Snowflakes

I've recently been intrigued by snowflakes. Have you ever looked closely at a snowflake? It's amazing what you can learn about God by looking at the things he created. By looking at a single snowflake, we can learn that God is an awesome, creative God. He pays attention to detail and he is an intricate designer. All the computers in the world could not make something as beautifully complex as the snowflake. No explosion of chemicals could form the designs and patterns of God's creation.

The sad thing is that people would like us to believe that our whole world is an accident. They'd like to tell us that we weren't created with a purpose, we are just some organization of gases. But how do we have thoughts and emotions? Even our mind testifies to the greatness of our God!

Job 12:7-12

But ask the beasts, and they will teach you; the birds of the heavens, and they will tell you; or the bushes of the earth, and they will teach you; and the fish of the sea will declare to you. Who among all these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this? In his hand is the life of every living thing and the breath of all mankind. Does not the ear test words as the palate tastes food? Wisdom is with the aged, and understanding in length of days.

Psalm 19:1-3

The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork. Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge. There is no speech, nor are there words, whose voice is not heard.

Science classes can be very convincing. Don't let them fool you.

I Judged a Book by it's Cover

I was in the library the other day, just browsing, when I decided to look at the section labeled "Young Adult." I walked by, and read a few of the titles. Rehab was the first to catch my eye. As I continued to read the titles I noticed they were all about drugs, sex, alcohol, gossip, prison, and a good portion were about vampires. I asked myself- Really? Are drugs, alcohol, and vampires all we have to our name? We are practically adults, aren't we?
Honestly, all of those books would thrill an average young adult. But we are not average teenagers. We have a purpose for our life and that is to give glory to God. So when we are tempted to engage ourselves in silly books about gossip and vampires, we can think about how we are honoring God through that action.
If we are considered "Young Adults," then why don't we act like it? Why can't we be interested in something more than what society gives us? Why is a teacher surprised when their student knows more about the Bible than the Twilight series? And why are peers alarmed when their classmate doesn't swear?

1 Timothy 4:12
Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity.

Young is not a synonym for immature.

Garbage in...

The media is constantly putting trash out into the world. Sometimes I don't think we, as young adults, notice how much we need to be protected from things on the T.V., in music, or on the computer. Do we ever stop and think about how it will affect us? Do we ever think about what God wants us to think about?

Philippians 4:8
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.

Now, in light of this passage, are the things we listen to or watch lovely? honorable? pure?If it is not, we should not be participating in such things. Instead, we should be filling our minds with things like Paul mentioned in the above passage. This would include memorizing scripture so we are more apt to following God's path, not the world's.

Proverbs 4:23
Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.

Garbage in, garbage out. We need to guard our hearts against all things ungodly, so that our lives can be glorifying to God. I don't want my life to reflect that of the people on T.V., I want it to reflect Christ. If God says this is the way we are to be living, then the only things that should come out of us will be true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, and excellent.

If God is really number one in our lives, we will honor him through our thought life.

The American Nightmare

This past week I was prompted to write an essay on the American Dream for my Literature class. We were asked to write our beliefs and interpretations of the American Dream in less than two pages (double spaced). This caused me to cut back from exactly what I wanted to say, so I thought I'd bring it back up here.

According to the dictionary, the definition of the American Dream is "a life of personal happiness and material comforts traditionally sought by individuals in the U.S." If I were to rephrase this, I'd define it as a life in which one strives or lives for gaining materials in hopes that they produce happiness. I had to ask myself if I agree, the answer, of course, is no. I do not believe that a life should be lived for the American Dream because it has the concept of happiness all wrong. For a Christian, Jesus Christ gives us joy, not "material comforts".

John 15:11

These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.

John 17:13

But now I am coming to you, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves.

We don't need material things to make us happy, Christ is all we need! He gives us joy, and our joy is made complete. We do not need to fill our lives with junk. The American Dream is really just a poor attempt at achieving a purpose in life and we already have a purpose. Our purpose is to glorify God in everything that we do. We should not live for a better future, a great house, career, or even a family. Our lives are devoted to God, the only Eternal One. All else will just fade away.

These are lyrics to a great song called "American Dream" by Casting Crowns:

All work no play may have made Jack a dull boy

But all work no God has left Jack with a lost soul

But he's moving on full steam

He's chasing the American dream

And he's gonna give his family finer things

“Not this time son I've no time to waste

Maybe tomorrow we'll have time to play”

And then he slips into his new BMW

And drives farther and farther and farther away

Cause he works all day and tries to sleep at night

He says things will get better;Better in time

So he works and he builds with his own two hands

And he pours all he has in a castle made with sand

But the wind and the rain are comin' crashing in

Time will tell just how long his kingdom stands

His kingdom stands

Well his American Dream is beginning to seem

More and more like a nightmare

With every passing day

"Daddy, can you come to my game?"

"Oh Baby, please don't work late."

Another wasted weekend

And they are slipping away

Cause he works all day and lies awake at night

He tells them things are getting better

Just take a little more time

He used to say, "Whoever dies with the most toys wins"

But if he loses his soul, what has he gained in the end?

I'll take a shack on the rock

Over a castle in the sand

Now he works all day and cries alone at night

It's not getting any better

Looks like he's running out of time

All they really wanted was you

All they really wanted was you

All they really wanted was you

What do you live for?

What Defiles a Person?

Mark 7:14-23
And he called the people to him again and said to them, “Hear me, all of you, and understand: There is nothing outside a person that by going into him can defile him, but the things that come out of a person are what defile him.” And when he had entered the house and left the people, his disciples asked him about the parable. And he said to them, “Then are you also without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into a person from outside cannot defile him, since it enters not his heart but his stomach, and is expelled?” (Thus he declared all foods clean.) And he said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him. For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.”

"What comes out of a person is what defiles him." Jesus' words tend to ring in my head. This passage boldly explains the state of man's heart, and, let me tell ya', it's no good news (that comes later). But, Jesus tells us that the heart is wicked and causes impurity in a person. From the heart, stems all kinds of evil. But if we are saved, that shouldn't be a problem...right? This reminds me of another passage:

Romans 3:10-12
None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands;no one seeks for God. All have turned aside; together they have become worthless;no one does good, not even one.

Okay, so that makes sense. No person is righteous because of their impure heart. From the heart comes all kinds of evil and sinful thing. With a heart like that, it's impossible to be righteous on our own account. It is impossible to seek for God or do good. The Romans passage even says that man has become "worthless." Ouch, that one hurt. So, how do we gain righteousness? How do we gain worth?

Romans 3:21-24
But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,

Jesus took away our wickedness and replaced it with His righteousness. He died so that through repentance and faith, we would gain His righteousness. Every sinful thing that we ever did died on the cross when Jesus died and when we die, God will not see our sinful life, but the blameless and perfect life of the One who died for us.

Conformed to Christ

Romans 8:29
For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.

Galatians 5:1
For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to the yoke of slavery.

Every Christian should strive to be conformed to Christ. We are called to be like Jesus. When someone is saved, the Holy Spirit works in a Christian and they are drastically changed. They go from glorifying themselves to glorifying the One who made them. They are set free from the bondage of sin and they grow to be conformed to Christ.
Do not be fooled by those who claim the faith and after time there is no change. These people need to take a serious look at their salvation. If Jesus was Lord over their life, there would be growth, there would be conformation to Himself. Jesus can calm storms, raise the dead, move mountains, and heal the sick. You bet He can change a sinful heart. God is all-powerful and he changes those who are His own.

Love...

Love is a word that is overused and misunderstood time after time; although, love is completely necessary in our lives. Typically, when we talk about love we think about a gushy feeling that you get when you see that special person you have a crush on. It is used in the sense of the butterflies in your stomach and romantic relationships. I think that as Christians, we should not just accept what the world tells us of love, but rather what God's Word tells us about it.

1 Corinthians 13:4-7
Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

Now, I'd like someone to show me where, in that verse it says that love is a feeling. Well, they couldn't because it is not there! All of these words describing love are actions. The bible tells us that love is a verb and it is most definitely not a sensation. That is why most dating relationships in our generation fail: because of selfish motives of wanting to feel good and not acting with the other's needs in mind.
Any person will tell you that they love Jesus (if they actually believe in Him). But, what makes a Christian stand out when every single person says that they love Jesus? Their actions. If you are saved, yet you are acting just like any other person, you are no different. You don't love Jesus if your actions don't show it.

John 14:15
If you love me, you will keep my commandments.

Besides, why would we want to be messing around with sin? Jesus died a terrible death so that we could be freed from sin. He gave us the gift of freedom and we spit in His face and tell Him that He isn't good enough by simply fooling around with our sin. That's not love. He gave us the purest most sincere love-laying down His life-and we turn and stab Him in the back with our fake love.

1 John 2:15
Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in Him.

Don't let your actions show that you love the world, but let them speak for the love of the Father.

Time for the Important Things

Oftentimes, life gets busy. Between school, friends, family, and extra-curricular activities, the teenage life can be chaotic and seemingly uncontrolling. Sometimes we find it hard to incorporate time for God in these types of settings. But I have frequently been awed by the amount of time we spend with pointless junk, wasting precious time that could be used for God. It amazes me at how many hours some Christians can spend playing video games, going on Facebook (temptation for me), or watching TV, without spending one second of their time reading the Word of God. When we are constantly surrounded by mind-consuming garbage and neglecting God's word, we are setting up idols. God is supposed to be number one in our lives and we would all like to say that He is, but we need to show that we love Him by getting to know Him through our actions of reading the Bible.

Acts 17:11
Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.

Approach the Scriptures with eagerness! God knows all there is to know about us and it is about time we start trying to know more about Him. The only way we can know about Him is in the perfect, inerrant Word of God. The excuse "I don't have any time," most certainly does NOT cut it. Make time. I think that God deserves it after all He has done for us. He gave us the biggest sacrifice ever known and I think that we can start sacrificing some TV/computer/video game time to spend with our Lord and Savior.
Sometimes it may be difficult getting into the habit of spending time with God, but I have a few suggestions and tips:
1. Cut out an hour or so of time you would spend doing something pointless or dishonoring- I used to be a fan of watching those CSI shows. I would literally watch them every night from 9-10 pm before I went to bed. CSI did not have content that was suitable for my eyes, and I knew it. It was hard, but slowly, I cut it out of my schedule and spent that hour reading my Bible and writing in a journal addressed to God. I have never ever regretted that decision.
2. Accountability- find someone who can help keep you on track with reading or perhaps even read with you. This could be a parent, sibling, or friend to remind you about what is important.
3. You won't miss the time wasted- Really, how much of that stuff are you going to miss? You might miss a TV show, but is that really what you want to be living for? In the end, the only things that matter are the things you do for Christ, not things you do selfishly.
4. Regularity- read at around the same time every day so you can plan events around your quiet time. Make it a time that is easy for you to unwind and be eager to read the word. If you say you will read it when you find time, you won't find time. Set aside a certain time for the most important thing, and then you will find time for the other stuff that is least important.

Humility

Philippians 2:1-11
So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Humility is very difficult to master. In Philippians 2:1-11, Paul uses Christ's example of humility to show us what it ought to look like in our lives. Paul says that Jesus, "though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men." Jesus was most certainly not prideful about being in the "form of God"; however, he took the role of a servant. He accepted the role that God placed him in, and he humbly took it. We are meant to be like Jesus. Christ is the perfect example of humility by becoming flesh and taking on the cross.
This passage reminds me a lot of when Adam and Eve sinned. The serpent told them that they would be like God, and, because of that pride, they ate the fruit. They let pride master them and I am sure that we do too. We so desperately want others to think highly of us when all that matters is what God thinks of us. We can spend so much time being self-righteous that we neglect our responsibilities to our God. When we are prideful, even to ourselves, it takes away from the glory that is to be given to our Lord and Savior. It takes away from the One who really deserves it, and that is Jesus.

Joy in Suffering?

James 1:2-4
Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

It is a very challenging idea to rejoice through suffering. The last thing we want to do through pain is thing positively. But God does use hard times in our lives to produce endurance and character. God seems to always work things out for his good when we are in Him. Although it hurts us and may tear us down, God can work through trials for His Glory. I believe Horatio Spafford, the author of the hymn, "It is well with my Soul," wrote this shortly after he was virtually left with nothing. All of his children died and the Great Chicago Fire ruined him financially. In this painful part of his life, Spafford managed to say the words, "it is well with my soul," although he had next to nothing left in this world. He rejoiced through the pain and strife.
We should be able to do the same. Even though we are not usually faced with this massive amount of loss, we are told to have joy, because pain produces endurance. Horatio Spafford is an amazing example of endurance for Christ. For through tough times, God produces an enduring and faithful man after His own heart.

"I Kissed Dating Goodbye"

Over the last couple weeks, I have been reading I Kissed Dating Goodbye written by Joshua Harris. This is a book that I would recommend every single Christian read. Prior to reading this book, I had already had many of the personal standards described in this book. Joshua Harris describes the immaturity of dating and the worldly mindset we have on dating. When a couple is established, they should not be selfish in satisfying their own needs. They need to have the other's wants and goals in their mind. Dating was not made to "try out" different people, but rather to find a partner to eventually marry and spend one's whole life with. I have many similar concerns with dating in a young age. When I see dating now, I don't see two people in pursuit of the same goal, I see two people striving to please their own physical needs by using the other. Oftentimes, we can forget about the other's needs and go after our own because we do not really know the purpose of dating. We think that it is just innocent dating, and then innocent kissing, and then who knows what? I think that a great standard to set is to save as much passion as you can fro your future spouse. I would recommend this amazing book to gain a biblical perspective of what dating should look like.

Youthful Passions

2 Timothy 2:18-22
Now in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver but also of wood and clay, some for honorable use, some for dishonorable. Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonorable, he will be a vessel for honorable use, set apart as holy, useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work. So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord with a pure heart.

All too often, we run toward youthful passions. We go along with the things of this generation because we are told that it is acceptable and normal. For example, the mass of immature and selfish dating relationships in the teenage population has been embedded in our minds. It is encouraged and considered normal to have a boyfriend or girlfriend. Immature dating is absolutely a youthful passion. We are expected to be thoroughly educated in aspects of the opposite gender, yet we are not expected to carry righteousness, faith, love, and peace as mentioned in the passage above.
It may sound very tempting to give in to the ungodly passions that engulf our world; but, here, we see in 2 Timothy that we are to flee from such things and pursue what really matters- the aspects of the heart. By fleeing from these passions, we are cleansing ourselves from what is dishonorable (as seen in the passage above) and we are useful to the master. So, by running away from all the immature passions of this world, we are instruments of righteousness, faith, love, and peace. This is the mission that God has called us to carry out. So we should flee youthful passions, and run toward God with all we have.

Witnessing

When many people hear the word "evangelism" they shudder. The thought of sharing our faith with others seems to put fear into the minds of young adults. But the Bible does command this for the Christian.

Mark 16:15

And he said to them, "Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation."

So what's stopping us? Fear. Maybe we are afraid of rejection or loss of friendship and the Bible does make it clear that you will experience loss because of your faith. No matter how practiced you are at witnessing, ever single unsaved person will place fear into your mind. But I don't think you should back away from proclaiming the Good News just because you have some fear. Witnessing is the ability to ignore or step past your fear and tell a person the Good News of Jesus Christ because you care about their soul. Open their eyes to the truth of the Gospel! Don't wait until you are older because there are so many more people that you can reach in your schools! People need to hear the Good News and you need to spread it.

"To Live is Christ"

Philipians 1:21-24
For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body.

This passage has to be one of my favorites! Here, Paul sums up the mission of the Christian. To live is Christ. This means to live your life with Jesus at the center, making Him Lord of your life. Praising Him in everything you do and giving Him the glory. Young adults should be looking like this in their walk with Christ. We should put Jesus first in everything we do; therefore, little problems will look like folly to us! Nothing else matters aside from your mission in Christ! When you die, it is not to be a morbid occasion, because right here in Philipians, Paul tells us that to die would be gain! And what do we gain? An eternity with Christ forever!

Run the Race

I have recently finished studying the book of Hebrews. Last night I read something that really caught my eye in the 12th chapter that could be applied to the young Christian's life:

Hebrews 12:1-2
Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God."

This passage tells us that we are to "lay aside every weight, and sin," so that we may run the race that God has set before us with endurance! The author compares this to Jesus when he knew he was going to be crucified. As Jesus endured the hardships and pain of the cross, he completed this task because he knew the joy that would come through it. In the same way, we should endure the hardships of this life and pursue Christ with our everything for there will be joy that comes when you endure!I know that in being a Christian, it is very difficult to grow spiritually when you have a sin that is holding you down. Perhaps it is someone of the opposite gender, friends, family, or music that may be holding you back from running toward Christ and giving Him your all. God tells us to lay these things aside so that you may run this race with endurance and without anything holding you back. So don't let the things of this world hold you back from completing the task given to you!

What Are You Waiting For? Pt. 2

“Christian” Label
Every one of us has been asked our religion. Someone in your school may have darted the question at you in an attempt to get to know you or relate to you in some way. But when they asked you the question, did you answer them with, “I’m a Christian”? Of course you did, you wouldn’t lie about that! Have you ever noticed that the word “Christian” has “Christ” in it? I am sure that you have come across people in your high school who claimed to be a Christian, but you knew they weren’t born again; they didn’t act like it. So this means that we really need to stick out if we are going to be placed in the same category as those people. We need to be obeying God’s word and speaking out for Him! No one will notice anything different between you and those who claim to be Christians. We especially need to watch our actions when someone knows that we really follow Christ because they will be right behind us every time we stumble to make a mockery of Christ. I mean, already Christ has been given a bad name because of wolves in sheep’s clothing!
My heart breaks every time I see someone at school who looks like everyone else yet claims to be a Christian. It is equally if not more disappointing when I see someone who claims to be born again yet still looks like any other person. What is the difference between these two types of people? Nothing at all. We, as Christians, are chosen to be set apart! Not soaking up the sin of this world! My pastor once told me an analogy from a book he read that says, “The difference between sheep and pigs is that sheep will fall into mud and immediately get up and keep walking while pigs will fall into the mud and roll around in it.” Are Young Christians acting like pigs? Are we rolling around in the sin of this world? We should be fervently walking toward Christ and if we happen to stumble, we should get right back up and keep walking. We are called to be sheep.

What Are You Waiting For?

Teenagers have the best reputation for being lazy. Face it, the average teen life is filled with selfishness, stupidity, immaturity, uncontrolled behavior, and ungodliness. Not all teens look like that. Not all teens have to look like that, certainly not the young Christian. But what does the Christian Young Adult life look like? How should a Christian appear at this age? Should they appear the same as everyone else? Is a Christian Teen supposed to care about compassion, purity, salvation of others, or worshipping God? Is age holding back this generation from going all-out for Christ and His Glory? What are you waiting for?

“Thus you will recognize them by their fruits.”
In Matthew chapter seven verses 15-20, Jesus tells us that anyone who is in Him will bear fruit. “Thus you will recognize them by their fruits,” He says. Notice He does NOT say, “Thus you will recognize them by their fruits, but only if they are 25 years or older because someone young can not be expected to do anything with their life.” He doesn’t say that! So knowing that, young people should still look like Christ. We are not children; thus we should be able to do great things to glorify God! So, what are we waiting for? We can’t wait until we get older to glorify God, we must start now. God can do great things through us in our teen years!
I have had many tug-of-war situations in my heart when I see a Christian my age act just like any other person you see at school. I sometimes wonder if they are really saved. The Bible refers to these people as “wolves in sheep’s clothing.” Undercover Christians can fool you in church, but when they leave that building, they seem to leave Christianity as well. Jesus calls us to be Christians all the time, not just in a church setting where others can see us; therefore, we must be true to our claim of Christianity and obey God’s word. The Bible also says that we are not to be conformed to this world, but to be transformed. We, as Christians, are set apart and what we say must follow through with the actions that we possess. That may look like being different in the way we dress, talk, eat, and treat others. Everything must be done to the Glory of God. If we are Christians, regardless of age, we need to obey what God tells us in order for Him to be glorified. The Bible never sets limitations on glorifying himself, so we also must not.