what's the point of it all

i read a short chapter in my adult & aging textbook about burnouts. basically, it said some main reasons why people experience burnouts (in whatever context) are because they feel underappreciated, not satisfying their compulsion to achieve themselves, & most importantly- a general alienation from their work. with this, the only thing i can say is Colossians 3:17=

17 And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

alienation from work in a church setting is alienation from God. everything we do, say, see,..even breathe should trace back to God. the originality and intentions and motives should all lead & point towards our Father.

i know i'm feeling worn out this year with school, work, my sorority, & church. everything else i can expect and maybe even learn to take in all the stressors, but not with church. if i'm just tired & exhausted, that's one thing. but being burnt out is like pressing on the accelerator too fast and eating all the fuel before going anywhere. what's the point of doing that? you stay in one place, burn your engine & tires so that you can't go anywhere else. 2 Corinthians 4 says this:

16 Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. 17 For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. 18 So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

God uses everything, even the negatives on top of positives, for His glory. He turns the bad into good. redemption. if you look at God's redemptive history, the Christian world is shaped by it. even the small little things, He uses it for His kingdom and not ours.

Love God & nothing else

real talk

1 JOHN 3

18 Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.

Words are the fruits of the heart, and actions are the fruits of words. God is the only one who knows if all 3 match. my words can't be different from what my heart feels or what my behavior portrays to others, because that'll count as lying. God can tell, even when i can't. The bible tells us to be real, not fake. It's easy to love someone with words because how are they going to check to see if it's compatible with your heart? It's not like there's a window to your heart...but in actuality, the mouth is. Our words need to portray our hearts, which in turn will be portrayed by our actions.

Moral of the story- don't just tell someone you love them, but SHOW them. God didn't only tell us He loved us a million times; He sacrificed His only living son to prove it.

Lord Prepare Me

Lord prepare me, to be a sanctuary,

Pure and holy, tried and true

With thanksgiving, I'll be a living,

Sanctuary, for You.

struggles.

EPHESIANS 4:26-27

26 “In your anger do not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, 27 and do not give the devil a foothold.

words of wisdom for me. i know my struggles and problems with anger & frustration. it's to the point that the problem itself makes me angry, which is a probably a pretty good indication that it is a problem. i've had times where i'm in an angry state and i vent it out there and then to the person nearest to me. or other times, i sleep it off- which, i very very strongly recommend AGAINST.

my personal goal, hope, prayer, whatever- is that when i get so angry to a point that i'm shaking and can feel a gigantic lump in my throat is to take all that to the feet of cross, and not blurt out whatever's on my tongue. even if i could even take one minute to just close my eyes, take a deep breath, and envision Jesus taking that all for me and being nailed on the cross for it; that would be better. even just the stupid things that drives me crazy has led me to sin and God knew that.