It says in Ephesians 5:15-16, ” Be very careful, then how you live- not as unwise but as wise,making the most out of every oppertunity because the days are evil.”

You can witness to people with the way you live, the way you treat people and the way you act. Witnessing isn’t always talking to people about Jesus, its also showing His love too.  So when someone who you know is a Christian cusses or does something you know they shouldn’t be doing, its your duty as a brother or sister of their’s in Christ to call them out on it!

Just something I’ve been thinking about lately….

Faithfully,

Alex

I see his love and mercy
Washing over all our sin
The people sing
The people sing

Hosanna
Hosanna
Hosanna in the highest

I see a generation
Rising up to take their place
With selfless faith
With selfless faith

I see a near revival
Stirring as we pray and seek
We’re on our knees
We’re on our knees

Heal my heart and make it clean
Open up my eyes to the things unseen
Show me how to love like you have loved me

Break my heart from what breaks yours
Everything I am for your kingdoms cause
As I go from nothing to
Eternity
Hosanna in the highest

Take a minute today to meditate on this. Its the lyrics of Hosanna by Hillsong. Its inspiring and sometimes I think we forget who God really is with our busy lives. : )

Walking by faith,
Alex

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
– Jeremiah 29:11

Recently I thought that it was in God’s plan for me to join the Peace Corps The idea to apply came after my pastor gave a sermon on listening to what God wants you to do and then doing it. Joining didn’t happen though, got a letter in the mail today. “Learn French or Spanish and apply again later.” That was basically the gist of it. I’m already majoring in German, and my teacher told me the last week (she teaches French too) that she thinks I should take French next year! What a coincidence! Guess I’m staying at Vincennes a little longer than I planned. Those plans that I made were not God’s plans though. I think maybe I was always going to stay here for two years. Don’t try and make your own plans, just pray and pray and pray. Listen to what God wants you to do and then do it! Take up your cross and follow Him. As long as you’re following Him, there is no doubt in my mind that you will be able to do anything!

“If any of you wants to be my follower, you must put aside your selfish ambition, shoulder your cross, and follow me. If you try to keep your life for yourself, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake and for the sake of the good news, you will find true life.”
Mark 8:34-35

Are you really living?

Following Jesus,
Alex

Blessed,
Alex

Are you really living?

Marshall Jones Jr - Friend and Blogger at bondChristian.com

This is a guest post by Marshall Jones Jr.
Someone (I wish I remember who) once told me that the benefit of attending Harvard isn’t the education – it’s the connections made. He meant that the friends made while attending the university are more important than the actual lectures and exams and diplomas. I agree. 

Think about it: anyone brilliant enough (or rich enough, but let’s assume the best) to get into a school like Harvard will probably be successful, assuming a loose definition of “success” here. Harvard just puts its stamp of approval on up and coming geniuses. So if everyone attending is already brilliant, what’s the benefit of attending? 

Friendships. 

I graduated from college last year. I’m only 20, though, so I still feel college-ish. But one lesson I’ve learned since graduating is the value of the friendships I made. 

• The day I walked across the stage, my Biology 101 exam questions no longer mattered, though the night before the exam I traded sleep for memorizing, “Kingdom / Phylum / Class / Order / Family / Genus / Species.”
• A month after walking, my GPA no longer mattered – potential employers rarely ask about it, especially since I graduated early.
• Half a year after graduating, I have a couple pieces of paper that amount to a hearty recommendation from a decent school in the middle of the United States. I’m not convinced they matter either.

But the friendships from college still matter… and they’re still very much alive. 

I was a good student in college. That means I procrastinated like crazy, made up for it by using big words (like “universalizable” and “circumlocution” if you must know), and generally found ways to play the game to win good grades. Trouble was, I didn’t spend the effort to build lasting friendships. 

They say you regret the things you didn’t do more than the things you did do. That’s at least true for my college experience. Looking back, I would have made friends with everyone. 

Thanks to Mark Zuckerberg (who happens to have attended Harvard) and his wonderful creation that is facebook, we have no excuse for not knowing our classmates – and professors for that matter. Use it as a giant Rolodex – remember those for storing addresses and phone numbers? 

In one of my classes my last semester, I literally went through the class roster and sent friend requests to everyone on the list. Some of course didn’t respond, probably because they have a “don’t talk to stalkers” policy. But some did, and I still keep in touch with them because of it. 

Facebook of course isn’t the only way to keep in touch – cell numbers and email addresses work as well. I’m just saying to get in touch somehow. Then do stuff… 

Go bowling, ice skating, shopping, or my personal favorite, Ultimate Frisbeeing – anything not school related. Study groups and school sponsored events can work, but they can dry up over the summer or once you graduate. The idea is to create friendships that go beyond the university. 

Once you have friendships that go beyond school, you can begin leveraging them. If you make Christian friends, you can form Bible studies or work together at local church or outreach events. You can create accountability partners. 

If you make non-Christian friends , you can continue to be an influence for Christ in their lives. In one situation, I helped a friend return to Jesus and the church just because I mentioned that I would pray for her when she was experiencing a difficult time in her life. 

Serve your friends. Care about them. You never know where friendships will lead. 

Your years in college are probably the best years in your life for making new friends – at least it’s when you have the most opportunity to do it. Take advantage of college to build something that matters. Healthy friends glorify God more than straight A’s ever could. 

“Two are better than one,
Because they have a good reward for their labor.
For if they fall, one will lift up his companion.
But woe to him who is alone when he falls,
For he has no one to help him up.” Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 

Speaking of friending, Marshall Jones Jr. would love for you to friend him on facebook. Marshall also writes at bondChristian.com, a practical guide for serving others.

- Justin

Are you really living?

See music video

Lyrics

I’m lost at the end of my rope
And I’m burning, I’m yearning
I’m hurting for hope

I’m needing this burden to go
But I’m searching for
Purpose, I’m searching to know

It knocks me down to the floor
Till I’m pounding the ground
And I’m down in my hole

It’s got me down till I go
Till I cry out to you I
Can’t take it no more

You are the one that I hold
You are the one in my soul
You are the one that I know
That will come when I call
And I fall and I fold let’s go
Cmon

I’m at the end of my rope and
I can’t take it no more
I think I’m losing control
I am about to let go

I am….

So you said to let go
Let everything I had hold
Let go till its all in control
Let go till its gone up in smoke

Crush me mold me make me
Stretch me fold me change me
Until I ain’t just the same me
You the only one my safety
You are the one gonna saved me
And I don’t wanna ever live safely
Destroy my world and take me
Past the end of my rope break me

Are you at the end of your rope?

- posted by Justin