Poem: He Sees

He Sees

I see someone lost among billions of people

He sees someone who stands out in the crowd.

I see a girl who is weary and tired

He sees a girl with strength and endurance.

I see a person who doesn't match up to the standards of the world

He sees a person who is her own person in Christ.

I see a sinner

He sees someone saved by perfect grace.

I see a young child less than worthy

He sees a child of the King.

~ Poem by Rebekah A. Crozier

This poem was completely inspired by God.  I wrote it based upon something God has been showing me lately. 

Do you ever feel less than worthy to be loved by anyone, especially God?  Sometimes when I look in the mirror, I am not satisfied by what I see.  But, what we see isn't always the same as what God sees. 

When I feel lost and like God doesn't care about me, He's carefully watching every move I make.  When I don't feel like I measure up, He views me as someone made perfectly whom He loves.

We don't need to care about the world's standards and who the world says we should be.  Instead, we need to live uniquely and just be ourselves.  That's what will draw people to us and make them wonder, "why are you so different?"

One word God has been giving me lately is the word, enough.  He tells me daily, through different situations that I go through that I am enough for Him.  That I am enough and I don't need to change anything about myself because I am enough.  God calls you enough.  He tells you that you are enough for Him and for your friends and family.  You don't need to compare yourself to others because you are enough. 

Isaiah 64:8 says, "But now, Oh Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand."  God didn't make you just like all the rest of the world.  He made you your own person.  He formed you specifically apart from everyone else.  He made you unique and different. 

This past Friday, I had the amazing chance to go to my church and hear Sadie Robertson speak.  Sadie is a senior in high school, and she is one of the stars of her family's reality tv show, Duck Dynasty.  She has done so much with her life to affect others like her.  One of the things she has done is written a book titled Live Original.  In her book, she talks about how God has called her to be set apart and live original or unique. 

While other tv stars and celebrities try to conform to the newest trends, Sadie made the choice a long time ago to stand out and stand up for what she believes in.

Don't be afraid to stand out.  Even if people ridicule you and judge you for not being like everyone else, God will help you through it.  He promises to always stay with you.  You will overcome any challenge you face because Jesus has already overcome the world and He stands with you.

Live original.  Live unique.  Be different.  Stand out.  Be set apart.  God made you special and He made you to be your own person.  You are enough so don't compare yourselves to others.  And whatever you do this week, remember God loves you no matter what.

A New Year, a New Start

Wow.  It’s 2016.  Time really does fly.  It seems like I was just in awe of the fact that it was 2015.  This is the time of year that, where I live, everyone is hoping and praying for snow.  I’m that one lonely person who doesn’t actually want snow this winter.  I’d much rather it be cold without the extra precipitation falling from the sky.

Anyways, there’s one thing that is on the mind of many a person at the start of a new year.  Can you guess what I’m going to say?  New Year’s Resolutions.  The first definition that pops up when you search this is, “a decision to do or stop doing something, made or announced at the New Year, which is traditionally considered a time for a fresh start.”

Some people are for this tradition of making resolutions, while others are against it.  I’m not against it because I think it is good to set goals for yourself for the year (or even for the day), as long as they are goals that will challenge you but are also realistic.

If we want to get somewhere with our life and be successful, but we don’t set goals, how do we expect to move in the direction we want to go in?  Without goals, we would just be ambling through life letting things happen.  Instead, we need to be intentional.  Being intentional means doing things with and for a purpose.  We need to live life with a purpose.  If we aren't intentional now, we may end up somewhere we never thought we would be.

Here’s the main statement for this whole blog post: Your intention determines your direction, and your direction determines your future.

Your intention determines your direction, and your direction determines your future. 

So, I’m going to ask you: what do you intend to do tomorrow?  Yes, I know.  Tomorrow seems like a long time away.  But, we need to plan ahead.  Do you think if a teacher didn’t know what he/she was teaching tomorrow, the class would be very organized?  Or course not.  Do you think you would learn anything?  Probably not.  Do you think if the President of the United States (or the leader of whatever country you live in) didn’t know what he/she was doing tomorrow or even next week, the government would be run very well?  Now, you may not think your life is as important as the president’s, but it’s important to God.

We need to live our life with a purpose.  We need to go through life, setting goals that will lead us in the right direction – closer to our Heavenly Father.  If you start going in this direction now, your future will great and will honor God, all because you decided to follow His direction for your life even in your younger days.

God created you to live with a purpose.  That’s why He made you.  He made you for a purpose.  He didn’t just say, “I’m going to create this person in this specific way. I don’t know why, but it looks interesting.”  Where would we be if God had created us to live our lives for no reason?

But, the Father of the universe (come one, the universe) made you (yes, you!) because He has a plan for your life.  Your life has purpose.  What you do tomorrow, next week, in this new year is all for a purpose.

“For we are His creation, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time so that we should walk in them.” Ephesians 2:10

God knew His plan for your life before you were even born.  Now, that’s some crazy planning-ahead!  I don’t know about you, but it makes me feel very special and grateful that God already has a plan for my future.  And to top it all off, He’s promised that it’s a good future (Jeremiah 29:11).

So, as Christ-followers, what should our New Year’s resolution be?

“But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for His possession, so that you may proclaim the praises of the One who called you out of darkness, into His marvelous light.” 1 Peter 2:9

According to the verse above, we were created and chosen to honor God and proclaim His name always.  He brought us out of the darkness, and called us to praise Him and follow Him.  That is our calling in life. 

So, my New Year’s resolution is to grow closer to God.  This year, I intend to serve Him and be a light for Him.  He created me for a purpose, and I want to live according to that purpose.  If I plan ahead right now, I will go in the right direction.  And the right direction will lead me to a bright future.  One I want to use to honor God. 

What is your New Year’s resolution?

Let No One Despise Your Youth

I probably wouldn’t classify myself as an adult yet.  I still go crazy sometimes especially when I’m with certain people… (you know who you are if you’re reading this).  I’m not as smart as those people in authority over me, and I don’t have enough money to support myself without the help of my parents.  No, I’m not an adult yet.

But, does this mean I can’t stand up for myself?  Does this mean I can’t work hard towards my future?  Does it mean that I can’t have a close relationship with God because I’m not really old enough yet?

Not at all.

Just because I am young, doesn’t mean I can’t have as much of an impact on the world around me as accomplished adults.  We can all do amazing things as young people.  We can inspire people, teach people, and share our stories with people.  And we can do it well, for the glory of God.

1 Timothy 4:12 is one of my most favorite verses in the whole Bible (that’s saying a lot).  It says, “Let no one despise your youth; instead, you should be an example to the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity.” 

1 Timothy is the first of two letters that the apostle Paul wrote to a man named Timothy.  From what is understood, Timothy was a younger man, and Paul was kind of like a mentor to Him.  In chapter 1, verse 2, Paul called him a “son in the faith.”  Goodness, that’s a pretty sweet title to be called, especially by an amazing, godly man like Paul.

Timothy may have been a “son in the faith” but, like all of us, he needed some more instruction in how to be a church leader.  So, Paul decided to give him that instruction.

A few verses later in 1 Timothy 4:14a, Paul wrote, “Do not neglect the gift that is in you…” Paul was basically saying that everyone has a gift given to them by God.  Whether your gift is teaching, writing, singing, or you’re very good at sports, God gave that gift specifically to you!  But, He didn’t give you a gift just so you could throw it down and not acknowledge that it is there.  He wants you to use it for Him.  He wants you to glorify Him with your talents and special abilities. 

You may be saying, “I’m only a teenager. How am I supposed to use my talents to glorify God right now?”  That’s what Paul was saying to Timothy in the first verse we looked at (1 Timothy 4:12).  He said that you should “Let no one despise your youth…” Other translations say, “Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young.”  

So, just because we are young in age, doesn’t mean we have to be babies in spirit.  (Now, this doesn’t mean that you should be allowed to watch R-rated movies even though your parents say you’re not old enough yet.  You should always obey your parents’ rules.)  Paul gives us 5 ways we, as young people, can be an example to others (even those older than us) and glorify God.

1.)   In speech – Ephesians 4:29 says, “No foul language is to come from your mouth, but only what is good for building up someone in need, so that it gives grace to those who hear.” 

o   Think before you speak.  When you talk, always make sure that what you’re saying is encouraging to others and won’t put them down and make them feel bad about themselves.

o   People will notice if you almost always say nice, encouraging things, and it is a good example to set for everyone.

2.)   In conduct – A lot of times, your beliefs will determine your actions.  For example, if you believe that cars are safe to drive and you drive one, you probably shouldn’t act scared because you said that you believed cars are safe.  If you really believed that, you wouldn’t be acting scared to ride in one.

o   So, if you believe in the Bible and that everything it says is true, your actions/conduct should show that.  You should obey all the guidelines God has set for us in His Word.

o   This will be an example to show that you really believe in the Bible if you live out everything it says.

3.)   In love – God is the perfect example of love.  In fact, He is love.  He loves us with an unthinkable amount of love, and we should want to share that amazing love with everyone we meet. 

o   John 15:12 says, “This is My command: Love one another as I have loved you.”  Short, sweet, and perfect.  We don’t deserve God’s love, but He still gives it to us.  So, not only should we love our friends and family, we should love our enemies, even if we don’t think they deserve our love. 

o   Those people that you don’t really like will be shocked when you start loving them.  It’s an awesome example to set and one that could lead lots of people to Christ.

4.)   In faith – Every believer has a personal story/testimony.  Someday, I’ll share mine with all of you.  But, even if you don’t think your story is great, God wrote it and He loves it. 

o   Don’t be scared to share the story of your faith with others. 

o   Whenever times get rough, remember to have a steadfast faith in Jesus, because He will protect you and He is always there.  In Matthew 17:20-21, Jesus explains how faith like a mustard seed can move mountains and work miracles.

5.)   In purity – This is the last one, but certainly not the least.  I love Psalm 119:9 which says, “How can a young man keep his way pure? By keeping Your Word.”

o   It is important, especially because of what society tells young people today, to guard your heart and mind.  If you don’t let bad things enter your heart and mind, bad things won’t come out.  But how can we stay pure in a world that tells us purity isn’t important, that it is old-fashioned?

o   David says it here: keep God’s Word.  Meditate on it every day; make sure you remember that time at least once a day when you talk to God and then pause and listen.  Reading God’s Word instead of spending your time on worldly things will lead you to a pure path.  You will be grateful for that pure path you followed once you are married.

Remember these 5 ways that you can be an example to everyone around you.  Even if you are young, God can use you in a powerful way.