Thoughts on the Future

I don't know about y'all, but I tend to get really nervous thinking about the future. Or thinking about change, for that matter. I don't like it, I get uncomfortable with the idea of some unknown experience or variable that pops into my short range view of my life. I like the way things are. Most Christians like the way their lives are; they are fine with being comfortable.

But we are Christians, we are supposed to be in Christ and of Christ. We are meant to live like He did. Jesus wasn't comfortable. Jesus wasn't allowed to be comfortable. If He had been content with comfort, He would have never come to Earth to live as a human. He would have stayed in Heaven where He could be Christ in His full glory and power. But instead, in order to save our dirty sinful souls, Jesus became uncomfortable willingly. He stayed awake for days on end, to a point where it became unhealthy, to serve people, to heal sickness. He never had a bed or a house to call His own, he was constantly traveling. He went through torture to save us.

Our modern day society was not the only one focused on comfort. People in Jesus' day were, too. Many people, not just the Twelve, would follow and travel with Jesus, listening to His teaching. But as soon as Jesus said something that didn't quite fit with their idea of comfortable things, they said, "Ooh, that makes me nervous. I don't agree with that, because that would involve me stepping outside of my comfort zone, and that's not okay". Those who were uncomfortable with His teaching left and went back to their families and their homes, where they knew it was safe and predictable.

But we are Christians. We aren't allowed to be content with being comfortable. When we become comfortable, we become complacent. We don't care about what God wants for our lives. We start to forget what God has done for us and called us to do, and that's not okay. We begin to become autonomous, living and functioning freely from the rest of the world, focused solely on our own lives and our ideas of important things.That is not okay.

I'm not saying that Americans and other Western countries are committing a terrible sin by living in a way that the majority of have beds, and a variety of foods to eat, an abundance of clothes in our closets, and a house we go home to every night. I'm saying we as Christians should start being scared about the idea of spiritual comfort. We are meant to be learners of God's Word and of God's Will. Being comfortable means not being stretched, not learning. What is a Christian if he does not grow? We should always be spiritually willing to allow God to stretch us and call us to new experiences and new revelations.

I'll be the first person to admit it, I do not like the idea of going on trips. Vacations are good, because they are planned and re-planned several times, so everyone knows exactly what's going to happen, when you're going to get to your destination, and what you're going to do when you get there (although there is always the possibility of a vehicle breaking down, or of bad weather putting a damper on your happy little group, both of which have happened to me and my family).

No,vacations are great, exciting. But trips that are specifically taken to find out which direction your future is going to go, are absolutely terrifying. My family and I are going to visit two colleges over Spring Break, and two others on different weekends. I don't want to go. The idea of assessing a college and it's campus is slightly overwhelming. Of course after that I have to choose a college. I don't want to have to do that either, because that means that I am accepting the fact that I am leaving my family. I don't want to leave my family, as much as I can't stand them sometimes. They are a source of comfort for me, why would I want to willingly leave that?

Because in order to grow, you must stretch yourself to what you know you can be.

After college visitng, comes graduation. That's a pretty big deal to me. I once thought that I would not graduate, not because I wasn't good enough in school, oh no. I know I'm smart, I'm an accelerated student who did better in most of her college classes than the actual college kids last semester. No, it wasn't because I'm not smart enough. I thought, and I'm sure my parents thought this as well, that I was never going to graduate because I was making choices that would have led me down the path of a self-destructive, homeless drop-out. Had my parents allowed me to stay in the environment I was in, I would have become unrecognizable. I look at the choices those former friends or mine are making, and I cringe, because I would have made those same mistakes, and I would have destroyed my life just like they did. But now, with graduation in my sight, I am reminded almost daily that this was not something that I accomplished; this was the work of my Savior. I shouldn't be here, as a dual-enrolled college student, writing a blog about spiritual matters. I should be the girl crashing at a friend's house because my own parents refuse to support my lifestyle. I should be long gone.

And right after graduation, is Canada. I have gotten to the point where I just want to pack up and go already. As much as I don't like thinking about the future, I don't like waiting even more. I was never a patient person, whether it be waiting in line at a theme park, or on a long car ride, or waiting for my parents to finish getting ready for church. I don't like waiting, because there is always the possibility that you waited too long, and you end up getting there late. (I don't like being late, I loathe it. It is a terrible, terrible thing that comes from being unprepared, and it makes you look like you don't care about everybody else's time. And that's not cool.) I don't even know where in Canada I'm going yet, but I want to go. I don't want to sit around anymore. But at the same time, I don't want to go at all. I just want to stay here at home, and go through the summer with my friends and family like I always have. None of this packing up and being gone for two months, I want to stay here.

But as much as I contradict myself, I have to always, always remind myself that I am supposed to be willing and let God stretch me and grow me into the best person he wants me to be. It isn't comfortable, nor is it always going to be a pleasurable experience. But that doesn't mean you won't be happy when it happens. Because if you are willing to let God move you, and you stay planted in His Word, you will always have a peace and joy about you that won't ever let you go.

Emily E.

A Hard Pill to Swallow

This has been a very emotional week for me and my friends. Our youth pastor and his family, who have been with us for four years, are being called to a different church. This wasn't something any of us expected, nor is it something we wanted. So many questions have been running through my head since Sunday, I just don't know how to take it all in.

On Wednesday in the youth group, he talked to us about where we went from here. What happens now, if you wish. It was so hard not to simply cry my eyes out in front of everybody as I listened to him, because even though it was his last time talking to us, what he said, God had already spoken to me throughout the week in my personal times with Him. And everything he said was hard to swallow. The biggest for me was most definitely to not get sidetracked and distracted when these things happen.

When our pastor announced he was leaving, one thought that ran through my mind was whether or not I should still go to Canada. As many know I am a Senior in high school this year, and I feel as I have some kind of leadership position within our youth group. With that position, I can't help but feel as if I need to stay here over the summer and help the group transition between pastors. But our youth pastor, and my mom later on, said it so truthfully. God has called me to Canada to do a ministry that no one else can do. And if I stay here, I am going to hinder ministry both here at home and in Canada. God will still use somebody else, but the results won't be the same, I will miss out on that relationship with God that is forged on mission trips, and I'll miss the opportunity that God has given me.

As true as that is, it is so, so hard to accept. Which led me to thinking today, what other things to I know in my mind but in my heart I refuse to accept?

What are we meant for? Why are we here? Are we here to take up space? Or are we here to help people? As Christians, we are here to show, share, and be Jesus to the lost people. We are not just here. We have a reason. Ultimately, we all have the same job - to show people the way to Christ. How we do that is different from every person, but is all the same in the end.

WE have a job to do, whether we realize it or not. WE are not here to party, to work, to just live. We are here to live for Jesus.To live in a way that glorifies God, not ourselves. And every day, we should live in a way that reflects the love of the Man who died to save us. Because whether or not we realize it, someone is always watching, be it our friends, coworkers, family, or a child. Someone is watching everything you do, listening to everything you say.

That right there, is something that most Christians refuse to accept in their hearts. But you know what, I determine right now, to accept that, and do live it. It's one thing to say something, it's another to live it out.

One thing that I find really hard to accept, no matter how many times it's brought up, is that according to the world, I know nothing of value, because I'm only seventeen years old. But according to God, I know so much more. Because I'm young, people are watching, waiting for me to screw up.

But what if I didn't screw up? What if I didn't fail? What if I succeeded, if I won? What if I proved them wrong? Then, I wouldn't just be looked at, I would be looked to. I would set an example, be a leader. People would look at me and say, "She's a good girl. She follows God's Will". God doesn't just want me to be good, he wants me to be excellent, to be everything I need to be in order for His work to be done.

Sometimes God, the Great Physician, gives us hard pills to swallow. Whether they be life circumstances, ideas, or convictions, it's all the same. Nothing is going to hurt any less than something else. God's conviction on a sin in your life is not going to be any more or less painful than losing a loved one. And that's simple the way life is.

Still in the valley, but looking towards the Son,
Emily

In the Valley

There are times in your life when a part of your life that has been so stable, so constant for so long, is suddenly ripped from under you. There's no warning, no signs of change; it just happens. Of course, things go on around you without you knowing, but when it comes to light it's so shocking.

When things like this happen in my life, I, like so many other people, begin to ask questions. I don't voice many of my questions aloud, but they're there nonetheless. When did this happen? Why does it have to be this way? Why now instead of later? What happens next? How do I handle this correctly? Recently, a very prominent question I have thought over is, How do I help others get through and transition between now and later? Do I take on the weight of other people's sorrow, do I stand and encourage them? Or do I sit and let everyone absorb this at their own pace?

Whatever happens though, as hard as times become, we have to remember to keep moving. The world is still spinning, the sun is still shining, the seasons are still changing, people are still living their lives. Most importantly though, God is still Sovereign, He is still in control, and He still has a plan.We don't see that plan as he does, but it's there, and He's still walking us through it.We don't have to understand why something happens, we just have to understand that God knows what He's doing, and trust that whatever happens brings glory to Him.

Nobody ever said life was going to be easy, and nobody ever said that there wouldn't be times of darkness. The Bible says there will be times of darkness, when you're in the valley between the mountains, where darkness and fear of the unknown tend to overtake you. But the Bible also says, that though you will end up in the valley, you're not alone if you are a Christian. Jesus walks with you. He keeps you safe and comforts you.

When I look around and all I see is empty darkness all around me, that is when I look up. Because even though I am surrounded by darkness on every side, the sky is never gone. And in the sky, in Heaven, is Jesus. Jesus, who protects me, and loves me, and keeps me sheltered. He is always there, no matter what I go through or where I am. And so I know, that even when everything around me seems hopeless, there is always something better on the horizon. My soul may be in the valley today, but my mind and eyes are on the Lord, who gets me through it all.

In the valley for a moment,
Emily E.

Setting Standards

I don't want a boyfriend.
I don't want to date anyone.
I don't want to hold hands, make-out, or have sex.

I am not friend-zoning.
I am setting standards.

What I do want is a Mr. Knightly. (Go look him up if you don't know who that is.) I want to have a man that I can go to about anything, not as in a romantic relationship, but as a best friend. I want to have my best friend be the one who stays by me, even when he doesn't agree with the way I'm going. I want him to tell me when I'm wrong and reprimand me with firmness and love. I want to be completely at ease with him at all times, unless we are quarreling. And when we do have a disagreement, I want him to make up quickly, be the man and make the first move to apologize.

I want to be able to say that if I put myself in situations and relationships that all end in heartbreak, that I always have someone there to comfort me. I want someone who is willing to prove himself to be a true friend, not because I ask him to, but because he wants to.

I am not friend-zoning.
I am setting standards.

I want to be able to be best friends and live out God's separate plans for our lives until He brings us together as more than friends. I want to be able to hang out together without worry of awkwardness or stiffness.

I am not friend-zoning.
I am setting standards.

I want to be able to tell my children one day, "before your father was my husband, he was my best friend." I want him to know me better than he even knows himself before we're even engaged. I don't want to have any romantic physical relationship until after we are engaged, because there isn't any reason for it any earlier. And even then, holding hands is about as far as it will go. Maybe a hug or two along the way...maybe.

I am not friend-zoning.
I am setting standards.

Emily E.

Back to the Basics

"Unless I am convinced by the testimony of the Scriptures or by clear reason (for I do not trust either in the Pope or in the councils alone, since it is well known that they have often erred and contradicted themselves), I am bound by the Scriptures I have quoted and my conscience is captive to the Word of God. I cannot and I will not retreat anything, since it is neither safe not right to go against conscience. I cannot do other wise; here I stand, may God help me. Amen."

This was the declaration of one of the bravest men in church history. Having entered an Augustinian monastery at the age of 22, he blindly followed the Catholic church's way, trying to obtain salvation, through the good works he did. It was not until after he was a respected monk, professor, and pastor that he broke from the church and read the Bible on his own. While studying the Good Book, he experienced his "spiritual awakening", fully understanding that no amount of church-sold sacraments would get anyone to heaven.

On October 31, 1517 (which was not any significant day at the time; Halloween was not an established holiday yet), this man started a storm that swept across Europe. For three years he debated with church officials of the true authority of the church, the true head, and brought to light the corruption of the papal-ship.  On April 28, 1521, he stood before the German King and the bishops of the Holy Roman Empire, and stated the jarring declaration above. Afterward, he was declared an outlaw and a heretic, living in hiding and under imperial charge for 25 years until he died of natural causes.

This man was not trying to change the world, he was simply doing something about the corruption he saw around him. He was trying to get back to the basics. God was disgusted by the church of the Renaissance, and He used this man to bring people back to the Scriptures.

Have you ever wondered where that phrase "back to the basics" comes from? Or why it even exists? I personally believe we have left the basics of everyday life. The way things used to be, before fancy computers and cars and phones and such things that try to capture our attention. There used to be a time when all people cared about was making an honest living that provided for the needs of others and themselves and the Good Lord Jesus. There was a time even before then when all preachers and Popes cared about was spreading the Truth -The Gospel- to the people around them. But they grew prideful and sinful and eventually got the state in which we find our hero above. They had gotten away from the basics of the Scriptures. And God called them back using a man of simple origins with a sincere desire to be used by God.

Today, the church has gotten away from the basics of Scripture. It has become so caught up in fancy buildings and happiness and self-gratification that we have forgotten what we're preaching about. We need to get back to the basics. Jesus. God's Love. Loving God. Loving and serving others. Telling people about Jesus.

When will we get back to the basics? When will the Christians wake up and see what they are missing? Are we so disgustingly comfortable to let our church leaders and those around us live in gross sin and corruption as they did centuries ago, that we just sit back and flippantly comment and shoo the problems away?

Young people, teens, you and I are the next generation. God has called us to be an example. Are we to just sit around and goof off until we're thirty and then settle into a working lifestyle where we become too busy to care? We need to be shining so brightly with the Light of the world that lives inside us that others are blinded. We need to find our way back to the basics. This generation will be a generation of change.

We will be the next Reformation, the next Great Awakening.

Live on in us, Martin Luther. May the world never forget what God accomplished through you.

Emily Elissabeth

Update

As of Friday, January 17, I have officially completed my file and application process to Current Canada. In about two weeks, I will get an email telling me where I will be placed. In the mean time, I need to start looking into the passport application, as well as scholarship opportunities. Also, I passed the driver's test on Thursday, so I can drive myself now without having my mom be with me. I don't say that because I have that freedom, but because my mom had to plan her schedule around me and my class times. So now both of us have a more open schedule. I'm really excited to see what God is going to do next.

Watching God Work,
Emily E.

Waves

Waves are powerful things. Like, the physical waves that crest onto the shore of beaches and rocks, those waves. Waves hold so much power, so much energy. They have the strength to pull you down and pull you under the water in a fraction of a second. So quickly, you can get caught by it if you let your guard down. Or the waves can take something from you, like your sunglasses or your swimsuit. That is never fun. Of course, the only time you have to worry about that is when you're not ready for the waves. When they catch you from behind, or you underestimate the size. That's when you get knocked over.

But when you're ready, when you face them head on, waves are fun. Jumping and splashing and surfing are a lot of fun, but only as long as you know what's going to happen next.

Sin is a lot like waves. It can be fun and exciting when you know what is happening. When you think nothing could hurt or surprise you.

The problem is when you turn to leave. If you know what's good for you, eventually you have to get out of the water, or sin. Because if you stay in the water too long, you lose all your energy and your body starts to wear down, making it easier for the water, sin, to knock you down, to drag you under. And that's when you find yourself in danger.

But God is a lot like waves, too. He is so powerful and so mighty, that, like the ocean and its waves, we can only see a fraction of Him. And when we, as Christians, turn our backs from Him, He overpowers us and pulls us back under His love and protection. When we spend time with Him, near Him, in fellowship with God, we have joy, we have peace, like when you are under the water. And when we spend a lot of time with Him, it starts to show. It is clearly visible to everyone if you spend a lot of time at the beach, or when you just got out of the water.  It is the same when we interact with others, they can clearly see God's impact in our lives.

It is our choice. Are your waves going to be representative of your sin, or of your God?

Emily E.