Proverbs

My schedule just keeps going and going and going and going and going....  I finish one assignment and there is another.  I finish a workout and I still need to do more.  But sometimes it's important to slow down, and take a break. 

That being said, today, rather than tell you a story about my life, or whatever, I'm going to tell you to read the 27th Proverb.  Why the 27th?  Because today is the 27th of February.  Most months if you read a proverb a day, you finish the book in one month.  It's packed full of wisdom.  Way more wisdom than I will ever be able to write here.

If you need me, I'll be in my hammock, reading Proverbs!

True or False?

Teachers oftentimes quiz us with true and false questions.   How do you tell if something is true or false?  Most often, you have to know the true statement in order to recognize that something is false. When I study for a test and I'm looking over true and false worksheets I don't spend very much time on the false ones. Why? Because it is the true statements that I need to know!  When a person is trained to find false money, they first count real money.  They sit in a room and count real money.  The person is then placed somewhere that false money is likely to appear.  When they are handed false money, they immediately know that it is fake! They might not know why, but they know that something about it is wrong.

In the same way we need to study God's Word, so that when something comes along that is incorrect, we know that something is wrong.  We should also memorize scripture.  Jesus responded with scripture when He was tempted by the devil.  The devil proceeded to leave him alone!  The importance of studying scripture is unmeasurable! Study scripture, learn scripture, memorize scripture!

Jesus answered, "It is written: 'Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.' 

Mathew 4:4 

Thanks to my friend Ashleigh for the metaphor about false money for this blog!

New Life

It's 11:15 on Friday night!  AAAHH!  It's Friday night!  I haven't blogged yet!  I will just give you a quick summary of today:  I woke up late because I had a two hour delay, gave blood for the first time, went to a family fun night, and I have another college visit scheduled for tomorrow

 The two hour delay was fantastic, because I had stayed up late last night studying for a Chemistry test.  The Family Fun Night was a blast, I played a little bit of volleyball and swam in the school's pool for a good amount of time.  I'm most definitely looking forward to the college visit to Indiana Wesleyan University.

Giving blood was a good experience, which I would highly recommend you do.  It's an easy, free way to help people.  In giving blood you give life to another, just as Jesus gave you new life through His blood.  He died for you, and in the spilling of His blood, it gave you the ability to have a new life!

I answered, "Sir, you know." And he said, "These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. 

Revelation 7:14

Christ has given you new life through his blood.  You have been washed clean.  You're a new creation!

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!

2 Corinthians 5:17

Don't let your old habits bog you down.  Don't hold on to them.  Give them up, so that the whole world can see that there is something different.  I've heard this illustrated in many different ways a couple of them are:

1.  Bugs: Some insects go through partial transformation while others go through complete transformation (metamorphosis?).  A cockroach goes through partial transformation, while a butterfly goes through complete transformation.  You want to be like a butterfly, going through complete transformation, not like a cockroach, only partly transforming.

2.  Vines:  Picture Tarzan swing through the jungle by grasping different vines.  Picture him trying to do this if he didn't let go of the previous one.  If you don't let go of the old vine, you can't go anywhere.  You're stuck.  You just hang there, no super obnoxious yells, and no hair flying in the wind.  You won't go anywhere if you don't let go of the old vines and trust in the new. 

It's now 11:30, and this blog doesn't flow as well as it should, but it's still Friday!

Plans

On Monday I went on my first college visit and it was pretty nice.  I was able to sit in on a class and eat lunch there.  It was a very good use of my day and will hopefully better enable me to choose where I would like to spend the next four years of my life after high school.  I come from a relatively small community, and would like to have smaller classes in college, so I'm trying to find a private school where I will be fully equipped to attend medical school after I graduate.

I'm not sure how it will all work out, but I know it will, because it is all in God's hands.  He has the power to take care of everything, to open doors that I can't open, and to prepare me for HUGE things.  I believe that He has huge plans for everyone.  He tells us this in Jeremiah 29:11. (I know I've already used this verse, but it is one of my favorites.)

For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. 

Jeremiah 29:11

I think that this is a very important fact to remember as we all go through life.  At my age, it might be about college, or whatever you want to do with your life after high school.  It might have to do with whether of not you're going to start a family or get married.  This verse is applicable to everyone.  This verse is applicable at all times, for any storm or trial your going through.  God does not test you.  He let's you be tested, by the devil.  God knows that you can make it and He won't let you be tested more than you can handle.  He'll get you through it, and when the storm is over and you look at the debris and rebuild, you'll rebuild stronger.  You'll come out of the test stronger than when you went in, because God doesn't doesn't let you be tested for no reason, He let's you be tested so that you can praise Him in the storm.

I lift up my eyes to the hills-- where does my help come from?  My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth.  He will not let your foot slip-- he who watches over you will not slumber;  indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.  The LORD watches over you-- the LORD is your shade at your right hand;  the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night.  The LORD will keep you from all harm-- he will watch over your life;  the LORD will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.

Psalm 121:1-8 (NIV)

I had this written on Wednesday, but I forgot to post!  Sorry!  Here it is now!

Useless?

My dad is back from Alabama, and his birthday is this coming Saturday.  He is the youth pastor at the church that my family attends, and I wanted to have the youth group do something special for him.  At first I was going to have the kids fill his office with balloons, but then it occurred to me that more people than just him go in and out of the office, so I talked to my mom, and we decided that we would fill his Volkswagen bug instead. 

Last week, on Sunday I handed each of the kids a bag of balloons, with a sheet informing them about what was going on.  They all agreed that it would be a good surprise, and we would fill his car with balloons the next Sunday. (yesterday)

This means that yesterday, I got to youth group early and sat outside reading a book (I oftentimes sneak off before youth group starts to read, so my dad didn't suspect anything.).  As people arrived, I had them sign a birthday card for my dad, and insert their balloons into the car.  Everything went smoothly and the car was quite full of balloons by the time it was 6:00 and it was time for youth group to start.

When my dad saw the balloons he laughed and climbed in to get the promised surprise that was in the car underneath the balloons!  I think he was pretty happy when he saw the container of cupcakes and the gift that waited for him under all of the balloons.

This whole excursion got me thinking.  Balloons can be fun, but they're not good for much.  I mean, sure you can play some fun games with them, and decorate rooms quickly and cheaply with balloons, but afterwards you just have a piece of rubber filled with air.  In a week or two the balloons will no longer look pretty, they'll just be gross, damp pieces of rubber in a plastic bag.  This reminds me of many things.  You might enjoy shopping, but in the end, all you have is an overflowing closet.  You can watch a movie and get a good laugh or a good cry (yes, boys, good cries do exist), but in the end, all you've done is sit for an hour and a half.  You can go jogging and keep your body fit, but in the end, you're still going to die.  You can have hundreds of friends, but someday you'll have to say goodbye to them.  I'm not saying (or typing) all of this to be a huge depressing cloud of doom.  I'm not trying to be as negative as possible.  I'm not saying that everything in this world is pointless, because it's not.  What I would like to point out is, there is only 1 thing that has a purpose, one thing that really will last forever.  For an eternity.  God. God's Word.  When I do things to please Him, I'm storing treasures up in heaven.  If I go on a jog because my body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, then I'm storing up treasures in heaven.  If I have friends to have Christian fellowship, or to teach people about Christ, than I'm storing up treasures in heaven.

I guess what I'm trying to say, is that it's not what you say that defines you.  It's not what you do that defines you.  It is why you do what you do that defines you.  What is the purpose behind your actions?  I try to do my best in school, not because I want to impress my teachers, or because I want to show off good grades, but because I want to become the best person possible so that I can glorify God.  If the purpose of what your trying to do isn't to glorify God, than why are you doing it?

I have found that when I do something because it's fun, or because I enjoy it, I still feel empty inside.  When I do things for God's glory, it takes on a whole new meaning.  It doesn't matter how well I do or how poorly I do, it matters that others see that there is something different.  I heard someone say something once and it really stuck with me.  He said, "If you're a follower of Christ, and you hang out with someone for a day and they don't notice a difference between you and the rest of the world, you're doing it wrong."  Wow!  Can people see a difference in the way I talk from a non-believer?  In the music that I listen to?  In the way I dress?  In my attitude towards others? Towards teachers? Towards coaches? Towards my parents?  I don't know, but I most definitely hope that they can!

The book of Ecclesiastes begins by saying, 

"The teacher says, 'Useless! Useless! Completely useless!  Everything is useless.'  What do people really gain from all the hard work they do here on earth?"

Ecclesiastes 1:2-3

By the end of the book the writer comes to this conclusion:

Now, everything has been heard, so I give my final advise: Honor God and obey his commands, because this is all people must do.

Ecclesiastes 12:13

I think that that is a pretty good advice.  Each day, I try to glorify God, and I hope you will too.

Kids

I love kids.  I enjoy working with them and playing with them.  At my school I am a peer tutor, which basically means that I help an elementary kid with his schoolwork once a day.  This past week has been rather rough in working with him.  I do my best to be patient, but these past couple of days he has just been very unfocused and uncaring.  There is only so much that I can do to help a child who does not want to learn.  You can point to the worksheet, you can talk to him, you can try to coax it out of him, but if he doesn't want to do his work, then there is absolutely nothing that I can do.  Personally, I find this aspect of peer tutoring very frustrating.  It's sad to me, to think about how much potential a child might have, but they waste it.   How can I make a child have a passion for learning?  How can I make a student care about his grades?

Honestly, I don't know the answer to that, but if I feel that disappointed with a student when he has given up, how does God feel when we give up? He tries to convict us, He points to things that should be fixed in our lives, and we just shrug our shoulders and say, "Whatever." 

I am in a constant battle to do what God desires for me, and sometimes that is painful.   Jeremiah 29:11 tells me that God has plans for me, and that his plans will not harm me.  This verse does not say it won't be hard.  The verse says that God will not harm me. 

I will trust God, even if that means I have to push through some pain.  In a physical sense, your muscles grow sore as you work out.  Eventually they grow, but there is pain involved.  I have to trust that the pain that I endure while I try to chisel things out of my life that are unholy, will build perseverance, and that perseverance will make me stronger and more complete. (James 1:2-4)

Stories

I told myself that I was going to blog 3 times a week.  Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.  I let Monday go because I posted on Sunday, but now it is Wednesday night, I have homework I need to do, and I really don't think I have time to say anything, but I will:
I will tell you a quick little story.  My dad is in Alabama this week, and tomorrow is Valentines day.  My dad told me to pick up a balloon that was at a friend's house and give it to my mom on Thursday. On Tuesday night,  I was going to do just that, until I walked out of the door of the friend's house and the balloon broke off of the string and flew into a tree across the street.  :(
I then proceeded to drive home in the monster of a truck that I had snuck out in(I had snuck out so that I could surprise my mom with the balloon that was now stuck in a tree). 
As I drove home I decided I could still buy her a balloon and surprise her, which meant the truck had to be parked the same way it had when I took it.  It had been backed in.  I began to back the truck in the driveway and heard a crunch.  That is when I realized that there was a mini light pole right next to our driveway.  It was now at a very acute angle with the ground.
A fedex driver had observed the whole thing and then came up to my truck and said, "Don't back up any  farther, you just hit a pole."  all I could think was, no dip Sherlock!  But I just nodded my head, trying not to bite his head off, because I try to avoid that sort of thing.  He then proceeded to tell me he had a package for a Tim.  I told him that Tim did not live on our street. Tim has never lived on this street.  Tim lives across town on a street whose name is very similar to this street's name.  (This is not the first time we have gotten Tim's mail.)  The fedex man asked if he could leave me the package to get to Tim.  I couldn't believe it!! I told the fedex man "no" and told him where I thought the other street was.  I then parked the truck to the best of my ability, which meant that it was still in the yard, and called my mom to explain the whole situation. 
My mom told me today that she has decided that God must not want her to have things, He must want her to have stories!

In this materialistic world I think that this is very good advice.  Stories can be tears.  Stories can bring smiles. Stories can bring laughter.  It is much more powerful to create stories than to have things.  Stories last much longer, and in my mind, they are much more valuable.

The Beginning

This is the beginning.  No, not the beginning of a life, but the beginning of a journey. My journey.  I'm not sure where this journey is taking me.  But I don't think it's about the destination.  I think it's about the experience.  This journey is the journey of a lifetime.  My lifetime.  I don't know if this blog will be interesting enough to catch anyone's attention.  I do know that even though I said that this is MY journey, it's not just about me.  It's about everyone I come in contact with, because everyone's journey is interwoven.  It's about God.  It's about my relationship with Him.  Right now, this late at night, on a Sunday I think that this is all I want to say.  After all, this is just the beginning.