Heart of God

David was a man after God's own heart. As I go through life I see more and more that I need to have what David had...a heart after God's. Do you ever think about how you get that? I mean, how do we become a man/woman after God's own heart?

I have kind of a weird question to ask you. What if God were to "break up" with you? Would it make a difference to you if He was apart of your life or not? I had asked this question to myself about two months ago now and found my answer to this to be no. Thinking about that really scared me. I mean, I wanted to be at that place where I would be absolutely distraught if God were to "break up" with me. It made me think and start to wonder how I could have a relationship with God that was meaningful enough to consume my heart.

The more I thought about it, the more it seemed like I couldn't get to this place of sincerity with God. I would read my bible, pray to God, go to church, serve others...but I never really felt like the scriptures were saying anything to me, I felt that my prayers would go unanswered, and sermons wouldn't really say anything to me. Honestly, looking back...it is a scary thought! So I went to a pastor friend of mine with the desire to find out how I could get this relationship with God.

He had a couple things to share with me. He said to continue to read the bible, go to church, and all of that, but he asked me to go one step further. He said that I needed to take risks. At first, I was like what does that mean, but he went further. He talked about dating relationships and the fact that we take risks in that to grow closer to each other. He was like, "the same goes for your relationship with God". If we want to grow closer to God, we need to be willing to take risks. He said, "Not blind leaps of faith, but risks lead by the Spirit of God". I thought and still think that, that makes sense. So I have been trying to take risks and follow these promptings in my heart. It has been an interesting journey so far...a good one!

I wanted to share this with whoever even reads this so that you can have this to use in your own life. It has and is still changing my life for the good. I feel closer to God than I have ever been and feel confident in the decisions I make because of it. It can't remember the the reference for this verse, but there is a verse that says that the closer our hearts our to God's...the easier it is for us to understand his will for us.

So please try this out...it has changed my life and it will change yours too!

He Can Do What?

Today was an interesting day. It had its ups and downs. Points of great joy and others of immense sadness. There is so much in life that I wish I could change...so much that I wish I could fix. I mean, I do fix what I can and try to do it quickly, but there are still things in life that I want to fix! I was reading this passage the other day in Ephesians and found peace in it.


"For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen."
                                                                                                                                        Ephesians 3:14-21


From this passage, I find comfort in the fact that God is in control and has a plan for me that is more than I can ever ask for or even imagine. There is this one thing that I long for in my life...I take rest in the fact that God knows what it is and will work with it beyond my wildest dreams! 


Today I meet with one of the wisest men I know and we discussed the topic of the will of God. We talked about how we discover the will of God and grow closer to Him. He shared that to know the will of God we need to be close to Him. We need to be willing to take risks for God and build that relationship with God. Not blind leaps of faith, but rather spirit lead risks. I hope this is making sense (cause it is like 2:23am lol).


So I guess all of this was to say that I am finding peace in the fact that God has a plan and it is immeasurably more than I could ask for or imagine.


The will of God is vast and great!!

The Truth Shall Set You Free

Truth - noun - a verified or indisputable fact, proposition, or principle


"Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."
                                                                            John 8:32


What causes us to tell the truth? Is it just a leap of faith? Is it based on something that is earned? I think that it is all of the above. When you tell the truth it is so easy. Life is less stressful, you are more at ease, and you just feel good about yourself. Well if this is the case, why do so many of us decide to lie, hide, and cover up the truth? 


When you think about it, lying is just a burdensome task. You have to follow up on it, keep track of it, and maintain this thing that eventually gets so big that you end up getting caught. So in the end, you end up hurting others and leaving yourself at a place where you feel lost.


You see lying only causes you to loose yourself. When you lie, you are basically putting up a front that you want others to see. A front that you think will be appealing to others and cause them to like you more or hang out with you more. It may work at the beginning, but in the end you start to question if the people that hang out with you really like you or just some front that you have put up for others to see. I can tell you that it is a hard place to be and is just painful. 


Those feelings I was talking about...I had them. Those thoughts that I was talking about...I had them too. I look back and call myself a fool. I mean what was I even thinking? I don't know why I made the decisions I did when I did, besides the fact that I am a sinner, but I see my mistakes. I look back and see where I was and am thankful for people in my life that will confront me. 


I don't know who will read this or even care to read through it when they see how long this, but if you are still with me I challenge you. I dare you to take a leap. I challenge you to just tell the truth. I will tell you that at first it is hard. Especially if you have been lying as long as I have. It is a bad habit that needs to be broken. I will tell you, from experience, that when you decide to tell the truth and you do it...it is so freeing! It is this burden that is just lifted off your shoulders. 


So what are you going to do? Are you going to take that leap? Or are you just going to remain the same? Should it really be a question? No. So ask God for the strength, will power, and determination and experience the change!