Thursday, April 7, 2011

7 Day God Challenge – Day 1 [for youth group]

For the next seven days, I'm going to write about where I've seen or experienced God in my day. It's funny. I'm always asking for direction from Him, when honestly, I don't spend all day thinking about Jesus. No wonder I never find directions; it's like following a broken compass!!!!

This morning, I sat outside and just thought. I don’t normally take time to just think, but I think it’s healthy to set aside time completely devoted to Jesus, without life’s obligations pressing on you. Last night, I prayed that I could just trust Him. Trusting Him takes two things: (1) realizing He exists and (2) knowing He’ll fulfill His promises. If you heard Pastor Meek’s sermon this past Sunday, you might recall his observation on a new bike trail he found. Well, those beautiful vineyards and plains happen to be right outside my house. So this morning, with a cup of coffee in hand and a Bible in the other, I took time to sit in awe of that breathtaking view on my back porch.

Peace. I experience a peace in God that I can never find anywhere else in this world; it’s out of this world. In the eerie silence, the wind blew my hair and the grass swayed to and fro while the sun’s rays shot through the cracks in the cloudy skies. The grass began to press harder to the ground with the increasing strength under the wind. The birds sang continually through it all as I sat. I felt my tiny, fragile state of being when I looked at the strength of the wind and the blooming flowers’ powerless attempts to resist it. Psalm 103:14-16 says, “For he knows how weak we are; he remembers we are only dust. Our days on earth are like grass; like wildflowers, we bloom and die. The wind blows, and we are gone – as though we had never been here.” And also like Isaiah 40:7-8 says, “The grass withers and the flowers fade beneath the breath of the Lord. And so it is with people. The grass withers and the flowers fade, but the word of our God stands forever.”

Oddly enough, these verses came to mind and I thought, “I’m like one little strand of grass, but He was willing to give His life to make sure I survived.” I’m not even a pretty piece of grass. I’m a withering, broken, bruised, ugly piece that God decided He wants to heal, mend, and never break (Matthew 12:20). Just then, the clouds broke and the heavens smiled down perfectly and I just know God had to be literally beaming from heaven. I know something so beautiful could never be an accident.

I guess Matthew 6:26-30 sums up what I’m trying to say: “Look at the birds. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. And aren’t you far more valuable to him than they are? Can all your worries add a single moment to your life? […] Look at the lilies of the field and how they grow. They don’t work or make their clothing, yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are. And if God cares so wonderfully for wildflowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you.”

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