Do You Hear What I Hear

Good Morning Everyone!!

When major events happen in our world, events that have in someway affected us we usually remember where we were and what we were doing when it took place. Most people remember where they were when JFK was shot and where they were when 9/11 happened. Unfortunately it seems we remember more when something big and evil happen. Whether it is a good or bad event most of us all have a story of where we were and what we were doing or how we heard about it when something that changed our world happen. During Christmas I absolutely love listening to Christmas songs. This year I have been listening to a station on Pandora called Sidewalk Prophets Holiday. Sidewalk prophets is a Christian music band. I have loved this listening to this station because of the different songs they have been playing. Yes, they still play traditional Christmas music but they also play songs that praise Jesus and tell of the amazing story of what Christmas really is. This year I have noticed myself really listening to the messages in these songs and I have come to understand the meaning of Christmas more than I ever have. The song that struck me this morning was the song "Do You Hear What I Hear."

"Do You Hear What I Hear," this song is of people who are hearing about the GOOD news and it is as if they are telling their story of what it was like when they heard that Jesus Christ the Savior that was told was coming, was born!

Below are the lyrics. Perhaps read through the lyrics and then listen to the song and imagine what it was like for those people who were not at the Inn the night Jesus was born but heard of the Good News. When asked about where they were and how they heard that Jesus was born I believe that this would be the story of how one Shepard boy heard of the Good News that night. Amazing!!

"Do You Hear What I Hear"

Said the night wind to the little lamb
Do you see what I see
Way up in the sky little lamb
Do you see what I see
A star, a star
Dancing in the night
With a tail as big as a kite
With a tail as big as a kite

Said the little lamb to the shepard boy
Do you hear what I hear
Ringing through the sky shepard boy
Do you hear what I hear
A song, a song
High above the tree
With a voice as big as the sea
With a voice as big as the sea

Said the shepard boy to the mighty king
Do you know what I know
In your palace wall mighty king
Do you know what I know
A child, a child
Shivers in the cold
Let us bring him silver and gold
Let us bring him silver and gold

Said the king to the people everywhere
Listen to what I say
Pray for peace people everywhere
Listen to what I say
The child, the child
Sleeping in the night
He will bring us goodness and light
He will bring us goodness and light

The child, the child
Sleeping in the night
He will bring us goodness and light

Click below to listen and watch the video.

Do You Hear What I Hear Song by Third Day
What did you think of the video? Incredible right?

There are so many songs related to what people of the world were doing or felt or how they heard of Jesus being born on that Christmas Night. The Good News spread and so did testimonies and this continues to happen today in our world! I pray that when you are listening to these songs the image and meaning of our Savior being born to save us and change the world becomes more powerful to you. Music has a way of connecting to our hearts, open your hearts to listen to the messages and spread the Good News.



"Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel."- Isaiah 7:14

Birthday Blessings

Hi Everyone!!

I had to create a post today for a few a reasons. Thank you so much to everyone who made my birthday weekend, yes weekend, amazing! (Having your birthday on a Sunday has it's advantages!) I am so grateful and thankful to God for the life that I have. I am just absolutely amazed beyond belief with the people he has blessed me with in my life. My family is absolutely amazing and I love them so much. I am so thankful for their examples of Christ being the foundations of their lives which helps and encourages me in my life. My friends, wow, absolutely incredible. I am so thankful to the Lord for the friends in my life. I am so amazed on the paths that bring me to them and without them I wouldn't be the person I am today. My weekend was incredible. From my girlfriends from my hometown who I have known since I was a little girl coming down on Friday night to begin celebrating to the SURPRISE party my friends threw me Saturday night to my family coming to my new church on Sunday morning and having lunch together, it was a perfect weekend. The kind words from everyone warms my soul and I am so thankful that the Lord puts people like you all on this Earth to love and encourage one another just for being born. Birthday's are special because we are all specially handmade by the Lord and we should celebrate Him and one another.

A Birthday Blessing

Here's a little story about what happened five years ago on my birthday and the presence of God in all of it. About a month before my birthday I was speaking with my mom about a family friend whose father passed away on her birthday. When talking about it I felt so sad for her. However, my Mom told me something that a priest said to her that made sense to me. He told her how special it was that her father went to heaven and met Jesus the same day that she was brought into the world. I thought that was a pretty amazing to look at it that way.

On my birthday five years ago I was taking a nap in the middle of the day. (How lucky was I!?) When I woke up I saw that there was a missed call from my Dad. I called him back and my Mom answered the phone. Right away I knew that something wasn't right. My Mom was supposed to be at work and she wasn't. She began to tell me that my Grandmother, her Mom just passed away. The first thing I said to my Mom was that I knew it. I just had this feeling that on that day, my birthday,  my Grandma would pass away. One of the last things she had mentioned was that she didn't get a chance to call me yet that today and wish me a Happy Birthday. Of course I was shocked, I was sad and upset, but I also understood how amazing God was and that He choose to have my Grandma meet Jesus on my birthday. That will connect me and her forever in such a special way.

It's pretty incredible that when we choose to let go and let God's plans for us to play out we can understand things that we never thought we could understand. Because of that conversation I had with my mom a few months earlier my birthday became something more than I could imagine. My Grandma went to Heaven that day, the feast they must be having up there, incredible.  I now go to church every year on my birthday, something I never did before she passed away.

It's amazing how God works in our lives when we let him. I am so blessed and so thankful for this life I have been given. Thank you to everyone!!!

"For we are God's masterpiece.
He has created us anew in Christ Jesus,
so we can do the good things
He planned for us long ago."
(Ephesians 2:10)

When Mercy Found Me

Hey Everyone,

It has been a while! I can't say that I didn't have time because I have had plenty of time I guess I just haven't used my time to write on the blog. So often do we hear people say they don't have time..I know I say it, but we make time for the things we want to make time for. So if you're struggling with balancing time, ask God to help you balance things in your life. We are here until God is ready to bring us home, we are on His time :)

Today, I was driving in my car on my way to drop some things off at another campus for work. For some reason I was feeling a bit down and just started wondering about my life and why I was doing exactly what I was doing right now. So I started to talk to Jesus and I asked him, "Show me what it is you want me to get from this drive? (I am never really a fan of this particular drive and it was absolutely feeling annoyed about doing it.) That's when I knew I needed to ask Jesus because I didn't want to feel that way.

As soon as I finished asking that question, an ambulance at the intersection ahead of me made a left turn, on the side of it it said, MERCY.

I said the word out loud when I saw it. MERCY. MERCY....... I started to think about what Mercy was because I couldn't really come up with a definition in my head. I know that God gives us mercy, God is a merciful God, but what does that really mean? So I asked Jesus, what is Mercy?

I continued on my drive and finished up the work I was doing. I drove back into the city and met up to have lunch with a great friend who was away for a month! After lunch and on my way home when I was pulling up to my house, the song on the radio caught my attention. The words I heard were, "When mercy found me." I sat there and thought to myself, God is answering my question from before, through this song. And sure enough He was. This song helped me to understand today what Mercy is. I'm excited about what else God is going to bring in my life to show me the meaning of Mercy. For all I know this is the beginning of something more.

Here's the song, I hope that you listen to it and I pray that it reaches your heart like it has reached mine. :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zm5oirhXl7I

"Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need."-Hebrews 4:16

Out of Here

"Get me out of here," or "I can't wait to leave here"

How often do you hear people say that? I know I say it. But why do I even say it? Is it because I actually want to leave the place that I am? Do I really want to leave the place that I call home? What I am looking for that I want to leave? What do I think will be there that I don't have here? Where is there? Am I looking for different opportunities? But what opportunities am I looking for? What am I searching for that I can't seem to find here?

Do you ever find yourself wanting to go somewhere else, to do something new? I think at some point we all get to that point or feel that way. And then when we are still at the same place and have been doing the same things we don't understand why we can't go somewhere else.

Well maybe it's because we are actually supposed to be where we are at the moment. And maybe God's plan actually has you exactly where you need to be and what you feel about leaving where you are are new desires that are stirring up in your heart that one day will be fulfilled.

If you get to that point where you want to leave and haven't yet take a few minutes to think and even pray. Think about what you do every day. Think about the people you see and interact with every day. Give yourself credit for the things you do and how what you do is helping someone else. If you can find one thing that you do and even constantly do that is helping someone out well then you just found a reason why you are still where you are.

Trust God's plan for you. GOD BLESS!!

"To this end we always pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of his calling and may fulfill every resolve for good and every work of faith by his power, so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ"- 2 Thessalonians 1:11-12 

Vows

Hey Everyone,

This past week at church a couple renewed their vows. They were married ten years earlier in the same church. They were still both glowing. Witnessing them renew their vows, a man and woman that I don't even know, I was touched. 

I watched them as they approached the altar, the bride of ten years wearing a white dress and the groom of ten years dressed in a suit. 

As I sat there and listened to them renew their vows, I felt the presence of God.

Priest: (Name), do you take (name) to be your wife? Do you promise to be true to her in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health, to love her and honor her all the days of your life?

Groom: I do.

Priest: (Name), do you take (name) to be your husband? Do you promise to be true to him in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health, to love him and honor him all the days of your life?

Bride: I do.

I really understood and felt why God created the sacrament of marriage to be an example of His love here on Earth.

Just look at the vows: Do you promise to be true in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health-- God is always true to us in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health.

To love- God always loves us.

Honor- God always honors us.

All the days of your life- Good does all of these things all of the days of our lives. 

As I watched them look at each other, hold hands, and recite these vows, the presence of God was so evident. These vows are the vows that God gives us and those who are called to be married are given the gift to promise these vows to another person to show and be an example of the love to them that God has for us.

Amazing. Truly Amazing.

"Two are better than one because they have a good return for their labor. For if either of them falls, the one will lift up his companion."- Ecclesiastes 4:9

Tangled

Good Morning Everyone,

When we allow our hearts to be open to the Lord we can see His presence everywhere. Last night I was cleaning my room and several weeks ago this board that I keep my jewelry on fell from the wall leaving a bunch of necklaces tangled. Yesterday I finally took the time to untangle it. When I held it I realized something. All of the necklaces were tangled and held together around my cross necklace.

I knew that the Lord was giving me a lesson right there. In life sometimes we feel like things are all tangled and knotted and we are not sure what to do. But one at a time with the help and the grace of The Lord the knots in our life can be untangled just like the way I had to untangle every necklace that was attached to the cross here. With God as the foundation He will hold us together even when we are tangled. 

Trust in the LORD forever, for the LORD GOD is an everlasting rock. Isaiah 26:4

God Bless!!

Jesus, will you walk with me today?

Hi everyone! It has been a while! Too long that I forgot what my username and password was for my blog. Not cool. I got a little frustrated and then stopped to pray about it and with the grace of God I was able to remember it. Thank you Jesus :)

A few weeks ago I had read a story about someone asking Jesus to walk with them. This stuck with me every day since. It makes sense to me. Jesus is with us all the time, yes. However, inviting Jesus into our lives is when we allow our hearts to be opened to hear Him and to fulfill the will of God. We become aware of His presence in our daily lives when we invite Him in. Every morning I will now ask, Jesus will you walk with me today? I have started to invite him into all areas of my life asking Him to walk with me. I invite Him to walk with me at work, at school, in friendships, ect. I have made it habit every morning that my first thought when I wake up now is Jesus will you walk with me today? It took a long time for me to wake up and that be the first thought that comes to my mind. The first thing I used to think about when I woke up was where is my phone and want to check my messages or go on social media. Not anymore.

Not only have I started to ask Jesus to walk with me during the day when I first wake up but throughout times during the day. Whether I am going somewhere or meeting someone I invite Jesus to come with me and be there with me. I am working on inviting Him in all areas of my life all of the time because I want to follow Him. At night when I am getting ready for bed, I ask this...Jesus, will you rest with me tonight?  Jesus is ready to be there for us all the time He wants us to invite Him into our lives because He wants what is best for us and He knows what is best for us.  It's our choice to invite Him and as soon as we call on Him...He's there. :)

God Bless!!

Romans 10:13

For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

Hope

Hope

Just when you think part of your world is falling apart,

God knows just when to touch your heart.

Though times are going change,

A simple moment is all it takes,

A few simple words can change it all,

And all of a sudden your world doesn’t feel so small.

Because now you have hope,

and the opportunities you have before you race through your mind,

You realize your life is on Gods time.

Remembering everything you have been through,

To get to where you are now,

Its funny how everything has come to together,

Where you least expected it,

But you followed on the path,

It’s better than you can ever imagine.

I have hope,

I have faith,

I have determination,

I have motivation,

Everything surrounding me is inspiration,

All of this because Christ is my foundation. 

The Lord Spoke Through The Roads

Good Morning Everyone!

Happy SaturDAY!

The other morning I was driving to work without the radio on. I usually enjoy putting on some country music in the morning or KLOVE radio. (For those of you who do not know, KLOVE radio is a Christian station that plays uplifting spiritual music and the purpose is to spread God's love and word to those who listen. I love the station). However, that morning I decided to drive to work in silence. There had been so much noise around the past few days when I have been at work and at home that I just wanted be in some quiet and even though I was driving I knew that I would be able to spend some time talking to Jesus and on this day I was able to listen and hear Him. It's amazing what silence can do.    This is what I heard in my heart that morning...

In order to get from my house to my job it takes about 10-12 minutes. The roads in the city are like a checkerboard and I travel from east to west. It's about 8 o'clock in the morning and yes there are some people out but in the scheme of things and the population of the city it is pretty quiet. I am feeling a little anxious thinking about all the things I need to do at work. I am praying to God asking Him how do I do everything for today? What is it that He wants me to do today? Then I am just thinking and asking God about my life, wondering where it's headed, wondering if and/or when certain things will happen in my life. Will I ever get to travel overseas? Will I ever be pursued by a man who is deeply in love with The Lord? Will I ever be married? Will I ever have kids? Are these things that I want and are they what God wants for me too? Am I following His path? Am I where I am supposed to be? What should I do or do you want me to do next? When will I know? How much longer? Those were just some of the questions that were flowing through my mind on this short drive.

As I continued to drive I crossed an intersection and I looked down the street to my left. When I looked down the street as I was passing the road only went a few blocks and there was a building there to end the road. I didn't think much of it until I crossed the next intersection and I looked to the left while I was passing. This road didn't end! This road was open until as far as I could see! And suddenly I had felt at peace.

In those few seconds that I passed those intersections The Lord had spoke to me through the road I was driving on and through the roads that I looked down and saw. Sometimes we are only focusing on one thing and just keeping looking straight ahead. We are wrapped up in the one thing that we are doing or that is going on in our life that we forget to look around and open ourselves up to other options or in this case roads! Roads/options that may help us, inspire us, encourage us, motivate us, change us,  allow us to meet new people, allow us to experience the many things God put on this Earth for us. When looking off the road I was on at the time down the roads to my left I began to understand this. The road that I first looked down reminded me that sometimes and end will happen. Sometimes we go a way where we reach an end. That end might be a job, a relationship, an experience, etc. But that doesn't mean that it is the end of everything because if you keep going and you look down another road you might see how open it is and that the possibilities are endless and what you never imagined happens because that is how much God loves us. When I looked down the next road and saw it kept going from the point I was at..I knew that the Lord was telling me to continue to trust Him no matter what road I was going down but to keep my heart open and my focus on Him and not my focus on that one thing that was taking over me.

How amazing it is that the Lord spoke to me while driving my car into work. I love that I can pray any time of the day or at any place and He is always there and listening. When I allow myself to do this and to open my heart I am always amazed in how He chooses to speak to me. That morning The Lord spoke to me through the roads. Look around because God is near.

"Be still and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!"- Psalm 46:10

God Bless :)

Rain

With my last post being about how beautiful the sky is I thought that today I could talk about rain. Rainy days, we all experience them. When we have events that have to do with the outdoors we hope that it doesn't rain. When we travel we hope that the rain doesn't delay us. On somebody's wedding day we hope it doesn't rain. On a birthday we hope it doesn't rain. At a sporting event we hope it doesn't rain. The list can go on and on. However, we all know that we need the rain. Rain enables the things planted in the Earth to grow but sometimes we let the interference of rain irritate us when it changes our plans. (It's not about Our plans either, it's about God's plans for us)

There's another way to look at the rain. Rain I believe is a beautiful thing. Here's why. Rain is a direct connection from the sky to the earth and something that we can physically feel on our bodies. So when it rains on the day of a special occasion maybe you can think of the rain in a different way especially if you have loved ones who passed away and you know that if they were alive they would be at the event you were going to. You can think of the rain as that person letting you know that they too are thinking of you and that they are still there with you. It's pretty powerful when you change the perspective of what it means when rain falls from the sky. Just as the rain falls to the earth to help nourish things the rain can also nourish our hearts. God loves us so much that He must have created rain to fall from the sky to show that He wants to give us nourishment, in our hearts and in the things that grow on the earth.

"You gave abundant showers, O God; you refreshed your weary inheritance"-Psalm 68:9

God Bless! :)

 

Rainbow Chasing

One of my favorite things to do is to look at God's Artwork. I love looking at the artwork He creates that we as human have no control over, such as the sky. For me, my favorite time of the day to look at His art is when the sun is setting. That is when I have seen the most beautiful colors I have ever seen. (A thought that goes through my mind is "wow these colors are so amazing and incredible that I cannot imagine the colors that the Lord has for us to see in Heaven.") Sunsets bring me to a stop. They allow me to be in awe and to praise my Creator.

I believe that sunsets are a way to help and remind us how precious life's moments are and how we should try to live and feel the moments that we are given. A sunset reminds me that I have been given that moment to feel what I am witnessing and this is something that I should take with me in all the moments of my life. Through all the days that we have been alive we have witness every morning the sun rises and every evening the sun sets. How blessed are we that God choose two times during our day to be able to watch the transition from night to day and to day from night. We are able to witness the sky changing. There is the key word, "changing." Just as the sky changes colors and transitions from day to night so do our lives. Here is a little cycle that I like to relate to our lives.

During the day there is light. We go about our daily lives doing the things we do, seeing the people we see, things are good, we feel pretty comfortable. Then as the sun begins to set we see these amazing colors and the beauty in the sky that just brings us to a stop and we are in awe. This could be compared to things in our life that we have prayed for such as a new job, a spouse, a child, a new friend, any type of blessing that we recognize. Our faith perhaps can feel so strong. We see this amazing sky and we feel so blessed. Then the slowly sun sets and night arrives. There is darkness. We all come across darknesses in our lives. My type of darkness may be completely different than another person's darkness and the definitions of darkness may vary but darkness happens. However, because of that sunset you saw before your darkness you keep having faith, knowing that in the morning the sun will rise and colors will be drawn in the sky and you will see the beautiful art that God has drawn which than will turn into the light of the day.

God loves us so much that He chose to make this a part of our daily lives. A way to remind us that if we trust and have faith in Him that the light will always shine.

*I absolutely love looking at God's Artwork and sharing it with as many people as I can. Photo's allow us to share the beauty that we witness when they cannot be there with us. I think that one of my biggest desires is to share God's Art with as many people as I can in person because I pray they can feel the excitement I feel when I'm watching the sky be painted into indescribable colors. My roommates call me "Rainbow Chaser" because of my desire to capture those moments of God speaking to us through painting colors in the sky. If you don't stop and take a look, you might miss it.

Below are some of my favorite pictures some of my friends and myself have taken. Amazing!

Psalm 19:1 The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.

God Bless!!

Fire Hydrants!!!

Hiiii Everyone!!

Last Sunday when I was driving home from Church I was behind a fire truck. I was stopped at a red light and was looking at the hoses on the truck. I was amazed and just curious on how everything really works. When looking at the hose I turned my eyes over to see a fire hydrant on the corner. I then was imagining putting the hose on the fire hydrant and trying to figure out how it would all work. As I continued to drive home I was noticing all of the fire hydrants on the sidewalks. It made me really think!! There were so many fire hydrants that I pass every day that I never even noticed, ever! The only time I ever probably notice a fire hydrant is when I am parking somewhere, other than that I don’t really take notice. I then began to think but wow, I can’t believe how many fire hydrants are just on my street. There are so many and to think they have all been placed there to help us incase of a fire. I thought about it as God putting them there incase there is danger. Think about it, we are so blessed that if we need it we have access to water in a bad situation like a fire. It’s almost like when God puts people in our lives when we need help too. The fire hydrants have been placed in the spots that The Lord has mapped out for them just like He has certain people in our lives at certain times to help or be a part of a particular blessing, struggle, or lesson. We just have to open our eyes and recognize and embrace what is around us!

God Bless!

Feeling Your Emotions

How often do we actually allow ourselves to feel the emotions that are in us? I struggle with this! I struggle with this when I feel as if the emotion I feel is a negative one, such as being sad, upset, or hurt. Even times when I feel so happy and excited I try to guard my heart so in case things don’t go as I planned I think I can prevent any hurt later on. Right there is my first problem, I need to let go and let God be in control of the plans He has for me. The other problem is because all of these emotions that I am feeling are building up inside of me. The Lord wants us to feel our emotions! He also wants us to know that every emotion we feel, Jesus has felt too. For example, when someone that we know and love passes away, did you ever try not to cry. People always tell us to be strong and we might even tell ourselves to be strong and not to cry because that person is in a better place. And yes although that is true let us remember the story of Jesus and his friend Lazarus.

The Death of Lazarus —John 11:1-36

11 Now a man named Lazarus was sick. He was from Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. 2 (This Mary, whose brother Lazarus now lay sick, was the same one who poured perfume on the Lord and wiped his feet with her hair.) 3 So the sisters sent word to Jesus, “Lord, the one you love is sick.”

4 When he heard this, Jesus said, “This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God’s glory so that God’s Son may be glorified through it.” 5 Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. 6 So when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was two more days, 7 and then he said to his disciples, “Let us go back to Judea.”

8 “But Rabbi,” they said, “a short while ago the Jews there tried to stone you, and yet you are going back?”

9 Jesus answered, “Are there not twelve hours of daylight? Anyone who walks in the daytime will not stumble, for they see by this world’s light. 10 It is when a person walks at night that they stumble, for they have no light.”

11 After he had said this, he went on to tell them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I am going there to wake him up.”

12 His disciples replied, “Lord, if he sleeps, he will get better.” 13 Jesus had been speaking of his death, but his disciples thought he meant natural sleep.

14 So then he told them plainly, “Lazarus is dead, 15 and for your sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.”

16 Then Thomas (also known as Didymus[a]) said to the rest of the disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.”

Jesus Comforts the Sisters of Lazarus

17 On his arrival, Jesus found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days.18 Now Bethany was less than two miles[b] from Jerusalem, 19 and many Jews had come to Martha and Mary to comfort them in the loss of their brother. 20 When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went out to meet him, but Mary stayed at home.

21 “Lord,” Martha said to Jesus, “if you had been here, my brother would not have died.22 But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask.”

23 Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.”

24 Martha answered, “I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.”

25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; 26 and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?”

27 “Yes, Lord,” she replied, “I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who is to come into the world.”

28 After she had said this, she went back and called her sister Mary aside. “The Teacher is here,” she said, “and is asking for you.” 29 When Mary heard this, she got up quickly and went to him. 30 Now Jesus had not yet entered the village, but was still at the place where Martha had met him. 31 When the Jews who had been with Mary in the house, comforting her, noticed how quickly she got up and went out, they followed her, supposing she was going to the tomb to mourn there.

32 When Mary reached the place where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”

33 When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled. 34 “Where have you laid him?” he asked.

“Come and see, Lord,” they replied.

35 Jesus wept.

36 Then the Jews said, “See how he loved him!”

_____________________________________________

As we can see Jesus loved Lazarus, that was one of his best friends. So when Jesus wept (verse 35), it was not because he was sad that Lazarus went to be with The Lord, but that Jesus was going to miss his friend. When we are in a situation like this remember that Jesus knows how we are feeling and He wants us to feel those emotions, to fully feel them. We can pray to Jesus to help us feel or emotions whether sad or happy.

Several months ago it took me to physically fall on my hands and knees on the ground to feel the emotions that were built up inside of me. After having a phone call with a friend about our friend who had passed away over two years ago I got out of my car to walk into my  house. Right after I got out of my car I fell all the way to the ground. It hurt. I wanted to cry and I held it in, until I got inside of my house where my roommate was there and I just fell into her arms and cried for at least a half hour. I was physically hurt and cut but so was my heart. I held my emotions in for so long about the passing of my friend that this fall is what caused me to let my emotions out. As I sat there and cried my roommate prayed for me right there. Afterwards my heart and my body felt so peaceful, the Holy Spirit had entered my heart because I finally let go.

Our emotions can be hard to understand at times. We might not understand why we feel a certain or what makes us feel a certain and how we are to express them. Talk to God about what you are feeling. Have comfort in knowing that Jesus has felt the emotions of rejection, sadness, hope, love, and all the other emotions that we today still feel.

God Bless!!

Opening Our Eyes

Here is a little story that I would like to share:

God Will Save Me

A terrible storm came into a town and local officials sent out an emergency warning that the riverbanks would soon overflow and flood the nearby homes. They ordered everyone in the town to evacuate immediately.

A faithful Christian man heard the warning and decided to stay, saying to himself, “I will trust God and if I am in danger, then God will send a divine miracle to save me.”

The neighbors came by his house and said to him, “We’re leaving and there is room for you in our car, please come with us!” But the man declined. “I have faith that God will save me.”

As the man stood on his porch watching the water rise up the steps, a man in a canoe paddled by and called to him, “Hurry and come into my canoe, the waters are rising quickly!” But the man again said, “No thanks, God will save me.”

The floodwaters rose higher pouring water into his living room and the man had to retreat to the second floor. A police motorboat came by and saw him at the window. “We will come up and rescue you!” they shouted. But the man refused, waving them off saying, “Use your time to save someone else! I have faith that God will save me!”

The flood waters rose higher and higher and the man had to climb up to his rooftop.

A helicopter spotted him and dropped a rope ladder. A rescue officer came down the ladder and pleaded with the man, “Grab my hand and I will pull you up!” But the man STILL refused, folding his arms tightly to his body. “No thank you! God will save me!”

Shortly after, the house broke up and the floodwaters swept the man away and he drowned.

When in Heaven, the man stood before God and asked, “I put all of my faith in You. Why didn’t You come and save me?”

And God said, “Son, I sent you a warning. I sent you a car. I sent you a canoe. I sent you a motorboat. I sent you a helicopter. What more were you looking for?”

Sometimes we find ourselves so caught up in the way that we want things to happen that we miss what The Lord is trying to show us. I know that there are many times that I find myself wanting what I want and not even thinking about what God wants for me. I get so caught up in the idea of how I think something should happen that I do not even see The Lord. I get caught up on how I think I would like to fall in love, or how my day should go, or when I should do this or that. This is when we need to pray that we can open the eyes of our hearts. When the eyes of my heart are open I always am amazed at what God brings into my life and the way that he does it. It is always in a way that I never thought about myself. And that makes sense because what the Lord has planned for us is so great that we can’t imagine it in our minds until we allow ourselves to let go and let it happen and to open the eyes of our hearts.

“Open my eyes that I may see wonderful things in your law”-Psalm 119:18

GOD BLESS