Being Shameless

Shameless is a word that is often thrown around in many different contexts. Sometimes in a good way, sometimes in a not so good. Either way, I just wanted to hit on some things that have been on my mind lately. At church we had a guest speaker talk about “shamelessness”. Needless to say it was a great message and I just wanted to share my thoughts on it and hopefully encourage ya’ll. Shame is something I think is not of God. I truly believe the devil uses shame in our lives to hinder our relationship with Jesus, and to be honest, shame is a very good way for doing so. The thing about shame is that it is something we dont have to deal with. Shame is what we had in our old lives (1 Cor. 6:9-11). Jesus has given us a new life, a new name and no shame. Shame is a result of sin, I think we can all agree on that. By Jesus taking our penalty for sin on that cross, we no longer are obligated to deal with that shame, but to flee from temptation and evil, living a live worthy of His cause. Now this is not to say that we will never sin and fall short, but we need to focus ourselves on God so that not if but when we do fall, we are able to let that sin go and come straight to Jesus, instead of taking that shame on our own backs. Oswald Chambers write in My Utmost for His Highest, “Yet John 3:9 does not mean that we cannot sin-it simply means that if we will obey the life of God in us, that we do not have to sin.”

Our speaker left us with 3 great points that I want to share with you to end this:

1) God will reveal your shame so you can deal with the blame.

if we conceal our shame, and do not allow God to take it from us, we are not able to deal with the “blame” of it and that pushes us off course in our relationship with God.

2) God wants to remove your shame and give you a new name.

God promises us that when we come to Him, confessing our sin(shame) that He removes it from us, making us pure and holy allowing our relationship with Him to thrive.

3) God will retool your shame to improve your game.

God uses our downfalls not against us, but uses them to make us stronger and fall more in love with Him, to show that love to a world full of people who don’t know Jesus, who carry their shame alone.

thats all I got, I hope this is an encouragement to you!

holla

-Bhavs

“Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.”- 1 Corinthians 6:9-11

Why Do We Fall?

So I’ve been watching Batman Begins a lot lately. There is one line that keeps poppin’ up in my head. Its when the butler Alfred asks Bruce Wayne, “Master Bruce, why is it we fall? So we can get back up again.” I think alot of times we fall, and we forget to “get back up”. The best part about our lives, is that when we fall into sin, we have the choice to rise from the ashes and get back up to our feet. I really have a bad habit of falling, and not getting back up immediately. When I stay “down”, it seems that, thats when my relationship with God really seems distant, because I’m refusing to rest in God, and take on my problems alone. We had a really good bible study not too many days ago about how we view our lives and go about living them. The bottom line was that we should not dwell on the “no-no’s” of life and where we fall short, but just clinging to God so that even if we do fall, our relationship with God is so good that He picks us up right where we’re at and takes us as we are. So to get back up isn’t just “doing the right things” but loving Jesus so that you are helped up, and hopefully led in a way so that you wont fall in that way again. We’re going to fall, but we have a loving God who allows us to get back up, and cling to Him in times of trouble, happiness, sadness, trials, hard times, and easy times. Go Him. Hope this encourages you!

Holla

-Bhavs

“Jesus looked at them and said, ‘With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.’ “-Matthew 19:26

We Gotta Grow

At church last night we were continuing our trek through the “God on Film” series and Pastor D gave an amazing message on growth. Without fail, every time he speaks its great, but last night really really really hit home. He talked about how we all have this “shadow side” which is a side that we mask, or in other words our flesh or sin. He defined our shadow side as: that part of me that wants to do its own thing, totally independent of God. Ya as soon as he said that, I knew exactly what he walk talking about, because I can see that side in my life come out alot, when the Godly thing is just “too hard” or “unattainable”. Romans 7:14-18 really hits this point well. Its Paul talking about how he is from the flesh, sold under sin. Then talks about how he doesnt even understand his own actions because what he does is not what he wants to do, and the things he wants to do, he doesnt do. That right there sums up our Christian lifestyles ya know. We try so hard to attain this Godliness level, then we always fall short, and we then dwell on that, because we know what we are doing is not what we want to do. The best part of this though is at the end of chapter 7 when Paul asks who will save him from this body of death, then goes on to thank Jesus Christ, because now he can serve God through the loving and saving Jesus. thats a pretty sweet deal to me.

Pastor D gave to reality’s on how we can grow in our relationship with Jesus.

1) SUBMISSION to the spirit of God.

2) OBEDIENCE to the word of God.

We need to submit so that we can learn to follow His teachings and let Him remain in our lives. And we need to obey His word that that He can work in us and allow us to grow.

Pastor D used a really good analogy for these points: Every Olympic athlete, has a coach and follows every thing to coach has him or her do. They do this because the coach knows whats best for that athlete, and through submission and obedience this athlete will grow, improve, and go on to be successful. We have to let God be our coach. He knows whats best for us, thats why He sent His Son to die for us, so that we can have an intimate relationship with Him, so that we can grow and prosper in this life, and live it to the fullest.

Anyways thats all I really got, there was def more, but this is a rough outline. If you get a chance, I really hope you come check out Mosaic, its such a sweet place, close to school, and great teaching. Mosaicland.org is the website, check it out or just get in touch with me if you have any questions about it!

I’m attaching a Trip Lee song called “Gotta Grow” and it just really makes sense when ya listen to it, hope ya’ll are doing well.

Holla

-Bhavs

“So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want.”- Galatians 5:16-17

Anxiety

I think the one thing, as a college student, that I deal with the most, is the feeling of anxiety. I feel like we have so much pressure on us as students, as well as so many things going on in our lives that we try to take all those burdens on ourselves. By that I’m saying that we don’t let God do what He wants to do, which is cut in and carry our burdens for us, and we end up giving into anxiety and letting it get the best of us. One of my favorite characteristics about God is not His giving, but the the love He shows for us, and the compassion He has for us. 1 Peter 5:7 says “cast all your cares upon God, because He cares for you.” Thats such an awesome reminder of how loving our Jesus is. It nowhere says in the bible to “only come to Him when you need Him” but it says cast ALL your cares on Him. Philippians 4:6-7 talks about not being anxious about anything, but in everything, through prayer present your requests to God, who has a peace that transcends all understanding. Thats a pretty sweet deal to me, that God loves us so much, not just to die for us, but to allow us to be in an intimate relationship with Him while we spend our time here on Earth. So ya, I hope this just encourages you to seek His face in all times of trial and anxiety, letting Him take your burdens and ease your heart and mind in Him, because He cares for us! Hope ya’ll are having a great day and a baller summer.

Holla

-Bhavs

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”- Philippians 4:6-7

“Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.”- 1 Peter 5:7

sick skills

not too long ago I found myself thinking about the amount of skill it takes to be an amazing athlete, but more on the EPL (english premier league) level. I cant even start to imagine the amount of speed, consistency, and skill that you would need to have a shot a being an EPL player. Well one of those questions, those relating to consistency and skill, was answered for me when I came across a nike soccer commercial. The commercial stars EPL star Wayne Rooney and what he does is set up a camera, draw a target on it, jogs about 20 yards out, starts juggling a ball, turns and volleys it, striking the camera perfectly. Of course thats amazing, and well my next question would be weather that is real or not. That answer came right after that when I saw a behind the scenes video as well. amazing, so I just wanted to share em with you. hope you enjoy, and are having an amazing day.

holla,

-Bhavs

the commercial

the making of, even more amazing

The power of the cross

I’ve been listening to this song alot lately called “Mighty Is The Power Of The Cross” by Chris Tomlin and it is an amazing song. Recently I’ve been thinking about how I’m so unworthy sometimes of the love of Jesus that its unfathomable to believe that He still loves me enough to die for me. Then I get to thinking about how there are so many times I become that mocker at the cross, spitting on Him, throwing stones, laughing, chanting for death, and not believing. This song has really brought back the bottom line of Jesus, and that is His love trumps all other things in our lives, including sin. The words in this song are just so powerful and really struck me. The first verse states:

“what can take a dying man and raise him up to life again? What can heal a wounded soul? What can make us white as snow? What can fill the emptiness? What can mend our brokenness?”

I just love that, It really made me think back to the root of the death of Jesus 2000 years ago, He DIED on that cross so that we can have LIFE. He fills us up, satisfies us like no other, raises us up to life, cleanses us, makes us pure, and mends our brokenness. Then the chorus talks about how amazing and awesome that cross was and is, and what it did for us. I’m attaching the song via youtube video, which the video itself was pretty well done as well. I hope you enjoy this song and really let it sink in as well!

Holla,

-Bhavs

Book Review: “Through Painted Deserts” by Donald Miller

So after a long break of not reading it, I finally finished Through Painted Deserts by Don Miller. Let me the first one to recommend this book if you havent read it! Its amazing. Don Miller is by far one of the greatest authors I have ever read. He just really knows how to put words together in a way that really hit home and make you realize maybe there is more to this world than which we see. Through Painted Deserts is all about Don’s road trip across the country with a friend named Paul. It tells of all the struggles they encountered, many conversations they had, and all the experiences they went through. To summarize the book, I think its main purpose is trying to make us realize that there has to be more to life than just existing, there has to be a way to experience life and not just getting through it. At the end of the book, Don makes some great points but the one I love the most is this. There is more to life than a steady job, money, cars and girls. Life should be about letting God in, loving Him, letting His love exist in you to pour out to others, experiencing what God has for you now, enjoying Him, and again, just really falling in love with God. In his book, he just breaks down life to make it so much simpler, and thats the point of life, simplicity, not just making life boring, but making God exciting, therefore making your life exciting.

again, excellent read, easy read, and just a great reminder of what life is really all about.

Holla,

-Bhavs

“It is a wonder of that those exposed to such beauty forfeit the great questions in the face of this miraculous evidence. I think again about this small period of grace, and thank God for it, that if only for a season, i could feel the why of life, see it in a metaphor of light, in the endless of the cosmos, see it in the miracle of friendship. And had these mountains the ability to reason, perhaps they would contemplate the beauty of humanity, and praise God for the miracle that each of us is, pondering the majesty of God and the wonder of man in one bewildering context. Their brows are rumpled even now, and their arms are stretched toward heaven.” -Donald Miller. Through Painted Deserts

God On Film: “Hancock”-purpose, pt 2

so tonight at church we continued with our God on Film series using the movie Hancock and Pastor D gave a great message on purpose, and finding that in our lives, adding on to last week’s message about purpose. Tonight was really concentrated on the power of purpose, which is something that I really needed to hear tonight. Pastor D made some really good points and I just wanted to share them with you as well as some of my own thoughts about it. His 3 points were:

1) Purpose enables us to live out of our strengths

2) Purpose compels us to serve others

3) Purpose gives us a new way of seeing ourselves

Some things are given to us from God, and they are things created to be done well, so why wouldn’t we capitalize on these things we’ve been given?! Finding God’s purpose in our lives can be one of the toughest jobs we have. But what I really took away from tonight was a purpose I think God has for all of us, and that would be witnessing to others. Ya i know He has plans, because He has given us specific gifts and talents, (athleticism, singing/music, preaching, relational and so on) but I think no matter how we use our talents, they should be used to expand His kingdom and everything we do should resonate Jesus Christ. ya diggg

Holla,

-Bhavs

“We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man’s gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith.”-Romans 12:6

“Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms.”-1Peter 4:10

What is Love?

So love is a pretty wide subject, and a pretty hard one to define at that. I’m gonna take a shot at trying to explain what lately I’ve learned what love is, and no I’m not talking about dating relationships/marriage or whatever, I’m talking about loving other people, in general, as Jesus loves. You know I used to think love was these little tingles you get in your stomach when you think about someone special. boy was I wrong, its so much more than that, weather it be in a boyfriend/girlfriend, husband/wife, sibling/family, friends/friends, Christians/non-Christians. Didn’t expect that last one in there did you? I think love is the most under rated thing in the bible, not because it doesnt really talk about it, because it does, but because we as humans seem to down play what love really is, which is the Gospel of Jesus Christ. 1 John 4:16 states that “God is Love”. And then 1 Corinthians 13:4 goes on to say that “Love is patient, love is kind, It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.” So therefore if God is love, that means God is patient, kind, doesnt envy, doesnt boast, and is not proud. We were created in God’s image, we have a perfect example set for us in Jesus Christ, so therefore love is showing patience, kindness, not being envious, not boasting, and not being proud. Thats a huge part of love, and there is one more, the second half of what I believe love is, and its summed up in 1 John 3:16 and its states, “this is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.” This is what love is! Laying down our lives for OTHERS. If we can love like that, imagine the possibilities! Imagine all the less hate, the less violence, and just meanness. Now I’m aware that loving like this is very hard to do, but its how Jesus loves us, that He was willing to give up His life for us, on a cross, so we don’t have to take that penalty, and can spend eternity with Him in Heaven.

So to sum it up, I would say loving someone is seeing their imperfections, and letting them go, so that you can see them as perfect, as Jesus sees us, even when we’re bent and broken, we are made whole and perfect through the LOVE of God.

Holla,

-Bhavs

“This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.”-1 John 3:16

” Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.”-John 15:13

School Starts back up for sesh 2

Somehow I ended up doing okay in anatomy 1 this summer, now its on to anatomy 2 in the second half of summer. Took my first test and thought i did amazingly, then I got it back today to find out I got a C, needless to say that is not the good start that I hoped to get off to. I have my first lab practical tomorrow, so we’ll see how that goes. Its all on the blood vessels, and we have to know em all, and well its just some pretty confusing stuff, as well as all this other stuff about how and where blood circulates, the order of circulation, different types of blood cells, and on and on. I feel pretty confident with this stuff, but I don’t want to blow this one considering I’m kind of in the hole already. So ya.

on another note, I love not having that job anymore because I have had so much time to do things like read, work out, nap and so on. I’ve been reffing soccer 2-3 days a week and thats been a great source of income in less than half the hours of my old job, and I even get in some exercise there!

last thing, i’m going to Cali in less than 5 weeks to end my summer off right, so I’m stoked!

holla

-Bhavs