Personal Study of Hebrews 11 - Part 1

Hi ya’ll! I spent some time over the last few weeks reading through the book of Hebrews with a very close friend of mine. As we approached chapter 11, I felt as though I needed to study each verse more in depth, through referring to scriptures based on the specific biblical character's story presented... So I did. 

The following is simply a breakdown of the first 6 verses of Hebrews 11. Each verse will be stated from the ESV, followed by connecting scripture references, word studies or other personal thoughts. I plan on doing the rest of Hebrews this way over the month of January 2018, but in the meantime I hope you find this resource useful, insightful and perhaps even encouraging. Because faith, as I’ve heard it said, is the currency of heaven.

Faith: 

complete trust 

or confidence 

in someone 

or something.

 ~~~

Hebrews 11: Part 1 – Verses 1-6

1 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. 

Assurance: a positive declaration intended to give confidence

Conviction:  evidence

2 For by it the people of old received their commendation. 

Commendation = praise. I’ve heard it used as receiving recognition for having faith.

3 By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible.

I’ve underlined “not seen” in verse one, it relates to how everything God has made was not made by what we as humans can see. And it requires faith to believe and truly understand this. However, there is much more that can be dissected from this verse, but I haven’t spent much time studying the creation of the universe by the word of God. It’s a very cool subject to look into, but my heart was set on studying the other people mentioned in this chapter.

Additional resource relating to verses 1-3: https://www.desiringgod.org/messages/what-faith-knows-and-hopes-for

4 By faith Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain, through which he was commended as righteous, God commending him by accepting his gifts. And through his faith, though he died, he still speaks. 

Who is Abel? In Genesis 4 we meet Abel, he was the second son of Adam and Eve, and had an elder brother named Cain. God commended Abel by accepting his gifts because he was obedient to God in his offerings (see Genesis 4:4-5).

You may have heard that Cain killed Abel? This was the first murder in the entire existence of human life. Abel’s blood was shed when he was murdered. When Jesus died on the cross his blood was shed for us. Abel was commended as righteous, and in Matthew 23:25, his blood is referred to as “righteous blood”.

How much more righteous is the blood of Christ than that of Abel’s? Jesus’ blood > Abel’s blood. Hebrews 12:24 says “and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.” While the blood of Abel still speaks, Jesus’ blood speaks a better word as our mediator between us and God under the new covenant!  

5 By faith Enoch was taken up so that he should not see death, and he was not found, because God had taken him. Now before he was taken he was commended as having pleased God. 

Who is Enoch? There isn’t much mentioned about Enoch in the bible. He appears in Genesis 5:18-24, and that’s the extent of Enoch’s story. Yet he’s mentioned again in Hebrews!  What we do know about Enoch is that he had a child, a son, at age 65 and afterwards Enoch walked with God for 300 years... then God took him. Simple as that, Enoch was no more (see Genesis 5:24).

(Cain actually has a descendent named “Enoch” as well, found in Genesis 4:17; however, this Enoch is not the Enoch in which Hebrews 11:5 speaks.)

Enoch was commended (as we read in verse 2: “praised”) as having pleased God, which Enoch did by walking with God all his days (more about this in the next verse).

Related scripture:

Genesis 5:24 – “Enoch walked with God, and he was not, for God took him.”

Psalm 73:24 – “You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will receive me to glory.”

6 And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him. 

People often quote this verse as a standalone verse... I was thinking to myself, “whom does this scripture relate to?” As in, what example do we have which precedes the “and” at the beginning of verse 6?

Turns out, Enoch, as simple and short as his bible-clip is, walked with God all his days and this is all we’re told about what he did to be “commended as having pleased God”.

Breaking down the actual verse now...

Draw near to God:

James 4:8 – “Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you.”

Hebrews 4:16 – “Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”

Opposite of drawing near to God is rebellion (aka our sinful nature) – and “woe” to those who are rebellious...

Zephaniah 3:1-2 NKJV – “Woe to her who is rebellious and polluted, to the oppressing city! She has not obeyed His voice, She has not received correction; She has not trusted in the Lord, She has not drawn near to her God.”

Must believe that he [God] exists:

Acts 17:24-25 – “The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything.”

1 Corinthians 8:6 – “yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist.”

Rewards:

Hebrews 10:35 – “So do not throw away your confidence, it will be richly rewarded.”

Seek Him:

Matthew 6:33 – “Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”

Lamentations 3:25 – “The Lord is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him.”

Psalm 119:2 – “Blessed are those who keep his testimonies, who seek him with their whole heart.”

Psalm 53:2 – “God looks down from heaven on the children of man to see is there is any who understand, who seek after God.”

~~~

And this concludes the first six verses of Hebrews 11, and this is my official last blog post of 2017. Thank YOU, dear reader, so much for being a part of this journey with me. I am hoping here will be may more blog posts to come. Perhaps even a book one day. God knows. :)

Happy soon-to-be 2018!

Don’t Run

Then Moses answered, "But behold, 

they will not believe me or listen to my voice,

for they will say, 'The Lord did not appear to you.'" 

The Lord said to him, "What is that in your hand?" 

He said, "A staff." 

And he said, "Throw it on the ground." 

So he threw it on the ground, 

and it became a serpent, 

and Moses ran from it. 

But the Lord said to Moses, 

"Put out your hand and catch it by the tail"

—so he put out his hand and caught it, 

and it became a staff in his hand— 

"that they may believe that the Lord, 

the God of their fathers, 

the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, 

and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you."

‭‭Exodus‬ ‭4:1-5‬ ‭ESV‬‬

~~~

I started the book “Living Courageously: You Can Face Anything, Just Do It Afraid” by Joyce Meyers yesterday. She speaks of fear, and encourages us not to run from fear. Instead we are to face it, courageously, and ultimately overcome it.

When Moses threw his staff on he ground it turn into a snake, “and Moses ran from it” (see Exodus 4:4). He was afraid, fearful, and potentially terrified. How could this be, a staff turning into a snake? And, aren’t some snakes poisonous?!

But God simply said, “put out your hand and catch it by the tail”, to which Moses, still fearful of the snake, did. He did it afraid. It’s not like his fear just disappeared, however he gained the courage to face it. Looked the snake in the eye (well, maybe not in the eye), snatched it by the tail and overcame his fear. 

You cannot experience victory over your fears if you’re running from them. Fear has a way of chasing after us, causing us to hide and be rendered ineffective. But this doesn’t have to be the end result. May God grant you the courage that you need to face your fears today, and everyday... and may you overcome them by His power and might.

“I know the Lord is always with me.

I will not be shaken, 

for he is right beside me.”

Psalm 16:8 NLT

Decisions, Decisions

I’ve been personally wanting to journal since Friday last week... it’s now Tuesday. It’s amazing how people and things come up and we can push aside the passions that are burning in our hearts. At least, I know this is what happens to me.

I’ve mentioned this book before, Boundaries by Cloud and Townsend... I've learned through reading that we need to make the decision to set healthy boundaries for our own selves in regards to any aspect of relationship. I’ve recently entered into a relationship (surprise to all those people who know me in person and have not been made aware of this — all you gotta do is talk to my Nonna for 30 seconds and you’ll know everything you need to) and as much as I always want to be spending time with him, I’ve realized that I’m going to need to set boundaries to fulfill other important tasks God has placed on my heart to do. These tasks can be as simple as making dinner, doing laundry, or even making time to write this blog during the day when I’m actually awake (I say this because it’s currently 5:52 AM as I type this sentence)... Simply put, there’s a proper time for everything:

There is a time for everything, 

and a season for every activity under the heavens:

a time to be born and a time to die,

a time to plant and a time to uproot,

a time to kill and a time to heal,

a time to tear down and a time to build,

a time to weep and a time to laugh,

a time to mourn and a time to dance,

a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,

a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,

a time to search and a time to give up,

a time to keep and a time to throw away,

a time to tear and a time to mend,

a time to be silent and a time to speak,

a time to love and a time to hate,

a time for war and a time for peace.

Ecclesiastes 3: 1-8 NIV

Now, enough about me, here comes the good part!

~~~

I have recently become acutely aware the adult life is full of decision-making moments.

I decided to do a brief google search of the above line, and the first article was from lifehacker.com entitled, "Top 10 Difficult Decisions You'll Make in Life (and How to Make Them)". Anything with a "how to" looks interesting to me; so I click into it, took a gander, and noticed that out of the ten difficult decisions listed:

• five were related to school and career (to go, to go back, what path to take, switching, and when to quit)
• two were geographical (where to live, rent/buy)
• three were relational (to date, to marry, to have children - or not)

Okay, first of all, why is 50% of life decisions based on solely education and career? There are so many human aspects to this major section of “life”... there is opportunity to build connections with peers, professors and professionals as every stage of schooling, as well as colleagues, employers and  customers while at work. We cannot neglect the importance of "who you know" in the process of learning "what you know" for our future career aspirations.

Secondly, geographically it's important to consider the whereabouts someone plans to live, but there are also more humans to consider: neighbours, other drivers on the road or perhaps transit bus drivers, doctors/dentists, grocery store clerks, bank personnel and more.

And finally, the actual “relational” aspects to life decisions, it could be mistakenly perceived to surround the one person you are choosing to be with, but I personally consider the family, friends, and acquaintances to be just as much as part of this section as the person one decides to date/marry.. then of course the additional lives that would be produced as a result of this relationship if God decides that’s what’s up (aka children).

The heart of a man plans his way,

but the Lord establishes his steps.

Proverbs 16:9 ESV

~~~

There's is one major decision that isn't mentioned at all in the article I reviewed, but it has longer lasting results than any other decision we will make in our life times. God's given us the decision to choose between life and death.

This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you 

that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. 

Now choose life, so that you and your children may live 

and that you may love the Lord your God, 

listen to his voice, and hold fast to him...

Deuteronomy 30:19-20a NIV

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son [Jesus],

 that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

John 3:16 NIV

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. 

I [Jesus] came that they may have life 

and have it abundantly [to the full].

John 10:10 ESV

So the most important decision in life is, and yes it does involve yet another relational aspect, to choose to follow Jesus Christ! My prayer is that we have:

The determination of Ruth with Naomi;

But Ruth replied, "Don't ask me to leave you and turn back. Wherever you go, I will go; wherever you live, I will live. Your people will be my people, and your God will be my God."
Ruth 1:16 NLT

The understanding of ourselves as Paul had (there is much more to this category);

Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners - of whom I am the worst. 1 Timothy 1:15 NIV

And the certainty of Joshua as he spoke to all of Israel;

... then choose today whom you will serve... But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.
Joshua 24:15 NLT

Remove to Replace

So I have the YouVersion Bible app on my phone for easy on-the-go access to the Word of God. On the app, the creators have incorporated a feature in which you can add "friends". When you add someone as a "friend" - and they accept - it allows each party to view the verses their friend has highlighted, check out any notes they've taken and shared, and view each other's bible plan activity. The app also offers the option to "like" any of the previously stated activities, in which your friend will receive a notification that you have liked something they have done on the app.

So someone, whom I don't think I know in real life, added me as a friend and I accepted. A few hours later I got a notification that they had liked my note called "remove to replace". It's based on Ezekiel 43:9 and I wrote it in 2014 on August 28. The year 2014 feels like a long time ago, and to be honest, I don't even remember publishing the note or highlighting the verse.

~~~

The note is short and to the point, it reads as follows:

Sometimes we have to put stuff away (for good) in order for God to enter in and stay with us forever. GOD HATES SIN. Simple as that. He loves YOU, but doesn't and cannot love sin. Remove all that doesn't bring glory to Him in your life and He will be with you. 

Ezekiel 43:9 NIV says:

Now let them put away from me their prostitution and the funeral offerings for their kings, and I will live among them forever.

~~~

This is an incredible reminder for me, because sometimes it's so easy to get comfortable and hold on to those things we are familiar with. Things that we can predict or feel that we have control over. It may be pertaining to people, family or friends. Or we can become consumed by certain habits or thought patterns. Or even things we do based on "tradition" or responding to situations with the mentality of "this is how I was raised".

Not everything we do is "sin" or sinful; we'd have to evaluate whatever it is that needs to be removed. My suggestion is to do this through prayer, and using God's Word as a basis on which to live our lives. If it isn't uplifting, nor bringing glory to God, or is just flat out wrong and you know it - do something about it. True repentance leads to change.i

Remove to replace.

Peace

So I was having -what would have been- a really heated discussion with a close friend the other day.

No, I'm sorry, I won't go into all the details, but for future reference it was "relational" to say the least.... but the reason why I'm bringing it up is because just before the discussion began I had spent some quality time in prayer. Having lifted both thanksgiving and requests to God, I had experienced God's peace in my heart and mind milliseconds before the conversation began.

In addition to the peace I was experiencing, the discussion topic which my friend and I were conversing about, had literally been lifted up in my prayers a few moments prior. It's cool how God works things out and prepares us for these kinds of moments; mostly when we are 'sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit'. Only then can we truly have peace about whatever comes our way.

I've been reading a book by John MacArthur called "Found: God's Peace"; its subtitle notes "experiencing true freedom from anxiety in every circumstance". (Yes, please.) On page 56, John MacArthur says that peace fabricated by humans cannot withstand anything the world throws at it:

"Godly peace cannot be produced on a human level at all. Any peace that humans can produce is very fragile. It can be destroyed instantly by failure, doubt, fear, difficulty, guilt, shame, distress, regret, sorrow, the anxiety of making the wrong choice, the anticipation of being mistreated or victimized by someone, the uncertainly of the future, and any challenge to our position or possessions..."

Peace is an attribute of God.... actually, just as God is love. God is also peace. 

“Now may the Lord of peace himself 

give you peace at all times in every way. 

The Lord be with you all.”

‭‭2 Thessalonians‬ ‭3:16‬ ‭ESV‬

Peace is also part of the fruit of the Spirit:

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, 

longsuffering [patience], kindness, goodness, 

faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. 

Galatians 5:22-23a NKJV

Near the end of the heated discussion, I recall my friend saying, "I'm amazed at how you're able to respond to me so calmly right now". It was definitely the peace of God ruling my heart and mind in those moments. And I'm grateful. 

"But above all these things put on love, 

which is the bond of perfection. 

And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, 

to which you were called in one body; 

and be thankful." 

Colossians 3:14-15 NKJV

Ultimately, Godly peace has nothing to do with human beings or human circumstances. Godly peace comes from God Himself. And even though the discussion with my friend has since passed, it's an amazing thought to know I can continue to lift up the request to God, and He will gently remind me that He had, has, and will have, everything in His control. 

Trust in the Lord...

Trust in the Lord with all your heart,

and do not lean on your own understanding.

In all your ways acknowledge Him,

and He will make straight your paths.

Proverbs 3:5-6 ESV

Trust in the Lord with all your heart:

Trust seems to be an action which is so much easier said than done. I've resorted to my dictionary again, but the amazing thing is, trust is first defined as a noun, then as a verb (action). As a noun, trust is defined as a "firm belief in the reliability, truth, ability, or strength of someone or something." So trust is directly tied to a person or thing, and it is dependent on the character or quality of who or what is being trusted.

The Lord, our God, is to be trusted with a firm belief in the reliability and strength of who He is. There are tremendous amounts of truths written in the Word which show the faithfulness of our God. Also, "all" in Greek means "all". Therefore, whatever the situation, the entirety of our hearts needs to be devoted to trusting God.

Do not lean on your own understanding:

How tempting it is to think that we know it all. Pride tells us we can figure out a solution on our own, or we can overcome a situation on our own strength. However, the reality is everything that has been revealed and communicated to us has first came from God. Our own understanding, logic and comprehension is limited by our human condition.

Also, we were just instructed to "trust in the Lord with all [our] heart". This requires us to trust - that even when it doesn't make sense in our own minds and understanding - we lean in to God, trusting Him to see us through.

Click here for an additional reading

In all your ways acknowledge Him:

There's that word "all" again. "All" in Greek still means "all". This includes anything and everything that we say and do. In Colossians 3:17 it states, "and whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him" (NKJV, my emphasis).

To acknowledge is to "accept or admit the existence or truth of". Or according to this article, Webster's dictionary defines acknowledge as "to recognize the rights, authority or status of". So when we accept the authority of God in all of our ways...

He will make straight your paths:

Another translation says "and He will direct your path". I've heard a lot about the word "paths" recently. This making of straight paths is not a question of free will, because God has given us freedom to choose. But when we choose trust in the Lord with all our heart... when we choose not to lean on our own understanding... and when we choose acknowledge Him in all we say and do... He will make our paths straight. He will guide us. And that's a promise.

I will guide you along the best pathway for your life. 

I will advise you and watch over you.

Psalm 32:8 NLT

I instructed you in the way of wisdom; 

I have guided you along straight paths.

Proverbs 4:11 TLV

Identity Crisis

It's shocking how life seems to slip by so fast, especially during the warmer seasons. I meant to post this blog the day after it happened, which was supposed to be August 8th... 20 days later...

So I attended a church service at LPC on August 7th, 2017. LPC stands for Lakeshore Pentecostal Camp - it's in Cobourg, Ontario. As a teenager, I had the privilege to attend youth camp on a yearly basis till the age of 18. Youth camp was amazing - a week long of non-stop fun, a little bit of drama and a whole lot of church. It has definitely left a lasting impact on my life and many others. I'm also thankful for the work God is continuing to do there at LPC.

Now, this particular sermon on August 7th was brought to us by a gentleman named Paul Fraser (I think). And he spoke on the topic of identity. 

Identity, for me, has been a constant learning process of truly knowing who and whose I am. Over the last 4 years alone, I went through at least two major valleys of having "lost" myself: 

1. Once it was because I thought I wasn't accepted for who I was by the people around me, or just the people I so desperately wanted to be accepted by - my "friends" as some would call them. (But this is more about our need for approval and choosing our friends wisely and ultimately knowing our worth regardless of what others say/suggest/think. We might touch on this topic in another blog one day.)
2. Another season of losing myself was when I felt as though I needed to change the way I acted and responded to certain things to fit the role I filled at work... after months of suppressing my natural emotions and responses I woke up one day and asked myself, "Okay, what's happened? How did I get here? And, Where has Amanda gone?" aka, WHO AM I?!

But going back to LPC, Paul Fraser started his sermon off by saying: "This week is not about you, it's about all the people around you - your sphere of influence. This week is shaping and transforming you, for all of them." But isn't it always? We don't consider the fact that everything we go through is not really for ourselves, it's for the people we are going to encounter. Sure, we learn from the events of life, and have an opportunity to grow in the difficult moments, but in the long run what we go through is for the benefit of others.

For Paul Fraser it all started with a question: "Who am I?" He said he had asked himself some serious questions about his identity; what he really thinks and what he really wants. He then began to speak about, what I believe is a perfect summary of, the marks of identity crisis. 

You become a victim of identity crisis when...

1. You start to define yourself by what you do.

• We shift who we are - and base it on what we are doing... Satan likes to come and confuse us, saying if you "do" something, you will "be" it. 
• You will lose yourself when you think you are only what you do - what happens when you fail at those things? 
• Then you move from a place of affirmation (approval) to rejection. Rejection causes us to fear when we let it overwhelm us. 
• Jesus created us first as a human BEing, then he allowed us to "do"; in that particular order. 
• A good prayer: I am loved and I am accepted by God. ... if you look for this outside of God, you will be exhausted.

2. You become defined by what you have. 

• Check your "want: level, it can quickly turn into "neeeeed"... but is it really necessary? 
• When you wrap your identity in what you have, it's only temporary. So when the items/material things are gone... so goes your identity and the cycle starts all over again. 
• When you have God, you don't "neeeeeed" anything else.  

So sometimes we lose ourselves in what we do or what we have. But the question of "who am I" is incomplete because it only makes us look within ourselves. Rather, we should be asking "WHOSE am I?", as it leads us to look outside ourselves. And there's only One who knows why we were created, only One who knows our purpose, only One who knows our fulfillment is - God Himself. 

For by grace you have been saved through faith. 

And it is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 

not a result of works, so that no one may boast. 

For we are his [God's] workmanship, 

created in Christ Jesus for good works, 

which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

Ephesians 2:8-10 ESV

You are God's masterpiece. He knows why you were created; your true identity. Paul titled his message "Ask the Artist". So when in doubt, simply ask.

And this concludes what I learned about at LPC on August 7th, 2017. 

What's In Your Heart?

Above all else, guard your heart,

for everything you do flows from it.

Proverbs 4:23 NIV

Another translation, or older edition of NIV, for the second-half of this verse once said, "for it is the wellspring of life". According to the famous google search engine, a wellspring is defined as an original and bountiful source of something. So in this case, our heart is a original and bountiful source of life. And this proverbs wisdom is advising us to guard it.

Our physical hearts are, first of all, absolutely amazing. This cardiac muscle works diligently night and day to pump blood to the ends of our fingers and toes, as well as all of our organs - and it doesn't require a 'thank you', 'keep up the good work' or pat on the back to keep doing what it was designed to do. But our hearts are also squishy, and without the proper protection it can be easily damaged.

I've never personally touched a heart - it's not something on my bucket list either - but having watched TV shows and movies with the representation open heart surgery... And by the looks of it, a heart on its own wouldn't be able to withstand a punch, jab or kick. Perhaps this is why God surrounded it with our rib cage, because it needs the protection it couldn't provide for itself.

But we have to guard our hearts on levels beyond the physical. This morning I was texting a girlfriend, mi amiga, about Proverbs 4:23, and I was able to share with her that,

"I was reading another devotional this morning, and it talked about "what's in your heart?" Because sometimes we do things and our hearts aren't even in it to do whatever it is [we're doing]... and that's not a good thing. Because if we do things and do not have love, what good is that? (See 1 Corinthians 13:1-3) Or if we mean for someone to eat [our food] and enjoy but our hearts aren't in agreement, would that not make us a liar? (See Proverbs 23:7)"

Her response was sweet: "yes so true tell me more". And I continued and had mentioned, "That was pretty much the gist of what I took from it." But I took a second to think, what really is in my heart? Because I know I've let some thoughts and habits in which aren't truly reflecting Christ in me. I continued the text saying, 

"We just gotta take time to examine our hearts, ask God to show us what we need to change and allow the Holy Spirit to give us the grace and wisdom we need to work towards being true. True to ourselves/true to our hearts... true to reflect our transformed hearts as they are to reflect Christ."

Once again, her response was sweet and simple: "amen! I love it."

We usually associate our heart with love, after all, we have been designed and wired for love. So I'm asking myself, and you dear reader, "what's really in your heart?" This isn't a take-two-minutes-circle-the-best-answer-and-move-on-to-the-next-question type question. This may take some time. And as beautiful and complex as a heart may be, I'm going to invite God in to examine mine. Some things just haven't been lining up like I thought they should. But I'm going to trust God to see me through this continual growing and renewing and transforming process.

Do not let your hearts be troubled. 

Trust in God, and trust also in me [Jesus].

John 14:1 NLT

And do not be conformed to [the pattern of] this world, 

but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, 

that you may prove [test that which is the] 

good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

Romans 12:2 NKJV

Faithful

It's mid-week, and it has been a very quiet afternoon to say the least. I've had the privilege to spend a lot of time with a lot of friends and family the past week and a half. But right now, in the quiet, my thoughts start to wander - I know I should be resting, but yet I'm seeking constant human companionship. I've honestly been stuck on what to write about the past two week, but I believe I may have became too busy and was missing God in the simplicity of resting.

But sometimes I get caught up in the feeling of being 'alone', although I know I'm never really alone. So to "fill" my time on this quiet afternoon, I decided to listen to some music on YouTube. I didn't have to search for the song because it was one of the suggestions under "recommended" (I love it when YouTube makes accurate recommendations!). The song that caught my eye is called "Yes and Amen" by Bethel Worship - check it out here. The lyrics for the bridge and chorus are as follows:

I will rest in your promises

My confidence is your faithfulness

Faithful You are

Faithful forever, You will be

Faithful You are

All Your promises are yes and amen

As I listen to this song of worship, I reflect on God's constant faithfulness towards me. This goes beyond His faithfulness to see me through the happenings of "back then and now"; although I've made so many mistakes, so many stubborn decisions, and gotten myself into messes... God's faithfulness towards you and me goes back to the very beginning. In God's desire to make man and partner with him to oversee all that God had created:

Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth." So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created them; male and female He created them. Then God blessed them, and God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living things that moves on earth."

Genesis 1:26-28 NJKV

And every moment that followed: from the fall of man to God's amazingly unbeatable redemption plan; God has been, is, and will forever be faithful. I am reminded of how He has been ever so willing to meet me halfway, even more than halfway because He's in constant pursuit of my heart. He has been ever so present in, both, the joyous and difficult moments. He's always seen me through. And I know going forward He will continue to do so! So as often as needed I return to His Word to remind myself of His promises; of His goodness and faithfulness; as a constant reminder of Who my God is and His love towards me.

Isaiah 55:10-11 NKJV

For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven, 

And do not return there,

But water the earth,

And make it bring forth and bud,

That it may give food to the sower,

And bread to the eater,

So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth;

It shall not return to Me void,

But it shall accomplish what I please,

And it shall prosper in the thing of which I sent it.

2 Corinthians 4:17-18 NKJV

For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.

2 Corinthians 1:20 NKJV
For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us.

~~~

For further study check out this list of the promises of God, 

I have listed them here too:

Exodus 14:14; 20:12

Deuteronomy 31:8

Joshua 1:9

2 Chronicles 7:14

Psalm 9:9-10; 18:3; 23:4; 27:1; 34:17; 37:4; 50:15; 86:5; 103:2-5; 107:13-16

Proverbs 3:5-6; 13:11; 22:6

Isaiah 40:29, 31; 41:10, 13; 43:2; 54:10, 17; 58:6; 61:1

Jeremiah 29:11

Malachi 3:10

Matthew 6:31-33; 7:9-11

Mark 11:24

Luke 11:9-13

John 3:16, 36; 8:36; 14:13-16

Romans 8:28;10:9-10

Ephesians 3:16-19

Philippians 4:6-7; 4:19

James 1:5; 4:7; 5:14-15

1 John 1:9

Revelation 3:5

And these are just a few :)

Roadblocks

For anyone who drives and plans their trips in advance, we all know there are moments where we think things are great: everything is going according to plan, and we're confident we're going to make it right on time! What could possibly go wrong, right? ... But then, half way through the trip, there seems to be flashing lights up ahead. No, it's not an accident, at least not from what we can see, as we peer over the cars in front of us, but as we get closer we realize we've encountered a legitimate roadblock.

This scenario literally happened to me on a sunny Saturday morning in May.... Now, in this moment I had to choose how I would respond, because ultimately, I have full control and responsibility in my responses to any situation I am presented with. When I saw the roadblock these two choices ran through my mind immediately:

1. I could shout or whine, saying something along the lines of, "Are you serious?! Why they gotta block the whole road like that? I'm gonna be late, this sucks." And continue to fume, and treat this moment like it's the end of the world... ultimately shifting the outcome of my day to a potential pool of anger and discontentment....

OR

2. I could simply say "Okay.... I guess we'll take the scenic route today." Choose to trust the outcome will still be a timely arrival, in this case, and be truly thankful to hear my GPS sound off its famous line, "recalculating..." (and then, of course, write a blog about this moment).

I chose the latter, and I'm glad I did. I made it to my destination on time, and the day was still sunny by sunset.

Sometimes we may get a bad report from the doctor for yourself or a loved one; we may find it difficult to secure a job or we are having difficulty moving on to the next role or, even worse, we lose it; our friendships become complicated or seem to come to a complete halt for reasons that could have been avoided; our kids prove that selective hearing is a choice, or maybe not even our kids, but rather, our spouses... whatever the case... these are moments when we have to choose. To choose our response to the situations we're faced with.

We can become discouraged, worried, and stressed out when things don't seem to be going our way... or we can choose shift our perspective to see the potential in our problem, because roadblocks aren't all the bad. They're preventing us from encountering something that can harm us which is up ahead. However, depending on your responses which come from our hearts, I believe we may have a control issue or, as some people would call it, a "trust" issue. So if I am, do we really trust God to see us through?

This quote is from a devotional called "Facing the Unpredictability of Life" by Sherene Ellen Rajaratnam:

If you are going through a difficult time right now, if your dreams seem shattered overnight, I would encourage each of you to hang in there and look to the God who created you and who knows you better than you know yourself. He is sovereign and He will lead you through it, if you would dare to trust Him. We need to trust that all our days are ordained by this God who created us and when we look back we will be thankful that it all turned out good.

Rajaratnam couldn't have said it better. We need to trust God to see us through, and by believing in His Word we will have continued hope during our difficult circumstances. And for those moments when we or someone we know has hit a roadblock, let's not try to give them an answer or explanation as to why we have been obstructed... but rather, let's reassure each other that God is still with us in the chaos, on the detour, and that He'll provide a way around/over/under/through the struggle.

We know that God makes all things work together

for the good of those who love Him

and are chosen [called] to be a part of His plan.

Romans 8:28 NLV

~~~

When the climb is easy, the peak isn't worth reaching. 

Quitting is not an option.

- Trent Sheldon

If You Can....

A few weeks ago, my mom, nonna (grandma) and I were praying to God for healing in my nonna's legs. She has been a diabetic for a over two decades, and it has become more apparent in the past few years that her nerve endings are damanged, as they are responding the way they other diabetics have said that they would. Diabetic peripheral neuropathy is what they call it, but I won't be going into detail on how it all works because all I know is that nonna has been experiencing a great deal of pain in her legs and feet because of it.

So there we were, praying. We've been praying, and waiting, and believing, for years. But in this particular moment of prayer my mom said something like "Lord, if you can heal her... wait, we know you can, but we ask if you will, please heal her..." Mom corrected one verb in her prayer and shifted the entire request in a different direction. When she finished praying, I looked at her and said, "I'm glad you changed the 'can' to 'will' because God really can do anything".

The words 'can' and 'will' are both verbs. According to Google their meanings are as follows:

Can; be able to, be permitted to.

Will; expressing the future tense; expressing inevitable events.

While God "can" do anything, it is by His "will" that He does what is pleasing to Him. When we ask if He will do something, it is with faith, hope and expectation that a future outcome will occur. Although... I believe we limit God by our limited faith; I know this statement can be controversial since I previously stated my belief that God can do anything. Faith is a sure requirement when receiving what we've asked for in prayer:

And whatever you ask for in prayer, 

you will receive, if you have faith,

Matthew 21:22

Therefore I tell you, 

whatever you ask in prayer, 

believe that you have received it, 

and it will be yours.

Mark 11:24

Jesus even says in Mark 9:23b that, “Anything is possible if a person believes”.

Here's the story, Mark 9:14-29 NLT paraphrased by yours truly:

So there was a father who's son was possessed by an evil spirit that wouldn't let him talk. The son would experience violent convulsions, where he would foam at the mouth, grind his teeth and become rigid. "So I [the father] asked your disciples to cast out the evil spirit, but they couldn’t do it" (verse 18). Jesus was not impressed, He immediately called for the boy to be brought to Him. When the boy came near to Jesus he experienced yet another violent convulsion...
Verses 21- 24: “How long has this been happening?” Jesus asked the boy’s father. He replied, “Since he was a little boy. The spirit often throws him into the fire or into water, trying to kill him. Have mercy on us and help us, if you can.”“What do you mean, ‘If I can’?” Jesus asked. “Anything is possible if a person believes.”The father instantly cried out, “I do believe, but help me overcome my unbelief!”Jesus then rebuked the evil spirit and he experienced a third convulsion, but after the spirit left him. The boy appeared to be dead, but Jesus took him by the hand and helped him to his feet, and the boy stood up. Later on, "when Jesus was alone in the house with his disciples, they asked him, “Why couldn’t we cast out that evil spirit?” Jesus replied, “This kind can be cast out only by prayer [and fasting].”"

This passage of scripture is a little more graphic than what nonna is experiencing in her legs. It may have been years, but our asking God to heal my nonna has not stopped because God didn't answer the way we were expecting. After all, He is God, He can do whatever He wants. And we as His children need to trust that He knows what He's doing even when it doesn't make sense to us.

Chorus from the song "Anyway" by Martina McBride:

God is great, but sometimes life ain't good

When I pray it doesn't always turn out like I think it should

But I do it anyway

I do it anyway

So let us continue in prayer; asking God to heal us and meet us where we're at. But just because we're experiencing problems, doesn't mean we can't still experience God's peace which is found in His presence. Invite Him into your everyday; ask Him to be part the simplest tasks, the moments of confusion and uncertainty, the routine of our seemingly mundane days... You'll be surprised how quickly He'll show up when you welcome Him to.

Fitting In (The Trouble With)

How often do you find yourself on the outside looking in?

Lately, this has been my experience at my new workplace. I mentioned a few posts ago that I had received a promotion and moved to a new branch closer to home. I wrote about how I had waited and waited and waited for this day (approx. 912 days). So... here I am. New branch, new role, new challenges.

(I'm going to do my best to stay positive while I type this because sometimes it's just too easy for me to feel sorry for yourself and have a small perspective.)

While at work there will be moments of conversation, and there's usually a lot of conversation, with multiple team members gathering to participate in the hype of sharing thoughts and opinions... yet from my perspective, while everyone is circled up over there, I am over here. 

By myself and uninvited.

Perhaps it's because I'm usually working on something or serving a client (because I lean towards the idea that we're paid to work, and not wasting time talking), but in all honesty, I feel like an outsider. And I so desperately want to be a part of it. These types of questions cross my mind: How on earth do I fit in to their already established group? What could I possibly add to show I have a valuable opinion or strong understanding of whatever it is their talking about? 

Last Tuesday, I was sitting between two co-workers who were pretty much talking through me... what I mean is, there was one person on either side of me and they were having a full out non-work related conversation, while I sat in the middle feeling invisible. 

I started thinking I wonder if they know I'm still here. But as they were chatting away, there was a phrase that kept coming to mind, "In the world, but not of it". And as they conversation continued it was on repeat, "In the world, but not of it".

And while I don't have a specific step by step 'how to be in the world but not of it", I do know where to start looking. In John 17, Jesus was praying for His disciples when He said:

I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world.

John 17:14-18 NKJV

The Word of God has been a constant source of encouragement, correction, and wisdom to me. It's the owners manual on how to live life, and live it well; despite all the challenges and issues anyone may face. And as a Christian I have been called to be the light of the world and the salt of the earth: although I am no longer "of" the world, I am still in it.  

Jesus’s true followers have not only been crucified to the world, 

but also raised to new life and sent back in to free others. 

- David Mathis, desiringgod.org

~~~

I realized that I, personally, need to change my thinking in order to overcome this feeling of being left out while at work. God's given me the opportunity to be a this particular work place at this particular time, to be surrounded by these particular people, so that He - in His perfect, yet mysterious, way - can work in the lives of those around me. 

So steps that I am personally going to take to continue to grow and know who I am in Christ, is by spending time with Him through prayer and reading the Bible. I will also surround myself with family and friends who build me up. And if I catch a negative thought, I'm going to cast it down in Jesus name and replace it with something positive or truth-filled. 

The God Who Sees

This is an old journal that I wrote:

~~~

October 29, 2016

I'm looking through old notebooks (full of sermons, journal/diaries, and prayers) and I stumbled upon two entries from October 2007 & December 2007. They were referring to a season of depression due to feeling the need to get approval from the wrong people... But I've come to a wonderful conclusion!

God always sees me through.

Not because I deserve it, and not even because I beg or ask Him to... but because He loves me. Seasons last for a while (that's why it's referred to as a season, right?) but God's faithfulness surpasses them all. I can always count on my God and for this I am grateful.

~~~

She said, "You are the God who sees me."

Genesis 16:13 NLT

What's in a name?

I had the privilege of hearing my dad preach this past Sunday. Now, my dad is more of a teacher than a preacher, because even when he doesn't mean to teach a particular point, there's always something new to learn and be revealed. I am always learning from him. He spoke from the book of Daniel, on Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego. 

And all this time, I thought those where their real names, you know?

Here's the back story, the people of God in Jerusalem were taken into captivity by the people of Babylon (see Daniel 1:1). The NLT version uses the word "besiege" which means to surround (a place) with armed forces in order to capture it or force its surrender. This is no joke, Babylon forced Jerusalem to surrender... the goal for Babylon was to make the people from Jerusalem forget who they were, where they came from and who their God was. Babylon did this by forcing cultural norms and other rituals on them, they even selected strong, healthy young men to be trained in "the language and literature of Babylon" (see Daniel 1:4).

The king had a chief of staff who was given a task to rename the young men who were to be trained... enter the real "Rack, Shack and Benny" (Daniel's included in this too):

Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah were four of the young men chosen, all from the tribe of Judah. The chief of staff renamed them these Babylonian names:

Daniel was called Belteshazzar.

Hananiah was called Shadrach.

Mishael was called Meshach.

Azariah was called Abedngo.

Daniel 1:6-7 NLT

Now, Daniel and his three friends were forced to give up their names, as well as every thing they once had consider as part of their identity. Dad mentioned that Shadrach's real name was Hananiah, and the name meaning of Hananiah is "YAHWEH [God] is gracious". While the name meaning of Shadrach is "command of Aku",  Aku being the name of the Babylonian god of the moon. 

And I immediately thought to myself, how often are we given names that derive us from our understanding of who we are in Christ... and believe what we've been called?

And my dad said this statement: "the Babylonians called Hananiah, and the other guys, different names so that they would forget who they really were." So when they were addressed they had to answer to a name that was never really their own. Sometimes we're given names (or labels, or comments are spoken over us) which makes us forget who we really are. Sometimes we speak them over ourselves, too. The goal of our adversary is to break down what God has called good. 

And God saw everything that he made,

and, behold, it was very good.

Genesis 1:31 ASV

The thief comes only to steal, [kill], and destroy. 

I [Jesus] have come that [you] might have life,

and have it abundantly! 

John 10:10 TLV

There's more to the story: Although, Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah were given Babylonian names and were required to learn Babylonian ways, they were determined to continue to serve their God even in the midst of being captive in Babylon. Daniel "was determined not to defile himself by eating the food and wine given to them by the king" (Daniel 1:8 NLT). Because by doing so would go against the Jewish laws found in the Torah, which Daniel grew up with and firmly believed. 

So Daniel proposed a challenge: he and his friends would only eat vegetables for ten days while everyone else gorged themselves on the kings food. And the way to measure success was to determine which set of men looked healthier and better nourished after the ten days. Daniel had favour in the eyes of the chief of staff, so he agreed. And yes, you guessed it, Daniel and his friends came out on top, and "God gave these four young mean an unusual aptitude for understanding every aspect of literature and wisdom" (Daniel 1:17 NLT).

Not only did they look good, God gave them a higher ability to live life well, even while captive in Babylon. And the king was impressed! 

"When the training period ordered by the king was completed, the chief of staff brought all the young men to King Nebuchadnezzar. The king talked with them, and no one impressed him as much as Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. So they entered the royal service. Whenever the king consulted them in any matter requiring wisdom and balanced judgment, he found them ten times more capable than any of the magicians and enchanters in his entire kingdom."

Daniel 1:18-20 NLT (emphasis mine)

So what I'm taking from this is; when you stand up for the truth in God's word (which had been the solid foundation for Daniel and his crew), and you do your best to live in a way that is pleasing to God, God's got you. Sometimes things in life don't make much sense (heck, these guys were living in captivity!) but God is still good and working things out for the good of those who love Him.

And this concludes Daniel Chapter Uno... 

Thanks for reading!

If you'd like to learn more about the book of Daniel, 

check out this awesome summary by the bible project: Read Scripture: Daniel