Second chances

How amazing our God is! That He would forgive our sins and continue to allow us to serve Him when we had wronged Him so much!

And how great He is to allow us to try again, and to give us second and even third chances..... Even more than that! He is always growing and changing us to become more like Him and giving us more opportunities to serve Him.

I am so sincerely thankful for the mercy of my Saviour and His second chances. When I have messed things up royally and my whole life doesn't make sense, I can find a quiet place and hear His voice. Sometimes He uses others to show me how wrong I am, or where I have strayed from His perfect plan for my life...

But always, He is ready to forgive and forget and give me one more chance to serve Him. And I love Him with all my heart!

Make your life count!
Always,
Amanda

Tuned to His Frequency

Last semester I had the chance to be a part of a drama production at Golden State Baptist College. It was an absolutely incredible experience and I loved it. Part of my job in the evening performance was to be the backstage manager of sorts. I had a headset and walkie talkie set. I was in communication with the sound booth, and the lighting crew the entire time. Yes, I talked to the actors backstage, and did other things. But I was still wearing the headset and I could talk to them and hear everything they were saying.

It reminded me of how prayer should be in our lives. Prayer isn't necessarily always talking to God. Sometimes it is just being there to listen. To keep tabs on His thoughts, even if when we aren't specifically focused on Him.

I wasn't with the other crew members. I couldn't see them, and I wasn't in the same place. But I could always hear them, no matter what I was doing. I was constantly in touch with what they needed from me, and what was going on where they were. And my radio was always tuned to their frequency.

We may not be able to pray 24/7, but that does not mean that we can't always hear God. When we are truly surrendered and right with Him, He sends us "messages" throughout the day to help us and guide our steps.

Prayer is so much more than just praying. It is living with the knowledge that God is always there, and listening for Him all the time. Like a radio, it's always being tuned to His frequency.

Make today count!
Always,
Amanda

Giving God Your Idols

Giving up the very thing that means the most to us. Laying all our dreams and desires down at the feet of our precious Savior. How noble it seems, and how far we think we have gone to honor Him!

But are we laying a precious treasure at His feet?

Or an idol?

Idols are anything in our lives that we love more than God. Our initial reaction to a statement like that is repulsion. Of course we would never love anything more than God!! Right?

But sometimes idols hide well. Sometimes they really are gifts from God that the devil has used to sidetrack us. Our idols might be a person, a job, a habit, or even our dreams for the future. But whatever they are, they keep us from loving our King first and keeping Him on the throne of our hearts. Idol worship in the Bible was often symbolized as spiritual adultery. Leaving our first love for something or someone else.

Of course, we would never call it an idol. It isn't that we worship that dream or the person or situation. But we just can't imagine our lives without it. We will do anything for God........ As long as that one thing is still in our lives.

Idols are hard to identify sometimes but they are even harder to get rid of. We think that by telling God that He can do whatever He wants in our life, even taking that one thing from us, that we are offering our best to God.

But God wants nothing to do with our idols. Instead of a sweet sacrifice of love, we are offering Him our own rejection of His person! What a terrible thought! We are telling God that because we hold this thing to be more important than Him, we will give it to Him to show our love. How confusing!

It's like slapping someone in the face and then telling them it was a gift because of how much you love them.

God does not appreciate us giving Him our idols. In fact, He hates them. They take many different shapes and sizes but they are all the same. They steal our heart, our time, our energy and our dreams away from our Heavenly King. They turn our focus away from His dear face.

In order to love Him first, we must tear down the idols of our hearts, and turn our eyes back to our loving Savior. Just like in Judges, the very godly kings took down the high places and cut down the groves, so we must completely cleanse our lives of everything that reminds us of that idol. God can only pour Himself into an empty vessel, He only wants to use a clean one.

I want to encourage you to search your heart and ask God to show you any idols that you may have. Be sincere, and honest before the Lord. Be 100% willing to turn away from anything that is stealing your heart. Put no qualifications on God's will for you. Love Him first and give Him everything, and He will shine His miraculous power through your life.

Make today count!
Always,
Amanda

Just a good quote!

Be of good cheer. Do not think of today's failures, but of the success that may come tomorrow. You have set yourselves a difficult task, but you will succeed if you persevere; and you will find a joy in overcoming obstacles. Remember, no effort that we make to attain something beautiful is ever lost.

3 easy ways to get patience in 5 minutes! Guaranteed!

Ever heard that slogan before? Maybe not with the word "patience" but with something? There are ads all over the place online and in magazines telling you that you can gain what you want in just a few easy steps or a few easy minutes. And half the time they try to convince you that no effort is required in achieving your goals.

But that's the world's system. God works in an entirely different way. He allows us to go through long trials and struggles to teach us patience. We are so used to the quick and easy methods of getting what we want in life, that we hate waiting for the Lord. But there is no easy or quick way to learn patience. It is a very long, sometimes very difficult process that God uses to conform us into His image.

But it is very much worth it. No matter what goes on in our lives, God is using it to build patience in us. Take your trials to the Lord and leave your burdens at the Cross. He wants you to trust Him in this difficult situation, and He will use it to build you up and draw you closer to Him.

Remember that no matter what you're going through, there is no need to fear, when God is on your side. Let Him build your patience.

Make today count!
Always,
~ Amanda ♥

It's Been One Year!

It doesn't seem possible that it could have already been one year since I started this blog!

God has been so good to me in the last year and has changed me in so many ways I can hardly begin to count them. I am overwhelmed with His goodness to me and His care for me over the last year.

If I had to give one big lesson I've learned over the last year, it would be that God always has a plan and sometimes we just have to trust Him with it. There is ALWAYS a reason for what is going on in my life and He is working through me.

Thank you to everyone who has read and followed this blog. You are a blessing and encouragement! May God bless you this Independence Day and may He bless America!

Make today count!
Always,
~ Amanda