I'm Ready

Patrick had inventory last week. Basically, that meant that I hardly got to see him at ALL last weekend. He was at work at 7 AM and did not get home until 12:30 AM. What did I do during this time? I shopped.

Actually, I drove to Aberdeen and arrived at 7:45 AM (long story there). Later, Mom, Krista, Gianna, and I traveled to Delaware to go to Ross. I got some cool stuff for the house. We then went to BJ's and got some tax-free grocery items that I can't buy at the supermarkets near me. After all this, we went home and had dinner.

Since Patrick had had band practice on Thursday night in Frederick (I went with him) and hadn't finished until 11:30 or so, we spent the night at his parents house. This meant that we had to leave their house by 6:00 AM on Friday morning so that Patrick could get to work on time. Needless to say, I was REALLY tired on Friday night. It was around 9 PM when I decided that I needed to drive home or else I wasn't going to make it home at all.

It is this drive home that has driven me to write this blog. To help keep me awake, I popped in a CD--the Avalon hymn CD, to be exact. My car doesn't have cruise control, and my speed definitely fluctuated. Had I been pulled over, I probably would have been in trouble because I would have made a crazy sight. I was singing, and I was overcome with emotion. Tears streamed down my face. While a police officer probably would have thought me an awful wreck, I know that that was not how God saw me.

During that time, I felt so close to God. It felt like every fibre of my being was consumed with praising Him. One thought crossed my mind: I'm ready. I was ready for the Lord to return at that very moment. I realized that THAT is how I want God to find me when the last trumpet sounds--praising, worshipping, and serving Him.

So often in my life I sin . . . and I do things that I would be ashamed to have Christ find me doing. The truth is--He DOES find me doing them every day. The thought is so convicting, and I am determined to put on the Armor of God and to wage a serious war on my sin.

Christians often put a lot of emphasis on liberty. I'm tired of this in my own life. I want to stop focusing on the silly, trivial things and put all of my energy toward serving God, striving toward holiness, and finding out how I may better please Him. Just because I can do X,Y, or Z does not mean that I should. How would God want me to spend my time?

This past Sunday we went to the nursing home. I almost broke down when I saw a woman (not one of our regulars) dancing in her bed as we sang praise to God. She could not get up, but she could move her body . . . and move she did as she worshipped God and let her joy overflow.

The truth is that I was tired, and I had to force myself to go and serve others instead of staying home and taking a nap. It was well worth it. What I want to do often seems to be the easier, more fun, cool thing to do; however, what God wants me to do usually turns out to be the better thing, the thing that brings me the most encouragement, fulfillment, and joy.

By the grace and help of God, I want to strive to put down my flesh and what I want to do and to race toward the light and doing what God requires of me. In doing this, I hope that I will be found doing His will and delighting in Him when He returns that I may be a good and faithful servant to the Lord.