Quick Thoughts

Dear Readers,
As I'm writing this on Monday, it's the first day of Tech Week for the play I'm in.  For you non-theater people, Tech Week consists of practices every day until performing the final showcases.  So yes, lots of work, make-up, costumes, mess-ups, laughter, relationships, and memories in the making.  I'm so excited (and a little nervous).  =)
But, because of that, I'm going to keep this post short, and I won't respond to comments until next week.  I'll see you back next Tuesday for some updates in life and maybe photos.
I'll miss you all.  Remember that you are loved and treasured.  God rejoices over you with gladness and quiets you by His love (Zephaniah 3:17).  Life's hard, but He's bigger.
If you haven't noticed, I took some time last week to redesign my blog, as it's been more than a year since I last did that.  (thanks to my friend Alea who helped me immensely!)  If you haven't seen the new look, here it is.  =)
I'll leave you with some challenging words from Oswald Chambers that seem to add onto Project Love.  Keep running the good race, my friends.
In Christ Alone,Hosanna





















Obedience or Independence?
If you love Me, keep My commandments.   – John 14:15
Our Lord never insists on obedience. He stresses very definitely what we ought to do, but He never forces us to do it. We have to obey Him out of a oneness of spirit with Him. That is why whenever our Lord talked about discipleship, He prefaced it with an "If," meaning, "You do not need to do this unless you desire to do so."  "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself…" (Luke 9:23). In other words, "To be My disciple, let him give up his right to himself to Me." Our Lord is not talking about our eternal position, but about our being of value to Him in this life here and now. That is why He sounds so stern (see Luke 14:26). Never try to make sense from these words by separating them from the One who spoke them.
The Lord does not give me rules, but He makes His standard very clear. If my relationship to Him is that of love, I will do what He says without hesitation. If I hesitate, it is because I love someone I have placed in competition with Him, namely, myself. Jesus Christ will not force me to obey Him, but I must. And as soon as I obey Him, I fulfill my spiritual destiny. My personal life may be crowded with small, petty happenings, altogether insignificant. But if I obey Jesus Christ in the seemingly random circumstances of life, they become pinholes through which I see the face of God. Then, when I stand face to face with God, I will discover that through my obedience thousands were blessed. When God’s redemption brings a human soul to the point of obedience, it always produces. If I obey Jesus Christ, the redemption of God will flow through me to the lives of others, because behind the deed of obedience is the reality of Almighty God.
– from My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers