hard work

September 30, 2011

Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

Psalm 23:6

     As a high school basketball player all four years; it required dedication, hard work, mental and physical toughness, and perseverance. 11 months out of the year I would have something going on every week. Early morning workouts, 2 hour practices, shoot rounds after practice, training, weight lifting, basketball camps 2/3 hours away, that’s what it took to be great. Thankfully I never made it a greater priority then God in my life; otherwise I wouldn’t be here now. My point is that all that hard work (while is good because it develops character), is only striving for fame and a golden trophy. How often do we put SUCH an effort into worldly things that will not even matter when we die? We should be working even harder for the furthering of the Lord’s kingdom. I believe that is what we are here for. I remember saying “If the opportunity presents itself, I’m going to play college ball”. I am so inexpressibly thankful that God called me to give that up and come here, and that I listened.

Application:

     I’m going to keep in mind the moment of God’s calling on my life to come here in order to remember that the things of this world do not compare to the goodness and love that will follow me in heaven.

More

September 29, 2011

“You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You have anointed my head with oil; my cup overflows.”

Psalm 23:5

     When we press into the Lord and make Him the most important thing in our lives, He fills us up with His Holy Spirit. If we seek Him He will respond. Being up here at the ranch I have been seeking Him with all my heart and laying my own desires down for Him. Because of this, I am feeling more filled and equipped with anointing of the Holy Spirit. It’s just like a sport or a job; your results are equivalent to what you put into it. All that being said, one thing I know is this, I can never do too much for God, never grow enough in His word, and never serve Him enough.

Application:

     This motivates me to never be satisfied with my relationship with the Lord but to want more and more of Him, always. I’m going to stay humble and stay hungry.

“But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory, both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.” 2^nd Peter 3:18

The Prize

September 28, 2011

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

Psalm 23:4

     This verse reminds me of the old TV show “fear factor”. In order to win one would have to outdo his/her competitors in three intense challenges. One episode involved them lying down in a glass coffin-like container while 200 rats were poured onto them. If they won the competition, 50,000 dollars was the grand prize. In life, there will be times when we are in situations that we feel we can’t overcome, but we must not forget that our God is always with us wherever we go and through whatever happens to us. Life is going to throw all kinds of challenges at us. We often victimize ourselves and tend to forget that God has allowed this to happen to us for a reason. “And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance” Romans 5:3. Life on earth is a constant battle, and our prize is eternity in heaven.

Application:

     Rather I like it or not, God is going to allow me to be tested and go through more hard times, like He’s been doing. So I’m going to keep this mindset and just remember heaven awaits me.

“Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive in Christ Jesus our Lord” Romans 6:11

September 27, 2011

“He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.”

Psalm 23:3

     God is the only person we can rely on. If we put our belief in something else or someone else, it’s just energy and time wasted. When we are weak He is strong. On Sunday I was extremely tired and asked God to give me strength for the week because I knew I couldn’t get by at this capacity. And He gave me strength. He gave me what I needed. “For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened” Matthew 7:8. If I don’t rely on God for what I need then who can I run to? He is all I have and it wouldn’t make sense to trust anyone else with my life.

Application:

     God has always provided and given me what I need. So I’m going to spend time this week thanking Him for everything He has done for me instead of asking Him for mores favors.

September 26, 2011

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me lie down in greed pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters.

Psalm 23:1-2

     If we want to experience the everlasting glory that awaits all who believe in the Lord, we have to follow Him with our lives on earth. Green pastures and quiet waters come with a price. We owe our lives to God. Yea following Him isn’t easy, and our flesh has its own desires, but He makes us a promise in Matthew 6:33 which say “Seek first His kingdom and His rightesnous and all these things will be added to you.” Overcoming the hard times and being vulnerable to the Lord have a great reward. One that is worth more than anything we are able to imagine. This verse speaks truth to me because I am dealing with being homesick right now, however, I know that by staying persistent and seeking the Lord earnestly, it will be another tribulation overcome.

Application:

     I’m going to remain faithful to the Lord and His promise. This will require me to reach deeper into His word because the devil always attacks us when we are weak. I have to remain strong and keep fighting for what God has for me.

 “And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands, for My name’s sake, shall receive a hundredfold, and inherit eternal life.” Matthew 19:29

fight for what you believe

September 23, 2011

For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return there without watering the earth and making it bear and sprout, and furnishing seed to the sower and bread to the eater; so will My word be which goes forth from My mouth; it will not return to Me empty, without accomplishing what I desire, and without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.

Isaiah 55:10-11

     These verses remind me of how powerful and perfect the Lord Jesus is to us. I think back on hard times in my life, and when God proved Himself faithful. Here’s a story. The transition from middle school into high school was very difficult for me. I was challenged in so many areas; basketball, school, high school group, friendships, it all was changing and became a lot harder. This was the first time I was honestly depressed. You know that feeling when nothing seems right for you and it’s just failure after failure? That’s how I felt. But now that I look back on it, I realize that God used that tribulation to grow me, make me stronger in my faith, and prepare me for the next trial. The verse applies to this because His promise doesn’t return void, And what he invests in bears fruit, as long as we remain faithful (not an easy task). There is nothing that’s insurmountable to God. He is going to allow you to be broken and forced to rely on Him, it’s up to you of how you will respond.

Application:

It’s simple. I will never give up

“And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose” Romans 8:28

September 22, 2011

For as the heavens are higher than earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts.

Isaiah 55:9

      I’ve tried too many times to be perfect and would beat myself up whenever I fell short. I have an issue with expecting too much of myself in every area of life. If I had a bad game I would be really mad, if I didn’t read my devotions one week I’d feel unworthy. I have always been my own worst critic. I’m realizing now that there’s going to be times when I’m going to mess up and fall short, because I’m not perfect. No matter how hard I try, nothing I do or say will ever come close to what Jesus has done for me. I simply need to come to the place of being ok with that, and just give Jesus everything I have, because He knows I’m trying and is a God of grace.

Application:

     I’m going to keep this verse in mind for every time I struggle with this. When I mess up, instead of pouting and being discouraged, I’m going to get back up and try again, remembering that I am ultimately going to heaven, and I just got to try my best to honor God in this worldly place.

“And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope.” Romans 5:3