Happy July 4th :)

Just wanted to open with this.

And if Our God is for us, then who could ever stop us
And if our God is with us, then what can stand against?
And if Our God is for us, then who could ever stop us
And if our God is with us, then what can stand against?
What can stand against?

Our God is greater, our God is stronger
God You are higher than any other
Our God is Healer, awesome in power
Our God, Our God…
Our God is greater, our God is stronger
God You are higher than any other
Our God is Healer, awesome in power
Our God, Our God… 

-Excerpt from Chris Tomlin's song "Our God"

I was listening to this song on the way back from church today and it really hit me. Hit me hard. If our God is really that much greater than anything, why do I still cower when troubles come my way? I do know the answer to that and it is because of my total lack of faithfulness towards Him. Because of my shortsightedness, I constantly fail to see how small any of my troubles are compared to the majesty of God. God is so much BIGGER than any obstacle the world can throw at you, but I still worry about every problem that comes my way. It's too lame of an excuse to just say its 'human nature' to worry, but being a Christian (still naive that is), it still boggles my mind to have someone who you can trust with all your heart that can make everything right again. I choose to struggle by myself with a trouble that God can take away instantly if only I can just reach out and grab His hand. I mean, He is right there, but still I refuse to show Him my weaknesses and surrender my pride. We can't do it by ourselves, we need God to help us through and even though I am writing this right now, I still have a hard time believing. 

Today during the sermon was based on "The Parable of the Sower" in Mark 4:1-20. He talked about how the 4 types of places the seeds settle and how it directly correlates to how we as people receive the Word of God. The first type of seed is cast onto the path where it is unable to take root and is always exposed to the scorching sun and the birds which feast on the seeds. He compared to those seeds to the people who get the gospel snatched away from by satan them as soon as they hear it. He call those people the ones with 'hard hearts.' They are the ones who refuse to receive, believe, and carry out the gospel. The fate of the second seed lead it to unpaved and rocky soil that did not let the seed actually grow and prosper. Unlike the ones cast on the path, these seeds (people) eagerly receive the Word, however since they could not grow stable roots that can hold them in the soil, as soon as troubles come their way, the waiver and fall apart because they aren't ground in the Word of God. These are the people with the 'shallow hearts.' The third place where a seed can be thrown is among a patch of thorns. In this case, the Word of God actually does take root, yet as soon as the seed starts to mature into a plant, the thorns around it choke the plant and the Word does not bear fruit. This is known as the 'crowded heart.' The troubles of the world come into our lives and literally push God out. Our hearts are too consumed with worldly pleasures and desires that our heart that was once set upon God, now turn to these idols instead.  A point my pastor made here was that these weeds and thorn actually do look alive. They give us the false perception that they contain life and we in turn start to believe and follow them. Last, there are also seeds which are sown onto the good soil. They are the ones who bear fruit and produce 30, 60, 100 times what was sown originally. These 'open-hearted' people gladly and openly receive the Word and let it grow inside them. Their hearts are rooted in God alone and they will not waiver when troubles come. 

As for me, I either contain a shallow or a crowded heart. It's hard to tell at this point, but I know for sure, because of my lack of faithfulness in Him, I have an extremely shallow heart where the Word hasn't fully taken root. When worries come my way, I fall down flat on my face. I ask "Why is this happening?" and turn my back on God. I never thought I was a shallow person, but here I am admitting it. I am shallow. I can't see past the things in front of me even though I know fully well that God might have something better in store for me and that He is putting me through this in order to help me get there. Sometimes I feel like my life is all about the now, however I fail to see that something perfect now can be horrible for the future. Nothing in the world is perfect, everything is flawed. Do you get what I mean? We need to recognize that nothing is greater than our God, that God is greater than all the troubles out there in the world. I need to surrender my pride, my self-boastfulness and step into God's light. I say again, He is right. there. with His arms open wide, all we need to do is reach out and grab His hand. Is that so hard? 

Over and out.