Walking with Jesus

Some thoughts before bed...

I find that running is a wonderful picture of our lives as Believers, and tonight as I was getting a little exercise in on the treadmill some thoughts came to me that I wanted to write down and share.

Running is not easy. I love dreaming about being a great runner. Preparing for marathons (more like making my "plan" of how to prepare for a marathon), winning races, having that outer and inner strength that it takes to run with endurance even when the body is screaming for us to stop. O how beautiful and inspiring it all is as I sit and imagine about it all. And that is usually how I set out...I make my plans, dream my dreams, and then finally I go for a run. And do you know what?! That is when I realize how hard running is...and how my body really is screaming "NO!" At this point in time is when I usually want to quit (after looking at my watch and finding out to my dismay that only two minutes has passed!!!). I almost wish I had someone pulling me along or pushing me onward.

This is also a very true picture of what it is like to walk with the Lord. I love making Bible reading plans, setting down goals for Bible memorization and prayer time, envisioning great spiritual victories, anticipating sweet intimacy with the Lord, and overcoming the sin in my life. Then I finally set out on my spiritual journey, and I am all excited as I go along. The Lord seems nearer than ever before, His word seems alive in my heart, sin seems to have vanished, and all goes well for a time. But than 1 minute passes by, 2 minutes tick on, and 3...And my spiritual muscles start to ache, my soul starts to hurt, and suddenly I just want to quit. I don't see the results I wanted, my dreams fade from view, and all I have left is the dusty path I am running, my aching soul, and my longing for what I had anticipated.

It is in these moments that I do not feel God's presence, but I trust His promise. Jesus said He would never leave us nor forsake us, and so I know He is with me in this time. Walking with the Lord is not a short and quick sprint, but it is living life with Him day by day and step by step. Soon we realize that our little legs aren't strong enough and so we start drawing upon the hand that holds our little hand in His own. We pull on the Lord to find strength...little do we realize that we may think we are finding strength in pulling His hand when really we are gliding along because His hand is pulling us forward.

Jesus loves us! O think about that!! Jesus loves me!! And as I walk heavenward He is holding my hand in His own. I trust Him to lead me where it is best...I trust Him to strengthen me and carry me...I trust that He will never leave me. Yes Jesus is holding me and I will not fear!

Well, these are my rambling thoughts for the night! Be encouraged by Jesus' great, unfailing LOVE for YOU TONIGHT!!!

Week Two

As I come to the end of week two of my training here in Yorktown, I wanted to write a little update on all the happenings of this past week. God has truly blessed me abundantly, and each new day I struck by the wonderful mercies of my God who has saved me and given me true life. His hand sustains me each new step heavenward.


This week we received all of our Personal Protective Equipment: dry suits, gloves, boots, goggles, mustangs (like a body life vest that’s supposed to keep you warm), etc. This is all of the stuff we’ll need for going out in the small boats, depending on what weather conditions are. Today we tested our dry suits in the pool to make sure they don’t leak. We have been having classes this week on navigation and using charts. So we have been working on coursing and preparing some charts that we will use later on in training.

I have been really enjoyed reading in 1 John this week and learning about God’s great love for sinners. My heart is encouraged in the Lord. I press on this week as His servant to do His bidding. He is my joy, my strength, my song!

#2 My Times are n His Hands

April 4, 2011 As I sit here in BM “A” school feeling out of place and overwhelmed from being in a new and strange place, I am greatly comforted and encouraged by God’s unfailing and everlasting Word. In the Psalms it says that our times are in His hands. I can be certain and confident that it is the Lord who has placed me here…not by chance or by accident, but on purpose and for a set purpose. I am His witness---a partaker of the glorious salvation that is in Christ Jesus. At times all seems too difficult and I don’t see how I can go on, but Jesus is walking with me down this path. Yes He has brought me here to this uncomfortable, difficult place where I am to meet Him in the fire, proving that His love is better than life and He is my treasure far greater than anything else in this here…only 12 short weeks.

Precious Jesus

Precious Jesus, You are near


When my heart is filled with fear,

When my soul is burdened down

By doubt’s and guilt’s clamoring sound.

When my life so weary be

from raging waves in my sea.

When my mind will not be still

And rest alone in Your perfect will.

When my eyes are filled with tears

From listening to all my fears.



Precious Jesus Your love’s the same

Through sun filled valleys and darkened plains.

through hardships, struggles, joy and peace

Through bitter days and sweet release.

Through crashing storms and raging seas

Through sorrows mark: character’s key

Through sin and failure, faith and growth

Through life and death and the cheering heavenly host.

Through all of time: future, present, past

Your love remains; it forever lasts.



Precious Jesus, I surrender all

Unto you my Lord…you heard my call.

For help to carry on in faith

When I was going to quit the race.

But your grace is greater than my sin,

Your love floods my heart within.

When such weariness overwhelms me so

You strength is mine, so onward I go.

Pressing heavenward toward my home.

Until then, You are with me...I am never alone.

One Life

One Life
December 5, 2010



I find that all too often, which is almost all of the time, we spend our lives in a fantasy world of our own making; as though we were building castles in the sands of time only to find that they will all too soon be swept away once the tides of reality come in. Life is only a vapor and it will soon fade away like the last rays of the sun before it finally sets below the horizon and is hidden from sight and darkness falls. We only have but one life to live on this earth, and it will soon be over.


So as I think over this reality, that God has placed me here on this earth for such a short time to declare His praise and live for Him, I charge my soul in the sight of God:


Put off all wickedness, and put on Christ. Cease complaining, arguing, speaking worthlessness, and belittling others to make myself look good; and instead give thanks to God, live at peace with others, set a guard over your mouth and say things that point to Jesus and encourage those who listen.


Run hard for the goal. Fix your eyes on Jesus, O Soul, and think of your true HOME, which is not this earth. Set your thoughts on heaven where Jesus is and be filled with eager excitement and joyful expectation of the day when you will finally be home with Christ.


Testify to the Gospel of God’s grace with all boldness and gentleness. Share the hope that Jesus has given you and do not hesitate to be an ambassador of our mighty Savior. Soul do not cower in fear but remember the Jesus is always with You and that He is your greatest Treasure. Acknowledge Christ before men and He will acknowledge you before His Father in heaven.


Life every second in the shadow of the cross, relying fully on the grace that was given you from God to enter into His presence with sure confidence because of the atoning work of Jesus Christ. He has ransomed you, He has cleansed you, He has put His robes of righteousness on you and now you are hidden in Christ. O Soul, live today with this close to your heart so that joy overspills from your life.

David Brainerd

DAVID BRAINARD

"It is impossible for any rational creature to be happy without acting all for God. God Himself could not make him happy any other way... There is nothing in the world worth living for but doing good and finishing God's work, doing the work that Christ did. I see nothing else in the world that can yield any satisfaction besides living to God, pleasing Him, and doing his whole will."

"Here am I, send me; send me to the ends of the earth; send me to the rough, the savage pagans of the wilderness; send me from all that is called comfort on earth; send me even to death itself, if it be but in Thy service, and to promote Thy kingdom."

"My desires seem especially to be after weanedness from the world, perfect deadness to it, and that I may be crucified to all its allurements. My soul desires to feel itself more of a pilgrim and a stranger here below, that nothing may divert me from pressing through the lonely desert, till I arrive at my Father's house."

Oh, that I could spend every moment of my life to God's glory!"

"I have received my all from God. Oh, that I could return my all to God."

"It is sweet to be nothing and less than nothing that Christ may be all in all."

"All my desire was the conversion of the heathen... I declare, now I am dying, I would not have spent my life otherwise for the whole world."

Birthday Reflections

Well, I welcomed my birthday in today at the stroke of midnight as I stood JOOD (Junior Officer of the Deck) watch. It is hard to believe that a year has passed since I turned twenty, but as I look back over this year, I am amazed by all that God has been teaching me. I have spent about six months of this year underway, living side by side with unbelievers without a way of escape (or perhaps they were the ones who did not have a way to escape me…it is all a matter of perspective). God has taken me through valleys, and He has also leaded me to the heights as I have experienced both spiritual highs and lows. I feel as though He has been putting me through His own course of Evangelism 101.




Now (as everyone here is sure to inform me) I have reached the age of ultimate freedom…I am no longer constrained by age limitations (for the most part) and I can live and party it up big time. But little do they know that they are not free themselves, but rather they are slaves to their sin. I am no longer a slave to sin because I have been redeemed by Jesus’ blood. So I press on as Christ’s slave; His ambassador here. I am His light in this darkness, reflecting His beauty to the people here. And at times my heart is burdened and I feel like I cannot go on one more step, but Jesus gives me strength. His love is so great that He does not hesitate to hold my soul in the fire to refine and purify me to be made like Jesus. He etches His character into my soul, and it hurts but He fills me with a greater joy in knowing Him that far outweighs any pain.



So many people live for this fleeting moment in time, but soon it shall fade away. However my heart is set on eternity….so they fill their lives with comfort and pleasure now, but I press on for something greater for that which is unseen. We all expend ourselves for something. I will be spent no matter what I live for, but what I am spent for shall make all the difference in my life. I want to be spent for Jesus…I want my life to be consumed by an undying passion to glorify His name all the days of my life. I am now 21, and my mind is set, my purpose solid---In Christ I press on in faith, His praise is the theme of my life.

Quotes to Inspire

"People who do not know the Lord ask why in the world we waste our lives as missionaries. They forget that they too are expending their lives ... and when the bubble has burst, they will have nothing of eternal significance to show for the years they have wasted."
-- Nate Saint, missionary martyr



“Would that God would make hell so real to us that we cannot rest; Heaven so real that we must have men there.” – Hudson Taylor




"I have but one candle of life to burn, and I would rather burn it out in a land filled with darkness than in a land flooded with light"
-- John Keith Falconer



"Some wish to live within the sound of a chapel bell; I wish to run a rescue mission within a yard of hell."
 -- C.T. Studd



“God had only one Son and he made that Son a missionary.”
 -- David Livingston



"He is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose"
-- Jim Elliot


"God isn't looking for people of great faith, but for individuals ready to follow Him"
-- Hudson Taylor


 
When James Calvert went out as a missionary to the cannibals of the Fiji Islands, the ship captain tried to turn him back, saying, "You will lose your life and the lives of those with you if you go among such savages." To that, Calvert replied, "We died before we came here."



"Someone asked, will the heathen who have never heard the Gospel be saved? It is more a question with me whether we -- who have the Gospel and fail to give it to those who have not -- can be saved."
 -- Charles Spurgeon



God uses men who are weak and feeble enough to lean on him."
-- Hudson Taylor, missionary to China



How sweet the name of Jesus sounds

In a believer's ear;
It soothes his sorrows, heals his wounds,
And drives away his fear.
~John Newton



To be able to lead others, a man must be willing to go forward alone.

- Harry Truman

 
Never . . . Never . . . Never . . . Never Give up!

- Winston Churchill

Living Strategically for the Glory of God-Part One: Living on Purpose

"First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is being reported all over the world.”
--
Romans 1:8

I think it is safe to say that we have all at some point in our lives made the excuse that, “Sometimes life just happens!” Time seems to speed up, our schedules seem to fill up, and before you know it all we can do is hold on as our busy lives seem to unfold like a giant, roller coaster ride. I find that this happens to me quite often, in that I get so busy with life that I do not truly live life to the full. I believe in Jesus Christ that He died on the cross to pay the penalty for my sin, rose from the grave, and now is seated at the right hand of the Father, interceding for me; but is my life truly being transformed by what I believe or is it just another thing that I add to my already busy life? How am I acting out my faith, and how do I glorify God by the way I live? I do not glorify God when I am not living for Him and pointing to Him, and it is just as true that I do not glorify God when I just “let my life happen.”

Everything is not always so cut and dry, this I know for a fact; but even amid life’s business, we should never let it determine how we live and who we live for. Sometimes life can be busy, and I have felt the pressure of a busy life. The past couple months have seemed extremely busy for me, between mess cooking for two weeks---which entailed 14 hour days, 7 days a week, plus two hours of class, and homework every week day---and three weeks of double watches---which entailed 8 hours of watch a day, anywhere from 2-6 hours of regular work a day, my classes, and homework. Life can get busy, and we have two choices we can make: We can either get dragged along with our busy schedules and watch our lives pass us by as life happens, or we can begin the discipline of “living on purpose”. Our choice will not necessarily change what our schedules look like all the time, but it will change the way we look and act as we carry out our schedules.

Paul wrote to the Christians in Rome and told them that he thanked God that their faith was being told all over the world. This does not just happen on accident; such a testimony is only established when we live our lives purposefully for the glory of God. I am greatly burdened for the Christians in my generation, because I meet a great deal of “Christians” but I do not see how their faith has impacted the way they live their lives. We are selfish Christians, captivated by the “American Dream”, mastered by our lusts, slaves to our wallets, exhausted from the fake Christianity we profess, and quite satisfied with making Christ a part of our lives so that we can have the assurance that we will not go to hell when we die. We are Christians who have fallen in love with comfort, embraced security, surrendered to the reality of this world,  renounced any sort of risk taking for the Kingdom of God (especially if it will hurt our bank accounts or cut into our “me“ time), and settled for an “American Christianity”. We would rather be spectators in the crowds of this world rather than join the “extreme Christians”---the Jesus’ Freaks---in the arena who fight the battle of faith to the death. We have become Christless Christians---perhaps we are not Christians at all for to be a Christian is to be a follower of Christ and if we are not following Christ than surely we are not Christians. We are in the hands of an angry God who hates us with a righteous and holy hatred (I am sure your Sunday school teacher never told you that one!). Yes, He does offer mercy and grace to those who believe in Him that Jesus is Redeemer and Lord, and that those who are true lovers of Christ are held by Grace. However those who only know the truth but do nothing about it have no such assurance, for even Satan knows and believes that Jesus is God and came to earth as the Savior of the world, and he revolts in anger.

Hudson Taylor, a missionary to China and founder of the China Inland Mission, once said, “There is a needs-be for us to give ourselves for the life of the world. An easy, non-self-denying life will never be one of power. Fruit-bearing involves cross-bearing. There are not two Christs---an easy-going one for easy-going Christians, and a suffering, toiling one for exceptional believers. There is only one Christ. Are you willing to abide in Him, and thus to bear much fruit.” This is the cross-roads of life that we all come to where we must chose whom we will serve. We cannot chose Christ while refusing to take up our crosses and follow after Him---you cannot have one without the other.

Oh what I write, I am not just writing to others, but it is a message so dear and fresh in my own heart for it is a message that God continues to challenge me with as I live out my life. My heart stings from conviction as I think over these truths I now wish to share. So I lift up my voice and I take a stand to challenge Christians to live strategically for the glory of God. Strategy should not just be used by the missionary in a foreign land, a military commander on the battle field, or a corporate executive in the business world; but in order for us to live out each day for God’s glory, we must be living purposefully, planning carefully, strategizing effectively, praying fervently, and living momentarily in the shadow of the cross of Christ. Life will just happen if we let it, that is why we must decide right now to live on purpose for the glory of God.


To the Cross I Cling
Living on purpose for the glory of God is definitely not an easy thing to do, which is why I think it is good to remind ourselves of the verses from Hebrews 12:1-3: “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning it’s shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider Him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you do not grow weary and lose heart.” From these verses we can conclude that if we are not fixing our hearts and minds upon Christ and what He endured for us at the cross, we will become discouraged, worn out Christians. If we are to live our lives strategically for the glory of God, we must first be fixed upon the cross of Christ. We must be rooted in the Gospel, which is the power of God for salvation (Romans 1:16); a message that must not just be preached to unbelievers, but to believers too!

A good question to ask ourselves is, do we preach the gospel? Do we ever share our faith; and the reason for the hope we have? I find myself getting discouraged when I realize how little I share the gospel with others, but then I realize that I hardly ever share the gospel with myself! How can I preach a message I hardly know, and how can I hardly know a message that has completely turned the world upside down? The first step to living on purpose and glorifying God in every area of our lives is to preach the gospel to ourselves. Think about Christ’s great sacrifice for you that He would die and bear the Father’s wrath for your sin, know His love which is better than life, rejoice that now you have peace with God because of the Lord Jesus Christ. This should be a daily discipline of joy that we eagerly carry out in our lives. We must cling to the cross of Christ---we must live each day centered on the cross---or we will give up and quit. Why do we linger so far from the cross? Why do we hesitate to preach the gospel to ourselves? We are in a spiritual battle, and our enemy is strong, but the One whom we serve is stronger. The Lord Jesus Christ is our stronghold and He is our deliverer. When we are weak and weary He is strong, when we cannot stand He causes us to stand, when we are afraid He is by our side, in Him we are more than conquerors. So cling to the cross---live life on purpose by knowing God’s great love for you that He sent His Son to die in your place.

A Daily Battle
As you cling to the cross and begin the discipline of “Living on Purpose” also keep in mind that it is a battle you must fight daily. Even as I write this, I find the struggle to live purposefully for God’s glory more fierce than ever, which causes me to turn to God, begging Him for help and mercy. I do not want to waste my life, but rather I want to be spent completely and fully for God that He might be glorified in me.

Remember that you will grow weary and lose heart if you do not consider Jesus Christ and the great work He has accomplished on our behalf. He died that we might live, He took our punishment that we might share in His glory, He was raised from the dead that we might be made right with God, and He lives that we might also live. We must fix our gaze on Him so that we do not give up when the way is hard and the road is tough. We must rely on His strength to persevere through the difficulties that lay ahead that He gives us to exercise our spiritual muscles. Press on as you daily battle sin and choose to live purposefully for God.

#6 My Confidence~Midgett Adventure #3

I am a pilgrim on a journey, and one thing I know for sure: I am not home yet. The road stretches forth, winding up steep mountain cliffs, and dipping into deep valleys. The joy welling up within my soul does not spring from my surroundings or from this difficult path I am on, but it springs forth from Jesus Christ and the love He has lavished upon me. I am confident of this that I am a weak, weary follower of Jesus Christ, and I have no strength to press on home. I am also confident that Jesus Christ’s love is better than life and this love is what drives me on heavenward. I am held by grace, and I press on sustained by this grace that I do not deserve. I am a debtor to mercy---the mercy of God---once destined for wrath, but Jesus took my place and now I stand in Him, clothed in His righteousness and arrayed in His beauty. I am a lover of Jesus.

Blown Away!

Well, it has been quite a while since I last posted anything. Life has been busy and filled with lots of good challenges. I have been mess cooking the past two weeks, which can be draining. The Lord is ever faithful in sustaining me and upholding me through His Word and through cross-centered music. I have come to love the song by Aaron Shust, "My Savior and My God." I  would listen to that as I washed dishes and cleaned tables. God has greatly encouraged my heart with His love throughout the past several weeks...when I feel down and discouraged, He brings the Gospel to my mind. "Christ has died for me, He has made a way that I can have peace with God, I am clothed in His righteousness, and in Him I hide!" Preaching the Gospel to myself is a definite must to keep my eyes focused on the cross. I do have some fellow Believers here on the boat, but most of them do not think about the cross and live discouraged lives. It is only by God's grace that He has taught me that the Gospel is not just for unbelievers but for Believers!

Now that I am no longer mess cooking, I will be working back in Navigation. I am also taking two classes that keep me busy with homework and projects. I am doing well, though even if I don't have lots of down time...it helps make the patrol go faster. I miss all of you back home, and it encourages me greatly knowing that you are lifting me up in your prayers.

I suppose if I were to sum up the past several months and even the past two years, the lessons God has taught me all seem to derive from the book of Philippians. The joy we have as followers of Christ is not based off of circumstances and feelings, but off of Him. Situations, people, pain, suffering, and even sin can never take away that which is most imoprtant to me---Jesus! Oh how I love Him...sometimes I feel like I could explode with the joy in knowing Him...and to think I have only tasted but a small bit of it. I am comforted by the fact that I am not HOME yet! Someday I will be with Jesus...and I will see Him face to face. My faith will be turned to sight. What a wonderful day that will be! My fellow Coasties cannot comprehend my joy nor the reason I am so happy when I tell them why...because I know Jesus and He fills me with joy. It is a mystery to them, but not to me. How could I be anything but joyful in knowing and being known by the Almighty God who has saved me. Believers who do not think and rejoice in the Gospel daily will be robbed of joy, drained of strength, and conformed to the word around them. We must fight for joy...true, lasting joy in Jesus. Sometimes God's presence seems far away...maybe even gone...but we must not trust our feelings. When God's presence seems far away cling to His promises.

So here I am clinging to the promises of God, amazed by His love, and filled with joy in knowing Him. I am saved by grace and I no longer live but Jesus Christ lives in me. I am not home yet, but someday soon I will be with Jesus and until then I want to live life with all I have got for His glory. O that I may be spent and used up for Him and make it to my heavenly home all used up, spilled out, and worn out from serving Jesus...and yes, smiling as I cross the finish line.