"But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found." - Luke 15:32
At Chapel today J preached on the words that came from Peter's mouth proclaiming Jesus as the Son of Man. Hearing what Peter had said, Jesus was pleased. He said to Peter "I say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church". Here, Jesus is not saying that Peter is the foundation of the church, but that the words Peter proclaimed had been revealed to him by the grace of the Holy Spirit. And that it is the Holy Spirit that will work through us to build God's Kingdom. Again, we are (I am!) reminded not to rely on my own intelligence, but ask for the Holy Spirit to come inside me and let God work through me, and fully utilize the precious gifts that he's given me. Every gladness of the heart we proclaim because of God's awesomeness, has been empowered in us by the Holy Spirit. (On a side note, I must say I've developed a liking of Peter, because of how his strong character is shown through the gospels).
I spend a great portion of my time on the bus thinking about God. Today it occurred to me just how good he has been to me. Out of the millions, he has chosen me! He called out to me in the midst of my secular and immoral life, and led me back to Jesus Christ. The amazing part is that I didn't do anything to ask to be "saved". It just happened. It feels like I've won the lottery because there are so many people - millions, all blinded by the world's definition of desires, all chasing after (driven by) worldly desires to satisfy the "self" - wealth, recognition, status... etc. Of course, the tendency to want to be selfish is a struggle for me everyday. But God has put a desire in my heart to focus my eyes on Jesus. He has ignited in my heart a longing to love him (above all else!) and know him better. It is ONLY by his grace and love that I have come back to walk along side him, not by anything that I have done personally. So why me? I feel so lucky and special because God has the power to change anyone's heart and he chose mine. This makes me feel that he must have plans to work through me somehow. Thank you Holy Spirit :o)
I've been thinking about taking some courses at Regent or VST for a few months now. To avoid being like my old self, I prayed about this on and off and also prayed with Julie about it. I didn't want to jump into anything without consulting with God first. Besides, me in seminary? I can imagine some of my friends, or others that I have wronged in the past knowing and saying "What?! You've got to be joking!" My old sins came back to haunt me. Was I even "good" enough in God's eyes to consider this? But the desire in my heart to know and study all there is about our awesome God kept growing. So should I or should I not? Then tonight at the book study we were discussing our faiths and prayer and listening to God. At one point Richard was doing some sharing and looked into my eyes (word of God speaks) and said "Faith and action go hand in hand. If you think that God is calling you to do something, take action, but also listen carefully!" At that moment, I knew God was speaking through Richard. No, I don't think God is going to appear to me in front of my bed, adorned by four-eyed creatures and say "Go now and take some classes at Regent/VST". I prayed for God to speak to me in a way that I would understand, and he did just that.
It's so funny how my day was so ordinary and even started out at a low point, but God chose today to speak directly to me. I want to continue to walk closer to him so that I am able to hear him better on all matters in my life :o)
I've been thinking about taking some courses at Regent or VST for a few months now. To avoid being like my old self, I prayed about this on and off and also prayed with Julie about it. I didn't want to jump into anything without consulting with God first. Besides, me in seminary? I can imagine some of my friends, or others that I have wronged in the past knowing and saying "What?! You've got to be joking!" My old sins came back to haunt me. Was I even "good" enough in God's eyes to consider this? But the desire in my heart to know and study all there is about our awesome God kept growing. So should I or should I not? Then tonight at the book study we were discussing our faiths and prayer and listening to God. At one point Richard was doing some sharing and looked into my eyes (word of God speaks) and said "Faith and action go hand in hand. If you think that God is calling you to do something, take action, but also listen carefully!" At that moment, I knew God was speaking through Richard. No, I don't think God is going to appear to me in front of my bed, adorned by four-eyed creatures and say "Go now and take some classes at Regent/VST". I prayed for God to speak to me in a way that I would understand, and he did just that.
As for my old, hindering sins, some dark and possibly unforgivable by human standards... God is so amazing! The Daily Bread devotion talked about the parable of the prodigal son, which I had heard many times before. Yet today, the passage really spoke to me. The writer asked "Which son are you?" I immediately knew I was the one who had gone astray but came back in repentance. God's unconditional love and the gracious way that he pursues us has saved me. God's love changes prodigal sons into precious saints. These were the words of God, spoken to me once again.
It's so funny how my day was so ordinary and even started out at a low point, but God chose today to speak directly to me. I want to continue to walk closer to him so that I am able to hear him better on all matters in my life :o)
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