Perspective

You know, my life isn't happening the way I figured it would...I know, surprise, surprise. lol.

It's all a matter of perspective though....

What an adventure I am on! If anyone ever says that Christianity is boring and a bunch of rules hasn't truly experienced what it is like to have a deep relationship with Jesus! At the same time, anyone who says that it's an easy ride after you surrender your soul to Christ might want to look into it a little farther because the Bible says that we WILL (future tense) experience tough times. That includes times that you just want to crawl into a dark hole or bottle and forget everything...forget that you even exist.
It's at those times that when I MUST wrap my whole being around verses like Romans 8:27-29 "...He [Christ] makes intercession for the saints according to the will of God. And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. For whom He foreknew, He also predestined, to be conformed to the image of His Son...." And, Jeremiah 29:11-14, "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. I will be found by you, says the LORD...."
Honestly, I know those verses so well because they seem to be everyone's "life verse", but in truly difficult times nothing can comfort me then they do know that that is my Jesus speaking directly to ME! That blows my mind!!!
The Bible tells me that He is a jealous God...not because He's insecure, but because He has my best interest in mind and has created me to worship Him, so when I worship other things (material things, friends, jobs, school, ideas of how my life should be, etc.) then I am going against my purpose, therefore, I become discontent and unhappy. And then I wonder why I'm not joyful...it's simple! Because I'm not surrendering my past, present, and future to my GOD!

When something happens to me and makes me question everything (even God's calling on my life that I was so sure about!) after surrendering and analyzing and praying and trying to surrender again I MUST CHOOSE to RELAX in Christ!..
I tell ya, those times when everything is pretty good and I stayed in close fellowship (reading the Word (Bible) and prayer) really show their strength when the storm hits...and hits hard!

Circumstances change, people change, my own heart can't seem to decide what it wants and how to feel, but this one thing I do know, my Jesus, my GOD, He NEVER changes! Romans 8:18-39...NOTHING changes where I stand with my God.
All I have to do is look in His Word and in my own life to see examples of this.

As Paul says in the end of Romans 7, I thank GOD that through CHRIST He saves me from this body of death into HIS everlasting, abundant life!