The Path Towards God

The crossroads

The path of God is the right mindset, attitude, choices, and actions we take that put us in line with God, and on the road to heaven. Moving towards Him, and not away from Him.

It’s also the path that brings us closer to ourselves. It brings us home to who we really always were meant to be.

This path to God is sometimes misunderstood by people. Some don’t understand that the path towards God causes division and arguments. It can cause us to push away from people who don’t yet know and believe in God.

I feel like I came to God’s path by accident sometimes. I came to the realization that everything I had tried in the past had failed. So, why not try the only thing I hadn’t -God. Doing so took me on an incredible journey I hadn’t thought possible. It took me on a four-year journey of learning who I really was.

As people we often cultivate and nurture destructive thoughts and become our own enemy. Thoughts of loneliness, fear, anxiety, worry, and immortality are more often the companions of our minds than we want to admit.

We have to embrace a new identity, characterized by trusting, obeying, loving, and imitating our heavenly Father. This leads to living a deep sense of belonging, security, and purpose, even while we struggle with sin. It involves a humble trust combined with righteous action, to do what’s right, that few are willing to give in to.

It involves knowing that we are loved, accepted, and realizing we have the standing of a legitimate child, not a slave, but adopted into God‘s family through faith in Jesus.

It’s having a deep confidence that God sees, cares for, and sustains you, even when you don’t have all the answers.

It’s striving to do God’s will, by reflecting His character and doing what is right and loving others. Even if we fall short.

It’s allowing the Holy Spirit to work within you, to transform your nature to wanting to please God by replacing the old sinful ways.

It’s following Jesus’s example of selfless love and sacrifice and leaving a mark on the world.

It’s living with hope, not fear, knowing your sins are forgiven and they you have an external inheritance and advocate in Jesus.

There are a few examples of how I put this into practice in your life.

  • Receive Jesus: Welcome Him into your life and believe in His name.
  • Pray: Talk to God as a Father and friend. Spill your innermost secrets to Him. He already knows them, but you need to get everything out in the open.
  • Love others: Demonstrate life to other like-minded believers and act righteously.
  • Follow Jesus’s example: Walk in life and self-sacrifice.
  • Embrace humility: Develop a child-like trust, not immaturity but reliance on God.

Jesus said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” In John 14:6.

There is much more to it than that. There were many more things I needed to learn about the way, and I’ve learned and still keep learning. These lessons come in bits and pieces through the course of my life. It’s a learning process and will continue until the end of my life.

It’s a deep spiritual quest for divine connection, seen across faith, and is a transformative process that involves prayer, and scripture in action.

Thinking About The Future Or Past

Daily writing prompt
Do you spend more time thinking about the future or the past? Why?
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I am more inclined to think about the present. The past is the past it no longer matters. If you’ve repented to God every mistake you’ve ever made has been forgiven. And as Matthew 6:34 says “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself Each day has enough trouble of its own.” I focus on the present day blessings and challenges and trust God for my future needs.

Taming Your Emotions

Emotions can be like wild horses. Beautiful. Powerful. Yet, if they are to be useful in everyday life, emotions like horses must be tamed.

But can emotions truly be tamed?

Emotions can seem like they have a mind of their own, less like horses, and more like loud ocean waves, our emotions seem unwilling to yield to even our passionate commands.

Sometimes we feel at the mercy of these dangerous whitecaps, whether they be anger, despair, loneliness, or envy. And waves of positive emotions come from, time to time too like gladness, surprise, and awe. But do we really have to take the bad with the good?

Growing up I never learned to handle my emotions. I was too busy being in a state of fear. I was stuck in emotional dysregulation, avoiding difficult feelings, or experiencing heightened anxiety. It has taken me close to 30 years to learn how to regulate.

There is a way to experience relief from our emotions that seem to drown us.

The Bible teaches self-control as a key “fruit of the Spirit” in Galatians, which enables us to master emotions, desires, and actions, not through personal might but by God’s power. Teaching us to guard our hearts, renewing our minds, and seeking God’s wisdom, along with responding to situations with patience and understanding instead of reacting.

But self-control does mean stoicism. Jesus Himself gave us examples of deep emotion in scripture. At Lazarus’s tomb in John 11:35 when, “Jesus wept.” and in the garden of Gethsemane in Luke 22:44, “Being in agony He prayed more earnestly. His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down on the ground.” We see that Jesus experiences deep sorrow and anguish. The catch is He doesn’t allow His sorrow to lead Him into sin. He submits to God’s will and puts us before Himself in each trying circumstance, even in the midst of powerful feelings.

That’s the kind of self-control we should aim for in our emotions. For help, we can rely on the Holy Spirit for lasting change. Even with this in mind, there are tangible ways we can fight for self-control on a daily basis.

Jesus tells us in John 14:1, “Don’t let your heart be troubled. Believe in God. Believe also in Me.” Life’s troubles can grow around us so much so that we can’t see the forest for the trees. Jesus calls His disciples in such a time to “believe in God. It’s a discipline of the mind to remember His goodness. Keep some Bible verses handy that encourage you in this belief, ior better yet -memorize them.

Don’t underestimate God’s willingness to hear your prayers, and answer them. James writes in James 5:13, “Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray…” We are loved by a kind God. He will help us in our times of emotional need.

So often our minds become consumed with the negative: what we don’t have, or why life is going wrong. Paul reminds us that in addition to calling out to God in prayer when we are consumed with negative emotion, we should focus on what is good. In Philippians 4:4-9 he tells us that, “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…and the God of peace will be with you.”

Next time your mind becomes filled with negative thoughts, think or write down all you can think of that falls into the above verse categories. And turn from your negativity to remember how God has blessed your life.

Another coping mechanism is to become familiar with red flags or triggers and interview early.

Learn the early warning signs of an emotional spiral for you. If you struggle with anger, irritation might be a red flag. Don’t let initial emotions snowball into what will eventually feel like an avalanche.

If I Started I Sports Team

Daily writing prompt
If you started a sports team, what would the colors and mascot be?
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If I started a sports team the colors would be crimson red and teal, Because crimson red symbolizes power and a life force and teal symbolizes balance and vitality.

The mascot would be a knight because it symbolizes courage and bravery.

Flesh vs. Spirit

Every day we are tempted to fall into sin. This is because we live in a broken world. It’s easy to let our flesh rule over us.

But,

Following Jesus is a call to freedom. Galatians 5:16 says, “Walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.”

A spirit led life is a spiritual life with faith in Jesus, which provide provides power and guidance to overcome sinful habits, and produce positive, godly outcomes, like love, joy, and peace, which contrast with the death, bringing fruit of sin.

We all have a choice of walking in the flesh, which is living by selfish desires, ego, and worldly motivations, theta often go against God’s will. The result can be livings restless, and spiritual death, which causes separation from God’s peace.

Walking in the Spirit is living under the guidance, power, and influence of the Holy Sprit, and making choices that align with God. The result can be growing spiritual, feeling fulfilled, and living a life that is pleasing to God which leads to experiencing His peace.

That being said, the Holy Spirit doesn’t remove temptation or our physical senses, but He helps us to overcome them.

Romans 8:12-13 warns us, “Therefore, brethren, we are debtors -not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.”

If you’re habitually living in sin, the Holy Spirit is hindered from helping to answer your prayers. Sin creates separation between you and the Holy Spirit. When we allow sin to reign in us, the Holy Spirit doesn’t have a way to work in the through your life.

This doesn’t mean we must be perfect -we all make mistakes. But we should quickly address sin before it becomes a habit.

The Holy Spirit is not an optional add-on for believers. He’s essential for living an abundant life that Jesus promises us.

God has not run out of ideas or answer to your prayers. He has already provided everything you need through His Word, His Spirit, and His Son. When we learn to walk in the Spirit, we will experience the fullness of what God has for us.

The Greatest Gift

Daily writing prompt
What is the greatest gift someone could give you?
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The greatest gift I ever received is eternal life and salvation given to me through my faith in Jesus. This gift provides forgiveness of sins, hope, peace, and reconciliation with God the Father.

The Sword For Battling Fear -Psalm 27

“ For God did not give us a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and self control” -2 Timothy 1:7

Psalm 27 is a powerful weapon against the enemy of fear and it’s power to insulate our hearts meditating on his truth, provides a key to unlocking the prison of anxiety, it just fails our fears, and gives us hope. 

It is called a sword for battling fear because it eclipse us with declarations of God‘s protection, guidance, and presence to overcome terror, shifting our focus from this stronghold to God‘s faithfulness. These verses urge us to be in deep pursuit of Him, and promises strength as we wait for His deliverance which can transform anxiety into confident worship.

It’s important to recognize the key themes and weapons in Psalm 27.

  • God as Protector

“The Lord is my light and my salvation, whom should I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life, of whom should I be afraid” -Psalm 27:1

  • Confidence in Adversity

“Though an army should encamp against me, my heart shall not fear. Though war should rise against me, even then I will be confident” -Psalm 27:3

  • Singular Focus on God

“One thing I have asked of the Lord, that I will seek after, that I may dwell in the Lord’s house all the days of my life, to see the Lord’s beauty and to inquire in His temple” -Psalm 27:4

  • Divine Shelter

“For in the day of trouble, He will keep me secretly in His pavilion. In the secret place of His tabernacle, He will hide me. He will lift me up on a rock” -Psalm 27:5

  • Joyful Worship

“Now my head will be lifted up above my enemies around me. I will offer sacrifices of joy in His tent. I will sing, yes, I will sing praises to the Lord” -Psalm 27:6

  • Persistent Seeking

“When You said, Seek My face, my heart said to You, I will seek Your face, Lord” -Psalm 27:8

“Don’t hide your face from me. Don’t put your servant away in anger. You have been my help. Don’t abandon me, neither forsake me, God of my salvation” -Psalm 27:9

  • Unfailing Care

“When my father and my mother forsake me, then the Lord will take me up” -Psalm 27:10

  • Courage to Wait

“Wait for the Lord. Be strong, and let your heart take courage. Yes, wait for the Lord” -Psalm 27:14

There are ways to use Psalm 27 as a sword.

Pray it: Turn you fears into prayers, praying these Psalms verses back to God.

Speak it: Use these truths as a weapon to counter the lies of fear and insecurity in your mind.

Live it: Cultivate a life centered on God‘s presence daily, not just in times of crises.

Conviction or Convenience

I still remember when I seen a young lady on the news in 1999 during the columbine shooting. She was asked by the shoo Ted if she believed in God, she said, “Yes,” and was promptly shot and killed.

It was later discovered that Cassie was not the only one targeted because of her faith in Jesus that day. You may ask, why didn’t they take the easy way out, for the sake of saving their lives, why simply say no?

I think that there was only one reason. They were convinced that the truth of Jesus was more important than saving their lives. When I think back to this, I have to ask myself a question would I have had the courage that they had?

People don’t die for beliefs. They don’t die for strong beliefs. They die for their convictions.

When America was being formed, was it formed by people who had a strong belief in freedom from tyranny?

No. I believe it was conviction that they had inalienable rights given to us by our Creator, and those rights were worth dying for, if necessary.

During World War I in World War II do you think they thought it was a good thing to do? No, they fought with the conviction that America was the greatest country in the world, and it was worth defending. And threatening our allies meant threatening us.

I think this is the point that many miss still miss today.

What are some things we should have conviction about?

Here are some things we need to be convinced about, in my opinion.

  1. The Word of God

We need to be convinced that the Bible is the Word of God. Not just a good book of nice writings, but the very Word of God, that is written by the Holy Spirit through men. And we have the word of the profits make more certain, we should pay attention to it as a light shining in the dark place. Understand that no prophecy scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation. Prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoken from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit. Isaiah 40:8 tells us, “The grass withers, the flower fades, the flowers fade, but the Word of our God stands forever.”

This is so important because in these times of turmoil we need an anchor to grab, something we can trust without reserve.

2. Jesus

We need Jesus more than ever for salvation. In the world, we’re seeing a clear choice between good and evil. In John 14:6 Jesus tells us, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”

And in Acts 4:12 Peter says, “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.”

If this is true, we need to start acting like it.

If you believe that Jesus’s blood was shed on the cross was exactly what we needed to save us from hell, and if we are convinced that He paid the price for us we need to start acting like it. We need to start acting like it because this will get us eternity in heaven. He did everything necessary to secure our salvation, by taking our penalty of sin on himself.

Jesus’s death and resurrection was not some meaningless ritual, He paid it all, and that should be enough to convince us to live for Him.

Jesus not only died for our sins, but He rose victorious over death, which opened the gates of Heaven for you and me.

The question is are we convinced or just believe?

Is it our conviction of Jesus was who He said He was and that He died and rose from the grave to bring us into heaven? If it is we should start acting like it.

Will we hold on to that conviction when times get tough and we are challenged as the truth of faith in Jesus gets harder?

We should act on our convictions about all else. I believe if we don’t share our stories and plant seeds every chance we get there will be people who will perish and will go to a godless hell.

I believe that it is our conviction that He really is the only way to heaven and we should be taking opportunities that are given to us to share the gospel.

Following Jesus is not a convenient path. Paul tells us in 2 Timothy 3:12 that all who live a godly life in Christ will be persecuted. “Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Messiah Yeshua will suffer persecution.” But what is the alternative: to live a life separated from God, that leads to spiritual death, and being banished from God’s light, and joy.

College Experience

Daily writing prompt
What colleges have you attended?
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Going to college with a family and job is tough. I attended a college that wasn’t a four year college, which means if you needed a four or six year degree you had to move.
I studied psychology with a minor in Crime Scene Investigation. In the 1990s’ there wasn’t the internet for online classes. So, I would have had to move to finish my schooling, which would be difficult with 2 children and two people having to work full-time jobs. And when you have children, they come before anyone else.

College of Eastern Utah

The Beauty In The Struggle

We have been trained to assume that if the process does not come easy, there must be something wrong wrong. From the way we use technology, to the way we make shopping decisions, and even the way we learn and work, we often assume that struggle is bad.Everything should be intuitive and simple, with clear and easy steps towards keeping our goals or receiving whatever we want.

This mindset is often applied to our belief in God, and we start to assume that if life is still hard of choosing to follow God, there must be a problem. Dress in spite of the many words of Jesus, and the apostles indicate that we will face difficulty and obstacles and living, according to the Bible.

We expect the feeling of running high we had when we first met Jesus will last forever. It’s important to realize struggles may hinder us, they do not define us. We are not defined by the sins of the past or the struggle of today, but by the vision of the future.

Many believe a believer’s life should always feel like a runners high -that the struggle toward holiness and the fight against sin will always be inspiring.

As human beings, we seek to minimize struggle whenever possible. But struggle is part of the learning process. No matter what the struggle the beauty is keeping our eyes focused on Jesus, so that we can become full united with Him, and find the energy and strength we need to get back up. 

As believers, we shouldn’t expect to feel a “runners high” all the time while we run life’s race. Because a spiritual life will often feel difficult. But we can run it with joy because the Holy Spirit is working through us, and the struggle is a sign we are in the race.

A Covenant With God

God has made covenants with several key individuals in the Bible, including Noah, Abraham, Moses, and David, as well as establishing a new covenant through Jesus. These covenants are foundational to the biblical narrative and God’s relationship with humanity.

A covenant with God is a sacred agreement or promise between a person or group and God, where both parties make commitments.

God sets the terms, and in return for a person’s faith, obedience, and promises, He pledges to provide blessings, guidance, and power.

The key concepts of a covenant with God are as follows:

  • A mutual agreement

It is a two way relationship for a person promises to follow God and God promises to bless them in return.

  • God’s role

God initiates covenant and is always faithful to His promises, even when people are not.

  • Humans role

A person demonstrates their commitment by keeping God’s promises through faith, repentance, obedience to the commandments, and other acts of righteousness.

  • Divine blessings

The blessings of a covenant include receiving God‘s help, power, and guidance, as well as eternal promises like salvation and eternal life.

There are examples in scripture

  • Noah: God promised never to destroy the earth with floodwaters again. God set His rainbow in the cloud, as a sign of the covenant between Him and the earth.
  • Abraham: God promised him a great prosperity and a specific land.
  • Moses: God established the covenant with the Israelites, promising to be their God and asking them to obey His laws.
  • Jesus: A covenant is established through Jesus’s Atonement, with promises of salvation for all who have faith in Him.

We can have personal covenants with God. These are solemn commitments made by us, it often involves prayer and reflection, where we express our faith and dedication to live, according to God’s will. It is a deeper, more spiritual commitment that focuses on the reliance of God’s grace and guidance.

God promises to remain faithful to His promises in the covenant.

There are some people who speak of God breaking covenants with His people. This is not true according to the Bible.

In Ezekiel 16:59-60, God declares He will punish Israel for breaking their covenant, but will remember His everlasting covenant with Abraham promising future restoration.

In essence, God never fails in His commitments, but the nature of the covenant and its fulfillment evolve, culminate in the permanent unbreakable New Covenant in Jesus.