If You're Looking for Emily

You might try her bed, or her desk, or the couch in the family room, or the hammock in the backyard. She'll likely be there, book in hand, waiting for a good excuse to be distracted.:o)

We Interrupt This Studying...

Top Ten Ways Emily is Likely to Distract Herself From Studying:
(not in any order)

1. Type this post.
2. Go on a longer run than usual.
3. Talk on the phone.
4. Clean her room.
5. Update her budget.
6. Run errands.
7. Organize anything that can be organized.
8. Accomplish things that have been on her "to do" list for weeks.
9. Daydream about absolutely nothing, and then realize she has no idea what she's been reading for the past ten minutes.
10. Update her calendar, planner, or "to do" list to make it seem like she's actually accomplishing something.:o)

Freedom in Slavery

Last Sunday I went to a "Chapel Elective" session at Grace Community, titled "Are You Sure It's God's Will?" As you can imagine it was well attended. Most people put a lot of time and energy into trying to figure out what God's will for their life is. The speaker did a really excellent job of laying everything out and explaining what Scripture has to say about it. One part that stood out to me was his definition of freedom. He said that the world defines freedom as "the ability to do what you want." I would agree that this is the definition I hear most often. He then went on to say that the Bible actually defines it as "the freedom to do what is right." As he put it, Christians are "free from slavery to sin and are now slaves of Christ." It's hard to imagine having freedom as a slave, but the reality is that the freedom of the Bible is far more liberating than the freedom advertised by the world. I was convicted that I too often focus on all of the things I "don't get to do" as a Christian. I think about all of the "restrictions" the Bible places on us, and get completely bogged down by rules and regulations and following the letter of the law. In actuality, however, Galatians 5:13-18 tells us that we are free. It goes on to say, "But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love."

Do I see the freedom in my slavery? Do I live like someone who is free to do what is right, or someone who doesn't get to do what is wrong? Am I focused on all of the things I "miss out on," or the many things I can do to bring glory to God? Do I get weighed down by and become consumed with unattainable perfection, or do I thank God that I am a great sinner and He is a greater Savior? Are my actions determined by what effect they will have on me, or whether or not they will please God? Bottom line, am I focused on God, or am I focused on me? These are the questions that have been swirling around in my brain, and I now pass onto you. The closing thought that the speaker left with us was this. "Don't ask, 'How do I find God's will for my life?' but rather 'How do I use my life to fulfill God's will?'"