Preparing for Prince Charming - Fulfilled in Jesus (Vlog post!)

Hello wonderful people of the internet. :)
I decided to make this one into a vlog.
I hope you enjoy because it took me quite a while to make it just right. ;)

Oh and for all you guys: You may want to watch this one as well.

Other parts of the "Preparing for Prince Charming" Series:
Introduction
Who is She? - It Begins with Surrender
Modest is Hottest!

What if He came back today?

What if He came back today? What would He find you doing?
 

Would He find you serving others in need? Would He find you reading His word joyfully? Would He find you sharing the good news?
 

Or would He find you sitting on Facebook mindlessly clicking through meaningless things? Would He find you as a couch potato, losing hours on movies that are merely garbage and unedifying to your spiritual walk? Or perhaps He might even find you in the middle of sin, some sin that you continually put as priority over Him.

Today I came across a link on a website, which shared a poll about Jesus coming back. Many American's, a total of 41%, expect Jesus to return by the year 2050.

With reading that my heart jumped, what if Jesus comes back in my lifetime?
It's exciting, it's scary, it's motivating and also very challenging.
Would Jesus be pleased with what I am currently doing for His kingdom if He came back today?
Would He be pleased with you?

A couple weeks ago when I was reading in the Gospel of Luke, I came across a familiar passage when Jesus is talking to some spies who had come to question Him. I found this passage interesting and wanted to blog about it in some way... and now I finally found my opportunity. :)

Check out the passage:

Luke 20: 20-26
 ^"20 Keeping a close watch on him, they sent spies, who pretended to be sincere. They hoped to catch Jesus in something he said, so that they might hand him over to the power and authority of the governor. ²¹ So the spies questioned him: “Teacher, we know that you speak and teach what is right, and that you do not show partiality but teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. ²² Is it right for us to pay taxes to Caesar or not?”

 ²³ He saw through their duplicity and said to them, ²⁴ “Show me a denarius. Whose image and inscription are on it?”

   “Caesar’s,” they replied.

 ²⁵ He said to them, “Then give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.”

 ²⁶ They were unable to trap him in what he had said there in public. And astonished by his answer, they became silent."

The main concept I want you to get out of these verses is verse 25, which I put in bold.
Give back to God what is God's. What exactly does that mean?

Did you realize that time is God's? God created you and gave you life in this world. He planned the steps you would take and the number of days you have to live. Taking that into consideration, it is only by God's grace and mercy that you are still breathing at this very moment. God has given you a certain amount of time (which is but a mere handbreadth), and He expects you to use it wisely.

Which brings me back to the original point of my post - What if Jesus came back today?
Are you spending your time wisely?

I know that we all have a lot of things going on in our lives, constantly. We all have plans and things we want to do. It's very easy to get distracted and simply forget that Jesus could return at any moment. But God has given us this life for a reason, and it wasn't so that it may be wasted on mindless, meaningless things. It was so that we may glorify Him, that we may do things for Him and His incredible and perfect Kingdom.
 

When I think about how much time I have wasted on stupid things, how much time I have wasted on Facebook, movies, or just being lazy in general, it makes me feel disappointed with myself. I want Jesus to be pleased with me, I want Him to constantly be glorified through the words and deeds that I do. I hope you want that too!

One thing I know for certain is that Jesus IS going to return. He is definitely coming back.
What will He find you doing?

Underground Worship

Light is scarce in this darkness, with only gleaming streaks of light shining from their flashlights. The cement floor is cold, but the hearts are warm, warmed by the love of Jesus. Huddled together, upon the cement floor is a group of devoted and thriving Christians. They are in hiding, because what they are doing isn't safe. They are risking their life. Risking it all for Jesus. At any moment, the police could burst in, take them all under arrest, or worse, kill them. Yet despite their risk, they are singing loudly, taking the risk of being heard, because they know that their Jesus is greater than any man, or what any man could do to them. They are part of the underground church.

This happens daily in countries like China, where people are not allowed to be professing Christians, so they meet secretly. Risking their life, their family, everything, all because they love Jesus more than they love themselves.

Yesterday (Friday) and today, part of my youth group partook in 30 Hour Famine. (I made a post earlier this week about it, if you'd like to, you can read about it HERE!)We began fasting yesterday at 12:30pm, and finished around 6:30 this evening. It was an incredible experience, as always. Last night, we had our very own "Underground Worship", and I have to say I loved every bit of it. It was amazing. There were around 21 of us huddled together in one of the cold, cement floor storage rooms in the bottom of our church. All we had was our flashlights, our Bibles, sheets of music, and my youth pastor playing his guitar. We would sing songs, and share our favorite scriptures in between. The worship was simply beautiful - I could feel the Holy Spirit working in the hearts of the people in the room.  There was nothing quite like it, nothing I've ever experienced. It opened my eyes a bit more to the experiences people over in other countries have, the people that are professing Christians, and are risking it all in order to gather together and worship Him. There was a moment in between singing stanzas when my youth pastor said, "Would you be willing to risk it all?" It's a powerful yet thought-provoking question.

It means giving up everything. It means being put out in the spotlight for all to see, it means risking being beaten and persecuted, it means risking going to jail, it means risking losing your family, it means risking all that you have physically. Everything.

There are people in various countries who face this situation everyday, yet they are faithful.
You are able to have youth group, small groups, Bible studies, church on Sundays, everything, yet how many of us are as truly faithful as those people - Those people who are risking it all?
Isn't it ironic that those people, despite their circumstances, are far more in love with Jesus than most "Christians" in America are?
So, what about you?  How much do you love Jesus? Would YOU be willing to risk it all?

The Cupcake Rap

Last time you saw me, I was talking about blueberry muffins. This time, I'm rapping (with someone special) about cupcakes.

Enjoy. :)

Worms Are Not Welcome Here

Today I had the joy of getting together with my best friend. We went around her neighborhood raising funds for 30 Hour Famine. (You can check out 30HrFamine by clicking HERE!)

30 Hour Famine is done through World Vision and in its simplest form, it is done to catch a glimpse at what poor and starving people, mainly children, are going through around the world. Check out these facts:

• Every day, nearly 8,000 kids under the age of 5 die because of hunger-related causes. That's one child every 10 seconds.
• One in six people will go to bed hungry tonight. The odds are worse for kids living in poor countries - they have one in three chance of going hungry.
• 1.4 billion people live on less than $1.25 a day.

30 Hour Famine is an awesome event that I have taken part in the past two years, making this year my third. My youth group holds the event each year around this time in April. In fact, my church has been participating in it for a total of three years (this being our fourth), and so far we have raised over $16,000! Isn't that amazing? I can't imagine how many children we have helped to feed!
For the event, we fast for 30 hours, beginning this Friday at noon, and then we meet at church around 6pm, we form "tribes", play group games, have lessons, last year we had an incredible prayer time, AND we sleep outside in cardboard boxes! To top it all off, when the 30 hours are up on Saturday evening, we get to enjoy a delicious meal of rice and beans! It's an amazing event and experience - I highly encourage you to check it out and perhaps hold the event at your church!

Despite the unsettling facts I listed above, I personally find joy in knowing that even though I'm just a young 17 year old girl in America, my fundraising and participation in this event is raising awareness and also providing for these people and children around the world! Every $30 I raise goes to feed and care for one child for one month. AMAZING!
30 Hour Famine is actually this coming Friday and Saturday, so I will probably post again about that sometime later. :)

Furthermore, while she and I were doing our door knocking, we had the joy of being out in the wonderful rain. It was quite a fun (and wet) experience, haha.

My best friend made a comment though, saying about how we are "washed" by God, in the sense of being cleansed. Right as she said this, I happened to notice another worm on the ground, flooded out of its home by the rain.

AND THEN, like usual, I had an epiphany, an analogy suddenly came to mind, like it always does. :)

YUCK! See the importance in being cleansed daily by God?

What is the whole purpose of being cleansed by God? It is to be rid of sin, rid of anything that is not pleasing to God, it refines us, it makes us more Christ-like. Seeing the worm made me realize that that's what happens to our sin in some sense. When God cleanses us, the "worms" or sin, come out. So, are you currently preserving any worms? If so, you should probably think about being cleansed of them. :)

"Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water."
Hebrews 10:22

And on top of ALL of that, I'm pleased to say that so far, I have raised over 60% of the money I need for my mission trip to Ecuador this coming June/July. (If you haven't heard about this awesome trip I'm going on, you can check it out by clicking here!) Praise God! He is so faithful. :) Please continue to keep me, this mission trip, and Ecuador in your prayers!

Ah, it's been a long, rainy, wet, BUT also a joyful, exciting and encouraging day. :)
To calm things down, I'll leave you with this peaceful song by Jon Foreman!

The Man Behind the Scenes

Stephen Colbert

Earlier today my brother and I were talking about the fairly well known comedian, Stephen Colbert. He hosts a show on Comedy Central entitled The Colbert Report. It could be said that his show is similar to Jay Leno, David Letterman, Conan O'Brien, etc. Except Colbert's show has a more political twist to it.

My brother likes him quite a bit and finds him unbelievably hilarious. Personally, in my opinion, he does make some funny jokes, though I wouldn't recommend his show. "Everything is permissible"--but not everything is beneficial. "Everything is permissible"--but not everything is constructive." (1 Corinthians 10:23) While it may be funny, it doesn't mean it's really worth your time to watch or for that matter, glorifying to God to watch (though, the subject of glory will come in handy later ;)). Nevertheless, my post isn't about whether or not you should watch Stephen Colbert!

The conversation with my brother went a little something like this:

Me: "Is everything Colbert says improv?"

Bro: "Oh no, he reads most of it from the teleprompter. Though his interviews are usually improv."

Me: "Does he write all of what he reads from the teleprompter then?"

Bro: "Of course not, he has writers. Though I'm sure a good bit comes from Colbert."

Me: "So you mean he's not even the creator of a lot of his content?"

Bro: "Yep, there's always a man behind the scenes who never gets the credit deserved."

There's always a man behind the scenes who never gets the credit deserved? That sounds strangely familiar.

It made me think of God, "the man behind the scenes". We know that God orchestrates everything according to His perfect will and plan. Along with this, He uses us as part of the process in executing these plans. It made think that we're almost like Colbert, reading from a teleprompter, words and ideas that are not truly our own, but come from a greater source.

See what I mean?

No matter what we do, or say, or accomplish, all of it truly belongs to God. He IS that "man behind the scene". While God may let us play a role or fulfill certain parts of His master plan, ultimately, all the credit and glory is due to Him. He is the creator, the inventor, the designer, the coordinator. He designs the perfect script upon the teleprompter of our lives, which we follow and fulfill, assuming we are fully dedicating our lives to Him, and being a living sacrifice so that Christ may reign in us.

May this be a reminder to you, that God is the one who deserves ALL the credit, ALL the glory. For you and I, are only little pieces of His entire picture which He so mercifully and lovingly allowed us to take part in.

Not only remember where the credit goes and belongs to, but be thankful that God has been so gracious to let us join in on this Heavenly joy. :)

 "So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God."
1 Corinthians 10:31

Preparing for Prince Charming - Who Is She?

She's young and in love with a boy. Completely caught up in a storm of emotion and feelings never felt before. Her mind and heart are consumed by this. Her love for God is fading quickly. Her priorities are rearranging. God is slowly being lowered on her list. She's stuck in sin, in lust, in idolatry. She is slowly more disrespected by this boy, and eventually disrespects herself and the boy in return. She has momentary satisfaction, but no secure joy is present. She feels a void, one that this "love" cannot ever seem to fill. The relationship has taken a sudden turn for the worse. It has ended. She's broken and feels despair. The promises made to her have been broken. Her planned out future is now crushed and quickly fading. She gave away so much emotionally, so much spiritually and physically. "What love is this?" her heart cries out. "That he would not love me so?"

Who is she?

She's young and in love with Jesus. Continually reminded of His love and grace, of His patience and mercy. She is consumed by His goodness and faithfulness, willing to give up everything for her King and Lord. Her love for God is growing rapidly, like never before. Her priorities are rearranging. God is becoming her number one, her all in all. She is fleeing from sin, she is finding freedom through the strength of God. She is respected, and respected by herself. She is understanding what true joy looks and feels like. She is discovering the treasures, eternal treasures, offered by Christ. She does not feel any void, but rather, she is whole and complete because of her Prince, Jesus. Day by day, her relationship with Jesus grows brighter and brighter, deeper and deeper. She trusts in her promise-fulfilling Savior, knowing that He is the same yesterday, today and forever. She no longer plans her steps, but rather, let's the Master Planner be her guide. She has let go of her dreams, her desires, and has placed them at the foot of the cross, so that she may accept whatever plans Jesus has created for her while letting go of her own. She has given away all of her heart, all of her mind, body, and spirit as a living sacrifice to her forever faithful Jesus. "What love is this?" her heart cries out."That He should love me so?"

Who is she?

Both of these are accurate descriptions of me.

Accurate descriptions of me at two very different times in my life.

One being seven months ago, one being now.

Can you take a guess at which description belongs at which time?

I was thinking long and hard about what my first post in this series would be about.
"What is the most important thing in all of what I'm going to write about?" was my thought.

And this is where the struggle begins. For me. For you. For anyone and everyone seeking to follow Jesus.

It's letting go of your dreams, your desires, your wants, your "needs".

It's saying God, whatever your will for me is, then let that will be. "Not my will, but thine, be done."

The whole purpose of this series is to talk about preparing for the guy that God may have in your future. What is not a better way to start out than saying to God that you give this part of your life, (hopefully along with every other part), to Him. If you ever want a beautifully scripted love story, if you ever want a love story more amazing than you can imagine, you need to leave it up to God. Any love story without God's hand is second rate. Let me tell you why.

Let's go back to the first description I listed at the beginning of this post. Take a good long look at what I wrote. Would you want that to be you? I should hope not. Let's take it a step further. Not only was I planning my future according to the way I THOUGHT I wanted my life to be, but I was giving up any plans that God would have for me. I was basically saying, God, my plans are better, and more joyful, and more awesome. But look at what I wrote. Was I joyful? Were my plans really better? They weren't. I was forfeiting any real, true joy. If God were to ever use me for amazing things, I was saying no to them, because I thought I knew better than Him. As days go by, I realize what a blessing it was that God broke that relationship up. It was a path that neither I or the guy truly wanted. It was what our sin and selfishness wanted. It was a path that was leading to destruction, to pain and sorrow. While we thought we were sowing such happiness, such love and future joy, we were wrong. We were only sowing heartache, pain, and regret, and that's exactly what we reaped.

A while back, in one of my blog posts, I wrote a little about a time long ago in my life, when I was several years younger. I had cried out a plea to God that I wanted to live a life fully given to Him, a life that rose above the mediocre Christianity that is so prominent today. I said God, that's not the life I want to live. I want my life to show that I'm giving everything to YOU! I want YOU to be the center of my life, where all my meaning and purpose derives from.

I believe that day was monumental in my life, and now that I think back about it and back on my relationship with the boy, especially when it ended, I realize that God was answering that prayer of mine, even though along with it came heartache and pain. While I wanted to love and be loved by the boy, God knew that that's not what was going to truly fulfill me - because only HE can. And praise God that He intervened when He did. While I suffered so much heartache and regret, I can't even imagine the heartache that God saved me from!

Referring back to the point of this first part in the series, all the while, for the duration of this relationship I had, I had taken away the pen from God. Rather than letting Him write me a beautiful and incredible love story, I was trying to write it myself. And how terribly I was doing! If you ever want to have a truly beautiful love story, you need to let God be the creator of it. You need to let Him have full reign - not just a little or even a lot. He needs to have it ALL!

We constantly try to have control, try to be the leader in this part of our lives. And I understand, it's really hard not to! It's so easy to assume or think that our planning is better, or "so romantic". But when we do this, all we are really doing is settling for less. We are settling for this world's best, and saying that God's best is somehow not as good, or as fulfilling. What falsehood this is!

I can't stress it enough how important it is to trust God in this area of your life. I know the world is telling you that you "need" a boyfriend, or that you may even feel you're not complete without a guy, but both of these are wrong! Christ is and should be your ALL IN ALL!

If you are still gripping onto this part of your life, I encourage you to let go and let God. Sometimes we worry that if we do this, God is going to bring someone who we don't find attractive, or that we don't find interesting, etc. But if you are truly honest with yourself, would God do that? Does God want you to be unhappy? No!

"For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."
Jeremiah 29:11

I decided that along with what I write, I'll recommend a helpful book or video or some little tidbit.

If you are really struggling with letting go and letting God then I highly encourage you to read:

"When God Writes Your Love Story" by Eric and Leslie Ludy
If you know me IRL, then feel free to ask to borrow it... :)

And along with that I'll leave you with this:

Click here to hear a beautiful love story told by Leslie Ludy!

"What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ."
Philippians 3:8
Click HERE for the next part in the series! (Modest is Hottest)

When Evil is Found

Last night I was reading in Deuteronomy, currently I am in around chapter 22. Just to give a little background about this book, Moses is accounting all that happened between being freed from slavery in Egypt as well as various events that occurred during their wandering in the wilderness. Along with this, Moses gives praise for God's goodness in rescuing them and Moses also goes over a number of guidelines and laws to follow in order to keep structure and maintain civility. As I was reading, I kept noticing a repeating phrase: "You must purge the evil from among you."

I decided to rewind a couple chapters and count the amount of times I saw this phrase between chapter 17 and 22. I counted a total of nine times. Recently, I have learned that when something in the Bible is said repeatedly, it usually is for a reason - to get the point across that the repeating phrase is truth and should be followed.

With this in mind, I couldn't help but soak up its repetitiveness.

I knew it was for a reason that it was said so many times.

Here we have well over a million, possibly even two million people, and they've just been freed from slavery in Egypt. Now God has to train them to understand and obey a completely different structure. It was very important for Him to lay down these laws, without them there would be very serious issues, sin, and if you boil it down, things would become very disorganized and out of control.

My next thought was: How can I apply this to my life?
There are all sorts of evils in this world. Sin comes in many forms: idolatry, lying, lust, murder, stealing, jealousy, anger, etc. All of us have our own struggles and weaknesses, and all of us are prone to certain temptations.

God made it clear that when evil was found, that it should be purged. I was trying to find the specific meaning for the word "purge" in Deuteronomy but I was having some trouble. After doing some research on the web, my ultimate conclusion was that purge means to purify, or cleanse thoroughly. In some senses it can even mean to prune something. Pruning comes across very strong, for me at least, in the sense that it means something is dead and it must be done away with to keep the entirety of whatever the object (say a plant) healthy.

Returning to my original question, where does the application come in? God made it known that purging or pruning away evil was significant, that it should and must be done. I believe that this same line of logic should apply in our lives as well. If you see evil in your life, a sin you're struggling with, you should purge yourself of it. If you see a friend struggling with a sin, you should hold them accountable and encourage them to purge it from their life. Why is this important? For the same reasons that God told the Israelites to purge the evil. Evil is not just some nice little thing that you want to keep around. It's ugly, it destroys, its entire aim is to wreck havoc in the world, people's lives, in everything! If you follow Christ, you know that sin will not build you up or make you more Christlike, but instead it pulls you away from Him and can even put off your spiritual growth. That is why purging evil and sin is SO important! We all know it's a lot easier said than done, but with God as our stronghold, there is nothing we cannot overcome.

A verse that has been encouraging to me in life is 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 which says:

"But he (Jesus) said to me (Paul), “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” ¹⁰Therefore I (Paul) will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong."

I challenge you, as a follower of Christ, to take a look at your heart, your life, your mind, your words, your actions, everything, and see where evil may lie. If you find something, and I'm certain you will, then take a long look at it. Why is this evil in your life? How have you let it in? What can you do to be rid of it? What steps can you take to prevent from falling into it again? I encourage you to seek out the prayer and council of others depending on the gravity of this evil as well as receiving accountability from those who you are close to. Accountability can do wonders, wonders I say! It's so incredibly beneficial and can build you up in a way like nothing else can. Find a close and sincere friend or two, and share with them about this evil or struggle you're dealing with. Don't be too ashamed to share, that's the biggest trap of the devil. He wants you to feel stuck in sin, that you can't get out of it, that everyone will think you're a terrible person or that they will only judge you for it. It's not true! If you seek out and share with true lovers and followers of Jesus, they will want to support you, encourage you, and walk through the struggle with you, so that you may see the sweet victory found in Jesus!

"Two are better than one,
   because they have a good return for their labor:
If either of them falls down,
   one can help the other up.
But pity anyone who falls
   and has no one to help them up."

Ecclesiastes 4:9-10

Okay, this is just ridiculous!

My Dad and nephew made Spring the Snowman! ;)

IT'S APRIL 2ND, and it's snowing!

WHAT IN THE WORLD!

Two things:

1. Where is that groundhog so I can take care of business with him - mister "Spring is coming soon!"?!?!

2. Okay, so, global warming??? Get real!

That concludes my blog post for today.. but to actually give some substance, check out this song. One of my favorites... :) Original is by Hillsong, but I really like Starfield's version. Enjoy your Saturday!

Lately, I've been wondering..

Why do we pray before we eat a meal?

I mean, now that I think about it, I don't think it's ever really been a "command" per se. It seems more like tradition. My parents prayed, taught me to pray for my food and so now I pray and teach other little ones to pray for their food.

But is there any Biblical reasoning behind this? This is where my question began, and so I decided to do some research.

Here's what others on the web were saying:

"Does it depend on whether or not the one hosting the meal is a Christian? What if we're in the company of non-believers? Do we take into consideration the ratio of Christians to non-Christians gathered at the table? What if I'm the only Christian at the table? Is it a cultural thing? Do Christians the world over pray before they eat? And should the prayer always come before eating? What if the meal was prepared by a really bad cook?"

"[Previously stating the assumptive thought that prayer at every meal is important] Well, ask yourself why you don't pray when you go out for ice cream. Does it depend on the quantity of food you are about to consume?"

"Why is this is done by Christians in restaurants? Is it supposed to be evangelism? If so, it's not effective. If it is truly offering thanks to God for His provision, then doesn't it relate to Mt. 6:5 where the Lord commands that prayers NOT be done on street corners where others can see? When "saying grace" is done in the home, why?...obligation? habit? tradition? sincere heartfelt gratitude?"

"What if the food you are eating is leftovers? Do they need to be re-prayed over? How many times?

I thought all of these were really interesting thoughts, some I never really considered. Ultimately I would ask: Do we treat prayer before a meal as a simple tradition and we do it out obligation?

I would say I am definitely guilty of praying for my meal out of mere obligation. It has almost become a subconscious habit of "Dear God, thank you for this food, bless this food to my body. Amen." There have actually been times when I have prayed something similar to that and then forgot and nearly prayed again. How terrible is that?!
Let's take a look at what the Bible says...

"Bring them here to me,” he said. And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people.^"

Matthew 14:18-19

Mark 6:41 also has nearly the exact same wording as this verse.

From this we can see that Jesus, to some extent, gave thanks for his food. Yet still, it made me wonder if there were any other places. The first idea that came to my mind was the Last Supper. So I flipped to Matthew 26:26, and indeed it says...

"...While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples.."

With these verses in mind, I would say that it would certainly be a Christ-like thing to pray before we eat. Seeing that Jesus did it, then surely I can/should as well!

But there is still one problem. Are we truly grateful? Am I truly grateful? What pleases God is a sincere prayer, a sincere heart. Whether it's tradition, commanded in the Bible or whatever it may be, ultimately, doing it with a genuine heart is most important. Sometimes we are in a rush, or we forget, or maybe we may even feel ashamed to pray for our food in front of others. I definitely think that because of the unlimited amount of food we have in America, that we so easily forget how fortunate we really are. Having food is something we really should be extremely grateful for!! Whatever the case, let this be a challenge to you that when you pray for your meals, you pray sincerely - with a genuinely grateful heart. 

Note: All quotes were taken from "Should Christians Pray Before Meals?"

Preparing for Prince Charming - An Upcoming Series

Part 1 (Surrendering your Love Story to God) is out! Read it by clicking here!
Part 2 (Modest is Hottest) is out! Read it by clicking here!

Note: This is created by a young lady, with young ladies in mind. In other words, if you're a guy, remember, it's not directed toward you. However, you could very easily morph it a bit to make it applicable.

The other night I was reading Proverbs. I came across Proverbs 12:4,

"A wife of noble character is her husband's crown,
but a disgraceful wife is like decay in his bones."

This is actually a picture of a fairly new married
couple who are youth leaders at my church. :)
Aren't they just adorable!?

I've certainly read this verse before, but suddenly it struck me as much more powerful. Obviously, I am not a wife, nor do I have a husband. Nevertheless, I do have somewhat of a desire to be married one day, if the Lord wills. Will I be a wife of noble character? Will I be my husband's CROWN? I sure hope so! I bet you would like to as well!

At one point I was in a relationship, which lasted for quite a while. I think I learned more from it after it ended rather than while it was happening. Consequently, my mind is constantly reflecting and revising where I went wrong, what I did right, and what I can do better. With the combination of my thoughts on Proverbs 12:4 and this as well, I've decided to share some of my experience through a series of blog posts over the next five or six weeks. Post will be all about guys and my opinion on waiting, guarding your heart, being treated with respect, purity and much more!

I really believe that guys (along with beauty) are at the top of the list when dealing with the most prominent issues girls deal with everyday. I'm excited to encourage, motivate, and ultimately challenge my fellow sisters in Christ to live a life more pleasing to God, especially in such an area as guys!

It can be difficult, and sometimes we would prefer to "be in control" of this area of our lives, but if we truly have given up our reign over our lives to Christ and desire to live for Him, then it includes this area as well. It takes trust and faith, but God is faithful - yesterday, today and tomorrow! It's something I am continually working on as well... so don't feel alone. :)

I will try to create a post once a week. I don't want it too often, as I want time to create a thoughtful and God pleasing post, as well as time for the reader to reflect and ponder the concept presented. This is just an introduction, so look forward to next week when I create the first actual post!

I'm excited! I hope you are too. :)

Do you have a topic you'd like me to write about in regards to this series? Or maybe you just have a question relating to guys? Feel free to leave a comment or email me at: beautifullyselfless@yahoo.com
I'd love to hear from you!

Dead End Streets Have Ceased

Aside from walking into a garbage dumpster lid, getting a bloody nose, losing a few tears and having a lovely red mark on my nose, my day at work went fairly well I'd say. :) I was doing a familiar routine outside of changing trash, and other little jobs, thinking about what wonderful thing I could write about on my blog.  Some profound truth of God's that could make at least one person's life more joyful.

I love epiphany's! I mean like when that great thought hits you and you feel brilliant. Yeah, you know what I mean. :)

See, I work at a place that sells gas, (but it's much more than a gas station), and so cars are constantly coming and going. As I did my work, an idea struck me.

Have you ever realized God is like a GPS? You know, a Global Positioning System. Those lovely little things in a person's car that directs them to so many places, and usually talks with an incredible British accent (or even better, a Darth Vader voice!).

To be more serious, how many of us have gone down the wrong road (symbolically)? Or perhaps made a mistake or "wrong turn"? I can definitely say I have, many times. Sometimes we feel like our turns (choices) were onto roads that turn into dead ends (mistakes), and we're stuck where we are. 

 

But as followers of Jesus, there really are no dead ends. Sure, there are roads that are dark and unwise to turn onto, but if we truly are filled with the Holy Spirit and know Jesus, eventually I believe we would come to a point of repentance and faith, where we would long to get off that path and onto one that is pleasing to Jesus.

Do you ever feel like you're at a dead end? Do you ever feel like you're stuck on a dark path, that you've lost your way and can't find your way back?

Well that's the great thing about GPS's. They can always recalculate a new route for you. You make a wrong turn, and they easily can fix it. When I thought about it, I realized God kind of does the same. 

Right now, our aim is to live a life pleasing to Jesus and to keep trekking along until our day of perfection, or when we die and are made new and are able to be with Jesus. That is our destination, and currently we are on a path towards it. 

Have you stumbled off on another tangent path? Let me remind you, as an encouragement, that your path can always be "recalculated" by God, so that, even though you went down a wrong path, you can be redirected towards the right one, and you can get back on track. Even if you make mistakes or poor choices, God can and will give you direction if your heart is fully seeking it.

There have been some moments when I drifted away from God's path for me. I went down roads that I shouldn't have. I made choices that I wish I hadn't. But in the end, God never left me and in fact, was there all along, pleading to my heart to turn to Him and follow His way instead. With time, He has "redirected" me to a greater path, one that I enjoy much better than any other ones I ventured onto. Though I may have felt guilt and unforgiving to myself, I have found forgiveness and love in my Savior's name. You can too. :)

I encourage you to search your heart and see what path you're currently walking on. Is it pleasing to Jesus? Are you truly following Him as you might say? If not, I highly encourage you to seek Him out and reconsider your current path. If your plea is genuine and honest, there is no doubt that God will work it out and direct you to His path, which may still be difficult but will be so much more fulfilling and joyful! The path you're on, if wrong, can always be "recalculated" by the power of Jesus!

"If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness."

1 John 1:9

"Who is a God like you, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of his inheritance? You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy. You will again have compassion on us; you will tread our sins underfoot and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea."
Micah 7:18-19

Are you taking advantage of where God has put you?

"Bloom where God plants you."

I heard this quote from when I went and saw Rebecca St. James on Friday evening.

It struck a chord.
How many of us are looking to the future so often and so much that we forget to appreciate where we're at now? 

I have a dear friend of mine, who was planning to go to a certain school. She was incredibly excited and I mean, EXCITED! As the time for leaving has come closer, she realized that she had been so focused on her future, that she forgot to tend to the present time. Consequently, she has pushed back the date for when she leaves to go to school. This way she may spend some time that she lost by taking advantage of the opportunities she has at home.

That is just one simple example of how often we get so caught up in our future that we often miss out and lose opportunities. Sometimes we even begin to dislike or not care for the spot we're currently in, and we lose appreciation for what we have now. 

Let this be a reminder that God has you in whatever spot you're in, right now, for a reason.

Don't get so caught up in the future, or even perhaps the past, that you're missing incredible opportunities because of your lack of patience and contentment.

"Nevertheless, each person should live as a believer in whatever situation the Lord has assigned to them, just as God has called them. This is the rule I lay down in all the churches."

1 Corinthians 7:17

"I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances."

Philippians 4:11

So my friends, bloom where God plants you! :)

I just thought it was a cool picture... Now I want some cake!

The Kindness of a Stranger (Vlog post!)

Due to recent encouragement regarding videos, I decided to make a vlog post - aka video post. Enjoy. :)

P.S. I know I said 5 minutes in the video, but it's a little bit longer than that. Sorry, I tend to talk a little longer than I should. ;)

Click here for a video with bloopers/outtakes!

Keep Your Head Up High

Something happened in my life some time ago, where my heart broke and sunk so deep.

Only by God's grace, have I sustained and pushed through.

The pain though - it's a feeling like no other.

It's so hopeless, it's terrifying. How am I ever going to get out of feeling like this?

It feels like there may never be a way out, that you may be stuck there forever.

I will say that I've made a promise to myself to never get into a spot where I may end up feeling this pain again.

In those moments, sometimes I doubted God. I doubted His promises. I doubted that He would really, truly, pull me through. I doubted that He would bring joy back to my life. It's so scary to think that maybe God really doesn't care about you. Because, honestly, I feel that without God, there is no point to life. What would be the point of my life if God wasn't there or didn't care?

It has taken time, but I will say that God is so faithful. God does keep His promises, 100% of the time. God DID pull me through. God DID bring joy back into my life. God really does love and care about me. I let myself think that my pain was bigger than my God, and how wrong I was. So, so very wrong.

Even though the pain was so unbearable at times, ultimately it has drawn me so much closer to Jesus. My life is so much more different now than before the trial God presented me with. My viewpoint in life has dramatically changed. Now, I can't get enough of Jesus (Psalm 42:1-2). I would say that I love Jesus more now than I ever did before. Now I know what true and genuine joy is! I know Jesus is in my life and that He will never leave me. :) I like to think of myself climbing a "spiritual ladder" and ascending greatly now!

My heart breaks though, for those who may not see this or understand it. But if you're hurting, if you doubt God and if He's really there. Let me tell you, HE IS! God is so incredible and wonderful and loving and you can trust Him! You just have to hang on, and He will bring through whatever you're facing. I'm a living example of this! And in the end, it has only made me stronger, it has only made me more in love with Jesus. You will see this too, but you have to keep hanging in there. God will give you the strength that you cannot find in yourself!

"But the needy will not always be forgotten, nor the hope of the afflicted ever perish."
Psalms 9:18

"Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we[a]have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us."

Romans 5:1-5

"But blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in him."

Jeremiah 17:7

A Slight Change... :)

I decided to change the name of my blog from "Beautifully Selfless" to "Less of me, More of You". If you haven't understood it yet, it is a reference to John 3:30, where John the Baptist says how he must decrease so that Christ may increase.

I feel this becoming greater and greater in my life, that people may not simply see Rachel, but rather they would see Jesus. :) I think "Beautifully Selfless" still greatly plays into this idea and concept, as it requires a form of selflessness for me to decrease and Jesus to increase. Because of this, I think (at least for now) I'll be keeping my blog URL the same. Not to mention, I don't want that to cause any sort of confusion for people in regards to finding my blog. 

And I encourage you all as well: May you decrease so that Christ may increase in your life! :)

Love Isn't Always on Time

Today while I was finishing up my work shift, the song "Hold the Line" by Toto (oldies but goodies, represent!) came on. The chorus goes a little something like this..

"Hold the line,

Love isn't always on time."

After thinking about it a little, I realized that love really isn't always on time! According to us, at least.

Whether it be love or anything else you're waiting for, sometimes it really feels that it's "not on time". 

Waiting, waiting and waiting... Yeah, it gets tiring, doesn't it?

In today's world, I would say the majority of us are used to getting things when we want them, or at least in a speedy manner. Part of being devoted to Christ, is waiting and having patience:

"Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him..."
Psalm 37:7a

"It is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the LORD."

Lamentations 3:26

More importantly, God is in control of all things and while you may think that something isn't on time, God is definitely on time! It's really us, who aren't on time. "Hold the line", referring back to the song, is actually a phrase which means keeping constant, or even persevering in some senses. When certain things in your life feel as if  they "aren't on time", that's when you need to "hold the line" and remember that God does not work according to our watches. 

God always has His reasons for why or when He does or doesn't do something. Have faith my fellow Christians, that God is good and all things come through His PERFECT will and timing! :) 

Side note: I know this song has a meaning a bit different than what my post is about, but it was merely for an example and a good song! :P

I'm just not Good Enough

There's a specific area in my life which didn't work out so well and when reflecting on it, it makes me feel nearly valueless, worthless, or simply not good enough. "Where did I go wrong?" or "Where did I not measure up?" are typically the thoughts that run through my head. It hurts, let me just tell you, it really hurts.

It's funny how a single little failure or blemish can block out any previous success or joy.

Recently, I've found myself interacting with various people who have made similar comments, about how they find themselves feeling "not good enough". This feeling can spawn from a variety of things. For a girl it could be her body, or a guy it could be something he was unsuccessful in. It could be from relationships, school, your relationship with your parents or even siblings. The possibilities are endless! 

When I think about the way it makes me feel, the feeling of not good enough, at the same time there is something within me that says, "You don't have to feel this way". It makes me think about who or what I'm trying to measure up to. 

Who or what are you trying to measure up to? How's that working out for ya? Not too good, I presume?

The truth is, there will always be something or someone who you are "not good enough" to. But that's okay. 

The only opinion we should truly be concerned about is God's.

As followers of Christ, we know we're pathetic, weak and pretty much nothing in comparison to God. 

The world tells us that we must continually be changing the way we talk, act, dress, etc in order to be good enough. Or, to be more personal, the result of the failure in my life seemed to come out as that there was some area that I wasn't good enough in. No matter where your struggle is, there is always this certain expectation felt, that if it isn't met, then it must mean you fell short and/or aren't worth much.

It's a lie.

When you are saved by God, your identity is with Him. He gives you value. He gives you worth.

We need to let go of building our own "self-esteem" and rather, build something called a "God-esteem".

As followers of Christ, we are called to die to self, and live for Christ. 

We cannot do that when we're depending on ourselves, others, or the world for our value or contentment. The only thing we will find then is more unsatisfactory.

If today you feel not good enough, or that you aren't measuring up, then let this be a reminder that in Christ, you don't have to try to perform to be good enough. Don't let the world, others, or even yourself try to tell you that you're not good enough.

Zephaniah 3:17

When of Christ, we can rest assured that our value is found in Him! It makes me feel comforted to know that I don't have to be concerned about anyone else's measurements or expectations, but rather that as long as I am loving and serving my Jesus, my value is found with Him. And what a value that is! :)

Can't Get Away

Whether you're Moses demanding to God that you're not capable of speaking well enough(Exodus 6:28-7:5),
Or you're Jonah running away from preaching the truth to a city(Jonah 1: 1-3),
Or even if you're Balaam, and God has to make a donkey talk to you in order for you to see the truth(Numbers 22:21-41),
You can't get away from Him.

Each of these men, in their own ways, were going against what God had called them to do.
But the funny thing is, with God, you can't get away. You may try to hide, or run, or deny the truth, but God won't let you get around it.

Quite honestly, I am so glad that we can't get away from Him. We can always be found by Him.
There definitely have been some times when I wish it didn't have to be God 's way, but that's only because I didn't understand what He was doing, and because I thought my way was better. I'm learning that in the end, it's me who's wrong, not God. God's plan always turns out better than mine!

Is there something in your life that you've been running away from? Is there something you've been called to do but have been putting it off because of fear? Lack of trust in God? Simply because you disagree?

Well, my friend, let me just tell you, you can't get away from Him... so stop trying. :)

"Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the LORD's purpose that prevails."
Proverbs 19:21

That green paper sure does go fast!

Today I got my monthly letter from the bank, showing my deposits, deductions and balance.

To say the least, I was blown away at how much money I spent in the past month. I thought I was going to be sick!

Now, while I feel guilty, I do have some good excuses, including my passport, which was over $100, along with plane tickets for my mission trip which were over $300 as well. But still, there was definitely a good chunk 'o change that I could have saved if I had been wiser with my money. 

Consequently, I created a budget for myself with the help of a book my Dad bought me when I was younger. It had a basic plan for creating a budget as follows:

Tithing 10%

Spending 25%

Long Term Savings 10%
Short Term Savings 25%

Taxes 5%

Expenses 25%

I took taxes, expenses, along with both saving categories and combined them, considering I don't really worry too much about taxes, nor do I really have any "expenses" (yet). 

Hopefully this plan I've devised will be beneficial and allow me to spend less and save more!

Here's my challenge to you: Are you wise about your spending/saving habits? Are you frugal or do you blow your money 'like nobody's business'? I've heard before that you can tell a lot about a person simply by what they spend their money on. What does your spending habit/purchases show about you?

 

"Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

Matthew 6:21

"The plans of the diligent lead to profit as surely as haste leads to poverty."

Proverbs 21:5