Come as you are

'Come as you are!' These words had a big impact on my life this week, and no, I wasn't listening to a Nirvana song. I had been having a pretty rough week and was struggling to spend time with God. As I expressed this to a friend, I got an email back saying 'come as you are'. It was so refreshing to know that I am loved and accepted as I am, and that I don't have to pretend to be anything else. More than that though, the email reminded me that Christ also utters that invitation to me...'Come as you are!'

I needed to be reminded that God doesn't expect me to come to him with it all together, but rather he longs for me to come just as I am. Fears, failures, doubts, brokenness and whatever else I may be. God is in the business of replacing fear with joy, failures with hope, doubts with truth and brokenness with wholeness. When I think about it like that, it makes me wonder why I often find it easier to go to God when things are going well than when they are not. Jesus says, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light". (Matt 11:28-30)

This invitation has been a very welcome one this week....I just need to get better at accepting it!

Opportunity or obligation?

Last week I had my mid year exams for college. While I am glad they are over, I certainly learnt a lot while studying for them. As a friend and I were praying before one of them, we were reminded of the incredible privilege it is to freely study the Bible. Its a privilege that we easily take for granted, and one that is far from a reality for so many people around the world. Thinking about this reminded me of an awesome talk I heard at a church in Portland, Oregon last year. The message of it really stuck with me.

It was talking about how we should view things such as Bible reading, prayer, (studying) etc as an opportunity not an obligation! At times I was studying because I had an exam and I felt like I should, but on remembering this I was able to see my studying as an opportunity to grow; to learn more about God, his Word, and how it has shaped the history of the world thus far. 

If I do something out of a sense of obligation, I often feel guilty if I don't do it. But that's not how God meant our relationship with him to be. Its a loving relationship. One where we should walk through life with Christ under the love of God, not the fear of him. 

Serving Christ and living for him is an opportunity not to be missed!

30 by 30 update

Just a quick update on how I am going with my 30 by 30 list.

19. learn to cook 4 new meals....Im halfway there with 2 down and 2 to go.

The first was a Teriyaki Chicken stir fry that scored 10 out of 10 with the family

The second was a slow cooker Country Chicken Chowder, scoring around a 6.5

23. Eat something I haven't eaten before...today was the day, and my sis took me out for my first attempt at sushi. Here goes...

I was not a big fan!

30. Inspire someone else to do a 30 by 30...done! On ya Em!

2 1/2 down, 27 1/2 to go. Stay tuned for more updates...