Inspired by Life

1 Chron 16:8-12 "Give thanks to the Lord" ...be grateful to God, don't just feel it inside - express your gratitude to Him, say it outloud "call on His name" ...once again, OUTLOUD say His name "make known among the nations what He has done" ...share God's story of your life (testimony), don't be shy about Christ in your life - proclaim it among every people what the Lord has done "sing to him" ...outloud, lift your voice to God in song, music, melodious "sing praise to Him" ...sing approval, adoration, grateful hearts to the Lord "tell of all His wonderful acts" ...speak of how He has healed the dead, saved us from death, given us power through the Holy Spirit "glory in His holy name" ...He is worthy of all our praise, His name is Name above all other names, Holy, Holy, Holy, is my God "let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice" ...don't be discouraged my friend, REJOICE as you seek...

White. Delicate crystals. Gently falling. Pure... it was a beautiful morning! The snow in all its glory laid out willingly before unmerciful footsteps. Tromping through the snow on the way to class, my eyes fell on a glorious picture of walking with the Lord. You see, i started out on the sidewalk where many other feet had been. It was fairly easy - didn't have to dig through piles with my feet (that are especially vulnerable to cold). Even though the sidewalk was not scraped, it was trodden on and packed down enough that the back of my jeans didn't get wet (b/c i really hate wet jeans). Then i turned onto a path where only one lone set of footsteps marked the perfect snow...this got a little bit trickier. So gingerly (or as gingerly as i can be...ha!) i stepped from step to step, avoiding the looming banks of snow on either side. Well, let's just say these must have been a guy's foot prints, b/c they were really big shoes prints, and the steps were pretty lengthy in d...

the weekend was frustrating and unfruitful, so i ended my Sunday with an intense workout. for some reason i find loosing myself in the weight room a great way to let off steam and de -stress....sort of like my safe-haven. after my workout though, i sat at the end of the treadmill...for a long time, thinking about stuff in my life. one of the major things on my mind was the potential of becoming a personal trainer. what would this mean for me? what would happen if i gave my life over to this profession ? the amount of time, dedication, sacrifice...if i was going to do this and be good at it there were some serious adjustments in my life that would have to take place. and i remember thinking, how can i dedicate my time to this when i'm not even dedicated to Christ? where are my priorities here and what the heck is going on in my life? God is my safe-haven. had i really gone so far to resort to a mere weight room to find sanity and peace? oh my word! talk about a slap in the spiritua...

"Oh God, you are my God, earnestly i seek you; my soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you in a dry and weary land where there is no water." Psalms 63:1 So... i've never been to a desert but i've heard stories. And lack of water is a big problem, right? i picture the classic movie shot of cracked and sunburned lips...the weary traveler resorting to crawling on their knees b/c they have lost strength even to stand...filed with a passionate thirst for water only to be teased by the desert mirage dancing on top the dusty sand. so... i've heard Christians use the analogy of "going through a dry spell" in their relationship with the Lord. i suppose all of us do at some point in our lives. Marriages usually have a point were they loose their "spark" (or something like that - i don't really know b/c i've never been married) and the couple really has to work at making their relationship last - INTENTIONAL. Some individuals loose thei...

By God’s grace, at age 17 I was baptized and dedicated my life to Christ Jesus and serving Him. I understood that I needed Him desperately in my life, so I invited Him into my heart and made a commitment to follow Him with my heart, soul, and mind. I confessed with my mouth that I was a sinner, and Jesus Christ, the Lord, was the only one that could save me from the judgment that I deserved. I am confident in my heart that because I believe, I will be saved. I fell in love with my Savior shortly after and dived into prayer and searching the Scriptures like never before. My eyes were opened, and I became enveloped and enraptured in God’s mercy and love. I wanted so badly to tell kids about this peace that I had found that not only saved my from hell, but gave me an enjoyment and satisfaction glorifying my Father – a joy and satisfaction that nothing by my own power, accomplishments, or desires could obtain. I started to study the life of Christ and apply His attitude to my own life. Tho...

i'm sitting at the kitchen table. The family is gone for the evening. This is a VERY RARE moment in my life...living in a house full of thirteen people, you just don't get moments by yourself. ever. and i would just like to point out that i can hear ALL three of the clocks in this room. Wow. Unbelievable. but i think many are like me - never have a peaceful QUIET moment in the day just to sit and listen. why not? are we really that busy? do we really ALWAYS have to have music playing? like, seriously...you will not go crazy without your ipod -you'll live (against popular opinion). Or maybe you already are crazy and don't even realize it, then when you have a moment of silence you see yourself as an ordinary human being and it freaks you out? ...and i think i just hurt my brain (that's why i don't go deep). some of the most precious moments of my life have not been surrounded by loved ones...or puppies...or whatever in your imagination is "precious" ......

so...i'm running the risk of being labeled a HUGE nerd at posting this, however - i will. i'm taking Chemistry 2 this semester and actually have really enjoyed it only because God's creation is so complex and fascinating. After every class i am more and more amazed at the creativity of God and the intricate design of small and invisible phenomena. But we were studying nuclear bombardment today and i was struck by a very powerful analogy related to spiritual attack we face in our lives as believers and soldiers of Christ. Within an nuclear bombardment reaction there is a particle accelerator that is used to increase the kinetic energy of positively charged particles. This allows the particles to overcome their electrostatic repulsion by the nucleus. This is an amazing and powerful reaction! i feel that i simply cannot do justice to the complexity of this process or how powerful of an anology it is as it relates...but just like in Christ...the power of the Holy Spirit increas...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_g5ZaV7ueAs

So what I have to say, you probably already know… but i'm going to talk a little bit about what draws women to the Lord. Pretty much the most obvious one is ladies want to be loved and valued. In a secular world, if girls aren’t feeling love/value in their family/home, they are going to try to seek out love through other avenues (usually ends up with other men). Same for the ladies of the church – if they feel they are not loved, they are going to try to find it through something else. The body of Christ should offer an unconditional love - ladies will be valued and accepted for who they are and the beautiful personality God has given them (not man’s measure of beauty). I would definitely say that is one thing that attracted me – the promise of love from the Father and the amount of love the body of Christ had for me. I was pretty shocked that someone outside of my family would actually care that much about someone they didn’t even know. I was used to love from my family because of...

As girly as my love for rainbows are, i fully relish the chance to glimpse at a peek of one. Maybe it has something to do with God's promises...because when i see a rainbow, i'm reminded of God's faithfulness. Not only was He faithful to Noah when He first laid out the rainbow as a sign of His covenant, but He is faithful to all of His children that walks in His ways. When i see a rainbow, i'm given hope that everything that i read in God's Word is true and i can cling to His promises. i get excited thinking about the prayers that i have laid before Him and how often and readily He has answered my prayers in the past. He is such a good Father - lavishing gifts on His children.

As i made my way to the top, the sun was just peaking over the top of the “mountain” i was climbing and began teasing me with its gloriousness. i got so excited and eager to reach the peak. As i fastened my eyes on the sun, my pace became faster. The ground i was traveling on was ugly compared to what was just beyond. When i reached the top, i stopped breathing for a moment, just soaking it up! Then my eyes traveled the path that followed the peak of the mountain - kinda walking the edge neither diving left or right. i started on the way, content for the moment to watch the view from the top but not willing to dive into the valleys and hills that stretched out before me. i remember thinking – this is me and my life. As i glanced back down the mountain i noticed the significance of analogy as the story of my life unfolded in a vision before me... the grass path i had walked on to reach the base of the mountain was relatively flat and care-free (except for minor bumps in the path that w...

http://www.tangle.com/view_video.php?viewkey=849dc7c803281df74bb2&sp=1

This is really just a glimpse into my journey to the knowledge of God's calling for my life... Ever since i was little, i had a passionate desire to see all people come to the saving knowledge of Christ Jesus. i received an instilled knowledge of His love and intense desire to see all people groups love Christ as much as He loved them. For the longest time didn't understand why people would give up this fee gift? All they had to do was receive it. It was my desire that they would receive it. i wanted Christ to change me inside and out, then send me to any country in the world. i wanted to be His little messenger. i drew this fabulous picture of myself serving God, humbly giving up my comforts of home and battling through the jungles of Africa to reach the lost natives (missionaries are my biggest heroes). i wanted to be the one everyone looked up to and admired. I wanted to be the one everyone wished they could be... The picture i drew was just that - a picture. "my" ...

Brandon Heath - Give Me Your Eyes from Brandon Heath on Vimeo .

so... i went with my friend to this church this morning. we knew this lady...ok, let me back up. it all started with God doing something in my heart. about two years ago, God was teaching me the power of prayer. i was taking a year off of school b/c i felt like God wanted me to. at the time, i remember thinking this is ridiculous, but i was trusting in God to reveal His will in my life. so, here i was - driving to work everyday and God laid this neighborhood on my heart (that i would pass by on my way there and back home). title: the Flinthills Place. it was totally random b/c obviously, i had nothing to do with these people. i knew no one that lived there. but God kept telling me - pray for these people. so i did. and just this intense burden for the hearts of these people came upon me. i was torn for the lost in that neighborhood. God gave me a love for the people that i would never had imagined. but i didn't know what to do. i knew that God was about to do something there but i ...

So, God has been teaching me a little bit about humility lately. It's def a tough one to swallow. Pride, at least so i have heard, is one of the biggest struggles of sin in a Christian's life. That's how satan got kicked out of heaven right? so i guess it's pretty serious. So much of our pride is hidden in our lives, we don't even realize it...the devil is sneaky and gets it in there innocently enough, then BOOM! you turn around and are absolutely clueless as to how you even reached this point of severity? ...i've been in prayer a lot that God would reveal pride in my life - and WOW. what a shocker. def. i had no idea that i had such a big problem, til God opened my eyes. It always amazes me how much prayer changes my life. Prayer strips me of everything of this world...sitting/having time in the Lord's presence reveals the ugliness of sin compared to the purity of Christ. So God revealed a lot... Then last night i was prayed over - prayer for healing of pri...

Ok, is it just me or does anyone else feel a wave of revival sweeping across the plans of the mid-west? like seriously. God is moving among our midst and i cannot sit still. and i'm talking about supernatural healings, words of prophecy, and God breaking the hearts of sinners into confession and repentance...etc. house churches are popping up everywhere. communities are being formed - the body of Christ is encouraging one another through prayer and worship. Acts is like the new thing or something...i meet plp that have just this HUGE heart for the Lord and are actively following to start fellowships and i ask them: how did this start? and answer after answer - "well, we just started reading God's Word and applying it to our lives. Taking Acts and how the early church lived and trying to mimic that." wow. i just stand in awe of what God is doing in the hearts of His people. i pretty much have chills running down my spine at the moment thinking about this... last night,...

...today i was seeking and listening for a word from the Lord. as i was walking back from campus today, God spoke these words into my ear: " live your life to the fullest in Me, then encourage others to do the same" wow. God still speaks to His children today.

Empty shells Line the sand Whispers say Lean in my ear Scream out your name No where, no where Can i go Your endless love Is not there Empty page White washed wall Shadows dance Your presence felt Reach for my soul In time not spent You alone Where can i go? To believe Empty heart Broken love One last tear Down on my knees I pray to you The clouds are gone Hear my cry And fly away Wings take wind J-Dog 2007

On that green summer day with children laughing shadows dancing under that shady tree... Ripples on the water reminds me of your face when you break into a smile and all those lines running from your eyes... and the twinkle shines in those big blue eyes just like the sun on the water. so just smile... Just smile. oh, smile... let that little light shine J-Dog 2009

So i was sitting at a coffee shop the other day waiting to meet one of my friends. I pulled out my homework to look like i was "busy" when this guy walks up singing to his head phones (and he was singing a really funny section of the song - it was just very entertaining). Of course, ammused, i ducked my head and smiled trying to stiffle a laugh. I guess he noticed. Weirdest thing: he asked "do you like studying?" Of course not - who does? He smarted back "then why you smiling at your notes?" Officially embarrassed. yep - "schooled." i had absolutely no come back. Hahaa! i just laugh at these moments in my life. Perhaps one day i will be witty...

Well, i came into the room and of course no one was there to pray with (i had a feeling that it would be that way). i new that the Lord was going to reveal Himself as a healer. And i was wondering what the rest of the people would think...so it was just convenient that no one was there. So i sat down and opened the Word to let God speak to me. I opened up to the passage (Luke 18) where the lady keeps knocking on the door. She is persistent...At the beginning of the passage it starts with "Now He was telling them a parable to show that at all times they ought to pray and not to lose heart." ...well God has definitely been teaching me the importance of prayer esp. consistent prayer. i've always wanted to acquire a heart for getting up in the morning and interceding for the hearts of the lost and friends/family. But i have a really hard time dragging myself out of bed in the morning. At the end of the passage it asks this question: "...However, when the Son of Man comes...

well...ok, so i told everyone i would "neeeever" start blogging b/c first: i think blogs are just like an online journal and a lot of people write things that, well, are maybe just a little too personal. and second: well, i ha..."strongly dislike" writing. So...i was determined to never do one. Well, if i've learned anything from my older sister - it's never do the "never will i ever" do this...or chances are very likely God will change your heart and you'll find yourself doing the very thing that you said you would not do in life. But when it comes to blogging...i don't just want to write stories about myself and my life - i mean - come on! BORING! (even though i do have quite a few VERY humorous stories as i do seem to get into these funnily humorous situations, but) i want to use this blog to help write GOd's story. i've seen Him work in so many ways in my life and the lives of those around me. Most of my blogs will be stories of...

i am so messed up, how could God ever want to use me? How could God look down and say i am beautiful? How could God still love me for as many times as i have failed to follow him? So many times i ask myself, how have i been so blessed to even be a part of kingdom advancement...God has been so gracious to me in my life. His strength is indeed made perfect in my weakness, b/c that's about all i have - is weakness. Yet God still wants to use me. He doesn't have to. He wants to. And He wants me to be a part of the absolutely joyous adventure of living a life in Christ.