It just never gets old.

Its 11:47 on Saturday night, my Husband is in bed, my daughter is asleep, and I played a little Wii Punch out...still can't beat the stupid Macho Man, and I put the game up. God was ready to speak to me and I could hear it

Honestly folks, like a lot of you,  I have found myself many times feeling like I am living the movie "Office Space" I have an awesome job, don't get me wrong, but I never thought the financial industry would be where I would ever be. When I first started I was pumped (mostly for the salary) and I was kicking booty...they put me full time within a couple months, and now, 2 years later I find myself slacking off terribly, staying on facebook all day, making mistakes, and wishing I was somewhere else all the time.

Satan.

I have let satan get into my head and he's using my job as a downer ya know? As I have begun to progress into grad school, praying about the fact that I want to be an addiction counselor, I wonder sometimes, where is my life going God? Am I going to stay at Security State Bank for 40 more years? Or do you have something bigger planned? I always thought God had something bigger planned for me...but in true Chelsi nature, I want God to want for me what Chelsi wants for me, which is not necessarily surrender.  God chose to deal with me tonight on that. 

When reading God brought me to 2 places:

Ecc 9:10-Whatever you do, do with all your might for there is no activity, or planning or wisdom or knowledge to Sheol, or the (underworld afterlife we like to call hell)

Give everything 100 percent Chelsi. Thats what God is telling me. We don't do that, we may give 1110 percent to our jobs, and 1 percent to our families. But in giving 100 percent to God we are giving 100 percent to every aspect in our lives. When we are Godly wives, mothers and husbands, fathers, our children and spouses are influenced by God working through you. Your attitude is different, working with others is different. When God is burning inside you the fire spreads and it becomes out of control. 

God has provided me with this job in this horrible economy, a job in finance at that. I should look at that as a gift from God, not an interruption to my TV schedule. I don't give 100 percent when i'm there which means i'm not giving God 100%. God wants it all or nothing. 

Revelation says in Chapter 3, know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other!¹⁶So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth.

God wants us to give our lives 100 percent in everything we do, whether it be work, look it as an opportunity, whether it be school, know that God is preparing you for something bigger, and be happy about life. Its too short...don't wait...Give it all to God.

Signed Sealed Delivered

Today I was pondering God, His wholeness, His presence, and His spirit. We tend to recognize God in the good times, the little things, a rainbow, the smell of rain right before it comes down, freshley cut grass, snow, even in April :-/ etc etc. We praise him when we are saved, when we are in Church, around other Christians, etc. God seems to be everywhere, but no matter what, we tend to go through some pretty dark times, and thats when people tend to question WHERE IS GOD?

We've all been in some pretty low places. Personally, I have been in some valleys that are so deep, there seems to be no sun.(thanks Audio Adrenaline) One thing about God I have learned is that its never HIM that puts us in our situations, whether it be financial, addiction, family related, etc. People tend to ask, why does God let this happen? Let me tell you something guys, its never God, God gave us free will and its what we do with it that messes everything up.

If you don't know the story about little Sandra Cantu, the little girl that was kidnapped, raped, and brutally murdered by her playmates, mom, Melissa Huckaby, yes I said mom. She was stuffed in a suitcase after all those brutal things that happened to her and thrown in a pond. Its gross, its ...i dont even know a word that is sick enough to describe this lady's actions. People blame God, but God gave that woman free will just like the rest of us, and thats what she chose to do with it. Its hard to stomach, but we take heed that God is a perfect judge, and he will judge her for her actions. The point i'm trying to make is that we are going to go through extreme hard times, whether it be things to this degree, financial, a divorce, abuse, alcoholism, etc, but what we can't do is get angry and blame God. When we are dealing with this God is always right there with us. He delivers us, and He has a perfect plan.

Isiah 43:1-3 states:

Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you. For I am the Lord you God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.

God is faithful, and God loves His children. He will never leave you, and never let you go through something that you can't handle. It isn't gonna be easy, its not like God is just going to wave a magic wand and make you feel better, but we can take comfort in knowing He is there, and he is always faithful. Whether you are going through a hard breakup, struggling with addiction, have lost a loved one, living less than paycheck to paycheck, don't blame God, lean on God. He is with you every step of the way. Stay faithful, He is the great deliverer, just ask Job.

I wanna change...but i'm in too deep!?!

People cope with things in different ways. As a huge fan of the show intervention, we see the tragedy of people who turn to things from heroin to alcohol to inhaling canned air to escape the world. When I watch these people, and see their pain, I just want to tell them that they are good enough to be set apart, to sell out to Christ, because he is waiting for them to come to Him, and Christ is faithful and is never going to leave. 

To someone struggling with any kind of sin, addiction, turmoil, anything...you are not alone. There is not a person on this earth that doesn't go through what you are going through. I have 4 things to say to you:

1. We are ALL born with sinful tendencies. 

 

Eph 2:1-3 says: As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, ²in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. ³All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature^{a]" style="line-height: 0.5em; ">[a]} and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. 

There is not a one of us who hasn't lived a life without who aren't sinners.  However, 

2. God set us free from sinful nature:

Romans 7:23-8:2 states

²³but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. ²⁴What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? ²⁵Thanks be to God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!  So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God's law, but in the sinful nature a slave to the law of sin

 ¹Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus,^{a]" style="line-height: 0.5em; ">[a]} ²because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.

3. God WILL give you new desires

Eph 4:22-24 says that "You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; ²³to be made new in the attitude of your minds; ²⁴and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness."

4. God will help you withstand temptation

This is probably the most important part. 1 Cor 10:13 says that God isn't gonna give us anything we can't handle. There are always gonna be temptations, Satan lurks, trying to make us fall but the Bible says o temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.

So there it is, right there from God. What are we waiting for? There is no more time for excuses, there is a loving good God who wants you to put off your old self and turn to Him. No matter what we may be struggling with...God is faithful, God is true, God is love, and he will never fail you.

Keep on Keepin On..

Being sold out for Christ is not easy. What I have found that the deeper I get in the Word, the closer we get to God, when we get comfortable is when I have found Satan sneaks up on us and BAM we slip and fall. Its gonna happen, we can be strolling along on our spiritual walk, and there's that small crack in the side walk, that small patch of ice that causes us to slip and fall, and bam... there we are...on the ground trying to figure out how to get up.

I have been dealing with this a lot lately. Jesus demands perfection, yet it is impossible because we are human, that however doesn't mean we shouldn't try. My problem has been when I fail, I let the guilt of my failure get in the way of my closeness with God. 

Its funny isn't it? We ask for forgiveness for our sin,  God forgives it, our sin has been paid for..and yet Satan is still getting something out of you by playing the guilt card. I struggle with not feeling deserving of the blessings and things that God has given me, yet God tells me, Chels, you are forgiven...keep on keepin on. John 1:9 says: If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. So  whatever your patch of ice is,  get up, ask for forgiveness, be genuine, and don't give up, keep on keepin on. God loves you..

Self Worth vs God's Worth

MESSAGE FROM REBECCA: SELF-WORTH VS. GOD-WORTH

PLEASE SHARE WITH YOUR FRIENDS!We Want to Hear from YOU! Email Us @ rebeccastjames@rsjames.com

REBECCA’S MESSAGE:

LIVE IN GOD’S ECONOMY…YOU’RE PRICELESS!We live in a culture that speaks the sermon of selfishness all the time. It places so much emphasis on self-help, self-worth, self-this, self-that. Because many people spend much of their time trying to please others, they’re uncomfortable in their own skin and don’t know who they are. Unfortunately, they derive their sense of worth based on what they do or don’t do for others. It’s all based on a false and conditional love. We can get so wrapped up in our selfishness that we can’t see beyond ourselves to find our worth in God—who we are in Him.Several years ago I embarked on a five-week long life-changing experience in Switzerland. I needed spiritual, emotional, and physical recuperation, and I found it at L’Abri (which means shelter), a community study center where Christians and non-Christians can seek honest answers about God and His purposes for their lives. It was there that the Lord spoke to me of my God-worth to the point that it was replacing my self-worth. Before this experience I don’t think I had ever really discovered the sense of wholeness in God that I felt there.One of the things I had to confront in my life was the issue of perfectionism. When you are a perfectionist you tend to either push yourself all the time to be better, or you are in failure mode and about to give up, believing that you’ll never succeed. My tendency was to live with a sense that God was disappointed in me—that I was not good enough. Through study and prayer and time alone with Him, the Lord assured me that I am loved and secure. I know that I’m His princess, accepted and cherished.If you’ve read The Lord of the Rings trilogy by J. R. R. Tolkien, or have seen the movies, you’re familiar with the creature Gollum and his obsession with “my precious,” the ring. He was willing to do anything to keep it, and then went to great lengths in an attempt to reclaim it. Ultimately, his selfish fascination with the treasure cost him his life. Unlike Gollum, God’s love for us is purely selfless because He was willing to give up what’s most important to Him—His only Son—to redeem you. He cherishes you as His precious creation. The apostle Paul put it this way:“Christ arrives right on time to make this happen. He didn’t, and doesn’t, wait for us to get ready. He presented himself for this sacrificial death when we were far too weak and rebellious to do anything to get ourselves ready. And even if we hadn’t been so weak, we wouldn’t have known what to do anyway. We can understand someone dying for a person worth dying for, and we can understand how someone good and noble could inspire us to selfless sacrifice. But God put his love on the line for us by offering his Son in sacrificial death while we were of no use whatever to him” (Romans 5:6-8, The Message).How much time do you spend in the morning each morning thinking about how others will perceive you based on what you look like today? How could you spend some of that time contemplating your worth in God’s eyes? Look in the mirror and realize how precious you are to Him. RebeccaStart every day with a special message, like the one above, from Rebecca—it’s an excerpt from her latest book, “Pure” which has just made the Top 10 Christian books nationally—join the journey with her of 90 days of purity in body, mind, and spirit!

Grow Up!

Have you thought about what it means to be a grown up? What makes someone mature, is it a particular number, such as being 18 to 21 years old? In my case turning 21 certainly did not grow me up. Is it getting married? Having children? Maybe, but not likely.

What is the difference between growing up and growing older? More importantly as Christians, how do we “grow up” in Christ? I like the msg translation of Eph 4:15 which says “God wants us to grow up, to know the whole truth and tell it in love - like Christ in everything. Ephesians 4:15 (MSG)A lot of us get saved at a young age, and a lot of us come to know Christ later in life. Sadly the situation I see around me is that people take refuge in the fact they are saved and continue to go on with their daily lives. We are all sinners, me included, however, I feel that that does not satisfy God. We need to make the choice to be disciples of Christ from the moment we are saved. We are to learn to be Christ like in every inch of our Christian walk. That is the difference between growing older and growing up as far as Christians are concerned.

One great example of growing up and choosing discipleship was Matthew. This guy was a tax collector..in a booth…and Jesus said “come with me” Matthew left right there. Left his booth, his belongings, the life he knew to follow Christ. Guys that has to be us, God yearns for us to grow up, to become close to him.

How do we do that? Isn’t life dull when we give up all the luxuries of a secular life? I’m here to tell you that when you die to self is when you really start to live. Great, but how do we even come close to the standard of becoming Christ like?

We begin by making the conscious decision to do it. Renew your mind, get rid of everything that may distract you from becoming close to God. Phil 2:5 “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus” I thought giving up things like Nip Tuck and Budlight would be hard, as well as some musical choices I liked to crank up in my car, however once I made the conscious decision to pursue Christ, none of that mattered anymore. 5 minutes into watching Nip Tuck I felt…an uncomfortable conviction, it was fabulous. Its not all sunshine all the time, but its something you have to discipline yourself to do.

Stay in fellowship with God. I have a journal, I do a bible study every night, and track my prayer requests. Some of you, this may not work for, but small things like listening to Christian music, watching a good spiritual movie, etc, praying to God on your way to work, its all fellowship and you will find you begin to thirst for it. That’s when the Holy Spirit takes over and begins to transform you and your life will never be the same. Its amazing.

To become like Christ we must learn humility, love, and forgiveness. Christ washed feet! The Son of God taking himself down to the lowest level possible, washing the feet of those who should be serving him! We must love, even our enemies, and forgive those who have hurt us, because we ultimately put Christ on the cross for our sins, yet he was willing to pay the price. We are no better than the next person, and forgiveness isn’t pleasant all the time, but it is necessary if we want to grow. Remember 70 times 7 and how Christ took the flack for all our screw ups.

Guys make the conscious to get to know God. Lets get out there and tell others because we might be the only chance at hearing the good news people get. Lets get out of the bars and into the sanctuary. Its time guys, the time is now…

The Blessing of Surrender

The Blessing of Surrender
by Rick Warren

Quit quarreling with God! Agree with him and you will have peace at last! His favor will surround you if you will only admit that you were wrong. Job 22:21 (LB)

*** *** *** ***

The Bible is very clear about how we benefit when we worship God through surrender: “Agree with him and you will have peace at last! His favor will surround you if you will only admit that you were wrong” (Job 22:21 LB).

In surrender, you begin to really live the life God intended: “Only those who throw away their lives for my sake and for the sake of the Good News will ever know what it means to really live” (Mark 8:35 LB).

You are set free, liberated from self-preoccupation: “But offer yourselves to the ways of God and the freedom never quits. All your lives you’ve let sin tell you what to do. But thank God you’ve started listening to a new master, one whose commands set you free to live openly in his freedom!” (Romans 6:16-18 MSG).

God is able to use you in great ways.

Why did God choose Mary, of all women, to be the mother of Jesus? It was because she was totally surrendered to God. When the angel explained God’s improbable plan, she humbly responded, “I am the Lord’s servant! Let it happen as you have said” (Luke 1:38 CEV).

Nothing is more powerful than a surrendered life in the hands of God.

© 2008 Purpose Driven Life. All rights reserved. Rick Warren is the founding pastor of Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif., one of America's largest and best-known churches. In addition, Rick is author of the New York Times bestseller The Purpose Driven Life and The Purpose Driven Church, which was named one of the 100 Christian books that changed the 20th Century. He is also founder of Pastors.com, a global Internet community for ministers.

Click HERE for a free subscription to The Purpose Driven Life Daily Devotional, your daily inspiration via email. Missed out on one of the Daily Devotionals? Click here to view the online archives.

Jesus is our Savior...but is he our Lord?

God raised Jesus from the dead and "seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet" (Ephesians 1:20-23 NIV).


C. S. Lewis said that there are basically 3 kinds of people in the world: those
who don’t want to obey and so don’t, those that don’t want to obey but do it
out of fear or pride, and those who want to obey

I would hope you would know that Jesus came down to earth and died on the cross for our sins. If not, e-mail me and we will talk. Great, Jesus saved us from the pits of hell...I don't think there is anything we can be more grateful for or thankful for in our lives. When we accept Jesus as our Savior, he is also our Lord, but do we distinguish the two at all?

According to Dictionary.com, Lord is defined as "a person who has general authority over others" so the question is, does God have authority over our lives? Sundays are great, going to church, great, but have you ever thought about if God is involved in every single aspect of your life? When we are driving down the street, jamming out to our favorite song, is it a song that would honor God. Does the way we dress reflect Him? What about the TV shows we are filling our minds with, would we be watching them if Jesus was in our living rooms?

It all comes down to this, you never know who is watching you and who sees Christ in you. We should involve God in all our decisions from our finances, to our tv, to our clothes, every part of our lives. Let him be Lord of your life and you will find that life is much simpler, and much more fulfilling.

I would urge you to make a commitment today to surrender yourselves to God. Make a conscious effort to obey him in every part of your life, from your thoughts, to your TV, wake up each day and surrender that day to God.

So then, my friends, because of God’s great mercy to us I appeal to you: Offer yourselves as a living sacrifice to God, dedicated to his service and pleasing to him. This is the true worship that you should offer. Romans 12:1-2

Chelsi

Faith Like that Jonah 33

Faith Like That lyrics

Jonah 33

I have read about the days of old

About the men who followed You

And how they saw the supernaturalAnd became the chosen few

So I come before You now

Tearing off my earthly crowns

For this one thing I have found

[CHORUS:]I want a faith like that

To see the dead rise or to see

You pass by, oh,

II want a faith like that

Whatever the cost, I'll suffer the loss,

oh, I

I want a faith like that

I'm not looking for a miracle Signs and wonders or things thereofI

caught a glimpse of what You want for me

And what I have is not enough

I read the story one more timeOf those who gave to You their lives

With no fear or compromise

[CHORUS]

I want a faith that can move any mountain

And send them to the seas

I want a faith that can break every stronghold

That keeps You, that keeps from me

And I want a faith like that

To see the dead rise or to see

You pass by, oh, I

I want a faith like that A faith like that

When do Black and White turn into Gray?

I think its safe to say that Gray is probably my favorite color. I ended up with my Martin guitar because I was looking for a "gray guitar" as said in the song "Mr. Jones" because I wanted to BE Bob Dylan.  In our society however, gray is overtaking the world, sending kind of an overcast on our moral code. The things to think about are how are we as Christians to avoid the gray areas of life, and second how do we do it without seeming like "judgemental bible thumpers" as so many non-christians like to point out.

What got me thinking about this was as I was reading Isaiah 5 tonight. God led me to verse 20 which simply stated:

20 Woe to those who call evil good 
       and good evil, 
       who put darkness for light 
       and light for darkness, 
       who put bitter for sweet 
       and sweet for bitter.

 21 Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes 
       and clever in their own sight.

 22 Woe to those who are heroes at drinking wine 
       and champions at mixing drinks,

 23 who acquit the guilty for a bribe, 
       but deny justice to the innocent.

 24 Therefore, as tongues of fire lick up straw 
       and as dry grass sinks down in the flames, 
       so their roots will decay 
       and their flowers blow away like dust; 
       for they have rejected the law of the LORD Almighty 
       and spurned the word of the Holy One of Israel.

So what does this mean exactly? First of all I believe we are learning in verse 20 that Isaiah was almost feeling sorry in a sense for people who start to become lax in their own standards because our standards should be God's standards. When we start to decide what is right and wrong, God definitely shows up. He is saying he feels sorry for those who say evil is good and good is evil...I can relate to that. For a long time I had the "as long as it's not hurting anybody else" or the "to each their own" mentality. I noticed that one drink every now and then became a drink pretty much every day, and the drinking led to other bad choices, I started to accept things around me, pot smoking, tv shows, music, whoever sleeping with whoever...etc...It was all the norm to me. I was learning to live in the gray area. My mind was filled with so much immorality that nothing really seemed wrong to me anymore. I became one of those who would roll my eyes at the "goodie goodies" but what I was finding that my life was empty. Even though I ran from the good, I longed for it. 

I'm not by any means saying I am holier than thou, or better by any means. I sin every day many many times. Its great to be accepted by the world isnt it? It certainly is easier. Thats probably why I let go of my biblical standards. When I was having fun with the world I was avoiding the persecution that I had dealt so much with before in my earlier years. I was having fun with my friends, involved in the drama, screwing up left and right, drinking, smoking, being hungover, depending on others, it was a vicious repetitive cycle,  and in the end, I was pretty much always let down.

Thats why I say I never REALLY knew what it was to have a relationship with Christ until my late 20's when I truly died to self and GAVE my life over to Christ. I'm not saying it was easy to give up my favorite tv shows, but as my mind became more Christ filled, the less interest I had in them. Its not like I just stopped watching things cold turkey because I was super Christian now, no way, I just let the Holy Spirit work in me, and all the sudden, I didn't care about the things I did before. Same with music, drinking, I just...stopped I had no more interest...the Holy Spirit is awesome...

I'm not saying everyone should do this, no-one is going to hell because they watch TV...I would just ask that you look at your moral code. Are we in the black and white? Our standards should be God's standards. What are we filling our minds with? Are we blind to the sex on tv now because its just the norm? What about our movies? Our books? We know what is right and wrong by reading the Word. Immersing ourselves in it. I guarantee that there is not an issue the Bible doesn't deal with. Let the Holy Spirit work in you. Love everybody. You don't have to agree with somebody, but you don't have to judge them either. Let God do the judging, love all, which is the greatest commandment. 

There are also great resources online, if you are struggling with something and you don't know if its right or wrong, or you are wondering God's standpoint. My favorite is www.gotquestions.org which provides Biblical basis for basically any question you can imagine.

 In closing just remember in developing and growing, in keeping our moral code remember to:

Obey God's commands

Stay in God's word

Remember SOLD

and PRAY PRAY PRAY

Die to yourself, and let God work in you because once he is in control its AWESOME. I can absolutely guarantee it because I am living proof.

Sold Out

I started out innocently enough, doing my nightly Bible study, because I'm trying to grow as a Christian, a person, and really connect with God. I've felt out of sorts lately, like even though I know God is there, I don't have those feel good fuzzy wuzzy jump up and down feelings. I started out tonight deciding to seek an answer, God how do I grow? I feel like i'm reading the same things, and they are going in one ear and out the other. Sure, I've changed my habits, changed my TV and Music, amongst other things, but intellectually and spiritually, what am I doing to grow closer to God? Then I came across Hebrews 5:13-14

Hebrews 5:13-14 states:

Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness, but solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.

At this point baby Jack, my nephew for those of you that don't know, crawled right by me. He is on baby food, great selections such as sweet potato and salmon, or turkey and applesauce, but the thing is is that he has graduated to these foods, baby steps if you will, he's not eating a real sweet potato off the grill for a reason, he would choke, he's not ready, he's a baby, but in 3 years or even later, if he is still eating mashed combos of things, there would be a problem. You don't see a lot of adults living on a diet of sole baby food, especially because they don't know or can't eat solid food. 

Its the same with our spiritual lives. When we are new christians, we learn the basics, faith, salvation, the love of Jesus, David and Golaith, etc...but when do we graduate to solid food? We must continually train, study, learn, grow, develop a relationship with God. Great, I thought, but HOW?

God spoke to me. He gave me an acronym, being a veteran, He knows how much the Army and myself LOVES acronyms. So I have learned how to grow up by becoming SOLD out. 

S--Seek

O--Obedience

L-Love

D-Diligence

We are to live a life of Seeking Christ. Matt 6:33 says seek ye first the Kingdom of God. To seek is to turn to God FIRST for help, in ALL aspects of our lives. Fill your thoughts with his desires, take his character for your pattern and to serve and obey Him in everything. What is truly important?

We are also to be Obedient to God's commands. 1 John 3:22-24 says that "And recieve from him anything we ask because we OBEY His commands and do what pleases HIM and this is HIS command: to believe in the name of HIS son, Jesus and to love one another as he commanded us. Those who obey his commands live within Him and He in them. Be obedient, its not easy, sometimes we are like a kid ya know? I more often than not say "but I dont wanna God!!!" etc, but when we are in His will, life is so much more solid.

Love: The greatest commandment. What does this have to do with character development? We should love each other, its obvious, love our parents, our children, those around us..but the purest way to love, I think is to marinate EVERYTHING in God's love. Deuteronomy 6:5 is my new favorite verse, which until the other day I didn't even know it existed. 

5 And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength. 6And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands that I am giving you today.7 Repeat them again and again to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up. 8 Tie them to your hands and wear them on your forehead as reminders. 9 Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

Seriously when I read this it brought tears to my eyes. Its about loving God with all of your being, and teaching your children to love God. Never ceasing, just letting God seep from our pores. Its a total commitment, an immersion, that becomes infectious, spreading the love and passion of Christ to your families and to those around you. 

Finally we must be diligent about growth. We can't just commit and then falter, we need to grow, we need to become solid, we need to learn, memorize, serve, love, and most importantly have a relationship with God, and let Him work within us. The best example of this is found in 2 Peter 1:1-10

3 By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. 4 And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires.

 5 In view of all this, make every effort to respond to God’s promises. Supplement your faith with a generous provision of moral excellence, and moral excellence with knowledge, 6 and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with patient endurance, and patient endurance with godliness, 7and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love for everyone.

 8 The more you grow like this, the more productive and useful you will be in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 But those who fail to develop in this way are shortsighted or blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their old sins.

 10 So, dear brothers and sisters,^[c] work hard to prove that you really are among those God has called and chosen. Do these things, and you will never fall away.

God loves us, he chose us, he sent His Son, his perfect, blameless, innocent Son to die for us, and time is to sell out now. We need to get excited, get on fire, and grow. I'm tired of being on baby food, i'm ready for some steak..I'm definitely selling out to Christ, and I look forward to journaling my ups and my downs, and my growth with whoever wants to hear about it...

Its time to for bed but thanks for checking out my first blog. Many more to come!

God Bless!

Chelsi