Snickers Satisfies?

Yesterday I was eating an Almond Snickers bar. I was unaware of the new candy, but it was indeed delicious! While I was glancing over the nutrition label (I find it impossible not to, since I'm a nutrition enthusiast), I came across one of their slogans, "Snickers Satisfies." There was a .com after it - their website makes your mouth water! Anyway, I immediately related it to God (How could I not?). I screamed at my Snickers bar You're wrong! God is the bread of life and the only thing in this world that can truly satisfy! I figured it was a hopeless debate. The Snickers won.

But despite my defeat, I have one thing against that Snickers slogan: the Bible. I found several references to the keyword "satisfy" besides the bread of life verse (John 6:35).

Psalm 90:14 (NIV)

"Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love, that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days."

How glorious is that?! God's love is the most satisfying thing in the universe. His compassion never ends, and He is the ONLY thing that can fully satisfy.

Psalm 145:16 (NIV)

"You open your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing."

I do enjoy a Snickers bar every once in a while, but even the healthiest, most protein-filled meal cannot satisfy me. Even if I had all of the wealth and fame of the world, I wouldn't be happy. If I had the most loving family (which I do!) I still wouldn't experience God's everlasting love. Praise the ultimate provider! He will not let you go hungry, and His Word never returns void (Isaiah 55:11).

-Snickers Satisfies picture found on Google

The Spiritual Physical

On Thursday I renewed my physical for the tennis season. It's one of those things you have to go to every year just in case you're not "fit" to be active in sports. It just so happens (not a coincidence, but part of God's plan) that on Friday night the sermon at my Bible Quizzing competition was on a spiritual physical. The message was based on 2 Corinthians 13:5, which was appropriate because we were studying first and second Corinthians.

2 Corinthians 13:5 (NIV)

"Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test?"

The following are the four criteria of the spiritual physical examination:

1) Food - Are you eating right? Not the hot dog or potato chips you're shoving down your mouth, but the spiritual food you consume, which is the Word of God. Reading the Bible is crucial to your health. Worldly food (AKA junk food!) is everything else society throws at you. The media, for example, has an enormous influence on our lives. While the Bible might be telling you to save your virginity for marriage, your favorite sitcom or movie might be advocating the opposite. This is unhealthy!

John 6:35 (NIV)

"Then Jesus declared, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty."

2) Vitamins - Prayer life! Prayer, or talking to God, recharges us. How else are we supposed to examine His will for us? How are we supposed to make wise decisions or gain discernment? (see "Prayer" post) Just like we take daily vitamin supplements in addition to our food, we need a dedicated prayer life on top of our faith.

1 Thessalonians 5:17 (NIV)

"pray continually."

3) Weight - Are you watching your weight? What's weighing you down in life? The weight of the world is burdensome. It can come in the form of technology, a busy life, or peer pressure -anything that causes you to stumble in your faith! Let's face it: life can be tough. But God can remove those burdens. He also calls us to carry each others' burdens (Galatians 6:2). Accountability partners are an excellent way to keep your faith in check. Good Christian friends can remind us of the most important thing, Jesus, and point out Satan's stumbling blocks (Matthew 16:23).

Psalm 68:19 (NIV)

"Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens."

4) Exercise - Put into practice what you believe. Just like exercise is a crucial part of staying fit, it's the same with exercising your faith! After all, what good is faith without actions? We are not only called to be like Christ, but share with others our new-found hope! According to the Great Commission in Matthew 28:19-20, we are to go and make disciples of all nations. James chapter 2 is the perfect illustration of faith and deeds.

James 2:14-19

"¹⁴What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? ¹⁵Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. ¹⁶If one of you says to him, 'Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,' but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? ¹⁷In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.

¹⁸But someone will say, "You have faith; I have deeds."
Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do.

¹⁹You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder."

(Physical picture found on Google)

He heals the brokenhearted

Last night I should not have attended youth group. I had far too much homework, and I have already stayed up past 10 or 11 for the duration of the week. However, a friend of mine invited me to her youth group and I decided to give it a try. The lesson was on forgiveness. And it was the perfect antidote.

About three months ago I experienced my first heartbreak. I was crushed. Angry. Frustrated. Shocked. Sad. And it was painful. I was truly, truly hurt. Despite my broken heart, I realize that it was all in God's plan. I've learned countless life-long lessons from this event. In fact, I'm still in the process of learning. I've realized that I can't trust in man ("Best Friend" blog post), change is good ("Change" post), pride is one of the worst sins ("Wrong Way!" post), and forgiveness is necessary ("Forgiveness" post). Apart from those, I've gained valuable experiences, and have learned to rely on God for love and satisfaction. What I didn't realize is that these are all connected! In the end, it all comes down to forgiveness.

In the previous post on forgiveness, I was basically exploring my thoughts. I wasn't quite ready to forgive, but I knew I had to sometime or another. I'm still not totally ready, but the youth group lesson last night gave me some insight. I have never learned to forgive because I've never had to before. I'm not referring to the little mishaps within the family where my dad will yell at me and I'll forgive him. I've never experienced something this big.


The youth pastor broke the lesson into three main points. The first is separating the person from the event. This is difficult. Once someone has wronged you, it's nearly impossible to still view that person before the incident. It's as if this one occurence alters your entire perception, and the sin they committed merges into the person. I never thought about this! What a novel idea. After all, God looks at everyone of us with love. He has compassion on us despite our sin - which hurts Him! Jesus is the ultimate example of forgiveness. Even while the Roman soldiers were mocking the "King of the Jews," beating Him, putting a crown of thorns on Him, spitting on Him, and nailing Him to a cross, Jesus still loved them. Yes, He hated their sin. But no, He didn't hate them. Jesus loved us so much that He took the weight of the world upon His shoulders, which was more unbearable than the physical pain - our sin.

Ephesians 1:7 (NIV)

"In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace."

Grace is such a beautiful gift (see "The Free Gift of Grace"). It's the act of loving people despite their sin. Holding grudges is overrated. If God gave us grace, don't you think we should only return the greatest gift by forgiving our friends and family in the same way? Like I mentioned in the earlier forgiveness post, it isn't just "because God said so." Everything God commands is for a reason, and it just so happens that forgiving benefits us in the long run. The past few months I have been angry. I've held onto that anger, letting it fester and grow, and my cold heart is not in the mood to forgive. I know it's part of God's plan, but am I truly trusting Him?

That brings me to the second point: TRUST God. One would think that I have gotten a hold of this concept, considering my many blog posts on this topic (see "Trust" for ex.), but with God nothing ever ends. Yes, I trusted that my heartbreak was part of God's plan, but I didn't fully trust that He would completely, totally, and miraculously mend my broken heart. I just figured I would have to live with the pain and somehow manage, getting through it myself. If you haven't read my blog, then you know this is contrary to my other experiences and beliefs. I don't just "get through it myself." God is my strength! Through Him all things are possible (Matthew 19:26)! One very convicting statement the pastor said went something like this, "If you are playing the silent game and not forgiving the person who hurt you, then that reflects your faith. It means you don't trust that God can fix what's broken." WOW. This was God speaking to me. I have to admit, despite my normal personality, which talks practically non-stop, I have been keeping silent. It's because I'm too afraid to confront the problem. I'm not willing to trust God with everything and just forgive the person! I can't let go of my pride.

Yes, my pride. Again, I have blogged many times about humility ("David - a role model for humility" and "Wrong Way!"). And just like God tells me, "everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted" (Luke 14:11). But Satan likes to disguise sin. He whispers in my ear, "You have the right to be angry. After all, you haven't done anything wrong." For a while I believed the lies! I thought I was practically perfect, and especially in the situation. But the pastor's third point stirred my guilty heart. He said the final step in forgiveness is "to lay down your right of being right!" This is a difficult thing to comprehend for us stubborn humans. We are always blaming someone! Why would we ever admit our wrong? I know I observe this on a daily basis with my brother and Dad. Not to point any fingers... but they will blame others for obvious events that they clearly had to do with. The other day my brother hurt himself and blamed me! He claimed I was "in the way" and "intruding in his room" so logically that made him trip? It's funny how we always have to justify our wrongdoings. No one wants to hear of their sin. But it's a reality, and we need to face it sometime or another. Whether it be today or on judgment day.

The pastor said we need to PURSUE forgiveness. We can't just keep playing the silent game and wait for the other person to make the first move. Part of the process is humbling yourself. After all, we are ALL sinners (Romans 3:23). At some point or another in our lives we ourselves have wronged someone. All of this involves trusting God. One of my favorite verses is 1 Peter 5:7 : "Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you." Trust Him. He can fix any broken heart!

Psalm 147:3 (NIV)

"He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds."

God may seem far away. He may be invisible. But He is as real as you and me. And He loves all of us so much. One of my favorite parables is in Mathew 18 when a man asks Jesus how many times he should forgive his brother. He asks if seven times is sufficient. Jesus replies by saying ""I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times." Although 490 seems like a gargantuan number, Jesus didn't mean that after 490 you should stop forgiving. He was giving an example of just how important forgiveness is. We aren't called to forgive some of the times, or only on Sundays. The pastor brought up Colossians 3:13, which commands us to forgive. This isn't a light topic in the Bible. If it wasn't valuable, Jesus wouldn't have mentioned it, and it wouldn't be mentioned so many other times.

Colossians 3:13 (NIV)

"Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you."

Forgiveness isn't a simple or easy task. It is a process that takes a lot of Scripture and trusting in God. Lately, I've been praying for God to give me the ability to forgive. To help me let go of my pride and take a step of faith. Already, I'm starting to change my perception. God is gradually softening my heart. He can truly mend any broken heart. Praise Jesus for His free gift of grace!

-Bubbly

~Flower picture taken by me. I thought it reflected springtime and forgiveness. It's a new beginning. Love covers a multitude of sins (1 Peter 4:8)!

(Love picture from Google)

Grades - Believing the Lie

I had an excellent 3 day weekend. Well, it was technically 3 1/2 days after another half day. Either way, I enjoyed every second of it. Normally my weekend is composed of rigorous homework, a busy schedule, and lack of sleep. Instead, after totally rocking my finals (I don't mean to brag, I was simply elated), I experienced 84 hours of fun! But, it felt like 228. Ask me, how did I arrive at that number? I accidentally miscalculated it the first time on my computer, and then completely didn't find that number odd until a friend pointed out my mistake. Oops!

Anyway, I am perfectly content with my finals and final grades for the second trimester. I find it very interesting how I actually stressed less this term, yet achieved a significantly higher GPA. How could this be possible? Is it true that I excel better when I not under so much pressure or when I maintain a relatively laid-back attitude towards my grades? Is it possible that not being so worried about my grades could result in better grades?

BUT....... that was before I had the dream.* Yes, I had another nightmare (see "Dream" post). I misread my GPA. I know it's like the end of the world! But it gets worse. When looked at from the vantage point of an overachiever, analytical, perfectionist, a 4.0 is like doomsday. Instead of the 4.378 I actually received, I misread it and it was a 4.0378. In my dream, I do recall feeling a terrible heap of dread and shame. It's as if I fell short of the quota mark. Like I tried so hard for nothing.

I always beat myself up like this. My mom says she doesn't know where it's coming from. It's not like my parents thrive on my super grades. They simply desire for me to try my best. Which is what I do. But I always feel like I can do better. Unfortunately, my overwhelming schedule doesn't calculate time for extra-credit or more studying. I don't even know why I've been dwelling on these things lately. If God has taught me anything this year it's that grades don't really matter, when focusing on Him (see "A New Perspective").

It's all about the truth. You see, I was telling myself lies when I felt like a failure (I know it seems ridiculous) in my dream of a 4.0! In reality, I have a perfect GPA. I am aware that it's possible to get a 5.0 with AP classes and A+'s. But even if I got a 3.0, the world wouldn't suddenly fall out from underneath me. I would still be living, and as long as have learned the most important lesson you can ever learn in this life - the Gospel and God's plan for salvation through Jesus Christ - then the rest is useless. Do you know what the truth is? It's Jesus Christ. And any lie you encounter in the world is from Satan. He's the father of lies (John 8:44)!

Romans 1:25 (NIV)

"They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen."

~Lord, I don't ever want to exchange your truth for lies of the world. Telling myself a 4.0 GPA is a lie. It's not the truth, and I don't ever want to be held captive by lies.

John 8:32 (NIV)

"Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."

-A+ picture from Google.

*Note: Notice how I completely changed the tone of my writing and my entire perspective from just one dream (I'm not purposely trying to be contradictory or confusing). It's amazing how lies can do that. They warp reality and can completely change your mood! That's one reason we each need God so much. He gives us truth. I'm not talking about the definition of truth as "void of lies" or "reality." I'm referring to THE truth - Jesus Christ. He is truth. And His word is the Book of Truth (Daniel 10:21). My mom mentioned an amazing verse the other night: God's Word never returns void!

Isaiah 55:11 (NIV)

"so is my word that goes out from my mouth:
It will not return to me empty,
but will accomplish what I desire
and achieve the purpose for which I sent it."

Some deep spring thinking...

Today is the first day of spring. Maybe not according to the calender or science, but to me, it smelled, felt, and looked like spring! On September 28th, it smelled like fall (see "The Smell of Fall"). Perhaps I'm just strange, but the sun and warm weather would also indicate a shift in seasons. Wouldn't it be boring if it was the same season all year round? I am very well aware that different regions in the world display separate climate changes, and some have none. Considering I used to live in a warmer climate, I am not against the tropical weather of Florida, I just also appreciate seasons. It's so exciting to see the sun suddenly come out of its hiding. To watch the snow melt away and the flowers to bud - it's truly lovely. Maybe that's why God created the different seasons, versus punishing people with cold weather. ;)

Don't you think the universe and creation itself is enough proof that there was a Creator behind the complexity? It's difficult for me to understand why people are confused when I state that there's enough evidence for God as there is for evolution and science. In fact, yesterday I got called a "radical." It shocked me for a moment, but then I said, "Thank-you." After all, wasn't Jesus a radical? Two thousand years ago humanity declared the Son of God a radical. So I will take that as a compliment. It shows that I am truly a disciple of Christ. That's what being a Christian is all about!

Although, I believe society has distorted the meaning of being a Christian. So much that people associate it with simply being a good person. That's great and all, but how do you define good? And is that the only basis for this religion? I am confident, 100% positive that there is no human being on earth or ever was, besides Jesus, that has actually followed the Ten Commandments completely. Not one! That's why Christianity (or at least the Bible I follow...) isn't just about strict rules that prevent any "fun." It's about a relationship with God that eliminates our sin in God's eyes, through Jesus' blood on the cross. I'm not perfect. Just ask my family! But because I believe and trust in God, through Jesus I am innocent. I will go to Heaven when I die. Not because I read the Bible. Not because I'm a "good" person. Or because I merely believe in God. The demons believe in God and they shudder!

That brings up another good point. Faith without deeds is useless. I'm terribly sorry if I sound like I'm making contradictory statements. But faith is a difficult topic to comprehend. Essentially, in order to be a follower of Christ (Christian) you have to, by faith, believe in God, trust in Him, and then demonstrate your faith by actively professing it and loving others like Christ loved us. There you go - a synopsis of the Christian faith. :)

Faith is just that. It takes a huge leap! But I also think it takes faith to be an atheist. If you claim you don't believe in God, you have faith that He doesn't exist! I may be biased, but I think it takes more faith to be an atheist, and I also believe there is more evidence for God than not! There's even a recent book called I Don't Have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist.

As much as I want to make everyone a Christian and have them see the truth - which is Jesus, I can't. I can't force anyone and ultimately I can't "convert" anyone. That's the job of the Holy Spirit. Even though God wants everyone of us to go to Heaven and choose life, He created us with free-will. If He hadn't, we would be robots forced to love Him. I don't know about you, but most relationships on the earth don't go well when someone tries to force another to love them. It just isn't the same.

I can tell you that God is real. He reveals Himself through creation, miracles, the Bible, non-coincidences, others, and His love. I can also tell you that God's love does not compare to anything in the universe! He gives me a peace beyond understanding and joy. I feel sorry for those who don't personally know God. They must experience a deep emptiness because nothing else in the world can fully satisfy. It is my prayer that God will reveal Himself to them. It is my prayer that they will face those doubts and grow stronger in faith. Hopefully, me, the so-called radical, can show them the light. Jesus is the way, the truth and the life (John 14:6)!

1 John 2:4-6 (NIV)

"The man who says, "I know him," but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But if anyone obeys his word, God's love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him: Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did."

-Picture taken last spring :)

A Dream

Last night I had a nightmare. I dreamed my Bible fell into the ocean. I was swimming and fighting to grab it and hold onto its words. The ink was fading and I worked hard to wash the dirt off with soap. In the end I saved it. It was rescued from the waves and the words were still alive.

I shared this dream with my FCA group today. One interpretation was that God was going to send me on a missions trip across the ocean. I am going to Mexico this summer, but I'm pretty sure the Gulf of Mexico doesn't count. Maybe someday I'll go across the sea to Africa or Asia on a missions trip.

But my mom's interpretation was the best, and most accurate depiction I believe. She said that it's true. That the dream is a picture of what goes on in my daily life on this earth. I am constantly bombarded with waves. Everyone and everything are trying to grab God's words away from me and I have to fight to save them. But in the end, I wonder if it's really me saving them. For it's God's Word that's the light to my path and the bread of life. I live on the Bible. Yes, waves are constantly trying to steal my Jesus. They want so badly to smear the truth and erase the ink on the pages. But not with my God. He will rescue me and His Word will prevail. Jesus triumphs in the end. The world can't take away Scripture. No. The waves will never grab hold of my Bible!

Ephesians 6:17 (NIV)

"Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God."

~Thank-you God for giving me this revelation. I know you will fulfill all of your promises. And in the end, your Word will save me!

(Wave picture from Google)