Well, today church was amazing and I enjoyed learning about finances and how it applies to marriage as well as to an individual who is just trying to get by. Every time I look at the cross on my desk (see day 7) I go back to Jeremiah 29:11-13. It simply states, " 'For I know the plans I have for you', declares the Lord, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. YOu will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.' " This has more meaning than "oh God has a plan for my life, that is great, I have heard that a million times." God wants us to be patient and wait for his plan to take affect. We cannot expect immediate action and we cannot speed up the process. Being patient applies to all aspects of life, not just waiting on God. We must learn to be patient and try to understand people and the things they do instead of shutting them out and condemning them or calling them sinners. We tend to believe that another person's problem is not my problem, but if they are hurting spiritually because of something then it IS your problem as a Christian and it should be our goal to try and help them in any way possible. This is just one example of being patient and waiting for God to use you and bless someone through you. It might not be an easy process but in the end it will be worth it if you just trust God's plan. The same holds true when things do not go our way or a prayer is not answered in a timely manner (in our opinion) or in the way we expected it to be answered. As the verse says, if you continually seek him, he will be there for you and will be found by you. Do not ever give up on God and his plan for your life no matter how grim things may seem.
Now for me, patience applies in a very different way of life, relationships. I always seem to feel that the next sweet and cute girl I meet might be the one that I will end up dating and possibly marry some day. I want that companionship NOW and not in a few years. I understand that this is in our nature and do not get me wrong, it is OKAY to feel this way by all means. What I need to understand though is that God has a plan and the time will come when I meet a special woman who will change my life completely. The woman that will always be there for me, who will encourage me, love me for who I am, be an accountable partner, be honest 100% with me, who will miss me, one who will stick with me until the end no matter what, the woman who everything I do not deserve but am blessed to have, and one who has remained pure for me because she LOVES me that much. In turn, I will be the man who loves her unconditionally, provides for her, calls her beautiful and pretty because she is, not because I want something in return, the guy who cannot love anyone else or desire anyone else because I am wholly devoted to her and my covenant with her and God is that sacred, and the guy who would do anything to make sure that she gets the best because she deserves the best. It all starts with God though and following his plan. This girl is out there and it cannot be rushed. I have had one relationship, which lasted 5 months, was long distance and was rather hard to hold onto. Some amazing circumstances led to a quick beginning and then I had to go to college and things fell apart on my end. I should have known better at the beginning but I was passing up God's time and was moving on my own time. I tried to make myself believe that it was right but God had other plans and I am okay with that. Then I got dumb over the summer before I came to college and met another girl. Same story, different setting and time. I wanted to believe this girl was right for me, and trust me she is going to make some man very happy one day, both of the girls I speak off will make their husband very happy. What I learned through all this though is that it does not matter who you date and and fast you start dating them or when you get your first kiss, it is about building a strong friendship and working into the relationship, it takes work and time. One of the girls I have separated from a little bit and the other one is a girl I can still talk to and have an interesting and great conversation with. Who knows, maybe it was not the time for us to be together and it might be down the road at some point, but I'm not counting on it. I am just going to let God guide me and direct me down the road in which he has planned for me. I have also learned that relationships cannot make you happy and fulfilled unless God is enough for you when you are not in a relationship. Sure they will fill the void for a little while but then you return to that empty state because God is the only one who can make us whole and entering a relationship with him at the center as well as with him as your primary source for happiness is going to make it that much more enjoyable.
Continue to seek him everyday and find strength in him. Please talk to me about anything and do not be afraid, I am not going to judge you. I have a sincere heart and I love to help people so do not hesitate to comment or come to me with questions or needs.
Joseph Robinson
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