Ask and you Shall Recieve...

So I posted about fasting once. I talked about how I was fasting. Well as I fasted, one of the things I asked God for was finances. I said "God, I really need a way of getting finances. Whether you open up more babysitting jobs or give me oppurtunities to work or just give me a real job-it's in your hands. I just need a job that will let me off on Sundays so I can still be with the kids in kids church." And that was all I prayed.
Well, on Thursday (Jan. 27th), I was at school. A woman came up to me and said "You're mom is on the phone for you." This never happens at our school, so my curiousity shot up. I picked up the phone. "Hello?" "I think I found you a job," my mom said. "What?" "Yeah! I found one. You're going in for the interview today after school." So here's how this happened:
My mom is friends with a woman (since I try to keep my blogs anonymous, we'll call her...ummm...Jill). Well Jill knows the owners of a restraunt about 10 minutes away from my house. And thes owners were talking to Jill and said "We need someone to wait tables, who is good with people and a hard worker." Jill said "I know just the person." And she called my mom and told her this. Well my mom then calls the coffee shop and says "My daughter is in school right now, but Jill told you about her. My daughter would be really interested in this job." The owners said "Great, can she come in after school." (Okay-side note: I'm currently involved in theatre at my school, and I'm in practice on Tuesdays and Thursdays after school till 5 pm. So I wouldn't be able to work on Tuesdays or Thursdays for awhile. Okay-back to the story.) "Wait," my mom says "She's in theatre and won't be able to be there till about 5:30. Is that okay?" "Yeah sure," the manager said.
So theatre gets out, and we go to the restraunt. The manager says "i'll be there in a minute." So we sit down. She comes out to us, and says "Okay, are you good with people?" "Yes!" I say. "Can you move fast? Can you move and be able to work 4 or 5 or 6 tables at a time?" "Yes I can!" I tell her. "Okay." So she talks to me some, explaining the restraunt and how I would work things, then says "If we hired you, what days would be a conflict?" I said "Well, I can't work sundays. And..." I then explained my theatre situation. In the end, I said "As soon as theatre is over, I am free on week nights and Saturdays." "Okay then," she said. "Can you give me your contact information?" As I was writing it all down, thoughts started running through my head. "What if she won't give me the job because of theatre? I can't quit theatre, because I said I wouldn't! Oh no!"
So I filled out the contact info, and gave it to her. "Great," she said. And the next five words that came out of her mouth were the best things I ever heard.
" Can you work Saturday night? "
"Yes! I can!" I answered.
"Okay good! So for now, until your play is done, you can work Saturday dinner shifts and fill in dinner shifts on weekdays. But you can't have that forever." "Why?" I asked. "because Saturday dinner shift is the best shift, and people will fight over it." "Oh, okay."
So this Saturday, I went in. I waited tables and did all that needed to be done. And at the end of the night, in tips alone, I made $58.
I thank God. I realized this:
1) I didn't call them. That job found me. God brought that job to me.
2) I didn't even have to fill out an application. They gave me that job.
And at the end of the night, the owners both told me "you did such a good job for your first night."
Thank you God!

Tie Love and Faithfulness around your neck. Write them on the tablets of your heart. Then you will have FAVOR and a GOOD NAME in both God AND man. -Proverbs 3:3

I find this INCREDIBLE (Matthew 11:1-4)

This is just something that I have been dwelling on lately.
So when John the Baptist got put in prison, he probably knew he was gonna die. And he was probably wondering “Is Jesus really the one? Ahve I given my life for the right thing?” He sent messengers to ask Jesus “Are you really the Messiah?” And Jesus answeres him by saying this:
“Go back to John and tell him what you have heard and seen—the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised to life, and the Good News is being preached to the poor. And tell him, ‘God blesses those who do not turn away because of me.”
Jesus is bassically saying “Look John, here is PROOF that I am the son of God…” and then lists off all these miracles and wonders that he was doing. I find that incredible. I kinda think he’s saying “Look, I’m living my life out like the son of God should.” His life PROVED that he was God.
All this to say: do OUR lives prove anything? Do our lives say “Hey, look, I’m a child of God and this is how I live my life-like Jesus.” Or do they say “Hey check me out. i’m a good christian on Sundays and Wednesday nights, but on the other days-who cares?” What message do our lives send?

Wow.

So you might have read my blog that was titled "A HUGE accomplishment", about a boy in my kids church. I also posted that on my "Tumblr" blog. Out of all the blogs I have ever posted, I think that was the one that got the most comments. I am well aware that not everyone believes in speaking in tounges and the gifts of the spirit, but these comments were not just "I don't believe in that" comments-they were harsh comments. One person posted "Isn't indoctrination great?" Another said "let the brainwashing begin." Some one else said "I had a similar expierience, but it ended with a nun yelling that I was going to hell." At first, I was taken back. But this is not the first (and not the last) time I have or will be poked fun at or teased because of my faith. My second reation was to be angry. I went on one of the blogs and started typing in rage. I started to say things like "You have never expierienced this? I feel sorry for you" or "I did not ask or need you opinion on my beliefs-I know what is true" and other things like that. Just as I was about to hit "Post!", God spoke to me. I realized that what I was about to say was not right. Even when the pharisees made fun of Jesus and said he was lying, alot of times, he just took it. when they were crucifying him and mocking him and spitting on his face, he didn't say a word.
Jesus said in Matthew 5:10-12 "Blessed are those who are persecuted, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of things against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great if your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets before you."
If I want to be more Christ-like, I won't get involved in all of that. I won't fight back or get angry, because Jesus says I shouldn't.
So are you wondering what I did in return to all those comments? I posted on one person's blog. The one who said "a nun yelled I was going to hell". I said the following:
"Hey, I just wanted you to know that that was my blog you reblogged, and I have something to say: I'm not angry or mad at the fact that you expressed you opinion. But I hope you know that you're not going to hell if you don't speak in tounges. I don't preach fire and brimstone, just love and truth. It's not your spiritual level that determines your entrance to heaven-just if you strive to be Christ like. It's not you level-it's your heart. God bless! -A christian girl"
:)

A huge accomplishment... :)

So today, I made a huge accomplishment. One the the best things a person could do, in my opinion. Today, I led four children to the Lord.
I teach kids church at my church, and so we were talking, and when someone mentioned Jesus, on of the boys said "Jesus-who is Jesus?" I said "You don't know the story of Jesus?" He just shook his head. So I began to tell him about Jesus. He had no idea that Jesus was killed and crucified-he didn't even know what crucified means. I explained that Jesus died for our sins, and that if you pray for Him to come into your heart, you will go to heaven. And then I asked him "Have you ever prayed for Jesus to forgive you of your sins and to come into your heart?" He said no. So I said "Do you want to?" He said "Well, I do want to go to heaven." And so then I asked all the kids, "kids, if you didn't wake up tommorow morning, and you died, how many of you know for sure that you would go to heaven?" All the kids just looked at me. I said "None of you?" They all said no. I said "Well, lets all bow our heads and close our eyes. If you want to accept Jesus into your heart, then raise your hand."
I looked up, to see who had raised their hands, and everyone of them had said yes. So I prayed with them all. Then I looked up and said "I'm so proud of you all. Now Jesus and the Holy Spirit lives inside of you. Now you can be babtized in the Holy Spirit." The little boy who asked me who Jesus was said "What is the babtism of the Holy Spirit?" I said "Well, when you accept Jesus into your heart, the Holy Spirit comes to live inside of you, and if you want, he can babtize you in the Holy Spirit. He gives you a special prayer language, and it's called speaking in tounges. When you don't know what to say to God, you can speak in tongues, and you are praying exactly what God wants you to pray." The little boy said "I want that too!" And so I prayed for him to recieve the babtism of the Holy spirit. He didn't get it right then, but I praise God that he prayed for Jesus to come into his life. Thank you Jesus for using me!

The rock or the sand-where does YOUR house stand?

"Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock. Though the rain comes in torrents and the floodwaters rise and the winds beat against that house, it won’t collapse because it is built on bedrock. But anyone who hears my teaching and doesn’t obey it is foolish, like a person who builds a house on sand. When the rains and floods come and the winds beat against that house, it will collapse with a mighty crash.” -Matthew 7:24-27
The rock or the sand-which one is YOUR house built on? Wisdom or foolishness-where does YOUR life stand?

Moving Closer

So I have been fasting.
Some people are not sure what that is, and for those of you who aren’t, it’s okay. Fasting is something that a person does for God. They give up something that means alot to them for a set amount of time, and focus on God more. Some people fast certain foods-like desserts or meat-some fast actual things-like tv or computer. And when they aren’t doing that thing they are fasting, they are praying and worshipping and drawing close to God. Some people feel fasting is something they would like to do, and some feel it’s not for them. If you feel that way, that’s fine-it’s whatever God calls you to do. This is just my opinion and expeirience with it. I actually suggest it for someone who wants to draw near to God. It’s a good thing.
Anyways, so I’ve been fasting. It has drawn me close to God. I haven’t ate in five days, and it amazes me that whenever I feel hungry, I pray, and God fills me up. He doesn’t literally shove food down my throat or make me feel full, but it is like when I pray, my mind goes off the fact that I’m hungry and tired and I begin to think about God and how good he is and amazing and all that.
If you think about it, it is like you are dying to yourself. When you starve yourself, in a way, you are dying. Dying to your flesh-your sin. You know what I mean?
In Romans 6:6-8, Paul said “For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with,that we should no longer be slaves to sin—because anyone who has died has been set free from sin. Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him.” So if we die to ourselves (not literally die), and don’t live in our sin, we draw nearer to God. That is what happens when you fast, I think. I don't know, but so far, it is working out pretty well for me.

I meant to post this New Year's Day...

So I meant to post this on New Year's Day, but I didn't...ANYways...here it is.
My New Year's Resolutions:
What is my New Year's resolution? What do I want to accomplish?
On New Year's day, I watched the ball drop at midnight, and then went up to my room and just sat in silence. I took out a notebook where I write my prayers and thoughts and different things I do in my quiet time with God. I flipped it to a blank page and began to write down all of the events from 2010 I could remember-all the events that made an impact on me. I wrote down a good 15 or so of them, and then asked myself, "Which of these events were beneficial? Which ones taught you somethings? Which ones would you take back?" I'm sad to say there were alot that were not the best idea, and I wish some of them had never happened. I started to think "Man! 2010 was a terrible year to me!" But looking back, I realized something-I learned something from all of them. Through all the stupid things I had done, all the mistakes, all the good things, all the things done wrong ot me, and everything I couldn't help-each one had taught me something. I began to write what I had learned.
I learned that I want me and my future husband to have a love that is beautiful, praise-worthy, and pure by watching my two friends Vanessa and Edgar prepare for and getting married. When some of my good friends walked out of my life, I learned how easily people enter and exit your life and how to take good things out of those relationships. When I tried to work out a relationship that should have never started, I learned not to idolize any relationship or friendship, because you only end up getting hurt. I learned a bit of the calling God has on my life by travelling to India. I learned alot in 2010.
I also realized that 2010 was a year of "firsts" for me. My first time to fast. My first car. My first international trip. My first kiss. And as I looked back on all of those things, I realized "2010 had it's ups-and-downs, but I learned alot and gained wisdom."
Then I thought about 2011. What do I want to do? What do I want to accomplish? What do I want to change? I want to grow my faith in 2011. I want to have a strong, sturdy trust in God. I want to focus on him and draw near to him more than in the past. I want to burn for Him.
I want to win my friends to God, and witness to them, not with my words, but with my life-using words if nessicary. I don't want to SPEAK about God's presence in my life-I want to LIVE it. Breathe it. Live off of it.
I want to read my Bible in a year. I want to fast as long as I can this year. I want to live 2011 with God.
In mid-2010, I completed a year long commitment I had made to not date. But then I took everything I had learned from that year and forgot it. I don't want to live 2011 like that. I want to have Jesus Christ at the center of all my relationships, friendships, and encouter with people. I want to hav emy life revolve around God. I don't want to have any relationships or friendships I regret in 2011. I want to put God in the front of my life and give him control. I want to live a God-life in 2011.
And THAT is my new Year's resolution.