home.

Okay. It’s time to get vulnerable. Let’s talk about missing home.

During my first semester of college I didn’t really miss home. I think it was because I was caught up in the new experiences and people that I was meeting. However, once Christmas break came around, things changed. After a month of being around my [awesome] family, I realized that 4 months without seeing them was going to be rough-really rough. So I trekked back to college, more than 1,000 miles away. I began the countdown to the day my mom would come pick me up during the layover of my flight. Once I got back to school, the work commenced and friendships continued, however, home was still distant.

According to Google, which we know to be ever reliable (sarcasm included), homesickness is defined as:

“the distress or impairment caused by an actual or anticipated separation from home. Its cognitive hallmark is preoccupying thoughts of home and attachment objects.”

Now I’m not really sure how true this definition was for me, but I do know what I envision when I think of being homesick. It’s the aching feeling in your soul where you just want to see your family again-to laugh with them. Etc.

Quick side note, I’m not usually this way. Actually, I’m a really independent person. I never thought I’d be homesick during college. I love my family, but I also love new places and being able to meet new people. In fact, there have been times where I zone out about my family and reaching out to them. I guess that’s why being homesick sort of surprised me.

But now this post is getting depressing, and I didn’t want it to go there.

So let’s go to a different place-a place where God provided. Sure, this semester was full of counting down the days I got to go home, but it was also full of times where God taught me things when I felt distant.

The first was that my home is not a place-at least not on earth. Although I am a proud [perhaps to a fault] native of Minnesota, and I love my family, and my friends, God has taught me that after all of these things He is my home. Sometimes this is hard to grasp and I fight to accept it. I want something tangible to call my home-I want comfort. God pushes me to show me that He is always with me. To be cliché, He is my home.

I also believe that through learning this God is preparing me for something. I definitely don’t think that I’ll be able to be with my family for 100% of my life. That thought kinda sucks, but I also thirst for adventure and to be able to do something “big” for God. I think that this is just one of those things that God uses to challenge us to lean on Him and surrender our feelings to Him because at the end of the day God knows what’s going on and will weave it into our story that He has written.

Another of those things was His provision. I cannot begin to express the amount of gratitude I feel for those who made college feel a bit more like home. Families taking me in over breaks, friends being there for rough days, and just people to laugh with made home seem to shift a bit in my mind. I learned that although God pushes us to learn new things, He provides for those times where we may feel weak.

So here’s a quick post to remind us that God’s challenges are preparation for something in the future. In the midst of hardship, God provides. And finally, there will be a day when the hardships end and we are home with Him.

"Join together in following my example, brothers and sisters, and just as you have us as a model, keep your eyes on those who live as we do. For, as I have often told you before and now tell you again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is set on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body."

Philippians 3:17-21 (NIV)

Identity.

Throughout my life I've struggled to discover who I really am. I think we've all gone through this process-and continue to go through it.

Many people say that you "figure out who you are" in college. Or thereabouts on the timeline of life. Okay, I'm here. Now what?

I'm not saying that those people are wrong. I do think that as we grow we discover more of who we are. But I think if we rely solely on our own ability to learn about ourselves, we will be relying on a very distorted view of who we are.

"How do I propose to remedy this?" is a question you may be asking at this moment. Well, this is a question I've been thinking about quite a bit lately as well. And I've come to the conclusion that by ourselves we will never really figure out who we are.

What I mean by this is that if I was to go through life relying on my own ability to figure out who I am, I would probably come up with a bunch of scrambled adjectives. Such as: enthusiastic, Christian, family-oriented, awkward, nerdy, blogger, hipster (still figuring that one out), etc. But what does this really do besides put myself in a bunch of boxes that society has established? Or stereotypes that are really just pre-conceived notions? To be honest, I'm sick of being able to define people in a simple list of words [read more about this here]. I think there's more to us than that. I think there's more to us than we can define by ourselves.

But the problem remains. If we can't define ourselves, are we left to a sense of despair? If this is the case, then we will soon return to boxing each other up in order to avoid admitting that we are simply broken people. However, I believe that there is an alternative. In order to really understand who we are I think we have to figure out where we come from. At least, that's what we do in a biography. I believe this all starts at the creation story. #throwback

Genesis tells us that we were created in the image of God. Now, if this is true, the most logical approach to discovering "who we are" would be to learn more about God. Some of the immediate attributes that come to mind when we examine who God is: loving, just, merciful. However, when I look around me, I certainly don't see the 7 billion people on this earth exactly mirroring all of these attributes. So what went wrong? Well, to brush you up on the beginning of time, the fall basically screwed us up as far as being the perfect image of God. Now we're jagged and bruised.

However, God didn't leave us like that. By sending Christ, we got a second chance at becoming more like Him and who we were meant to be. Thus, the best way to discover who we are would be to examine who our Maker is. We can learn more about who He is by seeing what He has done to repair our relationship to Him.

I would go far as to say that who we are is really dependent on where we are with our relationship to Christ. Are we His friend or enemy, follower or resister?

But back to the original question, the only way to figure out who we are is to seek God. And by doing so, God reveals who He is and thus who we are. For example, if we examine the Bible we discover that God is perfect and that we are imperfect. We see that He is constant and we are static. We learn that God is just and we are flawed in our decisions. That God is love and we are selfish.

As we discover who we are without Christ, we discover our need for Him. When we allow Him to come in and fulfill this need and surrender our lives, we learn more of who we are. By striving to fulfill our purpose in Him, we see the joy that we gain from worshipping Him in our lives. Thus, we learn that we were made to worship our God. By struggling and failing, yet persevering on, we learn that God is always there.

In my walk with Christ, I have consistently tried to figure out who I am. What my purpose is [last weeks post on purpose]. What I'm gradually learning is that God is the only one who can show me who I am. Because at the end of the day I was created in His image and for Him. My purpose is to glorify Him-through serving others, through worshipping Him in all I do, etc. My purpose is to make Him known. This makes sense, for if I am created in the image of God my purpose would naturally be to make this image more widely displayed to all the world.

If we can say that we are following Christ with our entire heart, than I think we have discovered a bit more of who we are. In fact, we have discovered (hopefully) the majority of who we are. For if we are followers of Christ, we should be 100% invested in Him. And if we pour all of our identity into Christ, then He is the one who will define who we are.

Thoughts on Purpose.

As a college student, I have a lot of goals and plans for my life. I’m consistently thinking about my next step-whether that’s in a class, relationship, or my blog. I am a huge planner. My friends can tell you that my daily planner is a mess-full of both menial tasks and large assignments. It’s very messy as well as colorful and many times confusing with large x’s and lines. I am always on the next thing I have to do, processing how I am going to get everything done for that day, week, month, etc.

I also day-dream about my future regularly. Because I’m a college student, many times I have no idea what I am going to do with my life or how my life is going to pan out. While some find it easy to say that “life is an adventure” and just go with that, I constantly feel that I must have a handle on my life, because otherwise I feel like I’ll spin out of control with all of the things that I have going on scattering around me.

However, recently, I have been thinking a lot about this idea of glorifying God in our lives. Since I go to a Christian school, I hear lots of testimonies of people being missionaries to other countries, working with human trafficking around the world, being a leader to different groups, etc. I see many people around making choices to change the world in big ways. Whether they’re flying cross country or writing pieces that will impact dozens of pieces, the feeling that others are making a difference while I’m waiting to change the world on the sidelines is prevalent. I keep hoping and praying that God would prepare me for that “big thing” that awaits or that He would bring it into my life.

Part of me sighs at relief at the position I am in life. Since I don’t really feel like my “big moment” has come yet, I feel comfortable in my daily habits and weekly schedule. My planner is my teddy bear in my world of crazy and while I do feel like others are doing while I am watching, I am rather cozy in my position on the sidelines.

Yet, there’s another big part of me that’s sick of waiting on the sidelines for God to bring something into my life. I grow impatient that I haven’t made a huge difference yet. I grow doubtful that my moment will come. This feeling is rarely admitted by myself, but it outpours in my little doubts of what my major is, what my career will be, etc. My fear of not leaving a big enough mark on the world displays itself in smaller, daily fears of not being in control. It took me a while to see the root problem of my fears, and I’m still struggling with admitting them to myself.

So once I get to this point, the question I have for myself is “What next?” Now that I’ve recognized that part of the reason I’m an obsessive planner and compulsively stressed is my deep rooted fear of not having a large enough legacy, how do I go about resolving this? I mean, besides the cliché answer of “Trust God” that I’ve been taught since before preschool, how do I battle the question of how I’m going to make a difference?

I really believe that we all want to make a difference. That we all want to grow up to be a someone. Whether that someone is in the medical field as a pediatrician, in the service industry as a nanny, or in the media field as a news reporter, the thing that we dream of ever since we are kids is the impact that we’ll have in the world. The people that we admire are those that we believe have reached their goal and satisfied this need.

So we’ve realized this fear is universal, but I still haven’t answered the question that we all ask throughout our lives: “How do I make a difference?”

I’m not going to pretend to have the answer to this question. Sadly, life isn’t a formula where we can plug in ideas and get a solution. But this isn’t to say that I don’t have hope. Some people may say that it’s unrealistic or just wishful thinking, but I do have to believe that if this desire to attain something more in this life exists, there must be a way to satisfy this thirst.

There have been many who, once they recognize this deep seated hunger, either leave the country or abandon their past plans. They switch their goals in the hopes of reaching this goal. I believe that is awesome-and those are some of the people that I most respect. Those who can leave the "American Dream" behind to chase after a higher calling in a big way are worthy of admiration. 

However, to be honest, I’ve always struggled with being a doer or leaving my planner behind to chase something higher. I always want a safety net or something to be able to go back to if my adventures don’t go as planned. Is there a way to act while holding on to this feeling of comfort?

That’s another question I don’t know the answer to. Sorry to disappoint...again. But let’s just remember I am a college student-I’m skilled in asking questions, but much less able to answer them. On a different note, the hope I had that we could make a difference applies here.

And this is where a bit of a solution comes into play.

I see many people in their day to day lives making a difference. Many people call them “random acts of kindness”, but I think there’s more to them than this. When someone is able to touch someone else’s life with a single word, touch, or action, there must be more than a simple explanation that the world gives.

At this point, I am reminded of a man who was able to perform so much on this world that He was remembered for all of history. One of His words silenced a storm, one touch of His garment brought healing, and one action He completed conquered death and brought the whole world hope. Of course, His name is Jesus.

Now, many people would say that what Jesus did on earth was more than random acts of kindness, and I would most certainly agree. Anything the Son of God did on earth would far surpass any words we could use to describe it. I also believe that behind our ability to bless other people is more than a worldly justification.

You know what I think the reason is? I think that every time we are able to help other people out of a motivation of love, we are acting out of the core of who God is and are thus glorifying Him. Whether it is bagging someone’s groceries, helping someone cross the street, or opening the door for a person, we are glorifying God because we are displaying God’s love to other people. Whenever someone travels cross-country to be a missionary, heads up an organization to bring justice, or write a book that provides truth to nations, they are expressing the very being of our Savior.

This brings me to my final point. And if you’ve been able to follow me up to this point, kudos to you, because I’ve barely been able to keep up with myself. It’s funny when you have a sudden epiphany at night and you just start writing. My final point is this: Glorifying God probably happens in many shapes and sizes. Sometimes we give more import to those who travel across the world; several times will I put more meaning on those who affect a larger number of people. However, I think this is limiting God to the distance we travel or number of heads we impact. I believe that God is able to influence people in many different ways-through many different people.

This is where we come in. We obviously all have different callings. We all have different abilities and interests. I am confident that God shapes us through our testimonies and talents to produce a person He can use to glorify Him. So whether it’s buying someone’s coffee at Starbucks or buying a flight to Africa to tell others about Jesus, God will use us. Our challenge is to discover how we can best serve Him in the time and with the abilities we possess.

Personally, I love to write. I love to worship. I love to learn. And I think that I can somehow find a merging point where I can glorify God by incorporating all three into my life. Your talents will be different. Your story will vary from mine. The key is to answer God’s call when it comes. That means that if I wake up in the morning and God calls me to fly across the world, that I pack up and trust in Him alone. It also means that if He calls me to continue to blog and try to figure out life and my relationship to Him more, that I do that.

While relying on God more than my comfort zone of planning is crazy hard, that’s what I am called to do. What I know now, however, is that the waiting is over. And it always has been. While God may have something else for me in my future, glorifying Him is not on a timeline, because God is outside of time. Worshipping God with my every being started the moment that I gave my life to Him. When I told the world that I would never go back, that was the instant that I had to start telling myself that every fiber of my being would be devoted to glorifying Him. While at times that may be intimidating, it is comforting to know that I am here for a higher calling and that my God is one who has already written my story and has many adventures in store for all of us. He knows the desires of our hearts, He knows that we desire to glorify Him, and the extremely amazing part of it is that He desires our service-our love-our worship. So while we are called to give ourselves to our Creator, He desires to use us to not only impact the world around us, but to also be His child. The one He can make plans for and love passionately. While sometimes our lives seem crazy and unpredictable, we serve a God who has conquered all and has everything already figured out.

The man who came to earth and completed so much in such a short amount of time is the God that we serve. So although today you may either be in a different country or just getting by daily, know that God desires and can use you for His kingdom to glorify Him. While I struggle through some of these questions about life, I know that God has already called me-and each and every one of us-to follow Him in every instance of our lives. We have to stop comparing ourselves to others, and instead listen to His voice while contributing to the world around us and fulfilling that deep-seated desire within all of us. When we are able to glorify the God of the universe and partake in His kingdom, we can fight against our fleshly fears that we won't accomplish anything worthwhile because when we are able to contribute to the Lord's kingdom, that's the biggest influence we could ever have. It is not only worthwhile, it is eternal. 

Obviously I'm not the one with all the answers. But it's comforting to know that as we struggle through life's questions, we can serve and glorify the God who does. 

Arrows and Rainbows.

A few weeks ago I was reading Psalm 64 and I came across the following verse:

“But God will shoot at them with an arrow; suddenly they will be wounded.” 

My immediate reaction to this was “What?! God shooting at people with an arrow?” I understand how this could be God reacting from His wrath, justice, or even mercy, but I was confused at this picture. Since I really couldn’t imagine God literally pulling out a bow and shooting to the earth, I wasn’t sure what this meant. Thanks to my handy-dandy cross reference tool in my Study Bible, I looked up where this originally came from, which was Genesis 9:12-16. These verses consider God’s covenant and how He says to His people:

“This is the sign of the covenant I am making between me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all generations to come…Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth.”

“Okay, that sounds great,” I thought, “But it really doesn’t help me with figuring any of this out more.” So then I looked at the notes under this verse and it made a little more sense.

Basically, to paraphrase from my NIV Study Bible, this verse is about the symbolism of God’s covenant. For one, before a rainbow appears in the sky, a storm is usually preceding it. Lightning bolts that fall to the earth are symbolic of God’s arrows. Once the storm ends, or God has fought for justice, He hangs up His bow in the sky. This is the rainbow-or God’s covenant of mercy.

So it makes a little bit more sense, but the fact that there are many more references pertaining to this idea, like Zechariah 9:14 or 2 Samuel 22:15, I would think there’d be more information on it.

So the search continued. Here are some of the things I found:

1. The Hebrew word in this passage is qesheth which can mean four things:

        a. bow (for hunting, battle)

        b. bowmen, archers

        c. bow (fig. of might)

        d. rainbow

I think we can gather from the definitions that the type of bow regarded here is one that is likened to a weapon. So it makes sense that the original Psalm I read was about God fighting against David’s foes. The rainbow resembles a literal weapon. However, this brings us to our next point, which is that:

2. Rainbows are arched down, which would mean that God’s bow would be pointing to the sky. This would also imply that after God’s judgment rains down on earth, He points the bow back at Himself. This could be symbolic of the fact that God sent His son (part of Himself) to earth thus relinquishing His judgment on Himself. Too much of a leap? Perhaps, but it does sort of make sense. This sign is one of grace to all of us. For God promised that He wouldn’t cause a flood as big as the one He allowed in Noah’s time ever again. This is evidence of God’s mercy.

I’m sure there is a lot more to study and learn from this theme that’s portrayed throughout the entire Old Testament. This blog post is just sort of an introductory section to so much more symbolism in the Old Testament, in this area and others, that just shouts how awesome our God is.

When I revel in this idea, I am awestruck at the character of God. But more than that, I feel so blessed at God’s mercy. Not only did He make a covenant with Noah, He has not gone back on His word. Whenever lightning strikes, it should remind us of God’s justice. We definitely do not deserve a God who provides for His children and fights on our behalf against the evil man. God shows us His mercy every time a rainbow appears in the sky. Everyone can see it. It is not specific to a certain tribe or tongue, but rather it is there for all. God’s mercy is there for anyone who will notice it and accept it as his or her own. God has not given up on us, even though we fail daily. His mercy is never failing and ever-present.

Even when we don’t feel or see His mercy, it is there. Just like the times when the rainbow isn’t present or the storm is still raging and won’t let up. Just because we can’t see it or the storm hasn’t ended doesn’t mean that God’s mercy is less or His promise isn’t still standing.

God’s justice will prevail until the next time that He destroys the earth. And even then His mercy will not fail. His love and grace are eternal and His Son has provided a way for us to revel in His promises for all eternity.

Surprisingly, I did research for this blog post (in contrast to the past). Some of the websites/blogs I referenced:

https://mattsbibleblog.wordpress.com/2012/06/11/rainbows-and-arrows-gods-covenant-with-noah-genesis-91-17/

http://www.biblestudytools.com/lexicons/hebrew/nas/qesheth.html

http://www.gty.org/resources/print/sermons/90-263

The Grace in God’s Sovereignty.

Today as I was listening to "You Do All Things Well" by Tenth Avenue North, I was reminded of the sovereignty of God. This is something I've been thinking a lot about lately. There have been many times in my life where things happen that I don't understand. I find myself in a seemingly hopeless state and I can’t see the purpose in it. However, in the midst of these hard times, I have to rest in the fact that at the end of the day God has it all under control.

God has a way of reminding me of this fact. This semester I'm taking a class in New Testament. Today we talked about prophecy of the Old Testament in preparation to dive into the New Testament. I never realized how active God was in preparing people for the Messiah. Learning about how he used people and prophecy to pave the way is fascinating. He takes people that are just like us, and gives them the power to work outside of their flesh to accomplish amazing things for His glory.

This makes me pause and think. Oh, the things that would be possible if I would only surrender all I am and all I go through to God. Can’t we just trust in the sovereignty of God? Can’t we trust in His ability to weave those moments of fear and doubt into His masterpiece? If we did so, perhaps He could help us step outside of those hard circumstances in order to grow closer to Him while fulfilling His purpose for our lives. This purpose may or may not become our legacy. It may or may not be remembered by many people. However, I honestly believe that if we could step out of our own fears and doubts about the present in order to step into God's sovereign will for our lives and the people's lives around us, the impact that we could have on even one person for the Kingdom would be worth the struggle.

Handling unsure times is one of the hardest things we as humans can go through. We love to be in control. I think it's a lesson we have to learn-that we're not in control. Perhaps over things like what kind of drink we get at Starbucks or whether or not we'll do our homework. But in the grand scheme of things, God is in control and is working His plans out. I believe all followers of Christ want to be involved in His masterpiece of taking hard times and making them a part of a larger story. In order to do this, we have to sacrifice our doubts and fears at the altar of grace and trust that God has everything under control. Even if He leads into harder times and we face more doubts, at the end of the day we know that He is in control and will draw us closer to Him. This is our true calling-to draw near to our creator and worship Him for being in control of things that we can't begin to grasp. This is the beauty of our creator-He understands the weaknesses that we face, yet He finds it no weakness to accept us for these and love us anyways. He finds no shame in giving the weak strength to glorify Him in fulfilling His plan. This, in a way, is the Gospel that we need so desperately in each of our lives.

Tenth Avenue North, “You Do All Things Well”:

“You break me, to bind me

You hurt me, Lord, to heal me

You cut me, to touch me

You died to revive me.”

1 Chronicles 29:11-12 (ESV)

“Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, O Lord, and you are exalted as head above all. Both riches and honor come from you, and you rule over all. In your hand are power and might, and in your hand it is to make great and to give strength to all.”

Job 42:2 (ESV) 

“I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.

Isaiah 46:9-10 (ESV)

“Remember the former things of old; for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose,”

Ecclesiastes 7:13-14 (ESV)

“Consider the work of God: who can make straight what he has made crooked? In the day of prosperity be joyful, and in the day of adversity consider: God has made the one as well as the other, so that man may not find out anything that will be after him.”

Making Jesus #1.

In the past two or so months, I've been getting accustomed to this crazy thing called college. While balancing school, debate, and many new [and might I add awesome] friendships, sometimes I find myself placing God on the back shelf. Not only is this plain wrong, but it's self-destructive. Without placing God as my first priority, I immediately feel the loss of peace and joy while my doubts increase. I know that when I choose something else (many times sleep) over time with God, I suffer personally. 

College has taught me a lot about priorities. About stressing less about a to do list since it will never end. About always putting people first because friendships last longer than grades. Finally, it's taught me a lot about putting God first because the harvest reaped from doing so can't be found anywhere else. 

A few days ago, I randomly flipped my Bible to Haggai 1 and saw a passage I had highlighted multiple months ago. In this chapter, it seems as if God is telling Haggai to speak to His people and tell them to let go of their worldly possessions and  run back to Him. In other words, to set their priorities straight. 

God approaches His people and says, "Give careful thought to your ways. You have planted much, but harvested little. You eat, but never have enough. You drink, but never have your fill. You put on clothes, but are not warm. You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it." 

God is telling His people to give up on material wealth. It has not and will never satisfy them. He tells them to evaluate their lives-is what you're chasing really worth the run? Of course, He already knows the answer. Because of this, He tells them to rebuild His house. His temple. God tells His people to replace their material goods with Him-because He knows that this is best for them and He loves them. He destroys their goods and tells them it's because they've disregarded His ruined house.

Although this might seem like a depressing passage, I see a positive thing occurring. In todays society, we are taught to put material possessions first. If someone loses their house, can't afford the latest trend, or must sell something in order to provide for their families it's seen as a disadvantage. This is how we're brought up-to judge each other based on what we own. However, God shakes this perspective up in this passage. I gain hope from this passage because God saw His people drowning in their material desires but lacking spiritually. Instead of giving up on them, He took away what was causing them to stumble, and gave them the mission run to Him instead. This passage gives me hope because I see our current society struggling with this but I have the anticipation that God can intervene and shake things up for us. He has the power to re-prioritize our lives and point us back to Him-out of love for us and for our benefit.

However, there are more things than materials that keep us from putting God first. Whether that's grades, money, or other relationships, something else always seems to hinder us from running after God whole-heartedly. Personally, it feels as if this is a never ending problem-because, to be honest, these distractions will always be there to tempt us. However, God will also always be there to help us combat these temptations and instead give us the desire to chase after Him. God won't leave us to our pointless greed, but if we ask He'll answer our prayers and be glad to retake His place as #1 in our lives. 

The key to this, of course, is to realize what we are lacking and implore God to intervene in our lives. To take away our distracting to-do lists, stop our mindless scanning of the internet, and make His way into our seemingly packed schedules. It is only when we replace our hope to make it materially in this world when we can set up God's house-the place where we talk to Him, read about Him, obey Him-in our lives and not only place it at the core of our day to day lives, but continue to build upon that foundation. 

The story continues and ends in Haggai 2. While in the first chapter God commands His people to build His temple and place Him back as number one in their lives, He then tells them to "Be strong...and work. For I am with you." 

Haggai not only makes it clear that God has the ability to restructure our priorities, but it gives us hope that God will give us the strength we need to combat society's lies in order to make Him first in our lives while renewing us with peace (verse 9). The first step in doing this, of course, is to ask God to intervene in our lives and shake up our perspectives. 

Finally, I'm not saying that all the things that distract us are wrong. Rather, while reading Haggai I have been reminded that while there are many things in life that are good-family, friends, education, technology, etc., God should always remain number one in our lives. One way to place God as Lord over our lives is to allow Him to intervene in our choices we make in regards to each of these areas of our lives. Although I'm sure the people in Haggai may have grumbled in their hearts when they first heard this message from the Lord that He was going to destroy the things that kept them distanced from Him, I am also sure that God blessed them for obeying Him and placing Him once again as Lord over their lives.