Satisfied

California
Transitioning from Hawaii to California has actually gone smoother than i expected. I'm actually really enjoying the state and the surrounding environment. California definitely has more places to check out than little Oahu, but Hawaii's weather is unbeatable. It's almost two weeks since i've move into my place and it's been going great. It feels like God is definitely deepening my faith through this transition. I noticed my blogs went from once a month to almost twice a week, lol. Having a lot of time for a few weeks has greatly cleared my head, and allowed me to focus my attention on God. I've been having dozens of spiritual thoughts roam in my head for a while, so this would be a good place to unload. If you've read any of my other blogs, u'll notice this one is very familiar if not redundant, because God has still been bringing me back to the 101 basics.

Why?
Question. Why don't we talk about things that matter the most? When was the last time we had a meaningful conversation? Sure small talk is nice and can help build relationships, but isn't it the deep and personal things that form strong relationships? Why don't we open up more to talking about God? Any mention of Jesus seems to be a taboo now days. Why don't we ask each other the tough questions? Why don't we ask ourselves the tough questions? Why don't we bother to seek any answers? Why don't we ponder about heavenly things anymore? Are we no longer concerned with God? Are we no longer curious? Shouldn't we dig deeper into the being of God's character? Is there anything of greater importance? In order to gain a deeper sense of God, we must all investigate, meditate and seek His truth.

Chasing the Wind
When i think of chasing the wind, i think of a dog chasing his own tail. We may think it's foolish, but we do exactly the same. In this world we are constantly chasing things to satisfy our heart. I'm pretty sure i don't need to convince anyone of that. We are always looking for things and people to fill us. We depend on stuff for happiness. We look to girlfriends, boyfriends, husbands and wives to fill this gap of loneliness. I was watching "The Secret life of Bees" yesterday, and Queen Latifah said, "We all seek to be loved by someone." And yeah, we do. We seek someone to care about us and to be there for us. But the problem is that we are looking to the wrong places.

We turn to money, friends, family, material wealth, hobbies, social networks, entertainment, sports, social statuses, cars, food and careers to give us a sense of worth and identity. We look to place our trust in all these things. We look for shelter, comfort and security in stuff. What good is it to gain the whole world and yet at the end forfeit your very soul? Paul considers everything he worked and lived for rubbish compared to knowing Christ. What is it that you invest into? Where do you place your trust? Who or what is your source of strength, motivation and joy? To make my point clear, the world will never satisfy our craving heart. Who do we turn to with our problems?

The Problem of Sin
And to even suggest God as an answer sounds foolish to many. I find it baffling that God would hide the mysteries of Himself to the worldly wise, and reveal Himself to the underdog ragamuffins. Many of us become stuck in our ways. By this i am saying that our own created ideologies of truth or misunderstandings of God can separate us from ever getting to know Him. We tend to stick to what we think or believe works. We don't usually want anything that involves surrendering or obedience. Burger King says "Have it your way." John Piper says that "We become so comfortable to the ways of the world that we are like fish under water. We no longer dream of air anymore. We have lost our entire capacity to even know that we miss it. It has become inconceivable that there's anything better than this worldly life."

We create and live in our own fantasy world because we fear the unknown. In the movie the Matrix, many people would choose to numb their minds and continue living in a made up world than know the reality of God. We have become so afraid of knowing truth that it stops us from even attempting to connect with God. It's easy to block out spiritual and religious jargon. No one likes being brainwashed. But we must also be careful that we don't block out Jesus along with other false religious ways. Our world has become so heavliy dependent on scientific and emperical evidences that we throw faith out the window. But by the Holy Spirit, God says that those who have ears will hear, those with eyes will see, and they will understand with their hearts. Sin has blinded our generation. But the truth of God gives light to our sin. There is only One who can remove this blockade of sin and forgive us of our iniquities. But the question is, "Who will you look to for salvation?" Looking anywhere else besides Jesus, is rejecting Him as Lord and Savior.

Pride is the root of our sin. All of us have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. We have all rejected, refused, and rebelled against His authority. Selfishness, pride and ignorance will be no excuse for denying Jesus as Lord. We as humans have become allergic to submission. We don't like bowing to any other authority than ourselves. Instead of humbling ourselves in obedience to God, we have instead placed a crown on top of our heads. We may claim that we are one nation under God, but in actualilty we live as if we're one nation over God. What right does the clay have to talk back to the potter? We have become gods, whether we know it or not. Who has the right to set up any moral law or boundary? Who has the right to declare what's right and wrong? We create our own rules and determine what's politically correct. We try to form truth by what is socially acceptable, respectable and culturally customed. Would not an ultimate supreme being of righteous judgement and holiness know better than all of the knowledge and wisdom of man kind? Now days we try to box God to fit into our back pockets. We say, oh i got salvation, i recieved Jesus, and our life has absolutely no evidence of it. We cannot contain God, make His deity up, or break Him down into some chemical gas. The only reason im ranting on the world is because sin leads us onto a road of destruction. The consequence of sin is eternal death, separation from God, and a whole bagage of His wrath in hell. But hopefully the next paragraph will lift your spirits.

The Solution of Jesus
Yes, we covered that sin is a huge problem. The solution is always Jesus. Because of our dirty sin, we all deserve death and damnation. But because of God's love and grace, there is a freedom through Jesus. There is a forgiveness by His sacrifice on the cross. Jesus' death pays our entire sinful debt if we place our trust in Him. We would be perfectly just for God to give us no salvation, but by His grace He sent His Son to die in place of our own life. So the good news is He not only saved us from our sin, but has also given us eternal life with Him.

People have all sorts of problems. People suffer with lonliness, depression, addictions, drugs, anxieties, frustrations, family issues, or from a lack of self worth, identity and purpose. But these all point back to one perfect solution. God sends His Holy Spirit to counsel, comfort, lead and guide us. He can heal any problem of the heart. But God uses our trials to grow, strengthen, and teach us. Through our storms, He calls us to draw close to Him. He is an everlasting stream of living water and strength. Just because you become a Christian, it doen't mean it ends there. He corrects, rebukes, disciplines, prunes and refines us to grow closer into the likeness of Jesus.

Appointments With God
A key aspect of building a stronger relationship with God, is keeping daily appointments with Him. We must be intentional on waiting upon Him. We cannot expect to grow closer to God without desiring Him. We must crave His presence in our lives. We must make time to just sit down and listen to Him. We must clear out the distractions of our mind and set Him as our core focus. We need to make more time to reflect on His love and should increasingly learn what it means to abide in Him.

Could you imagine finding your way through a thick jungle without a map? Well the Bible is God's living Word. It's greatly important to practice a consist meditation on His Word. Because when His Word dwells in our hearts, we begin to see a change in our lives. Prayer and Worship is a great way to communicate to God. It not only glorifies and praises Him, it also increases our relationship with Him. Sometimes the best thing we can do is just spend time with God one on one in the stillness and quietness of our heart. Just 5 mins with God can change your entire day. Imagine what an hour would do. What would it be like if all our thoughts were just consumed by His love. What if we allowed the Holy Spirit to live in our lives? Imagine what that would look like for a second. Practicing these spiritual disciplines should not just be going through a religious routine. Reading our Bibles should'nt be something we force ourselves to do. We don't have to turn it into some rigourous, intensive and academic study, but we should see it as a tender, sweet and intimate love letter. The more we fill ourself with the Holy Spirit, the more we'll see Him live through our lives. What goes into your eyes and ears, goes into your heart and mind, and then gets displayed in your actions.

Running the Race
I like how Paul mentions how a Christian walk should really be a sprint for the prize. The prize is Jesus of course! Seeking God is exciting because His love and mercy is fresh and new each day. The problem is that many of us don't see the value in wanting Jesus. Would you rather have the entire world or Jesus? Would you trade or surrender the pleasures of this world to know God? Would you rather have a lifetime on earth or one day in God's heavenly kingdom courts? Are we only concerned with physical and emotional blessings or would you rather have a spiritual one? How far are we willing to chase after Jesus? Mary poured out an entire and very expensive jar of perfume on Jesus' feet. She realized that He was worth more than any treasure of this world. Jesus says to take up our cross and follow Him, that in order to save our life we must lose it. An elderly lady gave all that she had, which was only two little coins, but she knew that it was better to invest in everything she had, rather than keeping it for herself. The disciples that were fishermen didn't hesitate to leave their family and buisness to follow Jesus. People realized that Jesus was not some ordinary man, or even just a prophet. Jesus is worth sacrificing everything. He is our eternal prize, reward, and salvation.

Foundation
What is your life built on? What is your foundation? How's our spiritual progress? Are we growing? or just meeting a status quo? Are we stunned in an exciting and joyful relationship with Christ? Or are we missing His deliverance and redeption? Are we abiding in Him? Are we yoked in communion with Him? Is there something standing in your way of God? When Jesus healed people, He usually said, "Your faith has healed you, go and sin no more." Believe that God walks into our sin without condemnation, and only full of grace. God doesn't want us to feel an unhealthy shame, sorrow, fear, worry or guilt. He justs tells us to come to Him with our sin, and that He'll wash our dirt off. Listen to His voice. He desperately yearns and desires for us to come to repentance and to sarinate in His love.

God is not a god of the dead but of the living. He resurrected, lives and reigns! He speaks directly to your heart. He says "You're mine! You're my child. I will never leave nor forsake you. I am always with you, trust in me. Come find rest in me. Abide in me." Heavenly Father, I pray we would surrender our lives and hearts to you. Thank you for your grace and salvation, and for conquering sin and death. Fill us with Your Holy Spirit and give us the strength to chase after you. Make us desperate for more of you. Teach us to follow Your ways and lead us according to Your will and for Your glory, Amen.

Step By Step

Oh God, You are my God
And I will ever praise You
Oh God, You are my God
And I will ever praise You

I will seek You in the morning
And I will learn to walk in Your ways
And step by step You'll lead me
And I will follow You all of my days

There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under heaven:
a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain,
a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace. -Ecc 3:1-8



Goldfish in clam chowder is just plain genius