He did what?

Hey all, how goes it? I have been MIA recently, I am back down in San Diego hanging with the folks and working as much as possible(which isn't much ha.) But I am reading through John right now and came across the story of Lazarus.

The story of Lazarus can be found in John 11:1-44, since it is so long I will paraphrase and share with you what is going on in my life with this snippet from scripture.

So Lazarus is a great friend of Jesus and Lazarus has two sisters, Martha & Mary who truly understand who Jesus is, the Son of God, the Messiah and so they all have a great relationship.  Since Lazarus was ill, I am sure it was something serious, such as pneumonia.  His sisters sent word to Jesus that his great friend and their brother is dying! But Jesus ends up staying where He is. He finally makes His way to Lazarus.  Meanwhile, Lazarus has been dead now for 4 days and many of the townspeople are in the house mourning, including Mary and Martha, but Martha gets word that Jesus is near so she runs out to meet Jesus, probably out of breath and attempting to explain everything in one breath.... 21"Lord, if only you had been here, my brother would not have died." HERE IS THE IMPORTANT PART ... Jesus says, "I am the resurrection and the life, anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying, do you believe this Martha? Martha says, Yes, Lord, I have always believed you are the Messiah, the Son of God. Then Mary comes out to meet Jesus, saying the same thing, "Lord if only you had been here, my brother would not have died." When Jesus saw her weeping with everyone from the house, a deep anger welled up within Him and he was deeply troubled." Jesus ends up raising Lazarus from the dead, 4 days of out cold, dead, no pulse.

So let me cut to the chase(I never understood that phrase but nonetheless I'm gonna cut!) In our lives, in mine specifically, just like Martha, we know who Jesus is, we have seen His power in our lives, His faithful love and pursuit of our lives.  But yet, we still question Him when He doesn't show up, GOD WHY! Why is this happening? It is such an easy problem to fix, just do this and it will be all better.  But nope, God has other plans and we know that He is perfect and good, but how many times do we question? But what does our Lord do? He brings glory to His name by raising someone from the dead... now if I were to ask you... what is greater, healing someone from a sickness or raising them from the dead? But yet I so often get caught up in the healing part(metaphor) versus the raising of the dead.  I am writing this because I want to encourage everyone out there that we don't know the end product of what is going on in our lives, could be small, could be big.... but if you give God the glory He will make it 10,429 times better.  Isaiah 55 says... "For as the heavens are above the earth so are God's thought above ours." God is so much bigger than anything we could ever comprehend and He is way bigger than death, love, relationships, finances, struggles, and sin.

He raised a man from death!


Be encouraged!

Blindfold me Lord

Blindfold me Lord
Blindfold me Lord, because I no longer want to see with my eyes. I want to see with yours
Blindfold me Lord, because I want to have to trust
Blindfold me Lord, I want you to lead.
Blindfold me Lord, so that I won't rationalize things.
Blindfold me Lord, because I want to follow.
Blindfold me Lord, because I want you to hold my hand.
Blindfold me Lord, so that my faith continues to grow.
Blindfold me Lord, because I want to please you
Blindfold me Lord

Jesus, let me learn by paradox
The way down is up,
That to be low is to be high,
That the broken heart is the healed heart,
That the contrite spirit is the rejoicing spirit,
That the repenting soul is the victorious soul,
That to have nothing is to possess all,
That to bear the cross is the wear the crown,
That to give is to receive,
That the valley is the place of vision
Lord, in the daytime stars can be seen from the deepest wells,
Let me find thy light in my darkness,
Thy life in my death,
Thy joy in my sorrow,
Thy grace in my sin,
Thy riches in my poverty,
Thy glory in my valley.

Sanctify them by the Truth, your Word is Truth

Romans 11:33 "Oh, how great are God's riches and wisdom & knowledge! How impossible it is for us to understand his decisions and his ways!"

Psalm 17:8 "Keep me as the apple of your eye; Hide me in the shadow of your wings."

Psalm 13:5-6 "But I trust in your unfailing love. I will rejoice because you have rescued me. I will sing to the Lord because He is good to me."

Psalm 37:4 "Take delight in the Lord, and He will give you your heart's desires."

Colossians 2:7 "Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness."

John 10:28 "I will give them eternal life, no one can snatch them out of my hand."

People That Come Into Your Life

Sometimes people come into your life and you know right away that they were meant to be there, to serve some sort of purpose, teach you a lesson, or to help you figure out who you are or who you want to become. You never know who these people may be (possibly your roommate, neighbor, co-worker, longest friend, lover, or even a complete stranger) but when you lock eyes with them, you know at that very moment that they will affect your life in some profound way, knowing He is behind everything.

Some people come into our lives and quickly go. Some people move our souls to dance. 
They awaken us to new understanding with the passing whisper of their wisdom. 
Some people make the sky more beautiful to gaze upon. 
They stay in our lives for awhile, leave footprints in our hearts, 
and we are never, ever the same.

And sometimes things happen to you that may seem horrible, painful, and unfair at first, but in reflection you find that without overcoming those obstacles you would have never realized your potential, strength, willpower, or heart.  Romans 8:28 says, “And we know that all things happen for the good of those who Love God and are called according to His purpose.” Everything happens for a reason, nothing happens by chance or by means of luck. Illness, injury, love, lost moments of true greatness, and sheer stupidity all occur to test the limits of your soul. Without these small tests, whatever they may be, life would be like a smoothly paved, straight flat road to nowhere. It would be safe and comfortable, but dull and utterly pointless. The people you meet who affect your life, and the success and downfalls you experience help to create who you become.

Even the bad experiences can be learned from. In fact, they are probably the most poignant and important ones.

If someone hurts you, betrays you, or breaks your heart, forgive them, for they have helped you learn about trust and the importance of being cautious when you open your heart. If someone loves you, love them back unconditionally, not only because they love you, but because in a way, they are teaching you to love and how to open your heart and eyes to things.

Make every day count!! Appreciate every moment and take from those moments everything that you possibly can for you may never be able to experience it again. Talk to people that you have never talked to before, and actually listen, the way Christ listened. Let yourself fall in love, break free, and set your sights high. Hold your head up because you have every right to, you are considered God’s child, Holy and blameless. Tell yourself you are a great individual and believe in yourself, because Christ believes in you from the beginning of the day to the end, no matter what you do, for if you don't believe in yourself; it will be hard for others to believe in you.

Proverbs 3:5-6 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, lean not on your own understand, acknowledge Him in all that you do and He will direct your paths.”