Messiah

THIS WEEK Christmas falls on a Sunday, so I get to blog to you about Christmas on Christmas! This morning after my whole family met at our house for breakfast, my parents and siblings and I got on a plane to go to Texas to visit my dad's side of the family. We are having a lovely time. We are full of ham and green punch and croissants. We watched home movies and I met my new cousin Seth for the first time. I'm really thankful for a day like this and every way God has blessed us.

On the plane today I was reading Luke 2, the chapter about the early years of Jesus' life. And what I noticed is that God found a way to come as a Boy who was both ordinary and extraordinary, human and God. He had the same rituals and ceremonies performed for Him as any little Hebrew guy would have, and He had parents who took care of Him and who worried when He was missing for a few days. But from the time He was born His life was also surrounded by the fulfillment and declaration of prophecies. At the mere sight of Him, praise went up from the mouths of God's servants to heaven. He was ordinary and human enough to relate to us and to stand in our place, and yet being God He can pay a sacrifice of ultimate price for our sake.

Simeon, an old prophet who was told by the Holy Spirit that he would not die until he had seen the Messiah, was filled with joy when he saw the Baby Jesus. In Luke 2:29-32 he shouts, "Lord, now You are letting Your servant depart in peace, according to Your word; [30] for my eyes have seen Your salvation [31] which You have prepared before the face of all peoples, [32] a light to bring revelation to he Gentiles, and the glory of Your people Israel."

He didn't need any explanation, no mention of the host of angels who proclaimed His birth to the shepherds in the night. This was the Messiah he had awaited for years. When Jesus went missing in Jerusalem for a few days a few years later, His parents found Him learning from the teachers and displaying astonishing wisdom. In Luke 2:49 He speaks to them, "And He said to them, 'Why did you seek Me? Did you not know that I must be about My Father's business?'"

He came for His Father's business. The Father's business was not just for Him to be an amazing little Boy, or even to be the greatest Teacher in history. His business was for Him to die and rise and be the Savior of the world. He is, as Simeon said, the light.

When I was up in that airplane today looking out the window, the clouds and sky I saw were too beautiful to really tell you about. The white and blue vapors stretched in ripples and peaks toward the horizon an infinity away, and the sun broke through the crystal sky. And I thought, you know, God sees this all the time. He owns it all, and He made it all. If He wanted to, He could let His omniscient Mind glide over all the perfect hills and valleys of the clouds and overlook what is happening downstairs. He could! And why shouldn't He? Or He could think about the stars and galaxies He made, and pay little attention to the speck of the world we messed up. He could let us fly into an asteroid belt and rejoice over the glittering heavenly bodies in their orbits.

But He does look down here. He pays much more than a little thought to us, the noisy race on Earth that, despite everything, bears His image still! He lets the light of the Son peak down and touch us, while He looks at what we are and what we were, and sees instead what we can be. What He made us to be, and what we will be. He lets His thoughts dwell on us below. He lets He love pour down from the clouds unhindered. He lets His mercy strike bright and fierce like lightning, mightily gentle like the loving hand of a Father to help His little one.

Psalm 139:17-18 "How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God! How great is the sum of them! [18] If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand; when I awake, I am still with You."

He scoops us up by His grace for our faith. Taking what was corrupted, He makes us shine again like we were always meant to, reflecting the light that He sent into the world. This is why we love God.

We celebrate Christmas to remember God's gift of His Son, the Messiah, the Chosen One the world had been awaiting for hundreds of years. That gift is only meaningful if we remember that He sent Him to die for us. He teaches us how to live, and how to die to ourselves. We do matter to God, enough to breathe a dying breathe for, enough to eject our death sentence paid in full, rendered void, from His resurrected lungs. He spared so expense just for the chance to knock on our doors and ask to come in.

Merry Christmas, everybody. We sure have a good reason to celebrate.

Scrooge and the Grinch

THIS WEEK, of course we are all getting ready for Christmas. We are getting everything together and lighting up everything we see with color. Tonight my family and I took a drive around our neighborhood to see all the lights and hear the music.

I began rereading Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol," and my family watched the movie version with Jim Carrey, who is a very good actor. I really love that story, and the movie always amazes me. You probably know it: a chronically stingy old man named Mr. Scrooge is driven to repentance by visions brought by spirits representing Christmases of the past, present, and future. By the end he is so radically changed and overflowing with goodwill and sincere love that everyone he knows is stunned by him.

You're probably also familiar with Dr. Seuss' story of the Grinch who Stole Christmas. That story also happens to have a new movie version with Jim Carrey. If you've seen that version you'll remember the scene where the Grinch stands on a cliff on the side of Mount Crumpit with a book full of the names of every Who. He begins to read them aloud alphabetically and shout in the direction of Whoville, "I... HATE YOU!!!" "Hate hate hate, hate hate hate, LOATHE ENTIRELY." After seeing his attempt to ruin Christmas by stealing the presents is foiled by the Whos' joy in singing their Christmas song together, he understands his error and is, like Scrooge, converted to a kindhearted soul.

God Himself is love. What better way to celebrate the coming of Jesus than to do as He did, and show love to people? Christmas is a great time to be reminded of what we should be doing throughout the entire year: loving Jesus by loving people. It's easy to think we are good at that, but Jesus also made it clear that love doesn't come naturally. True love is supernatural, so it takes God's help and our hearts to make it happen.

In Matthew 5:46 He tells us, "For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?"

Neither Scrooge nor the Grinch was loved by anyone, because neither loved anyone. The Grinch didn't even really love his dog Max, to whose head he tied an oversized antler to make him a reindeer to pull his heay-laden sleigh of stolen goods. But in the movie, after his heart has just grown three sizes because of the Whos, he looks at his dog in bewilderment and tearfully exclaims, "Max! I love ya!"

Love is infectious and powerful. It makes all the difference, whether it is done openly, as in the Grinch's returning of the gifts, or in secret, like Scrooge's anonymous sending of an expensive turkey to his employee's poor family. It is the first in the list of the fruits of the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) and the greatest thing we have according to Paul in 1 Corinthians 13:13, "And now abide faith, hope, and love, these three: but the greatest of these is love."

Jesus emphasized loving people we don't immediately think to love - not only our enemies, but strangers, too. Poor, rich, pretty, ugly, mean, stupid, pink, green. The Ghost of Christmas Past shows Scrooge a party held by Fezziwig, an employer he had when he was a young man. Fezziwig invited everybody he knew, and every kind and age of person walked in. But Scrooge did not even celebrate during Christmas, nor would he pay mind to the plight of the poor or let his employee make a hotter fire at night.

In Luke 14:13-14, Jesus tells us what we should do: "But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind. And you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you; for you shall be repaid at the resurrection of the just."

"Scrooge" and "Grinch" have become names for people who don't enjoy celebrating with people or share in joy with others. I'm afraid that most of us are like that sometimes, and forget to love. We may not even notice, because it might seem justifiable not to love. People are often very terrible to one another, and we don't deserve to be loved or forgiven. But what Jesus said about loving even those who do wrong to us still applies. It's not like forgiving them would be as profound as God forgiving us.

And that's just what we are celebrating right now. The coming of God in the flesh to break down every wall out of love for us, only to come knock on our doors and ask to be let in. That's love. And whether we are sharing that good news or just treating people with gentleness and charity, it is not only our job but our greatest blessing in life to love like Jesus does. Doing that, we can celebrate Him properly throughout the year.

Go Tell it on the Mountain

THIS WEEK I finished my finals and went home. In fact, tonight I completed my 6000 word history paper and submitted it online, so my first semester of college is finally over. I cannot believe it has been three months of school already. It sure is wonderful to be home.

I've spent much needed time with my family this week. On Friday my brother and sister, her boyfriend and I went to the Community Nutcracker, which was lovely to see again. Last night I helped my mom deliver a wedding cake, and afterward we went to a choir recital at a church in Middleburg, where my five-year-old cousin had a solo.

The recital featured a small drama about a man who used Christmas as an opportunity to lead his coworker to the Lord. What I loved about it was that it was very simple, yet very realistic. His friend just saw a change in him after he complained about holiday stress, and he answered his curiosity by telling him about how he had prayed to Jesus and made it through, and how He had totally altered his attitude and point of view. The coworker kept wanting to know more, to get his questions answered, and eventually through talking to his friend he got to respond to the gospel.

What I noticed is that it wasn't very complicated at all. The fact of the matter is that a lot of details of the Truth are a little confusing to our human frame of reference. Some points get the theologians and agnostics talking and writing books, and they are really interesting to read about. But talk isn't what saves people. Logic is a good tool, but love is what draws people in.

1 Peter 1:17-19, "[17] And if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one's work, conduct yourselves through the time of your stay here in fear; [18] knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, fro myour aimless conduct received by the tradition from your fathers, [19] but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot."

We are supposed to live in reverence, knowing who is was that died for our redemption. That is what Christmas is about: that God Himself came to earth to take our sin on Himself and suffer for it, so we could be His again. Think about that. That's what love means.

When Jesus taught and preached, He spoke in love. He spoke like nobody else ever had. Of course He spoke in wisdom, and He wasn't just trying to confuse everybody. But His goal was not that we would wrap our heads around Him but that we would let Him take our hearts and rescue our sinking souls. He gave us parables and explained a lot of things so that we could understand what we believe, but it's more important just to know and love Him. We can't understand a person or know him completely before having a relationship with him. And after we are, learning more is part of the joy of growing closer. We should talk about Him like He talked about Himself, not as a subject to be discussed, but as a Person to be known.

This gives me encouragement for the next semester of school, and for my friends. If they can see some of that love and if we can give it some patience, I know people will be saved because that is what God wants.

In Matthew 28:19-20 Jesus commands us "[19] 'Go theerefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, [20] teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you, and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.' Amen."

Pastor Aaron, who leads the college ministry at my church for UNF, said today that two students there had gone up to two complete strangers, and led them to Jesus right then. It doesn't always happen in a day, or over a month, or in the office, or overseas. But it always happens in the will of God. That is because we aren't saving anybody. God is doing the saving, and one of the greatest blessings He has given us as His adopted children is the opportunity to be a part of His work to bring more children home.

The prophets couldn't stop talking about Jesus hundreds of years before He came: Isaiah 53:5, "But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed."

The shepherds couldn't be quiet after they saw Him in the manger:
Luke 2:16-18, "[16] And they came with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the Babe lying in a manger. [17] Now when they had seen Him, they made widely known the saying which was told them concerning the Child. [18] And all those who heard it marveled at those things which were told them by the shepherds."

The earliest Christians wouldn't cease to spread the good news, and they got into trouble for it:
Acts 4:19-20, "[19] But Peter and John answered and said to them, 'Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you more than to God, you judge. [20] For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.'"

Now it is our turn. I'm feeling convicted about this, and I think a lot of us should. Something great is about to happen, because great things happen when the Holy Spirit moves. Watch the world change as we dare to change it in Jesus' name.

God Only Knows

THIS WEEK will be my last week of classes of my first semester of college. I'm thankful that I'm going to have about a month to just be with my family, and that I've made it through three months of classes away from home.

For many of us this month is one of the best in the year. We get to celebrate Christmas and the new year, and just take a break to enjoy being warm on cold days. But it's still earth, so there is still a dash of hell thrown in.

Last week a student in Architecture named Jade, a couple years ahead of me, died when her car flipped as she drove back to school from Thanksgiving break. She was buckled in and sober. But now she is gone, and everyone she knew is devastated. I have read some of the notes they left for her beside the flowers and the display of her work. She was a really lovely person, not just somebody people say nice things about once they're gone. She was known for bringing color and smiles, and for her promising skill in architecture. She was going places.

Doesn't God love us? Isn't He good? From our earthbound eye level, it isn't easy to understand. We know by faith that God sees more than we do, and that He understands what we don't. But He also knows that when the world goes dark, that is still hard for us to see.

Psalm 90:2 declares, "Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever You had formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God."

And verse 12 says, "So teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom." Our lives here are brief. But God is not bound by time. Our perspective is small, but His is as wide as can be.

I think that what He wants us to understand that not everything is good, but He is good, and He can make good come out of everything. When hell rains out of the sky, He is God, and He understands pain. When we are on the mountain tasting heaven, He is still God, and He delights in showing us His goodness.

Isaiah 43:13, "Indeed before the day was, I am He; and there is no one who can deliver out of My hand; I work, and who will reverse it?"

God is sovereign, so no part of our lives goes unnoticed by Him. Those who trust in Him can see hope in the distance, because a change of situation does not mean that God has changed, or that His promises have faltered. It only means there is more left to see. He is not done working.

Isaiah 43:19, "Behold, I will do a new thing, now it shall spring forth; shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness and rivers in the desert."

Repeatedly in the Old Testament He is promising to do something new, something amazing. He says He will send His Servant to bring salvation to the world. Then in the New Testament, He does it and almost everybody is surprised.

Isaiah 49:6, "Indeed He says, 'It is too small a thing that You should be My Servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved ones of Israel; I will also give You as a light to the Gentiles, that You should be My salvation to the ends of the erath.'"

When He sent Israel into captivity, He promised that it would not be forever. In fact, He sent them with a promise of love tagged on.

v.29:10-13, "[10] For thus says the Lord: After seventy years are completed at Babylon, I will visit you and perform my good word toward you, and cause you to return to this place. [11] For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. [12] Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. [13] And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart."

God fulfilled His promise to Israel. He wants His children to understand that He doesn't do things or let them be done for no good reason. He hates when we are hurting, and it hurts Him too. But so does our sin because it makes us far from Him.

God makes miracles out of madness. Maybe the miracle is that Jade was even born to bring so much joy to people's lives. Tomorrow isn't promised, but she lived each today fully. Maybe the miracle is what she left behind. I didn't have to know her to know that she's taught a lot of good things to a lot of people. She didn't live in vain.

One thing we know about life is that we really don't know very much about our lives. Will the milk go bad too soon? Will you ever find a guy you can bring home to your daddy, or, as the case may be, a girl to bring home to your mama? Will you pay off your loans? Will your loved one get better? God only knows.

But don't be discouraged, because He not only knows but cares.

Isaiah 49:15-16, "[15]Can a woman forget her nursing child, and not have compassion on the son of her womb? Surely they may forget, yet I will not forget you. [16] See, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands. Your walls are continually before Me."

The Greatest Blessing

THIS WEEK was Thanksgiving, the day we devote to remembering to be thankful for the mounds of blessings heaped up on our lives. I got to spend it with my family, and nobody was missing when we ate together.

I'm glad we have this holiday in America, because gratitude is one of the most important things to maintain and yet one of the easiest to dismiss. When we aren't thankful, our problems seem a lot bigger because we aren't thinking about how good we have it.

Please watch this video I saw on Godvine.com a couple weeks ago. I saved it to show it to you this week, because it made me thankful for everything I have no matter how bad a day I was having.



That sure makes our problems look smaller. What's amazing is that this man was thankful for everything even, and especially, when it looked like he was about to lose it all. That was because he saw that he was about to gain it all when he came to stand before God. He passed away in May of 2010.

What are you thankful for? Nothing is too big or small to be thankful for.

I'm thankful for my family. My talented and wonderfully understanding mom, my dad who is the perfect balance of responsible and fun, my clever and beautiful sister, and my funny and brilliant brother. I am thankful for days when I get to be with them and do anything, or nothing, and see my yellow house with flowers and citrus trees.

I'm thankful for not one Bible, but two, in a world where so many Christians struggle to get their hands on one. In many countries it is dangerous to carry them to give to other people. I'm thankful that I get to go to church in the same place every week, without fear of being punished or pressured because of it.

I'm thankful for my friends at school, for my life group, and for my awesome room mate. I'm thankful for the chance to study what I love in a university, and to go outside every day and see the things God made.

Psalm 100 is my Thanksgiving Psalm that I love to read this time of year.

v.3-4 "[3] Know that the Lord, He is God; It is He who made us, and not we ourselves; we are His people and the sheep of His pasture. [4] Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and enter into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name."

This makes me realize that gratitude comes from the recognition of need. We are thankful to God because He provides for our needs. So let's not become ungrateful and think that we can make ourselves, and reach the heights beyond ourdreams without the strength of His wings.

In John 10:11 Jesus tells us how He relates to us: "I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep."

We have so much to be thankful for. I hope we can practice gratitude as much during the year as we do in late November.

If we're thankful to God because He provides abundantly for our needs, and if He has provided most abundantly for our greatest need of salvation by giving Himself, then we should be most thankful to Him, for Him. He is our greatest blessing.

More than anything I am thankful to my Savior for saving me, and that He is close enough to hear. I love hearing Him remind me of promises like Jeremiah 29:11, as He did just a couple nights ago: "Fir I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thuoghts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope." I'm thankful for His sovereignty in my life, even on days when it all looks like it's falling apart, because it isn't really.

Take a little while to think about what you're most thankful for, and stay thankful. You'll find that when we are thankful for our blessings and bless the Lord because of them, our gratitude blesses us even more.

Dead Hamsters

THIS WEEK I remember something a teacher of mine used to say. He saw too many people walking around "looking like somebody killed their hamster." Too many sad faces. The truth is there's a lot of sad stuff going on under the wide blue sky. What can we do to put a smile on?

I've had a week of ups and downs. I've had a lot of work to do building my last model for my Design One class, and I'm going to me staying up late tonight finishing my project. But I also had the chance to spend time with my cousin who visited me, and we had a great time. I had to miss my cousin's Christening today, but Thanksgiving is in a few days and I will see my whole family then.

There's a lot of good to celebrate, because God loves to bless us. But troublesome things sometimes block out our view of them. What I've learned is that stress and frustration just lets us learn how to depend on God more, and it reminds us that this is not heaven. If every day were good we would start feeling entitled to convenience. We would take everything for granted and forget our essential need for God. So I'm thankful for occasional long nights when nothing is working and I don't get enough sleep, because in the dark we can see the light more clearly.

Two things are most important to have when you feel like somebody killed your hamster: first, God, and second, godly friends.

God's word is full of instances where He saw the need of someone who called out to Him, and he answered him. He will still do that for us.

Psalm 43:5 says, "Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God; for I shall yet praise Him, the help of my countenance and my God."

We should remember that praise isn't something we give God to tell Him, "Good job giving me everything I want!" Instead praise says, "You are worthy regardless of what happens, and I know You want and will give me what is good for me!" Nothing in life changes who God is, and discomfort doesn't mean He is far away. It's an opportunity to pray and see Him answer, and to praise Him and see your faith rise. Not problem is too big or too small for Him to care for.

He is the "help of our countenance." What does that mean? It means He upholds us, giving us a reason to turn our frowns upside down. It doesn't mean He will answer all our prayers with a Yes, but it does mean that when we praise Him despite trouble, all our reasons to praise will overwhelm our reasons to whimper and complain.

The other important thing to have is godly friends around us to lift us up. Friends must both encourage each other and give constructive criticism. We must embolden each other toward righteousness and call each other out about sin.

I've seen Proverbs 27:17 around a lot lately, "As iron sharpens iron, so a man sharpens the countenance of his friend." This means that friends help each other succeed, and to see clearly to make good choices. When iron sharpens iron it is an act of love, because if either of those swords tries to go into battle dull, the one using it will probably die.

On Tuesday during one of my late nights in the studio my friend Debbie came while I was away. When I came back I found she had left me an encouraging note and a Mountain Dew that would keep me awake all evening. The note had a reference to 2 Corinthians 12:9, one of my favorites, "[9] 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."

My friend didn't even sign her name on the note. She was acting completely unselfishly. And her gift really helped me to make it through that long Tuesday night. I'm reminded that we serve a God who turns things into the opposite of what they seem. So when we're weak we're really strong by His stength. And maybe when we're troubled we're really the most blessed for having a view of our need for God. Maybe when we're thankful despite frustration we really have the most to be thankful for.

I know I'm not going to get through everything this evening without the help of my God and my friends, and I'm thankful for them. So when my plexiglas isn't sticking together and when I have printer trouble at midnight tonight, I will do my best to smile anyway. To laugh and look forward to Thanksgiving. So grab a Bible and a friend this week and take your day by storm. Show the world that the children of God live victoriously in His name, for the glory of His name. Don't walk around like your hamster is dead. Every now and then, look up from the sidewalk and sing a song of praise instead.

How Big is a Mustard Seed?

THIS WEEK I discovered GodVine.com for the first time. It's a website all about videos meant to inspire, ecourage, and amaze you. It's just my kind of thing, especially categorized as "Miracle."

There's one I really want to share with you, about a man who had a heart attack:



Watch that real quick. It only takes 6 minutes and 15 seconds. I'll wait here.



That was amazing, right? It's so awesome that God still does these things in response to our faith. My favorite part was when the cardiologist confessed that he was having a day of very small faith, but when he took the little bit of faith he did have and obeyed God with it, he saw God's power.

It isn't hard to have faith, and it isn't a weakness to have faith. Faithful people aren't dumb. It takes faith to drive a car, that when you make a turn the light will stay red for everybody else and you won't be hit. It takes faith to eat spagetti, as I did earlier this week, because you must wait patiently for it to cool before you eat it, hoping for the promise that it will be much better after it won't burn your tongue. It even takes faith to pick up a new, unsharpened pencil, faith that when you sharpen it the graphite inside won't be made of chalk and disintegrate, and that it isn't already broken straight from the pencil company.

People need some level of faith just to function in the world. Disappointment comes from putting faith in the wrong things. Pure joy comes from putting our faith where it belongs, in God.

My Life Group talked about faith and faithfulness this week, and my favorite thing we talked about was this: that it isn't how much faith you have that matters, but whether your faith is true. Jesus said that even a faith the size of a mustard seed, which is about the size of the letter O on this page, is enough to see Him move. That is because He respects and appreciates our faith and He is not shy about proving it is not in vain.

I read Psalm 27 this week and it really blew my mind.

v.1 "The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?"

It seems so easy to think about, but when trouble comes, aren't I afraid and fearful sometimes? God is completely trustworthy and it isn't hard to trust Him. The hard part about faith is learning to trust Him more than we trust ourselves. Do we try to climb the mountain alone, or do we bring a guide who knows every rock on the mountain? He makes us stroner because He is strong enough for anything.

v. 3 "Though an army may encamp against me, my heart shall not fear; though war may rise against me, in this I will be confident." Can you imagine having an actual war rise against you? What kind of faith does it take to make impossible odds turn out in our favor? What does that look like?

Joshua 6 tells the story of the Israelites under the leadership of Moses' successor, Joshua. God told them they could have Jericho, an extremely well-forified city with a thick wall all the way around. Okay, what should they do? Should they get out jackhammers and bulldozers and knock the wall down? No. God said just to take a walk around the city once a day for six days, carrying the Ark of the Covenant. On the seventh day they would walk around seven times, and then shout really loud, and the wall would come down. That makes sense.

I'm reminded of the Kiwi and the Dragonfruit again, how God chooses the foolish things to put to shame the wise. They Israelites knew what God was telling them to do, and He hadn't failed them before. So they walked, and they shouted, and they ran for the city, and the wall fell. All it took was faith that God is wise and has good intentions for our benefit.

That's the kind of faith we are supposed to have. Faith that whether the sun is shining or there is a hurricane outside your window, whether the answer is to walk back into a room and pray for a dead man, or to just walk around a wall a few times, God will keep the promises He has made. One way or another.

Faith in God gives us access to the power of God. It doesn't take much.

We are called the descendents of Abraham because his faith in God was enough for him to me called righteous. His faith was imputed as righteousness.

Romans 4:23-25, "[23] Now it was not written for his sake alone that it was imputed to him, [24] but also for us. It shall be imputed to us who believe in Him who raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead, [25] who was delivered up because of our offenses, and was raised because of our justification."

If an ounce of faith is enough for us to be saved and reconciled with God because of His sacrifice, then faith must be very strong indeed. Imagine what else can happen. Go ahead and ask.

Kiwis and Dragonfruit

THIS WEEK I ate a kiwi. Have you ever eaten a kiwi? If you haven't it's probably because you were afraid to. It's not a good-looking fruit. It's a fuzzy, soft brown oval the about the size of an egg.

If you haven't eaten a kiwi, you should get one. They cost about 33 cents each at Walmart. You should eat a kiwi because, despite its weird appearance, it has a treasure inside.

If you cut a kiwi in half you see a lovely pattern of black seeds and bright green fruit. You can eat it right out of the skin with a spoon. It's tangy and sweet and wonderful.

The kiwi takes faith. You have to believe that when you cut it open it won't be as boring as it looks, because it isn't. That's what I thought of when I read 1 Corinthians 1 this week. Check it out:

v.27 "But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty."

God invented the kiwi in a way that it doesn't look like much, but within it shows His goodness and His ability to provide wonderful things for us.

When I thought about that, I remembered the one time I tried somethign called a dragonfruit. When I heard there was a fruit called dragonfruit, I decided I wanted it to be my favorite fruit. I couldn't wait to try it. Its skin is bright pinkish purple with frills, and inside it is pure white with thousands of little black seeds. It's pretty enough to decorate your house with.

If you haven't eaten a dragonfruit, don't bother. They don't taste good or bad. They literally taste like nothing at all. They should be called "Disappointmentfruit."

Despite the wonderful appearance of the dragonfruit, the kiwi outdoes it. God has chosen the kiwi to put to shame the dragonfruit, in a way. Of course, He made both. But I can't help but think this is something like the world. God loves to use all kinds of people to show His power and faithfulness. But His word is especially full of fishermen, shepherds, carpenters, poor people, and children. Whether He turns them into kings or reveals to them His mysteries, He honors the humble because they don't exalt themselves. Their low position is perfect for showing how He cares for those we tend to forget, and how He can provide in any situation. When He came in the flesh He even chose the humble position of a carpenter born in tiny Bethlehem and raised in backwoods Galilee, and He saved the world.

1 Corinthians 1:18-19 "[18] For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. [19] For it is written, 'I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.'"

His ways are different from our ways. He loves to do things in ways nobody expects, ways that nobody really understands right away.

He told us in Matthew 23:11-12, "[11] But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant. [12] And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."

I'm inclined to think that what God thinks is great is better than what the whole world thinks is great. 1 Corinthians 1:25 "Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men."

There is a lot of good stuff in this world. People and money and theme parks and lemonade and glitter all seem pretty wonderful, and they are blessings. But next to God, everything else is dragonfruit. God puts the kiwi on the table and says that the weaker things can be greatest. He says that a mighty nation can come from a single child of old parents. He says the whole world can be saved through the sacrifice of one Man, if that Man is His Son. He says twelve guys from no special background can become fierce witnesses of a life-changing faith that sweeps over the entire world.

Then, in Matthew 16:24-25, Jesus says this "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for My sake will find it."

How do we respond when He says this? Remembering that He has always been right and always does what He says, and knowing that He honors our faith and humility, there's only one thing to do. We take up the cross and follow Him daily. We choose the funny-looking kiwi for the brilliant promise that waits inside it. Because life in Christ, no matter the cost, will always be more wonderful than all the beautiful and bland dragonfruit the world could hold.

Home Sweet Home

THIS WEEK I am visiting my family at home for the weekend. I had to work extra hard for the last few days to finish by Friday night so that I wouldn't have to bring anything home with me. So Thursday and Friday weren't very fun days, but it only made my weekend here even better.

I love college, but home is my favorite place. If it were up to me I would just stay here all the time, have dinner with my family every night, go to my church and see my friends.

Home is a great place to see just how much my cup is running over. I have the happiest, prettiest, funniest family in the world. The fall weather is perfect. My cat is happy to see me. Yesterday we went and bought a lovely pumpkin and carved it up. I've never seen a nicer Jack-o-Lantern. We had corned beef and cabbage and watched our favoreite shows. This morning I attended my church with my pastor and saw my friends, and afterward we went to lunch with the wonderful Poole family. Now I'm blogging in my own house and everybody is sitting around watching the Texans beat the Jaguars. My brother is playing video games and my mom is eating yogurt. It's been as close to perfect as a weekend can be.

I enjoy my school, but how do I leave home again? How do I miss out on everybody coming home from school and work, and eating dinner, and the dog chewing up somebody's underwear, and having parties for people's birthdays? My brother's birthday is this Friday, and I won't be here.

I begin to ask God how I can miss those things, and how I can go back, and then I see Him standing there. Everything changes around Him, even while anything and everything else changes. How do I go away after a weekend like this one? I'll just follow God right back to Gainesville.

Last night I read Psalm 23, which is probably the best-known of the psalms. Every time I read it I get something new out of it.

It starts (v. 1) "The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want. (ESV)"

Like sheep depend on their shepherd just to survive, we depend on God. And just as sheep listen when the shepherd says it's time to graze somewhere else, we go where God says we should go. That's because the field isn't our home. The Shepherd is.

The psalm ends (v.6) "Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever. (ESV)"

As long as we are with God, our souls have what we need. Things might not always go well, and we will have happy and sad times, but He provides for us through everything. I realized that following Him necessarily involves walking, and walking involves moving, and moving involves change. So as much as I'd like to stay in this weekend and stroke my cat and eat pumpkin pie, I have to stay in God's will. And right now that means going to college in another city and just coming back every few weeks.

But that's okay. As wonderful as my home is, this isn't heaven. As long as we're in God's will, as long as we're close to Him and seeking to be closer, we are home. That's what makes heaven, heaven. It's not where we go, but who is there. And since eternal life has already begun for you and me, and because God is with us all the time, heaven is always around us like a little beam of light coming out of the clouds.

I read this to my grandma earlier this week, because there's more treatment to be done to take care of her cancer:

Philippians 4:11-13, "[11] Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. [12] I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and in every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. [13] I can do all things through Him who strengthens me. (ESV)"

What a wonderful life God offers us, that we get to go through life with the option of being happy with whatever happens just because we trust in God. It's a glimpse into a home where all the trouble we've ever gone through is like a blink, and there is no lack of time for overflowing joy in the presence of God.

Our God is our heaven. Our Heavenly Father is our home. My family is probably what I love most in this whole world, but I can't help but love God more. He's the only one who can get me to leave this place and still be satisfied in my heart.

So tonight I'll pick up and go back to Gainesville, and I'll look forward to coming back for Thanksgiving. Maybe this is all just meant to show me that our homecoming into heaven is going to be so much greater. It's really something to look forward to. And when we go home there, to the perfect weather and heavenly pumpkin pie, we won't ever have to leave home again.

Sickness

THIS WEEK on Wednesday morning my room mate Sarah woke up very sick. She was exhausted and had chest pains, and she stayed in bed for the entire morning.

I tried to take care of her as much as I could, but I really just had an unusually strong urge to pray for her. So I did. I prayed while I made some food, and I prayed while I was leaving the room for class. I prayed with my friend Shannon when we had lunch together, and I prayed when I was coming back from lunch. I was praying she would feel better soon and be able to have a good afternoon.

When I got back to the room Sarah was wide awake and on her feet. She had eaten some food and was ready for her afternoon. It was an amazing change: she could hardly move at the beginning of the day, but by the end she was driving a car to Bible Study and shopping in Walmart, feeling just fine. She made it to her club meeting and got the chance to enjoy the perfect fall weather. I'm still thanking God for that.

I think it's really something that God cares when people get sick. Sickness is just another kind of brokenness, a form of vulnerability that reminds us of how limited we are. One of the greatest scientists alive today, Stephen Hawking, suffers from a paralyzing motor neurone disease and speaks with the use of a computer program connected to his wheelchair. In the perfect world God created, before sin introduced suffering, there was never going to be any sickness. There won't be any sickness in heaven. But since it's here, God can use it to teach us about many things.

On Wednesday I learned from Sarah's brief sickness about the power of prayer. In James 5:13-15 James writes: "[13] Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms. [14] Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. [15] And the prayer of faith will heal the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven."

It's wonderful that God answers our prayers for each other. He still performs the same miracles we read about in Matthew, Mark, Luke and John when His followers are praying with faith. It's true that sometimes a really sick person won't make it, but think - maybe that's God's way of raising him up.

Sickness can also teach us about peace. The day after Sarah was sick, my grandma had a surgery to treat her breast cancer. It's a real blessing that it was caught very early on, but the treatment was still not fun at all.

I call my grandma a couple times a week. Leading up to this treatment she has been tellign me about the peace she has about it. She is a worrier, so it's unusual that she would have such peace about something like this. But she says it's because God is helping her not to worry.

Peace is a fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23), an amazing contentedness that comes from trusting God to be able to control any situation. I get it too: I find I don't have to focus on trying to get peace from Jesus, because He is alread ywalking me through the things that are troubling to be. My grandma's peace is spilling out onto everybody else as she goes through this. It's a concerning and unpleasant situation, but we aren't panicking because God says that everything is going to be okay. If nobody can ever take us from His hand, and if He is our helper, whom shall we fear?

God hates sickness and pain and all other sorts of evil, but He loves to turn them into good things. The most wonderful way I've seen Him use them is to show His power to save.

Last night I read Isaiah 53 (which I would recommend highly to every atheist out there) which was written about Jesus centuries before He entered the world. In Isaiah 53:4 the prophet writes, "Surely He took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered Him stricken by God, smitten by Him, and afflicted." God not only cares about our suffering but He gave His life to free us from it. Peopel still get sick, but we have eternal life in Him, so our souls are well.

God won't be stopped from turning things back to how they were always supposed to be.

Revelation 21:4-5 declares, "[4] 'And God will wipe away every tears from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.' [5] Then He who sat on the throne said, 'Behold, I make all things new.' And He said to me, 'Write, for these words are true and faithful.'"

The world has got cancer, but the Great Physician says that everything is going to be okay.

What We Need

THIS WEEK I have again become fixated on the Person of Jesus. I have noticed Him everywhere - in the studio, in my room, in His word, everywhere I look. I realize that from the perspective of someone whose life has been completely changed and revived by Christ, it's hard to understand sometimes how everyone doesn't see Him. It's sad to think that the majority of the world doesn't know Him, and probably never will.

I talked to a few people this week who, curiously, told me the same thing about their beliefs. They said they didn't have any religion, not that they were atheists, but that they didn't believe anything in particular. They said they thought Christianity is okay, and Christians are nice people, but if they were to pick a religion it would probably be something else.

Some people don't like organized religion. Some prefer to make their own way, and just try to be good people. Some think the Bible is a storybook and the world is a mystery.

While of course I can't agree with them on most things, I do agree with them on this: that we don't need religion. I mean, not in the sense of all the rules and systems people set up to get to God. We don't need that. In fact, it's not even Christianity that saves, because Christianity is the way saved people live. It's Christ. We need Christ, and that's all.

John writes in 1 John 5 about what it means to be "in Christ."

v.10-12 "[10] He who believes in the Son of God has the witness in himself; he who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed the testimony that God has given of His Son. [11] And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. [12] He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son does not have life."

My friend made a good point at an outreach activity this week. We can't save anybody. The best we can do is love people and share with them what saved us and can save them too - the grace of God. That's different from forcing our beliefs on people. If we believe Jesus is the only way, it would be really selfish not to tell anyone.

His real blood poured out on the earth we walk on. His miracles have truly been performed not only two thousand years ago but ever since then. His own Spirit really dwells with us, and His righteousness covers our faults. Who is this God who sees the earth spinning out of control and gives all Himself to salvage broken souls from the doomed planet?

No one ever spoke like Jesus. He speaks the truth in perfect wisdom and without shame. He sets aside what is easy for the sake of God's glory. He has made a lot of enemies, but He calls us who believe as His friends.

John 8:57-58 "[57] Then the Jews said to Him, 'You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?' [58] Jesus said to them, 'Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM.'"

I have seen this same Jesus moving all around me this week. Just a few days ago I had the privilege of seeing two guys praying together at a table in a courtyard. They had a stack of cards I recognized as an outreach tool, so I could tell great things were happening.

We don't need the rules and standards that people call religion. We don't need to prove anything or try to be good enough, because the perfection of Jesus already takes the place of our incompleteness.

What we need is unconditional love, purpose in the will of God, fulfilling worship, neverending friendship with God. We need to be followers of Jesus who make our will match His, and we will watch our prayers get answered and His dreams for our good come true. If you want to call that religion, then yeah, we need it. Let's just not forget the real Savior, who is what we really need every day.

My Best Friend

THIS WEEK I'm working on an important project for my Design One class that is just driving me nuts. To be honest I've been really stressed over trying to finish it as well as balancing my work with my other classes. To top it off, I've been in college for two months and I'm very homesick. As weeks go, it has been a tough one.

But I haven't quit.

I just want to use this post to talk about my best friend, the only reason I don't give up and go home. He keeps telling me every day, no matter how happy or frustrated I get, that this is what I need to do right now, and that sometimes the best thing is the hardest to go through. He shows me the light at the end of the tunnel and shows me the difference between what I want and what I need. God is my best friend, and He has walked through this crazy week right along with me.

I love God because He answers prayer. For months before I started college I was praying for a good relationship with my room mate, for friends, a church, a Christ-loving Christian group, a Life Group, and other Christians in Architecture. Two months into college, I have all of those things and more. So although I am away from my family, which is probably the hardest thing to deal with, I am surrounded by people who lift me up and make me grow. I have the perfect room mate, who is the kind to write a note for me on the white board when I'm having a rough time and she knows she won't be home.

I love God for His faithfulness. When I left the studio at 2:00 AM (a new record) on Tuesday night, I stood outside and waited for my ride to come take me back to my residence hall. It had been a very hard night of work. But I could feel God all around me as I looked up and saw the stars and planets. I felt Him so closely that it doesn't even matter that I can't see Him. And as He said, he who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much. So although there are still plenty of things about Him I don't understand, I trust He is faithful and just in those things too.

I love the way He speaks. In a quiet room if my room mate isn't around, I can talk to Him so that I don't have to eat my lunch alone, and He fills the room. When I open up His word late at night and pray to hear Him, He meets me. The other night, I was writing down some references that I thought Sarah could use. There was one I was thinking about, but I couldn't remember where it was. Oh well. But when I prayed and opened my Bible for something ot read, I saw it. Romans 12:18, "If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men." I heard it in my heart that it was what she really needed, and I'm thankful that He showed it to me so that I could show it to her.

I love God for everything He does. He gives us peace even during stressful times to show us that we are still in His will. He keeps the gravity working and the sunshine coming down. He confirms the validity of our faith by showing His presence in countless ways, from the answering of outrageous prayer to the pointing of a dizzy heart in the right direction.

But what really get me is that this God is both Creator and Savior. He is our King as well as our friend. It's astounding to me that He not only pays mind to us, but He paid His own life for us. That our God loves us more than life, enough to give life to the dying, is more than I can understand.

A few days ago I heard a Taylor Swift song called "Cold As You" which is about a girl dealing with a relationship with a rude and indifferent guy who she really cares about. There was one part of the song I never noticed before that made me replay it a few times:

"You never did give a [darn] thing honey but I cried, cried for you. And I know you wouldn't have told nobody if I died, died for you."

If we love God so much, and if we are in the least bit thankful for His sacrifice and everything He does each day, we won't be like the jerk in that song. Isn't it something? God Himself is so in love with us that He died to give us life. We don't deserve anything from Him. Isaiah 64:6 says "But we are all like an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags; we all fade as a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away." Even the merit and goodness we think we have is like nothing before the holiness of God. That's the mess God loves anyway. We should be thankful to Him for every blessing from salvation to salsa. So I'm praying for the heart of an evangelist and a mouth that just won't shut up about my best friend, my love and my God: my Jesus.

The First Day

THIS WEEK my great-grandmother Sophia Champagne passed away at the age of 95. She was a sweet lady who lived a long and happy life, and now people are gathering in New York for her funeral tomorrow.

When my Mom told me over the phone that she had died, I took a minute to stand and look out a window to think.

We called her Mem. I got my name from her. She was Polish, and her mother Antoinette came to America all by herself when she was 15 about a century ago. She was my grandpa's mother and my Mom's grandmother. The last time I spoke to her over the phone, I had asked her how she was, and she had said that she wasn't doing very well at all. Nobody was very surprised when she passed away. Mem was very sick and very old, and it was sad to see her go.

But as I looked out the window, just letting the news sink in, I was only a little sad. More than that, I was happy for her. Looking up into the perfect blue sky, I could imagine her flying up out of her dear old, sick body to the gates of heaven, finally well again. Finally surrounded once more by all the people she had loved in her youth. Finally home, where nobody grows old or gets sick or goes away. Finally with her husband and her parents, and with Jesus. I'm sad that Mem is gone, but I know she is doing a lot better now than she ever has been.

The day after Mem passed away, my Aunt Jennifer gave birth to my new cousin Seth. Jennfier is the wife of my Dad's brother John, and Seth is their second son after Elijah, who is two years old. He is healthy and happy, and he is fortunate to have a pair of really wonderful parents.

It's always a miracle when a new baby is born. How can it be that a new person has been formed with ten fingers and ten toes and two eyes, put together exactly right, ready to breathe and eat and learn? It's marvelous to think of this system God invented, how two people's lives can result in other lives, and how a baby can enter the world with everything brand new to him.

So my family saw a death and a birth in one week, and it got me thinking about birth, life, and death. And I wonder whether we have our perspective a little backwards.

Once Jesus was visited at night by a Pharisee named Nicodemus, who knew that Jesus was from God. They spoke about how a person could enter the kingdom of God.

John 3:3-8, "[3] Jesus answered and said to him, 'Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.' [4] Nicodemus said to Him, 'How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?' [5] Jesus answered, 'Most anssuredly, I say to you, unless on is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. [6] That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. [7] Do not marvel that I said to you, 'You must be born again.' [8] The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from or where it goes. So is eeryone who is born of the Spirit.'"

What if life and death aren't what they seem? Jesus is saying that in order to be saved and enter God's kingdom, we must be born again through His Spirit. That means that when we put our faith in Christ, we are born again. The temporary gives way to the eternal, and eternal life starts now.

John 3:16, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life."

In a way, death is like birth. For a while you're alive but haven't started living, becuase you're still inside your mother getting ready to go. But you can't stay there. After a while, you enter a world that is so full of things to see and places to go that the little dark space you knew before is like nothing.

In the same way, we only stay here in this world for a little while. We are alive in Christ because we have been spiritually reborn through faith in Him, but we haven't seen anything yet. We are just here for a while to give us time to grow. And when we are done, this time we will really start living a life so vibrant and full of God that it makes our few days here seem like a short walk down a dark hallway.

1 Corinthians 2:9-10, "[9]But as it is written, 'Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him.' [10] But God has revealed them to us through His Spirit. For the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of God."

Because we are made new by God's Holy Spirit, we understand that God's big plan is not confined to the small number of our days. He has even more planned than He is showing us while we are running around on this earth.

Romans 6:22-23 "[22] But now having been set free from sin, and having become slaves of God, you have your fruit to holiness, and the end, everlasting life. [23] For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord."

Death is not the end of everything. For a believer in Christ, it's only the beginning. As my family says goodbye to Mem and welcomes baby Seth, I cannot help but think that this week my family did not see a birth and a death, but rather two births. And while the mourners cry for Mem at her funeral, I hope that some of the same tears of joy that came with Seth's first day also come down alongside those tears of sadness, as Mem's eternal first day in Paradise finally dawns for her.


In loving memory of Sophia Champagne.

My 100th Post: The Choice to Rejoice

THIS WEEK could easily have been really awful, but it was great.

I was introduced to an initially frustrating concept in my Architecture class, and Photoshop gave me a lot of trouble. I had to walk a long way and got rained on. I was so busy some days that I had to go out to get things printed at 1:30 AM. I lost my key and locked myself out of my building without my phone or my supplies. And on top of it all, I didn't know for most of the week whether I would be too busy to go home for the weekend.

But I'm doing great. I think what made the difference was my Life Group meeting with all my wonderful friends. We discussed the difference between happiness and joy. I had had a pretty bad day and was tired, but I was reminded of something I already knew that really helped: Happiness is a good feeling we get that lasts a little while. But, as one of my friends explained, Joy is choosing to be content because God's unfailing promises remain even while our situations constantly change. We can't be happy all the time, but we can be joyful in any situation. Joy is a fruit of the Spirit, so when we make that choice to rejoice in God despite appearances, people take notice and see the difference God makes. It makes people want the hope He gives.

My group looked at 1 Peter 1:8-9, in which Paul explains that tough situations lead to great things when we face them by standing strong in our faith in Christ, "[8] whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, [9] receiving the end of your faith - the salvation of your souls."

That's what got me through this week. Knowing that even the inconvenient things and frustrating problems must happen for some good reason, I was able to remember how beautiful the day was and how good life is. I wasn't worried about anything because I knew it was all going to work together for good (Romans 8:28). And so it did. I got the hang of my project and was able to help some people out with it. I had some good conversations with strangers on a bus. My new friend Erin gave me some beef jerky and flavored nuts. And best of all, I got to go home this weekend and be with my family, which is one of my favorite things to do.

Today I visited my home church Southpoint, where I got to hear my pastor speak about the importance of suffering. He emphasized that God's promises to us are not tools for us to make our plans work out. Because if we decide what God is going to do based on our interpretation of His promises to provide and deliver and fill us with joy, then it's easy to get confused. God is extremely unpredictable, but He is faithful. He keeps all of his promises, and He wants us to expect him to, but it's wrong for us to give up faith in Him because things didn't work out how we expected. He doesn't work for us. He works in and through us.

If your mother dies of cancer after everyone prayed so hard for healing, or if your family is still broken no matter how often you asked for peace, it doesn't mean God has failed. It means it's time for us to look at the big picture and trust that God is faithful. Maybe your mother's healing came when she landed in the arms of Jesus, and maybe peace in your family begins with peace in you. Just don't stop praising.

Pastor Russ referred to 2 Corinthians 4: 16-18, in which Paul explains that all the pain we feel is brief in the grand scheme of God's plan: "[16] Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. [17] For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and external weight of glory, [18] while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal."

No amount of suffering, or of anything else, in life compares to the wonder and beauty of heaven's joy in the presence of God.

So sadness is the opposite of happiness, but it isn't the opposite of joy. I'd say the opposite of joy is despair, because despair is hopeless and fearful. We have the choice to remember Jesus, who said things would be hard but that He would be with us always, and who suffered unimaginably without losing faith in the goodness of God.

Psalm 30:4-5, "[4] Sing praises to the Lord, you saints of His, and give thanks to His holy name. [5] For His anger is but for a moment, His favor for life; Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning."

Whether the "night" lasts a day or a lifetime, God promises that He will bring us joy in the end. When we make the choice to rejoice, it doesn't matter what goes wrong, because God won't.

Broken

THIS WEEK was very eventful. After Tuesday everything was unusually relaxed, because I had a rare break from my architecture work. I haven't been to the studio in days. I got to go to my first Gator game, which we won to Tennessee 33 to 23.

But I had to work for that break. The first half of this week was insane. All weekend, Monday and Tuesday I spent most of my time working in the studio on my final project. Tuesday I was working for 13 hours from noon to 1:00 AM. Then my escort bus left me. Then my phone died. A Teacher's Assistant drove me back to my room, and I got to sleep around 3 to wake up at 5:30 the next day.

It was just one of those days (and nights). It can't all be easy, I suppose. When my bus left me I was really upset. After rushing to catch it with my shoes practically flying off my feet, I felt like God didn't answer my prayer, and I didn't know why.

But when I got to my room, my room mate Sarah gave me a big hug and had some dinner ready for me. She decorated the box with encouraging things like "You did it!" and "Welcome home!" as well as a reference to Isaiah 41:10.

God makes a big promise to His people in Isaiah 41:9-10. "[9] You whom I have taken from the ends of the earth, and called from its farthest regions, and said to you, 'You are My servant, I have chosen you and have not cast you away: [10] Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.'"

When I read this, I heard God say, "Don't believe it? Look up." So I looked up and saw the verse I had written on the white board, Philippians 4:6-7. "[6] Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, through prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God, [7] and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."

If it isn't amazing that the all-seeing Almighty God promises to hold us by the hand, then nothing is amazing. It's not always easy to believe. When the bus leaves you, or when your loved ones say things to hurt you, or when you don't understand what you're called to do, it's easier to pull away and try to deal only in the things we understand, to try to make it through alone.

When everything is a mess, how can we trust God that He knows what He is doing? And when we feel far from Him, how can we believe He is close by?

Monday night my Life group was talking about love, especially God's love. My new friend Shannon told us about one of her favorite songs, which tells how God uses brokenness to reflect His mercy "a million different ways." When we are broken, she says, it's like light coming out from between the cracks of a pot that has been reassembled. Maybe God uses times of confusion and frustration to get our hearts ready to shine.

I remember once at FISH club in high school we finished reading a psalm that spoke about brokenness, and someone asked what it meant. I think it means being in a condition of humility before God as we acknowledge our need for Him. It means accepting our smallness and His greatness as our pride and self-sufficiency lay broken all around. And sometimes it takes tough times to get us to that place.

I've been reading the story of Abraham again lately. There's a lot to learn from it, but what stands out to me is Abraham's amazing faith. In Genesis 22, God asks him to sacrifice the son he has waited a long time to have, the son who is his promise of having a long line of descendants.

Abraham couldn't have understood why God was asking this or have wanted to obey. But his faith in God's goodness and his reverence for His power led him to obey anyway. And because he showed such faith and godly fear, God spared Abraham and promised to bless Abraham's descendants abundantly. As it turns out, we are the children of Abraham because we are the descendants of his faith in God. When He said "In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed," He was talking about when He would give His own Son to us so that we could live by faith as well.

Abraham was broken before God, and God values brokenness like that. He even called Abraham His friend.

In Psalm 51:16-17 the psalmist prays, "[16] For You do not desire sacrifice, or else I would give it; You do not delight in burnt offering. [17] The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and contrite heart - these, O God, You will not despise."

This means that God sees us for what our hearts are like. He is looking for things like humility and love, justice and mercy, people to worship Him in Spirit and truth. He doesn't want to see us acting like we've got this God thing figured out. The whole point of salvation is living continually like we know how far we have left to go, and that only God can get us there.

Paul explains this really well in 2 Corinthians 4:6-7. "[6] For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. [7] But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us."

God, and God alone, has the power to do with us what we simply cannot do ourselves. The power is of him and NOT of us. He turned Saul, a Christian-killing enemy of the faith, into Paul, the greatest missionary in the history of the world. It took an encounter with God to change his life, so that he went on in total humility, calling himself "less than the least of all the saints" in gratitude and awe toward God.

With God, times of trouble and confusion often come right before moments of glory. He loves to use brokenness to show His power to fix things, as well as His power to overwhelm the odds. He wants us to have faith despite appearances and love without fear, and in return He will show the world a good reason for us to be that way. He dreams big, and He wants us to be part of reaching those dreams.

So maybe when the bus leaves without you, when you don't know where to go or what to do, when you've ended up broken on the floor once again, you're really in the best place you could be. Because once the illusion of our control is out of the way, there's room to see what God can do. When you've hit the low point, look up to God and see what He's doing now.

The Tough Major

THIS WEEK I am exhausted. I love college, but I spend a lot of my time in the Studio working on my models, and I'm working on the final of Project One: The Cube. I have hardly any time for my other classes, and I can't believe I've only been doing this for three weeks.

You see, I'm majoring in Architecture. Whenever I tell other students that I'm in Architecture, they express awe and terror. Who has ever seen an Architecture student? Don't they live in the Studio and never leave? Whatever happened to Bruce, who started architecture three years ago and hasn't been seen since?

And I sigh. Yeah, Architecture's really hard. But I love it, and I just can't stop. There's no other major for me.

When I come back to my room late at night and still see basswood sticks and chipboard in my mind all over the ceiling, I want to collapse and sleep. But I never want to quit. Because I love it, and I really just can't stop.

Then I remember another persistent love that endures despite all difficulty, and I'm more certain that I will survive. When I fear I will end my days trapped in a maze of planes and lines with only my cell phone to distract me, I recall that for years God has been working on me like I'm working on Architecture, and He's still not done.

I've only been in Architecture for a few weeks, so I know that despite the way the study fills my time and my mind, I know almost nothing yet. Then I look at the Teacher's Assistants, higher-level students who know everything I'm doing wrong, and I'm amazed that I will be there one day. Just when I think I know something, I don't. Nevertheless, I am learning. I will "get it" soon.

Now isn't that just like the way life is with God? He starts out on us, and we're a complete mess. It's a slow process to gain spiritual maturity and understanding. But with guidance from those who have been there, we do grow.

I am like Architecture. It demands a lot of patience, takes a lot of time, makes me laugh and cry to my Mama. It gets me on my feet and it brings me to my knees, and I know that with a lot of work it's going places. And it's definitely not going to work without God's help. Architecture does this to me, and I do it to God.

I remember Philippians 1:3-6, and I find it very encouraging. "[3] I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, [4] always in every prayer of mine making rquest for you all with joy, [5] for you fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now, [6] being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ."

When God saves us, the work has only begun. We have miles of growth to cover. We have so much room to mature spiritually. There are days when we push Him away, cross our arms and are impossible to deal with. Just like in Architecture, sometimes we are so far from the goal with so much left to do that it's hard to imagine we will ever sit still and cooperate. Sometimes the superglue just won't dry, and the basswood is disconnecting itseld, and the whole model looks like a mess.

So why does He bother? Why doesn't He "transfer to another major?" It's because He loves us, and He knows what we can be if we stick with Him. He sees the potential we have to be great for His glory. I see that in Architecture, and it's encouraging that He sees that in me and each of us.

I've also seen that trying to grow spiritually, as well as to get better at Architecture, is not going to work out without God's help. If I tried to become an architect on my own, I would end up jaded and tired with a dead look in my eyes, and I can't live with that idea. In the same way, trying to grow closer to God without seeking God and depending on Him is like trying to use superglue to attach something to a blue foam armature. It doesn't work. (Superglue eats foam.)

But if we trust God as the Ruler by which we measure ourselves, as the Triangle that will always keep us straight, then we won't fail.

Jesus tells us in John 15:4-5, "[4] Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. [5] I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing."

I'm about to go back to the Studio and work with new energy. Unless God calls me to something else instead, I'm sticking with this subject that I love, and I'm going to see it grow. And when I'm exhausted, with blue foam in my hair and glue on my fingers, I'll remember the work God is doing on me and be thankful that He hasn't given up.

The Hill

THIS WEEK was my second week of college, and I'm relaxing at home while I visit for a couple days. College is a big challenge and a lot of fun at the same time. God is answering my prayers for the right Christian group, and I think I will meet the right church soon too. I'm already a part of a Life Group and making a lot of new friends.

During the week I stay really busy, and it's not always easy. I've gotten lost a couple times, and I spend hours in the studio working on homework. To be honest, there are moments when I get really frustrated and just want to be asleep or go home. But I find I never want to give up. I don't want to change my mind and do something easier. I think it's because God's peace is staying with me, telling me that this is what is necessary right now.

I remember one of my favorite places in the Word: Philippians 4:6-7 "[6] Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. [7] And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

I'm studying architecture, and my Design class involves a lot of interesting but time-consuming work in the studio. I love it, but a lot goes through my mind when I'm sitting there working for hours at a time. Do I really want to do this? Can I do it? Will I have any real friends in architecture? Where are all the cute boys? How much longer will this glue take to dry?

I'm loving college, but I get tired thinking all of these things, and countless other things. But I'm never overwhelemed because I'm never alone.

On a hard day of class I read a great verse, Proverbs 12:1 "Whoever loves instruction loves knowledge, but he who hates instruction is stupid." How's that for a reason to keep trying?

Here's a brief lesson from college: every hill has two sides. My room mate Sarah has a lot of fun riding her bike between classes, and she tells me about the hills. There are more in Gainesville than in Jacksonville. She says it's a real pain to climb the hills on a bike, but on the other side it's a thrill to just glide down without peddling.

I think life works the same way. Not everything can be easy. But not everything will be hard. You know that if you climb the hill God calls you to, there will be a downhill side sometime. He wants to bless us. I've found that the point of the tough times is to teach us to trust Him. To trust that He knows best, and to trust that He can fulfill His promises.

My youth pastor spoke this morning at church about trusting in God's promises. Can we trust Him even when it doesn't look possible for His promise to come true? Can we do what Abraham did?

As an old man he rejected the chance to be fabulously wealthy and believed instead in God's promise for his future. He had no children and feared another would inherit his place. But God disagreed.

Genesis 15:4-6 "[4] And behold, the word of the Lord came to him: 'This man will not be your heir; your very own son shall be your heir.' [5] And He brought him outside and said, 'Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.' Then He said to him, 'So shall your offspring be.' [6] And he believed the Lord, and He counted it to him as righteousness."

It's hard to trust God with everything. It's easier to be like Job and question His ability. Isn't it better to handle things ourselves? But God tells us that He, who manages the universe, knows better than we do, and even Job repented of his doubt. Job 42:3 "'Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?' Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know." God honored his repentence and humility and "blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning."

Is there really a guy/girl out there for you? Will all your hard work in school pay off? Will you have what you need? In Matthew 6:33 Jesus answers the hard questions, "But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you." We will probably have to go uphill for a while, and as long as we are climbing the other side will seem to be out of our view. But we have faith in God for the joy of riding down the other side.

Lessons from College

THIS WEEK was my first week of college classes. It's been a lot of fun to figure out the mysteries of the bus system and to pack my own lunch. My classes keep me busy but they aren't too hard, and my friend Sarah is the best room mate I could ask for.

In the process of jumping into the college scene, I have heard God telling me lots of different things through the situations I get into.

First is the importance of uncomfortable shoes. My college campus is enormous, and I live far away from my classes. On Monday I walked around everywhere in comfortable shoes because I hadn't yet figured out how the buses work. I'm grateful that I was able to understand it quickly, however, because I found myself limping around in very uncomfortable shoes a couple days later. I wore them because they are new, and if I don't wear them they will never become comfortable.

Think of the painful black flats as a new and uncomfortable situation. Maybe something is going wrong in life, or maybe God is calling you to do something you aren't used to. It's not fun. But one of the functions of faith is to do what God calls us to, even if it isn't fun at first, believing that He will use it to bless us and others. That's how I feel about my homework sometimes. It's all part of what God calls me to, but it gets hard and tries my patience. And I'm sure you have things like that to deal with in life too. Think of the buses as the presence of God. He knows it hurts, and He is there to pick you up so that your struggle is not overwhelming.

Romans 5:3-5 "[3]And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverence; [4] and perseverence, character; and character, hope. [5] Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us."

Romans 8:28 "And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, who are the called according to His purpose."

Next is the importance of friends. At the church that Sarah and I visited today, the pastor referred to Acts 2 as he spoke about the nature of fellowship. The early church was a great example.

Acts 2:44-45 "[44] Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common, [45] and sold all their possession and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need."

I don't know what I would have done yesterday without my friend Sarah. She drove me to the supplies store for my order without which I couldn't work on my project. Then she carried my big heavy drafting board all the way to the studio on the second floor. Later she and another friend came to get me after I was done in the studio so I wouldn't have to walk to dinner alone in the dark, and she stayed on the phone with me until they found me. I'm grateful for her and for all of my friends.

Because it's so important to have other Christians around us, Sarah and I have been looking for the right church and Christian group. I've been hoping and praying we could be around Christians who care about reaching our campus, because so much good can be done here.

That's actually the last thing I've been learning about. The importance, and power, of prayer. This came to mind a few days ago when I was walking from a class and didn't have anywhere to be for a few hours. I prayed right then that I would meet a friend, because I felt lonely. Not more than two minutes later, I met two friends I had met a few months ago. Later I found a friend from school at a bus stop, another friend at another bus stop, and yet another friend while I waited outside my next class. Through this I could hear God telling me to ask anything in His name, and it would be done.

John 14:13-14 "[13] And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. [14]If you ask anything in My name, I will do it."

So I asked again that many people would be saved on this campus. I know it's His will, because He wants to give us the kingdom.

On Thursday I went with a few friends to hear Clayton King speak for the Campus Crusade for Christ (CRU). It was a funny and powerful message about the beauty of God's grace, as He looks at our shame and rescues us when we are lost and in need of mercy. This spoke to us particularly because we had gotten lost and were half an hour late. When Mr. King was done speaking, he invited those who wanted the gift of grace to raise their hands in the air. With our eyes closed, we listened with elation and heard him count to ninety-four.

Ninety four. How hard would three thousand be? I know our prayers won't go unanswered. We are dealing with a God who can save anyone despite anything, and who saved ninety-four people in a night this week. There is no limit to what He will do.

I encourage you this week to do the uncomfortable, to be with friends and be a friend, and to pray with shameless confidence. there is so much more in God than we have yet to see, and He is about to do things we have never witnessed before. Have a miraculous week!

Dreaming Big

THIS WEEK I moved into college! Today is my third day in Gainesville, FL, and classes start early tomorrow morning. It's a beautiful campus with interesting people, and I'm making a lot of friends. My roommate Sarah and I will be visiting a lot of churches and Christian student groups in the next few weeks to see where we can settle in.

College so far is fun, but it's very hard to be away from my family, my church, and my city. Part of me wishes I could be back in Jacksonville, but I know this is where God has called me right now. Being put into such a new situation serves to cast me closer to God. It makes me depend on Him more, because I know I need Him to live. I've got big dreams for this campus and for myself which, when I look at them, I realize are completely dependent on God moving.

I want to be an architect. Specifically, I want to design churches. But everyone tells me architecture is the hardest major I could have chosen. Sigh.

I want thousands of people to be saved on this enormous campus in the next few years. But people's hearts are hard, and there are just so many! How could it be possible?

I want to be a part of a Christ-centered, active Christian group. But what if my classes leave me with no time to get involved?

These issues spring up in my mind. But then I look across the room at my roommate's painting of Jesus, and I realize that all these things, however troublesome, don't really scare me. I know my God to move in greater ways than we expect, and to show His power when we pursue the relationship He wants us to have with Him. I know my God to be greater even than death, and to have done miracles around me before. He's surprising and marvelous, and I find that my giants are small compared to Him.

Like last week, I still feel like I'm on a threshold into a bigger part of my life where I don't know where I'm going or what will happen. Amazingly, Pastor Russ addressed just that issue at a worship service, called "Engage the Spirit," this Wednesday before I left. He referred to Isaiah 50 and explained that those times of facing the unknown are meant to strengthen our trust in God.

Isaiah 50:10-11 "[10] Who among you fears the Lord? Who obeys the voice of His Servant? Who walks in darkness and has no light? Let him trust in the name of the Lord and rely upon God. [11] Look, all you who kindle a fire, who encircle yourselves with sparks: walk in the light of your fire and in the sparks you have kindled - this you shall have from My hand: you shall lie down in torment."

This means that when dark, or confusing, times come, when we don't know where we're going, God is going to speak and tell us what to do. But He offers us a choice. We could light our own fire, putting our trust in our own ability or in the things we devote ourselves to. Or we could just trust that God knows what needs to happen, and do what He says even when we don't understand. It's a blessing to live life following God's voice, but otherwise our full potential in Christ won't shine through. Life is fuller when we rely upon Him, because He understands much better than we do and wants the best for us.

I can't see clearly past this afternoon. I can't be sure I'll even make it to my first class on time tomorrow, let alone make a plan for my next six years. Yet I have a dream to see thousands of people devote their lives to Christ, and to increase in my own devotion. I am reminded of a song by Jesus Culture: "Blow, mighty breath of God. Move upon this place. Blow, mighty breath of God. Move in power and grace." God will use us when He does that, but because it's His work, I don't have to worry that nothing will get done just because of my limitations.

We can have faith that God can and will do the things He has promised to do. He promises to stand with us when we stand for Him. He says He will save anyone who will put his trust in Him, accept His grace and repent. He tells us He wants to save people, and He proves it with examples of huge numbers being saved because of a few people's faithfulness.

I was reading Acts 4 yesterday, and I found some real gems.

Peter and John were arrested after they healed a lame man in Jesus' name.
v. 4 "However, many of those who heard the word believed; and the number of the men came to be about five thousand."

That's awesome! I've been praying for months that God would save thousands of people on my campus, and this shows me that with a little faithfulness, God will do great things.

v.13 "Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated and untrained men, they marveled. And they realised that they had been with Jesus."

This verse made it onto my dry erase board. I love that when we stand unashamed of our Savior, people see that we've been with Him. They see Him in us, even today. I hope that will happen now.

But Peter and John got put in prison! It's dangerous to talk about Jesus that way. Isn't it so much safer to just go to church each Sunday and keep Him to ourselves?

Well, yeah. But that would be pretty selfish. And Jesus tells us that if we're ashamed of Him before men, He will be ashamed of us before His Father in heaven. Who wants that? Besides, in 2 Timothy 3:12 Paul says "Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution." So what if some people don't like it? It's God's opinion that matters.

I get a lot out of Jeremiah 1:6-8. "[6] Then said I: 'Ah, Lord God! Behold, I cannot speak, for I am a youth.' [7] But the Lord said to me: 'Do not say, 'I am a youth,' for you shall go to all to whom I send you, and whatever I command you, you shall speak. [8] Do not be afraid of their faces, for I am with you to deliver you,' says the Lord."

There's no room for shame in a place where change is about to happen. Serving can be done anywhere from behind a vaccum to in front of a crowd. What matters is doing as we're called to do. Right now I feel like I'm called to look into architecture. So even though people keep saying how time-consuming it is, I'm not scared. I love architecture, and God has given me inexplicable peace about things that would otherwise terrify me.

I'm dreaming big and expecting great things to happen here. In fact, I know God's already doing it all over the world. It's beautiful: when our faith results in action, He responds to our faith with action. And His action strengthens our faith even more. His love living in us has power. I'm excited to see what will happen, because I have a feeling God's about to move mountains.

Romans 5:5, "Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us."

Have a miraculous week!

Cover Girl

THIS WEEK I turned 18. Yesterday I spent my birthday surrounded by my wonderful friends and family and getting good wishes from my friends on Facebook.

I am on a very unique threshold in life right now. On Friday this week I'm leaving for college, where I plan to study Architecture and Religion. This Wednesday night was my last night with my youth group, and I know there's something even better waiting for me in Gainesville.

God is about to move at my college, as He is moving all over the world. A magazine came in the mail earlier this week called "The Voice of the Martyrs" which focuses on persecuted Christians all over the world. On the cover the is a young girl from Laos. She wears a green skirt and a striped blouse, and she focuses intently on a Bible that is burned, melted, and stained almost to illegibility.

She is the only Christian where she lives, and her faith remains strong even though others tried to destroy her Bible. On the inside of the cover I read a quote by this girl, "My villagers still hate me and mock me like they mocked Jesus on the cross. It is the world's right to hate us or love us. But for me, I will follow Jesus because I read what He says, that the world will hate you." The magazine is full of stories about people like her, Christians who desire to honor Jesus more than they want anything else.

I hope one day to be half the Christian these people are.

I've been reading "The Case for Faith" by Lee Strobel, which discusses answers to several big questions about God. One section regarding church history included something I was surprised to learn.

"While most people think of the average Christian today as being a United States resident living far away from any danger for their faith, journalist David Neff set the record straight. 'The typical Christian,' he said, 'lives in a developing country, speaks a non-European language, and exists under the constant threat of persecution - of murder, imprisonment, torture, or rape.'"

I love that picture of the girl in Laos. Most of us are used to seeing girls on the covers of magazines at stores, usually thin with big eyes and low-cut tops and shiny hair. But this girl is a real cover girl. Her faith is uncomplicated and real, and her devotion to Jesus is astounding. She's a hero of mine.

When they realize what some people are going through in the world, many Christians feel bad about how good we have it. What right do I have to sit here and blog in peace when a Christian in China is sentenced to 15 years in prison for publishing an unauthorized Christian magazine? How can I be safe in my home while my sisters and brothers are dying? Is it wrong for me to be comfortable in this life?

I don't think so. We have a responsibility to take care of what God blesses us with. It's not evil for my family to have cars and air conditioning and free speech. But we shouldn't put our comfort above God's calling. We should be wholeheartedly concerned for people who are suffering, and we should take every opportunity to help them. Of course we should be as unashamed of the gospel as those heroes are.

"The Voice of the Martyrs" uses Hebrews 13:3 alot: "Remember the prisoners as if chained with them - those who are mistreated - since you yourselves are the body also." Those of us who aren't suffering that kind of persecution don't necessarily have to go move to Southeast Asia, unless that's where God calls us. We have to serve our God wherever and however He calls us to.

2 Timothy 3:12 "Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution."

A real Christian reads that verse, gets scared, and does it anyway through the strength Christ gives him.

As I said before, I'm on an important threshold in my life. I'm really excited about going to college because I feel like this is the place God wants me right now. He has given me a dream for my school of about 50,000 people. There's room for an enormous miracle, for thousands to be saved. And I believe something great is about to happen.

And to keep my mind on what's important, on the wall of my room at college I'll keep the poster that "The Voice of the Martyrs" sent to me, showing the countries in the world that are Hostile or Restricted against Christianity.

Be Confident

THIS WEEK was the first week of August, which is a very important month for me. A week from today, I'll be eighteen years old. And a week after that, I'll be at college. By the end of the month, I'll be settled into my first semester of college.

I have a few great books in my life lately. Two of them, in my view have a very opposite theme. One is Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand, a long and epic novel about a major railroad system and society's reaction to business success. I'm reading it so I can write an essay in the hopes of winning a scholarship, because college is expensive.

The other, which I ordered last week and have been reading for the last few days, is "The Case for Faith" by Lee Strobel. It discusses the validity of faith and answers frequent questions about God.

How are these opposite? When I read them, I sense a very different emphasis. In the former, there is a focus on the concept of human greatness and competence, especially in the attitude held by the very successful protagonist Dagny Taggart. It's an appealing view: Even if she's not a very happy person, Dagny is able to overcome all sorts of business problems because she is a person of a unique level of competence and business ability.

In the latter, a former atheist investigates answers to questions that cause many people to doubt God's goodness, His power, or even His existence. He gets professional opinions that advocate for the power of faith, which is trust in a God who understands more than we do, and who keeps His promises.

I think I've been reading too much Atlas Shrugged lately. It's a great work of literature, and there's a lot of it to read, but it did something to my attitude that I had to ask God to help me fix. He reminded me of a phrase I had read in His word, but I had forgotten where it was: "Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me." Later that day, I read a psalm that my friend referenced to in her Facebook Status, Psalm 51, and it contained that verse.

I think it's important to understand that we shouldn't be unconfident and down on ourselves, but we shouldn't have ultimate confidence on our abilities. People have truly amazing skills of incredible variety and extent. But why? God gave them to us. We have a strong God who cares for us very powerfully. He values humility and encourages confidence. Psalm 51:17 "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and contrite heart - these, O God, You will not despise." He wants us to be humble before Him. In fact, knowing Him and being humble before Him always involve one another.

God has never disappointed me. But I have. In my experience, whenever I try to be the source of my own strength, I'm too weak. And whenever I lean on Him, things turn out for good. Proverbs 3:5-6 pretty much say it: "[5] Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; [6] In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths."

God isn't shy about making promises, because He always keeps them. There are more than I can count, but here are a few that I've encountered just this week.

John 5:24 "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgement, but has passed from death into life."

2 Timothy 1:7 "For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind."

John 7:38 "He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water."

Isaiah 26:3 "You will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You."

Isaiah 54:10 "'For the mountains shall depart and the hills be removed, but My kindness shall not depart from you, nor shall My covenant of peace be removed,' says the Lord, who has mercy on you."

These are just to name a few. By reading His word, we learn that God is faithful and strong. He loves His people like a Husband, cares for us like a Father, and protects us like a King.

Compare those promises about God to these promises about us:

Romans 1:28 "And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting."

Matthew 6:26-27 "[26] But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: [27] and the rain descended, the floods came,and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall."

Proverbs 16:18 "Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall."

Based on these promises and on the fact that they turn out to be true, do you think it makes more sense to be confident in ourselves, or to be confident in God? Should we consider ourselves strong, we who are the size of dust on the surface of a speck of beautiful dust in this enormous universe? Or should we consider God strong, who made us and the whole universe? Should we climb the mountain ourselves or sail above it with Him?

I say we pray with an attitude like this: Psalm 37:3, "For You are my rock and my fortress; therefore, for Your name's sake, lead me and guide me."

I would be thrilled if a brilliant lady like Dagny Taggart would put her trust in God. She's successful in business, but she definitely doesn't have any peace or personal fulfilment. On the other hand, a book like "The Case for Faith" just gives me more reasons than ever to put my confidence in God, instead of on my own understanding. It's wonderful to know that He doesn't disappoint.