Going the Distance

It's so funny to write about my little victory today, but I'm learning that my little victories are what God uses to make big victories in my life.

Running has always been a struggle for me. I hate it. I know I should do it, but I never enjoy doing it at all. I really wanted to get in shape this summer, so I'm attempting to run daily. So far I successfully ran twice. lol Hey, it's still progress!

While I run I'm normally so negative. I have such a "ugh! Why am I doing this?!" attitude and it becomes such a burden for me to endure it. I can do short sprints or run hard for a little bit, but not very long. I would always be down on myself, because I knew I could do better and wish I had pushed myself harder.

But today before I ran, God revealed my negative mindset to me. He's been showing me lately the power of my thinking patterns, and how negative thinking affects my life. I never thought that being negative while running was really such a burden to me, but it really was! I would dread it before and struggle through it while I was doing it, and constantly stop to walk never really benefiting from it.

So I decided to do something different this time. I prayed. Yes, I prayed about running. But God is such a loving God that he wants to hear about every little detail of our lives, even physical exercise. Thus, I asked for Jesus strength and the holy spirit to take control of my mind and help me to endure.

Guys, I'm not exaggerating, but it was the most energizing run I have ever experienced! People at the park probably thought I was the biggest creep because I couldn't stop smiling! I even clapped and pointed to the God several times (if you haven't learned yet, I tend to be on the dramatic side). But it was such a victory I couldn't help but praise him!

That's the God we serve! He cares enough to help me on a simple run and hold me the entire way!! Man! He's crazy! The entire time I ran, I kept reciting Philippians 4:13, "I can do all things through CHRIST who gives me strength."

That's right. ALL THINGS. Not some things. Not just big things, but ALL THINGS THROUGH CHRIST.

He wants to strengthen us. He really does. Try it this week. Ask God to help renew your mind through the power of the Holy Spirit ,and then ask Jesus to release his strength. You will be surprised with the outcome.

Through Christ we can have the power to do ALL THINGS. Only through his loving strength :)

Losing to Win?

I have a question for you. Do you ever feel like a complete loser?  Not like a "you're an uncool loser," but a loser as in you are not winning.

Do you ever feel like a failure?

A miserable sucker?

Welcome to the club.

I realized that I indeed am a loser. I am a failure. I do suck at life. I am so weak and utterly wretched.

I am a sinner.

Can you say that? Can you call yourself what you really are? A sinner. Try it. Say "I am a sinner" out loud.
It's hard at first, but after a few times it's liberating.

As it is written:“There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands; there is no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good,
not even one.”Romans 3:10-12

Don't you get it? WE ALL SUCK!
So where's the hope in all of this? The answer is JESUS. Romans 3:23-26 reveals the hope we have in Christ.

For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God, with undeserved kindness, declares that we are righteous. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins.  For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when he held back and did not punish those who sinned in times past, for he was looking ahead and including them in what he would do in this present time. God did this to demonstrate his righteousness, for he himself is fair and just, and he declares sinners to be right in his sight when they believe in Jesus.

When I admit the fact that I am a sinner in need of a savior, then Christ can come in and take control. I try so hard to do life and I feel like I got it on my own, but that's when I fail miserably. I am a weak horrible wretched sinner who needs Jesus to save me daily. I have to daily recommit my life to the fact that I am a sinner in need of a savior before I can even attempt to make it through my day. 

How do you get this hope? Just ask for it. Right where you are admit that that you are a sinner, that you suck at life,and fail miserably.Then acknowledge that Jesus is the only way that you can be free from that and his sacrifice on the cross is what will save you. Finally, ask Jesus to make you right, to come in your life and make you a winner. After that YOU HAVE HOPE OF SALVATION.

Phillipians 1:6 says, "Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." Don't feel like you are in a hopeless mess! HE, not me or you, who began a good work in you WILL carry it out into completion. He is not and will NEVER be finished with you. The work God started, he will continue to do and make you more and more like him through Jesus.

So what am I by the grace of God?

With Jesus, I am a success. I am a conqueror. I am victorious.

I am a winner.

Treasures that last

"Approach each new day with desire to find Me. Before you get out of bed, I have already been working to prepare the path that will get you through this day. There are hidden treasures strategically placed along the way. Some of my treasures are trials, designed to shake you free from earth-shackles. Others are blessings that reveal My Presence: sunshine, flowers, birds, friendships, answered prayer. I have not abandoned this sin-wrecked world; I am still richly present in it. Search for deep treasure as you go through this day. You will find Me all along the way."- Jesus Calling

So often I lose sight of the treasures that God is showing me throughout the day because I am so focused on myself. I treasure my time, my thoughts, my desires so much that I get distracted from the real treasures that are for me.

I also so easily forget about where my real treasures should be: in heaven.

Matthew 6: 19-21 talks about the dangers of storing our treasures on earth, "Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal.Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be."

All the things I treasure in this life will fade away. My clothes, education, career, food, reputation - all of these things will not last. If my main purpose in life is to seek after the kingdom of God then my treasures will match. The last part of the passage says, "Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will be also." I say that I desire God above all else, but does my life really match that statement?

Paul Washer wrote an awesome letter about the dangers of focusing our treasures on earthly things not eternal.

"Man may pour into his heart all the fame, wealth, power, and pleasure that this world has to
offer, but he will still be empty. Eternity cannot be filled up
with the temporal, nor can infinity be satisfied by the finite.
Man’s heart was made for the full measure of God’s glory.
Apart from this, man is destitute, miserable, and empty."

You can find the rest here Is Your Eye Clear?

I love that above passage because it sums up the fall of humanity. When we try to fill our lives with anything other than God, we will always be empty. We were made to display God's glory. Anything less than that will leave us feeling hopeless and miserable.

To summarize this post, God has given us so many treasures throughtout this day and our lives. It is our job to choose what we are going to treasure and where our desires will be each day.

Are you choosing to store your treasure in heaven?

Fixing my eyes on the prize -Jesus

"When things don't go as you would like, accept the situation immediately. If you indulge in feelings of regret, they can easily spill over the line into resentment. remember that I am sovereign over your circumstances, and humble yourself under My mighty hand. rejoice in what I am doing in your life,even though it is beyond your understanding. I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. In Me you have everything you need, both for this life and for the life yet to come. Don't let the impact of the world shatter your thinking or draw you away from focusing on Me. The ultimate challenge is to keep fixing your eyes on Me, no matter what is going on around you. When I am central in your thinking, you are able to view your circumstances from My perspective." - Jesus Calling

I decided to take my journey that I've been experiencing out of my journal and into the internet.  The above passage is from my devotional book, Jesus Calling: Enjoying Peace in His Presence. Go get a copy RIGHT NOW! It will change your life. Seriously. But what Ive been learning about is the practice of fixing my eyes on Jesus. Everytime I start thinking about my past or worrying about my circumstances, that's when I start to slip up. God has given me this moment. That's all I am guaranteed. If I am constantly stressing about things that are out of my control I am going to miss out on His presence in the present.

David understood this concept. Psalm 27:4 says, "One thing I ask of the Lord, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life." David's primary goal he was seeking was to dwell in the house of the Lord. Now by "house of the Lord" you may think of a church, but I believe that David was using an analogy to describe being in God's presence, the place where He lives all the days of his life.

That should be our goal: dwelling in the presence of God daily, hourly, moment by moment.

Do you want to experience the abundant life that Jesus promises? Then enjoy His presence in the present.

"My presence will go with you. I'll see the journey to the end." - Exodus 33:14