Rocked by God this morning

A friend once told me; you think about others more than you think about yourself. In some ways, that's good. In some ways, it's bad (or not as good.)

A lot of times I find myself thinking about the needs of others. I'll think about the homeless people in our nation, the starving kids in Africa, the people who were hurt by the earthquake in Japan, the people whose houses/lives were damaged by the tornadoes in our country, my friends/family who need prayer...etc. When I think about all those people I wonder how I can help and that they really need to know the love of God. I'll think- those people are valuable to God too and He wants to restore their lives.

This morning as mom and i were riding around in our van, we were listening to Point of Grace.
Suddenly, God told me/laid it on my heart & mind that I am also valuable to Him. He also loves me and cares about me. So many times I'm thinking about others- that i think i miss the fact that God thinks about/of me, cares about/for me, loves me...etc. I didn't quite break down, but i cried because I was reminded of God's love for me and how much He loves me.

Romans 5:7-9 Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him!

There was a Point of Grace song that we were listening to some of the lyrics said:
"The more you give the more He brings His love back to you!" and "The answer is Jesus."
Amen to both of those!


p.s.- i did not post the picture to be vainful by any means...just posted it to remind me that God/Jesus cares about me and loves me.

somethin.....

I see all these people.
All these people who, like me, are wondering what they're gonna do in life.
People like me who are unsure, uncertain, and STILL wondering.

I've been told i have a gift for dancing. I like to teach dance, but my overwhelming question is-
am i adequate enough to teach dance? Do i know enough to teach? Would I make a good dance teacher?

i am taking a class about how to teach dance, but somehow it's hard for me to see myself teaching dance in a studio somewhere. This is not to say that i can't dream, but it's just hard for me to see myself in that position. Not that i can't do it- I'm just nervous/slightly worried about it.
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I have this Prayer Request word document on my computer. It's 5 pages long- filled with people's requests for this or for that--all these things really need prayer. Some of these things i have seen answered. For others, the answers are yet to come. It's not exactly overwhelming for me to have this list, but it's another reminder that everyone needs prayer.
I don't know about you, but sometimes i hear about certain issues that need prayer- and i think if i had prayed about that then it would have changed. (like my prayer is the only one that counts- or makes something happen (it's not a pride issue , plz don't think that) (which it doesn't) ). But I guess I just need to be reminded of corporate prayer, and how strong that is.
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I was talking with a friend the other day and she told me something (that a friend told her) that really encouraged me. Many times it's so easy for us to get bogged down in school and somehow school becomes our #1 object. We don't mean for/want this to happen because God/Jesus/Bible reading/Prayer should be #1. My friend told me that her friend said that God is always with us- even while we do school. For some reason, this really got to me. Not that i think God isn't with me during school- and only with me during church or crosswave weekends- but he's ALWAYS with me. It's not even that His presence is stronger in one place and weaker in another. NOPE. His presence is always with us, wherever we go- EVEN AT SCHOOL. It's not that i'm trying to not allow God in my school, but so many things fill my mind for school work- like right now- and it's hard to keep my focus on God when there are so many things asking for my attention. But during these times I remember that my final home is heaven with My King Jesus. This earth is not my final home- i'm just an alien passing through.

GO....Move...

This post is not about moving as in moving from one house to another. It's about following God's commands and His leading.

I've been reading more in Exodus. Now I'm reading about the plagues. (I'm past that now but I had been reading about the plagues). Before God brought the plague upon Egypt, He told Moses and Aaron what to do and say to Pharaoh when they went before Pharaoh. God always said "Go to Pharaoh...", then his specific order followed. Whenever God was about to move, or show His power, He always told Moses/Aaron what to say or do- so that God's power would be revealed and the Israelites and Egyptians would KNOW that HE IS GOD.

When God said GO, Moses and Aaron WENT. (Okay so Moses was definitely unsure of himself and argued with God when God first called him at the burning bush- but Moses eventually went.) If Moses had not responded to God's calling, then Moses would not have grown into the man of God that he became. Recently I've thought about what if Exodus 14:16 never happened.
((to Moses God said) ¹⁶ Raise your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea to divide the water so that the Israelites can go through the sea on dry ground.) What if Moses had not done that. Would God still have shown His power? Would God still have parted the Red Sea by another means of His power and shown more of His glory?

If Moses had not moved, when God said GO, if Moses had not spoken to Pharaoh when God said tell him this, if Moses had not fully obeyed God- Moses would have had many missed opportunities to serve God and to be His vessel. Moses would not have become the man of God that God created him to be.

A Snake's Tail...

Despite my rather boring morning...Let's be honest for a second. I haven't exactly been reading my bible lately. I've been really sick the past few days- almost a week that I've been sick. Last Sunday, I watched The Prince of Egypt on youtube (yes it's all there) and, again, I was blown away at how God used Moses- just an ordinary person. Moses was on God's mind from the beginning. The Israelites had been under the oppression of Pharaoh for many years, and God had in mind to deliver them, though the israelites didn't think so. They had been working hard for Pharaoh for many years and after working with bricks, straw, and clay for too long- they began to believe that maybe God was not going to save them from Pharaoh's hand. What their situation came down to was trust...would they really trust God and believe that He was going to actually save them?

So this morning i decided to start reading in Exodus; the same story that the Prince of Egypt is- just to understand it a bit more and see God's powerful hand at work all over again. This morning I read Exodus (chapters) 1-4. I read something in chapter 4 that baffled me and got me thinking. It was verses 1-4 (That's Exodus 4:1-4 just so you're not confused.)

1 Moses answered, “What if they do not believe me or listen to me and say, ‘The LORD did not appear to you’?”

² Then the LORD said to him, “What is that in your hand?”

“A staff,” he replied.

³ The LORD said, “Throw it on the ground.”

Moses threw it on the ground and it became a snake, and he ran from it.

⁴ Then the LORD said to him, “Reach out your hand and take it by the tail.” So Moses reached out and took hold of the snake and it turned back into a staff in his hand.

The part that really got me was when God told Moses to pick up the snake by its tail. AHEM...BY IT'S TAIL.. Nowadays, if someone picked up a snake by it's tail, the snake might come back and bite us. Now, picking up a snake by its tail is not a smart thing to do. I noticed in the Prince of Egypt movie that (in this part of the movie) Moses picks up the snake behind its head- the smart way to pick up a snake. But what did God say in the bible? Pick it up by its tail. God was asking Moses to trust Him on 2 (or maybe 3) accounts. 1) pick up a snake 2) pick up the snake by its tail 3) trust me that the snake will not come back and bite you. That's a lot to trust God on and really believe that the snake would not harm him when he picked it up BY THE TAIL.

Final Solo..

So i've really had a lot of topics on my mind and thought about many things I could write about on my next entry. I've had verses on my mind, spiritual topics, experiences...etc..ideas ideas ideas.

Let me begin by saying that i really do like my dance teachers. They've been so helpful to me these past years that I've been at Meredith College. They're so willing to work with me on anything or if i have a question, they'll be happy to answer it. They are also considerate of their students and are really able to be real with their students and help them out when they need it.

A few weeks ago, I performed my final solo dance. This dance was my final exam for my dance composition class. All along in this class, I have been creating new movement and learning about tools that I can use to help me in my process of creating movement. This final solo was also something that i created and performed for my class. (everyone in that class performed their solo, not just me). My final solo was/is about the battle that we as christians face everyday; the battle between the flesh and the spirit. I was really excited and a bit nervous about performing this solo. I kept praying that God would help me in this and that people would see Him in my dance and not just me. I was really looking forward to doing this solo as a form of ministry at my school and to the other students who were going to see it.

So i perform my final solo and as I was dancing it, onstage in the college's auditorium, i thought- this is what i really really want to do; travel across the country/world- and minister in my dance while i dance. Anyway, i do my dance and pray that God was glorified in it. I get my feedback later on from my teacher- and she did say a lot of things that i could have done to make my dance better and maybe a few ideas on it too..i think she did like it though.

When I saw my grade on my final solo, I was somewhat disappointed. It's not necessarily the grade that mattered much to me, it was the fact that I had worked on this dance for a really long time and I was really trying to add more to it and make it longer than one minute. Plus, I really felt like this was something great that I was creating. For example, you work on something for quite sometime, you put a lot of energy and emotion into it, you're really excited to show it or perform it, you can't wait to hear what your teacher/peers think about your piece, and you're just looking forward to the whole experience. Then when u do hear from your teacher or see the grade and it's not what you thought you'd get, it's kind of depressing and disappointing.

This is what happened to me in regards to my final solo. It's not that i didn't appreciate the valuable feedback I got from my teacher because I really did value it and she had some really great pointers. The grade I received was not what I was expecting.

This really all comes down to one thing, and one thing only --> Jesus Christ.
The other conclusion I came to in the midst of this was that I really was doing this for God and since He gave me a love for dance, why not give honor back to Him in my dance and just thank Him for taking away all my sin? I also thought that although I should respect people's opinions and advice, Jesus' thoughts on me is what I should be most concerned about.

In lieu of all these words, go watch my final solo- it's on my facebook page. Know that I am really doing it for Him; it's just that other people happen to be seeing it also.

Self Created Deserts?/ Brothers in Christ- but i don't know them personally.

So I've been thinking about this idea of deserts....spiritual deserts. I know I've had my share of mine and it would be honest of me to say that I'm kind of in one right now. (not exactly, but it's just hard for me to see God's plan for my life past college- ie see the previous post I wrote addressing this topic)
It seems to me that sometimes we create our own spiritual deserts. What do i mean by this? We read our bibles and spend time with God- gaining every possible thing we can from him and what He has to say. Our spiritual life is great. But, life goes on and we get can get so busy caught up in this or that- whatever it is- it takes the place of our time in the Word or our time with God. If/When this continues over a long period of time, we start feeling spiritually dry and we feel like we're not hearing what God has to say to us, we feel like he's far away from us, we're not able to get through, and sometimes when we read the bible- no words or verses pop out- it's just like reading another text book. At this time, the obvious is what we really need to dig into- praying, even though we may not want to, read the bible even though nothing jumps out at us, and remembering God's faithfulness to us in the past/present/future.

Exodus 13:20-22 says this: in talking about the Israelites before they crossed the Red Sea:
After leaving Sukkoth they camped at Etham on the edge of the desert. By day the LORD went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night. Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left its place in front of the people.

Notice who was with them in the desert. The LORD. He went ahead of them to guide them through and eventually out of the desert.

Exodus 14 talks about Pharaoh and his army trying to capture the Israelites- BUT GOD had a different plan in store. God saw beyond the desert, beyond the dry wasteland, beyond the arid and parched and barren land. God's plan of action was to take his people across the Red Sea into a place of celebration and victory. Check out Exodus 15 and you'll see what i'm talking about. http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Exodus%2015&version=NIV
See, if the Israelites had not been through the desert, they would have not come out on the other side rejoicing and praising God for what He has done.

On a smaller note, I'm looking forward to a huge concert this weekend. It's always wonderful when the body of Christ comes together to worship the ONE TRUE GOD. The reason for the 2nd half of the title "Brothers in Christ- but i don't know them personally" is this. Several artists are going to be sharing their music at this concert. It's so easy to see these cats as famous people or to see them as something they don't wanna be seen as. Lately, I've really been trying to see them as more of the body of Christ- and yes- even though I don't know them personally, they're still my brother's in Christ- who still need prayer for the everyday struggles. I'm excited about getting together with more of the overall Church body and just worshiping God with many people who believe the same way I do. I do realize that some people may not believe the same way, but I'm hoping that those people will come to know my Awesome Savior.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gzg26zJjb1Y&feature=youtube_gdata_player

This is my dance that i created for my 4th movement study in my dance composition 1 class. My piece is entitled: Extended to Crinkled. I hope you like it---and maybe you can guess what it is based on....i'll give u two hints.
1)My object is something you see during 3 out of 4 seasons.
2)Most of the time i'm green, but i can also come in red, yellow, orange, and brown.