constructive. 24Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others.

25Eat anything sold in the meat market without raising questions of conscience, 26for, "The earth is the Lord's, and everything in it."[a]

27If some unbeliever invites you to a meal and you want to go, eat whatever is put before you without raising questions of conscience. 28But if anyone says to you, "This has been offered in sacrifice," then do not eat it, both for the sake of the man who told you and for conscience' sake[b]— 29the other man's conscience, I mean, not yours. For why should my freedom be judged by another's conscience? 30If I take part in the meal with thankfulness, why am I denounced because of something I thank God for?

31So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. 32Do not cause anyone to stumble, whether Jews, Greeks or the church of God— 33even as I try to please everybody in every way. For I am not seeking my own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved.

In this passage of scripture the disciple is taught to observe what Rick laid out as three considerations prior to ANY action or deed we do; these being, edification, exaltation and lastly evangelism. As Christians we so often say that we are motivated and passionate about living for God's glory or that we desire to glorify Him, but so often our actions do not match our words...our lives don't always mirror this. In fact many times, it is the hypocritical lifestyles we lead that can stumble our brothers and sisters and an unbeliever. So ask yourself the following the next time you test yourself:

EDIFICATION (10:23-30)
WILL MY ACTIONS EDIFY OTHERS?
What does edify mean, you might ask. Does everything you do build up others or is it tearing up others VIEW OF GOD? Are you following God's thread of discipleship? You must, MUST, MUST look out for others...it is your job as a faithful disciple of the Lord.

EXALTATION (10:31)
WILL MY ACTIONS EXALT GOD?
Whatever you do, do all to God! You must deliberately exalt HIM not live by default. What is your default? To live for yourself, to please your flesh to glory in YOU. Live differently then the world and exalt HIM alone.

EVANGELISM (10:32-11:1)
WILL MY ACTIONS EVANGELIZE UNBELIEVERS?
This calls us to live selflessly in which we don't cause others who are less mature in the Lord to stumble, in which we set an example for the believer and non-believer alike and in which we are a living breathing example of the gospel....of JESUS CHRIST!

So the next time you desire to glorify HIM or you say you are...evaluate yourself and allow God show you and teach you how to honor and glory in Him alone!!!

Every Next Step Is an Extraordinary Scene

The words of Jeremy Camp's song, "Beyond Measure", resonate in my heart and mind as I approach this new season and say goodbye to the last. The chorus sounds like this:

I know that I’ve been,
Given more than beyond measure,
I come alive when,
I see beyond my fears
I know that I’ve been given more than earthly treasure,
I come alive when
I’ve broken down and given you control

As I watched my best friend walk down the aisle on what is sure to be one of the happiest days of her life, my eyes filled with tears. Not only was I moved by the perfect picture of marriage that Christ lays out in scripture, but I was realizing that the last page of this recent chapter in my life had been closed and as for her, a new one had just begun. It is in moments like this that I see God's hand of faithfulness and perfection. I realized at that very moment as she and her husband vowed a variety of promises to one another at how precious life is and how many blessings we have each been entrusted.

I look back on this last season in my life and I am amazed at God's gargantuan power and strength. He has shown His hand countless times as He has allowed me the privilege and honor of serving Him in a variety of ways. Not only that but He has used trials and tribulation to sanctify me and mold me slowly but surely into His Son's image. I think about what I deserve apart from the saving work of Christ and I am moved to tears at His love, compassion, and mercy on a sinner like me. The Psalmists countless times pray for and ask for mercy as I have in this past season of my life. I remember praying Psalm 86:6 over and over again,"Hear my prayer, O LORD; listen to my cry for mercy" and that peace and assurance of His answer filled my heart and mind.

Another line in Camp's song is "every next step is an extraordinary scene". Wow! Think about that for a moment...each step the Lord guides you, one by one, is a blessing and brings glory to our Father. When I look back on this past season this is all I can say, that each step has been extraordinary. God has shown Himself faithful over and over again and blessed me with more than I could ever have dreamed. Not only that, but I have truly come to realize that His ways are far better than mine, and that His timing is definitely much more accurate and precise...in fact it is perfect.

So as I said goodbye to my best friend as she embarks on this new season in her life in Colorado, the tears fell, but at the same time the excitement for what is yet to come echoed in my mind. It was in a moment while driving that I realized I too am headed for a new season, a time of cultivating and sanctifying, a time of new joy and anticipation for what is yet to come. I am overjoyed and enthusiastic about how God will show Himself fully and glorify Himself in this next chapter of my life...all I know is that it will be far better than I imagine or plan and that this next step in life will be an extraordinary scene.

Trusting the Lord Always

"Trust in the LORD with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
in all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make your paths straight."

-Proverbs 3:5-6

Last night was my best friend and her fiance's wedding rehearsal. The whole thing was surreal to me, I don't think I ever pictured the day that this would come. It was a great time of fellowship and fun, yet it got me really thinking and propelled me to write this blog.

I am going to be bluntly honest here and share a struggle that I often have, that is trusting fully and completely in the Lord when it comes to life-changing things. For a long time I have thought that it wasn't that I thought that He would let me down, because I believed He was faithful right? But the truth of the matter was that if I really did trust in the Lord with my WHOLE heart and believe that He was big enough to do anything I wouldn't fret and worry.

Over the past 6 months or so as Lauren's maid-of-honor, I have had the privilege of watching God sanctify both Danny and her more and more into His son's image and I have watched Christ grow them closer to each other preparing them for marriage. It has been a neat thing to see God's faithful hand slowly (definitely not in our timing) but surely, work everything out so smoothly and perfectly in His perfect will and plan. Both Lauren and I have talked countless times about how we fail to trust God with things yet has He ever let one of us down? No, of course not. As I see my best friend preparing for what is the second biggest day of her life after the day she became part of the Lord's family, there are tears in my eyes. I am so thrilled for this next season, not only in their lives, but in others as well, yet I am heartbroken at the fact that I am loosing my best friend, or at least it seems.

This morning God revealed to me once again that I am not fully trusting in His sovereignty and perfection. I need to realize that although yes things will change, He is ordaining this, His hand is upon this situation and I have nothing to worry about. Yes things will change, but for the better? I sat thinking about that for a moment...for the better? Could it really be. How could the fact that my best friend living thousands of miles away married could be better then how it used to be? I don't know, but what I do know is that God is faithful and that He is orchestrating each step we take as we obediently follow Him and His word. I am excited to see God use Danny and Lauren to further His kingdom in Colorado. And whether or not we see each other once a year or every ten, I am overjoyed to know I will spend eternity with the both of them! And what will I do while I wait on His coming, I will pray that God continues to sanctify me and use me for His kingdom.

"I went on with my eager pursuit after more holiness and conformity to Christ. The heaven I desired was a heaven of holiness." -Jonathan Edwards

Here are some pics from last night:

Your Standard?

Let's face it, we all have standards for different things in our life. For some of us, it may be our grades, for others our sports, and for even others our reputations. We have things or people that we hold in high regards and try to measure up to, or even surpass to allow us to pat ourselves on the back for being oh so wonderful.

As Christians, disciples of the Lord, we are called to live a different life. Our life is one that goes completely against the grain. As the world is going in one direction, we are going in the complete opposite. At times it is easy for even Christians to fall prey to measuring their "good deeds" or even their "sin" up to that of the worlds and feel better or more holy, but we must understand that when we are doing that, we are measuring ourselves up to the prince of this world. And that is the lowest standard possible!

We are called rather to measure ourselves up to the one and only standard of perfect holiness that we have, Jesus Christ. He came and lived the perfect life that we couldn't live amidst the temptation, pressure, and utter depravity of this world. Although our perfection will not come until we enter into eternity that is not an excuse to fail to measure ourselves up to Him. God doesn't say "TRY" to be holy but rather "BE" holy.

"for it is written: "Be holy, because I am holy."
-1 Peter 1:16

In our actions, in our speech, in our thoughts, in our lives we have a standard and that is Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior. Ask yourselves an honest question, what or who is your standard and then carefully evaluate His word and His calling for you and start measuring yourself up to Him! Is this an impossible task? No, absolutely not, God assures us that He will enable us, and it is only by Him, His grace and His power that we could ever even attempt to measure up.

"His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness." -2 Peter 1:3