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How Long Will I Trust God?


How Long Will I Trust God?
Really, how long will it be? What will be the thing that would make me stop?
The world wants me to believe that I know what’s best for me. Because “only I would (and do) know that”. It’s “my” life, after all. 
But wait. Who gave me “my life”? Um, God did, actually. So technically it’s not “mine,” then. 
The Spirit of God has made me,         and the breath of the Almighty gives me life. (Job 33:4, ESV)
Who knows what’s best for me? Well, God gave me life with a purpose, so He must (and does). 
The LORD will fulfill his purpose for me; your steadfast love, O LORD, endures forever. Do not forsake the work of your hands. (Psalm 138:8, ESV)
Sometimes that’s the only thing I have to hold on to. When my world falls apart and I can’t help it, He will get me through. When life crumbles and feels like it’s crushing me, it’s okay. 
Because I trust God. 
Trust in the LORD with all your heart,         and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. (Proverbs 3:5-6, ESV)
I will trust Him always. 
I will trust Him when I succeed. I will trust Him when I fail. 
I will trust Him when I’m singing with joy. I will trust Him when I’m crying tears of pain. 
I will trust Him if I stay right here. I will trust Him if He calls me away. 
I will trust Him with now. I will trust Him with the future. 
I will trust Him if I stay secure. I will still trust Him if I lose everything. 
I will trust Him no matter what happens. 
I think we have two choices. 
1) Trust God and follow along, because He knows what’s best for us. 
2) Don’t trust Him and be dragged around in life, because we honestly have no idea what’s best for us.
Without God, we. are. hopelessly. lost. Really. Our finite minds cannot know the best. We can’t even make good little decisions. How could we possibly trust ourselves with our entire lives?
I’ve made my choice. I’m trusting God, and I’m not turning back.
*aj
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Where Is God?



Happy Tuesday everyone, and happy early Easter! Because of the undeniable-yet-almost-unbelievable fact that Easter is right around the corner (despite of the three feet of snow on the ground right now), I have decided to do an Easter-themed post again. I love Easter because of what it means. I hope you find the same thing!

Many people are taught to think that God is “over there”. That He doesn’t care. That He wound up the world like a clock and then stepped away. That He couldn’t really be involved with us. 

But that, dear friend, is a very sad and misleading lie. 
God is love. How do we know what love is? We get to know God, because we CAN, and what God (through Jesus) did for us. 
By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. (1 John 3:16, ESV)

Why would Jesus lay down His life for us? Because He loves us.

Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. (John 15:13, ESV)

We sinned and broke our relationship with God. Sin equals separation from God. So why again did Jesus come?

To show us love. To lay down His life for us. To restore our broken relationship with God.

We need to lay aside the facts of our past and what we’ve done to think that we could never accept love from God. 
It’s true that we don’t deserve it. But that is how we know true love, that he reached out to us when we had run away…far away…too far away to be found by anyone accept God.

God wants to know us. And we can know him too. We know God because we accept His amazing love that He has shown us. 

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16, ESV)

God is not “over there”. He is here. And His love reaches far…no matter how far you are, you can always come back. 

I know this post is extra short today, but seriously, what more is there? 
Love is here because God is here; God is Love. 

Thank you Lord for your amazing love.

*aj

Category: From The Bible
Tags: love, Jesus, Easter, amazing love, God’s love, God
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What Does The Cross Mean To Me?



Happy Saturday everyone! Today we have a special treat. On Monday, this post will be featured on my friend Rachel Schaus’ blog, Notes From My Corner Of Creation. Enjoy this sneak peek in honor of Easter!


What does the cross mean to me?


For me, the cross means acceptance.

 

The cross is the place where I was counted blameless and accepted in the sight of God. Not because of what I did, but because of what Jesus did for me. He took my place in death and shame and gave me the right to be a child of God.

 

John 1:12-13 says,  “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor the will of the flesh nor the will of man, but of God.”

 

I am accepted. I do not have to be perfect. I do not have to earn my way to the love and acceptance of God. I do not have to do a certain number of good deeds to be cherished by God. Because I am not accepted by what I do-I am accepted because of what Christ did at the cross for me.

 

All I have to do is believe in His name! Accept the love he has for me! I am a child of God. Nobody can take that away.

 

The cross means acceptance. I think that we’ve all chased acceptance in our lives. We want to be loved, accepted, a part of the “in” group. Because, we think, maybe that will make us better people. Maybe we will have more privileges, our problems will all go away, or we will be satisfied…But our only perfect satisfaction by acceptance can come from God’s acceptance of us. Through Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross.

 

Stop trying to be accepted in worldly terms. Accept the acceptance of God. He loves us no matter what.
He knows we are not perfect. He knows that we will fail. He knows all this, and still loves us and accepts us.

 

Never once will we walk alone. Never once will God turn his back on us. Never once will we lose the love of God. Rest in the embrace of the Almighty – by what was done at the cross – FOR YOU.


*aj

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What is True Love?

What is True Love?
Where does it come from? Is it Prince Charming sweeping Cinderella off her feet? Is it a romantic moonlit stroll on the beach? Is it chocolate and roses on Valentine’s Day?
 Is it getting the attention and affection that a girl wants? Is it getting the appreciation and respect that a guy wants?
How do we know what love really is?
Let me start out by saying that I want to be loved. Like really and truly loved. (Not that I’m not loved by my family. I *truly* am. But I mean that I want to be loved by someone who has absolutely no obligation to. I think most people seek after this love.)
I want someone to look deep into my eyes and say, “Amanda, you are worthy of love (which is actually what ‘Amanda’ means) and I love you with my whole heart.”
 Deep down, don’t we all want that in one way or another? I know that I do. (Maybe that’s just because I’m a girl. Whatever.) Acceptance. Love. Respect. Affection. Appreciation. We all want it! But – you’ll never find that PERFECT satisfaction in a person.
There is a love that I have found – true love – it goes deeper than any human love. Regardless of my performance, I am reached. Despite my everyday failures, I am pursued. This love died for me and is the only love that can satisfy. What love have I found? The perfect love of God.
We’ll never be truly satisfied until we set our hearts in the love of God. We can even be Christians and not do this! (Bad scenario, by the way.)
Our ultimate love and satisfaction should come from God’s love. I know this might sound cheesy, but I’ve learned to say, “I know how to be content in all circumstances, whether in a relationship or single, because my relationship with God is TRULY ALL I NEED to be satisfied.”
Last year, I sought to be noticed. I don’t think I understood then how useless that would prove to be! This year, I’m focusing on more important things – like loving my Heavenly Father and loving others. Why get into a dating relationship now? I have all that I need to be content…and even more, full of JOY.
Disclaimer: I do NOT know everything about love. And NOT AT ALL am I saying that a serious relationship or marriage is not fulfilling. From all the people I’ve talked to, marriage is truly wonderful (and personally I’m really looking forward to it!) but only God can satisfy our craving for love. Marriage is an expression of God’s love, not the fullness of it. The fullness of God’s love – Jesus’ death on the cross for us and therefore forgiveness, love, and acceptance – is truly satisfying.
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A Journal Entry: Who I Am, Who God Is

Okay. This isn’t exactly a regular post. (I’ll be back with a regular post next time!) I’ve felt all these things…and yet God has stayed by me. He’s gotten me through and He never changes or lets me down. And I hope that when YOU read them, you are reminded of who God is in spite of you are, too.
God, when I am faithless, you are faithful. (2 Timothy 2:13)
When I am hopeless, you are my hope. (Romans 15:13)
When my heart is breaking, you comfort me. (2 Corinthians 1:3-4, Psalm 34:14)
When I fail, your grace washes over me. (Hebrews 4:16)
When I am depressed, you care about me. (1 Peter 5:6-7)
When I suffer, you cry with me. (John 11:35)
When my world crumbles, you stand. (Psalm 94:22)
When I am not good enough, you are. (2 Corinthians 12:9)
When I don’t know how to love, you are love. (1 John 4:16)
When I am at a loss for words, you speak truth. (John 17:17)
When I feel ugly, you remind me that I was made in your image. (Genesis 1:27)
When I sin, you are perfect and holy. And you forgive. (Psalm 18:30, 1 John 1:9, Romans 8:1)
When I want to give up, you strengthen me. (Isaiah 41:10)
When my friends fail me, you are my best friend. (Proverbs 18:24)
When I disobey and run away, you are my good shepherd. (Isaiah 40:11)
When I am betrayed, I am your child. (Galatians 3:26)
When I am shaken, you are my peace. (Philippians 4:7)
When I am in battle, you give me victory. (Deuteronomy 20:4)
When the world hates me, you have the greatest love for me. (John 15:13)
When even my family fails, you are the Everlasting God and Father. (Isaiah 40:28, Matthew 23:9)
Remember His promises…and draw hope. His love and mercy and grace and faithfulness extend to all.
*aj
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Considering Leviticus

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Another morning comes. I sit on the couch and open my Bible. Let’s see, what to read. “Okay, I could read Genesis. Or Exodus. Leviticus? No way. That book has nothing to do with me.” So I skip over it and go to the New Testament.

But wait.

Leviticus has everything to do with me. No, I’m not Jewish. So before you skip to the next post, let me have a few minutes of your attention to explain some *really* important things.

Recently, I read (and am still reading) through Leviticus as part of a read-through-the-Bible-in-a-year plan. As I approached it, dread filled my heart. (Wow, that was poetic.) Anyway, I didn’t want to read it. Seriously, what do you get out of learning about cleansing rituals?! Yeah, that was my mindset when I was towards the end of Exodus. And I learned some very important things that changed my feelings towards this holy book.

All my life, I’ve known that “All the books of the Bible are equally important.” But silently I added, “Except, the New Testament is better than the Old Testament, and Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy don’t really count for being important.”
Uh oh. *cringes* Big mistake there.

And I’ve been learning very important lessons from Leviticus that I wanted to share so y’all wouldn’t skip over it like I used to. Okay. Here goes.

1) Sometimes, God might have seemed picky or arrogant when He required specific things from His people. But! We cannot assume that for a few reasons.
a) He is God. Arrogance only comes from someone who puts themself in a higher position than they actually deserve. However, there is no higher position than God, and He deserves everything He is. He is “I AM”!
b) Because God is God, he knew exactly what the consequences for disobeying him would be. For example, when He commanded certain cleansing after touching dead things or refraining from eating pigs and other animals, it was to prevent the spread of disease and germs that the Israelites knew nothing about. Wow, isn’t God smart?! (The answer to that would be yes, of course.)

2) When the Bible talks about spotless animals without blemish for sin offerings, this foreshadows to Jesus, our spotless and blemish-less sin offering. Nobody else or any animal could forgive every single sin in the entire world.

3) While the Israelites were constantly making offerings to forgive their sin, Jesus’ perfect offering was a one-time-forgives-all kind of deal. Sweet!

4) Israel lived as a -slave to sin- and the law–we now live as children of God, living in grace! Thank you God!
Let me restate this. WE ARE CHILDREN OF GOD. LIVING IN GRACE. NOT SLAVES TO SIN. AMAZING, RIGHT?!

5) Obedience to God above all else is the most important. He created the world, and obviously knows best. Yes, our naïvety gets the best of us many times and we live life thinking that we are in control and really know what’s best for ourselves…stupid mistakes over and over and over. I’m guilty.

See what I mean? This has everything to do with us! This book foreshadows the freedom from sin and the law that was to come. Because Leviticus has everything to do with Jesus and I live only because of Jesus, this has everything to do with me.

So the next time you routinely gloss over Leviticus, think again. Don’t think of it as just a bunch of boring rules and regulations; remember that it is the holy and inspired Word of God; an unfolding revelation, and a foreshadowing of the awaited Messiah for every person.

*aj

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A Journal Entry: Will I Ever Be Good Enough?

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For a while there, I *thought* I had it pretty good.

I’ve kept straight A’s, I guess I’m pretty smart. My friends call me a genius. (Trust me, I am not.) People tell me I’m talented, beautiful, and godly. I have a lot of friends, and I guess I can be pretty popular.

At least I turn in my assignments on time. I sit in the front row of every class and my teachers like me.

I read my Bible every day without fail, I teach Sunday school and youth group, and I’m on our youth group worship team.

So I’m pretty good, I thought. (Big mistake. Pride does come before a fall.) My life had become a checklist, and I was doing well. Or so I thought.

But God changed everything.

He said “no”.

“No, AJ, you can’t be good enough for me.”
“I’m not good enough? Just show me what to do!” I screamed.

And he said, “Do nothing, Amanda.”

And I cried “WHY?! You’ve blessed me with talent! With a brain! Aren’t I supposed to use it?!”

And he said to me, “You don’t need to be smart. You don’t need to be beautiful by the world’s standards. You don’t need to do all this for me, because my love for you does not depend on what you do. You are my child, and I love you. I sent Jesus to pay the price for your salvation. And I see HIM in you, not the things that you do. (See Colossians 2:10 “And you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power.”)

“You are to do things for my glory, not for your benefit or to look good.

“Amanda, I love you anyway.”

He loves me anyway.

I’ve spent too many hours crying over feeling like I’m incomplete. But Jesus makes me complete. I’ve spent too many hours stressing over getting an A. But it’s not really that big of a deal. I’ve spent too many hours focused on me. And it’s not even about me. I’ve spent too many hours stubbornly worrying about my problems on my own…when I’m supposed to cast my cares on God because he cares for me. (See 1 Peter 5:7) What did I miss? Everything!

I’m not sure what I was trying to earn. Because I now realize that who I am in Christ has nothing to do with my performance.

And that was a relief to hear.

God doesn’t require us to be perfect. Perfection is impossible! He just requires us to abide in him.

And with his help, I can do that.

*aj

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Welcome To My Blog!

 

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Hi! I’m Amanda. Welcome to my new blog, Scattered Journal Pages. I’m really excited to start blogging. 🙂

Look for new posts on Tuesdays and Saturdays from now on! I’ll be writing about my faith and what I’m discovering as a Christian teen in today’s world. Thanks for stopping by!

 

*aj

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