Let me tell you, she's as real as they come and I am so blessed to know her. My friend Ashley has recently written a piece for Leslie Ludy's Set Apart Girl website entitled "Forsaking All." I can truly say that what Ashley wrote came from the depths of her heart; a heart that is seeking not her own but the will of her heavenly Father. So if you have a moment, hop on over to the Set Apart Girl site to read what she has to say.
They both stood and gazed at the exquisite gates of heaven. The two women were both Christians, the first had been saved for nearly all her life and the other had only been saved only for five. They silently glanced at each other. The first woman thought about the woman who stood next to her "look at her, until a few years ago she lived a wicked life; I'm so glad I didn't live like she did." The second woman could only think of the remorse that she had for not coming to salvation in Christ sooner "Oh, that I had turned to Christ when there was more time for me to live as the woman next to me. She must have a mansion so much better than mine." Heaven's gates opened and the two walked in. They stood before Christ, one with her head held high and the other not being able to raise her head for the shame that weighed her down. The Lord turned and spoke. The first woman acknowledged his speaking to her and stood taller. Surprisingly, there was a sadness in the Father's eyes as he turned to the woman who had claimed his name for so long. The second woman who glanced up to see Jesus' face and her heart stilled. "If he appears saddened by that woman who has been a Christian for so long, what must he think of me?", she lowered her eyes and listened as Christ addressed the woman beside her. "You have been my child for so long", He said "and the hundreds of things you have done in my name will burn up." "What?" gasped the first as she looked at the Lord. "You didn't do it for me, you did it all for yourself" Christ answered with pain in his voice. He continued, "all the meals for the poor, all your modest clothing, all your witnessing to the lost, all your acts of kindness were nothing; you left me out and served for your own gain." A tear rolled down the woman's cheek as she realized that she had served to make herself look good and to bring glory to her own person. She watched as her mansion was burned and only a simple portion of the beautiful lodging remained. "It could have been more" Christ said, the woman nodded and wept as she walked toward the streets of gold.
Jesus looked at the second woman who was too ashamed to look up until he spoke. "My child, your life has been one which has caused me much pain." The woman cried as she remembered the years of her rebellion and wandering without Christ as her Savior. The Father continued, "but the last five years your life has been one which has given me much hope." "But Lord, how can this be when the other woman had been a Christian so much longer and done so much more?" she questioned. The simple words proceeded from Christ's lips "only what's done for me will last." Waving his hand toward another mansion, Jesus showed as the second woman's house was burned and came out more beautiful than it had been to begin with. The woman gasped as she realized what had happened. The Lord lovingly gazed into the woman's eyes and said "when you lived those five years for me, it mattered but when a Christian lives for themselves; it doesn't matter-it is of no gain in eternity." The woman nodded and walked down the streets of gold to her mansion. Though not as beautiful as many, it was not as simple as some. She had lived five years as a daughter of the King and she has truly lived those years for him. It mattered.
NOTE: This story was soley to illustrate the importance of living a life for Jesus and not doing right simple to bring praise to ourselves. I acknowledge that the above story is not in the Bible and merely a story. I do not intend to leave anyone with the impression that I know what God thinks or will do when we stand before him. There will be mansion's, they will burn, and we will give account for what we have done here on earth.
P.S. If you want to share this story, please leave a comment.
...I am reminded of how quickly time goes by. It seems like it was just a few days ago when I was out in the summer heat. Now, the front yard is blanketed by maple leaves and the trees are showing branches that will quickly be covered by ice and snow. Life is like that. The days go by, the months pass, and the years roll by and before we know it; seasons of life have come and gone. Maybe some would consider me too young to reminisce about life, but I do anyway. I remember how I considered it an eternity until I would be a teenager, be in high school, get my drivers license, or start looking for a college to attend; but now it doesn't seem like it was long at all. I am beginning to realize how different seasons of life are created by God and given to us for different purposes. Childhood is a time to grow and discover the world around us, teenage years are a combination of many things but it is often during this time when we take the most obvious steps in who we will become, adulthood- I'm not sure about that yet. My mom always said that you shouldn't "wish your life away", and it's true. Having gained a few years since I was under the age of twelve, I see future years with a changed angle. The years ahead will come but I must life the life God has given me now. I can gaze into the future and make plans and goals but what presently matters is the what I am doing now which will prepare me for distinct days ahead. Now I need to be serving Christ, doing what is right, working hard, and preparing for the day when I will be an adult. The leaves will continue to fall, the snow will fly, and years will scurry on (until Christ returns) and I want to be able to look back and be thankful that I lived in the present with one eye on the future and my face fixed on eternity.
Read more...In this life, it is so easy for me to become attached to the things that are temporal that I soon get my focus of off Christ and onto what I think the world might hold for me. I know that my Christian perspective is distorted when I think that way and I know there is no earthly satisfaction unless Christ is at the center of my life. The beautiful song "Give Me Jesus" is what I would call my life's "song", It tells of what I long for my life to be. You can have ALL this world, but give me Jesus!
Give Me Jesus
In the morning, when I rise
In the morning, when I rise
In the morning, when I rise, give me Jesus
Give me Jesus,
Give me Jesus,
You can have all this world,
But give me Jesus
When I am alone
When I am alone
When I am alone, give me Jesus
Give me Jesus,
Give me Jesus,
You can have all this world,
But give me Jesus
When I come to die
When I come to die
When I come to die, give me Jesus
Give me Jesus,
Give me Jesus,
You can have all this world,
You can have all this world,
You can have all this world,
But give me Jesus
by Fernando Ortega
Sometimes you just don't know about it until you discover it for yourself. So has been my experience in the land of blogger and wordpress. The seemingly endless aray of blogs, websites, and online journals often boggle my mind but that's okay. In my time in blog land I have realized as Anne Shirley would say "kindred spirits aren't as rare as I use to think." I guess we don't feel like we don't know very many people until we do actually "meet" them. Browsing through blog land, I now know that there are teenage girls our there who are striving to serve the Lord and promote him. And while I wouldn't agree with everything on each blog, I want to say "thank you." Thank you to each of you who care enough to want to live a life for Christ and who want to share his love. I'm glad to have "met" you all through the blog world and I hope to "meet" more of you.
P.S. Please pray for me this Saturday, I'm taking the ACT test as well as being in a youth orchestra concert. Have a great weekend ladies!
There seems to be an endless supply of self-help books which are based upon the Bible and widely read. And while many of these books to hold value and may assist us in our walk with the Lord, they are written by people who can make mistakes. I'm not saying that we can never read any other book than the Bible and it is not my belief that other books are not helpful but we must keep one very important thought in mind-they're just books. To me, the Bible isn't just a book, it is the literal words of God written down by the men to whom God revealed his inspired words. Christian books about our walk with God, dating/courtship, what God expects for both men and women, and our attire; may be heavily based upon the Word of God and yet it is important that we line our thinking up with the Bible and not just what we may have read in an author's work. You see, we are fallible but Christ is not. Nothing He could ever write would have any error or mistake and yet we would never be able to achieve such a state of complete perfection. Sometimes it pains me to hear people rave about how wonderful is this book by Christian author so-and-so and yet they never breath a word about how great the Lord, who is at the center of the book, is. Perhaps I am taking this book thing a bit seriously but perhaps I am not. I one day hope to be a writer and publish Christian books and maybe that is why I desire that what we read be written with Christ as the absolute authority. We live in a world where we often too quickly believe what other's tell us instead of going to the Bible and seeing what a verse says instead of reading a verse that is applied in a certain way. That stack of books that are stack up on your night stand; read them. Read them and learn from them but never forget that Christ is the one whose word's we can trust completely and whose wisdom never fails.
to name a few!*
1. Do Hard Things
by Alex and Brett Harris
2. A Young Woman after God's Own Heart
by Elizabeth George
3. The Girl in the Mirror (this is a type of devotional book and I loved it)!
by Michelle Grover
4. A Young Woman's Call to Prayer
by Elizabeth George
5. Set Apart Femininity
by Leslie Ludy
* Click on the book title to find out more about each work
Who doesn't like walking to the mailbox, opening up the lid, and..."I got a letter!" I really like such an event. It makes my day and makes me glad that I have friends who care enough to sit down for a moment and write a letter, not just email.While email is often very convenient the truth is, we don't save those emails and years later; we'll have forgotten about them. Letters aren't like that. They hold more memories, they give us something to read back over, and seeing a friends hand-writing from years passed can remind us of how things have changed and how glad we were that we grew up with our friends. It sometimes concerns me that we only contact our friends and relations in the most simple ways of email and text messages. Perhaps it is because it may seem slow or out-of-date that we don't put our pen to the paper and take fewer than 10 minutes of our life to jot down a note to a friend. I wish we would. I can't say how many times I have received a letter from a friend and it has made a bad day into a better day. On a dreary autumn day, take out your pen and write something. It doesn't have to be long, but it should come from your heart. One day your friend will remember that letter you wrote and will be glad you cared enough to write to them. It is my opinion that letter writing is a lost art, let's get some letters in the mailbox.
P.S. If you would, please pray for the mother of my sister's best friend. She is ill with the swine flu and I'm sure she'd appreciate your prayers.
"Faith expects from God what is beyond all expectation." -Andrew Murray
"Faith takes God without any ifs." -D.L. Moody
"I have found that there are three stages in every great work of God; first, it is impossible, then it is difficult, then it is done." -Hudson Taylor
For people such as myself, the rational, see life as it is type, having faith takes much work. Impossible things I see as impossible, difficult things I see as difficult, and overcoming the odds often seems like a task that is too far beyond my reach. Oh me of little faith! I am certain that God has too often been grieved as I see as earthly eyes would see and not as Christ-mirrored eyes would see. My life is really a project and it will be until the day I meet my Savior face to face. But until then, there are so many things I must learn. Faith, I think, is near the top of that list. I guess that today I realized that I doubt God more than I think I do. I've been studying for the ACT ,which I'll be taking this coming weekend, and I just...doubt. It isn't that I haven't received an excellent education, have never taken standardized test before, or am afraid I don't know anything; it's the fact that don't trust God enough to leave the results up to him. Sure, my whole life doesn't depend on whether or not I score a 28 or more on the ACT, but sometimes I feel that way. It is when I feel that way that I hear Christ telling me "Don't worry, trust me" or, "I have chosen a specific plan for your life and you will get there". Faith...Lord, I need more of it.
"Faith sees the invisible, believes the unbelievable, and receives the impossible."
-Corrie Ten Boon
P.S. This is straight from my heart and may be one of the most heart-felt post I have ever written. This post may not be perfect but I felt compelled to share it.
-Elizabeth J.
Footprints in the Sand (footprintsinthesand365.blogspot.com) is the sole property of Elizabeth A. Jackson. Contents may not be transmitted for any commercial or noncommercial work unless express permission is granted by the author. Quotes and photographs belonging to the author may also not be used unless requested. Thank You Please note that many photos used in the blog post are stock photos or Photobucket photos that are not copyrighted.
October 15, 2010
For me, music has always been something that moves me more than most other attempts to do so. There is something about singing the beautiful words of hymns by Fanny Crosby, Isaac Watts, or P.B. Bliss, that stirs something within your soul. Sadly, many "Christian" songs and lyrics of today are void of the moving power such as I have experienced while listening to our taking part in the older hymns of the faith. So I have to ask myself this question: Why? Why do many modern songs seem to lack the depth, the power, the feeling, that are at the center of songs such as Amazing Grace, It is Well with My Soul, or How Great Thou Art? I cannot help but think that today's Christians songs more often focus on me, me, me instead of Jesus Christ, his power, and his salvation. I don't feel that this post needs to be any longer, I'll sum things up with this. Balance is everything and I hope we'll not toss aside the hymnbook in place of the lyrics of contemporary Christian groups and song writers. I don't believe that all contemporary Christian songs are bad, but I do think that we need to remember the songs of yesterday and sing them over again-those songs that speak of the wonderful words of life.
Sing them over again to me,
Wonderful words of life,
Let me more of their beauty see,
Wonderful words of life;
Words of life and beauty
Teach me faith and duty.
Refrain:
Beautiful words, wonderful words,
Wonderful words of life;
Beautiful words, wonderful words,
Wonderful words of life.
Christ, the blessed One, gives to all
Wonderful words of life;
Sinner, list to the loving call,
Wonderful words of life;
All so freely given,
Wooing us to heaven.
Sweetly echo the Gospel call,
Wonderful words of life;
Offer pardon and peace to all,
Wonderful words of life;
Jesus, only Savior,
Sanctify us forever.
To those of you who live in the United Kingdom/Europe, I will try to conceal my deep disappointment in the fact that you all are having the new BBC Emma broadcast before the United States. However, there is hope for those of us who live in the United States or elsewhere! The first episode of Jane Austen's Emma has been loaded to You Tube and you may view it here and here. I am so excited to see the whole thing but suspect I'll have to wait until January which is when new BBC mini-series are usually aired in America. Oh, and if anyone lives in the United Kingdom, let me know if you've seen the Emma movie and what your opinion of it is.
A sand castle is precariously built near the oceans edge. The tide is rolling in and as it does, small waves nip at the bottom of the foundation. The castle begins to slowly erode and beach goers pay no attention. A larger tidal wave comes in and the castle is swept away into the sea where countless other castles have drifted; so may be the fate of America. What began as small waves, slow descents away from God and His Word, have grown to be tidal waves that are destroying our Nation's foundation. Morality, righteousness, God, and right and wrong have been cast away as the ocean comes closer to claiming us. There is reason to be alarmed, filled with righteous indignation, and to fear for America; but the horizon does show a glimmer of our only hope - Jesus Christ. People such as myself will (if the Lord will's) be the next adults of America, we will either inch our Nation back toward her righteous foundation or will will thrust her father away from it. I am so concerned about the direction our Nation is taking. We have ceased to love God, the Bible, and righteousness; we have turned from God and he may soon turn from us. What can we do to stem the tide? First of all we can pray. Prayer is a powerful thing and we must fervently pray that God would cause us and our country to realize how far we have strayed from the right path. Secondly, strive to be a Christian citizen who up-holds the standards of living that are allocated for us in the Word of God. Thirdly, take a stand. Stand for the truth, fight for the name of Jesus Christ, and never be afraid to speak the truth in love. The sands of time are washing away and the castle is losing it's formation; are you willing to stand against the waves and defend the castle's foundation?
One day, there will come a time in my life and yours as well when you'll want to get married. And while most people will be blessed with the opportunity to be married and walk down the aisle to the person God created for them, there may be some who may never experience this. Will you still love God anyway? If you desperately wanted to get married, have a family, and serve the Lord in a household of your own; would each of us still be able to trust God and love him in spite of the fact that he may not have given what we desired? My whole purpose in writing this post is to challenge myself and those of us who are young, to decide NOW that we will give our lives to God and allow him to write the pages of it. While we are young, it is important that we choose to trust the Lord for today and all the tomorrows. I don't know what lies ahead in my life, I don't know if I'll ever walk down the aisle in a beautiful white dress, but I do know that I want to love God no matter what way he author's for my life. Today, we make choices that will, in the future, make us bitter or better. Let's give God our lives and love him as the supreme love of our lives.
(L to R) Emily, Heather, Liberty, and my Dad
The gorgeous view
My Mom and we girl's
A view of the Great Smokey Mountains
Me on the trail to Clingman's Dome
Home-made candy/caramel apples at the Apple Barn
Me and my little Sister Liberty (pardon my messy hair)
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