"What about me?" (missions trip part 1)

This week I am on a missions trip with Sharptown youth group (which I love so much btw). This trip is basically right in our back yard. It really is a shame that I haven’t done something sooner to help Hurricane Sandy victims in some way. These people only live about 2 hours from my home (in South Jersey), and I’ve always pushed off doing something because is wasn’t “my problem.” 
As I was thinking about this, I started wondering about what “my problems” are.  And I came up with about three things... school work, student loans, and finding a job to pay off the loans. 
Thinking about these things while standing in a 70 year old, Christian lady’s home who lives alone with several cats (that she rescued during the storm) on the second floor of her house, because there was 20 inches of water that destroyed the first floor, as well as her car and everything in the garage, put a new twist on my thoughts.

How have I never thought about this as my problem before?

As followers of Christ, we’re supposed to “bear one another’s burdens” to fulfill the law of Christ (Galatians 6:2). Our home owner who is 70 years old, is also a believer. 

Why haven’t I been bearing this burden of hers a long time ago?

In the book of Acts, shortly after Pentecost, the church was described as very giving. Acts 2:45 says, “And they were selling their belongings and possessions, distributing their proceeds to all, as any had need.” And then it goes on to say these things were done with glad and generous hearts.
I have a lot of things this 70 year old homeowner needs. Like water. Food. Money. Clothes. Shoes. Safety. Shelter. A Job. A Car. Education. Life Insurance. (Seriously...life insurance? Don’t even get me started on that one. Just throw me off a boat. It won’t hurt. I’m dead anyway.)

But listing these things and then thinking about how some people in other countries have to walk 2 miles a day in the heat to get clean drinking water for their families. Or thinking about how some people in other countries, and in our country, don’t know when or how they’ll get their next meal. Or don’t know if they’ll have somewhere safe to sleep at night, or if they have anywhere to sleep at all. Thinking about these things make me realize how insignificant my problems should be to me, and how I should be focused more on others. I don’t mean I shouldn’t do my school work, or pay my bills. I still have to prep for those things. I'm not sure how to explain it, but it's a feeling that hopefully you understand!

I know God will provide.

This makes me realize I have so much more than I need. I knew this before, but maybe now the realization is “What do I do with all this stuff? How do I help? Who can I help? Who is in need? What is my problem?”

Bear each other’s burdens.

That doesn’t mean I should watch a fellow believer struggle, and then say “Awe, I feel so bad.” and then walk away. I would have actually just made no difference at all in that persons life. I only said that to make myself okay with walking away without doing anything to help that person.
 
What do we do about fellow Christ followers in Haiti who depend on God for meals?
Do we ignore it and pretend like it’s not happening?
 
What do we do about the street kids who have no warm clothes in Africa and sleep wherever they can at night?

What do we do about the children who are being abducted from their homes and forced to kill others and fight in a war they want no part of?

All these examples are different, but they’re all fellow believers in need of something. Whether its guidance, love, wisdom, water, money, or food.

Maybe you can’t afford to sponsor a child, 
but I know you can pray. 
Maybe you can’t take a trip to Africa to love on some street kids and participate in a VBS program, but I know you can pray. 
Maybe you can’t protect all the children being forced into a war, 
BUT...I know you can pray.

Praying leads to so many things...
Opportunities will open up for you, and you may find one cause you are overwhelmingly compassionate about. It might be a problem in Africa, or right in New Jersey. But wherever it is, I encourage you to find it and make a difference in one life, or a million lives. 

And that is possible through prayer.

It may seem like a small thing to us sometimes, but if it’s God’s will, it will be answered. We have Jesus Christ on our side, who says “If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.” (John 14:14)

I know the passion God has put in my heart. I know what I need to do. I know what I have to give up in my life to pursue this and help those in need. My prayer is that you find yours too.


FYI
Tomorrow, we are gutting our home owners whole kitchen. This lady spent the whole winter in her house with no furnace and she’s been living in this home with no running water since Sandy hit. This lady is a trooper. She didn’t give up, and I don’t think she will anytime soon, even after recently being diagnosed with COPD. And she gives God all the glory for her survival. I haven’t had the privilege to meet this lady yet, but our team leader, Sarah, says she always says how she couldn’t have gotten through it without God.
I will post more soon!




-Erika

What's Missing?

“Your eyes are searching the earth. The groom’s eyes are searching for her.” -Shane and Shane

A couple weekends ago, I had the amazing privilege to attend a girls retreat with some of my best friends. So many amazing memories were made! The title of the retreat was called Obsessed. It was based on a six week bible study written by Hayley DiMarco. The study was about being obsessed with the “things” in our life. Whether that is love, worry, fear, your laptop, cutting, drinking, shopping, or success.  It was convicting and hard to hear, but it was so good! The last session was about being obsessed with God, who is the only one who can give you joy. 

The one thing that I kept seeing was that all the things I mentioned earlier that some of us may be obsessed with, or consumed by, only leaves us feeling more and more empty when we don’t constantly have these things. If I am obsessed with “stuff”, I will always want the most recent iphone and I won’t be satisfied until I get it. Or if I’m obsessed with love and being loved, I won’t be happy when my boyfriend leaves my house to go home. It may leave me feeling lonely. And when we break up, I may feel worthless and empty until I find someone else to love. OR the more I shop and feel the excitement of buying new things, the more I want to shop to feel content. All these things leave us wanting more in an unhealthy way. Being obsessed with shopping may put us in debt. Yes, we may feel full at the time of our purchases, but when we become obsessed with that feeling we may always want to buy things all the time to keep us feeling sustained. AND America has made this so easy for us because of credit cards and online shopping!
    
 Anyway...

After things like this kept coming up throughout our study, it became hard for me to think about why we don’t already know these things. We can look into the lives of celebrities or even our friends and neighbors and see it well. For instance, Justin Bieber... This kid is loved by so many girls, he has a lot of money and talent, and gets to do what he loves everyday of his life. Okay, so with that being said, why is he doing drugs? Why is he doing self destructive things? Why is he searching elsewhere for fulfillment? He has everything he has ever dreamed of, and there is still something missing for him and he is trying to numb or avoid the emptiness he is feeling.   

Imagine being on stage in front of thousands of people who are cheering and screaming your name, and singing along to the lyrics that you wrote. Then imagine walking off stage after your show is over and you feel absolutely amazing, like nothing can stop you. After that, you get escorted back to your tour bus through crazy fans who are screaming your name, and you love every second of it! After this happens night after night for a while, you start to get tired of it. Your highs are becoming higher while your lows get lower. You want life to be a high all the time. And now when you walk off the stage. You’re dreading the walk back to your tour bus because you know it won’t last. The feeling wears off quicker and you feel more alone than ever once you get to your bus. So you look somewhere else for fulfillment while you’re not on stage. And when you can’t find fulfillment, you look for something to numb the pain.

I am not saying this is exactly what happened to Justin Bieber, nor am I trying to bash him at all!  The kid has talent. I was just using him as an example.  BUT so many artist have overdosed on drugs or try to numb pain with alcohol or sex. I’ve always wondered why.  They’re living the dream, become hooked on drugs, and then overdose or go crazy? 

Why?

What’s missing?

We see it all the time with artists. But yet, so many of us dream of being actors or singers because we see all the money they make or all the attention they get.

The lives of these celebrities should be clear examples to us that money and attention isn’t everything. 

What’s missing? 

What have they done wrong? 

Where can they go? 

Is it even possible to be fulfilled all the time? 

Here is my observation:
They are searching this world for things to fill them and this world has nothing fulfilling in it that will last, because this kingdom is the devil’s! We see this in the bible in Matthew 4:8-9 when Jesus is being tempted by the Satan:

“Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. “All this I will give you,” he said, “if you bow down and worship me.”
 
Satan tried to tempt Jesus with all of the things of this world, but Jesus knew there was something better waiting for him. There is nothing in this world that will make us satisfied all the time. We have to look for a kingdom not of this world, and seek after it earnestly with all of our hearts, and we will find it and be satisfied. 

Look at the lives of the people around you. Look at your own life. 

What do you enjoy? 

What do you hate? 

Did you think life was going to be something amazing once you reached your goal, and then when you reached your goal it was like nothing changed? Or did you or someone you know reach their goal, and then after a while the feeling wore off and they felt more down than ever before because their goal wasn’t all they thought it’d be? 

Sometimes we put our hope in our dreams. 

Sometimes we put our hope in people. 

Sometimes we put our hope in things. 

All the while hoping we’ll be satisfied by them, but putting our hope in these worldly things will not   ever last. 

EVER.

If we put our hope in Jesus, we’ll never be disappointed because He’ll never fail us.
He is all we need, and He wants us!

While our eyes are searching the earth, Jesus is searching for us. Trying to get our attention through the things that have failed us. He finds us in our failed attempts to find ourselves, and will love us no matter how long we ignore Him calling our names.


We can try to ignore Him all we want, but our hearts know the truth.  

 

Brutal Love Never Fails?

Hey Everyone! 

Some of you may be wondering why I named my blog “Brutal Love Never Fails.” Really, it’s quite simple...I read a book about it, was impacted by it, and learned that God’s brutal love never fails. The name of the book is called Sifted, written by Rick Lawrence. Lawrence goes through, and dissects, Luke 22:31-32 which says,

“Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again,  strengthen your brothers.”

When you actually stop to think about this verse, you may come to the realization that it's pretty weird. If Jesus was basically God, then why didn’t He just stop Satan? Our thought is that if Satan demands, Jesus should rebuke him and be our biggest advocate. Lawrence tells us of the meaning of Peter’s sifting, and the book really answers a lot of questions about suffering in general. I would recommend this book to anyone and everyone.

Lawrence goes on to say that some of us may describe God as brutal because of something that has happened to us. However, that doesn’t mean that is an accurate description of who God is. That may be an accurate description of an experience we’ve had with Him, but that description is not true in whole. Let me explain a little more...If my little brother wants to go outside without a sweatshirt and my mom says no because it’s too cold, he will usually call her mean (this happens all too often...). Even tho, in that moment, my brother sees her as mean because of that particular experience he had with her, that is not true about my mom. She is not mean. I know that, and my brother knows that. BUT it was true to my brother in that moment.

I think sometimes we like to look at God to see how loving and compassionate He is. But we never want to look past those characteristics or think our suffering came from God. 

Ever. 

So what happens when we read the Old Testament. Do we ignore the fact that God indirectly allowed Job to suffer to prove Satan wrong, when He simply could have told Satan not to touch Job, his family, or his possessions?

Do we ignore the fact that God allowed His people (the Israelites) to kill so many others? Or do we take that and look at why? Why would God allow that? Why would God allow so many non-believers to be murdered by His people? Maybe this was some kind of preparation for the coming of Jesus.

If we look at Rahab’s story, we can see that news about the God of Israel was spreading fast. Rahab helped the Israelite spies to escape out of the town they were looking to take over. The story of Rahab also shows us that anyone could belong to the God of Israel. We see this with Ruth as well, which teaches us that God was not closed off to just the Israelites. This is very important to take note of. All these cities heard about what the God of Israel was doing for the Israelites and how he parted the Red Sea. Yet, they still fought them.  But seeing that all these places heard about God and what He did should be comforting. He wasn’t doing this for nothing. There was a plan.

Most of us know how the story plays out...
The land God promised the Israelites was finally given to them. And then the Messiah came many many years later. The Messiah didn’t only benefit the people of that time. He came for us as well. I believe the Messiah (aka Jesus Christ) was the result of all the brutality that was shown by God in the Old Testament. Jesus Christ is true love. God had a plan in all His brutality. His plan was to show His love for us.

I know what you’re thinking...that hardly makes sense.

I know.

It’s crazy.

I want to believe there was an easier way too, and there may have been. BUT I think God likes challenges. What if God chose the Israelites as His people because He knew they’d be the toughest, the hardest to satisfy, and the the biggest complainers? Maybe He knew we’d learn the most from their mistakes. If God chose a loyal, patient group of people with low standards, we probably wouldn’t be able to learn very much from them at all. God chose the Israelites for a reason.

I hope this is coming together a little. I hope some of you can see this in your life. But there is a chance some of you may never see the purpose of God’s brutality in your life, just like the Israelites who escaped from Egypt. They didn’t get to see God’s love for them played out thru Jesus here on earth. And that sucks. But, we still need to place our faith in who God is. Because one day, God will show us the purpose for His brutality if we let Him.

 

 

One last thing...

(This is my favorite example from the book!)

Sometimes when we feel we’ve lost control of our lives, we will try anything to get that control back. We’ll try everything to first save ourselves only to realize that we’re not able to cut as deeply as we need to.

Jesus will dig deeper than we ever could.  

We need to give ourselves over to God who is brutal enough to get the job done. He will use terrifying things we would never try. He will bear all things, believe all things, hope all things, and endure all things for us. 

His brutal love will never fail us.

I love you all. 
I hope you are able to put these concepts together to start to see and think about who God is and how He works.
(I also hope this made you want to read the book Sifted, by Rick Lawrence!)









-Erika

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose." -Romans 8:28

Believe me. You do not want to read this.

“Lord, I give You all I have. But, what do I have to give that You don’t already own. I’m Yours” -Shane & Shane

That is so true.

I’ve noticed lately, that sometimes we sing all the songs in church, but don’t really think about what we’re saying. Just to be clear, I am not saying all of us do this! However, I have noticed some of us do, myself included. I think it’s safe to say that sometimes we get caught up in our own thoughts, and before we know it the song is over. I sometimes do this while driving, during class, while I'm at work, or during church. Mostly during class, but that’s a different story... Sometimes we forget to focus and I completely understand that! However, have you ever stopped to think about what you are singing about? For instance, in the pretty, old school hymn “I Surrender All,” you’re singing, “I surrender all. I surrender all. All to Him, my blessed Savior. I surrender all.” 

Have you ever stopped to meditate on what these words actually mean?

I believe many of us think there are things we are SUPPOSED to do to be “good” Christians, or that we HAVE to be something we’re not to get to heaven. For example: 

Bob goes to church on Sundays, and even a small group during the week. He prays before meals, does daily devotions, and tithes ten percent. He sometimes even volunteers for a ministry in his church when he feels like it. 

Those are all great things, but is that what being a Christian is? Is that what surrendering all is? Does it mean giving up two days a week to go to bible study/church out of obligation or guilt? Does it mean tithing ten percent even though you really don’t want to, but you don’t want God, or others, to think you’re selfish? Does it mean praying the same things day after day out of habit? Does it mean volunteering your time so God will give you a couple extra points? 

When Bob passes away and is standing in front of God, do you think God will take out his check list and start checking off action after action, and then say, “Oh look at that. You did everything you were supposed to do.” Then God will sign the bottom of the paper, pat Bob on the head, and hand him the paper so he can enter into heaven to be heirs with Christ.

OR

Do you think God will look at Bob with sadness in His eyes and say, “I’m sorry. I showed you my love for you over and over again, but somehow you still tried to work your way into heaven out of your fear for hell. Your eyes were on heaven and not me. Your motivations were not right.” 

What if the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit still existed, but heaven or hell did not?

If there was no reward for following Christ, would Bob still follow Him? Would you still follow Him? Most people would probably say there’d be no point. But what motivates us to take care of our parents when they are old and cannot take care of themselves? What motivates us to care for our children, or siblings? What motivates us to visit and take care of our grandparents?

The answer is love. 

No matter how many times Bob messed up, his parents still loved him. His mom went looking for him to bring him home safely after he snuck out to go to a party one night. His dad still loved him after he got in a car accident because he was texting while driving. Something his dad repeatedly told him not to do. 

What if we saw God as our creator, who has been by our side and who has loved us no matter how many times we’ve messed up? What if we loved God for who He really is and not for what He can give us? Even tho we may turn away, He is still right there next to us. We may not see Him, but He definitely sees us. 

Luke 14:26 says, “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.”

Um...WHAT!?!

Let me try to explain this verse a little bit...

The word “hate” is used to imply that you must love God more than you love your own family and even your own life. If you don’t, you cannot be a disciple of Christ. I believe this is because God wants you to surrender your life to him and trust that he will take care of the ones you love. Look at the guy in Matthew 8 who asks Jesus if he can follow Him after his father passes away. But Jesus basically tells him not to worry about his father and to come and follow Him now. 

Not next year. 

Not next week. 

Not in an hour. 

NOW.

Jesus is saying we should love Him so much that we would go with Him on the spot. 

Would you leave your family right now to follow Jesus? 

One of the last things recorded that Jesus said to the disciples was “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.” (Matthew 28:19-20) It would be really hard to leave your family if you did not love Jesus more than them. It sounds terrible to even think about loving someone more than your child, parent, or even best friend, but we cannot pick and chose what we like about the bible and follow only those specific commands. 

Back to the main point...

I think that is what surrendering all is. Giving your life to the one who loves you out of your love for Him and allowing God to change your heart. 

I may be wrong...but I think we like to think we have control over everything in our lives...at least I do. Yes, we have free will and make our own decisions. However, I wonder what would happen if we started praying over our decisions, and took time to listen to God instead of talking the whole time. What if surrendering all is something we like to think we’ve done because we're scared to face the truth? Surrendering all is scary, and you can't do it without love. (I want to encourage you to read through the book of John to see how Jesus lived in complete obedience to God, his Father.) 

What if God is waiting for you to listen to what He is trying to say to you? Or maybe you are exactly where God has planned for you to be. Maybe He has these HUGE plans for you, but He is waiting for you to let go of something, or maybe God's told you His plans for you because you've already let go. I don’t know, but I think you do. 

Giving up your Sunday mornings to worship a God who loves you, because you love Him. Volunteering your time in a ministry at your church to serve the one who loves you, because you love Him. Tithing ten percent because God loves you, and because you love Him. Doing your daily devotions because He loves you, and because you love Him and want to know Him more. Spending time in prayer, not only talking to God, but listening to what God has to say to you, because you want to follow Him...because you love Him. Spending time with God because you love Him. (If you sincerely love God, you’ll want to spend time with Him.) If we can do these things out of love, our relationship with the Lord will grow so much, and we’ll be more willing everyday to surrender all to Him. We’ll learn how to trust in what we cannot see, but what we know is here. If you love Jesus, and start doing these things out of love, your life will look dramatically different. 

God is only limited by our capacity for wanting to know Him. Let Him fill you with the knowledge of Him.

How great does that sound? Knowing God more and deepening our relationship with Him. Why wouldn’t we want that? The thing is, we love to hold on to things...at least I do. No matter how much that thing is hurting us, or holding us back, we just do not want to let go! We don’t want to give up our comfortable lives to serve the Lord. We don’t want to let go of our hate for someone because they hurt us. We don’t want to do our school work because we think school is pointless. I’d like to let you know that if you give these things to God it will give you joy, it will bring you peace, but most of all it will glorify Him. People may start to wonder what is different about us.  But we can't do this alone. We need each other. Lets let Him take control of the life He has given us. 

Let go with me. 

Give up with me.

Why are we so scared?

Why are we holding on so tightly with all our strength to what isn’t ours? Aren’t you tired?

I know I am. 

-Erika

Hi my name is...

Hey friends!

Yes. I am writing a blog. As long as God is giving me something to write about, I will write!

I feel like I need to introduce myself...

My name is Erika.

I am 21 years old.

I have a wonderful family who loves me and would do anything for me. I am so grateful for them. 

I have a wonderful Christian family, who I also love so much. 

I am a guitar player/song writer. 

I am currently going to an art school, majoring in audio production. 

I love Dunkin Donuts.

I do not like fast blinkers.

I think huge statues are ridiculous...as well as manniquins.

Let me tell you why I am writing...

I see a HUGE need for change in the world. Don't get me wrong. Change is coming...but not from Christians. I believe Christians need to be the change the world needs, not the media. We need to tell of Jesus's love, and that is exactly what I want to encourage. I see a huge lack of love all over the world. Whether its from someone selling a young girls body for a couple of dollars in Cambodia, or from a dude freaking out because someone took his parking spot at Wawa...we're lacking love, and I believe through Jesus, we can change hearts. 

I want to make you aware of the influence the media has on our society. I want to show you music videos and songs that you or your children may be watching and listening to, that may cloud your/their minds. I want to make you aware of the war that is happening around us that you may not be aware of. I want to write of things that will give you hope, encourage you, and maybe even scare you. I want to inspire you to share with others, pray with others, and love others. I want to make you to think. I want us to move. 

I want us to love.

I want us to be like Jesus.

Lets be Jesus to someone today.

 

"Before the mountains were brought forth,

or ever you had formed the earth and the world,

from everlasting to everlasting

you are God."

Psalm 90:2