In the Vine

" When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said of him,   “Here truly is an Israelite  in whom there is no deceit.” “How do you know me?” Nathanael asked. Jesus answered,   “I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you." Then Nathanael declared, “Rabbi,  you are the Son of God;  you are the king of Israel.” Jesus said,  ' You believe because I told you I saw you under the fig tree. You will see greater things than that.'   51  He then added,  'Very truly I tell you,   you will see heaven open,  and the angels of God ascending and descending  on the Son of Man.'" John 1:47-51 In Jesus's first days of his ministry, he began to call his disciples. I'm always amazed by their ability to just get up and follow, leaving everything behind. That is something I strive for and often fail at.  When it came to Nathanael, Jesus let him know that he saw him earlier sitting under a fig...

I’ve found myself overwhelmed recently with the busyness of my schedule. I keep thinking its going to slow down and it never does. Rather than continuing to sink and hope it gets better, I've decided to tackle the problem head first and figure out how to live effectively and joyfully in the midst of the busyness. This is a follow up to the blog I posted a few months ago, Infinitely Important of Insignificant . I definitely do not have it all figured out, but here are some practical ways I am working on prioritizing my faith and finding rest.  I hope this helps anyone else who is feeling as overwhelmed as I am feeling. “We never grow closer to God when we just live life. It takes deliberate pursuit and attentiveness.” Francis Chan 1. Regular time to talk with God-  This is of utmost importance. I put this first because it is by far the thing that is helping me the most. My day is drastically different if I start it out with time with God. My new resolution is not ...

“One must keep on pointing out that Christianity is a statement which, if false, is of no importance, and, if true, of infinite importance. The one thing it cannot be is moderately important.” – C.S. Lewis Before you read any further, know that this blog is mainly a rant at me that I am posting for others to read. If it can hit home and change a little part of your heart or inspire you in any way, then that credit goes to God alone because this is my attempt at putting into words what He is doing in my life. On to my ramblings…Earlier this year, my boyfriend, Josh, got a job as the high school youth pastor at Agoura Bible Fellowship. Since about May, I have been very involved with the youth group there. God has done some incredible things through this already. We have been going through the book of Acts. In the past few weeks, we have just started talking about Saul/Paul. It is so interesting looking at his life and how he lived, completely sold out for spreading the message of...

"Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised." Proverbs 31: 30 As I'm going throughout my week and having daily quiet times, certain themes tend to repeat themselves over and over. This week, that theme has been the fear of the Lord. It has come up multiple times in my devotionals and in my bible reading. It is often regarded as something to really strive for. God lifts up and blesses the people who live with a fear of Him. Psalm 25:12-14 "Who, then, are those who fear the Lord? He will instruct them in the ways they should choose. They will spend their days in prosperity and their descendants will inherit the land. The Lord confides in those who fear him; he makes his covenant known to them." I'll be honest; I never really liked the term "Fear of the Lord." I cannot fully explain why, but I do know that the term has kind of been swept under the rug for most of my life. I always thought that ye...

We all make countless decisions throughout the day.  We make conscious decisions and subconscious decisions. Most of the time, we aren’t even aware of the decisions that we are making. Some decisions are easier: what to wear, how to do our hair, what to eat. (Although, all three of those decisions can be very difficult at times!) Some decisions are harder. The real question is: what is your motivation behind every decision you make?  Our decisions affect our actions, which ultimately affect those around us.    We've all heard 1 Corinthians 13, The Love Chapter,  many times. In fact, if you watched The Office last week, you heard part of it there! The first few verses talk about how it doesn't matter what we do, what we say, or how we think if we don't have love. If love is not our motivation behind all of it, it’s all meaningless.     In my own Christian walk, I’ve found it overwhelming to keep track of all the things I am supposed to do, th...

"Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. 8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. 9 Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you." - Philippians 4:4-9 I absolutely love this passage. There is so much meat in these six verses. I think they truly sum up how to live as a Christian, in a relationship with Jesus Christ. 1. Rejoice in the lord, ALWAYS - Key word being ALWAYS. No matter the circumstances, ...

Lately, I’ve been convicted by how much I worry and stress about the future.   I tend to let what could or could not happen tomorrow affect my happiness today.   There are plenty of problems with this. First, I have absolutely no control over what is going to happen a minute from now, let alone tomorrow or the next day. Second, the most effective way to live is to live one moment, one breath at a time, surrendering each and every decision.   When I am spending my time stressing over outcomes of certain situations, I am not living this moment to its fullest. If you know me, you know I am a planner. I'm organized with my plans almost to the point of OCD. Yes, it’s good to plan and we do need to do a certain amount of that, but plan with the idea in mind that God can do whatever he wants with that plan. My devotional a couple days ago started out, “Bask in the luxury of being fully understood and unconditionally loved. Dare to see yourself as I see you: radiant in...