Jars of Clay

Do you ever feel like you just can't live up to the standard? Like you aren't good enough to be where you are, doing what you're doing? Like everyone would look down on you if they could read your thoughts, if they could know what you struggle with? I do; and those feelings are hard to deal with, especially since they are true. None of us can measure up, especially not to God's perfection. We're flawed and unworthy without Christ; but there is good news: with Christ, you are a precious princess. You are worthy, you are sanctified, you are treasured. We may not look like much, but we aren't supposed to. God puts His treasure in jars of clay (2 Corinthians 4:7) So that the world will look at the inside, the power of God inside, instead of the outside, you; His avenue to reach the world. If, like me, you don't look like much, rejoice, and let the light of Jesus Messiah shine through you.

In Him,

Becky

God loves to say yes.

Any time you pray for God's will, He will always answer "yes" to your prayers. (1 John 5:14-15)

A few prayers God loves to answer:

• Prayers for salvation (1 Timothy 2:4)
• Prayers for His Spirit (Luke 11:13)
• Prayers for needs (not wants!) to be met (Matthew 6:31-32)

Want to be sure your prayers will be answered? Obey God, search His word for what He wants, then ask for it! You'll get it every time.

Truth is...

"Simply let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' be 'No'; anything beyond this comes from the evil one." -Matthew 5:37

Speech is an area that is tough to become truly Christ-like in. I've realized lately that my flippant answers and quick promises don't please God. As His children, He wants us to speak the truth, always (in love, of course!) and to mean what we say. It's challenging to really honor the Lord with everything you say, but try and take a step back today and think before you speak. It will make a difference!

If this is you today, come to Jesus.

Quiet Heart

Psalm 46:10a says, "Be still and know that I am God."

Hmm. Surely that doesn't mean "sit still and know that I am God." On the contrary, I believe it means a stillness of spirit, of the heart.
In our society today, it's hard to be still in spirit. We're constantly bombarded with books, movies, music, television, the internet, and cell phones (not to mention real time spent with our friends instead of talking to them) to keep our thoughts occupied every second of every day. Why? Because we don't want to think. We are afraid of being alone with our thoughts. However, a Christian desperately needs that quiet time to think and worship the Lord. Have you ever sat down to read your Bible but were unable to focus because song lyrics pop into your head or your phone beeps with a text from a friend? It's happened to me before, and it frustrates me!
So if having such a busy heart is a problem... how do we fix it?
Here are three practical ways to start.

1. Turn it off. Decide on a set time to be done with electronics for the night. For instance, I turn my phone of at 9 pm, and I don't turn it back on in the morning till after I've had my quiet time. It's a lot less tempting to "check it really quick" if you know it has to start up first.
2. Tune it out. Purpose to listen only to worship music for a week or even a month. Your heart will be more focused on worship.
3. Memorize. This is probably the most helpful one! Memorize scripture to fill your mind. I like to memorize words of Jesus from the gospels. When I think of them, it's like Jesus speaking right to me! It helps you relax, too.
   

Hope those easy ideas help to cultivate a calm, more focused heart.

In Christ,
Becky

The Narrow Road

Matthew 7:13-14
Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.

Girls, don't shy away from the hard stuff. God's road is hard, because we live in a world that is the exact opposite from all His ways. Jesus didn't promise that following Him would be easy, in fact He said it wouldn't. However, He promised He would be our strength(Exodus 15:2), our protector (Psalm 32:7), and our helper (Psalm 118:7).
Continue on the road less traveled and you will reap great benefits!

This has been on my heart lately, just wanted to share. :)
Have a great day!
-Becky

Feelings and Faith

Feelings can be hard to deal with. Sometimes you don't feel God's presence, sometims you don't even feel like you have been forgiven. The good news is, though, that God's power is not affected by our emotions. God's saving grace extends to you no matter what your circumstances, so trust Him despite your feelings!

A New Life

What a God we have! And how fortunate we are to have him, this Father of our Master Jesus! Because Jesus was raised from the dead, we've been given a brand new life and have everything to live for, including a future in heaven--and the future starts now! God is keeping careful watch over us and the future. The Day is coming when you'll have it all--life healed and whole.

--1 Peter 1:3-5 (The Message Paraphrase)

Saved by Grace

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God--not by works, so that no one can boast.
Ephesians 2:8-9 (NIV)

Lately I have noticed an abundance of teachings about the cost of being a disciple of Christ. Jesus calls His followers to lay down everything for Him. I want to clear something up for you, though.

It's by grace that you are saved.

You will never be good enough, courageous enough, selfless enough to earn your salvation. Our good deeds are to be overflow of our love and praise for God. We love God, we serve Him, and we follow Him because He has redeemed us, not the other way around. I've heard people say that "easy believism" is heresy; but I think the Bible is pretty clear...

That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved."
Romans 10:9

I want you to see the goodness of God's grace, the sovereignty of His plan. When you realize the magnitude of God and the glory He deserves, service, love, and obedience for Him will come as a natural result of that! The things you do for God have nothing to do with you being saved.

NOTHING.

However, if you are a Christian and you aren't serving God out of a willing heart, aren't obeying His word, and aren't seeking to know Him more, then you need to check yourself.
Take some time today to bask in the love and grace of our great Savior!

Your sister in Christ,
Becky

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. (NIV)
John 3:16

Believe.

It's all you have to do to be saved by Christ. Salvation is so simple, so easy for us, because it was such a big thing for God. He gave everything. What does believing in Him actually mean?
The Greek word here is pisteuō, meaning "to believe, put one's faith in, trust, with an implication that actions based on that trust may follow"
So, have you truly believed in Christ? Put your faith in Him? Allowed that trust to change you?
If we know that we can be saved by this simple act, why wouldn't we tell people! Will you share with someone today?

In my posts the next few weeks, we will go through some of the big ideas behind our salvation and Christ's mighty work for us. Because, when you understand just what He has done for you, you will never be the same!

In Him,
Becky

Speak Now

Proverbs 31:8
Speak up for those who can not speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute. (NIV)

"In Germany, the Nazis first came for the communists, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a communist. Then they came for the Jews, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Jew. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a trade unionist. Then they came for the Catholics, but I didn't speak up because I was a Protestant. Then they came for me, and by that time there was no one left to speak up for me."

- Martin Niemoeller,
Luthern priest arrested during World War II

Enter in!

I had something written and prepared to share with you today, but during my quiet time this morning I learned SO MUCH and instead I just want to encourage you!
If you are struggling in your faith, you can read all the Christian books out there and they may tell you all the things you want to hear.
You can read a thousand Scripture verses and try to conform them to what you want them to say in your situation.
However, just studying the Bible and spending time basking in God's presence is what is truly going to bring peace, joy, and hope to your life. What you read may not apply to what you are struggling with; but God's word will bring peace and comfort beyond all else!

Psalm 73:16-17a
When I tried to understand all this, it was oppressive to me till I entered the sanctuary of God..

You may be oppressed beyond belief today. Enter the sanctuary of God. He will teach you, touch you, love you, and meet you right where you are.

Quick Quote

"All that is not eternal is eternally out of date."

--C.S. Lewis

In the midst of sorrow.

Last week's earthquake in Japan was devastating.

The destruction is amazing. The death toll is horrendous-and rising.
If you or someone you know was directly effected by this disaster, my heart goes out to you. Be encouraged by the fact that millions of Christians all over the earth are praying for you. When tragedy strikes, people say many things to try to ease the suffering, sorrow, and pain. However, there is only one thing that we can truly take comfort in:

God is good. (Mark 10:18)
God is sovereign and does what He pleases. (Psalm 115:3)

If God does what He pleases, and is 100% good, then what He does can only be 100% good. He knows what He is doing! Take hope in Him.

Odd

Does being a Christian make you a different kind of woman? Think about how--if--your relationship with Christ changes you and your appearance. Can those who walk past you in Wal-Mart tell that there is something out of the ordinary about you? "Wait a minute," you may be thinking, "That's a little over the top. I don't even know those people." I pray that my Savior would transform my life so that a difference in my heart would be obvious to everyone who even glances at me. Would you make that your prayer as well?

Failures

Without failures, the Christian life would be impossible.

Think about that.

If you never failed, Christ would have no reason to redeem you.
If you never failed, you would be stagnant and never grow.
If you never failed, you would be prideful.
If you never failed, you would judge others.
If you never failed, you would would have no compassion.
If you never failed, you would be like Satan, thinking yourself like God.
If you never failed, you would be legalistic and self-righteous.

Be thankful for your failures. They remind you of a big God and a small you. They point out areas that you need to grow in and open your eyes to see that you are not better than anyone else. They make salvation possible.

Be willing to fail, but don't stay there. Grow.

Do you love Him?

Do you love to give?
...love to serve?
...love to sacrifice?
...love to pray?
...love to read the Bible?

Good; but there is a more important question: Do you love Jesus? He should be the reason you love those things.
Loving Jesus will overflow and pour over into all other areas of your life. If you love Him with abandon and make your life all about your relationship with Him, you will love the things you should love more than you could on your own.

Just Today

Although it is still a ways off, my high school graduation gets closer every day, and every day I wonder more what I am going to do after that. I pray about my future most every day, trying to find out what God's will and plans for me are. It often stresses me out, but I recently read a verse that changed my outlook.

1John 2:6 (NIV, © 1984)
Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did.

My life (and yours, too!) is not defined by one thing God has for me to do, but by walking in Christ's footsteps every single day. The Father has a plan for each of His children, but those plans are not found by sitting around. Begin the search for His plans today by walking as Jesus did.

my life travels

The year was 2001. I was six years old. Having been in church all my life, I dutifully did what I was taught everyone needed to do. I "accepted Jesus". When I kneeled by my bed that night with my parents, I truly meant what I said. I knew I had sinned, I knew that I needed to be saved from that sin. I was saved with my head; but over the years, through His graciousness, the Lord has connected that head knowledge with heart knowledge. As I grew up, I was blessed with amazing mentors in my life whom I could look up to. As I watched them and saw the passion that they had for the Lord, I knew something was missing from my life. I thought of Jesus as a buddy, a pal, but I didn't love Him. I read my Bible just because. It was not something I disliked to do, but it surely didn't excite me. Thankfully, the Father did not stop with examples for me. He also showed me how I could grow to love Him and how I could have that passion that I saw in my role models. I began growing closer and closer to my Savior, but I occasionally doubted that I was really saved. He showed me through Romans 10:13 that if I called on Him, He would save me! He opened my eyes to see the evil of my sin and selfishness, and that He alone could restore me. Today I am still growing in intimacy with my Savior. He has truly become my best friend and I love Him so much. When I think over my testimony, His grace is what stands out to me. If it weren't for His unfailing love and mercy, I would be missing my relationship with Him, the best thing that every happened to me. I am thankful especially for role models and mentors that He put in my life that showed me how to live set-apart for my Savior. I have a passion to tell other girls about the great love that my Father holds. I know so many Christians that miss out on what they could be experiencing by truly giving up their lives for the Lord. I have not arrived yet, and I never will, but my King continues to sanctify me and helps me to see life through His eyes. If you have any questions about your relationship with Christ, please find someone you trust to talk to. If you don't know of anyone, email me! I would love to pray with you and share with you how the Lord is working in my life and how He could work in yours too.

iheartministy{at}yahoo{dot}com
Through Him,
Becky

GO

"The 'Go ye' part of the call had been crystal clear. Autumn of 1892 seemed to be the right time. She would sail then. But where? That was the vague part. Africa? China? She had often thought of both. Perhaps it was the solidity of her confidence in the Great Shepherd that prevented her worrying much over the geography. He would get her where she belonged, wouldn't He?..."

--A Chance to Die, the Life and Legacy of Amy Carmichael
by Elisabeth Elliot

The Father has put a call on each of our lives. He has said "Go ye". The when, where, even who and what do not matter. God has such a perfect plan and He wants to include you, right where He knows you will fit. Amy Carmichael chose to obey Him before she knew all the logistics of what He was asking. She laid down her life for the Lord, in the same way we are called to do today.

Will you go?