I found these verses this morning and thought they were a good reminder as to Who is the source behind the victories in our lives. Psalms 60:11-12- "Give us help from trouble: for vain is the help of man. Through God we shall do valiantly: for He it is that shall tread down our enemies." Remember how weak we are and how strong our God is! Praying for you all!
Chrystal D.
May 29, 2008
Fallen Man
"Fallen man is not an imperfect creature who needs improvement. He is a rebel who must lay down his arms" - C.S. Lewis. Sometimes we think we just need to improve, we do need to improve but we have to learn to cast all our cares upon christ. We are to week to try to improve by ourselves, we need Christ's help!
10:34
"Faith is the key to being free from the love of things that makes you a self-centered person striving for security instead of taking the risks of love"
May 28, 2008
Rejoicing no matter what
OK for all you wondering “Wait I thought she was gone...” yes I am still in Europe, but we are a train right now and I have something that I want to post… and this will get Chrystal off my back for not posting recently. Lol
A couple days ago, we were in Rome and saw the Caesar Shuffle as my mom likes to call it (Coliseum, Forum ruins, and Pantheon) and while all of these were awesome and wonderful something else sticks out in my mind. My mom had heard that there was a prison near the Coliseum that supposedly Paul and Peter had been kept in, and she really wanted to see it. To be honest, I wasn’t that excited about seeing a prison but we all figured why not?! Well this was not just any prison… she was right it was where Peter and Paul had been kept at one point. Now I am not sure when or what the story is there because I can’t find the story in my New Testament (I hate it when I wanna find something and cant!!! It is MOST annoying when I can’t find something just because I don’t have the right materials lol) But I am going to try my best to describe the prison to you, my reason for doing so I will explain at the end.
The entire prison is underground; basically it’s a very large hole in the ground. In the time of the Romans prisoners were lowered into it on a rope through a hole in the top that is probably only wide enough for my mom or I to get through. (now a door has been dug in from the side so you can walk in) It is about 30 feet from the top of the (for lack of a better word) cave to the floor. So imagine being lowered into this pitch black hole and you cant see the bottom. Once you reach the floor there is a set of stairs carved in so you can reach the bottom level. This bottom room is maybe 18 ft wide and not tall enough for my dad and Erik to stand. Here tons of prisoners would be kept (its not sure how many but lets just say it wouldn’t meet the Geneva Conventions standards) and chained to a pole. It was in a prison like this that Peter and Paul sang and praised God.
While we were actually in the prison I didn’t think too much about it, but as the day went on and I looked back at pictures it struck me how completely depressing it must have been to be imprisoned there. There is literally NO way out! Unless someone pulls you out. Yet… Peter and Paul REJOICED! They were chained to a stone pole in literally a hole in the ground after being beaten with no light, food, or way of escape and they rejoiced!!!
I say all this to point out that no matter how bad we think things are we will probably NEVER have to suffer like that… so how can I possibly ever complain or not trust God to take care of me when he took care of Paul and Peter in such HORRIBLE conditions?
I will stop writing my book now… Hope ya’ll are doing well!
Kristin Hanson
P.S. Chrystal or Rachel if i made any grammatical or spellings errors please fix them for me I dont have time now... thank you dears
A couple days ago, we were in Rome and saw the Caesar Shuffle as my mom likes to call it (Coliseum, Forum ruins, and Pantheon) and while all of these were awesome and wonderful something else sticks out in my mind. My mom had heard that there was a prison near the Coliseum that supposedly Paul and Peter had been kept in, and she really wanted to see it. To be honest, I wasn’t that excited about seeing a prison but we all figured why not?! Well this was not just any prison… she was right it was where Peter and Paul had been kept at one point. Now I am not sure when or what the story is there because I can’t find the story in my New Testament (I hate it when I wanna find something and cant!!! It is MOST annoying when I can’t find something just because I don’t have the right materials lol) But I am going to try my best to describe the prison to you, my reason for doing so I will explain at the end.
The entire prison is underground; basically it’s a very large hole in the ground. In the time of the Romans prisoners were lowered into it on a rope through a hole in the top that is probably only wide enough for my mom or I to get through. (now a door has been dug in from the side so you can walk in) It is about 30 feet from the top of the (for lack of a better word) cave to the floor. So imagine being lowered into this pitch black hole and you cant see the bottom. Once you reach the floor there is a set of stairs carved in so you can reach the bottom level. This bottom room is maybe 18 ft wide and not tall enough for my dad and Erik to stand. Here tons of prisoners would be kept (its not sure how many but lets just say it wouldn’t meet the Geneva Conventions standards) and chained to a pole. It was in a prison like this that Peter and Paul sang and praised God.
While we were actually in the prison I didn’t think too much about it, but as the day went on and I looked back at pictures it struck me how completely depressing it must have been to be imprisoned there. There is literally NO way out! Unless someone pulls you out. Yet… Peter and Paul REJOICED! They were chained to a stone pole in literally a hole in the ground after being beaten with no light, food, or way of escape and they rejoiced!!!
I say all this to point out that no matter how bad we think things are we will probably NEVER have to suffer like that… so how can I possibly ever complain or not trust God to take care of me when he took care of Paul and Peter in such HORRIBLE conditions?
I will stop writing my book now… Hope ya’ll are doing well!
Kristin Hanson
P.S. Chrystal or Rachel if i made any grammatical or spellings errors please fix them for me I dont have time now... thank you dears
May 27, 2008
Your goodness is as a morning cloud...
O Ephraim, what shall I do unto thee? O Judah, what shall I do unto thee? for your goodness is as a morning cloud, and as the early dew it goeth away. I found this really neat verse in Hosea 6:4 the other day, and was thinking about how that can be related to the way we have seem to have set a pattern in our lives (though it's not a very good one). It can be related literally: We have our devotions in the morning (hopefully), and start off on a great day. But then, by noon, just like the morning cloud and the early dew, our goodness has seemed to have disappeared, and were off bickering and doing whatever else we like to do. Ouch! And then it can be related in a more spiritual way: Again, we have our devotions in the morning, and by the heat of the day (noon), or when the temptations and trials come, the same thing happens. Where did our goodness go? Perhaps out the back door.
Even just the name of this blog, "This Is Just The Start", has a lot to do with this verse. It is just the start right now, when we are in this great Youth Group trying to serve God, but when you are out of Y.G. and soon after out of the house, and on your own (some of you pretty soon), where will you stand?
Mark D
Even just the name of this blog, "This Is Just The Start", has a lot to do with this verse. It is just the start right now, when we are in this great Youth Group trying to serve God, but when you are out of Y.G. and soon after out of the house, and on your own (some of you pretty soon), where will you stand?
Mark D
Who is benefitting from my salvation, me or God?
I was reading from Job recently and came upon several verses that caught my attention. Job 21:14 Therefore they say unto God, Depart from us; for we desire not the knowledge of thy ways.15 What is the Almighty, that we should serve him? and what profit should we have, if we pray unto him? This is describing how the wicked feel about God. Have you ever been witnessing and someone asks you why they should serve God. They want to know what he is going to do for them. It made me wonder; in what ways do I benefit from my relationship with the Lord. I know that isn't the right attitude to have towards the Lord, but thinking realistically, I have greatly benefitted from the relationship.
He has come to save us from death and the tormentor. He has come to give us joy. I love it when I am experiencing the full joy of the lord! Even when things are hard, there is joy if we are continually letting our minds dwell on his goodness. James 1:2 My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations-why?- knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that me may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing. We know that even when we are in hard trials or temptations, he is doing it for our good.
He brings hope in sorrow. I loved hearing people talk about Ida after her death. They weren't in despair. Why? because they knew that even though Ida meant so much to them, she meant even more to God, and he had taken her home. Home to a place where there will be no more crying, no more dying, no more aches and pains, and no more sin. Only the presence of her all-powerful savior.
He takes away the burden of life.....if we let him. He told us to take his yoke for it is light. I just recently got finished with school which means I needed to be evaluated. I hate being evaluated. I got so busy and so caught up in getting things ready that I felt like life was a burden that was meant for a man with much bigger shoulders... It was, the God man. I once again needed to change my focus. God tells us not to worry about the clothes that we will wear or the food we will eat. I can imagine God standing there looking at me struggling to carry this impossible weight. “Will you let me carry that for you? It was meant for me not you.” But no I keep on carrying it for a while until I am so tired I fall upon my knees. “Please take this burden off my shoulders Lord, I can't carry it.” Without ever scolding or saying “I told you so” He reaches down and takes it off my back and places it on his own. He helps me up and starts to lead me in his perfect way. You all can pray for me that I would remember to let God lead my life. I didn't get this on the prayer list so I will put it on here. Please pray that I would remember why I am serving at camp this summer. It is so easy for me to get caught up thinking about the fun time I will have that I forget why I am going there, to serve.
Greg
He has come to save us from death and the tormentor. He has come to give us joy. I love it when I am experiencing the full joy of the lord! Even when things are hard, there is joy if we are continually letting our minds dwell on his goodness. James 1:2 My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations-why?- knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that me may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing. We know that even when we are in hard trials or temptations, he is doing it for our good.
He brings hope in sorrow. I loved hearing people talk about Ida after her death. They weren't in despair. Why? because they knew that even though Ida meant so much to them, she meant even more to God, and he had taken her home. Home to a place where there will be no more crying, no more dying, no more aches and pains, and no more sin. Only the presence of her all-powerful savior.
He takes away the burden of life.....if we let him. He told us to take his yoke for it is light. I just recently got finished with school which means I needed to be evaluated. I hate being evaluated. I got so busy and so caught up in getting things ready that I felt like life was a burden that was meant for a man with much bigger shoulders... It was, the God man. I once again needed to change my focus. God tells us not to worry about the clothes that we will wear or the food we will eat. I can imagine God standing there looking at me struggling to carry this impossible weight. “Will you let me carry that for you? It was meant for me not you.” But no I keep on carrying it for a while until I am so tired I fall upon my knees. “Please take this burden off my shoulders Lord, I can't carry it.” Without ever scolding or saying “I told you so” He reaches down and takes it off my back and places it on his own. He helps me up and starts to lead me in his perfect way. You all can pray for me that I would remember to let God lead my life. I didn't get this on the prayer list so I will put it on here. Please pray that I would remember why I am serving at camp this summer. It is so easy for me to get caught up thinking about the fun time I will have that I forget why I am going there, to serve.
Greg
The love and payment of God
While I was cutting grass the other day, I thought of the time that Josh broke his arm in a tree! Since then my Dad doesn't like us climbing trees :/ When I was younger I remember thinking, Why does my Dad care? Its not his arm. Now I know he cares for at least two reasons.
- He loves us and doesn't want us to get hurt
- He has to pay for the hospital bill.
- He loves us, and doesn't want it to hurt us, as it will if we keep doing it.
- He had to pay the hospital bill with blood so we can go to heaven. (since we cant have a imperfect body in heaven.)
Jordan D
May 24, 2008
True Love
I have been doing a study in Ecclesiastes recently, along with my Psalms study, and I will admit that at first it was a bit difficult to get into. But I stuck with it and am beginning to find a lot of pretty basic and simple reminders of who our God is, what He expects of us and how that, in turn, should affect the way we live. The first few chapters deal a lot with the vanity of life and the limitation of human wisdom. Both good things to be reminded of daily! The next few chapters, (which is what I am working in right now,) deal with Gods timing for things, learning to be content through disappointments and how to enjoy good hard work. However, the verses I want to share with you have nothing to do with all that. These are verses you all probably know and have heard a million times, but here they are anyways. Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 “Two are better than one; because they have a good reward for their labour. For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow; but woe to him that is alone when he falleth; for he hath not another to help him up.” These verses are pretty much self explanatory. Basically, we NEED godly friends who can encourage and strengthen us and who, most importantly, can keep us accountable when we mess up. God cares enough for us to have placed friends in our lives so they can help us to get our focus back where it needs to be and encourage us to keep going. Psalms 54:4b “The Lord is with them that uphold my soul” I guess, my next question should be, “Am I that kind of friend?” I have been hit with this question several times recently through different things, including the recent study in “Changed into His Image”. Jim Berg pretty much nails us about how we should be encouraging and helping our friends “God has called every believer to a ministry of discipleship with those around him. He said that we are to be teaching others to observe all things whatsoever He has commanded us. Mathew 28:20. Discipleship is helping another believer make biblical changes toward Christlikeness. Since discipleship means helping someone make biblical changes toward Christlikeness, it ought to be our primary concern in the relationships of our life.” When I am with other people is my main concern their spiritual health, how to be able to pray for them, or how we can grow closer to God? Or do I simply get together with them to have a good time? Don’t get me wrong… I, of all people, think it’s very important to be able to get together with friends and just be able to goof off together and have some clean fun. ;) And yet at the same time, I can’t help but think that sometimes the emphasis on “having a good time” is too great. How come, in the majority of conversations, even in ones after church, the name of our God is hardly even mentioned? We say we love God, but do we really? I have seen older siblings of mine who are engaged and in love. They have a hard time talking about anything other than that special person. No matter how many times I change the topic to something different, it always comes back to talking about their fiancé/fiancée. They will talk about their last date together, how that other person perfectly completes them, and how they are looking forward to getting to spend the rest of their life with that person, etc. (Honestly, it can almost get annoying! Especially when it’s late at night and they won’t stop! ;) But my point remains…our love for God should be the same way, if not even more so. Is my love for God so shallow that I have a hard time even talking about Him with others? Or do I find myself constantly wanting to bring God, somehow, someway, into all my conversations? Am I willing to tell others about the last time God and I had a really neat experience together? Do I get excited when I think about spending an eternity with Him? It’s easy to say right off, “Yes, of course I am/do!” but if you sit back and really think about it, you will realize how earthly focused we really are. The main reason that God gave us earthly companionship was so that we could seek Him together. Psalms 55:13-14 “But it was thou, a man, mine equal, my guide, and mine acquaintance. We took sweet counsel together and walked unto the house of God in company.” God should be the first thing on our minds in the morning, He should be the first One we run to tell about any new news or problem, and He should be the One that we just can’t stop talking about!
Chrystal D.
Chrystal D.
May 22, 2008
Enoch and his testimony
i know this is kinda a bit late from sunday... but the message that pastor gave sunday night really convicted me.
it was from Hebrews 11:5 "By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death, and was not found because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony: that he pleased God"
I got to thinking and the thought struck me, if God still took people to heaven would he see me as holy and righteous as Enoch, take me and give me the testimony that i pleased Him? and i would have to say that i DO NOT think that God would take me home before i died because my walk with the Lord isn't where it should be... so i would greatly appreciate prayer in this area because i can't do it on my own.
Erik
it was from Hebrews 11:5 "By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death, and was not found because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony: that he pleased God"
I got to thinking and the thought struck me, if God still took people to heaven would he see me as holy and righteous as Enoch, take me and give me the testimony that i pleased Him? and i would have to say that i DO NOT think that God would take me home before i died because my walk with the Lord isn't where it should be... so i would greatly appreciate prayer in this area because i can't do it on my own.
Erik
May 21, 2008
Who's Stronger?
Do you push the standards as far as you can or do you let your standards + God show others the difference between a Christion and an unbeliever. Do you let your standards lead you down the wrong path, or do you set higher standards then maybe even your parents, and I assure you that over time more than likely your standards will falter a bit, thats why we should set the higher standard now. Then when you have kids, the standards will not have changed from the previous generation. Are you pushing with the world or pushing against the world? Just for encouragement... the Lord is on our side what is there to fear? Judgement day is coming and its a whole lot better to sacrifice now than to sacrifice on judgement day. Don't be willing to sacrifice the joy of the permanent for the joy of the immediate.
Jordan D
Jordan D
Jesus, My Father, Savior, Friend,
The One who sustains me to the end,
I've failed again and gone my way
but now I'm sick of self and play
Draw me back unto Your side
And let me always there abide!
Help me to see Who You are, what you are.
And then to see who I am, what I am.
A worthless worm, made a prince
through and by the Precious Lamb
The One who sustains me to the end,
I've failed again and gone my way
but now I'm sick of self and play
Draw me back unto Your side
And let me always there abide!
Help me to see Who You are, what you are.
And then to see who I am, what I am.
A worthless worm, made a prince
through and by the Precious Lamb
May 19, 2008
A lesson from David
I was reading in Psalms recently and was struck again with the wide range of emotions David went through. He goes from being ecstatic to being depressed to being miserable with himself to being awed by God's greatness. Sometimes he's even downright mad and impatient, asking God to strike his enemies and avenge him. However, through all these changing feelings, one theme remains constant: David's faith in God. No matter what David was feeling at the time, all his psalms reflect his faith that God would take care of him no matter what. Personally, I was glad to see this. It was encouraging to be reminded that even David, a man who was so close to God that he was called a man after God's own heart, did not always feel like God was close. However, even when he didn't FEEL like trusting God, he always KNEW that God was trustworthy. It was not what he felt that was important, after all feelings are fickle, but it was what he knew that got him through the tough times. He knew that God took care of him in the past, and he had the faith to believe that God would do the same in the future. After pastor's sermon on Heb. 11 about faith, it reminded me that faith doesn't have much to do with what I feel but what I know. How many times does God have to prove Himself before we will trust Him? Looking back on God's record, I know that He has never let me or anybody else down, so why should He start now? Be careful about feelings. Feelings are wonderful things and God uses them, but they are not a firm foundation for faith.
Psalm 77:7-11. Will the Lord cast off for ever? and will he be favourable no more? Is his mercy clean gone for ever? doth his promise fail for evermore? Hath God forgotten to be gracious? hath he in anger shut up his tender mercies? Selah. And I said, This is my infirmity: but I will remember the years of the right hand of the most High. I will remember the works of the Lord: surely I will remember thy wonders of old.
Mike
Psalm 77:7-11. Will the Lord cast off for ever? and will he be favourable no more? Is his mercy clean gone for ever? doth his promise fail for evermore? Hath God forgotten to be gracious? hath he in anger shut up his tender mercies? Selah. And I said, This is my infirmity: but I will remember the years of the right hand of the most High. I will remember the works of the Lord: surely I will remember thy wonders of old.
Mike
Living Simply—Yet Focused
I was reading from Matthew 6 this morning and The end of chapter is talking about taking no thought of your raiment, your food, etc. Because God, who cares about even the little things, would He not care for us? If we will place all of our trust in Him and simply Him, He will supply our needs, and His glory will shine through us.
For Christ to shine through us, we must look to Him, and without even realizing it, He will shine through us, without any conscious "help" from us.
There is only one way to develop and grow spiritually, and that is through focusing and concentrating on God.
John 7:38 -Jesus was saying, “Do not worry about being of use to others; simply believe on Me.” In other words, pay attention to the Source, and out of you “will flow rivers of living water”
We will not find the source of this light through common sense or reasoning, but through focusing directly on the light itself. - Christ! This is how we will grow.
If you want to be of use to God, you have to maintain the proper relationship with Him by staying focused on Him, and He will make use of you every min. of your life—yet you will be unaware, on the conscious level of your life, that you are being used of Him.
Praying that Christ will be evident through all of our lives!
Rachel
For Christ to shine through us, we must look to Him, and without even realizing it, He will shine through us, without any conscious "help" from us.
There is only one way to develop and grow spiritually, and that is through focusing and concentrating on God.
John 7:38 -Jesus was saying, “Do not worry about being of use to others; simply believe on Me.” In other words, pay attention to the Source, and out of you “will flow rivers of living water”
We will not find the source of this light through common sense or reasoning, but through focusing directly on the light itself. - Christ! This is how we will grow.
If you want to be of use to God, you have to maintain the proper relationship with Him by staying focused on Him, and He will make use of you every min. of your life—yet you will be unaware, on the conscious level of your life, that you are being used of Him.
Praying that Christ will be evident through all of our lives!
Rachel
May 18, 2008
Happy Birthday Erik- aka:"Dan"
Happy 16th Birthday Erik Hanson!!!!!! Thanks for your part in Sigma. Thanks also for using your abilities, such as singing, playing the violin, etc. to serve God and others. We'll be praying for you in this next year.
p.s. Good luck with the permit! =)
May 15, 2008
All we have been learning......
I was getting on the blog today,and i was looking at all the posts we have on this thing.269 well.....270 after I'm done writing this one out=)We have come a long way since we started the blog.We started this thing in what... July 2007 i think.We all have learned soooo much since then.I'm so thankful for our Y.G. I'm so happy of what we've learned.... and will keep learning in the years to come. Have a GREAT DAY everybody!
Zach
Zach
May 14, 2008
“God is Bigger than the Boogie Man” ;)
John 10:4 – And when He putteth forth His sheep, He goeth before them and the sheep follow Him, for they know His voice.
The part that really stood out to me in this verse is “He goeth before them and the sheep follow Him”. This made me think of the times when my brothers and I were little and we were afraid of the dark. And then would come the dreaded assignment of taking the trash out! The barrel that we burned our trash in was quite a distance from our house, near the field, and when it was dark out, it seemed a mile away! So, if my mom would tell one of us to take the trash out, at night, we would always go get a sibling to go with us first. In a way it almost became an adventure. We’d grab our flashlights to help us see and the butcher knives to help protect us from any “bad guys”. =) Then we’d go outside and stand on the porch and stare out into the darkness, deciding whether or not we were brave enough to go the whole way down to the burn barrel. (yes… we were “scaredy-cats” ;) And that is when an older sibling would come out of the house, grab our hands, laugh at our uncertainty and proceed to lead us down to the burn barrel. Suddenly being out in the dark didn’t seem quite so scary with the reassurance that somebody, that was bigger than us, was leading the way and would take care of any problems that would arise. God is certainly bigger and more powerful than any uncertainties or problems that may come up in our lives that we tend to think of as so major. Including the temptations in our lives, the unknowns, the frustrations of failing over and over, weakness in witnessing, going through the death of loved ones, experiencing some kind of change, etc. And I am learning that those are the times when God simply grabs our hand, laughs at our fears and proceeds to lead the way. Psalm 27:1- “The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The LORD is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?” Psalm 59:8-9 “But thou, O LORD, shalt laugh at them; thou shalt have all the heathen in derision. Because of his strength will I wait upon thee: for God is my defense”
Chrystal
The part that really stood out to me in this verse is “He goeth before them and the sheep follow Him”. This made me think of the times when my brothers and I were little and we were afraid of the dark. And then would come the dreaded assignment of taking the trash out! The barrel that we burned our trash in was quite a distance from our house, near the field, and when it was dark out, it seemed a mile away! So, if my mom would tell one of us to take the trash out, at night, we would always go get a sibling to go with us first. In a way it almost became an adventure. We’d grab our flashlights to help us see and the butcher knives to help protect us from any “bad guys”. =) Then we’d go outside and stand on the porch and stare out into the darkness, deciding whether or not we were brave enough to go the whole way down to the burn barrel. (yes… we were “scaredy-cats” ;) And that is when an older sibling would come out of the house, grab our hands, laugh at our uncertainty and proceed to lead us down to the burn barrel. Suddenly being out in the dark didn’t seem quite so scary with the reassurance that somebody, that was bigger than us, was leading the way and would take care of any problems that would arise. God is certainly bigger and more powerful than any uncertainties or problems that may come up in our lives that we tend to think of as so major. Including the temptations in our lives, the unknowns, the frustrations of failing over and over, weakness in witnessing, going through the death of loved ones, experiencing some kind of change, etc. And I am learning that those are the times when God simply grabs our hand, laughs at our fears and proceeds to lead the way. Psalm 27:1- “The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The LORD is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?” Psalm 59:8-9 “But thou, O LORD, shalt laugh at them; thou shalt have all the heathen in derision. Because of his strength will I wait upon thee: for God is my defense”
Chrystal
