Redos

Thankfully, for our sake, God is in the business of redos! There are so many people in the Bible that God gave an opportunity for a 'redo'. I have been reading in the books of Exodus and Acts and want to give you a taste of just a few redos mentioned...Aaron, Moses and Paul. Aaron was to be Moses' spokesperson and help lead the Israelites out of Egypt; he accomplished those tasks, but then led the Israelites to worship a golden calf...an idol. Later, God allowed a 'redo' and anointed as well as consecrated Aaron as a priest to serve Him! Moses became angry with the Israelites and threw the tablets with the ten commandments written on them on the ground and they broke. God gave Moses a 'redo' and he spent 40 days rewriting the tablets. As he came down from Mt. Sinai, his face was radiant because he had been with the Lord! Paul had persecuted followers of the Way, and yet, God appeared to him on the road to Damascus, blinded him, and then gave him spiritual sight. He then healed his physical sight and used him in an amazing way to bring many to faith in Christ and strengthen them in their walk with the Savior! Don't EVER give up on yourself, or God, and what He can do with a life surrendered to Him. His mercies are new every morning and GREAT IS HIS FAITHFULNESS! God is in the business of redos each and every day! Praise His Name!

Created to Worship our Creator

When was the last time you worshiped the Lord...just you and He? God's word teaches us that worship of God pleases Him more than our 'sacrifices' of DOING the tasks that God desires for us to do. He is much more interested in us BEING the person that He wants us to be. I order to BE the person He wants us to be, we are to DAILY worship our Creator and allow Him to transform our lives into His image. There are many ways that can enhance our worship of the Sovereign God of the universe...study the various Hebrew names of God and thank Him for who He is, turn on some praise music and sing along,find a hymnal and sing out to God, or read the psalms and turn those verses into prayers and songs of praise and thanksgiving to God. It is essential that we carve out time to worship our Creator on a daily basis. As you do this, you will fall more in love with the God who made you and treasures you! 'I will praise God’s name in song and glorify him with thanksgiving. This will please the LORD more than an ox,more than a bull with its horns and hoofs.' (Psalm 69:30,31)

Freedom from Guilt

I have been auditing a class at OBU entitled 'Christian Counseling' by Gary R. Collins. The book is OUTSTANDING and I wanted to share an excerpt with you:'God knows us perfectly. He understands that we are merely dust, and He recognizes that we will sin so long as we are on earth. He does not expect perfection, but He wants a sincere attempt to do God's will as we understand it and as best we can. God is compassionate. He loves us unconditionally and will forgive our sins without demanding personal atonement and penance. The ultimate solution to guilt and guilt feelings is to honestly admit our pain,suffering, failures, and guilt; to confess sin to Christ and at times to other human beings; to pray for forgiveness and a sincere desire to repent and change behavior; and then to believe with divine help that we are forgiven and accepted by the God of the universe. It is He who in turn helps us to accept, love, and forgive both ourselves and others.' many times our struggles relate to a false concept of God and/or a false concept of God. Believe who God says He is and who you are...and experience His peace and freedom!

Lifetime Learner

I always want to be a lifetime learner. There is always something new to learn about God and His character,how I might emulate Him and reflect His character to those around me, and about myself and the world I live in. God is like a beautiful diamond with so many amazing facets to who He is. We can never fully know the vastness of our infinite God. I want to seek to know more of Him each day..."For my determined purpose is that I may know Him..." (Philippians3:10) I also want to know more about how God has made me and equipped me to serve Him and others. "He who gets wisdom loves his own soul; he who cherishes understanding prospers." (Proverbs 19:8) I seek to also be a learner of others and their needs as well as a learner of the culture and language they live in. (Yes, even in America!) I hope you will join with me in the desire to be a learner of our amazing God, of yourself, others, and the world we live in. "Listen to advice and accept instruction, and in the end you will be wise." (Proverbs 19:20)

Reflections

I have been procrastinating starting a blog for a looong time, but just can't put it off anymore. I really believe God desires for me to write my thoughts and reflections down both for myself and for others. This truly is a step of obedience for me and I trust that God will use this blog for His glory! "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it ALL for the glory of God." I Corinthians 10:31