The Journey

Lately I've been working hard trying to get into shape for summer. Swim suit weather will be upon us before we know it, guys! And as a result I am feeling myself slowly transform, but can’t see the results much yet. If you are a human being whose been on this planet for longer than thirteen years, you probably can sympathize with how frustrating that is. It makes me wonder, though, why it is I’m not entirely happy with the way God made me. It’s not that getting in shape is wrong, but I think part of it is motivated by the feeling that God didn't quite make me perfect . Which is totally ridiculous, considering “perfect” is a fluid concept in today’s world and “beautiful” is almost unattainable without Photoshop and a paint brush. Then why do we, as human beings, fall into this trap? Why are we plagued by constant discontentment when it comes to how we look? Is there something wrong with us? Well, yes, there is. It’s called sin. Sin festers inside, making us f...

Prayer. What is prayer? Why do we pray? Is it absolutely necessary for a relationship with God? Dictionary.com  defines prayer like this: noun 1. a   devout   petition   to   God   or   an   object   of   worship. 2. a   spiritual   communion   with   God   or   an   object   of   worship,   as   in  supplication,   thanksgiving,   adoration,   or   confession. Notice the words "devout petition" and "spiritual communion". These words indicate a deep, fundamental connection that is difficult for our human minds to comprehend. I guess the closest thing we have here on earth to that would be the bond created when we marry (not that I would know much about that, but my parents have been pretty open about their relationship so I probably know more than some). The point is, prayer is personal . It's the only way that we can commune with ...

So, dear Reader, today has been tough. Well, to be honest, most of it hasn't, but I had another tough moment. And guess who it involved? My brother. If you guessed right, you get a gold star. Little brothers are like... the puppies of the human world. When they want to be, they're cute, funny, and sweet. But most of the time it seems like they just make too much noise, play a little too rough, and need a bath. I'm not saying that I don't like  my brother. That's not it at all. He's just... a little brother . If you have one, you know what I mean. As I usually do, this morning during my prayers I asked for peace, love, and patience. I'd been doing pretty well with him, so I didn't really think much about the prayer or put too much fervency in it. A half hour later he came tromping down the stairs in his sweats (the ones my sister and I threaten to burn every so often) and opened the fridge. I made an off-hand comment about how we had left-overs. ...

It seems like today the whole world is obsessed with one thing: communication. We now have Skype, Twitter, Facebook, Google Plus, YouTube, Blogger... and probably a hundred other means of communicating including cell phones and the Post Office. So why is it that with all that we still cannot answer the one question that bugs us the most: How does God communicate with us? So does he tap us on the shoulder and whisper in our ear? Write letters in the air? Strike us with proverbial revelation lightning? How? Before we answer this question, we need a little bit of history. At the beginning of the Old Testament, Adam and Eve had direct, audible, one-on-one discussions with God. But after sin, that ended abruptly. Then people had only one way and one way only to hear from God- prophecy. Sure, they could pray to Him, but the only way He talked back was through the voice of another. Some of the most famous Super-Star prophets were probably Noah, Moses, Daniel, and Isaiah. There...