- Monday: Work: 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
- Tuesday: Class: 8 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. -- Work: 1 p.m. to 6 p.m.
- Wednesday: Class: 8 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. -- Work: 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. -- Class: 7:05 p.m. to 9:35 p.m.
- Thursday: Class: 8 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. -- Work: 1 p.m. to 6 p.m.
- Friday: Work: 6:30 a.m. to 4:30 a.m.
So from that I should be pretty busy for the awhile...and being an elementary teacher, probably for the rest of my life (with the exception of the summers, of course!). I was praying today as I was pushing my kids at work around on our "Bye Bye Buggy" up and down the hallway, and I was praying that I would be thankful for the opportunities I have been blessed with. I have been given so much--love, encouragement, scholarships, a good job--and I want to make sure I am rejoicing in the Lord always.
What an awesome God we do have! I have been reading in Ephesians and I have read the first two chapters a few times now. I recently got a new bible for my birthday (my old one was well-loved, and carelessly scribbled in by my 13-year-old self) and was yet to mark in it or take notes on the pages. I know it seems like a long time without note-taking, but I wanted to make sure the notes aren't silly. I am a grown-up now :). But from these two chapters I found the first verses that I chose to mark.
"In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory." Ephesians 1: 13,14
I went to a wedding with Matt two weeks ago and as the bride and groom walked back down the aisle as man and wife, the song, "Signed, Sealed, Delivered" by Stevie Wonder played. First of all, I love that song, and secondly, these verses reminded me of that in a big way. The lyrics of the song say, "Here I am, signed, sealed, delivered, I'm yours..." And that is exactly what we are in Christ Jesus. We know we have eternal security in our salvation because it is "sealed" with a "promise" and "guaranteed" to us. The promise is made by God--it is in the Holy Spirit. I was so moved by this even though I've read similar verses many times. The Lord makes us promises and then backs them up over and over in His Word. Here He gives us three words that carry so much. Earlier in the chapter Paul also talks about how we are adopted sons by Jesus Christ, and how we were "predestined" to be, even though God knew we would rebel and turn to sin. In verse 6 it says He made us "accepted in the Beloved." We are indeed accepted, and we can never be let go.
Thank you so much for this Erica ... makes me realize how blessed I am to know you :)
ReplyDeleteFirst off - YAY for 8 a.m. classes!
And YAY for a new Bible (though it's always fun looking at your old Bible and see the notes you once wrote!).
This evening at Bible Club, we were talking about the Holy Spirit and eternal security. Kindof like you said, we are sealed in Him...completely His and accepted in His sight because Jesus paid it all. And when God sees us, He sees His Son!