Reality!? and Disciplines? and things that I love to love

What really is meant, when someone says "thats reality".  what is reality?  This is the question that is currently bouncing around in my head.  Along with what kind of disciplines do I have?  I have been asked to think about what is my interpretation or take on reality, and in a way i have writers block or thinking block whatever you want to call it block.  I am thinking to my self... "self, how can you prepare for what your journey ahead is going to bring?" I would try to answer, but i got nothing.  There are the obvious that you normally go to; prayer, time in the word, talking about it with others who have been where you are going spiritually and physically.  But ultimately I believe that it has to be something you learn for yourself. I know that God will not put us in a situation that we can't handle, it will be hard but we can handle it.  It should make us fully reliant on God, knowing that we can not do it alone and we need his guidance to set us on the path he has for us... I know this questions might not be answered yet but I can be patient and wait.  

My dad gave me this really cool book called; Disciplines for the inner life,  it is crazy how Gods timing brings you something you need to hear or read, this is a little blurb from that exact thing i needed to hear: 

" God guides us, despite our uncertainties and our vagueness, even through our failings and mistakes.  He often starts us off to the left, only to bring us up in the end to the right; or else he brings us back to the right, after a long detour, because we started off by mistake to the left in the belief that we were obeying him.  He leads us step by step, from event to event.  Only afterwards, as we look back over the way we have come and reconsider certain important moments in out lives in the light of all that has followed them, or when we survey the whole progress of our lives, do we experience the feeling of having been led without knowing it, the feeling that God has mysteriously guided us.

It was he who made us meet this man, made us hear that remark, read that book, with all the decisive consequences they have bad on our lives.  We did not perhaps know it at the time. Time has had to elapse to enable us to see it.  Thus, the disciples on the Emmaus road talked with Jesus without recognizing him (luke 24:13-35).  It was he who brought us up short be means of a dream which at first we did not understand, a serious illness, a strange hesitation, or a painful failure.  It was he also who guided us by means of a success, and so opened up a new and unexpected horizon to us.  Ah, that is the true answer to our perplexing problem of success and failure!

~From Reflections by Paul Tournier

God does things to help us and guide us, I believe that we will never fully understand everything immediately that happens but we will see the fruit appear and know that why we had that suffering period and even that joyful period.  

The goal, in prayer, is to give oneself away.  The Lord loves us- perhaps most of all, when we fail and try again.~Emily Griffin.  keep praying hard, and be consistent in doing that.  

Things that i love:

• Jesus
• Family
• my dog mocha
• a freshly opened jar of peanut butter
  
• snow, it makes me very happy
• a movie that makes me feel good
• quality hang out time with friends
• aspen trees
• the sound of leafs being stepped on
• making peoples day/laugh /smile
• making cookies from scratch 
• a big bone fire 

The list can go on and on.  I even love to love.  

until next time 

PEACE from the M O O S E 

What now!?

So i am that guy... living with the parents out of college, no food, no job, my pet's head isn't falling off (he does have a huge tumor though) and i do have food a lot of it actually.  But yeah i still have no job.  Things are going pretty well.  Jesus is always amazing and understanding.  Still it is an interesting transition for me living in Charlotte and waiting to move to Africa.  While i wait i try to spend my time wisely as my parents have taught me... doesn't always go to plan.  So i have been trying to force my self to read more.  Read King Leopold's Ghost very interesting, a man of greed that never had enough and pillaged and plundered The Congo(Zaire) for years, and using it as his personal play ground killing anyone the rebelled.  Not that far into it but working on it.  I am also reading the Shack again.  really good i recommend it for all.  But as my time here in the US is getting shorter every day I ask my self what is God teaching me before i go.  these thoughts come to my head... How am I really spending my time, what am i thinking of most? is it surfing the internet(facebook/you-tube), playing mindless games, watching TV how about reading the bible, if you could rate your top ten things in numerical order 1 being, doing it the most, and 10 being the least, in your daily agenda where would your time with God fall or getting in the word... i know my is not were it should be.(very thought provoking) that was put into my thought process by my mother.  Other things are what do i have to offer the the people that i am going to be working with?  How is God going to use me in further his kingdom?  these are all thoughts that i try to fill my head with, as my mother would say fill your mind with things that are edifying and things that honor God. 

something great to ponder on: from Streams in the Desert:

November 13

I have chosen him, so that he will direct his children. Genesis 18:19

God chooses people He can depend upon. He knew what to expect from Abraham and said of him, "I have chosen him, so that he will direct his children... that the LORD will bring about for Abraham what he has promised him."  God knew Abraham would"  direct his children." The Lord can be depended upon, and he desires for us to be just as reliable, determined, and stable.  This is simply the meaning of faith.

God is looking for people on whom He can place the weight of His entire love, power, and faithful promises.  And His engines are strong enough to pull any weight we may attach to them.  Unfortunately, the cable we fasten to the engine is often too weak to handle the weight of out prayers.  Therefore God continues to train and discipline us in His school of stability and certainty in the life of faith. May we learn our lessons well and then stand firm.

God knows that you can withstand your trial, or else He would not have given it to you. His trust in you explains the trials of your life, no matter how secure they may be.  God knows your strength, and He measures it to the last inch.  Remember, no trial has ever been given to anyone that was greater than the person's strength, through God, to endure it.

Well life is good and God is always good, I do pray that God speaks to your heart in some form or fashion and you follow your dreams that he has placed in your heart, with that said, i recommend listening to Erwin Mcmanus's podcast from a few weeks ago in his wide awake series titled Dream, and Discover.  That dude has got it going on... 

Things you can pray for: 

• The fighting in the Congo where i am going to work its self out.
• My heart as i am going to serve and that i can be fully devoted to God and in turn what i am doing, (mind,body, soul)
• Pray for my attitude towards a lot of things.
• The missionaries that are already serving and pouring out onto others.
• My family( my wife and future family, don't know who they are yet, but they are pretty amazing from what i hear)
  

That should hold me over for a while.  Thanks love you all.

PEACE from the M O O S E