Victoria

I want to ask you guys to pray for a little girl. Her name is Victoria and she is five years old and battling cancer. I do not personally know her, only through email. Please say a prayer for Victoria and her family. Their only hope for her now is Jesus. She is a wonderful, amazing little girl who dreams of growing up to be a ballerina and a mommy. Though I don't really know her, I know that she is such a sweetheart and is still full of faith. Please keep her in your prayers.

Merry Christmas; after hearing about Victoria my heart got set back into what Christmas is really all about....the gift of Jesus Christ, and our hope in Him. Because of Him we truly have something to celebrate.

May you have a beautiful Christmas and a blessed New Year!

Sweetly Broken

I love the song, "Sweetly Broken" - it is definitely one of my favorite worship songs.

I love the chorus, how it talks about Jesus beckoning us to the cross, drawing us to our knees, and we become so lost in His love. I love the thought of that, I love the truth in that. That He is always calling us to the cross, that place where we become broken in ourselves and are finally able to be made whole in Him.

Sometimes though I find that I often fight the things that would bring me to that place. This week though I was looking up Scripture that had to do with our brokeness and each one I found brought me comfort. For I saw how God can take the broken heart and heal it. Sometimes I think the hardest prayer to pray is just simply saying "God I need You", and yet I was thinking how maybe it's the best kind. I have learned that daily we are a broken people, yet our brokeness can be made sweet when we take it to the Lord.

Psalm 51:17
The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, A broken and a contrite heart-- These, O God, You will not despise.

Psalm 147:3
He heals the brokenhearted And binds up their wounds.

Isaiah 61:1
"The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon Me, Because the LORD has anointed Me To preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives, And the opening of the prison to those who are bound;

His Grace

Thanksgiving is approaching quickly, and while there are countless blessings for which I am thankful, I am just going to name one. For to name all my many blessings would take forever, because God is just THAT good. I am giving thanks for what He has given me, but I will be most thankful for His grace. Really, the list could be endless of whom and for what I am thankful, but I think it could all be summed up in that simple word...grace.

I'm thankful that His grace is sufficient for me, and I'm thankful that He loves me so much He died for me just so I could have that grace. It's nothing short of amazing.

So right now, today and forever, count your blessings. But never forget the most precious one of all. Grace. There is nothing that this life can throw at you that His grace can't handle. Nothing.

And to me, that's the greatest blessing of all, for I know how often I fail, how often I mess up, how often I fall upon His grace. I know that each and every day I need the grace of God, and that apart from that grace, I am nothing.

2 Corinthians 12:9-10
And He said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness." Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ's sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Studying James

In church group on Sunday evenings we've been studying the book of James.

This has been a good yet challenging book. The book we studied before this was Romans.

Now, if you ever have studied both these books you know that they seem quite different.
Paul, writing Romans, is all about grace. Many times in that book we are reminded that salvation comes from faith and nothing we can do could ever earn our salvation, and nothing we could ever do could take our salvation away once we confess and believe that Jesus is the Christ who came to save us. I love Romans and never tire of reading it and discovering once again God's great love for man.

But then we get to James. It just somehow seems different, doesn't it? The whole Bible teaches us that salvation is by faith not by works, so then why does James talk about faith that works so much? I was confused by this for a long time but little by little things started making more sense. And even now as we are studying James I find myself understanding more and more.

James of course does not teach that salvation is through works. Obviously that would be contrary to what the whole rest of the Word says. But he does talk an awful lot about doing good and thus showing our faith. This was a very difficult concept for me to grasp. Finally I understood. Faith is believing that Jesus came and paid the full price for my salvation. There is nothing I need to do to get this salvation except to accept what He did for me and confess I'm a sinner. But what James is talking about is that if we truly believe in Jesus, our deeds are going to show it. One good example my pastor used was if you are going to take a test, and say "I have faith I'm going to get an A" but never once study, your faith is just empty words. You don't really believe that because you didn't act upon it. So too, if you say "I believe that Jesus is my Savior and saves me from my sin" but never turn from your sinful ways, you're merely just saying empty words.

I loved what my pastor quoted: "James and Paul are not standing in front of each other fighting each other. Instead, they're standing back to back, each fighting different battles"

So once I studied a little more and understood more clearly these books, I could see that really James and Paul aren't that much different.

Paul's books are a joy to read. It reminds you that nothing you do yourself can ever get you to Heaven, it's only by the work that Jesus accomplished on that cross. It's only by grace.

James can seem really harsh, but what he says is true too. If we really believe what we say we do, our actions will no doubt show it. If the only reason people know you're a Christian is because you told them, then you need to examine yourself to see if your faith is real. People should know you are but not because you told them, but because of the way you live your life.

I love James 2:18 But someone will say, "You have faith, and I have works." Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works." I've been thinking of that verse a whole lot. Can people really see my faith through my works? Or is my faith just empty words? It's a sobering thought indeed. May we be a people who live by the grace that Jesus Christ so freely gives to us. And a people who live our faith out loud.
As someone once told me "Our good works are a by-product of our love for Christ"

I don't think I could have said it any better.

Cubbies

I might have mentioned before that I help out with the Cubbies (3, 4, & 5 year olds) at church. If I haven't, well, I guess I'm mentioning it now. :)

Last time one of the cutest little girls on the face of this earth said the cutest thing.

Here's the conversation, to the best of my memory:

Mike (teacher of the class): "What do you want to be when you grow up?"
Bethany: "I want to be a Queen, but queens are bad. She hurries to explain: But I'm not going to be a bad one. I'll be a good one."
Mike: Well that's good! What are you going to be the Queen of?"
Bethany: "I'm going to be a Queen who lives in a castle."
Mike: "Oh, do you have a Prince?"
Bethany: "Yes. His name is Miles and he goes to my school."
Mike: "Really? Does he know he's your Prince?"
Bethany: "Yes he knows it. Bethany pauses for a moment then says: No actually he doesn't know yet."

Bethany exits the "stage" in her beautiful Queen gown and goes sits down while Mike calls on the next child to explain what "career" they want to have when they grow up.

It was way too cute! I totally love being in there with all those kids.
They never fail to make me laugh or to give me something to smile about - even days later.
I love those kids.

Count It All Joy

Count it all joy
When the rain begins to fall
Count it all joy
When you've no strength left at all
Count it all joy
When the clouds begin to break
Count it all joy
When your world is about to shake
Count it all joy
When the tears run down your face
Count it all joy
Because of God's amazing grace

He's Coming Back!

Today in church our pastor talked some about our Heavenly Hope.
We have been studying the book of Revelation and it's been a challenge but also an encouragement, especially today.

I loved it when he talked about how we should daily be watching and waiting for the Lord's return, sitting at the edge of our seats living as though today is the day! Oh how differently I'm sure each and everyone of us would live, knowing He would soon be here to take us back.

Needless to say it was a big encouragement and a great reminder to me to keep my eyes fixed on the things above.

Then tonight at church group we sang the song "I Am Amazed" Man I totally love that song and the last verse, the one that says "I am bound for paradise..." really touched me. It was the perfect ending to the day. Singing that song and knowing that I am bound for paradise, it is real and it is right.

It's a challenge to me to remember daily to live and watch for His return. Sometimes it seems so far away, and other times it seems even further. But I need to stop living by what I feel and start living by what I know. I know Jesus is coming back to take us home. I know I am to be thinking on the things above, and storing up treasures in Heaven. I may not know what day He is returning, but I know I am to live as though it's today. I know Jesus is coming!

How differently we would view our daily lives if we would just live each day in that hope. How much richer would our lives be! So let's take up a stand. Let's live each day in the hope of Jesus Christ. Let's not just keep it inside us, but let it consume us. Let's live each day to know God more and more. Let's wake up each day knowing this may be the day. Let's live each day in the Lord's grace. Let's never stop watching for His return. Let's live at the edge of our seats.

2 Thessalonians 4:17
Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.

"I am bound for paradise
And it is real, and it is right
To believe Your words in black and red
That You'll come back just like You said and...

I'm amazed, I am amazed
At what Your word tells me You did
I'm amazed, I am amazed
You gave it all so I might live
And I'm amazed with You"

You're coming back! Thank you, Jesus.