I've come to realize something significant lately. And that's how God doesn't have any expectations of us--and please know my heart when I say that. Sure, God calls us to a standard and has desires to see us succeed, but I don't think He comes to us and says, "Gary, you need to do this, and that, and this... and if you don't, then you fail." More than anything He loves us, and whether we screw up or not, He could care less.
We were made to succeed.
"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD. "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future" (Jeremiah 29:11, NIV).
I know in my own life, I have always struggled with expectations--I put expectations on myself that are so high that there is no way I can meet them. And since I don't meet those expectations, unreasonable or not, I fail. I set myself up to fail. It's almost as if in my mind, I make myself God and say, "Gary, you need to do this, and that, and this..." It essentially becomes idolatry.
When are we going to get to the point we we tell ourselves, "I am good enough. God says I'm good enough, and that is enough. I don't have to work for my salvation, for love, for acceptance, for whatever--God's already given me everything, and I can't earn any of it"? There's a reason that they say salvation, joy, peace, and so on, are gifts from God. He gave them to us. If God says we're enough and that we are complete, then why don't we believe in Him? Why is it that we take other's words for who they say we are, but ignore what God says about us?
It's amazing, isn't it? This is the human struggle. Every day is a struggle, every day is a fight. The enemy's out to win over our soul, but God's even stronger. It's time that we find ourselves complete in God. It's time we quit suffocating ourselves with false expectations, and time for us to focus on God and God alone.
"With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible" (Matthew 19:26, NIV).
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Friday, February 18, 2011
Prophecies Come to Pass
The more I've been thinking about it lately, the more I have come to realize how serious God is when He makes promises. Or prophecies. Or whatever you may want to call them. Here is a little testimony of how this rings true in my own life.
Last summer, I took part in the summer internship at my church, which was a great experience. It was a season of my life where God drew me closer to Him, and I really saw Him build me up and strengthen me for what was to come. Or in other words, for senior year. Looking back on that season in my life, I'm glad He did that. Cause I don't know if I could have made it otherwise.
There came a point where He gave me a few promises/prophecies:
1. During this school year, God would reveal His love through people and situations. That I would grow closer with those who are already there, but also that new friendships would arise.
2. The winter would be a very difficult time for me. But that if I held onto Him, His word, and those He'd surrounded me with, I would be just fine.
3. A revolution is coming. Many are going to be saved at my school, and find God.
The first prophecy has come to pass. I've grown a lot closer to a lot of people I didn't think I would have even six months ago. My friendships with others have developed, and I've made a lot (and I mean a lot) of new friends too. This has been a huge blessing in my life, simply by the fact that God is revealing His love to me through other people, and using others to work through my heart and make me more complete.
The second prophecy has also come to pass. The past few months have been some of the hardest months I have ever gone through. I can definitely say that they have been some of the darkest months I have seen in a very long time. But God's been faithful as He said He would be, and He's carried me through these times. He's allowed me to be broken so that I could be made whole, and even better than I have ever been before. And it's true. Even today, I feel that I have come a very long way from where I was even a few months ago. I've grown tremendously, and it's been yet another blessing to see God move so much in my life.
The third prophecy has yet to pass, but I have faith that it will. Are there doubts? Sure there are. Sometimes I look at the situation with a practical mindset and think to myself, God, how in the world are You going to work this out? But He will. He's made everything work out thus far, so I can stand firm in my faith, knowing that His will will come to pass.
I am ready. Me and many others are ready. There's an army of men and women of God rising up at my school, in my city, in the Tri-Cities. I'm ready for whatever God may have for me, for others, and for His glory. I'm excited for what's to come, and I'm forever blessed and humbled that God would use someone as inadequate and broken as I for His kingdom and His glory. Here it comes. The rainstorm is coming, and you better be sure to grab your umbrellas.
Okay... so that last part was a little corny. But you get my point. :)
Last summer, I took part in the summer internship at my church, which was a great experience. It was a season of my life where God drew me closer to Him, and I really saw Him build me up and strengthen me for what was to come. Or in other words, for senior year. Looking back on that season in my life, I'm glad He did that. Cause I don't know if I could have made it otherwise.
There came a point where He gave me a few promises/prophecies:
1. During this school year, God would reveal His love through people and situations. That I would grow closer with those who are already there, but also that new friendships would arise.
2. The winter would be a very difficult time for me. But that if I held onto Him, His word, and those He'd surrounded me with, I would be just fine.
3. A revolution is coming. Many are going to be saved at my school, and find God.
The first prophecy has come to pass. I've grown a lot closer to a lot of people I didn't think I would have even six months ago. My friendships with others have developed, and I've made a lot (and I mean a lot) of new friends too. This has been a huge blessing in my life, simply by the fact that God is revealing His love to me through other people, and using others to work through my heart and make me more complete.
The second prophecy has also come to pass. The past few months have been some of the hardest months I have ever gone through. I can definitely say that they have been some of the darkest months I have seen in a very long time. But God's been faithful as He said He would be, and He's carried me through these times. He's allowed me to be broken so that I could be made whole, and even better than I have ever been before. And it's true. Even today, I feel that I have come a very long way from where I was even a few months ago. I've grown tremendously, and it's been yet another blessing to see God move so much in my life.
The third prophecy has yet to pass, but I have faith that it will. Are there doubts? Sure there are. Sometimes I look at the situation with a practical mindset and think to myself, God, how in the world are You going to work this out? But He will. He's made everything work out thus far, so I can stand firm in my faith, knowing that His will will come to pass.
I am ready. Me and many others are ready. There's an army of men and women of God rising up at my school, in my city, in the Tri-Cities. I'm ready for whatever God may have for me, for others, and for His glory. I'm excited for what's to come, and I'm forever blessed and humbled that God would use someone as inadequate and broken as I for His kingdom and His glory. Here it comes. The rainstorm is coming, and you better be sure to grab your umbrellas.
Okay... so that last part was a little corny. But you get my point. :)
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