Lately,  I have been struggling with my impatience.  I have always struggled with impatience, but lately it has been with the feeling that people, specifically my co-workers, are treating me a bit begrudgingly because I am sometimes the “nice person.”  I am often the person they can get their anger out on.   I find this really hard because I don’t like being taken advantage of.  I am personally struggling with how to best approach this as a Christian.  I don’t want to be walked over.  I don’t want to feel like the punching bag for others’ problems.  But, I want to be God’s walking light.  I want to share his radiance and want to be the light that this world sees.  I want to know that my integrity and character stay intact, even while others don’t and are not acting the most agreeable.  I know who I am and more importantly I know whose I am.  I am a child of God, and that should be what matters most.     

This was a problem that many in the Bible faced as well.  In Romans 12:18 it says, “If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.”  Paul wrote this to the church of Romans after he had seen many not getting along, even when they were supposed to be in the same family, God’s family.  In the end, creating harmony can only be done as long as it depends on you and not on others.  Even when the other members are making life hard, it is very important that we keep our integrity.  It is important that we don’t spend our time speaking harshly to them, we shouldn’t gossip, and we shouldn’t try to create hostility or use words our enemies could use against us. 

I have a perfect example from this past week.  I was talking to a coworker, and I got very upset by their comment that they made to me.  This being said, I responded in a way I hardly ever do.  I was snippy and I raised my voice.  From her perspective, it very much seemed as though I was yelling at her.  Now, this was already after a bad day, and filled with disappointment from many other parties, students, and just generally, myself.  Then put salt on the wound, and I was ready to yell out in pain.  However, afterwards I was filled with deep regret.  I don’t know so much if I was filled with regret for the fact that I had gotten upset.  While I did want to stand up for myself, there was also a part of me that didn’t like that I didn’t act with my usual integrity. 

Romans 12 will continue its theme of living in Harmony in verses 19 and 20.  These verses remind us that we should not take revenge, but rather if your enemy is hungry, feed him, if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.  Basically, we need to do the contrary to what our flesh and our human hearts want.  They want to seek revenge and to get even, but our God-like heart should want to show love and support even when that person does not love us equally.  The Lord also reminds us that in verse 19 we need to let the Lord avenge us and fight for our injustices.  In a recent church service, I was reminded of this.  The pastor asked us some prompting questions including, “Do you believe in the Lord enough that he will avenge for you”  Basically asking that if we truly trust the Lord, than we shouldn’t feel the need to fight back for our injustice, because we will know that the Lord is there for us and will take care of us and will make things right and just.  If we then believe that we don’t need to take the issue into our own hands, then we can spend more of our time thinking about how to act more like the Lord.  

It is also important to remember that God and the Holy Spirit are the main source of help that we have in this world.  I often believe that I can will myself to be completely patient and kind no matter what happens.  However, it is never really, truly me that is the one that becomes more and more patient.  It is the Holy Spirit that the Lord has given me.  What is the most important is for me to remember that I need to pray and focus my attention more on the Lord and how he can help me achieve my patience rather than by myself.  

The thing that I have found helps me the most in this matter is to talk it out with someone else.  I need to make sure this is actually talking it out as opposed to venting.  I often can find myself talking badly about the situation, making myself sound like the obvious sufferer and victim and the other person, the evil, malicious one in the wrong.  I need to make sure that I find someone who I can talk out my problems with, and to find growth.  I know that this for most people can be a therapist, or a mentor. I have also taken moments to write things down about my feelings and why I feel wronged, and then more importantly what I can do to change the situation.  This is, again, one of the many reasons why I have a blog. I definitely need to continue to grow in this, but I know that the older I get and the more mature I become, I will be able to live in harmony with more and more people, even when they do wrong against me.   

For the last few months in church we have been covering Romans 12. In this chapter, there is a lot of description about the different jobs and gifts that the Lord, through his grace and mercy, have given us.  These verses say, “So in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.  We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith.” The Lord has given each of us a role and items that come easier to us and ones that he really wants us to capitalize on.  

Even though the Lord has given each of us our certain roles and our certain positions in life, the Lord also does expect us to slowly but surely work on the items that we are not as good at.   That is why we are supposed to grow in all the fruits of the spirit. One of those gifts that the Lord has given out but also has an expectation that we all grow in is kindness or mercy.  I enjoyed that my pastor spent time highlighting this particular gift.  It can be very easy to believe that kindness is not a gift, but rather a weakness.  However, it is definitely a gift to be able to give kindness and love to the people who are in this world that then make the world a better place.   

I am not always the person to believe that all you have to do is be kind.  We can look at kindness as sometimes good enough.  As long as a person is kind, they don’t have to worry about fighting for justice, or they don’t have to be a witness for the Lord.  A person can be a quote on quote “good person” by just being kind.  Being kind is important, but it can often be looked at as a word that is shallow.  However, when I think of kindness, I think of a person who deeply cares about the other.  This means that kindness goes deeper when a person cares about the person’s physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being.  This is caring about justice, their peace, and that they feel cared for and have been taken care of with hospitality.  

I believe that everyone, especially right now needs a little bit more of kindess.  A Proverbs that I really enjoy is Proverbs 16:24 that says, “Pleasant words are like a honeycomb, Sweet and delightful to the soul and healing to the body.”  Kind words are refreshing to the body and to the soul.  It seems as though everyone is at odds with every issue and argue about everything that pops up.  Because of this, there is a lot more hostility in the world.  However, when we take the moment to really be kind, the deep kind of kind, when we care about our neighbor’s social, emotional, and physical well-being, we are able to provide real healing.  

I know that as a teacher, I have felt a little more discouraged by the way I see students and parents acting and the way they talk to both me and the other teachers in the area.  I even sometimes get very exhausted from the way I see some students talk to their peers.  It seems as though I only see items being said with sarcasm and a mean heart and not with a kind, compassionate, and encouraging heart.  At the end of the long days, and at the end of all of the stress we deal with on a regular basis, it is so much easier to hear kind words that are sweet to our souls.  

My challenge for everyone is to pick one person that is in your life that you can write a letter to, and that letter should be filled with a whole bunch of kind words and encouragement.  I know words aren’t for everyone.  I know that I love words because that is why I have a blog, so maybe the idea of writing a letter or a card to someone isn’t a hard concept for myself and other word-lovers, but I believe that putting into words how you appreciate someone is a great beginning to honor them.  

This blog post is coming out the weekend after Thanksgiving.  This is the season when it is easy to appreciate and love others.  The holiday of Thanksgiving is set aside specifically, so we can say what we are thankful for.  However, it is very important that we don’t just take this time to really talk about what we are thankful for, but rather that we spend every part of the year discussing what we are thankful for.  It is a good reminder that we need to continue this feeling of gratitude and this feeling of kindness throughout the rest of the year. 

I have noticed in my life in the last few years that I tend to get really mad, really impatient, and even upset with God over the little things that pop up into my life.  This could be losing my phone at a cross country meet, locking my keys in my car, spilling the noodles for my Mac and cheese, etc.  No doubt these are frustrating moments.  These are things that put us behind, make us do extra work in something that wasn’t planned. These are the moments that I start grumbling, or I start cursing.  I am ashamed of these moments, and I knew that I needed to take some time reflecting on why I can get so upset over these little things.  

However, the thing that bothers me the most is that I do get upset with God in these moments.  I yell up to heaven and I ask why there are these small inconveniences that have to pop up in my life.  I will usually have guilt about this and pray for forgiveness quickly after. It is strange to think that when my grandpa or my aunt died, however, I never got mad at the Lord.  These were big tribulations that never made me question the Lord’s love for me.  I never was upset because I knew that the Lord said there were going to be hard things that come up in life. I think the reason for this is because I have this terrible thought, probably from Satan, that the Lord is laughing at me in my small inconveniences.  I start to wonder if the Lord is finding enjoyment out of my struggles.  This is a piece of entertainment for him as I run around trying to find the small thing that I lost or hitting my head on a cabinet.  Satan is very good at using our weak moments against us to attempt to drive a wedge between us and the Lord.  

However, the thing that I believe the Lord is trying to teach us, and specifically me, in these small inconveniences is that we need to slow down.  There are many times that I get stuck trying to do 10 things at once, so I can get a million things done in a day.  When I am going to school or I am working in the summer, I am on a very strict schedule.  Therefore, I am so very upset and impatient when my plans get ruined.   The Lord, I believe, is trying to teach me that I don’t need to get all of those things done.  I don’t have to make such a hectic schedule, and I don’t have to be everywhere at once.  I also know that I would actually lose less items and would forget less things if I did slow down.  If I took my time, and I didn’t get concerned about getting all those things done, I would probably less frequently forget to do something or I wouldn’t misplace things as much because I took the time to put them in the correct place.  

I think that the Lord is also often trying to remind me that I am just a human being, and that I need to be humble.   I am often very proud of myself for how much I can get accomplished in a day.  I am always so happy if I can keep myself on track.  When I have a lot of these mishaps, I am reminded that often the things that I achieve in a day are only able to be achieved from the Lord.  The moments where the little things are going wrong should be a reminder that I am not meant to achieve everything on my own.  It is ok, more than ok, to ask others for help, and definitely to pray to the Lord for guidance and assistance.  

There are many times that the Bible brings up patience.  Obviously the biggest lesson is that we need to have patience in times of trial and tribulation, but it is also highly important to have patience in everyday life. One verse I found that discusses patience is Proverbs 14:29.  This says, “Whoever is patient has great understanding, but one who is quick-tempered displays folly.”  This is a good reminder that when one is patient, they are also understanding, empathetic, and have a better handle on situations and relationships that are taking place on earth.  This also is a good reminder that those who don’t have patience, and those who get upset about the smaller things look foolish.  

I am still going back and forth on whether or not I will pick the word patience, or I will pick the word courage as my word of the year for 2022.  These are the two words that I feel I need the most growth in, and I have felt this way since I was a child. I think this is something that I do really need to consider because I do really need to make sure I am working on patience in the small items and in just everyday life.  I don’t want to get impatient and curse underneath my breath when I am behind someone slow on the road.  I don’t want to get instantly mad when I can’t seem to find the item that I had just misplaced.  I want to continually grow to be a calm and peaceful human on earth as often as I can in order to serve as a better example of the Lord.  

Recently I was watching one of my favorite shows which happens to be “Say Yes to the Dress.”  It’s a great show, right?!  Can you think of a better show than watching women try on their future wedding dresses and deciding which ones they are going to buy and wear on their wedding day.  Anyway, one of the comments that they make often is trying to be respectful of the budget that the brides have set forth.  This also reminded me of when people will use the saying trying to be respectful of people’s time.  This made me think about what I think being respectful is.  I think for a majority of time I considered being respectful as just being kind to one another.  However,  now I am starting to think of it as showing consideration and thought to the person that you are with.  

Respect is being cognisant of someone else’s feelings and their place in life.  The best example I can give of this is in regards to food.   Food is a big piece of our lives though, so that is why it serves as a great example.  I have had moments where I have friends who are on a strict diet for health and personal reasons.  Even though I wasn’t on the diet, I knew that I should be aware of their feelings and shouldn’t eat the food that may seem tempting to them in front of them.  Therefore, I was trying to be respectful of my friend’s feelings.  I know many people who have done this with their languages when they are around me.  They may try to hide their harsher words or swear words because they know that I try not to speak with swear words.  Similar to in “Say Yes to the Dress,” when the consultants are trying to work within the bride’s budget, they are being aware of the financial stability of the bride.  

There is also respect that one should have for the people who are in power or in authority.  This is even something that is mentioned in the Bible.  Romans 13:1 says, “Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.”  The Lord knows who is in the government authority positions.  I am not saying that he agrees with what every single authority person is doing.  I am not saying that he believes that every authority is a good representation of God.  In fact, many of them fall incredibly short.  I do know that a lot of people who are not fans of many of the representatives in government currently.  However, part of respect is learning how to follow the laws while still being able to stay within our moral grounds and thoughts.  

There are examples of people who do this in the Bible.  For example, Daniel is known for not agreeing with the king of his time.  He didn’t agree with the food that the king wanted his soldiers and servants to eat, because Daniel disagreed with the cleanliness of the food.  Overall, it didn’t follow the morals that he and God had set for himself.  He simply told those who are in charge of him that the food they were requiring was not what Daniel wanted as part of his clean Jewish eating.  However, he never was mean or disrespectful.   Therefore, as long as he was still able to fulfill the duties the king and his authority figures set out, they agreed to let him try his clean eating and eating the food that was more morally fitting.  Daniel was able to do this, and he even succeeded more than the men who were eating the food that the king provided.  

The passage of where this is seen is in Daniel 1, and especially in verses 15 and 16, “At the end of the ten days they looked healthier and better nourished than any of the young men who ate the royal food. So the guard took away their choice food and the wine they were to drink and gave them vegetables instead.”  The Lord also would bless Daniel and the others with great knowledge of dreams and literature.  This would make it so Daniel had an even higher calling in the king’s government than his other workers.  

This also includes many of the others who are following the authority of their bosses or supervisors.  There are going to be times when we don’t want to always follow the bosses and supervisors that we have.  We may not always agree with their rules or with their policies.  I am not even saying that we have to.  However, there should be a certain amount of respect that we should give to those who are in charge of us.  We should all be able to approach our supervisors with a question yet acknowledge them taking the time to listen and hopefully change whatever is on our hearts.  

Being able in all situations to disagree with someone, but being able to speak these thoughts without arguing, or angering the other party is highly important for advancing the kingdom of God.  Every single day, besides just our bosses or those who are in authority over us, we will encounter those who are different and have differing perspectives.  I believe it is very important that we are able to speak our truth and our beliefs, especially when defending the Lord or our religious perspectives, but our other goal is to gain members of the body of Christ and that will only happen through kindness and respect.  This will happen in the moments where we show love and compassion to those who are different from us and will be willing to love and care for all that we see and meet.  Being able to do that will speak more volume than getting along and being kind to the ones who always agree with us.  

Overall, being respectful is being willing to think of others.  This is again being aware of more than what is going on in our lives and what we find as disrespectful or awful.  It is being willing to not argue on everything and to be caring and compassionate enough to think about how they must be feeling.  It is being willing and able to speak your thoughts that may be different from others with humility and love.  This is being able to be a valuable employee and citizen while also being able to follow your morale obligations. 

Every year I participate in an event called, “Dressember.”  Throughout the entire month of December, every single day, even on the weekends, I wear a dress.  Yes, this means in the really cold weather, I am wearing dresses.  (Don’t worry too much though, I have leggings and sweaters to wear with my dresses as well.  I am not completely crazy.)     The reason that I participate in this event is because it is a way to raise awareness about the issue of Human Trafficking and modern Day slavery.  More people learn and hear about the problem of Human Trafficking when I and others participate in events that raise awareness to it.  There are many who have heard the term, but they may not exactly know what it is and how it can impact billions of people around the world.  This has become a fundraiser that many people are starting to recognize about me as well. I know that since I have started participating in Dressember, even my students at school are becoming more and more aware of what the fundraiser is for and why it is a good thing.  

Along with raising awareness about human trafficking, I am also given the chance to raise money to help end this problem world wide.  Last year, I raised a little over a $1000 on ending human trafficking in the world.  These funds go directly to other non-profit organizations such as International Justice Mission or A21 campaign that go into the areas that have those who are being trafficked and rescue them.  These organizations, yes, do complete investigations, rescue operations, and they also make sure to supply those who have been rescued with the items they need in order to achieve success and reach happiness.  

Another great reason that I love Dressember is that I love to wear dresses, and I love the chance to think about fun and cute outfits that I can put together.  The whole reason that this organization started originally was as a style challenge, and I definitely love using this opportunity to grow in my own personal style.  Every year that I do this, I find a new way to put dresses and outfits together in order to grow in my confidence and my love of style.  This also serves as a reminder that we as all people can use our passions to help make an impact in the world.  I know that Blythe Hill, the original founder of Dressember, has a passion for fashion and even studied design.  Creating Dressember gave her a chance to complete a new style challenge once a year.  Then through that passion and style challenge, she has now created a nonprofit that raised 3 million dollars in their campaign in 2020. 

All in all, I have fallen in love with Dressember for many different reasons.  I absolutely love that I have the opportunity to do this fundraiser, and I am hoping that I can raise about 1500 dollars this year.   I know that in order to raise enough money for a rescue operation, one needs to be able to raise around 8,000 dollars.  This is a rough estimate, and each rescue operation could be different in regards to price and even the amount of people saved, but overall this is how much money it does take to fund a rescue operation to help save those who are trapped in slavery.  This means that if I raise my goal of 1500, then I can be a little short of a quarter of a rescue operation! 

All in all, I am using my platform of this blog as well as my passion for writing as another call to help.  I am also going to be giving a challenge.  The first challenge is, of course, for you to think about participating in your own dressember style challenge.   Make a dedication to wear a dress or a tie throughout the entire month of December.  This could be a page that you choose to start on Dressember.org.  The other thing that you could do is sponsor or give a money donation to those who are already participating in Dressember.  If it is pleasing to anyone,and if you would like to give me a donation, I would greatly appreciate it.  My page is https://dressember2021.funraise.org/fundraiser/courtney-post

Yep, you read my title correctly.  This blog post is going to be about food.  This is definitely one of the weirder titles that I have had on my blog.  However, I realized recently that my relationship with food, as well as our cultures, can actually have a big saying in our relationship with God.  Despite what many people will think, God does have some words to say in regards to food and our relationship with it that we need to reflect on as his followers.  I recently was watching a youtube video by Kiana Docherty called, “The Disturbing Truth of Mukbangs,” and I realized that our culture’s relationship with food is one that needs to be reflected upon.  

If you are not on youtube a lot like me, you may not know what a Mukbang is.  A Mukbang is “a video, especially one that is live-streamed, that features a person eating a large quantity of food and addressing the audience.”  The term from the years of 2017 to 2019 was searched at least 100,000 times on Youtube, and the youtubers who do Mukbangs can raise over $100,000 dollars because of subscribers watching these Mukbangs.  Essentially, you are watching people overeat.  You are watching them enjoy their own gluttony and food.  

So we have this one side where we see people who are obsessed with watching others eat food, but then we also have many people, including teenagers who still struggle with eating disorders.  Eating disorders in the sense that these teens choose not to eat or eat and then throw up, so they can achieve a thinner size.    I know that since I have become a teacher, I often hear about some of my students who are struggling with an eating disorder and often not eating in order to stay skinny or to achieve a certain weight. So on the one hand you have a culture who loves to watch and maybe participate in making Mukbangs which is again essentially watching people eat food for the duration of the video, to also a high amount of teen girls and boys who are not eating in order to stay thin.  These are two very different extremes, and I am going to say here that neither one is healthy.  

What does the Bible say about food? One thing is that the Bible talks about gluttony.  The Lord condemns those who are gluttons.  Some of the verses that speak wrongly to being obsessed with overeating and gluttony are Philippians 3:19 and Proverbs 23:2.  Philippians 3:!9 says, “Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is set on earthly things.”  This verse clearly points out that there are those who have made feeding their stomach and the food that they enjoy as their God.  They care more about eating and feeding themselves, plus indulging in the things of this world.  This was used in the New Testament, but this concept is also referred to in the Old Testament.  Some of the people who were sinning in Sodom were sinning because they had a love of food and indulging themselves.  They were more self-indulgent and not caring about the needy.  

Then there is also a verse of Proverbs 23:2 which says, “and put a knife to your throat if you are given to gluttony.”  This verse is intense.  This verse is a clear warning against having a clear obsession with food or with anything that is not the Lord.  This verse is a reminder that we need to get a handle on our obsessions before they become a major problem.  This doesn’t mean that we should put a knife to our throats, but maybe we need to talk to our friends and mentors about our obsession with food.  We also need to make sure to pray to the Lord and bring him any concerns or problems that we have with food.   I am not a therapist, but I know that if there are times when one feels they are overly obsessed with food or counting calories, then seeking professional help is also another great option.  

Does this mean that we should never talk about food?  I am again going to go to the Bible and answer this question with a no.  The Bible does think that we should be hospitable, especially when sharing the Gospel or through growing in fellowship.  Because food is filled with nutrition and everyone needs to eat, it is important to include food and to make sure your guests are fed and enjoying their food when you have people over.  

The Lord also speaks well of food.  The Lord is the one who made food.  In Genesis 9:3, God was telling Adam that all the food that is on plants can be for him and something that he can enjoy.  “Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you. And as I gave you the green plants, I give you everything.”  The Lord wanted to make sure that Adam and all the people who are in the world are able to enjoy food and feel well nourished.  Oftentimes throughout the Bible, there is a lot of discussion of the disciples eating together and convincing others to be hospitable including serving meals to those who are being shown love.  This is because God knew that food is important to creating relationships.  Many share their thoughts and emotions while they are eating shared meals.  

In conclusion, God created food and wants it to be used for goodness.  This doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t ever enjoy it, but also means that we shouldn’t become obsessed with it.  The last verse that I am going to highlight is 1 Corinthians 10:31, “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”  This is a good reminder that no matter what we do, or whatever is in our lives, we need to honor the Lord.  Some helpful tips I have tried to learn is to pray over my food.  I am not the best at this, but I know that I should make sure to pray thankfulness over what the Lord has given me.  Then again the next important thing is that I need to make sure to share food in a state of gratefulness and in a state of hospitality.  I need to make sure that I don’t look to food as my own god, but rather as a gift from the one and only God. 

I have mentioned many times recently that I am a cross country coach.  This past week for me, and my mother who is also a cross country coach, was our regional cross country meet and that means this is the meet where we find out who is going to go to the Iowa state cross country meet held on October 30th.  In order to qualify for the state meet at the regional cross country meet, there are two teams that have the least points or win first and second go, or the top ten individual runners go themselves.  It is hard to achieve.  A person has to work really hard.  Both my mom and I were blessed to have two individuals achieve this high honor and make it to the state meet.  I am so proud of all my runners, but I am especially excited for the two individuals who are going to the state meet.  

According to my title, I am talking about the individual who gets 11th place. This is the first individual who doesn’t make it to state.  This individual was close, dangerously close.  Close enough that you can see it in front of you, and yet you are not the one who gets it.  Many of the runners who were in this place ended up crying.  It is a devastatingly disappointing place to receive.  You worked hard, and now it feels as though it won’t matter because you are not going to be receiving the major award.  Then you can spend your whole time thinking that if you were just ten seconds faster, you would be going or if you just would have passed that one more person, you would be going.    

The point I am going to make here is that we have all most likely been in 11th place at some point in our lives.  I am not necessarily saying that you have been in 11th place in a cross country meet, but there has been a time where we have been close to achieving something, but then ended up falling short.  These could be the times that we have applied for a job, maybe even had a job interview and then ended up not getting it.  This could be the time that you were close to getting the reward or the prize, but then you received second or you were not the one that was drawn.  The point being that every single person has felt disappointment, some small ones and then some bigger ones.  

However, those are the times that we can understand what we need to do in order to achieve what we are working towards.  This is knowing what we want to achieve in the future and seeking to achieve it.   Many of the runners that received an 11th place in that regional meet were able to start thinking about how they can continually improve their time and the way they can compete in every race.  This is also something that can be done with the help of the Lord.  1 Peter 5:10 says, “And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.”  The Lord knows that we will suffer, but once we have suffered, he wants us to be strengthened and established.  We can always continually be growing in any of our goals, and with the prayers to the Lord, we will develop.  

This is also a good reminder to be humble.  We all are going to have moments where we fall and where we fail.  We will have moments where we will just not measure up.   This is because we are not perfect, and we are definitely human.  That is why it is important to stay humble and to keep our belief in God.  The Lord is the only reason that a person receives success.  He is the one who has given us our talents and our opportunities.  It is not correct to feel as though we can do it on our own.  Our failures and the times that we fall can serve as our reminder that those opportunities only really do come from the Lord.  

Last, this is a good reminder that every person is a different person.  Every person is going to have different successes and failures.  Essentially, every person has a different path to success and has a different path in life.  You can not compare your path and the life lessons that you are learning to anyone else in this world.  You have your own path and your own walk.  The last reminder is that God has a plan for your life.  There will always be present pain.  There will always be present suffering and present rejection, but the Lord has worked through that and will continue to help you work through it. Romans 8:18 says, “I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.”  The Lord has a great heart in you, and he has a belief that you will be exactly what you are supposed to be.  This is not meant to be the person that is right next to you, and this will have a different path than the person who lives next to you.   So when that person achieves the items that you want, it is good to keep a reminder that this may be their path, but it is not your path at the moment.  Not to say that you can never achieve this desire, (such as state cross country) but the Lord first wants you to learn something important first.   

The last verse that I want to highlight is Psalm 34:18 which says, “The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.”  It is alright to be crushed and to be disappointed.  I am not going to be the person who says that you need to act like everything is perfect and that you are not upset.  The Lord knows your true feelings, so you might as well be honest with him and with yourself, plus the trusted people who are around you.  Then the Lord will be with you.  The Lord will save those who are crushed in spirit.  

It is amazing to look at the book of Psalms and to see all the glorious ways that the Lord has to defend us and to care for us.  One day as I was doing my personal daily devotional, I read the verse of the day.  The verse of the day this past Monday was Psalm 68:5-6.  I found glory and comfort in the verses of Psalm 68:5-6, “A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling. God sets the lonely in families, he leads out the prisoners with singing; but the rebellious live in a sun-scorched land.”   Because I found this verse has a lot of good truths, I thought I would take the time to break it down in its entirety.  

“God is a father to the fatherless.”  The Lord is often called our Father.  This isn’t necessarily like our fathers who are here on earth.  Our fathers here on earth make mistakes and are human.  There are many who don’t have the best relationship with Fathers, and there are many Fathers who have chosen not to be in their child’s lives.  That is not what this Father in heaven is like in the slightest.   However, he is like our Fathers here on earth in that Fathers are supposed to take care of us, and we can go to them with anything. There are times that we make mistakes and he has to give punishments, but he does this because he continually wants us to be better people. The second line is, “a defender of widows.”  It is really important that God wanted to highlight these two groups of people.  These are often groups that are forgotten about in this world, and this was especially true when the Bible was being written.  The Fatherless didn’t have a family name that they could look to, and the widows didn’t have a husband to help provide for them.  Granted, in the United States, this isn’t exactly how we look at the widows or the fatherless now, but these groups are still missing fundamental people to how we see the traditional family.  

“Is God in his Holy Dwelling,”   The Lord is not here on earth.  He is in such a higher place than those who are in the world.  He is above the world.  He is above the sins and the problems.  That doesn’t mean he doesn’t care about the tragedies or the issues that are happening in the world, but it means that when we die and have followed Jesus throughout our lives, we are going to leave this world and be with the Lord.  This is even said in the Gospels in John 14:3, “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.”  The Lord has not forgotten about us as we are in tears, as we are stressed, and as we are in pain.  The Lord is going to help us as much as he can while we are on this earth, but then he will prepare a home for us.  The Lord will prepare a place for us to live and be filled with joy for eternity.  

One of my favorite parts about this verse is “he leads out the prisoners with singing.”   The Lord cares about our freedom and that we feel free.  The Lord cares about making sure we can feel secure and at peace in our relationship with the Lord.  We as people can get distracted by the sins of this world.  This could be gossip, bad habits, caring too much about other things above the Lord, etc.  The Lord doesn’t want us to stay in that place of living in sin.  He knows that oftentimes when we are constantly thinking about sin or when we have sin as a major part of our life, we are held captive.   He wants us to be free in the knowledge that we are made right with him, and we have the opportunity to live in his holy dwelling for eternity.   

I know that recently I have been struggling a lot more with how other people think of me, and that has really held me captive to my own thoughts.  I have found myself more and more concerned that I am being perceived correctly by everyone.  While it is nice to have others like you, and it is good to have friends and try to make good relationships, the goal in life should not be to have as many people as possible like you.  The only opinion that should matter is the approval of the Lord.  The Lord’s pleasure in your actions is what we should be seeking with our daily actions and thoughts.  

The last piece of these verses is, “but the rebellious live in a sun-scorched land.”  Even though the Lord is loving, he is also just.  If there are those who are not willing to follow the Lord’s laws, they are not going to be able to live eternally with the Lord in heaven.  I would say that this verse in it’s majority is filled with great joy and inspiration.  However, it does end with a warning.  A person can’t continually run away from the Lord.  They can’t continually live the way that they want to and never meet the Lord on this earth and live in the Holy Dwelling place.  Those who choose to live rebelliously will ultimately be punished.  That is why we as Christians must continually seek the Lord and help others to do the same. 

Dear Courtney, 

You love to learn.  You love to read.  You love to watch documentaries.  You love to listen to informational podcasts.  Specifically, you love to learn about what are some of the injustices in the world and what can be done to fix it.  You love people, so therefore you want to learn about them.  This is obviously one of the reasons that you are a Spanish teacher.  You loved learning about the Spanish language and Latin American cultures, so now you get to teach others this same passion.   

You are a doer.  Not only do you love to learn about the things of this world, but you also love to do things for the world.  You love to work for non-profits and do fundraisers that are making actual change.  It can be really hard to do this on a regular basis, and there are times when you don’t want to think about anything but your own life.  However, then you learn more and more about the injustices that are in the world, and then you remember your higher purpose of putting that learned content into action.  

You are genuine.  The way that you feel is what you express out into the world.  You genuinely love to talk to the people who you are talking to.  When you are excited, you really show it.  When you are crying, you really cry.  Life isn’t about faking emotions for you.  You really want to be the person that you are.   This is why you love your blog so much.  You love to be authentic with your thoughts and emotions.  What you write in your blog is what you are actually thinking and feeling.  

You are supportive.  You care about making sure the ones in your life feel supported.  You try to make sure to go to your student’s events, by attending as many as you can.  Sometimes you even do that above caring about yourself and your health.  You try to make sure to go to events that your friends are involved in, or you go to their family’s visitations, funerals, etc.  There are also many times you encourage your loved ones through encouraging words in cards and in gifts when you see something you know they would enjoy.  

You are creative, and you absolutely love to make something new.  You always make the joke that you want to quit your job in order to become a card marker.  Granted, you really don’t want to quit your job, but you do love to create new cards or new paintings and something different.  It is a stress reliever for you, but in the end a lot of people have cards or paintings that hopefully bring them joy.  

You do have problems with your patience.  I know that this is something that you are working on, and you are praying to the Lord, which is all you can do.  You have students now, so you know that you need to continually grow in your patience in order to help be a better teacher to the students.   You also most likely struggle with patience because you are a bit sensitive.  Sometimes you can get hurt by things that are not intentionally out to hurt you.  Then you are hurt and become more impatient.  You are continually growing in this.  Having thick skin doesn’t make you a mean person, just not one that will fall under insults as easily.  

Sincerely, 

Courtney 

Yes, this was a letter to myself, but it was one that needed to be made.  I know I am not close to being perfect.  However, the way that I have been talking to myself lately is not ok.  It is not alright.  I understand that I am listening to the words of the devil, and that is really altering the way that I am looking at myself.  I am not living then as a daughter of the Lord, but rather as a captive of the evil one.  I don’t always like having to get personal like this with myself, but it is also fundamental for starting to see myself as the way the Lord wants to see me.  I challenge all of you to do this if you are finding yourself listening more to the evil one than the Lord.  You may just have to write a letter to yourself as well.  This can easily be done on your phone or in a journal.  

Reminder that God does know you.  He loves you and wants you to always remember that.  Jeremiah 1:5 says, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”  The Lord planned for you.  He knows everything about you and planned for you to be the particular way that you are.  This is not about being arrogant, but simply only about loving yourself.  This is about making sure to love God’s creation in you. 

Recently I was reading the book, “Uncommon Ground.”  This book is written by Timothy Keller and John Inazu.  However, they do ask other writers and followers of God to also write chapters.  The first chapter of the book that I read was by a theologian Kristen Deede Johnson.  She talked about the reasons that she wanted to go into theology.  She discussed that when studying theology, she would meet many people who think differently than her.  She realized that no matter in what position she would be in life, she would be meeting those who believe different things than herself, and yet it is still her responsibility as a member of the family of God to develop relationships with them.  

One part of her chapter that really stood out to me was when Kristen realizes that she has always looked at her relationship with God as an individual, rather than when one becomes  a Christian, they are now a part of God’s family.  She admitted that she often believed that she would see her walk with the Lord as what she needs to do and what she needs to get done.  She believed that she needed to do everything, and she didn’t think that she could depend on those who were also brothers and sisters in Christ.  She started to realize that she needed to start looking to her brothers and sisters in Christ as almost teammates or family members instead of separate individuals.  

Kristen highlights a verse in the Bible of Ephesians 2:19, which says, “Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household.”  There are many followers of Christ all over the world and in our local area.  There are times that I struggle with trying to meet new Christians.  I am not the best at taking the time at church to really get to know those who are also members.  I tend to want to get back home and prepare for the school week.  However, I should really remember that if I care about my family in Christ, that I need to take time to actually get to know them.  

I am hoping in the next few weeks to join a Bible Study group at my church of other Christian women.  My hope then is that I will really get to know these women, so I will be more willing to talk to them after the church service is over.  I have gotten to know some of the parents at the church from helping out in the youth groups, but I just don’t get to spend the time having those adult conversations.  When I am getting to know them, then I know there are many ways that I can then help them out and help them grow closer in their walk with the Lord.  

This also reminds me of the first disciples.  They did everything together.  They ate supper together, worshipped together, prayed together, and discipled others together.  They did this because it was going to make everyone stronger and it was because they did believe that they should be together as a family.  This was written in Acts 2:46-47.  “Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.”Again, they were growing in number because when they were acting like a model family, then there will be many others who will want to join them.  Similarly, if we have love for our fellow Christians and treat one another like family, we too can have many others want to join in the Christian walk and our Christian family.  

  We can often want to feel as though we live on an island, and I do believe that comes down a lot to our individualistic society thoughts and feelings in the United States.  We can believe that everything that we do on our own makes us better and stronger individuals.  However, there is so much more that we can accomplish when we work together.  We are not supposed to compete with one another but rather, we are supposed to work together, cheer each other on, and complete God’s work on earth.  

My challenge for all of you this week is to show a great deal of love to someone else who is a part of the family of God in your life.  Find a way to encourage them in their walk of life. One thing could always be seeing if there is anyone in the church who needs meals made for them, or an encouraging card for those who are struggling with their faith.   I know that there are times that I believe my main focus should be on serving non-believers in order to work on converting them to the Lord.  While it is important to focus attention on those who are not members of the body, so they may become members of the body, we also need to make sure that we are taking care of those who are in our “family” or in the body of Christ.  We need to make sure they are doing alright, and they are healthy.  If they are hurting, then they are a piece of the body, our body, of Christ who is hurting.