Conclusion & Day #43: Oodles To Grow

It seems like just a couple days ago I was writing an introduction post. I remember not knowing what to say. I wasn't sure how to start, or how to format my words, or if anyone would end up reading what I wrote! And honestly, I didn't even know if I was going to be able to stick with this blog for 42 days.

And now here I am. Writing my conclusion post. And boy, am I going to miss writing every day! I have learned so much. I've learned that journaling is the best way for me to understand and grow closer to God. I've learned how to manage my time effectively and how to become a better writer. And probably most importantly, I've learned how to listen to God.

A very specific lesson that I learned was that God knows exactly what I need. I've written about this previously, but I I experienced it in a major way this past week. I realized that when I fall down and scrape my knee (figuratively, but possibly literally, too), God will stick a band-aid on my boo-boo and allot me just the right amount of time to heal.

Over the past 42 days, I believe I have changed. I would like to believe that God has made some major positive renovations. I would like to believe that I have become wiser, stronger, more open to new things, more intelligent, and more full of the Holy Spirit than I was at the beginning of Lent. I think I am all of these things to a certain degree, but I absolutely have a multitude left to learn, and oodles left to grow.

I plan to continue journaling while spending time in God's word daily. I plan to pursue God with all my heart. And lastly, I plan to continue depending more and more on God, until He is my sole support.

I must reiterate the fact that I have learned so much. I hope you learned at least a portion of what I learned about God, and I hope you learned at least one thing about me. Thank you for sticking with me through my journey, or at least reading some of my thoughts. I pray God blesses your life greatly and that you grow closer to Him.


Photo #43: Oodles To Grow

Day #42: Ahhhh, I Love Happy Endings =]

The LORD blessed the latter part of Job's life more than the first.
~Job 42:12a

Happy endings. We all love 'em, right? And guess who got a happy ending to their story? That's right, Job.

In the first part of Job 42, Job repents. He admits to God that he has been foolish. And finally, Job repents in dust and ashes.

After Job repents, God finally takes away the suffering. And imagine what God does next. He blesses Job with TWICE as much as he had before. Do you remember how many animals Job had in the beginning? He had over 11,000 animals. God gave Job over 22,000 animals in the end! Job was blessed with 7 more sons, 3 more daughters, and even more numerous amounts of wealth than he had in the beginning. What a happy ending.

This final chapter of Job gave me so much joy. God has been working in my life and making some major rearrangements and renovations. Somethings have even been taken away from me. It has given me great hope that after Job had gone through many tribulations, God blessed him with twice as much as he had before. When I read those verses it felt like God was whispering in my ear 'If you continue to follow me, I'll bless you like that, too!'

Job was faithful to God. Sure, he spoke foolishly and harshly a couple times, but don't we all? If you think back to the deal God made with the Satan, Satan was trying to get Job to curse God. Job cursed himself, but never did he curse or blame God. So Job was faithful. And in the end, God blessed him for it.

Tonight I attended my church's Maundy Thursday service. Pastor Brown kept encouraging us to follow Jesus. He spoke about how following Jesus may cost you security, it may cost you what you think are your dreams, it may cost you friends, and it may even cost you your life. Yet in the end it will be worth it, and God will reward!

The past 42 days have changed me. I'll save the rest for tomorrow's 'reflection post', but I will say that I have made the strong commitment to eagerly pursue Jesus. I will follow His way no matter what I might lose. Because in the end I know there will be a happy ending.


Photo #42: Ahhhh, I love happy endings =]

Day #41: What Do You Think? Feedback And Interact

He makes the depths churn like a boiling cauldron
and stirs up the sea like a pot of ointment.
~Job 41:31

First, I must begin by saying that I can NOT believe this is my 41st post! I only have one chapter of Job left, then I will write a reflection post. The past 41 days have been amazing and I have learned so much.

Yesterday God described His behemoth, or what I believe to be a land dwelling dinosaur. Today God is describing His leviathan. The leviathan is spoken of as a huge fish ("Can you pull in the leviathan with a fish hook"). The leviathan is described as having fearsome teeth, and impenetrable scales. God also says the leviathan shoots sparks of fire from it's mouth while smoke pours from it's nostrils. Is it just me, or does the leviathan sound like a dragon?

We all thought dragons weren't real (unless you're part of some cult... No offense if you are). We thought they were just a well known, multicultural myth, like fairies or Pegasuses. But here we might have proof that God actually created a dragon... A water dragon, maybe, but nonetheless, a dragon.

This particular story/'myth' is spread through many cultures. The Irish, Vikings (How To Train Your Dragon is a cute movie, by the way =]), and Chinese all have dragons. And seriously, how many times have we heard a tail about sea monsters? Myths are just like rumors; they start with a seed of truth and grow. So realistically, how would so many societies so far apart from each other all base their culture on the same 'mythical' creatures?

God created leviathans, and humans inevitably saw them (considering humans and 'dinosaurs' lived at the same time) and probably even associated with them. And considering the leviathan was a sea dwelling creature, some of the leviathans could have potentially survived the Great Flood of Genesis chapters 6&7 (Yes, I'm talking about the Loch Ness monster).

I guess somethings will always be left to theory. Somethings we don't have definite proof on. Somethings, a lot of things actually, are left to faith. And for me, I have faith that God created a leviathan (sea dragon) and a behemoth (land dinosaur). Some might say the only proof I have is a book. However, I just so happen to think that book is pretty trustworthy.


Photo #41: What do you think? Feedback and interact. =]

Day #40: RAWR! Means 'I Love You' In Dinosaur

He ranks first among the works of God,
yet his Maker can approach him with his sword.
~Job 40:19

I found the 40th chapter of Job exciting. Today I get to talk about (drum roll please) behemoths!!! Woo hoo!

The behemoth is described as herbivorous, extremely strong, with a skeleton like steel and a tail like a cedar tree. Most people believe God is describing a hippopotamus. (A hippo? But hippos don't have tails like cedar trees! Most people think the 'tail' is a euphemism... But I'm pretty sure God said what he meant.) Seriously though, when is the last time you saw a hippo with a tail like a cedar tree?

I, personally, do not believe God has just described a hippopotamus. I think God described a DINOSAUR. In fact, I believe another dinosaur was mentioned earlier in the book of Job, the Leviathan (Job 3, also in Job 41).

First, I'm going to give you a short history (that was an oxymoron) of the word 'dinosaur'. In 1842 paleontologist Richard Owen coined the word 'dinosaur'. The word is a combination of the Greek words for 'terrible/powerful/wonderous' and 'lizard'. So 'dinosaur' actually means 'terrible lizard'. Before Richard Owen gave a name to these creatures, most common people only knew about Leviathans and Behemoths (even though no one knows exactly what God was describing).

I am a Young Earth Creationist. That means I believe God created the world in 6 consecutive days, not thousands of years (so I believe the world is only about 6000 years old). I believe God created what we call dinosaurs, along with all His other creations. Neither ourselves or birds evolved from dinosaurs, and yes, humans did live at the same time as the creatures called dinosaurs.

God is amazing! I keep saying it, but it's so true! I mean, He created dinosaurs. There aren't many things cooler than dinosaurs (except maybe ninjas). And what amazes me most about all of this is the fact that God could have stopped after creating dinosaurs. He would have had tons of fun playing with His dinosaurs (I know I would. RAWR!), but He decided to make us. And He loves us more than He ever loved His dinosaurs.


Photo #40: RAWR! means 'I love you' in dinosaur.

Day #39: Hakuna Matata!

Do you give the horse his strength
or clothe his neck with a flowing mane?
~Job 39:19

Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?...See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin....If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?
~Matthew 6:26,28,30

In Job 39 God is still speaking to Job. God is speaking of His knowledge of all His creatures' comings and goings. God asks Job if he knows when the deer or mountain goats give birth. God asks Job if it's by Job's power that the hawks fly and nest. God knows the answers to all these questions, and I'm sure Job does too, but God is reinforcing that he is, in fact, Almighty.

God knows about everything about that ostrich. He knows everything about the wild donkey and the wild ox. His eye follows every hawk and eagle. He cares about all His creations so much. Matthew 6 points out that he feeds the birds of the air and clothes the lilies of the field. But ostriches, nor eagles, nor lilies were created in God's image...

God created us in His image. When I say us, I mean me, you, him, her, them... We were created in GOD'S image! Just think, if God cares so much about His plants and animals, then how much do you think He cares about His made-in-His-own-image-humans? Jesus even says 'Are you not much more valuable than they?' (Matthew 6:26)

I worry a lot. I worry about school, I worry about friends, I worry about myself, I worry about having the things I need, I worry about the future... All this worry can also be called stress. I know I shouldn't stress about things, but I do. I know I shouldn't have to worry about every single thing in the world, but for some reason I do. Sometimes I feel like everything is up to me and I have to be the one to take care of it.

Why should I worry and stress? I don't see the birds, or the bugs, or the flowers worrying, and God takes care of them! We're even more valuable than the birds and bugs and flowers, so how much more will God provide for us and take care of us? I don't need to worry or get stressed about life. God will take care of me. He knows exactly what I need and will always provide in due time. So in the mean time, I will work on stressing less and focusing more on a Hakuna Matata life.


Photo #39: Hakuna Matata!

Day #38: The Moment We've All Been Waiting For!

Then the Lord answered Job out of the storm...
~Job 38:1

Okay, so picture this. A dark stadium with a single spotlight focused on a podium in the center of the stage. At the podium stands an announcer with a hand-held microphone. In a deep rumbling voice the announcer proclaims 'And nowwwww... The moment we've allll been waiting for...!' A drum roll resounds throughout the auditorium...

Do you have that scene pictured? Well that's how I felt when I read the first verse of Job 38. Job has been speaking and speaking, wishing (but probably not expecting) that God would reply. Well, the moment we've all been waiting for is here. God has replied!!

Ahhhhhh, it's a nice feeling knowing that God has a sense of humor. In fact, I think God just used sarcasm (Surely you know, for you were already born! You have lived so many years! ~Job 38:21)! I guess God did create us in His own image. Where else would we have gotten humor from?

I love my Lord! He is BY FAR the coolest person I will ever meet! The things he says just amaze me. I mean, take verse 22: Have you entered the storehouses of the snow, or seen the storehouses of the hail...? Or if that isn't cool enough for you, how awesome is it that God uses the pronoun 'I'? "When I made", "When I fixed limits", "When I said". I just find it all so exhilaratingly mind-blowing!

Probably the thing that has made the biggest impact on me about this chapter is how personal God is being! I mean, He's directly talking to Job, Elihu, Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar. This is also the first chapter I've read (out of the entire Bible) where God describes Himself making the world. In Genesis He just kinda gives an outline of what he made, but in this chapter He speaks about His creations in more detail.

I think I'll just end by saying this: I serve and love an AWEsome God.


Photo #38: The moment we've all been waiting for! (Which in this case would be sandal weather. =]]])

Day #37: Smashing Stereotypes

The breath of God produces ice,
and the broad waters become frozen.
He loads the clouds with moisture;
He scatters his lightning through them.
At His direction they swirl around
over the face of the whole earth
to do whatever He commands them.
~Job 37:10-12

I must admit it. The first time I read Job 37, I imagined Dumbledore standing in a pool of clouds, gracefully performing all the actions Elihu describes. I'm sorry for being such a dork, but I did. =]

Just in case you've lived in a hole for your entire life, I'll describe Dumbledore's appearance to you. He's quite old, has long white hair and a long white beard. He has a long nose, blue eyes, and wears librarian-style glasses. I'd say he kinda looks like a taller, thinner version of Santa Claus. He's also a bit intimidating... It may seem kind of odd, but that is how I imagine God looking.

I guess sometimes I get these ideas of what people look like. I hear someone speak, or I read something about them, and poof, here comes this little painting of what they (theoretically) look like. A perfect example is listening to a radio show; the portrait you paint in your head is the complete opposite of what the person actually looks like.

Does all of this actually come down to stereotyping? I visualize what people look like based on what kind of people I think they are. Then I assume they look that way.

God is far greater than any Dumbledore or Santa Claus. So it may be an automatic reaction, but God is way more than I can begin to imagine about, so why try to stereotype Him? I think I also need to try to keep my mind open and not be so quick to stereotype (I find stereotyping completely irrelevant and potentially hurtful)...


Photo #37: Smashing stereotypes. (Yes, I am actually a squirrel. My favorite trees are redwoods. =])