Fasting the idea of giving up in order to better focus myself spiritually on God. So in class we were challenged to fast either for a couple hours or even a few days. Fasting isn't just not eating food. But it can be anything that pulls us away from God or distracts us. It helps us put faith in God you get us through the day.
So I decided that for twenty four hours I would not eat at all. I would only consume liquids. This I thought would be a challenge and a growing experience for me spiritually and physically. I started it off at eight o'clock on Monday night So I did some homework drank water and then went to bed. Today I just treated the day like every other day. I just didn't eat. It wasn't hard for me. After eight o'clock tonight I had some chicken and continued as normal. Now that I reflect back I see I did it all wrong that I only completed it half way. That if I am going to fast on something it need to be challenging enough were I feel as though I cannot go on without God.
This troubled me and I tried to imagine how long I would have to go and get a necessity of prayer. I now find myself wanting to do it again but for a longer period. The first time I did it was more of a proving to myself. Which fasting is not about. I want the next timeI do it to be ever trusting and be in prayer and meditation the whole time I am in it.
Fasting is easy and in that I must try to lengthen it. I feel God challenging me. Not in that to do it longer or strain myself but rather challenge in the way that I must rely on God's strength and help to sustain me. I challenge you to trust God and try fasting. Praise God for all that he is doing and will do.
Tuesday, October 30, 2012
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
A Spiritual Journey (mine)
I was born at a young age. This is my Journey of spiritual growth. Everyone in my family knew God almost all of us went to church every Sunday. Mom and Dad were both Christians. This influenced me greatly knowing my two favorite people in the whole world followed Jesus then I should be a follower like them. As a kid I never really noticed what was a God moment and what wasn’t all I knew is that if I loved Jesus then he would help me out in everything I did.I had one time of depression when I was a child when I was seven my great grandma died. I barely knew her but I still was old enough to understand what this meant. I cried as all kids do. We went to the funeral home I saw her there. No life in her only an empty body. My dad told me not to worry because God is with her and she is worshipping God like she did on earth and that one day I could meet her again. This growth taught me to be strong because God is there.
When I grew out of childhood and became a pre teen it was a time of growth for me spiritually. Middle school youth group and just different events in my life that hurt a lot but my dad and mom helped me see God’s good in it. My mom and Dad pointed me to God but I accepted Christ in 5th grade at a summer camp. When I was ten years old my aunt Lana passed away. She was 33 years old. It hurt so bad. I couldn’t express my hurt to anyone but my family. No one understood. I prayed to God for comfort and he comforted me. I knew God was there and even though life hurt I trusted he would help me get through it. I grew so much through these years. There was a lot of hurt but God showed me that I can love even deeper than I thought I could. Hurt included the loss of many friendships and the whole idea of grades in my life and not doing well. All of this prepared me for my high school years
.
In high school God showed me my calling. I was able to preach in front of church and this made me feel like I was made to do this. That is when I discerned my call from God. When I was a senior in high school my grand father passed away. It was Christmas and we all headed home then at 2:01 our family got a call that grandpa had passed away from cancer. This really challenged me. I cried and prayed for comfort. It came but that didn’t stop the hurt. I really saw strength from my father in that time and it astounded me. Me and my cousins carried Grandpa’s casket to the grave and that was it. The hurt was still there and I thanked God so much for his faithfulness in his comfort. The thing that maybe hurt almost as much as that is when I cam back from break and I walked around not one person asked why I looked sad or if I was okay it hurt. The friends I thought I had to comfort me weren’t there at all. This taught me that in the end the only person I can rely on is God. He never lets me down and is always there for me no matter what. I trusted God and he brought me to Kuyper.College has been quite the experience I have grown up faster than I can notice. I have gained a whole new depth of understanding for relationships and what true friendship means.
God has changed and shaped me into a man and hopefully will continue to do so. Hopefully this skim view of my life and how I have grown spiritually. God is good through all things and I thank him everyday for all he has done for me.
When I grew out of childhood and became a pre teen it was a time of growth for me spiritually. Middle school youth group and just different events in my life that hurt a lot but my dad and mom helped me see God’s good in it. My mom and Dad pointed me to God but I accepted Christ in 5th grade at a summer camp. When I was ten years old my aunt Lana passed away. She was 33 years old. It hurt so bad. I couldn’t express my hurt to anyone but my family. No one understood. I prayed to God for comfort and he comforted me. I knew God was there and even though life hurt I trusted he would help me get through it. I grew so much through these years. There was a lot of hurt but God showed me that I can love even deeper than I thought I could. Hurt included the loss of many friendships and the whole idea of grades in my life and not doing well. All of this prepared me for my high school years
.
In high school God showed me my calling. I was able to preach in front of church and this made me feel like I was made to do this. That is when I discerned my call from God. When I was a senior in high school my grand father passed away. It was Christmas and we all headed home then at 2:01 our family got a call that grandpa had passed away from cancer. This really challenged me. I cried and prayed for comfort. It came but that didn’t stop the hurt. I really saw strength from my father in that time and it astounded me. Me and my cousins carried Grandpa’s casket to the grave and that was it. The hurt was still there and I thanked God so much for his faithfulness in his comfort. The thing that maybe hurt almost as much as that is when I cam back from break and I walked around not one person asked why I looked sad or if I was okay it hurt. The friends I thought I had to comfort me weren’t there at all. This taught me that in the end the only person I can rely on is God. He never lets me down and is always there for me no matter what. I trusted God and he brought me to Kuyper.College has been quite the experience I have grown up faster than I can notice. I have gained a whole new depth of understanding for relationships and what true friendship means.
God has changed and shaped me into a man and hopefully will continue to do so. Hopefully this skim view of my life and how I have grown spiritually. God is good through all things and I thank him everyday for all he has done for me.
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
Prayerful Consideration of Prayer
Prayer, used by Christians and non-Christians alike. It is a way for people to consult with the almighty, right? Not really, in class we learned that prayer is a form of worship. So this week we had to practice this discipline. I am usually a regular prayer, I prayer before I go to bed and when I eat. But I never really pray because I feel called to I always did it out of routine. This week I tried to be more spontaneous.
Whenever something came up that even teetered wether or not I thought I needed to pray for it. I did it right then and there. So I almost made it a game. I sat waiting for something I could talk to God about. From wether I should buy a car or not to what kind of drink I drink. As I sat around Sunday I thought about is that really prayer is for? Prayer is a time to bring my troubles and blessings before God and thank him for it. So I started on Monday praying to God not because it was a game or because its routine but because I know that God wants to hear all I say and to help me with everything he does.
Prayer is probably in my opinion the most important and under used discipline we are told to do. Prayer is a calling by God to bring our troubles, our burdens to him and trust that God's grace and good will, will do what is for his glory. Prayer is a way for us to talk to God and we shouldn't be scared of it because no matter what we say God will listen and help us through it.
Whenever something came up that even teetered wether or not I thought I needed to pray for it. I did it right then and there. So I almost made it a game. I sat waiting for something I could talk to God about. From wether I should buy a car or not to what kind of drink I drink. As I sat around Sunday I thought about is that really prayer is for? Prayer is a time to bring my troubles and blessings before God and thank him for it. So I started on Monday praying to God not because it was a game or because its routine but because I know that God wants to hear all I say and to help me with everything he does.
Prayer is probably in my opinion the most important and under used discipline we are told to do. Prayer is a calling by God to bring our troubles, our burdens to him and trust that God's grace and good will, will do what is for his glory. Prayer is a way for us to talk to God and we shouldn't be scared of it because no matter what we say God will listen and help us through it.
Pray everyday about all things . Don't be afraid to pray for the hard things and the small things. God wants to be there for you no matter what.
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
Meditating: Not Just for Hippies and Monks
This week we were challenged to do the spiritual discipline of Meditation. The definition of meditation is the clearing the mind of worldly thoughts and thoughts that would distract us from thinking about God. When we do this we let are mind be filled with what God wants it to be filled with.
When I first thought of meditation I thought of sitting in a tower, legs crossed and humming the same tone. Meditation is different than that., it can be used to glorify God and to help us i what we do. So my goal for the week was to meditate least once a day for a half an hour or more at a time. Sadly this dream did not come into fruition. Instead I only did it three times out of the six days. At first I was upset with myself for not completing my goal. After that little pout I decided to try to look at the bright side of it.
The first time I meditated was on my porch, in a lawn chair, in mid-afternoon. For abut five minutes I kind of joke around I sat the best I could in a cross legged position and then put my hands out to either side and started humming a song. If anyone saw me they would have thought I was crazy. But when I actually started to clear my mind and focus on nature and God it was an experience I had never felt before. After roughly a half an hour I got up and went through the rest of my day. My day finished out great. It was an amazing feeling everything I did and everyone I talked to I was more happy more wise and less immature.
God proved me wrong when I thought meditation was only for hippies. I am excited to continue on this way of worship. God leads and teaches in mysterious ways. Try meditating some time you might end up liking it.
When I first thought of meditation I thought of sitting in a tower, legs crossed and humming the same tone. Meditation is different than that., it can be used to glorify God and to help us i what we do. So my goal for the week was to meditate least once a day for a half an hour or more at a time. Sadly this dream did not come into fruition. Instead I only did it three times out of the six days. At first I was upset with myself for not completing my goal. After that little pout I decided to try to look at the bright side of it.
The first time I meditated was on my porch, in a lawn chair, in mid-afternoon. For abut five minutes I kind of joke around I sat the best I could in a cross legged position and then put my hands out to either side and started humming a song. If anyone saw me they would have thought I was crazy. But when I actually started to clear my mind and focus on nature and God it was an experience I had never felt before. After roughly a half an hour I got up and went through the rest of my day. My day finished out great. It was an amazing feeling everything I did and everyone I talked to I was more happy more wise and less immature.
God proved me wrong when I thought meditation was only for hippies. I am excited to continue on this way of worship. God leads and teaches in mysterious ways. Try meditating some time you might end up liking it.
Tuesday, October 2, 2012
Confessions of a Male College Student.
Confession, a scary word to a guy. Showing weakness to others, confessing that we can not do and be all that we claim. This week I was challenged in the spiritual discipline of Confession. I thought to myself "Hey! I do this one!" This excited me but then I remember I have to confess, to people on my blog, about my confessing. Confessing, I confess I confess. Well there thats it......
Wow that would have been a lame blog. So I decided to share with ya'll why I confess and the kind of people I confess to. Confessing is an acknowledgement of falling short or doing something that I am embarrassed or ashamed of. Now guys, I know this can sound rather silly (dumb) whatever word you think fits best. But as a guy and one who doesn't like being vulnerable, I have to say that if you confess to the right people (and God) it can be very therapeutic. Being able to remove that weight off your chest and just letting go of something that you did is a wonderful. Plus then the other person keeps you accountable to make sure you don't do that again.
Now choosing the kind of people who will listen, give feedback and not judge are hard to find. I really only confess everything to three people; my girlfriend, my best friend and God. All three of these are trusting, loving and able to keep me accountable of what I do. They aren't afraid to tell me if I am wrong or to listen to my rants. When choosing the people you want in your most deepest part of your lives you have to know them well, trust is also very important, the most important though, in my opinion is that you want to hear what THEY have to say. This isn't a time to vent and then walk away. No confession is a time to make yourself vulnerable and let people know you are weak. And trusting that the person you confide in is able to give you the advice or hug that you need.
Confession is healthy, its hard and most important it is a way for us to glorify God. God is always there for us when we feel like no one else is. He strengthens us in everything we do. Confession is a way for me to admit I am fallen, broken and unable to save myself. GOD is all I need and should want. God can help me in my struggles. Praise God for He is good all the time and never falters.
There you have it I Reuben Antvelink am weak. I confess my struggles to people and I know that I have a God who loves me through all of my problems. PRAISE GOD!
Wow that would have been a lame blog. So I decided to share with ya'll why I confess and the kind of people I confess to. Confessing is an acknowledgement of falling short or doing something that I am embarrassed or ashamed of. Now guys, I know this can sound rather silly (dumb) whatever word you think fits best. But as a guy and one who doesn't like being vulnerable, I have to say that if you confess to the right people (and God) it can be very therapeutic. Being able to remove that weight off your chest and just letting go of something that you did is a wonderful. Plus then the other person keeps you accountable to make sure you don't do that again.
Now choosing the kind of people who will listen, give feedback and not judge are hard to find. I really only confess everything to three people; my girlfriend, my best friend and God. All three of these are trusting, loving and able to keep me accountable of what I do. They aren't afraid to tell me if I am wrong or to listen to my rants. When choosing the people you want in your most deepest part of your lives you have to know them well, trust is also very important, the most important though, in my opinion is that you want to hear what THEY have to say. This isn't a time to vent and then walk away. No confession is a time to make yourself vulnerable and let people know you are weak. And trusting that the person you confide in is able to give you the advice or hug that you need.
Confession is healthy, its hard and most important it is a way for us to glorify God. God is always there for us when we feel like no one else is. He strengthens us in everything we do. Confession is a way for me to admit I am fallen, broken and unable to save myself. GOD is all I need and should want. God can help me in my struggles. Praise God for He is good all the time and never falters.
There you have it I Reuben Antvelink am weak. I confess my struggles to people and I know that I have a God who loves me through all of my problems. PRAISE GOD!
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