Oh Night Divine

Long lay the world in sin and error pining
Till he appear'd and the soul felt His worth
A thrill of hope
The weary world rejoices
For yonder breaks
A new and glorious morn!
Fall on your knees
Oh hear the angel voices
Oh night divine
Oh night when Christ was born
Oh night divine, oh night, oh night divine
~ Oh Night Divine

Since yesterday was Christmas I thought I would write about something relating to a Christmas song. This is a song that I really enjoy listening to. The sin is full of sin that each and every person alive commits. The good news is though that Jesus was born so that He could die and take away the punishment that we should receive for the sins we commit. Yesterday we celebrated the day that Jesus was born many years ago. Because of Jesus' birth we have hope that we are forgiven and that we will one day live in heaven with Jesus.  Since Jesus was born we can rejoice and know that we have a lot to be thankful for. During Christmas we sometimes forget the real reason why we are celebrating because of the many things that we do with our loved ones. There are also times during the year that I think we often forget about this wonderful gift that we received long before we were born and that is the gift that Christ was born for us. This is the best gift that we could ever have received and ever will receive. God sent His son, Jesus, to be born for us as a Savior.

The morning when Christ was born was a very glorious morning to those who found out the good news. It is still a day that we see as a very glorious morning as we celebrate that day. That night was a night that changed the world forever. On that night our Savior was born and that meant that His life was going to be the example of a life that we should try to follow (even though it isn't possible because we are sinners). It also changed that way that we live because we know that there was a Savior born for us that took away all of our sins so that when our time comes to leave this earth we would enter our Lord's eternal kingdom.

Remember that Jesus is God's greatest gift to each and everyone of us.
Justina Marie

God's Unfailing Love

Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul. Rescue me from my enemies, O LORD, for I hide myself in you. Teach me to do your will, for you are my God; may your good Spirit lead me on level ground. For your name's sake, O LORD, preserve my life; in your righteousness, bring me out of trouble. In your unfailing love, silence all my enemies; destroy all my foes, for I am your servant." ~ Psalm 143:8-12

I think this is a great verse for us to use as a reminder of a few things. There are often times where we wake up in the morning and we don't want to get out of bed or do anything that day. This verse reminds us that we should remember God's unfailing love for us. When we wake up we should remember that it is a new day and a gift from God. We should trust in Him that whatever the day brings our way is all a part of His plan for us. There are times where we think we know what is best for us and we try to follow a path that we believe is right for us. We need to remember that God is leading us along the path we are walking along. Today in Chapel I heard something very similar to the following quote (I may not have gotten it word for word) by one of our professors here:

"Imagine that you are riding on a bike for two. You are riding on the seat on the back. Jesus is riding on the seat in the front. You are the one that is working to pedal and get where you are going while Jesus is steering the bike. When you come to a fork in the road Jesus takes the path that He knows is where you are supposed to go. Every once in a while He looks back at you with a smile, not to see that you are still there because He knows that you are, but to assure you that you are being led by Him and not on your own and that you are being taken down the right path for you."

 I thought that was a great way to express how Jesus is leading our lives and how we are being taken down the road to do God's will for us. The verse says, "Rescue me from my enemies, O LORD, for I hide myself in you." In the meaning of the quote this relates because we are in a sense hiding ourselves in God because we are behind Him and He is leading us in the direction He wants us to go. He is rescuing us from our enemies because He is turning down the paths that are where we are supposed to go and that means that He is taking us away from our enemies. God is going to silence our enemies and destroy our foes. We are His servant and are to share the Word with others so that they may know who God is. He has unfailing love for us and does so many wonderful things for us that each morning we should wake up and think about how great His unfailing love for us is and that we are being led by Jesus on the path that God has planned out for us.

Remember that God has unfailing love for you and that He is leading your life according to His plan.
Justina Marie

Jesus ALWAYS Remains

Higher than the mountains that I face
Stronger than the power of the grave
Constant in the trial and the change
One thing... Remains

On and on and on and on it goes
It overwhelms and satisfies my soul
And I never, ever, have to be afraid
One thing remains

Your love never fails, never gives up
Never runs out on me

In death and in life I'm confident and
Covered by the power of your great love
My debt is paid there's nothing that can
Separate my heart from your great love
~ One Thing Remains by Jesus Culture

No matter what is going on in life and amidst the many changes and hard things that are happening. Right now there are many things that are going on in this world. Things that are hard for many people and people are struggling with multiple things in their life. We need to remember that even with all those things that are changing that there is one thing that never changes. "One thing remains." With everything that changes in life there is ALWAYS one thing that never has, never does, and never will change. Jesus will ALWAYS remain. He is ALWAYS there for us. He will ALWAYS be there and we don't have to be afraid. Jesus satisfies our soul. We should know that in times of death and in life that we are covered by Jesus' love. He loved us so much that He died on the cross for us so that He could take away our sins. Our debt has already been taken care of us by our Lord, Jesus Christ. He loves us so much and it is because of that love that we can love others. There is nothing that can separate us from from His wonderful love for us.

It is important that we ALWAYS remember that Jesus' love never fails and that He will never give up on us. We may think that His love has failed because things aren't going right for us. Truth is that His love for us NEVER fails. We may think, at times, that we have done too many horrible things that God won't forgive us for. Often times we think that because of all the bad things we have done that He is going to give up on us. Truth is that God will NEVER give up on us. His love will ALWAYS be there for us. It will NEVER run out on any of us! His love is greater than anything else. There are many people who go through tough things and the ones that get through it the easiest are the ones who love God and know that He loves them more than anything. They may struggle with things, but those who remember this can remember how great His wonderful love is for us and that He will ALWAYS love us. Nothing can separate us from the love that God has for us.

Remember that God's love never fails, God's love never gives up, and nothing can separate us from God's love.
Justina Marie

Be strong and know that God is with you

"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go" ~ Joshua 1:9
"I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength." ~ Philippians 4:13
"Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men." ~ Colossians 3:23

I know that many of my friends are getting ready for finals these next couple weeks. There are also many people who are really busy this time of year getting different things done. So many people tend to be stressed during this time because it seems like there is so much to do that you thought you'd have gotten done already and wouldn't need to crunch so many things into what seems like so little time, but in reality . It is important that we take time to relax and remember that everything will get done and go according to God's will. The three verses above, along with many others, are great reminders for us that we should keep in mind during this time. They shouldn't only be on our minds during this time, but ALWAYS.

The first quote from Joshua tells us that we need to not be afraid, but to be strong and to not be discouraged, but courageous. There may be several things that we need to get done, but we shouldn't get discouraged by that. We should be strong and know that we are going to get everything done. God is with us wherever we go and helps us in everything that we do. With God's help we are able to push through the hard times and can overcome the long list of things that we have to complete. In everything that we do, God is going to give us the strength that we need to complete it. Sometimes it may not seem like it, but those are the times that make us stronger. With God everything is possible and He will help us get everything done. Everything we do, we should work on it to glorify God and not as if we are doing it to glorify man. We should do everything to the glory of God. The things that we do should be for God and we should put our whole heart into it.

Remember that God is always with you and will help you be strong to get things done.
Justina Strecker

Here I am to Worship

I'll never know how much it cost
To see my sin upon that cross
Here I am to worship
Here I am to bow down
Here I am to say that you're my God
You're altogether lovely
Altogether worthy
Altogether wonderful to me
~Here I am to Worship by Tim Hughes

The first two lines of this excerpt from the song is really powerful. We will never know the pain that Jesus felt when He stretched out His arms on the cross and died hanging there for us. There is no pain that we will ever endure that is as great as that. We do feel some pain, but nothing will compare to that. He was tortured slowly and He didn't even do a single thing wrong His entire life. He died on the cross for us who are undeserving because we sin daily, but He never sinned. We should be thankful that Jesus was willing though to do this for us because by that one action we will be able to live in heaven for eternity. He did what He did because it is what God had planned to happen. We can see the wonderful love of God and Christ through that action. God has an unconditional love for us and He sent His only Son to die for us so that we can all one day live with Him. That is some pretty powerful love for one to be able to go through that.

God is lovely, worthy and wonderful. He has done so many great things for us and has given us each so many blessings. He is worthy of all our praise. We shouldn't just worship only when we go to church or chapel, but we should worship Him 24/7. Since we are sinners we do fail at this, but it just means that we should try to praise Him in everything we do and we should do everything to the glory of God. Sometimes we forget how awesome God is and all the wonderful things that He has done for us, so it is important that we do take time to remember everything that He has done for us. He is wonderful and His unfailing, unconditional love is the best thing that we could ever receive. Not only should we thank God for loving us unconditionally, but we should try to love others like He loves us. It is the best kind of love that one could receive, so why wouldn't one want to share that love with others? We should even try to show this love to strangers because just maybe that one moment of a love like that can turn into something big for them and could possibly be life changing.

Remember to always worship God no matter where you are and what you are doing.
Justina Marie

God will always pick you back up

'Cause my whole world is caving in
But I feel you now more than I did then
How can I come to the end of me
And somehow still have all I need
God, I want to know you more
Maybe this is how it starts
I find you when I fall apart
~ Fall Apart by Josh Wilson

Sometimes we see our world changing around us and it seems as if everything that was going right is now going all wrong. We find ourselves struggling with different things in our life and it is hard for us to get back up and see the good in things. At times it can seem like everything is against us and we aren't going to find a way back to how they were. In a way though that could be what God wants because the way things were wasn't how He wanted them to be. He wanted us to be on a different track and to get on the right track God wants us on sometimes we struggle because we can't find our way there alone. When need God to help guide us to the right track that He wants us on. Sometimes we fight against what He wants because we think what we want is better for us, but truthfully what God wants us to do is always what is best even if we can't understand why He wants certain things to happen to us. That is the beauty of God though because we can't see the amazing things that He wants to happen and we only realize them once they happen if we even realize them at all and to get to that point sometimes we have to struggle so that we can see the beauty in the amazing thing that is going to happen.

While we are down we really need to remember that God is with us and He is going to help us through the difficult times. We should always strive to want to know more about our wonderful Lord. No matter if we are going through the difficult times or the times that we see as being great we should always want to know Him more. He has done so many marvelous things for us that we will never know them all, but each one is a blessing from God. Sometimes it takes the struggles that we go through to want to get closer to God and to see the many things that He has given to us and done for us. When we fall apart it is important that we look to God on where we should go and what we should do because He knows what is right for us according to His plan. He is always there to pick us up even if we don't feel like we can go on. No matter what happens, the good and the bad, God is always there with each of us and is going to help us stay on the path that He wants us on. We have to look to Him and trust that He will guide us according to His plan.

Remember that God is always with you and will help you through all moments.
Justina Marie

Never Alone

When there's nowhere else to turn
All your bridges have been burned
Feels like you've hit rock bottom
Don't give up it's not the end
Open up your heart again
When you feel like no one 
Understands where you are
Someone loves you even when you don't think so don't you know you got
Me and Jesus by your side through the fight you will never be alone on your own you got me and Jesus
~ Me and Jesus by Stellar Kart

At times we may be going through struggles and it feels like there is no one that we can turn to. Sometimes we feel like the ones who told us they would be there for us and when we really need them they aren't there. We may feel as if no one loves us because they aren't there for us like they told us they would be. At times we want to give up because we just don't see that anyone is there for us. We may feel like no one understands what we are going through, but the truth is that many have had similar situations and they would be willing to help us. We may feel like we are stuck and have no where that we can go, but there are so many places that we can go because this world is full of many opportunities.

The thing we need to remember is that God is ALWAYS there for us. Jesus is with us through everything and even if we are going through a struggle He is going to pick us up and carry us through the hard times. We can always turn to God and talk to Him. He may not give us the answers that we want, but He is going to give us the answers that He knows are best for us and according to His plan. We should never want to give up because God has given us this life as a gift and He has a plan for each person's life. God also knows how we feel and He will help us in the right path to get to those people we need so that we can overcome the things that are bothering us. We should be the "me" in this song because we should love others just as Jesus loves them. If we ever see someone who needs someone to talk to we should be willing to talk to them and help them out. We may not have gone through the thing that they are struggling with, but at least we can be there for them and try to help them remember that they are loved. It is very comforting to know that He is always there for us and loves us no matter what.

Remember even if you don't think anyone is there for you or understands you that "you got me and Jesus."
Justina Marie

Thank you for letting me be alive

I won't take it for granted

I won't waste another second

All I want is to give you

A life well lived, to day "thank you"

I want to live like there's no tomorrow

Love like I'm on borrowed time

It's good to be, it's good to be alive

~ Good to be Alive by Jason Gray

I am really sorry that it has been about 2 weeks since I have written last. There have been many things that I have had to do and just really haven't had much time to relax and think about life. I have been so stressed with a lot of school work and also with other things going on in my life and many thoughts running through my head. The song Good to be Alive is a great song and a great reminder to me. It is one that every time I hear I really think about the words and try to think about my life for a little bit. We get so many things in life and sometimes we forget to stop and thank God for ALL that He has given to us. 

The song says "I want to live like there's no tomorrow Love like I'm on borrowed time." That part of the song is how I want to live. I know it isn't how I live, but I wish that it were. I love God and I know He loves me, but I don't feel like I live everyday like there is no tomorrow. Where I am at in life, I seem to always be looking to the future and thinking about many things that are going to happen. I am always doing homework for the next day or even a few days away, I am thinking of what I have going on over the weekend and what homework I can do during the weekend, and I am thinking about when is the next time that I am going to get to see certain people that I haven't seen in quite a while. I know that I wouldn't get by if I didn't think ahead and didn't do these things, but what I really need to do is think about each moment and not take it for granted. I need to remember that we aren't ever promised a tomorrow, but that each tomorrow is a great gift from God. I want to be able to live my life where I don't hold back and I do everything to the best that I can and I want to live for God and praise and glorify Him in everything that I do. 

He gives us so much and so we should use the abilities that He has given us and show His love to others. I want to be able to love others without thinking twice. Often times, even though we shouldn't, we judge people for things (some of which we don't even realize) and so we may not love them like we should. The way that we should love is because of the great love that God has for us. We should try to love others like that, even though it isn't possible because His love is the greatest. He gives us the ability to love so we should want to spread that love with others and not hold any of it back. If we see someone who is struggling or just isn't having a great day, we could do a small little thing such as holding a door for them or smiling at them and by that small act we could be showing God's love. I truly hope that I can try to do these things and I hope that I can show God's love to others as best as I am able to do. 

Remember that each day is a gift and we never know when we may not have a tomorrow so we should live as if there isn't one and live to glorify God in all that we do.

Justina Marie

All I am is Yours

So I'll stand, with arms high and heart abandoned
In awe of the One who gave it all
I'll stand, my soul, Lord, to You surrendered
All I am is Yours
-I'll Stand by Hillsong United

At Praise last night we sang this song and it is a song that I listen to quite often. These words have a great meaning and often times we forget how amazing God really is. We go about our days just getting done what we have to get done for the next day and even for something later that day. So many times we forget to just stop and praise God. We are His children and we should be in awe of Him and make sure that we take time for Him daily. Lately I have been really tired and busy and I haven't done my devotions every night this week like I used to do. I need to get back into that because when I did them I felt great when I went to bed right after I did it and it helped me to remember how awesome God is. We need to try to always remember this because it was Him who created us and has a wonderful plan set out for us.

The song says "my soul, Lord, to You surrendered All I am is Yours." To me this is probably the deepest part of the song and that part that has the biggest meaning to us. We have surrendered our soul to God and that has made us His. So this means that we should be living a life for Him and recognizing the beauty that He creates. He gives us everything that we ever need and more because truly we only need Him, but He gives us so much more. I think we sometimes forget that we are living for God and we stray away from Him, but He knows that we belong with Him and He will make something happen that will lead us back to Him. The picture below is of me on the first day that I had felt rain in over a month because of the drought this summer. I had edited it to have the lyrics of this song on it. It is my background on my computer and is just a great reminder to me that I am Gods and I am surrendered to Him and will do whatever it is that He has planned for me.

Remember that we surrendered to God and that we are His.
Justina Marie

Forgiveness

Show me how to love the unlovable
Show me how to reach the unreachable
Help me now to do the impossible
Forgiveness
I want to finally set it free
Show me how to see what your mercy sees
Help me now to give what you gave to me
Forgiveness
~ Forgiveness by Matthew West

For one of my classes I had to read quite a bit of a book and do some annotations on it. The last chapter that I read had to do with forgiveness. A lot lately I have also been listening to the song Forgiveness by Matthew West because I think it is a really good song and has some really good thoughts in it. The lyrics are basically us asking God to help us live in a God pleasing way and asking help to reach out to those who don't know who He is. There are people who feel like they are unlovable because of something about them, it may be a disease that makes them different, a disability, the way they look or even something that they aren't very good at. God loves everyone no matter what we think may be wrong with them. We should try to love everyone as well because everyone has something about them that makes them different from everyone else and we are loved so why shouldn't we show that love that He has given us to others? Sometimes people feel so unloved that they just want to cut life short and end their life themselves. What if they had just one person that would show them that they cared and that they loved them? Maybe they would then believe in them self and maybe others would begin to love them as well.

There are many people who don't know the about the Word of God and we should want to help share God's Word with others because of the powerful messages that can come from it. There are so many people who do not know the Word, but we should be trying as a church to get the Word out to more people. Don't get me wrong, there are groups already doing this, but they need more help. We need God to help us see the way that we can do the impossible. We need God to help us see how we can love the unlovable and reach the unreachable. It may seem impossible but Luke 1:37 states "For nothing is impossible with God." They may seem impossible to do by ourselves, but if we look to God for help He will help us and we will be able to accomplish great things. We are sinners and we may fail at trying to do these things by our own, but God forgives us. He then will make us realize that we cannot do this without His help. We can't find the way to love the unlovable or reach the unreachable without His help.

God has given each of us a certain ability that we will use to help bring others to Him. Sometimes we may not believe it, but we have to trust in Him. We have to have hope that even if we get taken down a rough path we will end up on the right path and be doing exactly what it is that He wants us to do. We may fall and not do things according to what we should, but He has mercy on us and we are forgiven of our sins. Even when we fall we shouldn't be afraid to get back up and try again. God will help us do the things that we don't think we are able to do especially if we have fallen at it at some point. With God we are able to overcome obstacles and do the things that we thought to be impossible.

Remember that even if we fall we are forgiven and can still get back up and work on doing the impossible with the help of God.
Justina Marie

Life goes by in a blink

When it's all said and doneNo one remembersHow far we have runThe only thing that mattersIs how we have lovedI don't want to missEven just a secondMore of thisIt happens in a blink, it happens in a flashIt happens in the time it took to look backI try to hold on tight, but there's no stopping timeWhat is it I've done with my life?It happens in a blink- Blink by Revive
Sorry it has been awhile since I have written. I have been very busy with several things lately. I was informed yesterday that my great-grandma had passed away on Thursday and I heard the song Blink by Revive while I was driving home so that I could go to the funeral and it just got me thinking. So often we just go through life and take people for granted and the things that people do for us for granted. We never know when God is going to take a loved one to be with Him. As we go through our day we should be thankful for the people that we have in our life. When we die, some of us may be remembered for something because we are famous, but for the most of us we may only be remembered by those who love us. Our life goes by so quickly and often times we just think about the way that we want things to go for us. We don't think about what we could do that could make a difference in a loved ones life. At some point, our loved ones will be taken from us and how will we feel if we really thought about how we treated them? Would we feel bad because we took them for granted or we didn't spend as much time with them as we should have? 
Having my great-grandmother die has been sad, but also a rejoicing moment. I know that she is in heaven with God and my great-grandfather. I was also glad that I got to see her one last time about a month ago because I hadn't seen her for a few months. No matter how often we see someone, if it is everyday or very rarely, we should always cherish the time that we get with them. We are going to lose our loved ones at some point and it will be sad, but we should also be happy because they are taken out of their suffering and going to live with our Heavenly Father. This song reminds us that life goes by really quickly and we need to take time to show our loved ones that we do really love them and appreciate them for all that they do for us. We can't go back and change anything that we wished didn't happen, but we can always change the way we do things from that point on. So if you haven't told the people that mean the most to you that you love them lately, do it. Send them a text, call them or if you are with them tell it to them in person. 
Remember to show your loved ones that you love them and don't take them for granted.Justina Marie

In Remembrance of 9-11-01

Below is an article that I heard today and it is found at http://thenew1037.cbslocal.com/2012/09/11/something-you-can-hang-your-hat-on-lessons-from-911-the-little-things/



As you might know, the head of a major company survived the tragedy of “9/11” in New York because his son started kindergarten.
Another fellow was alive because it was his turn to bring donuts.
One woman was late because her alarm clock didn’t go off in time.
One was late because of being stuck on the NJ Turnpike because of an auto accident.
One of them missed his bus.
One spilled food on her clothes and had to take time to change.
One’s car wouldn’t start.
One went back to answer the telephone.
One had a child that dawdled and didn’t get ready as soon as he should have.
One couldn’t get a taxi.
The one that struck me was the man who put on a new pair of shoes that morning, took the various means to get to work but before he got there, he developed a blister on his foot. He stopped at a drugstore to buy a Band-Aid. That is why he is alive today.
Now when I am stuck in traffic…
miss an elevator…
turn back to answer a ringing telephone…
all the little things that annoy me…
I think to myself…
this is exactly where God wants me to be at this very moment.
The next time your morning seems to be going wrong,
the children are slow getting dressed,
you can’t seem to find the car keys,
you hit every traffic light…
don’t get mad or frustrated;
God is at work watching over you.


Sorry if the story was a little long, but I will make what I say somewhat short. In one of my classes today I heard that article and it just amazed me. There were so many that died in that terrible accident, but each of these people weren't there because of one of these little things. We question God at times why things happen the way they do, but He has a plan for each and every one of them. Sometimes we don't do something we usually do or sometimes we do something we don't usually do and there is a reason for all of it. Each of these little things could have a great impact on what is to come for us. The people listed above didn't make it to work for various reasons, but because of the little things they are still alive. God is always watching over us and helping us get to the places that He wants us to be so that His purpose can be fulfilled. Instead of worrying why something happened different than it usually does just know that God has some reason for it. So next time when something little goes wrong remember that God has a reason for it and it may just save your life.

Remember to trust the things that happen because God has a plan for us.
Justina Marie

God is INCREDIBLE!!

Our God is an awesome God

He reigns from heaven above

With wisdom, power, and love

Our God is an awesome God

- Our God is an Awesome God by Michael W. Smith

Last night I watched a video with a friend for one of her classes. The video was talking about the universe and different galaxies. The technology that has been made to capture what different galaxies looks like is so amazing. During the video many wonderful pictures were shown and I was in awe. Seeing these pictures made me see how incredible God really is. I thought before this that He was incredible, but the pictures just blew my mind and strengthen my thought. There are so many stars in the universe and the universe is huge. When compared to the universe earth is about the size of a quarter or smaller and the universe is about the size of America or a little bigger. I never really knew how big the world was until this video. Don't get me wrong I knew it was big, but after watching this I realize how incredibly huge it truly is.

For God to have created all that He did is just an incredible thought. He didn't just do our little solar system and a little beyond that, but He created so much beyond what we can see in a telescope. God has placed every single star in the entire universe exactly where He wanted it and He keeps doing this as new stars appear which happens way more often than you would think. When thinking of how big the universe is we are reminded that our God is even bigger. He holds us and so much more in His hands. This makes me feel very little and somewhat undeserving of all the gifts He has blessed me with. We are tiny creatures that live on this world because He put us here and He takes care of each and every single one of us. He didn't have to put us here or take care of us, but the fact that He did should remind us that He really really does love us a lot. We have a God that is so incredible. We need to not think of ourselves as something big, but we need to humble ourselves and thank God for everything that He does for us. I don't know about you, but when I look into the night sky I see an incredible work that the Lord has done and to think that He has done even more beyond what I can see amazes me.

The picture below is the center of the Whirlpool Galaxy. It is nicknamed the Darling of Astronomy. This is the last picture that the video showed. The picture just amazes me. Like I said we have an incredible God.

Always remember that God is always holding us in His hands.

Justina Marie

He is with us even in our struggles

Oh no, You never let goThrough the calm and through the stormOh no, You never let goIn every high and every lowOh no, You never let goLord, You never let go of me-- You Never Let Go by Matt Redman
Our lives aren't always easy and at times we go through struggles. We could struggle when it comes to many different things. We could struggle at following the right path, getting through the day with all the things we have to do, making relationships right and sometimes we could struggle on believing whether there is hope for us or not. I will admit that I have struggled with these and countless other things in my life. There are obstacles that I have ran into in my life that makes me question what I am doing and where I am. I believe though that once I overcome the obstacles that I grow closer to God. We may go through struggles and think that it is all God's fault that we are going through them, but when we think that we need a reality check. The reason we have these struggles are not because of God, but because of the evil things in the world. The devil tries to pull us away from God and at times he takes over something in our life and is in control of us for a little while, but God is always there with us and is helping us get back on the right track.
God is with us through everything and He won't let us fully slip out of His hands. He is with us even among the hardships and trials that we face. When we are weak and can't go on He lifts us up and carries us through those times. Once we get past it we grow stronger. It doesn't mean that we may get knocked back again, but every time we do we will just keep getting stronger. One day all of these troubles will vanish. We just have to keep pushing through the hard times and hope that we will be back on our feet soon and that God will show us in the direction of the path that He wants us to be on. We may stray from it, but He is a wonderful God who forgives us for the things we do. It doesn't matter when we fall or how many times we fall, God is ALWAYS going to be holding onto us.
You should check out the song at the top of this post and By Your Side by Tenth Avenue North. They are great songs and go along well with this topic.
Remember that God is always going to be there with you through everything even the struggles you go through.Justina Marie

Rejoice for the New Day

Psalm 118:24 - This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.

Often times we wake up each morning and think about all of the things that we have to get done or the places that we have to get to that day. Sometimes we wake up not wanting to get out of bed and not wanting to do the many things that we have ahead of us that day. There may be a few times when we actually want to spring right out of bed because we are so excited about something that day. No matter what it is that we have going on that day, whether it is something we look forward to or something that we don't want to go to, we should be rejoicing. God has given us another day and we should be thankful that He has given us another day to live, another opportunity to share His love with others.

I feel as if we take many things for granted and are thankful for a very small portion of the things that we should be thankful for. If we have a problem that is what we usually focus on and sometimes we blame God and get mad at Him because of the bad situation we are in. We have struggles to help make us stronger and to help us grow closer to God. At times we may struggle, but God is there to carry us through the times where we feel weak and like we can't go on. The bad things that happen aren't because of God, they are because of the evil and sin in the world. We have so many things to us, but we take them for granted because we are used to getting these things.

There are people in other countries that are lucky to get a little bit of food, that are lucky if they have a roof to sleep under for a night and are lucky to have more than one pair of clothing. Yet most of the time those people are the ones who are thankful for every little thing that they have. We can learn a great deal from them and be grateful for all that we have including every little thing. Think of how much happier we would be if we thought of all the little things that we are thankful for and not about the few things that make us unhappy. Abundance of things we don't need makes us appreciate less of those things that we do need. It does seem like the more we have the less appreciative we are of the things we have. The thing that we do have in abundance is God's love and we should love Him and others in an abundance as well.

Remember to be thankful for the little things.
Justina Marie

Why I am writing this blog

This summer I worked at a Christian camp and I did a blog talking about my experience there, but now I am back at school and decided that I would start a new blog. My relationship with God grew a lot this summer because of the experiences I went through and I plan on being a teacher in a Lutheran school and a passion of mine is sharing God's Word with others. I decided that I wouldn't bore you with what I do in my life, but rather turn something that I hear and think is inspirational and put it into a blog and talk more about it or something along those lines. Maybe something I say will motivate you or possibly relate to something you are going through and help you get through it.

God Bless,

Justina Marie