I LOVE Mondays!

I can say for the first time in my life that I actually LOVE Mondays! Here's a rundown of a typical Monday for me: class, meeting, library, meeting/discipleship (x2), my 30 minutes of 'me-time', gym, dinner, time with my wonderful roommate, then Bible Study with the most beautiful and fantastic girls in the world. Yes, it's busy, but this semester I enjoy every minute of my Mondays! It's a great thing to look forward to the week beginning! I often times also try to squeeze in a little 'shopping time' on Mondays too- last week I discovered "Bijuju" (aka the most fabulous jewelry store), and this week (much less exciting), it'll probably be the grocery store. So here's to 2 and a half more months of marvelous Mondays!!

Trying to be like Mary in a ‘Martha World’

Recently in Bible study we studied Mary and Martha (Luke 10:38-42). I had overlooked these two women for so long while studying about Jesus’ time on earth, but now I see how important these two women are for the modern woman today. We live in a ‘Martha world’. By that I mean that we are constantly on the go, busy, rushed, trying to meet certain expectations, and habitually busy with unimportant things. I want to be more like Mary was in this ‘Martha world’; by that I mean that I want to slow down and not be in such a rush that I overlook the beauty of the world around me. I think that’s what Martha struggled with the most- she simply couldn’t slow down to enjoy the presence of our Savior; instead she thought she had to stay busy to please Him. I want to model Mary’s life because she did understand the importance and the necessity of simply enjoying the moment of Jesus’ visit and she dropped everything to just be captivated by His presence.

With this being said, my goal for the present is to be like Mary in this ‘Martha world’. I hope you find this Bible story (that seems so modern and true today!) equally as encouraging as I did :)

"Practicing What I Preach"

As I was reading my lovely “Jesus Calling” book in my quiet time yesterday, I came across this:

“Bring Me your weakness, and receive My peace. Accept yourself and your circumstances just as they are, remembering that I am sovereign over everything. Do not wear yourself out with analyzing and planning. Instead, let thankfulness and trust be your guides through this day; they will keep you close to Me. As you live in the radiance of My Presence, My Peace shines upon you. You will cease to notice how weak or strong you feel, because you will be focusing on Me. The best way to get through this day is step by step with Me. Continue this intimate journey, trusting that the path you are following is headed for heaven.”

Not a single word of this devotion doesn’t speak to me. I say it to my Bible Study girls all the time; “Don’t worry so much; or God’s got it; or Be strong!” These words flow out of me so easily to them, but after reading this paragraph, I thought, “do I really do these things too?” It’s really easy to say that I give my stress and sometimes sadness over to God, but do I really do it? It made me think, and really cling to God even more, knowing (yes KNOWING) that He’s in control, has me in His hands, and loves me, despite my many imperfections.