Jasmine

When God created her up in heaven He pulled her aside and said, "Child, I have a special purpose for you."  And she said, "Yes Father."
He sent her to this earth to be with us.  He chose a special family to help Jasmine fulfill her special purpose.
Through her short 2 1/2 years on this earth Jasmine went through much pain and suffering.  And yet this angel did it with love and a smile on her face.  She brought so many people together and showed us all something unique.  She taught me love, thankfulness and faith.  Lessons I continue to learn over and over.
She left us and went home to heaven, where she was met with love.  God said to her, "Well done good and faithful servant."

I know we don't always understand why He does what He does.  I know for me I have so many questions. But I am learning to listen closely and to pay attention.  He will answer all questions in time.
Thank you to God and Jasmine for teaching me love, thankfulness, and faith.  Just when I think I am going strong in these areas of my life, I am shown I can do better.
Thank you to her parents for sharing her to the world.  Such a precious and beautiful gift you were given.  And even though she is home now, she will be seen again.  Through all of us that were touched by her short life and when we enter the gates to heaven.  I know she will be waiting for us!

Photo taken by Jessica V. of Jessica V Photography

God's Plan

I know we have all heard that God has a plan but what exactly does that mean? I am sure it means something different for everyone.

I have been going back and forth about what His plan is for me. What should I be doing with my life? For quite sometime now He has been telling me to sit still and wait. Of course I was just reluctant to do this, but after must resistance on my part I did indeed sit still and wait.

After a few months I brought up the topic again to God. I asked Him again what I should be doing with my life. He lead to talk with friends and family to help me. He helped me keep my ears and my mind open (and my mouth shut) so I could listen to what He had to tell me.

Well last night I had a good conversation with God. I was journalling and I remembered (or you could say He nudged me) to take some tests my church and a good friend of mine have been telling me about.

I took these tests online and both of tests showed my spiritual gifts, my personality type, and some jobs I would best be suited for. One of the top jobs is counseling. This is a topic that has been brought up to me many times over the last several years. I have always been interested in this line of work.

So I asked Him if this is what He really wanted me to do. Is this what I am supposed to do? In my heart I believe He said yes.

Then I asked Him "What if I am not very good at it?"

You know what he said? He said, "Why would I design you for something you wouldn't be good at?"

He has a good point!

So I am looking into schooling to get my education and certifications under me. I feel like I am ready to start this journey. If this is where He is leading me, I will follow!

Conditional Christian

This is a topic that has been buzzing around in my mind for the past week. I am not quite sure where the term came from or why it even popped into my head.

According to Webster's Dictionary:

Conditional means "Containing or depending on a condition or conditions; made with limitations; not absolute; made or granted on certain terms. A conditional promise is one which is to be performed, when something else stipulated is done or has taken place."

Christian means "A real disciple of Christ; one who believes in the truth of the Christian religion, and studies to follow the example, and obey the precepts, of Christ; a believer in Christ who is characterized by real piety."

Just looking at these definitions it seems like these 2 words should not even go together. To truly be a Christian there should be no conditions or limitations to your faith and love for God. He did not put conditions on us when He sent his only son to die for our sins.

But I know as humans we have a tendency to put conditions on just about anything, including our beliefs.

I would have to say I am guilty of this too. I find myself not always have faith things will turn out and worrying about situations that are not under my control. That's just like saying I trust God but not really over this one situation (for whatever reason). Worry is actually a form of not trusting God. So basically this is just like putting conditions on my relationship with God.

I also find myself not giving Him glory and praise as much as I should. In a way that's kind of like taking credit for the good things and situations in my life; giving all the glory to myself or other things. Not acknowledging something is ignoring it.

These are just examples and I really could go on.

In Celebrate Recovery and in AA there are steps to take to help work through the issues and situations in your life. Steps that help you overcome obstacles. The first step is admitting there is a problem and that my life is unmanageable.

So I guess God planted this term in my mind and heart to get me started on a new journey. I see how I have been putting conditions on my Christian faith and even though my life is not unmanageable as of yet, without putting Christ at the center of my life and under every circumstance, I recognize how my life would be complete chaos and totally unmanageable.

A man, a flood and God

There was a very heavy rain storm in this small town and the town began to flood due to the amount of rain. There was a man inside his home that was certain that God would come a save him. The town began to evacuate because the rain was not letting up and the waters were getting deeper. The mans next door neighbor offered a ride to the man but his response was simply, "I have faith in God and He will save me."

Some time past and the waters became deeper so the man had to move up to the second floor of his house. Another boat came by and the passengers shouted to the man to come aboard the boat to get to safety. The man simply replied, "I have faith in God and He will save me."

Some more time past and the waters began to get so deep that the man had no choice but to move up to the roof of the house. A third boat came by and offered the man help and begged him to please get in the boat so they could take him to safety. The man simply replied, "I have faith in God and He will save me."

Sadly the man drowned in the flood.

When the man got to heaven he immediately demanded to see God. When he was taken to God he said to Him, "I had faith in You all my life. I never doubted You. And when I needed you the most, You weren't there. Why didn't You save me from the flood?"

God said, "Didn't you see the 3 boats I sent for you?!"

This story crosses my mind from time to time and I have always found it interesting. I think some of us get so consumed with life and even though we want help, we don't ask for it or even take it when it's offered. Some of us get caught in waiting on God to show up and help that we forget He works through people. We fail to see He is in all of us and He wants to help us every step of the way. He truly wants what is best for us.

We may not always agree on what is best for us. Someone told me once that Gods will and our will are actually the same but we struggle over which path is better to take. We all want to choose our own path and have control over our lives, usually because we think our path will be easier. But Gods will is always better and the path He leads us down might be more uncomfortable and difficult but will have a much better reward.

God said we should seek Him first. I know it's real easy to put ourselves first and to focus our view on our own little worlds. I think if we could just look past ourselves just a little bit, step outside of our comfort zones and what we are used to, we would see things beyond our imagination. We would see and begin to know what we are truly capable of doing and being. We could even start to come to an understanding with each and we could all know peace.

Borrowing Faith

I saw a quote today that really inspired me. It was directed to a pastor who had moved from Michigan to Georgia to plant a new church. This pastor had become very discouraged with his new church community. The numbers were not what he was seeking and he had no desire to lead a small congregation.

After 3 years he went back to Michigan to seek guidance (and possibly a job) from his former pastor and original sponsor of the church planting endeavor.

His former pastor said to him "If you have lost faith, borrow mine." The pastor returned to Georgia and continued in his work at the church he had started. The congregation grew and today they have over 3400 members in that church. All because someone believed in him even though he did not believe in himself.

Have you every borrowed faith from someone? How many times? And why did you lose your faith in the first place?

I know for me....I usually lose faith in myself. I start to tell myself that I can't handle things or that I am weak. Then discouragement settles in and makes a nice home in my head. I try to take a stand and snap out of it but it doesn't always work. My self esteem usually hits bottom and I begin searching for a way up.

And that is when I start to see other people and their faith in me.

I hear others words and see their actions toward me. I look and notice how other people have faith and believe in me. So I take their faith and remember that until I gain my own back; which usually doesn't take very long. At least not anymore.

On the other hand, I continue to have faith in many other areas in my life. I have great faith in God and I know He has His hand in everything. He will always provide my needs.

I have great faith in my family and know that they will be there for me even if I can't be there for myself.

I have great faith in others around me. I know that the people I choose to associate with are made for great things. He has a plan and purpose for all of us and it is nothing we can't handle or accomplish without His help. There is no doubt in my mind that I will rise up when He calls my name to come home!

So I pray that my faith in me will continue to grow and become stronger, just as my faith in our God has grown and can not be broken!

And if you ever find yourself lost in faith, borrow mine.