Thankful

so it being Thanksgiving and all, I figured I’d make a list of what I was thankful for. A church email this morning reminded me how easy it is to take things in life for granted, and not even thank God for the blessings you receive.

Jesus

good conversation

family

reading

forgivness

food

grace

quiet times

clean water

waking up every morning

freedom

school

tangible things of this world

technology

relationships

good friends

perfect love

my dog

soccer

getting a chance to be a witness

watching tv

hope

a great girlfriend

knowledge/learning

bright sun

music

snow

exercise

work

money

chapstick for this weather

getting through school

late night talks

watching movies

relaxing

I Hope we can all remember to thank God on more than just today for everything we have and are given.

“Now, our God, we give you thanks, and praise your glorious name.”-1 Chronicles 29:13

“Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for men.”-Psalm 107:21

“give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”-1 Thessalonians 5:18

Holla,

-Bhavs

Living the Dream

I would like to say to start off that this post is kind of sobering, so i’m sorry if its a morbid topic.

Last night I had one of those dreams.  You know, the kind that really make you question and appreciate the brevity of life.  I had a dream that I was diagnosed with cancer, and that it was inoperable.  I just remember sitting in my hospital bed and wishing someone would come visit me.  Then what really got me thinking was why no one would come.  As a sat in the coldness of that room, I just kept waiting for the door to open and see a familiar face to drop in to check on me.  But it never happened.  As I woke up and tried to recall this dream, I had to examine myself and figure out why would no one come or care that I was dying.

I came to a couple conclusions about this dream.

1) life is short, so its not something to be taken for granted

2) how we treat people really does make a difference, not just so you wont be alone, but because you are a light in a dark world, a light in which shines Jesus all around you, no matter where you are.  If we love people with a heart like God’s, imagine how the world could change.

3) It made me realize how I’ve been treating people.  I don’t want my love to be exclusive or subjective. If I was sitting in a hospital bed, I would want that room to be packed with people not because I’m popular or anything, but because I have sincerely loved them and they are willing to love me back.

4) If I was given a certain amount of time to live, I would change how I act, love, treat people and live.  So why not start living like that now?

5) The last thing I got from this is that I can tell that God wants us to be challenged.  Not just by sin or the world, but in our faith in Him.  That we can trust Him in every situation from laying on a death bed to sharing our faith with a friend to following Him in decisions we make about our lives knowing that He won’t fail.

I know that dreams of mine like this are often overlooked but for some reason this one really stuck with me so I hope you too were also able to take away something out of my dream.

Holla,

-Bhavs

Man Up! This ones for you MEN

Songs have pretty much been doing it for me lately.  This one I really like called “Man Up” by Da T.R.U.T.H is SICK!  This one is for you guys. Enjoy the music video and I hope that this spurs you on towards being more like men of God.  Great message and lyrics.  enjoy suckas! i also think you’ll enjoy the movie clips used in the video.

When I Grow Up

So I was randomly thinking about what kind of dad I want to be when I grow up. Then on the radio I hear the song “watching you” by Rodney Atkins and it talks all about how his boy is so in love with him that he wants to do everything like his daddy and imitates his every move. So when I grow up, I want to be a dad like this, and have a great influence on my son or daughter. Granted that wont be for a very long time, it was a nice thought to have. I’ve attached the music video, enjoy.

on a side note, I feel like in our relationships with God, our heavenly father, we should be the same as the little boy in the song, always trying to imitate our dad because we love Him. So if we do that, how would that change our lives? Just a random thought, enjoy the music.

holla,

-Bhavs

If I Had One Wish

So lately I’ve been reading through the book of Romans and its pretty much amazing. But one verse really stuck out to me and really got me thinking about how I think about the people the surround me. It was Romans 15:13 (book of Romans is amazing and I strongly recommend it). If I honestly evaluate how I see other people, its usually not in an urgent way of investing in them and loving on them as much as possible. I sometimes don’t have a heart for people who don’t know Jesus, and I just pass them off, thinking “I’m sure they’ll hear the gospel eventually, from someone or somewhere else.” The only problem with that is God calls us all to share the good news of the gospel if our lives have been changed by it and to have a hope and a prayer for everyone here that we are surrounded by.

“I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.”-Romans 15:13

I want this to be the way I view the world and people around me. If I don’t, then who am I living for?

Holla,

-Bhavs

Slow Fade

Great new song I heard by casting crowns. Its called “slow fade”. Absolutely amazing song. It talks about how falling away from Jesus isnt something that happens in just one day. Its a process and we sometimes dont even notice it. We also have to be careful about what we see, what we do, and what we hear, because its the “second look that kills us” and pulls away from God. But the best part about all of this is that we are always pursued by God no matter how much we are fading. check out the song, its amazing.

Its not that I’m lazy, Its that I just dont care

So for some reason my world is getting rocked by school lately. I have a pretty good idea why, and its because I am doing about 9892300 different things with my life right now, which is cool and I love it, but I’m truly starting to get burnt out not just physically but emotionally and spiritually as well. I feel like my time spent with God is always forced, even when half of my activities have to do with serving Him directly such as cru, bible study or church. This is so discouraging to me because I feel so drained and separated from God right now, and when that is going bad my world takes a quick spiral downwards ya know what I mean. With tests every week, papers due, hw assignments, presentations, soccer, office work, cru, church, and CFC, I feel like I’m always going and never have time to sit still and just spend time with the most important person in my life, Jesus. Luckily the semester is almost over and the pressures of school will be over for a while. Even when I’m doing hw or studying, it seems like I go at it with a half hearted effort because I seriously hate it right now. All of this stress pours out of my life and it sucks because I tend to take it out on other people like my roommates, friends, girlfriend, people in my class, and my teammates. This sucks because I’m showing them everything but Jesus ya know, almost like hate is unintentionally flowing out instead of love; not a good sitch. I have been reassured however by God that He is near and continues to pursue my heart even though I tend to turn it from Him so much latley, so I hope this is an encouragement to you if you are struggling with the same things.

Holla,

-Bhavs

“Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.”

-Psalm 139:7-10