devotionsbylilly

[devotionsbylilly]

Over spring break one of the leaders gave us a lesson about a parable given by Jesus in Matthew 7. In this parable, Jesus is talking to a crowd about two houses, one built on a rock and one built on sand. When storms came, the house built on the rock stood, while the one built on the sand fell. I had heard this parable taught in church or Sunday school once or twice, but this guy made me look at it a different way. Although, the main point of the story is that we need to build our houses on the rock, (which is God). He said if you look closely at the passage BOTH houses went through storms, not just the ones built on the sand. No one had ever pointed this out to me, but it makes sense. God never told us that if we were to follow him that life would be perfect, but I think at times non Christians and even ourselves think it’s supposed to be that way. If you are a Christian, at least for me, I know once I decided to give my life to Christ it felt like the storms got bigger than they were before. (I like to think of it as the devil trying to keep me from doing God's work.) But, any way I think as Christians we think we have to portray to the world that everything is fine, that nothing bad ever happens, and that we aren’t struggling. I think we do that so that non-believers will be more willing to come to Christ, but I don’t think that’s the right way to go about that. We’re humans, we love to connect to others. Most friend groups have something that connects them, whether it’s a common interest or something that happened to all of them, they have a connection. I mean even as Christians we are all connected, not only because of who our father is, but because we all need him, and we fall short every day. This is the same with the lost, we were once like them, and even now we might be going through similar things. The only difference is that when we go through those trials we have help, where they are struggling by themselves. So, although it may be hard to bear your trials or storms with someone else, I encourage you to do so. Tell your truth, not only where God brought you from, but how he helps you through those storms daily. You never know who could relate, and who may look at your situation and your structure and may want to switch from sand to rock. You just need to be brave enough to be vulnerable and remember you’re not alone, God’s with you.

Matthew 7:24-27

[devotionsbylilly]

-Spring break looked different this year, read more about my experience in NYC down below.

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-https://devotions-by-lilly.webador.com/devotions/1242715_my-spring-break

[devotionsbylilly]

A Piece of my Path:

I graduated from a fairly small high school in 2021, I mean I pretty much knew everyone in my graduating class. I remember that fall my parents and I packed up the car and headed an hour down the road to Chapel Hill. College, I was so excited but at the same time, I was so nervous. I was scared I wasn’t going to make any friends, that the classes were going to be hard, or that I’d get lost trying to find those classes. I remember my dad telling me, “just think about it as a sleepover, one day at a time.” So, that’s what I did. The upcoming weeks were difficult, my roommate was one of the sweetest people ever, we just didn’t have much in common, especially when it came to my Faith and how it was being affected. She wasn’t a Christian and as much as she listened and tried to understand where I was coming from, she just couldn’t. Which was like most of the people I met. So coming from a school where most people went to church on Sundays to a school where students could care less about God, that was a tough transition for me, I felt like I was alone. I remember sitting at my desk one night, (my roommate had gone out) and I just cried, I cried out to the Lord, I was scared and I was upset that he allowed me to come to this place and left me here by myself, I missed my friends, my parents, and my sister. I’m pretty sure I cried myself to sleep that night. The next night I decided to dig into his word and spend time with him, and boy was that a game changer. I may not have had a physical human with me, but what I did have was God. When I finally learned to lean on him and realize he was all I needed, I didn’t feel so alone.

He then sent me some of the best friends I could have asked for. So there’s a funny backstory to this. In my sophomore year of high school, my mom convinced me to go to this leadership camp at Wake Forest. It was an overnight thing and the only other person from my high school and I split up. I remember meeting my group and in my group, there was this girl with the same name as me, (even spelled the same!) Well, fast forward three years there I am eating dinner alone, waiting for the weekend to come up so I could go home when all of a sudden I see this girl who looks oddly familiar. I ended up building the courage to go talk to her, it was the girl from the camp. She didn’t remember me immediately, but she ended up inviting me to a bible study that week. I went and met some amazing people and ended up becoming a part of this Christian group that has students like me who want to spread God's word. Sometimes I look back and think about how crazy it is that God orchestrated all these events because he knew what freshman Lilly would need and when she would need it. I still wouldn’t give up those first two weeks though, they may have been challenging but that time alone allowed me to realize what relationship was most important in my life, the everlasting one. So when things are difficult and you feel alone just lean on him, because you never know where he could take you. During freshman year I memorized a verse that helped me get through those hard times and is still helping me today. Isaiah 41:10.

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Society likes to break us down and tell us we can’t do something because of things that are out of our control. Things such as gender, age, deformities, etc. Over time we start to believe what they say and it becomes our mindset. “Well I can’t go and do that, I’m too young.” Or “I can’t make a difference, I don't have much money.” This way of thinking can make us feel inadequate and is a very dangerous way to perceive oneself. It not only hinders what you achieve in the regular day-to-day but it can affect your spiritual life as well. God may be calling out to you wanting to use you in his big scheme of things and you may miss the opportunity to do so because you’re afraid you aren’t good enough. We see this attitude throughout the bible. In Exodus Moses tells God he can’t help him because his speech isn’t the best, God then uses Moses to free his people from slavery. In Judges, we see Esther, a Jewish woman in a terrifying situation who could've stayed quiet but God uses her to free his people from destruction. Sarah told God she was too old and yet he used her to make the nation of Israel. David could have complained that he was too young but he became king and within David's Lineage comes Mary the mother of Jesus. I mean without David stepping up that really would've changed things. A big one we may not think about often is Jesus himself. He very well could have called those angels to save him, to get him down, save himself all that pain and torment, but he didn't. He listened to his father and saved us. Now I’m not comparing your situation to what Jesus did for us. But think about it this way, you could ignore what God is telling you to do. Ignore him telling you to tell that person about him, or him calling you to go to that place, but just think about what those people could be missing out on because you were too afraid to listen to God's voice. It’s okay to be scared. Just remember that God sees the big picture, he’s called you for a reason, he’s all-powerful and he’s with you every step of the way. Where you say God I can��t, God says to you, well I can.

Exodus 4:10-12

Luke 3:23-38

Esther

Genesis 18:12

#DevotionsbyLilly

[devotionsbylilly]

Most of the time when people think of Christians they think of people who have their whole life together, people who don't have any tribulations, a person that always has a smile on their face. At times this is true but a lot of times we put on a mask and don't let others see what's really bothering us. Maybe we've come to believe this is how it should be. We say we shouldn't complain about the bad times or we think we have to be happy all the time because non-Christians are watching and many times it's hard to reach out for help or even admit we have a problem. Now if you're not a Christian I'm not trying to steer you away from coming to know God, trust me it's still the best thing that ever happened in my life. I just want those who struggle with depression, anxiety, stress, etc to know that first, you aren't a bad Christian if you feel these things or if you go through hard times and also you're not alone in feeling or going through hard times, many people throughout today and history are faced with those same feelings. A bunch of times people who follow God face more setbacks than those who don't. I mean Paul went to prison, Daniel was thrown in a lion's den, and these are just two out of many many others. Now in today's world and especially in the country we live in, we most likely aren't going to be thrown in a lion's den for being believers, but we may have trials and seasons that test our faith. A loved one being sick, losing a job, not getting into that dream school, now yeah these are basic life things but we are humans and these things hurt. I don't care how many people say "well it's all a part of God's plan" I mean it is and it is life but you're allowed to have feelings over these things, you just can't allow those feelings to put you in a place where the enemy can get a hold of you. Because trust me Satan wants nothing more than to get you in a place where you don't feel like doing the work God has prepared and sent you out to do. God will lift you out of whatever den you've been thrown into, all you have to do is ask and look for him. So when you're going through something, just remember that it's okay to feel a certain way but always look towards him in those moments even harder than you normally would.

[devotionsbylilly]

I'm sure everyone knows the scenario of being in a group and feeling like no one listens when you try to say something. It's aggravating, been there done that. Sometimes I know that our relationship with Jesus can feel like that. There are times when we talk and talk and we pray and pray and it feels as if we're being ignored, it is not a good feeling. But the good thing is that we couldn't be more wrong about that situation. God is that one person who hears you, the person who answers you or asks the next question so you don't feel stupid, or worse invisible. (Don't you just love those people?) Now it may take him a little longer than we want to respond, but know you can always count on him listening. He tells us this in his word. Psalms 145:18 states, "The Lord is nigh unto all them that call upon him to all that call upon him in truth." He always hears us. I know we have seasons in life where it feels like we're pushing a rope uphill and nothing seems to be going our way. Just bad news after bad news. In these seasons we begin to turn and ask God many different questions. We may begin to get angry or upset because we feel as if he isn't listening or more than often we feel like he doesn't even care. But he does listen and he cares about us and what we're going through, he does hear us calling out to him, and he sees every tear that falls. In Luke chapter twelve the Lord talks about the sparrows and how none of them are forgotten by him. He then goes on to talk about how he cares for us far more than the sparrows, he cares for us so much he knows the number of hair on our heads. So if the Lord cares enough about us to know the amount of hair on our heads, don't you think he cares enough to listen when we call out to him too? And speaking of those tears, he sees each and every one. In Psalms 56:8 it states, "Thou tellest my wanderings: put thou tears into thy bottle: are they not in thy book?" How amazing is it that God cares about us enough to keep our tears? The Lord loves you and he truly does listen. So I ask that with whatever trials you may be going through in life you don't give up when you don't get results right away. Keep on talking to and relying on him. He never gives up on you, so don't give up on him.

1 John 5:14: “And this is the confidence that we have in him, that if we ask anything according to his will, he heareth us.”

Hebrews 4:16: “Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.”

#Jesuslovesyou

[devotionsbylilly]

Most everyone has probably heard these verses at a wedding a time or two and thought well that's how I should love my spouse. But in Matthew 5:44 Jesus tells us to love our enemies(“But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you…”). And when he states the word love he means the kind as mentioned in those first verses. Being humans with flesh and being sinful by nature it becomes so easy to wish ill upon those we disagree or have problems with, even strangers we've never even met before. But as Christians we are set apart from the world, we are commanded to love everyone, even if we disagree. In the world we live in today it's so hard to see what the kind of love that was designed for us was meant to be like, due to what the world offers up as love now. The good news for us is that we have a bible and God that shows us and teaches us what love looks like. (Romans 5:8). Jesus died for us knowing that we were sinners and knowing exactly what we would do in this life. He even died knowing some people would never accept him, yet he loved us so much that he did it to give us a chance to repent and accept his love. We are called to love and to love like Jesus. We should use the examples in the bible and love others so much that we want to share the gospel with them, even if sometimes our flesh believes they might not deserve it. But if you were to look at yourself did you deserve his love too? I know I didn't but he loves this sinner ]and the rest of the world too, even that person you're arguing with on social media. Just remember during this crazy world, to love as Jesus teaches.

~1 Corinthians 13:4-8 “Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth, not itself, is not puffed up, Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil, rejoiceth in the truth…”

~Romans 5:8 “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”

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As Christians, I'm sure we've heard the saying, "well if God is so good then why did he let this bad thing happen?" It truly is a hard question to answer because as humans there is no possible way for us to understand how and why the God of the universe does what he does. Many people believe that God doesn't care about or love them because of the hardships that happen in their lives. Luke 19 talks about Jesus coming into Jerusalem, most of us know this story, about how everyone rejoiced and cheered about a savior. But verse 41-44 says that Jesus wept for the city. You can look and see that Jesus is having this emotion because he knows what is in store for the city, and particularly the downfall that it will see. But he also wept because the people were looking for a savior and missed the one right in front of them. They were looking for someone to save them physically while Jesus was there for them spiritually. Many times people today are the same way, they are looking for someone or something to take the bad or pain away while failing to realize that there is a God who cares about not only the bad but our spiritual beings as well. When you become saved the pain in this life will not go away, we can thank Satan and this wicked world for that, but it will make life more tolerable. So for those of you who are lost and looking for a way out of the bondage I pray that you open up yourself to the possibility of God and his love for you.

Luke 19:41

“And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it.”

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Pulling Weeds:

Many times people who aren't Christians may look at the lives of those who are and think they have it all figured out or that we don't have to do anything different once we get saved. What they fail to realize is that it's hard being a Christian. Every day we have to make choices to help further our walk with God. We still have temptations and we still have flesh, we aren't perfect. Now getting saved is a one and done, once we're saved we can't lose our salvation, Romans 10:9, "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised from the dead, thou shalt be saved." As Christians, we are expected to live in a way that's different from the world. Every day we must pull the weeds in our life. We should value our relationship with God enough to make the hard choices and put in the work to not only strengthen our relationship with him but to let others see our walk with him as it is. We are all sinners, born that way from birth. The unsaved don't want to look at your life and be afraid to follow God because they don't believe they can live the perfect life that you are portraying. We do need to show others the goodness of God and what good he's bringing in our life. But you aren't perfect. We all fall short of glory every day but the good thing is that God picks us up and still loves us even in those times we decide to follow our flesh instead of him. But to help us make those hard choices of choosing him instead of the flesh we must pull the weeds in our life daily. We can do this by talking to him and getting into his word. The more we know about him and his character, the more we know how to live like him.

Galatians 5:16 “This I say then,walk in the spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.” KJV

Proverbs 3:5-6 “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.” KJV