Break until the New Year.

Hi everyone, I know the postings have been off these past two weeks but I'm going to chalk that up to the holidays :) I'm going to take a break until the New Year. I've been busy and haven't been keeping up with the blog but I'm super excited to see where the Lord is going to take the blog this up coming year. I'm exciting to see how God is going to work in all our lives this year. I pray for safety for this up coming New Years and I pray for the Lord to renuin our excitement for the New Year!!!

The best is yet to come.

Wouldn't you be super excited if someone told you that one day you will be better then you ever thought? I know if someone told me that in 5 years I would be buff I would always have this happiness inside of me knowing that all the hard work of dieting and going to the gym would finally payoff. Imagine knowing that the best is yet to come, shouldn't that bring us peace, joy, and an excitement that should help us to look past our current situations? In 1 John 3:2, John writes to Christians something that encouraged them and this should encourage us too. He writes:
² Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears,we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.
Think about that for a minute, first of all we are children of God which to me is the best part of this verse. But something that blows my mind and gives me hope is the fact that what we will be is not yet known. That's mind-blasting!!! I know I gave the example of being more muscular in the future but this "new" me will be nothing like something so small as more muscles, it will be a transformation that will blow our minds. It says in the last part of this verse that we shall be like him. If you were like me, as soon as you read that you were trying to imagine what exaclty it means to be like him. I believe that no matter how glorious we might picture it, there's no way we could even come close to what it really will be like.
So I don't know where everyone is at in their lives. I don't know exactly how you're feeling or what you maybe going through but no matter what, THE BEST IS YET TO COME! I know life is hard and it's so much easier to just give up and have no hope. But I'm here to tell you that there is a hope that you can hold onto and this hope will never fail you and this hope is eternal!
So today I pray that God would restore this hope to us. I pray that we would understand that this hope has never left us but that we leave that hope. I pray for those of us that choose worry and stress instead of hope that we would come back to the hope we have in Jesus. I pray for strength and faith for us to let God be God.

Don't settle for less.

So as I wrapped up Proverbs today this last Proverb really didn't stick out to me as the other ones did. Pretty much what stood out to me was how bad I want that wife this king was talking about. The way he described her made it seem like she was the perfect girl. After reading that I started to think that there's no way that's possible. I know that view was formed from what I call my unsuccessful dating life:-) but as I started to think about all that stuff and the wife I wanted I thought why not? Why couldn't that happen to me? I believe that's how the Lord spoke to me today was saying to me why not you Gabe? It's funny how easy I forget the promises the Lord has for us. In Psalm 37:4 it says:
Take delight in the LORD,and he will give you the desires of your heart.What's so crazy about that is I say I believe that but when it comes down to thinking that it's for me then I start to doubt it. I know that it's because I go back to all the failed relationships but that doesn't mean that God isn't going to give me the desires of my heart. So many times we always look back to what went wrong or how we screwed something up and based on that, that's how we come to our conclusions that these desires of our hearts will never be fulfilled. Now I know that looking foward to marriage, finishing school, getting through hard and trying times in your life are things that consume our minds. I feel that instead of spending so much time and so much effort trying to fix these things we should know that God is at work and will take care of all these things as long as we put all our hope and faith in him.
Now the reason why the title is Don't settle for less is because I feel that we do that a lot. When it comes to all those things I listed off we just get so tired of waiting that when the slightest thing changes or when a perosn comes into your life we just say ok this is good enough. When I read Psalm 37:4 it's says the desires of my heart, not things that are close or things that I could get use to. Our God is a great and faithful God and because of that we don't have to settle for anything less then our hearts desires.
So my prayer for us today is that we wouldn't settle for anything less then our hearts desires. I pray that God would give us the courage to trust him to do this. I pray for strength and faith for us to let God be God.

It's ok to just talk with God.

Proverbs 30 was a Porverb that I'm not sure if I've read before or just don't remember it, but this Proverb reminded me of something that I love to do but it's something that I also forget to do, that's just talking with God. This is not a Proverb of Solomon, this is a saying of Agur. We don't really know who this guy is but one things for sure his saying made the Bible so I'm sure it's in there for a reason. As I was reading this I saw the way he would talk to God, it reminded me of how I would talk to a friend. He starts off by saying that he's weary, then he talks about things that are too amazing for him, and also just points our observations that he's made. Now I know that this doesn't sound like praying, well I believe that's because it's not. We tend to think that praying is talking to God, which is true but when we pray we are usually giving requests, concerns, needs, and all those other things. I'm not here to say that we shouldn't do that because Jesus is the only one who can do all those things and therefore He's the only one we should go to. What I'm talking about here is just talking, having a conversation with God. We know that Jesus is our King and Savior but He's also our friend. Jesus is a friend like no other. We might have really close friends that we would go to for anything and everything but the problem with those friends are that they are flawed human beings. They will fail you and let you down but Jesus will never do that to you.
I believe that we should pray all the time and that we need to submit our requests to God. I also think that it's super important to just talk with Jesus. Loving Jesus isn't a religion, it's a relationship and communication is a big part of a relationship. Some might think that Jesus doesn't want to hear all about your problems but the truth is He does. Not because they are greater then anyone's but because He loves you and cares for you. You might ask yourself why does God need to hear about our problems if He already knows what we are going through? Good questions, and the only answer I can come up with is He loves you and cares for you. Here's something I want to close with, one night my professor was talking about this subject and he asked us when was the last time we told God how we felt? When I was thinking about that I thought that God knows how I feel but then I couldn't remember the last time I told Him exactly how I felt. So I did and there was this peace that I experienced that I believe only could have happened because I was in communication with Jesus.
So my prayer for us today is that we would take some time to just talk with Jesus. I pray against any fears or concerns that might keep us away from doing so. I pray that God would meet you exactly where you need to be met. I pray for strength and faith for us to let God be God.

Fabulous Friday.

So today is a quick entry, it's sparked by things that I don't understand that's going on in my life and also a lot of people that I've talked with who don't understand why things are happening to them. Well here's my answer for all our questions to why these things are happening to us whether it be family problems, financial issues, relationship issue, health, and all those things we just can't under why, I have no idea. I really wish I could give everyone the answers they are looking for, but here's one thing that I've learned and I'm so thankful for I AM NOT GOD! I don't why these things happen, it maybe a test, attack, or it just might be something we've done but one thing I know and hold onto is that God is in control over everything. I also know that no matter what, God can turn any situation around no matter how big or small we might think it is. Here's something that helps me, I realize that these things are something that I can't control so I've stop trying to control them. I say that I believe that God will take care of everything yet I still like to try and take care of them all on my own. Here's a way to make today and even everyday a fabulous day, cast all your cares on Jesus and completely release it to him and let him take care of it. Stop trying to fix things that you have no power to, I know it's hard but it's better then worrying and stressing about all those things.
So my prayer for us today is that we release all our fears, stresses, and all that other junk that keeps us down. I pray for safety over the weekend. I pray for strenght and faith for us to let God be God. Have a great weekend!

Don't be snared.

I've touched on the subject about blaming the wrong person or giving the wrong person credit for something they do not deserve. I said that sometimes I believe we blame God for things that He didn't do and we give the devil too much credit sometimes. The one thing that has really been worked on in my life is that instead of blaming God or the devil for anything bad that happens to me, I now think about if I'm the one the casued this. Many times I feel that it isn't God putting us through hard times or that it's the devils fault that we go through bad things. I'm not saying that those things don't happen because I believe they do, but after reading verse 6 in Proverbs 29 my view that I have on this matter was strengthened. Proverbs 29:6 says:
An evil man is snared by his own sin, but a righteous one can sing and be glad.
I don't believe this verse is saying that if bad things happen to you it's because you are evil. I do believe that our sin can keep us ensnared in those hard struggles and situations that we might find ourselves in. When I think of this I think about a friend that I have that is constantly surrounded by drama. When I first met this person and starting talking to them about this I just thought that this person just had bad luck. But the more I got to know this person I realized that this person wasn't unlucky, this person was surrounded by drama because they put themselves in the drama. This might be coming out of left field but that how I see this. Some many times we wonder why these things happen to us but we never stop and analyze our lives. We want God to step in and fix everything but we aren't walking righteously. Remember what I talked about yestarday, our prayers could be detestable. Also what I've been learning lately is that if I want all these blessings I need to do my part.
Now I'm not saying that bad things always happen to people because they are evil sinners, even though we all are. But I'm just saying that we need to always make sure that we are walking righteous with God and making sure we are keeping our ends of the deal up. I know the Lord tests and does things through hard situtation, but maybe a lot of those things could be avoided if we just tried to stop sinning?
So my prayer for us today is that we would repent of our sinful ways and make a stand to walk righteously for Jesus. I pray for the discernment and strength to do that. I pray for strength and faith for us to let God be God.

Is God hearing you?

Have you ever felt like God wasn't hearing your prayers? Kind of feel like He's not listening you? Here's a question I have for you after reading Proverbs 28 today; Would God ever not listen to your prayers? Now I'm not going to say yes or no because I don't know for sure if that's the case. After reading Proverbs 28:9 my view on that idea of God not listening is formed. Look what it says:
If anyone turns a deaf ear to the law, even his prayers are detestable. (Prov. 28:9)
I've never thought of my prayers ever being detestable, to be honest that's kind of a scary thougt. Now I don't believe that this is only talking about the laws that our governments put in place, I believe that it's God's laws that we are suppose to make sure we keep. I like to tell people that God loves to bless us and He's there to provide for what you need but I tell them that we need to keep our end of the deal up. All throughout Proverbs we see that there are tons of promises that we can hold onto but there's always something that we need to do in order to receive them. That's how I read this Proverb, God will hear our prayers as long as we keep his instructions. I'm not here to say that if we sin or mess up that God isn't going to listen to you, but I do believe if we continue to live in sin and never change those things in our lives then our prayers become detestable to God. I like the way the commentator in my Bible puts it; God does not listen to our prayers if we intend to go back to our sin as soon as we get off our knees.
The great thing about our God is that even though you might be in sin and haven't been serving the Lord He is there just waiting for you to ask Him to forgive you. It's not too late, and there's nothing that you could do that would keep you from the love of God. So my prayer for us today is that we would make a choice to follow God's laws. I pray for anyone one who might be discouraged because they feel that God isn't listening to their prayers I pray that they would analyze their lives to see if there's anything that would keep God from hearing their prayers. I pray for discrenment for us to realize that it isn't God that's not there but it's the sin in our lives that would keep us from him. I pray for strength and faith for us to let God be God.

What's your reflection?

Ever read the Bible and just got smacked upside the head by it? Those awesome but also convicting time when you read a scripture and you know that it's something that you need to work on. Well today as I was reading Proverbs 27:19 that happen. Here's what it says:
As water reflcets a face, so a man's heart reflects the man. (Prov. 27:19)
Talk about huge smack in the face. After reading that I started to think how I was at work this morning. Was I loving, did I acknowledge people, did I smile, did I show compassion the way Jesus would? I could answer yes to some of those questions but I couldn't to all of them. I think back to this morning when I didn't introduce myself to the new people on my route or how I avoided certain people because they bug me. If I'm not nice to people or compassionate to others then how will people ever see the love of Christ that is in me? I've blogged before about be ambassadors of Christ but how good are we doing if we walk around all day looking mad and bothered all day? I'm not here today to make you feel bad if you aren't always super excited to go to work or school, let's be real there are probably other places we would love to be. But I do think that it's super important to check our attitudes and the way we carry oursleves in our everyday lives. Remember we are representing the one who lives inside of us but if our lives tell a different story then what makes you think that the people who don't know Jesus want any part of what we got? I know life is hard at times and things don't always go the way we want them to. Just remember that we serve a loving God that is always there for you and that our hope and future is eternal. So let's make sure we show that to the people around us.
So my prayer for us today is that our lives would reflect that of who we serve, Jesus. I pray that our hearts would be filled with compassion and love for those around us. I pray for the strength to show the love of Jesus especially when we don't want to. I pray for strength and faith for us to let God be God.

Are you a fool?

Would you consider yourself a fool? I'm pretty sure that most of us wouldn't call ourselves fools or like it if someone called us a fool. Here's how a fool is defined by dictionary.com; a silly or stupid person; a person who lacks judgment or sense. After reading that I was like there's no way I was a fool. But then as I read Proverbs 26 today my answer changed. In verse 11 it says: As a dog returns to its vomit, so a fool repeats his folly. I know that's a gross picture but I believe that illustration really brings it home. I think how stupid a dog must be to return to what he just threw up, but are we really any different? If you were honest with yourself wouldn't you say that you've return to things that you know are wrong, things that God has asked us to stay away from? I don't believe that all those things that we would return to are all sinful things. It could be a certain person you like, a job you're in, or maybe even family. We so many times return to the sinful things that our flesh desire but we also keep going back to things that bring us pain/heart break. I'll be honest with you, I've been a fool lately. 
I didn't blog today with the intention of calling people fools today but this really spoke to me today. Now instead of recognizing if we have been fools lately and either getting mad or bummed if you have been, God also gave me a sense of encouragement. Read 2 Corinthians 5:17. If you are like me and realize that you've been a fool lately there's hope for us. We don't have to be like this forever. That's what I love about the Bible, we have God's living and breathing word that shines a light on the areas of our lives that we need help in and it always speaks to us the way we need. I don't believe God was telling me that "Gabe you're a fool and I'm mad at you"! I believe it was more like "Gabe you're acting a little foolish right now, how about you let me help you get out of this funk you're going through and let's get back to living life to the fullest". I don't think that was just an ecouragement for me, it's for anyone who feels like they are just terrible because of the choices they've made and that there's no hope in store for them. Jesus died for all of us and because of that we can have forgiveness and we can have a relationship with God, no matter what we've done.
So my prayer for us today is that God would shine his light on the areas in our lives that we've been acting like fools. I pray that God would give us the discernment and strength to help us in this area of our lives. I pray for faith and stregth for us to let God be God.

Fabulous Friday.

Oh, how He loves us, oh, oh how he loves us... These are some lyrics from the song How He Loves sung by The David Crowder Band. This song or should I say version of this song is one of my favorite songs of all time. What I love about this song is that there is so much truth in this song. What I love about this song is this is a song that talks about how He loves us and not the other way around. Most of the songs we sing in church are songs that talk about how we love Him and worship Him and that's great because He is worthy of praises. When I listen to this song I can't help but feel better about myself and life in general. To know that Jesus loves me that much is incredible. We read that He loves us but to hear it in a song, and especially the lyrics that were choosen to describe his love is mind blasting! Here's some lyrics that should blast your mind:

He is jealous for me- The God of this universe loves us so much that he is jealous if we chose to love anything else more then him. I know that might sound stalkerish but to me it's so incredible that the God of all cares that much for us that he would even take the time to be jealous for us. 
We are His portion and He is our prize- Is that correct? Shouldn't it be, He is our portion and He is our prize? Yes it should because we don't deserve to be His portion, but that once again speaks to the greatness of his love for us.  
So why talk about this? Well the title of today is Fabulous Friday and I couldn't think of a better way to have a more Fabulous Friday then walking all day in the Lord's love for you. There's an unbelievable peace and joy that comes with knowing just how much Jesus loves us. Of course the true way to find out how much He loves us it to search His word and find out all He's done:-) Things might be hard or not going the way you might want them to be going, walk today knowing that you are loved by Jesus. Here's how the song talks about this idea:

I don't have time to maintain these regrets when I think about... the way... that He loves us! 

So My prayer for us today is that we walk in the love of God. I pray that no matter what we face today or this weekend that we always remember that He loves us. I pray for those who think that they could never be loved this for those thoughts to be removed in the name of Jesus! I pray for blessing for today and for protection for this weekend. I pray for strength and fatith for us to continue to let God be God. Have a great weekend!

So yestarday I talked about how we shouldn't envy those things that we want that unbelievers have. We know that it's because unlike the unbelievers we have a hope that can't be taken away from us. After reading Proverbs 24 a new question came to me. If we see that an unbeliever's life (all those things that we are in envy of) starts to fall apart, how should we feel about that? Do you think to yourself; well they had that coming to them, or of course that would happen to them because they don't follow Jesus. I'll be real with you guys even though I feel bad that I 've ever thought like this, I knew someone that this happend to and my thought was God took it away from you because your in sin and it was only a matter of time before it happend to you. Anyone think that these thoughts are ok? Looking back and especially after reading today, I feel super crappy that I would think like this. Here's one of Solomon's wise sayings that covers this topic:
 ¹⁷ Do not gloat when your enemy falls;
   when they stumble, do not let your heart rejoice,
¹⁸ or the LORD will see and disapprove
   and turn his wrath away from them. (Proverbs 24: 17-18)
After reading this we should obviously realize that rejoicing when they fall or stumble isn't showing God's love at all. But that's not what stood out to me. Verse 18 to me seems like a warning to us. Even though it doesn't say who he will turn his wrath to I almost feel like that it's probably heading towards those who's hearts rejoice when they fall.(That's just what I feel in my spirit) I don't know about you but I don't want to be happy when an unbeliever falls. We've been called to represent Jesus and I know that he wouldn't show love that way. After reading about how Jesus healed people, whether sickness or casting out demons, I would bet that Jesus wouldn't rejoice when unbelievers fall. Remeber this as Jesus was hanging on the cross he ask the Father to forgive the people because they didn't know what they were doing, do you see anywhere in that statement where there would be a heart filled with joy/happiness when someone falls or stumbles? 
I'm not here to call you out or say that you're a terrible person if you think this way. I just hope and pray that we would have a change of heart when it comes to this area of loving God's people, whether they believe in him or not. So my prayer for us today is that we would be filled with the love and compassion that Jesus has. I pray that instead of being happy when people fall that we would be moved to love on them and lift them up in prayer. I pray for strenght and faith for us to continue to let God be God.

Have you ever been jealous at all the success you see unbelievers have that you don't? Have you ever thought, why do they get blessed even though they don't serve the Lord? After thinking like that do you ever just ask God why them and not you? I'm so guilty of this, I do this all the time. Is this wrong? I don't have the authority to say if this is right or wrong but I want to share with you how I view this. I believe that there is a fine line that we can walk in this area that could make this right or wrong. I don't believe it's wrong to want some of those blessings that people around you get. What I mean by that is wanting to have a house of your own, a wife/husband, maybe even a better job, I believe is ok. Where we can go wrong is when we start to harbor bitterness and envy. I'll share an example with you that I've asked the Lord to help me with. I have a  friend who doesn't serve the Lord and just live life the way they want to. This friend has things that are desires of my heart. My friend is married, has a family, and has a brand new house. As I saw all these things just falling into place for my friend I started to get bitter and upset and I started to ask the question why him and not me? As I started thinking like this I started to get convicted and thought to myself is this how Jesus would love my friend? Then I thought to myself, instead of being jealous of the blessings that my friend received I should pray for the Lord to continue to bless my friend. How selfish is it to only pray blessings for someone when they are less fortunate then you?
What the Lord spoke to me in this area of my life is what Solomon wrote in Proverbs 23:17-18:
¹⁷ Do not let your heart envy sinners,
   but always be zealous for the fear of the LORD.
¹⁸ There is surely a future hope for you,
   and your hope will not be cut off.
Instead of being jealous of my friend I need to focus on the Lord and grab a hold of the fact that I have a hope that will not be cut off. I'm not saying that since my friend doesn't serve the Lord that everything he has is going to be taken away, but unlike my friend my hope is in Jesus and with that comes a future of joy that nothing could ever take away. These things that we desire like marriage, family, and jobs, even though are good things they are just temporal and not eternal. I'm not saying that we shouldn't want or strive to get those things but I'm just saying that they aren't the end all be all. Unless Jesus is the center of our lives these things that our hearts desire will never be enough.  
My prayer for us today is that we wouldn't allow bitterness or anger to fill our hearts in this area. I pray that the Lord would replace those feelings and thoughts with his love. I pray that we wouldn't be so consumed with the desires of our hearts and that Jesus would be our main desire. I pray for strength and faith for us to continue to let God be God.

Get lost in Jesus!!!

This blog entry is a product of a heavy heart. At the end of Proverbs 22 Solomon start to write what they title Thirty Sayings of the Wise. Now I'm not saying that I'm wise or have the authority to give a wise saying, but here's a saying that I've been telling people and a saying that I've been living my life by; GET LOST IN JESUS! Durning these past four months or so I've been dealing with areas of my life that God has been refining and I'm so thankful for that. During this time I've just been getting lost in Jesus. Now that things aren't as bad as they were, the idea of getting lost in Jesus is still in my mind but it's something that I haven't been doing as much as I was before. How easy we forget the things, or in this case the person who has brought us out of our struggles and is always there to take care of us. I was reminded of this because yestarday and today was a day that I just started to question why God would allow things to happen. First of all my friend Trevor's dad passed away yestarday, my friend in class his dad is in critical condition, and this morning I got a message from my best friend/brother that our dad(he's like a second father to me) is in the hospital with atrial fib(a heart condition). As all this started to sink in I started to think about how my family is in perfect health but we are so torn apart. I started to wonder why God is doing this or allowing these things to happen. The more I think about this, the more upset and confused I get. 
When I start to do this I think about the way Job got the smack down by God, the where were you scolding. Instead of questioning God's motives and trying to figure out the answers that God only knows, I needed to just get lost in Jesus. We don't get lost in Jesus to forget about all the bad things that are happening around us, we get lost in Jesus because by doing so we get reminded of how great he is and how he has everything in control.  
I want to end with this, getting lost in Jesus isn't something that we automatically have this is something that we need to do. Getting lost in Jesus doesn't mean that all your problems will just go away. But by getting lost in Jesus we have a new sense of comfort and peace because the one with power over all is the one that is going to be the one that is going to handle everything for you. Like I always say and have been reading about in Proverbs, we need to keep our end of the deal up(walking in righteousness).
So my prayer for us today is that we get lost in Jesus! I pray that instead of getting lost and worrying about all the stuff around us that we would focus on our heavenly father and we would let him work everything out for his glory. I pray for strength and faith for us to continue to let God be God.

What are you pursuing?

Hi everyone, sorry I haven't posted anything these last 4 days, I was in Arkansas, yes I said Arkansas:-) But it's good to be back. So as I was reading chapter 21 of Proverbs and a sharp contrast stood out to me today. Solomon talks about two types of people, one who pursues righteousness and one who pursues pleasures/earthly things. Here's how Solomon puts it:
¹⁷ Whoever loves pleasure will become poor;
   whoever loves wine and olive oil will never be rich.
²¹ Whoever pursues righteousness and love
   finds life, prosperity^[c] and honor.
After reading these two verses I want to be the one who pursues righteousness and love but I had to step back and ask myself, which one am I? I can honestly say that this is probably the biggest thing that the Lord has been working on me in this season of my life. In verse 17 this is someone who pursues pleasures and material things. I'm not saying that it's a bad thing to want these types of things but we need to be careful about how much energy we put into getting these things and if we put these things in God's spot. One desire of my heart is to get married and have a family. I've always wanted this since I could remember. As I started getting older I started to add this unnecessary pressure on myself to make this happen. Once again I'm not saying that wanting to get married is a bad thing, but in my case I wanted this more then anything. I put my pursue of this before God and his plans for my life. I always felt that once I get married and all that good stuff then life would be great and everything would be great. But what I've found out in this season of my life is I don't need anything except God to make life great. All I want is to pursue righteousness and love, and by doing this I will find life, prosperity and honor. Even though those other things are good things they will never fully satisfy my hearts desire. Only Jesus can do that.
Remember I'm not telling you that you can't desire those things because I still desire those things. I'm just saying that we need to make sure our priorites are to love the Lord our God with all our hearts, souls, and strength, pursue righteouness and love and let God take care of all that other stuff. Here's something to hold on to:
 ³³ But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.(Matt.6:33)
In this chapter of Matthew Jesus is telling us not to worry about the stresses of life because our heavenly father will take care of us as long as we keep our ends of the deal up.
So my prayer for us today is that we pursue righteousness and love and not the pleasures of this earth. I pray that our focus would be on God and that we would trust him with all our hopes, dreams, and our futures. I pray for strength and faith for us to continue to let God be God.

Make sure you're blaming the right person.

I've touched on this subject before but after reading Proverbs 19 today this subject came back into play. The idea of putting the blame or another way you can look at it is giving undeserved credit to someone or something. Are you blaming the right person? Who's getting credit for something that they do not deserve? When it comes to this topic I get reminded of the responses people give or tell themselves when it comes to trials and hard seasons in their lives. So many times we think because we are going through a rough patch of life that it's either God testing us or the devil is attacking us. I'm not saying that doesn't happen, but many times we might be giving the credit or blame to the wrong person and we forget to blame the person who's probably the one to blame, us. The reason why I feel this way is because this is the journey that I've been on and after reading today it's only strengthen my belief in this thought. Solomon puts it like this:
 ³ A person’s own folly leads to their ruin,
   yet their heart rages against the LORD. (Prov. 19:3)
Now I know that the Bible talks about being tested by God and that when we suffer for God our character is being built (Rom.5), but that doesn't mean that every little trial that comes our way is a test from God. I know I'm guilty of this. Also we like to say that we are under attack from satan. Now I know that satan does attack us but he's not as strong as we make him out to be. He can't attack you unless God allows him to,(Job) and he can't be everywhere attacking people at the same time, he's not omnipresent like our God! Solomon pretty much says that it's our own folly that leads to our ruin.
Recognizing that God isn't always to blame is very important. The reason for this, I believe is because when we do this we are attacking/bashing the character of God. Our God is the God of love and compassion and we are his children who he loves and takes care of. If we always blame God for "putting" us through these so called tests we will start to think that he's just a cruel God that just wants to show his love by discipline and not compassion. Even though God will allow us to be disciplined I believe he would rather show us his love by compassion and blessings, not trials and hardships.
I want to close with this, we need to start taking blame and stop blaming God, also we need to stop giving credit to the devil. I believe we do this because it's a lot easier to blame someone then to take responsibility for our own actions. Many times we aren't sure why things are happening the way they are but that's ok. What I mean by this is we waist so much time worrying about why things are the way they are instead of having faith and trusting that God is at work. It's not our job to take care of everything, that's our Heavenly Father's job :)
So my prayer for us today is that we repent if we are always blaming God for all our hardships. I pray that we would release any anger or bitterness that we might have against God. I pray that God would give us the discernment to recognize who get's the blame or credit for things that happen in our lives. I pray for strength and faith for us to continue to let God be God!

Hold on to this!

When reading the Bible we seee how there's power in the name of Jesus. From the healings that Jesus did, the casting out of demons, and the raising of the dead all done in his name, we have proof that there is power in the name of Jesus. That's a great thing to hold on to and to always know that we have access to that same power! In chapter 18 of Proverbs Solomon talks about a different characteristic of the Lord's name. This is what he says in verse 10:
¹⁰ The name of the LORD is a fortified tower;
   the righteous run to it and are safe.
After reading that I went to dictionary.com and it defines the word fortified as; to protect or strengthen against attack; surround or provide with defensive military works. Also to make strong. After reading this definition I think about how we as believers are attacked by the enemy and the forces of darkness. Many times pastors will say things like "spiritual warfare" or "we are at war against the enemy". So we get this sense that we are at war. Sometimes these attacks feel like they are too much to handle. We might feel like giving up because we can't win so our hope gets lost. According to this verse we don't need to ever give up this fight. First of all because we can call upon the name of Jesus and with that name comes power, but we also see that the name of the Lord provides safety for us. After reading that definition I see that it's not just a place to hide out from the enemy but it's a place that protects us from and will defends us from the attacks of the enemy. 
So where have you been turning for protection? I hope if you have been feeling like you're being attacked and can't make it, that we would take the wisdom of Solomon and turn to the Lord. One quick thing to point out, just because we are Christians doesn't mean that we are entitled to this fortified tower/protection. We see at the end of this verse Solomon writes the righteous run to it and are safe. Two things stick out to me, the first is that once again we are called to be righteous in order for us to recieve the blessings of the Lord. Second I see that there is another action we have to make. It says to run to it. When I think of this idea of running to, I think of making sure that we seek the Lord for protection. Even though God can protect us without us asking for it, I believe that we need to make sure we ask God for his protection and make sure we call upon the name of the Lord.  
So my prayer for us today is that we believe in the name of the Lord and allow him to be our fortified tower. I pray for the renewing of strength to keep on fighting the good fight. I pray that we would turn to the Lord for the help and protection from the enemy. I pray for strength and faith for us to continue to let God be God.

How's your spirit?

Hi everyone, hope you all had a happy Thanksgiving!!! It's great to be back. This thanksgiving was probably the worst Thanksgiving I've ever had. Without going into details this was the first Thanksgiving I didn't get to spend with my whole family. Because of this I was pretty bummed out on Thanksgiving which led to a not so great weekend. It's funny how we can let one thing ruin an entire weekend. I like how Solomon puts this:
²² A cheerful heart is good medicine,
   but a crushed spirit dries up the bones. (Prov. 17:22)
Another way to translate this is a heart in good spirits is good medicine... After reading this today I can see how this is. Because I let my situation "crush my spirit", I did feel like my bones were all dried up. I just kind of felt lazy and really not in the mood to do anything. But how can this be? How can I say that I love Jesus and I'm so thankful for what he's done for me yet I still let a little situation like this ruin me? I'm not here to say that you can never feel sad or hurt but what I did was let something take the place of the joy that the Lord has given me. Instead of being thankful for what the Lord has done and have faith that he is at work in my family I allowed the enemy to rob me of my joy.
I know for some people the holidays are a tough time, that's what I'm dealing with at the moment. But there is someone that we have that can and will take away all the hurt and pain that we are feeling, his name is Jesus. Jesus will never fail you, he will always be there for you and he will always love you!!! The one thing I've have been learning in this season of my life is to just put all my trust in the Lord. By doing this I believe that this is the way we don't allow our spirits to be crushed. If we put all our hope and faith in the one who can't fail us then we will have nothing to worry about.
So my prayer for us today is that we cast all our cares, worries, stresses, and pains on the Lord. I pray for healing in Jesus Name for those of us who's spirits are crushed. I pray for the Lord to renew a right spirit in us and I pray that our hearts would be made cheerful. I pray for strength and faith for us to continue to let God be God. 

What I'm Thankful For.

So last night at church we had a few people share something that they were thankful for. That is what inspired this entry today. I have so much to be thankful for but I want to share what I'm thankful for after reading Proverbs 16. I'm thankful for the Lord's promises. I'm so thankful that we serve a God that just didn't save us, that would have been enough, but he also promises us blessings, comfort, peace, and a whole lot more. The one thing that I've been dealing with these past few months is the issue or idea of "what's next for me"? I thought I had everything I wanted and I also thought I had my future all planned out. Well things changed and I was left with doubt and I was also depressed. During this season in my life I hit a crossroad, I was going to either start all over and do things myself or do what the bible says to do, trust in God. Proverbs 16:3-4 says: 
³ Commit to the LORD whatever you do,
   and he will establish your plans.
 ⁴ The LORD works out everything to its proper end...
If it wasn't for a promise like this, who knows where I would be right now? I'm so thankful that I can take this promise and put all my hope in it. Because of a promise like this I am able to trust in God and not worry what's instore for my future. One thing that the Lord has been changing in me is the release of fear and the bringing in of excitement. Instead of worrying and stressing about what's next, I can put all my hope in God and be excited to see what's next because I know that God is in control of my future and his plans are WAY better then anything I could have done!
The greatest thing about God's promise, besides them being true, there are so many of them. Because they are true we can put all our hope and faith in what God has promised us. One quick reminder, God gives us these promises because he loves us but that doesn't mean that we are entitled to them. We need to make sure we keep our end of the deal which is living righteously for the Lord. I want to encourage you that if you don't have a promise that you hold onto you should open up that wonderful book, the bible, and find not just one but as many of the Lord's promises that you can. They will help relieve worry, pain, and stress. 
So my prayer for us today is that we find comfort in the promises of the Lord. I pray that through God's word we would find all that we are looking for. I pray that we would trade in our worries, hurts, and stresses for the comforts of the Lord's promises. I pray for safety and peace during this Thanksgiving weekend. I pray that we would be reminded of how blessed we are which would restore thankgiving in our hearts. I also pray for strength and faith for us to continue to let God be God.

Just giving you a heads up, I wont be blogging for these next couple days but I will be back at it come Monday. Have a happy Thanksgiving and be blessed:-)!!!!!!

He's always watching.

If you knew that someone was always watching you wouldn't you be on your very best behavior? I know when we are around our friends at church or people at work we act different. But as soon as we are at home all alone or maybe around certain people we become different people. We think that because we are alone or around those certain people we can act the way we want. I'll be honest with you, I'm totally guilty of this. I don't know why we do this, maybe it's because we think that no one is watching us??? Well after reading Proverbs 15:3 I was reminded of something that should put that thinking to rest. Prov. 15:3 says:
³ The eyes of the LORD are everywhere,
   keeping watch on the wicked and the good.
If you really think about that, it's kind of a scary thought. I just get reminded of things that I did, knowing that they were wrong but because I was alone or with certain people I let slide. Whether it was something I watched on T.V, or the way I acted or talked with certain people. That very thing just happened this morning with a guy at work. We started talking about things we use to do, (before I followed Jesus) and to some people it might be just sharing memories of the past but now that I think about it I was glorifying my past. I want nothing to do with that part of my past because that part of my life wasn't honoring to God and I don't ever want to bring glory to that. If I just would have remembered this thought I'm pretty sure that conversation wouldn't have happend.
I'm so thankful that Solomon would right something so important for us to always remember. God is everywhere and sees everything!!! I hope that this thought is always in your mind. So the next time you think that no one will see what your about to do whether it's what you view on the internet, what you and your gilfriend/boyfriend might do, what you might say, where you might go, or how you might act with a certain group of people remember: THE LORD IS ALWAYS WATCHING YOU!!!
So my prayer for us today is for God to give us a heighten sense of awareness of this. I pray that we would always remeber that God is always watching and because of this we would make the right choices that we are faced with. I pray that this would bring us a healthy dose of fear for the Lord. I pray for strength and faith for us to continue to let God be God.

Fear.

One occurring theme I've seen in the book of Proverbs is fear. In Proverbs 1:7 it says:  The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge... I know we all want knowledge, but does this mean we need to be scared of God in order to gain knowledge? I'm sure there are many books and scholars that could explain this fear better then I can but I want to share with you how I see this fear. This type of fear isn't always being scared of God striking you down if you sin. To me this fear is a fine balance of fear and respect for God. When it comes to the idea of fear, being scared of God, that's something that we need to remember. What I mean by this is we need to remember who God is and what he's done. Read the Old Testament and find out how God would punish those people who sinned against him. It's pretty intense. We don't read that so we are constantly in fear of being struck down/punished, but we get the understanding of what God is capable of doing to us and also that he's not going to stand back and let sin rule.
The next part of this fear is respect. The best way I could describe this is how we looked at our parents when we were little kids. For me it's like when my dad would punish me. I loved my dad but I didn't walk around in fear thinking he was going to just always punish me. But knowing that he was my dad and that he had the power and authority to do so was enough to keep me from disobeying him. I think it's funny how we can have so much respect for parents and obey them because we are scared to get punished but yet we constanly disobey the ONE who is in charge of all. This is why this fear is so important. I believe we need to have this fear always in our minds because it will help us keep from sinning.
I want to leave with this, after reading Proverbs we see how fear is the beginning of knowledge so that why we should strive for it but it also make God happy. Psalm 147:11 says: the LORD delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in his unfailing love.
So my prayer for us today is that we learn how to fear the Lord. I pray that we would find out exaclty what this means so we could gain knowledge. I pray for strenght and faith for us to continue for us to let God be God.

Fabulous Friday.

Anyone in the mood to be rewarded with good things? That sounds good to me. Anyone want to take a guess how this happens, just think of the topic we've been talking about in Proverbs. Well here it is, the answer is walk in righteousness. This is how Solomon says it in Proverbs 13:21:
²¹ Trouble pursues the sinner,
   but the righteous are rewarded with good things.
I know I like my Fridays to be as easy as possible and to be filled with as little trouble as well. How about today we all make the decision to walk righteously and see what God has instore for us. Now I'm not saying that if today we walk this way that everything good will happen to us, but who knows it could. To me if we do that I get the idea of taking a step instead of walking. Walking requires more then one step, I will say that it is one step after another, so instead of saying I'm going to walk righteous today and then expecting good things to happen to you at the end of your day we should walk righteous one day at a time and then put your faith in Jesus knowing that he has blessings instore for those who walk righteous.
So my prayer for us today is that we continue to strive to walk righteously. I pray that we would take the advice of Solomon and make the choices we need to make to honor the Lord. I pray for protection over the weekend and I pray that no matter what we do this weekend we walk in righteousness and honor God in everything we do. I pray for strength and faith for us to continue to let God be God.

Are you stupid?

I know this is a pretty harsh title but this is a question I had to ask myself after reading Prov. 12. Right off the bat Solomon says:
¹ Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge,
   but whoever hates correction is stupid.
So as the title says, are you stupid? To be honest I believe that many of us fall into this category. I'm not trying to call anyone stupid, I'm just thinking about this whole correction thing and I can see how we, myself included could be labeled stupid. Isn't it easier to give instruction then to receive it? I have been blessed to be in a position that has me give people instruction on a weekly bases. The funny thing is most of the instruction I give is the stuff that God has instructed me to do and things that I am working on myself. I can say one of the worse feelings I get is when I give instruction to someone and then I go and do what I told them not to do. Talk about a crappy feeling, now that's being stupid.
I want to clear a few things up here. I know Solomon says whoever loves discipline... but let's be real, do we really love to be disciplined? I know I don't, it reminds me of my dad spanking me when I was a little kid. I think we might have this idea of discipline as something that is associated with pain. There's some truth to that but that doesn't mean it's always physical pain. The one thing I remember my dad telling me was that he didn't want to discipline me but he knew he had to. At the time I thought he was lying but now that I look back I can see what he meant. He would discipline me for my own good. I am a firm believer in discipline and I believe what Solomon is trying to tell is us that we should love to be disciplined or take correction that would benefit us. It's not like he's saying love to be punished but learn to love to accept correction that would benefit you. This is hard because we don't like to be told that we are wrong. We like to think that we are right and that we don't need anyone to tell us otherwise. Well I'm here to tell all of us if we have that mindset then we are stupid! We should always be opened for correction not because we are all wrong but because correction will help us see things that we might not notice. One quick thing, that doesn't mean that we accept every correction that is thrown our way, it just means that we should be open to correction. Here's something practical and it's also my prayer for us today. Ask God to break down our pride that would not allow us to recieve correction. Also when correction is received, ask God to give you discernment to know what corrections to receive and what to ignore.
I pray for strength and faith for us to continue to let God be God.

Seek Righteousness.

¹⁰ When the righteous prosper, the city rejoices;
   when the wicked perish, there are shouts of joy. (Prov.10:10)
Which one would you like to be? We see here how gnarly of a comparison Solomon gives us between the righteous and the wicked. I don't know about you but I think that would be awesome if people would be happy for me when good things happen to me. I would hate for people to have bitterness and resentment towards me when good things happen to me. How crappy would that feel to know that people would shout for joy when you perish? To make this a little more clear I think of my pastor/friend/big brother PJ. He is so blessed. He has the wife, the awesome kids, a home, and a great ministry. He has everything I want and hope for. Some people might look at his situation and think he's lucky or ask why does he get all those things? I believe with all my heart that PJ has been so blessed in his life because he tries his best to walk righteously and blameless in the sight of the Lord. Just like the city rejoices, I know that I rejoice everytime PJ prosepers. Now I'm not saying that if you live righteously that your life will end up like his, I can't say that because I don't know what God has instore for you. But if you live a life of righteouness, when blessings come your way instead of people mocking you they we realize that you were just obeying God and your blessings will be well deserved!!!
So why should we really seek righteousness? We know that it's because that's what God asks of us but is there really any benefits that come from this? Of course there is, why else would I ask :-)? Here's what Solomon says about this:
¹⁹ Truly the righteous attain life,
   but whoever pursues evil finds death. (Prov. 10:19)
So if you've been asking God for an abundant life or just blessings in your life but feel that nothing is happening I would suggest that you stop looking at God and asking what's wrong with him and start looking at yourself and ask what's wrong with me? I know I'm guilty of this and this is something that the Lord is working on me during this season of my life. So my prayer for us is that instead of looking at God wondering where he is, we would look at ourselves and work on our walks with the Lord. I  pray that would wouldn't focus so much on the outcome of his blessings but we would focus on what we need to do in order to recieve the blessings. I pray for faith and strength for us to continue to let God be God.

How to get blessings.

¹⁶ The wages of the righteous is life,
   but the earnings of the wicked are sin and death.
²² The blessing of the LORD brings wealth,
   without painful toil for it.
²⁷ The fear of the LORD adds length to life,
   but the years of the wicked are cut short.
²⁹ The way of the LORD is a refuge for the blameless,
   but it is the ruin of those who do evil.
³⁰ The righteous will never be uprooted,
   but the wicked will not remain in the land.
In this Proverb we have what I call verses that people hold onto. I believe that holding onto to these verses is a good thing to do but I believe that believing and doing what these verses say is much more important. We see here in these verses that there are awesome blessings and benefits for those who choose the Lord's ways. But if we take a closer look we see that these things just don't happen to us because we believe in Jesus. In these verses they call us to righteouness, to be blameless, and to stay away from being wicked. I know I love to hold onto these promises but I'll be honest I usually only meditate on the outcome and not the work that I need to put in. So many times we get mad at God because these things aren't happening to us. We say that we read our bibles, go to church, and pray but life is still crappy. I'm not saying that those things aren't what you should be doing becasue you should, but if you look at these verses where does it say anything about reading your bibles, going to church, or praying? I believe that those things will help you to live righteous and blameless, also they will help you to stay away from evil. What I take from this Proverb is that God isn't asking us to live religiously, what I mean by that is living life with a "checklist". It's not about saying I lived righteous today or I resisted the enemy today so where's my blessings? It's more like making a choice to live everyday the way God has asked of us and not expecting anything in return but knowing that there are things instore for us who choose to live this way.
So my prayer for us today is that we make a choice to live today, then the next day, and then the next day, and so forth to live righteous and blameless in the sight of God. I pray that the Lord would pour out his blessings on us. I pray for continued strength and faith for us to let God be God.

The right invitation.

In Proverbs 9 we see two women that are inviting people to their dinner parties. They both are on the "highest point in the city" (3,14) and their menus both look the same. So what's the difference? Well the way Solomon addresses them is the first women is wisdom and the second women is folly.When reading about the first women we see how beneficial attending her party will be. In verse 6 we see that by attending her party (accepting wisdom) that we will live. I also want to take a quick look at the 7 pillars. This has nothing to do with the construction of her place, in the bible the use of the number 7 represents perfection. So by saying that she (wisdom) has these 7 pillars is saying that this is the perfect place to be. As we take a look at the next women's party we see that it's completely different. Instead of having life we see that this party leads to death.
After reading this I asked myself, which party would I choose? Of course I said I would choose the first one, who wouldn't? Then I started to think of all those times that I chose the other one. There has been so many times that I've chosen to accept the invitation to the party that the foolish person would choose. Anybody else in that boat? How is it that knowing what we know, that we would still choose to pick the things that lead to death? I'm not here to tell you that because you've picked the thing that leads to death that now you're doomed. I believe that Solomon is showing us what we need to stay away from. It's not that we don't know these things but these are things that are huge issues that we need to avoid. Have you noticed that Solomon has talked about the same things for these first 9 chapters, do you think it a coincidence? I don't. Remeber Solomon was the wisest man to ever live and these are things that he fell for. That's why he's so persistent about reminding his audience to choose wisdom.
If you are like me and have chosen the other party from time to time I here to tell you that you're not doomed. I will say that if you continue to walk down that road and not choose wisdom then you will be. Jesus came to this earth and died for you so that you can be saved. All we need to do is ask for frogiveness, repent of our ways, and do everything we can to make sure we live righteous and choose wisdom.
So my prayer for us today is that we choose wisdom. I pray for continued strength and faith for us to let God be God.

Fabulous Friday.

How would you like to access power that kings have, how would you like prosperity, does a full treasury sound nice? That would make a fabulous Friday in my book. So how do we do that? In Proverbs 8:12-21 we see how this could be done, the answer is Jesus. When Solomon is talking about wisdom, and how wisdom is what gets you here he's talking about Jesus. Jesus is the only way to wisdom. Now let's be clear, wisdom isn't the same as knowledge. We can all gain knowledge but wisdom comes from Jesus. This wisodm is from the one who knows all and controls all. In verse 14 he tells you that he has insight. Like I said before this kind of insight isn't like something we would get from someone who is an expert in a certain subject. This insight comes from the one who was there from the beginning, the expert of everything.
This is a Proverb that tells us that we should search for this wisdom, and when we find it we should do more then just be ok with having it, we should live like we have it. Solomon lays out for us the benefits of having this wosdom. What I want to leave you with is what he says about those who do not find wisdom:
³⁶ But those who fail to find me harm themselves;
   all who hate me love death.”
So my prayer for us today is that we are a people who want and find this wisdom. I pray that we would realize that we do have access to this and that we would take full advantage of this. I pray for the strength and faith for us to continue to let God be God.

Don't be fooled.

So in proverbs 7 we see that there is a man being lured into adultery by this women. She is enticing this young man and leading him down a path that ends in destruction. This is a classic struggle of flesh and spirit. This man has to choose whether to give into his fleshly desire or to honor the Lord and do what is right. In this story this young man give into his flesh. Now I know that this is talking about adultery but I believe that there's more behind this then just that one topic. I believe that this is calling us to resist any thing that leads to sin. Just as Solomon was warning this man to stay away from this temptress, we also need to avoid things that would ensnare us. I know saying that and doing that is easier said then done. Let's be real here, things that we need to stay away from are usually the things that are flesh crave the most. They are usually the things that are being plastered all over T.V, radio, the internet, and any other media outlet. The media does such a good job of enticing us to want to crave these things, it's like they are programming us to crave these things. Even though the media does this doesn't give us an excuse to give in to our flesh. Solomon shows us in this Proverb that these things will look good, feel good, and it will feel natural for us to want these things. Look how he describes what actually is taking place:
²¹ With persuasive words she led him astray;
   she seduced him with her smooth talk.
²² All at once he followed her
   like an ox going to the slaughter,
like a deer^[a] stepping into a noose^[b]
 23 till an arrow pierces his liver,
like a bird darting into a snare,
   little knowing it will cost him his life. (Prov. 7:21-23)
So how do we avoid these things? Well how about doing what Solomon has been telling us to do, Keep these commands within you(Prov 7:1). This whole book and the whole bible show us what we need to do. If you are struggling with this and feel like you just can't win then maybe you should examine how you preparing yourself for this battle. Are you reading God's word daily? How times a day do you talk with Jesus, are you asking him for help? If you're not doing this then don't expect to have victory in this area. The only way we can overcome this is with Jesus and Jesus alone. I don't care how smart you are, the only way to have victory is with Jesus.
So my prayer for us today is that we would ask Jesus for strenght in this area. I pray that would would recognize temptation and then resist it. I pray that we would search God's word and ask for help in this area. I pray for continued strength and faith for us to let God be God.

What bothers you?

I know what bothers me, bad drivers/traffic, stupid questions (my opinion), and being late just to name a few. I hate it when you're trying to get somewhere quick and you get stuck behind a bad driver. The stupid question thing happens to me all the time at work, and nothing makes me more mad then being late, whether it's my fault or someone elses. I don't know about you but when these things happen to me I usually get mad. Knowing that these types of things make me mad, I always try to avoid these things as much as possible. Sometimes I wish I could just tell people what bothers me, what I hate, and that everyone would just not do any of those things and life would be great. If you knew that something bothered someone so much, would you keep doing it to them? I'm not talking about trying to get a laugh out of a friend I'm talking about something that someone can't stand and detests, would you do it to them? I think it's safe to say that we wouldn't because we don't want to be a bad example to people. What if I told you that many of us do things that really make someone's blood boil? What if I said that we do things that someone hates? If you knew what we did and who it made mad, would you think twice about doing those things? I hope so. In Proverbs 6: 16-19 we see what we do and who it make mad.
¹⁶ There are six things the LORD hates, 
   seven that are detestable to him: 
    ¹⁷ haughty eyes, 
      a lying tongue, 
      hands that shed innocent blood, 
    ¹⁸ a heart that devises wicked schemes, 
      feet that are quick to rush into evil, 
    ¹⁹ a false witness who pours out lies 
      and a person who stirs up conflict in the community.
Any of you do things on that list? I know I'm guilty. What really speaks to me is I have this picture of God just getting a little upset when I do something on this list. Almost like it bothered him a little but then it's not a big deal. After reading this I picture how I get when someone does something that I hate and how much it make me mad. Here's something to think about, when you get mad/ bothered, there's really nothing you can do about it. You can either suck it up and deal with it or you can start an arguement, get mad and let this thing eat at you. Now imagine what God could do to you if you keep making him mad? Read how he handled this in the Old Testament, it wasn't so nice. I'm not saying that if you make God mad then he's going to kill you, but I just think we should always have on our mind who God is, what he's capable of doing so we stay away from these things.
Now if you've done something from this list this doesn't mean that God hates you or doesn't love you. God always loves you no matter what you do. I just wanted to show you this list and make you aware of what God hates. Not to scare you but to open your eyes.
My prayer for us today is that God does open ours eyes and helps us to see what we may be doing that would make him mad. I pray that through this we would repent of our ways and ask God to forgive us. I pray that we would be given the strength to stay away from the things that God hates and I pray for strength and faith for us to let God be God.

Stay away from sin.

So the title of this Proverb is called warning against adultery. Now I think it's safe to say that we all know what this means. This is something that ruins lives, I know because this very thing took a toll in my family. But I don't want to talk about why it's so important to not commit adultery because I believe we all know why. What was placed on my heart was the consequence of us not obeying God and giving into our flesh. Solomon warns us why we need to stay away from adultery, it leads to death (verse 5) because it's sin. What I remembered is that it's not just this sin that leads to death, all sin leads to death.(Rom.6:23) So many times we might justify why we sin. We like to think that one sin was worse then the other so therefore it makes that "lesser" sin ok, but I don't believe so. Even though Solomon is giving us the warning against adultery, because this struggle of sexual immorality ensnares a lot of people so be on watch, I believe that this warning would be for anything that would ensnare us. I believe that Solomon would warn us to stay away from things that would keep us from living a life that Christ has asked of us, Holy and Righteous. If you don't think that this is a big deal then read what Solomon writes that happens to a man that doesn't do this:
²²The iniquities of the wicked ensnare him,
   and he is held fast in the cords of his sin.
²³He dies for lack of discipline,
   and because of his great folly he is led astray. (Prov.5:22-23)
I want to end with this, when we think of adultery we think of sex outside of marriage. That's what it is but I want to share with you what my professor taught us about this. To "adulterate" means to mix in something that is not Holy with what is Holy, once you do that it makes whatever that is not pure anymore.
So my prayer for us today is that God would open our eyes to the sin in our lives. I pray that we would take these warnings that God has placed in his word and take them to heart. I pray that the way we live our lives  would be pleasing to the Lord. I pray for strength and faith for us to let God be God.

What Path are you on?

Do not set foot on the path of the wicked
   or walk in the way of evildoers.
¹⁵ Avoid it, do not travel on it;
   turn from it and go on your way. (Prov. 4:14-15)
I'm sure we've all heard this before. This is a real important thing to keep in mind. This is something that if we follow will save us from hurts, worries, troubles, and tons of unnecessary problems that we could avoid. The tricky thing about this is this road that we are suppose to stay off of is the road that our flesh craves to be on. This is the raod that the world tells us that we should be on. This is the road that looks like fun, sounds fun, and to behonest is fun. The thing about this fun and this road is that first of all it's temporal and this roads leads to nowhere. These things that you will experience on this road might feel good and satisfy your flesh for maybe a day, week, month, or maybe a few years. But I can tell you that you will never be fully satisfied and you will always be wanting more. Even though this raod seems fun and you think this is great you have to remeber that this road has an end that will leave you broken.
The reason I feel so passionate about this is because I know what it feels like to be on this road that this proverbs warns us to stay off of. I took this path and I did everything that my flesh desired and the things that the world would tell you "is living". I got drunk and high all the time. I lived it up in Vegas pretty much every weekend, and without going into detail I never denied my flesh for the opposite sex either. I lived like this for a good amount of time. No matter how drunk, high, or "fun" things were I was never satisfied. I was always wanting more and when I wasn't doing these things I just felt empty and alone. Just like I said earlier this road ends in pain. I was left broken and in pieces. There was actually a point in life where I didn't want to live anymore, and if you know me that's not me but that's how bad it got. Then one day I just realized that this way wasn't the way to go, I realized that I  needed something else, I needed healing, restoration, and most of all a love and joy that would last more then a weekend. That's when I found Jesus and I started walking on the other road. All I can tell you is that this road I'm on is a road that is full of joy, peace, and a love that has never left me.
I don't know what road you're on, I'm not sure if you've even heard of the other road, the road that Jesus ask us to walk on. I want to leave you with this. If you have strayed from Jesus' road or have never knew there to be another road besides the road the world tells you to live then it's not too late to start your path down the road with Jesus. No matter what you've done or how many times you've walked away from this road, Jesus is there and is always ready to take you back.
So my prayer for us today is that we make the choice to get back on, start walking, or keep walking down this road with Jesus. I also pray for the strenght and faith for us to let God be God.

⁵ Trust in the LORD with all your heart 
   and lean not on your own understanding; 
⁶ in all your ways submit to him, 
   and he will make your paths straight. (Prov.3:5-6)
This is probably one of the most known verses in the bible. This is a promise that a lot of people hold on to. What we have here is a wonderful promise that our paths would be made straight. I know when I read it I usually tend to focus on that last part and tend not to focus so much on the other part of the verses. They key here I believe is not that end part of the verse, but there are three things it takes in order for our paths to be straighten.
First we need to trust in the Lord with all our hearts. This is something that I believe we do a pretty good job at, but what I think we lack is that we aren't trusting him with all our hearts. If so, then why do we worry so much? Why do we fear and stress so much? I'm not here to bash on anyone, that's why I said we, but I feel that if we trusted in God with all we got then we wouldn't fear, worry, or stress about anything.
Next we have to not lean on our own understanding. This to me is something that is hard to do and sometimes really frustrating to me. How am I suppose to not lean on what I know? Does this mean I forget everything that I've learned? What I've learned about this step is that it's not about you understanding something, because if there's a situation that you know how to fix or resolve then go ahead and do it. I feel that this is talking about those times when you have no idea what to do or when you're in a situation when you have no idea why God would put you through something like your experiencing. In these times we try to think why and come up with an answer or solution. But what I've learn is that sometimes there's no sloution that we could come up with, only God knows why. So by not leaning on our own understanding we have to be ok with not knowing what to do, and just be content with trusting that God knows best and will take control of the situation.
Finally we need to submit all our ways to him. I believe if we do this then this is how we really stop fearing, worrying, and stressing about our everyday problems. How awesome would it be to just be able to dump off all our concerns, problems, worries, and stress off on someone else, let them take care of them? Well that what this verse is telling us. By submitting all our ways, (I like to think of it as submitting how we know to do/handle things) then we can not lean on our way of doing things and just let God take control over everything. The sweetest part of this is that we are dumping all our ways on him and then after he takes all that, he makes our path straight. What a Good God!!!
So my prayer for us today is that we live our lives like these verses. I pray that God would help us in whatever area in this verse that we would need help in. I pray for the strength and faith for us to let God be God.  

Fabulous Friday.

⁷ He holds success in store for the upright,
   he is a shield to those whose walk is blameless,
⁸ for he guards the course of the just
   and protects the way of his faithful ones. (Prov.2 :7-8)
Want a fabulous friday? If so, there's a pretty good way to make that happen. We see in this proverb that God shields and protects us. This is a great promise to hold on to but you have to remember that we need to do our part. You notice our walks need to be blameless and we need to be faithful. Now don't think because you sin that your walk is ruined because it's no longer blameless. We all sin, no one is perfect. But what we need to do is make sure that we walk in righteousness, repent of our sinful ways, and always ask God for forgiveness. And if we want this protection that is promised here then we need to make sure that we are faithful. Verse 8 reminds me why I just keep following God. When times get tough and I just feel like giving up and doing my own thing, I remember that if I do that then I'm going to be on my own and things are just going to get harder. So instead of doing that I trust in God and remain fatithful, first of all because He is, and also because I know that he guards my course.
So my prayer for us today is that we would walk blameless and remain faithful. I pray that if we feel like giving up or straying from the path that we would be reminded that God will only guide us if we are faithful. I pray that we would understand and hold on to these promises. I pray for strength and faith for us to let God be God.

Attack or Advice?

So I'm going to be reading and blogging from Proverbs until I finish it. I will just be taking portions of each chapter that have stood out to me, challenged me, and even things I don't understand. Anybody want wisdom? If so I hope that you will follow along with me through the book of Proverbs on your own and I would love it if you commented on these entries or the thing(s) that stick out to you. I really feel that we would all benefit from eachothers prospectives. You can just comment on the blog or email me(gabetovar_25@yahoo.com) You don't have to but I think we would all benefit from this.
So as I was reading chapter one there were many things that stood out to me. The one thing that stood out to me the most was at the end of this proverb when Solomon talks about the fools. This is what the Matthew Henry Commentary says about the fool :Fools. Those are the worst of fools that hate to be taught, and have a rooted dislike to serious godliness. (He is describing the fools that Solomon is talking about in this Proverb) As I was reading that and thinking about this I started to think of how we may react to advice/criticism. I know that I really use to struggle with this. Anytime someone would tell me something whether it was good or something that we feel is negative I would think to myself "who are you to tell me this?" I've also seen this in many other people's lives. We aren't really good at taking criticism, we tend to get super defensive when it comes to this area in our lives.
 ²⁹ since they hated knowledge
   and did not choose to fear the LORD.
³⁰ Since they would not accept my advice
   and spurned my rebuke,
³¹ they will eat the fruit of their ways
   and be filled with the fruit of their schemes
These verses are what sparked this thought. I believe that God uses people in our lives to bring us insight. Sometimes the hardest thing is receiving advice/criticism when it's something that shines light on a area in our lives that needs to be changed. But I believe that wisdom can be obtained by accepting advice from others and not discrediting what people have to say because we feel what we think is right. I know this isn't so easy to do or accept but I feel that this might be inline what Solomon was talking about.Matthew Henry's definition of this kind of fool is someone who hates to be taught. How can we be taught about ourselves if we won't listen to anyone? Now I'm not saying that you need to accept everything that people tell us, but just like Matthew Henry said we should listen to people that bring godly advice(even the tough stuff). I'm not sure how this applies to you but it's just something that was placed on my heart.
So my prayer for us today is that we chose wisdom instead of knowledge. I pray that we would have a desire to seek after the Lord so our lives would be filled with wisdom. I pray that God would speak to us through these Proverbs and that we would gain wisdom and insight from his word and eachother. I pray for strenght and faith for us to let God be God.
(Don't forget to respond :-)

So last night I got to speak at my college group and I felt like the message was a challenging one. I covered Luke 9:51-62, what some bibles title this portion of scripture as the cost of following Jesus. I was kind of worried that this topic might have been pretty harsh and would really challenge us. In this portion of scripture two men tell Jesus that they will follow him and one man is asked by Jesus to follow him. Jesus gives each man a unique response that is pretty straight foward. He wanted each man to make following him their number one priority and it starts as soon as they said they would follow him. But they all make excuses or put something else in front of Jesus. We don't know if these guys followed him or what exactly happend to them.  I believe that the main point of these scriptures is that we need to put Jesus first no matter what, and that nothing should ever be placed above him.
Now I'm not sure about you, but this is something that I'm working on, putting God first. Now in these scriptures God gives what we might think as harsh responses to these guys and that might bum you out. When I first read this I thought that if God wasn't first and the most important thing in my life then he would just turn his back on me and just ignore me. But that's not the case. That's actually what I want to encourage you with. Even though God deserves to be number one, we are humans, we mess up. The great thing about that is God knows that and understands that. But lets clear something up, that doesn't mean that we don't try our hardest to put him #1. I want to encourage you by saying that God won't turn his back on you, God loves you that much. The greatest thing about our God is he's a God of forgiveness. Our God is a God of 2nd,3rd,4th,5th......chances. If you haven't been putting Jesus as the number one thing in your life don't beat yourself up. Repent of your ways and start making him #1. Don't allow yourself to buy into the lies that would tell you that you missed out on this, or that you don't deserve God to take you back. Here's something to help with that thought, NO ONE DESERVES FOR GOD TO TAKE US BACK, but that's the great thing. He loves us that much that he does. So let's not waist anymore time letting others things in our life be in the place of God. Let's make him #1!
So my prayer for us today is that we put God first. I pray that we would remove whatever it is that has been placed above Jesus and that we would ask for forgiveness and repent of our ways. I pray for strength and faith for us to let God be God.