A couple months ago (possibly the summer, fall or winter), I went to the nail shop to get a pedicure. Usually when I get a pedicure I watch TV or start a conversation with the people in the shop. Well, this time I brought in a book…Weird by Craig Groeschel. My reading seemed to peak an interest to the young lady, let’s call her Amy, who was doing my pedicure. Apparently when I read, I tend to be a bit vocal. I did not realize this because I usually read alone at home.  She asked me what I was reading. I said, “I am reading a Christian book about how other people are living their life for Jesus.” She looked at me and in the most sincere and naive voice asked, “Who is Jesus?” I was speechless. I was speechless  for several reasons:

1. How can it be possible that a person living the U.S. has never heard about Jesus?

2. How is it possible that a person in my neighborhood/5 mile radius has never heard his name?

3. How can I express to Amy in words who Jesus is?

Well after I got over my shock, I explained to her that Jesus is the son of God. God sent him to Earth and Jesus died on a cross to save all of us from our sins. Then I mentioned the Bible is where you can learn more about Him and she asked me, “What is  the Bible?” I explained to her that it’s a book that tells you how to live your life. Amy’s English skills are not strong, so I kept it concise. I explained all of this in a minute. Basically what you just read is what I said.

She was very interested at first and I could tell that it sounded confusing to her and I asked her what her religion was. She was not sure what I meant and I elaborated and stared naming religions, Buddhist, Jewish, Taoist. Amy said she was Buddhist. I asked her to tell me more about her belief system. She talked to me briefly as well.

After I left the nail shop I immediately called Jay, my boyfriend, and Marianne to tell them about what happened. I was still in shock by the fact that I have been going to this establishment for two years and not once have I mentioned my LORD and SAVIOR!!!.

As a result of this experience, I know not to assume. My number one assumption was that everyone in the U.S, or at least Houston, knows who Jesus is. I now see the need to mission to those in our own city and community. I understand that it is not an easy topic to work naturally into a conversation. Its kinda hard to go up to someone you meet causally and say, “Hey do you know who Jesus is?” But I’d rather take my chances to look like a freak, than to miss an opportunity to spread His name and word. For all I know it may be the only time they will have the chance to hear it.

SPEAK UP!

I failed to do so for sooooo long. I may never know how many other countless people I have interacted with have NEVER heard His name.  But I do know that from now on, that is going to change. That is why we are here!

“He said to them,  ’Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.’” -Mark 16:15, NIV

It has been quite awhile since I have posted. A lot of things have happened in my life.

Quick recap: My grandfather, Gonzalo Baylon, is now radiating in the presence of the Lord. Losing my grandfather was quite a hard loss in my life. I wrote about him in my personal journal. Though losing him was hard, it has brought me closer to the Lord. And when you get closer to the Lord, you have to be cautious, because that is when Satan brings his cunning and manipulative self into your life and tries to cut you off from God. It happened to me. I could hardly believe it. I was so close to letting him enter my thoughts. PRAISE GOD for getting me out of that!!!

I entered 2012 with a brand spanking new accountability contract. I believe my friend Priscilla will elaborate more on our accountability contract on her next post. So I will let her fill you in on that, but it has been an AMAZING experience so far!

The biggest news of all is that I am now working full time for a clinic that serves HIV+ clients. I’m really excited to take on this new adventure. Also, my household now has TWO! dogs. I was not very happy about this change, but this little cuddly miniature pinscher just crawled his way into my hard heart and has softened it. This is a picture of me and Malachi. I named him Malachi, because it means “God’s messenger”. And yes, this cute little 9 pound creation of God has sent me many messages upon his arrival.

What I think the Lord has set upon my heart to write about is BOLDNESS. The past month or so, the Lord has just put me in situations where I keep hearing this word and speaking this word. Initially, I wanted to write a whole post about boldness, but it just became TOO LONG! So I’m going to write a three part series, speaking about what it means to be a BOLD follower of Christ.

I want to talk about three things.

1. BOLD FAITH!
2. BOLD PRAYER!
3. BOLD LIVING!

This entry will be about BOLD faith!

When you look up the word on Dictionary.com here are the definitions that speak out to me.

not hesitating or fearful in the face of actual or possible danger or rebuff; courageous and daring; challenging; beyond the usual limits of conventional thought or action; imaginative

Psalm 138:2-3, NASB
I will bow down toward Your holy temple
And give thanks to Your name for Your loving kindness and Your truth;
For You have magnified Your word according to all Your name.
On the day I called, You answered me; You made me bold with strength in my soul.

What does having BOLD faith look like?
Bold faith means putting the Lord above ALL ELSE in life. Seems simple enough, right?

I was listening to a message by Pastor Gregg called Real Life: The True Vine. And he made an amazing point. Sometimes, we act as if God is serving US. We treat the great and capital letters H I M like a peasant!! Before you scoff, really and truly think about it. Many of us fail to put him first in our lives, but actually put him dead last. MYSELF INCLUDED! I am not casting any stones, here. I am super guilty of this!

What could we possibly put first above Jesus?
Relationships! (significant others, friendships, children)
Addictions! (alcohol, drugs, food, television, pornography, gambling, internet, money, etc.)
Work! School! TIME! The fact that there is ONLY 24 hours in a day and we couldn’t possibly fit in some time with the Lord on OUR busy schedule! Starting to sound familiar? How many of us will watch a TV show before we spend our time with the Lord? Or get on Facebook?

Brothers and sisters, the Lord our God should not be our peasant. He should be ruling over our entire life. Including the small decisions in our daily lives, such as what to eat today, what to say to a friend when they are seeking advice, or whether to take a right or a left turn on an unknown path. God has given us a gift by letting us LIVE in this world. And he has put us in this planet for a specific purpose. We, as Americans, grow up in a culture that promotes taking control of your life and it is crippling us all.

When I was in high school, I wanted to be a nurse, because I wanted to help people. Did I ask the Lord how I could help people? Nope. I just decided on my own that I was going to make a big girl decision and become a nurse, without any consultation, because I was taught to control my own life.

Was it any wonder that I failed in this attempt? Eventually, the Lord led me to be a social worker and I haven’t looked back! That was His calling for me.

Live BOLDLY by putting GOD FIRST! Let God till the soil of your garden, and out of that, you will bear beautiful fruit. If God is growing tomatoes in your garden, and you hate tomatoes, honey, you better learn to love it. Because HE is the almighty, all consuming God. And if He wants to use your life in a certain way, you just go on and PRAISE HIM for the privilege to represent Him in this world the way HE wants you to. Tell the Lord, “I AM YOUR SERVANT!!! USE ME FOR YOUR WILL!”

Now, it’s easy to do this when things are going well in life. But how easy is it to put God first when things aren’t going so well in your life?

It’s not. I know.

And as far as understanding why bad things happen to us or why the Lord has put certain things on our path, we do not have the capacity to truly understand why things are the way they are.

But, God will put trials in your life. That is a total guarantee when you are living in this world. There are two reasons for it. If you are letting God till your garden and you are bearing fruit, God is putting trials in your life to help improve you. If you are not letting God till your garden and are not bearing fruit, God is putting trials in your life to help correct you. Pastor Gregg refers to these as perfecting storms and correcting storms.

Earlier this year, I wrote about how I was in a deep pit of depression. There were many things going on in my life. And I just took hit after hit and I couldn’t handle it. I was a Christ follower at that point in my life. I did ask why it was happening to me and I didn’t comprehend it. But the one thing I did not do was I did not blame God. I boldly lived by faith.  I let Him guide me through that dark time. He shaped me. He molded me. And I came out stronger, because of it. I think I was able to cope through my grandfather’s death, because I went through that trial. So Jesus used this dark time in my life to IMPROVE me (perfecting storms).

Another hard time in my life was leaving nursing school. I was not a Christ follower at that point in my life. But I felt alone. My parents were not supportive of my decision to leave nursing school, most of my friends thought I was crazy, it was really lonely. But, because I left nursing school, I found time for other things. And a friend invited me to a Bible Study that literally changed my life and I accepted the Lord as my personal savior. I didn’t even acknowledge Jesus before this. But He used that dark time to CORRECT me (correcting storms) and help me see that He is there and will always be there, even when my support system wasn’t.

Referencing the definition of boldness, live BOLDLY in FAITH through trials without hesitation or being fearful in the face of actual danger. Be courageous and daring and take on life’s challenges. Be bold by thinking beyond the limits of conventional thought or action.

Spiritual Warfare to put it simply is a battle/fight between Good and Evil…Light and Darkness.

If we look at this in a grand scale we know this represents the battle/fight between God and the devil.

As children of God, as adults, and as humans we know and are aware of sins that we commit.  With that being said the spiritual warfare that we as humans experience is with evil/sin. This can come through various forms, it can be through temptations, actions, words, thoughts, and more importantly what we DON’T do.  Yes, you read correctly, what we DON’T do.

Anyone who attempts to get closer to God and faith has a battle/fight between evil trying to lead us in the opposite direction. To be an active Christian and follower of Christ I have learned that it takes self-discipline, prayer, and support from family and friends in order to stay on track. It also seems like the stronger your faith becomes the stronger evil around you becomes.

There are certainly things we can do individually or as a group to help us get closer to God. No one said being a follower of Christ would be easy and part of being a good Christian and follower is studying, reading, praying, and giving.

I struggle with this EVERYDAY! I’m sure others do as well. We KNOW what we have to do in order to be good Christians, but sometimes we just DON’T do it. It can be because we claim we are busy, we don’t have time, we have better things to do, we have other activities that are more fun that we want to participate in, and I’m sure the list can go on. Not doing what you know you are suppose to do or are wanting to do in order to better your relationship with God is as bad as all the other forms of sin. We are letting the opponent win!

The LEAST we can do to show our love to God is to spend a fraction of our time with him. Prayer is one of the most powerful things we can do to help us with our spiritual warfare. Prayer is also the most basic way to get our minds and our hearts ready for the fight. Having support is also important when you are struggling. REFLECTING is a way for you to analyze not only yourself but also the things that are going around you. Once you are aware then you know what you have to do in order to get back on track. It is not easy and there will be days when the opponent will win but you have to get back up and fight back!

Isa 41:10 Do not be afraid—I am with you! I am your God—let nothing terrify you! I will make you strong and help you; I will protect you and save you. 

I’m thankful that God has brought two people together that love and trust Him! I don’t say this just because they are going to enjoy this blessing for the rest of their loves or just because they get to enjoy their honeymoon (and yes naturally this is true). I am excited because this is another opportunity for God to be made known. I’m grieved by the number of marriages I see that end in divorce and the devastation that it causes. I am deeply saddened by the countless loveless (this is not measured by just romance though it has it’s place) marriages I see all around me. Christ died to free us from sin and we are free if we have trusted our lives to Him and have repented of our rejection and rebellion toward God! THIS IMPACTS EVERY AREA OF OUR LIVES… That being said, marriage i believe is one of Satan’s biggest targets. Marriage is designed to rescue is from “the misery of selfishness” (I can’t remember exactly who said this and to show us another living breathing practical display of God’s love for us . This is why it should be protected, cherished, and defined clearly.

I’m 25 and I get the question now more than I ever have in my life “when are you getting married?” I don’t know the answer to this any more than I know when the world will end (though I know I don’t predict that from a movie). However, just as I know I am prepared for the end of the world because I have entrusted my life to Christ and this is seen in my words AND walk (never perfectly) I also believe in preparing for marriage. Just to make this clear, I don’t go to seminary to find a husband or serve on the mission field to get a man. I serve because I am obeying God and submitting to His will. Back to this preparing for marriage… I don’t get my understanding of marriage from movies (though this is hard bc of all the Disney princess movies and romantic comedy that has filled all of our minds because we enjoy them and long for this mystery man who does not exist as portrayed but back to the point) or music or even often what I have seen around me. I have seen some couples that have blown me away with their unselfish love for each other. Others have blown me away that they managed to live in the same house for so long being miserable…sadly. Marriage, as I understand it to be, is not some stroll in the park or an emotional high that sustains itself and not an excuse to be able to have sex whenever you want.

Without going on and on about what it is not which we may or may not hear, just keep in mind that love which is the basis for marriage (Christ’s love) is not emotions but is a commitment. Love is exemplifying godly character bc you have spent time with Hin being so satisfied that you can look beyond your own desires and (not losing your identity) desiring to help someone be who God has called them to be and doing that through loving and serving that person and only being able to by God’s grace and strength. I don’t know who or when or if I will get married. Only God knows His plan, but I do know that if He allows it then I want to build my husband up by my words, raise my kids and take care of our home (not lead-ladies, if you are initiating before you are married you should expect to do it in your marriage which is not your God-given role. Let Him step up and if He doesn’t keep going) (and I do not lose my identity as a female or any rights in order to do this. I submit to God and fulfill my role as a wife because of love, not force) so that the rest of the world can see our marriage as an example of Christs’ love.

I’m tired of seeing Christians who get married with little to no knowledge of what their roles are or what a real marriage is (granted there is a plethora of reasons) or reject the idea of marriage bc they don’t understand why God designed it the way He did. Ultimately our submission problem is with God and if I want to get the heat off I would say trust problem since submission seems to be such a loaded negative word when not properly understood. If I can’t trust that God is in control and submit to His leading, I will never be able to submit to any imperfect human because I have placed myself even above God Himself.

BUT and this is a big BUT (pun intended) I am thankful that today and not today alone, that God has drawn two more people together (one man and one woman-no exceptions) who have given their lives to Him, will become one (through sex that God designed for that purpose) and learn to be selfless so that the world can see that Christ’s love is more than we could ever grasp and that HIS design for marriage is abundantly more wonderful than something we think about as “just sex”

My purpose in writing this is by no means to have a well written article because it is not well written. It is not to get comments or “likes.” The purpose of this note is to share in His joy and remind myself and others that God is in control and marriage, though in a very sad state right now and has been for a while, is not anything beyond what God is able to restore and through it glorify Himself. This note is for Him in hopes of drawing more of us to Him.

I have spoken to two. I am still praying on person number three.

Person number one and I spoke on the phone. I was worried it would be awkward, but it turned out to be ok.

Today, three seasons later, I receive a Christmas present from Person number one. It is a PostSecret book. If you aren’t aware of what PostSecret is, it is a forum where people anonymously share their secrets on a postcard and send it to it’s creator, Frank Warren. It is quite popular and there have been books published. Sometimes, people will put confessions on a postcard and put them in the books at the bookstore, so when other people purchase them, there will be a secret in their purchase. A super fresh secret that no one has laid eyes on.

Well, when I opened my PostSecret book, I was excited to find a postcard. From Person number one. Here it is below, with Person number one’s permission:

Praise God!! Talking to someone about their faith journey is never easy. But with love and compassion, you can plant seeds. With God’s will, those seeds can grow and blossom!

Please pray for Person number one. God has it set in His mind to seek one of his lost sheep and have the Shepherd lead the way back to Him.

Heavenly Father, only you can move mountains. I pray that Your will be done in the heart and soul of this person. I know you seek your child and in your perfect sense of time, your child will come home. In the name of your son, Jesus. Amen.