NaBloPoMo - Blog Post #12

"Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes. Rather, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight." - 1 Peter 3:3-4

In my old bible, I have this verse underlined with the word "Wow!" written next to the words "unfading beauty." 1 Peter 3 is one of those "wives submit to your husbands" passages, but these verses are so amazing, and I just love them. How many of us women are concerned with how we look every day? I confess that I have spent mornings just staring into my closet because I can't decide what I want to wear. I don't have a lot of jewelry, but the pieces that I have are very special to me, and I wear them often. And I don't know that I've ever worn an "elaborate hairstyle," but I have sure seen other women do it!
When I came across this verse, it put all of this into perspective (the bible has a knack for doing that!). I should not really care so much about what I look like on the outside, but that my inside is beautiful. I have met plenty of people who are beautiful on the outside, but inside they are very ugly. It's almost a shame when you meet someone like that because their outsides don't match their insides. Sometimes, I am like that, and I hate it. I try to think about this verse when I am doing something that makes my insides clash with my outside.
My favorite part of these verses is that it says a gentle and quiet spirit is of "great worth in God's sight." That is so amazing. God doesn't care what we look like on the outside, because after all, he made us in his image, so he knows it's perfect! God cares about our insides - our gentle and quiet spirits. Awesome.

NaBloPoMo - Blog Post #11

"Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity." - 1 Timothy 4:12

This is a favorite among us youth leaders because we are constantly reinforcing this with our students. I also take this verse very personally because I am always thinking that people do look down on me because I am so young. I have always been mature for my age, and I am always trying to prove to people that I can hang with the grownups just as much as I can hang with the kids.
This verse really encourages me, and helps me to stay focused on my mission. The second part is really the most important part - "set and example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity." As a youth leader, setting a good example is critical. We have to practice what we preach, because otherwise our entire ministry could be rendered useless.
So, to all you young'uns out there, make this verse your mantra. Keep it close to your heart, just as I do.

NaBloPoMo - Blog Post #10

"All the peoples of the earth are regarded as nothing. He does as he pleases with the powers of heaven and the peoples of the earth. No one can hold back his hand or say to him: “What have you done?”" - Daniel 4:35

Awesome words spoken by King Nebuchadnezzar. I came across this verse while I was going my "read through the bible in a year" plan, and I was reading through Daniel. Daniel is one of Evan's favorite books of the bible, so I paid careful attention while I was reading so I could figure out why.
Read the verse again. Really think about what it says. To give you a little background, Nebuchadnezzar had just been thinking to himself how great he was, because he had built the city of Babylon for his own glory. That was when God spoke directly to him and basically said, "now you see it, now you don't." God took everything away from him. All his riches, his authority, and his entire kingdom was taken away in one fell swoop, and God made him go eat like the oxen, and he became like a beast. After that was all over, Nebuchadnezzar spoke these wise words because he finally understood the fullness of God's power. God is in control of everything. There is nothing anyone on earth can do to hold back his hand, or to try and convince him that his plan is not the best plan. There is nothing anyone can say to make God change his mind. Not even if all the people in all the world got together and said, "God we really don't agree with [fill in the blank]." God would say, "That's nice, but it's still my Word, and it's not changing."
It's true that God does things that we may not agree with, or that we may not even like, but it's GOD! He is in total control, and no one can hold back his hand. I absolutely love this verse.

NaBloPoMo - Blog Post #9

"As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God." - Psalm 42:1

This is such a simple passage, but definitely one of my favorites because of the image it conjures up. I don't think I've ever seen a deer panting, but I have seen a dog panting - it's a hot day, he's been running around the yard playing, and he's so thirsty, his tongue is hanging out of his mouth and he can hardly catch his breath. I imagine it is a similar scenario with a deer.
When a deer is so thirsty that he (or she) is panting, that deer will stop at nothing until he finds a source of water. Nothing in the world is more important than getting that drink of water.
I always think about that image when I hear this verse. The same way that a deer will stop at nothing to get that drink of water, so our souls should stop at nothing until we get that Living Water that is God. God is the only thing that will quench our spiritual thirst, and He does that through His word, and through our prayers. This verse is almost like my personal "mission statement." This is the way that I constantly want to live - panting for God's Living Water. I confess that sometimes I don't always live that way, but I try to keep focused and remember that no matter what, God is everything that I will ever need.

NaBloPoMo - Blog Post #8

"The LORD is my shepherd, I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me." - Psalm 23:1-4

This passage is most commonly known as the "funeral Psalm" as it is often read at funerals. But as I was doing my bible reading one day, and I came to this passage, I really just stopped and carefully read it, and just fell in love with it. It paints a beautful picture of how God is always by our side protecting us. I love how it says "he refreshes my soul," and that it says "I lack nothing." That is so beautiful. God is the only thing I will ever need, because with Him I lack nothing. This passage also reminds me that there is nothing I need to fear because God is always with me.
These verses inspired one of my favorite songs by Matt Redman called "You Never Let Go." Listen to the song, and really meditate on the words. It is a great reminder that no matter what is going on in our lives, that God never lets go, and he is always with us.

NaBloPoMo - Blog Post #7

"As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts." - Isaiah 55:9

This verse comes right after my favorite passage from yesterday, but it too is really great (I think I've said that almost every time now.) This verse gives me a lot of comfort when I really stop and think about it. It reminds me that God's thoughts are always higher than my thoughts so, although I may not understand what God's plan is, I know that he has it under control. He knows what he's doing...I mean, this is GOD we are talking about! The truth is, we can never fully understand God's thoughts. We often want to know what the plan is for our life. But our plan is probably and likely not the same as God's plan. We might not understand it, we might not even like it or agree with it, but we should remember that God's way is the best way (to steal a quote from Veggie Tales).

NaBloPoMo - Blog Post #6

"Seek the Lord while he may be found; call on him while he is near. Let the wicked forsake his way and the evil man his thoughts. Let him turn to the Lord, and he will have mercy on him, and to our God, for he will freely pardon." - Isaiah 55:6-7

This little passage brings me way back to my old Sunday School days at Terrill Road Bible Chapel, singing songs with my Uncle Gus playing guitar. He had written a song that took the New King James version of this passage and put music to it! It was always one of my favorite songs to sing in Sunday School. In fact, Terrill Road used to have "Youth Music Nights" where the youth of the church could show off their talents, musical and otherwise. So one year, my cousin Taylor and I sang this song together with Uncle Gus on guitar. Everyone just loved it, because as cousins, our voices blended quite nicely together.
Aside from it being a great song, it is also a great passage! It promises that the Lord will have mercy on the sinners (that's us) and will freely pardon us from our sins. The NKJV says "abundantly pardon." How great is that?! This passage is a great encouragement to those who do not yet know Jesus, or who are lost in their sin. He will welcome you in with open arms and will abundantly pardon you from your sins!