Update

A lot's happened since my last blog post—I've been fighting off a bad case of writers block, and haven't been able to keep up on my blog or journal or book writing the way I'd like to.  But as I said, a lot has happened.

I got a job, at Starbucks, and have been working pretty hard lately to begin saving up for mission trips and college funds.  I've tried to keep up on school, but with work being such a high priority, doing school has become harder... I think that God's teaching me perseverance in all that I'm going through right now.  I have made a decision regarding going up to camp (www.eaglelakecamps.com) this summer, and I've decided to go up as a nanny.   I'm excited about the time I'll get to spend with the two kids I'll be watching, and very glad to be going up to camp again.  Not only is the scenery beautiful, but the Lord has worked in mighty ways through the camp, and I'm ready to see Him work there again.

I hope that this finds you all well, and that you have all had a blessed Easter!  He has RISEN!   

Book of the Week: Do Hard Things by Alex and Brett Harris

Be warned: don't read this book unless you're ready to make some change in your life.  The book Do Hard Things is a good one about teenagers doing things for God—and not just any old "things", but hard things, things that make us "rebel against low expectations."  This is the book that started it all off for the Harris' boys movement, one that hundreds of teens have stood for in the last four years.  It's about the need for teens to go above and beyond the small prospects their parents, teachers, and other adults constantly (and unknowingly) give them.  How hard can it be to take a little more initiative and get some other things done—something other than the normal, "make your bed, do most of your homework, and have a semi-daily record of taking out the trash?"  Instead, Alex and Brett chose to do above and beyond what they needed to by launching the Rebelution.

This book helps us figure out how to change the way we think based on 1^st Timothy 4:12, "Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity."  It helps us to go above and beyond the low values and expectations that our country has given to teenagers and help lead a growing group of young people who are totally sold out for God and what He wants for us.  There is a quote by Randy Alcorn on the front cover of this book that defines the whole book—"Will prove to be one of the most life-changing and culture-changing books of this generation."

He'll love till the world ends

Life's been crazy, as usual, but I can't say that I would change that for anything.  Sometimes I think that crazy is good, and other times that good is crazy... it gets complicated. 

 But no matter what, I want to talk about something that I've been relearning lately:  God won't give up on you.  It doesn't matter what you do, how horrible you've been, what your past is like.  God simply won't give up.  He won't let go.  I'm listening to a song by Disciple right now, an older one called After the World.  You've probably heard it before...

 "Was I there for the worst of all your pain?
And was I there when your blue skies ran away?
Was I there when the rains were flooding you off of your feet?
Those were my tears falling down for you, falling down for you

(chorus)
I'm the one that you've been looking for
I'm the one that you've been waiting for
I've had my eyes on you ever since you were born
I will love you after the rain falls down
I will love you after the sun goes out
I'll have my eyes on you after the world is no more

Did I arrange the light of your first day?
Did I create the rhythm your heart makes?
Could you believe when your candle starts to fade
I want to be the one that you believe
could take it all away, take your heart away"

This song is a direct letter from God to me—this is when I love music so much, when the lyrics stands out among the beat and teach me something that I wasn't even looking for.  In this case, it's teaching me that life, however horrible, however hard, is lived with a certain SomeOne at my side.  And that SomeOne has loved me since I was born, and He'll love me until the world ends. 

 That's true for us all—God will never, never let us go or stop loving us.  He is there for the worst of our life, just standing there next to us, waiting for us to talk to Him.  Waiting for us to recognize Him, to let Him help us through.  He won't let you go.

The Relationship of a Lifetime

I went to the Rock and Worship Roadshow over the weekend and Bart Millard, the lead singer of MercyMe, said something that really struck me. He was talking about our relationship with God and how our lives shouldn't be the same after we accept Jesus into our lives as before. He said, "is there ever one of those times when all of a sudden, when you're praying or reading the Bible or just thinking about the Lord, that all of a sudden He's just all over you, dripping from your beard [for those of you who have one!], so close to you that He's inside of you, and you know, you just know that life will never be the same?" That's the relationship between you and God. And your life is going to be different. There's no way around it.Mary knew about this relationship when she sang the song recorded in Luke chapter 1:

“My soul glorifies the Lord
and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
for he has been mindful
of the humble state of his servant.
From now on all generations will call me blessed,
for the Mighty One has done great things for me—
holy is his name.
His mercy extends to those who fear him,
from generation to generation.
He has performed mighty deeds with his arm;
he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts.
He has brought down rulers from their thrones
but has lifted up the humble.
He has filled the hungry with good things
but has sent the rich away empty.
He has helped his servant Israel,
remembering to be merciful
to Abraham and his descendants forever,
just as he promised our ancestors.”

When you read this song of adoration you can see the joy and peace that lies behind it. When Mary sang it she was so exultant to the Lord that the words most likely poured out, almost on their own, trying to let the wonderful joy Mary had stored up inside her out to the world, to show it a little bit of the love the Lord had for His people. David, in many of the Psalms, shows this same spirit of exultation in Psalm 111, when he says,

"Praise the LORD.
I will extol the LORD with all my heart
in the council of the upright and in the assembly.
Great are the works of the LORD;
they are pondered by all who delight in them.
Glorious and majestic are his deeds,
and his righteousness endures forever.
He has caused his wonders to be remembered;
the LORD is gracious and compassionate.
He provides food for those who fear him;
he remembers his covenant forever.
He has shown his people the power of his works,
giving them the lands of other nations.
The works of his hands are faithful and just;
all his precepts are trustworthy.
They are established for ever and ever,
enacted in faithfulness and uprightness.
He provided redemption for his people;
he ordained his covenant forever—
holy and awesome is his name.
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom;
all who follow his precepts have good understanding.
To him belongs eternal praise."

I can just picture the people of Israel dancing to such a song of glorification and joy, dancing a wild dance of raw beauty and love for their wonderful Lord and true King. That's what I think of when I look back on listening to Bart from MercyMe that night—that's what true joy and adoration are, what it really means to have a relationship with Jesus Christ.

Footsteps

This is the video "Footsteps" by New Tribes Mission, featuring the Bible Translator Lisa Kappeler.  It's an amazing look into the lives of the people serving the Lord on the mission field.

When life gives you lemons...

Have you ever heard the phrase, "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade?"   My understanding of the sentence is that when bad things come your way, you should simply make something good out of them, or at least look at them in the most positive manner possible.  I struggle with that one, with being happy despite the circumstances, and I think that a lot of other people do, too.  Sometimes other people become down about something that we think isn't a big deal, and we think that they just need to lighten up a bit and then life'll go on just fine.  Other times, it's the opposite—we make a big deal out of a seemingly small thing, and other people start avoiding us because we're complaining and upset about something that's really out of our control.  That's where we need to look to God.
I did a study on the will of God and how we should react to it today, just so I can understand why "bad things" happen in our lives, and what we should do when things don't exactly go our way.  1 Peter 4:19 sums up the whole matter really well:

So then, those who suffer according to God’s will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good.

That passage is really hard to comprehend, even though it reads easily enough.  Some people may say that the summery of the verse is "if you're suffering or hurting, it's according to God's will and you should respond to his will by doing good."  I disagree.  I think that the summery should go something like this: "Our faithful and loving Lord will at times make us suffer by His will; during these times we must commit ourselves to His faithfulness and continue to grow and mature in Him."  We need to trust Jesus in the times of our suffering, rejection, pain, or frustration—this is the only way that we are able to grow and do good.  If we chose instead to turn away from God and vent our frustration and anger against other people, all it does is cause more hurt, but God's made a way for us to grow through it instead—by keeping close to Him.
So the next time "life's giving you lemons," don't give them back or act like they don't exist.  Make a big pitcher of lemonade—something sweet from the pain—and share it with family, friends, and most importantly, God!