Something right

For how much I question how much I show or hide my faith, I must be doing something right when my sister and various friends come to me and ask for prayer for themselves or for a friend. I just wish I would feel more like I am doing the right thing. Guess I better start doing more of it!

Inspiration--or the lack thereof

I have been cruising around other blogs for a few days now trying to fing some writing inspiration. No matter how many I look at, though, I am disappointed. They carry mindless banter about how their days have gone, what drama is in their life, or other things that I do not care to read. This is making me realize, though, that I am hungrier than I thought for the things of God--things I want to learn and pass on to others, ways I want my life to change, miraculous ventures throughout my life. To read the Bible, go figure, will probably fill this void. If only I would go at it, though, with this deep hunger instead of the usual attitude of "You know, I really should read my Bible now. It's not very exciting, but I really should." Imagine how much I would learn if I opened my Bible and read and studied it with the attitude of "I can't believe how many life lessons are in here! Wow! What do I want to learn about today? All God's promises, all His help for our lives is right here, in my very hands! Teach me, Lord!" Oh, how much inspiration I would have!

Holiday Celebrations

With Easter having just passed, I started thinking about all of our holidays and why we celebrate them. It is sad to say that most people probably celebrate various days because it's tradition, they get to drink lots of alcohol, because they are off work that day, or some combination of these. While celebrating, how many of the people who know the true reason for the holiday actually celebrate that reason or event?

For instance, why does Christmas seem like it is about 20 times more important than Easter? Yes, it is a very important thing that Jesus was born, but is not His ultimate sacrifice so much more worthy of our thanks, praise, and remembrance than simply being born (even be it a miraculous birth)? Thinking back, I always knew that Easter was a Chrsitian holiday and that it dealt with Jesus being crucified, but those are not the memories I hold. Instead, I remember days of pastel colored bunnies and flowers, great wooden crosses draped with a cloth, Easter lilies across the floors, and banners over the walls and windows of the church decorated with doves with olive branches and phrases such as "He is risen!" Looking now, I realize that it is so easy to go "Yeah, He is risen!" and not actually think about from what He arose.

A challenge to myself--do not celebrate unless I know what it is I am celebrating. For instance, I now know that St. Patrick's Day is about celebrating how St. Patrick brought Christianity to Ireland; why that is celebrated by a whole lot of alcohol, I really do not know. Easter has so much more meaning now that I have thought about the whole process behind that three day span.

I'm not sure how to end this besides to say that I need to stop taking things for granted, stop assuming that I know or understand something, and stop taking what people say without question and start to actually do some research for myself.

To Change the World

Today while driving home, the song "The Lost Get Found" by Britt Nicole was playing on the radio. The song ended with the phrase, "There's a really big world at your fingertips, and you know you have the chance to change it," and right after that phrase ended, I drove past a construction site. All that was there so far was the metal framing for what will soon be a dining hall. Then I noticed a man standing there with his son on his shoulders. They were simply staring at the framing. Immediately, this conversation went through my head of the father talking to his son and explaning the different parts to the construction, why the frame went up first, what would come next, and how each tiny piece is essential to the strength of the finished building. No sooner did I imagine this than my mind transferred it a step further...

If we will stop for just a moment and let God lead us where He wants to, to take His hand, trust Him not to drop us when we are on His shoulders, and listen to what He has to say, He will show us the wonders of the world. He will show us what was, what is, and what will come if it all. Not only that, He will also show us how it is going to happen. Isn't that what we are all wanting to know anyway? How and why things happen?