Broken Record

My mind has been slammed with all the negative things going on in our world lately (as have everyone else’s). We hardly hear anything good anymore. The news is talking about it, everyone at work is talking about it; we talk about it at dinner, we talk about it at home. ISIS, Ebola, government schemes, border crisis, etc. Conversation, for many, has become like a broken record. Logically, how could it not be? These things are terrible, frightening, and seemingly uncontrollable.

BUT I’d like to start a new broken record. (Sidebar: This blog is directed toward followers of Jesus Christ and please, please, please if you are reading this and are not a believer and want to know more, please talk to me). If you’re a Christian, this should absolutely, positively NOT be your record. This should not be our topic of conversation all the time. This should not be what we continually bring up at work, home, dinner, etc. (I’m speaking to myself here as well). Fellow believers, this has got to STOP and stop now. Sure, everything going on is scary, I know. But things are different for us. We have a Hope that others do not. We have the One and Only true God on our side. He goes before us. He knew all this would happen; this is not a surprise to Him. It’s all part of His perfect plan. In all seriousness, we have NOTHING to be scared of. We know how it ends for us and that in and of itself should cause rejoicing, not fear. Yeah, you’re going to suffer at some point, probably, but God told us that in His Word. That suffering is nothing, NOTHING compared to the glory we will receive one day (soon)! Obviously, if you’re a Christian, what I’m stating right now is like a broken record (but I think you needed to hear it again). So… we got that fear behind us. (Whew!) 

What do we do then? Stop worrying, stop thinking about the bad things and do what the Bible clearly tells us to do. Think on the good!! Look at your blessings, look at the food on your table, look at your good health, look at your SALVATION (if nothing else, that’s more than enough). Think on those things; talk about those things! What else are we supposed to do? PRAY, PRAY, PRAY, PRAY, PRAY, pray, pray, pray, pray! I can’t say it enough.. PRAY!!! I’m being so serious y’all! We have got to pray like we have never prayed before. Pray for our leaders, pray for lost loved ones, pray for revival, pray for your church, pray for God to teach you more is your Bible study, pray for your pastors; the list could go on and on. It’s in the bad times and the chaos that God can create the biggest blessings. It’s in the tragedy that He can give you a miracle. It’s when you feel like you’re the only believer out there that He sends revival. We, as God’s people, have got to pray. We can’t continue to mess around. We’ve got to cut off the TV, put down the phone and do what we are called to do. If we don’t then who will?! America and this world need the righteous men and women to step up and be true Disciples of Christ. This world needs Jesus. Plain and simple. And God has called us to be His witnesses and show this world who He is. What a calling? What a responsibility? How amazing is it that God chose to use us? But we have to allow Him to use us.

Be His hands and feet. Pray. A world of unbelievers are waiting? Will you do your part?

Many reading this may be convicted at this point (I know I am). So I challenge you, get off the computer/phone and find a prayer closet. GO PRAY. Pray and expect God to act!

Do You Know MY Jesus?!

                Today, while riding in the car with Susie, she reminded me of something so serious.  My dear friend reminded me of the many people I know and love that don’t know MY Jesus.  You’re thinking, “DUH, Holly,” but there’s more to my previous sentence than meets the eye.  Here’s my deal:

Let me preface with saying, ONLY God can truly know our hearts and where we stand with Him. With that being said, there are so many people who claim to be Christians; who claim to have a relationship with God, who claim to know Jesus Christ.. but their lives tell a completely different story to those on the outside looking in.  They talk about God as if they have a relationship with Him, but then they consistently do the very things that put Christ on the Cross with no remorse.  I’ll admit, that used to be me for a period of time.  I talked the talk, but definitely didn’t walk the walk as I should have. 

So let me explain what made me want to live my life absolutely, completely sold-out to God; what made me want to honor God in every way with every part of my life:  Jesus, plain and simple.  God, in human form, came to this Earth and died on a Cross for ME, so that I might be forgiven. “I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more.” – Hebrews 10:17. Hallelujah, what a Savior!  That’s MY Jesus, that’s MY Savior!  It’s been said before, but I’ll say it again: He died for you, why in the world would you not live for Him?”  What have you got to lose, when you can gain the precious gift of eternity with God?  That, my friends; that is EVERYTHING!

I have to ask: Those of you “talking the talk, but not walking the walk,” WHY?  If you know my Jesus, why would you want to dishonor Him with your life? Why would you want to continue living in sin, when He has already paid the price for your sin in FULL?  Why get drunk when you can be full of His joy; why be sexually promiscuous when He can fulfill all your longings better than any man or woman; why be fearful when he has your entire life in the palm of His hands; why lust when He, Himself, is all the love you need.. I could go on and on!  “What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase?  By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?” – Romans 6:1-2.  I challenge everyone to look at your own life.. Have you died to sin?  This doesn’t mean in any way that you will never sin and be perfect, because you can’t be, but it does mean that you will strive to please God and run from sin as best as you possibly can.  And with God’s help, you can die to your sin.  MY Jesus should make you want to; He should compel you to want to live your life apart from sin and as close to God as you can on this Earth.

So, to everyone reading, (sold-out Christians, those on the fence, talkers-not walkers, non-believers, etc.)   I’d like to pose a question that Susie stated in the car today, “Do you know MY Jesus?”  Do you KNOW my Jesus, or do you just claim to believe He’s real.  The demons believed y’all, so that is NOT enough.  Do you KNOW Him, KNOW Him in such a way that every part of your life can’t help but show everyone around you that He is the one you’re living for, the very reason you exist?

If you can’t answer yes to that question, please, I’m begging you, search your heart, search the Bible, talk to someone and learn who Jesus really is.  I promise, once you truly KNOW Jesus, your life will never be the same (and that’s a great thing).

If you do KNOW my Jesus, I strongly urge you to share Him with those you love.. just don’t assume that they KNOW God by saying His name in a conversation or making their Facebook status a Bible verse every now and then.  Be bold, ask questions, find out if they really KNOW Jesus or if they’re just a fan.

People we love (many who think they are Christians) are going to die and go to Hell, yes Hell, if they don’t KNOW Jesus as their Lord and Savior.. and it’s on our hands to make sure we’ve done everything in our power to show them who He is.  They are in our lives for a reason; we MUST do something about it. (Colossians 1:28).

"When I say to the wicked, ‘O wicked man, you will surely die,’ and you do not speak out to dissuade him from his ways, that wicked man will die for his sin, and I will hold you accountable for his blood." Ezekiel 33:8.

                                                                … for such a time as this!

Keep The Change!

“It is strange that while praying,

we seldom ask for a change of

character but always a change

of circumstance.” – Anonymous.

            Isn’t it funny how we always try to pray ourselves out of tough situations?  We tend to pray that God would change our situation or merely take us out of it.  The more I see others and myself (insert conviction here) do this, the more I realize how wrong it is and how dangerous it can be to spiritual growth.

            Don’t get me wrong, I totally understand that all circumstances are NOT fun, with many being very difficult and ever hurtful at times.  It’s completely human to want a life with perfect circumstances, BUT that doesn’t make it right and it certainly doesn’t give us a right to whine to God because we’re uncomfortable.

            Personally, (yes, I’ll be honest with ya) I don’t enjoy hard situations.  I tend to moan at uneasy circumstances (i.e. times of doubt, facing the unknown, periods of waiting, forgiving and loving those who have hurt me, BIG life changes, wanting revenge NOW, etc.)  I’m sure you can relate to at least one of those (come on, be honest with yourself).  So many times I’d feed myself the deceitful lies – “I’m allowed to moan at uncomfortable things,” or “It’s normal for me to feel this way.”  Well any true Christian would know that normalcy tends to exude the opposite of Christ – meaning NOT the route to be on.

I’m learning more and more how selfish I and many Christians can be. (We’re not supposed to act as the fool in Proverbs 18:1-2, y'all).  It saddens me that many times I can dissect a situation into how it’s hurt ME, how it’s too much for ME to handle, how it’s not what I want at the moment, or heaven forbid that I have to change, or… well, you get the picture.  I can make situations become all about me and my fleshly desires.  Oh, how thankful I am that Christ didn’t live like that.

            Now onto the point and take away here:

I am so glad God is still and will always be in the teaching business, as I am continually learning and being sanctified daily.  As a Christian, I continually learn more and more how my life is NOT about me. Contradictory statement?  Not in the least bit (John 3:30).  My example, Christ, came to this world in obedience to His Father (not for Himself).  He died on a cross for the world to fulfill God’s plan (obviously, not at all for His personal gain or comfort, Luke 22:42).  Yet so many times we, ‘Christ followers’ tend to pray and ask God for any route other than the example Christ laid out for us, purposely leaving out “..not my will, but Thy will be done.”  Truth is, we’re more worried about our own comfort and selfish desires – sadly. 

I believe God asks a totally different attitude of us.  In trying and uncomfortable circumstances, we should pray that God would graciously change our hearts, making and sanctifying us to be more like Him.  When others are involved, we should be lifting them up and loving them even when it’s hard, praying that God would draw them to Himself (if not saved), bless them, use them, and use the situation to benefit their relationship with God (NOT talking about, judging, belittling them, etc. – Proverbs 19:11).  Most importantly, we’ve got to understand that every situation, whether good or bad, can either glorify or defame God.  Our goal in this life should be making much of God – meaning our purpose in EVERY situation has NOTHING to do with us, but everything to do with God’s glory.  (Psalm 115:1).

            I leave you with this:

STOP asking God to change the situations that you don’t like in your life, yet ask Him to change your heart, that you might grow to His likeness and bring glory to His name through it.

So, how are you handling and praying about your uncanny circumstances?

Poetry Love!

I love to write, as you can tell! Specifically, I have a hankering for writing poems. As a matter of fact the title of my blog came from a poem I wrote last year - As to why I haven’t shared it, I’m not sure, but here it is. Better late than never! Hope it blesses you!

In The Making..

A little girl, full of innocence and grace,

With a spirit of laughter and a smile on her face.

She looks to the future with gazing eyes,

Expecting the unknown, excited for the surprise.

Getting older, she finds a life full of change,

Learning and growing, seeing a life to rearrange.

Finding God, opening her eyes to see

That all along He’d been waiting for her patiently.

Wrapped up in His grace, lavished with His love,

It was a romance sent from up above.

His love for her proved so true and sure,

But earthly charms began to allure.

Having her heart tugged here and there

With broken pieces strewn everywhere.

Trusting words and empty promises to stay,

Little by little she gave her love away.

Being misled, torn by deceit and lies,

Trying to be strong, wearing a disguise.

With tears never ending and a shameful heart,

She longed for the young love she had at the start.

Feeling completely broken and petrified,

She thought her love again would be denied.

Searching for the romance she used to share,

To her knees she fell and met Him there.

His words to her so clearly heard that night,

“I love you and you will always be My delight!”

Such peace and freedom overflowed her life,

Enamored with His presence, He took away her strife.

Once again, Lord, she prays,

Keep her under Your wings of mercy all her days.

Solely firm in You, she chooses to be content,

Knowing that the Lover of her soul is heaven sent.

Now looking to a plan bigger than her own,

Seeing a life better than she’s ever known.

Striving to become what God wants her to be,

A fairy tale still in the making seeing as that little girl was me.

"What Can I Do?"

You call me to come be with You

To rid myself and be made anew.

Here in Your presence, I’m in the highest place.

Lavished with Your love and enamored by Your grace.

But so unworthy and undeserving am I,

Sinful and torn so much I want to cry.

Bringing nothing, but filthy rags,

Full of brokenness; covered with bags.

Lord, You can’t just want some time with me,

A girl who is blemished, unclean, and diseased.

You must want more, perhaps a song I can sing,

What can I bring to You, tell me anything.

I am begging, I am down on my knees,

An ashamed daughter, I know Your heart sees.

I will not be worthy of Your love any day,

But then I stop and hear You say:

“Daughter, I don’t want anything from you,

Just a heart that’s love for Me is undeniably true.

All I want is some time to lavish you with My love,

Time to show you My peace from up above.

Precious is our time, let it last a little longer,

It will build you up and make you stronger.

My child, My daughter, don’t you see?

You are perfectly beautiful to Me.

Sweetly broken child of mine,

You were made for a romance that’s so divine.

Don’t make this time such a task,

Just be with me, that is all that I ask.

My beloved, You bring so much joy to me,

I’m so in love with You, so just simply be.”

"Your Daughter's Cry"

I am Your daughter, Christ is my King

You've become my everything.
I can remember the time I was saved by grace
Growing nearer to the day I will see Your face.

Life on Earth is tough at times
My sin amounting to many crimes.
Every new day is a new race to run
I can only get by with the help of Your Son.

In many other things I try to be content.
Teach me, You ONLY will bring fulfillment.
Make these doubts in my heart cease
In You alone, I find my peace.

You are my fortress, stronghold and rock.
I come to Your door, I come and knock.
I ask You to take my life, do as You will
And my cup will overflow, Lord, make it spill.