Chapters 6 and 7
"The answer lies in letting Him change you".p.103
"I need God to help me love God." p.104
"We should be the ones begging to worship in His presence" p.109
"What does running toward Christ and pursuing Love look like in daily life?" p.114
These are a few of the phrases in chapters 6 & 7 that I underlined and made notes beside in my book as I was reading. If you are not highlighting, underlining and writing in your book... get a pen and read it again!
Chan gives us so much to think about and so many scriptures that apply to what he is sharing. For this response I want you to share 3 or 4 statements or scriptures from chapters 6 & 7 that you underlined or that stood out to you and tell us about how it impacted you, why you highlighted it, what notes did you write in your book and/or what is God speaking into your heart through these words. I know this might be personal but God could use your heart to reach another. Share what you feel comfortable sharing and know that what is posted here will stay here :)
The summer is flying by and we will all be in school together soon. I hope you are having a wonderful, restful, adventurous and FUN summer! I hope you are learning to fall in love with our Lord! I LOVE LOVE and I LOVE YOU!
Tosha Haynes
"When loving Him becomes obligation, one of the many things we have to do, we end up focusing even more on ourselves" (103).
ReplyDelete- This quote really made me stop and think about how I view God. Honestly sometimes I make God just another point on my "to-do list". I view Him as something that i feel "obligated" to check off my list. And this quote is very true, because when I put God as just an item on my list it becomes all about me accomplishing everything on my list, and after I'm able to check everything off, it becomes all about me succeeding in my accomplishments. It becomes a constant cycle of selfishness. God, my Father and Creator deserves to be WAY MORE than an obligation. He deserves to be respected and loved. Out of my love for him, and his love for me, I should WANT to honor him and seek him through all that I do.
"You have to stop loving and pursuing Christ in order to sin" (104).
- I love this quote because it is so simple, yet so true. Sin is the opposite of who God is. As long as we are honoring God, loving God, seeking God, and living our life in a way that is pleasing and honoring to Him then sin is not an issue for us. Sadly, we are all sinners and we will all sin and experience sin. The good news is, is that all we have to do is ask God for forgiveness and fix our eyes on Him and we are back on the right path.
"When we work for Christ out of obligation, it feels like work. But when we truly love Christ, our work is a manifestation of that love, and it feels like love" (110).
- This quote is very similar to the first one i chose. I just love how it restates that when we really love God with all of our hearts then what some people view as work, is really love. When we love Him we love to honor Him and please Him. When we really love God we love to tithe, we love to pray, we love to make decisions in our life due to what we know is right. Some people would look at many of these things as burdens or they may dread giving up something that they want, but when we LOVE God, everything of the world does not matter.
"Do you realize the foolishness of seeking fulfillment outside of him?" (113).
- This quote is so blunt and so powerful. Sometimes it is the most obvious things that i tend to forget about. This quote is so straight forward about the fact that through God alone is the only way that we can obtain fulfillment. Things of the world never give us true satisfaction, so it is foolish to strive for such things.
"Love your neighbor as yourself" Galatians 5:13-14
ReplyDeleteEveryone has heard this verse at least once in their own life. This always makes me have to stop and think about my actions. I always need to make sure that im not putting myself first before others. God is telling me through this verse to always love others around me as i would love myself.
"When you are pursuing love, running toward Christ, you do not have opportunity to wonder, Am I doing this right? or Did I serve enough this week?"
I think this is a very strong question that everyone faces including myself. When we love God so much we should not be questioning ourselves and we should be listening to Gods order for what he needs us to do.
"What does running towards Christ and pursuing Love look like in daily life?"
This is again another question I am faced with daily. But this quote inspires me to think in depth of Christ and his love for me. Each and everyday i try my best to love and live for Him.
-"Love your neighbor as yourself" (103).
ReplyDeleteThis is a very popular verse that mostly everyone has heard of. It makes me take a step back from what I'm doing and really focus on what it means. Instead of putting yourself first, let the people you're surrounded by go in front of you. So, God is telling me to not be as selfish and love my neighbors more than myself.
-"So take heart, keep on, fight the good fight, pray continuously, and do not grow weary" (106).
This kinda stood out to me. God is telling us to have faith in him, and he'll be in control of our lives. We should take God's word and fight against the Devil and pray pray pray.
- "What does running towards Christ and pursuing Love look like in daily life?"
This quote motivates me to take a deeper look of God's love for us. In my daily life, I try to do my best to accomplish everything for God's glory.
"When you are truly in love, you go to great lengths to be with the one you love...could you be satisfied with heaven, if Christ was not there?" (100&101)
ReplyDelete-These statements stood out to me because it made me think what it is like to truly love someone and the things we do for those we love so dearly. God truly loved us, we were all He thought about. He even died for us and died so that we could intern be with Him forever. Out to the side I wrote 'This is how we should be acting towards God and how we should feel about him, truly loving.' We try so hard to get to Heaven, but why? Would I be satisfied without God in heaven? It made me think about why I want to go to Heaven, and for a little bit I thought about wanting to be with loved ones that had died, being sin-free, and living in eternity, and then I thought about being with God. And how much I long to see Him, talk to Him, and praise Him in Heaven side my side. Heaven wouldn't be heaven with God not there, He is what makes Heaven. It made me realize that I'm not always truly loving God and this statement has put a mental picture in my mind of what it means to truly love God. To always be thinking, talking, and longing to be with Him.
"When we love we're free! We don't have to worry about a burdensome load of commands because when we are loving, we can't sin." (102)
- When i read this it made me think about how I spend my day, what do I spend my time doing the most? I realized that during "my time" I would sleep late, watch four hours of t.v., and be on my phone or computer. I find myself keeping to myself and not reaching out to love others. I'll even catch myself evaluating people, which is a really bad habit of mine. I'll start to compare myself to them and either be putting them down or myself down. This statement made me think about how important Love is and how loving others can free us from any bondage, I wrote out to the side how God's most important commandment is to love. If we only followed one of God's commandments, to love your neighbor as yourself, we would then automatically be following the rest. This is the cure to all sickness, pain, and troubles we could have. This made me realize how powerful love is and how by loving others throughout the day and most all of the day, will not only bring me closer to God but farther away from sin.
"Having faith often means doing what others see as crazy. Something is wrong when our lives make sense to unbelievers." (115)
-So far in this book these two sentences have stuck with me the most. When other people see me and the way I live I should seem crazy to them, different. At times in my life if you were to take out God my life wouldn't look too different, and that's bad. I've realized now not to be afraid, afraid of bad things happening, what others think about me, or even if ____ is the right thing. Because nothing is going to seem right in others eyes, the only thing that should matter is what is right in God's eyes. I've come to realize that God loves these crazy things, He has made me to be different and when I'm different compared to other people it's a good thing in His eyes. He created us differently, He gave each of us a unique gift, and we should live our lives like how He intended them to be, crazy in the eyes of unbelievers.
When I read chapters 6 and 7 it was very convicting! The verses that were shared were perfect to represent what Chan was saying. One scripture that spoke to me was Galatians 5:13-14. It says this, "But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love" (P.101). I want to want God. This verse is special because it tells me that the freedom that was graciously given to me is not to be used for myself, but to be used for others and to further serve God.
ReplyDeleteAnother great verse that I came across in this chapter was Psalm 130:1-2. This verse says "Out of the depths I cry to you, O LORD; O Lord, hear my voice. let your ears be attentive to my cry for mercy" (P. 106). I love this verse because I often forget that I can turn to Christ whenever I choose, but I turn to worldly things instead. This verse tells me that I need to know that God is there for me whenever I want. And the last verse that I love is 1 John 2:6. This is actually my favorite verse. It says this, "Whoever claims to live in him, must walk as Jesus did" (P. 117) What was interesting about this verse is that Chan interprets this verse differently than I would. Chan asks if we are ready to make our lives like Christ, but I view that verse of if you are not fully committed to Christ, then you are not the Christian you claim to be.
-Abby Cook
1) "The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to him in song." (Psalm 28:7)-- (105)
ReplyDeleteI've heard this verse before, but it definitely jumped of the page when I read it. It gives my comfort to know that God is my strength and my shield, and that he protects me. I underlined this because it reminded me even more how I need to trust in him completely because of his love and protection. Not only is this one of my favorite verses, but it reminds me to trust God in all the toughest times.
2) "Jesus said, 'In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.'" (John 16:33)-- (106)
This is such an important verse to remember. Sometimes I get so frustrated and confused with the things I have to go through, but this is a reminder to expect the obstacles God is going to throw in front of us. He puts them there for a reason. But it is also a reminder to realize that God has conquered the world, so he can help us conquer AND obstacle that comes in our way if we turn to God.
3) "God didn't just give a little for us; He have His best. He gave himself."-- (119)
One reason this stuck out to me is because it makes me think on how much God has really done for me. He has provided food, water, a loving family, amazing friends, a wonderful school, a bet to sleep in at night, and soooo much more. What I have done for him in my life that even compares to what Jesus did for me? Nothing. Therefore, this statement is such a good reminder on how I need to strive to return the favor to him.
4) "We are each given different gifts and talents by our Master. The thing that matters most is how we use what we have been given, not how much we make or do compared to someone else. What matters is that we spend ourselves."-- (127)
I LOVE this statement. I tend to be down on myself a lot for different things, or I will be jealous of what someone else has that I don't. This promts me to remember to love what I have and feel blessed for what I possess, not be jealous of others for their gifts and talents.
~Lindsay Curtis~
1-"If you could have heaven, with no sickness, and with all the friends you ever had on earth, and all the food you ever liked, and all the leisure activities you ever enjoyed, and all the natural beauties you ever saw, all the physical pleasures you ever tasted, and no human conflict or any natural disasters, could you be satisfied in heaven, if Christ was not there?" (101)
ReplyDeleteI'm going to be completely honest. When I first read this, my initial reaction was, "Hey that doesn't sound so bad". RIght after I thought about it, I re-read the passage and got the weirdest feeling. I didn't know how I had become this way and thought that I could live my life here on earth or in heaven without Christ. After talking to God, I realized that I am not near as in love with Him as I want to be or as in love with Him as He wants me to be. I can't imagine how much I hurt Him by even thinking for a second that I would be okay on my own without Him. I now know that I will NEVER be okay even for a second without Him by my side, and I am working on my relationship more and more every day.
2- After I read that first passage on the third page of the chapter and felt so bad, I didn't really want to go on reading the chapter. After a while, I picked the book up and began reading again. I came across the part where it said
"God wants to change us. He died so that we could change. The answer lies in letting Him change you." (103)
I realized that God sent His son to die so that he could shape us and mold us into the Christians that He wants to be so deeply in love with. I asked God to change everything about me and the way I have been living my life not 100% dependent on Him. I feel like he is beginning to open my heart to Him so that I will allow Him to change me and allow myself to fall in love with Him.
3- The last section in chapter 6 is about telling God the truth about how you haven't been completely devoted to HIm and how you've been lukewarm. It says to go to God and be completely honest with HIm because he already knows and can't be fooled.
This section really showed me that even when I try to convince myself and others that I'm in a relationship with God, he knows when I'm being serious and when I'm being lukewarm. I learned that I need to be completely honest with Him, so that we can work together to get me back on to a straight path and have an amazing relationship with HIm the way He designed it to be. The last paragraph in this section says, "Jesus, I need to give myself up. I am not strong enough to love You and walk with You on my own. I can't do it, and I need You. I need You deeply and desperately. I believe you are worth it, that You are better than anything else I could have in this life or the next. I want You. And when I don't, I want to want You. Be all in me. Take all of me. Have Your way with me." (111) When I read this, I realized that this was exactly what I've been feeling for a while but I just couldn't put words to it and, in a way, I was trying to hide it from God. I re-read it a few more times, and then finally put it in my own words and went to God about it. I felt something lift off of me and knew that God heard me and forgave me and wanted to continue to pursue a relationship with me.
1. "Grandma Clara used to say, 'I love love." Don't we all? Don't we crave it? And isn't that what God wants of us--to crave this relationship with Him as we crave all genuine love relationships? Isn't that what brings Him glory-- when believers desire Him and are not merely slaves who serve out of obligation?" (101)
ReplyDeleteThis was convicting when I read it because I know it's true. Love is such a strong and powerful emotion. When you're in love, it brings you pure joy...but when that love is stripped away from you, it puts you in a place of deep sorrow. Love can make or break you, but everyone loves it. Everyone desires it. And God is absolutely no exception. Shouldn't we love our Father and Creator more than anything in this world? Yes, but that rarely happens.
2. "When you are running toward Christ, you are freed up to serve, love, and give thanks without guilt, worry, or fear. As long as you are running, you are safe... It is when we stop actively loving Him that we find ourselves restless and gravitating toward other means of fulfillment." (104)
I feel like I don't run, I jog. I have never been whole-heartedly in a passionate love with God. I've come very close to that...but I always end up jogging. I jog and then slowly come to a screeching halt. I stop actively loving and pursuing Him.
3. "Are you ready and willing to make yourself nothing? To take the very nature of a servant? To be obedient unto death?" (117)
I wrote out to the side of this "No". Of course I'm not ready to do that! My selfish answer just proves and reminds me that Jesus loved me THAT much. He was selfless enough to do anything save me!
4. "Giving that is not motivated by love is worth nothing. Paul says from this kind of giving we 'gain nothing'; however, when we give out of love, we gain much. Giving results not only in heavenly compensation, but also gives us great joy in our lives here and now." (120)
I loved this because, recently, I have been hearing that "we are meant to serve. we are happier when we are serving, rather than receiving". I'm glad that I was reminded of this once again. Giving feels so good. It fulfills me way longer than getting presents or worldly possessions does.
~Kathryn Fisher
~"If you could have heaven, with no sickness, and with all the friends you ever had on earth, and all the food you ever liked, and all the leisure activities you ever enjoyed, and all the natural beauties you ever say, and all the physical pleasures you ever tasted, and no human conflict or natural disasters, could you be satisfied with heaven, if Christ was not there?" (100-101)
ReplyDeleteThis passage really stuck out to me because as I thought about what it was saying I realized that I actually would be ok with that (who wouldnt?) and that is NOT ok with God. I thought about why that seemed awesome and knew it was because I'm not completely head over heals in love with God like he asks us to be. I love life and all God has given me and that's not a sin, but that's also not what God calls us to do. He calls us to love him no matter what and to want to go to heaven TO BE WITH HIM and not to get all the rewords.
~"Life isn't perfect when you follow Christ wholeheartedly; you will have trouble, Jesus says-it is pretty much guaranteed." (106)
This kind of "popped my bubble" of how I always thought and felt about life and how I always think that none of the bad stuff will happen to me and I won't have to go through trials and tribulations, but this passage gave me a wake up call that if I live the way God calls me to live then i will inevitably have all kinds of trouble.
~"The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me'" (Matthew 25:40)
This verse stood out to me because I always wonder how I can glorify God and honor him and show my love for him and this made it so clear: I love God by loving others. I can serve God by serving all his people and loving them completely.
- "If you could have heaven. with no sickness, and with all the friends you ever had on earth, and all the food you ever liked, and all the leisure activities you ever enjoyed, and all the natural beauties you ever saw, ll the physical pleasures you ever tasted, and no human conflict or any natural disasters, could you be satisfied with heaven, if Christ wasn't there?"(100-101). This quote really stood out to me as I was reading chapters 6 and 7. I think it stood out to me because the situation that was set up in that paragraph actually sounded very enjoyable to me, which concerned me deeply. I then noticed that all the times in life where I am on my knees praying and relying on God fully are the hard times in life. This is wrong and this question inspired me to rely on God and love him ALWAYS!
ReplyDelete- "You have made known to me the path of life, you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand." (Ps. 16:11) This verse made me realize that my picture of God as a fortress in hard times is right, but also wrong. God doesn't only help me in hard times, but he brings me all the joy in life.
- "And now, little children, abide in him, so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink from him in shame at his coming"(1 John 2:28) This verse made me remember the picture of Jesus as my loving caring father who would never want to do me any harm. This was comforting to me and kept me from fearing him as much.
1)In chapter 6, Chan says that " God is the only true giver, and he needs nothing from us. But still He wants us."(109)
ReplyDeleteWell, I continued to read and I found a passage that said "He certainly dosen't need to beg or plead with us."(109) I connected that to the quote above and from that I noticed that we r the ones who NEED God but we don't always WANT him. God does not Need us but he always Wants us. It is truly amazing how my view has changed because of this exerpt.
2) In chapter 7 they made a point by saying " When you pray, your prayers are heard by the same God who answered Moses' prayer for water in the desert..."(116)
I guess I've never thought about this before I read it but wow, God is ultimate, he listens to us, and he was the one who listened to Moses and more. It is so amazing that my God, my rock,
is the same God that " the people of faith" served and is the same God we serve! Also, Chan later goes on to say that God is the same one who gave Abraham and Sarah a baby when she was barren! God is great and truly amazing, our God is the same one as the one who made the Joseph 2nd in power only to Pharaoh!
3)Also, the scripture that says " Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and truth."(119) 1 John 3: 16-20
It is so true, I have heard it many times, that we need to show His love through our actions. There is actually a song that states " They will know we are Christians by our love and actions".True love causes us to sacrifice and that is the truth part. Chan says our love is shown by how we live our lives and I agree 100%! Also, give your time. This is one action that best represents this verse.
"God wants to change us. He died so that we could change. The answer lies in letting Him change you." (103)
ReplyDeleteI never thought that way that Jesus died so that we can be change. I always try to change myself to be better, more Godly. But it never worked, I always failed. I realize I cannot change myself only God can. Like He said you need to pray for God to change you. So I will pray to God to change me in the way he want. Instead of taking it in my own hands.
"Having faith often means doing what others see as crazy. Something is wrong when our lives make sense to unbelievers." (115)
I always been safe and never did anything crazy that show my faith. My life right now WOULD make sense to unbeliever. I have never thought that way before, well most of the thing he says I have never thought of it that way. I need to do stuff crazy to show God and so people can see God’s love and that he is truly there. It will be hard and I not sure if I can do that but I will pray for God to help me to be crazy with my life.
“If you could have heaven, with no sickness, and with all the friends you ever had on earth, and all the food you ever liked, and all the leisure activities you ever enjoyed, and all the natural beauties you ever saw, all the physical pleasures you ever tasted, and no human conflict or any natural disasters, could you be satisfied in heaven, if Christ was not there?" (101)
I know the right answer to this question however to tell you the truth I would feel I little guilt that he die for me and was not there but I think I would be fine with it. I know how wrong that sounds. The truth is that sometime I do forget that Jesus and God exist. I need to feel the opposite that I could not live with out Jesus. I need to be and should be crazy, whole hearted in love with Jesus. Another thing I need to pray for!
1."Love your neighbor as yourself"
ReplyDeleteThis verse I alway had a hard time following. I always end up hating or judge people. I would like to say I love everyone but I am human. This verse is telling me to put other before me and to love them more then me. It hard even with people i love I still think of me first. I need to pray for me not to be so selfish and to love my enemies.
2. When loving Him becomes obligation, one of the many things we have to do, we end up focusing even more on ourselves"
This verse is so true!!!!! It makes me think of how much I make him because a obligation. I just cheek him of a list each day. O it sunday I have to go to church or it dinner and we have to pray. I need not to think of him as a obligation but as something I want to do. I want to pray to my loving father to let him know I love him. I want to go to church to learn more about him and become closer to him.
3."We are each given different gifts and talents by our Master. The thing that matters most is how we use what we have been given, not how much we make or do compared to someone else. What matters is that we spend ourselves"
I struggle with this a lot special in sporty. Every athlete wants to be the best so people will glorify them. That why you work so hard, but God wants them to work hard because he gave you the talents to glorify him with them. I need to remember that I serve him not other and special not me.
Okay so this is about the third time everything I've written has gotten erased. Fun.
ReplyDelete1) Okay so the first thing that I was really impacted by was the quote " I thirst to be made more thirsty still." This was cool because it really applied to where I am in my walk with God right now. It also helped me to realize that it's okay to not to want God as long as you want to want Him, because that's still wanting him (yes it's super-confusing).
2) The second thing that I thought was really convicting was the idea that "If you could have heaven, with no sickness, and with all the friends you ever had on earth, and all the food you ever liked, and all the leisure activities you ever enjoyed, and all the natural beauties you ever saw, all the physical pleasures you ever tasted, and no human conflict or any natural disasters, could you be satisfied in heaven, if Christ was not there?" And honestly my first reaction, like AK, was "oh thats not so bad." Then I realized how sad that was to think that I could be "Ok" without my savior. God helped me realize that without him life is nothing and my life would be so short and have no impact. So that's another thing I'm working on.
3) The third and final idea that impacted me was "If you really want to experience God's supernatural provision. Test him. Give him more than you can manage and see how he responds. This made me think about how true this is. I mean like it's only when we truly rely on God that we can see how powerful he is. So right now I'm working on how I can give more than I can manage (obviously money wouldn't work because our parents provide for me).
1. In chapter six when he quotes John Piper "If you could have heaven, with no sickness, and with all the friends you ever had on earth, and all the food you ever liked, and all the leisure activities you ever enjoyed, and all the natural beauties you ever saw, all the physical pleasures you ever tasted, and no human conflict or any natural disasters, could you be satisfied in heaven, if Christ was not there?" that really made me think because that is how selfish we are now and how un-dependent on Christ we are. At first you read it and you think wow thatd be really nice but then you realize that you just said I would be fine without Christ. Which is heartbreaking to Him.
ReplyDelete2. The question Chan asks "Is loving God-and, by extension,loving people-what you are about? Is it what being a Christian means to you? Do you live as though faith, demonstrated through love, really is the only thing that counts?" This really stopped me dead in my track because its not. This is something that I really need work on when it comes to my relationship with Jesus Christ. Chan even admits that he didnt feel like it meant that to him. This is something that I feel like a lot of people need work on at some point in their spiritual journey.
3.In chapter 7 when Chan gives a passage to read, Hebres 11, I went and read it. This passage was probably one of the most helpful I have read in a while. The way it gave examples of people living out acts of faith made me think of how unfaithful i can be at times. My dad has been fighting cancer and it has really opened my eyes to how faithful I need to be in order to get through this. God has healed him in ways I couldnt even begin to imagine and this passage just proved what I had been telling myself.
-“He needs nothing from us. But still He wants us. He gave us life so that we might seek and know Him” (109).
ReplyDeleteThis quote impacted me because it shows me what a gift getting to know Christ is. He does not need us, but he still wants us, and we need him. We live in such a fallen world that it is necessary for him to be by our side. He is the one who can truly love and forgive us. He is the one that brings us back up to our feet when we our down, and he helps us to lift our heads. We just need to seek and find God, and know that He sent his son for us as a free gift.
-“God didn’t just give a little for us; He gave His best. He gave Himself” (119).
This quote really hit me. This quote speaks to me and says that because God gave me his all, I need to give my all back to him. God needs to be my whole life not just part of it. That is something I try to work on daily. I need to see that God gave himself and I need to give myself back to him. It should not be a choice but more like a command.
-“Another important element of giving is with our time” (120).
This quote really spoke to me because time is something that I struggle to give up. I now realize that time is something important. All 24 hours of the day should be used to glorify God. I was but on the earth to worship him and I should obey that. I do not need to ignore it! This element is important!
-“But God doesn’t call us to be comfortable. He calls us to trust Him so completely that we are unafraid to put ourselves in situations where we will be in trouble if He doesn’t come through” (124).
This quote impacts me because it is something that I have thought about before. I have realized that my walk with God should not be comfortable, and after reading this I feel God just letting me know again. I should take risks and not live a normal life but an extravagant life for Christ. I need to take leaps of faith for him, and know that God will carry me through even though sometimes it may feel that he is not right by my side. He has planned out every second of my life and He is the one that is in control.
Mallory McCullough
1) Chan says, "It is a remarkable cycle: our prayers for more love result in love, which naturally causes us to pray more, which results in more love." (104)
ReplyDeleteThis quote really showed how God will answer your prayers and bless you in a way that you didn't think possible. Praying for love seems so simple yet it could make a huge difference in the other choices that you make or the way you treat other people. This continuous cycle of love all starts with just one prayer and that was amazing to me.
2) John 16:33 "In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." (106)
This verse hit me because I always wonder when something happens to a really nice loving christian "why would God let this happen? These are his people. How could he let them fall?" But verses like this help me realize that those obstacles are put in Christians lives so that they can grow closer to God and show everybody else that God can help you through anything. This verse was kind of a comfort to know that it is guaranteed that you will have troubles but God will be there with you the whole time.
3) Chan states on page 116, "If we allow ourselves to live recklessly for Him, then we, too, will see His glory. We will see Him do the impossible."
This quote affected me because it showed me that I don't live recklessly for God. If God told me to pick up everything I have and move to a foreign country I would not want to because it's like I don't want to give Him that kind of control. I don't give my whole self to God and this quote helped me realize that I really need to and I need to be able to do whatever He calls me to do
4) At the end of the chapter Chan writes about the parable of the talents. He says,"Similarly, we are each given different gifts and talents by our Master. The thing that matters most is how we use what we have been given, not how much we make or do compared to someone else. What matters is that we spend ourselves." (127)
I like this quote because I feel like I compare myself to people ALOT. I always find myself saying things like, "If only I could sing like _________ or if only I were better at school like __________." I constantly compare myself to other people or worse I try to gain their talent instead of focusing on what God has actually given me. Because I do this though I know that I am not glorifying God. This passage encourages me to use what God has given ME and not focus on what he's given OTHERS.
“God wants to change us; He died so that we could change” (pg. 103).
ReplyDelete~I love this because it is all the truth! It is basically saying, we should change our way of living because Jesus died for us to follow him. I don’t really get the point of living if it is not for the glory of God. Even though this is REALLY hard, it is true. There are billions of things that we can get caught up in, in this world. We need to set aside these things and simply change! For the last couple of months I have been trying to change my way of living. I have been trying to accomplish a pretty difficult task. I am really trying to live my life according to God. Live how Jesus lived. I know that it is impossible to be Jesus but we can take Him for an example and take action to change the world. There is an awesome example of this in one of Carrie Underwood’s new songs. It’s called Change. There is one line in this song that really emphasizes this idea of change... “the smallest thing can make all the difference, love is alive...” It is a very powerful song that goes right along with this idea of change. We can “begin to focus more on Christ, loving Him and others becomes more natural” (pg. 104).
“Life is comfortable when you separate yourself from people who are different from you... But God doesn’t call us to be comfortable. He calls us to trust Him so completely that we are unafraid to put ourselves in situations where we will be in trouble if He doesn’t come through” (pg. 124).
~I read this and realized how comfortable/satisfied with the world I am. I often settle for less. Now that I think about it, I can remember a couple of times where I made a quick decision and failed to trust in God. Now I know that there will be a time when I am not going to have a choice. I am just going to have to trust in Him to prevail. To me, when I read, “God doesn’t call us to be comfortable” I immediately think about how I need to accept new friends for who they are and not for who they aren’t. I need to stop being judgmental and just accept the fact that God made them who they are. On another note, I have been thinking a lot about missions. I want to go somewhere and share God’s word but I am afraid to put my life on the line. This quote made me want to JUST DO IT! If I do happen to get into trouble, I can just trust God and He will do what he wants.
“And now, little children, abide in him, so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink from him in shame at his coming” -1 John 2:28 RSV
~WOW! This is VERY powerful!!! How horrible would it be to stand in front of the Throne of God and “shrink from him in shame”!? On the flip side, how incredible would it be if you were standing in front of the Throne of God in confidence!?!? WOW they are 2 totally different feelings! This verse also goes along with my missions trip thoughts... I want to go but I am afraid of what to expect. I need to get over that fear and just do it because I really do not want to stand in front of the Throne of God and say that I was scared of sharing the word of God. I would rather say, “Did you see how many people converted to Christianity!?” or “Look how many people’s hearts changed!” This feels much better (even to type). When the verse refers to us as, “little children” it reminds me of how powerful God is! He made the UNIVERSE!!!!! That is beyond belief! It is hard for me to even imagine how ipods are made! There are times when I don’t know what to pray. It helps me when I think back on my day and I just simply tell Him, “thank you for _______.” It can be anything!
These chapters were very moving! They made me realize what I need to be doing in my life and how I should be living.
*Presley Russell*
I underlined quite a few verses and quotes that really caught my eye. As I am reading this book I am learning more and more about how amazing and how much God cares about me. It is INCREDIBLE.
ReplyDelete1. “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Galatians 5:14
This is a very profound verse but it is so true. The meaning is simple treat others the way you want to be treated. This verse stood out to me because it applies to my life in so many ways. It challenges me to be kinder and more thoughtful to others and to make sure that they are put first.
2. “One of the clearest ways we love “with actions and in truth” is through giving to others” (120).
We are so fortunate to have as much as we all do. I personally struggle with giving to others. Like Chan says when we give we are showing how much we love others. I will work on giving more to others and sharing the truth about Jesus.
3. “When you pray your prayers are heard by the same God who answered Moses’ prayer for water in the desert, the God who gave Abraham and his barren wife a son, and the God who made the slave Joseph second in power onto to Pharaoh” (116).
When Chan said this I had to read it a few times for it to really sink in. I was in awe that the God who I pray to every night and who I go to in time of need answered the prayers of Moses and Abraham and Joseph. I am so thankful for a God who can do anything and who loves and cares about me.
*Leslie Berry*
1. "I am ashamed of my lack of desire. O God, the Triune God, I want to want Thee; I long to be filled with longing; I thirst to be made thirsty still." (pg. 99)
ReplyDeleteI absolutely loved that the first part of chapter 6 had a lot to do with lacking the desire for a relationship with God, because that has literally been my prayer for myself for the past 2ish months. It is so hard to actively pursue a relationship with Christ when I don't even really want to most of the time; its pretty frustrating. I constantly have to pray to God that I want to want Him, that I need Him to give me the desire for Him.
2. "It does no good to muster up more love for God, to will yourself to love him more. When loving Him becomes obligation, one of many things we have to do, we end up focusing even more on ourselves." (pg. 103)
This statement is so true, and it is a trap that is so easy to fall into. Its so easy for me to just make my time with God another thing to cross off my to do list for the day; if i read my Bible that morning or did a little quiet time, then im good for the day! But its not about me or how I want my day to go...doing that is like putting God in a box. Instead, my "quiet time" needs to be throughout my whole day, focusing on that rather that the things (I think) that I need to get done.
3. "Something is wrong when our lives make sense to unbelievers." (pg. 115)
I love this quote! It is just so good because its short and sweet and so true. We are children of the King; our lives should look SO MUCH different from those around us!!! Even our image on facebook (our pictures/things we say/write) needs to be obviously different from those of non believers. At CPA, we are a Christian school, and most of the students there call ourselves Christians, and yet we look no different from kids at other non christian schools. It is so sad and gives such a bad image for Christ...why should others want to follow Christ when our lives look no different from theres? It is something I need to be reminded of every single day. I need to live my life for Christ in a way that people can look at me and just tell that there is something alive and working inside of me.
"Why do most people feel they have to either pay God back for all He's done (buy His love) or somehow keep making up for all their inadequacies and failures (prove their love)?" -p. 102
ReplyDelete"But the solution isn't to try harder, fail, and then make bigger promises, only to fail again." -pg. 103
These quotes absolutely, completely, one hundred percent describe my life and relationship with God PERFECTLY. I constantly feel ashamed, inadequate, frustrated, insufficient and simply... stupid. Basically my life consists of: deciding to "change" and become a better Christian who is more pleasing to God, failing at it and realizing that I never changed at all, then feeling guilty for not living the life that I think God deserves, deciding to "change" again, failing, and well.... I think you get where this is going. When I read these quotes, they really opened my eyes to what a true relationship with the Lord looks like. I realized that my focus is all wrong. Instead of driving myself crazy by trying to please God, I should instead just love God and not worry about anything else.
"When you are running toward Christ, you are freed up to serve, love, and give thanks without guilt, worry, or fear. As long as you are running, you are safe." -pg. 104
After reading this, I had never felt more comforted and at peace in my entire life. It definitely hit the target for me and showed me the main error in my life. I realized that I am constantly worried and feeling guilty for all of the things in my life that are unpleasing to God and it pulls me away from the one thing that is most pleasing to God: running into His arms and experiencing His pure love.
"How would my life change if I actually thought of each person I came into contact with as Christ?" -pg. 118
Instantly while reading this, the oh-so-famous bible verse "love your neighbor as yourself" popped into my head. I have heard that phrase countless times throughout my life, but this quote finally opened my eyes to what the verse really means. We are meant to love God with everything we have and to love other humans the same. This quote presented itself as a challenge to me. It encouraged me to look at those around me the same way that I look at my loving Savior.
Sydney Pashley
1. Page 103: "God wants to change us; He died so that we could change. The answer lies in letting Him change you." Then he continues later on the page saying, "Jesus Christ didn't die only to save us from hell; He also died to save us from our bondage to sin."
ReplyDeleteWhen reading this page these statements jumped out at me. I kind of stepped back and looked at my life. I realized how often I find myself not letting God change me and work in me because of my sinful and stubborn nature. It is so much harder to step back and let God change me. I reread these statements a few times and reminded myself of why God really died. Besides the fact that he is eternally saving us. He died to free me from ALL of my sins. I realized how much I need to step back and let God change me and let Him do whatever He has planned for my life.
2. Page 104: "I need God to help me love God. And if I need His help to love Him, a perfect being, I definitely need His help to love other, fault-filled humans."
This statement that Chan made instantly connected with me. It was such a great way to think about how much I can't live without God. It reminded me of how sinful nature I am and how far from perfect I am. It made me blessed and thankful to realize that I need God to help me love God that way that our might God deserves to be loved (or as much as humanly possible.) Then the second sentence of this statement brought to me the importance of needing God's help to truly love others the way that He would love them.
3. Page 105: "The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to him in song." (Psalm 28:7)
This verse stood out to me automatically. I reread it again while in Africa over the past two weeks and it brought a whole new meaning for me. While I was there I had to constantly remind myself that the Lord was my STRENGTH. There were many, many times over the two weeks when I had no choice but to trust in Him. Every time he helped me. (Which reminded me of the part of this verse where it says: my heart trusts in him, and I am helped.) My walk with God grew tremendously while I was on my trip in Africa and one of the main things the Lord showed me was the importance of trusting in Him even when it may not make sense to. And this verse was such a great reminder to read that reminded me of the Lord always providing and bringing a joy into people that only comes from Him.
4. Page 122: The 2nd full paragraph on the page. Talking about the guy from church who heard the sermon then sold his house and moved in with is his parents.
All of the stories that Chan told in Chapter 7 about giving things up and truly trusting in God really challenged me. As awful as it is I realized how much I don't give up and completely trust God with. These stories and especially this one made me pray that the Lord would help me to drop everything I have no matter the circumstances and whole heartedly trust in Him. It was so inspiring to me to read these stories of the people who couldn't see the outcome of their life but knew that whatever they were giving would be way better rewarded in heaven and that was all that mattered to them. I want to have a faith like those people who never seconded guessed 110% trusting in the Lord. I know the Lord is helping me to that point.
""When loving Him becomes obligation, one of the many things we have to do, we end up focusing even more on ourselves" (103).
ReplyDelete- This quote stuck out to me, because I can truly relate to it. In my head I know I need to spend time with God. So sometimes I will think of it as a chore. Something I don't really want to do at the moment but I guess I have too. It sometimes becomes an 'obligation'. At that very thought of me not wanting to do it, i start feeling guilty, and worry why I don't always crave to be in God's word. I start worrying about myself! When really this time was supposed to be spent on God. I never thought about it that way until i read that quote, and it's truly opened my eyes to a whole new way to look at it.
"We are always the recipients of His great and manifold gifts. Not the givers. Never the givers" (108).
-This quote really humbles me. Sometimes if we praise Jesus a lot we start to get cocky. We think we are giving God so much of our time, and that we are such good people, when really it's the opposite. We should not worship God so we can feel better about ourselves, we should worship Him so we can feel better about our relationship with HIM! When we praise Christ, he rewards us. It says so in scripture. We should never think we are doing God a favor by giving Him attention. It's the other way around.
"Christians these days like to play it safe. We want to put ourselves in situations where we are safe 'even if there is no God'" (116).
-This quote not only relates to me, but what I see around me everyday. Rarely do I come across a Christian that has been willing to die for Jesus, and has proved himself worthy of that thought. In this chapter it talk's about Abraham willing to sacrifice his son for God. I thought about it, and i admitted to myself that I don't think I could do that. The thought that I am a 'play it safe Christian' makes me sick, but because i now realized i am one, it motivates me to get to a place where I love God enough to do ANYTHING for him.
"Instead of adding in another thing to our lives, perhaps God wants us to give Him all our time and let Him direct it as He sees fit."
- This quote is straight on! It's so true, but we never think of it that way. I think of adding God into my schedule... penciling Him in on my busy life. God shouldn't be added, He should BE my schedule. He should be thought of throughout the day, prayed too sporadically, and i should have a quite time with him at night or whenever. I should have to pencil in OTHER events into my life, NOT Jesus. This quote really helps me realize that.
“When you are truly in love, you go to great lengths to be with the one you love…when you are apart from each other, it’s painful. He or she is all you think about; you jump at any chance to be together.” (100)
ReplyDelete- I was convicted by this because I read it purely from the perspective of a boy and girl. I thought, “Yes, that sounds about right. If I were truly in love, that is how I would feel.” and moved on. When I returned to it, I realized that this is the way I should feel about God. It should hurt when I fall away from Him and feel separated. The sound of His name alone should get my adrenaline pumping. I should be fighting for time to be with Him. I wish that this was me, but, regrettably, I cannot admit fully to any of these. I think I have forgotten, in essence, the joy that Christ’s love brings. I am saved from a desolate eternity with Satan by the One that I betray daily. I am covered in a love so perfect that it often leaves me speechless. God is SO good. Isn’t THAT enough to get your adrenaline pumping?!
“The fact is, I need God to help me love God. And if I need His help to love Him, a perfect being, I definitely need His help to love other, fault-filled humans. Something mysterious, even supernatural must happen in order for genuine love for God to grow in our hearts. The Holy Spirit has to move in our lives.” (104)
- This caught me off guard. I always read the verses about showing Christ’s love by loving others and thought, “Oh, I can do that…easy.” I’ve spent years trying to love others on my own, and I don’t think I ever asked God for His help. I thought I could do it on my own, but I was wrong. I cannot even BEGIN to love others until I ask God to work in me and purify my heart in order to have the capacity to love both God and others.
“Do you recognize the foolishness of seeking fulfillment outside of Him? Do you understand that it’s impossible to please God in any way other than wholehearted surrender? Do you want to see God more than you desire security?” (113)
- For years, I have been desperately searching for fulfillment, for security…to feel truly accepted and loved. This quote really stands out to me because it is, in a way, everything that I find impossible to believe. Trapped within my own sin-ridden heart, I keep trying to gain approval from others and please everyone, God included, until I barely recognize myself behind the mask that has consumed me. But God is not pleased by my superficial efforts; he wants all of me, not just the polished fragments. He wants the “wholehearted surrender” that terrifies me. So, “do you want to see God more than you desire security?” I must admit that I can not proclaim a loud and resounding “YES!” to this yet, but I am learning/trying to let go of my blind thirst for an “I love you”. In the end, isn’t God the only one who matters? So why does He sometimes matter least? HE is the only one you should strive to please. HIS approval is the only one that matters, because, in the end, it is the only one that counts.
Grace Bomar
1. "God didn't just give a little for us; He have His best. He gave himself."-- (119)
ReplyDeleteThis passage stood out to me because it's a reminder that God gave his everything, his son, for us, and we can't repay him. The only way we can even come close is to give our life over to him and follow him whole-heartedly. Not only did He give us his son, but also the promise to love us unconditionally. Because of this, I'm encouraged to always strive to give MY best, just like God does for me.
2 & 3. “When you are truly in love, you go to great lengths to be with the one you love…when you are apart from each other, it’s painful. He or she is all you think about; you jump at any chance to be together.” (100)
Like Grace Bomar said, this sounds right for a boy and a girl to be in love, and after further thinking about it, I also realized that this is how we should feel about God. He should be the center of our life, and we should feel sad when we stray from him. Unfortunately, it's hard for me, as the sinful human that I am, to always focus on Christ and feel torn when I'm not focused on him. Whenever I think about the eternal part of my life, I always long to picture myself in heaven, living there forever. The only way I can do this though is if Christ does become the love of my life, and I literally can't live without him. Although another passage that stood out to me said, "When loving Him becomes obligation, one of the many things we have to do, we end up focusing even more on ourselves" (103). Like I said before, it should be something I long for, just like I long to see myself living in heaven with God. However, it also SHOULD be an obligation. Like the very first passage said, God have His BEST for us, and in return we should feel and obligation to give our best back to him.
-Grace Mayernick
"when you are truly in love, you go to great lengths to be with the one you love"(100). When i first read this i also believed that it was about boyfriends and girlfriends just like grace bomar said but when i thought about it i started understanding what he wanted the readers to understand . That being a christian is deff not easy and that we are always caught up in our daily lives so we have no time for God!!! We should love God like we love our husbands or boyfriends we should love God just like Clara did!
ReplyDelete"God wants to change us; He died so that we could change"(103). when i read this i didnt understand what it was actually saying but something in me told me that this was important. But as i keep on reading it its kinda telling me to, like right this second change my life, change whatever im doing!! its just POWERFULL!!!
"True love requires sacrifice . ANd our love is shown by how we live our lives"(119). The statement kinda says it all, to love God to love others we have to learn about sacrific, right now i have to learn how to sacrifice my sleeping time or my time hanging with my friends! but the second part is telling us that what we do with our lives deff has an affect on if we will be able to go to heaven or not!
“Imagine going for a run while eating a box of Twinkies. Besides being self-defeating and sideache-inducing, it would also be near impossible. You would have to stop running in order to eat the Twinkies" (104).
ReplyDelete- When I read this the first time I read through the chapter I just skimmed over the depth of what it was saying and chuckled. Once I went back and read the chapter again one night I stopped and underlined it. I prayed that God would help me get something out of this chapter but I was very doubtful because it was around midnight. But once I realized I underlined it I really got to look at what it was saying. And I really liked it. Great message for sure.
“When you are running toward Christ, you are freed up to serve, love, and give thanks without guilt, worry or fear. As long as you are running, you are safe" (104).
-This goes with the first quote I put up here. About running while trying to eat a box of Twinkies. How you have to stop running in order for it to be possible. This just goes on and ties it all into Christ. When I think of “running” Christians I think of missionaries. I think of pastors and leaders. Once I really thought about it, well, im not a missionary, and im not a pastor but I want to be running to God. So I started. I picked up my walk with God to a run FOR God. It was amazing what was changed and it’s the best thing ive done.
"If you could have heaven, with no sickness, and with all the friends you ever had on earth, and all the food you ever liked, and all the leisure activities you ever enjoyed, and all the natural beauties you ever saw, all the physical pleasures you ever tasted, and no human conflict or natural disasters, could you be satisfied with heaven, if Christ was not there?" 100-101
ReplyDelete-This quote really impacted me when I read it. I started to realize that sometimes I do feel like that would be enough, which is completely wrong to think. It has inspired me to only want God, and to learn that He is the only one that can fill me up.
"The fact is, I need God to help me love God. And if I need His help to love Him, a perfect being, I definitely need His help to love other, fault-filled humans." 104
-This quote is so true for me. I have found that I really do need God's help for me to love Him because I cannot do it on my own. Also, there are many people that I find hard to love, and this quote helps remind me that I can only love them with God's help.
"In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." John 16:33
-This verse really stood out to me. It has been one of those verses that I have leaned on throughout this year and that has really helped me. It just continues to remind me that my life will never be easy. God went through all the temptation and hardships in this world, but He overcame it. It comforts me to know that He went through things like I am experiencing.
"Something is wrong when our lives make sense to unbelievers." 115
-This quote really stood out to me the most. It really made me think about how I shouldn't care what unbelievers think because they will never understand until they come to know Christ themselves. In addition, Like Caroline Smith said, Christians should live their lives differently than unbelievers. I think that it is extremely important for us to let God's light shine through us in everything we do. This can make a huge difference in how people few God.
1. "But running is exhausting-if, that is, we are running from sin or guilt, out of fear. (Or if we haven't run in a while.) However, if we train ourselves to run toward our Refuge, toward Love, we are free-just as we are called to be" (104).
ReplyDelete-Thinking of the comparison between literally running and running from sin, guilt or fear, really opens my eyes to a lot of things. I get "out of breath" when I constantly feel guilt for not giving enough of myself to God, or fearful of what His plan is for me. But as soon as I feel that close relationship to God, I really do have that free feeling.
2. "You have made known the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand." (Ps. 16:11)
-This verse reminds me that whenever I'm filled with the joy of God's presence, then I'll also be filled with eternal pleasures. Unlike the feeling I'm filled with through earthly pleasures.
3. "If you merely pretend that you enjoy God or love Him, He knows. You can't fool Him; don't even try" (110).
-Reading this really opened my eyes to how sometimes I'm just praying to pray and how I feel like once I pray it's one more thing to check off my list of things to do. But, God sees right through that, He knows that I'm not giving him my undivided attention, which he deserves to say the least.
1. "The critical question for our generation-- and for every generation-- is this: If you could have heaven, with no sickness, and with all the friends you ever had on earth, and all the food you ever liked, and all the leisure activities you ever enjoyed, and all the natural beauties you ever say, and all the physical pleasures you ever tasted, and no human conflict or natural disasters, could you be satisfied with heaven, if Christ was not there?" (100-101).
ReplyDeleteThis really stood out to me and I thought about this for a very long time. I thought of it as having everything you've ever wanted and more. But not having God would just make everything not worth it. At first, I thought "Wow, how incredible!" But then i realized we need Christ more than anything. I am nothing without Him. Sometimes we wish our lives were easier, and wish we were like others who appear to have it better. But if they don't Jesus in their heart then they are missing out. Having everything you want is not important. What is important, is having Christ with you forever.
2. "You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love. The entire law is summed up in a single command: 'Love your neighbor as yourself'" (Galatians 5:13-14) (101).
We are free to do as we please. We choose to hurt one and another and not to think of others as highly as ourselves. I have always heard in Sunday school to "love your neighbor as yourself". But I do not always do that. I just sorta be nice, but I do not love them as I do myself. It was a wake-up call to tell me how I need to honestly and truly love Jesus first, then others second, and put myself last.
3. "The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to him in song." (Ps. 28:7) (105).
God is so good! He does so much for us it is incredible! My heart really does trust him and He does shield me. My heart loves him and loves to love on him. He is so amazing in all he does for us. I love to praise him in all he does.
4. "Out of depths I cry to you, O Lord; O Lord, hear my voice. Let your ears be attentive to my cry for mercy." (Ps. 130:1-2) (106).
I like how Chan said Psalms isn't all about rejoicing, but sorrow too. If we call out to God in need, He WILL answer. He is going to help and has already planned out a path for us. God listens to me when I am sad and in need of help. He is the only one that will ALWAYS 24/7 forever and ever be there for me. And everyone else in the entire world to. All we have to do is reach out to him and cry for help.
“When you are truly in love you go to great links to be with the one you love.” (100)
ReplyDelete-I love this quote because it sums up what a true relationship should be with God. Unfortunately this is not always the case with my relationship with Jesus Christ. This is a good reminder to make God your treasure because were your treasure is there your heart is. Sometimes my treasure is focusing more on myself then God.
“When loving Him becomes an obligation, one of many things we have to do, we end up focusing more on ourselves.” (103)
-Loving Christ should be even more natural than loving your parents because His love is perfect and unconditional. We get caught up on worldly loves and put them before our heavenly loves.
“When we love we are free.” (102)
-If you truly love others the way Christ loves you, you should not feel burdens or bad thoughts towards others. This is crazy love because we know it is all out there for us but we don’t surrender everything and take advantage of it.
"If you merely pretend that you enjoy God or love Him, He knows. You
ReplyDeletecan’t fool Him; don’t even try." (110)
-If we truly do love God, He knows and will love us back no matter what. And if we don't truly love Him, don't try to hide it because He knows everything about you and knows what your thinking 24/7, so whatever you do, just know that He is there watching and listening every step of the way.
"But the solution isn’t to try harder, fail, and then make bigger
promises, only to fail again . . . The answer lies in letting Him change
you." (103)
---- You have to give God all you have in order for Him to fully control your life, because when your driving the roads bumpy and not so smooth, but when God's driving, He's leading you in the right directing on a smooth path so you will end up in the rightful place (heaven).
Im not sure if this verse is in this book, but it's one of my favorites and relates to the above: "Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need and thank Him for all He has done" (Phil. 4:6).
----I love this verse because it has helped me so much through these past couple weeks. I now know that praying helps a whole lot more than gossiping about it to all of my friends.