When Life Overwhelms You

Stop.

Pray. Cry out to God for help.

Take a breather. Give your mind a chance to relax.

Pray again. Ask God for the strength to continue on. He knows what you're going through. He can help. Trust Him.

When you start again, pace yourself. Remember, your Father is with you. Rest in His peace.

Remember to thank your Father for His help.

And finally, remember the sun is the most beautiful when it shines in through the clouds of life--and rainbows only appear after the storm.

Thank you Father, for helping me through the business of this week. Thank you for giving me the strength to get done what needed to be done. And thank you for giving me rest. Blessed are you, O Lord our God, who gives man rest.

Back to School

Well, I've started school back. I suppose that's worth a blog post. First impressions on the professors--all of them are in the good to great range.

Glimpses of Eternity, Glimpses of Beauty

Sometimes life feels like chasing after the wind; like darkness has set in and I cannot find my way. But even in the darkness, you can find flickers of light. These sparks of light are glimpses into the eternity which God has hidden in the heart of man--they are glimpses of beauty. I want to share just a few of these sparks that have been light to me with you:

Some Definitions

Beauty
The evidence of the Creator's hand. His fingerprints can be seen throughout all creation.

He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, he has put eternity into man's heart, yet so that he cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end.
(Ecclesiastes 3:11)

Faith
Trusting our Father at His word.

Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD; I will take joy in the God of my salvation.
(Habakkuk 3:17-18)

See also: Hebrews 11

Thankfulness
Accepting a gift in such a way that honors the giver. Let us honor our King with the gifts He has given us.

We love because he first loved us.
(1 John 4:19)

Wind
An invisible force that baffles scientists to this day. This force can manifest itself in many forms from the power of a tornado to the stillness of a whisper.

The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit."
(John 3:8)

When Everything Else Crumbles

When everything else crumbles, what is left?

Comfort Zone

There is a lot I do not know. There is much I have not surrendered. I have considerably more growing to do. And the fact is--until Yeshua returns, this will never change.

I am not saying that I am satisfied where I'm at or that I will not continue along the path. I will continue to learn. But there will always be something deeper. I will continue to surrender. But there will always be more to give. I will continue to grow. But there will always be something higher. The more we grow, the more we long for more.

Identity: Who You Are

I think I want to wrap up on the question of identity...at least the question of Who am I? Maybe I'll continue more on how to be who we are. But I think I've ranted long enough about finding out who you are. It's really pretty simple--just not something you can put in a box. You are who you are and you are growing every day.

Identity: Your Voice

Often times when we think about the question of identity, the first thing we think of is an occupation. What am I going to be when I grow up? I know for the longest time that was where my focus was. To be sure, finding a job is pretty important in this world. But when it comes to the question of who you are, I think your job is only a minor part. In fact, I would say how a person responds to their job tells you more about them than what their occupation is.

Identity is defined as "the individual characteristics by which a thing or person is recognized or known." How do you recognize someone? Usually we see their face or hear their voice. Sometimes a person may be recognized by their smell, but that doesn't happen as often ;)

Power of Prayer

I pray because I can't help myself. I pray because I'm helpless. I pray because the need flows out of me all the time- waking and sleeping. It doesn't change God- it changes me.
-C.S. Lewis

There are a lot of things I don't understand about prayer. I don't understand it's affect in the spiritual realm. I don't know if telling God something He already knows can cause Him to change His mind. I've seen people miraculously healed through prayer. Sometimes when I pray it feels like I'm talking to the secretary. But there is one thing I have learned about prayer--and it's enough to keep me praying. Prayer changes me.

Identity: I am who I am

I talked with a some friends a few days ago on the subject identity and they've helped me to put a few more of the pieces together. I think the whole idea of finding out who you are is a little bit misleading. Why? Because you are who you are.

Identity: In His Image

(repost from my FB notes)

Where to begin? What is step 1 in finding out who I am? Honestly, I don't know where the best place to start is. But we have to start somewhere--so why not at the beginning?

Then God said, "Let us make man in our own image, after our own likeness."
Genesis 1:26a

When I said that to search for our own identity would lead us face to face with God, I was not exaggerating. We are made in the image of God and so our being reflects who God is.

Identity: Introduction

(Repost from my FB notes)

God has been teaching me about identity lately...asking myself Who am I? And how do I live as myself, not as a pretender. Seems that several people I have talked to have reported similar stories. So, what I originally started as a personal project, I want to open up to you so that we can help each other in our journeys. I want to write a series of notes on this subject...I have some ideas floating around in my head, but no definitive plans. It's gonna be a trial and error type thing with possible false starts and dead ends. But isn't that the way every journey is?