I just signed up for this deal... four bags of coffee (a $38 value) for $4.95! & free shipping! It's a promo from BocaJava. You pick your four flavors, join, then you can cancel at any time.
CHEAP COFFEE!
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Monday, June 8, 2009
Heaven & how we live
(I will write about Italy, but that is going to take a while.)
Our pastor just concluded a series on Heaven yesterday. I think it was 5 weeks long, & we missed the 3rd & 4th week so I haven't listen to them yet, but just what I heard has been really good. Not quite what I expected. But it has changed my thoughts & the way I view my circumstances & actions.
I want to tell you about yesterday's sermon, because it was very convicting to me.
1 Corinthians :11-15
"For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, & the fire will test the quality of each man's work. If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames."
This scripture, when referring to the man that builds on the foundation of Jesus, means someone who has put their faith in Jesus to save them. It is speaking of believers (which means more than "I believe in God" or "I go to church, sometimes" or "I'm a good person" or just calling yourself a Christian but that is another topic); if you do not know Jesus this does not apply to you.
We are saved by grace, but our reward is based on how we live.
On Judgement Day, our lives will be presented before the Lord: every thought, word, action, every single little bit of our lives that we maybe think doesn't matter, everything will be judged (remember Matthew 12:36-37?). So, we are building our lives with the following aspects:
-our thoughts
-our actions
-our words
-the attitudes of our heart
-the way we spend our money (which is an expression of how we live our lives; what we value)
These things are represented by either gold, silver & costly stones, OR, wood, hay & straw. They either represent what the Lord is passionate about (love, patience, kindness, compassion, humility, etc) or what He despises (ugly words about other people, anger, lies, jealousy, disobedience to authority, coveting, etc). It will all be presented before the fire, & what is left is our reward. Some will not receive a reward, based on the way they lived their life.
I want a reward. I want to build my life with gold, silver & costly stones. Since yesterday I have noticed some of my thoughts that are definitely straw. I want to live my life aware of the thoughts & attitudes I have so I can make sure they represent gold. I don't want to live my life selfishly, living in the moment, responding out of emotion, instead of stepping back & seeing things the way God does - an opportunity to respond in kindness, not anger, or the chance to forgive instead of be bitter.
This is just my summary of the sermon, it is certainly not all-inclusive. You can listen to it & the rest of the Heaven series here.
Our pastor just concluded a series on Heaven yesterday. I think it was 5 weeks long, & we missed the 3rd & 4th week so I haven't listen to them yet, but just what I heard has been really good. Not quite what I expected. But it has changed my thoughts & the way I view my circumstances & actions.
I want to tell you about yesterday's sermon, because it was very convicting to me.
1 Corinthians :11-15
"For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, & the fire will test the quality of each man's work. If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames."
This scripture, when referring to the man that builds on the foundation of Jesus, means someone who has put their faith in Jesus to save them. It is speaking of believers (which means more than "I believe in God" or "I go to church, sometimes" or "I'm a good person" or just calling yourself a Christian but that is another topic); if you do not know Jesus this does not apply to you.
We are saved by grace, but our reward is based on how we live.
On Judgement Day, our lives will be presented before the Lord: every thought, word, action, every single little bit of our lives that we maybe think doesn't matter, everything will be judged (remember Matthew 12:36-37?). So, we are building our lives with the following aspects:
-our thoughts
-our actions
-our words
-the attitudes of our heart
-the way we spend our money (which is an expression of how we live our lives; what we value)
These things are represented by either gold, silver & costly stones, OR, wood, hay & straw. They either represent what the Lord is passionate about (love, patience, kindness, compassion, humility, etc) or what He despises (ugly words about other people, anger, lies, jealousy, disobedience to authority, coveting, etc). It will all be presented before the fire, & what is left is our reward. Some will not receive a reward, based on the way they lived their life.
I want a reward. I want to build my life with gold, silver & costly stones. Since yesterday I have noticed some of my thoughts that are definitely straw. I want to live my life aware of the thoughts & attitudes I have so I can make sure they represent gold. I don't want to live my life selfishly, living in the moment, responding out of emotion, instead of stepping back & seeing things the way God does - an opportunity to respond in kindness, not anger, or the chance to forgive instead of be bitter.
This is just my summary of the sermon, it is certainly not all-inclusive. You can listen to it & the rest of the Heaven series here.
Friday, May 15, 2009
Just a quote I like...
Oh the comfort, the inexpressible comfort of feeling safe with a person, having neither to weigh thoughts nor measure words, but pouring them all out, just as they are, chaff and grain together, certain that a faithful hand will take and sift them, keep what is worth keeping, and with the breath of kindness blow the rest away.
George Eliot
George Eliot
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Shredding & Italy!
I don't get much done when I'm not busy. My to-do list is small this week, so somehow I end up being really good at pushing things off to another day. I should get everything done then enjoy my rare spare time. Hmm. Maybe tomorrow.
Update on my shreddage: I'm seeing lots of new definition in my arms! I have never had much upper-body strength, it's all in my legs, so I'm enjoying these new biceps that have arrived! Also yesterday was the first day I was able to complete the whole workout without stopping or putting down the weights. Yay for strength & endurance! I got my mom & sister doing it too, & did the workout today with Haley. The shred has spread.
We leave for Italy soon...! I need to start getting things together. I'm looking forward to seeing amazing sights (especially the Roman ruins, & thinking of the Christians Paul was writing to... so cool), drinking some yummy Italian coffee (I was reading that they don't drink cappuccinos after lunch, so if you order it you scream TOURIST... as if we won't already do that), & of course eating Italian food! We should do enough walking that we won't come back looking like blimps. Just kidding... even on vacation I need to keep my mind on Jesus & what He would have me eat. Luckily I have a built-in accountability partner, & Josh will be able to keep me in check.
I took an architectural history class my senior year & learned about a lot of the buildings & churches we will see over there... bummer that I don't remember much at all. Nor did we have a book in that class.
Anyone reading this been to Italy &/or have some tips???
Update on my shreddage: I'm seeing lots of new definition in my arms! I have never had much upper-body strength, it's all in my legs, so I'm enjoying these new biceps that have arrived! Also yesterday was the first day I was able to complete the whole workout without stopping or putting down the weights. Yay for strength & endurance! I got my mom & sister doing it too, & did the workout today with Haley. The shred has spread.
We leave for Italy soon...! I need to start getting things together. I'm looking forward to seeing amazing sights (especially the Roman ruins, & thinking of the Christians Paul was writing to... so cool), drinking some yummy Italian coffee (I was reading that they don't drink cappuccinos after lunch, so if you order it you scream TOURIST... as if we won't already do that), & of course eating Italian food! We should do enough walking that we won't come back looking like blimps. Just kidding... even on vacation I need to keep my mind on Jesus & what He would have me eat. Luckily I have a built-in accountability partner, & Josh will be able to keep me in check.
I took an architectural history class my senior year & learned about a lot of the buildings & churches we will see over there... bummer that I don't remember much at all. Nor did we have a book in that class.
Anyone reading this been to Italy &/or have some tips???
Thursday, May 7, 2009
30-day Shred
So, one of the women on staff at the church gave me a workout video that she had told me about the previous week. I thought, "eh, I'll check it out." The only workout videos I had ever done were butt-lift videos (with Paige freshman year) & tae-bo, back when that was popular, & I hated that. But I was going to give it a chance.
Who knew you could get such a workout in 20 minutes?!
Jillian Michaels, the hard-core trainer on The Biggest Loser, is who made this video, called "The 30-day Shred." It is basically 3 circuits of - 3 minutes of strength training, 2 minutes of cardio, & 1 minute of abs. There are 3 levels so you can move up to the next level when you want to; I have been doing the video since Sunday & I'm not seeing that day coming anytime soon!! The first two days I was SO SORE. Now just my calves are sore. It's pretty intense. Josh is doing it too, & it's hard for him as well!
I'm going to update you on my progress occasionally. I won't do 30 days straight, I will probably skip Saturdays, & we do have a trip coming up soon (!) that will get in the way. But this is a good workout regardless; I probably will still do it from here on out (although not every day), especially if I don't feel like going to the gym. My goal is to build strength & muscle, to tone, & to hopefully help lose a couple of pounds of fat (those last few pounds I gained after getting married are hard to get off!).
You should get shredded too (mainly so I have someone else to be sore with)!
Who knew you could get such a workout in 20 minutes?!
Jillian Michaels, the hard-core trainer on The Biggest Loser, is who made this video, called "The 30-day Shred." It is basically 3 circuits of - 3 minutes of strength training, 2 minutes of cardio, & 1 minute of abs. There are 3 levels so you can move up to the next level when you want to; I have been doing the video since Sunday & I'm not seeing that day coming anytime soon!! The first two days I was SO SORE. Now just my calves are sore. It's pretty intense. Josh is doing it too, & it's hard for him as well!
I'm going to update you on my progress occasionally. I won't do 30 days straight, I will probably skip Saturdays, & we do have a trip coming up soon (!) that will get in the way. But this is a good workout regardless; I probably will still do it from here on out (although not every day), especially if I don't feel like going to the gym. My goal is to build strength & muscle, to tone, & to hopefully help lose a couple of pounds of fat (those last few pounds I gained after getting married are hard to get off!).
You should get shredded too (mainly so I have someone else to be sore with)!
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
Living by Christian Principles vs. a Relationship
I receive these devotionals every day, & today's was really good. Here it is -
Stop Living By Christian Principles
TGIF Today God Is First Volume 2, by Os Hillman
05-04-2009
..."having a form of godliness but denying its power" (2 Tim 3:5).
God never called you to live by Christian principles. He calls you to live in relationship with the living God, Jesus Christ. One of the weaknesses of the Church today is that we teach people principles without the relationship.
The western church is big on ten step programs, "how-to" methods and acrostics to illustrate memorable ideas. There is a place for establishing principles to change negative behavior. However, we are not called to have a relationship with principles, but a living God.
Living by principles is the equivalent to living by the law in the Old Testament. It is rooted in the Greek system of learning and is dependent upon our strength instead of being led and empowered by the Holy Spirit. Principle-based living is powerless living. This makes our Christian experience a religion instead of a relationship. "But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law" (Gal 5:18).
We read about principle-based followers in the book of Acts, "The apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders among the people. And all the believers used to meet together in Solomon's Colonnade. No one else dared join them, even though they were highly regarded by the people" (Acts 5:12-14). There was a group of followers who liked being taught but never entered the game.
The prophet Jeremiah tells us about the nature of God and His desire for every believer.
This is what the LORD says: "Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom or the strong man boast of his strength or the rich man boast of his riches, but let him who boasts boast about this: that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight," declares the LORD. (Jeremiah 9:23-24).
Friend, have you been guilty of living a life based on principles instead of knowing the One who authored the principles? Invite Jesus to be Lord over your life and begin to spend time with Him every day. Ask the Holy Spirit to lead and guide you through every moment of your day.
Stop Living By Christian Principles
TGIF Today God Is First Volume 2, by Os Hillman
05-04-2009
..."having a form of godliness but denying its power" (2 Tim 3:5).
God never called you to live by Christian principles. He calls you to live in relationship with the living God, Jesus Christ. One of the weaknesses of the Church today is that we teach people principles without the relationship.
The western church is big on ten step programs, "how-to" methods and acrostics to illustrate memorable ideas. There is a place for establishing principles to change negative behavior. However, we are not called to have a relationship with principles, but a living God.
Living by principles is the equivalent to living by the law in the Old Testament. It is rooted in the Greek system of learning and is dependent upon our strength instead of being led and empowered by the Holy Spirit. Principle-based living is powerless living. This makes our Christian experience a religion instead of a relationship. "But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law" (Gal 5:18).
We read about principle-based followers in the book of Acts, "The apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders among the people. And all the believers used to meet together in Solomon's Colonnade. No one else dared join them, even though they were highly regarded by the people" (Acts 5:12-14). There was a group of followers who liked being taught but never entered the game.
The prophet Jeremiah tells us about the nature of God and His desire for every believer.
This is what the LORD says: "Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom or the strong man boast of his strength or the rich man boast of his riches, but let him who boasts boast about this: that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight," declares the LORD. (Jeremiah 9:23-24).
Friend, have you been guilty of living a life based on principles instead of knowing the One who authored the principles? Invite Jesus to be Lord over your life and begin to spend time with Him every day. Ask the Holy Spirit to lead and guide you through every moment of your day.
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