We Can Make A Difference

I have been feeling the need to serve others the longest and I remember I wanted to volunteer with a passion when I read about the life of Jim Elliot. If you don’t know about him, you should Google him. He was a missionary who lost his life because he wanted to spread the gospel to those who never heard of Jesus Christ. He died so that others would live in Christ! I can’t think of a better way to go. His quote will always stay with me: “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose.” His quote sounds like a modern day disciple for Christ. I watched the video “Albertine” by Brooke Fraser (Ligertwood) and it moved me. If you never read about the genocide in Rwanda, you need to read about it ASAP! I want to travel and help others, it makes you realize the things that you take for granted. I have vacation time coming up and with my Pastor’s permission, I would love to go overseas and do some Christian volunteer work. It would be better than just lounging and doing nothing right? And if we are feeding the hungry, clothing the naked and helping the helpless; we are doing as Jesus requested of us. We are helping Jesus when we help them. We can’t minister to someone who can’t hear anything but the rumbling in their stomach. You feed them, and then introduce them to Christ. The same goes for someone who has no clothes or nowhere to live.  I guess I reached the point where I just can’t be immobile anymore; I have to get up and do something to help the body of Christ.

I Wan'na Be Like You...

Oh, oobee doo
I wanna be like you
I wanna walk like you
talk like you, too
you’ll see it's true
and ape like me
can learn to be
human, too
 
I have been singing that song all year so far at the most random times. If you have seen the Jungle Book, you know that song is when King Louie wants to find out how to become a man from Mowgli. I remember when I was younger watching it on VHS, I would sing and dance along with my brother and sister. Singing the song back to myself now; I look at it from a spiritual aspect. We should be saying that to Jesus. We want to walk like Him, and talk like Him. We want to know the way to become a Christian; how to gain internal life. We’re tried of being in the state where we are just kidding ourselves by thinking we’re okay. Am I reading too much into the song? Probably, but God can speak to us through anything; even Disney. Lol.

Ashamed to Ask for Help?

I was at intercessory prayer today before it started and did my usual routine: prayed for myself so that I can be in a place to pray for others. I always look at it as this: how can you be effective for others if you're not effective to yourself? After I prayed, I opened my Bible and began to read James 5:13-20. I was amazed by it. I have read this book before but it seems like there is a new light to it today. It talks about prayer, but not just praying; it tells us that if we are in trouble, sick, in a bind, etc. we should go to the elders and be prayed for. Nowadays it seems that we want to deal with our troubles on our own. Why can't we ask for help? Why are we so ashamed of our present situations? It's like some of us would rather starve then tell our brother or sister we're hungry. We aren't perfect; we strive for it each day in CHRIST! We're human; and as humans we will fall constantly. What made this realization even more amazing was my Youth President spoke about showing compassion for your fellow brother and sister in Christ when they fall. He mentioned the story of the adulteress and Jesus when He said "If any one of you is without sin, let him be first to throw a stone..." We, the body of Christ seem to be the ones that show the least amount of compassion towards the sinner, backslider, and the fallen at times. But we need to remember, we were in their situation; we were lost, at a point where we felt we were too far from God. We need to be more like Christ so that when someone is struggling with something, they won't be too afraid to ask for help.

Be Yourself?

"Be yourself, everyone else is taken."- Oscar Wilde.
This has to be one of my favorite secular quotes. Why? Because it states the facts in one sentence. Everything is summed up for you in a simple statement: be yourself. Why? Because, everyone else is taken. If you're not yourself who are you going to be? I remember before I rededicated my life to Christ I was all over place. I didn't know who I was anymore. When I got back into church, I thought I was supposed to look, talk, and sound like everyone else because they looked like "christians". But by who's standards? When I became completely sold out for Christ it was a change that started from the inside: the heart. God started working on me, in me, and through me. He made me aware of skirt lengths, shirt sizes. I became more aware of the way I looked, talked, carried myself, etc. because I was becoming who God wanted to: me. And that included my crazy print bohemian dresses (believe me, I have a lot) , ethnic jewelry, 4 inch stilettos, short curly hair, etc. There's a person or people I can reach because I am being the person God has made me to be. Jesus didn't fit the mold. He was unconventional in every sense of the word. He reached out to those who would have been lost otherwise; he was a teacher and lived a life so his could be the ultimate example. He broke the mold we were expected to fit into. It's not about tradition or religion in the sense you're just wearing the title of a christian. It's about a personal relationship with Christ. The word Christian is broken down simply: Christ-like. When we become Christ-like, we come who He wants us to be. When you find Jesus, you find yourself.