Show me how to Love

Good morning! I hope today you find the time to wobble. It really does make your day start off ten times better. :) Don't know how to wobble? http://youtu.be/UH5hUULu4Nk

So, last night I was talking with my dad and Sydney about some Biblical topics. We started to talk about the fruits of the Spirit - love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law! I started to slowly realize that these were some of the characteristics of Christ. In order to grow to be more like him, I needed to master each of these fruits. I then decided I want to take each one, one at a time, and grow in it, until I have reached the full potential of what CHRIST'S definition of that word is. Starting at the beginning- love. What is Jesus' definition of love? The answer can be found in 1 Corinthians 13:4-7:
 "Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.  It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres."
Love looks like this. Love is going to be hard to master, I know. Especially because patience is not a strong point of mine. :) But love is patient is the first step in becoming more like my Savior. Please be praying for me, I really want Him to show me how to become a more loving person, but I have a tendency to slack off of things. I do NOT want to slack off of this amazing journey! I would also encourage anyone else wanting to do this to do it. :) I'm super excited to see what God has in store for me as I continue in this!


"I confess that I’ve been blind
Open up this heart of mine
Show me how to love
Father than this world I know
Take me where You want me to go
Show me how to love"

Show me how to love, Sidewalk Prophets. http://youtu.be/PrrsLqhoQPE

Let my words be LIFE!

So, recently I have realized just how much cussing I am exposed to. I remember coming to PE for the first time last fall, and being completely shocked at how much foul language was used at the high school. Even people I had known for a long time would be dropping words that I didn't know were in their dictionary! It amazed me. I guess I got used to it, because half the time those words don't even stand out to me anymore. I didn't really think much of it. I kinda started to think cussing wasn't so bad, I mean everyone does it, right? My bus is the absolute worst. I promise you there has not been one time I have been on that bus that I have not heard someone cuss every other word(hey that rhymed!). Today was worse than most, though. I could not wait to get off. I stepped down the bus and started walking down the street to my house. All the words I had heard on the bus were flashing through my mind. I couldn't get them to leave. "Why fight it?" I thought. "Just say them, get it out of your system." It sounded like a good idea to me. Once I said it, they'd be out and I wouldn't have to hear them in my head. Just say a little one. Whisper it. "But what if just saying one little one leads to me thinking it's okay?" I sighed. I know in the Bible it says not to cuss. I've never cussed before, because I never have felt the need to. "Jesus, please help me." I said. As I opened my mouth, I wasn't sure what was about to come out. "Let my words be life, let my words be truth, I don't wanna say a word, unless it points the world, back to You." I heard myself singing. I smiled. There IS no point in cussing, or saying mean things to people. I don't want my words to tear people down. I thought about the mean words a person at school had called me just yesterday. Did I want to make people feel the same way that person made me feel? NO way! So thank you Jesus for giving me the strength to overcome the sinful temptations and wrong things I want to do. LET MY WORDS BE LIFE!

"Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear." Ephesians 4:29

Beware of Boasting

I love reading in the new testament. I can relate to so many of the parables and stories. There is soo much good stuff in Matthew chapters 5-7, which is what I read today. Don't you just love when a story in the Bible is the exact answer you needed to a problem? Yeah that happened to me today. I had just finished sending a text to a friend to tell them how much I had been reading in the Bible. I didn't realize at first why I was doing that. As I read through Matthew 5, I started to realize that I felt like I was boasting to her, about how good of a Christian I was that I was reading not just one chapter in the Bible, but four. As I flipped the page to Matthew 6, the first verse I see says this. "Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven." I sighed, a little smirk forming on my lips. Yep, I had been caught. I prayed a quick prayer asking the Lord to forgive me for this selfish act I had committed, and through the rest of my devotional time, the teachings really stood out to me, and I was able to apply them to my life. I thank God that he cares enough about me to discipline and correct me when I get out of line. I really do love to read the new testament though!! :D I hope this day is a wonderful one for you!

A child's heart.

Good evening. As I lay here in bed next to my little brother, he never ceases to amaze me. He is reading a veggietales story, improvising for words he does not know. He is adorable. :) no cares in the world, his childish innocence is refreshing. He isn't stressed out by the things I find myself stressing over. He just offers a simple answer to a problem that I am over thinking. I wish I could have a childlike mind, so naive to the worldly ways. "But Jesus called the children to him and said, 'Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.'" Luke 18:15-17. If I was able to come to God with a child's earnest and sincere, pure and innocent heart, my relationship with him would be that much better. I don't want it just so I can get into the kingdom. I want to have a deep relationship with my Heavenly Father. I want to bless people because I have Christ's love inside of me. I want to have so much if it that I explode and can't hold it in. This past week I have been trying to treat my family nicer than normal. I have tried to be more patient with each of them; listening to their needs and trying to do what I can to help them. It is really hard, I assure you. I get irritated very easily, which has just recently come to my attention. But I am overcoming it, thanks to my Savior's love and mercy for me. I'd encourage you to also to listen to Jesus Loves Me. It's generally known by everyone, but if you take in the words and realize how much you really ARE loved by our creator, I guarantee you will not be able to help but smile :)
much love, Elise

Just trust?

Hello! I'm new to all this blogging stuff but I figured I'd tell you a little about myself first :) My name is Elise. My favorite color is purple, my favorite band is Skillet or (my band) The Insiders, and I have some awesome friends. Anyways, for the past couple weeks, I've been studying myself, my thoughts, my behaviors, the way I act and react to things. I've realized I need a lot of changing in order to become the Christ-like woman I want to become. So I started praying, that God would bring me closer to him. I read my bible every day, paying attention during church, and I even deleted all my secular music stations on pandora. I figured by cutting out all the bad influences in my life, I'd be drawn more to God. I found out trying to do that with friends who aren't the best influence is really hard, but I'll save that for another day. So I keep doing the things I know I should do, but I can't seem to feel close to God. So tonight I felt a little desperate because I have been close to God before, and being in his presence is such an amazing experience. Anyways, I started looking up on google how to come closer to Christ. I read a lot of stuff, stuff I'd already been doing. Then I went to a website called hotchocolatewithgod.com (yes I know it's silly but quite a nice thought to picture if you close your eyes and imagine it). A girl on the website answered a question similar to mine; how can I get close to God? I'm a Christian but I don't feel like one. Ah yes. The first girl answered that our feelings don't define us, and Satan uses them to tear us down. I agreed, but felt like I still wasn't living out my faith. I kept reading and the second girl to answer said this; she read her bible, had people praying for her, and she herself prayed. But she put an emphasis on trusting God. "...all you girls who feel this way too – GOD loves you. He wants to be close to you! Talk to Him about this and trust that He will help you to draw near to Him." BAM! It clicked. I'm not trusting God. I'm not willing to give myself completely over to him. I feel the need to take care of myself, to not be dependent on someone else to make me feel complete or happy. The last time I did that, it didn't end up well. I felt depressed, and hurt. That's when I decided I only needed me. But now I'm starting to realize I DO need Jesus. And much as I hate to say it, I am NOT able to take care of myself. I don't know what's best for me. So to wrap this all up, the more I start reaching deeper into myself, the more I realize trusting God and letting go of my self-reliance is the next step in my walk of faith. 
"I no longer live but it is Christ who lives in me, and the life I now live I live by faith in Christ Jesus, who loves me and gave himself up for me." Galatians 2:20. Goodnight friends.