O' Joy, where art thou?

Oh what joy it is to have a church you truly find joy in. I tell you.. I wouldn't give up my church for the world.
But what makes a church? Is it the building, playground, or excellent child care? Nay, it is the people.
The people make up the church. The people ARE the church. I don't think we say this enough, how important the church is.
The people at my church I consider family. My brothers, my sisters, my fathers and mothers all in Christ. There are a lot of people in my church who may not even realize just how much I love to have fellowship with. Some people I could just sit and talk with for hours about Jesus and spend even more hours praying.

Like today after Faith Bible Institute, Dennis, Faith, Grace and myself stood inside and prayed for a young mormon girl named Sydney. And you know what?
I BELIEVE she will come to Christ.
I BELIEVE Jesus will woo her.
I BELIEVE God will save His daughter.

The power of prayer is so incredible it's beyond any of our understanding why the God of the universe, nay, the CREATOR of the universe even cares about what we think or pray about. The more I get to know Jesus.. daily I find myself baffled by the great things He does for me. I am a sinner and when I wasn't even following He still provided for me. Come to think about it I haven't gone ONE SINGLE day without food or suppliment? By the grace of God and much respect for my mother.. Fatherless, growing up behind a computer screen looking for pleasures of the flesh and satisfaction. I never found it.. Finally, God pulled me out of that life. I found Jesus.. and now my life has completely turned around. Now I'm on my own two feet, paying my own bills, my own car.. I have a life now. And that's not because anything I've done aside from the work I put into it, but that He provided. And it's just that. HE provided it. He provided every thing out of complete grace. WOW. How AWESOME IS THAT?

Now and days I'm so worried about my career, my future wife, my future family... Future this, future that. What someone reminded me today was that I shouldn't be worried about the future. Thanks to Jesus my future is SET. Enjoy the present, and the future will come on it's own. Build this character now so that I wont bring it into marriage. To stop focusing on the blueprints and how the tower will look in the end and... just set one brick at a time.

But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Matthew 6:33

Those of you worried about something... a wise person once told me this and it always stuck with me. It's so simple, yet powerful. It's to not dwell on things that upset you. Simple right, but how powerful is that to keep with you day by day? How many times do you get upset, frustrated, or irritated? Don't dwell on it. In fact, REPLACE IT!

Replace it with a memory, a thought, an idea. Perhaps something funny.. like someone rolling into a pond.
You'd be surprised just how a simple smile can be contageous.
This life is.. merely a vapor. Enjoy it.. Christ offers so much joy. Have you even attempted to ask for it, or did you just get frustrated and blame Him?
I know I have. Let me ask you something.

Male or female.
When's the last time you had to control an impulse of just raising your hands in absolute joy to the Lord and shouting to thank Him?
Last time for me was on the way home tonight from FBI. Of course.. I had to drive so I couldn't exactly jump for joy or raise my Hands.
God saw my heart though.. Call me an oddball of a man to have such girly impulses. I think it's awesome.

3 hours later, 4 full posts deleted.

I give up on writing one tonight.
Maybe it's better off that way.