The Bible Revealed

It seriously amazes me to think about God’s word. HIS word. HIS thoughts. HIS stories. HIS ideas. HIS creation. HIS book dedicated to revealing, teaching, guiding, and correcting us, so that we may become more like the people He has called us to be. Let me explain to you some of the intricacies of the Bible that I have learned on my relentless pursuit to understanding HIS word.

The Bible is 66 books written by 44 authors in 3 different languages covering 3 continents. Somehow, all of that combined to give us 1 message!

The Bible is banned in 51 countries. Can you imagine the kind of power this book must contain in order for it to be banned in 51 countries? Their fear of God is admirable.

The center verse of the Bible is Psalm 118:8 “It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in man.” There are exactly 594 verses before it and 594 verses after it. If you add 594 with 594 you get 1188 which is where the verse is found, Psalm 118:8.

John 3:16 says “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son.” Let’s take a look at the word “loved” in this verse. I think you’ll find an interesting parallel. If we trace back the word “love” we will find that the first time it was used in the Bible was in Genesis 22:2  “Then God said, “Take your son, your only son, whom you love—Isaac—and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain I will show you.” Did you catch that? “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son.” “Take your son, your only son, whom you love....sacrifice him” There is a parallel here of God sacrificing His son for us and Abraham sacrificing his son for God. I have a really hard time believing this to be a coincidence, a matter of fate, a man made creation.

How often do we view the Bible as sacred? How often do we take this sacred book with us wherever we go? How often do we look at this book? How often do we share it with others? How often do we see God’s word for what it is--beautiful, intricate, holy, magnificent, ancient (yet timeless), perfect, and sacred. God’s word is immeasurably powerful. You have a few choices. You can put Christ in a box, limit Him, and say it is all a coincidence. Or, you can acknowledge its beauty, submit yourself to His influence, and delve into HIS word.

I want to leave you with a powerful excerpt I once read about God’s word. “When you read your Bible, receive and savor it like a love letter from God to you. Remember, you’re reading in order to meet someone. Ponder what you have read, and apply it to your present circumstances. Let it go down into the core of your being. And as you read, expect Him to commune with you.”

In Bondage

I’ve tried to be intentional in asking God everyday to do a work in me, to illuminate the areas of my life that need work, and to reveal himself to me continuously. The more I ask for these things the more I am humbled; however, I’ve realized how much my past hurt hinders my relentless pursuit. I have discovered how much I am still in bondage; I’m a slave to fear, worry, and anger.

In making this discovery, I knew that in order to successfully live out my relentless pursuit I needed to humble myself before the Lord and ask for healing. I have been through and seen more than most teenagers and it is time for me to acknowledge it is more than I can handle on my own.

How relentlessly could I be pursuing my savior if I wasn’t willing to trust Him to handle ALL parts of my life? How could I encourage people to be “souled out” for Christ if I was still carrying around anger? I am giving my past to Christ. I am humbly coming before Him asking Him to heal me. I am ready to deal with some painful parts of my life and rid myself of them! I am praising God because He is more than capable of healing me and He is more than capable of healing you too.

What are you carrying? What is holding you down? Maybe you are feeling the same way. Maybe there are parts of your life that you are angry with God about. Maybe there are things from your past that you carry around every single day. Maybe you are tired of being burdened. Maybe you are ready to claim Galatians 5:1 over your life. “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.” In one of Beth Moore’s studies she asks readers to make liberty in Christ a reality in your life. How powerful is that? Christ wants us to have liberty in Him. Christ wants to free you of whatever you are held slave to. The hard part is that you have to let Him. You have to risk opening up painful parts of your life so that he can completely take them away. You have to risk encountering tough emotions so that you can experience a new freedom in Christ! When you ask God to heal you and free you of your burdens he will. He can make you whole again. While it might take a lot of time, I promise you that if you seek Christ in the hardest times of your life you will feel his comforting hand in the end. You will be able to say “I sought the Lord, and he answered me, he delivered me from all my fears.” Psalm 34:4 Claim that for your life!

Hey Satan, I've got news for you.

Have you ever felt that high of being in the presence of God? Have you ever heard Him in times of worship? Have you ever seen Him in nature? Have you ever felt Him holding you in the palms of His hands? I have experienced God in ways that I never would have imagined. If you are passionately living your life on a pursuit for Christ, you will experience Him too. You will know without a doubt that whatever you experience was because of Him.

Unfortunately, Satan is going to be on his own pursuit for your life. For every plan Christ has for you, Satan has one too. For every perfect path God has set aside for you, Satan has developed his own to counteract it. The more you seek after Christ in your own relentless pursuit, the more Satan will try to bring you down. Without a doubt the hardest thing about my relentless pursuit, so far, has been feeling the presence of Satan  so strongly in my life. I could feel him all around me. I felt weak. I felt like my strongholds were taking over. I felt the presence of a powerful being that had me down for a long time. It had me distracted. It had me feeling completely defeated.

Then I remembered exactly how powerful Satan really is. I remembered that he has already lost. I remembered that my Savior has already defeated him. I have this very stubborn part of me that so desperately wants to let Satan down. I would like to think that every single time I wake up in the morning and set my feet on the ground, he scrambles and screams “she’s awakeeeee!!!” How awesome would it be to know that your alliance with Christ was so strong that Satan shook every time you woke up in the mornings? How awesome would it be to know that you were so relentlessly pursuing Christ that Satan felt the desire to throw everything he could at you to stop you?

I hope that you remember that Christ has YOUR name written on the palms of his hands. He has already defeated Satan for you....so live for your savior. Remember that any time you feel Satan’s presence it must be because he is so intimidated of the plans Christ has for you. Believe me, Christ has some big plans for you! Don’t let anything stop you for claiming what is set apart for you!

Check out the rest of my pictures at www.facebook.com/emilymichellephotos "Capturing the world through His eyes."

2+2=5

“Teenagers: move out, get a job, pay your own bills while you still know everything.”
I saw a sign last week with this text on it and it really resonated with me. I guess there is a part of the seventeen year old in me that can see more value in my own opinions than those of others. I think I’m right, but one of the first lessons I’ve learned in my relentless pursuit is that I’m not. When I begin to trust in my own plans above the plans of my Savior I can really be missing out on a lot of good that God has planned for me. It can really get dangerous when I start to value my own ideas and plans more than the “good, pleasing and perfect will” of God (Romans 12:2)

I can remember a time when I was younger that I would argue with my mom about the exception of the math problem 2+2. I was so convinced that sometimes those numbers added together for a total of 5. There was no telling me otherwise; I just knew that two plus two could sometimes equal five. I would seriously be so angry and frustrated that she did not see how absolutely correct I was in my divine revelation that 2 + 2 equaled 5!

Situations in our lives work a lot like the 2 + 2 math problem. I would see the problem (2) develop my own solution (+2) and always fall short of the correct answer (=5). I would form my own opinion (2) trust in my plan to succeed (+2) and forget that I need to trust God to provide (=5). In raising money for my brother’s treatments I would trust in myself and my family to get him where he needed to be (2+2=5) I would doubt and question God’s plan and timing and decide to act on my own ideas (2+2=5) It wasn’t until we lifted up that financial burden and gave it to Him before he opened our eyes to the correct answer (4) and showed us what he had in mind all along (2+2=4). We trusted God to provide and now Ryan’s first round of treatments this summer are covered (2+2=4).

God is teaching me in my relentless pursuit that I need to learn to trust him and take myself out of the equation. I need to submit myself to the advice of others. I need to humble myself before him and acknowledge that any direction he has me going in is far better than the direction I would choose for myself. God is teaching me that 2+2=4.

Welcome to my Relentless Pursuit

Let me start by saying I have no idea what I am doing here on blogspot; however, I have become so enthralled by the concept of a relentless pursuit that I feel led to write about my journey, my life, my relentless pursuit to be all that God has made me to be. Do you have any idea how much God loves you? Whoever you are, wherever you've been, whatever you've done, He loves you with a love that is unrivaled by anything else of this world. He so strongly desires a one on one, intimate, personal relationship with you. He continually pursues you Are you on a pursuit for Him? Are you relentlessly living a life that honors the person who made you all that you are? I'm not sure what this blog will turn into. I'm not sure how many people will read or even care about this blog; however, I feel that my journey on this relentless pursuit for my savior has led me here. I feel that God is asking me to share with you the ups and downs of trying to live a relentless pursuit. He asking me to be real with you. No cookie-cutter nonsense, no happily ever after, no ending this blog in warm fuzzy feelings, because the truth is the day you turn to Jesus and acknowledge Him as your savior is the day you accept your relentless pursuit. It is the day you decide that the least you could do for the person who is giving you breath right now is live for him. Prepare for things to get real. Prepare for things to be raw. Prepare for God to challenge you and encourage you in your own pursuit. I would like to welcome you to my relentless pursuit...