Wow. It's been over a month since I've posted! This just shows how crazy life gets. Man, well let me fill you in on some stuff that's been going on in my life real quick! Well, first off, God has been doing amazing things at The Roz lately! It is absolutely incredible. My cousin got married last week and I had the privilege of being in it and singing a few songs for the new happy couple! I know God will bless them :) 1 Corinthians 13. Also, today I was baptized!! I was baptized when I was seven years old, but that was more of the parents saying that they will raise their child in the church. But this was MY decision :) Today I became a member of Roswell Street Baptist Church and in obedience publicly professed Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior :) I am so thankful that someone very close to me was able to baptize me. He has seen me in my walk with Christ ever since I first started going to Roswell Street six months ago! I am also grateful for all the wonderful friends and family I have. They are all such supportive and caring people :) They are true blessings. Praise God for all He has been doing!
Fearless for My Father,
Chanan
Sunday, October 3, 2010
Monday, August 30, 2010
Separation From God
Why is it that we often consider ourselves separated from God? Are we truly separated from Him? From His great love and mercy?
"For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." - Romans 8:38-39
Nothing can separate us from God's love. Nothing. We can't allow things we may be going through to take over our minds and thoughts. Not troubles, families, friends, weariness, weakness, hate, love... etc. The list could go on and on. I know recently for me it's been school work. I wake up. Go to school. Come home. Do homework. And when it's time for me to do my quiet time with God, I want to just lay down and say I am too tired and go to sleep. Yes, this is the typical life of a high-schooler, but God is first and foremost. Always. He has the greatest plan for us. And that plan may not seem so wonderful now, but we often forget how truly blessed we are.
We have everything we could ask for at the snap of a finger. Water is available at every corner. Struggling to find food is trying to figure out which side you want with your entree. Not looking for just a handful to last days. We take so much for granted. And being comfortable with this way of living cannot allow separation of our hearts and God.
God will always have love for us. It is never ending. We must return the favor by not focusing on what can separate us from God's love. Because it does not exist.
Fearless for My Father,
Chanan
"For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." - Romans 8:38-39
Nothing can separate us from God's love. Nothing. We can't allow things we may be going through to take over our minds and thoughts. Not troubles, families, friends, weariness, weakness, hate, love... etc. The list could go on and on. I know recently for me it's been school work. I wake up. Go to school. Come home. Do homework. And when it's time for me to do my quiet time with God, I want to just lay down and say I am too tired and go to sleep. Yes, this is the typical life of a high-schooler, but God is first and foremost. Always. He has the greatest plan for us. And that plan may not seem so wonderful now, but we often forget how truly blessed we are.
We have everything we could ask for at the snap of a finger. Water is available at every corner. Struggling to find food is trying to figure out which side you want with your entree. Not looking for just a handful to last days. We take so much for granted. And being comfortable with this way of living cannot allow separation of our hearts and God.
God will always have love for us. It is never ending. We must return the favor by not focusing on what can separate us from God's love. Because it does not exist.
Fearless for My Father,
Chanan
Thursday, August 26, 2010
All Things New
"So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." ~ 2 Corinthians 5:16-21
Now I am sure when you first read the passage above many things came to mind.
1. Wow that is a long passage.
2. What does all of this mean?
3. What on earth is reconciliation and why is it used over and over again?
Well... Yes. It is a long passage and very wordy. But there is a purpose for that. It is for emphasis on the key point. And this is where we come to the word reconciliation.
Reconciliation: to accommodate; make one thing compatible with another; made compatible or consistent.
Now lately life has been stressful. Going a hundred miles an hour with dedication after dedication. And I have had trouble with just finding the time to relax and spend personal time with God. On my drive to swim practice today I didn't turn on the radio and just relaxed. Thought about how blessed I am and just let all the worries and stress go away. Most people would say it is because of the quiet, alone time. I agree with that; but also I believe that during that time I just said to God that I have to trust in Him. And Him only. I realized that I must be reconciled with God. I must become compatible with His love and mercy and consistent in my love for Him.
Of course we are going to go through hard times. Hey, being a teenager with school work, after school activities and drama is not easy! But the Bible says that if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. And it says that the old has gone and the new has come! Do you realize what this means? God makes ALL things new. All things. This means that our hope in Christ is not lost. If we are in reconciliation with Christ we are made new. God sent his sinless son to die! For us! If that isn't true love then I don't know what is. We must look to the cross. At the cross God made all things new so that we become the righteousness of God.
Reconciliation isn't just saying that we are compatible with God. It's that we are completely in love with Him and all He has done for us! Last night I talked to someone at my church about getting baptized and becoming a member of the church officially. I was baptized when I was about 7 years old, but this time it is definitely a personal decision. I want to publicly declare my love for the Lord and my reconciliation with Him. For I am so grateful for Him making all things new.
The past has been redeemed
Now forever we will sing
You can make all things new
Only your power can raise us
You can make all things new
Only your love can save us
All hope is not lost
'Cause you make all things new
-(All Things New by Brett Younker)
Fearless for My Father,
Chanan
Now I am sure when you first read the passage above many things came to mind.
1. Wow that is a long passage.
2. What does all of this mean?
3. What on earth is reconciliation and why is it used over and over again?
Well... Yes. It is a long passage and very wordy. But there is a purpose for that. It is for emphasis on the key point. And this is where we come to the word reconciliation.
Reconciliation: to accommodate; make one thing compatible with another; made compatible or consistent.
Now lately life has been stressful. Going a hundred miles an hour with dedication after dedication. And I have had trouble with just finding the time to relax and spend personal time with God. On my drive to swim practice today I didn't turn on the radio and just relaxed. Thought about how blessed I am and just let all the worries and stress go away. Most people would say it is because of the quiet, alone time. I agree with that; but also I believe that during that time I just said to God that I have to trust in Him. And Him only. I realized that I must be reconciled with God. I must become compatible with His love and mercy and consistent in my love for Him.
Of course we are going to go through hard times. Hey, being a teenager with school work, after school activities and drama is not easy! But the Bible says that if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. And it says that the old has gone and the new has come! Do you realize what this means? God makes ALL things new. All things. This means that our hope in Christ is not lost. If we are in reconciliation with Christ we are made new. God sent his sinless son to die! For us! If that isn't true love then I don't know what is. We must look to the cross. At the cross God made all things new so that we become the righteousness of God.
Reconciliation isn't just saying that we are compatible with God. It's that we are completely in love with Him and all He has done for us! Last night I talked to someone at my church about getting baptized and becoming a member of the church officially. I was baptized when I was about 7 years old, but this time it is definitely a personal decision. I want to publicly declare my love for the Lord and my reconciliation with Him. For I am so grateful for Him making all things new.
The past has been redeemed
Now forever we will sing
You can make all things new
Only your power can raise us
You can make all things new
Only your love can save us
All hope is not lost
'Cause you make all things new
-(All Things New by Brett Younker)
Fearless for My Father,
Chanan
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
In Secret Silence
"But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you." ~Matthew 6:6
Around the middle of July I began a daily devotional called "My Utmost for His Highest" by Oswald Chambers. It is amazing to me how convicting each days couple of paragraphs is. And last night's was definitely one that really applies to me right now. It talks about prayer and how it is difficult to pray without our minds wandering off. And hey. I'll be the first to admit that I struggle with this. Daily.
Okay so a lot of people, including me, have their quiet times with God daily where it is just one on one with God and His child. I sit down with my Bible, devotional, journal and non-bleed through Bible highlighter. I get into some of God's word then read my devotional for that particular day. This is God's way of speaking to me. It's kind of His way of being like, "Umm. Hello! I'm important; I created you and I am sending you out! Don't forget about me! I have a plan for you!" In other words it is definitely a wake up call. And then I journal about that particular verse and devotional and how it miraculously applies to something that has been going on recently in my life. Then comes the not so easy part. Prayer.
Prayer is a difficult concept to grasp. But it is an important one. Think about it. It's our personal time with our mighty Father! How blessed are we to be able to talk to our Creator! It just amazes me. How he is there for us ALL THE TIME. We don't have to wait for an e-mail back. We don't have to leave a voicemail. We don't have to worry whether or not He is going to come through for us. Because He will! Always. Prayer is your secret time with God. And I know I struggle with my mind wandering off about what happened that day or what I'm doing tomorrow during a time of prayer. But I can't let these worries and other thoughts come between the personal time I spend with God. He is way more important than that.
In my devotional for yesterday it said: "Your Father, Jesus says, is in secret and nowhere else... Enter the secret place.. Get into the habit of dealing with God about everything." How true is this! We can go to Him about everything? Of course! But we cannot allow these worldly things get in the way of our relationship with Christ. We must be in secret silence during prayer with Him. We must shut the door deliberately on emotions and remember God.
We have to constantly remind ourselves:
"I have to focus on God. I have to be with God. In Secret."
Fearless for My Father,
Chanan
Around the middle of July I began a daily devotional called "My Utmost for His Highest" by Oswald Chambers. It is amazing to me how convicting each days couple of paragraphs is. And last night's was definitely one that really applies to me right now. It talks about prayer and how it is difficult to pray without our minds wandering off. And hey. I'll be the first to admit that I struggle with this. Daily.
Okay so a lot of people, including me, have their quiet times with God daily where it is just one on one with God and His child. I sit down with my Bible, devotional, journal and non-bleed through Bible highlighter. I get into some of God's word then read my devotional for that particular day. This is God's way of speaking to me. It's kind of His way of being like, "Umm. Hello! I'm important; I created you and I am sending you out! Don't forget about me! I have a plan for you!" In other words it is definitely a wake up call. And then I journal about that particular verse and devotional and how it miraculously applies to something that has been going on recently in my life. Then comes the not so easy part. Prayer.
Prayer is a difficult concept to grasp. But it is an important one. Think about it. It's our personal time with our mighty Father! How blessed are we to be able to talk to our Creator! It just amazes me. How he is there for us ALL THE TIME. We don't have to wait for an e-mail back. We don't have to leave a voicemail. We don't have to worry whether or not He is going to come through for us. Because He will! Always. Prayer is your secret time with God. And I know I struggle with my mind wandering off about what happened that day or what I'm doing tomorrow during a time of prayer. But I can't let these worries and other thoughts come between the personal time I spend with God. He is way more important than that.
In my devotional for yesterday it said: "Your Father, Jesus says, is in secret and nowhere else... Enter the secret place.. Get into the habit of dealing with God about everything." How true is this! We can go to Him about everything? Of course! But we cannot allow these worldly things get in the way of our relationship with Christ. We must be in secret silence during prayer with Him. We must shut the door deliberately on emotions and remember God.
We have to constantly remind ourselves:
"I have to focus on God. I have to be with God. In Secret."
Fearless for My Father,
Chanan
Monday, August 23, 2010
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