I'm writing this post in part to encourage myself, and hopefully you will be encouraged as well.
Okay who has plans. Probably everyone. But lets be honest, who sticks to them? Not I. Either by fault of laziness or they just don't work! Let me tell you where I am at with this. I am restless... It is like I have ants in my pants. (And it really is because my legs are pealing/itchy thanks to tanning so fast over spring break...)
I am also bored with routine. This boredom leads me to invest in facets of my life otherwise untouched. Wanting things such as: a plan. a new atmosphere. new friends (even though I absolutely adore my current friends!). new place to live. A life-partner (husband). A talent, for praise of people and in part to praise my God. ADVENTURE.
I worry about making the 10% of students who get accepted to grad school for physical therapy. Are you kidding me? It will have to be VERY divinely inspired for my acceptance because on average my grades are B's and C's. Not the 3.8ish requirement for gpa. again... I have no idea how this will be accomplished. Hard work and dedication sure... but seriously. Crap. But I guess if that girl from Legally Blonde can get into Harvard... It is possible for me to get into Georgia State.
Also from about thirteen till nineteen I saw myself on the mission field. I'm not as passionate about that at all, at least in going to other countries. I don't know what to tell people anymore. I don't know what to tell myself anymore about what my future is/could/should be.
It is the strangest feeling to have no direction, or very little.
What is the coolest thing ever though is that Jesus does not require anything else but that I just love Him. Everything I have strived to accomplish is in vain if i have not loved Him with a devoted love.
All this to say it doesn't matter what I do with my career, what I do to earn money. Not really. All that matters.. all that matters.. is that I focus on christ and do all I do as if unto Him: that all I do be done as an offering of PRAISE. Not grudgingly working through school, restaurant biz, dating, whatever. It must all be done in praise to mean anything to Jesus. That is hard. Do you know how selfish and grumpy I can be? I can give you a few numbers to call if you want proof.
Also, this invokes a scary as hell prayer onto my heart. "Jesus, do with my life as You please. Let it be glorifying to You, and only You. Also have my heart. Also have my income. Also have my romances. Also have my friends and family. Also kill the 'me' I have created, so the 'me' you have created will exist in harmony with You." Scary but good. So good. The goodness of good.
Do you realize that Jesus doesn't call us to OUR full potential? Do you realize that Jesus allows things to happen that take away arms, legs, friends, family, loves, sight, hearing, any happiness aside from Him? Do you realize that we control no thing.
"He is no fool who gives what He cannot keep, to gain what he cannot lose."
Here's to giving God what we cannot keep.
-Casey
Showing posts with label Hard Questions. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Hard Questions. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
Bad Things
Today I went to the UCC cafe at UWG for lunch by myself. As company I read my Bible, for it is wise to know the one you love more deeply every day.
As I was reading and eating my chef salad (which by the way, salads are a very awkward food to eat by yourself...maybe because of the mess factor) a guy walked by and said "I don't know many people who read the Bible.. are you reading for fun?'
Okay, this seemed easy enough. He didn't join me, however He did stand close by, I think he was in a hurry.
I said, "Yes I am reading for fun." However, after much debate in my heart on whether or not reading the Bible is actually fun this was my conclusion....(much after the guy had left) ... Reading the Bible is equivalent to eating. Sometimes eating can be fun, like when consuming silly foods, daddy's delectable steaks, or forbidden candy you are only allowed to have during halloween. But mostly, eating is done to sustain life. A sandwich, fiber/protein bar , Chick-fi-la on the run, salad... non of these necessarily fun but necessary. The Bible is our food, some stories are exciting and passion inspiring, but we read to learn and grow and sustain our soul in rightness with God.
He went on to say he read Genesis through Exodus but became bored and sad because it was all mean (still seeming to be in a rush). I'm nodding and listening to hear what else he might offer as a conversation (not conversion) sustainer. I just wanted to talk and hear his side. He said "especially Job.. thats just mean! God seems to be very mean!
This is where I said God allowed the devil to make Job suffer, God was testing Job's faith in Him and in return (after Job did not sin against God) God got the glory, God getting the glory is the purpose behind Job and the rest of the Bible.
Doesn't that sound right? Partially it is. The point behind everything is for God to get the glory. However, we cannot only pin the bad things on the Devil and the good things on God... everything that happens in this world is in God's hands.
A side note in my Bible says it better " God is not in charge of only the good things that happen, impotently observing as bad things happen, but He is sovereignly in control of all things, good and bad. He permits His children to endure testing. One who only accepts the good from God's hands risks rejecting Him completely when things do not work out as desired. Such a limited acceptance of God's wisdom is foolish."
Job 2:10 states the same. " But he said to her, 'You speak as one of the foolish women speaks. Shall we accept good from God, and shall we not accept adversity?' In all this Job did not sin with his lips."
This brings me to say that , as of now, this is as far as my understanding of why bad things happen in this world goes. Im not suggesting you don't study the Bible and everything else for valid reasons, but when you do search, don't search for what makes you feel good about the world. There are more important things than YOU in this world. We can glorify God by accepting who He is, and being open to Him revealing Himself to us.
As I was reading and eating my chef salad (which by the way, salads are a very awkward food to eat by yourself...maybe because of the mess factor) a guy walked by and said "I don't know many people who read the Bible.. are you reading for fun?'
Okay, this seemed easy enough. He didn't join me, however He did stand close by, I think he was in a hurry.
I said, "Yes I am reading for fun." However, after much debate in my heart on whether or not reading the Bible is actually fun this was my conclusion....(much after the guy had left) ... Reading the Bible is equivalent to eating. Sometimes eating can be fun, like when consuming silly foods, daddy's delectable steaks, or forbidden candy you are only allowed to have during halloween. But mostly, eating is done to sustain life. A sandwich, fiber/protein bar , Chick-fi-la on the run, salad... non of these necessarily fun but necessary. The Bible is our food, some stories are exciting and passion inspiring, but we read to learn and grow and sustain our soul in rightness with God.
He went on to say he read Genesis through Exodus but became bored and sad because it was all mean (still seeming to be in a rush). I'm nodding and listening to hear what else he might offer as a conversation (not conversion) sustainer. I just wanted to talk and hear his side. He said "especially Job.. thats just mean! God seems to be very mean!
This is where I said God allowed the devil to make Job suffer, God was testing Job's faith in Him and in return (after Job did not sin against God) God got the glory, God getting the glory is the purpose behind Job and the rest of the Bible.
Doesn't that sound right? Partially it is. The point behind everything is for God to get the glory. However, we cannot only pin the bad things on the Devil and the good things on God... everything that happens in this world is in God's hands.
A side note in my Bible says it better " God is not in charge of only the good things that happen, impotently observing as bad things happen, but He is sovereignly in control of all things, good and bad. He permits His children to endure testing. One who only accepts the good from God's hands risks rejecting Him completely when things do not work out as desired. Such a limited acceptance of God's wisdom is foolish."
Job 2:10 states the same. " But he said to her, 'You speak as one of the foolish women speaks. Shall we accept good from God, and shall we not accept adversity?' In all this Job did not sin with his lips."
This brings me to say that , as of now, this is as far as my understanding of why bad things happen in this world goes. Im not suggesting you don't study the Bible and everything else for valid reasons, but when you do search, don't search for what makes you feel good about the world. There are more important things than YOU in this world. We can glorify God by accepting who He is, and being open to Him revealing Himself to us.
Thursday, July 28, 2011
I don't have anything to prove.
When you think "my identity..", who do you say you are? or Who do you want to be?
Is all this seeking who we are , us trying to prove something?
This question seems so hard to answer to me so it got me thinking...
What is the core of these questions, "What is my identity?" or "Who am I?". Okay so maybe we should ask, "What does an Identity consist of?" Is it something able to be labled? Such as popular, nerd, athletic, artistic, musical, dramatic, ugly, pretty, crazy, reserved, black, white, gay, straight, christian, or muslim? Are one of those lables what people see when they look at us? Are those lables what we think of ourselves? Do these things proclaim why we exist? (maybe thats the real question..."What am I doing here?")
None of those things tell anyone who you are. They all talk about things you believe about yourself or do. Not that they are all bad things. Like I am indeed a christian. But is that my identity? Is who I am really found in something I believe?
Hard questions. Because when we talk about this we get so close to the Truth!
We want to be known. Yeah, you're scared of someone knowing the deepest scariest places in your heart.. But guess what you're asking when you ask about your identity. You want someone to recognize WHO you are. Not what you do. Not what you look like . Not what you like. (Don't even get me started that all these things will pass away!)
You want someone to know the deepest parts of you. The good and great parts, the evil desires, the beautiful desires, and still want to know you. To strip down everything we consider our identity and see the core of why we exist. I don't know that we can find our 'identity' in any word. I do believe, however, that we can find freedom from trying to be someone, and let Jesus break through our walls and let Him stand there as our stronghold.
I've found my identity in many things before. Some good to the worlds standards, even some bad to the worlds standards. I have never been filled before allowing Jesus to BE for me.
Look guys, I know you all know something about me. If you've known me lately you might even say I'm a pretty good girl. Please, don't flatter me. "Pretty good girl" is not my identity.
Identity isn't what we long for. We long to be known and loved.
Maybe we were never meant to search for who we are. Maybe we just are.
Just maybe we don't have to prove anything.
Maybe we don't have anything to prove...
Just maybe Jesus really is who He says He is.
"For the death that He died, He died to sin once and for all; but the life that He lives to God. Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus."
Romans 6:10-11
Is all this seeking who we are , us trying to prove something?
This question seems so hard to answer to me so it got me thinking...
What is the core of these questions, "What is my identity?" or "Who am I?". Okay so maybe we should ask, "What does an Identity consist of?" Is it something able to be labled? Such as popular, nerd, athletic, artistic, musical, dramatic, ugly, pretty, crazy, reserved, black, white, gay, straight, christian, or muslim? Are one of those lables what people see when they look at us? Are those lables what we think of ourselves? Do these things proclaim why we exist? (maybe thats the real question..."What am I doing here?")
None of those things tell anyone who you are. They all talk about things you believe about yourself or do. Not that they are all bad things. Like I am indeed a christian. But is that my identity? Is who I am really found in something I believe?
Hard questions. Because when we talk about this we get so close to the Truth!
We want to be known. Yeah, you're scared of someone knowing the deepest scariest places in your heart.. But guess what you're asking when you ask about your identity. You want someone to recognize WHO you are. Not what you do. Not what you look like . Not what you like. (Don't even get me started that all these things will pass away!)
You want someone to know the deepest parts of you. The good and great parts, the evil desires, the beautiful desires, and still want to know you. To strip down everything we consider our identity and see the core of why we exist. I don't know that we can find our 'identity' in any word. I do believe, however, that we can find freedom from trying to be someone, and let Jesus break through our walls and let Him stand there as our stronghold.
I've found my identity in many things before. Some good to the worlds standards, even some bad to the worlds standards. I have never been filled before allowing Jesus to BE for me.
Look guys, I know you all know something about me. If you've known me lately you might even say I'm a pretty good girl. Please, don't flatter me. "Pretty good girl" is not my identity.
Identity isn't what we long for. We long to be known and loved.
Maybe we were never meant to search for who we are. Maybe we just are.
Just maybe we don't have to prove anything.
Maybe we don't have anything to prove...
Just maybe Jesus really is who He says He is.
"For the death that He died, He died to sin once and for all; but the life that He lives to God. Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus."
Romans 6:10-11
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Jesus is THE Truth.
Okay.. so we all know Stumbleupon is a big way to waste our time.. though I found a site on Contradictions in the Bible. This was very interesting to me. I believe if there is no Jesus then we are wasting our time. (Though don't get me wrong, undoubtably there is.) I also believe God will come out as the Truth if indeed He is, so I seek truth. The site posted numerous contradictions, giving a phrase then verses to dispute. [[ I would like to note that in order to be a contradiction, someone must deny the truth of one statement and proclaim the opposite. That will never be seen in scripture, for God cannot deny Truth, therefore He cannot deny Himself. ]] Here are some fabulous examples:
1. How many men did the chief of David's captains kill? 2 Sam 23:8 - 1 Chron 11:11
Contradiction? Nah.. look it up for yourself. I laughed.. different number of men killed yes, also different chief.
2. Who was Abijam's mother? (nevermind that I dont know who Abijam is.. ill study him later.) 1 Kings 15:1-2-2 Chron 13:1-2
Misspelling. Its Machaah vs Michaiah. You decide if this is enough to claim God does not exist.
3. Was Abraham justified by faith or works? Romans 4:2-James 2:21
Contradiction? Purely vs by vs, yes. Paul is so fun to study to me because he is sarcastic...
The contradiction is disproven by simply reading one sentence further. God has always saved by Faith btw... He never changes, guys.
4. What color was Jesus' robe? Mat 27:28- Mark 15:17.
Error? Yes. Purple vs. Scarlett. Good thing the big saying today is "Nobody's perfect!" or "I'm only human!" Yeah guys, believe it or not, the authors were human. Seeing as the contradiction is not on whether Jesus died or not, or whether He rose from the grave, I think we're still standing on rock solid ground.
5. Is it good to be happy? Proverbs 17:22 - Ecc. 7:3-4.
Contradiction? No. Words of wisdom appeal to certain circumstances.
Many "contradictions" are considered so because :
o The reader compares one verse to another without continuing the authors' thought.
o The author misspelled a name, place.
o Intellectual dishonesty.
o Comparing the Old covenant to the New covenant. (Rules have indeed changed, thanks to Jesus, the ultimate sacrifice.)
o Authors compared have different details. (purple vs. scarlette, # 4)
o The question asked is very one sided. (#5)
I could go further, and undoubtably will. I will continue to seek to disprove my God because He always has, and always will come out on the side of Truth.
Also, be left with this: seek truth! It is important, and very interesting actually, also if you seek truth and are honest with yourself, you will always end up on the right side. I'm seeking truth, even yet, as I have found Him. If you find that you have disproven my God, please don't leave me in the blue.
Thanks for reading,
Casey
1. How many men did the chief of David's captains kill? 2 Sam 23:8 - 1 Chron 11:11
Contradiction? Nah.. look it up for yourself. I laughed.. different number of men killed yes, also different chief.
2. Who was Abijam's mother? (nevermind that I dont know who Abijam is.. ill study him later.) 1 Kings 15:1-2-2 Chron 13:1-2
Misspelling. Its Machaah vs Michaiah. You decide if this is enough to claim God does not exist.
3. Was Abraham justified by faith or works? Romans 4:2-James 2:21
Contradiction? Purely vs by vs, yes. Paul is so fun to study to me because he is sarcastic...
The contradiction is disproven by simply reading one sentence further. God has always saved by Faith btw... He never changes, guys.
4. What color was Jesus' robe? Mat 27:28- Mark 15:17.
Error? Yes. Purple vs. Scarlett. Good thing the big saying today is "Nobody's perfect!" or "I'm only human!" Yeah guys, believe it or not, the authors were human. Seeing as the contradiction is not on whether Jesus died or not, or whether He rose from the grave, I think we're still standing on rock solid ground.
5. Is it good to be happy? Proverbs 17:22 - Ecc. 7:3-4.
Contradiction? No. Words of wisdom appeal to certain circumstances.
Many "contradictions" are considered so because :
o The reader compares one verse to another without continuing the authors' thought.
o The author misspelled a name, place.
o Intellectual dishonesty.
o Comparing the Old covenant to the New covenant. (Rules have indeed changed, thanks to Jesus, the ultimate sacrifice.)
o Authors compared have different details. (purple vs. scarlette, # 4)
o The question asked is very one sided. (#5)
I could go further, and undoubtably will. I will continue to seek to disprove my God because He always has, and always will come out on the side of Truth.
Also, be left with this: seek truth! It is important, and very interesting actually, also if you seek truth and are honest with yourself, you will always end up on the right side. I'm seeking truth, even yet, as I have found Him. If you find that you have disproven my God, please don't leave me in the blue.
Thanks for reading,
Casey
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Edify
We are to edify and lift up others. (1 Corinthians 10:32-33)
To edify is to instruct or improve someone morally or intellectually.
The past two years I have been wrestling with the fact that all things are lawful for me. Where do I draw the line of things I wont do? What is my reasoning for drawing that line?
I have friends who run hard and fast away from the Lord, and I think what if I do drugs with them? drink with them? The offer had been presented many times. Had been presented. Turns out, the people who persisted in pressuring me to to join them in drinking or drugs were trying to get me to fall, to sin.
Three questions rise up for me:
Firstly I think, what kind of friends do I really have here?
Second I think why do they want me to fall?
And what If I had joined them?
Pertaining to the first question, these friends are lost. Their actions are just a bi-product of intense searching, self-fullfilling, and yes.. desiring of intimacy with Jesus. Those who know not the Love of Jesus may not consider the endless filling of holes in their life to be a search for Jesus, but indirectly, it will show them that nothing but Jesus can truly save and heal and bring the joys of the Christian Way.
Why would they want me to fall?? These friends are just longing for an even playing field. Their act of hatred was not directed towards me, rather to The Way in general. If I fall, they might not feel as bad "committing the crime", it would be some sort of justification.
What if I had joined them??
I may just have justified their actions. " If Casey the Christian can do it, surely I can."
Or I may have just accidentally proclaimed "The LORD Jesus does not mean as much as I say to me, therefore don't bother getting to know Him."
Possibly I just ripped any hope from them, they already do not believe or know Jesus, everything I do is supposed to point to Him. I am supposed to be the Messenger bringing love and JESUS with me wherever I go. If I do something that hinders this love, where is my true devotion? Even if its just a possibility, the chance is too high of a price.
So now, where do we draw the lines and why?
If you are possibly stripping hope from someones life, do not live dangerously.
Do not do anything to cause anyone else to stumble. If you (who are of age) drink, yet someone else forbids that of them self for reason of it being sin against God, then don't drink. Who after all is your God? Not yourself and not the alcohol!
Consider others ways more righteous than your own, those who abstain from things, and do everything to edify them.
Your liberty (being able to do whatever you want, as a christian) is not affected by another persons conscience. But because of our command to live in love and esteem others higher than ourselves, we must not do things to serve them.
Love and NOT knowledge is the basis of christian conduct.
and Note from my Bible pertaining to 1 Corinthians 6:12
"All things are lawful for me was the theological slogan the Corinthians had adopted to justify their behavior, Paul affirmed his own doctrine of Christian liberty. But the Corinthians needed to understand that the "lawfulness" of any given behavior was qualified by its "helpfulness". Freedom to act as one pleases is not really freedom at all. It is the most insidious form of bondage."
To edify is to instruct or improve someone morally or intellectually.
The past two years I have been wrestling with the fact that all things are lawful for me. Where do I draw the line of things I wont do? What is my reasoning for drawing that line?
I have friends who run hard and fast away from the Lord, and I think what if I do drugs with them? drink with them? The offer had been presented many times. Had been presented. Turns out, the people who persisted in pressuring me to to join them in drinking or drugs were trying to get me to fall, to sin.
Three questions rise up for me:
Firstly I think, what kind of friends do I really have here?
Second I think why do they want me to fall?
And what If I had joined them?
Pertaining to the first question, these friends are lost. Their actions are just a bi-product of intense searching, self-fullfilling, and yes.. desiring of intimacy with Jesus. Those who know not the Love of Jesus may not consider the endless filling of holes in their life to be a search for Jesus, but indirectly, it will show them that nothing but Jesus can truly save and heal and bring the joys of the Christian Way.
Why would they want me to fall?? These friends are just longing for an even playing field. Their act of hatred was not directed towards me, rather to The Way in general. If I fall, they might not feel as bad "committing the crime", it would be some sort of justification.
What if I had joined them??
I may just have justified their actions. " If Casey the Christian can do it, surely I can."
Or I may have just accidentally proclaimed "The LORD Jesus does not mean as much as I say to me, therefore don't bother getting to know Him."
Possibly I just ripped any hope from them, they already do not believe or know Jesus, everything I do is supposed to point to Him. I am supposed to be the Messenger bringing love and JESUS with me wherever I go. If I do something that hinders this love, where is my true devotion? Even if its just a possibility, the chance is too high of a price.
So now, where do we draw the lines and why?
If you are possibly stripping hope from someones life, do not live dangerously.
Do not do anything to cause anyone else to stumble. If you (who are of age) drink, yet someone else forbids that of them self for reason of it being sin against God, then don't drink. Who after all is your God? Not yourself and not the alcohol!
Consider others ways more righteous than your own, those who abstain from things, and do everything to edify them.
Your liberty (being able to do whatever you want, as a christian) is not affected by another persons conscience. But because of our command to live in love and esteem others higher than ourselves, we must not do things to serve them.
Love and NOT knowledge is the basis of christian conduct.
and Note from my Bible pertaining to 1 Corinthians 6:12
"All things are lawful for me was the theological slogan the Corinthians had adopted to justify their behavior, Paul affirmed his own doctrine of Christian liberty. But the Corinthians needed to understand that the "lawfulness" of any given behavior was qualified by its "helpfulness". Freedom to act as one pleases is not really freedom at all. It is the most insidious form of bondage."
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
It is amazing how writing down feelings, hopes and thoughts releases negative and positive energy. I just finished a post and deleted it because I realized how much it did not make sense, releasing negative feelings concerning myself. Of course it is not as if Jesus played no part in me being closer to peace.
Anyway, I've heard it said that we do not have souls, we ARE souls and we have a body.
Have some fun with this thought! How foreign it is to us! I was driving in my car thinking, this is my body, yet I am alien to it. I'm going to try to help you understand just exactly how it makes me feel... explaining feelings is especially difficult though. Thats why we have words for them, and still everyone is never really sure how you feel when you try to explain deeper.
It feels peaceful, as if you have no attachment to the rest of the earthly world and no matter what happens your security in Christ is more than enough. I think this is where people who die for Christ have found themselves. They are being tortured by every means possible, emotionally, physically, but their peace is overwhelmingly pure. Considering myself as an alien to this world is not a lonely feeling at all, because I realize this is my temporary home and the Lord also places us here before we can enter His kingdom so we have the chance to chose Him. Blessings, hardship, heartbreak, happiness, death, life, everything giving a glimpse of who God is or is not.
Really our bodies are like our cars.. we feed them, take them in for check ups, try to fix them when they are sick and sometimes they just can't be fixed, all the while our souls in the drivers seat, taking this or that turn, stopping here and going there. We care how it looks, want it to be pretty and have a good body. But what really matters is the interior, keep it free of clutter so Jesus can drive and we can ride passenger, room enough in there for the Holy Spirit and God too. Since they are 3 in 1 you KNOW they will take up some room!
haha.. oh me.
Anyway, I've heard it said that we do not have souls, we ARE souls and we have a body.
Have some fun with this thought! How foreign it is to us! I was driving in my car thinking, this is my body, yet I am alien to it. I'm going to try to help you understand just exactly how it makes me feel... explaining feelings is especially difficult though. Thats why we have words for them, and still everyone is never really sure how you feel when you try to explain deeper.
It feels peaceful, as if you have no attachment to the rest of the earthly world and no matter what happens your security in Christ is more than enough. I think this is where people who die for Christ have found themselves. They are being tortured by every means possible, emotionally, physically, but their peace is overwhelmingly pure. Considering myself as an alien to this world is not a lonely feeling at all, because I realize this is my temporary home and the Lord also places us here before we can enter His kingdom so we have the chance to chose Him. Blessings, hardship, heartbreak, happiness, death, life, everything giving a glimpse of who God is or is not.
Really our bodies are like our cars.. we feed them, take them in for check ups, try to fix them when they are sick and sometimes they just can't be fixed, all the while our souls in the drivers seat, taking this or that turn, stopping here and going there. We care how it looks, want it to be pretty and have a good body. But what really matters is the interior, keep it free of clutter so Jesus can drive and we can ride passenger, room enough in there for the Holy Spirit and God too. Since they are 3 in 1 you KNOW they will take up some room!
haha.. oh me.
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