June 17

Seek God to Worship, not JUST the experience or feeling of it.

Proverbs 15:15-18

"All the days of the oppressed are wretched,
but the cheerful heart has a continual feast.
Better a little with the fear of the Lord
than great wealth with turmoil.
Better a meal of vegetables where there is love
than a fattened calf with hatred.
A hot-tempered man stirs up dissension,
but a patient man calms a quarrel."

This passage is all about attitude! A lot of the times it seems that it doesnt really matter what we have or what situation it is - our happiness isnt determined by our circumstances, but the coindition of our hearts, with which we look upon our circumstances. When we have cheerful hearts, fear of the Lord, love, and patience we can achieve so much more happiness than people with wealth or riches. hhahah this is why spoiled kids are often more miserable. IN YO FACEE.
And whats especially important is that a lot of the itmes, we cant change whats around us. We cant change the fact we only have veggies to eat while our neighbours have a fat cow (haha taking examples from the verse, ofcousre). And maybe to apply it to our lives rihgt now, we cant change the fact that we have to write exams and we're busting our butts. haha but within these situations we can really find the peace and contentment (is that a word?) that lies innately within us. So as I hit the books again (or maybe ramyun first) I think im really gonnna try to have a more postivie attitude towards this.
School is done in 4 days! cant wait!

Hey guys!
I didn’t read a verse today but I thought I’d share some things that I’ve been thinking about. Ive been studying for my TOK exam and we have a whole unit on faith. And we learned about a whole bunch of philosophers that believe in God, don’t believe in God, believe that faith is subjective, or believe that faith is objective, believe that faith should be blind, or believe that faith should be totally rationalized. And not only did I find this unit really interesting, but it really made me reflect about my own faith, and a lot of the times I found myself questioning my beliefs.. But in the end I think it’s all about balance. And maybe that’s why Christianity is such a hard religion to follow because there are so many grey areas.
Faith: subjective vs. objective:
Some philosophers loved God but hated the church – thought that the church simply mouthed empty formulae and trapped us in a routine that made God really impersonal and distant from us.
This is something I think that we really have to watch out for as leaders in our church community. Sure, we have practice every Friday, go to church every Sunday, lead worship songs, etc. But it’s really up to the condition of our hearts and our genuine willingness to worship that makes what we do so much more than empty formulae.
On the other hand, some philosophers thought that all religious truth are completely objective – doesn’t matter who you are – faith is the same for everyone. I’d have to say that this is only true on some levels. There are things like scripture, the basic message that is universal: whether or not you’re a guy or girl, live in Africa or live in Toronto, the bible makes it clear that some truths are completely universal. But then we can’t take that and assume that faith should be exactly the same for everyone. Because that takes away the relational aspect of Christianity, which is probably the most important part of it.
So then how do we make sure that we stay in line and live the best possible Christian lives? I think that at the heart of everything, it all depends on the heart that we have. If our hearts are in the right place, then even our routine becomes so much more, and we accept God’s universal word, but at the same time we have the desire to connect with God on a personal, intimate level.
Phew. Thought id get that off my chest. Sorry this is more a rant then a real devo. Haha
Good luck on exams everyone!

that was quite the read cathy... it got me thinking

“Sing to God, sing praise to his name, extol him who rides on the clouds — his name is the LORD— and rejoice before him. A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling.”

This was the verse of the day. At first, i didnt get anything from it, but after reading it again the part "sing praise to his name" got me thinking. When we all "sing" (either actually singing or playing the guitar) we should do it for HIS name, not ours. you know that phrase from sports "i play for the name at the front, not the name at the back..." its like that.

-Isaac

I read Jeremiah 29 today.
v. 11 "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

From this chapter and especially the verse, I realized that it is great to expect great things from God for our lives or whatever we do. God has all the plans set for us- all we have to do is trust and follow. The one part that significantly stuck out for me was the "plans to give you hope and a future". When we are struggling in a situation or feeling as if things cannot be worse, we often forget about God. However, if we turn to God and ask for His help and let Him take over our lives, then we will probably find the hope that we cannot see at the moment.

“Sing to God, sing praise to his name, extol him who rides on the clouds — his name is the LORD— and rejoice before him. A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling.”- Psalm 68:4-5

This is what we are called to do, to praise Jesus and to glorify his name!
Aren't we so honoured to be able to love a God like Him, to be loved by Him. It's siiiiiick.
No matter what we say to him, about him, he really is indescribeable. Have you ever just sat there and thought of how AMAZING God is?
It really blows you away. haha. Let us sing to God, dance for God, praise him like our hearts are filled with love and joy.
There is only joy in God's presence. Just cry otu to God, worship him, don't let pride or other stuff restrict you from reaching him.

EXAMS ARE OVER!
High School is over...Mwuhahahaha.

I'm gonna go do something crazy and start a new blog. Or a youtube channel. Hahahaha.

Cathy, I'm glad you "got that off your chest". I really benefited from reading it so thank you!

Today I read Isaiah 12:2
2 Surely God is my salvation;
I will trust and not be afraid.

It's a simple verse, but it reminded me that trusting in God only needs to be that simple, as well! He is our salvation. In a literal sense, that means that He has our backs after our deaths - He's insured that we have eternal life. With that in mind, what is there to fear? I've come to find that fear is often what leads us to falling into the traps of this world so easily, because of a fear of resisting what's "popular", because of a fear of being different, etc. Trust in the One who can grant you everlasting life, and abandon that fear. When we learn to trust Him, I can't help but think that it'll help us to be the best God-like people we can be in and amongst this madness we live in. Whoowhoo!


Good luck with the rest of your exams!



- H

I read Acts 4-5 today and learned about courage.

Acts 4:19; 5:29
But Peter and John replied, "Judge for yourselves whether it is right in God's sight to obey you rather than God." Peter and the other apostles replied: "We must obey God rather than men!"

There are times when you're going to hardships and you have absolutely no one to depend on other than yourself or God. Sometimes it's easy to trust yourself more because you feel like you can take control of the situation, but sometimes, you feel so helpless that you just have to go to God. I think that these verses are about courage as well as pride. When you want something to go your way but it doesn't seem to, you do everything in your power to make it go your way, keeping God on the side (well, you can still pray, but you have a very specific purpose). Thus, one thing we need to be praying for is the ability to see the world through God's eyes. I think THAT takes real courage -- being able to put your trust onto God even when you think you can handle it, since you know that God is only going to give you the best.

Have a great Thursday everyone! I'm pretty excited for praise on Friday...Like Jacob said, I know you guys are super busy, but if you can find some time, please devote them into practice!


Roh