Joshua's blog

Ahh… So good to be back. I apologize for the (super) late post, I ran into technical difficulty which, sadly, disabled my ability to post music. Oh well. But enjoy the songs already on here. Anyhow, I would love to be your light in the storm, and yes, this is quite the storm. COVID-19, or coronavirus, is here, and it is deadly. But not as deadly as the news says. It is very contagious but is fairly fatal. It only has a 3.5% mortality rate. But still, be prepared. I do not anticipate this as the start of end times, but you never know. Be on guard, but don’t fear. Love others, and enjoy what time you have together. I love my family… yes, even my sisters.

Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

-Philippians 4:6 

Until the world sees Jesus,
-Joshua C.

PS. Toilet paper WILL NOT protect you from COVID-19, despite popular belief. Try stocking up on Bibles instead.

Four weeks have already gone by. As I welcome you back today, I want to encourage you to read on and be a child of Christ.

        I write this lising to Eye of the Storm (Ryan Stevenson) and I can’t help but think about the lyrics, and realize that we all have this. Pain, heartache, death, etc… but God is still there. He always was, always will be. That is the message I bring to you today. Love trumps Hate. Peace overcomes War. Life defeats Death. God conquers Satin. You are not alone. I go through these hardships too. But the thing the Lord wants us to do is look back, reach our hand out, and pull others out. As we turn others to the light, we strengthen the army of God. It isn’t a physical army, but a spiritual one. thousands strong, we are always looking for another one to add to the ranks. To the Lord, just showing up isn’t going to cut it. He needs warriors, and recruiters. We can be both. I am. The world is an dark, evil place. Think of it like this:

You have a house. It is spotless. This is you with Christ, in your first few years of life. Outside your house is the world, full of mud, dirt, and grime, and a house here and there. But as you please the world, you start to hide God. You don’t wade in the mud and get stuck, you bring it in your own house. You cover the once clean house with worldly mud. If you have ever tried to clean mud out of a house, you know it is almost impossible. Almost. You can try to clean it out yourself, spread it around, scoop buckets out of your bed, try to wash it down, but you can never remove it all. God is like one of those magical cleaners on TV. Only difference is that he works. Unlike others, worldly temptations, which will claim to help you. Well, they don’t. Sorry. they make it worse, spread the stain, dull it instead of covering it. They will tempt you to go get more mud. Because they can clean it. Right? Wrong. Don’t let the world cover your house in mud. Mine, in all honesty, still needs a little cleaning. And remember, God is the Eye of the storm. The calm. Look to him, not the world.

Until the world sees Jesus,

-Joshua C.

 

P.S.

My sincerest apologies that this came out late.

We all have heard the story. Jesus was crucified and died on the cross, forgiving our sins, and then three days later rose from the dead and ascended to Heaven. Great. That is the Good News, and it is what we as Christians are called to share. But now what?

The Bible also says something else. We are to help others. I know what your thinking. Josh, spare me the lecture. I’ve heard this before, and the time before that, and the time before that. Trust me, I know. I’ve lived in the Church my whole life. But I want you to be honest with yourself. You can tell me what you want, but you can’t fool yourself. My question is: If you have heard this many times, why aren’t you doing it? And for those of you that haven’t heard this message, you just read it. Don’t foll yourself. Nobody’s perfect. Not me, not you, not your family or friends. Nobody. I’m sorry, but it’s true. You know it, deep down. 

So don’t lie to yourself, and realize that we are called to spread the word of the Lord and to help others. one way to do that: Share this blog. I will be posting these weekly, along with scripture. Please, leave a comment. I would love to get some feedback on my posts and know that you’re reading.

Until the World Sees Jesus,

–Joshua C.

Welcome back, Friends,

This is my second weekly blog post. I wanted to tell you about the series my youth director at my church, Longview First United Methodist Church (FUMC), which she calls ‘The Masks We Wear’. This series is about the different ways we please society, and how we hide our true self and faith. One thing that I like about it is this quote:

Pleasing people gives you nothing;

Pleasing God gives you power.

        And that is true. When you fall into the pit of society, you may unknowingly worship false idols, and as revelation states:

¹⁴The lake of fire is the second death. ¹⁵ Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.

If you stray far enough from God, or never look to him, you are liable for hell, or the lake of fire. When this will happen, no one knows. But it could happen in a few minutes, tomorrow, or thousands of years from now. But it will happen, and fun fact: Revelation is the only book in the Bible that hasn’t happened yet. John wrote this book off of a vision that God showed him. It is also, in my opinion the most cryptic book in the Bible, using descriptive imagery that could be literal or figurative.

I encourage you to read the Bible daily, and get one if you don’t have one. Spread the gospel, and let the light of Jesus Christ himself shine through you like a lighthouse in the night. Also check out the music I have posted on my other pages, which you can access through the menu at the top.

May God’s light shine through you always.

Until the world meets Jesus,

-Joshua C.

I used to live a phony life. I played, and I read, and I did things that in all honesty, I wasn’t supposed to do. Wrong things that stand against God and his word.

I write this for all people out there who come to this out-of-the-way blog for who knows what. But your time here won’t be wasted. I am no longer going to live a phony life. If you have never read the first book of Left Behind, I encourage you too. like the pastor in the book who was left behind, some people live a phony Christian life. Sure, nobody’s perfect. I’m not. But from now on, I won’t pretend to be. I will live a life with God, following the rules (the best I can) he set for us in the Bible.

 

“For I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.”

-Philippians 4:13

 

Christ strengthens us. He has and always will. But if we live a phony life, he will try, but we will lock our hearts and shut him out. The world may not see a difference, but He will. I am going to do my best to send a post out every week on something encouraging, strengthening, unlike the hateful words society tells us to use. This is the only place were I will do this, and I encourage you to show others and come back. And I will leave you with my favorite verse from the Bible:

 

“We are hard pressed on every side, yet not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair;

persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed;”

-2 Corinthians 4:8-9

 

May the light of Christ be seen throughout you. And forever know, Jesus loves you.