During the mediocre...

Life can be hard. Life can be blessed. And life can be normal. I've heard it said that its easy to trust God during "good times", as well as through the trials, when God calls you closer to Him. But it is so hard to rely on God and follow the Holy Spirit when life is mediocre, or going reasonably okay. We begin to think we don't need God, or He isn't there--we just kind of forget Him, or box Him into our "devotional time". I was talking with a friend about Christianity. She was explaining how we often live day by day, or month by month, always onto the next goal--but as Christians we should instead live moment by moment, guided by the Spirit. And its true! Only the Spirit can keep us from wandering off the narrow path! But when life gets busy with other stuff and the spiritual and emotional parts slow down, we lose sight of the Spirit. And we lose sight of God. Maybe we catch a glimpse of Him--but so often He seems to vanish. Once our spiritual high fades... life just returns to normal. It's boring. We sin, and its hard to see. But like we learned in history class, sometimes our "walk with God" is like a labyrinth... There is one path to the center, and at times we feel close. Then, just a moment later, we are far from the center. Yet we have to keep walking to reach our goal, trusting that the path will lead us there. That might just sound like mumbo-jumbo to you, but its true, sometimes we just need to trust that God is still there. Not blindly, but through a continued persistence and an active search for Him. (Meaning, go read your Bible and study it in prayer.) This is a huge reminder to myself, but I know it applies not only to my life, but to others as well. Continue onwards! Strive for perfection! Pick yourself up and rise again, as Tyrone would say. Don't lose faith in God's presence, and don't quench the Holy Fire! Hold onto good and reject evil! (Since you become what you behold... ;) 16 Rejoice always, 17 pray continually, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. 19 Do not quench the Spirit. 20 Do not treat prophecies with contempt 21 but test them all; hold on to what is good, 22 reject every kind of evil. 23 May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it. - 1 Thessalonians 5:16-22 And: Phillipians 4:8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things.