I once was lost, but now I'm found!

"...the word of God came to John, son of Zechariah, in the desert. He went into all the country around the Jordan preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins."
-Luke 3:2-3


it's the baptizing of your life into a constant state of repentance and receiving of our glorious Father's forgiveness (to die to yourself and be raised to life with Christ Jesus). being made holy and righteous, being sanctified thru and thru. a precious cleansing thru the blood of Christ! this is obviously different from the baptism of the Holy Spirit...
"I baptize you with water. But one more powerful than I will come, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire." - Luke 3:16

"I AM the resurrection and the life"

"'Lord,' Martha said to Jesus, 'if You had been here, my brother would not have died. But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask.'
Jesus said to her, 'Your brother will rise again.'
Martha answered, 'I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.'
Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?'
'Yes, Lord,' she told Him, 'I believe that You are the Christ, the Son of God, who was to come into the world.'"
-John 11:21-27

"Jesus, once more deeply moved, came to the tomb. It was a cave with a stone laid across the entrance. 'Take away the stone,' He said.
'But, Lord,' said Martha, the sister of the dead man, 'by this time there is a bad odor, for he has been there four days.'
Then Jesus said, 'Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?'
-John 11:38-40

the Kingdom of Heaven is here!

THATS MY KING!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yX_7j32zgNw

Here is a trustworthy saying:
If we died with him,
we will also live with him;
if we endure,
we will also reign with him.
If we disown him,
he will also disown us;
if we are faithless,
he will remain faithful,
for he cannot disown himself.
-2 Timothy 2:11-13

"why would i find beauty/truth/intimacy exciting if it did not matter or mean anything?"

the very depths of me groan for beauty and peace. there's something amazing about how a singly note can calm your soul, a painting that makes you feel like there's hope, a melody that opens up your spirit to receive the goodness and love of our Father, whether we realize that that is it or not. there's something to the stillness of His presence. something very powerful. getting still can be so hard. in the stillness, in the secret place with Him is where this beauty i long for lies. its the only place i even get a taste of it. i know its real because i've tasted it. its something no one could have told me about or explained, only something that can be known through His grace, and it is available for all. this beauty is the most real thing i've ever experienced. its something i would do or give up anything for. He is worth it all. thank you Jesus, my Lover.

i'm struggling to find rest. i feel like a lot has been demanded of me lately which excites me but at the same time i have become very exhausted. i know He isn't disappointed in me and that it's all a learning process. "but those who Hope in the Lord will renew their strength." i'm trying to hold onto this. to gaze upon His beauty and know He loves me to death and is not disappointed by my weaknesses because my weaknesses give Him a chance to show His strength and to lift me up. You are good Father. Be near. Take me nearer always.

i don't think anyone reads this but if they ever do please pray for me. i want to obey the Spirit and find my life and rest in Jesus and be close to Him and intimate with Him...to be someone He knows He can go to and use...to be someone He can get alone with and reveal His deepest secrets and His face...to know Him face to face every day and every night...

i just hung out with a homeless friend of mine who just got saved the other day...

i realized i'm incredibly weak and need much more faith. be near Lord

faithful, You're always faithful

(Now Moses was a very humble man, more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth.) - Numbers 12:3

oh to be truly humble...

Where there is forgiveness there is healing and deliverance and freedom. "where the Spirit of the Lord is, THERE is freedom." (2 Cor. 3:17). We can have perfect love, perfect health, perfect deliverance, perfect healing, perfect forgiveness, perfect mercy, perfect grace because all the atrocities that are caused by our sin have been bought by Christ and taken from us. He bought a pure and spotless bride! "You are not your own, you were bought at a price." (1 Cor. 6:19-20). "Therefore, honor God with your body." (1 Cor. 6:20). Jesus forgave and healed. we aren't merely supposed to stop at the forgiving portion because Jesus keeps going in scripture to bring about full purity and redemption. We must believe that He bought ALL of our infirmities, ALL of our sorrows, ALL of our transgressions, ALL of our iniquities, suffered OUR punishment so instead WE would have peace, and by His wounds we ARE healed (Isaiah 53:4-5). Our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit. so have righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit. This pleases our Lover! (Romans 14:17-18).

Lord, teach us the art of giving it all to you and instead of receiving what we deserve i pray we would receive Your grace, tender mercy, and love that You want to give to us instead. It's why You came Jesus. Hallelujah.

Jesus coming to Earth and dying on the cross was/is a BIG deal. I pray to know the fullness of this Jesus!

He just wants to love us and no matter what we go thru He is there. He is THE good Father. Amen

You're Beautiful

"...if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land. Now my eyes will be open and my ears attentive to the prayers offered in this place."

2 Chronicles 7:13-15

now there is one thing that i will desire, to gaze on the beauty of The King

if i am good, if i am merciful, if i am forgiving, if i am merciful, if i am loving in any way...it is because He was these things to me first. it is all by His grace. just the way i like it haha. He doesn't have to but He proves His grace and love. so amazing! AMEN!

"we love because He first loved us." 1 john 4:19

"Be still, and know that I am God"

...to be sensitive to the Spirit... He never leaves us

"Their sins and lawless acts I will remember no more." Hebrews 10:17

He stays with us even when we mess up because their has been forgiveness thru Jesus and His Spirit remains in us. Amazing! to hear the Holy Spirit is to hear Jesus and to hear the Father because they are all One and the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Christ who is in the Father; therefore they are all One!!!! Jesus us in heaven but His Spirit is with us! God with us!!!!! we are not left alone.

"So as the Holy Spirit says: 'Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion, during the time of testing in the desert, where your fathers tested and tried Me and for forty years saw what I did. That is why I was angry with that generation, and I said, 'Their hearts are always going astray, and they have not known my ways.' So I declare on oath in my anger, 'They shall never enter my rest.'" (Hebrews 3:7-11)

BUT!!!!!!! if we HEAR Him and BELIEVE Him and stand on the Rock, which is Jesus, we will forever enter His rest and "share in Christ if we hold firmly till the end the confidence we had at first." (Hebrews 3: 14)

Hallelujah and Amen

i love the way You move. the way You just walk into the room

i'm convinced that conquering sin is not merely a matter of suppressing the sin (the sin would still be in us...just not active) but to desire the love and intimate presence of Christ, our Lover and Power, more than the sin. to where we no longer even think about the sin but constantly see Jesus and His splendor

I need this and more every day

what if when we felt alone instead of seeking out that companionship in other people we sought out this fulfillment in Jesus. that his closeness would be our comfort...that the presence of the Spirit would fill us in every way beyond any nearness or love any human could pour out on us? that we would actually talk to him (prayer) and build a relationship (which is only possible thru communication)...that he would be REAL to us. what if we trusted and had faith in Him that he TRULY is for us. trust and believe that he knows our hearts, that he delights in showing us mercy, that he IS a good father who knows how to give good gifts, that he IS alive and powerful...that he heals, that he draws near to us, that we are his absolute joy, that we believed that the Father sees us the same way he sees his son Jesus, that the Father's wrath has been satisfied to that the only thing that is showered on us is his grace, mercy, joy, delight, love and everything else that is good and compassionate? what if we truly had faith and believed in Him to the point that no matter WHAT there is absolutely nothing to worry about EVER!!!? that when we screw up He doesn't care and just wants us to keep our eyes on him and keep coming? that when we fall He WILL lift us up and restore us? what if we had a gram of faith? what if we honestly believed that one day we are going to die and meet Jesus face to face and BE MARRIED TO HIM!!!!? what if...

if brokenness is what it takes, brokenness is what i want

...to remember the grace and mercy and intimacy He had on me and to strain for what's ahead...

"The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise." - David