A Message from Dove Chocolate

I must admit, God is pretty darn good to me, even on my worst days. This past week (all 7 days of it) has been absolutely incredible minus a few bumps along the way.

It started off last Wednesday with a {primary staff} language arts inservice. I enjoy being together with the teachers and away from my classroom on occasion. We don't always get to talk during a typical work week, so it's nice to have those days. Wednesday evening, Cassandra and I shared some laughs together, and Thursday I headed down to Nashville for a mini vacation with two of my best friends. My time in Nashville was very refreshing. We shopped and ate, shopped some more, and ate some more. I headed home on Sunday, spent Monday with my mom (and dad), and dove right back into the "school" routine on Tuesday.

Yesterday, my morning was rough. I was short tempered and frustrated with my class in general, and {let me be honest} I had a pretty rotten attitude. At lunch, my mom {I love working with her!} gave me a Dove chocolate to cheer me up - somehow chocolate always helps. However, this time, it wasn't the chocolate that cheered me up; it was the message inside:

Remember your passion.

Wow! I stopped dead in my tracks. It seemed as if this message was given to me for a reason. What is my passion? Teaching/helping kids, sharing God's love, living life to it's fullest...
Although, with the bad attitude hanging over me, I wasn't doing any of that. My students were tense, God's love wasn't flowing from me, and I definitely wasn't living life fully. I said a prayer, and to my surprise, my afternoon went much better.

As I lay my head to rest last evening {an hour earlier than normal}, I thanked God for the small reminder he sent to me via a piece of Dove chocolate.

February Resolution

IS WHAT YOU'RE LIVING FOR WORTH DYING FOR?

I read this on a sign last week, and I've heard it in sermons before. I specifically recall a sermon from my church in Peru (Camino de Vida) about serving the immediate community. Every month (or maybe every other month), Camino de Vida hosts a day known as "Servolution". It's a day to go out on the streets and serve the people. This may be in the form of passing out water bottles on a hot day, playing soccer with kids in the street, or building a home to house those who have no place to go. I love looking at the pictures my friends post from these events, and I hope that one day I, too, will be able to participate.

After seeing the above question on a church sign last week, I really started thinking about what exactly I'm living for. Am I living to have fun or am I living to survive? Am I living oblivious to everything around me or am I living up to my full potential? Ultimately, am I living for Christ or am I living for the devil? What a thought!!

I like to think that I'm living up to my full potential in Christ, but, when I really start to dig and search my heart and motives, often I beat myself up. I don't believe God expects us to be perfect, but I do believe He expects us to give Him our all, our entire being, for the glory of His name. I believe if I'm not giving the Lord my all, then I am not living up to the potential I could have in Him.

What does that look like? That means giving God my time, giving the Lord my work, surrendering my desires to Him, and allowing Christ to mold me to better serve His purposes for my life. It means stepping out of my comfort zone and sometimes doing things that I wouldn't normally do. It means that daily I take up my cross, I lay down my life, and I ask God to take the lead.

Is it easy? Not at all! However, I'm seeing that the days I make a conscience effort to pray that Jesus walk with my through the day, things seem to go much more smoothly. My attitude is better, my opportunities are greater, and I sleep wonderfully at night. On the contrary, the days I hold onto life and guard it with all my might, I feel stressed, frustrated, and bored with life.

So, is what I'm living for (every moment of my day) worth dying for? I can't honestly say yes, but I think most of the time I do an okay job. I've noticed that since I've began this thinking, soul searching, and daily surrendering, I've had more opportunities to talk with my students about Christ or verses from the Bible that teach us how to live. Because of that opportunity to minister to my students, I find even more motivation to give each moment up to the Lord to be used for His purposes.

No longer will I wait until I return to Peru to give my all to serving and ministry. I will make a conscience effort to daily give the Lord every moment to be used for the glory of His name.

And there {finally} is my New Year's Resolution :)

We Are {the Light of the World}

We Are by Kari Jobe

So wake up sleeper, lift your head

We were meant for more than this

Fight the shadows conquer death

Make the most of the time we have left

We are the light of the world

We are the city on a hill

We are the light of the world

We gotta, we gotta, we gotta let the light shine

We are called to the spread the news

Tell the world the simple truth

Jesus came to save, there’s freedom in His Name

So let His love break through

I've been playing this song on repeat in my car recently, and today I was very excited when we sang it in church. God has been reminding me {a lot} recently, that no matter where I am, it is my responsibility is to spread his light. My mission is to be his hands and feet. He's been showing me that I can do ministry here in the U.S. through my job, at the grocery store, and even through conversations with friends. 

A few days ago, a friend asked me at what point I began to come out of my 'shell' and not be so shy. I had to think about it a bit, and I responded by telling her that during college I was forced to open up more due to roles I played in leadership and in various schools where I was placed for practicums. I couldn't pinpoint an exact time of change, but rather circumstances that changed me little by little.

I've been pondering this question over the last few days, and I've drawn a few conclusions of my own. You see, I've been a Christian for as long as I can remember. My parents took me to church most Sundays during my childhood, and I remember I was baptized at the ripe age of 9 on my father's birthday. Even though I was told that I had been saved from my sin and had Jesus 'living in my heart' (as if He hadn't forgiven me or been with me before this point), I never truly quit living for myself. I prayed and I read my Bible, but I still lived to do what I wanted to do, facing the struggles of most teenage girls in the areas of worldly pressures from friends and my desire to fit in. While I faithfully attended church and youth group, my personal relationship with Christ was typically forgotten about 6 out of 7 days a week. 

It wasn't until college when I had to go to church without my parents that my faith really began to take a turn for the better. After being in a few ministry roles and a mission trip, I began to really understand what it meant to have Christ living in me. I develop a yearning I had never felt before. I had a stronger desire to please Him, to spread the gospel, and to show his love to others. This desire was so strong, I sometimes stayed awake at night feeling as if I'd failed Him on that particular day. It was this realization of what truly living for Christ meant that I believe has transformed me from the shy, quiet girl I used to be into the confident, outgoing lady I have become.

No longer do I fear what others think of me if I mention Christ in conversation or get overly excited about a new Christian worship song I've fallen in love with. I don't worry {as much} about where my future will take me, because I have learned that as long as I'm serving the Lord, it doesn't matter where I am physically. I have discovered the joy of the Lord, and I have allowed him to fill me with peace. This joy and peace Christ has given me have changed me. It is only by the grace of God that I no longer live in fear of the world, for I know that with Christ by my side, nothing in this world matters.

The song above says it perfectly, "WE ARE THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD!" If we don't get out there and spread the saving word of the Lord, who will do it for us. There are people in my life, that I may be the only person to ever show them Jesus. I would hate for them to die without ever having had the opportunity to experience Christ's saving grace. I will make the most of the time I have left, for no man knows when his final breath may be. 

Whether I remain here in the U.S. or return to Peru {or another nation} I will take the challenge and be a light in this world. 

Let me leave you with a verse fro Matthew 5:14-16 ~ 

14~ You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden.
15~ Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.
16~ In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in Heaven.