Who Will you Follow?

Who Will You Follow? 

By Sarah P.

Who will you follow? In today’s world where life can pull us a million different directions, finding the answer can be hard. So many things grab for our attention: guys, social media, grades, popularity, chores, family. Some things seem worthwhile, some really are worthwhile, and some look like fun but aren’t all that great; how’s a girl to choose? What are we supposed to do when every inch of our lives is vying for our attention and promising to make us happy? 

Joshua wasn’t undecided about who he would follow. He stood up in front of the entire Israelite nation and proclaimed this challenge: 

“…choose today whom you will serve. Would you prefer the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates? Or will it be the gods of the Amorites in whose land you now live? But as for me and my family, we will serve the Lord.” (Joshua 24:15, NLT, emphasis mine) 

And you probably know what the people said in response. “…‘We would never abandon the Lord and serve other gods. For the Lord our God is the one who rescued us…we, too, will serve the Lord, for he alone is our God.’” (Joshua 24:17-18) 

Yet we find only a few chapters later, in Judges 2, that God is saying this to those very same people: “…you were not to make any covenants with the people living in this land; instead, you were to destroy their altars. But you disobeyed my command. Why did you do this?” (Judges 2:2) 

Maybe that’s what we do. We get saved and pledge our allegiance to Christ, promising to follow Him. And then a few months later it’s like nothing ever happened. 

Ladies, I’ve got some news. It’s not just those disobedient Israelites who tend to fall away. 

It’s us. 

We pick other gods to follow: popularity, romance, social media, self-image. And we forget that promise to God. We forget to follow Him. We lose our vision. 

I was recently asked the question, “Where do you find purpose?” And, honestly, that would be hard for many of us to answer. What drives you, what makes you want to live? If you’re really being honest, is that whatever you’re chasing filling you up? Is it satisfying you craving for love? Is it being what you need? 

Or do you know deep down that the stuff you’re chasing just isn’t enough? 

Jesus said, “Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me. Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing.” (John 15:4-5) 

When we follow other gods, we keep Jesus from satisfying us. We’re like grape vines trying to thrive off of Dr. Pepper: it’s not going to work. We chase after the empty sweetness of this world instead of drinking deeply of the Living Water.   

If you’ve wandered away from God, I earnestly ask you to run back home. Throw out the other stuff. Get rid of it. It will only hurt you and leave you empty. Believe me, dear sisters. It will only hurt you. Our only real source of purpose is Christ. Only in Jesus—the Living Water—can we thrive. Only in Him are we truly satisfied. 

Who will you follow? 

God Bless, 

Sarah 

A Promise From God

A Promise From God  

            Just this morning we saw that my little bunny Cinnamon died. We are very sad. But this reminds me of a subject most people don’t like to talk about. Death.

           

People don’t like to talk about this, but we have to face facts. We are all going to die, whether we like it or not. That is why we have to be ready to meet our maker. Death is part of the curse. When Adam and Eve left the garden, death entered the world.

“For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature is able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:38-39 KJV) This wonderful verse tells us that if we are truly Christians, and love God with all our hearts, we don’t have to be afraid to die, or be separated from our loved ones. Because nothing, yes I said nothing, will ever separate us from the love of God. We don’t have to be afraid to die, because, unlike the non-Christians, we know that we will live in eternity with Jesus in heaven after we die. If we are deep under the ocean, God is with us. If we are on the highest mountain, God is with us. We don’t have anything to be afraid of! Isn’t that wonderful?

“Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin, and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.” (James 1:15 KJV) You see, when you sin, you are going to go into eternal death. Hell. But you have hope! If you believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, you shall be saved, from death in hell! So I ask you today. Do you believe on Jesus, the Lord of Lords, and God of Gods? If you don’t, I beg you, come to Jesus! He can save you from eternal condemnation! Just put your trust on him! He died so all of his chosen would be with him in Heaven.

For those who are Christians, you don’t need to be afraid to die. God will always be with you through thick and thin. In Joshua 1:9 it says, “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee withersoever thou goest.” Isn’t that a wonderful promise? God will always be with you.

Overwhelmed by God

Overwhelmed by God

By Samantha W.

I have a bad habit of getting overwhelmed with things in my life. Problems and responsibilities pile up and I have no escape. I want to find an open field where I can scream for one solid hour.

Have you ever felt the same—where all your emotions wrap up turning your insides into scrambled eggs? It happens to me when I forget how powerful God is.

Ah, Sovereign Lord, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for you. Jeremiah 32:17 NIV

Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.” Mark 10:27 NIV

How many are your works, O Lord! In wisdom you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures. Psalm 104:24 NIV

By his breath the skies became fair; his hand pierced the gliding serpent. And these are but the outer fringe of his works; how faint the whisper we hear of him! Who then can understand the thunder of his power? Job 26:13-14 NIV

These verses and more like them made one phrase come to mind. God is awesome. Ironic for the definition of awesome is “inspiring an overwhelming feeling of reverence, admiration, or fear.”

The word overwhelming again, only this time it struck a chord with me. How many times have I been overwhelmed with my problems instead of being overwhelmed at the fact that God, the maker of Heaven and Earth, loves me and calls me His?

Too often, I fix my eyes on my circumstances and surroundings, and I lose focus of the fact that God is bigger than any obstacle. Then, because my brain’s consumed over the wrong thing, my own limited thinking puts a limit on what God can do for me.

On the other hand, when I center on God’s infinite wisdom and power, I realize I can do anything He calls me to do. No ifs, ands, or buts.

The same is true for you. Isn’t that an awesome thought?

When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him? You made him ruler over the works of your hands; you put everything under his feet. Psalm 8:3-4, 6 NIV

CAT Mom

CAT Mom

By Emily M.
I know how the title sounds but I am in no way referring to the mother of a cat. You see I am taking care of this kitty that we have fondly nicknamed fluffy and she is the cutest thing I ever saw. I am accused of thinking about that of every cat. Now fluffy has no one to teach her how to be a cat so I was and I am giving it a try. However it has ended up in some hilarious moments. Now the other day I woke up and found a lizard lazily floating in my kitchen sink in the middle of my unwashed dishes.
After looking unsuccessfully for a weapon of lizard mass destruction and failing I suddenly had a light bulb moment.  Mainly it's because fluffy does not mew so she sits there looking at me with cat eyes so I can give her food. And i told myself that fluffy was a cat right and cats eat lizards....right...well this mommy was going to teach a kitty to catch food.
So after a screaming moment of lizard tail coming off I caught the Lizard and put it on the floor for fluffy to catch. In fact, I went to the point of pointing her in the right direction....
Now like all those mothers out there I was waiting for that moment of achievement where she caught her food. Instead fluffy looked at the Lizard and liked it a d let it go. Not once but twice......how does it Lick food and let it go....
I thank God for mothers out there. As much as we have our great moments we also have those moments when we don't always get it right. Sometimes we will say something, do something even think something that does not work for our kids. But I would like all kids to know in spite of all this, we still love them. The Bible says they are our quiver full of arrows and that someday they will rise up and call us blessed. This Mother's day kindly rise up and not only call your mama blessed but be a blessing. I am still trying to get past licking food stage and I know just like with my two kids, me n fluffy are going to get somewhere.  Happy mother's day!

Hannah: A Godly Mother

Hannah: A Godly Mother

Stariana W.

When we think of Samuel, we think of a prophet, of a godly man, or of God's speaking to him. The first thing to come to mind is rarely his mother, Hannah.

            Hannah couldn't have any kids. The other wife of her husband mocked her because of it. One year, Hannah was mocked so much she couldn't stand it. She went to the temple and cried to God. She begged Him to give her a son, and, when he was old enough, she would give him to serve God all of his life.

            God heard her prayers.

            Hannah had a son and called him Samuel, meaning 'asked of God.'  But she didn't forget her promise. When Samuel was old enough, she took him to the priest, Eli.

            Now, what makes Hannah such a good example of a mother? She gave her child away, didn't she?

            Hannah was a godly mother because she believed in God and made a vow to Him. Even though it must have hurt her to give her child away, she honored her promise. She never forgot Samuel though. She made him coats every year and gave them to her child.  Because she honored her vow, God gave her more children.

            We can learn from Hannah. If we honor our promises to God, God will bless us in return.