Blessed

It's been awhile since I have blogged and to be honest my life has changed... in a great way! A little over a year ago my life seemed stagnant and monotonous. I went to work every day and was ready for a change in my life. I felt I was ready for a change in my job and doors kept closing. I was ready to meet someone and felt pretty hopeless about it. In May 2011 I met a girl named Amanda Boyer. Let me tell you something... The minute I met her I knew she was special. She had me from hello:). Time went by and a month later we had our first date. After that first date I knew without a doubt I wanted to be with her. After two months I told her I loved her and on May 5th I asked her to marry me. To this day it was the best decision I have ever made. If you don't know Amanda you sure are missing out! She is the most caring and loving person I have ever met. It had always been important to me to marry a person that was passionate about the Lord... Amanda has a great relationship with the Lord. I look up to her in so many ways it's hard to keep count. I often wonder how I even got a chance with Amanda. God has truly blessed our relationship! She comes from a great family and I can't wait to be a part of the Boyer family some day! I couldn't thank God enough for the Boyers. God is good! I have realized alot lately that in hard times it is hard to praise God but he has reminded me that through these hard times he is faithful and he can do far more than we can ever imagine. I am the luckiest man in the world that he brought Amanda into my life and sometimes just the thought of what he has done to bring us together just helps me get through the day! I am very blessed."God can do anything, you know—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams! He does it not by pushing us around but by working within us, his Spirit deeply and gently within us." Ephesians 3:20

Character

Character is something that you don't often see especially in pro sports. Last week when the Rangers beat the Yankees, Texas outfielder Josh Hamilton truly showed what character is. If you don't know Josh's story you need to watch it. This video tells alot about who he is now as a man. It is truly amazing what God can do through someone.

Praise

Do you ever have days or even long periods of time where your mind is numb or your stomach is sick? You feel like God is absent, like everyone and everything is against you. You might feel like you have this huge weight on your back or things in your life might not seem fair. These times are trying! You have all of these mixed emotions of anger, confusion, fear, sadness, loneliness, your heart is broken and you keep crying out to God but he doesn't answer. Your longing for God's guidance and wisdom.

When I go through these times I feel like running away where no one knows me and that is hard to do. We always want our problems and trials to go away quickly so we run. Realistically that's not going to happen and we have to face it all. One of the hardest things for me is praying for my enemies or people that have hurt me. When I do pray for them I find it one of the most freeing things ever. God asks us to do hard things during hard times. A close friend once told me

"Satan will bring his best before God brings his best."

Satan is always going to be fighting his hardest when he knows that God is working in our lives and when we are being obedient to God's will. The best thing and the hardest thing to do during these times is to praise. Praise your enemies and praise God. Once you do Satan will be defeated!

Just last night I read some scripture that gave me hope and reassured me that God is in control. Isaiah 60:20 says:"God will be your eternal light,your God will bathe you in splendor.Your sun will never go down,your moon will never fade.I will be your eternal light. Your days of grieving are over." This verse brought a huge smile to my face... a smile that I haven't felt in a long time. The last six words echoed in my head throughout the night and today as well. YOUR DAYS OF GRIEVING ARE OVER! God is good and at the right time he'll make it happen!

In Revelation Chapter 7 it talks about the people from the great tribulation and how they washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb. They're standing before God's throne praising him and serving him day and night. The last few verses in the chapter remind me that God is faithful and in due time he will bring us out of our hard times. "Then he told me, "These are those who come from the great tribulation, and they've washed their robes, scrubbed them clean in the blood of the Lamb. That's why they're standing before God's Throne. They serve him day and night in his Temple. The One on the Throne will pitch his tent there for them: no more hunger, no more thirst, no more scorching heat. The Lamb on the Throne will shepherd them, will lead them to spring waters of Life. And God will wipe every last tear from their eyes."

I am God. At the right time I'll make it happen. Isaiah 60:22(The Message)

Exodus 4:12

Well for some reason I felt the urge to blog tonight. It has been quite some time but I felt like I wanted to share this verse with anyone who reads this post. When I think about what Moses had to go through I'm sure he was really afraid and really not sure what he was doing at times. There are a lot of times I feel the exact same way. Exodus 4:12 says " Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say." I have read this verse many times but when I read it the other night it really strengthened my faith. I may not know where God is taking me but he does. If he doesn't worry than why should I. It doesn't do me any good.  Sometimes I forget how big God really is. 

God's love for us has no limits. The first two words of Exodus 4:12 honestly gives me chills. I know God has a plan for me but it is my job to walk in his ways and believe in him. I know this is short but I don't have much else to say... the verse really says it all.

" So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help    you;  I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.  Isaiah 41:10

Thankful

  Well it has been about a week since I have written anything. Lately my mind feels like it has been empty for some reason. Just this past week I was reflecting about everything in my life and how thankful I am. I am thankful to have a loving family. Without them I would go crazy. I am thankful to have a job in today's economy. God has always provided for me. I'm also thankful for God's randomness. He always works in the most mysterious and random ways and I like that because it really makes my journey with him exciting. I could go on and on about a lot of things that I am thankful for but I don't want to bore you. What are you thankful for? Anything crazy going on in your life? I would like to know. Peace out.

Amazingly Simple

How can we better understand God and how he works? Oswald Chambers quotes: " By receiving his Spirit, recognizing and relying on him, and obeying him as he brings us the truth of his Word, life will become amazingly simple". I am very guilty of letting my worries and concerns get in the way of what God is trying to do. I worry about my job, I worry about our country and sometimes even wonder if I am doing God's will. Why do I waste so much time worrying when deep down I know God is in control? He knows what he is doing. These little things can dominate our lives and we lose sight of what is most important and that is trusting God and relying on his Word. I like what Jesus says in Matthew 6:30. " If God gives such attention to the appearance of wildflowers most of which are never even seen don't you think he'll attend to you, take pride in you, do his best for you? What I'm trying to do here is to get you to relax, to not be so preoccupied with getting, so you can respond to God's giving. People who don't know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don't worry about missing out. You'll find all your everyday human concerns will be met."

This is the Message version which is longer but I like how honest and upfront it seems. All of my concerns will be met if I will stop worrying. To be honest with you I don't agree with what Barack Obama has done this past week and I don't like the direction he is going but when I stop and think about it all... God is watching and has total control over our country. I can't be consumed with what Obama is doing. It's not my place to worry, but I can stand up for what is right. Another verse that I like is Matthew 13:22. Jesus says: " The seed cast in the weeds is the person who hears the kingdom news, but weeds of worry and illusions about getting more and wanting everything under the sun strangle what was heard, and nothing comes of it."

Just like Oswald Chambers said: life will become amazingly simple if we rely on him and obey him as he brings us the truth of his word. God is good and he has never failed me. In our good and bad times we have to continue to trust him no matter what the circumstances are. If you have worries in your life right now I encourage you to read Matthew chapter 6. It is full of great scripture. Have a good day.

Truth: Where is my trust?

Well these past couple of days I feel like I have been learning a lot. Either through God's word or a through a sermon I feel like I have been growing in my faith. God puts us through times where we have to learn how to trust him and figure out what we really believe as a Christian. Yesterday I heard a quote that is so true. "What you believe determines how you behave." Where is my trust? In the world? Or in God? I have to decide daily if I will put my trust in God and rely on him to get me through the hard times. I can't rely on the things of this world or anyone else to get me through. Don't get me wrong... I think that it is great to have spiritual mentors in your life and I have some of my own but only God can change me and I have to believe in him and his word.

I like what it says in Isaiah 50:10-11. " Who among you fears the Lord and obeys his servant? If you are walking in darkness, without a ray of light, trust in the Lord and rely on your God. But watch out, you who live in your own light and warm yourselves by your own fires. This is the reward you will receive from me: You will soon fall down in great torment." Like I mentioned the other day... right now I have my own wants and I know what would make me happy but is it what God wants? Is it his will? It seems like today's society thinks that everything is okay or normal. I think that there are things in all of our lives that at times we know is a sin but we let it slide by thinking it is okay. If we continue down that path we are in for torment. If people want to know what truth is they can find it in the word. The truth is God.

I heard a song on the radio today by a band called Addison Road and the song is called "Hope Now". The chorus says: Everything rides on hope now, everything rides on faith somehow, when the world has broken me down , your love sets me free. If you have not heard this song I encourage to listen to it. The rest of the words are amazing. I will close with a quote by Chuck Swindoll. "Convictions are a matter of choice, not force." Sorry if I blabbered on in this post but all of this was on my mind and I wanted to say it. Have a good day.