A Look Back at 2013

 

                                                    “Delight yourself also in the LORD,
                                                    and He shall give you the desires of
                                                             your heart”. Psalm 37:4

This is supposed to be the end-of-the-year post from me this time, and though we are already 18 days into the new year, I'm still going to write about 2013. I don't want to go into 2013 history and retell all the things that happened (or didn't happen as I had hoped); and this is because 2013 was probably one of the less rewarding years that I can remember. I became excited that 2014 was just around the bend and thought about all the great possibilities that it might offer. Because it's a fresh start to a new year! Also, you can check out my blog post here: Anna's Insights to find out what my big news update is for this year.

I would say that the brightest spot for me in 2013 was being able to purchase my reining horse, whom I enjoy very much. A lot of people need their “get-away-s”. Some go on vacation, some bury their heads in books, some go fishing, and some, like myself, go play with their animals. In 2013, I needed a lot of that “out” from all that was going on around me. It was indeed a challenging year that I would like very much to forget. As some—or perhaps most of you know—my Grandpa went to be with the Lord in October. We were all glad that he wasn't/isn't in pain any longer, but the occasion caused many negative repercussions in the family.

Perhaps, 2013 was less than desirable for you, too. But today is the day that the Lord has made (Psalm 118:24). God has granted us to see the start of yet another year. How we respond to the challenges is up to us, but be assured that He will never leave you nor forsake you (Deut. 31:6). God's not finished with you yet and 2014 is another chapter in your life. Circumstances, good and bad, are written in most of the chapters. How should we respond them? “Commit your way to the LORD, trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass” Psalm 37:5. Commit this day to Him and let Him lead you by the hand. God was alive and well before time began (He was), He is still alive and well in today's, mixed up society (He is), and He will one day come back for His saints and purge this wicked world (He is to come)!

If we will only draw near to God, He will draw near to us (James 4:8). When we commit our time and energy, our thoughts and our lives to Christ, He will never forsake us. For we are His children and God never forsakes His own (Psalm 94:14).

We only have this moment to make a difference, for we are not guaranteed the next moment, hour, nor day. We cannot belong to Satan and belong to God. Riding the fence or turning to God only in our desperate hour is not the right kind of relationship we should have with Him. If we only call out to God when we feel lost and hopeless, we cannot expect an answer! God is a jealous God and He wants our devotion on a moment to moment basis; not problem to problem. God shows us where we are wrong when we truly repent and admit that we are sinners. And when we partake of communion, we remember what Christ did when He shed His blood for us on the cross. Any man who eats and drinks, but does not belong to God, is only eating and drinking judgement on himself (1 Cor. 11:29). And God promises that if we come to Him, repent, and turn from our evil ways, He will wash those sins away (1 John 1:9).

If you have not yet committed yourself to the Lord, I urge you to talk with your parents, your pastor, or another family member. If you already have, my prayer is that you will walk closer than ever with Him this new year. If you want a resolution this year, don't just be convinced that it's important to trust God with every part of your life: be convicted. God's got great plans for you, friend! You have nothing to “fear, only trust and obey.”

“When we walk with the Lord
In the light of His Word,
What a glory He sheds on our way;
While we do His good will,
He abides with us still,
And with all who will trust and obey.

“Trust and obey,
For there’s no other way
To be happy in Jesus,
But to trust and obey.”

God bless,

Julianna

P.S. Just to let our friends who aren't on Google+ know, Kaleigh and I have made our 2014 video, so please be sure to check that out on our “About Us” page.

2013

Photo credit

Fear not, O land; be glad and rejoice: 
for the Lord will do great things. 

Joel 2:21

As another year closes out, I can with certainty look back and say "The Lord did indeed do great things, for He does all things well." This year will always hold numerous memories for me; the majority of them being very special ones. 

2013 marks the year when I earned 30 more college credits, met some online friends face-to-face, attended a conference in Washington, participated in several musical performances, saw increased babysitting opportunities, attended two funerals for close family members, and began teaching Sunday school. There are many, many more things I could list, but that would take far too long and that is not my primary intent for this post. 

The verse quoted at the beginning of this post would have been a good one to remember at the beginning of the year, perhaps. It looks forward to a future of good things. I could not have told you at the start of 2013 what kinds of great things I would encounter--and yet, I clearly saw this promised fulfilled. I can now look forward to 2014, knowing that the same promise holds true for each and ever one of God's children. 

It is interesting to note that God commands His people to "be glad and rejoice" in their present moment and not after He had done "great things". No, He called them to be joyful even when they could see what the future held. They were also commanded not to fear. Joyfulness in the Lord is a confidence that He holds your future in His hands. And confidence in the Lord replaces fear.

Our confidence comes from knowing that we have a *present joy...

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations: That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ: Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory. (1 Peter 1:3-8)

 and a *prospective joy...

Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, To the only wise God our Savior, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen. 

Sometimes I forget that I probably don't just have Christian readers, though. Maybe some of you don't have that joyfulness, trust, and confidence in the Lord. True, not all believers demonstrate those traits consistently, but they have the means of receiving it. 

True joy will only come through the Lord Jesus Christ—He is the Creator of it, and only He can give it. You may see happiness in doing “good works” or accumulating fame and fortune, and, while those things are not always inherently wrong, they will not provide you with eternal life. One day you will die…or the Lord will return before that happens, and in that final day when He judges the earth, you will either both fear and dread Him or you will join the thousands who will praise His name forever. You can choose to believe God doesn’t exist or that your good works will outweigh your bad, but that doesn’t eliminate the fact that your life will be measured according to the righteous standards of God’s law.

There is no other name, person, religion, or method that will prevent you from eternal damnation. (Acts 4:12) Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Him. (John 14:6) Through the substitutionary death of Christ on the cross, He took your sins on Himself, and provided eternal life to those who confess their sins, turn from them, and believe in the Lord. You will die and you will be judged—where is your eternal destiny?

For those of us who have eternal confidence, Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He is faithful, and has promised that the joy of the Lord is our strength. Fear not—don’t give way to the devil’s temptations, disappointments, and doubts. May you enter 2014 with gladness and joyfulness, knowing that He who has done great things, will continue to throughout this next year and until the day of Jesus Christ.

Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fullness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore. (Psalm 16:11)

May God go with you all.

Your sister in Christ,

Kaleigh

*Terms and quoted texts taken from my pastor's sermon.

Determination!

                                        "Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might;
                                     for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom,            
                                         in the grave, whither thou goest."  ~Ecclesiastes 9:10


I'd like to share a couple of stories with you that I read in Devotions both this morning and a few days ago.


"Charles F. Kettering, a noted scientist and inventor, believed that the easiest way to overcome defeat was simply to ignore completely the possibility of failure and to keep forging ahead.  He once gave an address to Denison University on this theme.  He told how he had once given a tough project assignment to a young research worker in a laboratory at General Motors.  He wanted to see how the man would react to a difficult problem so he kept from him notes about the project that had been filed in the lab's library.  These notes, written by expert researchers, included various sets of statistics and formulas that proved the assignment the young man had been given was impossible to do.

The young research worker set his mind to the project, and worked virtually night and day for weeks.  He refused to give up or think the project impossible.  One day he came confidently to Kettering to show his work.  He had succeeded in doing the impossible!

A little extra time...a little extra effort...a little extra care...a little extra attention sometimes makes all the difference between success and failure, and not only that, but the difference between good and great."

                                                                           ~~~

"There once was a Louisville University quarterback who dreamed of playing pro football.  Upon graduation, however, no pro team drafted him.  So, he wrote to several teams and finally got an opportunity to try out for the Pittsburgh Steelers.  He gave his best effort, but wasn't chosen.  His friends said, 'You got a raw deal...it wasn't meant to be...I guess it's time to hang up your cleats'.  But the young athlete didn't give up.  He continued to knock on doors and write letters.  Finally, he received another invitation.  But again, he didn't make the team.

Most people would have given up long before this point, but not Johnny.  He was fanatic about his personal dream.  From his early days of playing sandlot football, he had been obsessed with this goal.  So, patiently and persistently, he continued to pursue try out opportunities.  Finally, he was invited to try out for the Baltimore team...and he made the third string!  Through training and many long hours of drills and fitness building, he worked his way up to be starting quarterback.  Indeed, he became one of the greatest quarterbacks ever to play in the NFL.  The dreamer's name?  Johnny Unitas.

Keep driving until you arrive at your goal line!"



History is filled with determined people.  The 1984 USA All-Around champion, Mary Lou Retton, is another example.  She was in therapy constantly for five weeks leading up to the '84 Olympics after a much needed knee surgery had been preformed.  That year, she came home with one gold, two silver, and two bronze medals.  With her determination and positive attitude, she not only succeeded what seemed "impossible", she also became the first American to receive an All-Around gold medal.  I admire Mary Lou for that determination.  Not only for her fighting spirit, but because she was also born with hip dysplasia and still went on to perform amazing acts of agility and balance.  

Can you maybe think of some people in history who, though the thought of success seemed impossible, achieved it?  Those are the kind of people who are not willing to give up their dreams.  They have a vision and chase after it instead of expecting it to just be laid on their doorstep.

"Some people succeed because they are destined to, but most people succeed because they are determined to."

Phillipians 4:13 "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me."

In Christ,
Anna

Friendship: Guest Post

   Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man 

sharpeneth the countenance of his friend.

Proverbs 27:17

Today's post is written by a special girl: Kaleigh's youngest sister. Sarah (age 14) is an avid reader and writer when not doing schoolwork. She enjoys being adventurous while exercising. Her infectious personality often causes others to laugh along with her. She is on the left side of the above picture. Sarah hopes you are encouraged by this post! 

                                                                             ~~~~~

Friendship is one of the most special things God created, yet sometimes the hardest thing to hold together.

Proverbs 17:17a says “A friend loveth at all times”. Does this mean just when your friend does what you ask, just when they’re being nice, or just when they’re the easiest to love? No, “all” means “always”: entirely, totally, and in every respect. Even when they give you an attitude that is so hard to love.  

To love someone means way more when you fulfill it with actions. Saying “I love you” is something anyone can do, but going that extra step to show that person how you love him means a whole lot more in the long run.

The picture above shows two friends. The one on the right has been through a lot of trials lately, and no one knows why, but we continue to trust in God. After all, His plans are way better than ours. I used my knowledge of the Scripture, and the wisdom given to me by God to encourage my friend. It hurt me to see her suffer so badly, and though there were limits as to how far I could help her, I jumped at every opportunity possible. I used Scripture, prayer, and cards the most.

Encourage your friends when they hurt. If you can’t say anything to make them feel better, let them know you’re there for them, and are willing to listen to anything they may need to share or get out. When they lose loved ones or jobs, or fail tests, or get into relationship problems, sometimes just a Bible verse and e-card telling them you care can go a long way.  

Proverbs 27:17: “As iron sharpens iron, so a man sharpens the countenance of his friend”. Are we sharpening our friends for good, or are we tearing them down? Sharpening your friend can be asking a simple heart-provoking question, such as one I was asked recently: Where do you want to be in 20 years? Or “What are you filling your days with?” Show the people you love that you care what’s going on in their lives.

By God’s grace, we can keep our friendships strong. 

                                                                              ~~~~~

Great job, Sarah! Thank you for being willing to share your thoughts with us. :)  

Blessings,

Kaleigh