The Chosen LIfe

Higher Ways

Personally, I find myself asking “why?” for the small, annoying things and rarely for the big life-changing things that happen. But many wonder why God allows bad things like shootings and other mass tragedies. Bad things are more common these days and everyone has an idea or opinion or angry accusation.

The question why does not plague my thoughts when something horrible happens because I know a little something about God.

Love God More

It was the father of the demon-possessed boy who told Jesus, “I believe, but help me overcome my unbelief. (Mark 9:24) I find myself saying, quite often, “I love you Jesus, help me love you more”.

1John 4:19 tells us that we love because He first loved us. I understand this to mean that we are not even capable of love, not real love that the Bible speaks of, until we know His love. We think we know love… the world thinks they know love… as a feeling, as conditional, something that is for things as much as people (thanks to our limited English language).

But I recently realized a deeper meaning to 1John 4:19:

My First Six Weeks in Las Vegas

I moved to Las Vegas at the very end of June and by mid-August I had to evacuate my house, take a trip to the hospital, and ended up in the middle of a dog fight. Here’s what happened…

Prepare Your Heart

Then Samuel spoke to all the house of Israel, saying, “If you return to the Lord with all your hearts, then put away the foreign gods and the Ashtoreths from among you, and prepare your hearts for the Lord, and serve Him only; and He will deliver you from the hand of the Philistines.” 1 Samuel 7:3

In this passage of scripture, the Lord is telling the Israelites to return to Him with all their hearts, then tells them that after they have gotten rid of their idols, to prepare their hearts for Him. So the question becomes, if they have returned to the Lord with all their hearts, and do what He says, what does it mean to then prepare their hearts for Him? Have they not returned to Him wholeheartedly? Is this message something that might apply to us, even if we love the Lord with all our hearts and are living in obedience? Just how do we go about preparing our heart for the Lord? And why?

New Mercies

Lamentations 3:22-23 tells us that God’s mercies are new every morning. That is to say, every moment. At times when life gets busy and I am easily distracted from spending time with the Lord or giving Him my full attention when I do make the time, I feel as though I have disappointed Him yet again. I compare His faithfulness to mine and fall woefully short.

Remember

We are only a few generations removed from the Holocaust yet there are those who claim it never happened and want it wiped from the history books. If they have their way, history will be changed for future generations. Most of us were not around during the holocaust, but that generation has ensured that what was endured will not be forgotten.

There is a memorial to the people who lost their lives on 9/11/2001, and it reads, “Never Forget”. Most of us were here for 9/11, and it is our duty to pass on the truth of what happened so that generations to come do not forget. There is a reason we are to never forget.

Making Your Faith Authentic

I’d only been a Christian for a few years when I decided to go to YWAMs (Youth With A Mission) Discipleship Training School. The commitment included living at their facility during three months of intensive teaching followed by two months on the mission field. Everyone who lived there helped maintain the facility, and my daily work assignment was to vacuum the dining hall, sweep the breezeway and clean the public restrooms. I have to tell you I was not happy about this assignment! Cleaning is one of my least favorite things to do, and public toilets? Ick! My teenage roommate complained about having to be in the office because she couldn’t type and hated office work. I was 30 and had lots of office experience and that would have been an ideal fit for me. I thought, these people have things all wrong, but I plugged away at the job I was given.

Our Spiritual Inheritance

O Lord, You are the portion of my inheritance and my cup; You maintain my lot. The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places; yes, I have a good inheritance. Psalm 16:5-6

Psalm 16 was written when David was running from King Saul. David had been welcomed into Saul’s house, but now Saul had turned against him and wanted to kill him. Although it did not make sense for Saul to turn against David, God had a purpose. If Saul had willingly handed the kingdom over to David, David would have accepted it as from Saul. But because Saul had turned against him, inheriting the kingdom could only come from God. It was God’s will. God had anointed David to be king of Israel many years before and would fulfill that promise in His sovereignty, despite the circumstances David found himself in. David accepted what God had for him. He realized the Lord was his true inheritance and he was satisfied with where the lines had fallen, the boundaries of his life.

The Lord is My Light

The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? Psalm 27:1

After creating heaven and earth, God made light. Light affects us in amazing ways. The warmth and light of the sun can change our whole attitude on a dreary day. We love gazing at stars, the tiny lights in the darkness, and they inspire us to dream. Light makes us feel safe in an otherwise dark world.

Discovering God's Love

I had been a Christian for a few years and I couldn’t understand how other people knew God was talking to them. He never talked to me and I was feeling like He didn’t love me.

I was thirty when I went to YWAM (Youth With A Mission) Discipleship Training School in the Los Angeles area. I had been there about a month when one day we were given an assignment to go off by ourselves and talk to God. I was to ask Him to tell me how much I meant to Him. My first thought was, “Oh sure, God isn’t going to talk to me.”

Learning to Love God

I was in my late 20s, single, a fairly new Christian, and I had psoriasis. My elbows and knees were covered with big red scaly splotches that couldn’t be hidden except by clothing. I never wore anything shorter than capri pants or ¾ length sleeves. It was too embarrassing to let anyone other than my closest friends see. As a result, I mostly turned down invitations to do fun outdoor things that would require shorts or a bathing suit. Other people may not have let it bother them, but right or wrong, I was ashamed of the way I looked.

the Chosen Life

Living Life by God's Design