LIFE-LONG LEARNING

Life-long learning ... I thought of several phrases I could make with these words:
Learning about life is a long process. Life involves learning. A long life is full of learning.

I haven't blogged much lately -- mostly because February has been an uneventful month and I have been a little less enthusiastic about my studies. Could partly be because the spring semester seems longer, but I have also not been the most diligent with my time management.

However, a couple of recent experiences have caused me to look at my situation in a different light, and I want to share with you what I believe God has spoken to my heart.

I have not been diligent in setting aside time daily to just be in the presence of the Lord. My Bible reading and prayer time have been inconsistent. Since He is really my Lord, my life needs to display that, even in the areas known only to God and to me. If I am going to be really honest, this lack of devotional time and communion with God has affected my productivity and my attitude. But when I honestly confessed to Him that I had been allowing other things to take precedence over what I knew was most important, He began to work a change in me, and I noticed a marked improvement in my attitude the following day.

This is not the first time I have had to learn this lesson, and it certainly won't be the last, but each time it changes me a little more and my roots grow a little deeper.

Last Sunday was an exciting day. My landlady wasn't feeling well in the morning, so I thought she would stay home, but she was at church also. Later, at home, when I was waiting for my pizza in the oven to cook, she was sharing with me how the pastor's message had impacted her and it was a really special sharing time for both of us. I realized then that I need to take hold of these moments every time they come because you cannot always plan for them.

This week, I went swimming for the first time, and the following day I had a horribly runny nose. My teacher was adamant that it was because I went outside too quickly after the swimming and although she expressed it in a very kind way, I am not proud of my initial reaction. I didn't want to be told how to do something, and I struggled with it all day, but there was this thought in my mind that perhaps she was right. After talking to my mom, I realized that perhaps the issue was my unwillingness to set aside my own ideas and adjust to a different way of doing things, and not the advice that I was given.

I don't like being told how to do things, how to say things (this happens a lot in class) and although I know I should try and adapt to the culture here, there are still times when I want to do things my way. This is not only detrimental to the process of learning how to live in community and harmony in a different country and culture, but also in my Christian walk. The New Testament makes it very clear that we are no longer in charge of our own lives, but that we now belong to God and we must be willing to die - to lay down our wills, our desires, our pride and self-importance - and allow Him to direct us.

The process of language learning often doesn't go quite the way I want it to, but I have to remember that it is a process, and just like God is patient in the process of changing me to become more like Christ, I have to patiently trust Him to help me accomplish the goal.

Someone once said, "When you stop learning, you stop growing."
May I always remember that God has promised to complete the good work He started in me, and that all He asks of me is to press on every day in faithfulness and obedience to Him.

CELEBRATING LIFE

"Behold that which I have seen:

it is good and comely for one to eat and to drink, and to enjoy the good of all his labour that he taketh under the sun all the days of his life, which God giveth him: for it is his portion." ~ Ecclesiastes 5:18

"Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning." ~ James 1:17

I've been reading in Ecclesiastes lately ... a book of the Bible which I have always struggled with because of the pessimism it seems to portray. My spiritual eyes have been opened to the light of who God is and I have a growing relationship with Him, so I read it through that viewpoint, which makes the statements about everything being "meaningless" somewhat confusing. However, the author does make some very profound and true statements about God.

Jesus said in John 10:10 that He came in order that whoever came to Him "might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly."

So when I read Ecclesiastes 5:18 and meditated on it, I realized it was a jewel indeed. Every day that we have IS a gift from God, and as followers of Christ we can live joyfully in the time that God has given us, with what He has given us to do because we know that God is sovereign, even though we can't understand all the "whys" of this life.

That is a great motivation for celebrating and living "joy"-fully today: knowing that this is a day given to me by God and that by living every moment of it in an attitude of thankfulness and praise I am giving Him honor and acknowledging that He is God over my life.

A Jewel Box for Life

I will never forget one particular story my mom read to me from a children's story book when I was small...

The little girl in the story wanted a jewelry box full of jewels for her birthday. However, on her birthday, she received from her parents a brand new Bible. She was so angry that she threw the Bible against the wall and ran from the room. Her mother came to her later and told her that they had indeed given her a jewelry box and then proceeded to explain that the Bible is full of promises that are jewels for life and would last far longer than the cheap little jewelry box that she had wanted. Then, together, they started a project to search through the Bible for verses and promises that started with "R" for ruby, "E" for emerald, "D" for Diamond, "P" for pearl, and so on...and the little girl eventually realized that she had a greater treasure box than she could have ever imagined.

I've always loved this story, and it has become a new inspiration for me right now! I have found myself struggling with various issues lately and particularly the temptation to look elsewhere for entertainment and pleasure...when I really should be reveling in the Word of God.

So I'm inspired to begin a new project...

• STEP ONE: Buy a pretty new journal.
• STEP TWO: Every time I am feeling lonely, missing family, wondering if or when I'll ever have the privilege of being married and raising a family, feeling aimless or bored or fighting temptation in an area where I'm particularly vulnerable, I will open my Bible and search for verses and promises that apply to my situation. I will write them down in my book - a new "jewel" in my "Jewel Box for Life."

I believe that this will help me stop the habit of wasting time on the Internet and will also bring me the fulfillment I desire, along with a closer and more intimate relationship with Jesus Christ, my Lord.

Lord Jesus, show me the infinite preciousness of Your Word and cause me to delight more and more in Your incomprehensible and amazing love for me, to treasure who You are and find my pleasure and my completeness only in You.