I use an Australian Lambswool duster here at housekeeping. Everytime I use it I remember riding the four wheeler will Lelle through the sheep pasture at the Calais' farm in Australia. Lelle will never forget that ride since I drove her straight through a pile of sheep dung. You're welcome Lelle.
Accomplishment after a failure is so much sweeter. You realize to the full extent what has been done.
I realize that my tennis shoes are very dirty and are in great need of a wash.
Lately I find myself wearing sweaters and trying to convince myself that the season really does change in Southern California, the trees have turned colors, and the air is crisp and fresh with a slight hint of smoke in the air from wood furnaces inside the festively decorated homes. When my bubble pops I realize that I'm sweating profusely and highly regret my choice of wardrobe. It's November!
Anyways, those are just a few random thoughts that I have for the day. I hope you enjoyed them.
Friday, November 7, 2008
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
Lately
Lately, I have found myself easily distracted, which has resulted in less meditation and less guidance in my everyday life. I really enjoy the insights God provides when I slow down and write about what He is doing in my life. Therefore, I'm going to try to start up again. It's a bit difficult as I don't have internet at home. I may just have to write in my journal at home. Anyways, here are some things I've learned lately.
1. Being busy in life isn't about how much you have to do but with how you manage what you have.
2. Cherish the good moments in life and don't be afraid of change.
3. Take time to spend with God and pray. He has a wonderful way of bringing your thoughts back into perspective.
4. Treat others with the same love that you are given.
5. Forgive without grudge.
6. Ask forgiveness without excuse.
7. Exercise is important, but still a challenge to prioritize. :)
8. Wear sunblock...burns hurt badly!
9. Failure - it's not all that bad. It's humbling and has a way of balancing out your ego. It's about being persistent and following through until you have made it. Failure only defines you if you give up.
Anyways, I'd like to write more, but I should go. Until next time.
1. Being busy in life isn't about how much you have to do but with how you manage what you have.
2. Cherish the good moments in life and don't be afraid of change.
3. Take time to spend with God and pray. He has a wonderful way of bringing your thoughts back into perspective.
4. Treat others with the same love that you are given.
5. Forgive without grudge.
6. Ask forgiveness without excuse.
7. Exercise is important, but still a challenge to prioritize. :)
8. Wear sunblock...burns hurt badly!
9. Failure - it's not all that bad. It's humbling and has a way of balancing out your ego. It's about being persistent and following through until you have made it. Failure only defines you if you give up.
Anyways, I'd like to write more, but I should go. Until next time.
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
Unbiased Love
One of my friends taught me a lesson about unbiased love the other day on an excursion to get Dairy Queen ice cream for a study break. I gave my order to the worker for my ice cream as a means to receive the delicious treat. I didn't think twice about the woman who took my order. My friend stepped up after me and treated the worker as a friend. She began to speak with her about where she was from, etc. Even though it was a small gesture I was able to observe this worker's day brighten just because someone took a moment to notice them. I can't even say it was my friend in herself, but Christ working through her. And I praise God for her example for my own life. I pray Christ will work in me to touch others like that, even if only in a small way.
Allowing God to Lead
How does one come to know God's will in their life? The present chapter in my life is coming to a close and I''m preparing to start a new chapter following my graduation in June. I'm struggling with several directions in which I may choose to take. I wish I could sit back and expect God to light the right path with flashing green lights indicating that "this is the way you should go." I have felt God's leading with that level of clarity before, but currently I do not feel a clear calling. I don't know whether I'm mixing up my own desires for my life with those of God's. I don't want to make decisions on what I think is best for my life, but on what God knows is best for my life. I want God to prepare me to do His will and help others come to know Christ. The bible gives many examples expressing our need to trust in God and hold onto Him. It also promises that God will come through and will lead us. So I trust that God WILL COME THROUGH. There is still 7 months for God to reveal the plan he has for me. Please pray that I am not anxious, but that I find peace in the unknown. Isaiah 41:13 states that God will take my right hand and tells me to not fear, for He will help me. In some ways, one can find encouragement in knowing so little about their future. Jeremiah 29:11 tells us that God knows his plans for our life and that those plans are to give us prosperity and a future. This gives me the chance to put my faith in someone greater than I. I put my faith, trust, and future in Christ who knows my own soul better than I do. Pray that I am patient, but not stagnant in my present situation. I have struggled with always looking to the future as being a better place and opportunity to serve. I pray Christ allows each of us to believe that we can change a life now. There is no point to wait. Being in school is such a selfish occupation at times because we become so absorbed with our own education that we miss reaching out to those around us. We're tired, but God can give us the strength to give a little more. What are we waiting for? I have the opportunity on clinic to treat people as I would Christ, but I often fail due to being tired, discouraged, or irritated because my patient is difficult. I praise God for certain individuals he has put in my life that remind me of how I can treat everyone as Christ would around me.
Thursday, October 4, 2007
Unfailing Love
"Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever." (Psalm 23:6)
How has God's goodness and unfailing love been following me in my life? It's easy to get distracted by the challenges in life and overlook how God is pursuing a relationship with me. But in hind site I can clearly see how God has lead me to my current state. I can see how He has taken difficult situations in my life and has used them to mold me and help me mature. In some ways, I see myself becoming less emotionally connected to finite things in life. Those feelings of emotional need have been replaced with a focus and need of Christ for my own emotional fulfillment. I only recognized this change in my life as of recently when challenged with some new storms. I feel at peace with these situations even though the challenges they present have not passed. It's almost as if I'm walking on the water (in Peters footsteps), focusing on Christ. I often feel fear and am tempted to take my eyes off of Christ to observe the water and waves around me. But from past experiences, as well as evidence from Christs word, I know that taking my eyes off of Christ will only cause me to sink. I know Christ will still catch me, but each fall is never without pain and consequence.
Some of you may be questioning God's care for you. God never promised that life would be easy. The bible makes it very clear that life as a Christian is not easy. But He also promises to always be there for you. God will never leave you. He loves you with all of His heart and will continue to pursue a relationship with you. He gave us the ultimate example of love by the cross. Christ knows our pain. We do not have a God who is unfamiliar with temptation, pain, and sorrow. He identifies with what we are going through. He desires for us to be intimate with Him so that during our weak moments He can be strong.
How has God's goodness and unfailing love been following me in my life? It's easy to get distracted by the challenges in life and overlook how God is pursuing a relationship with me. But in hind site I can clearly see how God has lead me to my current state. I can see how He has taken difficult situations in my life and has used them to mold me and help me mature. In some ways, I see myself becoming less emotionally connected to finite things in life. Those feelings of emotional need have been replaced with a focus and need of Christ for my own emotional fulfillment. I only recognized this change in my life as of recently when challenged with some new storms. I feel at peace with these situations even though the challenges they present have not passed. It's almost as if I'm walking on the water (in Peters footsteps), focusing on Christ. I often feel fear and am tempted to take my eyes off of Christ to observe the water and waves around me. But from past experiences, as well as evidence from Christs word, I know that taking my eyes off of Christ will only cause me to sink. I know Christ will still catch me, but each fall is never without pain and consequence.
Some of you may be questioning God's care for you. God never promised that life would be easy. The bible makes it very clear that life as a Christian is not easy. But He also promises to always be there for you. God will never leave you. He loves you with all of His heart and will continue to pursue a relationship with you. He gave us the ultimate example of love by the cross. Christ knows our pain. We do not have a God who is unfamiliar with temptation, pain, and sorrow. He identifies with what we are going through. He desires for us to be intimate with Him so that during our weak moments He can be strong.
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
How long, O Lord?
"How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and every day have sorrow in my heart? How long will my enemy triumph over me? Look on me and answer, O Lord my God. Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death; my enemy will say, "I have overcome him," and my foes will rejoice when I fail. But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation. I will sing to the Lord, for he has been good to me." - Psalm 13
This Psalm is so heartfelt and really captures how I feel right now. I returned from my mission trip, where I could truly see God working. I was on a high, only to return to find out that my loved ones were hurting deeply.
The devil never stops trying to attack me and those around me. "The enemy persues me, he crushes me to the ground; he makes me dwell in darkness like those long dead. So my spirit grows faint within me; my heart within me is dismayed." (Psalm 143:3,4)
My dear friend Rochelle lost a beloved part of her family, Shaz. Shaz was her dog, and was a beautiful and loving one at that. I had the privilege of spending time with my Shazzle Dazzles when I was in Australia. Please pray that God will put his loving arms around Rochelle and her family.
I also discovered upon my return from Bangladesh, that my Grandpa (post-accident: brain hemorrhage due to a fall) is not doing so well. He is not expected to live more than a couple weeks. It is time to start saying goodbye in my heart. I'm not up north where I can actually say goodbye in person. I love my Grandpa very much and will miss him greatly.
God has blessed me with wonderful friends and family to support me in times of need. My only request is for prayer for my friend Rochelle, her family, and my own family. Life is never without its storms and trials. We see evidence of pain and suffering all the way through the bible. It's a fact of this sinful life. Our only hope is in Christ. As long as we can hold onto him in our pain, he has promised to uphold us in our weakness.
"Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us." Romans 5:3-5
I pray that in all trials Christ shines through in my weakness. Thank you for your prayers.
This Psalm is so heartfelt and really captures how I feel right now. I returned from my mission trip, where I could truly see God working. I was on a high, only to return to find out that my loved ones were hurting deeply.
The devil never stops trying to attack me and those around me. "The enemy persues me, he crushes me to the ground; he makes me dwell in darkness like those long dead. So my spirit grows faint within me; my heart within me is dismayed." (Psalm 143:3,4)
My dear friend Rochelle lost a beloved part of her family, Shaz. Shaz was her dog, and was a beautiful and loving one at that. I had the privilege of spending time with my Shazzle Dazzles when I was in Australia. Please pray that God will put his loving arms around Rochelle and her family.
I also discovered upon my return from Bangladesh, that my Grandpa (post-accident: brain hemorrhage due to a fall) is not doing so well. He is not expected to live more than a couple weeks. It is time to start saying goodbye in my heart. I'm not up north where I can actually say goodbye in person. I love my Grandpa very much and will miss him greatly.
God has blessed me with wonderful friends and family to support me in times of need. My only request is for prayer for my friend Rochelle, her family, and my own family. Life is never without its storms and trials. We see evidence of pain and suffering all the way through the bible. It's a fact of this sinful life. Our only hope is in Christ. As long as we can hold onto him in our pain, he has promised to uphold us in our weakness.
"Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us." Romans 5:3-5
I pray that in all trials Christ shines through in my weakness. Thank you for your prayers.
Wednesday, September 5, 2007
The Broken Hearted
Today in my devotion, I was reading about the broken hearted. I want to tell you about it, but I'm running late for clinic. Hopefully I will find the time to post later today. Sorry!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)