Wooooow. Beachstock was AMAZING! I think we all learned a lot from the lessons and just interacting and growing in relationships with each other. One thing that inspired me to really push forward in my art (films/animation) is what Dinesh and Caroline George both touched on: we are the ones who can change this world. So thinking about that, I looked through my helpful book, "God's Promises: for every day" and found a section on what we could do to influence our world.
Matthew 5:14-16
"You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven."
We are the hope for the world! We are responsible for what we see wrong. We have to pray and have faith in God's power to change it through us. I've struggled with being afraid of saying I'm a Christian sometimes, but this scripture tells me that by doing that, I'm denying someone the light of hope and just leaving them blind. And just like people put their trophies in a glass case or hang up their diplomas and awards, we should be the same way about living our lives for Jesus. Whenever I do something for God, I can always imagine the smile on his face as he looks at me. Just knowing he's happy about what I've done pushes me on to keep walking this path. In short, we should stand apart from the world. We should look, feel, sound, maybe even smell different than the world. Adonai li, lo ira. Mah ya'aseh li adam? The Lord is with me, I'm not afraid. What can man do to me? (Psalm 118:5-9)
Other scriptures to read:
Daniel 12:3
Mark 16:15-20
Acts 1:8
Luke 4:18
God will gives us the strength and courage if we ask for it, and he'll show us the right path to follow, so have no fear and go make a difference in someone's life!
Tuesday, May 30, 2006
Tuesday, May 23, 2006
From Water to Wine
I'm actually stealing Mary K's Quiet Time hehe...she shared John 2:1-11 with me yesterday and I had some thoughts about it and decided to study it a little further and that's what I'm reading this morning.
John 2:1-11 Jesus Changes Water to Wine
This was the start of Jesus' ministry. The miracle took place in Cana in Galilee. Although Jesus was born in Bethlehem near Jersusalem, most of his ministry took place in Galilee. So the setting is that they are at a wedding that everyone was invited to, so I'm assuming they were good friends with the people getting married. The party goes on and they run out of wine. Mary summons Jesus and when he is good and ready he turns the water there into wine and the banquet continues. This was the first miracle and disciples put their faith in him.
Well, I thought more about the concept of changing water to wine and a couple things jumped out at me. I asked myself what would I rather have at my wedding-water or wine? Seems like a no-brainer! The only thing that would hinder me from choosing wine is the cost. Although the wine tastes so much better...it's so much more expensive. I can get water for free! (if I want that Fiji water I might have to shell out a buck or two..but anyways..) In terms of being a Christian I thought- there is a cost to count when becoming a Christian- for me it is persecution, heartbreak (in the world I could care less if people around me were saved, but now man, my heart just aches sometimes!), tears, pain, etc BUT being a Christian to me is just like that wine. It's so much sweeter! I wouldn't give up wine for water anyday, even if I could get it everywhere for free! I feel that way about my relationship w/ God! I don't want to settle for what the world has to offer no matter what the cost because it's worth it!
The second thing I thought about was the fact that what Jesus did for me on the cross was like changing water to wine. If I were to do a taste test of water and wine, it would be easy to distinguish the two. I could smell them and know the difference. I could see them and know the difference. I could taste them and definitely know they were different. God took me, the bland, ordinary water and turned me into wine. He took a timid, people pleassing, insecure, heart-broken me and gave me a spirit of power, love and self-discipline! And the difference is tangible. I see the difference in my life. Not only that, other people see the difference and it's not because of anything that I did, but because of the gift he gave me, which brings me to the last thing that stood out to me.
The only way that the water became wine was through the power of Jesus Christ. The water didn't sit and ferment or something. Someone didn't pour some Kool-Aid mix in the joint. It was Jesus' power that transformed it. I'm realizing that I am no different from the murderer, prostitute, or homosexual offender by nature. The only thing that seperates me is the gift of God that I have accepted. Not the fact that I repented of my sins, not the fact that I share the gospel, but the grace of God that enables me to do those things through the power of the cross. That humbles me.
Jesus turned my water into wine and he did it in his time. Today I'm thinking of all the situations in my life that are like water that I want to be wine. My Mom becoming a Christian, getting married...someday, being in the ministry.. .These are some of my dreams that can seem so unattainable sometimes, but I look at the water to wine story and think man, God CAN make those things happen, but he will do it in his time and just like the story, he could very well be saving the best for last.
Love,
Aisha
John 2:1-11 Jesus Changes Water to Wine
This was the start of Jesus' ministry. The miracle took place in Cana in Galilee. Although Jesus was born in Bethlehem near Jersusalem, most of his ministry took place in Galilee. So the setting is that they are at a wedding that everyone was invited to, so I'm assuming they were good friends with the people getting married. The party goes on and they run out of wine. Mary summons Jesus and when he is good and ready he turns the water there into wine and the banquet continues. This was the first miracle and disciples put their faith in him.
Well, I thought more about the concept of changing water to wine and a couple things jumped out at me. I asked myself what would I rather have at my wedding-water or wine? Seems like a no-brainer! The only thing that would hinder me from choosing wine is the cost. Although the wine tastes so much better...it's so much more expensive. I can get water for free! (if I want that Fiji water I might have to shell out a buck or two..but anyways..) In terms of being a Christian I thought- there is a cost to count when becoming a Christian- for me it is persecution, heartbreak (in the world I could care less if people around me were saved, but now man, my heart just aches sometimes!), tears, pain, etc BUT being a Christian to me is just like that wine. It's so much sweeter! I wouldn't give up wine for water anyday, even if I could get it everywhere for free! I feel that way about my relationship w/ God! I don't want to settle for what the world has to offer no matter what the cost because it's worth it!
The second thing I thought about was the fact that what Jesus did for me on the cross was like changing water to wine. If I were to do a taste test of water and wine, it would be easy to distinguish the two. I could smell them and know the difference. I could see them and know the difference. I could taste them and definitely know they were different. God took me, the bland, ordinary water and turned me into wine. He took a timid, people pleassing, insecure, heart-broken me and gave me a spirit of power, love and self-discipline! And the difference is tangible. I see the difference in my life. Not only that, other people see the difference and it's not because of anything that I did, but because of the gift he gave me, which brings me to the last thing that stood out to me.
The only way that the water became wine was through the power of Jesus Christ. The water didn't sit and ferment or something. Someone didn't pour some Kool-Aid mix in the joint. It was Jesus' power that transformed it. I'm realizing that I am no different from the murderer, prostitute, or homosexual offender by nature. The only thing that seperates me is the gift of God that I have accepted. Not the fact that I repented of my sins, not the fact that I share the gospel, but the grace of God that enables me to do those things through the power of the cross. That humbles me.
Jesus turned my water into wine and he did it in his time. Today I'm thinking of all the situations in my life that are like water that I want to be wine. My Mom becoming a Christian, getting married...someday, being in the ministry.. .These are some of my dreams that can seem so unattainable sometimes, but I look at the water to wine story and think man, God CAN make those things happen, but he will do it in his time and just like the story, he could very well be saving the best for last.
Love,
Aisha
Quiet Time Roster
Hey Ladies,
I'm glad to see that so far there are several people that want to join! I'm trying to invite as many people on here as possible as hopefully this will take off and be istrumental in helping us learn more about God and his word.
The plan, like it was stated in the e-mail, is to have one person post their Quiet Time to the site every week. It would be ideal if we started on a Monday, with someone posting what they are learning that weekend or the Monday morning. Then, during the week, we would all post our thoughts or comments, if any.
There are five of us registered right now and hopefully more people will join. I have created a roster that starts last Monday through the month of June. Since we have some people now, we can go ahead and get this thing moving. As more people join, we can add them to the roster. Depending on how many people eventually join, the schedule could be changed to having posts made twice a week instead of weekly. For now, the schedule is as follows:
June 26-> Chevonne
July 3-> Denise
July 10-> Dion
July 17-> Chelsea
July 24-> Sara
July 31-> Olamide
* This coming Monday many of us will be at Beachstock, so I moved that date to the 30th, which is a Tuesday
I will be posting my QT shortly....
I'm glad to see that so far there are several people that want to join! I'm trying to invite as many people on here as possible as hopefully this will take off and be istrumental in helping us learn more about God and his word.
The plan, like it was stated in the e-mail, is to have one person post their Quiet Time to the site every week. It would be ideal if we started on a Monday, with someone posting what they are learning that weekend or the Monday morning. Then, during the week, we would all post our thoughts or comments, if any.
There are five of us registered right now and hopefully more people will join. I have created a roster that starts last Monday through the month of June. Since we have some people now, we can go ahead and get this thing moving. As more people join, we can add them to the roster. Depending on how many people eventually join, the schedule could be changed to having posts made twice a week instead of weekly. For now, the schedule is as follows:
June 26-> Chevonne
July 3-> Denise
July 10-> Dion
July 17-> Chelsea
July 24-> Sara
July 31-> Olamide
* This coming Monday many of us will be at Beachstock, so I moved that date to the 30th, which is a Tuesday
I will be posting my QT shortly....
Monday, May 22, 2006
Welcome Everyone
Hey everybody!
I'm glad you all decided to join. Feel free to play around with things and familiarize yourselves with the site. I look forward to posting the QT roster soon and sharing our thoughts. Have a great day!
Thanks,
Aisha
I'm glad you all decided to join. Feel free to play around with things and familiarize yourselves with the site. I look forward to posting the QT roster soon and sharing our thoughts. Have a great day!
Thanks,
Aisha
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