Be Careful What You Wish For.....(Part 1)

Because you just might get it. Is what you want in life clashing with what God’s wants for you? What is preventing you from totally receiving the lifestyle He wants for you? What we fear is that God’s plan is not as good as our own. We perceive God as the policeman keeping record of our faults and keeping us from having fun, instead of perceiving Him as our Father who has only our best interest in mind.


Trust us, we feel your pain. Our entire lives we have witnessed people living the “holy life”, and it seems like an existence void of fun, joy and happiness. We have grown up believing that everything that is good for you is boring and everything that is fun is bad for you. This is a faulty perception that we have only now just realized. God doesn’t want to keep us from fun; He wants to keep us from pain. Take sex for example. Does God (the creator of sex) want to keep you from having sex and pleasure? No. He wants to give you guidelines that shield you from danger, suffering and shame. Being promiscuous can lead to abuse, an unwanted pregnancy, STDs or a broken heart. That is why God’s intention for sex is within the safety of marriage. Another example is keeping the Sabbath. Does God want to keep you from having fun? No. God provided a day for our minds and bodies to rest from the stress and strain of work and school. But it is deeper than that, knowing that we would be consumed by the cares of this world, He created a day when we could be reminded of who made us and where we came from. God gifted us with a day to re-connect with Him and be rejuvenated.



“Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night. He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither; and whatever he does shall prosper.” Psalms 1:1 – 3 NKJV



To being wise,



Meredith, Jennifer and Marisa

A Low Down Dirty Shame (Part 2)

In reference to our previous post, it was rather grim. We are not fire and brimstone kind of gals, but we wanted to convey the severity of that message, the malignancy of sin. We want to inspire you to let God exterminate sin in your life, like you would exterminate cockroaches in your kitchen.



It doesn’t mean that God does all the work. It starts with your choice. Every single time you are tempted you have to choose to let God work in you. From the moment you wake up to the time you go to sleep and every moment in between each choice should allow God to move on your behalf.



The problem comes when we take control. We fail, because our very existence is born into sin. When we sin, which will happen and we allow the guilt to separate us from God, we are no longer abiding in God’s grace. This is the devil’s most successful and popular deception to separate us from God. As a result, every time sin is the cause for our estrangement from God, our bondage to Satan is exposed. That is why it is imperative to cling to God even more in moments of shame and weakness. For it is through a contrite heart, repentance and forgiveness that we benefit from God’s unlimited grace and we remain free in our connection to our Master.



To be bonded to Christ is the ultimate freedom. Every low down dirty shame that you accumulate is covered by the pure and perfect blood that Jesus shed for you.



To being wise,


Meredith, Jennifer and Marisa

A Low Down Dirty Shame (Part 1)

It was a balmy evening in paradise, but something sinister had occurred. It started so simply, nothing more than a woman’s hunger. She just wasn’t satisfied; the possibility of having it all was within reach. She gazed at what was before her. It was beautiful, tantalizing and she knew it was like nothing she had ever had before. She pondered what was about to be hers and the pleasures it would hold for her. When it was offered, she took it without hesitation. What seemed like bliss became horror. The life she had known was shattered forever but this one act.



I am sure this story sound very familiar. Eve was tempted by her own desires. The desire to know and to be like God was something that had already been present in Eve. Satan provided her with an opportunity. When that opportunity came, rather than thinking twice about what God told her, she relied on her own judgment and her own longing.



Does this sound familiar in your own areas of weakness? Satan tempting you with something you have secretly wanted and you succumb. With your covetous eyes you will use all manner of flawed reasoning to get what you want. What we see here is that sins starts with corrupt desires.


“But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.” James 1:14 & 15 ESV


“But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:7 – 9 KJV



“He who says, 'I know Him,' and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him.” 1 John 2:4 & 5 NKJV



That is why sin needs to be conquered. The way we know that we are in Him, is that His love perfects us to sin no more. Sin keeps you in bondage to Satan. If left unchanged, you remain shackled and this reserves your place in hell.



To being wise,



Meredith, Jennifer and Marisa

Turning Point (Our Steps to Christ)

Marisa:

It all began my sophomore year in college. My major was in jeopardy, I was about to fail a class. I felt that this occupation I was pursuing was God’s path for me. But this one class was the key to my success or my failure. All I was praying for was a passing grade, I asked God to help me in this class if this was where He wanted me to be. I passed, by the skin of my teeth and something was revealed to me; that God wanted to show me who He was and that He was interested in every aspect of my life. The next year I fell ill and my major was once again in jeopardy. Again, God proved that He had my back and could do the impossible, if I allowed Him to. In those moments of despair I realized that God was my constant. His was the friendship that had to be a priority. I graduated with my degree and was accepted into a school of higher learning in my field. I feel God has shown me that this is where I am meant to be, as long as I follow Him.





Meredith:

It started for me, when the path I chose for myself was not working out. I went through a period where I blamed God for certain things not working out in my life. I asked Him for help and when it did not come in the way I had expected, I withdrew from Him. Surprisingly, God stopped talking to me, which was the perfect way to reach me. The silence made me worried. I had grown accustomed to God pursuing me and when He didn’t it gave me reason to pause. His silence (which was very effective) was what encouraged me to seek Him. Like a child who isn’t interested until you ignore them, I couldn’t be reached until God ignored me. After that, I was the one doing the pursuing. I found that God has just been waiting for me. He changed my path and the path He chose for me was far superior to the one I had chosen.





Jennifer:

For a long time I felt that my life was just fine. I knew about God and accepted that He was the Lord and Savior. I felt I was a good person, who fell short of the mark, but reasoned that everyone did, so it was no big deal. I made a life decision that left me looking for a job. I was not worried; I felt that as a competent and hardworking individual it would not be long before I found gainful employment. Four months passed and I finally turned to God. I began to pray, but realized that I had no business asking God for anything, because I did not know Him at all. I began seeking Him and so much has changed for me. A desire to know Him began in me that had never been present before. I found I had a void that I didn’t even know about! Since then I have had a job offer and my desire for Christ keeps on growing.



As evident in our three stories, God is always trying to reach us, in precisely the way we need Him to. He called to us and we listened, it was the turning point in our lives, will you ignore His call?




To being wise,



Meredith, Jennifer and Marisa

Life in Transition

Wouldn’t it be strange if a friend came to you and revealed that they were using the same toothbrush that they had since the 1st grade or that you had a friend who never left the 5th grade or that you knew someone who never managed to learn how to tie their shoelaces. You would find it strange that they had not managed to go through the normal progression of maturity and change. Everything about our lives is in constant motion and constant progression. We are always getting older, we are always learning and we are always moving. So why is it ok for our relationship with Christ to be stationary? If you are not getting closer to Christ, you are getting further away from him because there is no such thing as being stationary. If Christ is the new life, then if you are not getting closer to Him, you are getting closer to death.


If you are not growing in Christ, you are dying.


“For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.” Colossians 3:3 & 4 NIV



The three of us were born into this church. We know all about Seventh-day Adventism and all of the customs and beliefs. We have accepted these customs and beliefs and we live our lives by them. For a long time our view of the church was through our parents’ eyes. It always felt like their church, their customs and their beliefs. It felt like it was their God. And while we believed in the message and we believed in Him, we did not know Him for ourselves.



Our parents have inspired us, their connection with God is something we came to yearn for. Not until a few years ago did we decide that we wanted it to be our church, our customs and beliefs, our God.



To being wise,



Meredith, Jennifer and Marisa

Mirror, Mirror On the Wall..............

When you look in the mirror what do you see? Sure, your physical attributes are readily visible. But when you look deeper perhaps you see your father’s mischievous grin in the corner of your mouth, your mother’s compassion in the set of your eyes or your grandfather’s determination in the wrinkle of your forehead? Those attributes may not physically be there, but they are a memory or a reflection of the significant people around you. These important people have left imprints on you, is Christ’s imprint visible?


“Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” “For the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true, and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord.” Ephesians 5:1, 2, 9 & 10 ESV


If we claim that we are Christians and are children of God, there should be evidence of Him in our lives. Just like the important people in your life have left their mark on you, Christ’s mark should also be evident. The minute we reflect something opposite to what Christ embodies, we create doubt. That’s a lot of responsibility. But the beautiful part is that we don’t bear this entire burden, all we have to do is allow Christ to live within us. So who is the fairest of them all?


In the following posts we are going to outline how to allow Christ to take residence in you.



To being wise,



Meredith, Jennifer and Marisa

The Friend with Benefits

Take a trip down memory lane, recall how you met your best friend. Remember how you met, and how situations and experiences brought you closer to each other. Think about the major events in both of your lives that defined your relationship. If you wrote it down on paper it would read as a timeline, mapping out your growth from being acquaintances to being life-long, best friends. If you were to map out the timeline of your relationship with Christ, how would it read? Are you friends? Have you even met yet?


The same markers that you experience in your growing relationship with your best friend will be there when your relationship with Christ grows. They won’t be the same of course, no gossip sessions, shopping outings, or whatever boys do together. But a deeper understanding will emerge, a closeness that you cannot deny and evidence of your change.


“I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.” John 15:5 NKJV


When you are in a growing relationship with Christ you learn that He is the ultimate friend with the absolute best benefits.


“But what happens when we live God’s way? He brings gifts into our lives, much the same way that fruit appears in an orchard—things like affection for others, exuberance about life, serenity. We develop a willingness to stick with things, a sense of compassion in the heart, and a conviction that a basic holiness permeates things and people. We find ourselves involved in loyal commitments, not needing to force our way in life, able to marshal and direct our energies wisely.” Galatians 5:22-24 The Message


Christ is the best friend you could ever have, but like any other relationship it takes time, effort and commitment.


"It takes a long time to grow an old friend." -John Leonard



To being wise,



Meredith, Jennifer and Marisa