Light in the Depths

“Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you.” ‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭13:17‬ ‭ESV‬‬ There are many times that I have been given the responsibility of leading people in some way. Whether it's leading people to complete a task or assignment, to finish a job, leading a sports team, and numerous other things. However, in all these ways I've been a leader it has never been easy and is always stressful. People are always fighting you and problems are always arising that are keeping you from becoming successful in whatever it is you are trying to accomplish. I know for a fact that there were many times that if people would've just been willing to allow me to lead them properly that the tasks could've been accomplished in a less stressful manner. If people could've just realize that I was meant to lead for a reas

“Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.” ‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭6:1‬ ‭ESV‬‬ “Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord.” ‭‭Colossians‬ ‭3:20‬ ‭ESV‬‬ I could never even begin to tell you how many times I didn't listen to my parents and didn't do what they asked of me. So many times I've snuck around the will of my parents, reasoned why it would be ok to go against what they asked of me, and even just directly disobeyed them, regardless of what the consequences would be. And I can tell you that practically every time I disobeyed them they were hurt by my disobedience. So why would I disobey them if I knew that it would only come to hurt them? Honestly the majority of the time was just me being selfish. I didn't feel like listening to them, I wanted to do what I wanted to do, I thought that I knew better than my parents, the list goes on. I always put myself over them and never cared enough about what they were thinking and instea

“Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness?” ‭‭Romans‬ ‭6:16 ESV A while before coming here I was in a situation where I was choosing to be obedient to my flesh and not Christ, I was falling into a bondage that I didn't know how to escape. I thought that since I was walking a walk that seemed to be of Christ, that in this situation I wasn't sinning. If I had these feelings that I had, then how could I be sinning? At first I didn't really think there was a choice, these feelings I had were so strong and felt so real that I thought they had to be of good nature. Eventually though, these feelings I had would start consuming my life. Whenever I was in a scenario that put me in a situation where I could feel these feelings, they would be all I could think about. Sure I could talk with people and I still cared about

“But Peter and the apostles answered, "We must obey God rather than men.” ‭‭Acts‬ ‭5:29‬ ‭ESV‬‬ Peter and the apostles demonstrated at this moment an obedience that exceeded far beyond any form of obedience that I have ever experienced in my walk as a Christian. They followed Jesus’s example of complete selflessness to the point of death and put their lives directly in the hands of the Lord by standing up for the light and truth that is Jesus Christ. They were directly commanded to stop preaching by the high council of Jerusalem about Jesus Christ being our Lord and savior after already being arrested for their preaching and responded by saying “We must obey God rather than men.” And then not only said that but continued into saying how not only is Christ our Lord and savior but how this how council was responsible for his death and how they had to repent and seek forgiveness for their sins. They had to expect by saying something like this that they were going to get either th

“Although he was a son, he learned obedience through what he suffered.” ‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭5:8‬ ‭ESV‬‬ Something that we've learned from our perspectives readings was that as Christians we are are called to be priests for Jesus Christ, which means we must act on behalf of the people to Christ and we must act on the behalf of Christ to the people. In truth though no man acts directly on behalf of God the father, we are only able to communicate with him because Jesus was appointed as our high priest when he died on the cross for our sins. He became the ultimate sacrifice, which led to him being anointed as our high priest because of his obedience to God the father. He did everything the Lord asked him to, and by remaining vigilante in standing against sin he ultimately remained obedient to the father throughout his entire life. Even as the son of God, he remained humble as a man and endured all the temptations and sufferings of this world as a man, so that we may have an example to foll

“As for me, I shall behold your face in righteousness; when I awake, I shall be satisfied with your likeness.” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭17:15‬ ‭ESV‬ David lived quite the dangerous life as a follower of God. He was constantly relying on the Lord’s strength and guidance to comfort him and protect him from the numerous enemies that he would face troughout his life. Throughout all the turmoil that he endured he was ultimately able to remain a servant of God, Psalm 17:5 ESV “My steps have held fast to your paths; my feet have not slipped.” So what does a servant of the Lord do when they are facing hardships? What do we do when the enemy is surrounding us? Seek the Lord’s face, and be content in the fact that we know he will come through for us, just like David always did. We are called to turn to God with all of our battles and find comfort in the fact that when we rely on his strength and his protection that he will provide for us. We will go through trials for our faith and during those trials it

“Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content.” ‭‭Philippians ‭4:11‬ ‭ESV‬‬ So something to note about this passage is that Paul wrote this while he was imprisoned. And while in prison he's talking about the secret to contentment. And let's not forget what else happened to Paul while he was a servant of the Lord. 2 Corinthians‬ ‭11:24-30‬ ‭ESV‬‬ “Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea; on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers; in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on m

“Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you."” ‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭13:5‬ ‭ESV‬‬ At the start of this passage, the writer of Hebrews starts off with by saying Hebrews‬ ‭13:1-2‬ ‭ESV‬‬ “Let brotherly love continue. Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.”‭ How often do we see people throughout our day and just turn away, saying things like “oh they aren’t my problem,” or “I don't even know that person,” or “well this is mine and I don't feel like giving it away.” Along with the countless other excuses that we could make for not wanting to help people, how selfish do all these statements sound? Then ask yourself how many times you've said statement like these to yourself in your life? I know for me the excuses are most definitely in the thousands. So that means that there has been thousands of times in my life where I could&

“Soldiers also asked him, "And we, what shall we do?" And he said to them, "Do not extort money from anyone by threats or by false accusation, and be content with your wages."” ‭‭Luke‬ ‭3:14 ESV Everyday the enemy plagues my mind with fleshly desires that feel like they would be tremendously satisfying if I had them right now. Usually the best defense that I've had against these thoughts is found in 2 Corinthians‬ ‭10:5‬ ‭ESV‬‬ “We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ,” Some fleshly thoughts that I have throughout the day are honestly kind of silly and aren't a problem taking captive. For instance, I wish I didn't have to eat oatmeal today, I wish I had my music to listen to, I wish I could take a nap right now, etc. All these things aren't too much of a challenge for me to take on and I don't really need to reread verses like Philippians 4:13 to overcome

“But godliness with contentment is great gain, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content.” ‭‭1 Timothy‬ ‭6:6-8‬ ‭ESV‬‬ Isaiah 40:13-14 ESV “Who has measured the Spirit of the Lord, or what man shows him his counsel? Whom did he consult, and who made him understand? Who taught him the path of justice, and taught him knowledge, and showed him the way of understanding?” ‭‭What in God’s omnipotence, omnipresence, and omniscience could we ever offer him that he doesn't already have or understand? Nothing. He ultimately gave us everything through creation because if it wasn't for creation we wouldn't even exist to experience this life. Then he gave us everything again when he paid for our salvation through the blood of his son, which guaranteed us eternity in Heaven. So how do we ever repay those debts? What do we need to do to thank him for the lives that he's given u

“so that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.” ‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭6:12‬ ‭ESV‬‬ God’s love is inescapable. His grace is inescapable. The cross is inescapable. These are statements that we should be reminding ourselves of every day. There is nothing that we can do that can steal us away from Christ. Ephesians 4:30 ESV “And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.” We have been sealed by The Holy Spirit and that seal cannot be broken. No matter what we do after we become saved we are bound to him. Romans 6:18 ESV “and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness.” So if this is the case, why don't we just do whatever we want? We are already guaranteed a seat in Heaven, so why don't we just do whatever we want? Because we know it is wrong to. Because we understand that Jesus was sent to die on the cross for our sins and that our sins will only lead us

“I, John, your brother and partner in the tribulation and the kingdom and the patient endurance that are in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos on account of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus.” ‭‭Revelation‬ ‭1:9‬ ‭ESV‬‬ John wrote this letter as instructed to seven nearby churches to warn them of the end times and second coming of Jesus. Something unique about this book of the Bible was that everything that John wrote about was based off of visions that he received from an angel. It wasn't just through experience that John was speaking but rather he was given visions from heaven to share with the world what was to come of it. So, how could John make these people understand that these visions really were from God when he was the only one who had seen them? Especially since he had been exiled and outcast from his people. Why would God allow John to be exiled from fellow Christians in need of his wisdom and guidance if he was such an important member of the church? Cou

“being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy;” ‭‭Colossians‬ ‭1:11‬ ‭ESV‬‬ In this section of this letter from Paul to the Colossians Paul is listing things that he and his fellow saints are praying for that the Colossians may receive from God. So, as believers of the same God, we can expect to be strengthened by his power to have the endurance and patience to follow him, and to be joyful in that endurance and patience. Now I don't know about everyone else, but I am rarely joyful in having patience and endurance. It sucks having to wait for things, it sucks having to train for things, and it sucks not knowing why we are waiting and training for those things. Both in a worldly and spiritual sense. But yet we are supposed to find joy in all those sucky things. James 1:2-3 ESV “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.” If y

“By your endurance you will gain your lives.” ‭‭Luke‬ ‭21:19‬ ‭ESV‬‬ James‬ ‭4:14-15‬ ‭ESV‬‬ “yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, "If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that."” If we compare our lives spent on this Earth to the eternity that we are promised in Heaven, just as James says, it is like a mist that appears for a time and then vanishes. Our lives are a practically meaningless span of time when you compare them to eternity. A grain of sand in the entirety of the Earth’s oceans, and still that isn't a true enough comparison of how short our lives on this Earth truly are. And I believe this is what Jesus is trying to say here in this verse. This life will be filled with sufferings of many kinds, but compared to the eternity that we are promised for our sufferings, where life will be perfect, the sufferings will be infinitely worth

“Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. The ones along the path are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved. And the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear the word, receive it with joy. But these have no root; they believe for a while, and in time of testing fall away. And as for what fell among the thorns, they are those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature. As for that in the good soil, they are those who, hearing the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patience.” ‭‭Luke‬ ‭8:11-15‬ ‭ESV‬‬ Life as a Christian is not easy. As a Christian I am constantly at war with my flesh, the enemy, and the world. All of which are constantly weighing me down and looking for cracks in my spiritual armor in which they can penetrate my being. They try to break my

“Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.” ‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭5:15-17‬ ‭ESV‬‬ Our Earth is a pit of death and destruction. It has been destroyed by sin and has been completely covered by its darkness. However, this chapter of Ephesians goes on to tell us about how we can avoid the shadows and stay in the light, and how to not only stay in the light but be a light ourselves. It is by staying in the light of Christ that we stay out of the darkness and by allowing him to shine through us that we become lights ourselves, and the light of Christ is truth, and truth being wisdom. For that is what he embodies. So everything we do we must do with wisdom. For we know that if we are not acting in truth then we are acting in sin. That is why we must always examine ourselves. Because it is so easy to fall out of truth. But if we are walking in tru

“If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.” ‭‭James‬ ‭1:5‬ ‭ESV‬‬ Now that I have finally reached a point in my life where I can truly consider myself to be a servant of Christ, I realize how little wisdom I have in this world. Especially since growing up I always thought I was such a wise person just because of how well I did in school and how I always improved in athletics by being an intelligent athlete. For one I don't know jack squat about God and I never will. We will never begin to fully understand him in his inifiniteness and that alone can humble a person pretty well. Also, because I didn't start my walk seriously until around half a year ago I have so much to learn about how a Christian is truly supposed to live in this world. Especially since I have so much to learn from scripture and the Bible is, in essence, the foundation of how to live as a Christian, along with being guided by the Hol

“For our boast is this, the testimony of our conscience, that we behaved in the world with simplicity and godly sincerity, not by earthly wisdom but by the grace of God, and supremely so toward you.” ‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭1:12‬ ‭ESV‬‬ Something that is stated pretty clearly throughout the Bible is that as Christians we are not to boast about ourselves. For everything that we know is from God, and it is through Christ alone that we are able to see the world as we do as Christians. Galatians‬ ‭1:11-12‬ ‭ESV‬‬ “For I would have you know, brothers, that the gospel that was preached by me is not man's gospel. For I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ.” Here Paul isn't boasting about anything that he has personally done. He is boasting about the change that God has brought into his life and how he now walks as a servant of Jesus. He is boasting about the wisdom that God has given him through his good graces, and

“Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show by good conduct that his works are done in the meekness of wisdom. But if you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast and lie against the truth. For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there. But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy.” ‭‭James‬ ‭3:13-17‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ “Who is wise and understanding among you?” How often do we consider ourselves wise in this things we do and the things we say? How often do we think that our way is the best way because we know what we are talking about? And I'm not even talking about spiritually yet. I'm just talking about in day to day life. “Trust me this is what you want to do.” Or “I know what I'm talking about?” But how many times when we say or do things like these are we proven completely and utterly wrong? Wh

“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; A good understanding have all those who do His commandments. His praise endures forever.” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭111:10‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ The fear of the Lord. The fear of the Lord. The fear of the Lord. Since this verse states that “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,” to find wisdom we must understand what it means to fear the Lord. A lot of people may just think that when it says to fear God that by being afraid of what God can do you will keep his commandments. But the Word tells us to not live in fear and that being a follower of Jesus frees us from sin, but fearing for our lives doesn't sound very freeing. So what does it mean then by “the fear of the Lord”? Personally I feel that it means not to fear WHAT the Lord has done, but to understand who the Lord is in all his sovereignty. Well if we apply what pastor Steve was teaching us the other day in class, what know that God in his sovereignty does everything out of love. Not just

“And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” Then many warned him to be quiet; but he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” So Jesus stood still and commanded him to be called. Then they called the blind man, saying to him, “Be of good cheer. Rise, He is calling you.”” ‭‭Mark‬ ‭10:46-52‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ I find it funny that this demonstration of faith takes place in Jericho, which is where the faith of Rahab was shown in the book of Joshua. Both of these stories are great demonstrations of faith, and can actually be seen as pretty relatable. Rahab had never seen any Israelites before the two spies entered the walls of Jericho and had never personally seen any works of God in her lifetime. However, she knew the Israelites’ God was the one and only God. Joshua 2:9 ‘and she said to them “I know that the Lord has given this land to you and that a great fear has fallen on us, so that all who live in th

“One day Jesus said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side of the lake.” So they got into a boat and set out. As they sailed, he fell asleep. A squall came down on the lake, so that the boat was being swamped, and they were in great danger. The disciples went and woke him, saying, “Master, Master, we’re going to drown!” He got up and rebuked the wind and the raging waters; the storm subsided, and all was calm. “Where is your faith?” he asked his disciples. In fear and amazement they asked one another, “Who is this? He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey him.”” ‭‭Luke‬ ‭8:22-25‬ NIV Yesterday was for the most part just another day for me. I was rocking from side to side, bobbing up and down in the waves, but I was still progressing through the day ok. Then something completely unexpected happened. A storm appeared out of nowhere, and it was horrifying. It was a monstrosity of a storm with lightening flashing and thunder roaring. With waves swooping which

“But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” ‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭11:6‬ ‭NKJV The whole basis of Christianity is faith. Nothing can be accomplished as a Christian if you don't have faith. And faith isn't something that comes very easily. Throughout our lives, the faith that we put in others and things of this world always seem to let us down. Whether it's relying on friends, cars breaking down, family not following through on promises, no matter what the break of trust is, our trust of things becomes broken. Day in and day out, over and over again. You can't escape it in this world and you never will. And ironically that's exactly what God would have us do, trust him. For that is what faith in God is, trusting him. Trust that he is there for us and that he is providing for us, in all ways. But, God doesn't just give out free handouts, for he is a just Go

“For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and that one, ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it. When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those following him, “Truly I tell you, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith.” ‭‭Matthew‬ ‭8: 9-10‬ ‭NIV‬‬ Yesterday while I was in prayer God put something on my heart. I'm not going to say what he asked of me but he told me to do something and just like one of the centurion’s soldiers in this story I'm going to do what he commanded me to do, and it starts with this IBS assignment. I am a believer in Christ Jesus. I know he died on the cross for my sins, I know that God speaks to me constantly throughout my life and I can see the blessings that he bestows upon me every day since I first started seriously following him back in August of this year. Since then I have never found so much joy and happiness and fulfillment in life.

“Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” ‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭11:1‬ ‭NIV‬‬ When we are saved by Christ we become slaves to God’s righteousness, we belong to him. Therefore we can have faith and hope in him because of that fact. We have been promised, by God, that as long as we have faith in him and serve him he will bless us. We do not have to be afraid because He is watching over us. We can have the upmost faith in him when it comes to ways in which we are serving him. At times it can be hard to have faith in him. Tasks seem too difficult, days seem too long, and material things may seem too expensive. But in times where we lack understanding of how things are going to be accomplished, we can have faith in him, because we know that he is going to bless us and provide for us, especially in ways that we would never expect. When it came to paying for this internship, Thalia didn't have the funds to pay for this trip. She wasn't getting help