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