Seeking God With ALL of My Heart

Wow! God is truly amazing. Tonight I felt God's presence upon me and speaking to me. Tonight I was supposed to go with the Watchmen Team to the Bronx to do ministry for the children there but God had a different plan for me. After dinner I went down to the van to get a seat but the van was packed full and so they didn't have any room to fit another person in. Nyack had an event tonight called Hallelujah Fest and so I went to that. God knew I was supposed to be there and I am so glad he brought me there. The service was filled with praise and worship, a deep message, and a very intimate time to spend time with God. The thing that spoke to my heart tonight was that I needed to come and seek God with all of my heart, to take his bread and his drink so I can be satisfied, and to allow myself to create deep roots in him. I know God but tonight God was telling me that I needed to seek him and feel his love. This past week was pretty stressful for me with mid term exams and a lot of classwork, but tonight God wanted to take me away from all of those things and just focus on him. I am so thankful that I have a God that knows my every moment and that he is willing to take hold of my life and lead me. Please continue to pray that I will seek God with all of my heart more and more each day and that I desire to be filled with his everlasting food and drink. Hallelujah Father!! We praise you!!

The Residence Life at Nyack College

For my Freshman Seminar in Education class, I have to blog about different topics and this week I have to talk about the residence life at Nyack. From the two months I have been here, my residence life experience has been very positive. I stay in Simpson Hall and have a sick view looking out onto the Hudson River. I wake up in the mornings to a beautiful sunrise. I have made Simpson my home away from home. I love the color green so pretty much my side is covered with green things from my blanket to my backpack.

My roommate is great and I have gotten along really well with her. It is cool that we can talk with each other about different things and that whenever I might have a question about a class she is there to help me out. My floor is nice as well. I know a couple girls on my floor so it's nice to stop by their room and chat. My RA is really nice and helpful too. I usually don't have a problem at night sleeping and I can usually handle the noises that still go on late in the night. Overall my residence life experience is great. I love the people and the environment.

Fall in Nyack

Nyack College is so beautiful in the fall with the changing colors of the leaves, the leaves falling, and the chilly weather in the air. It has been four years since I have experienced the fall season and I am enjoying every moment of it. Fall reminds me that Thanksgiving is right around the corner and that winter will be here before I know it. I am so memorized by God's creature and I love walking outside and taking it all in. God you are truly amazing!!

Crazy Love Chapter 4: Profile of the Lukewarm

This chapter is pretty deep and as you read on I ask that you take it seriously and look within yourself and see what God is speaking to you about.

The issue for this blog is asking yourself: "are you totally in love with Jesus Christ or do the words halfhearted, lukewarm, and partially committed fit better?" Jesus says in Revelation 3:15-16, "I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm-neither hot nor cold-I am about to spit you out of my mouth." Wow! Jesus literally says that he will spit us out of his mouth if we are a lukewarm Christian. He wants to be so hot for him not warm. Below are some descriptions of a lukewarm Christian that Francis Chan wrote in his book with verses to go along with them. Let this be a time to look at your own life and see if there are any areas that are lukewarm.

- "LUKEWARM PEOPLE attend church fairly regularly. It is what is expected of them, what they believe "good Christians" do, so they go." Isaiah 16:13

-"LUKEWARM PEOPLE give money to charity and to the church...as long as it doesn't impinge

(to affect the limits) on their standard of living. If they have a little extra and it is easy and safe to give, they do so. After all, God loves a cheerful giver, right?" 1 Chronicles 21:24; Luke 21:1-4

-"LUKEWARM PEOPLE tend to choose what is popular over what is right when they are in conflict. They desire to fit in both at church and outside of church; they care more about what people think of their actions (like church attendance and giving) than what God thinks of their hearts and lives." Luke 6:26; Revelation 3:1; Matthew 23:5-7

-"LUKEWARM PEOPLE don't really want to be saved from their sin; they want only to be saved from the penalty of their sin. They don't genuinely hate sin and aren't truly sorry for it; they're merely sorry because God is going to punish them. Lukewarm people don't really believe that this new life Jesus offers is better than the old sinful ones." John 10:10; Romans 6:1-2

-"LUKEWARM PEOPLE are moved by stories about people who do radical things for Christ, yet they do not act. They assume such action is for "extreme" Christians, not average ones. Lukewarm people call "radical" what Jesus expected of all His followers." James 1:22; James 4:17; Matthew 21:28-31

-"LUKEWARM PEOPLE rarely share their faith with their neighbors, coworkers, or friends. They do not want to be rejected, nor do they want to make people uncomfortable by talking about private issues like religion." Matthew 10:32-33

-"LUKEWARM PEOPLE gauge their morality or "goodness" by comparing themselves to the secular world. They feel satisfied that while they aren't as hard-core for Jesus as so-and-so, they are nowhere as horrible as the guy down the street." Luke 18:11-12

-"LUKEWARM PEOPLE say they love Jesus, and He is, indeed, a part of their lives. But only part. They give Him a section of their time, their money, and their thoughts, but He isn't allowed to control their lives." Luke 9:57-62

-"LUKEWARM PEOPLE love God, but they do not love Him with all their heart, soul, and strength. They would be quick to assure you that they try to love God that much, but that sort of devotion isn't really possible for the average person; it's only for pastors and missionaries and radicals." Matthew 22:37-38

-"LUKEWARM PEOPLE love others but do not seek to love others as much as they love themselves. Their love for others is typically focused on those who love them in return, like family, friends, and other people they know and connect with. There is little love left over for those who cannot love them back, much less for those who intentionally slight them, whose kids are better athletes then theirs, or with whom conversations are awkward or uncomfortable. Their love is highly conditional and very selective, and generally comes with strings attached." Matthew 5:43-47; Luke 14:12-14

-"LUKEWARM PEOPLE will serve God and others, but there are limits to how far they will go or how far they will go or how much time, money, and energy they will be willing to give." Luke 18:21-25

-"LUKEWARM PEOPLE think about life on earth much more often than life in heaven. Daily life is mostly focused on today's to-do list, this week's schedule, and next month's vacation. Rarely, if ever, do they intently consider the life to come. Regarding this, C.S. Lewis writes, "If you read history you will find that the Christians who did most for the present world were precisely those who thought most of the next. It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this.'" Philippians 2:18-20; Colossians 3:2

-"LUKEWARM PEOPLE are thankful for their luxuries and comforts, and rarely consider trying to give much as possible to the poor. They are quick to point out, "Jesus never said money is the root of all evil, only that the love of money is." Untold numbers of lukewarm people feel "called" to minister to the rich; very few feel "called" to minister to the poor." Matthew 25:34, 40; Isaiah 58:6-7

-"LUKEWARM PEOPLE do whatever is necessary to keep themselves from feeling too guilty. They want to do the bar minimum, to be "good enough" without it requiring too much of them." 1 Chronicles 29:14; Matthew 13:44-46

-"LUKEWARM PEOPLE are continually concerned with playing it safe; they are slaves to the god of control. This focus on safe living keeps them from sacrificing and risking for God." 1 Timothy 6:17-18; Matthew 10:28

-"LUKEWARM PEOPLE FEEL secure because they attend church, made a profession of faith at age twelve, were baptized, come from a Christian family, vote Republican, or live in America. Just as the prophets in the Old Testament warned Israel that they were not safe because they lived in the land of Israel, so we are not safe because we wear the label Christian or because some people persist in calling us a "Christian nation.'" Matthew 7:21; Amos 6:1

-"LUKEWARM PEOPLE do not live by faith; their lives are structured so they never have to. They don't have to trust God if something unexpected happens-they have their savings account. They don't need God to help them-they have their retirement plan in place. They don't genuinely seek out what life God would have them live-they have life figured and mapped out. They don't depend on God on a daily basis-their refrigerators are full and, for the most part, they are in good health. The truth is, their lives wouldn't look much different if they suddenly stopped believing in God." Luke 12:16-21; Hebrews 11

-"LUKEWARM PEOPLE probably drink and swear less than average, but besides that, they really aren't very different from your typical unbeliever, they equate their partially sanitized lives with holiness; but they couldn't be more wrong." Matthew 23:25-28

Whew, that was probably a lot to take in all at once but I hope there was at least one thing above that made stop and think about. I just want to remind you that this profile of the lukewarm "is not an all-inclusive definition of what it means to be a Christian, nor is it intended to be used as ammunition to jude your fellow believers' salvation. Instead, as 2 Corinthians 13:5 says, it is a call to 'examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves.'"

Yes, Jesus will spit a lukewarm person out of his mouth but it is only for good reason. Revelation 3 does end positively though and here is what it says, "Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest, and repent. Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me. To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches." (Rev. 3:19-22)

*All quotes taken from Francis Chan's book, Crazy Love: Overwhelmed By A Relentless God.

Crazy Love Chapter 3: Crazy Love

God is crazy in love with us and he desires for us to have a crazy love for him too.

When you think of God, are there any characteristics of your earthly father that is present in the Heavenly Father? We are God's children and his love and desires for us is stronger than the love and desires a humanly father has for his children. Francis Chan said that his "desires for [his] children is only a faint echo of God's great love for me and for every person he made." Matthew 7:11 says, "If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!" This verse reminds me that my Father in heaven is abounding in love with each one of us and that nothing else compares.

God loves us so much that we are wanted by him too. Before we were even formed in our mother's womb, God already knew us and loved us. It says in Ephesians 2:10 that we were created "to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." Our existence "was not random, nor was it an accident. God knew who He was creating, and He designed us for specific works."

This holy, eternal, all-knowing, all-powerful, merciful, fair, and just God loves me! Jesus did not have to love us. He is complete and perfect and really does not need you and me, "yet he wants us, chooses us, and even considers us His glorious inheritance."

"The greatest good on earth is God. Period." His love for us is never ending. Now God loves us with everything he has but we have to question ourselves and ask: are we in love with God or just His stuff? God looks at us for who we are not by our status, money, clothes, beauty, etc. but can we say the same thing to God? Do you really believe that "God loves you, individually, and personally and intimately?" And do you see and know Him as Abba, Father? Have you reached the point where you loved God with all of your heart, mind, and soul? Is the crazy love for God there?

Homecoming 2010

This past weekend was Nyack College's Homecoming. It started on Friday night with the Homecoming Dance and for the first time in my life I went. I got all dressed up and beautified. I felt very nervous in the beginning but once I got to the hotel and saw everybody else all dressed up and having fun, the butterflies flew away. I had a great time and enjoyed every moment of it. Saturday was a packed filled day with both the women's and men's soccer games, the women's volleyball game, and a 5K run. There was also a big white tent with many different booths created by various clubs, groups, and teams promoting or selling things for their groups. I loved the atmosphere with all the students, faculty and staff, and alumni coming together for some great fun and excitement. Both the soccer teams won their games 1-0 and the men's game went into double overtime and the game winner came from an amazing header off a corner kick. I enjoyed running in the 5K race. The course was pretty much running around the whole entire campus twice so there were hills to conquer quite a few times. I completed the race and I thank God for giving me the strength to run hard. Overall Homecoming 2010 was a success!!

Crazy Love Chapter 2: You Might Not Finish This Chapter

Each one of us can die at any moment and if we do will we have any regrets?

Francis Chan writes on any given average day we get so "caught up in ourselves that we don't consider God very much." We forget that we are only a vapor in the wind. In reality our days are not normal since we forget the small things that keep us alive like our kidneys or that we travel from place to place in a vehicle. It says in James 4: 13-14, "Now listen, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money." Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes." Just stop and think about this for awhile. We are just a simple mist that comes and goes.

We all have our stresses and worries and they consume our lives a lot. We think about our families, personal problems, our schoolwork, etc. and as they take over our lives we forget that God is the center of our lives and that our lives were given to glorify him. Imagine yourself being in a movie. You would think that the movie is about us and our amazing lives but in reality we are only a few seconds in it. The whole movie is about God from beginning to end.

Our lives are short and we can die at any moment. With the little time we have here on Earth, let's be reminded why we were put on this earth, which is to bring honor and glory to our Lord Jesus Christ. Don't let the stress and worry consume our lives or live our lives selfishly. Don't imagine yourself on your death bed and think about all the things you regretted to do while you were still alive. We are a mist in the wind that comes and goes so in every moment live for Christ. In the end, "nothing matters except our King and God."

As we come to a close I would like to leave you with three small verses to read and reflect on.

Ecclesiastes 7:2 "It is better to go to a house of mourning that to go to a house of feasting, for death is the destiny of every man; the living should take this to heart."

Ephesians 2:10 "For we ar God's workmanship, create in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do."

Colossians 1:16 "For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him."

Crazy Love Chapter 1: Stop Praying

Stop Praying?!?

Why would Francis Chan say that? He started off this chapter by saying that we need "to stop talking at God" and just take some time to just be still and reflect on the presence of God. After I watched a short video clip called the "Awe Factor"on Chan's website, all I could do was sit there and be speechless. It put into perspective how small I am and how BIG God is.

Sometimes we hear how amazing God is or how beautiful he is that we truly forget this awesome picture of God. We get so wrapped up in our busy lives that we forget to worship and love him whole heartily. God is holy. God is eternal. God is all-knowing. God is all-powerful. And God is fair and just.

One thing I loved about this chapter was how the throne of God was described. In the Bible there is two places where the throne of God is described. One is Isaiah 6 and the other is Revelation 4. In Revelation 4, John describes the throne of God in as many words as he can. He says that the one sitting on the throne is made of two gems, "jasper and carnelian" and that there is a rainbow that looks like emerald surrounding the throne. From the throne came "flashes of lightning" and "rumblings and peals of thunder." There were seven blazing lamps before the throne and "a sea of glass, clear as crystal." John described how there were twenty-four men dressed in white and wearing crowns and four living creatures that each had six wings with eyes covered all over them. The faces of each creature were different. One was of an ox, another of a man, another of a lion, and another of an eagle. John goes on to say that the twenty-four elders took their crowns off, bowed down before the throne, and said "you are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being." At the exact same time the four creatures never stop saying day and night, "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come." After reading this crazy but wonderful description by John I do not know how I would react to be in the presence of God. I know my mouth would be wide open and my body fully trembling from this surreal picture.

Isaiah described the throne of God very similar to John but he also said, "Woe is me! I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty." Isaiah actually saw the Lord seated on the throne and felt so unworthy and unclean to be in the presence of the perfect and glorious God.

As I reflect on this chapter I get a beautiful picture of God and his throne. He is so great and I so small and all I can do is worship and praise his glorious name. The world we live in is nothing compared to God's home. My God is holy, eternal, all-knowing, all-powerful, and fair and just. Nothing I do is hidden from God. All can do is say "Woe is me" and "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty."

So let's stop praying at God but for and with God. I cannot wait to stand amongst his throne and presence and proclaim how holy he is!

Hands of Compassion

This morning I got the opportunity to help out with Hands of Compassion, an outreach to the homeless that my school created. I got up at 6:30am to get ready and met in the cafeteria to make peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. We had a small devotion before we left for Penn Station in New York City.

Once we got into New York City, the group split into two groups to cover different areas in and around Penn Station. I got to be in one group with some people named Kevin, Thressa, and Leah. We walked to Penn Station and I was so amazed by all the tall buildings, lights, people, cars, sounds, and signs. I haven't been back to New York City in awhile so it was really good to be back and feel the busy atmosphere again.

We walked around inside Penn Station to see if there were any homeless people sitting around in the station but we didn't see any so we walked around the outside of the station. We met some people standing outside and offered them a sandwhich or fruit and they gladly accepted and said thank you.

There was one area that was right across from Penn Station that many homeless people hanged around out so we went there next. As my group walked up to some of the people we saw a man and woman huddled together so we headed their way to offer some sandwiches and fruits. After we gave them some food the woman thanked us and we began talking. She started off by thanking us for taking our time to be generous and that God would bless us. We then ask here where she was from and what were some of her aspirations. She told us she was from Brooklyn and wanted to be a lawyer. We asked her what decided her to become a lawyer and she told us how she wanted to help people that were innocent but were wrongly accused. She shared many personal stories and I was surprised how much knowledge she had about law. We also began talking about God and what made a person good or bad. Even though there were some views of hers that I personally didn't believe in it was still good to know where she was coming from. Kevin did ask some important questions about faith and referenced Romans 3. While we were still talking to this lady we saw other homeless people come by us and we offered them some sandwiches and fruit. Leah also got to talk to a woman that was sitting next to the man and woman we were talking to and struck up a conversation. Leah told us later that the woman she talked to was diabetic so she couldn't eat the sandwich and shared some personal difficulties she had like how her former husband was abusive and that if was really difficult for her to find food because she was a diabetic.

We talked for over an hour with the people but sadly had to head to a different area so we asked them if this area was usually the place they hanged around on Saturdays and said that we would come back next weekend to talk with them some more.

There was a man named Richard that the others met on the previous Saturdays so we went to his usual spot to talk to him. When we got to his spot he wasn't there and we asked some of the other people if they saw him but they didn't. We looked around and couldn't find him so we prayed together asking that wherever Richard was he was safe and that God woule protect him. We then headed back to Penn Station to go back home.

This experience for me was an eye opener. Before I came I did have some fear about how I would feel meeting homeless people and talking to them but after doing this today I feel more confident. God really touched my heart and let me see how I am so blessed with many things and that I sometimes take the littlest things for granted. The homeless people I met were very intelligent and it was a tough situation that brought them to the place they are right now. Just offering sandwiches or fruit and listening to them went a long way. How many times do we see a homeless person standing on the road or sitting on the curb and just pass on by?

God calls us as Christians "to look after orphans and widows in their distress" (James 1:27) and that includes the homeless as well. I thank God for allowing me to step out of my comfort zone and spend time with these people.

Please pray that I may continue to have a humble heart, that I would look after the orphans, widows, and homeless of this world, and that I be able to share the love of God to these people.

I am so grateful to be apart of Hands of Compassion and I look forward to the many more opportunities God has for me.