News: hmmm... Spanish test next week, so this week has been crazy with studying. Please pray! Wednesday I'll probably take the quiz, Thursday the test, but also pray for my studying... peace in the process... etc.
Also please pray (sorry! lots of prayer requests! I try not to be too needy, but it is so comforting to know that my friends and family are interceding with God on my behalf! Feel free to post requests if you so desire) -returning to subject- also please pray for dance. We're down to three more weeks, including Tuesday, of class before the dress rehearsal and I haven't even finished choreographing the dance! (Almost have...), no less teaching it! So I'm going to do my best and leave the result up to Him-it is for His glory, after all! And He'll take care of His glory!
FYI, you all are all officially invited to come see the dance presentation! :-) More details are on the way, and it'll probably be in the church announcements anyway as the day approaches.
Favorite nugget: (2 since I didn't post last week)
"Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin that so easily entangles us, and run with endurance the race marked out for us, looking unto Jesus" ~Heb 12:1-2
"For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguements and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ..." ~2 Cor 10:4-5
I was familiar with both halves of this verse, but I never realized that they were part of the same thought! Taking thoughts captive is one of our weapons that are not carnal but mighty. Mighty in God-it is His power that captures the thoughts, not mine-PTL!
3 comments:
I will be praying! And don't worry about the quantity of the requests: a) it reveals a humble attitude; always a good thing. b) We love to pray for family(and you are!--body of Christ in Ephesians, + you are our friend), and both God and we(us? whatever.....) love to do all we can to help, nourish(definition at Bible study), and encourage you. So, no worries there. Besides, you work hard, to the glory of God and your parents, so I have no doubt that you will do fine on your test.
I can't wait to see the fruits of your effort in worship dance! I would love to be there, but that all depends on whether my parents think that I can make it schedule-wise.
I am here, and I read it!:)(though I noticed you took that part out) But anyway, we could invite some others (like those at swing dance, maybe?) to come and see your worship dance too.
As for nuggets.....the Hebrews passage reminded me of what our pastor said today in his sermon--"would any of our sins ever be worth it in light of eternity?" Would it not be so much better to throw off temptations and look only to Christ? Alas, if only we saw that day to day, and looked to our prize in heaven, Jesus! It also reminded me of what I have been reading in A Hunger For God, by John Piper. He states clearly early on that part of fasting is not just abstinence, but a "homesickness for God", a fierce desire for "the higher hunger that is". And so, when we are running with endurance the race marked out for us, we must remember that to throw off the sin that so easily entangles, we must first look to the goal, the prize--Jesus--desiring Him above all else.
As for Corinthians: praise the Lord! He has not left us to merely attempt to fight off evil "with our bare hands", but has equipped us, and taken care of us so that we can stand against the devil's schemes. 'For the word is sharper than any two-edged sword...dividing bone and marrow, body and spirit' --paraphrase, this was from memory a long time ago--but point being that 'our battle is not against flesh and blood, but...against the cosmic powers of darkness', so aren't we glad that God has equipped us with His weapons and saved us with His might!
Did you know that my prayer request was to take every thought captive, or did you just post this "'cause you could"? :) Well, whatever--praise the Lord for mutual encouragement! Everything that "exalts itself against the knowledge of God" would be cast down, and His truth would remain! "Beauty is truth, and truth beauty"--someone named Keats, I think--and oh, the beauty of God's truth above all others!
I pray that He would take our thoughts captive by His grace and mercy, and help us battle temptation so that we may run our race with perseverance, looking only to out goal--Christ Jesus.
Praise the Lord! :)
--Josiah C.
Glad you don't mind praying for me, because I have another request :-)! I'm taking a math test tomorrow, so I'm studying for Spanish and math at the same time-those being my two hardest subjects-and I haven't slept well for probably two weeks. And I'm not! going! to! be! anxious! so... yeah-prayer would be great :-).
Haha, then I will pray for that as well. I hope you will get some good sleep soon! And don't be anxious; just cast all of your cares on God, and He will give you His peace, which transcends all understanding. You have an AWESOME God. :)
--Josiah C.
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