Judgement Day

Hey, Jotters!! Hope you are all enjoying your Saturday!!

So there's been a lot of hype lately about when Judgement Day is, the most recent being May 21, 2011 (my sister's birthday!). It's interesting to me to see people openly proclaiming that they "know" when the world is going to end, even when the bible preaches that no one will know.

The best verse (in my opinion) that proclaims this is "No one knows about the day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the father." (Mark 13:32 and Matthew 24:36, they are the same)

We must be careful when we let ourselves believe that we can predict God's actions. Though we may have a strong relationship with God, it does not mean that we are all-knowing and able to know when he is going to carry out his plans. It even said the Son HIMSELF does not know.

So what does this tell us??? That even God's holy and perfect Son will not know the day God has chosen until that very day. God has told no one and never will tell anyone, no matter how elite we think we are, because God expects us to trust him and prepare ourselves no matter the day or place. If Jesus has not been told and still trusts his father, then we too must trust our heavenly father.

"Therefore, keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him." (Matthew 24:42-44)

If we trust in the Lord and love him with all our hearts, we need not worry what day, time, or place he will return to carry us to heaven. We should be preparing regardless of these factors. We should obey him TODAY. God knows that if we knew the coming of Christ, we would be lazy in our work for him or even sin until the day he comes and repent at the last minute.

The point that I, and God, are trying to make is we need to be ready no matter what. We must follow Christ and do everything we can to show the world his love and what he has done for us. As long as we have faith in Jesus, we have nothing to fear but for those who do not know what he has done for us.

What about you...are you ready for the unpredictable coming of Christ???

I pray that all of you do not fall into the world's hype and I pray that you instead focus on your growing faith and bringing others to Jesus.

Love you all!!

 

Read more

Funday Sunday!

Hey, Jotters!

Happy Mother's Day (yesterday)! I've been doing a lot of thinking about what could liven up my blog a bit and keep you guys from going totally insane of straight devotions all the time. So since I love fun, amazing, and weird pictures, Sundays are going to be my "off" day, and I'll post one or maybe a handful of pictures I find amusing, fun, or really cool. So here's my pick of the week! (My computer totally froze on me so this post is meant for Sunday.)

President Obama showing his funny side

What do you guys think of the president's prank...funny or cruel? Also, comment on what conversation you think is going on here! 

Love you guys!

Read more

Doing Work for God

Hey, Jesus Jotters!

What a beautiful day it was to be alive today in Sibley, Iowa. The sun was shining with a temperature of over 70◦, a light breeze was flowing through the budding trees, the birds were chirping, and my black lab, Charlie, laid on our front steps to soak in the sun. Yes, a beautiful day to...work?!? Yep, I worked today...And let me tell you, some days I just feel like quitting. 

I work for my grandpa, who lives down the road, in his self-owned greenhouse, and sure,  it's fun to see all the flowers begin to bud and see all my work come to life, but honestly...today I would have rather been sitting outside and soaking in the sun like Charlie! Why, God, why must you make this beautiful day when I have to work INSIDE???

So many times we feel like the work we are doing isn't worth the work at all because we'd rather be doing something else for ourselves, or we would rather spend that time with friends and family. Sure, doing those things is very important, and God wants us to take some time to enjoy the blessings he's given us, but what about the rest of the time? What about the work God calls us to do and the work that he has specifically set aside for us to accomplish in his name? And I'm not just talking about our 9-5 jobs working in an office, as a student, as a farmer, or even a self-employed person. God has given us those jobs so that we can serve HIM.

Sometimes we think, "How could I possibly serve God sitting in a cubicle all day?" or "I don't have time to serve God when I need to focus on school." or maybe even "No one in my line of work believes in Jesus, my boss doesn't approve talking about religion, and I just don't feel comfortable bringing God to work with me."

Well here's a little secret, we may think that the work we're doing isn't meant to pour into our spiritual life and that God has no place, but it does and HE does. God is always with us, no matter where we are and what we're doing, and he's constantly giving us opportunities to reveal himself through our actions and works.

God understands that we need those jobs so that we can provide for our families and for ourselves, but what about him??? Where does he come into play in the busyness of our schedules???

Though we may feel we are too busy for God or that it doesn't feel right bringing him into other parts of our lives besides church, God has never been too busy for us, so the least we could do is answer his call and start bringing him with us everywhere we go.

How can we accomplish this? God tells us that when we do works (actions) in his name, he will reward us greatly in heaven.

"Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not people, because you know that the Lord will reward each one for whatever good they do, whether they are slave or free." (Ephesians 6:7-8)


By showing God's love through how we treat people and performing our work with God in mind, we can show people who God is no matter where life takes us. And when we are not ashamed to present ourselves in a godly way and when we are not ashamed to profess that our actions are being lead by God, it is then that God looks down upon our actions and works with pleasure.

"So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work." (2 Corinthians 9:7-8)

What about you? Where is God calling you in life? How can you show others God's love everyday?


Love, Trish

Read more

Keeping God In Control

In high school I thought I had it all. My family and I were close, I had lots of friends, I got good grades, and (most important to me) I had a boyfriend. Having all these things made me feel that I had life under control and that's all I needed.

I've always believed in God, and I accepted Jesus as my savior in 8th grade. Although I knew Jesus was in my heart, I felt that he wasn't doing enough for me. I grew up without close friends, and I always felt alone. My life felt like I had no control of it, and I tried many times to let Jesus help me. But I felt that I could do better and work faster at making myself happy; so it was then that I decided I needed to take matters into my own hands, without Jesus. 

As my years in high-school rolled by, I turned more and more away from Jesus and instead choose to seek satisfaction in my relationship with my boyfriend. I felt that as long as he loved me, nothing else mattered. But year after year we would break up and then get back together and repeat the cycle to try to make our relationship better. Even though I knew this situation was bound to keep continuing, I still felt that I had it under control and everything was going to be fine, just the way it was.

Don't we all do this? We get stuck in a situation and we feel that we have it under control, no matter how many times we get hurt. We see it happen to our friends and family, and when we try to help them out, they just respond "Don't worry about it, I've got it under control."

God tells us that we should "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths." (Proverbs 3:5-6)

  

But why should we trust in God? What right does he have to control our lives? 

"Before I shaped you in the womb, I knew all about you. Before you saw the light of day, I had holy plans for you: a prophet to the nations - that's what I had in mind for you." (Jeremiah 1:5)

God knew us before we were born, and even BEFORE we were created! He knows everything about us: thoughts, feelings, and dreams. God knows us through and through, and he knows exactly where to lead us and where he knows we'll feel satisfied. God would never lead us anywhere he thinks we will fail. He will only lead us to where he knows it will glorify him and make us happy at the same time. When we seek satisfaction in the Lord we will find joy and peace in us and in him.

What areas of your life are you not letting God take control? Why? What could you do everyday to ensure that God has control?

Follow my favorite links to receive more help on keeping God in control of your life. 

Love, Trish

Read more

My First Jesus Blog! (Yikes)

Hey, everyone! Welcome to my first blog post!

I had this wild and crazy idea the other day to create my own blog. I've always liked to jot down ideas and thoughts I have during the day, but over the years I've stopped doing that as much as I used to. I have a journal, but if you were to actually open it up and look for something, you wouldn't find much. It's not that I have nothing to say, it's just really hard to get myself to write things down! But after I started my first year of college, I experienced so many new and wild changes in my life that I regret not writing it all down. I decided to take action.

So, here I am typing my first blog post ever in hopes to share with all of you what life places before me. But as I was thinking about writing a blog, I didn't want it to be (specifically) about me, but rather, about my relationship with Jesus. And not just about my relationship with Jesus, either, but a blog for people to read in hopes of understanding what it's like to live as a Christian and how to deal with it. And by dealing with it I mean letting Jesus deal!

Ya, some of you may be thinking "Is she serious? She's honestly going to write a blog about Jesus?" Well, ya! I know that being a Christian in this day and age is difficult and can become a struggle and at times, you just feel like giving up. But it's in my hopes that by sharing with you what Jesus presents to me that you can learn how to deal with it according to how Jesus intends, too.

And every blogger needs feedback, so:
         • Leave comments
         • Tell me what needs to be re-done, added, or changed
         • Suggest topics that you want to see in the future or ones you don't

And most important...Pray for me!!!

I'm very excited for this new challenge and I hope you all are too!

Love, Trish




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

Read more