I do not have a very big green thumb or the best at keeping plants alive. I did become a bit better a few years ago when I was given a plant for my grandpa’s funeral.  The school I was working at the time gave me a hope lily, and I love it so much.  I am also very proud of myself for keeping it alive for the past five years.  I also was given a small succulent from my friend Allison that she received from a wedding.  She had so many succulents, so she wanted to share the joy.  It is also growing and staying alive.  This is especially good for me, because I usually have done an especially bad job with the succulents I have previously owned.  

However, as I have owned these plants the past few years, there have been times where the pot I have for the plant is too small for the plant’s needs.  I know there were a few problems because the succulent or the Hope Lily didn’t seem to be thriving.  No matter how much I watered them or made sure they had enough sunshine or even made sure to rotate them to get sunshine from the various different angles, it just didn’t seem to work.  They were still a bit droopy and looking a bit sad.  This was because the roots couldn’t seem to get all the nutrients they needed.  They needed more room to grow. 

I believe this can happen to people in our everyday walks of life as well.  Sometimes people outgrow the job they are in.  Sometimes we can really get used to the job we have and the position we have had for years, until one day we feel as though we aren’t being challenged or aren’t developing any new skills like in the past.  This sometimes means we need to take on a new job or take a bigger position with more responsibility.  

This can also be similar to us and our Christian walk.  There are going to be times where we need to be challenged to speak to other people about Christ.  Maybe this is the challenge for us to leave a Bible study in order to lead our own with new people.  Maybe this is a challenge for us to go on a mission trip to a faraway land or domestically.  There are a lot of ways we can feel challenged to grow deeper in our Christian walk and through spreading God’s love with others.  

Some of the ways in my history I know I was called and challenged in my Christian faith, was when I knew, living in Buffalo Center, I needed a Bible Study to be a part of.  I needed a chance to meet with other believers and discuss the teachings and the commands of the Bible.  This is why I was so excited to join one of the women’s Bible Studies at my church.  This ended up being an amazing blessing.  It was one of my favorite things to go to once a month.  I also started meeting one on one with my Bible Study leader to continue my own personal growth and study.  My personal way I have been challenged recently is something I discussed a few blog posts ago through feeling challenged to start meeting one on one with another believer and to start discipling them.   

Hebrews 6:1-3 discusses the importance of growing in the love and the teachings of Christ.  This says, “Therefore let us move beyond the elementary teachings about Christ and be taken forward to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death,and of faith in God, instruction about cleansing rites,the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. And God permitting, we will do so.”  This discusses the importance of growing in maturity and in the wisdom and the instruction of Christ.  We can’t stay in the elementary teachings forever.  Just as we advance and mature in our educational career, or our jobs, or even socially, we need to do so with Christ. 

The challenge for you this week is to spend some time thinking about whether or not you have outgrown a “pot” you are currently in.  This could be in life, social settings, and/or in your Christian life.  Are there areas where you feel you have outgrown your place in the world?  Are there places where you are feeling challenged?  If you do have those certain areas, where you are being challenged and are being called to do something different, take time to write out a plan how you can go forth into this challenge or in your new “pot.”  It may be just the choice to really help you thrive, just like my plants are thriving in their new bigger pots.   

Recently, I have had some issues with my health.  I am blessed it seems to be nothing internal for what I know.   I have had a bout of hives come and go.  I don’t know what is causing them. At first, One or two were just popping up every month or so, but they were in odd spots and the hives would hurt really bad when they were present.   Because of the rarity, I tried not to be overly concerned.  However, these last few weeks, I have really struggled with a feeling of fear because I have gotten a lot more hives on my body.  

This has been really hard for my mental health as well.  I try not to get stressed about these hives and my overall health, but I also am struggling because I don’t want to continue to have these issues.  I think I would be at more of an ease if I actually knew what was causing me the problems.  I had a medical appointment with my normal doctor, and she gave me a referral for an allergist.  I am hoping through this appointment I would get a few of the answers I really desire.  

Something I need to remember is God has a plan, and the plan is for good.  I write about God’s plan often.  I do need the constant reminder to mind God’s plan, and this is another one of those times when I need to remember the plan, He has in store for me.  There are many verses in the Bible discussing God’s all-knowing power and God’s goodness.  One of those is Proverbs 3:5-6 which says, “Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight”.  This is a good reminder to continuously trust in the Lord and his work.  He has a plan, and He also has goodness.  

I would ask for some prayers.  I am hoping to go to an allergist soon, in fact, this upcoming Wednesday, and I am hoping to get the answers I have been looking for.  I am nervous about what the doctor might say or recommend from this appointment.  I am very nervous yet very excited to finally talk to someone about my hives and the allergic reactions I have been experiencing.    

I have been trying to look to other Christians at my church who have also been struggling with their health as well.  A lot of them are struggling through a lot worse health issues such as cancer or heart malfunctions or losing of the ability to walk.  They have been continuously going to Christ and are having so much faith and belief in God’s sovereignty.  I have been looking and listening to them for guidance during this time where I am not sure what is coming next for me.  

Are there any things you are struggling with when it comes to having faith in Christ?  Is there one particular area where you genuinely struggle with your belief?  Is there a time when you feel as though Christ isn’t close by? It is important to be aware of the times and the situations where you don’t have much faith in Christ.  It can only be helpful to learn to lean on Christ and the Holy Spirit in the ways you need to better follow Christ.

Then, like most of my challenges end, I would recommend spending time in prayer to Jesus about believing in sovereignty or to trust in the Lord.  We can not have complete trust without Christ’s inclusion or ability.  However, we can believe in Christ through the Holy Spirit working his way in me. 

To end this blog post, I will spend some time in prayer. This will be in part to myself but I also will be praying for anyone else who may be struggling to believe in the sovereignty of God.  

Dear Lord, 

Thank you for the love and the grace you have shown both me and the rest of your people.  Thank you also for the wonderful sovereign plan you have for both me and for the rest of your believers.  Thank you that you have always had a big plan of how you are going to rescue and offer salvation for all your followers, but also thank you for the individual plans you keep for every single one of us.  

Please help me believe in your plan for my life.  Please help me to believe in you even as I am going through this struggle with my allergies.  Please help me to have continuous faith.  Please help the many others to believe in you and your good plan as well.  

In Jesus’ Name

Amen

I was recently at a small group, and we were discussing more on the idea of discipling and how every single Christian has been called to be a discipler. I do actually love discipling.  I used to disciple some young women when I was in college.  I would spend time leading a Bible study and then I would also meet one on one with some of the girls to go over God’s Word in more detail.  This was a wonderful chance to get into God’s Word and see what God was doing with the other girls in my Bible study. 

I have been really desiring to meet one on one and getting the chance to disciple once again.  I have discussed this with a couple of my pastors because I have marked down my interest in discipling on the volunteer forms they have handed out in church. I have received a few emails back about the pastors looking for someone interested in being discipled that I can eventually meet with.  However, one question I have received from them was asking if I knew of anyone who would want to be discipled.  Is there anyone who I believe could do well with meeting one on one?

This really made me stop and think.  I wanted the pastor to set this all up for me.  However, that isn’t really the best way to be a Christian disciple.  The best way to be a Christian disciple is to find those who really need a stronger relationship with Christ.  Then you spend time giving them more guidance.  This is something we can be praying over as we are talking to other believers, maybe ones that just came to the faith.   Sometimes, these people seek you out and ask to be discipled.  Then there is an opportunity if you are willing to also speak truth to them.  We could even be praying for this opportunity for this as well.  

We also need to remember that as a discipler, you do not need to know everything.  We are never going to know everything as a Christian.  We can remember to stay humble and have an open heart to learn more and more about Christ.  This can even be taking a few more notes on what you have been learning in your personal study and then sharing that on with the next person.  This can also be something we continually pray over, guidance in what we want to spread on to another generation of Christians.  

There are many verses about being teachers of the Word.  However, one of the greatest of these is the Great Commission.  This is Matthew 28:18-20 which says, “And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,  teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”   This is a good reminder that the Lord has predestined all these things to happen.  He has set the plans in a very particular way.  He invites us to be a part of the sovereign plan, and this can include sharing the Gospel on a regular basis.  

Sometimes we can assume this means we need to go out and tell 100 people every day about Christ.  This would be awesome and we should definitely tell a lot of people about Jesus.  However, as I have learned about the power of multiplying, there is power in the ability to really spread the love and knowledge of Christ with a few people who will then spread this same message with a few more people and on and on.  This will create spiritual generations and really spread God’s love faster and more deeply and thoroughly.  

The challenge for this week is to spend time thinking about those who you could disciple.  Is there anyone you know in your Bible study or in your life who really wants the chance to know Christ or you know they are looking for more in life?  Is there a chance you could be the extra light this person needs? The other big piece of this challenge is really being willing to pray over the opportunity to disciple someone, and I am going to give an example of praying over having someone to disciple in the ending of this blog post.  

Dear Lord, 

Thank you for the love and the grace you have given us.  You have really blessed all of us, with an opportunity to follow you and to love you.  You have also given us the opportunity to walk alongside others to deeper follow you.   

I want to spend some time in prayer over finding someone to really dive deep into your word with.  I know the main role of a Christ follower is to follow God and then help others do the same.  Please help make me aware of the needs and the desires of those I am in contact with on a regular basis.  Please help me to find others and help bring them closer to you.  Please help me seek guidance and love from you on this journey.  

Please help me to love you with all my heart.  

In Jesus’ name, 

Amen

I have recently been asked to have another role at church.  I was asked about a month or so ago to be a prayer partner.  A prayer partner stands up front at the end of the church service and is there to offer prayer to other congregants in church.  At first, I was very apprehensive.  I didn’t know how I would feel about this extra responsibility.  I  was already helping with Treehouse or the children’s ministry on a pretty much weekly basis.  I do know the church is always looking for volunteers though, especially with our growing congregation, and I wanted to be helpful.  Plus, it was not very long of a time commitment.  

However, I have been very blessed to pray with others.  It has actually been a great opportunity to meet more people who are in the congregation, specifically in the 11:00 hour time when I go to church.  I also have loved getting to learn more about the needs in our church, from the individuals who have come to me.  We are all experiencing different things from one another and this has helped me be there for them like the Body of Christ should.

 For one example, I was blessed to pray with a woman who was starting an outreach program in her neighborhood.  She would be giving out some small gifts, often ones including scripture and would spend time getting to know all of them.  Some of her neighbors are actually a home of those who are recovering from a drug addiction.  This was really empowering.  She was very excited and very joyful for this outreach to her neighbors.  And I was blessed. Another woman was getting ready for her mission trip in Brazil for her college to learn about nursing and doctoring there.  This is an amazing life and mission opportunity, and I do hope it goes well and teaches her many great things.  

Other times I have prayed with others, it has not been as joyful, but rather a bit more tear-filled.  However, I have still been blessed with the chance to pray over these individuals.  This includes a man who was praying for someone who used to work for him who recently had a fire at his house, from a woman who is trying to make more decisions about her health and whether or not she should continue her medications as is or should she decide to step away from them.  Another was praying over the students and the school a young woman goes to where the majority of her class have all fallen very ill with the Norovirus.  All these prayer requests are very selfless or are trying to find their way closer to God.  They are really thinking about others and are thinking about how they can be a better follower of Christ.  

I realized through this experience that it is really truly a blessing to spend time praying with others.  It is also something God has commanded each and every one of us to do.  This is said in James 5:16 which says, “Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.”  There is also Matthew 5:44 which tells us to specifically pray for our enemies and those who persecute us, “But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.”

Jesus would also model praying for others through his actions.  He would show how to best pray for one another because he was often praying to God for his disciples. For one example, he taught the disciples how to pray with the Lord’s Prayer.  This Lord’s Prayer included praying for your enemies and that they will find forgiveness.  However, there was also praying in the land of Gethsemane.  Some may say he was mostly praying for himself, but he also knew he had a big role to play in saving everyone’s life.  He brought his disciples with him to teach them how to best pray with others when they are distressed and are in need of prayer.  He brought some disciples with him because he wanted them to pray over others.   

Jesus also prayed for his enemies when he was dying on the cross. While Jesus was hanging from the cross and was dying and in a lot of pain, he ended up crying out, “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.”  He asked for forgiveness for those who were persecuting and killing him.  He wanted them to be forgiven because he knew they were so blinded by their own sin.  

My challenge for you this week is to spend time in prayer for others.  Ideally, this challenge wants to focus on praying for others with them.  However, if that is not something that is available for you this week, then it is good to at least spend time in prayer for others on your own time.  This could even include texting some friends and asking what they would like to have prayers over. It really truly is a blessing to pray for others.

A few weeks ago, I wrote about my tires constantly losing air pressure.  It has only gotten worse recently as the temperatures in most places have decreased dramatically.  This day I am currently writing is right in the middle of the polar vortex which it is being called because large portions of the United States and Canada are experiencing incredibly cold weather.  

Because of the constant low tire pressure, I have had to visit the air pressure machine often, and when I say often, I mean at least a couple of times a day, during this period of below freezing temperatures.  It has been a very big inconvenience and it also in some ways dangerous because if it would have gone all the way to 0, then I could be stuck outside in weather that isn’t meant for anyone to be outside in.  

I don’t always love going to the auto shop to have my car fixed just because then I have to ask others to help pick me up from the shop to bring me to the office and then bring me back to the auto shop.  I feel bad taking time out of a person’s day and I also have a fear I will have to spend a big deal of money at the shop, so sometimes I just choose to bear with the issue for a lot longer than I need to.

However, I learned there are times a person really needs to deeply fix the problem.  They can’t just slide by forever doing something to make it through the day or through a few hours.  For another example, health is something a person really needs to get fixed when something is not quite right.  I had a lot of pain in my knee at a few different points in my life.  I was taking a lot of Advil and painkillers as well as going to the chiropractor to help align them and alleviate the pain.  However, I eventually had to go to the doctor and twice was given knee surgery to finally fix the problem. 

We as people also need a long-term fix.  We don’t need just a little fix that will fix us for the day, but rather from deep inside.  This is a type of fix that may seem a lot bigger in the moment but will completely benefit us in the end. We need to have someone come in and make everything right with us and really make us feel whole.  We can’t feel whole on our own through our own merit.  This is what the Gospel is all about.  The Gospel is about us as people who are sinners not being able to save ourselves because of our sin or because of our uncleanliness.  Then Jesus comes down to earth and dies on the cross for our sins in order that we may have the ability to live in heaven forever with Him.  

There are many verses about the Lord coming in and changing us.  One very traditional verse is 1 Corinthians 5:17 which says, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation, the old is gone, the new is come.” This is a great verse many young Christians, both young as in new to the faith as well as just young in age, first learn.  This is because it is easy to understand and it is easy to memorize.  It also has a powerful message.  We as people are changed once we come into the faith, changed for the better.  We are a new person and are now made clean, made white as snow.   

 However, another verse I found that I believe really captures this message is Revelation 21:4 which says, “He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” And He who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Not only will God make us a new creation and will make us clean and white as snow, he also helps us with all of the emotions we can have or the hurt we can go through.  He will wipe away our tears and take away our pain.  Not saying sad or disappointing or even hurtful things won’t happen again in our future, but it is to say, God will be there for us and will be our life-long Savior. 

The challenge for this week is to spend time in prayer and in thankfulness over the Lord who was willing to give his all and to give his everything in order to save us.  He gave his all to the people.  It can be very easy to forget all the Lord has sacrificed and has given us.  We can even grow in our own bitterness and sadness from the bad things that come from the world.  We can sometimes even choose to walk away.  I definitely have done this.  I can get distracted by my own worries and my own anxieties.  I need to remember I don’t need to stress because the Lord is by my side.  Sometimes it is most important to just choose to sit and be grateful for the Lord’s greatness. 

I have mentioned a few different times being very hurt by a group of friends where I used to live.  I felt rejected and left out many times.  I was very hurt by some of their actions and their lack of inviting me at times.  I had a lot of hurt from this town and from this group of people.  It did open my eyes to what many of my students will often experience when they are in both middle and high school.   I understand what it is like when a friend just doesn’t want to be your friend anymore or at least not as close as you had been. 

I didn’t talk to them for months.  Maybe, if anything, the briefest of text message conversations.  I just stopped having the conversations for a while.  I didn’t want to keep putting myself out there to be hurt once again.  I didn’t try to do anything drastic though.  I didn’t post anything bad on social media or send messages that would allude to my hurt feelings.  

Then I received a donation for my big Dressember fundraiser by a friend from this group. I was very grateful for this donation.  She as a friend has given every year, but I didn’t know if she would with the relationship being very different than it once was.  I did gratefully start a texting conversation and sent a small Christmas gift and card to her in my complete gratitude. 

Another friend in the group reached out to see about wedding planning.  She is also planning a wedding and so it can make it very fun to text her and see how her initial planning is going as well. She wanted to get together. We were able to get coffee and spend a long time talking to one another and getting to talk about our wedding planning and our ideas.  I love getting the chance to talk about wedding stuff with someone else who is also doing the same thing.  I’m glad we were able to see each other and bounce off ideas.  Maybe we will get together one more time before all the wedding craziness. 

The point of this journey is that those friends extended an olive branch.  I don’t know if they knew how hurt I was, but they had to know I wasn’t reaching out near as much as I had been before.  I wasn’t sending cards.  I wasn’t texting and asking to get together. They reached out to keep the relationship alive, and I am very grateful and appreciative of this fact. 

I want to highlight Ephesians 4:32 which says, “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.”  I love this verse because it does highlight the main point of this blog post which is to forgive one another.  However, it also shows that forgiveness is multi-faceted with being kind to one another and being tenderhearted.  Sometimes it does take more than just a simple, “I forgive you,” but an actual trying to rebuild what was once there.

I am not going to say that these particular friendships are going to be the same as it was before.  To start, I am in a whole different city now, so it wouldn’t be the same regardless of whether or not I genuinely wanted it to be the same.  I also don’t know if I trust them as completely as I did before.  However, I can still be someone they can come to, and I can spend some time with them throughout the year.  I can also, of course, make sure to send them either a card or at least a text with a “Happy Birthday,” or “Happy Anniversary,” or “Congratulations.”  

I am nervous about having a challenge for this week.  If I gave any type of challenge, it would be to think about some of the relationships in your life.  Are there any people reaching out to you and hoping to extend an olive branch?  If they would, would you be able to accept this olive branch?  Are there any people who you want to extend the olive branch to?  Is there any way you can offer forgiveness to anyone in your life?  My main challenge would be to spend time in prayer about these relationships and situations. 

It is important to have boundaries with those who have really hurt you to not put you into risk to constantly be taken advantage of.  There has to be a balance between putting oneself at risk for constant hurt and yet still being able to forgive those who have hurt you just as Christ has always forgiven us.  Relationships can be hard but learning to take those olive branches when they are there or to offer them when there is an opportunity can really help build the relationships and the love of the world.

I have been watching a lot of bridal drama recently.  (It is a guilty pleasure. Maybe it’s not the best but it is entertaining).  One video has gotten really popular on social media, and I do believe it can teach us a very big life lesson. 

The video is of a bride, who decided to wipe off all her bridal makeup her makeup artist just completed.  Now, this could just be seen as a loss of money.  She didn’t like it, so she got rid of it, even though she already paid the makeup artist. This was her decision at the end of the day. However, the main problem was she didn’t vocalize anything or any problems when she was in the makeup artist’s chair, and then she makes this video discussing her frustration with the look of her makeup.  Her makeup artist is also tagged or mentioned, so essentially this puts the bride’s makeup artist and her small business in jeopardy. One comment this bride made during the video was “Oh, I can’t wait to make a TikTok about this.”  I do believe this was a bit immature and unkind to do.  

While I do have a problem with this bride being this cruel to her makeup artist, I do believe her issue was more than just being immature.  Her problem was her bridesmaids and friends hyping her up. We could hear them in the background. She was being told by the bridesmaids that she should definitely do her own makeup and she does a better job than the makeup artist would.  They were hyping her up to do the wrong thing as opposed to the right and kind thing. 

I understand weddings can be stressful, so this bride may have just been in an anxious state. She might have heard someone say they didn’t love her makeup and therefore felt as though she really needed to redo her makeup all over.  Again, there is no problem if she really did want to waste her money and end up redoing her makeup for her wedding day.  The problem really was her deciding to put all that drama and information about the makeup artist on her social media for anyone to see and hear.  This was only going to be hurting the make-up artist feelings and possibly career.  

What this bride needed was someone to tell her “no, stop.  You can redo your makeup, but since you didn’t speak up and state your problems with the makeup artists, you don’t need to make a TikTok about this situation.  You do not need to be this mean or malicious.  I understand it is your wedding day, but you need to still be thinking about other people.  Let’s redo the makeup quickly if that is what you want, but then we have to get on with the rest of our day.” This is a type of response from friends who are reasonable and who hold you accountable.

The Bible talks a lot about the importance of friendships and how it is important to be wise and loving with your friends.  One verse I really want to highlight is 1 Corinthians 15:33 which says, “Do not be misled: “Bad company corrupts good character.” This is a reminder that we need to always be conscious of the decisions we are making or the people we have around us.  They really can impact the decisions we make for the better or for the worse.  

 I am not saying you can’t have some people around you who are supportive. Having “no people” does not necessarily mean they are not supportive, but it is important to have supportive friends who will also make sure you don’t do something terrible or are acting not in the way you usually do.  It is important to have friends, partners, or really any kind of relationship with people who will hold you accountable and want you to be the best person you can possibly be.  This is the kind of friends you should want.   

My challenge for you this week is to spend time thinking about your friendships and the people you have around yourself.  Are you easily persuaded?  Are you around those who could easily persuade you to do the wrong thing? If you are finding your friends are majorly “yes, people,”  It can be a good idea to rethink some of your friendship dynamics for a few more friends who will give you solid advice.  

I also think it is just as important to be the friend who holds other people accountable.  It is important to make sure we are supportive friends, friends who are there for others, but friends who also can tell their friends when they are being ridiculous or are making a wrong choice.  It is good to be the friend who can give good, loving, and Godly advice.  This is the type of friend God wants us to be.  My other challenge for you this week is to be reflective over whether or not you are this type of friend.  Are you the type of friend who will give Godly advice? Are you the type of friend who will tell your other friend to stop when they are making the wrong choice?  Are you willing to say the thing that your friend needs to hear, not just want to hear.   

This will be something I need to work on as well.  I believe I can sometimes be a Godly friend, but I also don’t love conflict or offending others.  I can be fearful, but if my friends know me and love me, they should know I am giving them Godly advice because I care about them and want to hold them accountable.  This is the same thing you should think about if this idea is something you are not quite used to. 

I am continuing to read and study the book of Esther.  To give the whole recap of the book of Esther: This book starts with a king of Persia who is having a banquet and wants his wife to show off her beauty to his friends and workers.  She refuses, and this greatly angers the king.  To handle this situation, he chooses to have a competition to find a new queen.  Esther ends up winning this competition and becoming queen.  Then her cousin and guardian, Mordecai hears of a terrible plot created by Haman, the King’s assistant, to murder all of the Jews.  

The whole book is incredibly interesting, but chapter 5 is when things really start heating up.  In the beginning chapters, the main assistant of the king, Haman,  has just requested to kill off all of the Jews in Persia.  The king agreed.  This made Haman incredibly happy.  He was in one of the highest positions in the kingdom.  Then unbeknownst to him as to why, he was invited by Queen Esther, to go to a banquet where it was only him and the king.  Now, he is even more happy because he got to go to a banquet with the two highest individuals in the kingdom.  Haman is described in the Bible at this time as: “That day Haman left full of joy and in good spirits.” (Esther 5:9)

However, there will be something that will soon change his mood.  You may rightly assume this would be a death in the family or someone trying to attack him and rob him.  This type of traumatic event would rightly change the mood of anyone.  However, these examples are not what changed Haman’s mood.  What changed Haman’s mood was Mordecai standing in the street.  Mordecai refused to bow and to praise Haman in the city streets.  After this event, Haman was very upset.  He was angry and then instantly had to go to his wife and friends to complain.  He even says this after bragging about all his accolades, “Still, none of this satisfies me since I see Mordecai the Jew sitting at the King’s Gate all the time.”  (Esther 5:13)

This is wild.  Haman just had the best day, and yet he was so upset because someone didn’t want to bow down to him.  It is hard to imagine going from such a high to such a low over something so trivial, yet maybe this is something that can easily happen in our lives on a regular basis.  I am going to be completely honest when I say I can easily fluctuate in my feelings and my emotions.  I overall try to be kind and happy on a regular basis throughout the day.  However, there are times when I do become easily frustrated.  I can be in a great mood and I am very happy with all my blessings and a lot of things going well, and then something can go wrong, like I make a mistake, or I have to spend more time on something I hadn’t originally planned and then I am in a bad mood. 

I don’t know how many of us can often forget all of the blessings we each personally have been given.  I don’t know each of your personal blessings, but I know I can say which blessings I have been given and need to make sure I am incredibly grateful for each day.  For example, I have an apartment to live in, food to each and every day, a job I love and enjoy, and family and friends who love me and I love them.  I have been incredibly blessed.  That even when something does not go the way I wished it would, I can still be grateful for what I do have.  This can even be with my car.  I have a car, and it is incredibly helpful for all the different tasks I need to complete in a day, especially within my job and going to visit others.  However, my car often does have low tire pressure in the winter.  I know this is pretty common, but I have to take my car to get tires filled a couple of times a week.  I can easily become frustrated, and while it is an annoyance, I also know I need to be aware of my blessings of even having a vehicle. 

I do always want to remind people to constantly count your blessings.  It is important to daily thank God for your blessings.  Otherwise, we can easily forget them when there is something that does go wrong or we don’t have something we really want.  Psalm 118 verses 1 through 4 says, “Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever! Let Israel say,“His steadfast love endures forever.” Let the house of Aaron say, “His steadfast love endures forever.”Let those who fear the Lord say, “His steadfast love endures forever.”

The challenge for this week is to spend a little bit of time to reflect and pray over your blessings.  This could be anything small or anything big that you often can forget about, but it is something to remember when something starts to go wrong.  Besides my car example, I often need to be very grateful for my job. I absolutely love my job and all that I get to do in the Waterloo community.  Sometimes I may get frustrated by the little things that go wrong, but I need to remember how blessed I am in my job before I really get frustrated.  I hope you have a good week to think about your biggest blessings.

I have recently started studying the book of Esther in a Bible Study.  I love the book of Esther a lot.  It has always been one of my favorites, if not my absolute favorite, book of the Bible.  I have loved the story of bravery in a young girl.  She showed strength and courage, when most people in her position would not dare to.  

Something notable about the book of Esther is there is no mention of God anywhere.  He is not mentioned and seems to not necessarily be in constant contact with his people.  Esther and her cousin Mordecai are living in the country Persia, which is not where God’s people were in control.  It could be assumed, possibly, that Mordecai and Esther, through their Jewish faith, were talking and praying to God, but we never actually read about it in the book. 

However, we see many times that God had complete control over the situation.  He was controlling the small things, the things we don’t necessarily always think about.  For example, God was in control of the King picking Esther to be his wife and to like her the most out of all the other young women he was shown.  God is the one who chose Esther to be the most favorite and to be the most desired.  He also chose her to have Mordecai who would take care of her, and was often around to hear about the big things happening in the city, so he could best warn Esther.  He happened to be around at the best moments, which definitely meant good for both himself, Esther, and all the Jewish people. 

One other thing I enjoyed about re-reading and re-studying the book of Esther is realizing that if we choose not to partake in something God had planned for us, then God will find another way to complete this part of His story.  Sometimes we as people can believe God needs us.  He can’t complete a certain job without us and our saying yes to certain actions.  It can feel nice as people to feel needed, but this gives us, as humans way too much credit.  

One piece of advice I most appreciated that Mordecai gave to Esther was when he told her that if she was not the one who decides to save God’s people, God will find a different way to save them.  This is said in Esther 4: 14. The text reads, “If you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance will come from another place, but you and your family will be destroyed.  Who knows, perhaps you have come to your position for such a time as this.”  I love this verse because it is a good reminder God can use anyone at any time.  He chooses us, and we can either choose to rise to the occasion, or he will make a new path.  God is completely in control.  He doesn’t need to use us, but he chooses us. 

I know I am a person who can sometimes forget God has complete control.  I will often struggle to believe in him completely.  I want to be the one in control of my destiny and of the things happening in my life.   I know I personally have a few bigger events in the near future where I can already feel the stress of control is starting to take over.  For example, this year, I am getting married and moving with my husband to our new house.  Besides this major life event, I also need to finish getting my teacher license renewed within this next year.  I need to make sure I am staying on top of everything with my job and working, my volunteering, mentoring, etc.  There is a lot I want to have control over, but I also know I need to take a step back. 

The challenge for this week is to think of times when you as a person have not believed in God’s complete sovereignty and have tried to take control, when it was not yours to take control over.  What are the things you tend to really stress over because you can’t seem to allow God to do His work? After you decide which things are easy for you to want to control, spend some time in prayer asking for God’s sovereignty to be more known to you.  This way you may be more aware of his control and his love for you.  God has a plan.  He wants us all to have a positive part of his plan, but he doesn’t need us in order to fulfill it.  

I have recently finished studying a Bible devotional book about Malachi.  I have enjoyed doing this devotional book because I didn’t know a lot about the book of Malachi before I started reading and studying this book.  I also love the connections to the world we live in today.  Old Testament books can often be looked at as old fashioned and way too irrelevant for today and therefore don’t provide much input to how we should act in our day to day life.  However, many times when a person really takes the time to read and understand the many interactions the people have with God in the Old Testament, it does provide a lot of insight into how we should be acting.  

This book really discusses the Israelites and their sometimes fickle relationship with the Lord.  They don’t always follow the Word and the laws of the Lord.  In the book, we really see how the priests didn’t follow their particular God-given expectations. This showcases that leaders are such an important piece of the religious organizations, and this is because the religious leaders really impact all of their followers.  God gives them these expectations and parameters for a very good reason.   

One of the questions we were asked throughout the study was “How do you help religious leaders and encourage them?”  This was a good question and this question is one I need to be reflective over.  I don’t know if I always spend time thinking about my religious leaders and how I can be an encouragement to them.  I often think about a few different things I am grateful for when it comes to my religious leaders, but I don’t always take the time to let my religious leaders know my gratitude. I also don’t take a lot of time to think of how the pastors or the religious leaders think or are feeling, and if they even need any encouragement. 

I do often find I am more concerned about what the leaders can do for me.  I think about how the leaders can pray for me, or ask me about any problems or concerns  I may have.  I think about how interesting I want the services to be at church, or how great I want Bible study to run for the week.  It is all about, I want, I want, and I want.  I want to learn a lot from my sermon and from the lessons the pastor brings to me.  However, I want it to also be in a fairly timely manner, so I don’t have to get out too late from church. 

I also can often believe that pastors should be immovable or not hurt by anything.  I believe they are indestructible, and they never experience hurt.  Sometimes it can be very hard to think about pastors being human.  I think this way too often about some of the pastors I see on a regular basis or my Bible Study leaders.  I imagine this is a lot of pressure for them, because ultimately they are human.  

I really want to highlight Acts 20: 28-31 which says, 

“Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood. I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.” 

I love this verse because it is a reminder that there will be leaders who will be tempted with a variety of problems or issues.  This will slowly start to take away the leaders who will then impact the other disciples in the group.  This is why it is so vital to be an encouragement to your church leaders, so they can continue to fight off these emotional attacks.

The challenge for this week is to spend time encouraging a Christian leader you know in your life.  This could be a coworker or a boss.  This could be a Bible study leader or even your pastor.  This could be a friend you have personally, who you know is really taking a lot of time being a Christian leader amongst their own circles.  There is a large array of leaders you may have in life who could be someone you could encourage.  

I know one person I really want to encourage is named Jean.   She is in charge of the children’s ministry at Trinity where I go to church.  I want to encourage her because I believe she does a great job with the kids and working well with all the volunteers.  I also am always impressed about how little stress she has when there are big problems that may arise.  I am always happy I can be helpful and a volunteer for her.