Jesus and Starbucks

This is a rather old video (from 2008) that I stumbled upon recently. It's quite humorous, enjoyable, and very interesting! Although it's intended for churches, I think there is a lot that anyone can learn from it. Check it out!

I found it both laugh-out-loud hilarious and terrifyingly convicting at the same time. As a coffee junkie and former Starbucks barista, I couldn't help comparing the real environment of Starbucks to the environment of this "churchy" Starbucks in the video. This Starbucks was little proud (though probably unintentionally so), very cliquey, uncomfortable, and unwelcoming (the employees were so "in your face" and desperate that it was a little scary and turned me off). A real Starbucks, however, is relaxing, welcoming, helpful, and very relational; Starbucks baristas are actually encouraged to make relationships with customers, instead of simply advertising.

Maybe we as Christians can learn something from Starbucks. After all, our faith at its core is very relational. Take a look at the Gospels and the books of Acts. In addition to teaching the public about Jesus, the disciples and others also boarded with them, ate with them, and made friendships with them. For the longest time, Starbucks didn't advertise at all. (Even now their advertisements are rare occurrences.) They rely largely on the word of mouth. Maybe instead of luring and tricking our friends into coming to church with us to just "try Jesus" like a bunch sleazy used car salesmen, we should make an effort to attempt the much more effective (but also much more difficult) route: actually showing our friends the love of Christ every day through our actions and words.

Christmas Magic

Why is Christmas so magical? Is it the weather? Is it the breaks from school or work? (Though breaks do always produce a little bit of magic!) Is it the smells: evergreen, cinnamon, ginger, and vanilla? Or maybe it’s the sounds, the music, the plays, and the movies? Or the sights, the colorful lights, the shimmery snow falling softly in the night sky?

Or maybe it's none of those things. Maybe what really makes Christmas magical is that it’s the time of year when everyone suddenly remembers what’s really important in life. We’re kind and forgiving towards family and friends (even when they've hurt us) because “it’s Christmas” and we want to keep the peace. We buy gifts for needy children just to see their faces light up with smiles for one day (despite the fact that for the other eleven months of the year, we refuse to give their families anything because they’re all “lazy Welfare abusers”). We donate extra money to charities so that starving families in our communities can actually have a nice meal one night. We bake cookies, brownies, and pie for everyone at work or school (whether we like them or not). We volunteer. We host parties. We sing. Some of us actually go to church for once. We smile and glow because for one month of the year, we actually make an effort to bring joy to others…and we realize that we enjoy doing so.

Joy and giving. Those two words can pretty much describe all of the special things we do every Christmas season. But why do joy and giving have to be confined mostly to December? What if we treated every month like it were December? What if we celebrated every single day as if it were Christmas?

What if we should?

Sometimes we reserve our joy for the Christmas season only. And other times we don't feel any joy at all...ever. Sometimes life is just tough and all of our days are stressful, sad, and difficult--especially Christmas. But as Christians, we've been given hope and a new life in Jesus! We should rejoice and be glad every day because of what He has done, shouldn't we?

"Be joyful always." --1 Thessalonians 5:16

"My lips will shout for joy when I sing praise to you--I, whom you have redeemed."

--Psalm 71:23

"The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field."

--Matthew 13:44

The last verse makes me think of the end of Dickens' A Christmas Carol, when Scrooge is suddenly filled with a new joy and runs around town wishing everyone a Merry Christmas, giving away food and turkeys to needy families for dinner. What if that were how all Christians acted every day: dancing, singing, and running around town sharing the joy that Christ has given us with everyone? This is what I think we should all aim and pray for! What a different sort of place the world would be!

So with that thought, I'd like to wish everyone who reads this a very Merry Christmas! My prayers will be with you all! "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit." (Romans 15:13) Peace, God Bless, and Happy Holidays!

Praying Like Jesus

Something stuck out to me last night during my small group at church. I've been meditating on it and felt like writing about it. We've been reading and discussing the book of Luke for the past few weeks and last night we tackled chapter 22.

It’s all pretty tough. Jesus’ friend betrays him and he spends what he knows will be his last supper with his closest friends. He’s about to be arrested, he’s about to be tortured and killed, and he knows all about it. So Jesus goes to the Mount of Olives to pray.

He withdrew about a stone's throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed, "Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done." (Luke 22:41-42)

I love this prayer! It’s short, to the point, honest, genuine, and full of so much emotion. Christ’s prayers are, I think, the best examples of how we as Christians should strive to pray. Jesus is honest with God that he would rather not go through what he knows he must do. He even asks for his “cup” to be taken from him. So many times we’re not honest with God about what we really want. I know I sometimes feel like it’s wrong or even sinful to not feel like doing what God asks of me. But how can it be wrong or sinful if Christ himself does it? It is, after all, very real and very human. Whenever we’re struggling, I think it’s best to just be real with God: to tell Him what we really want, to tell Him all of our fears, struggles, and worries. Being a naturally reserved person, I’ve learned recently that when I open up to my friends, I feel closer to them and our bond strengthens. We’ll never feel close to our friends if we’re never truly open and honest with them. What makes us think this doesn’t apply to God as well?

After “being real” with God, Jesus takes it one step further. He prays honestly about what he wants, but he also willingly submits to God’s will over his own; yet another model for us to follow. Jesus, who is both God in the flesh and a King, submits himself fully to God. And then right after he does this, something absolutely awesome occurs:

An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him. And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground. (Luke 22:43-44)

Jesus is open and honest with his Father, prays for what he wants, but ultimately submits himself to God’s will…and then God strengthens him! This occurrence makes me think of another verse that I’ve been meditating on lately, written by Paul to the Philippians:

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:6-7)

So what can we learn from Jesus’ prayer in the Mount of Olives? I think we can learn that if we’re consistently open and honest with God in our prayer life, if we confess our struggles and present our requests to Him, and if we ultimately choose to submit to His will for our lives, then we can trust that our loving Father will give us peace and strengthen us to do His will!

Faith When It Seems Impossible

“Faith is the art of holding on to things your reason has once accepted in spite of your

changing moods.” ~

C.S. Lewis

"Faith is not a sense, not sight, not reason, but a taking God at His Word." ~Evans

"Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. This is

what the ancients were commended for." ~Hebrews 11:1-2

The verse from Hebrews 11 always confused me just a little. It sort of made my head ache in the same way that taking the LSAT did. But lately God has been speaking to me about faith and the other day, that Hebrews verse suddenly made perfect sense. Faith is being sure and confident in God and what He has already said and done, so confident that even when everything around you points to your hope being impossible, you trust with certainty that God is at work and that He will deliver.

Noah trusted what God had told him and built the arc, despite the fact it probably didn't seem like there would be a flood for a while. Abraham was so sure of God's promise when he listened and almost sacrificed his son Isaac.

So what is faith for us then, today? I think faith is taking God's word to be the absolute truth, even when we don't "see" Him working at the moment. Faith could be, for instance, to not give in to hopelessness and depression when everything around you in today's economy says you won't be able to get work; faith would be trusting with certainty that God will take care of your needs somehow. Or faith could be to not settle for a jerk who doesn't treat you right because you don't believe that a good man can love you; faith would be trusting that if God wills you to be married then He'll bring the right kind of man into your life who loves you and treats you well (and that if He doesn't will for you to be married, that He has even better plans to use you to bring Him glory!)

Faith often defies all human reason. Maybe that's why the ancients were commended for it. Maybe faith that trusts God no matter what, defying all human logic and tangible evidence, stands out from the crowd and brings glory to God. Maybe if we all practiced our faith more often in our daily lives, we would stand out more as shining children of God.

Some More Encouragement For Women

I stumbled upon this encouraging little message written by T.D. Jakes recently. I know all too well that we ladies always need some Godly encouragement, so I thought I'd share this with all of my lovely sisters everywhere!

"Just Because" by T.D. Jakes

Just because no one has been fortunate enough to realize what a gold mine you are, doesn't mean you shine any less.
Just because no one has been smart enough to figure out that you can't be topped, doesn't stop you from being the best.
Just because no one has come along to share your life, doesn't mean that day isn't coming.
Just because no one has made this race worthwhile, doesn't give you permission to stop running.
Just because no one has realized how much of an awesome woman you are, doesn't mean they can affect your femininity.
Just because no one has shown up who can love you on your level, doesn't mean you have to sink to theirs.
Just because you deserve the very best there is, doesn't mean that life is always fair.
Just because God is still preparing your king, doesn't mean that you're not already a Queen.
Just because your situation doesn't seem to be progressing right now, doesn't mean you need to change a thing.
Keep shining. Keep running. Keep hoping. Keep praying. Keep being exactly what you are already...COMPLETE!

To all of my Godly sisters, continue shining as the women of God that you are!

Mirror Talk

As someone who has always struggled with confidence and self-esteem, I wrote up this challenge. Every morning, at the start of your day, try standing in front of a mirror and speaking these reminders to yourself:

• I am a child of The Most High God!
• I have been made in the image and likeness of God, who is beautiful and the definition of love.
• I have been fearfully and wonderfully made.
• God, the Creator of the universe, created me and declared all of his creation (including me!) to be VERY GOOD.
• God knows EVERYTHING about me, the good and the ugly, but He sill loves me!
• He loves me so much, that He died for me, in order to have a relationship with me!
• I am not my own; I was bought at a price: Christ's sacrifice.
• My real beauty comes from my inner self, from Christ in me, not from my hairstyles, my clothes, or my jewelry.
• Today, I will CHOOSE to believe and trust God's love for me and aim to please only Him! I will choose NOT to submit to the world's standards and chase after its approval.
• Today, I will remember that I am a child of God who is dearly loved. I will clothe myself with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.
• Today, I know that I can do all things through Christ, who loves me, strengthens me, guides me, and is with me always!

Some Bible verses that I used as references:

John 1:12-13, Genesis 1:26-27, Psalm 27:4, 1 John 4:15-18, Psalm 139:13-14, Genesis 1:31, Psalm 139:1, 1 Corinthians 13:4-8, John 3:16, Romans 5:8, 1 Corinthians 6:19-20, Romans 12:2, Colossians 2:20, Galatians 1:10, 1 Peter 3:3-5, Colossians 3:12, Philippians 4:13, John 16:13

Lessons in Confidence

God has been speaking to me a lot lately. Or perhaps He always spoke so loudly, but I just wasn’t paying close attention. He’s teaching me a lot right now by really sculpting and chiseling my character. I know because I can feel it and it isn’t always pleasant.

One of several issues that God is working with me on is confidence. Confidence is something I’ve always struggled with. It’s a thorn to me; it cripples me in my everyday life and especially in my faith. So many times I tried and failed to battle it, probably because I always attempted to overcome it with my own strength. During the past year, however, I know that God has been speaking to me a lot about confidence. Only recently have I truly begun to pray fervently for it. So today, I want to share some of the things that I’ve learned.

For one thing, I've been meditating a lot on these verses recently:

"Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will." – Romans 12:2

“Cursed is the one who trusts in man, who depends on flesh for his strength and whose heart turns away from the Lord. He will be like a bush in the wastelands; he will not see prosperity when it comes. He will dwell in the parched places of the desert, in a salt land where no one lives. But blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.” – Jeremiah 17:5-8

"This is what the Lord says: ‘Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom or the strong man boast of his strength or the rich man boast of his riches,
but let him who boasts boast about this: that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight,’ declares the Lord.”

– Jeremiah 9:23-24

“But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’" – 2 Corinthians 12:9

“For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.” – 2 Timothy 1:7

First and foremost, I think it’s vital to remember who and what we really are: we have been created in God’s image and declared “good,” but we are also sinners who repeatedly choose to reject our wonderful, perfect Creator. We are therefore destined to Hell, to an eternity deprived of God’s love and mercy. But because He is goodness, mercy, and love, God became flesh and dwelled among us. He taught us, loved us, befriended us, and ultimately sacrificed himself and died for us, so that we could have a relationship with Him. I believe it’s absolutely essential to always remember this with a spirit of thankfulness and humility.

God has been teaching me about confidence in two ways throughout the past year. The first is that I need to allow Him to define me and determine my value. My constant struggle with self-esteem is largely due to the fact that instead of turning to my loving, perfect Creator and Savior for love and affirmation, I am running to everyone and everything else. It is a sort of spiritual adultery. I allow the world to define me and I chase after its approval, but I am never quite good enough for its approval. It is a dysfunctional, abusive relationship that only boils down to my pride. Daily, I need to humbly remind myself that not only is God’s love for me enough, but that it’s a treasure more valuable than anything on this earth!

The second lesson is that my daily confidence must come from Him and not from myself. I have always been incredibly hard on myself. In my own strength, I never believe that I am good enough, capable enough, or qualified enough to do anything; so I would sit, spiritually fruitless and ineffective, in my own paralysis. But the good news is that I don’t need to be capable, qualified, or good enough. Really! And it’s so freeing! It lifts a giant weight off of my own shoulders to know that I don’t have to be capable or qualified because God is the one who’s really doing all of the work, not me! And who is more qualified, capable, or powerful than God Himself?! With His help, I can do all things!

Yet, even as I write this I'm still struggling with my confidence and self-esteem. It's a battle every single day, but now I make it a habit to pray every single day about it! And slowly, very slowly, I am watching God's Spirit work little miracles in me! And I pray that the same be for all of you!