Having Spiritual Gifts Intruduction

 

"But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal. For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit; To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit; To another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another [divers] kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues: But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will." (1 Corin 12:7-11) (KJV)

Good Morning Oddballers,

Today  I want to touch on our spiritual gifts. Because honestly, people don't know what they are gifted in. Plain and simple.I don't really want to go on a huge tangent today, so I'm going to keep it a bit simple.

I decided to do a series on Spiritual Gifts. Covering each gift for what it is and make others aware of gifts they could possess in their life. SO Today, I want to talk about the importance of spiritual gifts and list a few I want to cover these next couple weeks :)

Spiritual gifts are important to me because they are tools that we can use to minister and be disciples. It is the qualities in us that just come easy for us. We are great at doing these things when we interact with others around us. They are used in God's image. It showcases the good things about each and every one of us. For me, as I'm sitting in a new environment, I immediately try to figure out who is the leader in the environment, and then I look for what qualities they possess that make them the leader in the situation. Most of the time, the good things about that person as a leader had something to do with their spiritual gifts. That's why I'm going to talk about spiritual gifts. As Christians, we need to utilize our gifts to introduce people to the Holy Spirit. Being aware makes us role models for others who really need help.  Here are a few gifts I want to touch on:

GIVING, LEADERSHIP,  MERCY, PROPHECY, SERVICE, TEACHING, ADMINISTRATION, DISCERNMENT, FAITH, HEALING, HELPS, KNOWLEDGE, MIRACLES, TOUNGES, WISDOM, EVANGELISM, MISSOIONARY, CELIBACY.

Of course, there are plenty more, but I think these are the pretty big ones, and that is what I want to cover these next few days. Let's chat about our gifts so that we can grow as followers in Christ.

Have a Wonderful Day Guys,

Oddball

The Bible Brings Me Back to You (God)

 

"In a desert land he found him, in a barren and howling waste. He shielded him and cared for him; he guarded him as the apple of his eye." (Deuteronomy 32:10)

 

Good Morning Oddballers,

 

Today I really want to focus on overcomming obstacles in our lives, because it seems like myself and many other people I know are struggling in this area of their life.Recently I have been fighting with the thoughts that I don't have a purpose or place. Obviously that is completely untrue on every level, but I have been struggling with those kinds of thoughts recently. What I've found is that reading some scripture and getting involved in a depression topical Bible study was a good way to bring me back to Jesus again. When I'm struggling with something, usually I try to narrow down the problem, and then do some Bible study on that area and see what I find. So yep. I'm working on depression at the moment. I don't feel depressed, I just feel like my heart is heavily troubled, which can lead to depression if not treated right away. So that's why I'm doing a Bible study on Depression.

 

What I want you all to know is that having a troubled heart is something you can overcome. Yes, its going to take A LOT of work on your part and some major faith in Jesus to help guide you through, but trust me, once the wave is over (it hasn't ended for me quite yet but I know it will), you will feel so light and unbelievably happy. It will just hit you randomly and you will realize that God will never leave or forsake you. It's absolutely breathtaking. There is nothing more powerful than the emotion comming from an emotional wellness state farthest from God. :)

 

The verse I put up today kind of shows what kind of thing I'm talking about. Even if we are in a desert in our lives, God knows where we are, he knows what we are going through, and he wants to helps us overcome whatever we need to handle in our lives. He will shield you from your enemies and care for you. He will gaurd you and make you strong. What I"m saying is, NOMATTER what you are feeling, God knows about it, and is trying to find a way to guide you through the wave so that you don't hit the sand with a THUD and a bunch of seaweed wrapped around your ankles.

 

As Christians we can conquered anything through God. So if you are in a mental slump, the Bible will lead you back to God. Don't forget that ...EVER..I don't know what I'd do with myself if people didn't quite understand that concept. So many young Christian lives could be saved this way, and that's why I am writing about it to you today.

 

Much Love and God Bless,

 

Oddball

"I'm Only Begging You For Mercy"

 "Be you therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful." (Luke 6:36)

Good Morning Oddballers,

Today I want to talk about Mercy, becaue I feel like it is something I haven't really talked about in a blog post. So here I go. :)

According to the dictionary, mercy is compassion or kindly forbearance shown towards an offender, enemy, or other person in one's power; compassion, pity or benevolence. So basically what it means is showing compassion towards others who do wrong towards you.

It sounds a whole lot harder than it looks, I mean, people dissapoint us everyday. We get angry at others because they lie, and steal from us. They will end up hurting us, but showing mercy is a way to be more like Christ in his image. One of the greatest things about God is his mercy. For example, how many times have you dissapointed God? I think that is a weird question to ask conisidering we are all sinners. Most likely, the answer will be around 10 times a day, and if you have lived around 10 years, that's around 3650 times. Yeah, God has shown you mercy over 3650 times. Why can't you give a person mercy once??

I think that is the question we all should be asking ourselves every once in a while. Forgiveness is along the lines of what I'm talking about, however, mercy is the glue that brings forgiveness into the picture. Feeling compassion towards a enemy is the only way forgiveness can be made for that person. I mean, who would want to forgive someone who they are not compassionate towards. This is simple logic people. That's why it is sooooooo important that we as people show mercy. It's so important for our health and well being.

So now, I'm going to post a video talking about Mercy..its a pretty famous song..H0pefully you tune into it to just relax after a long day.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y7ZEVA5dy-Y


Much Love

Oddball

Reflection in Our Lives

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." (John 1:1) (KJV)

Good Morning Oddballers,

I know it's been awhile since I wrote a blog post, but I spent a lot of time relfecting on my life and my goals. So today, I want to chat with you all about why I think reflection is necessary every once in a while.

First of all, I feel like personal reflections involving yourself and God are a rejuvination tool for when in life we get overwhelmed by our circumstances. When I'm stressed. I feel the need to just sit by myself in a quiet place and just meditate with the holy spirit. Usually that calms me down and helps me focus on what I need to focus on in my day. I honestly have a kind of life that is constantly in motion. There are events, and meetings, and drama all day. I never stop listening to problems that occur in my life or dealing with problems that occur in my life. IN all honesty, if people actually walked a day in my shoes and heard my thoughts, they would think I had an extremely stressful life. Which is true. That is why I reflect and meditate often. I think I would have lost my mind by now if I hadn't.

Secondly, reflection helps a person connect with God on a more intimate level. so many of us strive to have that intimacy with others in our lives. I think, that a way we can practice being intimate with others is by working on our personal relationship with Jesus. If we as people cannot connect with our savior, how can we connect with others? That is why I like reflection as well, it teaches me how to stop, and listen intimately to others when they are speaking to me. It helps me calm down and really focus on what the other people are trying to say instead of listening to my own ambitions and jumping to conclusions. Reflection is a good way to practice these skills. Having some one on one time with our Savior is a good thing. We should be spending time alone with him. Even if its just to have a conversation or to say nothing at all. Reflection is a good thing people.

So as you all go about your days in the next few weeks, try to take an hour out of your day to just sit, read a bible, and talk to God. It is one of the most refreshing things to do to spend your spare time. It makes me feel better after a long day, and I'm pretty sure it will make you feel better as well.


Have a Wonderful Day,

Oddball

Making Realistic Expectations is the Way to Go

"According to my earnest expectation and [my] hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but [that] with all boldness, as always, [so] now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether [it be] by life, or by death." (Philippians 1:20) (KJV)
 

Good Morning Oddballers,

 Today I wanted to touch on the topic of expectations, because I feel like many people make set an expectation for the people around them and for themselves that seem to be really unrealistic. This can cause a whole lot of problems for themselves as well as others. So today I wanted to show a Bible verse that mentions the kind of expectation we should have for God, which is different than the kind of expectations we should have for others.

Yes, what this verse is talking about is really genious, however, reality check is this----the people around us, aren't God. GO FIGURE. that most likely answers 80 Billion of your questions. hahaha. But seriously, the expectations we have for God SHOULD NOT be the same as the ones we have for others.

Let me put it to you this way. People sin. People will hurt you. People will make you mad. God is consistent, loyal, and will never forsake us. HE is sinless in nature. Why expect others to be the same in your life? So many people I know tend to get super angry at people for ridiculous reasons. They can't forgive another person because they lied about where they were and because of that we get bitter and angry. That is honestly wrong on so many levels. Expecting perfection from anyone is wrong, because you will be dissapointed every time. Don't set yourself up to get hurt.

Also, don't put unrealistic expectations on yourself. "Oh I want to be 110 lbs "when in reality you are 5'11" and your BMI would be 4% at that weight. Ugh. Ladies and Gents, don't strive for unrealistic expectations about your looks or anything else on that line. Even other types of qualities in yourself. It will cause massive amounts of habitual self monitoring that you really don't need. SO DON"T DO IT. set your expectations on the Lord our God. and just breathe okay???


Make realistic expectations for yourselves and others,

I wish you all the best today,

Oddball

Beautiful Women have Beautiful Hearts

"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men's bones and all uncleanness." (Matthew 23:27)

Okay Oddballers,

I'm going to be honest about something in myself that I really like. Sometimes during my free time, I like to browse through black and white wedding photos, because I feel that they really capture the inner beauty of a woman. There is just something special about a woman in a wedding gown. Their true beauty just shines through them and when I look at the woman in the picture, I think of all the sturggles and heartbreaks she must have went  through to get to the place she is at in that moment. Deciding that she was going to devote her life to a companion. I don't know, it's just been something that has fascinated me for a long time. I enjoy it, and I just thought you guys should know.

The reason why I brought it up is because I want to touch on inner beauty today. AGAIN. I really repeat this topic because I know its what SO many people around me struggle with. Everyone, in a way, is striving to reach the modern standard of beauty and be what other people call "attractive" physically. IN my opinion, it isn't all about the physical things, but rather the person that is weaved in their hearts, the kind of woman that projects enormous amounts of Joy and love towards others around them. Inner beauty is the MOST attractive thing I notice in people. I find myself drawn towards people with the greatest hearts. They just light up a room and make me want to be around them and never leave their side. IT's that powerful for me.

Yes, I can't ignore the fact that physical attraction is important...it is what sparks intrest in a person, and I think that is why God made us that way. He gave us that gift so that we can be drawn to people in our lives that could impact us in an amazing way. Just because a person is drop dead gorgeous does not mean that I'm going to be obsessed with them. I achknowledge their beauty and move on. That's kind of how I roll people. Because honestly, God judges us by our hearts and what our intentions are, if a person's heart isn't beautiful but they are attractive, then I have no interest in them. It's all about their morals, who they are, and what they believe and hold to be true.

So as you go about your day..think of all the beautiful people you have in your life, and just talk to them. They may inspire you today.

I wish you the best :)

God Bless,

Oddball

Confusion..What the heck is going on??

"For God is not [the author] of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints." (1 Corinthians 14:33)(KJV)
 

Good Day Oddballers,

There are times at the end of a very long day where I sit down at my desk and ask myself, "What the heck just happened?" This occurs to me quite frequently. There are many aspects of living on Earth that just confuse me. If I actually had time to write all my confusions out, this blog post would be WAY too long and everyone would stop reading it.So instead, I want to focus on confusion in general. Hopefully tackling some sort of understanding in the world that will always confuse us.

Let me give you my opinion on confusion. One, I feel like confusion is absolutely irrevocably normal on every level. Since we aren't God, the creator, its a given that we will find ourselves super confused about many things. Also, I feel like through God we can find a deeper understand of our world and have peace over the things that may confuse us.

I don't think there is an answer to everything that God will really want to give us, but I do think that the answers will come eventually, and in the end, everything will fall into place.

When one is confused, we tend to question God and his "all-knowing" capabilities. This, my friend, is normal. Because we don't understand something, we blame our teacher for not teaching us what we need to understand. We get frustrated with God because we are so confused about a certain event that happened to us. We want to know the WHY but nothing is making sense. We yell at God saying, "Tell me what I don't understand. If you are all-knowing, you should be able to answer all my questions."

The thing is, I kind of like being confused. It gets me to ask questions, seek God's wisdom, and become curious about the world and how it works. Yes, I can say that sometimes it can be a tedious and frustrating expirience to be confused about some aspects of our lives, however, I feel that it is important to recognize that we don't know everything, we won't know everything, and we shouldn't strive to know everything. So as you and I go about our normal lives today, I want you as well as myself to think about some things you don't understand, and just pray for wisdom and understanding. Don't get tied up in your lack of knowledge, but rather, explore the capabilities of your mind and hunt for the answers through scripture and prayer.

Let us embrace our Confusion about the planet we live in together. Get out your Bibles and your prayer journals everyone :) It's time to get to work :)

Love ya,

Oddball

The Importance of Companionship

   
“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you." (John 15:1-6) (ESV)

Good Morning Oddballers,

I want to make this post rather quick this morning on companionship. I spent quite a bit of time meditating yesterday and I found that one of my desires as a person is companionship. In my opinion, I think that is a fair desire as a Christian. We all should have some sort of companion in our life to share the good moments with and help us through the hard times. I'm NOT saying a romantic relationship, rather a strong friendship that won't break apart over something trivial just because you are mad.

By the way, if you are friendsh with someone one minute, and the moment they get mad at you and you lose their friendship. They honestly didn't even value you that much in the first place. REAL friends fight through their anger and talk it out. A friendship doesn't get lost over hurt, it may be broken and take time to heal, but it will not break apart. Friendships that are strong can make it through a lot.

The verse I chose today doesn't have a whole lot to do with what I'm talking about, but I wanted to taouch on it because God is an example of a companion in our lives. He is there to help us and give us wisdom to make it through the trials and tribulations of our sinful world we live in. Like the verse says, he will take away the branches that don't bear fruit. We should have friends like this in our lives.

If you don't have friends that are willing to call out your faults and help you through them, what is the point in the friendship? If you don't have friends who are willing to stand by you and help you through the tough times, willing to openly talk to you about anything, pray for you, ask you how you are doing, and actively participate in your life just the way Jesus Christ has done for us, Then I personally believe that it is a waste of time. I would rather have  few people in my life of High Value that honor me instead of many that really don't care about me and my wellness.

That is all, Thanks for letting me rant this morning.


Much Love and God Bless,

Oddball

In order to Love Others...we have to Love Ourselves

"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you." (Philippians 4:8-9) (ESV)

Good Morning Oddballers,

Yesterday was Valentine's Day, and because of that, I decided not to write. Usually I do not write on holidays because it gives me a day off to focus on a topic to write about later in the future. Also, it gives me time with others to make sure that they are well on that Holiday. Yesterday, my focus was to let others know that they are love by God regardless of their relationship status. I was single on Valentine's Day, and honestly having the holy spirit working through me is good enough for me. :)

So today, I want to write about loving yourself. So many people I know don't really love themselves and who they are in the inside. I think, in order to love other people, we need to learn to love ourselves the way God made us in his creation. The Bible verses I chose today really reflect on the kinds of qualities in us that we should be thinking about on a daily basis. Think about the things you do that are honorable and keep doing it. Know what is pure in you and keep it that way. Know the lovely, commendable, and excellent qualities that would give God praise, then notice them, and praise yourself for them. Love the good things that God finds in you. I"m sure there are great qualities in every single one of us if we actually took the time to stop, think, and see the beautiful creation of us.

It's up to us as Christians to love others as much as Christ loves us, if we don't love ourselves, then it is going to be very difficult to love others as well as Christ. So we got to stand up, know that we are beautiful people on the inside and out, and radiate that out to everyone you see every single day. Smile. I can't even tell you the power of a smile. Do it! All the time.

Dude.......... ---------> DO IT ALREADY!!!

Smiling = Freakin' Awesomeness


I wish you all the best on your Spiritual Journey,
God Bless,

Oddball

Lent Season..Let's GO!!

   

“Yet even now,” declares the Lord, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; and rend your hearts and not your garments.” Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love; and he relents over disaster." (Joel 2:12-13) (ESV)
 

G'day Oddballers,

Today I want to touch on Lent...because..well..It's ASH WEDNESDAY! I don't really want to go into huge detail on what this day means..however, if you don't know then feel free to Google Lent or Ash Wednesday to get some more info. Today I want to talk about what I'm thinking of sacrificing this lent season. To me, there are many things I want to give up that I feel are holding me back from my full potential as a Christ follower, and one of them, which I probably won't share with anyone, will probably be the hardest thing for me to do in what is probably my whole life. It jsut kinda hit me all of a sudden..however, there have been a couple dreams recently that sollidify what I have to do. So I KNOW it's what needs to be done.

That's what makes it hard. This thing has been at the core of my heart, where I treasure it and respect it on so many levels. To be able to give up what I hold close to my heart will most likely be the hardest thing for me. I won't go into detail, but trust me, throughout these next five weeks its going to be a battle, and I will keep you all updated on the major things that will probably come up. I will try to focus on some struggles that I will be going through becaue of it. Don't worry, my blog isn't going away anytime soon. :)

So that's all I want to say really today. Hopefully if you are thinking about sacrificing something for lent (symbollically not LITERALLY), and you think you might need some help with it, feel free to send me a message or a comment on what you need help with and I will gladly be there to help out with whatever is necessary.

Have a lovely Ash Wednesday,

Oddball

Generosity

"Give, and you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full-pressed down, shaken together to make room for more, running over, and poured into your lap. The amount you give will determine the amount you get back." (Luke 6:38) (NLT)
 

Good Morning Oddballers,

Today I want to touch on Generosity since it is around the time of Valentine's Day (or Singles Awareness Day depending on who you talk to), I want to touch on how to me, Valentine's Day isn't always about your significant other or family on that day. I try to be generous and loving to everyone in my life.

Let's be generous with our generosity to others. Whether this type of generosity comes from things we say, things we do, or gifts we give. It should come from the heart with the best intentions and with the expectation that you probably won't get anything back for it. It's kind of like the concept of openess. Openess is the idea that you share things with people without being asked. Generosity is kind of the same way. Giving to others without being asked or expecting anything in return.

Gifts can be of any kind. Time, Kind Words, Transportation, Cards, Notes, Friendship, Helping a Hand, and Objects are all things we can give to each other. Imagine if everyone of us was generous to the people around us. I'm pretty sure no one would be sad on Valentine's Day or Christmas. Everyone would have recieved the love and affection from others that Christ gives to us every time we take a breath. Generosity is such a powerful thing. It not only builds character, it builds a Christ-loving role model for those younger and more inexpirienced at life than you are.

One thing that I wish for life is for more and more people to become generous people. Just like the Bible verse says today. You will be given back more than you can imagine. It might not be right away, but it sure does come back in amazing ways.

Let us all be more generous people in our lives.

Thanks for Reading Today

God Bless,

Oddball

Do Not Obsess Over Stuff..it's not Like Everything has One Direction's faces on it. LOL

   

     "More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope," (Romans 5:3-4) (ESV)
 

Good Morning Oddballers,

I really dislike making a One Direction refrence in my title because of their mass popularity in the United States, but I think it has some potential to be a good example for what I want to touch on today. First of all, I would like to ask you an direct question; "Have you every obsessed over anything?" The answer should be Yes..or I don't know because I think at some level we all have focused on something so much that it drives us crazy.There are a couple examples that I've seen recently that I think fit this example.

One Direction Fans...SOMETIMES. I mean, I like some songs that they wrote, but I don't sit and talk about them like I know them, follow their every step, listen to every interview, scream whenever their song is played on the radio, cry when I meet them in person. I just go, "That's song is decent." I listen to it and move on.

The Other Is Packer Fans...Since I live in Green Bay, WI. I know how religiously (no pun intended) they follow everything Packers. The newspaper is covered with Packer stuff, you cannot walk into a Target, Walmart, Shopko, Kohl's, American Eagle, Old Navy, or most other department stores and not find SOMETHING with either cheese or the Packer logo on it. The Fans are crazier than I have ever seen at any other sports event, and they dress like it to. Sometimes I feel like being a Packer fan to them totally takes over their life.

Too often people tend to focus on something other than God. The material things in this life tend to have us OBSESS over the minute details. Focus on God and the plan that he has for you.

One thing that I know works for me is to just stop what I'm doing at the end of the day, meditate with God and just set all of my stress, fears, and anxiety aside and just focus on the Lord and his plan that he has for me. Listening for the word of Lord and having a conversation with him about my struggles. It is a good way to change your focus to an area that is better than constantly obsessing over a celebrity or some other material posession.


I wish you all the best today..

Much Love and God Bless,

Oddball

A letter to My Readers

"Let those who love the Lord hate evil, for he guards the lives of his faithful ones and delivers them from the hand of the wicked." (Psalm 97:10) (NIV)
 

Dear Oddballers,

Today I'm going to play it a little chill because I want to address to you all why I write my blog. I have asked myself this question recently and I just want to let you all know what the response to that question is. I left a Bible verse as well today because I want to make sure that I am still incorporating somewhat of a devotional into my post.

The first reason is that it reminds me why I am on this planet as a Christian. I'm one of those people that needs a constant reminder of my worth to God and society. This blog is a way that I dive into the scripture and am reminded on my reason for waking up every morning. My life has continually been struggle after struggle. I don't usually get a break on life to be honest. I have talked to some people recently and they told me how they feel so blessed sometimes that they honestly want to struggle a little bit so that they can grow in their faith. Personally, I think either extreme is a struggle. I'm one of those people that has expirienced Many Many different things in my lifetime that should never be expirienced by any individual, however, it makes me stronger in that I can connect with people on all different walks of life. I can attempt to understand the kind of pain and suffering they are induring and have somewhat of an idea the kind of support they need. That it why I need a reminder all the time. I tend to lose my focus. Writing Monday-Friday on this blog, Saturday video blogs, and Sunday Hope Daily Devotional contributions is a way I'm consisteently reminded. :) Now you know.

The second reason is that I have unconditional love and a passion to serve others through my words. Mostly in the form of writing and speaking. My top love language is quality time, I strongly value one on one conversations and its how I learn to connect. This blog makes me feel like I can talk to each person one on one on topics that tend to hit my mind. It helps me build a connection with strangers so that I can give back in a way that satisfies my need for intimate relationships with people. That also explains why when I don't get quality time with people it causes me anxiety. I want to be around the people I care about. This also explains why reading my Bible isn't as fullfilling than it is to most people. I need my meditation and solitude on a daily basis to feel fullfilled.

The third reason is that I LOVE Christ and strive to be a biblical woman. I appreciate all the love, messages, support, and comments many of you have said to me on how I'm such a strong woman of God. IT's so hard for me to believe sometimes, but it is my strength other than the Lord our God and affirmation that writing is a way that I can consistently live my life for Christ.


You all are fantastic, Enjoy your Days to Come,

Praise God.

God loves you just as much as I do <3

Oddball 

I love you all as Brothers and Sisters

"With all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love," (Ephesians 4:2)
 

Mornin' Oddballers,

I want to make this a bit quick today. I want to talk about something deep that has been bothering me the past few weeks. I have been struggling with the feeling of being deserving of a relationship with someone on a romantic level. For some reason, there seems to be a "worthiness" issue and I find myself consistently doubting the success of things when I know that I can emotionally handle something on that lines. So I have spent some time looking up God's love and what that means to me in my life, and I learned that nomatter how I feel, I deserve to be loved and so do you too.

Love is a funny thing. People use the word all the time like its the glue that takes a relationship from friendship to "more than friends". In my opinion, the word love belongs to all of my relationships with people. I love my friends, I love my family, it only makes sense to describe it that way. I don't "love" grilled cheese. I "like" griled cheese. If you love God, I wouldn't put him on the same level as grilled cheese. I heard that in a video on YouTube one time. hahaha.

Anyway the verse today talks about loving each other like brothers. Not saying that women can't love each other as sisters. It's just using brothers to represent both genders. In all honestly, I love you all as brothers and sisters of Christ. I try to be as humble, gentle, patient, and kind with all the brothers and sisters around me. You are all family to me. And I love you all. :)


Just wanted to let you all know that today.
Oddball.


 

Being Content.

"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go." (Joshua 1:9)
 

 Good Morning Oddballers,

I want to focus on Contentment today because I feel like many people I know are struggling with the satisfaction of what they have right now. So here I go. For me, I think the struggle is more or less contentment with who I am as a person. Am I really satisfied with my identity. Do I want to be someone else. Should I be someone else? Those are the questions I have been asking myself recently. But what I think I failed to realize is that I really should have a solid foundation and full contentment with God before I can be solid with who I am as a person.

College is one of those times in many people's lives where we all struggle with the question "Who am I?" This is totally normal because I think everyone feels it once in their college career. We question whether we are worthy of a relationship and deserving of one. We question whether how people view us is really the truth or are they just being kind because they are afraid to tell me who I really am. Maybe it's the fear that some bad habits you had in the past will come back to haunt you, or some negative qualities in yourself that you never want to show in front of the people you care about.

What I can tell you right now is that I have felt all of these things in the past few months. Some rather recently and I am still working on organizing those thoughts and tackling them one on one. Just like the verse says, we need to be strong and courageous because the Lord is with you wherever you go. As much as we would like to question the location of our Savior when we are struggling, we have to be content with the fact that he is there right beside us all the time.

This also works with material goods as well. Sometimes we are so focused on the things that we want that we lose track in God's plan for us. This is completely normal on many levels and I can tell you that it is VERY difficult to be content with the things you have in that moment of time. But what I can tell you from that is that it is very possible to tackle with contentment in the Lord. The more content you are with the Lord in your life, the more content you will be with all of the things around you. One wouldn't get stressed as much because they turn to the Lord knowing that he will never leave or forsake us. It's an amazing feeling and I encourage all of you to realy consider having contentment in your life.

Now I'm going to post a video with this. It's a song call "I'll Follow You"- Jon McLaughlin. This song is about a husband telling his wife that he will never leave her. This is how God feels about us. Whenever I hear this song I think about how much God loves me this way and also how I hope to have a husband as devoted as this man.

Enjoy

Oddball

 

Hardships aren't easy to deal with. That's why "Hard" is in Hardship.

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.”(Proverbs 3:5)
 

Good Morning Readers,

Today I'm going cliche. Not because its easier but because we all need reminders of the same old same old. Yeah, we all go through hardships in our lives. It's part of being a Christian. Trials and tribulations will come your way. You will struggle. You will fall down. You will most likely doubt yourself and question your identity. Trust me, I've been there. Not saying I've conquered anything I just listed (maybe saying I've conquered small hurdles would be better), but I feel like I've found a good solution to dealing with it so that one's anxiety level is low and the happiness and joy is evident through anything.

The Key to this is realizing that we probably will never understand the "why" in any type of  challenge that comes our way. At least right away. We need to  learn that we CANNOT UNDERSTAND everything because, well, we AREN'T GOD. Go Figure. Trust me, if I was God, this planet would be seriously messed up. Not to mention the fact that the amount of snow would be lower, the bug population would be lower, and zombies would have not existed in fantasy literature. LOL Just to name a few things.

I learned during my winter break back home that I will never be able to control many situations I encounter, and to try and control them will just leave me stressed out and feeling overly sorry for myself that I don't have the capability to solve everything. Little did I know that I was trying to do things that only God can do. No wonder I keep failing numerous amount of times.

So what I'm saying is, this verse is extremely famous. Proverbs 3:5 should be on your top 10 most memorized and read verses in the entire bible. We should TRUST the lord with all our hearts and lean not on our own understanding. DO not try to understand everything. You will be seriously overwhelmed. You wouldn't believe the amount of stress I put myself under in an attempt to understand every situation that I was in that was difficult.

NOT UNDERSTANDING EVERYTHING = AWESOMENESS. :) regardless of your opinion.

So trust God. Seriously I cannot stress that enough.


Enjoy your day of not understanding. :)

Oddball