Advanced School/ Escuela Avanzada (Esp. & Eng.)

Today I decided that I'd just let the Daily Bread/Pan Diario speak for itself...and me. So here it is.
Passage: Salmo 27/ Psalm 27

Versión en español para Nuestro Pan Diario
       Tendemos a dividir la vida en categorías: llenamos nuestros días de ocupaciones tales como el trabajo, los recados, las tareas del hogar, el cuidado de los niños; y después, tratamos de forjarnos tiempo para actividades «espirituales» como la iglesia, los grupos pequeños, las devociones personales.

       No veo esta división en los salmos. De alguna manera, David y los demás poetas se las arreglaban para hacer que Dios fuera el eje gravitacional de sus vidas, de modo que todo se relacionara con Él. Para ellos, la adoración era una actividad esencial en la vida; no algo que cumplir al pasar, a fin de poder reasumir las otras actividades. Todos nosotros necesitamos experimentar el proceso de permitir que el Señor esté en cada detalle de nuestra vida.

           Para mí, los salmos se han convertido en un paso en dicho proceso de reconocer el lugar central que le corresponde al Dios verdadero. Los salmistas tienen un ansia, un deseo y un hambre del Señor que, en comparación, los míos parecen anémicos. Jadeaban con la lengua afuera anhelando a Dios, como lo hace un ciervo exhausto y sediento de agua (42:1-2). Yacían despiertos durante la noche soñando con «la hermosura de Jehová» (27:4). Preferían pasar un día en la presencia del Señor que mil años en otra parte (84:10).

Estos poetas estaban inscritos en «la escuela de avanzada de la fe». Quizá al leer los salmos se nos pegue un poco de esto.

Para tener un corazón para Dios, entrégaselo a Él por completo.

English link to Our Daily Bread

         We tend to compartmentalize our lives. We fill our days with activities such as work, errands, chores, caring for children. And then we try to carve out time for “spiritual” activities such as church, small groups, personal devotions.

        I don’t see that separation in the Psalms. Somehow David and the other poets managed to make God the gravitational center of their lives so that everything was related to God. To them, worship was the central activity in life, not something to get through so other activities could be resumed. The process of letting God in on every detail of life is one we need.

        For me, the Psalms have become a step in the process of recognizing God’s true place at the center. The psalmists have an urgency, a desire, and a hunger for God that makes my own look anemic by contrast. They panted for God with their tongues hanging out, as an exhausted deer pants for water (42:1-2). They lay awake at night dreaming of “the beauty of the Lord” (27:4). They would rather spend one day in God’s presence than a thousand years elsewhere (84:10).

It was “the advanced school of faith” that these poets were enrolled in. Maybe as we read the Psalms, some of it will rub off on us.

One life to live for Christ my Lord,
One life to do my part,
One life in which to give my all
With fervency of heart. —Brandt

To have a heart for God, give your heart totally to God.

 

I really enjoyed reading this one today and hope you find it helpful. It reminds me of the passage I read yesterday "And in all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your path." Proverbs 3: 6

Thanksgiving Special

Proverbios 3:1-12 is what I read today.

Hey guys, I have 7 minutes to write, so ahí tienes:

Once again, I've decided to chose a part of this passage because it's kind of long and I'd like to fix myself on something. vs. 6 speaks to me and this Thanksgiving Special

It says "Reconócelo en todos tus caminos y él enderezará tus veredas."
       Basically, in all that I do, I should recognize that God is in it and that He is there to make things work out. I know that this is important because lots of situations arise in my life when I am not repping God in every situation in every momento. I then think about my actions in these situations and how I could have been more forward with my Christian beliefs.
     Example: Since being in Chile, lots of people have told me how good my Spanish is and how I speak it well. (I did take it for 8 years), but that's not the right response. In order to properly give credit where credit is due, I would have to say "Gracias a Dios" because He's the one that's given me the capacity to reach this level of Spanish in my life and be here..in Chile. So, God, I am thanking you now for giving me this capacity to learn this wonderful language because I know I didn't do it by myself. Your strength took me from one Spanish class to another (because we sure know that not all Spanish profs are made equal..or teach well.)

 Since today is Thanksgiving Day (in the US at least), I want to show others (and definitely God) how thankful I am for where He's brought me and where he plans on taking me. Time to stop focusing so much on me and what I've done...cause it honestly isn't all that appealing. Sometimes more appalling.

Aight..I'm out.

Much love, peace and turkey grease on this splendid day.

Ife 'Quipayan' S.

Going Big.

I'd just like to say that waking up late just drastically changed my day. Arg..

But, on a less angry note, the devotions comes from Lucas 7: 11-23. I personally only read from 11-17 because I realize that it's better if I read in smaller chuncks. I tend to actually remember it.

Resucita a un joven de Naín
    Talks about when Jesus went to a city and brought a child back to life. This child was all his mother had left in this world (mas o menos). She was a viuda (widow) that lived with her son, but wasn't entirely alone. From the message, it says that everybody and their mama was there with her as the procession went by. And at the end of the day, Jesus' fame spreads "por toda Judea y sus alrededores"/ "throughout Judea and the surrounding country".

    Talk about doing something big.

Yea. Let's talk about this.

     Ever since I was small in the United States, I have always said that I'd become the president of the US. I mean, since I can remember there are two things that I've outwordly confessed: 1) That I will be prez. of the U.S and 2) that I wanted to be a lawyer. Needless to say, I've been sidetracked from both "dreams" so to speak because I seem to not be able to stick to one thing for a long period of time. I haven't done much to reach either goal anytime soon (not that they are short term goals, by no means).

   The thing about Jesus is that He embodied His vision for the world; He was the change He wanted to see in this life by doing what He was called to do. There is no doubt in my mind that when Jesus woke up everyday, He set out to live out the calling, not just talk about it. To be who He determined to be.

   I don't know about you all, but it does sound like a pretty big deal. But one thing I am 100% sure of is that the God that placed me where I am today, did not commit a boo-boo and that my days do have a purpose. I, myself, may not always walk in that purpose, but at the end of the day, God's will is accomplished. Punto.

So I'm out. Enjoy your day, live with purpose and let God show you the way. Deuces

With much love, peace and elbow grease,

Ife 'Quipayan' S.

Been Slackin', but I'm happy

Blah. Sorry ladies and gents. I have been slackin' in more ways than one. I really do enjoy writing in this blog and like re-reading what I write because it shows me that I can really keep up with it.

Some of my moments of the last few days have involved me consciously making decisions about my life, not just making moments. Example:

I am not the greatest when it comes to fashion and I am okay with that. Really. But on Friday or Thursday (can't remember. It's been a while), I decided to pick out articles of clothing that 1) tenía ganas para llevar and 2) was appropriate (considering weather and my duties of the day, etc). It was like dressing up a doll and making her look pretty. For me, looking presentable isn't on my list of top priorities, but I realized that when looking good can affect the way I feel. I feel good about myself 98% of the time (to be honest), but when I dress well, it's like "Whoa, look out world!"

    This is not a blog about superficiality, nor am I saying that to feel good you've got to look good. I'm just saying that, for me, it adds to my jolliness!

So, basically what I'm saying is that for way too long in my life, I've just done things because that's the way it needs to be or that's the way someone wants it. But now, I truly would like to live in a way that honestly makes me happy. I smile like crazy when I know that I'm wearing my favorite shirt with my favorite scarf and singing to myself with my iPod on. Why? Because it makes me happy. I don't want to live life just trying to get to the next stage. Man, enjoying every aspect of  my life is what it's about and letting people enjoy theirs.

And I know that this just doesn't apply to the simple things in life, like what to wear, but to the bigger things, like who your friends are and what kind of relationships you have. I am becoming more of a woman when I express myself to the people I love. I am getting past the stage of "Oh. What will they think of me?" or "Maybe I shouldn't say this. How will they take this? I don't want to sound too...". I definitely respect my loved ones enough to watch my words as to not purposely cause damage, but I am working on expressing my love for these people. (That was actually kind of weird to say. I rarely use that word. Just never grew up with it.) It's not all mushy stuff, but it's a simple: "Just wanted to see how things are 'cause I miss you." 3 years ago, you wouldn't have ever caught me saying something like this. Just wasn't something I wanted to share, but now, I realize that I am a human being with feelings and if people don't know what those are or don't want to know, then psh.

Sorry if this got way deeper than necessary. I just want to acknowledge some milestones in my life. Next step: saying some of that stuff aloud....in Spanish? Hm? We'll see.

So, to all my friends out there, thanks for still being my friend. :) 'Preciate it!

Aight, I'm out. Much love, peace and elbow grease,

Ife 'Quipayan' S.

P.S. I actually squirm sometimes re-reading my mushy blogs...blah. jaja. That's okay.