Coming to Christ
// So in the past month or so, 3 of my friends are starting to come to Christ. I really dont know exactly where they are, because thats between them and God. I know they have at least faith of a mustard seed, and thats choke compared to none at all. So im glad that 3 of my friends are at least starting to seek the truth. It was awesome hearing how God is starting to change each of their hearts. But now they have already hit major obstacles in their faith. I think all of them are looking for that "God experience", where you truly encounter God's love and hear his voice. I think satan especially goes after those who are about to make these eternal decisions. I think these guys really do want to become closer to God, but are having a hard time giving up worldly desires.
// I think becoming a Christian is a slow process. We may become justified with Him, but other things will still have a hold on us. Does God have to be number 1 in our life for us to be a Christian?? Can one be saved by only having God as just a part of our life? I think God starts off as part of our life, and through the long process of sanctification, God slowly goes up in our rank. We start to see new things, we start to see how evil our sins are, how misleading our world is, and how much greater our God is. The transformation of the heart takes continuous convictions with and by God.
// Yes people can start the race towards God, and yes we will stumble and fall, but God promises that if we truly become His children, He will always be there to pick us up. That no matter how many times we run astray, and take our eyes off the goal, our Dad will always draw us back. That nothing can snatch us out of His mighty hand. God sees our life from start to finish, but the thing is, there are tons who havnt even started this run. The bottom line is that we need to encourage those around us to take that first step of faith, and start this race towards God.
Only One Judge
// God has been constantly warning me to not judge others. I learned this the hard way. Many people that i talked to say that they dont consider it judging, but after hearing how some of my friends said, "dont judge me" i kinda believe that i did. Only God the author and potter can truly know peoples heart. I think by judging peoples actions, they think that im judging their heart. I think it is important that we gently correct others tho. We need to first look at our lives, point out that we arnt nearly perfect, and that we too fall short. But we cant just allow our friends to loove their sins. I think it takes choke love to tell a brother or sister things they probably dont want to hear. But how do we do that in the most loving way? I dont jump out and say "Hey what your doing is wrong, and point at their sin" I tell them that We need to be careful that we dont fall into these temptations. That Christ is way bigger than things of this world. I still dont know if its considered judging though, because if thats the case, then we cant help our brothers n sisters in their deepest sins. Catch my drift?
// As Christians we should love truth, and we should love correction. When someone tells me, "hey we shouldnt be listening to this music, hey we shouldnt say that, hey i dont think we should watch this, hey what we're doing is wrong," i say "yeah man ur completely right, this really isnt glorifying God." But when others here the same line, it becomes a "Ho, who do u think you are". So as of now, until i find a better way to speak to others, im gonna hold my mouth shut. When we become Christians, we should no longer love our sins, we need to actually hate sin. God is disgusted by us loving sin. If God loves everything that is pure and righteous, then He has to hate sin. He takes no pleasure in evil deeds of darkness. Should we judge others hearts? No, only God has the authority of that. But should we test others actions, I believe so. If I just let my friend continue to swear, curse, drink, watch/listen to bad media, talk smack about people, or get involved in sexual impurity, Is it loving of me to continue to let them do so? By no means! By sitting back watching our Christian brothers/sisters sin, is like approving of it.
// Yes we need to constantly test ourselves, Yes we need to renew our own minds, watching all of our actions, Yes we need to be careful how we warn others, Yes we need to be accountable for one another. But right now, im having a really hard time doing that. And I have strong faith that God will heal these friendships, that He will convict our hearts, and that He will show me how to gently and correctly build others up.
Epic
//Friday night I got to talk to my youth pastor, about how Epic is doing a really great job bringing students to come, have fun, and meet new friends. Butt sometimes our ministry gets so caught up with planning events and activities, that we lose sight of our ultimate goal. We need to disciple these high school kids. Sure building friendships with them is important, but what's more, is telling them about Jesus. I know i'd be inconsistent with small groups, so that's kinda preventing me from committing to disciplining some of the guys. On Saturday we had beach day with all the students, and we got to bond over vball, football, and surfing!! And again, i see that Epic wants to connect with these kids, gain their trust, and show them that learning about Christ really can be fun. But its so so important that they take time to know and learn the deep seriousness of God. Jesus is not our homeboy. He is our God! He doesn't fit in our worldly standards. He's bigger than we can imagine. And I think some of our students are beginning to see that. Im glad that we're slowly making a transition to more discipleship. Cuz many are relying on church for God, when they should be relying on God for God.
Baptized!
// Sunday after One Love service i got water baptized. It was really rejuvenating, knowing that God, my family and friends we're there to witness it. I saw it as a rededication, vowing to live for His glory n not of my own, to recommit my life to Him, making that eternal promise to Him, and declaring Him as my Lord n Savior. So yeah, baptism was good. But also being able to see my mom n dad sit on the sides of me during church was also really empowering. I pray that they took something from the service. They came to support me, but I hope God instilled a deeper truth in their hearts. I'm really glad that God is working in my friends n family. I have full faith that God will save them. A faith that He will show them His ridiculously crazy awesome love. That they would continue to seek Him, and find a deeper intimacy with Him.
God is Good! Amen!
