I don't want to give up what I like doing

This was one of the biggest issues I used to deal with.  I was afraid of leading a boring life and missing out on my college years.  (The best four years of my life, right?)  But if I already assumed I'd have to give up some things, I already knew they were wrong.  I believe in absolute truth.  We all know right from wrong- it's in our conscience.  If your desires are holding you back from surrendering your life to Christ, don't let them stop you!  Life with Christ means freedom and purpose!  It means experiencing a love that this world simply cannot provide.  We're all looking for the same thing, and we're searching in all the wrong places: boyfriends/girlfriends, sports, good grades, jobs, social status, food, shopping, whatever else.  How do we find what we're looking for? John 10:10 "The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy.  I came that they may have life and have it more abundantly."


To put our desires before the truth of Christ is to buy into the age-old deception.  "We don't need God- we can be our own god."  It's a matter of putting your will before God's will.  This is so appealing to us.  But you don't have to live in the world for long to realize that its' promises are false, and its' paths to happiness and salvation are also false.  James 1:17 "Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows."  Even though I was scared to give up the things I wanted to do, I knew that this life is just a rat race.  Always running, never arriving.  Getting filled up while running empty.  It's a continuous cycle.


http://carm.org/apologetics/objections-and-answers/i-dont-want-give-what-i-doing


This article is from the website www.carm.org, which is a Christian Apologetics website.  Apologetics means "defense of the faith."  Apologetics offers logic and reasoning behind faith in Christ.  If a person truly took time to do the research, s/he would see how much faith it takes to not believe.

What are you doing on Sunday nights?

Join us at The Rising! :)
www.neorising.com

Peace and Justice!

This is one of my favorite pastors- Mark Driscoll.  Comment and share what you think about his message!  I'll probably post more clips of his sermons.

"How I yearn for you all"

Philippians 1:8 "For God is my witness, how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus."

The author of Philippians is Paul of Tarsus (formerly known as Saul.)  Saul was a persecutor of Christians.  He hated them.  He witnessed and supported the murder of Stephen for his faith in Christ.  Saul had studied the Scriptures thoroughly, and he did not believe that Jesus was the Son of God.


One day, Saul was on the road to Damascus to continue persecuting those following "The Way" (Christians.)  It was then that Jesus literally stopped him in his tracks and asked, "Saul, why are you persecuting me?" in which Saul responded, "Lord, who are you?"  From then on his life changed entirely, and he became a devout follower of Christ.  Paul wrote 13 books of the New Testament, and spent the rest of his life proclaiming the Gospel.  


Only the Lord can change hearts.  I did not have the same care and compassion for people that I do now; especially people I have never met.  It's an indescribable joy.  Where does that joy come from?  It doesn't come from an earthly source.  It comes from a supernatural source- Christ.  He's alive, still changing hearts and still drawing people to himself.  I can testify to that, just like Paul did.

Those Bear Grylls posters...

If you go to BW, you have seen the blue posters with a picture of Bear Grylls and the caption, "Is there more to life?"  Alpha is a program that starts THIS Tuesday, February 15th, at 9:00p.m. in the S.A.C.  The purpose of Alpha is to explore the meaning of life.  All BW students are being encouraged to check it out, and here are a few reasons why:


1.  FREE food is offered at every meeting.
2.  It is a chance to meet new people with different life stories.
3.  You get to have open, non-biased discussion about the basic questions of life.


This program starts with broad questions, and as the weeks continue, starts to look at who the person of Jesus Christ actually is.  What does he stand for?  Why did he say he was the truth?  After all, IF God really did exist, what would you ask?

Great Morning

Weather.com just told me it's 5 degrees and sunny, but feels like negative 8.  If you know me... I HATE being cold.  But it's interesting how the sun is always shining on the coldest days.  I see it as the Lord showing us his faithfulness.


Ok, here's why mornings are great: I get to wake up and spend time with Jesus.  The next great thing about mornings: COFFEE.  The next great thing: mornings happen every day.  There's something about seeking the Lord before all the stresses of the day start piling up.  My mind is clear, and I can focus on the only thing that really matters.  The world changes every day and we can't find stability in anything.  When it comes down to it, not even in family and friends.  One of many reasons I love the Lord is because he offers consistent love, joy, peace, and hope.  And instead of disappearing when times get difficult, that's when these attributes actually flourish!  That's how I know God is real.  He's always there.  He's always watching us.  Not because he's waiting for us to mess up, but because he's madly in love with us.


Anyways...  Here's the verse from my devotional this morning:

1 Peter 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!  According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.

I don't know how people live in this corrupt world without a living hope, but I am thankful to have found something I can rely on and put my trust in.

Psalm 4:8

In peace I will both lie down and sleep; for you alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety.


I am a person who happens to have bizarre dreams all the time.  They're not always scary, but they bother me to some degree.  If you have weird or scary dreams a lot, something that helps me is praying before falling asleep.  When I pray I get the best sleep, it's so peaceful.  Seriously try it- the Lord is faithful.

My First Online Prayer

Father, thank You for the opportunity to share my faith with anybody who cares to read this blog.  I pray that as people read they would see Christ, not me.  Make clear to people how You met me, turned me around, and showed me the way home.  Reveal to them the difference between religion and a relationship.  Let this be done in Your will and for Your glory.  In Jesus' name- Amen.

This blog is a testimony to the transforming work of Jesus Christ.  I will be writing about my personal walk and various related topics.  They will include how I became a Jesus freak, how God works through my life, Scripture, prayer, relativism, apologetics, etc.  My desire is for people with ALL beliefs to participate, and I look forward to receiving feedback.  If you want a specific topic covered or a question answered, please let me know.  (Keep in mind I am not a scholar on any given topic- the point of this blog is to express my thoughts and personal experience.) 

Hopefully this will be interesting and thought-provoking.