foundations

1 Corinthians 3:10-15
But whoever is building on this foundation must be very careful. For no one can lay any other foundation than the one we already have--Jesus Christ. Now anyone who builds on that foundation may use gold, silver, jewels, wood, hay, or straw. But there is going to come a time of testing at the judgment day to see what kind of work each builder has done. Everyone's work will be put through the fire to see whether or not it keeps its value.
If the work survives the fire, that builder will receive a reward. But if the work is burned up, the builder will suffer great loss. The builders themselves will be saved, but like someone escaping through a wall of flames.



Our missionary from missions conference shared the above verse with us this past sunday during his sermon. He told of a new construction building in the country where he works that had been undercontruction most of the four years his family had been there. It was recently discovered to have been constructed improperly and to be unfit for use. This huge, nearly complete building that changed the skyline and was meant to provide jobs and so much more, is useless as it currently stands.
He then shared the above verses.
As Christians, our lives and deeds are built on the foundation of Jesus Christ. Some deeds are like gold, silver and beautiful jewels. Some deeds are wood, hay, and straw. I have a 'sneaking suspicion' that many of my building projects lately have been of staw and hay...not even wood.
I sat in church thinking of how much I didn't want my deeds to be worthless and made of worthless things that have no lasting value. And then I realized I was still thinking of ME! sheesh, I am so messed up and self-centered.
Jesus, be the center, foundation, builder, finisher and completer of my life. Let your name be glorified.

You must remain faithful to the things you have been taught. You know they are true, for you know you can trust those who taught you.
You have been taught the holy Scriptures from childhood, and they have given you the wisdom to receive the salvation that comes by trusting in Christ Jesus.
2 Timothy 3:14-15

inspired by openness

is it ok for christians to struggle?
is it acceptable to be angry, frustrated, hurt, confused? at God?

This life on earth is hard...yet we spend so much time pretending that we've got it together!  God has really been orchestrating events in our lives lately...conversations, sermons, songs, even blogs, to remind us of our need for Him in our daily life as well as our need of fellowwhip with other christians. 
We're not lone ranger christians or superheros with no vulnerabilities. 

A college friend of mine just posted about some of the struggles she has been having and I was so blessed to read it.  While the details differ, I've felt a lot of those same emotions and struggles.  I was inspired by her openness.  For months now, I've been meaning to get more of myself onto the blog, but haven't had a chance.  (Even now, I should be packing for a trip!)   I've never been much of a journal person (except on missions trips), but am hoping that maybe posting more of my thoughts and what I am learning would be good for me and others as well.

I'm not the writer my friend is.  I don't "have it all together" and I often forget to keep God's perspective in my life.  But hopefully, in the next few weeks and months, I'll be able to allow God to work through some of the areas in my life that need serious fixing or replacing and post what I am learning.

One quick area is my need for companionship.  I'm not talking about with my husband (although he is 1 of the 3 most important guys in my life [the others being my son and my father]), I'm talking about fellowship with other christians in the body.  Sunday morning just isn't enough, and I am glad that I am realizing that!  Still not sure what God is working on in this area of my life...what the end results will be, but so far I have been amazingly blessed to have found a few ladies online that I chat with here and there who also understand the significance and need of God in their lives.  The worldly view of self as most important gets really old and discouraging...and impractical when you have little kids!  It is refreshing to remember Jesus first and to learn to let all the other things in life fall into place based on a biblical worldview.



well, that turned out to be rather rambling, but as a female person, I think sometimes I just need to talk it out!