Monday, November 18, 2013

From an Idol to My Worship

"I used to be afraid of failing at something that really mattered to me, but now I'm afraid of succeeding at things that don't matter."    -Love Does

I've always worried about failing. I don't want to make mistakes, and I don't want to let people down. But you can't succeed without making mistakes, you'd never learn anything.

Starting in my high school career of basketball, and continuing even 'til now, I wanted to do well so badly. I wanted to run the plays correctly and score in the "doubles." I wanted to start. I wanted to be a star player. I was so focused on myself instead of God and even my teammates. I wasn't playing for His glory or to help my team; I was playing for myself- for my pride and for my own achievement.

During my senior year, God began to show me how foolish this perspective was. I was doing it for myself, but I was only getting frustrated, and this desire for stardom only robbed me of the joy of playing basketball. I was playing for myself, but I was not receiving any joy from it.

God began to move in my hear to show me I needed to lay down my pride and, ultimately, my desires. I had to be open to success and to failure, and I had to give both up to God. The only reason I was playing basketball was because He'd given me the opportunity. I had been worshipping basketball, and I fear I still sometimes do, but I needed to, and still need to, use it as worship to God.

Whether I win or lose, whether I score the game winning shot or miss a bunny, am I giving my all for God's all- Christ? Am I humbly accepting the successes and joyfully persevering through the failures?

I've struggled with this for the past several years, but I hope I'll continue to improve in surrendering it. I think I'll continually have to remind myself to do so, however, because I sadly find that my heart is prone to wander. But thank God for having such merciful patience with me. He is ever-faithful to take me back when I re-center on Christ.

I'm supposed to keep my eyes on the hoop if I want to score in basketball. It is the center and ultimate object of the game. As believers, we need to keep our eyes on Christ. He is at the center of life and should ultimately be the object of our hearts.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6smGew7dGto

Thursday, November 14, 2013

Mr. Right? Pt. 2

I'm always looking for other things and people to complete me. How can they? Everyone else is just as broken. How and why do I expect others to complete me when they aren't even complete themselves?

God is the only perfect, whole being. He's the only one who knows what it is to be complete, and thus, is the only one who knows how to fix someone who is broken.

Why am I looking towards others, especially guys, to complete me? They can't even fix themselves!

We were made in God's image; He knows what we're supposed to look like and how to get us back to that place. While a godly young man can help point us and encourage us to be who we were meant to be in Christ, he doesn't know the big picture and cannot shape us into who we were created to be. Only God can do that.

We have to let Him fix us before we start looking for "the one." We're always looking for the one who will "complete" us, but you see, two broken halves cannot make a whole. There'll always be that jagged ridge where they meet. Before we look to have our hearts joined with our spouse, our hearts have to be whole in Christ. When we give our hearts into Christ's hands, He is then able to meld them with our spouse's seamlessly because His love and perfection smooths over the rough ridges.

So yes, look and wait for the godly young man you're supposed to be with, because he will be a blessing, but also realize that your heart won't become whole after you meet him. It only becomes whole in Christ.

So before finding Mr. Right, find your heart in Christ.

Mr. Right? Pt. 1

I'm a pretty helpless romantic and, like many girls, am always daydreaming about my Prince Charming. However, God's really been trying to show me this: His timing is best. May this encourage all of you amazing, single people to find contentment in the beauty of single hood. I'm working on seeing it too :)

If you're future husband met you today, would he fall in love with you? Are you the version of yourself that he'll want to marry and is supposed to marry?

Stop worrying about him and who he'll be and start worrying about who you are. You want to know who he is, but you need to be focusing on who you are in Christ. You aren't ready for that relationship if you don't have a stable relationship with Christ. So, right now, even though it's hard, focus on God. Fall more and more in love with Him, so you'll know how to love your husband.

"'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 a hope and a future.'" -Jeremiah 29:11

God has good plans for you. If He has a husband in store for you, God knows who he'll be and God will make sure he's right for you. You're God's daughter, and He won't settle for anything less than a Prince Charming for your husband, so why would you?

Have patience. I know you want that amazing love story with the beautiful proposal and wedding, and maybe one day you will, but right now you're here in the present. Live in it and get ready in it so you'll be ready for that beautiful future.

Stop looking for Mr. Right and start becoming Mrs. Right.

Salutations!

Hello!

This is my first blog and my first blog post. I decided to create this blog to have a place to share my thoughts and my heart. I love to journal, but I'm the only one who gets to see that. My hope is that by putting such expressions out there, God will use them and someone else will be able to benefit from them as well.

I don't know how often I'll blog or even what it'll all contain. I'm a young, single, college girl, so don't be too surprised if I write about love a lot ;). Regardless of the topic, I hope you'll enjoy it and be able to benefit from some small aspect of my writing.

Love, happiness, and peace
Babe

"Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity."    -1 Timothy 4:12