Falling in Love ~ Part 1

People say falling in love is easy.

Sometimes it is.

Sometimes it is not.

People say they love God and God loves them - which is true - but I don't think people really understand what that means.

When you realize how much He loves you, it is so much easier to fall deeper in love with the Lover of your Soul.

He is a Father: He carries us when we're weak, He defends the orphans (Hosea, Proverbs).

He is a Friend: He shoulders our burdens, He listens to our cares (Matthew, 1 Peter).

He is a Lover: He woos us to Himself, He keeps us secure (Hosea, John).

He is a Judge: He is holy, He rules justly (Psalms).

He is a Redeemer: He justly forgives those He saves, He desires to save all (1 John, 2 Peter).

Do you see?

There is no one like this.

Even though we may know some people who have some of these general qualities in degrees, only God is all of them.

And He loves you.

And who could pass that up?

One Who loves you and sees past your mistakes, past your failures, and past your flaws.

One Who loves you and wants to heal your scars, provide for you, and shape you into a purer you.

I can't.

I've fallen in love.

Have you?

Blessing the Lord

There's this song, you may have heard it, it's called "10,000 Reasons".

I can't remember the first time I heard it, but I remember thinking, "Oh, I should go download this when I get home" because it was a good song and I liked it. 

Well, I forgot to download it.

Naturally.

Well, the next time (of note) that I heard it was at a funeral for a baby.

I was so emotional that I couldn't even sing it.

But I was thinking.

We can't just bless the Lord when we have everything. When everything's nice and sunny. When we have everything we need.

We need to bless Him when He takes gifts away. When He teaches us lessons. When He allows pain in our lives.

Because whoever said "God will never give you more than you can handle" was wrong.

God will never allow you to be tempted beyond what He gives you an escape.

And God gives us more than we can handle to teach us to depend on Him for everything.

And that tender, nurturing love is truly blessable.

Contentment and Letting Go

I actually wrote this in a random notebook almost a year ago and just now found it - thought it might be good to share. 

It's not just "the Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want".

It's "the Lord is my ___, I shall not want".

The Lord is my friend, I shall not want.

The Lord is my protector, I shall not want.

The Lord is my comforter, I shall not want.

The Lord is my provider, I shall not want.

The Lord is the lover of my soul, I shall not want.

The Lord is my guider, I shall not want.

The Lord is my study buddy, I shall not want.

So why do I still want?

Because I'm not satisfied in Him.

I'm not filled with Him.

I want to be.

I thirst for Him.

I am weary of my burdens - He alone can give me rest.

Why don't I give them to Him?

Why don't I just surrender everything?

Because I like to be in control.

I never was.

And honestly, I don't want to be in control anymore - I don't know what I'm doing.

Ever.

I want Him to be in control.

It might not make things easier. . .

But it will be better.

"Come Unto Me"

I just need to post this, both because I need it right now, and I'm sure there are others who could too.

Be Still and Know

Psalm 46:10

"Be still and know that I am God. . ."

Sunday, one of the songs we sang in church had to do with trusting God and being still in His presence. 

Monday, a dear family at our church buried their three month old daughter. One of the songs at the funeral was about being still and worshiping God. 

The funeral shook me up quite a bit, and afterwards I went for a drive, just to think and pray alone. 

I ended up at a beach, just staring at the waves. 

And that's when I realized (again) what being still with God really is.

You know when you're with that friend and you don't need to say anything to fill in the silence because it's a comfortable one? I think that's what being still is. It's sort of like a lull in the conversation, where you've poured out your heart, and you're just waiting on Him to speak to you.

It's really nice. And very comforting. 

And it isn't something you only do when things are hard.

It's something we should be doing all the time. 

It's hard. I know it is. There are so many distractions, from school, work, friends, obligations, technology (hey, I admit this freely, and I love my gadgets).

But God gave us the time we have . . . shouldn't we "spare" some for Him . . . ?

Looking Back . . .

It's hard to believe that about a year ago today I graduated from high school. I went to my friends' graduation today, and every time one of them stood to speak, I could remember - in startling clarity - what it was like to do the same.
The life-lessons I've learned this past year have been somewhat few, I suppose, but by no means insignificant.
The most important thing I've learned is to really take hold of God's promises. He didn't just say nice things to give us stuff to say to each other when we're going through a tough time; He said them so that we could run to Him for comfort.
1 Peter 5:7 says: "Cast all your cares upon Him, for He cares for you".
This has never been more real to me than through the past year. There were times - and there will be times - when I would cry myself to sleep, wondering how the heck I was going to pass a test, a paper, or merely survive the week. I realized that He was just waiting for me to give him my burdens, and then let them be - - at least for the night. [Obviously, I understand that I have to put in some time and effort, too.]
I just can't explain the peace that I would feel. I'm not a touchy-feely kind of person, and I'm not (generally speaking) subject to much emotion, but this was real. The peace of God really does "transcend all understanding".
I guess what I'm trying to say is this: it's been one heckuva long year, but it's really been worth it. I would not trade anything for the closeness that's been brought to my relationship with Jesus because of this year.
To those who are facing freshman year - tackle it head on! And congratulations to the CBCCA Class of 2011!

Gasping for air . . .

So, college has been rather stressful lately. Part of it is my fault; I know it is: I tend to procrastinate on things I could do right away. I'm praying God will help me overcome that. Also, I need to learn to let Him calm me. It sounds easy, but it's really not. I never really realized that before I got to college. He says "Come unto Me, all who are weary, and I will give you rest." (And so help me, I cannot think of the reference. If you know it, please comment below; it would be much appreciated!) I guess my problem is this: I'm a control freak. I need to have control of everything. Life doesn't let us control much, if anything. If we just give over our burdens to Jesus, life would be so much easier! I know that sometimes at night, I find myself rehearsing my schedule for tomorrow along with what has to be done by when. One night, I found myself on the verge of tears because I was so overloaded! I would like to say that I 'laid' my burdens down at Jesus' feet but I didn't. I think I dropped them! It was just so amazing the peace I had when I knew He was with me. It's like I told my mom the first week or so of school: Jesus said He'd never leave me, and He most certainly didn't bring me to this point just to let me fall on my derriere and fail alone. Yes, I may fall on my derriere and fail, but He'll be with me every step of the way.

Ah, that was therapeutic!

So, after Final Exams, I've decided to go through my notes and such and post all the wonderfully random and quirky things my awesome professors have said this semester. (God is SO GOOD; I love all my profs!) They shall remain nameless, don't worry. ;]