Can You Grasp It?

I am starting a Bible study with the 11th and 12th Graders in Sunday school. We are doing a study called Crazy Love by Francis Chan. I am really nervous when it comes to teaching something. Especially since I don't feel like I know enough myself to be leading others, but I am just following in obedience to God telling me I need to teach this class. We have only done 1 chapter and I am already loving this study! Sometimes I get into a rut of allowing myself to only be learning things over and over that I already know (easy to do as a preachers kid - we have heard it all and know it all, right?! lol), and not asking God to show me something new. But when I actually take the time to learn something NEW, it's awesome to see my heart and mind begin to look at things a little more through God's eyes.

I was captured by this book immediately when I read the first sentence of the Preface: "To just read the Bible, attend church, and avoid 'big' sins -is this passionate, wholehearted love for God?" I think my old self that just let myself go through the routine of Christian church life would have said, "Yes! It is! Duh!". Are you one of those people that think that way? Does something in your heart long to break free from the status quo of "yeah, I go to church, I sing songs, I pray, I don't cuss, etc....."? I know I do.

I think immediately when we are faced with this question we think, "Well, here comes the list of do's and don'ts". But what Francis explains is the simplicity of just falling in love with God. That's all God is asking us to do. He just wants a passionate love relationship with us. It's not complex, it's not trying harder to be religious. It's not about being religious, but about having a relationship. When we grasp this concept, we will be blessed beyond measure!

There are several students in our youth group that come to me on a weekly basis feeling like they don't measure up to what they should be as a Christian. They are constantly dwelling on the fact that they don't do this or they do that but its not good enough. It breaks my heart! These are common things I am hearing from what they say, "Kelli, I need to pray more to be a better Christian. Kelli, I need to share my faith more, Kelli, I mess up too much, Kelli, I won't ever be good enough. Kelli, people at school don't like me, why would God?" Have you thought these things before? Some of these things are definitely things we need to be better at as Christians, but what we are missing is that God doesn't require us to be doing all of those things perfectly to love us!

I believe wholeheartedly that Satan has a way of making us think that just like the world feels/thinks towards us, that is how God feels/thinks towards us. Here are 3 Factors that we are always being pressured with in our world today. 1. APPEARANCE - Do you look good enough (are you acceptable in appearance to others, athletic ability) 2. WHAT YOU DO - (how much money you have, whats your intelligence) 3. WHAT DO OTHER PEOPLE THINK ABOUT YOU (do you measure up to their standards, is your car the newest style, do you own expensive things) We transfer these thoughts to our relationship with God. We are taking these messed up concepts we have and are hiding them in our hearts in place of where God's TRUTH and His WORD should be.

God LOVES your appearance. Did you forget He CREATED you? He is absolutely in love and amazed at your beauty, and He made your for HIS glory! Let that soak for a minute. God made you for HIS glory! Isaiah 43:7 "everyone who is called by My name, whom I created for My glory, whom I formed and made." The next time you feel like you don't measure up to the world, remember you measure up in a glorifying way to your Creator.

God has a purpose for you. The world tells you that you need to make a lot of money, have the best education, be the highest on the totem pole, make enough money to have the best house, the best vehicle, etc... God says, I created you for MY glory and I have a plan for you to be set apart from the world's standards. As a Christian, you are called to live a holy life. Also, one other thing is that you don't have to do anything for God to call you to live a holy life. He loves you so much that without a list of do's and don'ts, He gives you a purpose in life. Read this scripture: 2 Timothy 1:8-9 "So do not be ashamed to testify about our Lord.........but join with Me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God, ⁹who has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of His own purpose and grace." The only purpose in life that you need to worry about is God's purpose.

God thinks highly of you!
Colossians 3:12 "Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved" God chooses YOU and loves YOU! What a wonderful thought. What would happen to us if we took this in and grasped His love for us.
Psalms 36:7 "How priceless is your unfailing love! Both high and low among men find refuge in the shadow of your wings." We find purpose in ourselves, knowing that God has unfailing love. He doesn't give up or stop loving us when we fail Him.
John 3:16"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." He died for you!
Romans 8:35-39"Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. Neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

There are so many more verses about how much God loves us, but I know for me as I am reading these right now and typing them out, I am becoming more and more confident in who I am already. Sometimes we just need to be reminded that we belong to the Lord who created us! Romans 8:31 "If God is for us, who can be against us!"

God, thank you for your Word. When we feel discouraged, we can turn to you for peace and understanding! Help us understand that You are not looking at what we do to be loved. You already love us.

Once we grasp God's love and we choose to have a personal, passionate relationship with Him, those things that we have a hard time doing, (praying, witnessing, being an example, etc) will come naturally!

Spiritual Eyes

Sometimes I wish I could close my eyes and reappear on the mission field where solid Christians surrounded me and God was being poured into my life constantly Sun-Sat.(dorm life-bible studies, school-bible class, Outreach - sharing our Faith in tribal villages every week & church) I didn't see it as being a struggle to serve God, bc it was a common lifestyle. We even focused on God through sports, choir, band, etc. Everything we did was circled around God.

On the other hand, I see the danger I had of not being prepared to shield myself under God's protection when the pressures of unfamiliar sins faced me here in America. What do I mean by that....well, I didn't have to work as hard at surrendering to the Lord everyday on the mission field like I do here. It wasn't as hard to be in love with the Lord bc no one made me choose otherwise. No one cussed in my face, no one asked me to do drugs or have sex, there was no temptation to wear inappropriate clothing, there was no temptation to listen to non-Christian music or watch ungodly movies & TV. I had no pressure of feeling like I needed to date a guy to be popular. I didn't have to stand up for my faith to non-Christians bc everyone in my school was already a Christian. And the village I went to weekly was so hungry for more and more Jesus! I didn't have to face too many situations with a secular mindset. I didn't care if I wore the same thing twice that week. I didn't have friends making fun of me if I didn't have the most popular "thing"! "Things" were not taught to be priority in life. I learned to live with nothing yet at the same time knowing I had everything already in Christ Jesus.

I am thinking about this today, bc I have been reminded today of how much God wants me to surrender to Him everyday in this lost world! I have no excuse to be lazy in my Christian walk just because my surroundings are different now. I don't live in the Christian bubble I did on the mission field. (Not that everything was perfect, but it was easier.) But, just because I'm not surrounded daily with Christian people doesn't mean I can become like world. I don't have a day off. I can't clock out when I walk out of church. It's a lifestyle!

As a 26 year old in America I am faced with a lost world that is pressuring me everyday and has been over the past 10 years. I have let the LIES slowly slip into my life! God says that as Christians, we are in the world, but we can't become like the world. Romans 12:2 says "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will." I can't let man decide who I am or I will lose my identity that I have in Christ. How does this happen? So Simple! We live in a world that screams "TV is important, expensive jeans are what you need, you have to look good, you deserve things more than your husband/wife does, God can wait until the next church day, it's all about YOU and YOUR needs before anyone else, do what YOU want, live how YOU want, make YOURSELF happy!

I don't say this so you can feel overwhelmed, throw your hands up, and give up! No way! I say this to encourage you to look at life through God's eyes. Ask God to give you wisdom! Ways to find truth and meaning in your life can be found in His Holy Word. Proverbs 2:1-5 says "My son, if you accept My words and store up My commands within you, turning your ear to wisdom and applying your heart to understanding, and if you call out for insight and cry aloud for understanding, and if you look for it as for silver and search for it as for hidden treasure, then you will understand the fear of the LORD and find the knowledge of God." Wow - God is telling us RIGHT HERE to search for understanding and wisdom as if searching for hidden treasure! This morning I heard on the Christian radio station that if we had just a glimpse of life through God's eyes, we would be SO moved and think SO differently than we do. The great thing about that, is WE CAN! All we have to do is ask Him! What a wonderful promise from the Lord!! I don't have to give up, I can just ask HIM for guidance!!!

My prayer: Lord, you are Maker of heaven and earth! WOW! Help me understand who You really are. That You are not a small God, but a Big, marvelous, all knowing, loving Creator! God, show me where You are at work in my life. Help me to see life through YOUR spiritual eyes and not my worldly eyes. Remove my pride! Remove the obstacles in my life that direct me down the wrong path. God, give me Your mercy because I have none without You, God, give me Your strength because I have none without You, God show me YOUR way because my way leads to destruction. Lord, forgive us for choosing our own route and for selfishly choosing ourselves over You!! Give us the desire to search for understanding and wisdom as if searching for hidden treasure!

God will use our messed up circumstances to grow us closer to Him if we allow Him! Lord help me to be that person you created me to be!