Maulit.Session1.Journal
Throughout my life I have always been drawn to theology and church. In my family I have been called the family “Chaplin”. When grace is said at family dinners my family looks to me to lead the prayer, if we have sick family or friends I am the one that is leading a group prayer for that person or family. We have helped many people, believers and non-believers, with death and sickness. Doing this it has strengthened not only my belief in the healing powers of God but has strengthened my family and has helped some non-believers open their hearts to learning the word.
I want to live a more “Christian” life, but I feel like I have so much to learn to be able to live in the image of Christ. The more I am immersed into the
I also enjoyed teaching little kids about agriculture through our Elementary Ag Day. I am also involved with many services through the church. I am a mass server, eucharistic minister, and involved in various youth group activities. Being a mass server and eucharistic minister, I was able to help my community and church celebrate the mass. I was a helper at VBS and Christmas school helper through the Youth Group.
Through these activities, I have gained crucial skills to interact efficiently with others, and learned how to meet others needs as well. Involving yourself in church activities can help you learn these important skills, as well as empathy and modesty; as you see your own community and yourself grow. And by interacting with the public through artwork is
I look to Jesus Christ for guidance and strength in my everyday life. I pray to Him about how thankful I am, and I pray to Him about others around me. I look to Him to help me prepare and pass exams. I also ask Him to help others in whatever hardships they may be having. My family taught me about His message. My grandparents have contributed a great deal to my acceptance of Jesus Christ. One of my best memories is when my grandmother sat me down in church and we prayed to Jesus Christ to forgive our sins and to accept me. My grandparents are people that live by His word, and they try to spread His message everyday. They thank him everyday for the blessings in life that they have. My grandparents are very much involved in the Westwood Church community, and they have encouraged me to be too.
As a child I was not raised in a “church-going family” but I was always interested in why people followed the Lord and gave their lives to him. When I was around 8 years old I asked a family friend if she would take me when she went the next Sunday, and she said yes. But, for an 8 year old, sitting in a big room with some strange man trying to be funny and using words that I didn’t understand wasn’t very fun. I kept going even though I didn’t enjoy it and I would draw and try to find ways to make the hour and a half pass. Without my knowledge there was a whole other thing going on upstairs, children’s ministry. That’s something I was interested in. So, the next Sunday I made my way upstairs and found where I was supposed to be and it shocked me that I wasn’t the only one who drew at church! There was an entire table designated to coloring pages and more crayons than I could have ever used. After coloring on countless coloring pages we went to “worship time.” It was so fun! We got
We have the potential to become Christlike in every aspect of life. But the thought patterns and habits of many years do not instantly vaporize upon accepting Jesus as Savior.
My call to ministry started at an early age. I attended Bible classes with family and friends to gain knowledge of who God is and what He has done. It was then, that I grew to have a strong appetite for God and His word. I enjoyed studying not only the Bible but other reading materials and books pertaining to God. It gave me a clear understand of his word. It was evident by many that I was seeking God and He was always there. I recall in my younger age having conversation with others about Christ. Although I had some knowledge and understanding of who God is and believed in Him, I wasn’t attending any church as regularly as I should.
Although my grandmother was over 70 years old and even she was not in good health, she did not stop attending the prayer meeting. She sang hymns and read the Scripture everyday. She lived a sincere Christian life until the day she went to the Heaven. I loved her reading the Scripture for me. Further, it was so happy to hear stories how she had believed Jesus and lived her Christian life. I used to take a nap listening to her telling the stories of the heroes in the Bible. Whenever she knelt down for prayer, I followed her way of prayer. She was a mentor for my Christian faith. As I grew up, I
Many men throughout the Bible and history have heard the call of God upon their lives. Although unique to each individual, there are common traits with each person’s call from God, and from that we can accurately discern whether it is God’s calling. Today, we are all called into ministry, but only a few are called into vocational ministry, such as the pastorate. This specific type of calling, although tantamount to the former, uniquely demands those called, and the cost must be realized (Titus 1:5-11). However, the rewards for following God in obedience far outweighs the price to be paid. There is no better place to be than in God’s will and call for our lives. Personally, I believe I am called into vocational ministry for many reasons
Furthermore, I have a great passion for intercessory prayer for others as the Holy Spirit reveals to me, through discernment and visions. I believe I believe that I am also called to teach and preach in conferences, local, and globally to broken woman leading and guiding them to wholeness. Ministering to young married couples, guiding them to the unit that God has ordained marriage to be in the local assembled, as well as globally.
God expects individuals that call themselves “Christian” to grow spiritually. The Word of God encourages personal examination as a part of the growth process, as found in Psalm 139:23-24: “Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my concerns. See if there is any offensive way in me; lead me in the everlasting way.” Becoming more Christ-like focuses on how He works in us and not on our work for Him. The Cycle of Works demonstrates that regardless of work we complete, the acceptance of others, the sustainability of our works and the significance it brings, we cannot compete with God’s Cycle of Grace that show us that we are significant in His sight and that brings us sustenance and acceptance
Dancing and cooking for my community is always a fun way to support my culture, but there is also a lot of knowledge to teach within the church. To keep the tradition and faith alive, every Sunday I teach bible study. I enjoy sharing my faith and knowledge with the younger kids; I realize how grateful I am to have had this knowledge bestowed on me at a young age.
My family was never the one that went to church every Sunday, or prayed before meals, or prayed together at all. In fact, we still don’t do those things. However, what has changed from then is that we are all spiritually connected with God to a greater extent because of each of us developed our own faith over time. Growing up, my Mom taught us who God was and the tremendous amount of love he has for us and that we are all His children created in His image, but that was, for the most part, the extent of it. As much as I wish I had additional knowledge concerning The Bible and God’s word, I couldn’t thank my Mom more for only teaching me the basics about God. It was that which allowed me to discover God and my faith for myself and not rely on other’s thoughts and beliefs placed in my head as a child.
I have learned that ministry goes beyond just preaching God’s word. According to Earley and Gutierrez (2016) real ministry is doing your part. Ministry is also glorifying God in ministry based on the gifts or talents that he has blessed you with and uplifting his name and making others aware of the goodness of God through that gift or talent. My ministry is music. I have been singing since I was a little girl and I now know that this is my calling from God. Being able to minister to people and encourage them in the Lord through song has become a passion for me. I have found throughout my life that gospel music has always made me feel encouraged throughout the trials in my life. So, being able to actually give someone that encouragement and let them know that no matter what God is there through it all blesses my soul and theirs. “There has never been a more demanding season of ministry than we are experiencing today” (Gutierrez, 2014, p. 13). This statement is so true and I know being able to minister to people through music is a very important ministry. “Sing to the Lord a new song; Sing to the Lord, all the earth. Sing to the Lord, bless his name; Proclaim good tidings of his salvation from day to day (Psalm 96:1-2).
My Dad has been a pastor all my life and I have always been heavily involved with my church. However, Even with a large christian background I never truly became a Christian until I was about ten years old. That is when I went to Big Sandy Bible Camp and made the decision to let Christ be the center of my life. Almost immediately after my initial decision to dedicate my life to Christ I noticed a dramatic change in my lifestyle. Before I was a real Christian I sought out to find my value in earthly things like money, video games, or being in a good clique. After I became a real Christian I stopped trying to find my value in those material things and found my identity in Christ. I started looking at scripture as the truth inspired by God rather than just some meaningless book we recited in church. I now have a scheduled quiet time each day that I spend in prayer and scripture. One of the reasons I am now such a strong christian is that i have many places where i find christian fellowship. Some of the opportunities I have for that include, youth group, sunday school, finding christian
Growing up in a religious environment, I observed and absorbed things that I continuously apply in every aspect of my life. One particular quote from a passage in the bible transformed my perception of my obligation as a person. It states ,“Let your life so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father”. This statement inspired me and I began to see that life involved more than just myself, but my service to others. At this point, I became actively engaged within my church. I participated in youth choir, praise dance, organized youth