Yet I will exult in the Lord

Though the fig tree should not blossom
   And there be no fruit on the vines,
   Though the yield of the olive should fail
   And the fields produce no food,
   Though the flock should be cut off from the fold
   And there be no cattle in the stalls, 
Yet I will exult in the LORD,
   I will rejoice in the God of my salvation.

                                                   Habakkuk 3:17-18

God's kingdom

Was cleaning out my desk and stuff... and then I found my journal from freshmen year. I journaled that a brother prayed that we are not here for success or to build memories, but for God's kingdom. How I easily forget.

"The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field, which a man found and hid again; and from joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field." Matthew 13:44

'When God’s present kingdom consumes and saturates my entire life, that is how I am effective and will make a difference. It comes down to where every word, every thought, every action, and my entire being are to His glory, wherever He places me and whatever He puts me through for His matchless, invaluable kingdom.'

watch over your heart

"Watch over your heart with all diligence, for from it flow the springs of life." -Proverbs 4:23

The flesh is weak, the spirit is willing. Self-control, submission, trust in the Lord. We tell ourselves lies of temporary "pleasures" that weakens and dries the soul. The desires of the flesh can seem so subtle, but it may eat us up and we forget the Lord. That is why we always need to be on guard; there is no break from spiritual discipline. Lord, help us.

"You'll never amount to anything and you'll never accomplish anything of significance unless you learn habitually to do those things you don't like to do. You won't move ahead in life by letting it all hang out, by just doing what feels good in the moment, by following your passions. You only really make an impact in life by saying "no" to pleasurable but empty things and saying "yes" to the good things that may not be pleasant in the moment. And it is a sign of maturity to be able to do that, by the way. It's the sign of a mature Christian to say no to the short term pleasure in order to reap the long term good."

J.P. Moreland

blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord

Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD
And whose trust is the LORD.
For he will be like a tree planted by the water,
That extends its roots by a stream
And will not fear when the heat comes;
But its leaves will be green,
And it will not be anxious in a year of drought
Nor cease to yield fruit.
Jeremiah 17:7-8

"My goal is God himself, not joy nor peace, nor even blessing, but Himself, my God." -Oswald Chambers

Christ and His church

Simply put, marriage is meant to be a picture of Christ and His church. All the other blessings in weddings, marriage are so small or maybe even nothing compared to this picture. This truth is accepted by believers (hopefully) but to love it, embrace it, value it does not come quickly.
I loved weddings ever since I was small. First because I loved being with all my cousins when a relative would get married. Then I loved weddings of people from church just because my friends were there as well. I just enjoyed the environment of weddings. Now seeing how couples aim to glorify God with their marriage, aim to be selfless and to serve, to diminish themselves so Christ can be lived out in their lives, to point each other to Christ - for the wife to submit to the husband, and the husband to lead and sacrifice for his wife - is very different than how I saw it before.
The book of Hosea speaks of how God loves His people, people who are like prostitutes. He pursues and loves and protects. Christ sanctifies His bride, He cleanses her, nourishes her, cherishes her (Eph 5)... He died for her. How wonderful of a husband Christ is to His church.

(not sure if to relate God's promises to Israel the same to the church, but still reveals the character of God)
"I will betroth you to Me forever; Yes, I will betroth you to Me in righteousness and in justice, in lovingkindness and in compassion, And I will betroth you to Me in faithfulness. Then you will know the Lord." Hosea 2:19-20

"The graciousness of uncertainty"

one of my favorites from Oswald Chambers' "My Utmost for His Highest"

He quotes 1 John 3:2b but I like both verses one and two:
See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of God; and such we are. For this reason the world does not know us, because it did not know Him. Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is.

Naturally, we are inclined to be so mathematical and calculating that we look upon uncertainty as a bad thing. We imagine that we have to reach some end, but that is not the nature of spiritual life. The nature of spiritual life is that we are certain in our uncertainty, consequently we do not make our nests anywhere. Common sense says - "Well, supposing I were in that condition..." We cannot suppose ourselves in any condition we have never been in.
Certainty is the mark of common-sense life: gracious uncertainty is the mark of spiritual life. To be certain of God means that we are uncertain in all our ways, we do not know what a day may bring forth. This is generally said with a sigh of sadness; it should be rather an expression of breathless expectation. We are uncertain of the next step, but we are certain of God. Immediately we abandon to God, and do the duty that lies nearest, He packs our life with surprises all the time. When we become advocates of a creed, something dies; we do not believe God, we only believe our belief about Him. Jesus said, "Except ye... become as little children." Spiritual life is the life of a child. We are not uncertain of God, but uncertain of what He is going to do next. If we are only certain in our beliefs, we get dignified and severe and have the ban of finality about our views; but when we are rightly related to God, life is full of spontaneous, joyful uncertainty and expectancy.
"Believe also in Me," said Jesus, not - "Believe certain things about Me." Leave the whole thing to Him, it is gloriously uncertain how He will come in, but He will come. Remain loyal to Him.

why be holy?

I know in this Christian walk we will be sanctified. We are to strive towards holiness and godliness. We are to be like Christ. We are to love, to fight sin, to trust in God, to be a light in the world, etc. But why? I don't know why I asked the "why" question because I know that these are fruits of a believer. We were created to worship and do good works. I sound like I don't believe because I ask the why question. Thinking about it more, it cannot be merely because it's fruit of a Christian or even because we will be rewarded. Then I was reminded that it's because.... God loves me. Somehow it makes sense. His love controls me. (2 Cor 5:14)

But God being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved)
Ephesians 2:4-5