Now and Later

As I promised a post containing my future plans will be coming soon but I'm waiting on a few more things to line out :)

But for now, here's some food for thought that God hit me with this week!

I don't know how many of you are on Pinterest. Chances are if you are a woman, you have at least checked it out and recently more men are picking it up! I love that because it gives a different mix to the pins. Anyways regardless if you have been on Pinterest or not, this blog still applies.

I LOVE Pinterest! I mean I'm addicted to way more than I ever thought I could be! Just to explain a little for those who don't know: When you set up an account on Pinterest you make different "boards." These are like bulletin boards but it turns out just being categories. When you go to the home page you can see things your friends are "pinning" (The act of saving an item to your board) or you can browse categories you are interested in and just see pins from other random users. Anyways, I have several boards but the ones I use the most are:
"Dreamday Ideas"-- my wedding board (which I pretty much have all of planned, except for the groom of course)
"Something for the Tastebuds" -- contains recipes and cooking tips and tutorials
"Home"- collection of ideas for when I own a house
"Cute Crafts"- anything from clothing projects to gift ideas to wreaths
"The Future Kiddos"- Clothing, party ideas, kid rooms, and parenting techniques for when God fulfills my dream of becoming a mom
--- Anyways you get the idea. These are the things I pin most often. All these "pins" are either pictures or links or instructions to have for that moment you need them.

Well about a week ago, I was sitting on Pinterest and had been pinning for at least an hour when the thought hit me: you have been sitting here pinning tons of crafts and you could have done one in the time you've been sitting here. Why on earth are you spending all this time pinning ideas if you aren't going to use them? This immediately struck a chord with me on a spiritual note. How often do I spend time at church in Sunday School or conversations with other believers or reading my Bible soaking up knowledge and wisdom about the Lord but never put that bit of knowledge into action?

Am I saying that everything we learn we should go out and do THIS moment? No! Example with Pinterest: I can't go out and make a wedding happen until I have a groom, that would be silly and I can't decorate a home I don't own, and it wouldn't be wise to buy clothes and plan parties for children I haven't had yet. In the same way many times God teaches us lessons preparing us for something ahead. For example in my studying of the Bible I am already trying to learn how to be a submissive, godly wife and a godly mother to my children. However, I can't put that into practice yet because I'm not a wife or mom. Also I think God teaches us how to deal with suffering even though we might not be suffering at this moment. He teaches us how to help the poor even though we might not have a beggar sitting on our front porch. He is constantly preparing for the future! And those truths that He is teaching us need to be stored up and meditated on so when the day comes we are ready. But what about what should be applied right now?

Am I saying I never apply what God teaches me to life? Absolutely not. But I definitely don't apply everything or even the majority of things God teaches me to my life immediately. Many times He has to teach them to me over and over and over before they ever become evident in my life. For example with Pinterest, I have done maybe 4 or 5 craft projects of off there and maybe 4 recipes. (Here are a few of my Pinterest projects)







But in comparison to the 99 pins I have on my craft board and 111 pins I have on my recipe board, I am not applying very much of what I'm pinning.

But God never fails to drive a point home when He really wants me to get it. I tucked this thought in the back of my head but God revealed it to me again as I was reading through James on Tuesday. James 1.22 "But be doers of the Word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves."  I knew then it was very clear what God was trying to say. He doesn't JUST call us to be in church (Hebrews 10.25), or to be in constant communion with Him (1 Thes. 5.17), or to use His Word as a guide (Psalm 119.105) but He calls us to take ACTION! To put what we learn into motion. Romans 6.13 "Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as INSTRUMENTS FOR RIGHTEOUSNESS."and 1 Corinthians 15.58: "Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain."and Ephesians 2.10: "For we are HIS workmanship, created in Christ Jesus FOR GOOD WORKS, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them."
I am in no way saying that we are saved BY our works, but FOR good works.

This has become a new challenge for me and I hope it will challenge you as well to BE DOERS AND NOT JUST HEARERS. I want to make a conscious effort to sort what God teaches me for "now" and "later". I want to meditate on the "later" and be prepared to use it. But I want to take the "now" and use it ....NOW!

1 Corinthians 10.31: "Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of GOD!"

Matthew 5.16: "Let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in Heaven!"

I'll leave you with lyrics from two of my favorite songs:

Jason Cox:
"I want to be more than moved, more than inspired, more than the notion I need the motion to follow after YOU to run in pursuit, give me the passion, urge me to action, I wanna be more than moved by YOU."

And Mandisa:
"I can't live my whole life wasting all the grace that I know You've given, cause You made me for so much more than sitting on the sidelines. I don't wanna look back and wonder if good enough could have been better, everyday's a day that's borrowed, so why am waiting for tomorrow?"