1st Peter Chapter 1

6 So be truly glad.* There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you have to endure many trials for a little while.7 These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.

Tonight in Small Group these two verses stuck out to me. This goes along with my last post about stress. Yes, I know these verses are referring primarily to people who were being persecuted and killed for their beliefs. I'm not being persecuted or killed, but I am being challenged. I've never really had to stand up and justify what I believe in on a regular basis. To claim why I believe what I believe to someone who knows as much if not more about Christianity than I do. It's challenging to argue for the cause of Christ. It's forced me to step back and evaluate myself and my actions.

In spite of the difficult month it has been - the stress or the challenging of my faith, the part that stuck out to me the most was the part that says "There is wonderful joy ahead." There is something great coming...there is rest, there is peace, there is joy...there are things beyond what I can imagine are good coming. I cannot wait for that day.

Genealogy...

...Is overrated in my humble opinion. I decided this after small group last night. We were reading Hebrews 7 and 8 and it's all about this priest who has no family. He kind of just shows up out of nowhere. Now, back in the day...you became a priest based on your family history. The tribe of Levi were all priests and that was passed from generation to generation. but this other guy...wasn't in the family in the way. He was of a different kind of "family."

Coming to my overall point...I like that there are stories in the Bible that pretty much state that it doesn't matter who you are...or where you're from (your family) in order to be a blessing and to bless those areound you. How cool is that? I don't have to be of royal blood to be someone who's important and significant to God. I just have to be me to inherit His blessings that were planned long before I was born.

Small Group has been a great blessing. I'm sad to think that I just started going just as the year is ending. Three more weeks of wondeful discussions, of heart-wrenching pain and of community that supports you when those dismal events happen. I don't think I have ever experienced community like this and it's mind-boggling. It's freeing. It's love. It's not perfect, but it's a glimpse of a beautiful story that is un-ending.

Wow, I sound sappy. The timing of this group couldn't have come at a better time in my life. This is a happy post and if I'm too sappy then I apologize. Go look at my pictures on Flickr instead.

Life is good. For the first time in years, I can truly say I am happy and enjoying life.