blessings
(note: I am not a perfect disciple, I will be made perfect in my desire to be one, and that is all due to the endless adbundace of grace, mercy, and provision that is in Jesus Christ)
Isn't this such a declaration of faith, of a staunch heart? found it one someone else's xanga:
"I am a disciple.
I'm part of the fellowship of the unashamed. I have stepped over the line. The decision has been made. I'm a disciple of Jesus Christ. I won't look back, let up, slow down, back away, or be still. My past is redeemed, my present makes sense, my future is secure.
I'm finished and done with low living, sight walking, small planning, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tamed visions, mundane talking, cheap living, and dwarfed goals. I no longer need preeminence, prosperity, position, promotions, plaudits or popularity. I don't have to be right, first, tops, recognized, praised, regarded or rewarded. I now live by faith, lean on His presence, walk by patience, lift by prayer and labor by power.
My face is set, my gait is fast, my goal is heaven, my road is narrow, my way rough, my companions few, my Guide reliable, my mission clear. I cannot be bought, deluded or delayed. I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice, hesitate in the presence of the adversary, negotiate at the table of the enemy or meander in the maze of mediocrity. I won't give up, shut up, let up, until I have stayed up, stored up, prayed up, paid up, preached up for the cause of Christ.
I am a disciple of Jesus. I must go till He comes, give till I drop, preach till all know, and work till He stops me. And when He comes for His own, He will have no problem recognizing me--my banner will be clear!"
By Louise Chapman Robinson. Text found among his papers in Zimbabwe after he was martyred.
and then the purpose driven devotional for the day:
“Can I Help?”
by John Fischer
I love to work with my hands. I get very excited about what I can do to a room with a few pieces of molding and a couple cans of fresh paint. My wife, Marti, is not quite as enthusiastic as I am about this, mainly because she doesn’t like clutter and the fact that this kind of work pulls me away when we would normally be having family time. I argue that it saves us money, but the real reason I do it is the satisfaction created by the transformation, and the realization: “Hey, I did that!”
Of course it takes me three times longer than a professional and even longer when you factor in the few hours here and there that I have to put into projects like this. To make matters worse, I’m a perfectionist, so I have craftsman tastes driving my amateur abilities. I measure twice, cut slow, and do things over if I have to.
I also have a huge sense of ownership over work like this - I don’t like to share it with anyone. As a result, I’m not a very good teacher. My two older children don’t know much about projects around the house because I did them all myself and didn’t let them help me even if they wanted to.
Which leads me to mentioning a project that has now taken up two weekends, severely challenged Marti’s patience, and tested my own with our five-year-old, Chandler. Every time I’m working when he is around (which is most of my available time), he asks me if he can help. I’m old enough now to see that I haven’t handled this well in the past, but knowing I have an opportunity to change that doesn’t make it any easier.
I’m realizing that an important part of serving people is allowing them to serve you. This is sometimes hard because it may mean you have to teach them to do what you know you could do better on your own, but their growth is going to depend on the opportunities you give them.
In many ways, I would prefer to work alone on these projects but I have to remember, “What am I here for - to remodel a room or teach my son how to use a hammer?”
When I die, which is he going to remember most, nice clean angles on the molding in this room or the experience of sawing through wood as I hold it for him?
I love that. Sometimes I get very... "fatalist" and i'll be like "what's the POINT of all this?"; things such as singing to a kid over and over, playing some random game they mad up when all the rules contradict each other, letting them braid my hair in all sorts of kooky styles, or coloring what seems to be the hundredth picture.
(and I don't color in the lines very well.)
and sometimes i through my hands up (figuratively....) and am like, "this is useless! -this game makes NO sense, all we're doing is giggling at each other - im going to recycle this drawing - im going to take out these 6 braids ".. etc.
but you know what? most of the time, i agree with what John Fischer wrote. And i believe it to be true 24/7. It's such an easy opportunity to bless others... in order for them to believe in "good" (lovve, joy, peace.. etc), they must recieve good. And I pray and trust that God will use the "fruit of the Spirit" to point them to the Spirit that makes it.
Isn't this such a declaration of faith, of a staunch heart? found it one someone else's xanga:
"I am a disciple.
I'm part of the fellowship of the unashamed. I have stepped over the line. The decision has been made. I'm a disciple of Jesus Christ. I won't look back, let up, slow down, back away, or be still. My past is redeemed, my present makes sense, my future is secure.
I'm finished and done with low living, sight walking, small planning, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tamed visions, mundane talking, cheap living, and dwarfed goals. I no longer need preeminence, prosperity, position, promotions, plaudits or popularity. I don't have to be right, first, tops, recognized, praised, regarded or rewarded. I now live by faith, lean on His presence, walk by patience, lift by prayer and labor by power.
My face is set, my gait is fast, my goal is heaven, my road is narrow, my way rough, my companions few, my Guide reliable, my mission clear. I cannot be bought, deluded or delayed. I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice, hesitate in the presence of the adversary, negotiate at the table of the enemy or meander in the maze of mediocrity. I won't give up, shut up, let up, until I have stayed up, stored up, prayed up, paid up, preached up for the cause of Christ.
I am a disciple of Jesus. I must go till He comes, give till I drop, preach till all know, and work till He stops me. And when He comes for His own, He will have no problem recognizing me--my banner will be clear!"
By Louise Chapman Robinson. Text found among his papers in Zimbabwe after he was martyred.
and then the purpose driven devotional for the day:
“Can I Help?”
by John Fischer
I love to work with my hands. I get very excited about what I can do to a room with a few pieces of molding and a couple cans of fresh paint. My wife, Marti, is not quite as enthusiastic as I am about this, mainly because she doesn’t like clutter and the fact that this kind of work pulls me away when we would normally be having family time. I argue that it saves us money, but the real reason I do it is the satisfaction created by the transformation, and the realization: “Hey, I did that!”
Of course it takes me three times longer than a professional and even longer when you factor in the few hours here and there that I have to put into projects like this. To make matters worse, I’m a perfectionist, so I have craftsman tastes driving my amateur abilities. I measure twice, cut slow, and do things over if I have to.
I also have a huge sense of ownership over work like this - I don’t like to share it with anyone. As a result, I’m not a very good teacher. My two older children don’t know much about projects around the house because I did them all myself and didn’t let them help me even if they wanted to.
Which leads me to mentioning a project that has now taken up two weekends, severely challenged Marti’s patience, and tested my own with our five-year-old, Chandler. Every time I’m working when he is around (which is most of my available time), he asks me if he can help. I’m old enough now to see that I haven’t handled this well in the past, but knowing I have an opportunity to change that doesn’t make it any easier.
I’m realizing that an important part of serving people is allowing them to serve you. This is sometimes hard because it may mean you have to teach them to do what you know you could do better on your own, but their growth is going to depend on the opportunities you give them.
In many ways, I would prefer to work alone on these projects but I have to remember, “What am I here for - to remodel a room or teach my son how to use a hammer?”
When I die, which is he going to remember most, nice clean angles on the molding in this room or the experience of sawing through wood as I hold it for him?
I love that. Sometimes I get very... "fatalist" and i'll be like "what's the POINT of all this?"; things such as singing to a kid over and over, playing some random game they mad up when all the rules contradict each other, letting them braid my hair in all sorts of kooky styles, or coloring what seems to be the hundredth picture.
(and I don't color in the lines very well.)
and sometimes i through my hands up (figuratively....) and am like, "this is useless! -this game makes NO sense, all we're doing is giggling at each other - im going to recycle this drawing - im going to take out these 6 braids ".. etc.
but you know what? most of the time, i agree with what John Fischer wrote. And i believe it to be true 24/7. It's such an easy opportunity to bless others... in order for them to believe in "good" (lovve, joy, peace.. etc), they must recieve good. And I pray and trust that God will use the "fruit of the Spirit" to point them to the Spirit that makes it.