Day 16

Is it not interesting how when you are all alone and no one is watching, it is easier to be tempted?That was the case this morning for me because my roommate went out with his family to Western Kansas. Satan was trying to pull me in, my computer was just on my desk it was only a few feet from my bed on the top bunk and it would be easy to just go over and make a few clicks into sin. However, I told myself as I lay in my bed that I was stronger and that I have a greater reward waiting for me as long as I stay faithful. I kind of prayed but at the same time I was just assuring myself that God was there for me by believing in my reward and I was able to quickly fall asleep and forget about it. I will be honest that it might have been hard for me to resist such a strong force a few weeks ago. Today I once again prayed for continued guidance and for his will to be done in me.

Today I take my focus off myself in a sense but this scripture applies to me in what I need to do for others. I opened to Philippians chapter 1 verses 3-11, section titled "Thanksgiving and Prayer." This is important for everyone to hear so I will give you the full text. It says, "I thank my God every time I remember you. in all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. It is right for me to feel this way about all of you, since I have you in my heart; for whether I am in chains or defending and confirming the gospel, all of you share in God's grace with me. God can testify how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus. And this my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ -- to the glory and praise of God." In this passage, the author (Paul) is writing to those at Philippi telling them how much he cares for them and how he is eager to see their growth in Christ. In the same way, we should be longing to see our fellow Christians grow and we should encourage them through our prayers and through our actions toward them.

My goal everyday is to pray for those that I consider my friends. It is nearly impossible to remember everyone because I know so many people. I do pray for those that I know have needs and those that are close to me. But many names run through my head as I pray and God knows those that I am thinking about and my prayer is taken in the context of all those people. I am not able to pray specifically for everything but I know that God knows and will take care of everything. All my friends hold dear spots in my heart and they deserve everything that I can give them. I pray that I will see my friends grow relationally with me as well as spiritually and relationally with God. I must continue to have faith that God can change people's hearts and bring them to him. 

Change starts one person at a time and it starts with what Christians do to help make a change in the hearts of others. Show others how much you appreciate them by telling them you are going to pray for them and actually doing it. Pray with them if you have to but let them know you care. We can influence people just by showing we care and making them smile. Just reaching out a hand can be all it takes to pull someone on board and make a difference in their life. I have the hardest time with actually talking to people because I do not know how they will react so I just sit back sometimes and let things be. Being bold does not mean making a fool out of yourself, it means that you stick your neck out and do something that you would not normally do and taking a stand for what you believe and what you want for others.

Continue reading these because I truly think you will not pull out just what I say but you might even find your own meaning and a way to apply it to your own life.  I am praying for all of you who are reading this and I also pray for those who do not. I still am taking prayer requests and my phone is still open all the time. Continue to seek God and his plan for your life and you will find great joy!

Joseph Robinson

Day 15

Well, I don't think I have had a tougher day since I began this process. I had to speak up a little bit today and bite my tongue when some people made fun of other kids. I had to work hard to convince a professor that I was simply misunderstood concerning turning in one of my projects, and I had to just stay humble and obedient throughout the day.  I am only 25 days from returning to Arizona and that is a weird thought, I will be going "home."

I was thinking about temptation today and came upon Jesus in the desert located in Matthew chapter 4 verses 1-11. Here Jesus goes to the desert, does not eat or drink for 40 days and nights and then Satan comes and pushes him to the limit by asking him to turn stones into bread if He is the Son of God. Then he tells him to throw himself off the highest point of the holy city and angels will come catch him. Lastly, he takes him and shows him all the kingdoms of the world and promises that it would all be his if he just would bow down to worship him. Jesus though weary, stood strong and countered Satan with responses corresponding scripture. You could say "well he is Jesus, of course he did not sin" this is not the point though, the point is that Jesus being fully God and fully human was able to withstand temptation even when he was tired and hungry. 

A problem that I have when I am tempted is that I pretend to want help from God but I am not too sure on how to fight Satan because I really want to do it on my own. Satan tears through my heart easily when it is not protected and seeking God. One way that I can counter the attacks of the Devil is by memorizing scripture and using it to my advantage when a tough situation comes up. I spent 2 years in high school memorizing books of the bible. I cannot remember all of them, but the important ones that stood out are ones that I will never forget. Even though I spent the time memorizing, I am not set with what I need to know. Learning and being able to stand strong is essential to resisting temptation. Praying is also a key to being able to stand strong because with God on your side you are unbeatable. God wants you to succeed and will do all that he can to guide you through tough situations. When I need to keep myself out of situations that will lead to temptation. When you are surrounded by those who can build you up, it is easier to live for God and to be pleasing to him. As I continue to seek him, things will get tougher so being strong in him is key to staying in touch with him.

Continue to follow the plan that God has for you and do not waste a day in achieving your goals.  Press on toward the main goal (Heaven) and you will have nothing to worry about. 

Keep praying and growing in his name.

Joseph Robinson

Day 14

Well, today has been rather eventful. Online midterm, tackle football, classes, and finally bible study! I must say that God has really changed my heart in the last 2 weeks. I have opened up to him so much and his presence is felt all over.  With that in mind, now is not the time to let up. It's where the push begins and things will start getting tough rather soon. It is just when I think I am safe and become content with where I am at that Satan comes in to devour me. 

Today I was looking for something regarding watching and waiting for what is to come. I was guided to 1st Thessalonians 4:13-5:11. This talks about how not being in the dark and hopeless as well will rise up since we are in the light and we will meet with God in the sky. It says we should be surprised as if a thief has come in the night. Therefore, we should be self-controlled, put on faith and love as the breastplate and the hope of salvation as a helmet. God died for us so that we may live with him. Also, we need to encourage one another and build each other up.

I take this as I need to do so much work in the name of the Lord so that when he comes I will be surprised because I will not have been worrying about when he might come. If I continue to do his work, it will seem as if I have never stopped doing what I was intended to do when he comes back (that is praise him). We should not get too caught up in the world but we should focus our attention on him because if we are in the light then we will be taken when he returns. My job is too reach out to people as best as possible when God gives me the tools to reach out to people. We have been put here on earth to do great things and live our lives but we should not lose sight of the main goal. I sometimes get caught up on Baseball, but I need to remember that Baseball is a tool for me to reach out to people.  Stay alert and do not ever give up on God because the moment you do very well may be the moment that he returns. Do not subject yourself to that kind of pain and torment, always be ready. 

Growing is one of the hardest things to do and you must work at it. Continue to be who God wants you to be and seek his plan everyday of your life. Some days will be hard but just pick yourself up and ask for help when you fall down. Do not let yourself fall into a hole that seems impossible to climb out of.

I am always here for anyone, whether I know you very well or even not at all. Please contact me if you need help with something or if you would like prayer. I have more time on my hands than I could ever want.  Have an awesome day and God bless.

Joseph Robinson

Day 13

Have you ever told someone that you would do something tomorrow? Ever said you would forgive that person tomorrow, or when the time is right? Have you ever told yourself that there will be time to do it later? Have you ever pushed it back to the day after tomorrow? Have you ever lost the opportunity to forgive that person tomorrow? Was there a time when you DIDN'T get around to it later, or someone else did it already? Think about it....

James 4:13-17 says that we should not boast about tomorrow and say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business or make money." There is no guarantee for tomorrow, "You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes." We should be saying, "If it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that." If we know the good, we should do it, otherwise we sin.

There are many times in a day when I say I will get to something later and that I can make time and then I just keep pushing it off until I am forced to do it. Some would call this procrastinating but it deals more with the heart and whether you are devoted to what you said you would do. I have let friends slip away from God because I said that I would wait for the chance to share his word but I just kept saying that there would always be time tomorrow. I have had acquaintances at school who committed suicide and I had opportunities to share but I kept telling myself there would be another time. I need to stop being selfish and not dwell on tomorrow because it is not guaranteed, not only for me but for everyone. That one person you have been wanting to reach out to might move away tomorrow or die in an accident tonight. Your friend who you thought was so happy with life might be so depressed that they take their life and then tomorrow is gone. These verses pretty much say that it is a sin to boast about tomorrow and if you know the good but do not do it, you are a sinner. I am not pointing fingers or convicting anyone because I do it too. Being passive does not help, taking action is what we are supposed to do and if we sit on out hands, we will feel guilty that we did not take the opportunities we are given. The same is true in our walk with God, do not walk the road of "I can ask for forgiveness tomorrow" because tomorrow may never come. Now is the time for action to make a change in this generation. It will get tougher as the end days come and as more and more people are deceived. If you care about the ones you say you LOVE, you will take the necessary steps in order to guide them. If they choose not to follow, you cannot do much but you can say that you gave it all you had.

Chase your dreams and goals but do not wait for tomorrow to begin the journey. Live for the moment but not in the moment. 

If you are following this, please leave a comment or something so that I know who is following along. I am not interested in numbers, I want to know who my audience is.

Joseph Robinson

Day 12

I have had a rather easy week so far this week, but I have quite a bit to do the rest of the week so I am praying that God will help me through it and provide the time I need to do well on a midterm as well as continue to work for his glory. I cannot imagine these last two weeks without this time that I am spending with him. I was starting to spiral but I had reached out and let him catch me before I made it to the ground. I continue to pray daily and to work at being 100% dedicated to him everyday even when I am with my friends. It is definitely a tough task but I know he is there with me when I need his strength.

In speaking about hard times, I thought of Paul and Silas today and thought it would be good to examine that story and how I can apply it to my life. The story is found in Acts Chapter 16 verses 16-40. The story begins with Paul casting out a spirit from a slave girl who predicts the future for money that benefits her owners, this came after the girl followed them for days and mocked them from behind. The slave owners are not thrilled about this casting out though and have Paul and Silas flogged and beaten in front of the town. Then they are thrown in prison. Let me stop here and make an observation, Paul and Silas were working for the glory of God and they are put in prison and beaten because they did something good? I would think that at this point they would abandon God and just apologize and try to go on their way. This was not the case however, when midnight came about, Paul and Silas began praising God with prayer and the singing of hymns, the other men in the cells were listening and soon an earthquake came and the cells opened and the chains fell off of all the men. The guard was about to kill himself because he thought prisoners had escaped but Paul and Silas assured him that everyone was still there and he was safe. Long story short, they ended up leading this man and his family to Christ and were released the next day with a public apology from the Magistrates and were given an escort out of the city.

How does a story about two men who were imprisoned and then released apply to me today? Well, I am glad you asked. God wants all his people to know that doing his work is not an easy task and you will be looked down upon because of it. He wants to assure us though that as long as we remain faithful, he will take care of us and reward us (either sentimentally or with eternal life). I know it is hard for me to stand up for others when they get picked on but that is because I do not know how people react when I speak up. Sure it is just fun to them and if the person does not know they are talking about them then what harm is it? The problem is that it is a big deal, you are degrading someone and pointing out flaws even when you might not know them. Jokes can be hurtful and can lead to self-image issues for a person. Sitting back is better than joining in, but stopping it all together is the best move in the situation. I am guilty of this today, but I was the one making a joke. I was talking about a girl I had never even met and said that she must "go to another guy when she leaves the one she is with"  all because she was wearing a short skirt when it was 35 degrees outside. I know it is not normal or appropriate you could say for someone to wear a skirt when it is that cold, but what difference does it make to me what clothes she wears? The point I am trying to make here is that God wants us to serve him in every aspect of life and he will be pleased with us. 

We need to stand up for our faith and try to bring people to Christ without being afraid of persecution or humiliation. Remember that God was humiliated when he was beaten and killed. People spit on him and mocked him, what is the worst that can happen to us? Maybe someone will not be your friend? Well that is their choice and a rather poor choice to pick friends solely on religious beliefs. Maybe people will start making fun of you? Well, you are stronger and will persevere because God is on your side and he will handle the situation. It is going to be tough but do not lose hope for your reward is near. Step out of that comfort zone and start to invest in people instead of having an empty relationship. It goes back to your relationship with God, you can know him and just go through the motions or you can know him and seek his plan for you and give your all to him. Your friendships should be the same way, work in people's lives and for those in which it is good for people to invest in you, let them do so.  

My prayer is this "I cannot do this on my own Lord, give me strength and guide me as I seek to build your Kingdom. You have given me so much and I can never thank you enough for what you have done but I can serve you and show love to you as a start.

Amen"

Please do not hesitate to take me up on any of my offers, they are all still on the table and if you want to leave comments that give your take on what I am saying, do not be afraid, I love to discuss things and grow. Criticism is okay too, I am not perfect and want to know what you think.

Joseph Robinson.

Day 11

I have to say that this is definitely something I enjoy doing everyday, everyday I think about what God has planned for me to read and how it is going to affect my life. My prayer to him is just me begging him to continue to reveal himself to me and show me the way. I am able to accomplish anything with him by my side and cannot wait to see what this next year brings. There is only so much we can do by ourselves to grow and then we have to turn it over to God and have hi take complete control

I would not say i have been getting arrogant lately but i have been feeling that I am better than most people at certain things and I tend to try to flaunt that a little more than I should. I am trying to bring myself back down and God directed me right to where I needed to be tonight as I was searching for a passage to break down for myself. He brought me to the Book of Job, Chapter 1 verses 20-22. 

These verses state "At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground in worship and said: 'Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.' In all this, Job did not sin y charging God with wrongdoing." A little background to what lead to this if you do not know, is that one day Satan asked God if he could put Job to the test because he was so faithful to God. God obliged under one condition in that Satan could not hurt Job.  As the day progressed, Job found out that he lost all his livestock, his camels, and all of his children were killed. Job continued to praise God because he knows that he was blessed by God but he was still faithful to God because he knew that everything that was taken from him was the Lord's.  You see, we need to continue to praise God even when a storm hits in our lives. When finances are low, when a family member dies, when our house burns down, when our car is stolen, or when we just need a pick me up, God wants us to praise him and stay faithful. It is easy to stay true to God when you are constantly being blessed, but the true test comes when you feel like you have lost so much or everything. 

I found that when I was doing well in Baseball, it was much easier to love God because I knew it was him that was giving me the ability to play and perform at the level in which I did. Sure I put in the work at practice and was the first to show up as well as the last to leave, but I still received every drop of talent from my creator. While this is good to understand, I have found that I tend to boast and compare myself by saying I am better than this guy or that I can do this better than him. All that I can do is go out on the field and be who God created me to be, if i have what it takes to perform better than the other guy, than someone will see and give me an opportunity. If I try to outperform someone and leave God behind, I will not reap the benefits and will make a fool of myself. Being humble and being grateful for all that God has given me is essential for me to succeed. This applies in all aspects of life. You will continue to do well as long as you work hard and ask God to give you knowledge and help you achieve your goals. If it is meant to be than God will make it happen. I cannot take all the credit for saying that I understood this all on my own. Just as this devotional is a learning process, a girl I met over the summer helped me realize this last Friday. She has taught me so much in the 3 months that I have known her and she has been a blessing to me. It is truly amazing how God moves and brings unexpected things into your life. 

What I want people to take from this is just to continue to seek God and stay humble. Thank God when you eat that next meal or when you get a bonus on your paycheck. Be grateful when a parent or family member does something nice for you and return the favor in showing them love. Brighten someone's day by saying hi or doing something nice for a person you do not normally talk to. You will feel so rewarded even if they don't return the favor.

My next challenge is for you to attend a church service if you do not normally go to church. I am not saying you need to regularly attend but go to a church and sit in on a service. See if the people are friendly or if they even notice you. How do they welcome visitors? Take a friend along if you would like so you do not have to go alone. If you are unsure where to go, give me a call or leave a comment with some questions. I know where there are churches in most areas and I'll even take time to research and find some in the area if i do not know of any. Also, my phone and prayer line are still open, feel free to contact me anytime. I know you think I am a busy college student but when one is faithful to God, he will make sure you have time for everything that is worth your time.

God Bless,

Joseph

Day 10

Today was amazing, I learned so much through the message in service today and was happy I did not have to go to Lawrence because our games were cancelled today. I went and saw the movie "Fireproof" for the second time today and it is truly a message that everyone should hear. It does not only apply to marriage, but it applies to your everyday walk with God and how you treat anyone that you claim to love. God is awesome and seeking him is one of the best things I have done in awhile.

My devotion today took me to Joel 2:12-17. It talks about rendering your heart and returning to God for he is gracious and compassionate. He just might bless you because of it. Give everything to the Lord because he longs for you. The rest are instructions for what to do, by telling us to gather everyone and ask the Lord to spare his people from scorn to the nations. 

I have learned throughout the years that no matter how far I walk away from God, forgiveness is always right behind me. You have to mean it though and you have to let God release you from captivity in your sin and the guilt that it brings.  The passage says that God is slow to anger and abounding in love.  No one should ever feel as though they have done so many things wrong that God would never forgive them, no one is too bad for God to forgive. He loves us the same no matter what, that is what makes him so great. You might say that you have done everything that is wrong (Drugs, drinking, sex outside marriage, looking at pornography, using his name in vain, being an adulterer, murdered someone, or a combination of these things) but if you sincerely can live for him and ask for his forgiveness, it will be given because we serve a merciful God. He will make your life much more enjoyable and bring peace when you feel guilty and ashamed.

Some of you might wonder how I can speak of this Love that is so great when I do not have any experience running away from God. Well, this is the part where you learn a little about me. By about the time I was 9 or 10 years old, I was addicted to pornography, I was just a kid and yet it consumed my life, whenever I was alone at the house, the temptation was there and more often than not, it prevailed. I battled with guilt every time and going to church just made me feel like I was not worthy enough to be there because I was a horrible person. I felt so lonely and was so young in my faith that I did not understand what I needed to do to make amends with Christ. I did not want to confess to anyone what was going on because I felt that I would be an outcast and be despised. I felt that I could never amount to anything that people expected me to be because I was so entangled in sin. I knew I was in the wrong but it was much easier to just hide everything because then no one would know. This made life much harder and forced me to play the role of "Christian" when I was around people from church and those in my family. I was always told what a great kid I was but people had no idea. I am not going to lie, this problem continued even after my mom caught me at the age of 10. It went through my Junior year in high school when I decided to make a change. At this point it was not completely gone. I struggled occasionally but found when I went to God it was much easier. I have now made a pact to God, myself, and more importantly my future wife to never look at the garbage that once consumed me. My future wife deserves to be loved for who she is and I am already sorry for taking some of that away by my selfishness as a kid and teenager. I am free from guilt because of the grace of God though. He has forgiven me and I hope that she forgives me as well even though I might not have even met her yet. I have wrestled with this for many years and always kept it a secret but God has showed me that I cannot be ashamed of who I have been. I have to embrace it and press on toward the goal. I could not live with this bottled up inside of me anymore because if I did, it might begin to consume me again. For those of you that have known me, this will most likely be a shock to hear this, but it is who I have been and though I am not proud, I have hurt myself and others by this but God has changed me and given me a new passion which will reap great rewards and not temporary ones brought by sin. 

I want you all to see that no matter WHAT you have done, God will welcome you with open arms. This is my story, what might yours be?

Working for the glory of God,

Joseph Robinson