A Cellist in the Tuba Section

1 Corinthians 7:17 Only let each person lead the life that the Lord has assigned to him, and to which God has called him. This is my rule in all the churches.  (ESV). If you read the blog post  Moving into Ministry , you'll know that each of us has been given different spiritual gifts by God. One of the most difficult things to overcome when it comes to spiritual gifts, and life in general really, is the comparison game. So often we feel like we need to compare ourselves to others. We think things like: He's more spiritual than I am because he can speak in tongues. She's prettier than me because she's got a thigh gap. I'm so much better than her because I don't drink. And on and on and on... Comparison is a trap because it takes our focus off of the unique plan that God created for our lives. That causes several problems: we fail to accomplish things that God wants us to do which makes us feel distant from God. In addition, losing our focus causes us ...

Psalm 147:1-3 Praise the LORD! For it is good to sing praises to our God; for it is pleasant, and a song of praise is fitting. The LORD builds up Jerusalem; he gathers the outcasts of Israel. He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. (ESV) Have you ever had a day where nothing seemed to go your way? You got tons of homework, your friends ignored you, your crush won't talk to you, you got in a fight with your parents, or your car broke down. Maybe all of the above? When you're in the middle of that kind of day it can be really hard to know what to do. When I have an awful day, I find that I fall into the trap of impatience, and start getting mad that I'm still in a season of singleness, even if the cause of my bad day has nothing to do with relationships. The reason I want a boyfriend on those bad days: I want someone to comfort me. What I have to remember in the middle of a bad day is that I already have a comforter. God is able to comfort us at any time an...

Masks You probably think of Halloween. I think of church because all too often, we don't come as we are. We cover ourselves and pretend our lives are perfect when we know they're not. We get so afraid of what others will think sometimes we forget that Sunday is meant for worshipping God, not worrying if anyone will see through your disguise. We hide because we don't want anyone to see our shame but by protecting ourselves we push others away. Others who don't know Jesus. Others who don't know where to turn. Others who are just as broken as we are. I understand: as Christians, we must try hard not to sin but when we do, we must repent and move forward because hiding it is killing us and others. We can't be afraid of "dirty words" like: depression, abortion, homosexuality, attempted suicide, masturbation, abuse, heroine, alcoholic. We all make mistakes. Sometimes we cave into the flesh, but hope is...

Do you often feel unloved? Excluded? Well, I have recently been searching to learn about God's love, and what that looks like. So, below I have compiled some of the verses I've found about how much God loves you, so memorize some for those moments when you feel absolutely alone and unloved. Lamentations 3:22-24 The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. "The LORD is my portion," says my soul, "therefore I will hope in him." (ESV) Psalm 103:8 The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.  (ESV) Psalm 103:11-14 For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us. As a father shows compassion to his children, so the LORD shows compassion to those who fear him. For he knows our frame; he remem...

Imagine that you hear about a fall dance at school. A friend tells you that everyone will be dressing up for this dance, so you find a really cute cow costume assuming that she meant it was a Halloween dance. You're dressed up in your cow costume and you get out of the car, and...everyone is wearing dresses and suits. This is a formal dance, and you are standing outside in a cow costume. Imagine how out of place you would look and feel in that situation. Maybe you would wait outside for your mom to pick you back up, or you'd walk home, or maybe you would brave it out and pretend that you're a royal cow. Regardless, there would be no way to hide how out of place you are if you go in to that dance. However, as a Christ follower, the difference between our lives and the lives of people who haven't yet begun a relationship with Christ should be that different. It's important to note: I'm not saying that non-Christians have all the fun while Christians are staunc...