Anybody out there going through some type of problem, maybe its something new, or something that has caused you pain for a long time. Could be a problem with a person, or physical problem, money problems, etc. Could be all sorts of stuff.
Well I think we all go through difficulties and hard times, and here are some verses that may provide some comfort and guidance. All verses are from the NCV (New Century Version)
¨We also have joy with our troubles, because we know that these troubles produce patience. And patience produces character, and character produces hope.¨ -Romans 5:3-4.
¨We know that in everything God works for the good of those who love him.¨ -Romans 8:28. (it says EVERYTHING, which includes problems, and suffering)
¨Be patient when trouble comes,...¨ -Romans 12:12.
¨When people curse us, we bless them. When they hurt us, we put up with it. When they tell evil lies about us, we speak nice words about them.¨ 1 Corinthians 4:12-13.
(and soon Paul also writes....) ¨so I beg you, please follow my example.¨ 1 Corinthians 4:16. (wow, how wonderful that would be to be able to have that patience and calmness when we are being insulted and hurt. I just read a commentary about this subject, and it said that when people hurt us, and we repay them with love, that may very well cause the person to feel shame and remorse, and cause them to repent.)
¨Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is the Father who is full of mercy and all comfort. He comforts us every time we have trouble, so when others have trouble, we can comfort them with the same comfort God gives us.¨ -2 Corinthians 1:3-4. (So God comforts us in our troubles, and then we know how to comfort others when they go through their troubles)
(This next one is when Paul had been asking God to remove his ´thorn in the flesh´, which many people think was probably a painful physical problem. God´s reply to Pauls prayers was ¨my grace is enough for you....¨.)
¨I begged the Lord three times to take this problem away from me. But he said to me, "My grace is enough for you. When you are weak, my power is made perfect in you." So I am very happy to brag about my weaknesses. Then Christ's power can live in me. For this reason I am happy when I have weaknesses, insults, hard times, sufferings, and all kinds of troubles for Christ. Because when I am weak, then I am truly strong.¨ - 2 Corinthians 12:8-10
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Sunday, September 7, 2008
Boy or girl?
Yesterday in the afternoon, Eliana and I went to a medical clinic for women that does the 4d ultrasound. It was quite a place, and their ultrasound machine was really impressive. They had a big TV on the wall so we could watch the ultrasound on that.
Remember, its an ultrasound image, so its not perfect, but that is an image of our Son´s face.
The clinic gave us some photos, and also a DVD. We don´t have a DVD player on our computer, and so couldn´t put anything on here from that. And we don´t have a scanner, or even my camera that I loaned to someone, to take a shot of it. And so had to use our webcam to take a picture of the image. And so here is our baby... fast a sleep. He has no idea that his mama and papa are taking a look at him, and listening to his little heart beating.
The doctor looked at a lot of different stuff, including the babies brain, spine, heart, stomach, etc. He said there was no apparent problems, and that everything looked good.
We saw the babies little feet, and hands..
And also we got to see an image of our babies face. He said that if we had come in a few months sooner, he could of gotten us some better photos.
But we were really happy with the scan that they did. Below is a photo they took of the babies face. During the scan, our baby was really moving, and opened its mouth, and I am almost certain that I saw some smiles. So it seems our baby is very comfortable and content.
And at the beginning of the scan, the doctor told us that our baby is........ (are you ready?)
A BOY! So everyone be ready to soon welcome our Son into the world, and into our family. We really thought it would probably be a boy, and we were right.
My parents tell me that I was very active when I was little, and if they took my eyes off of me for a few seconds, I would be gone. So I am guessing that our Son will be the same.
To everyone that has said a prayer for Eliana or our baby, thank you so much. And thanks to God, because he has blessed us so much.
We haven´t decided on a name yet. I told Eliana that when the baby is old enough, he can decide his own name. But she didn´t think that was a good idea. Soon the baby will have his name (we think the middle name will probably be Lee, the same as me and my Dad´s)
And now, the photo...
Remember, its an ultrasound image, so its not perfect, but that is an image of our Son´s face. The clinic gave us some photos, and also a DVD. We don´t have a DVD player on our computer, and so couldn´t put anything on here from that. And we don´t have a scanner, or even my camera that I loaned to someone, to take a shot of it. And so had to use our webcam to take a picture of the image. And so here is our baby... fast a sleep. He has no idea that his mama and papa are taking a look at him, and listening to his little heart beating.
Thursday, September 4, 2008
simple requests
There was a time in my life when I became so confused, and full of doubt that I did not know who God was, and even had doubts about if there was a God.
I read a book about Bible prophecy, and end times, and it was with the intention of finding proof that the Bible is true. But although the Bible is full of fulfilled prophecies, that still did not take away my doubts. I can´t remember what all I did to try to take away my doubts, but nothing worked.
And so I finally gave up. I told God, ¨I cannot believe, and I need your help. I am so confused, and I need you to show me what is true.¨ It did not happen immediately, but over months and years God has, and continues to show me the truth, and make himself real to me. And not only that, I am getting to know God, little by little.
What is interesting is that all those doubts and confusion came right after I started becoming serious about living my life for God. I believe that satan came to destroy what God was doing in me, and so I think his plan was to confuse me so maybe I would follow a lie.
But I asked God to show me the truth, and take away my doubts. It was a sincere request, and I believe it was what God was waiting for.
One thing I wanted to add. In Exodus 33, Moses is speaking to God, and says ¨Show me your glory¨. That is a simple request, but also a huge one. I believe that is like saying to God ¨I want to know you... I want to see into your heart¨. And God gave Moses what he wanted.
So if you are wanting truth, and for God to show himself to you, you should simply ask for it...
"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." -Matthew 11.28-30 NIV
I read a book about Bible prophecy, and end times, and it was with the intention of finding proof that the Bible is true. But although the Bible is full of fulfilled prophecies, that still did not take away my doubts. I can´t remember what all I did to try to take away my doubts, but nothing worked.
And so I finally gave up. I told God, ¨I cannot believe, and I need your help. I am so confused, and I need you to show me what is true.¨ It did not happen immediately, but over months and years God has, and continues to show me the truth, and make himself real to me. And not only that, I am getting to know God, little by little.
What is interesting is that all those doubts and confusion came right after I started becoming serious about living my life for God. I believe that satan came to destroy what God was doing in me, and so I think his plan was to confuse me so maybe I would follow a lie.
But I asked God to show me the truth, and take away my doubts. It was a sincere request, and I believe it was what God was waiting for.
One thing I wanted to add. In Exodus 33, Moses is speaking to God, and says ¨Show me your glory¨. That is a simple request, but also a huge one. I believe that is like saying to God ¨I want to know you... I want to see into your heart¨. And God gave Moses what he wanted.
So if you are wanting truth, and for God to show himself to you, you should simply ask for it...
"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." -Matthew 11.28-30 NIV
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Looking to God for what our hearts desire.
I wanted to write about something that might help you. Sometimes I will go through times that I have a lot of resentment towards others. I will remember people in my past that have directly caused me hurt, or maybe it was kind of more indirectly. And then feelings of resentment and anger come. And I know one thing for certain, that type of anger and resentment is not good for a person. It is one thing to hate the bad things that a person does, but is another thing to hate the person.
I truly believe that is probably the #1 way that satan is trying to derail me spiritually, and distance me from God.
I imagine that my struggles are able to help others, because I know other Christians go through the same things that I do.
I want to say that resentment and anger with others is really a very dangerous thing. When I do not forgive someone, really I am hurting myself. And like my Mom said... hurting people, hurt others.
It is not like forgiving someone is like pushing a button. Really it is out of Gods grace that God helps us to forgive. But I think that we need to want God´s help, and even if we do not want to forgive, we can simply pray ¨God, really I do not want to forgive, but I know I need to, and so help me to be willing to forgive¨. But truly it is something that God does in us.
I want to say something about being married, and I know this is true. I know that it is very bad for a marriage when we look at our spouses, and think ¨why don´t you do this for me, or why aren´t you different¨. We will see the flaws in them, instead of the good stuff. And satan wishes to take advantage of that, with a goal of destroying the marriage.
I know that God does not want us to look at our spouses, and to do that. And I think the reason why we do that is because our eyes are on our spouses and not on God. We are looking to our spouses for something that truly they cannot give us.
The pastor that married Eliana and I said ¨you cannot make each other happy. Do not put your eyes on each other, but put them on Christ. And when you do that, your marriage is also blessed¨ That is so true. My Dad is who often said to me ¨don´t think about what others need to do for you, but about what you need to do for them. ¨
I believe I have the best wife in the world. But if I want to be a good husband for her, then God has to be first in my life, and nothing else. And it is the same if I want to be a good father. I believe that when we put our eyes on God, then our hearts find peace, and we are able to love others like we should. And so I think a truly blessed marriage is not like what you see in the movies, but it is when both the husband and wife are seeking God, and wanting to know him more and more. Because God loves us more than we can imagine.
God has used my wife to teach me a lot, and to help me grow spiritually. But if you have a spouse that is not seeking God, then remember that you are not responsible for your spouse, but we are responsible for ourselves. And if you can love that spouse like God wants you to, then they may see Christ in you, and want the same things for their lives.
And I also want to say that although I wrote all the above, I have often done the opposite and not followed that advice. But I know how much it hurts me, and also my marriage when I do that. But I have learned some things after making many mistakes, and I hope this can also help you.
God, help us to put our eyes on you, and not on anybody else. Help us to think about doing things for others, and not about what they should do for us. May you fill our hearts with love and peace and joy, and that will spill over so we can bless others like you are blessing us.
I truly believe that is probably the #1 way that satan is trying to derail me spiritually, and distance me from God.
I imagine that my struggles are able to help others, because I know other Christians go through the same things that I do.
I want to say that resentment and anger with others is really a very dangerous thing. When I do not forgive someone, really I am hurting myself. And like my Mom said... hurting people, hurt others.
It is not like forgiving someone is like pushing a button. Really it is out of Gods grace that God helps us to forgive. But I think that we need to want God´s help, and even if we do not want to forgive, we can simply pray ¨God, really I do not want to forgive, but I know I need to, and so help me to be willing to forgive¨. But truly it is something that God does in us.
I want to say something about being married, and I know this is true. I know that it is very bad for a marriage when we look at our spouses, and think ¨why don´t you do this for me, or why aren´t you different¨. We will see the flaws in them, instead of the good stuff. And satan wishes to take advantage of that, with a goal of destroying the marriage.
I know that God does not want us to look at our spouses, and to do that. And I think the reason why we do that is because our eyes are on our spouses and not on God. We are looking to our spouses for something that truly they cannot give us.
The pastor that married Eliana and I said ¨you cannot make each other happy. Do not put your eyes on each other, but put them on Christ. And when you do that, your marriage is also blessed¨ That is so true. My Dad is who often said to me ¨don´t think about what others need to do for you, but about what you need to do for them. ¨
I believe I have the best wife in the world. But if I want to be a good husband for her, then God has to be first in my life, and nothing else. And it is the same if I want to be a good father. I believe that when we put our eyes on God, then our hearts find peace, and we are able to love others like we should. And so I think a truly blessed marriage is not like what you see in the movies, but it is when both the husband and wife are seeking God, and wanting to know him more and more. Because God loves us more than we can imagine.
God has used my wife to teach me a lot, and to help me grow spiritually. But if you have a spouse that is not seeking God, then remember that you are not responsible for your spouse, but we are responsible for ourselves. And if you can love that spouse like God wants you to, then they may see Christ in you, and want the same things for their lives.
And I also want to say that although I wrote all the above, I have often done the opposite and not followed that advice. But I know how much it hurts me, and also my marriage when I do that. But I have learned some things after making many mistakes, and I hope this can also help you.
God, help us to put our eyes on you, and not on anybody else. Help us to think about doing things for others, and not about what they should do for us. May you fill our hearts with love and peace and joy, and that will spill over so we can bless others like you are blessing us.
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