Deny Yourself

"Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow Me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for Me will save it."
- Luke 9:23-34

In this verse, Jesus predicts His death and then tells the crowd that living a life for Christ is a daily process. We are called to literally deny ourselves every single day. That means considering yourself as nothing compared to Christ, daily following the Lord and yielding to His presence. We are also called to take up our cross every day, meaning that every day we should be so in love with Christ that we are willing to die in order to follow Him. Dying to self. This is a call to completely surrender to the Lord and all that He has to offer. Sounds intense, but the reward is incomparable to anything else. Jesus never candy-coated his sermons nor did He try and display things as easy and very do-able. Jesus was real with us, and He still is real with us. He gives it to us straightforward, reminding us that a godly life isn't easy. But He then says that if we do deny ourselves and take up our cross daily, we will be saving our life. Personally, I find it extremely difficult to deny myself. How can it be easy to deny yourself in a world that constantly tells you to look good, feel good, wear the right clothes, say the right things, make perfect grades, make a ton of money, etc. Our world uses the media to make perfection seem like something everyone should desire daily and work towards achieving. But Christ says just the opposite. He says DENY all of that. Deny yourself. I struggle a lot with pride, so this is something hard for me to constantly try and do. Especially being in college now, feeling like we all have to impress the world with our grades, our resume, our friends, and our social activities. I think denying yourself is so so hard in college. But that's why Christ says it's a daily process. We must train ourselves, through prayer, scripture, and time spent with God, to consider ourselves nothing compared to Christ. To completely deny ourselves and take up our cross daily. It's not easy but Christ tells us that it is worth it. Our reward in heaven will be better than anything we could ever imagine. 

Clothed in Righteousness

It's been a long time since I've written a post on here (over a year...) but I felt called to tonight, after RUF, a youth ministry I go to here at UVA, every Tuesday night. We read the passage below and I was incredibly overwhelmed by God's love. 

Genesis 3:8-21 

8 Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden. 9 But the Lord God called to the man, “Where are you?" 10 He answered, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.” 11 And he said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?” 12 The man said, “The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.” 13 Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.” 14 So the Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, “Cursed are you above all livestock and all wild animals! You will crawl on your bell and you will eat dust all the days of your life. 15 And I will put enmity between you and the woman and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head,and you will strike his heel.” 16 To the woman he said, “I will make your pains in childbearing very severe; with painful labor you will give birth to children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you.” 17 To Adam he said, “Because you listened to your wife and ate fruit from the tree about which I commanded you, ‘You must not eat from it,’ “Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat food from it all the days of your life. 18 It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. 19 By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return.” 20 Adam named his wife Eve, because she would become the mother of all the living. 21 The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them. 

This passage is one I'm sure you've either read before, heard before, or know the story of. This is the fall of man, when sin entered mankind's life and corrupted our world. Tonight I was overwhelmed by the amount of anger and sorrow we see from God, but also the love He extends. For the first time, I realized just how upset the Lord was at this point in time. After finishing his creation of a perfect and spotless world with two perfect human beings whom he loved, sin enters the picture. It becomes far from perfect. God became sad and angry when this happened. He cursed both man and women, and the serpent. God makes childbearing "severe, with painful labor" and curses the ground that man walks on. Tonight I could see the pain in God's voice as He spoke these words to Adam and Eve. The Lord had a reason to be angry and in pain. The people he designed intricately through love disobeyed him and became covered in sin. But there is hope. There is grace. And there is love. Verse 21 proves this. Although the Lord was full of sorrow for his people, he clothed them. The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and Eve, and He clothed them. This is the hope of the Gospel. While we were filthy, sinful, and against the Lord, He clothed us. This doesn't mean he simply forgot about the sin by covering it up with garments. It means that in our sin, while we sin, He clothes us, He helps us, He cares for us. God sees us as righteous, clothed in beautiful garments. This shows the magnitude and power of God's love for us. He loves us so much that even while we disobey Him, sin against Him, and bring Him pain, He is faithful and gracious all the while, loving us unconditionally. This is something that should bring us so much joy, thankfulness, and peace, on a daily basis. We ought to be overwhelmed by the Lord's love when we read this. Yes, the majority of the passage involves sin and the brokenness of our world, but through this, God's love is highlighted incredibly. God loves every single one of us, even when we sin against Him. This should not give us an excuse to sin, but rather a reason to sing, rejoice, and be glad. Rejoice in the fact that He has chosen us out of pure love and grace, and He is constantly clothing us in His royal garments of righteousness.

Leaving an Impact

This morning I went to church in Austin and got to hear Colt McCoy speak at Austin Stone. Colt talked about Philippians 2:3-11 and how we are called to live as Christ did and strive to leave the impact He left on others. I think this passage is so powerful if you truly look into what it is saying. 

"Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death-- even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."

We are called to see others as MORE important than ourselves. That doesn't just mean those specific people who you have a huge amount of respect for. It means everyone. Even the people that get on your last nerve, that you just want to ignore. We must consider them better than ourselves. We must look out for their interests and not just our own. God sent his son Jesus to earth as a human. He was fully man yet fully God. The scripture says that Christ didn't consider His equality with God as something to be used to His advantage. Instead, He made himself nothing, He humbled Himself as a servant. Christ never looked out for only His own interests. He never considered Himself better than others. He served others out of humility. True humility, as Colt talked about this morning is living a life off of this passage in Philippians, a life reflecting the life of Christ. Sure, we won't ever be as perfect as Christ but that's why Christ did what He did. Jesus is the ultimate example of how to live life. 

In order to leave an impact on others in this world, we must care for each other, respect each other, serve each other and love each other daily. Years after you pass away, how will people remember you? Will you be someone who was known for their looks and the things they owned? Someone who cared way too much about how much money they made? Someone who only cared about him or herself? OR will you be known as a humble woman or man of God who never saw themself greater than others? Someone who served others on a daily basis and who desired to know Christ better every day of their life? It's not my job to convict you to do or stop doing certain things. It's just my hope and prayer that the Lord convicts us all where we need to be convicted. Colt mentioned how nothing in this life will matter after we're gone, unless it relates to Christ, and the love we shared with others while on earth. If we invest our life into reaching out to those in need, sharing the Gospel, reading Scripture, worshipping the Lord etc., then that's when we leave a legacy. Not only will you yourself be remembered, but Christ in you, which is far greater. Christ will be remembered. Not Eliza, but Christ. That is my personal prayer although it's often tough. We live in a fallen world that tells us the opposite. Make your name known, get into this college, get this job, make this amount of money, help this many people, the list goes on... But in Christ our world is a temporary place to share what He has done and is doing within your life, until we go home, to heaven where we truly belong for eternity. So my challenge to you: simply PRAY. Ask the Lord to convict you. Ask Him to help you live a life reflecting Jesus, serving others, looking out for their interests, and considering them better than yourself. Sometimes it won't be easy but the reward in heaven will be incredible. (1 Cor. 2:9)

His Promises

A promise is a guarantee that a particular thing will happen.
Whether you see it or not, Scripture is FILLED with the God's promises. His Word isn't only something we should look to when we "need" it, in certain circumstances. His Word is living and active (Hebrews 4:12). It's something we constantly need. And He filled it with thousands of promises for you and me. How many times have you made a promise to someone? How many times have you failed to keep that promise? God's promises are unfailing. He is faithful when He gives us promises throughout His word. In Psalm 119:50 David writes "My comfort in my suffering is this: Your promise has given me life."
Here are a couple of incredible promises the Lord gives us:

"Ask and it will be given to you. Search and you will find. Knock and the door will be opened to you."-Matthew 7:7

"Come to Me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." -Matthew 11:28

"For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there among them." -Matthew 18:20

"Do not fear, for I am with you...I will strengthen you; I will help you; I will hold on to you with My right hand." -Isaiah 41:10

"everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life" -John 3:16

"If the Son sets you free, you really will be free."- John 8:36

"Anyone who follows Me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life." -John 8:12

"If you ask me anything in My name, I will do it." -John 14:14

And lastly, one that has so much power, "If you remain in Me and My words remain in you, ask whatever you want and it will be done for you." -John 15:7
This means that if God's people truly abide in Jesus, they will desire what He desires & will pray according to His words & those prayers will be pleasing to Him. He tells us that by remaining in Him, we can ask for anything! And it will be done for us.

These are only a few of the countless promises that Christ tells us through His holy Word. So much comfort knowing that He is such a promising God! PTL

Living Water

He alone is the true Living Water who quenches the thirst of man.
To drink from Him is to experience Him, trust Him, and depend on Him. When we drink from the Lord, we are satisfied. He is the only one who can deeply and truly satisfy us. All else fails in comparison to the Lord. In John 7 Jesus says, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him." It goes on to say, "By this He meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were later to receive."(37-39) Christ literally tells us here that if we are in need of satisfaction or someone to depend on, He is the only one to turn to. All other "fountains" will not bring satisfaction. He says that streams of living water will flow within those who trust and believe in Him. This is a promise that the Holy Spirit, our Counselor, will be within us the moment we accept Christ. Christ in us, the Living Water.

In John 4 a Samaritan woman is at a well with Jesus. He asks her to give Him a drink but she believes she shouldn't do so. He responds by saying, " If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked Him and He would have given you living water." He doesn't just say water, but "Living Water". He means the Holy spirit, a water that doesn't leave anyone thirsty. Christ goes on to say "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life." (13-14) We are blessed with the Holy Spirit who lives within us, giving us life abundantly, satisfying all of our needs. The same Holy Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead now lives in you and me. In 1 Corinthians 3:16 Paul says, "Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells within you?" The Spirit inside of us is what Jesus meant when He promised that "streams of living water will flow from within you." And lastly, Jesus tells us in John 16 that "it is for your benefit that I go away because if I don't go away the Counselor will not come to you. If I go, I will send Him to you." He believes that the Spirit living in us is greater than having Christ standing before us.

-We must spend as much time listening as talking to the Lord.
-We are able to experience fellowship with the Lord through the Holy Spirit. (2 Corinthians 13:13)
-24 hours a day we have the opportunity to interact with Him.

The Spirit of the Lord is living inside you, blessing you with streams of Living Water.

Redeemed

What made me write this post is the book I'm reading, Radiant, by Marian Jordan.
I strongly suggest reading this book if you really want to be encouraged and challenged in your faith.

The word redemption means "to compensate for the faults or bad aspects of something, to buy something back and restore it to it's original intention".

Every heart beats to be redeemed, restored to our original intention.

The Lord does just that. He knew us before we were even thought of by our parents. In Isaiah chapter 43, the Lord says "Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; you are Mine."

He longs to walk alongside us from the day we are born. He tells us not to fear anything or anyone because He is constantly with us, fighting for us. Through His amazing grace, Christ came to redeem us. Truly, He came to "compensate for our faults, to buy us back and to restore us to our original intention." Faith in Christ Jesus allows us to be restored, renewed, washed clean by His own blood. This is true redemption. We no longer have to live with guilt, fear, pain or worry. Christ came to show us that we are HIS, He has redeemed us and called us each by our very own name. He tells us throughout scripture that we belong to Him, that He is with us, and that He loves us with a redeeming, everlasting love. A love that will not ever leave us, one that cannot be separated from us, a love that restores us to our original intention- worshipping Him and praising Him, what we were created to do.

Freedom and Grace in Christ

"You are not under law but under grace"- Romans 6:14
"Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom"- 2 Corinthians 3:17

In Christ we have the gift of freedom. We are not held captive to anything, but instead we're set free. We are free to rejoice together and mourn together. In Christ we are free to LIVE abundantly. Christ doesn't call us to live a life of control and worry. Instead, He tells us that each day is a blessing. We must rejoice in each day, knowing it is only from the Lord. Christ desires that we live our life singing praises and thanking Him all day every day. Having a relationship with Jesus will set you free from a life of captivity, brokenness, or fear. In Christ we get to experience freedom, freedom that can only be found through Him and His word. In Romans 6, Paul tells us to offer ourselves to God, every part of our being. We are called to live under His grace. Sin will not rule over us. Paul later writes in Galatians 5 that "Christ has liberated us to be free". If we try to live by the law, we are isolated from Christ and have fallen from grace. But living a life by the Lord's grace will set us free. We are called to be free brothers and sisters in Christ. We must use this freedom as an opportunity to serve one another through love. Christ's "law" is simply to love your neighbor as yourself. Walk by the Spirit. Allow the Spirit to control your daily life. If you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. (Galatians 5:18) Instead, the Spirit pours out fruit into your life. The fruits of the Spirit. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith, gentleness, and self-control. We do not live by our flesh but rather by the Spirit in us. And since we live by the Spirit, we must also follow the Spirit. (Galatians 5:25) He calls us to a life full of freedom and grace. Rejoice in this freedom and live by His grace.