Learning Lessons

Hello again.
I know it's been forever since my last post. I'm sorry. Life happened. But that snapshot of life came with a few great lessons, so here we go...

Lesson one:

So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver. (2 Corinthians 9:7 NKJV)

When you ask God for opportunities, He's going to give them to you. When some of my favorite people left early this month to serve in Guatemala, I wanted to go with them so badly but couldn't. So I told God I wanted to serve people here at home. My first thought was to serve those in some of the poorer areas of the community. I found a youth house in the area and emailed them asking if they needed volunteers- they never replied. But then my grandmother called me and asked me to clean some things for her and I said okay (reluctantly). And then my mom and sister came into town and my twin had surgery. I was asked to stay at the hospital overnight with her and I said okay (begrudgingly). And then my mom got really sick and needed to go to the hospital, and I had to bring her even though a friend was in town visiting me. And I said okay (but sighed at the thought of sitting in the emergency room for hours on end). Then my grandfather had some tests done, and I had to wake up out of a sound sleep to pick him up from the doctor. I said okay (and pouted the whole way there.)

It suddenly occurred to me that these were the opportunities God was giving me to serve others. He was asking me to be Jesus to people who I always seem to forget needs Him as much as the people in Guatemala or the Ninth Ward. I felt so ashamed at this, especially when I considered my last post almost a month ago. God is not going to ask me to be faithful in big things until I learn to be faithful in little things. He will not give me the opportunity to serve in big ways until I learn to serve in small ways with a joyful heart. The Lord loves a cheerful giver and he who doesn't love is but a clashing cymbal. I can spend all my time, money, and energy doing things for people, but until I do it with an attitude of love and joy, it will mean nothing, and I will only make those around me and myself miserable. I thank God for revealing this to me on a deeper level and I pray for the wisdom to recognize the attitude of my heart before I serve someone, and if my heart is not cheerful about it, I pray God will give me His joy and cheerfulness to love others like He does.

Lesson 2:

Another lesson on pride. Maybe I'm the only person in the world with this problem, but I doubt it. I have a very difficult time admitting when I've made a mistake. I was taught to say "I'm sorry; I was wrong" at a very young age; my mom taught me manners. However, as I grew up I began to hear from time to time, "sorry doesn't cut it" and so my apologies became fewer. As I got even older, pride let me forget the importance of these words. Is it just me, or is it that in our society admitting wrong is seen as a weakness? Why do we feel the need to justify our actions with lame excuses instead of admitting we are wrong and seeking forgiveness? It takes so much more energy to come up with the excuses we use. Why can't we just simply admit our faults and try better next time? It would certainly save us a headache. Furthermore, when we seek forgiveness instead of finding excuses, God has the opportunity to move in our lives.

In my most recent history class we often discussed the "what if?" factor. I think about the story of Cain and Abel. When Cain killed Abel and God asks him where his brother was, Cain replied, "Am I my brother's keeper?" God then punished Cain so severely that Cain said he "could not bear it."

I think God knew where Abel was. He's God. So why did He ask Cain? I think He was giving Cain the opportunity to confess and repent of his sin. God didn't need Cain to tell Him where Abel was, He was only giving Cain the chance to say, "I'm sorry, I was wrong."

So here's the what if: What if Cain had responded differently to God's question? What if he had admitted that he murdered his brother, fallen on his knees and cried out for mercy? I'm sure punishment would have ensued, but surely not so severe a punishment as he did receive.

I think many of us have this problem. We do something wrong and cover it up because if we admit our guilt, there will be a consequence. And then when God asks us what we've done we have all these excuses of why we had to do what we did. Then before we know it, our consequences become twice as bad as what they could have been.

For instance, I quit a job that I really loved in a very unprofessional way back in October. I had a very complicated list of reasons and EXCUSES for quitting, when the truth was: I had made a mistake. I ended up unemployed for 5 months and never apologized, then I ended up finding a job I was miserable at and I've worked there for the last 3 months. For 8 months I have put off saying I'm sorry and had to borrow money from family and worry about paying bills. Those were my consequences.

Finally today I said I was sorry, and the owner is willing to rehire me. What if I had said sorry sooner? I wouldn't owe family members money, I would have some form of savings, and I would be much better off. Now that I've apologized though, God is able to provide me with a wonderful job for the rest of college. See my point: God can move if we repent.

Lesson 3:

And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity. The tongue is so set among our members that it defiles the whole body, and sets on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire by hell. (James 3:6 NKJV)

Watch your mouth, fool!

My mom picked my sisters' and my names for very specific reasons. She is a very Godly woman and wanted each of her children to have a biblical name. My sisters' middle names are Celesta and Noel. Celesta comes from the Gaelic word for star, more specifically, the star the wise men followed to find the Christ Child. Noel means Christmas in French. My name Gabrielle comes from the archangel Gabriel, the messenger of God. It also means God is my light or God is my strength. I believe God chose my name as much as my mom did because those three things practically sum up my life.

My mom called me Gabbie before I could speak, and ironically enough, I am the talkative one of my sisters. We used to walk into Walmart, and I was the three year old who introduced the whole family to the greeter at the door. I was also the one who used to share dreams with my mom and she knew they had to be from God. I was His messenger before I realized what that even meant. But I was also the child with the darkest teenage years, and it was then that my name stood as a reminder that God is my light. And there were times I had to really fight to survive because of the messes I created, and it was then that my name reminded me that God is my strength to keep pushing forward.

But back to being His messenger:
The words we speak have power. We are all His messengers. Every time we open our mouth we have the power to create or destroy. We chose the direction. However, I think there comes a time in our walk with Christ that we must choose ultimately whether we will gain control over our tongue or not. I think I'm at that point. Last night I was with some of my favorite people and one of them decided to be a backseat driver. Before I even realized it, the words shot out of my mouth, "shut up!" The entire atmosphere in the car changed and it was because of me and my stupid mouth. I had hurt a really good friend's feelings and gave the night a sour note.

Before I became a Christian I had such a foul mouth. I cursed constantly and told dirty jokes. I didn't think twice about it. But when I gave my heart to Christ, I began letting these things go. I don't curse nearly as much now as I used to. But now I am realizing how much more work is left for God and I to do with this tongue of mine. It doesn't stop with cursing and dirty jokes. It goes deeper. Speaking life is so vital in the Christian walk. Speaking positively and lovingly to others is so important. The Bible says that non-Christians will know our faith in the way we love other Christians. Luckily, there weren't any nonbelievers in the car last night, but what if there had been? My unloving remark to my brother in Christ would have raised an eyebrow, I'm sure. How can I expect nonbelievers to know the love of Christ if I don't make it a point to love others in every word and deed? I don't want this to ever happen again. I pray for God to give me the wisdom to think before I speak now and I pray He gives me more opportunities to love others with my words.




Well, these are just some of the things that God has been showing me this summer. I hope to write again soon (sooner than 2 weeks).

God bless you.