Worship

What does it mean to worship God?

Scripture says:

"Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name;
worship the LORD in the splendor of holiness." - Psalm 29:2

"Worship the LORD in the splendor of holiness;
tremble before him, all the earth!" - Psalm 96:9

"And Jesus answered him, 'It is written, 'You shall worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve.'" - Luke 4:8

"But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is is seeking such people to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth." - John 4:23-24

"We know that God does not listen to sinners, but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does his will, God listens to him." - John 9:31

"I appeal yo you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship." - Romans 12:1

As I have been on various music worship teams over the years and have another opportunity to be on worship team tomorrow morning at church, worship has been on my mind.

We are continually reminded as members of the worship team to be in worship in every part of our lives, not only on stage on Sunday morning.

Looking at the Scriptures listed above, I would summarize that true worship is submitting myself to the Lord and serving Him whole heartedly in everything and acknowledging Him for who He is, giving Him all the glory.

Too often I find myself being a worshipper of self. Doing what I please instead of seeking to please the One who has given me life.

Today I failed to worship God. I was frustrated at work and decided to let my frustration affect my conduct. Instead of focusing on the Lord and His love for me, I focused on the negative situations happening at work and I operated with a negative attitude.

I would like to say that I have a reputation for being full of joy at work, but I know that it was a little stained today. After getting a text message from one of my coworkers, which expressed their concern that I seemed upset at work and they felt guilty because they had made a comment to me which they believed caused me to be angry, I realized that I had not operated in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ today. I quickly apologized to my coworker for my negativity and reassured them that the comment had been forgotten and forgiven.

May God continue to work in me to make me a better worshipper no matter what kinds of situations life brings my way.

Let me follow the perfect example of Christ Jesus and be a light to the world. - Philippians 2:1-18

Don't Worry

Ever since I wrote my last final exam on December 19th, the one I dreaded because the class was super hard and I was going into the exam with a 54, I was trying not to worry.

There were many things I was tempted to worry about such as:
- would I be allowed to continue in my program next semester if I failed?
- what would I do with my life if I couldn't continue?
- would I have to take the class again next year?
- what would the people who know me think of me if I failed?

I'm sure there were more things to add to that list but I decided to pray and trust the Lord to help me through the waiting period.

Waiting was hard. The marks were supposed to be posted last Tuesday but they weren't posted until Friday.

*breath of relief*

I passed!

Now when I look back on the situation I see God's provision. He wants me to be a good steward of everything that He has given me so why would He allow my effort and His money to be wasted? I know that all situations do not turn out this way but I see it as a clear confirmation that He wants me to keep pursuing a career in nursing. Next semester starts right away and I want to do my best for His glory at both work and school.

It feels good to be given a chance to begin fresh this semester. I praise God for His trustworthiness and faithfulness throughout my life, especially in the difficult waiting times. It's true that "The LORD is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts, and I am helped; my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to him." - Psalms 28:7

New Year Goals

It always feels fresh and energizing to have a new start. I especially enjoy January 1st for that reason.
Though I usually just ponder about goals that I would like to achieve in the New Year, this time I want to write them out for a bit of extra motivation.

1. I want to spend at least 30 minutes reading the Bible and praying every morning.
2. I want to spend at least 30 minutes running every morning.
3. I want to run at least one official half-marathon and do it under 1 hour and 45 minutes.
4. I want to pray for specific people in my life who don't know Christ every day.
5. I want to stay debt-free.
6. I want to be able to do 20 man push-ups in a row.

I think that's a fair list. So far so good! :)

It's Christmas!

Christmas is the most celebrated holiday in Canada, and I'm sure in many other countries as well, but we all celebrate it differently.

Some families have Christmas dinner, others can't afford it.
Some open gifts on Christmas eve, others Christmas morning.
Some attend church on Christmas eve.

Obviously the list could go on and on and on but I want to talk about the true meaning of Christmas. A Charlie Brown Christmas absolutely nails it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DKk9rv2hUfA

Last night our family read Isaiah 53 together, the chapter about Jesus Christ. It reads:

"Who has believed what he has heard from us? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed? For he grew up before him like a young plant, and like a root out of dry ground; he had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

Surely he has borne out griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned - every one - to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.

He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth. By oppression and judgment he was taken away; and as for his generation, who considered that he was cut off out of the land of the living, stricken for the transgression of my people? And they made his grave with the wicked and with a rich man in his death, although he had done no violence, and there was no deceit in his mouth.

Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him; he has put him to grief; when his soul makes an offering for guilt, he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days; the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied; by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities. Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong, because he poured out his soul to death and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many, and makes intercession for the transgressors."

Those are the words of God, spoken by the prophet Isaiah hundreds of years before Christ was born.
We have the privilege today of being those who no longer wait for the coming of our Saviour. Jesus has already come so that we might be saved from the powers of sin and death.

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God...He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth." - John 1:1; 12-14

May many come to confess Christ this Christmas season and be saved! Merry Christmas!

Blah, blah, blah...

It's one of those days...just finished writing a final exam and don't feel like studying for the next one right this minute :). So I think I'll blab on for a bit just for fun...

I heard a joke the other day that I thought was funny even though it took me an extra few seconds to understand...it went like this:

"Did you know that the man who wrote the Hokie Pokie died? It took them two weeks to bury him!"

LOL!

As I was praying this morning I asked God a lot of questions about life. There are so many things that I find myself unsure about but I know that He will provide the answers that I need when I need them.

I decided last week that I am going to quit my paper route. After having to be ready at 6am for clinical rotations, which forced me to start my paper route at 3:30am, which I did not enjoy and will never do again, I've decided it's time to be done. Ever since I have had to drive to pick up my papers to deliver each morning it's been a bit of a pain anyway. The pros have finally been outweighed by the cons.

I bought some floating shelves for my bedroom and now that they're mounted, I'm not sure what I should put on them! I figured that I needed more space for something but that something remains a mystery...

A new discovery that I made yesterday is that I can focus on reading my textbooks more if I am walking around at the same time. So now I can place my textbooks on my treadmill and study while exercising! Multitasking is a precious gift from the Lord :).

Today I created a casserole for supper and tried to take it out of the oven without oven mitts...don't even ask why because I don't know. My hands hurt...

I thought I needed maybe only ten more hangers for my closet but I bought thirty just in case (plus they were cheap). Turns out I'll probably need another thirty. Or I need to give away some clothes...

Now I think I should really go and study for my next exam...while watching Pirates of the Caribbean! Yes, I can do both. I'm just making flashcards for now :).