Martha and Mary

I've heard the story many many times. Today I was consumed with the story. I placed myself as Mary and Martha.

As Martha: I was preparing dinner while Jesus sat in my living room. I was frustrated with Mary because she was sitting on her behind not helping or even offering to lend a hand. I began to become more and more angry slamming pots around and making all kinds of racket. I kept shooting angry glares towards Mary but she never took her gaze from Jesus. Wouldn't she want Him to have the perfect meal? Why wouldn't she help me? Surely Jesus will tell her she needs to help me. Let me go ask Him...

As Mary: I knew my sister was upset with me as the pots began to chime, ding and dong louder and louder, but I didn't care; I was with Jesus. I was sitting at His feet listening to His parables in His soothing voice and occasionally hearing His soft laughter. Why would anyone want to be doing anything other than listening to Jesus? No body should! I knew I was about to get it when Martha walked up...

As Martha: I stormed over to Jesus with hate in my eyes, heart and soul. Martha gets to enjoy Jesus while I slave away. 'This is going to change' I thought. I proceeded to question Jesus instead of my sister due to the fact she was already ignoring me. I spoke my [bitter] heart "Lord, doesn't it seem unfair to you that my sister just sits here while I do all the work?" Then I demanded "tell her to come and help me!"(Luke 11:40). Ha. That's it I embarrassed her in front of Jesus. Serves her right.

As Mary: I knew it was about to get ugly when Martha interrupted Jesus during one of His stories. She proceeded with a overly hateful question as a stab to me. As she finished her question a slight smirk appeared upon her face followed by a dumbfounded look when Jesus replied "My Dear Martha, you are worried about all the details! There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her" (vs. 42).

As Martha: After hearing Jesus speak I remembered to whom I was speaking to. I stepped back when I realized I had belittled the Lord. I was worried about getting thing completed. I didn't want to be seen as I saw my sister, lazy. It was me who was wrong. Jesus could have prepared dinner in the blink of His eye, but I forgot that. I truly was worried about the small things. I wasn't concerned with the fact JESUS WAS IN MY LIVING ROOM. I was worried about how things would turn out, but that shouldn't matter because Jesus would make them turn out perfect!

As Lindsey: I have been so distracted with the details. I have been having my quiet times to a God who is in heaven but not to and with one who is in the same room as me. I have been caught up in ME getting the details right but Jesus can perfect the details when I hand them over to Him. Jesus is perfect I am not in any way. I am a Martha. One is wanting things to go perfectly but unwilling to sit and listen to what Jesus wants to say to me because too many things would be left unfinished. I need to become Mary. One who listens and leaves the details up to Jesus. He will let them fall into place.

Summer Job

Yesterday we dropped Joshua off at the airport. He is going to be gone for two months without much communication. There will be some, but I don't know how often that will come. I am sad, but I am glad because I know the LORD will use him as a vessel.

Tomorrow I begin my summer job working as a youth intern at a church. I kick off my first day... week with VBS. I'm a going to hit the ground running. I cannot wait to see what the LORD does this summer in this town. I can feel the LORD already brewing something up.

Being BOLD for Jesus.

Lately the LORD has been showing me that He wants me to be bold(...like He has to show any of us that.. we should already know). Over and over again I hear "BE BOLD FOR THE GOSPEL AND THE SAKE OF JESUS CHRIST". I always feel convicted because I am not being bold for His sake. Here is when my passion started..

Last weekend at a d-now I was sitting, watching and listening to the voices singing praises to the LORD. I realized.. that's what I do most of my life.. sit and listen. He speaker had said earlier: "don't just sit and soak in Jesus, you can't hold Him to yourself. You need to be spreading what He showed you in your time with Him. Procalim His name!". When I was sitting I was asking the LORD what I was doing on an everyday basis for Him... I found exactly what I was doing... nothing. The this wonderful idea just happend to pop in my head... what if I simply wrote verses and handed them out to random people I don't know and told them about Jesus and prayed with them if they would allow me to. (We have handed out verses at the past two d-nows I've been to. Why do I only wait for weekends like that or specific 'mission' projects that someone else has planned? Or only with my friends, who are Christians, but now proclaiming the gospel to someone who might have never heard it before- this is what we are called to do).

SIMPLE.

That is exactly what I want to do. Go to places.. where ever I am.. Marshall, home, Dallas. To whoever needs to hear the words of the LORD.

I didn't do anything about it expect think 'how cool would that be?'... thinking about it is NOT nearly enough.

I read Isaiah 11:6-9 the other day. It talks about how we will all live in harmony together on day. For example: lions and lambs hanging out together and cobras and infants playing together. ENEMIES. Things that shouldn't be together are best friends! Verse 9 says "Nothing will hurt or destroy in all My holy mountain...the earth will be filled with people who know the LORD". Basically everyone lives in harmony because everyone knows the LORD. Imagine how much we could transform this world if we, as Christians, told people about Jesus! I know people, when they truly find Jesus will be a peace inside, but hopefully also if they are violent- physically or with their words-they will be at peace when they find Jesus. Imagine how drastically our world would change if people knew the LORD. What are we doing as Christian? What am I doing? I want people to live like one day we will in heaven. Peaceful and worshipful.

MY LIFE NEEDS TO BE A MISSION FOR CHRIST!
I'm working on it :)

Linds

The Butterfly Circus

This was a very powerful video we watched for spiritual renewal week last night during release:

Original:
http://www.thedoorpost.com/hope/The Butterfly Circus/


Part one:


Part 2:



Let this settle before you read what I have to say about it


Let God speak to you and listen to what He has to say



Things I learned from this video:

A butterfly has to struggle on their own to gain their strength to fly. You cannot force someone to be a christian because they will never have strength to fly on their own. You have to let people learn on their own and struggle to find their strength.

Before you come to the Lord you are one thing but something different happens with your life (you get all wrapped up in something different and try to figure out what it is). Then you are a new creation and you learn to fly on your own and bring glory to God!!

There is so much to be learned from this video and God is using it in powerful ways :)

The Great Thing About Jesus

So often people die (or say they will die) for people they love or righteous people die for good and righteous people.

But Jesus, a righteous man, die for those who didn't love him (yet) and are not even close to being called righteous. He died for those who will and continually spit in his face and run from him. I can only imagine Him wiping the spit off His face and saying 'it's okay. I would do it over 927485 million time just for you because I LOVE YOU that much'.

Creation

When I woke up Monday I really did not want to do my devotional because I had a two quizzes and a test and it was over creation (this usually makes me excited but not that morning). Anyway I did my devotional. I read Job 38 which said "who kept the sea inside its boundaries as it burst from the womb", "who laid out the path for lightning", "was it you who carved the canyons" and just mind blowing stuff. YOU SHOULD READ IT! Anyway I just remember how cool I though God was and again he humbled me by showing me how great He is.

So, what should happen when I get in chapel? We have a speaker who basically quotes the creation story and has BEAUTIFUL pictures of all the things God has created. Then what does the speaker quote... JOB 38! Please see how real the Lord is!

I was just so amazed by what happened and I was so joyful. I realized that the Lord is going to bless me even when it is something I don't want to do but He desires me to do. The Lord has been telling me that when I walk on HIS path it is so much better than what direction I would walk.

Later in the day, I was talking about it and then I realized it was my birthday and all day the Lord was showing me His creation. Then I realized, something I have known but was reemphasized, 'when you talk about Me I will fill you with joy, and when you talk about what I have shown you and have done you will get more out if it from other people because I communicate through them as well'.

Joy Filled

So lately, like since Thursday, I have been so joyful in the morning and something happens in the day and I get robbed of my joy. Seriously!! Sunday we talked a little in church about letting the devil rob us of our joy. DING DING DING DING: ephiphany: the devil is the one who has been taking my joy away... that little poop head... Today I prayed that God didn't let my joy get robbed from me. I had a wonderful day a little thing happened but it wasn't enought to rob me of my joy. Then at work... that's is when it happened. (Don't get me wrong I LOVE going to work! Sometimes it is challenging but so rewarding.) James, the down syndrome boy I attend to, did not want to cooperate. He just kept saying "no"... "no". So I was really tring to do puzzles with him and it was so hard because he did not want to be doing that and I just got fusturated and sad because I couldn't help him or really understand him. Getting him to go to dinner and then a bath and brushing his teeth and eyedrops were a NIGHTMARE! Needless to say it was just fit after fit, so I was just getting bogged down and robbed of my joy. Then when I was laying on his pillow putting him to bed I was just thinking how lucky I was to be working with him because even through all of this he would come and give me a hug or just look at me and laugh and it just filled me with so much joy!! So by the time I got in the car I was so JOYFUL!! But the devil didn't stop working... he let me see something I didn't want to while driving back to school. Then the the switchfoot song Gone came on. You know "gone, like yesterday is gone. tomorrow is too late.
** Here is where God gets even more awesome!! **
The Lord has laid this verse on my heart for a while now and it is 1 Chronicles 29:15 "our days on earth are like a passing shadow, gone so soon without a trace" but He also laid Psalm 9:1 "I will praise you LORD with all of my heart; I will tell of all the marvelous things you have done". For me it was like the LORD was telling me that I am blessed with a new day to tell of all the marvelous things he has done, not only to my christian friends but to nonchristians because the day will soon be gone and that opportunity will soon pass. SLAP IN THE FACE! Anyway then that song came on and just brought me so much joy! Then I was so excited to run back and tell my roommates but NONE of them were in the room and I feel like I was robbed of my joy AGAIN!! Then God just kind of revealed how awesome and in control and how he delights in every detail of my life (psalm 37:23) and it just made me joyful again.

To say the least even though at points in my day the devil robbed me of my joy the LORD refilled my joy and punched the devil in the face for me and it was awesome!!

Ps. This might be confusing but I wanted to tell the world how awesome He is and how His hand is at work in my life!

Pss. I wish I had time to say all the little things that the LORD is doing in my life but I just don't have that kind of time!! He has done SO MUCH!!