God's Commands Mirror his Beauty

Today I read Ecclesiastes 12:13, "Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man."

I pray that I will never forget that my purpose, our purpose, is to fear God and keep the commandments he has given. As I learn more and more about the character of God, he becomes more and more beautiful.

In Micah 6:8, he requires us to act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with him.

In James 1:27, his expectations are that we look after orphans and widows in distress and to keep ourselves from the pollution of the world

In Luke 9:23-24, he calls us to take up our cross and follow him, losing our lives to find true life

In Matthew 28:19-20, he commissions us to go into the world and make disciples, teaching them to obey his commandments that are hope and true life.

These are only a small amount of the commands given to us by God but each one is so beautiful and so full of goodness and righteousness. God gave us commands not because he wants to restrict us or punish us, but because he loves us and wants to protect us. His commands bring our attention to the things in life that are important - mercy, justice, humility, orphans, widows, the poor, and the Gospel that brings hope and true life.

I have by far not listed all of the commands and teachings that God issued to the prophets or that Jesus gave to his disciples, but each one only continues to show the beauty of the God we serve and his heart for mankind. I desire with my whole being to obey his commands and to take up my cross and follow him. My prayer is that I do not lose focus on the purpose and passion that God has placed in my heart.

The Final Stretch

So, this blog will reflect my last semester at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. I am excited for May to come! I can hardly believe that I am able to finish in 4 years with a double major (German & Linguistics), even having spent a year abroad. God is so good! As I look back on my life, he has been so faithful, guiding me to UWM, pouring out so many blessings and bringing many wonderful people into my life. I can't think of a better place to have spent the last four years. However, something else I have learned is that any place can be wonderful if you focus on serving God and others around you. I don't think there is a really a wrong place to be, because God is everywhere and he is all you need.

Over the last couple of weeks, I have not been grounded in the Word of God and have felt so lost. Why do I continually let myself drift from the purpose Christ has given, when I know he brings so much joy? But the amazing thing is that he never lets me get too far before drawing me back to himself. We serve such a mighty God who does not leave us as we are. There is nothing more beautiful than remembering we were made to glorify God and that his promises are true.

This Christmas I was reminded so strongly that Christ was born to die in order to restore us to God. It is so humbling to imagine that God, the creator of all the earth, would reach out to us and restore us to himself. I feel so small, yet so loved at the same time. My prayer for this next semester is to be known as Christ's and be bold for him. I pray that Christ's love will pour out of me into the lives of others. I just want to serve him, to learn more about him and to live like him.

I will need all of his strength to survive until May. As always, I have chosen the challenging road instead of the easy one. I could have taken an easy 3 credit German class, but I am doing an independent study for the last 3 German credits I need. I know that I will be stretched but am also excited to grow and learn how to do research. I think it will really prepare me for graduate school, which reminds me...I am supposed to be researching the GRE and grad schools at this very moment. So, that's my first post...the beginning of the final stretch to completing this chapter of my life. How exciting!