Jesus loves me.

the song completes that line as "this i know, for the Bible tells me so"

... it's the knowing part that I often struggle with.  yes, i "know" that Jesus loves me, infact, I share it with people often... yay (well maybe not as often as i should).
...however there's that part of me that climbs out of me time and time again that whispers... "you are not satisfied with your life... didn't Jesus say you would be satisfied?"  .
... this hint of temptation... that causes me to look away from the Lord and at myself and my own circumstance ... and say "what the heck is wrong with me?!? how come everyone else seems to have it right but me?!"  ... the   funny thing being that we all have this very similar issue.

I know Jesus loves me, but my heart wavers to the part of believing this knowledge, because it's easy to be distracted and get caught up in thinking Jesus' love towards me should always come as a physical blessing.


I was listening to a sermon today, and the preacher said, "yes, I still believe that the Lord wants to bless us" ...or something to that extent.
..and it's like a light dawned.  Suddenly, the Lord met me, and seemed to whisper in my heart "yes, I want to bless you, yes I love you, .....yes I bled, for you."

it's as if I'm looking everywhere for the blessing, when the One who gives it is an arm's length away.  Why do i have to relearn this lesson so many times??

"once it was the blessing now it is the Lord..."

Our vision of blessing is so skewed too, we view blessing through the world's eyes, when every blessing that God gives, brings glory to Himself.  Sometimes it might be something that seems so positive, a new child, a marriage, a job opening, or an opportunity for ministry in something you are so passionate for.... other times a blessing might be loneliness, poverty, or a seemingly daunting task that is way over your head.  The positive times and the difficult times... are all positive in the Lord's eyes, because He uses each and every one of them to bring glory to Himself, but also to change us into the likeness of Christ.

... and you know what is so good about that?  ... well there are a lot of things...
... but one thing is that as we become more like Christ, we learn to abide in Him more, and we become more satisfied, more full of joy, more focused and obedient, more willing to accomplish the task at hand whatever it may be, and more in love with our Lord.

I'm sick of being dissatisfied, cuz honestly it makes me feel like crap.  and i go into the phases where i just feel like blah.  so .... today I will look to my Lord.

I know that He loves me, that everything He has given to me, will benefit me, and the body of Christ, and lead me onward towards His kingdom.  I know He loves me, so I will learn to trust Him in everything.  Even if it means bearing with some difficult stuff sometimes... because He gave me His strength to bear it.


...and the meat of all of this really comes down to... am i willing to put aside the distractions i would give myself to ignore my issues... tv, iphone games, facebook, movies, random tasks to obsess over...
...and am I willing to face my sin, face the issues that I deal with every day, face the challenges and lay them before the cross and spending that time in prayer and fellowship with my Lord, cuz if my life is any testimony... that is what makes the difference.

if I am willing to be loved by the Lord, to take that time and chat with Him like a friend, if I am willing to let myself go free and be embraced my Father, and no longer enslaved to the world and its lusts...
... then there is One waiting to shower me with His love, to pour down His blessings ....  to instruct me and help me, to walk beside me as a friend, a brother, a master.

He is a beautiful Lord.  May we know the depths of His love, and be willing to take the time to experience it in our lives.

Will you let the Lord love you today?

looking up... :)

there's something about looking horizontal that makes my heart grow cold and bitter.  whether it's towards starvation in the Sudan that seems unnecessary with the world's wealth, or the game of politics that splashes the news night after night.... maybe it's the sickening fame that everyone seems to running after these days.  ...or the false sense of "bliss" that comes with the holidays.... where the world tries to pretend through the media and advertisements, and a forced "spirit of giving" etc, etc ... that the world is alright after all.

...sorry not trying to dampen your spirit, just trying to be real.

not just looking at the world ... but at the Church ... at our friends, at our lives ... it's easy to get down.
...when we focus on the horizontal ... we focus on the temporary bliss, the temporary hurt, we get angry about little things, and depressed because things aren't going like the fairy tales promised they would.  We judge, we compare, we obsess, and we digress into the black hole of self-absorption.  It's no secret that this world is fading away... it's no secret that things are getting worse, ...and it's no secret that you and i don't look half as good as some of those made up chicks who's body parts are only half real.... ha. sorry. i just had to throw that in there to lighten things up some.

but friends.  as a reminder to myself and to you.

     ...we do not belong here.  it is not our home.  may we not get fixated on the things that are temporal, for it will only bring sadness, dissatisfaction, frustration, and bitterness.

...but when we look to our Lord, not only do we have hope for a future, but we will know how to live today in His purpose, with joy and satisfaction, with peace, and graciousness, with sincerity in our love towards others, and a heart that is not afraid of being seen as "less than" or "foolish" by the world, because our God is great, and His promise is sure.

...and to make things even better... He promised that He would carry out what He began.  So let us let go, and trust, that even in this crazy world, God is doing a mighty work.

May we look up and submit to His leading that we might walk in the peace and purpose that the Holy Spirit brings.  :)