Tuesday, April 19, 2011

The Parking Spot

     One day when we were in the McKinney area, mom and I decided that we would go get our favorite drink from Quick Trip. When we first pulled up, I looked over to the right and there was this HUGE truck shading us from the sun. We went in to get our black cherry smoothie drink (it is one of the best drinks ever), but that is beside the point. When I walked back to the car and went to sit down, I felt the heat beating down upon me. I looked over to the right and I noticed that there was a tiny car there. It looked like a bug in comparison to the huge truck that was in the same parking spot a couple of minutes ago.
     I know you’re probably thinking, “Okay, the car changed so what?” Well let’s try to relate this to our lives, friendship wise. We parked in our life parking spot, and the people on either side of us are our close “friends”. The fact is when you mature and get older your friends are going to change. Also some friends that you have may be good Christian influences and strengthen you in your faith. They might help protect and support you, just like the huge truck blocked me from the sun. Your Christian friend might have to move away and you become close to another person who is not a good influence on you, and they allow the sun to hit you with its full force. Whenever you allow people to be your friend make sure that if they are not a Christian that you are the one influencing them, and not allowing them to influence you.
     The point is God allows different kinds of people to be a part of our lives. We might have friends who are awesome and block the sun for us, and yet we need to understand that we might have to step up and be a good Christian role model and block the sun for someone else. Don’t be discouraged if friendships don’t work out or you draw apart from each other because that might be God saying, “I need you to focus on this person who needs a friend at this moment, someone who needs you to block the sun.”
Romans 8:28 “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”
     God will use you to be a witness, and He wants the best for you. Trust Him to give you the friends that you need to have at this moment.  
Matthew 6: 25-27 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?”
     Don’t worry about who your friends are or who they are going to be. God wants you to trust Him and don’t worry, because when you worry Satan is distracting you from the awesome plan that God has for you! Trust in God and He will provide for you!

 

Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Love Part 2

      In today's culture we say things like: "I love my new phone!" The term "love" has been stripped of its true meaning and purpose. Would you die for your phone? Love is not just an emotion, or a joy ride. Love is sacrifice. Love is work. Love is not simply gained. Love is serious. Love is important.
      God allowed his son Jesus to die for all of the sins that you and I have committed. That is the upmost example of love and sacrifice. Love is a lifestyle. My mother loves me and cares for me, but at times she hasn't always liked me. She doesn't just give up on me because I haven't been obedient or respectful, at times. She sticks through it, and loves me with the love of Jesus. If she followed the world's definition of love - she would have said," Well my child's being a brat so I don't want her anymore." She loves me the way Jesus loves the world. She sticks beside me through thick and thin, and I don't always deserve her love but she has never stopped loving me.
      Often in marriages, one of the partners gets upset with the other and begins to doubt how they had ever begun to love their spouse. In those relationships, often times the outcome is divorce. Divorce is not something that needs to be sugar coated and accepted in our culture. Divorce is terrible and it hurts everyone involved. Most people (not all people) involved in divorce don't see "love" as being a lifestyle. They see love as: someone making them happy, giving them things, or making them feel good about themselves. Love is so much more than that.
      Strive to love others with not the world's love but Jesus’ love!

1 Corinthians 13:1-3 - Talks about how we cannot fully serve God or be successful in life, if we don't have love.
1 Corinthians 13:4-8a - Talks about the awesome characteristics of love.

Look up these two verses and LOVE with Jesus’ love!! God bless you. God loves you and wants you to accept His awesome love!