Work

I'm writing about something today which I think many of us can relate to. I'm writing about work. Work comes in many different forms. For some it is school homework, for others it is physical labor, but for me it is mental.
You see although I am a soldier in the United States Army, I am also a Computer Technician. Yes I admit it, I'm one of those computer geeks who spends his off time playing with video games and building computers. I have 2 desktop computers and 1 laptop. Well... I actually only have 1 desktop and one expensive paper-weight because I flashed the bios on the other and now it doesn't turn on. For those of you who know what I'm talking about, heed the following warning... Do not flash your bios unless you know what you are doing. Even then it is still extremely risky because the slightest mistake can cause permanent damage. For those of you who don't know what it means to flash a bios, heed the following warning... DON'T FLASH YOUR BIOS! That being said, I will continue with my article.
The past few weeks have been extremely intense for me. Not physically intense, but mentally. I never get a chance to just stop and breath. I bombarded with constant requests for computer assistance. It feels like every time I turn around someone has a problem that only I can solve. I am not however the only person who can solve the problem, but rather the only person who people trust to solve them.
Let me make something perfectly clear. I do not consider myself as smart as people may think. Most of my work consists of troubleshooting, using Google.com, lucky guesses, and asking people who already know. I have learned absolutely everything by hands-on training.
With all this in mind, it is no wonder why I am so tired. I'm both incredibly tired and hungry at the same time. I'm too hungry to sleep, and I'm too sleepy to eat. All I want to do is quit, to shutdown and leave everything behind. When I get off work, all I want to do is disappear, to vanish off the face of the Earth to a place where no one will ask me anymore questions and I can just exist in peace and tranquility.
I know that this too shall pass, but sometimes it is hard to believe it when there is no end in sight. But I have faith that I will not be tested beyond my own strength. I know that the Lord is my strength. Whom shall I fear? Whom shall I dread? I may be tired of working, but at least I'm still alive and well. Work may come and go, but my God loves me forever. He will never leave me or forsake me. I can trust in Him to strengthen me when I am weak. No matter how many computers I have to fix, no matter how many people are asking me for help, my God is still on the throne.

One of Those Days

I know I've written about spiritual deserts in the past, but I feel like jumping on the issue one more time. You see, I've had my share of spiritual deserts in my lifetime, but this time it's been different. This desert has lasted quite some time, in fact I find myself still in the middle of it. Before I continue, let me first explain what I mean my spiritual desert.

A spiritual desert is a time in one's life when the heavens seem as brass; it is a time when you and God appear to be light-years away. During this time, it is not unusual to find that it is harder than usual to read your bible, pray, or even feel remotely like a child of God. If you've ever gone through such a time, you will understand me. If you've never gone through a desert, you are fortunate, but you may want to prepare for it... just in case.

The reason I am writing about spiritual deserts is because I find myself in the middle of one and it doesn't feel as if is ending anytime soon. It's been going strong since November. I've found that my entire outlook in life has been shaken apart. Lately I've been reevaluating my entire existence on this planet.

Although it feels as if the desert will never end, I know that this is only a season. I know that God is allowing me to go through these things because he is trying to make me strong, and He knows that I'll need the strength later on down the road.

For those of you out there who are "having one of those days", take courage. I know your life is being twisted upside down, and nothing makes sense anymore. You aren't the only one being tried. What you are feeling is perfectly normal. Just remember who is still on the throne.

The drought will soon be over

Nothing But Dust

It's easy to judge. To think we know for certain, the right thing to do. Sometimes... It just isn't so clear. It's easy to be right. To know without a shadow of a doubt that you know the way. But sometimes, the way isn't quite so obvious. It's easy to be the one who has all the answers to every question in life. But sometimes the answer isn't so easily found. It's easy to be the one with what it takes to succeed in life, and it's easy to be the one without it.

It's easy to claim to know all, but it's hard to realize that all we know is nothing.

No matter how much you know.

No matter how smart you think you are.

No matter how much wisdom you've acquired.

No matter how many articles you write.

No matter how many followers you have.

No matter how old or young you are.

No matter what you've experienced in life.

No matter where you came from or where you're going.

No matter how many times you pray and read your bible.....

YOU ARE BUT DUST!

You are no different than anyone else in the world. You are a human being, and unless you realize this, you will never have any effect on the world.

Maybe it's time to stop and analyze your life. Maybe it's time to ask yourself "what does my life mean?"

Why are you a Christian?

Why do you go to church?

Why do I pray?

Why do I read my bible?

What does it all mean! What am I living my life for?!

I am nothing but dust!

My life is but a shadow.

I know absolutely nothing. The sooner I realize this, the better. Until I realize just how small I am, I will never fulfill my purpose in life.

I could become a scholar. I could become one of those guys who examine every word that comes out of every one's mouth for scriptural error. But what would become of me? This would not make me special. I would still be dust. I would be dust with an over-inflated sense of importance.

It is time for me to begin a new journey... A journey of realization.

Realization of who I am, who God is, and what my purpose is in the scheme of things.

Without this journey, I will never be more than dust.

Living by Faith

Hebrews 11:1

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.

You believe that Jesus is your savior and you believe that heaven and hell both exist. In the natural, no sane person would believe such things. But that is what is so unique about faith. You don't have to see or feel something to have faith in it. This is what having faith is.

Faith is what comes between God's promise and the fulfillment of that which is promised.
2 Peter 1:3-4

Seeing that His divine power has granted us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust.

Rom 1:17 But the righteous man shall live by faith.
The bible does not say that the righteous man will have faith, but rather it says the righteous man shall LIVE by faith. It is a daily lifestyle to choose to have faith and to choose to trust in God.

James 2:26

For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also is faith without works is dead.
What happens when the doctor tells you that you only have days to live? It is during these times that you will decide if you will live by faith or by sight. Every day we have to choose to live by faith. Every day we have to choose to walk in obedience to His word and believe that what what He promises will come to pass. It is easy to be overcome by what we see happening around us. It was Peter's faith that allowed him to walk on water with Jesus. Peter sunk when he became fearful of the storm around him. It is only when we are in the middle of the storm are we faced with the decision of where our faith lies.

Speech always follows faith. Without speech, faith is incomplete. This is a golden principle that we see in 2 Cor 4:13: It is written: "I believed; therefore I have spoken."With that same spirit of faith we also believe and therefore speak. This is why God speaks. Without speech, God cannot infect us with faith. We who have believed what God has spoken, must in turn speak for faith to be complete. This is why Rom 10:10 tells us to believe in our heart and confess with our mouth.

You cannot attain to the fullness of Christ without faith. Faith is part of our foundation, infact it is built upon it. Just as we say that a chain is only as strong as it's weakest link, so to is the foundation on which we build ouselves. If we are lacking in faith, our whole foundation is lacking. Just as the man who built his house on the sand, so too is a foudation lacking in faith.

What is Faith?

What is faith?
Faith is something that we are born with and develop over time. For some, faith comes easy, but for others faith is far more difficult to attain. Many of us practice faith without even knowing it. Every time you sit in a chair, you have faith that the chair is going to hold you up. Every time you take a breath of air, you have faith that there is going to be something for you to breath. Every day you believe that the sun will rise and set just as it always has. I guess faith is pretty simple after all.
Hebrews 11:1
Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.
You believe that God exists although you’ve never seen Him. You trust the Word of God, although you never met the men who wrote it. You believe that Jesus Christ will save you from a hell and spend eternity with Him in heaven, but you’ve never seen either of these places. THIS my friend is what faith is.
Let’s now examine faith from a spiritual sense.
Faith is not just a word, but a lifestyle. Rom 1:17 But the righteous man shall live by faith.
There may be times when faith is not always easy. It is difficult because we are creatures living in a physical world, striving to reconnect with Christ It is far easier to trust what we see than to trust what we do not see.
Faith must be exercised. Just like any muscle in our body, if our faith is not exercised it will wither away. Unfortunately, the only way to strengthen our faith is to test our faith. This is why God allows us to go through trials and tribulations. God wants to know where we stand in our faith, and to allow us to see what areas in our life we need to work on.
It is easy to say to someone who is going through something “just have faith brother”, but it is totally different when YOU are the one having your faith tested. There are times when we will go through rough spots, but that does not mean you are weak in faith. NEVER doubt your faith. When you go through times of unbelief, just tell God “I believe, but please help my unbelief”.
Faith also comes to some as a spiritual gift.
1 Corinthians 12:9
To another, faith by the same spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one spirit.
We see here that the gift of faith is among all the rest of the spiritual gifts. So faith just like any other gift must be exercised and strengthened. Will your faith vanish totally if you stop exercising it? The answer is no. You will always have faith in you, but the scope which your faith covers become very narrow.
But what about those people who say “well brother, I just don’t have the gift of faith. I guess I will never have complete faith”. If you are among those who say this about faith or any other gift for that matter, you are wrong. Just because faith is not your primary gifting, does not mean you do not have faith. You just don’t have the GIFT of faith. Faith is present in everyone. But there is nothing wrong with desiring the gift of faith or even asking God to give you that gift. He just might do it if you truly desire it.
James 1:17 (NKJV)
Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning
Psalms 84:11d
No good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly.
Faith is foundational to Christianity. Without faith, we have absolutely nothing. Everything we read in the Word of God is based solely upon faith. You could possibly even say that faith is the greatest gift of all because all of the other spiritual gifts depend upon faith. We all have a measure of faith, but we must all work at strengthening our faith. A Christian without faith is not a Christian at all, but rather a member of religious organization.