Weeks in Review: November 12-25

Early this week (November 12-18), I was feeling stressed and overwhelmed with everything that needed to be done. Thankfully, God reminded me through His Word that it is when everything is out of whack and when there's just so much to do, that the place that I need to be is in His presence!

I never ever thought that I would say this, but I think God is slowly but surely transforming me into a people-person. He is showing me just how much He cares about other people and how much He wants me to care for them as well. I've always tended to prefer to spend time by myself, rather than with other people. I have always felt that I needed to have something to say in order to talk with people, otherwise it might be awkward. However, God is teaching me that it's not so much as the stories or advice that I might share, but the questions that I ask that are important. Questions keep a conversation going. The thing too is that if one walks by the Spirit, then the Spirit will tell someone what to say, what questions to ask. I'm not sure if I have seen this played out in my own life yet, and I'm not even really sure if/how I would know if it did happen. I guess it's something that God will have to keep training me in. (By the way, it's not as if I didn't love people before-- I tended to love those who seemed to be left out or people who were somehow different. Now, God is showing me how to love everyone that I come into contact with.)

Overall, I had a good Thanksgiving and a good break from school. Yet, I also struggled with giving into the fleshly desires of sleeping in (beyond what I should have) and watching movies excessively and eating junk food excessively.Those things, by themselves, are not bad, but when they drown out the Spirit's voice and what He is telling me to do, then it becomes sin. Rest does not necessarily equal giving into the fleshly desires that have been controlled up until that point. Rest is much more than that, and I neglected that this week. So even though I feel rested, I did not really rest as I should have. (Hopefully that makes sense; sorry if it's confusing.)

Towards the beginning of the semester, I prayed that God might show me if I really need other humans or if I could just be fine all by myself with God. Almost immediately, God answered by giving me loneliness. This week, God continued to answer that prayer by showing me how boring it can be without other people around. If it was just me and God on this earth, then there would be no one to love, besides God that is. Yes, humans definitely need other humans. I need other people-- not only so that they can teach me and show me my wrongs, but also just so that I can keep sane.

Today, I was challenged at church when two men gave their testimonies of how after they were saved, they didn't miss a day of reading their Bibles. That really challenged me because there's the occasional day during the month when I will give in to the fleshly desire to sleep in rather than go spend time with God. Lately, I noticed that that was happening more frequently in my life-- more like once or twice a week. I've also noticed that I've just been spiritually apathetic lately. (Now, in terms of psychology, I don't know which one is the cause of the other. I've just noticed that there is a correlation.) So please pray that God might light the fire in my soul again. Along with that, pray that I might diligently do the work that God has for me these last 19 days before I go home. Thanks!

 Words I learned: armamentarium, reprobate, machinate

"It appears that the best way to get more of what you need is to give away the little you think you have left-- at the appropriate time and in the appropriate way. Yes, the best way to be surprisingly satisfied is to be irrationally released to respond to God's promptings to serve, even when doing so seems impossible because of your perceived lack."

"Past failure doesn't have to mean future failure."

Have a blessed week!

Weeks in Review: October 29-November 11

Sorry that I did not write last week. The time change threw me off, and so I went to bed super early. Now I'm back to a pretty regular schedule though. The second to last week was good, but this last week was difficult for me. I was reminded that I'm not in control, even though I think I am. A hard lesson to swallow.

I have been re-reading Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan, and I have noticed a recurring pattern throughout the book. Whenever Christian meets someone along the road, he is always asked about his journey thus far, and others tell him of their stories as well. Why doesn't this happen in the Christian community? Why is this not the first thing that we ask people when we meet them? Why isn't it the question that we ask our friends when we see them? Why don't we ask, "What has the Lord been doing in your life since the last time we spoke together?" or "What is your story?"

The words of the Gospel should always be on our lips. Even if people we know have rejected the Truth before, it is important to keep on telling them. It may not be until the 47th time that they hear the Gospel that the Spirit has worked in their hearts enough to finally accept the Truth and repent of their sins.

One thing that I was thinking and laughing about this week was how people try to take God out of public schools. Yet, their attempt is futile. He is still actively at work in public schools. His Sovereignty has no limits.

Another thing that I thought about this week is God's deliverance. Certainly there are things that we see that He delivers us from. Then I thought about how there are probably many unseen things that God delivers us from. We may not know about these unseen things that God delivers us from, but we can still praise Him for it! An example might be God delaying us at the grocery store so that we don't get in a car wreck.

I think that Psalm 12:1 describes well the condition of the United States, "Help, Lord, for the godly are no more; the faithful have vanished from among men." This is seen especially with the re-election of a man who has disregard for God's laws concerning human life and marriage.

Words I learned this week:consanguineous, upshot, qua, anorectic, polemic, heteronomy, paean, concupiscence, gambit

Please pray for me this week as I have a lot to accomplish before Thanksgiving break. Pray that I might have diligence in the work that God has given me to do, and that I also might enjoy it.

"One thing I ask of the Lord, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple." ~Psalm 27:4