It is a very interesting thing to sit and wonder what should I have as my first blog post topic... what would people actually want to read about (assuming at least 1 person will read this). I haven't written anything in this sort of free writing style in a very long time and it certainly was not broadcast on the internet. Oh great, it already says I spelled internet wrong which I know I definitely did NOT! I think that people want to read something real, something honest, something slightly entertaining and of course something they can relate to in some way. It seems simple but when you over think it, it feels impossible! Of course it is not impossible because people probably blog amazing things every single day... and I need to get a hold of them and get some ideas! No no no, nothing copy cat here, I'm just saying, what do people actually want to spend their time reading? Which begs a very interesting question as to what things to people read that are a complete waste of time and what things are actually valuable... the only thing that comes to my mind as the most valuable thing ever is things of... eternity.
The only eternal thing in this world is God's Word... everything else will pass away but the truth of the Creator of the universe will remain the same.
Proverbs 21:21 "He who follows righteousness and mercy finds life, righteousness and honor."
I think that even in my 25 years on earth I have definitely followed plenty of unrighteous ways and they are never worth it. I sat around in my brokenness for far too long, wondering what was a better way of living my life. A lot of Americans have a mentality to do what you want to do whenever you want, you know what is best for you. It is extremely selfish and if you don't believe it is selfish, prove me wrong. There are things that we all have to do obviously, but there are many unnecessary wants that we lust after in this life which can keep our focus so far away from God we think we don't even need Him. It's tough to follow something if you really don't know what it is... so let's look up the word righteous... it means uprightness, morality, observance of the law, justifiable, accepting standards (in this case God's standards), and in accordance with accepted standards of morality (dictionary.reference.com). Wow, that leaves my head spinning and it definitely is not how I would tend to describe myself, I have to work extremely hard daily to even attempt to be not even close to God's definition of righteous. His definition would be following the 10 commandments found in Exodus 20:1-17 which are:
- 1) You shall have no other gods before Me (God)
- 2) You shall not make for yourself any idol
- 3) You shall not take the name of God in vain
- 4) Remember the Sabbath Day, to keep it holy
- 5) Honor your father and mother
- 6) You shall not murder (1 John 3:15 "Whoever hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him)
- 7) You shall not commit adultery
- 8) You shall not steal
- 9) You shall not lie/ bear false witness against someone
- 10) You shall not covet (desire anything that belongs to another person)
When I look at those standards God has set, they seem so trivial, so simple, so obvious. The truth, however, is that keeping all of them all the time every second of your life would mean that you are perfect. I know that I have broke every single one of them and I am extremely far from perfect, but that doesn't mean I can't strive to do the right and honorable things to Christ when I need to make decisions about my behavior. Reading through the commandments humbles me more every time and reminds me where I came from, when I used to enjoy my sin and do whatever I wanted when I wanted... back to the selfish American model of thinking... oh yes, I was there too. But God is telling us that if we follow righteousness, if we follow Him, follow Jesus Christ, we will find life, righteousness and honor. He also wants us to follow mercy too! Mercy's definition is "compassionate or kindly forbearance shown toward an offender, an enemy, or other person in one's power; divine favor; blessing; a pardon" (dictionary.reference.com). Wow, we are called to follow that! I feel like that has all been given to me when I am so undeserving as pointed out in Romans 3:23 "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." It is also pointed out when I try to measure up next to God's standards, His holy commandments. Serious stuff though and very important to think about in your own life... what would God say about your decisions, and how you have lived your life? The exciting thing though is that He forgives. He can and will take all of those mistakes and disgusting sins far far away from you, He did that for me.
1 John 1:9 "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
Acts 3:19 "Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord."
Sooooo amazing to me that we can just ask him anywhere we are and He hears our repentance, turning away from our sins, confessing them to Him. It takes a lot of self-examination to understand that you are wrong, that you are doing things that God hates, that you are sinning against Him. That's a tough thing for many people to admit because we all are quick to say "I'm a good person." I used to say that about myself, but Christ has shown me my faults and taken away my pride and trust in myself and I have given my trust and control of my life completely over to Christ. The One who sets sinners free. You as well, can trust in Him... what we all truly deserve is eternal punishment because of our sins. We deserve to be separated from God forever because we did not want to listen to Him, we wanted to follow our hearts, our sinful desires, our own way. There are two paths I keep hearing over and over; my way/ your way and God's way. I have tried my way long enough and that way stinks, it leads to death, destruction, sorrow, misery, and eventually eternity in hell. God's way is ridiculously better than my way could ever be, because He knows everything. He created everything. He gave everything. He gave His Son Christ up for us (sinners who were against Him) He was the sacrifice for our sins, He paid our fine, our penalty and judgment was upon His perfect Son Jesus Christ so that we could live.
I. Will. Never. Get. Over. That.
-Alisha
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