Good Thoughts

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. -Romans 8:28-9

My pastor was talking about starting off the new year and how much of a promise this verse is. The thing that struck me was what he was saying that good was. When I think of good I guess I think of happiness or comfort. I realized that it's one of those words that I can't really think of a solid meaning for. I looked it up on Dictionary.com and it had 58 definitions for it! I guess I'm not the only one who has this problem. Anyway, he was saying that good is actually defined there in verse 29.

To be conformed to the likeness of his Son

That actually makes sense because if good meant comfort the Bible would seem contradictory. Job had a ton of bad things happen to him that he never deserved. Paul served God wholeheartedly and ended up in a Roman prison and eventually dead.

It got me thinking about Jeremiah 29:11 as well.

For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

What if God's definition of prosperity isn't always what we think of as prosperity? I know God loves to bless his people, but maybe sometimes things happen so we can become more like Christ and won't feel or look good at all.

Christmas Greetings!

I hope you had a wonderful Christmas! It's kind of sad that it's almost over.

Last night my family went to church like we always do. We ended up getting there early because we didn't know how icy the roads would be so I got to greet people with my mom. I felt like I opened that door a million times, but it was fun. Something about church on Christmas Eve is just so beautiful.

We got the whitest Christmas you can imagine :D For someone who is used to it raining every Christmas it was a miracle.

Tidings of Comfort and Joy!

I'm sitting here hoping I can write this fast enough that I'll still have internet when I go to save it. The weather has been crazy. I can't remember ever having snow and ice for a whole week before. It usually snows one day and is gone the next. We've been home for an hour and we've got three inches of new snow. It's really blowing too. They said on the news to prepare to be without power for a week or more O.o I've been there, done that, and I didn't enjoy it!

We've got 15 inches of snow now. I'm amazed at the fact that they say every snowflake is unique and there must be a billion just in my yard alone. I think it's so cool that God didn't make them all fit the same mold. I love it when it's snowing and you can actually see the snowflake shape when they land on you. I used to think they were all just white blobs, and I'm glad they're not.

Our driveway is really steep and when we tried to go up it tonight we slid all over the place and started sliding backwards toward the road. The brakes were doing nothing and my dad kept saying "Pray" as we got rolling faster. We ended up getting turned enough that we got stuck on some new snow. God protected us and helped us get turned around. We did have to hike up a ways, but we were safe. It's funny, I keep being reminded of how God sends angels to protect his people. I actually have a cool story about them from Ethiopia that I'll have to post.

For now, Merry Christmas! Stay warm and safe wherever you are.

Christmas Quiz

You Are a Snowman

Friendly and fun, you enjoy bringing holiday cheer to everyone you know!

What Christmas Ornament Are You?

Haha,Interesting :)

Lessons from Ethiopia

I went to Ethiopia because I wanted to be able to be Christ to other people in a tangible way. I never thought that instead I would see Christ in them.

One young man worked all day at the clinic even though he also had to work and go to school at night. Another used all the money he had to buy stuff so he could make us popcorn. He just wanted to bless us.

The interpreters paid their own money to take several taxis to get to the clinic. I wish you could see them witness – They were so honest and you could tell they had a passion for God. The loved these people and when we would all pray together it didn’t matter that we were speaking English and they were speak Amharic because there such a spirit of unity.

I’ll never forget the girl who came up to me and gave me a hug and said “I love you” over and over again or the little boys who followed me around trying to get me to play with them.

One lady came in and wanted prayer for her muslim family. They had kicked her out of her house because she became a Christian and now she was living on the street. She didn’t complain about it – She just talked about how God had been so faithful in her life.

I met a few other Christians who were living on the street and what I saw amazed me. They were some of the most joyful people I’ve ever met. It made me realize that joy really isn’t based on things. It comes from knowing Christ and the freedom he brings.