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Showing posts from February, 2008

Purpose Driven Life Day 4: We Are Made to Last Forever

... He has also set eternity in the hearts of men ... ~Ecclesiastes 3:11 This chapter was supposed to impress upon us that God created us for eternity. If I said I was moved the first time I read this chapter, I would be a big liar. This reading, at the time, did not overly excite me. I already know that there is an eternity with God. Truthfully, it is hard to stop living what for the wonderful things I have been fooled into thinking this world has to offer. When we start to lose focus on God, it seems that we start to think material things are all there is to live for. That is why it is imperative to stay focused on Him at all times even when we would rather not or don't feel up to it. One of the most compelling points of this chapter is that what we do in this life does indeed have eternal consequences. Please understand how powerful that it. These consequences will even follow you to heaven. We do live forever, one way or another. Personally, I am a planning on living with Chri

Purpose Driven Life Day 3: What Drives Your Life?

Since I am still away and out of touch with everything, I was able to sneek some time in between classes to post something. This was supposed to be done on February 9th but was actually completed on February 12, 2008. I will be caught up and on time soon enough. What Drives Your Life? Day three of Purpose Driven Life asks the question, “What drives us?” Warren discusses five factors that drive peoples' lives (usually): guilt, resentment and anger, fear, materialism, and need for approval. Which one of those drives you? Personally, before God showed me His direction for my life, I was driven by materialism. For those who know me well, it may not seem that way at first because I never really cared about brand named clothes or having the most popular of this or that. Upon appearance, I am not materialistic as the world defines it. I am not Paris Hilton or a person who has to have everything that’s hot and trendy. I am not much of a big shopper either. In fact, I actually hate shoppin

In The Wilderness

This is not in any way spiritual. I am literally in the wilderness. I am away for two weeks for something to do with work. I have no television (OMGosh!), no internet (this is just a fluke but I will try again if I can), and have the potential for a bear encounter. Needless to say, I am not at all happy about this. However, I am trying to make the best out of it. I have a funny roomate, who is keeping me entertained and putting up with my talking. The people that I am here with are all very knowledgeable in what they do, and I sincerely hope to learn something amidst my grumbling. I will be writing my updates and will have to post them all at once when I get back. In the mean time, pray for me that God allows me to come through this without any close encounters with bugs, spiders, bears, or anything that can eat me. I will remain positive and open that God has put me here to learn and grow. If there are any spelling errors, sorry because the spellcheck is not working and I have to post

Purpose Driven Life Day 2: I Am Not as Accident

For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. ~Ephesians 1:4 There are these things called unplanned pregnancies that happen, and they happen quite often, that sometimes bring people together, tear them apart, or motivate them to do better. Nevertheless, something happens in reaction to an "unplanned pregnancy." At least we think it is unplanned.Maybe it is hard for us to think that God has time to be so involved with our lives. Is life really unplanned? Rick Warren asserts that God planned out our life from before we were even born to our death, taking into consideration the choices we make, sin, and everything in between. Isn’t it hard to fathom that we (insignificant us) can have a role to play in the balance of the world. I mean honestly, what is living our life on a daily basis truly contributing to the world. This is where I think we have to get it wrong. This is where I believe we miss the mark on how to live our life a

Purpose Driven Life Day 1: It is NOT About You

Day one of Purpose Driven Life reading started yesterday and guess what? It is not about me! What? A couple of months ago, that statement would have gone right over my head. I would have nodded and agreed wholeheartedly but went on planning my future, mapping out my goals, and dreaming my selfish dreams. Now, however, I can agree with a clear conscience. Some of the points I thought were interesting are: You can be successful without fulfilling your life’s purpose. This is no awe-inspiring statement; however, I just never thought about it like that. The purpose of my life is part of a larger plan. Wow, really! It is kind of cool to think of myself as part of a master plan. I almost feel like I am part of a covert operation except God is not undercover. We just choose not to listen. Going to the source does not mean looking to ourselves. I always thought that when I looked deep within my heart, I would find all the answers that I needed. Oops. Whenever I did that, I only came out with

"Purposed Driven Life" Starts Today

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Today is the first day. It is never too late to join in with me. Go out and get your book and lets go. To learn more read Join Me For Lent ! 40 days to make our lives that much better.

Day 17 of the 21: Can We Perservere

So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. 36 You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. (NIV) ~Hebrews 10:35-36 To me, the above passage is all about walking in the Lord and not giving up. We have to stay confident that if things are not going our way that we still have to remain faithful to God and walk in the path of Jesus. There is a better reward than worldly things and therefore, we should not fall into sin in an attempt to get something from the world. That's so much easier to write than it is to do. However, that is why it is equally important that we actively do things that keep us close to God. Prayer, reading the bible, fellowship with other Christians, attending church, and doing what God intends us to. We not only have to persevere in faith but in life in general. We should know that no matter what God will provide for us and wants us to be successful and happy. If our goals and dream

Psalm 73 (Envy not)

Psalm 73 (NIV) 1 Surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart. 2 But as for me, my feet had almost slipped; I had nearly lost my foothold. 3 For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. 4 Thy have no struggles; thier bodies are healthy and stong. 5 They are free from the burdens coomn to man; thy are not plagues by human ills. 6 Therefore pride is thier necklace; they clothe themselves with violence. 7 From their callous hearts comes iniquity; they evil conceits of thier minds know no limits. 8 They scoff, and speak with malice; in thier arrogance they threaten oppression. 9 Their mouths lay claim to heaven, and thier tongues take possession of the earth. 10 Therfore thier people turn to them and drink up waters in abundance. 11 They say, "How can God know? Does the MOst High have knowlege?" 12 This is what the wicked are like-- always carefree, they increas in wealth. 13 Surely in vain have I kpet my heart pure; in vain have I washed my

Spending Time Away From the Word: Disastrous

I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man reamins in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. 7 If you ramin in me and my words remain in you, ask wahtever you wish and it will be given you. 8 This is to my Fahter's glorid, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples. (NIV)~John 15:5-8 The past three and a half days have been a complete blur of activity. This is not in a good way. It has been so hectic that I am not three days behind on my 21-day consecration. How sad is that? I mean really. 21 minutes of quiet time so that I can pray and focus on God has been so hard to come by. That basically means that for the last few days my priorities have been way screwed up. I feel it too. I feel it in the way I react to certain situations. I have no patience and I get frustrated so e

Day 12 of the 21 Days: Leaders Sin Too

This day I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live 20and that you may love the Lord your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him. For the Lord is your life, and he will give you many years in the land he swore to give to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. (NIV) ~Deuteronomy 30:19-20 Although Moses was faithful in the whole of his life, there were moments during his leadership of the Jews when he sinned against God. When we see spiritual leaders fall it is very difficult to grasp how they can because we expect more out of them. We look to them to inspire, encourage, and teach us in the ways of God. When they fall pray to sin, it is devastating for not only Christians but also for those who are outside looking in. It is an opportunity for the enemy to strike with negative thoughts. That's when you hear people saying how Christians are just hypoc

Day 11 of the 21 Days: Why Please God?

Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O LORD, my rock and my Redeemer. ~Psalm 19:14 Why should we even be concerned about pleasing God? Of course, we love God and we want to go to heaven and all that good stuff. On a more practical side, if our hearts are after pleasing God we may work harder to live as he wants us to. The best way to please God is to live our life as close to Jesus' as we can. This is not only a way to praise God but also helps us avoid dangers that a worldly lifestyle can attract. Psalms 19:14 is something I need to pray every morning when I wake up. There are times during the course of the day when the things that come out of my mouth are not at all acceptable. I believe that because we have a propensity towards sin, we need to constantly be mindful of our thoughts and actions in order to walk as Jesus walked. Prayer: Psalms 19:14