Isn't it cool when God shows you stories in the Bible and shows you stories in present-day that relate? Isn't it even cooler when God shows you stories in the Bible and makes you a part of stories that relate?
Today I read Acts 2-11. Acts 8:26-39 tells of Philip being directed by the angel of the Lord. Philip was told to go to Jerusalem, so he went. There in Jerusalem was a man from Ethiopia who had come up to worship. He was sitting in his chariot reading about the prophet Esaias and not really understanding what he was reading. The Holy Spirit spoke to Philip and told him to "go near, and join [him]self to this chariot."
Philip went to the chariot and heard the Ethiopian man reading, so he asked him if he understood it. The Ethiopian man said, "How can I, except some man should guide me?" Philip explained all about what the man was reading, telling him about Jesus, and His gift of salvation. When the chariot came to water, the man wanted to be baptized, and, after confirming that he understood, Philip baptized the man.
How cool is that? The Holy Spirit led Philip to a place that he wouldn't have otherwise been to meet someone who wanted to know more about God. That happened to Mrs.Kristy and I today.
We were mosying around Wal-Mart, not looking at anything in particular, and actually spending more time than we really needed to in the clearance aisle, when we were approached by a lady who wanted to know what church we went to. Our skirts gave us away. Apparently our clothing really does speak wonders about us! :)
This woman shared with us that her daughter needed to find another church and that she was worried about not finding a "holy, Bible-preaching church". After talking with the lady for about 10 minutes, we exchanged information with her. Then she shared with me how I should stay with God and submit to Him and I will be blessed beyond my wildest dreams. I know she's right. :)
Isn't that the coolest?! This lady was searching for something, and God guided us together to get answers for her. AWESOME!
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
Growth & Parallels
On April 26th, my pastor shared with the Sunday evening group a challenge that a friend of his had given to his youth group: read the New Testament in 30 days. The challenge is called "30 Days of Light", and you read nine chapters a day out of the New Testament. By the end of the thirty days, you'll have read the whole NT and grown into a more mature Christian.
I took up this challenge, as did the rest of the group, and I'm happier than I've been in a long while. I have problems keeping up a daily reading schedule, and an even harder time praying regularly. Since I've been reading, I've learned lots and started praying tons.
The one thing that has hit me over and over again in my reading is personal sacrifice and the willingness to drop all and follow Jesus. Matthew 4:19-22 tells of Jesus calling to the disciples, "Follow me," and the dropped everything and followed Him. Everything. Could I be expected to drop everything and follow Jesus? These men didn't even go back and explain to their families they were leaving; they just left.
Also, Mark 12:41-44 tells of people giving money to the church. The rich cast in lots of money, and there was a poor woman who gave two mites (a very small amount of money). Jesus said the poor woman gave most because she gave all she had, while the others gave of their abundance. Would it really be a sacrifice for a millionaire to give $300 to a charity? Or would it be a sacrifice for a single mother of three working for minimum wage to give $300 to charity? This woman put her faith in God to provide for her and gave all she had. I need to give until it hurts. I need to put my faith in God.
This also made me think of today's government. Lots of people are up in arms about the spending the government's doing. Apparently the president was trying to make people proud of the government's efforts to cut back by announcing that they were going to cut $100k out of the national budget. If a U.S. family that made $120k/year cut $100k out of their spending, that would be something to applaud. But the U.S. spent $2979 BILLION last year. Where's the sacrifice?
It's awesome to see how God's Word applies to our world today. It's awesome to experience God working in my heart and shaping me to be more like Jesus. Thank you God, for loving me.
I took up this challenge, as did the rest of the group, and I'm happier than I've been in a long while. I have problems keeping up a daily reading schedule, and an even harder time praying regularly. Since I've been reading, I've learned lots and started praying tons.
The one thing that has hit me over and over again in my reading is personal sacrifice and the willingness to drop all and follow Jesus. Matthew 4:19-22 tells of Jesus calling to the disciples, "Follow me," and the dropped everything and followed Him. Everything. Could I be expected to drop everything and follow Jesus? These men didn't even go back and explain to their families they were leaving; they just left.
Also, Mark 12:41-44 tells of people giving money to the church. The rich cast in lots of money, and there was a poor woman who gave two mites (a very small amount of money). Jesus said the poor woman gave most because she gave all she had, while the others gave of their abundance. Would it really be a sacrifice for a millionaire to give $300 to a charity? Or would it be a sacrifice for a single mother of three working for minimum wage to give $300 to charity? This woman put her faith in God to provide for her and gave all she had. I need to give until it hurts. I need to put my faith in God.
This also made me think of today's government. Lots of people are up in arms about the spending the government's doing. Apparently the president was trying to make people proud of the government's efforts to cut back by announcing that they were going to cut $100k out of the national budget. If a U.S. family that made $120k/year cut $100k out of their spending, that would be something to applaud. But the U.S. spent $2979 BILLION last year. Where's the sacrifice?
It's awesome to see how God's Word applies to our world today. It's awesome to experience God working in my heart and shaping me to be more like Jesus. Thank you God, for loving me.
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