From the Head to the Heart

I’m pretty sure that ever since my second Friday of Pathfinders in first grade I could have recited Proverbs 3:5-6 to anyone at any time. The thing I have been learning this week is that there is a big difference between knowing a truth in my head and knowing that truth in such a way that it sinks into the core of your being and impacts the very way you live your life. Obviously, this is not a new lesson for me, but it is one that God has been pounding me with this week.

I have been spending a lot of time lately thinking about what I’m doing next year. Crunch time is fast approaching, and my decision is (hopefully) imminent. I have a couple of options that I am considering, and I am confident that at any of them I will enjoy my job, have great opportunities to serve, and will learn a lot. The issue is that (obviously) I want to make the best decision, not just a good decision. And I have been stressed out lately about which one I’ll choose. Which is odd, considering I just finished memorizing Philippians, which includes the verse, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God, and the peace of God, which surpasses understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” I can recite that verse all day long. The disconnect comes when I try to take the verses I know in my head, such as Philippians 3:6-7 and Proverbs 3:5-6 and actually live them. It’s taking a while for me to learn this one, and I don’t know when it will sink in for good, but I’m now aware of the problem, and I think that’s an important first step to finding the solution (which will involve a lot of prayer and time in the Bible.)

A Video

Yesterday, I made a video to promote our upcoming camp. This week's thought is the content of the video. (I tried to load the video itself to the blog, but it wouldn't work, so I guess I just ahve to give you the youtube link.)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hQLRpd5AMy4

Thursday's Thought-Remembering

We live in a very fast-paced society. We are always moving forward. We can’t afford to slow down, stop, or—God forbid—take a look backwards. We value progress and change above all else and see the past as a necessary step to getting where we are today and nothing more.

If we are Christians, though, should this be our attitude about the past? In the Bible, God was very intentional about making sure His people remembered the past. Starting with creation, God made a weekly celebration—Sabbath—to commemorate His work. He was so passionate about His people remembering His work of creation that in Numbers 15, a man is stoned for gathering sticks to build a fire.

God also gave His people numerous other reminders throughout the Bible of His previous work. The rainbow is a gift to help us remember God’s faithfulness to keeping His promises. The Passover was given to the Israelites to remind them how great a salvation God had given them from the land of Egypt (and that one was such a big deal to God that if someone failed to keep it properly, they were excommunicated from the nation of Israel). When the Israelites entered the Promised Land, they built a pillar of rocks next to the place where they crossed the Jordan River on dry ground so when future generations asked about the stones, they could tell the new generation about God’s faithfulness to them in the past. Throughout the Old Testament, God is wildly passionate about His people remembering in an intentional way what He has done for them. This theme even carries over into the New Testament, where Jesus institutes the Lord’s Supper as a reminder to His followers of His death. Each time we celebrate this, it should be an intentional act of remembering what God has done for us in the past.

But what difference should this make in our lives (besides inspiring us to take communion the next time they have it in church)? One thing that I have found in my life is that reflecting on God’s past faithfulness is one of the best tools available to give me hope of His future faithfulness. Reflecting on times in the past when I was in a situation where I had no idea how anything could ever work out for good but I can now see how God used it to shape me and mold me into who I am today, I am encouraged to persevere (with faith) through today’s trials because I know the same God who got me through yesterday will get me through today.

P.S. As far as last week's post goes, I didn't totally skip it, but it is in the form of an inspirational video, and I wanted to wait until my new computer got here to load it, since my old one would take forever to load it. The new computer is here now, so it should be up soon.