What Jesus wants

I just finished two long weeks of CNA training today, and I'm moving on to clinicals on Monday.  Every day I left my house at 6:15am and didn't get back till almost 6 every evening.  Coming into it, I knew it was going to be hard to keep up with my devotions, and for the first week guess how many I did: zero.  But then over the weekend, I didn't have much of a break and I was not mentally ready for another day of class this past Monday.  I decided that I needed to make first priorities first (this sounds familiar..) and spend time with God.  I took the bus because it is cheaper than driving, so I have a whole hour every day on the way there, and I started to use that time to journal and read this awesome book called The 10 Second Rule.  That time became a very refreshing time every morning on my way to class, and I'm so glad that I didn't wait any longer than a week to get back to devotions.

The 10 Second Rule is basically a challenge to "just do the next thing you're reasonably certain Jesus wants you to do."  Man, it is such a good book!  I've been needing something to knock me out of this funk and mediocrity, and this book is so challenging and encouraging.  I want to just post a bunch of quotes right here but I'm not exactly sure on the legality of posting pieces of books on blogs, plus I don't think it would be as meaningful for you as it is for me.  Just read the book. :)

Anyway, being in this CNA class has got me thinking really hard about what it looks like to be a Christian in the secular world.  First off, I realized how selfish and foolish it was to not be spending consistent time with God during a time when I was interacting with people who didn't know Him every single day.  Selfish because as a Christian, my purpose is to represent Jesus and be a light and encouragement to others, whether they know Him or not.  When I don't spend time with God, I am not being filled with the Spirit and His fruits (love, patience, gentleness, etc), and I can't be an effective witness.  That's selfish because I'm forgetting my purpose.  Skipping my tent time is also foolish because I'm not giving God opportunity to convict me of sins and mistakes, fill me with joy and wisdom as well as the ability to glorify Him, and speak to me--and it becomes that much easier for Satan to distract me, to try and get me to conform to the world's standards.

In his first book, Peter says we should set apart Christ Jesus as Lord in our hearts, and always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks why we have the hope we have.  That preparedness and sanctification ("set-apartness") can come only when our lives are consumed by Christ.

Okay forget it I just want to put the quotes in here.  I'm pretty sure it falls under the Fair Use rule or whatever it is (I just read an article).  The reason that the 10 Second Rule is such a challenge is that it requires us to ignore what our brain wants us to do (not go out of our comfort zone, not take a risk, not talk to a stranger) and instead do what God wants us to do.  The author of the book, Clare De Graaf, made a really interesting point.  What if we get an inkling of an idea (e.g. go talk to that person to encourage them or go help that lady with her groceries), but aren't sure it's from God?  Ultimately, it doesn't matter!  When we really know God, we can have a sense that we should do something and be able to tell if it is consistent with his character.  Would the action show love or patience or kindness?  God wants you to do it.  De Graaf reminds us that there are guidelines that Christians should always follow, even if it's not a command for a specific event.  For example, Jesus tells us to love our neighbor.  So when we see someone in need, we should put down whatever we're doing and help them because Jesus already told us to--it applies every time.

Proverbs 2:2-6 says that if we seek wisdom and cry out for understanding, searching for it like hidden treasure, "then [we] will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God.  For the Lord gives wisdom, and from His mouth come knowledge and understanding."  I think knowing God's will begins here, with the little things.  His will for us is already in the Bible. Sure, it may not be specific to life's events, but sometimes it doesn't have to be.  It just takes boldness on our part, a willingness to step outside of our comfort zones.  Even this week God has already given me opportunities to practice this 10 Second Rule concept.  I need to stay in prayer and be consistent with my tent time so that I am in tune with God's desires.

And, here's the best part!  In Romans 7 Paul describes his inner conflict between the good his heart wants and the indwelling sinful nature that tries to distract.  Verse 22 says "For in my inner being I delight in God's law; but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of win at work within my members."  He sounds pretty distraught, and this struggle, the clash between human selfishness and desire to do God's will, is no foreign subject to any Christian--definitely not to me!

But there's hope!  We do not have to be slaves to the sinful nature, "because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of LIFE set me free from the law of sin and death!"  That's Romans 8, an incredible chapter that has new meaning all the time.

So the moral (well, morals) of the story is:
Time with God is important.  Don't skimp.
To grow closer to Him, seek understanding of His will in the Bible.
Be willing to step outside the comfort zone to be the light of Jesus to someone.
And don't be discouraged! Jesus' sacrifice has set us free, and God promises peace!

Dream and updates

Okay sorry for the lamest title ever!  I just could not come up with anything clever or even remotely interesting.  At least it's descriptive...?

One of my favorite things about my family is that we (well, they, since I usually don't live with them) are very hospitable.  The house has always been open to people who need a place to crash for a night, and we love hosting friends for a week or weekend or whatever.  Sometimes in the summer there are short periods where we move from room to room as various people move in and out.  Anyway, all that was just to preface a funny dream my dad had last night that I want to immortalize here.  In the dream, he was sleeping in the room that my sister and I used to share, in one of two twin beds against opposite walls.  He woke up in the middle of the night to find a large man sleeping on one side of him in the same bed, and on the other side lay a 9-month-old infant.  My dad then looked across the room and saw six or seven little girls in the other bed, in the style of these dogs (watch the video, it's really short and cute!).  Apparently in the dream he didn't think anything of finding all of these random people in his room and bed; he just figured that they had come by during the night needing a place to stay and my mom let them in.  Haha.

Also, I don't think I've posted since I've been home.  I was in a friend's wedding the day before I flew home, and it was just beautiful and I was so glad and honored to be a part of it.  Since I got home, it's been awesome being with my family.  Making music with my dad and sister, and enjoying food with my mom, and just spending time with each other.

Oh, so as a part of my commitment to tent time, I've started reading Joshua.  I'm a little ashamed to admit that I've been trying to get through the Old Testament for... two years now?  I've read the New Testament tons of times, and a lot of the Old as well, but one of my (nonbelieving) friends once inquired, how can a person be a Christian if they haven't even read the entire Bible?  I don't agree with this completely, but for real, I have this whole book of God's word and I haven't even read the whole thing!  Something is wrong here.  So I'm trying yet again to read the OT, and I'm skipping the Pentateuch (the first five books) because I've read those a few times.  But this time, I'm writing a short, 3-4 sentence summary of each chapter as I go through.  Not only does habit this make the reading more memorable because I'm writing it down, it also helps motivate me to really think about what it's saying (a necessary task for summarizing).  It's been great so far and I think I'll definitely continue this idea as I work through the OT.

One last thing: Last night I took a CPR/BLS (basic life support) class for healthcare providers and not only did I get to use a bag valve mask, I am again certified in CPR and have a card that says Healthcare Provider with my name on it!  One step closer... :)