Hello.
It sure has been a really long time since I have written.
Life has been busy. I finished up my first semester of pharmacy school, then my sister got married, then enjoyed a super short vacation at home and in San Francisco, then started right back to school January 2nd.
There is alot of things that I believe God is trying to teach me. He wants to desperately teach me to be patient and to depend completely on Him. I feel that too often I try to do things on my own and try to just persevere depending on my own knowledge, my own strength, my own abilities. But I can't. A song that a SITC friend emailed to me entitled "A little longer" by Brian and Jenn Johnson has really hit the nail on the head. At first, it talks about what can I do for Christ, what can I say, sing, dance, or bring to Christ that will be pleasing to Him. But I can just serve and serve all I want too and still not grow in a relationship with Him, and I can surely not learn dependence on Him. The song then goes on to talk about the sweet moments with Christ that we want to hold on to Him just a little longer, to savor the precious time that Christ comes down to us and wraps His loving arms all around us. In those moments, everything else can be put on hold. Everything else in this short lived lifemeans absolutely nothing compared to the awesomeness of Christ.
So I read Haggai 2 yesterday. And let me tell you, it is phenomenal! It talks about a nation that is constantly doing their own thing, serving their own gods, leading their own lives, and building up their own 'treasures' on this perishing earth. And God has been trying to get their attention, they plant grapes, olives, figs, pomengranates, etc only to produce little to no fruit. I believe this is exemplifying their lives. They are not producing any Godly fruit because they are not sowing anything worth God's time. Everything they touch is unclean and ugly in the sight of God.
YET! Despite themselves, God STILL CHOSE THEM to pour out His abundant blessings upon. Why? They did not deserve it. They did not DO anything worthy of having God spend His time even acknowledging them. But neither have I! I do not deserve to be called a child of God. Haggai chapter 2 is a perfect example of how much God loves us, of how much grace He has, of how much mercy He has, of how much compassion He has, of how He never breaks a promise, and of how perfect He is. It also goes to show that NO ONE is ever too far gone, because God can still choose him and use him for His honor and glory in the earth. It also means that God doesn't necessarily bless those who have it all together. That's comforting too. Course I have to remember that God's blessing won't always be packaged all in a pretty box and bow, God's ways are mysterious.
Here's something I thought was really good. When you are persistently pursuing God, but you feel like you are still in a dry, desert place, God is already drawing you to Himself. Remember Moses and the burning bush? Moses was running from all that he knew, and when he was in the desert, God met him there.
I'm learning dependence on God. I'm learning that His ways are not my ways, His thoughts are not my thoughts, His blessings are not what I may expect, and staying in the Word of God is one of the most important things I could ever do.
In Christ Alone,
Tara
It sure has been a really long time since I have written.
Life has been busy. I finished up my first semester of pharmacy school, then my sister got married, then enjoyed a super short vacation at home and in San Francisco, then started right back to school January 2nd.
There is alot of things that I believe God is trying to teach me. He wants to desperately teach me to be patient and to depend completely on Him. I feel that too often I try to do things on my own and try to just persevere depending on my own knowledge, my own strength, my own abilities. But I can't. A song that a SITC friend emailed to me entitled "A little longer" by Brian and Jenn Johnson has really hit the nail on the head. At first, it talks about what can I do for Christ, what can I say, sing, dance, or bring to Christ that will be pleasing to Him. But I can just serve and serve all I want too and still not grow in a relationship with Him, and I can surely not learn dependence on Him. The song then goes on to talk about the sweet moments with Christ that we want to hold on to Him just a little longer, to savor the precious time that Christ comes down to us and wraps His loving arms all around us. In those moments, everything else can be put on hold. Everything else in this short lived lifemeans absolutely nothing compared to the awesomeness of Christ.
Zephaniah 3:16-17 On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem: "Fear not, O Zion; let not your hands grow weak. The Lord your GOd is in your midst, a mighty one will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness; He will quiet you by His love; He will exult over you with loud singing."
So I read Haggai 2 yesterday. And let me tell you, it is phenomenal! It talks about a nation that is constantly doing their own thing, serving their own gods, leading their own lives, and building up their own 'treasures' on this perishing earth. And God has been trying to get their attention, they plant grapes, olives, figs, pomengranates, etc only to produce little to no fruit. I believe this is exemplifying their lives. They are not producing any Godly fruit because they are not sowing anything worth God's time. Everything they touch is unclean and ugly in the sight of God.
YET! Despite themselves, God STILL CHOSE THEM to pour out His abundant blessings upon. Why? They did not deserve it. They did not DO anything worthy of having God spend His time even acknowledging them. But neither have I! I do not deserve to be called a child of God. Haggai chapter 2 is a perfect example of how much God loves us, of how much grace He has, of how much mercy He has, of how much compassion He has, of how He never breaks a promise, and of how perfect He is. It also goes to show that NO ONE is ever too far gone, because God can still choose him and use him for His honor and glory in the earth. It also means that God doesn't necessarily bless those who have it all together. That's comforting too. Course I have to remember that God's blessing won't always be packaged all in a pretty box and bow, God's ways are mysterious.
Here's something I thought was really good. When you are persistently pursuing God, but you feel like you are still in a dry, desert place, God is already drawing you to Himself. Remember Moses and the burning bush? Moses was running from all that he knew, and when he was in the desert, God met him there.
I'm learning dependence on God. I'm learning that His ways are not my ways, His thoughts are not my thoughts, His blessings are not what I may expect, and staying in the Word of God is one of the most important things I could ever do.
In Christ Alone,
Tara
