Cramming for the Test

This week at church Tyler stated something that really hit home. He asked us when the last time we sat down with God and studied his word for hours. As a student for essentially everyday of my life thus far, I have spent countless hours cramming for tests and exams. Now, that isn't to say that was fun or enjoyable at all. However, it was a priority. The week of exams, I clear my schedule and study hard because I want to do well.

So I am claim to want to "do well" for the Lord, but I have yet to force myself to sit down and really learn his Word, so that I can be ready for the "tests and exams" of life that come my way. I need to make this my main priority. Thus, I plan to require myself to really take time to do this occasionally and I am recruiting your help to do it. I need to be held accountable for this. So by the end of November, I will have spent a chunk of time just studying God's word. I would love to have some company or some people to just do the same. I will post more details of my plans in the near future.

A letter from my grandmother.

My Grandmother passed away about a month ago. This (rather long...but stick with it) letter below was written by her to my Dad, Aunt and Uncle when she and my Grandfather were missionaries in South Korea. My Dad and his siblings were in the states. This makes me so glad to come from a linage of believers. What tugged at my heart in this letter was her desire to pass on to her children not just that Jesus gives us eternal life in heaven, but what a "relationship with Christ" really means to us here on earth. Please read:

I woke up early this morning and thought of how I would begin my first class to get their attention and to start us on the right track--It will go something like this--Have you created anything or made anything just because you wanted to? --just for your own satisfaction--for your own glory? Then it was yours and you could do with it as you pleased. Then, if you, a human being, have the right to create something for your own glory (satisfaction), doesn't God, who is all powerful, have the right to create things for His own glory--for His own satisfaction--and use them the way He wants to? God in His wisdom and power created this universe and created man for His own glory. this means that the purpose of our being here--the very purpose of our lives--is to glorify God--to have a personal relationship with Him, giving Him thanks and praise. This is why we were created.

I've already worked awfully hard on this year's Bible Study, but last year I really slaved. However, it was good for me, 'cause I got a lot straightened out in my own mind--things that had bothered me. I had some real frustrations about finding Christ to be of help personally in my everyday life and also had some resentments toward God. Nothing seemed to help with the daily struggle, and life seemed mighty rough to me. Slowly during the past four years I have come to understand the two sides of the Christian life as God evidently planned it: first, eternal life, through faith in Christ, which I settled long ago; second, the abundant daily life which comes through letting Christ take over in our hearts and believing that He is right here with us to help us with all that we will trust to Him--a personal relationship by faith. It's the same faith, but a different aspect--we can have faith for eternal life and exercise that same faith for an abundant life on this earth. We just have to open our lives to Christ and accept by faith the fact that Christ is right here with us ready to help us. This more abundant life I have slowly come to understand and have grown into. I had felt all along that there must be more to the Christian life than I had found. Now I know there is no other way to peace and satisfaction on this earth than in putting Christ first in everything and trusting Him to work out everything for me. This is really a great and wonderful realization, because it takes the burden out of living and gives a peace and joy that cannot be had without Christ. Now what really hurts me is that I didn't know of this abundant life and how to have this personal relationship with Christ through faith in time to teach each of you children to put Christ first in all your thinking and planning. This really tears my heart. And because I love you children so much and don't want you to have to go through the misery and separation from Christ that I went through, I'm trying to tell you this now. I so hope that you take this step of faith, and ask Christ to come into your heart and take over, because Christ dwelling in you can give you a wonderful satisfying life of peace and contentment--it doesn't mean having to go out and do things for Him--He doesn't really need any one of us--it just means asking Christ into our lives, trusting that He is there continually and letting Him take over and guide and take care of our needs--let Him guide even in the little things of life--there at home--in relationship--in working out problems with people--in the decisions you make--in seeking your life work and life partner--even as to the use of your time--asking for His guidance and strength, admitting that your strength and wisdom come from Him, putting your problems in His hands and saying, "Lord I can't, but You can", and trusting Him to work. The abundant life is a personal relationship, believing that Christ is right here with you and within you and that He personally cares about your present situation and problems as well as your future. You enter into this personal relationship by asking Christ to live in you and take over your life problems, and then trusting Him to do it, and then praising Him and thanking Him for his presence, for salvation in Him, for life, health, beauties of His world, His power, His wisdom, His help, the things He has allowed us to have, the work we have to do, etc., giving Him praise and glory. Out part is to yield ourselves to Him, entirely and willingly, trusting Him to accomplish results. If we take a step of faith we can expect God to work. "The step of faith always falls on the seeming void, but finds the rock beneath." He can carry our burdens and manage our affairs if we commit them to Him. You may need to pray the prayer I had to pray many times, "Lord, I believe, help thou mine unbelief.". Faith will grow as we thank Him and give Him praise and glory. Deut. 28:47 shows us through Moses' words to the children of Israel that we are to "praise the Lord with joyfulness and gladness of heart by reason of the abundance of all things". So it is yielding ourselves to Christ, trusting Him in everything and praising Him that brings the abundant life here on earth.

a young goat...

In my morning reading i came across this:

Judges 14:6 The Spirit of the LORD came upon him in power so that he tore the lion apart with his bare hands as he might have torn a young goat.

firstly, who tears a goat? and why is that the comparison to the lion??? that samson, what a fella...

anyway, i just thought i would share...

have a great day and be sure to tear apart lion as you might tear young goats.

- hH

Prayers from 10/24/07

Prayers from our last modest cattle home group (the boos and moos):

+ Rain
+ Lisa (no cavities)
+ God's will for our group being missional
- Leigh Ann's mother's skin cancer
- Dana's friend: wisdom in tough situation
- Jessica's little brother
- hannaH's mother's wrist surgery
- Patrick's grandma's chemotherapy
- Mitchell's grandparent's farm
- Elizabeth's friend

MORE fun at the fair!

More fun at the fair! -from Patrick

All Night Bash

http://uab.ncsu.edu/allnightbash.html

Meet at my townhouse Friday night at 9:00pm to carpool over to NCState. It will be $10 without a student ID. If you need one, please email me and I will try to arrange something.

Jera

Future Hockey Games

Below I have posted the dates of upcoming Hurricanes College nights. For the cheap seats it would be $15 with a valid ID. I was thinking January would be good. Let me know if you are interested: jera.mendenhall@gmail.com

November 28
December 18
January 22
February 19
March 25

fun at the fair!

Fun at the Fair

The predominant thing I want to do at the fair is eat! I have a few things in mind that are musts such as Saratoga chips, apple french fries, apple dumplings, and root beer. I am very excited and I hope you are too.

I have attached the fair schedule: http://www.ncstatefair.org/2007a/General/10-17-07.htm
Racing pigs could certainly be fun and I always love the fireworks.

Please comment on anything you are getting pumped about too!

What really grinds my gears...MODEST CATTLE EDITION

Do you know what really grinds my gears? The words that come out of my mouth. Let me setup the familiar situation. It's a good ole modest cattle Wednesday night study and we've read this week's passage, and have been asked a somewhat vague question about it. There's a good 30 seconds of silence when one brave sole (I'm rarely this person) comes out with an answer. Our group quickly starts warming up to conversation about the topic, and I decide I wanna contribute something significant to the conversation. After some deep pondering I come up with something that, in my head at least, seems to be very profound.

I thought that once this statement was made, it'd be so profound, that I'd expect everyone's faces to be glowing like Moses' as he came down from Mount Sinai. So after a little pause in the conversation, and a 2 second courtesy wait I speak my profound words of wisdom..."So when Jesus says love your neighbor...I think it means we shouldn't hate our...uh...neighbor"...wait...WHAT?!? What just came out of my mouth?...that was the dumbest thing I could have said...,Sadly though instead of cutting my losses...I keep going. "Um...what I meant was that...ya see...love is good, and hating is...uh...well, Webster defines love as the...um...Lisa, didn't you have something to say?"

Sad to say when it comes to making answers up on the spot...I'm what you'd call the anti-C S Lewis. I'm not always the best with...um...words. However it does remind me of what James says in the Bible about words...or I mean the tongue where when you say something, you can't...um...or your tongue can't take back the...er...I think it has something to do with putting toothpaste back in a tube or...oh boy...

...and that's what really grinds my gears.

Prayers from 10/03/07

Prayers from our last modest cattle home group (the boos and moos):

• Leigh Ann had a great day
• Matt Barry did too
• Patrick's car keying is covered by the insurance
• Jera has no more exams
• hannaH is excited about going home and hopes for a safe flight
  
• Patrick is having two spots removed; hope all goes well
• Dana's friend Aubrey's headaches to be figured out
  

October Things to Know

October Schedule:
10/3: 7pm Bible Study at 1116 Garnet Ridge Way
10/10: 7pm Bible Study at 1116 Garnet Ridge Way10/17: 7pm State Fair Fun at 1116 Garnet Ridge Way (walk there; admission will be $4 with our coupons)
10/24: 7pm Bible Study at 1116 Garnet Ridge Way
10/30: 7pm Owner's Night at V21
10/31: 7pm Patrick's Party (aka Halloween)


Also, I would like to know your thoughts on an idea the ladies have had. I was hoping to start a monthly rotation of random matchups in our group with the intent of getting to know one another better. So you could be matched up with 1-2 other people in the group and meet to hang out grab lunch or coffee. Let me know what you think: jera.mendenhall@gmail.com

If you would like to step up a lead our bible study discussion or lead it with me, let me know. I know you get tired of hearing me talk!

Thanks!

--Jera