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The Future: Control, Loosened Feet, and Letting Go  

Waterfall

To be completely honest, I have no idea where I’ll be a few years from now.

I have no idea what I’ll be doing, who I’ll be friends with, where exactly I’ll be at in school, where I’ll be living, nothing. I really don’t know.

To some people, this might seem like a horrible thing. NO CONTROL? WHAT ARE YOU, CRAZY?

(Yeah, I am. But it’s a good kind of crazy. You’ll see why.)

I can be a bit of a control freak at times. Really. I worry way too much about things sometimes. I wouldn’t encourage it, because it focuses on I and me too much. What I want. What’ll help me. (More like what I think that I want and will help me, but really won’t.)

I might make a million plans right now. Now this is hypothetical, and I haven’t thought through the answers to all of this, but I’ll do an example.

I’m going to go to ____ College.

I’m going to major in _______.

I’m going to have a career in _________.

I’m going to date ________ person, we’re going to get engaged and be engaged for ___ months, and our wedding theme and colors will be __________.

I’m going to have _________ many kids.

I’m going to buy a house by the ___________.

And so on and so forth. Maybe we don’t have it all figured out, but we dream (and plan out our ideas in our heads), and hold onto *that thing* as our security.

But *that thing* cannot be guaranteed. Why? Because we are not in control.

Proverbs 16:9 says, “The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps.”

 

I’m not saying I haven’t made plans. I sure have. I mean, it’s very smart to plan ahead, but we cannot be so stuck on it that we don’t let God lead us.

James 4:13-15 sums this up pretty much the same way that I’m trying to explain.

“Come now, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit’— yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, ‘If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.’”

 

We should live with “loosened feet”. Feet that are free to move where God calls us. We can plan, but we must let God direct us. We are not in control; He is. We should live to do what God wills for us. By getting to know Him, He will show us. He will open and close doors for us, and He will guide us.

(Isaiah 30:21, “And your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, “This is the way, walk in it,” when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left.”)

Like I said, I have absolutely no idea where I’ll be at in a few years, both physically and spiritually.

But that’s okay with me.

I’m not in control, but I know the One who is. And I trust that He knows what’s best for me.

As a matter of fact, I know that He knows what’s best for me. He knows what’ll bring me closer to Him. He has a purpose in everything, even if I can’t see it.

So I’ve let go.

It’s okay that I’m not in control. Because He is, and that’s all I need to know.

*aj

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Covered by the Cross

Covered by the Cross

Sometimes, I think we see ourselves as dirt.

Yeah, something like that. Like maybe we don’t feel like we are good enough.

Or we don’t believe that God hears our prayers because we think we are so sinful and hopeless…

But we’re not.

We’re not hopeless. We’re not seen as sinners anymore. We’re not living under the law. Why? The blood of Jesus rescued us.

Hebrews 10:19-23 says this to us in encouragement.

 

“Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful.”

We have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus. Because of His death, we have communion and a relationship with God.

Because of the blood of Jesus, we are seen through the lens of His holiness. The curtain between God and us has been torn. His love for us broke the separation.

We have a full assurance of faith! Our hearts are sprinkled clean and we are counted pure. We have hope! And God is faithful.

That passage is soooooooo encouraging to me. See, I know that my sin nature is, well, sinful. Nobody needs to tell me that. HOWEVER. My sin does not define me, because it has been paid for. The blood of Jesus (via the cross) is what purifies me. Not by anything I’ve done, of course!

There’s one thing that’s the most important to know: The Cross is enough.

 

I can’t do anything to add to the finished work of Christ because it has already been done.

We are not perfect, but we are holy because of Christ. He has rescued us and poured His holiness over us.

There is nothing we can do to make Him love us more, to hear our prayers any better, to give us more blessings, to make us “less sinful”, to make us more joyful. It’s been done.  We are loved infinitely, and we will never be loved or accepted by God any more than we already are.

The Cross covers it all.

We are pure. We are loved. We are adored. We are accepted. We are holy. We are blameless. We are redeemed. We are worthy. We are wanted. We are hope-filled. We are defined by the Cross. We are blessed. We are children of God. We are saved. We are good enough. We are righteous. We are forgiven. We are more than conquerors.

But why are we all these things?

We are all these things because of what Jesus has done. We are all these things, yet we cannot boast about it. Why? Because when we were undeserving, He came to save us.

 

Seriously, we did not do anything to earn this. It’s a free gift.

And that’s what makes it so AMAZING. We are forgiven because of the blood of our Savior.

We are holy, righteous, and redeemed. We are loved, and we are forgiven.

We need to live in light of that.

*aj

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True Peace

Peace, Mountains

Peace.

*takes a deep breath*

Visualize world peace. 

There’s a sign in my dentist’s office that says just that. “Visualize World Peace”.

That sounds good, right?

Well, it seems so…but here’s the thing.

Peace, many times, is mistaken for a lack of conflict.

Therefore, it stands to reason that if there is peace, there is stability. If there is no conflict or apparent danger, there is peace.

According to the Bible, however, that’s not really true.

In John 16:33, Jesus says,

“I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”

Here, Jesus is talking to His disciples. And He just dispelled a myth about peace. Jesus says that in Him, we can have peace. Notice that He confirms that in this world, there will be tribulation.  (Think of this as conflict mixed with really hard times and trials. Not exactly pleasant.)

Yet, we still can have peace. Why? Jesus has overcome the world.

But what does that mean?

I’m big on explanations (if you haven’t noticed).

Jesus overcame Satan, the Prince of this world. He overcame sin’s power over us. He restored the peace we can have with God.

Peace is like an apple. (What?)

Imagine that the inside (core) of an apple is like the “inside” of us. If we have internal non-peace (which will rot the inside of us), that will eventually result in the “outside” of us being rotten and non-peaceful. Likewise, our inner peace – coming from a relationship with God – will result in a fresh apple, because no apple rots from the outside in.

That might not have made a lot of sense.

My point is, we have hard times in the world and outer non-peace (insecurity). Because the world as a whole does not have Jesus, the world as a whole does not have true peace.

You cannot do ten thousand hours of meditation and spiritual rituals to achieve inner peace.

You cannot buy enough stuff to achieve happiness or peace.

You cannot cut out all wars in the world to achieve world peace.

There is no magic handbook that you can follow to convert the world to be a conflict-free place (although you’ll get those claims).

The chance of having a “peaceful” world seems really hopeless, right?

However, there is a clause. (I’ve always wanted to say that!)

Inner peace for the Christian is possible through Jesus. This peace is a restored communion with God. An assurance of security and fellowship with Christ. We can rest in Him; He is our safe place.

Paul writes in Colossians 3:15,

“And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful.”

 

We can let His true and lasting peace rule in our hearts.

The world does not know true peace. Until Jesus comes again, true world peace will be promised by many and fulfilled by none.

But we are secure in Christ, which produces our only real peace.

Isn’t that the only kind of peace we should want?

*aj

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Truly Satisfied

Beach-Cliff-Sand

Even if I might sound like I have all of my life figured out and perfect, it’s not so. Don’t worry. I ain’t perfect.

Truth is, I’m not content all the time. Really. I have a tendency to worry about things way too much. And even though my head knows that worrying does nothing, my heart jumps in the way and makes me forget how secure I really am in Christ.

I mean, what if I don’t have enough money to pay for [insert important thing here]?

What if I can’t get the [insert “needed” thing here]?

Although I’ve read this verse in Hebrews before, it stuck out to me this time.

Hebrews 13:5-6

‘Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, ’I will never leave you nor forsake you.” So we can confidently say,

“The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?’”

Sometimes we might let something other than God drive our lives. For example, money.

Here is the worldly life in a nutshell.

You go to school from 5 years old to 18. You’re supposed to get good grades to get into a “good college”. You go to college for a few years and “you better get good grades, or you won’t get a good job.”

So you finally land a good job. How do you know if it’s a good job? (Although this is a little sarcastic, it’s kind of true.)

You ask the following questions:

  • Does it pay well, so that I have enough money to both take care of me and/or my family and still have enough money to buy what I want? Really: Can I get what I want out of it so that I’m comfortable?
  • Do I like it? Rephrased: Does it make me happy and comfortable?
  • Can I imagine doing this for the rest of my life? Meaning: Is it enough to fulfill me?

See, there’s nothing wrong with having a good job. In fact, it is truly a good thing and a blessing. However, we need to be able to say, “If everything was taken away from me: my earthly pleasures, my home, my great job, my best friend, my Starbucks, my phone, my warm bed, and everything else along with it, I would be content.”

I got to hear Leslie Ludy speak yesterday at a conference. One point that she made stuck out to me. (This is paraphrased; so don’t quote her or me on these exact words.)

“If you’re not finding your contentment in knowing that Jesus is all you need, and looking to find contentment somewhere else, you will never be content.”

Am I finding my fulfillment in the amount of cash in my bank account?

Am I finding my fulfillment in my stuff or my circumstances?

Do I really believe that Jesus is enough?

Because Jesus is enough.

 

Confidently, I will say, The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?

 

My last post was about how God is satisfying enough, and I guess that’s what I’m trying to say here too.

This can go another way as well.

How about we chat about love for a moment.

The world says that true love comes from a human relationship that makes me happy. That satisfies me. That gives me the fairytale ending I want.

But – like temporal stuff – it’s temporal, unless it’s an outpouring of the eternal.

Let me explain.

Because I am content with the love of God inside me, and I know He is enough for me, possessions take lesser importance. I can enjoy human love more because I already understand what Real Love looks like.

I can rejoice in all circumstances, because I know that my life is in the hands of God.

What can man do to me?

Whether I live or I die, it’s a win-win.

Keeping our lives contented – not because of possessions or relationships – comes from finding satisfaction in God alone. Because God is enough.

No worries here. Lay ‘em down at the Cross.

By realizing the significance of the love of God, you’ll find your satisfaction.

*aj

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NEW! Book Thursdays: The King’s Scrolls by Jaye L. Knight

TKS Cover

Welcome to a new feature on Scattered Journal Pages, Book Thursdays. Maybe you know that I love to read, maybe you don’t. But nevertheless I do, and because I don’t have the time to start a whole new blog, I’m adding a new feature to my existing blog. Here, on random Thursdays, you’ll find book reviews, recommendations, possibly author interviews, and other events that all have something to do with books. This won’t effect regular Tuesday and Saturday posts, it’s just extra. I hope you enjoy, and Happy Thursday!

When I started this book, I was a little worried. I mean, what if I didn’t like it? What if it was cheesy? What if it was boring? Well, it sure wasn’t. This book is the FANTASTIC sequel to Resistance (actually, book two of six in the Ilyon Chronicles) by Christian New Adult Fantasy author, Jaye L. Knight. I can’t even tell you how much I loved Resistance. I thought it was super. And it was. Absolutely FANTABULOUS. But The King’s Scrolls was even better. So, maybe you’re not a fantasy fan. Maybe it’s boring to you. Perhaps you find it pointless, or a waste of time. That’s what I thought when I started reading Resistance. I’ve never enjoyed fantasy before, because I could tell it was fake. But wow, this was different. Really different. Sure, there are dragons. (Really awesome dragons, let me point out.) And there are characters of different races (ryriks, cretes, dorlanders, talcrins, humans, etc.), but it’s not weird. They’re all people, just different kinds of people. They’re all realistic and 100% believable. So before you make a judgment call on whether you think you’ll enjoy this book or not, give it a chance. Please do. There were so many moments that I just stopped reading for a moment and closed my eyes, or crossed my fingers, or bit my lip, or just let my heart flutter for a minute. You know, those moments when I was screaming and fangirling on the inside with pure joy on my face because it was so good. Just. So. Good. I’d close my eyes and grasp the book so tightly and hold it to my heart, attempting to soak up the beautiful literature via book osmosis. Please tell me that I’m not the only one. Now for the plot. Four dragon-riding cretes arrive in Landale Forest. They are seeking to retrieve the only complete collection of The King’s Scrolls. However…belief in Elôm (the one true God) is illegal, and reclaiming the Scrolls is, well, dangerous to say the least, and if anything goes wrong, it’ll end surely in execution. At the same time, some crete followers of Elôm are being dangerously sought out for the accusation of being Elôm’s followers and having the last complete collection of the King’s Scrolls in their possession. What will happen when they are discovered? Now, there were a few parts in the book that utterly manipulated my emotions. One of the days that I read for a few hours, I cried five times. (Seriously! It’s pretty pitiful, seeing that I’ve never cried that much over something real, let alone a fantasy book.) Honestly though, as much as it tore me in two, it was so believable and perfect although immensely heartbreaking. Now, for the REAL part of the story, there’s one thing I wonder and marvel at. What would happen if we placed this kind of value on the Word of God? I mean, we have such freedom in this world. We have the freedom to keep the ENTIRE COLLECTION of “The King’s Scrolls”, so to speak. It’s legal to believe in the One True God. By a lot of people, it’s even encouraged. We don’t face potential imprisonment, torture, or execution. And yet, though these characters are fictional, they’ve taken a stand. They’ve faced every hardship imaginable. And stayed strong, refusing to deny what they believe because they know that it’s the truth. They know (and we should too) that the Bible is life-changing. Without it, we are hopeless. Lost. Wandering aimlessly in this crazy world. But we do have The Scrolls. Isn’t that encouraging? A heartfelt thank you to Jaye who graciously gave me a free copy of this book to read and review honestly. All opinions are my own, and I wouldn’t change them if someone paid me. 🙂 *aj P.S. If this book sounds interesting to you, support Jaye by purchasing a copy! You can get one on Amazon and on her website.   You can see my full review on Goodreads.

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Why Do I Always Fall For The World’s Lies?

Sweet Mercedes

Psalm 37:4

“Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.”

Let me explain what I used to think this verse meant.

If I just read my Bible, pray, go to church, obey God, and love and serve Him, then He’ll give me what I want.

 

I don’t know if I fully understood that knowing God and loving Him was SERIOUSLY satisfying.

We’re all living in the world. (If you’re living in space right now, then hello! And yes, I’m talking to you too.) Every day, we hear messages from the world coming at us about what we “need”. “You need more money. You need more clothes. You need more stuff. You need to be dating. You need to be more beautiful/handsome. You need to be a perfect student. You need _____.” I think we all can fall for these things.

I mean, come on! Why else would we fall for the TV commercials that “promise” to do something for us?

One commercial that really bugs me is the mascara commercial that shows the woman with creepily long eyelashes and promises to give you longer and thicker eyelashes if you use their mascara. However, in the disclaimer, it says, “false eyelashes used in demonstration.” No joke.

This company has an interesting  (if not deceptive) technique.

  1. They obviously want people to buy their product, so they make it seem like all women need long and thick eyelashes, or they won’t be beautiful or happy.
  2. They use this “fact” to their advantage by offering a product that supposedly can fix this problem.
  3. They make it seem like the people that use their product are very beautiful and therefore happy.
  4. The product sells because the majority of the women that see the commercial think that by using this mascara, they will be beautiful. And if you’re beautiful, that must mean that you’re happy, right?

Well, NO. The only satisfaction that you and I will ever get is the perfect satisfaction that comes from a relationship with God.

So why do I always fall for the world’s lies?

Why do I always think that God will give me “what I want” by my forcible compliance?

I’ve figured something out.

Delighting myself in the Lord comes before knowing what the desires of my heart truly are. I can’t just say, “God, I want ______. So from now until 9:30 P.M. on Friday night, I will delight in you, and after that, I know you’ll be faithful to gimme the [pointless and little] thing I want.”

No way.

It must go the other way around.

By delighting ourselves in the Lord, we find out what the desires of our hearts really are. For example, a desire of my heart is to get to know God better – but this is only because I have found my true satisfaction (by delighting) in Him. And guess what? I get to know Him more and more every day. And this makes me insanely joyful.

(I also talk about happiness vs. joy in my fist post, here.)

The desires of my heart have changed because I have found that He is truly what I need (and what I really want!).

Is that crazy? Well, maybe it sounds that way.

Perhaps the question we should be asking is, “Which do we want? Temporary earthly things that won’t satisfy for long? Or things – like

a thriving and growing relationship with the Author of your soul – that will satisfy forever?

I know what the desires of my heart are because I know the One who rescued my soul.

I know where True Love comes from.

I know who I really am.

Do you know?

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What is The World’s Biggest Problem?

  

Good morning, everyone, and Happy Saturday! I hope you’ve had a good week and are enjoying the beautiful day.

This week, I had to write an essay and I thought it turned out pretty well. I had to write it in response to the question, “What is the world’s biggest problem and how would you work to solve it?” Enjoy!

What is the world’s biggest problem and how would you work to solve it?

There are many problems in the world. It is no surprise to Christians, however; we live in a fallen world. The world is full of sin, death, and seeming hopelessness. But the biggest problem in the world is not only sin. Because of sin we have this problem: the problem of incorrect biblical teaching.

What is incorrect biblical teaching? There are many ways to expand upon this question because it is such a huge issue in this world, and not always recognized. If the Bible is not taught correctly, it will not encourage thriving, growing, and real change in the life of a believer. First of all, many people believe that a Christian’s life will be easy, pain-free, or full of health, wealth, and prosperity. This is the furthest from the truth! It is not easy to live a life that will be full of persecution. It is not enjoyable to be tortured for one’s faith. However, just because a life is difficult, does not mean that it is not worth it. Because God wanted to have a personal relationship with us, His children, He promised never to leave us nor forsake us. And the eternal glory that is waiting for us — heaven for believers — is completely worth everything that we will have to endure in this world.

Another form of incorrect biblical teaching is the concept that we (as Christians) have the obligation to work hard to add to our salvation, or we will lose it. Ephesians 2:8-9 says, “For it is by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not from yourselves; it is the gift of God, not by works, so that no one can boast.” Salvation is a gift! Because of our faith alone, we are saved. Our “good works” that we do in this life are simply an outpouring of the joy that we have, coming from the amazing free gift of salvation from God. God does not force us to work for Him, but we should desire to give Him glory because of the thankfulness that comes from our freedom from sin and death!

To solve this problem of incorrect biblical teaching in this world, I would make sure that every spiritual teacher was taught correctly. Theology cannot come solely from a book written by a respected person in authority. It must come directly from the Bible, from someone who understands the Word of God and can reflect the Inspired Truth in how they teach. Without Christians living in light of Truth, how can those who are unsaved ever come to know the Truth?

*aj

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Stress is Real, But There’s a Solution.

Castle and Bike

Have you ever read Psalm 91?

I love it so much. I don’t really have time to go through it all, and I don’t want to lose anyone’s attention (my own, actually…) so I’m just going to pick out a few verses from it.

Psalm 91:1-2 says,

“He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High

    will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.

I will say to the Lord, ‘My refuge and my fortress,

    my God, in whom I trust.’”

 

See, I get really stressed sometimes. If you’re not a high school student right now but once were, you may have forgotten how hard it can get…I’m not saying that “real life” is any easier, but stress is a real thing for us teens. (Well, I don’t know anything about being an adult, but I’ve heard that’s hard too.)

“You gotta get good grades.” “You really should have a job to pay for your own stuff.” “You need to do a bunch of sports and extracurricular activities, or you won’t have a chance of getting into a good college.” “You have to go to college! You won’t be able to get a good job to be able to support your family if you don’t!” “If you aren’t dating or married by your early twenties, it’s the end of the world!”

Yup. Stressful, right? Now, most of those aren’t true. (They’re good things, but seriously not of utmost importance.) But that’s what the world tells us, day after day. It’s such a burden.

I haven’t always heard all of those coming at me and stressing me out, but a lot of people can fall prey to those lies. And it affects our lives! For real!

Believing lies leads (usually) to realizing that we cannot measure up to them, which makes us live the life cycle of the overcommitted and stressed teen (or any other person).

I won’t go into the “don’t believe the lies” sermon; I’m just going to talk about real life.

You may be stressed (like me), but you are not alone.

Let’s do a little mental activity here. Take a picture of yourself in your mind. Now, cut and paste that picture and put it in the arms of God. And here’s the fun part. Envision yourself really and truly there. Well, guess what? That’s where you are. For real.

Let’s read those two verses again.
“He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High

    will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.

I will say to the Lord, ‘My refuge and my fortress,

    my God, in whom I trust.’”

God is our refuge and fortress.

I’m going to look up the words “refuge” and “fortress” in the dictionary, because I think that it helps to know what the verses are saying.

*goes to dictionary.com and copies and pastes*

“Refuge: shelter or protection from danger, trouble, etc.”

Alright, cool. So, according to this definition, God is our shelter and protection from danger and trouble. And stress. And hopelessness. And hardships. (Well, He doesn’t keep us from them always – I know this firsthand – but He is with us and our place of safety and hope in, well, everything.)

Now let me look up “fortress”.

“Fortress: any place of exceptional security; stronghold.”

I love love LOVE the word fortress. It sounds so medieval-y and awesome. I imagine a huge and strong stone castle with a wide and dangerous, crocodile infested moat around it, and an exclusive drawbridge just for me, and guards committed to protecting me around that, and a huge iron gate around that. Basically, 110% secure and an extremely safe place.

Well, that’s God.

The first verse says, “He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High

    will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.”

 

So God is our shelter in e.v.e.r.y.t.h.i.n.g. If we dwell in His shelter (by trusting Him), we will abide (which means to remain; continue; and stay) in THE SHADOW OF THE ALMIGHTY!

I find so much comfort in that.

Okay, yeah, life is SO STRESSFUL and crazy at times. I feel it. But God is with us, His beloved children.

I’m not going to tell you that life is easy. It. Is. Not. But trusting in God takes the pressure off of us. If He is all we have, He is enough.

We can’t say, “If I trust in God and also have _____, then it will be enough.”

God. Is. Enough.

God. Is. Here.

We. Have. Hope.

God. Is. Strong. Enough. To. Handle. Anything.

He. Loves. Us. So. Much.

*aj