BlogBloghttp://www.princesswarriors.net/blog/2010-04-21T01:40:56ZSquarespaceThe Good Samaritanhttp://www.princesswarriors.net/blog/2010/4/20/the-good-samaritan.htmlPrincess Warriors2010-04-21T01:27:34Z2010-04-21T01:27:34ZI have been spending alot of time in this parable lately preparing to teach the middle school youth group on it next week. It's been making me reflect on the question "Who is my neighbor?" and "Why Do I often Ignore them?"  I wave, say hello, make small talk, but I have lived on this street for three years and I barely know the people living around me.

I think often we get stuck in our own little groups (even as adults) and become hesitant to venture out outside of them. I have been thinking how many of my neighbors have I even invited to our bible study? The answer is one, and that is going to be tomorrow when I call her! I don't have a problem inviting other Christians because I know they will be open to it, but venture into that unknown territory and it becomes a little scary.

Being a Good Samaratin isn't just about saving someone from the oncoming train or speeding car, or gang of thugs. Let's face it, how many of us will actually have a circumstance like that present itself to us? Sometimes it's helping our neighbors find a Savior, and his name is Jesus Christ! Where would I be today if my good samaritan friend hadn't invited me to Bible study and led me to Christ? Still lost in a crazy world, in my pit of despair even though I had convinced myself my life was "just fine."

How many of us continue to act like the priest and the Levite in this story? We leave others to save themselves, just like these two left the traveler for dead. People all around us are dying spiritually, yet we are content to leave it up someone else to reach out to them. It's time we all got out of our comfort zones a bit and starting loving our neighbors like we should!  We should love them enough to be brave enough to bring up at some point what has saved us and given us hope in this life and for eternity. Invite them to church, invite them to a bible study, or start off by inviting them to dinner and letting them see Christ in us!

We have opportunities every day to be The Good Samaritan, we just have to recognize them and then act on them. Let's pray that we see them then follow God where He wants us to go with it.

 

]]>Delight In The Lord!http://www.princesswarriors.net/blog/2010/3/23/delight-in-the-lord.htmlPrincess Warriors2010-03-23T14:24:23Z2010-03-23T14:24:23ZHebrews 11:6 states the following: “And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.

 

As I pondered this verse last night I started to break it down in my head and really think about how I earnestly seek God. I also thought about the rewards. I like being rewarded for my efforts in anything I do, everyone does. My mind was racing with different possibilities of what prize God would give me for my heart that was seeking him. At first my thoughts were on material things. Maybe I would finally sell that multi-million dollar house this year, maybe we would win the lottery and be able to pay off all our debt. The list of “things” that God could reward me with went on and on, and I was almost giddy with the possibilities of the prizes that would fall from heaven!

Then my spirit was convicted as God spoke to me quietly. I heard him say to me that although He could certainly send me my money manna from heaven that wasn’t going to happen because He knew, as I did, that my heart was changing and that the desires of my heart were changing to be more in line with his. Psalm 37:6 says “Trust in the Lord and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture. Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.”

Faith isn’t about believing in God because you want and expect rewards from him.  I think for a long time that is what I expected. I wanted a good return on my investment! I expected materialistic rewards from God. As I trust in him and attempt to do good in my little world he is revealing to me what Faith really is. It isn’t thinking that if I have a bible study at my house that God is going to automatically bless me. He may, and he has, but I shouldn’t expect it and that should not be the motivation behind my actions. Faith is obeying God’s direction in tough situations with friends and family and letting him work it out. Faith is looking at your bank statement and praying that He just provides what I need and nothing more than watching him replenish it to the dime of what you need to pay your bills and give you a little extra.

God desires for me and for all of us to do exactly what these two scriptures instruct us to do. He wants us earnestly seeking him, he wants us trusting him in all situations and delighting in him.

If we look at the word earnest and it’s meaning the dictionary defines it as “serious in intention, purpose, and effort.” Being earnest implies to have a purpose and to pursue it diligently and with eagerness. Is this how we have been seeking God? Have we been diligent? Have we been eager about it? Have we been serious about it? Too often I think we see God and prayer time as a chore and something to check off our list. That is not what he wants! God is not a chore. Scripture says we are to delight in him!

It then dawned on me that what God is after is not only my good works. I can have all the bible studies I want in my house but if my heart is not in it and I’m not earnest about it I’m not honoring him, and I’m certainly not delighting in him, I’m just going through the motions.  I want to earnestly seek him, and I do want to receive his rewards for my life of belief, faith and service.  That is how he shows his glory. He just made me realize that the rewards are different than what I had envisioned. Life is not a game show. The rewards of living these two scriptures out is a life filled with the rewards of peace, joy, love, and the belief that through anything we face that what God’s word says is true. “For I know the plans I have for you.” He tells us in Jeremiah 29:11. “Plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.” 

My future may not entail winning the lottery, or even selling the multi-million dollar home this year (although I believe I will!) But I have faith that God’s plans for me are better than anything that I could ever dream up as the desires of my heart let go of worldly gains and shift towards the desires he has planned and purposed me to obtain.

]]>“Be Still and Know That I am God.” Psalm 46:10http://www.princesswarriors.net/blog/2010/3/8/be-still-and-know-that-i-am-god-psalm-4610.htmlPrincess Warriors2010-03-08T19:22:21Z2010-03-08T19:22:21ZTISHA'S TEACHING:

How can we be still in today’s society? We have so many things being thrown at us every day; so many messages being presented to us. Society doesn’t value stillness today; in fact many would look at it as laziness. However, God places a huge value on stillness. His word instructs us to “be still, and know that I am God”

God wants our relationship with Him to be first and foremost. He desires for us to discipline ourselves to carve out time for Him each day so He can teach us, lead us, and guide us on our walk with Him.  During this time we are to be completely focused on Him, and Him alone. God desires for us to hear His voice! In order to hear Him, we must put away the distractions. How will we ever draw closer to God if we don’t focus on Him fully? God puts wonderful opportunities like Bible Studies, retreats, and worship time and prayer time in our lives, opportunities that are clearly orchestrated by a mighty and loving God who wants us in a relationship with him, opportunities to let his Spirit move us, but we continue to be distracted by outside influences, and then we refuse to admit they are hindering us.

If God has led you to a Bible Study, to a retreat, to someone’s house for a prayer meeting, or even to a twenty minute time out in your day to rest in Him, give Him the fear, respect, and awe He deserves!  Don’t cheat yourself by missing out on what He wants to communicate to you because you can’t pull yourself away from the distractions that you are facing. The enemy will use everything he has to keep you from seeking and hearing God. Computers, the Internet, cell phones, pressing business matters, and your own anxious thoughts that if you possibly devote this time to God that everything you had on your “to do” list is just not going to get done!

Don’t fall into that trap any longer. Every one of us is guilty of thinking our lives, our jobs, and the lives of our loved one’s will cease to function if we are not available every waking minute of the day, but we all know the world will go on. We really just are not that important. Perhaps it’s time to get over ourselves, put the distractions away, and believe that our mighty and loving God will really take care of us, take care of our families, take care of our jobs, and set us on the freedom trail once we let go of all this other stuff.  Believe in God for who He is, and if he has called you to a place to soak in his goodness, trust that He will take care of anything else that is waiting in the wings while you are devoting your time to Him! 



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