Half way through.... It went by pretty fast. It feels like I blinked and there went half a year. So much happened. Scary stuff. Sad stuff. Crazy stuff. Joyful stuff. Awesome stuff. I would not change anything except, perhaps, my attitude at some parts of it.
One thing I have learned specifically is that it is good to work hard. It is good to focus on what is working out in your life. It is good to praise God for what He is doing in your life. It is good to praise His name! He is worthy of all our praise.
I was reading Revelation 3:1-3 and I was struck by the message from God through John to the church of Sardis: " 'I know your works. You have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead. WAKE UP! (my capitalization for emphasis here) and strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your works complete in the sight of my God. Remember, then, what you received and hear. Keep it, and repent. If you will not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come against you."
I was convicted and wowed by its message to the church of Sardis, to the church today across the world, and to me as I read: lazy "eye-service" Christianity without our hearts involved is not being a follower of Christ. To live life obeying the rules and reading the scriptures and doing what we are commanded to do is not enough. We need to do it with our whole hearts. If we live and people praise us for living as "good" Christians, may we thank and praise God for the transformation He is doing in our lives and work all the harder to push back sin and complete the good works He has prepared for us! Let us not sit back and think, "Okay, I figured this Christianity thing out now." Let us run the race with endurance and wait for the bridegroom with oil ready in our lamps, awaiting Him long into the night with great anticipation!
Even though the semester is done, our work is not! We are always called to good works in Christ Jesus. So, let us not grow weary of doing good, but with prayer and supplication present our requests to God, the Author and Perfector of our faith in Christ. He will be at work in us and give us strength to press on: this is the beauty of GRACE manifested in us!!!
This is a poem that I wrote about these thoughts:
I see the work in you
It's wearing you down
All you try and you do
Try hard while wearing a frown
But, you were made new
Ashes replaced with a crown
500 shades of bright blue
now cover you too
We were made to work hard
Laborers we are meant to be
Twisted by our disregard
So restless we can be
Jars of clay- broken shard
Work, repair a broken me
This is who we are-
Broken souls, broken we
So press on, oh press on
Run hard, run fast
This life isn't meant to last
But, it will pass before we know it
So don't focus on the past
Work hard with eyes above
Work hard work with love
Sometimes we don't know who we are
Sometimes we don't go very far
Sometimes we run around in circles
trying to mend the broken jar
But, if we see the light above-
how it fills our hearts with love
Shards won't matter, we will work
until we reach the end
Sometimes we won't see a result
We won't gain riches or fame
We will go on anonymous-
no glory to our name
But, what is in a name
if it has empty fame?
If it brings us glory we who are damned?
So thank God He has saved
Thank God that He loves us
Thank God for His grace
that lightens our face
Love will replace
sin's ugly, empty face
It's mask of sadness, doubt, sickness, and death
You give each breath
Praise You
Praise God
No longer damned sinners are we
Glory, honor, power be
Never to me
But, to God who redeemed us
and set us all free
By His Spirit, we are anointed
By His inheritance, we are appointed
By His redemption, we are adopted
Captives broken free
Prison break
For Christ's sake
Glory make
Hallelujah, Allelu
Sing for me, sing for you
Sing for the glory that lives in each of us
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