From a Bug to a Butterfly

I have always adored butterflies, mostly for their beauty. They are such a beautiful part of God's creation. It also amazes me they start off in something that is very unimpressive, plain, and easily over looked. But with time, they can turn into something that is truly beautiful that no one can ignore. As believers, our life can reflect that of a butterfly, especially when it comes our faith.



Caterpillar- Caterpillar's aren't as beautiful as the butterflies they grow into, and before we know Christ, we haven't reached our full potential. Ephesians 2:1-3 says, " As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath." As a part of the world, we were dead in all our sins that we were born into. We were born into darkness, because of our sins. Just as caterpillars aren't who they fully are yet, when we are not in Christ, we can't see the fullness of who we could be. 

Cocoon- When butterflies make their cocoon, they start the process of becoming the beautiful butterfly. This transition is when we accept Jesus for the first time in our lives. It is a long journey ahead of us. 2 Corinthians 5:17 says, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come." In the cocoon you are literally shredding of your old life, and becoming a new creation. A caterpillar and a butterfly, even though they are the same insect, they don't look the same. It is in the cocoon when the caterpillar becomes a butterfly. Like when you accept Jesus, you don't immediately change your whole life, but it takes time to grow, develop and mature.



Butterfly- Once the butterfly breaks out of it's cocoon, it is a strong, beautiful butterfly. Like with our faith, as we grow closer to God, we become less like the world. Ephesians 2:4-5 says, "But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions--it is by grace you have been saved." WE are alive in Christ. We were saved by grace, so we can see who we really are in Christ. We start to see ourselves as Christ sees us, which is how beautiful, and perfect we are. We were washed clean by the blood of Jesus. It won't always be easy. A butterfly still has day to day challenges, and so will we. But now we have Jesus on our side to help us get through whatever we are going through. 


Dear Heavenly Father,
Thank you for you love and for continually making me into something that is beautiful. I know that O am still changing and growing everyday. I pray for wisdom and strength to keep pushing through as you work on making me beautiful.

Impressing Others

One thing that all of us in some point in our lives get caught up doing is trying to impress someone. It could be your new boss, or a potential boyfriend, or a friend that you want on your side. I'm not saying it is wrong to want to look presentable, and to act on your best behavior. But when you go out of your way to impress someone, and you do things you wouldn't normally do, then it might be time to evaluate why you are trying to impress them.

In my vlog this week, I mentioned this sign. IT is a quote from Dr. Seuss that I love. It is just a great reminder of being yourself is important and if people are truly your friend, then they will accept you for who you are, along with your wacky quirks. For example, I love to dance around my dorm room, and my close friends find it fun to join in with me, even if we all can't dance. Your true friends aren't there to judge you, but accept you and all you qualities that make up you.




One of the Bible verse that I am working to remember is Galatians 1:10 which goes,
"For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ."
I love this verse because it talks about how we can't go around pleasing man and trying to serve the Lord. If we are constantly trying to change who we are so that certain people will like us, then we are changing what God created in each one of us to do his will. God will put people in your life who respect you for who you are and those are the ones to hang around with, for it is when you are truly yourself, that is when you can accomplish God's will. 

Dear Heavenly Father,
Thank you for making me just the way I am. Help me to surround myself with people who accept me for who you made me to be. Help me to do your will, and not trying to change who I am. Amen.

Not Bending Under the Pressure

Many of us know that as Christians, we are suppose to stand firm in our faith. We shouldn't bend under the weight of what the world has to offer. But we often do compromise our values for what the world has to offer. We lie to our parents on where we are going just so we can go to a party. You might lose your virginity just to keep the boy/girlfriend that you finally got. You may cheat on a test in school just to get the grades you need. It is so easy to fall into the trap of this world, but that isn't what God wants us to do as followers. God doesn't want cowards who aren't going to stand up for him, he wants people who are going to stand with him through thick and thin.

At our small groups were were going over this idea of standing firm and we looked at a couple of stories from the book of Daniel in the Bible. The story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego is the first one in the book of Daniel. (3:13-30) A brief summary of the story is that the king at this time, Nebuchadnezzer, made a gold statue to be worshiped every time an instrument was played. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, disobeyed this order and they kept on praying and worshiping God. The king found out, and he ordered that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego to be thrown in the furnace that was heated seven times hotter than before. The second story we talked about was Daniel in the lions den(6:1-28). The summary of Daniel is that Daniel was a high ranking officer to King Darius. Daniel was an honest man, and the king liked Daniel. The other officers didn't like Daniel so much because he was good, so they attacked his faith by telling the king to write a decree that would put anyone in the lions den, if they prayed with in the next thirty days, to anyone but the king. The king agreed, and the decree was made. Daniel didn't change how he prayed and he prayed three times a day, so he was arrested and thrown in the lions den.

The thing is, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and Daniels story didn't end there. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, were saved from the furnace by an angel, and they walked out without a single burn. King Nebuchadnezzer saw what happened and made a decree that if anyone had something bad to say about the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, then they were to be cut up into pieces and their houses turned to rubble. In the lions den, and angel kept the mouth of the lion closed so that Daniel wouldn't be eaten, and when King Darius saw this, he made a decree saying that people must fear and have reverence for the God of Daniel.

Here we have two examples of people who were faced with the choice to stand firm to God, or to go with the crowd. The consequence for standing firm was death, but they stood firm and God saved them. Not only did they show that their God is mightier than anything in this world, but it lead to decrees being passed to honor their God. Most the time when we are challenged to stand alone, our lives aren't at stake, but it might be our popularity, or our friends/dates, or whatever you value, but God can give you so much more for standing with Him. You just have to trust that He has a plan for you that is going to glorify him, and not completely destroy you.

Dear Heavenly Father,
I pray that you will stand by me when I face persecution in my life Lord. I also pray that you are close to the people who are facing death because of their faith. I pray that you will be with them, and that you give them strength to face everyday. Let them know that they will be rewarded greatly in heaven for the persecution that they face. Help me to share my faith, and not hide behind the fear of persecution because, you want people who will stand for you. Thank you Lord for everyday that I live Lord. Amen.

Material Wealth

So it is only the third week and I have already missed a week of doing my video blog. It is hard because it take some time to plan record and edit it that I am still getting used to. Thank you for being patient as I work out the kinks in this system.

So for today, since there isn't really a theme for the week, I want to talk about material wealth. Before we go on, I want to ask you a question. Lets say your house or wherever you live was burning down, and you could save only one item, what would you save? Or another question is that your computer is going to crash and before it does you can save only one file, what would that file be? 

On answering those questions, it may be easy to answer one and not the other, or it may be hard to answer both. Many of us want multiple things so it is hard to pick just one, or we try to cheat the system by placing multiple objects inside each other to count them as one. 

Now not many people's houses burn down, but living in an age of technology, we get computer crashes all the time. Sure there are ways to get data back, but there are times that you just lose data and it is gone forever. 

I had this happen to me over the past week where my hard drive crashed. At first I was devastated because so much was in that hard drive. But in the week since it happened, I found that I didn't even need most of what was on that hard drive, and I have been fine without those files. The reason for this is based of where we are placing our trust and hope in. 

A verse popped into my mind, Matthew 6:19-21 which goes, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." 

If we find out treasures in the data files that we keep, then where will we turn to when they crash. That is why God tells us to put our hope in him, for that treasure we store up will never be damaged or destroyed. So take some time to think about what you can not live without, and reflect where your heart is, and how you can realign your focus to put your hope in God and not in the things of this world. 

Dear Heavenly Father,
Thank you for the materials that you give me Lord, but help me to not put my hope and trust in them but in you. Help me to realize that everything is your's and I am just borrowing for a short time what you give me. Amen.

Sweet Memories

So Wednesday, I gave a specific example of how something that I wrote can add meaning to my life now and how God can speak through it. If you haven't read it I suggest that you take the time to read it after this one. Today I want to give a general over view about this with more examples.


So as I was looking back over my sixth grade Life Journal, the first thing that struck me is the fact that I had my favorite movie and favorite TV show plastered all over the first handful of pages. My favorite movie is Meet the Robinsons and my favorite TV show was Danny Phantom. In looking back over them, I stopped to think why I enjoyed them so much. To me, they were a source of encouragement, to keep going and fighting even when everything seems to be against you. Just thinking of college life and life after graduation, I could really use that advice.


I continue to look and I see all the songs and poems that I wrote back in middle school. It is funny because some off them reflect how alone I felt because that awkward middle school years, it was hard to find a stable group of friends. Reflecting on that, I can see that I have come so far. I went from having little friends that would change every trimester, to having a solid group of friends I continually talk to and have Bible studies with and completely enjoy each other's company.  There is much encouragement to see how I have grown.


Lastly, as I was going through my Life Journals, I found a plan on what my life would be like in 3, 5, and 10 years. I have to say that my life took a different course. I wanted at the time to win American Idol, instead I am a digital media major at college. Not exactly what I planned, but it is interesting to see how my life is turning out and how it is amazing at the same time.


These are just three examples of how looking at the past can be a great reminder of what lies ahead and how God can use even the simplest notes or sketches that we make to speak to us. He can encourage us with how much we have grown, or show us his path that he is leading us down, or give us encouragement when we needed it.


I do encourage you to keep some form of a journal to write down your thoughts and ideas, so you can go back to them later.


Dear Heavenly Father,
Thank you for all the ways that you speak to me. Help me to keep my ears open to what you have to say and know that everything can be used for your glory. Amen.

A Poem from the Past

So in my vlog Sunday, I talked about my life journals and how I will look back to them to find God's voice, when I feel like he is so far away. In looking for something to post, I came across this poem. I remember that when I wrote this poem, life was hard. School was getting to me and it felt like my life was falling apart. That lead me to fall on my knees and just surrendered.

I found this poem in a time where it is the first week of classes and I already feel like I am drowning and life has gone so wrong. One of my external hard drives has crashed. I spent over 300 hundred dollars in books. I have more reading and writing than I expected, and the projects this semester require more of me than it did last semester. On top of that I some how have a social life that I don't want to abandoned. I also still want sleep. Just sitting here writing this, I can't survive this next week, let alone the rest of the semester.

But then I find this little gem.

I look up.

Everywhere I look I see

Red.

Weapons surround me.

The opponent,

Stronger than a pack of lions.

Me.

All by myself.

No weapons,

No one to back me up.

But I have to fight,

For I can’t afford to lose.

The opponent knows well my weaknesses.

They bury me in ten feet of homework.

They yell worthless every time I miss a ball on the field.

They whisper that I will never be as good as anyone I look up to.

They stress me out to the point where I make myself sick.

But I can’t give in.

I fight and fight

But for every step forward,

I take ten steps back.

I back up farther and farther,

Until I am in a corner, stuck

But I continue to fight.

The opponent feeds on my fear.

They get stronger while I get weaker.

I am losing everything I have.

But I keep going and going

And going and

Going,

Until

I SURRENDER!

But then everything stops,

I see a hand reach down.

I look at the face of my savior.

“Take my hand” he says.

I take his hand.

We land in a nice clearing.

“What took you so long to surrender?”

“Why didn’t you step in sooner?” I ask

“I would have but you were stuck in your ways.

You were persistent in fighting this battle.

But don’t you know I have already won the war?”

I now feel guilty.

I can’t do this all by myself.

I look up to see him fading.

“Wait what if I need you again?”

He smiles and says,

“For I am always with you.

All you need to do is surrender.”

And with that he was gone,

But I felt him closer than ever.

I surrender.

God's timing on this couldn't be more perfect. I was totally prepared to fight tooth and nail through this whole semester. But I don't have to fight. God is way more capable than me on dealing with life, so instead of fighting, I think I am going to try and lay this, all of this crazy mess that I have gotten myself into, at his feet and let him worry, and stress, and care the weight of my homework and assignments, because I can't.

I don't know if this was really a post for you, or more of a post for me to stop and reflect on surrendering to God. Either way, I hope this encouraged you to write, draw, or just get on paper how God is moving in your life now, because one day it may be useful in reminding you what God is truly capable of, and that he is still with you speaking into your life.

Dear Heavenly Father,
Thank you for speaking into my life. Help me to listen for your voice no matter how small. Lord, I surrender all that is going on in my life to you, because I know that you are going to be what guides me through the semester.  Thank you Lord for always being with me. Amen.

Not Letting Flaws Stop Us

So last blog post I used Peter as an example of someone who was close to Jesus who over time changed to be one of the leaders of the first Church. As I mentioned last time, Peter wasn't perfect and Jesus was still able to use him for his plan.

Now if I was to ask each and everyone of you, what are your flaws, we could come up with a list a mile long. For me, I could come up with a list of improvements that I could make or change in my first video that I did that I didn't like. One thing for me is that when every I speak public, I find that I often say "so" in the beginning of my sentences. Below is a video from me recording my next video and me conversing with my mom after I got frustrated that I kept saying "so" as I talked.

We all struggle with this. We let the flaws get in our way. But what if we are letting our flaws get in the way of God's will. Just think, if Peter had let the fact that he betrayed Jesus three times stop him from following what God had for him, then where would the church be. When Jesus returned to Earth, he made sure he reminded what Peter's job was, which is fishing for people. Jesus stilled used Peter, and he can still use us.

So while it is important to recognized that we are not perfect, we can't let these flaws stop us. God can still use us, and we have to be willing to let hi plan play out in our lives.

Dear Heavenly Father,
Thank you for loving me despite my imperfections. Help me not to get focused on my flaws, but to instead focus on what makes me special in your eyes, and to follow your will you have planned for me. Amen. 

Starting Point

Happy New Year! Seeing how it is a New Year with new beginnings and new opportunities, I am trying something new. Starting Sunday, January 1, I am creating a video blog (or a vlog for short) that will tie in with what I am talking about on this blog. So if you didn't see the video from Sunday, here is the link to my Youtube Channel for the first video, New Creation.

When talking about New Creation, one thing that majority of us fall into the trap of thinking is that this is going to be an instantaneous change. I have even fallen guilty of thinking that once I repent than my life will change overnight and I will never be tempted or fall into sin. The thing is that is not how God works. God is not a miracle maker. When he works he takes his time to make sure everything is done correctly, and he wants to know how much he is willing to be with you and to work with you.

In the Bible, Simon Peter was one of Jesus disciples. When Jesus came to ask Simon to follow him, he dropped everything he had to follow Jesus. Jesus changed his named to Peter, because he was the rock for the church. When asked, Peter claimed that Jesus was the Savior of the world.

The thing is that Jesus star disciple wasn't perfect. On the night of Jesus betrayal, Peter denied that he knew Jesus. Peter wasn't perfect, but Jesus still uses Peter, and the more Peter and Jesus hung out the more that Peter changed into one that would help start the first church after Jesus died. We can all look at Peter and see all that he did, but that doesn't mean that he was perfect.

So relating what happened over 2000 years ago to what is currently happening. So if we don't change over night, then that means that we change over time. This requires more effort and spending actual time in God's presence, but the change will be lasting and you will turn into the person that God created you to be.

So since it is the New Year, and most of us are making New Year Resolutions, why don't we together make a resolution to spend more time with God so we can change into the person he made us to be.

Dear Heavenly Father,
Thank you for making me a new creation. Lord help me to spend time with you on a daily basis so I may change into the person you had in mind for me. Amen.