I felt challenged to pay a bit more attention to lent this year - and giving up hot chocolate may not be a huge sacrifice but for me its basically the same as a coffee addiction! and i wanted to choose something totally attainable and at the end feel like it was an offering. I totally feel the need to have it every morning has gone - I actually forgot my mug in the car this morning and forgot to bring it into work!
Also for the six weeks I wanted to explore a little more about what sacrifice means - when we sacrifice we are giving up something valued for something else more worthy - and i was really challenged to find what I valued as worthy.
I started with changing around my personal space so basically at some point in my day I would be able to focus more about what I am passionate about and would help me re focus my mind towards Jesus.
I covered my car with truths, promises and encouraging words! At first I was soo nervous about this because well bright yellow post it notes posted all over the dash would kinda draw attention and for awhile I felt like no one really noticed! Then all of a sudden almost everywhere I was parked someone would be reading them while i was trying to get into my car - but after one or two I didn't feel so self conscious any more - it was actually kinda exciting!
I wanted to see this verse every morning Romans 12:1-2 -- and to be challenged for each day to be a sacrifice
"take your everyday ordinary life - your sleeping, eating, going-to-work and walking-around life and place it before God as an offering" and i totally felt like wow - i don't think i've ever read this before - He wants my life - he wants all of my nothing extremely important life given to him as an offering
the verses later go on to say this "Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him."
- this just simplified making God happy soo much
- embracing what he does for us makes him happy!
"don't become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You will be changed from the inside out."
- this sometimes is really hard for me
-so with all these reminders set everywhere for me I did find it was much easier to keep my attention on God and I've decided to keep them up for as long as I feel I need to have such extreme reminders in my life - to see my life align with Jesus and not my world
and this kinda became my prayer mirror - while getting ready each morning it was easy to pray because everything was just right in front me!
It was actually really fun to creatively bring more of Jesus into my life!
--ashleigh
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