Rejoice-Lily

So, just a warning, this post is going to be really long and has nothing to do with bible study, but it is about God, so it's all good. It's just something I've been thinking and praying and studying recently.

A few nights ago, Brina and I were having a late-night conversation on how horrible society and life is. Brina made a comment on how life is degrading in pretty much every aspect and I replied "No, it's already dead." That seems like a very depressing and pessimistic thought, however it is actually not that bad if you understand three things.

The first is simple: when I say life is dead I mean that it is spiritually fallen and destroyed.

The second is that Jesus died. Physically died. During the entire crucifixion process He could have died like four times. The Romans were very focused on killing people, they were pro murderers. There was absolutely no way that He was somehow still alive physically after He was buried in the tomb.

Third is that it is easier to raise someone spiritually than it is to raise someone physically. I think everyone can agree on that. You can revive someone's spirit by smiling at them, but bringing someone back to life requires much more.

So if Jesus died and then rose again, and I mean He really was dead and then started walking and talking to His friends, then what's so bad about us being spiritually dead? If Jesus can lift us up, brush us off, and teach us how to live, then we don't have to worry about our death any more. We don't have to care. We don't have to act like zombies because the one who defeated physical death can easily raise us spiritually!

And now I get to my point about rejoicing.

Rejoice in the Lord always. And again I will say, rejoice!
Philippians 4:4

The word rejoice is defined as "to feel or express joy or triumph." I was playing an arrangement of Good Christian Men, Rejoice and something in the music reminded me of a victory. I thought about the word rejoice and kind of realized that you don't always have to be exultant and chipper, but really, just realize that God has already won this battle and rejoice in that.

I struggle with this pretty often when something I read in a book confuses me or misleads me. Then something happens in my life that confuses me even more and I feel far away from God and terrible and everything. At that point, I forget that I've already won the war, even though in this particular battle it looks like I'm losing.

So, to close up, rejoice in what Jesus did for you. You don't have to lose anymore.

"Smells like I'm winning."

Thanks for reading! Well, if you did read this really long post. I'd love to hear anything you have to say about the matter or a song that applies or something (and pretty much every single worship song does).

Lily

Tech and Masks - Brina

Okay guys, I (me being Brina) just wanted to explain a few things: if you're a JB bible study-er than you should've gotten an email inviting you to contribute to this blog. There should be a link and if you follow it, you will be brought to your Blogger dashboard. (It will be different if you don't have a Blogger account, but they're super easy to make.) Under "Manage Blogs" you should be able to easily click New Post under the heading Heart of Worship and BAM - you're a blogger!

Also, on the topic of clarification... We've been having a little bit of trouble with the word "Masks". Yeah, you probably just groaned, but after reading Paul's definition of a mask I thought I'd share my own thoughts on the matter.

1 Thessalonians 2:4-6 says "We are not trying to please people but God, who tests our hearts. 5 You know we never used flattery, nor did we put on a mask to cover up greed—God is our witness. 6 We were not looking for praise from people, not from you or anyone else."
The original definition of masks was, I believe, this same thing, when you try to change who you are and what God's made you in order to get praise from people. A mask is something we use to make men praise us. Sometimes we are blind to our own sin, but this isn't necessarily a 'mask', persay, because its deeper than wanting others to like us; its wanting to like ourselves.

It's like living in the dark, which Paul describes in 1 Thessalonians 5:5-6 as something we should NOT do. "You are all sons of the light and sons of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness. So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be alert and self-controlled." So we have to be alert and self-controlled, which implies we are paying attention, staying from temptation but also fully realizing our sins.

So now we have two different things: "masks" and those who "live in darkness". This is really just my interpretation and thoughts on the confusion of masks. What do you guys think? Comment any disagreements, questions, continuations...

Love you all, Brina :)

Faithful

You are there in every season of my soul
You are there, You're the anchor that will hold
You are there, in the valley of the shadows
You are faithful, God
~Faithful, Chris Tomlin

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hZg7EBxbqSE

not friday. good idea. i love you daddy

What is this Nonsense??

Okay guys. This is Brina talking, specifically to the JB Bible Study! I was asked (more or less) on Thursday to make a blog for the Jim Bridger Bible Study for us to post prayer requests or share stuff on. I thought, okay, cool, I can do that. But "Jim Bridger Bible Study" makes a pretty boring blog name. "Heart of Worship" came from the fact that I believe the deepest worship is studying God's word, spending time with him, following his example. Worship isn't just singing, it is doing what God calls us to do. And that's exactly the reason we have our Bible study - to grow in our relationship with God and try to understand His words.

So, this blog is open for anyone to post on. That does not mean you should post anything you want (so no links to Friday, Anna). Its an easier way of communicating with the group than email (hypothetically). That means you can share prayer requests or notifications or share a message God's put on your heart.

If you guys have any ideas of how we could improve this blog or a question, email me or post a comment here! Thanks guys :)

-Brina