More on the topic of l.o.v.e.

My previous post stuck with me the other night as I was trying to drift off to sleep. Throughout the Bible we are told to let love guide our lives. We are told to love not only our friends, but our enemies. We are told to love like God loves. Yet, it seems like an impossible task because I am not God and will never, no matter how hard I try be able to love like God loves. I want to love like He does... oh, how I wish I could. I want very much to love sincerely the way He does. I want to be able to look at everyone around me and no matter what they've done, simply love them. I want to be able to not only love my friends when they are doing what is right in my eye (which is very blind and judgmental if I do admit so myself), but when they are doing wrong, when they are driving me up the wall. I not only want to love my friends sincerely, but I want to love my enemies sincerely as well. I wish I could say I do not have enemies, but the truth is I do and I find it the most difficult to love them. I find it so difficult to not pull out the list I carry in my heart of the wrongs they've done to me and throw it in their face. I find it difficult to not want to hurt people back who've hurt me. I want to sincerely change and be able to love the way God loves.

Love is complicated...every single type of love because it seems to involve so much, but what does the Bible say love is? Well, lets look at 1 Corinthians13.

That's what love is and that's what God is. God is patient. God is kind. God isn't rude. He is about Himself, but at the same time He is about others, so much about others. He is not easily angered. He does not keep records of our wrongs- but forgives! He is not about evil, but is about the truth! God always protects, He always hopes, He always perseveres. And His love never ever fails. How awesome God's love is!

That's how I want to love, but I realize that I probably never will love like that...I wonder how often one can really love like God loves? I'm not sure its possible, but I hope that one day I will be as patient and kind as Him. I hope that one day I will not be rude, will think more about others than myself, will not be easily angered, won't holds people's mistakes against them, won't delight in evil, but the truth. I hope one day I can fully love like He does. What a great day that will be!

All He did He did for love

I can't sleep. Why? Because I'm thinking about love. No, not the mushy kind even though that has its time and place in my thoughts. Right now I'm thinking about the love that God has for the world, for his children... I'm beginning to think that love is really want makes the world turn. The Bible says out of faith, hope, and love that love is the greatest. It also says that if we do not have love then really we have nothing. Love is really what God is all about. Everything He has created, everything He has done has love written all over it.

God had so much love in Him that He created the world. He had so much love in Him that He simply had to create to get it out! What else can one do with love, but express it? His creation was Him expressing love. I think think that the fall was Him in a way expressing His love. I know sounds weird, but bare with me as I try to explain. God created the world because He had so much love in Him, but He hated the sin that Adam and Eve fell into, so He destroyed the world. Yes, he destroyed the world and all in it because He hated the sin, but He hated the sin because it caused harm and He does not want harm for His people! It caused Adam and Eve to drift away from Him, to separate from Him and that is what He really hated. He loved them so much that He wanted them to be forever connected to them because He is right, He is good. He loved them so much that He wanted what was best for them and sin is not what is good for the world, so really I believe that it was out of love that He destroyed it. Maybe I'm wrong. I'm clearly no Bible scholar, but these are just the thoughts keeping me awake.

After the flood God made a covenant that He would never again destroy the world and that was out of great love. Of course He realized that every human would still continue to sin, but He still chose to love them...no matter their sin, no matter how deep, now matter how big He decided He would forever and always love them. God then sent His son Jesus to the world...because He loved the world...He sent His son to connect with the world and then die for the world. Oh, how great a love God must feel for everyone in order to send His son to die for us! When Jesus was nailed to the cross our sin was nailed to the cross as well..and with that there was forgiveness for our sins. No one can forgive us the way God can forgive us. No one can wash us clean and make us free! All of this because He loves us! And all other things in the Bible... the laws, the rules, all His precious words are because He loves us.

I was listening to a message early by Donald Miller and he spoke of this love. He said so many things that just grabbed a hold of my heart. He said that love does not control, but it lets go. He expressed that God does not control. Yes, He very much wants us to be close to Him, to have a relationship with us, but He does not force us. Love has nothing to do with force... God does not force us to be close to Him, to have a relationship with Him and that shows His love. He gives us a choice... He knows that not everyone wants to have a relationship with Him... He even knows that some who do have a relationship with Him will walk away. But its all our choice. Love is about letting things be, letting things go. With God we are allowed to just be who we are... we are allowed to be broken, we are allowed to be a mess, we are allowed to sin, we are allowed to come and go.

No matter how broken we are.. He still loves us.
No matter how messy we are....He still loves us.
No matter how much we sin...no matter how big or small the sin is...He still loves us.
No matter how we come...He still loves us.
No matter how we go...He still loves us.
No matter what He still loves us.

Who else loves us like that? Who else loves us that much? No one ever could and no one ever will love the way God loves. It is beautiful and so right. I cannot fathom how I ever lived without His love. Donald Miller said without God's love you cannot live. Well, to him, I say I am thankful I never have to live without that love!


Thank You for Your love. Thank You for all You did in the name of Your love.
Thank You for creating... because of love.
Thank You for sending your son to die... because of love.
Thank You for the cross, for forgiving... because of love.
It is a great and beautiful thing unlike any other.

Genesis 26 through 28

The world is full of people who only think of themselves, of people who are so selfishness that they never once consider how their choices or their own actions will effect others around them. There are people in the Bible who are no different. Let me tell you the story of Jacob and Esau. They were the sons of Issac and Rebeka. Esau was the oldest and was given his name because he was born with an intense amount of hair covering his body and the youngest clearly, was Jacob, given this name because he was clutching tightly to his brothers heel. Both parents had their favorite son, if that's how you want to look at it. Isaac loved Esau because he loved his game (being a hunter and the outdoorsy type) but Rebekah loved Jacob.

Later on in life when Issac had aged and was nearly blind he called to his oldest son, Esau and told him that he was very sick and was going to die soon. He told him to go hunting and bring him a hearty meal and that he would give him his personal blessing before he died. Rebekah heard Issac tell Esau this, but she had another idea. She told Jacob that his father was going to give Esau his personal blessing and that he should pretend to be his brother, getting the blessing first. So, Jacob went out and killed two young goats in order to make his father a hearty meal...then Rebekah dressed Jacob up in Esau's dress-up clothes, and covered the rest of him with the goat skin, so when his father, Issac touched him he would believe he was Esau and bless Jacob instead.

When Jacob went to his father he lied saying that he was indeed Esau and his father gave him the blessing he intended for Esau. When Esau came to him soon after, both Esau and Issac realized that Jacob had fooled their father and stolen Esau's blessing. This made Esau very angry and he swore that he was going to kill his brother. Rebekah heard of this and she warned Jacob, telling him he must go away in order to escape his brother's vengeance.

I'd been thinking about this story all day. There are so many errors in this story, so many broken hearts. First, Issac and Rebekah both have their favorite son. They both love one son, not both, which is not how it should be. Parent's should not love one child more than the other, but both equally. But they don't and I think, maybe it's the social worker in me, that of course this was going to cause issues. It seemed to cause the house to be divided - both parents wanting what's best for the one they loved best, which maybe caused confrontation and tension between these brothers. Maybe it also caused the brothers to be selfish, which is my next thought. I can't really say who is more selfish than the other in this story because both Esau and Jacob are selfish, just like all humans. Esau was only thinking about himself and the blessing his father was going to give him. He didn't seem to think about how Jacob to might want the blessing, but then again Jacob clearly didn't think about how stealing Esau's blessing was very selfish as well. Neither of them thought about how their choices would affect the other. They made their choices simply for themselves.

This of course made me think about my selfishness. It left me asking myself how often do I make choices based on what I want? How often do I think about others before I think about myself? What would I give up for others? What would I be willing to lose. I try not to be selfish... I try to think of others before myself, but most of the time my emotions, my wants get in the way. I know that this is wrong. My past choices in life have proven that being selfish can get you nowhere but in a huge tangled mess, hurting later on down the road. My selfish choices have also hurt others greatly, much like what will happen later in the story of Esau and Jacob.

Stay tuned for more about them soon.

Genesis 23 through 25

Abraham's wife, Sarah dies and Abraham wants to find his son, Issac, a wife. However, he does not want this wife to come from the place they are at now, but from his home. He tells his servants to go back to his home and find his son a wife, one that will come back to the place where they are at now. She must come back, but if she will not then the the covenant Abraham made with his servant, to find Issac a wife, does not have to be made . The servant goes to Abraham's home and believes he has found a woman, Rebekah, who is suitable to Issac. He then prays about it. He says, "GOD, God of my master Abraham, make things turn out well in the task I've been given."-Genesis 24:42 (the message) and things do turn out well. Issac and this woman Rebekah get married. Abraham also remarries.

The prayer is something that jumped out at me. Prayer is very important to my relationship with God. We cannot have a relationship with anyone if we do not speak to them, so how can we have a relationship with God if we do not speak to Him? It's impossible even though I am sure that at times many Christians, myself included, believe that their relationship with God is just fine when they aren't speaking to Him...because yes, there are times when I do not talk to God like I should, when I do not turn to Him for the things I should, when I do not pray for others like I should. This is actually something I have been struggling with recently. Not that I'm not speaking to God, but more so I am not praying for everyone I should, but it is something I feel called to do. I feel God telling me to pray for others at times. However, sometimes the only prayer I can say is "Yeah, yeah be with them too." It's something I need to work on...in my heart.

Prayer is a task that has been set before me, that has been placed on my heart, so God please make it turn out well.

GOD-Yireh

My mind keeps on drifting back to that term. It has such a beautiful meaning to me. GOD-sees-to-it. I just love that. I love how Abraham named the place where God provided for him, GOD-Yireh. I've been thinking about places in my life that I could call that. Where in my life did my God provide? Where in my life did my God see to it?

Everywhere really. I believe deep within my heart that God saw to all my life, but I want to think more specifically.
God saw to it with the friends I made in junior high and high school. Specifically He saw to it that I made a good Christian friend who could lead me...who has continued to lead me, whether I tell her or not. (Thank you!).
God saw to it that I went to church camp and opened my heart to Him, fully, letting Him and saying "I am Yours God! My life is Yours!"
God saw to it that I had a desire to go to Tabor and He saw to it that I made it there!
God saw to it that every semester I was there it was paid for.
God saw to it that I made friends at Tabor that will always and forever be the friends I need. (Love you all and miss you!)
God saw to it that when I wasn't heading in the right direction, that there was a way out.
God saw to it that when I messed up I was forgiven!
God saw to it...all of it...more than I see and more than I ever will.

My Past- God Yireh!

My Present- God Yireh!

My Future- God Yireh!

My Heart- God Yireh!


Thank You for seeing to it!

Genesis 22

Here God tells Abraham to take his son, Isaac, to the land of Moriah. He is to sacrifice him there. Abraham does not question God, but takes his son to this land and is so close to sacrificing him when God's angel calls to him, telling him not to harm his son. Then, a ram very close by, which God provided to be sacrificed instead of Isaac. This place, where God provided the ram, Abraham named GOD-Yireh, which means GOD-sees-to-it. God's angel also tells Abraham that because he was going to offer up his son that he will be greatly blessed.

This chapter may have been very short, but it spoke volumes! First of all I am in awe of how Abraham did not hesitate when he was told to sacrifice his own son! His love for his son is great and I cannot imagine how hard it would be for him to even think about sacrificing his son, but his love for God is greater and for God, he would do anything. How awesome is that! This of course, like the Bible often does, caused me to look at my own life. What have I sacrificed for God? Not much... at least not as much as I should. When I became a Christian there were things I did give up, things I did walk away from, but still not much of a sacrifice. The summer before my junior year of college I sacrificed my fear and anxiety about traveling to Skid Roe in L.A. to work with the homeless, yet, still not much of a sacrifice. Sadly, more than often, I do not sacrifice anything for God, but rather I sacrifice God for other things. I have sacrificed my relationship with God to have relationships that were not what God wanted in my life, that did nothing but lead me far away from Him. I have sacrificed my relationship with God because of my anger, not listening to His word when it says, "In your anger do not sin"(Psalm4:4), but getting so angry that I do not honor God with my tongue or my actions. I have sacrificed my relationship with God in order to get other things... and that is heartbreaking because I truly do love God, but I am not perfect and I have not yet reached that place in our relationship where I am able to give all to God...able to sacrifice all for Him. I hope to get there, I want to get there, but in order to I have to let Him guide me, which I don't always do.

So, God, help me to sacrifice things for you, even if it means sacrificing things for me because it will.

This chapter also made me think about a theme I have already seen in the short amount of time I've been reading. Abraham named the place where God provided - GOD-Yireh, which means GOD-sees-to-it. The theme I see and will continue to see it God sees to everything. God takes care of everything whether we see it or not, in some way He provides. He does not leave us hanging, but gives us all we need. Even more than that He often blesses us. I am so thankful for those things.

I like that about Him

Earlier I wrote about walking away from God and how, at times, that seems like something much more easier than staying with Him. It made me think of something I had written elsewhere, which I now want to put here...along with other thoughts mixed in.

I have had hard relationships. I think all relationships are difficult. Now, maybe not in the same way, but in some area they all need work. My relationship with God is one that needs work on a daily basis. It is one that will always need work because I will always need to strive to be better...to be more like Him...to show His love. Like I said before sometimes I feel this need to walk away, which in all honesty is silly because I definitely do not need to walk away from Him, but I need more than anything to reach out my hand and grab Him, holding on for dear life. But in those times that I do walk away and I do (that's what sin is...me walking away from Him...to my desire...to my want...to my selfishness...) He doesn't walk away from me. When I walk away, saying "God, I am done with this." He gets it and doesn't push me, but in my heart I hear Him say, "Okay, well I will be here waiting for you. I am not going anywhere." And He keeps His promise. When I return He is still there, waiting for me, having never left. I like that about Him.


I like the fact that I don't really have to tell God what's going on because sometimes words don't come to me. It's nice to not always have to be speak, but just be... its nice that sometimes all I have to do is say His name and He gets it.

I like how when I mess up He doesn't throw it in my face and when I come to Him and say,"God I've really messed up, big time." He doesn't say "I told you so!" Even though He did...

I like how He forgives me....constantly, without any hesitation. Freely He gives it. All I have to do is ask and He forgives. I like how, at times I will say, "NO God, I am not forgiving that person!" But then, He works on my heart and I forgive, just like He forgives. I like how He helps me to forgive people I don't think at times deserve forgiving, how He helps me forgive....me.

I like how He knows who you need in your life....and who you don't. I like how there are people in my life who are so much like Him and who speak HIS TRUTH to me....even when its hard, even when I don't want to hear it

I like how when I read the Bible I feel like He is speaking directly to me. His words give me direction and guidance. They give me hope, they show me His love. I like that He wrote those words just for me.

I like how He has a plan....and its not one that I know or can see, but it will not fail. It will be much bigger than I can imagine and it will bring Him glory.

I like how when I am weak He is strong. So strong.

....There are so many things I like about Him. I know I will think of more things to add to this list and maybe I will.

Tell me- what do you like about Him?

Genesis 16 through 21

I must say that sometimes I won't have thoughts on some of what I've read. I will express somethings, but not always everything. In these chapters many things are shared, but only a few things jumped out at me.

Abram and Sara very much want children even though they are to old. God promises, however, that they will have a child. This isn't something they understand because how could it possibly happen? They are far to old! Sara actually laughs when she hears that she will have a baby. Gods response to that is turning to Abraham and asking, "Is anything too hard for God?"No because just like God promised they were given a baby, whom they named Isaac.

This stuck out to me, not because I exactly say things are too hard for God, but because I live in such a way at times... there are times where I am so anxious and worried about the life I live. When will I get a job? It won't come! What will my job be? Nothing of any importance! Will I be good at it? No because I don't know anything! Where will the money come from? Nowhere! I am going to be poor forever! Questions after questions with no answers it seems, but truth be told God is the answer. Nothing is too hard for Him! When will I get a job? In God's time. What will my job be? What God wants it to be...where He wants me to be. Will I be good at it? God will prepare me. He has yet to let me fail. I do have knowledge, more than I think and it is from Him. Where will money come from? From God...it always comes. I've never gone without.

Thank God that NOTHING is TOO HARD for Him! Thank You for Your timing. Thank You for Your will. Thank You for giving me all I need.

At the end of chapter 21 Sara's son is being made fun of by Hagar, who is the son of a slave. This upsets Sara very much and she tells Abraham that he must get rid of them. They were sent off with some water and wandered into the desert. The mother was worried because without water her son would surely die. She cried, not wanting to watch her son die. God heard her son crying ad came to her saying, "Don't be afraid. God has heard the boy and knows the fix he's in. Up now; go get the boy. Hold him tight. I'm going to make of him a great nation."-Genesis22:17-18 (the message). Then God made a well appear and the mother gave her boy a cool drink of water.

What stuck out to me here was "God has heard the boy and knows the fix he's in." God knows our troubles, our needs, our desires. He will not leave us without, just like He did not leave the boy without the water he so desperately needed. God will always provide us with what we need and if we do go without, the way I see it, we didn't really need it or God has found some other way to help us with our troubles, provide us with our needs, and give us our desires.

Other thoughts from today: This morning I was thinking about the times I want to run from God. Sometimes, being a Christian I get super tired. It's hard always having to make the right choices, having to read my Bible all the time , having to love people , having to keep my morals straight....not that I always do those things...most of the time I don't. Sometimes I just want to run the other direction...far far far away from God. I want to make my own choices that have nothing to do with reading my Bible, loving people, or keeping my morals straight. But then I thought some more... and those times I've drifted away aren't great times. When I don't have God in my life I feel like something is missing and life just doesn't feel right. So, I'm glad that I haven't drifted away from Him. I'm glad that He has my heart and keeps in close to Him.

Genesis 11 through 15

In chapter 11 God turns His people's language into babble and spreads them through out the earth. I always liked this story...simply because to me it explained why everyone else talks in different languages. We all used to speak one language, but being able to talk to one another caused a problem. The people decided that they were going to build a tower to Heaven and we're able to do this because they could communicate with this. God knew that if they could do this, then they could do other things, so He made it so they could no longer communicate and no longer live close by one another. I think there is a bigger picture to why God did this. I don't believe its because He doesn't want us to communicate - how the world would be a mess if that were true! But I believe His reasoning behind this (and maybe I'm wrong) is because they were able to do something without Him. They didn't need God to get to Heaven! They were just going to build a tower to get there! Needing God is important and He wanted His people to realize it!

In the chapters 12 through 15 the Bible talks about Abram. God tells Abram "Leave your country, your family, and your father's home for a land that I will show you." -Genesis12:1 (the message). He explains to Abram if he does this he will be blessed, so Abram trusting God and His word leaves his country, his family, and his father's home. There are hard times - how can there not be when you leave what you know? But still Abram's listens to God and continues on his journey. In chapter 15 God speaks to Abram in a vision. He says, "Don't be afraid, Abram. I'm your shield. Your reward will be grand."-Genesis15:1(the message). Abram, still, however, has his doubts. He asks God - how do I know this will all be mine? And what good is it if I do not have a son? In the end God makes a covenant with Abram telling him that he will give this land to Abram's children.

I thought about a few things as I read. One was how often does God tell me to go somewhere? I've heard Him a few times...sometimes going...sometimes ignoring Him. Yet, God is not telling me to go just to go. There is a reason behind it. There is a plan. God may have at times told me to leave my home, my family, and my friends and yes, maybe it would have been super hard, but along with Him telling me that I am sure there would have been blessings to follow. Maybe there would have been blessings for me...how can there not be when listening to God? When following Him? When obeying Him? Maybe there would have been blessings for others, which, would be so good because my heart, the heart God has placed in me does love to help others. Yet, I haven't always done what God has told me to do. Even though I know at times God has told me, just like He told Abram..."Do not be afraid, daughter. I'm your shield."

I hope next time I listen because that is what this has told me:
-Listen more to God.
-Do not be afraid.
-He is always with you, no matter where you go.
-His plans for you are bigger than you know.

Thought of today: "God doesn't play dice" He isn't trying new things out on my life. He isn't guessing at the outcomes. He made me. He knows me. He has everything under His control.

I have to remind myself of that daily, sometimes, even multiple times a day. God knows my past. He knows my future. It was all part of His plan. He isn't playing some game and deciding as my life goes along. Everything-ALL in life-is under His control.

PRAISE God for His love. PRAISE God for His plan. Praise God for having His hand over all my life!

Genesis 3 through 10

There were a few things that stuck out to me in these chapters.

God searched for Adam and Eve in the garden and when he found them He also found that they had been decieved by the serpent. It says, "The serpent was clever, more cleven than any wild animal God had made." I thought about this... the serpent surely is the most clever animal God has created... He lies so well. He knows how to trick. He knows how to manipulate. He knows how to destroy all God has built whether it has been physical things or spiritual things. The serpent knows how to hurt God's people. He throws lies at them constantly and can cause some much damage, but God is better than him. The serpent may be able to throw lies at us, but God gives us the truth. The serpent may be able to destroy us, but God can rebuild us. The serpent may be able to hurt us, but God loves us. The serpent may be strong, but God is stronger! Praise Jesus!

It hurt God greatly that the serpent was able to decieve Adam and Eve. It hurt Him deeply that they listened. It hurt Him so deeply that He decided it was best to destroy the human race...all except for Noah because God liked what He saw in Noah. He had Noah build a ship for him and his family, along with every type of animal God had created. But He wiped out the rest. "I am going to bring a flood on the Earth that will destroy everything alive under Heaven. Total destruction"-(Genesis6:17-the message). God kept Noah and his family because He liked what He saw in Noah...Then God thought to himself,"I'll never again curse the ground because of people. I know they have this bent toward evil from any early age, but I'll never again kill off everything living as I've done."-(Genesis8:21). He made this convenant with Noah - that the earth will never again be destroyed by floodwaters.

"This is the sign of the convenant I am making between me and you and everything living around you and everyone after you. I'm putting my rainbow in the clouds, a sign of the covenant between me and the Earth. From now on, when I form a cloud over the Earth and the rainbow appears in the cloud, I'll remember my convenant between me and you and everything living, that never again will floodwaters destroy all life. When the rainbow appears in the cloud, I'll see it and rememeber the eternal convenant between God and everything living, every last living creature on Earth"-Genesis9:12-16 (the message)


Thought of today: I noticed that the word sin is in Christian. I think this is important. I make a lot of mistakes, I sin a whole lot... Sometimes I've even had people say to me, "That's not very Christian of you." They may be right, but just because I am a Christian doesn't mean sin is not still present in my life. I believe I sin just as much as the non believer - it's different maybe because of how I deal with it and what I do with it, but sin is still in my life just like it is in the word Christian. Sin is part of the fall of man, but God is bigger than my sin, He died for it and with Him, only with Him can I conquer it!

Genesis 2

In this chapter God forms rivers and trees,beautiful trees... one tree that He made was the tree of knowledge of good and evil. He also formed a man, but realized that man could not live alone because that would cause him to be lonely, so He also created a woman, from the man. He told them that they could eat from any tree, other than the tree of knowledge because if they did they would die. At the end of the chapter is says, "The man and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame."

The last part is what stuck out to me the most. They felt no shame. Yes, it was because they hadn't yet eaten from the tree of knowledge, but its still what stuck out me. After the eat from the tree they feel great shame because they messed up - big time! They did exactly what God told them not to! However, Jesus died for our sins... sins like Adam and Eve committed...the sin of not listening , not obeying Him. So, I wonder if were supposed to go back to NOT FEELING SHAME. Jesus was nailed to the cross for our sins. He died to take on all of it - our shames, our guilts, our really really bad choices. So maybe, just maybe we are to go back to when Adam and Eve felt no shame and FEEL NO SHAME, but allow it to be nailed to the cross.

I've been thinking about sin a lot today. We all sin. We can try to deny it...try to hide from it...but no matter what our lives prove that its there. However, I believe that some people deal with their sin better than others. Now, I'm not just talking about how they control it better than others (or so it seems), but what I mean is some people acknowledge their sin, go to God about it, and then they move on....they let go...and live their life as if the sin is done and over with, which is it is because God says so. God does bring our past sins to our attention on a daily basis, but fully forgives. I think, however, a lot of people (myself included in this) believe otherwise.

Let me explain with a picture and a metaphor:

This is my attempt at a scoreboard. A lot of the time people believe that God is counting their sins against them. They believe God couldn't possibly love or care about them because they sin so much, so deeply. However, its more like my picture. God takes on our sins. They aren't counted against us, but He died for our sins, so its more like My sin-O and God taking on the sin-+50. God loves us that much. He is that good!

Genesis 1 and so on...

I have to warn you - I have absolutely no idea how this blog is going to look. Some days I may read just one chapter in the Bible. Other days I may read a whole book. Some days I may blog multiple times a day about different things and other days, I may not have access to a computer (that is a slim chance) It's all really up in the air. I also have to warn you that when it comes to my thoughts and my writing sometimes its all over the place. That's me - messy at times, but it doesn't matter... all that matters is that you get a glimpse into the good book. Maybe you've read it, maybe you haven't, but I hope your soul gets a drink whenever you read because that's what its about. His word will fill you, it will satisfy you. All you have to do is open the book and read.

Tonight I read Genesis 1, which talks about God creating the earth and all in it.

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
God said,"Let there be light," and there was light.
God said,"Let there be an expanse between the waters to separate water from water."
God said,"Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear."
God said,"Let the land produce vegetation"
God said,"Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark seasons and days and years, and let them be lights in the expanse of the sky to give lights on the earth."
God said,"Let the water teen with the living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the sky."
God said,"Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sear and the birds of the air, over the live stock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground."
(NIV)

The things God said are what stuck out to me the most in this chapter. As I was reading I couldn't help but think about how awesome it is that God simply spoke and things happened, things were formed, life was created! God is so amazing that all He has to do is speak and life just happens. How cool is that? I think that's how God is in my life....just because He is in my life, just because He speaks to me and guides me things happen in my life, that otherwise wouldn't happen.

Thought of today: The gospel is meant to extend to all people...even those hated.

The Beginning

Here, on this blog are where two of my passions, Jesus and writing, come together.

Let me explain: Do you ever have ideas come to you at the weirdest times? The other night I was lying in bed unsuccessfully trying to sleep, when a project popped into my head. That's where this blog comes into play. I have a heart for God... my heart has been shaped and guided by Him. God speaks to me and I honestly believe His thoughts...His words...my experiences with Him aren't to be kept to myself, but shared. As a Christian I am called to share the gospel. How else would others hear about Him if it weren't for people who know? Who are willing to stand up and share? I am doing it a bit differently, however. I am not one that would stand on a street corner with a sign that says, "Jesus loves you!" I'm not opposed to the idea, but that just isn't my style. Nor am I the one to insert Jesus into the conversation with a stranger. I am, however, the person who would talk about my experiences with God if the topic comes up. I am one who tries to live my life in such a way that those around me can see Jesus in me...and hopefully can see His love too. That's what I am aiming for this blog to be about- sharing His word and showing that Jesus loves His people and the world that He created. The plan is for me to read through the Bible-from the beginning to the end-and blog about what I've read. I will also blog about other things that Christians deal with. God is the desire of my heart and in my heart He has also placed the passion of writing, not just about anything, but about Him. I want to give Him all the glory and hopefully, through writing...through sharing His words, that can be done.

So, here's to the beginning of reading through His word and sharing it along with whatever else He lays on my heart.

From His word...to my heart...to you.