Well, I haven't done this in a while... So, let's try this out. As you can see I tried starting a blog for the new year, I guess it was supposed to be some sort of "new start" of something and it just died out in about two weeks. This year can be different, just sayin'. Hopefully this will last longer than two weeks this year. First of all, I just want to say God has been good to me in this past year and it was definitely a year of CHANGE in my life. I'm so excited for what God has in store for me this year and all the things He'll show me in my life this year. This is definitely going to be a year of breakthrough, not only for me but for many others as well. 2010. It's a new decade and that just means we have ten years until the next decade. What will we do in those ten years? I hope it's impacting, life-changing, shocking, amazing, and grandormous! (is that a word? Well, it is now) I really feel like we can make a difference we just need some direction. This generation is very passionate, and that's awesome! We just need to funnel the passion because it's going other places like, drugs, sex, alcohol, lies, insecurities, less self-worth, and anything else you can think of that sounds bad. BUT then again, that's pretty much always been going on since the beginning of time. What I'm really trying to get across is that maybe we can be the break in the chain; maybe this trend of bad things ends here and now. Do YOU believe that we can be the change that we wish to see? Do you think we have the ability to lead others into victory, success, prosperity, joy, happiness, kindness, self-control, beauty, love? I think so. It just takes a light-switch like device in your brain called VISION to turn on. Where did the vision go? we get all fired up at our rally's and church events but the flame dwindles in the fast-paced daily routines of life and we FORGET why we were even telling people about Jesus in the first place. Why do we even go out and invite people to church? Why do we take the time to have a twitter account and talk about how cool service was Wednesday night? Why do we even try to put Bible study groups in our schools and around our communities? Oh yeah, because we have a purpose to fulfill. We are called by God to lead people to Christ and see this nation and world come to know Him, that every knee shall bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord. Don't let the daily mundane tasks take you away from the very thing we should be thinking about every minute of every day. We are working to advance the Kingdom, to seek and save the lost, to do what Jesus did while he was here on earth. REMEMBER what He did and move! Act now, take heart to this cause and go after the lost and the hurting and the broken. Let us turn our eyes to God and learn to love like He loves and let's share that love. Let us LOVE. I don't know why I am even talking about this, but I just feel like we need a wake up call and if you want to make a difference you don't need to wait until you have that new job, or that new car, or that new year, or that new house, or that new feeling, or that new Jesus. He'll been the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. So do what you can with what you have and GO. If you have money, give it; if you have knowledge, apply it; if you have truth, testify to it; if you have words, write them; if you have wonder, amaze someone; if you have love, share it. Whatever you have, God gave it to you to do something with, so go, and MOVE. I dare you.
Faith is huge when it comes to God. I believe that there are measures of faith and that certain things may or may not happen based on that measure of faith. I like to think of faith as Hebrews 11:1 says, "Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see." Faith isn't something that can only happen if you trust in God's great power. I know it's easy to say God can do anything and look at the stars and see how that statement is entirely true, but sometimes it's hard to believe that we have trouble putting our faith in that same God. We say we can do all things through Christ like the Bible tells us, yet we don't have the faith in that same Christ to provide for us, also like the Bible tells us He will. Actually the Bible promises that He will provide. The concept of faith is so hard to wrap my mind around because I can have faith in what the Word says, yet I don't act on my own life with that same faith. God promises us many things and there are so many examples of people who have been blessed by those promises and all it takes is faith. All we need to do is be sure of what we hope for, and I know everyone has hopes. If we could have that faith in God to be 100 percent sure of what we hope for, then those things would become a reality. All it takes is a little bit of faith, true faith. I've let myself believe that a hope may not come true and usually it doesn't come true. If I believe, by faith, that something will happen then it will happen, but if I have an inkling of a doubt in my mind that it won't happen, it's not going to happen. God sees the intention of the heart and He knows when we truly have faith in something and when we are just merely hoping for something. Faith is more than a belief, it's an action and step forward towards a hope that we are sure of. Don't let the "realities" of this world bog you down with false faith. You can do all things through Christ, and you will be blessed if you stay true to His commands, and God will be your strength when you are weak, your blessing when you are poor, your sight when you are blind, and your way out when you see no path. God is bigger than all of your problems and if you just believe and have true faith, you will be rewarded :) Lord, I pray that I may never forget your promises in times of struggle and that I find true faith inside me. You are AMAZING Lord! Glory to You forever and ever. Amen.
God Bless
Church, a word used so much to talk about a building yet, Church is far from just a building. I've been reading a lot from the Bible on what the Church means and what exactly it is. I'm reading in 1 Corinthians right now and it's talking about the body of Christ, or the Church body of Christ which is the Church worldwide of every believer. It talks about how the Church is just like a human body, "If the foot should say, 'Because I am not a hand, i do not belong to the body,' it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body." (1 Cor. 12:15) This is such a great point to realize because the Church is not just a building, but there still is a local Church. God's people are supposed to come together and unite as one to become THE Church and we can do that through our local Churches. If you think that you don't have what it takes to be a part of the Church and the cause of Christ to build God's kingdom, then maybe you just are a foot wanting to be a hand. Ya, that looked like nonsense, but think about it... In 1 Cor. 12:15, that you just read, God's word specifically tells us that just because a foot wants to be a hand doesn't mean it should cease to belong. And isn't that the goal? To make people feel like, when they enter the local Church, that they can belong and be a part of something bigger than themselves? God wants us to realize that we are the body of Christ through the common factor of believers, but we also need to build up our physical, local Churches so that people actually have somewhere they can belong and do God's will. Church is much more than a building, yes, but there is a reason we go to Church every Sunday, sometimes Saturday, sometimes Wednesday [like Champions Centre], because we are here to change people's lives and be a part of God's will in building His kingdom on this earth! There is much to be done, and the second you think that there is "too much" Church or that you don't need to come every week, make sure you keep in mind that God has a plan for His kingdom and [like it or not] you are a part of it. I pray that I never doubt the importance and value of a Church service or event and that I continue to draw people closer to You by inviting them to Church. Lord, I pray you give this generation a passion and a burning fire in their soul to reach out to those who don't know you, not only because we want them to go to heaven and live with You but also so that they live a called life, building our kingdom, and carrying out Your will. Nothing makes us more passionate than being a part of something bigger than ourselves, so we ask that You continue to give us the courage and boldness to step out and touch people's lives. Glory and praise to You forever! Amen.
God Bless
President Elect Barrack Obama was sworn in today as the 44th President of the United States becoming the first African-American President. Today America, and President Obama, made history and I was just glad to be a part of it. I watched the Inauguration at school (WFL) today and it was pretty sweet. First, I have to say Pastor Rick Warren did an amazing job at the invocation and he was pretty much lead by the Spirit throughout that entire prayer. After that I was pumped to hear what President Obama had to say and he was very powerful. I do have to say that I personally didn't vote for Barrack Obama because of some key moral issues for me but he's MY President now and I support him fully. There are some things I still don't agree on but who doesn't agree with everything someone else agrees with? God has placed Barrack Obama as President of the United States and I need to respect God's authority. Romans 13:1 says, "Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established." God has placed Obama in presidency and I entirely support the decision. First of all, it's God... Why should I be questioning Him? Second of all, This man is a great public symbol of leadership, change and freedom, something that this country needs. If we can all rally behind Obama and support, I believe we can see some great changes in this country. This doesn't mean I'm going to abandon my opinion on certain issues, I'm still not going to agree with President Obama on some things, but that doesn't mean I won't support him. I believe he's going to be a great leader for this country in the next four, possibly eight years and we're going to see lots of progress and change. Today was a historical day and I pray we remember the original intent of this country by our forefather's and I also pray for Barrack Obama that the Lord Almighty will keep him safe and blessings will come for him and his family and that the Lord will give him the right strength, courage, compassion, and wisdom to lead this country. Praise and glory to God. Amen.
God Bless
I just got done reading 1 Samuel 20 and it was probably the most amazing display of true friendship I've ever read [you know it's good cuz it's in the Bible]. This chapter tells the story of two great friends, Jonathan and David, who are the prime example of what true friends look like. In the beginning of the chapter David is expressing to Jonathan his concern for his father's (Saul) behavior, because David knows Saul wants to kill him. So Jonathan being a good friend says, "Whatever you want me to do, I'll do for you." (1 Sam. 20:4) This display of love for David is so true and genuine that they showed friendship like God wanted friendship to be like. So Jonathan ends up creating an escape route for David if he realizes that Saul truly wants to kill David. Before he leaves David to go to dinner with his father (where David was also to attend), he makes an oath with David basically giving God permission to kill him if he doesn't follow through with what he promised David. That particular Scripture says, "And Jonathan had David reaffirm his oath out of love for him, because he loved him as he loved himself." and what's interesting is that it says that Jonathan loved David like he loved himself. This key point is what struck me at first because in the New Testament Jesus talks about loving one another as yourself as part of the greatest commandment and it's so true. When you decide to "love another as yourself" you start to do things for people that mean something. As I read this I just wanted to challenge myself to look at everyone as God does, with love, and treat them the way I would love to be treated, not how I would LIKE to be treated or would be OK with being treated but how I would LOVE to be treated. Later in the chapter Jonathan almost gets killed by his own father just for standing up for David and that shows me that Jonathan was a true friend. So I want to challenge you [as I will be challenging myself] to treat someone this week the way you'd LOVE to be treated and see what blessings will come. I just pray that I can learn to become a friend to my friends like Jonathan was to David.
God Bless
So, this is my first devotional blog and this read was pretty cool. I did one of those "open-the-Bible-wherever-and-see-what-happens" devotion's. I ended up reading through Deuteronomy 12 and 13 and it was pretty interesting. I'm not gonna lie, but I was doubtful at first to whether I would even get anything out of it from God. But, I hung in there and read these two chapters which correlate really well. Throughout Deuteronomy Moses is basically reiterating all the laws and commands of God from Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers and in chapter 12 and 13 he's talking about the Place of Worship and Worshiping other God's and all the consequences, etc. So he talks about this Place of Worship, where it is, and what you must do there and when I was reading that I kind of saw that as the Church today. And I don't mean the building, I mean the Church, the capital C Church, the Church that IS all believers. God wants us to find that "Place of Worship" in our hearts, where Jesus makes His dwelling, and worship Him there. God is setting up an atmosphere where we can be open enough to let the Holy Spirit's presence enter us and bask in our worship to Him. At the end of the chapter Moses gives warning to worshiping God like those who worship other gods, which leads into the next chapter, "Worshiping Other Gods". As I read this chapter I kept being reminded of the first commandment God gave to Moses, "You shall have no other gods before Me"(Deut. 5:6), and it all started to make sense. Once we turn away from God, even in the slightest ways, we begin to fall into worldly habits and our sin nature. Moses, in these two chapters, warns us of the most important trap of the devil: turning AWAY from God. I know in today's world people don't really worship golden calfs of anything, but having "other gods before Him" can be as deceiving as having a slight addiction to video games, or TV, or letting relationships with the opposite gender become your main focus. God should be FIRST and CENTER in our lives, the Bible says "no gods BEFORE Him", so anything you think you've been doing that you would prioritize over praying, reading your Bible, or going to church could be a potential "god" in you life that you could end up worshiping. I know I've been in a situation where I've noticed that I was putting something BEFORE God and it was ruining my relationship with Him. I pretty much got addicted to Guitar Hero, I was playing that game, literally, everyday. . .twice a day. It was so bad and, thankfully, I started to realize what it was doing to my relationship with God and I put a stop to it. I told myself I wouldn't play ANY video games for a week and I did it. I was tempted many times but I fought through and I don't play that game everyday anymore. It's not like I'm telling all the gamers to quit playing for life, cuz I actually still play Guitar Hero and plenty of other games, but it's not an ADDICTION anymore. I feel ashamed to say this, but I was letting Guitar Hero become another god BEFORE Him and it took me away from blessings I could've had in reading my Bible during that time, or having a really good prayer time with God. Still, I turned AWAY from God and turned to other gods and it hurt me in the long run. What really encouraged me though, was this Scripture at the end of chapter thirteen, it reads, "None of those condemned things shall be found in your hands, so that the Lord will turn from his fierce anger; he will show you mercy, have compassion on you, and increase your numbers, as he promised on oath to your forefathers, because you obey the Lord your God, keeping all his commands that I am giving you today and doing what is right in his eyes." (Deut. 13:17-18). This Scripture really speaks to me, telling me [and you] that all I need to do is follow His commands and obey His word and he will have mercy on me, show compassion and pour out blessing. Now, I can look to this Scripture to motivate me to obey God and keep His commands and remember the first of those commands, to have "no other gods BEFORE Him".
God Bless
About Me
Yo, what up my fellow comrads! I'm Nick :D and as I continue my walk with God I will post blogs of my devotionals and plenty of other things. It's a start, right?
Feel free to comment on what I write cuz it won't always be right haha.
Well, I hope you enjoy what I have to say and this is really for me, so I can keep track of what I write. This will definitely be pretty cool to look at ten years from now to see what I wrote.
Thanks for checkin this out! I love you dudes!
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