Misery Loves Company

I feel like that saying "misery loves company" hits it right on the spot. Why is when you are not miserable you don't want to be miserable but when you are miserable you not only want to stay miserable but have anyone and everyone around you be miserable. Not that I am miserable at all, do not misinterpret me but I have seen so many attempts of miserable people try to bring me and others into their miserable circle. The sad part is that these miserable people call themselves Christians. Christian is a hard term to define and a hard life to live. I love Jesus and truly believe in Him but I also believe I am a sucky follower. One of the main reasons that many people turn to God is to leave their miserable lives and live a happy and joyfully blessed life. As nice as that sounds, not even the Christian life is all flowers and perfume, but the Christian afterlife is.

I guess the main reason I am writing this blog is because I'm being real and I'm upset. Never do I stay upset, I always find a positive side and never are my thoughts this absolutely random but I just write them as they come. I guess I can say I'm fed up with the world (but who isn't?). I'm fed up with negative people throwing grenades. I'm fed up with everyone thinking they figured out life and how to live it accordingly to the way they lived it. I'm fed up with miserable people thinking they are miserable or everything is miserable. If I honestly wanted to, I could list reason after reason of why I should be miserable but I don't because that is stupid and untrue. I believe that Jesus knows the way and even though sometimes I'm running off His path getting caught up with life I believe He stills keeps His eyes on me and His arms around me unlike the world thinks. I believe He does this with everyone, even the miserable people.

I guarantee you no human will tell you better than Jesus does. Not your best friend, co-worker, boss, brother, sister or even your parents. I figured out not to live life according to how people tell you to live it because Jesus wants you to live life the way HE wants you to live it. You will never please everyone and it's a fault to try to. If you please your brother maybe your sister will get upset you didn't do it her way. If you do it the way your father says then mother is upset at both of you for choosing this way. I'm not bound to this world and basically I'm only her on a temporary visa. My home is with God. I pray to Him for all things and you are in no position to judge or explain to step by step life.

Let the Lord guide you and I together but in whatever ways He wants.

Run Soul Run

"And the Lord said to Satan, From where did you come? Then Satan answered the Lord, From going to and fro on the earth and from walking up and down on it." - Job 1:7

As I lay in my bed surrounded by only pitch black, the only glare of light is the beaming white from my phone where I read the text of Job 1:7. It was late and inconvenient but I was told to re-read the story of Job. It was in my gut. It's been a while since I read Job. I came across Job 1:7 and I stopped right there. Not because I was sick of reading but because I needed to stop and ponder. Right before whipping out my phone in the pitch black of my room to read some scripture I had spent a good 3 hours recording a song I had recently written about fleeing from the devil. Why would I write a song about fleeing from the devil instead of writing a song about taking him on head to head? Wouldn't that be more awesome!? In a song, yes. In real life, no.

As life becomes more and more clear to me I start to understand what it means to flee from the devil. It means getting to live a life with God, not just saying you do. It means I don't have to be a footstool for the Devil and his sinful ways anymore. It means I can stop being on the losing side and being on the winning side.

Many of us have dropped the question "How borderline can we be with God to be saved but still live the life we want?"

Does that make any sense?! Maybe a few years ago but not anymore. I got to thinking, if I am not running away from the devil then I'm running away from God. In life you are not still. You are constantly moving, progressing, stepping forward, taking on new challenges, but in which direction? Are you taking on challenges running with God or running away from God? Running with the devil or running away from the devil?

In Job 1:7, the devil said he walked up and down the earth, all around it and I honestly believe he is still walking up and down the earth every single day. Tempting us with his sin that appeals as eye candy but is rotting our soul. I can't stand the devil! Why? Because sometimes he actually gets me. Is it the devil I can't stand or is it myself I can't stand for falling for his sly tricks? Probably both. All I know is I can't do it by myself. I'm trying to run a marathon with the devil when the audience keeps handing me living water.

Are you running with the devil too? it's okay, everybody has. I'm going to flee. Call me wuss, panzy(which is actually a delightful flower) or just plain scared but honestly I'm not scared at all, because I know I'm not alone this time and never again will I be alone.

Satan is like my room, pitch black surrounding all areas. Jesus is like the white beam coming from my phone. Dim at first but more than enough to take away all fear.

Bring it on satan, cause I'm running this time.

"So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." - James 4:7

A Sprinkle of Salt

"You are the salt and light of the earth.." - Matthew 5:13

Just a couple days ago we were having an ordinary day at the car wash. When you see a hundred different people every day you really experience some real "characters". About mid-day, an elder man came in to the wash happier than ever. He introduced himself as David with a big smile on his face and an arm reached out to shake mine. He politely asked for my name and made it very noticeable that he is having a magnificent day. Out of all the hundreds of people that I have seen come in and out of that wash, I never saw anyone any more happy than I saw Mr. David that day. He got his wash, smiled and waved at us and said "God is good" to us.

What Mr. David just did right there was sprinkle a little salt in all of our lives. Salt makes you thirsty right? Mr. David came in with such joy that it left most of us curious why this man is so happy. The only clue he left us to his happiness is that God is good. That is all he needed to say. He didn't come in and try to preach the Gospel to everyone he saw and He didn't try to explain the amazing works God is doing in his life. Granted, neither of those are bad things at all but in a situation like that all he really needed to do is exactly what he did. Mr. David didn't come in and dump salt on us, all he did was sprinkle just a little bit leaving us thirsty for what he had.

When I go out into the world I want to stand out like Mr. David. I want to sprinkle salt all around so thirsty people will come and drink of water that forever quenches. It is hard to be different from the world when your flesh desires the pleasures of the world but it is worth it to take the step towards light, sprinkle some salt and forever be thirsty no more.

The Time We Spend

"To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven.
A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to reap that which is planted.
A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;
A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to to mourn, and a time to dance.
A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing.
A time to get and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence and a time to speak;
A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace."

-Ecclesiastes 3: 1-8

Time is something we will never understand but something we should strive to manage. I'm writing this blog because I suck at time management and I know it. You always hear people say "I wish I had all the time in the world". We all want enough time to work, read, go to the movies, play music, be with our significant other, relax, etc. We can only wish. Since we don't have all the time in the world, how you spend your time really shows your priorities. It is easier to come home after working all day to sit down and watch hours of The Office and eating hot cheetos, believe me I know. But how far will that get me?

I know God wants me to use more of my time wisely for Him and spend it with Him. I can't tell God that I love Him and then never want to spend time in His word and singing worship. No one just automatically loves God because He is God. You have to spend time and develop a relationship with God just like you have to do with everyone else. I don't think I am the only person that God wants more of my time. I am sure there are others that God is itching to spend time with. The thing with God is though it is not that He feels obligated to spend time with you and He would feel bad if He didn't. It is that he genuinely loves you and wants to build a relationship with you. Some people will read this and feel guilty about not spending enough time then they will read some Bible chapters, say a prayer and get on with your day. That is not what I am talking about. I don't want you to feel guilty and make you spend time with God. I want you to WANT to spend time with God. I want to want to spend time with God.

It is easy to say but harder to do. We can spend all day planning on how to make our days earthly productive by going to the pool, watching the latest movies and jamming to the latest tunes. I am not saying that any of these are bad in any such way, I am just saying don't let the time fly and forget to spend time with who should really be your best friend. I am going to try to take some time today and really strive for more. I hope you do the same.

There Is Something About Writing

There is something about writing that makes it different. Maybe it is the fact that you can write anything at anytime to anyone. When you are writing you don't have to hold back what you really mean, you can really say it. You can say it in as many sentences as you want with as many exclamation points as you want. Maybe it sticks out because the computer doesn't judge what you type or the paper doesn't laugh at what you write. And probably the best part about writing is that you can check over every word you say before you hit submit. You can act however you want to act, sound how smart you want to sound or talk the way you want to talk.

I started this blog a couple years ago because my head was filled with tons of thoughts and encouragement I wanted/want to spread. Through out these years I have been through my highest ups and my lowest downs. I have climbed to the top of the mountain and crumbled right back down to the bottom but I never stopped writing. I never stopped doing what I thought I should do. This blog never once said "Alin, you sinned way too much today, you are not allowed to write anymore". In no way was my own strength and attitude enough to keep me writing but the strength of God in me that encouraged me to get back up. It was His Word that came into my life that changed everything about it. It was not the fifty hour work weeks that kept me writing. It was not the arguing downstairs that kept me writing. It was not the punches from friends and family that kept me writing. It is mere strength, strength from God.

I honestly don't believe God called me to be a writer but I will take advantage of this nifty thing called the internet. I will not stop writing. I pray that the words of encouragement written on this blog are God's words through me. Amen.

Communication

Communication is known as one of the most essential elements to a humans life. Why do you think Facebook is infiltrated with countless numbers of people trying to stay in contact with the world? Nobody wants to fall off the map of communication. We are all talking, texting, messaging, calling people every single day. The words that come out of our mouths affect each and every person around you.

After working at a car wash for a short amount of time, I quickly realized how communication affects everything. When I have a smile on and a hop in my step, people will communicate back with a positive attitude. If I am tired and just have a bad attitude, looks like I'm not going home with much money that day. If communication affects my work life, won't it affect my Christian life? Absolutely!

The way I decide to talk to people and handle the way they talk to me is huge. I recently ventured upon a situation to where somebody was talking to a close friend of mine and about some life decisions and situations, it seemed as though the person meant very well for my friend but from my point of view, this person came off with bad communication. I later talked to my friend about and he explained that the way the person talked to him was a complete turnoff and not helpful at all BECAUSE the communication was bad.

You could be giving advice to Christians, helping non-Christians, texting a friend, selling at work for commission, or just talking to a family member. If your communication is off, then everything else will be off as well. Don't let your conversations go to waste. Just with a simple step up in your attitude you'll go more than miles in life.

A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger -Proverbs 15:1

Prayer:
Father, may we look to our words before we use them. May we change our heart, so that our attitudes portrayed may change. Let us be helpful, not hurtful. Let us communicate with purpose.

Are you content with your life

"Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord." - Romans 12:11

I've heard and seen of many people who are perfectly content with their life and what they have. I have also heard and seen of many people who are always wanting more and more. More money, more cars, more electronics, more facebook friends. How about more God? How about more blessings? How about more scripture?

I DON'T want to be content with my life nor do I want to be chasing after items. If I chase after God, the blessings will chase me! I believe God has something big in store for each of us, I honestly do. Because of this, I'm not going to be content with just being a day to day Christian that gets day to day blessings to make it by. I want God to truly bless me! I want Him to lavish things upon me that I would never dream to ask for. And whatever God pours upon me I want to pour it back upon Him. Is it wrong that I want God to bless me in extravagant ways? Absolutely not! God is a God of blessings. He wants to bless in the most amazing way possible but we just make it so incredibly hard for Him to bless us because were too worried trying to get our own worldly blessings. Were to busy saving up for that car or spending time at the movies enjoying our own time that we lost track of where our time and money needs to be. When I start directing every area of my life towards God, He is going to start directing blessings into every area of my life.

Don't be ashamed to ask God to bless you.

"Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you." - Matthew 7:7

For the past couple months I have been asking God to always bless me with the bare minimum to get by. It is time I start asking God for some real blessings. It is time I start praising God in some serious ways. It is time I take my relationship with God to the next level. I no longer want to be content with everything in my life. I want more of God. I guarantee you you want more too! Please don't miss out on amazing extravagant opportunities and blessings from God.

The Roots of Your Heart

"But each of you had better tremble and turn from your sins. Silently search your heart as you lie in bed." -Psalm 4:4

How many have you said "That wasn't like me to say" or "That was definitely out of the ordinary coming from me"? We have moments in this way where we have acted "out of the ordinary" or said something that we did not filter before it came out of our mouth. Each of us have a beating heart that is deeper than we think. That goes deeper than our mind. Many times we use our minds to filter out our actions or our words so the people around us don't really notice what our heart is really like. Sometimes we tend to explode out of nowhere and use the phrases "that wasn't like me".

When our true heart shows how do we react? Do we just cut off the branches or do we go deep to the roots? 99% guaranteed just cut off the branches. I'm guilty of it, your guilty of it. If our true heart shows we swear that we will never act that way again. And we mean it. Then we repeat our mistake. You can't approach your heart and your life with just cutting off the branches and leaving the roots. We must dig deep and realize what is deep inside our heart that is slowly making it rot. We must admit that we have heart problems, even if it doesn't seem like it we do, and cut away the roots. It's time to pull out the tree and throw it away. Let God plant the seeds of your heart this time and let His seeds grow. Forget your old ways. Be done with them. Be done with the controlling, the swearing, the rudeness, the foul mouth, the sexual desires, the lies.

I have a hunger to change and I pray that God puts this hunger in each and every person because the only way to change is to indulge in that hunger for Christ. Fill your heart with His Word and He will plant beautiful seeds that will grow and flourish. Let Christ's heart be your heart.

Putting On The New You

"... you have put off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self.." -Colossians 3: 9-10

When I became a Christian I was always taught that my life was about to change drastically. My actions would change, my words would change and my heart would beat a different beat. This is all by far extremely truthful and accurate. I did change drastically but in no way shape or form is changing easy. Putting on the new self and putting away the old self and your old fleshly desires is definitely a process. A never ending process to be more specific. We will never reach the state of perfection but we should always strive to become better for the Glory of God. Now that we are the body of Christ we have to represent in the most honorable fashion. When you become a Christian, unlike the rumors, you will not automatically become a great loving person. It takes time and true effort. I have been a follower of Christ for about five years now and it has never been harder. I am constantly messing up. I could always be giving more time to the Lord and reading His word. I am always looking out for ways to benefit me rather than God.

No matter what you hear, say or think, no one is a good person compared to Christ but do not let that get you down! It is time we look at what we can do to really make big changes. I am going to write out a list of qualities that we need to remove and a list of qualities that we need to put on. I am striving to work on this list myself and am examining myself constantly.

QUALITIES WE NEED TO REMOVE:
-Sexual Immorality
-Impurity
-Passion
-Evil Desire
-Covetousness
-Anger
-Wrath
-Malice
-Slander
-Obscene Talk from your Mouth

QUALITIES WE NEED TO PUT ON:
-Compassionate Hearts
-Kindness
-Humility
-Meekness
-Patience
-Bearing with one another
-Forgiveness
-LOVE!!

*Colossians 3

Take a look at this list constantly to examine yourself, as I will do with same. Stay in constant prayer and I know the Lord will change our hearts!

God Wants His Money Back

"Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the LORD Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it.”

- Malachi 3:10

Tithing has always been one of those topics that whenever I hear it come up in church the first thought that comes to my head is "The pastor just wants more money from us" Ha ha. Now in some cases that is probably true, unfortunately, but in other cases I do not think so. The verse up above clearly explains that you can NOT out-bless God. No matter how much you put in that bowl on Sundays, how much you give you the homeless or how many sacks of clothes you give away. God will ALWAYS out-bless you!

How do I know God will always out-bless me? He says "Test me in this". Put Him to the test. Put some more money in that bowl, put some more clothes in that sack. The Lord will put more money in your bank account and put more clothes on your back. What do we do with the extravagant amount of blessings the Lord is bestowing upon us? Give them back :)

The more you give back to God, what you do for a brother you do for the Lord, the more He gives back to you. It is a beautiful cycle that has never failed. When we start trusting God with our money, there will be no where else in our lives to where we don't trust God and that I can guarantee. We are so clinched to our money living in a consumer based society that we always feel like we just need more and more. The thought of giving to God seems outrageous because "we need it more than God". God does not need a dime from you, that is why He gives it back! But by giving to the Lord, not only do you give your money, but you give Him trust.

LAST OFFICIAL FRIDAY FIVE!! CONGRATS SENIORS!

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HAPPY FRIDAY EVERYONE! ENJOY!

TO EVERETT & EVERYONE IN BIBLE CLASS:

I WILL GREATLY MISS YOU ALL AND ALL THE GREAT MEMORIES, I LOVE YOU ALL!!
=]

It Is Time For A Heart Transplant

"The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is? But I, the Lord, search all hearts and examine secret motives. I give all people their due rewards, according to what their actions deserve.”
- Jeremiah 17:9-10(NLT)


There's not much to say after reading a verse like that. You can't say much after this verse because you are sitting in silence examining your heart. Or at least that is exactly what I did and am still doing. "The human heart is the most deceitful of all things.." Wow. To think that supposedly the most important organ in our body is the most deceitful and desperately wicked. It is true though. Our hearts crave the sins of this world. Our hearts want what it should not have. Our hearts hurt more than it helps. The more our hearts indulge in the sins of this world the faster it will die. Our hearts are stone.

I do not want to take my heart of stone and polish it up, make it look nice and stick it back in. I want this evil heart gone. I was my sins gone. I want purity. I need a heart transplant.

“For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life." - John 3:16(NLT)

The Lord our God sent His one and only son to die for us so that His heart will be available for us. Since Christ died, His heart can now be transplanted into our bodies. We can throw away our old hearts and live to the new rhythm that our new heart beats. No more living according to our old ways, we are putting on a new self with a new heart!

"You were dead because of your sins and because your sinful nature was not yet cut away. Then God made you alive with Christ, for he forgave all our sins." - Colossians 2:13(NLT)

Amazing Grace

"For it is by GRACE you have been saved through faith. This is not your own doing; it is the Gift of God" - Ephesians 2:8(ESV, Caps me)

We have all sung the melody to that song at least 753 times in our life time. Christian, Non Christian, Black, White, Gay, Straight. Whoever you are, you know the melody and words to that song. Almost every time that songs comes up on my iPod I usually skip to another song just because I have heard it so many times that that melody is no longer as appealing. It is not the melody that gets me anymore. It is what is behind it. Grace. Amazing grace.Take a look at what grace actually is.

Grace is God giving His one and only son to save a bunch of washed up sinners.
Grace is God answering prayers that don't deserve to be answered.
Grace is receiving the strength we didn't have to make it through the day.
Grace is having friends and family that we take for granted.
Grace is our sins wiped away for eternity.
Grace is the ability to read and write.
Grace is Love.

When you think about God's many acts of grace and how truly amazing it is, it is unfathomable. He loves us more than we could ever love Him. Take a glance at your life and I guarantee you you will be able to count more blessings gotten from God than blessings given to God. This is something we can work on. Even though we will never be able to be more graceful or giving than God, we can always strive to be like God. Let God's grace inspire us to have more graceful and giving hearts.


"For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only son that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life" - John 3:16

Why is John 3:16 the most famous verse in the entire Bible?
Because that grace that is expressed in that one verse is enough to render our minds wild. We can't process such love, mercy and grace.

At this moment, bow your head in silence and just ponder His grace. Where ever you are just for a minute. Then give thanks to the Lord, for He is Good.

This is Not Your Fight!

"Do not say 'I will repay evil'; wait for the Lord, and He will deliver you" - Proverbs 20:22

Buried in the book of Proverbs surrounded with famous verses and words of wisdom I came across this verse and just had to stop. Solomon does not want us to have any sort of animosity towards anyone for any reason. He wants us to wait. Wait for the Lord almighty. Why are we waiting? Why are we not mapping out blue prints of a destructive plan to annihilate those who have done wrong to us?

Because it is not worth it.

We do not need to chase those who have done wrong to us or to the people around us. We do not need to scheme a plan of how to send a group of samurai ninjas to steal their bed sheets. We don't need to spend time worrying about avoidable worries. The Lord WILL deliver you. That's powerful right there. The creator of this universe is going to deliver from any pain caused to you, any wrong done to you. As you read this I guarantee you are thinking of people in your life who are affecting you or have affected you in a negative way. Revenge is like a lemon, it looks sweet but tastes bitter. Put your evil plans away. Tuck your worries down the drain. Take a minute and look to your savior and say thank you. Thank you for fighting for me. Thank you for delivering me. Thank you for taking caring of me and watching over someone as small as me.

"The LORD will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.” - Exodus 14:14

Today quiet yourself. Do not try to repay anyone back for what they have done to you or what they have been doing. Forgive them and let the Lord handle any fight, battle, quarry, anything! Who better to have by your side than the creator of each and every person? =]

Move on Forward

"Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it on my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead" - Philippians 3:13


All day you could surround yourself with thoughts of what happened in the past and how it affects you now but you need to be surrounding yourself with thoughts of how your present is going to affect your future. Just like Paul said, do NOT get caught up in what lies behind. That is over, it is finished. Move forward in life. Take one day at a time and walk with the Lord. Pray that you are walking His path and His plans will go accordingly.

Move forward. Don't stop to think about the past.

Your Loss is Gain in Christ

"Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For His sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God depends on faith" - Philippians 3:8-9

If all I posted for the blog was just those two verses that would be enough. I need say no more, Paul said it perfectly. But I shall share my thoughts anyway because they are in my head and if I leave them there it will make my head bigger which won't bode well with my buzz cut so I must write them down.

Basically, the first thing Paul tells us that losing everything is beyond worth it to know Christ. That concept alone will stump us nowadays. Were so addicted to our televisions, video games and text messaging that we can't even give more than ten minutes of our precious time to reading the scriptures. This is the most selfish act we could possibly pull. All we do is satisfy ourselves with all the self entertainment and showing but where does God come in the picture? Paul considers everything he gave up RUBBISH in order that he may gain Christ. That means he no longer cares for what he had before because it is not nearly as good as what he has now.

Towards the end of the verse, Paul hits righteousness through faith in Christ. Think about that for a second. Being right according to Christ not according to societies standards. If we start living our lives according to what other people think is right instead of what the Bible says is right, we are going to miss out on the most incredible blessings! And I guarantee you the blessings are more incredible than whatever game you're playing or whatever movie you're watching.

Let us take a second and examine the usage of our time. What all do you do in one day? How much of that is for Christ? How much of it is for yourself? Are thing some things you need to give up? How willing are you to give them up?

Let's continue in prayer and pray about how we use our time. Pray not only for yourself but for others close to you as well.

Who Are You Trying to Please?

"Obviously, I'm not trying to win the approval of people, but of God. If pleasing people were my goal, I would not be Christ's servant" - Galatians 1:10(NLT)

So many times we are caught in trying to the win approval of people that we forget that that is not what really matters. If you really think about it, to please everyone around you would be impossible. Why do you dress the way you do? Why do you go where you go? How do you spend your free time the way you do? If you're dressing the way you do because everyone around you thinks it's cool, maybe it's time you double check your wardrobe. If you're going to a certain church only because that is where your parents want you to be yet you feel more comfortable and connected to a different church, check your priorities one more time. If you are spending all your time trying to figure out how to make everyone in your life happy, let me let you in on a secret.. that's not your job! We are not People-Pleasers, We are God-Pleasers!

Your job is to bring joy to the heart of the one who created you. Follow in His guidance and I guarantee you everything else will fall into place. God never created you to please everyone around you. You have no obligation of living up to people's standards but only living up to God's standards. When you are right with God you are not with the world. Remember, not everyone will be happy with what job you have, who you date, what music you listen to.. that's okay! The Lord created us to be His sons and daughters which means He is our Father. Set your goals, standards and way of living according to God's Word and the life of Jesus Christ.

Pray constantly and know that when you're in the right with God, your living the way He intended it.

I'm a Christian

"Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ" - Philippians 1:27

I bet I can guess a few of the thoughts that came into your head when you read the title.

"I'm a Christian too, a lot of people are"

"How does that make you different?"

"Obviously you're a Christian! You have a blog with words that say Jesus every once in a while"

Nowadays, it's so hard to tell who is actually a follower of Christ and who just says they are a Christian so they can have some sort of religious background or because mom and dad said so. It's so easy to say you're a Christian, so incredibly easy. What is not easy is to show you are a Christian instead of just saying it. I don't even like using the word "Christian" anymore because our generation has killed that word. It means nothing anymore. It has no value and it proves no difference between people who believe in Jesus Christ and follow His way and people don't believe in Jesus Christ. 76% of Americans consider themselves Christian. Going to church Sunday mornings won't save you. Mumbling a half asleep prayer while in bed at night won't be heard. Going on youth group trips to Six Flags every summer won't clear your conscience.

In today's day and time, I don't want to be a Christian. I don't want to pray prayers that won't be heard. I don't want to go to church services that mean nothing to me. I don't want to spend 5 minutes a day reading the Word of God. I WANT TO BE A FOLLOWER OF CHRIST! Don't you? Don't you want to pray with all your heart and soul? Don't you want to love because Christ loved first? Don't you want to spend more time in the Word because that is where ALL the answers are? Don't you want to be a fishermen of men and bring people to Christ so Christ can bring them salvation?

Let our behavior and activities be worthy of the gospel! Let us show love to the world even when we don't want to. Let us coat ourselves with Christ's attitude and let our heart beat and be consumed by his fire.

Let's not just be Christians, let us be Followers of Christ.

Christ's Attitude in Us

"Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience" - Colossians 3:12

Every morning when I wake up the first thing I pray is that today is not a day for Alin to live but a day for God to live through Alin. I pray that my attitude will die and Christ's attitude will live through me everyday. I see this as so crucial and as a topic that is not talked about as much as it should be. We should be constantly reminded of our attitudes and how it not only affects us but it affects those around us just as much. Usually when we are surrounded with people that are showing positive Christly attitudes, that will bring out the bright positive attitude out of you!

How else do we obtain this attitude? The best 100% guaranteed way that your attitude will change is by reading the Scripture. The more you dive into God's word the more your attitude will become like God's.

Everyone of us has those negative nancy's in our lives that just never seem to be happy, never seemed to be pleased with life. This could be your co-worker, boss, somebody at church or maybe even a family member. This negative attitude comes from an absence of God's perfect attitude in your life. Go into the Word!!! Study the Scriptures, find out what Christ is like and your new attitude will begin to form. Stop trying to control your life or someone else's life. Stop complaining about not having as many materialistic blessings in this world. Stop blaming others for what you're not seeing clearly.

"The things of this world will perish, but you remain; They will all wear out like a garment" - Hebrews 1:11

It's time we realize that it is not about us anymore. It's not about what we can buy in the world, what we drive, who we can boss around, what don't we have, where can we vacation. It's not about us. When we look to Christ, we look to the positive, the spiritual amazing blessings that we have that will satisfy a thirst that will no longer need quenching. Look to Christ in all things and your attitude will go from negative to loving, caring, kindness and positivity.

Christ called us to be united, with Christ's attitude only can we do this.

Abiding in God's Word

"For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope."
-Romans 15:4(ESV)

I have read Romans multiple times but never really noticed this verse. Today this verse popped out at me. It was telling me something. It wanted me to know that whatever is going on in my life I'm suppose to look to the Scriptures for ALL the answers. I cannot fathom the number of ways we will try to do things our way instead of going to the scriptures first. Instead of going to the Scriptures first, open up the laptop and get to Google. Instead of praying God's Word will speak to you, text everyone you know asking them what they think. Instead of obeying his command to abide in his Word, just wing it and whatever happens happens.

We are NOT meant to handle this world alone! The Scriptures will help us. Encourage us. Get us through anything we need. It contains all the answers. It is your guide to life. It provides faith. It molds character. It gives strength.

When you don't any better, go to the Scriptures.
When you think you know better, go to the Sciptures.

"All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work." - 2 Timothy 3:16-17

Making Prayer a Habit

When you think of everything that goes on in just one day I bet you feel like you could write a whole entire list of activities you go through. Brush your teeth, put on clothes, shower, eat breakfast, drive to work/school. That's just the morning! As your day goes on you have so much to think about and work on that you forget the most essential part of your day.. prayer! I'm not talking about a 5 second mumble of a prayer before you eat and a "thank you God" while lying half asleep in bed. I'm talking about staying in constant communication with the Lord throughout your whole day!

You will never believe how much better, more blessed and easier your day is when you have the Lord Jesus Christ by your side at all times. When you're not in constant prayer with the Lord, you're in constant worry with yourself. God did not design the world in a way that you're about to handle it by yourself. He designed it specifically so that the only way you can make it in this world is with Him and Him only. How are you going to do that? Pray for strength, courage, boldness, love, humility and humbleness. These characteristics will coat you when you stay in constant contact with the one who has proved all these qualities to the greatest extent.

I've realized in the last 8 months that the more time you spend with somebody the more you become like them. I have countless hours and days with my girlfriend, Adri, everyday it seems like we are becoming more and more like each other! We begin to talk like each other, eat like each other and even think the same! Just like with God, the more time you spend with Him in prayer and in His word the more you will become like Him!

Take time to dedicate yourself in constant prayer with the Lord. I guarantee your days will be easier and happier =]

God's Incredible Forgiveness

"If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness." -1 John 1:9

Forgiveness of sins is a subject that is impossible to comprehend, just like God's other amazing qualities. Why? Because it's too amazing for our puny little brains to understand how incredibly lucky we are! There will never go by one day where you don't sin. There will never be any person that is absolutely perfect, except Jesus. But there will always be the forgiveness of your sins.

No one wants to walk around this world without God's amazing forgiveness. I can definitely name quite a few times that if it wasn't for His forgiveness I would be in much more troubled situations than I am now. But to truly receive His forgiveness you have to REPENT! This means Jesus isn't exactly giving you a Get Out of Jail Free Card by forgiving all your sins without you even trying to repent or have a change of heart. To receive the amazing forgiveness of Christ, which is amazing if I haven't already said that, you must have a genuine heart of repentance and want of change.

"Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord," -Acts 3:19

We all have struggles, intense struggles that drive us to sin constantly. You may sin the same sin everyday. You may completely hate that you sin so much but can't help it. We are human and it's understandable. We are definitely not perfect, obviously, and the only way you are going to get past that sin is Christ! You may be struggling with drugs, alcohol, pornography, sex, lying, cheating etc. whatever it may be don't you think that you should turn to the only person who was actually tempted with everything and yet fell into no sin? That man is Jesus Christ. I don't care if you're the biggest alcoholic you've ever known. I don't care if you've slept with multiple partners. I don't care if you've lied to everyone in your life. It's time for change. God loves you just as much as He loves everyone else! If you think this is you and you want God's forgiveness, repent! Ask God to change your heart and PRAY! Pray as much as you can and I guarantee Christ will change your life and give you a fresh start, every single day.

Morals

Growing up in a Southern Baptist Church you could imagine the emphasis they put on having morals. It seems as though growing up with strict morals and good thoughts and ways to live by is a great thing but sometimes I think we got it all wrong. I'm in no way saying that morals are bad or we shouldn't have morals but I am saying we should take a new perspective on morals. You always hear not to drink or smoke, to go to clubs or to say bad words. I'm not encouraging any of this but at the same time I am also not saying that God will love you less for doing or having done of such things. The way our community portrays morals makes it seem as though God will dislike you for messing up or you have no part and deserve no part of the church if you caught doing immoral things. Yet, those who have better morals and have done a good job keeping them somehow deserve to be a part of the church and are known as better Christians.

Christians, therefore, cannot expect to be sinlessly perfect, for there is none righteous, no not one (Romans 3:10)

By making morals seem like a list of wrong and rights were missing the whole point. Christianity isn't a check list of what to do and what not to do. It is a relationship with Christ that instills His LOVE in you as you grow with Him! It takes time to grow in a relationship with Christ just like it takes time to grow in a relationship with each other. Even if you have messed up in your life and continue to mess up, which everyone does, you are not less loved by Christ. As your relationships blooms, you will start to be a better person and start to act like Christ because His love and mercy changed you, not because your parents told you what you're doing is wrong and you need to change. Only CHRIST can change you! Sure, others may have influence on you, but true change only comes from the Lord. Take it to heart and realize that a relationship with Christ is what it's about it. It's not about wrongs and rights. It's about Christ.

1 At one time you were like a dead person because of the things you did wrong and your offenses against God. 2 You used to act like most people in our world do. You followed the rule of a destructive spiritual power. This is the spirit of disobedience to God’s will that is now at work in persons whose lives are characterized by disobedience. 3 At one time you were like those persons. All of you used to do whatever felt good and whatever you thought you wanted so that you were children headed for punishment just like everyone else.
4-5 However, God is rich in mercy. He brought us to life with Christ while we were dead as a result of those things that we did wrong. He did this because of the great love that he has for us. You are saved by God’s grace! 6 And God raised us up and seated us in the heavens with Christ Jesus. 7 God did this to show future generations the greatness of his grace by the goodness that God has shown us in Christ Jesus.

-Ephesians 2:1-5

Be BOLD

When I first started teaching Tae Kwon Do I worked with two Masters from Korea, Master Lee and Master Kim. As of today, I still work with Master Lee. Master Kim was always the crazy upbeat one that no one could handle. One particular day in class one of the younger students had pointed out that the formation that they were instructed to stand in was in the shape of a cross. This was not intentional but it just so happened that that's what it looked like. Master Kim being him crazy self had gotten hyped up about what the child had pointed out and asked if anyone in the class is a Christian. Talk about an awkward moment, haha Master Kim was just curious yet as soon as he asked that, EVERY single parent was eyes out focused on the class to see if he really just asked that.

Why was that moment so awkward? Why did everybody's head jump up when the term "Christian" was used? Why did it seem wrong to ask that question?

Acts 4:29 says "Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness". Now I don't know about you but how are we suppose to speak The Word with great boldness if were unable to say the word Christian in public without feeling awkward!?I can't tell you how many opportunities I've had to share the gospel or talk to somebody about Jesus or give some encouragement but that I let slip away because I didn't want somebody to think I was weird or trying to shove gospel down their throat. I didn't want to be labeled as one of "those Christians" but what am I worried about?

I believe that when we go to Heaven and were standing at the gates and we come up to Jesus, He's not going to ask us "Did you live a good life?" or "How much money did give away?" BUT "Who did you bring with you?"

Think about it. Ponder it. Next time you have an opportunity to share the Word, the beautiful word of Jesus Christ, make sure you share it with BOLDness! Do not be ashamed or scared for Gospel means "Good News!", everybody wants to know the good news =]

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FAVORITE EXERCISE

Too Busy Inside the Church to go Outside the Church

This is just a short thought that I'd like to speak about for just a moment. When you become baptized or saved or a member of a new church you want to give God all of your time, correct? You have this fire within that just won't let out and all that fire wants to do is build up inside of you so the glory of God is magnified. This is a great thing I tell you!

Don't play with fire.

Yes, even the fire that is building inside of you to glorify the body of Christ. Sometimes we are so absolutely caught up in what we have to do for the Church that we completely forget that there is an outside world that needs our help. We go on missions, have church picnics, church basketball nights, band practice, orchestra practice, choir practice, sunday morning church, sunday night church, saturday night youth, friday night church, youth group trips, visiting the elderly, small groups etc. All this stuff is amazing and I'm not saying that any of it is bad in any way but getting caught up in all of it, it turns into a routine and not only that it keeps you from the outside world. Even Jesus sat with the tax collectors and the sinners because they are the ones that need a doctor! You need to take time to speak to non-Christians and to relate to them. Love them.

The Very Same Power

“The same spirit that raised Christ from the dead dwells in you.” - Romans 8:11

The VERY same power that raised Christ from the dead is ALIVE in us today!
Wow wow wow. Let's stop right here.
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..
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WOW! Can you believe that?

How many times have you caught yourself going through something you just can't handle? All the time right? Maybe you have a lot of bills this month that you don't know if you're going to make them or not. Maybe all your friends are having sex and all you're doing is being tempted to have sex. Maybe nobody is really paying attention to you right now and you just need a friend. Maybe you can't handle school, work, friends, finances, family and everything else life has to offer at the same time. Where are you going to find the strength? the will power? THE VERY SAME POWER THAT RAISED CHRIST FROM THE DEAD IS ALIVE IN YOU. The power is in you! It's Jesus! Jesus has/is the power that raised Him from the dead and Jesus is alive in you. Jesus has already provided all the strength you need to handle anything. When you come upon another day that you think you can't make it, pray for faith in Jesus because the power is there you just need to believe.

I was recently speaking to my girlfriend, Adri, about our New Years Resolution and trusting God more. My New Years resolution was to trust God more because last year with barely trusting God, He always pulled me through. I went further on to use a financial example. I explained to her that I have no idea where I get half my money. This makes me sound a lot like a drug dealer but I'm not haha. I meant in a sense that as weird as this may sound, Martial Arts Instructors aren't payed as well as you think and there are quite a few things that require money in the world. Last year I learned to trust God more and he will provide what I need and most of the time more than what I need! Whenever I'm stuck or need to make it through something, the power of Christ is in me and all I need to do is trust. Constant prayer and faith in God are the ingredients that let the Power of God rise into your heart.

Jealous much?

When I was a kid if my brother got something that I didn't get I wanted it. If he got a new Buzz Lightyear toy with the special utility belt, which I still think is a fanny pack, I wanted it. If he got a new basketball and I didn't, I would take it and play with it. If he got new violin strings and that played beautifully, I wanted those too, I didn't even play violin I just wanted the strings.

It is a natural human inclination to be jealous! Everyone is jealous of somebody and wants something or someone that they "can't have". Nowadays I'm not really so jealous for basketballs and Buzz lightyear's but there are always things that get me going. When I see local musicians playing at nice venues I always have this thing inside me that wishes I could play there too. There are little things in everybodies life that just kind of nudges the jealous part into us.

"For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice" - James 3:16

"Set me as a seal upon your heart, as a seal upon your arm, for love is strong as death, jealousy is fierce as the grave. Its flashes are flashes of fire, the very flame of the Lord." - Song of Solomon 8:6

Did you ever know that the feeling of jealousy was that fierce? That it can really be that affecting in your life? As you go on with your days and you feel jealousy overcoming you at some point just kind of stop and COUNT YOUR BLESSINGS. You can't think of what you don't have when you're too busy thinking of what God gave you. One of the things that I have been coming to realize more and more since the past year is that God blesses me way more than I could ever deserve and when I feel jealousy start to overcome me, I start to think of things that I have that others don't have haha. As you bow your head in prayer, start by counting and thanking God for your blessing for you and I truly have no reason to be jealous.