Monday, January 30, 2012
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Who Am I?
I am the salt of the earth (Matt 5:13).
I am the light of the world (Matt 5:14).
I am a child of God ( John 1:12).
I am part of the true vine, and Christ’s life flows through me (John 15:1,5).
I am Christ’s friend ( John 15:15).
I am chosen by Christ to bear fruit (John 15:16).
I am Christ’s personal witness sent out to tell everybody about Him ( Acts 1:8).
I am a slave of righteousness ( Romans 6:18).
I am a slave of God, making me holy and giving me eternal life (Romans 6:22).
I am a child of God; I can call Him my father (Rom 8:14-15; Gal 3:16; 4:6).
I am a coheir with Christ, inheriting His glory (Rom 8:17).
I am a temple---a dwelling place—for God. His Spirit and His life live in me (1 Cor 3:16; 6:19).
I am joined forever to the Lord and am one spirit with Him (1 Cor 6:17).
I am part of Christ’s Body (1 Cor. 12:27).
I am a new person. My past is forgiven and everything is new (2 Cor 5:18-19).
I am a child of God and one with others in His family (Gal 3:26-28).
I am a child of God and will receive the inheritance He has promised (Gal. 4:6-7).
I am a saint, a holy person (Ephesians 1:1, Phil 1:1, Col 1:2).
I am a citizen of heaven seated in heaven right now (Ephesians 2:6, Phil 3:20).
I am God’s building project, His handiwork, created in Christ to do His work ( Eph 2:10).
I am a citizen of Heaven with all of God’s family (Eph 2:19).
I am a prisoner of Christ so that I can help others (Eph 3:1, 4:1).
I am righteous and holy (Eph 4:24).
I am hidden with Christ in God (Col. 3:3).
I am an expression of the life of Christ because He is my life (Col 3:4).
I am chosen of God, holy, and dearly loved (Col 3:12, 1 Thes 1:4).
I am a child of light, not of darkness (1Thes 5:5).
I am chosen to share in God’s heavenly calling (Hebrews 3:1).
I am part of Christ; I share in His life (Hebrews 3:14).
I am of God’s living stone, being built up in Christ as a spiritual house ( 1 Peter 2:5).
I am member of a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God (1 Peter 2:9-10).
I am only a visitor to this world in which I temporarily live (1 Peter 2:11).
I am an enemy of the devil ( 1 Peter 5:8).
I am child of God, and I will be like Christ when He returns (1 John 3:1-2).
I am born again in Christ, and the evil one—the devil—cannot touch me (1 John 5:18).
I am not the Great “I AM”(Ex 3:14, Jn 8:24,25,58), but by the grace of God, I am what I am ( 1 Cor 15:10).
I am the light of the world (Matt 5:14).
I am a child of God ( John 1:12).
I am part of the true vine, and Christ’s life flows through me (John 15:1,5).
I am Christ’s friend ( John 15:15).
I am chosen by Christ to bear fruit (John 15:16).
I am Christ’s personal witness sent out to tell everybody about Him ( Acts 1:8).
I am a slave of righteousness ( Romans 6:18).
I am a slave of God, making me holy and giving me eternal life (Romans 6:22).
I am a child of God; I can call Him my father (Rom 8:14-15; Gal 3:16; 4:6).
I am a coheir with Christ, inheriting His glory (Rom 8:17).
I am a temple---a dwelling place—for God. His Spirit and His life live in me (1 Cor 3:16; 6:19).
I am joined forever to the Lord and am one spirit with Him (1 Cor 6:17).
I am part of Christ’s Body (1 Cor. 12:27).
I am a new person. My past is forgiven and everything is new (2 Cor 5:18-19).
I am a child of God and one with others in His family (Gal 3:26-28).
I am a child of God and will receive the inheritance He has promised (Gal. 4:6-7).
I am a saint, a holy person (Ephesians 1:1, Phil 1:1, Col 1:2).
I am a citizen of heaven seated in heaven right now (Ephesians 2:6, Phil 3:20).
I am God’s building project, His handiwork, created in Christ to do His work ( Eph 2:10).
I am a citizen of Heaven with all of God’s family (Eph 2:19).
I am a prisoner of Christ so that I can help others (Eph 3:1, 4:1).
I am righteous and holy (Eph 4:24).
I am hidden with Christ in God (Col. 3:3).
I am an expression of the life of Christ because He is my life (Col 3:4).
I am chosen of God, holy, and dearly loved (Col 3:12, 1 Thes 1:4).
I am a child of light, not of darkness (1Thes 5:5).
I am chosen to share in God’s heavenly calling (Hebrews 3:1).
I am part of Christ; I share in His life (Hebrews 3:14).
I am of God’s living stone, being built up in Christ as a spiritual house ( 1 Peter 2:5).
I am member of a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God (1 Peter 2:9-10).
I am only a visitor to this world in which I temporarily live (1 Peter 2:11).
I am an enemy of the devil ( 1 Peter 5:8).
I am child of God, and I will be like Christ when He returns (1 John 3:1-2).
I am born again in Christ, and the evil one—the devil—cannot touch me (1 John 5:18).
I am not the Great “I AM”(Ex 3:14, Jn 8:24,25,58), but by the grace of God, I am what I am ( 1 Cor 15:10).
Saturday, January 28, 2012
Friday, January 27, 2012
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Monday, January 23, 2012
Shane and Shane: Before The Throne (with Bethany Dillon)
When Satan tempts me to despair,
And tells me of the guilt within,
Upward I look, and see him there
Who made an end of all my sin.
Because a sinless Savior died,
My sinful soul is counted free;
For God, the Just, is satisfied
To look on Him and pardon me
To look on Him and pardon me
Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
Praise the One, Risen Son of God!
Thursday, January 19, 2012
The Lord is good and He remains faithful, forever.
Forever.
Throughout the Bible God has made promises.
He promises to never leave us or forsake us. And He hasn't.
He promised Abraham that He would have many descendants. And Abraham had MANY descendants.
He promised that there would be a Savior. And there was.
He does not break His promises. In Titus 1:2, we see that it is impossible for God to lie. He is true to His word.
God also promises that we will face difficulty; the Christian walk isn't easy. So, we are to remain faithful to Him and trust Him. He loves us, He is good, and He is faithful. Forever will He be with us. He will never let us go. His love endures forever. Forever. Can you think about that? Forever. Forever He is faithful, Forever He is strong, Forever He is with us.
It is hard to have faith and trust Him, especially in tough times. But, that's what we are to do. Trust Him. Because He is good. And He will never let us go. Romans 8:28 tells us: 28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. And in Jeremiah 29:11, it says: For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
It's hard sometimes to see the hurt and the crap in this world, and to still say, God is good. But, the truth is, He is Good. And He loves us. And no matter what we're facing, we are to remain faithful to Him, just as He remains faithful to us. No, we're not perfect, and certainly not God, but we are called to have faith and to be faithful to Him, and when we seek Him He will help us.
God's timing is perfect. Those who wait on the Lord will renew their strength. It's not easy to be patient, to wait on Him. But that's what we are to do.
Remaining faithful and being patient isn't easy, and it won't be. But we have to do this. Because He will deliver us. His love endures forever. He is constant, He does not waver.
And He will bless us so much. The walk with God isn't easy, but it's good. He has a plan for us, even if we don't understand. His ways are far above ours, and we won't understand completely. But, He loves us and has a wonderful plan for us.
We see in Proverbs 3:5-6, 5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
6 in all your ways submit to him,
and he will make your paths straight.[a
He knows what we need. He really is good beyond what we can understand. May we remain faithful to Him, and Trust His plan for us even when it's tough. May we grow in this truth.
This is the truth God revealed to me/reminded me of, thought I would share. God Bless. Take Care.
I leave you with this video. Take a look/listen.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2RmZFaruXhs
edit:
Also, read all of Proverbs 3. Great. And check out Psalm 136; here are a few verses from it, Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. His love endures forever. Give thanks for the God of gods. His love endures forever. Give thanks to the Lord of lords; His love endures forever. Psalm 136:1-3
Oh that we may hold on to the truth that God loves us so much. May we have great faith.
Like I mentioned, He wants to great things in us, we are to just trust Him and be obedient to Him. Let's let Him do a great work, and just trust Him. How easy that is to say, but so hard to always do. But, Lord help us! Oh, what great things can come out of this! Blessings to you.
-Kelsey
Throughout the Bible God has made promises.
He promises to never leave us or forsake us. And He hasn't.
He promised Abraham that He would have many descendants. And Abraham had MANY descendants.
He promised that there would be a Savior. And there was.
He does not break His promises. In Titus 1:2, we see that it is impossible for God to lie. He is true to His word.
God also promises that we will face difficulty; the Christian walk isn't easy. So, we are to remain faithful to Him and trust Him. He loves us, He is good, and He is faithful. Forever will He be with us. He will never let us go. His love endures forever. Forever. Can you think about that? Forever. Forever He is faithful, Forever He is strong, Forever He is with us.
It is hard to have faith and trust Him, especially in tough times. But, that's what we are to do. Trust Him. Because He is good. And He will never let us go. Romans 8:28 tells us: 28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. And in Jeremiah 29:11, it says: For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
It's hard sometimes to see the hurt and the crap in this world, and to still say, God is good. But, the truth is, He is Good. And He loves us. And no matter what we're facing, we are to remain faithful to Him, just as He remains faithful to us. No, we're not perfect, and certainly not God, but we are called to have faith and to be faithful to Him, and when we seek Him He will help us.
God's timing is perfect. Those who wait on the Lord will renew their strength. It's not easy to be patient, to wait on Him. But that's what we are to do.
Remaining faithful and being patient isn't easy, and it won't be. But we have to do this. Because He will deliver us. His love endures forever. He is constant, He does not waver.
And He will bless us so much. The walk with God isn't easy, but it's good. He has a plan for us, even if we don't understand. His ways are far above ours, and we won't understand completely. But, He loves us and has a wonderful plan for us.
We see in Proverbs 3:5-6, 5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
6 in all your ways submit to him,
and he will make your paths straight.[a
He knows what we need. He really is good beyond what we can understand. May we remain faithful to Him, and Trust His plan for us even when it's tough. May we grow in this truth.
This is the truth God revealed to me/reminded me of, thought I would share. God Bless. Take Care.
I leave you with this video. Take a look/listen.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2RmZFaruXhs
edit:
Also, read all of Proverbs 3. Great. And check out Psalm 136; here are a few verses from it, Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. His love endures forever. Give thanks for the God of gods. His love endures forever. Give thanks to the Lord of lords; His love endures forever. Psalm 136:1-3
Oh that we may hold on to the truth that God loves us so much. May we have great faith.
Like I mentioned, He wants to great things in us, we are to just trust Him and be obedient to Him. Let's let Him do a great work, and just trust Him. How easy that is to say, but so hard to always do. But, Lord help us! Oh, what great things can come out of this! Blessings to you.
-Kelsey
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Honduras
God is good.
God has a plan for my life.
God works is mysterious ways...we don't always understand what He is doing.
FAITH is the very core and foundation of my relationship with God.
For months, my church had been planning a trip to Honduras, but I didn't plan on going. I kept hearing things about it, but I wasn't really involved in it, since I wasn't going. But, as it got closer and closer for my church family to leave, people were talking more about it, and I was wishing that I had planned to go with them. Well...apparently it was planned for me to go, all along; it just wasn't my plan. The Honduras team was to leave last Tuesday early in the morning . Around 7:30 pm, monday, the night before, I received a call from my youth minister. A friend of mine who was going on the trip wasn't going to be able to go on the trip any more; her passport had expired and she didn't know it until that night. And my youth minister was looking for someone to go in her place. I hated it so much for my friend; it sucked so bad; I know how much she wanted to go. But, there was a reason all this was happening. So, I told my youth minister I would think about it and talk to my parents and call him back within minutes. I did want to go. At first, my parents were very hesitant; it was extremely last minute and other factors were contributing; I mean of course, understandable. At first I told my youth minister no because my parents didn't seem like they wanted me to go, but after a few minutes and talking with my parents, they gave me the okay to go. So around 9:30 Monday night until about 1:00, I was packing for Honduras. I got to the airport a few hours later and headed to Honduras with my church family! It was crazy; I was going to Honduras! I was excited, but didn't really know what to expect. I had gone on international mission trips before, so I wasn't really worried about it.
While I was in Honduras, I had the privilege of ministering alongside of my home church family and other believers who worked in the orphanage, where we served. I don't feel like those kids know any stranger, well maybe they knew we loved me that's why they acted the way they did, not sure. But, as soon as they encountered me and my sisters on the first morning, they hugged and greeted us like we had been their friends forever. They wanted to hold our hands, hug us, and be our friends, and they didn't even know who we were! I spent most of my week with older girls...they ranged from around 12-25, but I also got to spend time with the toddlers and the younger girls and boys. Those kids are so beautiful and sweet; what a loving group of kids! And those little ones are so cute! The loved they showed was a great glimpse of God's love for us. And they were so sharing. They were constantly writing us notes, making us bracelets, and giving us other things that they had. When we would take them to the store; they would share what they got with us, their friends, and their siblings. They barely knew us, but they loved us like they'd none us for a long time. It's crazy because groups come in and out of that place all the time, and they still love on us just like never seen people come in there. I know they long for people to love on them and spend time on them because there just isn't enough for them all to get a lot of one on one on attention (but those staff love them, no doubt), but when I think about this, I think of two scenarios. I just wonder how I would be if I was in their place. Would I be so open to love, to love people I didn't know? Or I would be reserved? I get that they would want love, but I just wonder if they ever are hesitant? Just a thought. I am thankful for the loved they showed me. And praise God that He is doing so much in their lives, He is showing His love through them. And when we left, they were sad, but they told us not to cry; are they so used to people coming in and out of there? Just was crazy to see. They definitely taught us a lot! It was a blessing to get to spend time with them. I am thankful for the older girls that I did get to spend more time with; I hope to stay in contact with them.
I am thankful that I knew some Spanish, others from my group knew some, and some of the kids knew some English, so it was definitely helpful, but it was still a definite struggle. There were times when I just wished I could just say what I needed to say in Spanish like I could in English, but it wasn't that easy. Having a language barrier is tough for sure, but God used us in awesome ways to love on those kids, despite the language barrier. I will say it is such a cool thing to witness prayer and praise (singing) and reading of Scripture in Spanish and in English; God is being worshipped by His people in two different languages. Even though I didn't know the language, it was still very cool; it didn't matter whether or not I knew the language.
God is good.
God has a plan for my life.
God works is mysterious ways...we don't always understand what He is doing.
FAITH is the very core and foundation of my relationship with God.
God seemed to be resonating these truths while we were in Honduras; I'm pretty sure, in some way or another, the fact that God does things we don't understand was talked about at least four times while we were, basically the same wording. And specifically, faith was talked about two times. And there was a talk about God is good no matter what at least once. But that's just specifically, they all were talked about and tied in throughout the week. God is good; He loves us and wants to do awesome things in our lives (His plan for us), we don't always understand what He's doing or why He's doing, but because the previous are true, He will be faithful, and we should be faithful to Him, and trust in Him. Good stuff.
The trip was challenging at times, but all in all it was good, and a great blessing.
Peace and Love.
-Kelsey
God has a plan for my life.
God works is mysterious ways...we don't always understand what He is doing.
FAITH is the very core and foundation of my relationship with God.
For months, my church had been planning a trip to Honduras, but I didn't plan on going. I kept hearing things about it, but I wasn't really involved in it, since I wasn't going. But, as it got closer and closer for my church family to leave, people were talking more about it, and I was wishing that I had planned to go with them. Well...apparently it was planned for me to go, all along; it just wasn't my plan. The Honduras team was to leave last Tuesday early in the morning . Around 7:30 pm, monday, the night before, I received a call from my youth minister. A friend of mine who was going on the trip wasn't going to be able to go on the trip any more; her passport had expired and she didn't know it until that night. And my youth minister was looking for someone to go in her place. I hated it so much for my friend; it sucked so bad; I know how much she wanted to go. But, there was a reason all this was happening. So, I told my youth minister I would think about it and talk to my parents and call him back within minutes. I did want to go. At first, my parents were very hesitant; it was extremely last minute and other factors were contributing; I mean of course, understandable. At first I told my youth minister no because my parents didn't seem like they wanted me to go, but after a few minutes and talking with my parents, they gave me the okay to go. So around 9:30 Monday night until about 1:00, I was packing for Honduras. I got to the airport a few hours later and headed to Honduras with my church family! It was crazy; I was going to Honduras! I was excited, but didn't really know what to expect. I had gone on international mission trips before, so I wasn't really worried about it.
While I was in Honduras, I had the privilege of ministering alongside of my home church family and other believers who worked in the orphanage, where we served. I don't feel like those kids know any stranger, well maybe they knew we loved me that's why they acted the way they did, not sure. But, as soon as they encountered me and my sisters on the first morning, they hugged and greeted us like we had been their friends forever. They wanted to hold our hands, hug us, and be our friends, and they didn't even know who we were! I spent most of my week with older girls...they ranged from around 12-25, but I also got to spend time with the toddlers and the younger girls and boys. Those kids are so beautiful and sweet; what a loving group of kids! And those little ones are so cute! The loved they showed was a great glimpse of God's love for us. And they were so sharing. They were constantly writing us notes, making us bracelets, and giving us other things that they had. When we would take them to the store; they would share what they got with us, their friends, and their siblings. They barely knew us, but they loved us like they'd none us for a long time. It's crazy because groups come in and out of that place all the time, and they still love on us just like never seen people come in there. I know they long for people to love on them and spend time on them because there just isn't enough for them all to get a lot of one on one on attention (but those staff love them, no doubt), but when I think about this, I think of two scenarios. I just wonder how I would be if I was in their place. Would I be so open to love, to love people I didn't know? Or I would be reserved? I get that they would want love, but I just wonder if they ever are hesitant? Just a thought. I am thankful for the loved they showed me. And praise God that He is doing so much in their lives, He is showing His love through them. And when we left, they were sad, but they told us not to cry; are they so used to people coming in and out of there? Just was crazy to see. They definitely taught us a lot! It was a blessing to get to spend time with them. I am thankful for the older girls that I did get to spend more time with; I hope to stay in contact with them.
I am thankful that I knew some Spanish, others from my group knew some, and some of the kids knew some English, so it was definitely helpful, but it was still a definite struggle. There were times when I just wished I could just say what I needed to say in Spanish like I could in English, but it wasn't that easy. Having a language barrier is tough for sure, but God used us in awesome ways to love on those kids, despite the language barrier. I will say it is such a cool thing to witness prayer and praise (singing) and reading of Scripture in Spanish and in English; God is being worshipped by His people in two different languages. Even though I didn't know the language, it was still very cool; it didn't matter whether or not I knew the language.
God is good.
God has a plan for my life.
God works is mysterious ways...we don't always understand what He is doing.
FAITH is the very core and foundation of my relationship with God.
God seemed to be resonating these truths while we were in Honduras; I'm pretty sure, in some way or another, the fact that God does things we don't understand was talked about at least four times while we were, basically the same wording. And specifically, faith was talked about two times. And there was a talk about God is good no matter what at least once. But that's just specifically, they all were talked about and tied in throughout the week. God is good; He loves us and wants to do awesome things in our lives (His plan for us), we don't always understand what He's doing or why He's doing, but because the previous are true, He will be faithful, and we should be faithful to Him, and trust in Him. Good stuff.
The trip was challenging at times, but all in all it was good, and a great blessing.
Peace and Love.
-Kelsey
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