Contentment

Verse of the Day:

Matthew 6:33

³³ But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.

I have a friend who is constantly looking for something more.  She always thinks that having more of certain material things will make her happier.  She never feels people are giving her enough attention or dedication.  In all the years I’ve known her, I haven’t seen her completely content with where her life is.  Sometimes it breaks my heart that she is always reaching for something more.  Although this friend does have a relationship with God, she struggles to put Him at the top of her priority list and to ‘seek first the kingdom of God’.  She is a beautiful, wonderful girl, but she has a real issue with being thankful for what God HAS provided for her.

I know that I don’t have a perfect relationship with God either, but watching my friend struggle has made me see more than ever that no one will ever be content with material things and earthly relationships unless they are putting God as their #1 priority.  By doing this, we are making it easier for God to speak to our hearts and help us to be happy. 

The Simple Truth:  Unless you put God and your relationship with Him at the top of your list, you will never be truly happy with the things happening in your life.

Pray:

Lord, thank You for all You’ve provided me with in this life.  Help me to have You and Your desires for me as the focal point of my life.  Amen.

Peace, love & prayers-

K

Straying

Verse of the Day:
1 Timothy 1:6


Some people have left these qualities behind and have turned to fruitless discussion.

I think teenagers know best that life gets pretty busy, and it gets hard to keep in touch with God. Sometimes we stray away from the Lord, and to be honest it is hard to get back on track. What's so awesome about God is that He will ALWAYS accept us, even after we have wandered on our own path. I found this song about straying and having God change hearts. It's really good, give it a listen!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pnN-4JcXoDs

The Simple Truth: It is easy to stray away from God and wander down our own paths, but God will always accept us back into His heart.

Pray:

Lord, help me not to stray from you. If I do stray, remind me that You will be right there to let me back on Your path. Change me to stay strong in  you always, no matter how hectic my life can get. Amen.

Have a great weekend!

Let your light shine.

-Lo

Words

Verse of the Day:
Mathew 12:37


Jesus said, "For by your words you shall be justified, and by your words you shall be condemned"


Sometimes I do not realize the power of words. I could be having an awful day and someone could come up to me and compliment me or give me encouragement and immediately my day can be brighter. Or just the opposite -- someone could say something nasty to make my day absolutely terrible. Words can make or break our day.

Most of us do a lot of talking every day. We talk to our parents, our teachers, and our friends. Do we realize how much our words mean though? Words are more important than we think! We use words to encourage others. We use words to put people down. We use words to make promises; to break promises. We use words to express our love and our dislike toward others. Words you spoke yesterday may define how your day was today.

Be conscious of the words you use around others and take into consideration the power in them. Think before you speak! :)

The Simple Truth: Words are important and very powerful. They can have more impact than you think.

Pray:


Lord, help me to use my words wisely and to think before I speak. Help me to encourage others with my words, not put them down. Help me understand the importance of words. Amen.

Let your light shine.
-Lo

Broken Pots

A water bearer in India had two large pots, each hung on each end of a pole which he carried across his neck. One of the pots had a crack in it, and while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water at the end of the long walk from the stream to the master's house, the cracked pot arrived only half full. For a full two years this went on daily, with the bearer delivering only one and a half pots full of water in his master's house. Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments, perfect to the end for which it was made. But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and miserable that it was able to accomplish only half of what it had been made to do.

After two years of what it perceived to be a bitter failure, it spoke to the water bearer one day by the stream. "I am ashamed of myself, and I want to apologize to you."

"Why?" asked the bearer. "What are you ashamed of?"

"I have been able, for these past two years, to deliver only half my load because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your master's house. Because of my flaws, you have to do all of this work, and you don't get full value from your efforts," the pot said.

The water bearer felt sorry for the old cracked pot, and in his compassion he said, "As we return to the master's house, I want you to notice the beautiful flowers along the path."

Indeed, as they went up the hill, the old cracked pot took notice of the sun warming the beautiful wild flowers on the side of the path, and this cheered it some. But at the end of the trail, it still felt bad because it had leaked out half its load, and so again it apologized to the bearer for its failure.

The bearer said to the pot, "Did you notice that there were flowers only on your side of your path, but not on the other pot's side? That's because I have always known about your flaw, and I took advantage of it. I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back from the stream, you've watered them. For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate my master's table. Without you being just the way you are, he would not have this beauty to grace his house."

Each of us has our own unique flaws. We are all cracked pots. But if we will allow it, the Lord will use our flaws to grace His Father's table. In God's great economy, nothing goes to waste. So as we seek ways to minister together, and as God calls you to the tasks He has appointed for you, don't be afraid of your flaws. Acknowledge them, and allow Him to take advantage of them, and you, too, can be the cause of beauty in His pathway.

100

Verse of the Day:
2 Corinthians 5:9


So whether we are here in this body or away from this body, our goal is to please Him.


Well, here we are. We've made it to our 100th post! And YOU, our readers, have really helped us reach this milestone.

We started this blog in August kind of unsure what it would be like. We didn't have much experience writing devotionals, but we sure tried our hardest! Since it was August, we had a lot of time to write blogs, and a lot of times we would have blogs pre-written and ready to post. Then school started. We both found ourselves extremely busy and had a harder time squeezing in time to write. Then our grandpa died. Everything in our lives changed, and getting back into the swing of things took awhile. Eventually we got back into writing again.

Throughout this all, we'd ask ourselves if anyone was even reading our blog. Then every once and while, someone would approach us and say "I LOVE your blog. It relates to my life and has great messages!" We'd get fired up about writing again.

Sometimes it takes a lot to think up a good blog on a night with a lot of homework, but we have two great reasons to keep up the hard work. One is YOU, our readers. We want to help you stay in touch with Jesus even when your own lives get busy. Secondly, we're doing this to to strengthen our relationship with the Lord and to please Him.

The Simple Truth: No matter how crazy our lives may be, with a determination and help from God, any goal can be met.

Pray:


Lord, help me to keep you in mind when I am reaching for goals. Help me to realize that you are here to help me and motivate me for whatever challenge I pursue. Amen.

Happy 100th Post! Thanks for reading!

L&K

Character

Verse of the Day:

1 Corinthians 15:33

Do not be misled, bad company corrupts good character.

When I was in high school, I had a really great group of friends.  We all had similar morals and values, none of us drank, and we all were very driven to do well in school, excel in sports, and be involved in as many activities as we could.

I went to college without anyone from Watertown.  I was excited to make a name for myself and not be Erin’s little sister and to make all new friends.  A few weeks into school, I realized I hadn’t met very many people who were like my friends back home.  I was not spending time with people who were building me up in general, and especially not building me up in my faith.  Many of the girls I was hanging out with weren’t concerned about doing well in school, they liked to go out drink 4 nights a week, and they were hanging out with a new boy every day.  These were NOT the type of people I wanted as my friends.  I’m not sure where I would be if that would have been the group of friends I stuck with, but I’m willing to bet it wouldn’t be close to where I am now.

Eventually I did meet people who were much more similar to me.  I’ve met some of the most amazing people at college who my life would be so very different without.  And all of these people have helped me to become a BETTER person.  They’ve made me who I am today and helped me to get where I am right now – and I’m so happy with where that is.  So just like bad company corrupts good character, I think that good company can help your character, even if it’s good already.

The Simple Truth: No matter how much you try to control it, you DO end up becoming similar to the people you spend the most time with.

Pray:

Lord, help me to choose the people I spend my time with wisely.  I know that if I trust You, You will lead me to the people who will help make me who I am supposed to be.  Amen. 

Peace, love & prayers –

K

We Are Many Parts

Verse of the Day:
Romans 12:4


Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function.


As many of you know, I am a large choir nerd. This past summer, I got the opportunity to go to All-State Choir camp. IT WAS AWESOME. I had a wonderful director, and overall the experience was just amazing.


I've worked really hard to be a good singer,and I've realized that I've kind of got a knack for it. I thought I was pretty good just on my own! Then I went to camp last August. I was blown away. When we all came together as a group, we were so powerful. It was so overwhelming. Each of our individual talents came together to form one awesome giant sound of awesomeness. We all had different parts, too. I was a soprano, but there were other voice parts as well. We all came together to perform our specific role, and in the end, it turned out fantastic.


We all have different gifts. It's just the way it is. When we come together, though, we are so powerful. In a church, it wouldn't make sense for everyone there to be the pastor. We need the singer, the person who reads scripture, and the people who attend church to pull everything off. We all have a role and it's up to us to come together with everyone else to make it twice as powerful.


The Simple Truth: We all have different individual gifts, but when we come together and unite, the results are twice as impactful.


Pray:


Lord, help me to recognize my individual talents and my individual roles. Help me to then come together and pull my weight to make any group event a success. Amen!


Let your light shine.
-Lo

Messy Houses & Lives

Verse of the Day:

Psalm 51:2

Wash away all my inequity and cleanse me of my sins.

My apartment at college is not what I would call clean.  With four busy 20-something girls living in it, it gets pretty dirty really fast.  Little things like not putting our shoes on the rug or not doing our dishes because we think we don’t have time can make a dirty house quicker than we realize.  I think a lot of it goes back to a ‘I’ll clean that up when I have time!’ mentality.  Then we look around one day and realize what a mess we’ve made and one or all of us goes on a ‘cleaning spree’ and the place is spotless… For a few hours at least.

When our lives get busy, we, ourselves, can also get ‘messy’.  We accumulate sin or grudges or baggage, and pretty soon our lives are full of things that are making our souls unclean.  We look around one day and realize that even though we planned on cleaning our lives up, we’re in a bigger mess than we thought we’d be in.  When we see that our life needs some major cleaning, we can’t just do it ourselves.  We need to go to God and ask for forgiveness and His help to make our lives pure again.

The Simple Truth:  Our lives, just like our houses, get messy.  Look around at where you’re at and see if you need to ask God to help you do a little cleaning.

Pray:

Lord, help me to be able to see my life how You see it and ask for help when I need to make myself pure again.  Thank You for always forgiving me, no matter how big of a mess I’ve made of things.  Amen.  

Peace, love & prayers-

K

Behind the Scenes

Verse of the Day:
Psalm 116:6


The Lord protects the simple hearted.

Today during my free block I was hanging out in the library. I overheard some teachers talking. They were talking about their kids and how much they had to figure out before the day was over. They had to get kids to different sports practices, get a meal together, and pick up kids from daycare. At the same time, they were also in charge of 30 students. They had papers to grade, finals to get ready, and students to discipline. What I'm getting at is that teachers (and a lot of other people) do a lot more work behind the scenes than we think they do. We usually don't give them enough credit. We don't thank them for the things that we cannot see.

Relating this to God -- I think there are a ton of ways throughout our lives that God has protected us and we didn't even know it. I don't think we know how many times God has directed us away from trouble. Usually, we probably don't even realize it's happening. So today, thank God for the ways He has protected you from behind the scenes.

The Simple Truth: Although there are many wonderful things God gives us that are visible, there are many times He has protected us from harm and we don't even know it.

Pray:

Lord, thank you for protecting me, even when I don't know it. Thank you for keeping me safe and helping me make right decisions. Thank you for the things you do for me that I cannot see.

Let your light shine.
-Lo

Taste & See

Verse of the Day:

Psalm 34:8

O taste and see that the Lord is good; how blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him!

I love to cook.  It totally destresses me when I can be in the kitchen all alone, making some sort of delicious dinner for myself, or even better – for other people.  I love to be able to serve others and making them meals is a great way to do it.  And I think I have some pretty tasty dishes.  ; )

So, you can read  this blog about what a great cook I think I am or I could tell you in person or someone else who has eaten something I’ve made could tell you,  but are you yourself really going to believe it until you actually eat something I’ve cooked?  Probably not. 

In the same way, we can read all we want about God.  We can go to church and hear about all of the miracles He performed.  Our friends and family can tell us about their relationship with God.  But until YOU 'eat' God’s word and experience Him yourself, you won’t be able to fully know all that He has to offer you.

The Simple Truth:  No matter how much you read or hear about God, you will never be able to ‘taste’ all that He is until you experience Him yourself.

Pray:

Lord, help me to move deeper into a relationship with you.  I know that if I want to know you more, I have to have my own encounters with You, not just hear about other people’s.  Thank You for giving me the chance to have a loving relationship with You.  Amen.

Peace, love & prayers-

K

Roots

Verse of the Day:
Ephesians 3:17


Your roots will grow down into God's love and keep you strong.


We all have roots. It just matters where we plant them. This short video has a great message and really gets you thinking about where you roots are. So sit back, relax, and enjoy this short clip :)

http://www.godtube.com/watch/?v=7PLGGPNX

The Simple Truth: We need to allow God to be our master gardener to keep our roots strong and healthy.

Pray:


Lord, help me to know that I do not need to live in the past. I can live in Your garden where you will nourish me daily and give me exactly what I need. Amen.

Let your light shine.
-Lo

Patience

Verse of the Day:

1 Thessalonians 5:14

And we urge you, brothers and sisters, warn those who are idle and disruptive, encourage the disheartened, help the weak, and be patient with everyone.

So after that adventure getting TO our cruise, we were hoping for a less exciting trip back.  And it did turn out to be less exciting, but only by a bit.  After getting off our ship, all we wanted to do was be back home.  Instead we ended up debarking (fancy word that I really wanted to use – it just means get off the ship. J) earlier than originally planned and getting to the airport about 5 hours before our plane took off.  Let me tell you how exciting the Miami airport is – not very. 

We were supposed to board at 12:20, but it never happened.  Time kept passing.  We kept getting more bored and more impatient.  Pretty soon, it was 1:30 and our plane should have been in the air for a half hour.  Then someone came over the intercom and informed us that there had been a scheduling error, and there were no flight attendants for our plane.  I mean, really?  By this point, I was ready to put on a flight attendant uniform, show people what to do if the plane crashed, and serve drinks and peanuts to them.  I could not stand to be in that airport any longer!  Our plane didn’t end up leaving until 2:30 and we obviously got home later than expected.  But the end result was the same: we got home.

A lot of things in our life are out of our control.  We couldn’t do anything to make that situation better, besides being patient with ourselves, each other, and the airport employees.  At one point, part of me wanted to go up to the counter and yell at them for all the trouble they were causing, but when I really thought about it, I realized that would have solved nothing.  They were doing the best they could, as are most people when situations like that occur.  Being patient is hard, it really is.  But we’ve all been in situations where people were patient with us and it meant the world. 

One of my favorite sayings is “Be kinder than necessary, for everyone you meet is fighting a great battle.”  I read that quote every day before I go to school, work, or wherever I am going and I encourage you to do the same.

The Simple Truth:  Things rarely work out exactly the way we plan them, but there is no reason we shouldn’t handle even the most frustrating situations with patience. 

Pray:

Lord, help me to be patient in all areas of my life, whether it be with situations, people, or You.  I know that patience will get me farther than overreacting will.  Thank You for ALWAYS being patient with me.  Amen.

Peace, love & prayers -

K

Trust

Verse of the Day:
Psalm 9:10


Those who know your name will trust in you, for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you.



Well, we went on our cruise! And it was AWESOME. Buuuuut, before we even got to Florida to get on our cruise ship, we had some trouble.


You see, we boarded our plane, sat on it for about 45 minutes, and then the pilot came over the intercom to tell us that our flight was cancelled due to technical difficulties with the plane. We had a boat to catch, so we needed to get another flight ASAP. We got tickets for another flight to Florida, and then at the last minute, a voice came over the intercom. "Salonek (they pronounced our name wrong also) party of 4, we don't have enough room for all of you on this flight"


AHHHH we were freaking out! When it came down to it, someone backed out of flying that flight and another person didn't show up. We trusted the airline company to get us to Florida on time to catch our cruise, and after much changing of plans, we finally made it and had a great time.


Relating this to God, we trust God, but sometimes he leads us through detours that seem totally ridiculous to us. In the end though, we always get where we were supposed to go.


The Simple Truth: Even when it seems like God is leading us the wrong way, trust in Him and you will get to exactly where you need to be.


Pray:


Lord, help me to realize that things do not always go as they are planned, but to know that I need to trust in You and everything will work out. Amen.


Let your light shine.
-Lo

Guidance

Verse of the Day:
Proverbs 16:9


Human hearts can plan their course, but the Lord determines their steps.  


I am a big planner.  I like to know when, why, and how things are going to happen.  Even if an event is months away, I like to know what time I will need to be there, what I should be wearing, what I should bring, etc.  Many times, other people don't plan that far in advance, so they can't give me an answer... And that really stresses me out!  I like being able to take big steps in planning instead of little ones as the details come in.

The guidance we receive from God many times doesn't come in big pieces.  Usually it comes slowly in small pieces, He shows you just enough for you to trust His plan enough to take that next little step.  He never revels His plans for us all at once.  By doing this, He teaches us to trust Him more and more.  He's a tricky guy, huh? ; )

The Simple Truth: Never doubt that God has a great plan for you - no matter how slowly He shows it to you.

Pray:
Lord, thank you for the great plans You have for my life.  Sometimes it's hard to not have things happen when or how I want them to, but help me to be patient and trust that You will show them to me when the time is right.  Amen.

Peace, love & prayers-
K

P.S.  There won't be any entries for a few days because we'll be soakin' up some sun on a cruise ship. :)

Practice

Verse of the Day:
Philippians 4:9


Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me - everything you head from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you.


I've been playing piano for 11 years. I didn't sit down as a 1st grader and pull out Beethoven's 9th Symphony at my first lesson, though. I started at the basics. After much practice and discipline, I began to work on more advanced things. I made progress. It wasn't like I had two or three lessons and I had every aspect of piano down. In fact, there are still things I don't know about the piano and the techniques to use. I am still learning today!

The same goes with our spiritual life. It takes practice. It takes discipline. First we need to master the basics of Christian living, and then we can move on toward the more advanced aspects of Christianity. The more we practice disciplines such as prayer, Bible study, and service, the more we grow spiritually. The more we will mature to the person God created us to be.

The Simple Truth: Just like playing the piano, our spiritual journey takes practice and discipline.

Pray:


Lord, help me to know that I will not be perfect at Christianity at first. It takes practice and discipline. Help me to do things like reading the Bible and praying to practice my faith so that one day I will be the Christian you created me to be. Amen.

Let your light shine.
-Lo

God's Ways

Verse of the Day:

Isaiah 55:8

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord.

It amazes me every day how differently everyone’s mind works.  I can see a situation and come to one conclusion, and someone else can see the same situation and come to a completely different conclusion.  I have never met two humans who think or act exactly the same.  Our brains interpret information, and we act, talk, and feel accordingly. 

God’s thoughts and ways are even more different than the variation of humans.  Sometimes I think extremely rationally and wonder “How can He know everyone’s prayer?  How does He have a plan for all of us?”  But then I remember – He isn’t us.  He isn’t human and His ways, thoughts, and plans are much higher than us and far beyond what we, as humans, can understand.  He can see into the future further than than we can even imagine, and His plan all works according to that.  

The Simple Truth:  God works in ways that are far beyond our comprehension.  Trust Him to know what is right for you.

Pray:

Lord, remind me that You don’t think or act like we do.  Your ways are divine and I cannot imagine the great things You have planned for me.  Amen.  

Peace, love & prayers-

K