What I Learned When My Phone Was Stolen

          Last year I went to Africa. Johannesburg, South Africa, is known for its high crime rate. We also had a two day layover in Washington DC, another high crime area.

          I always made sure I had a firm grip on my clutch purse that held typical wallet contents as well as my brand new nice phone. And I made it around the world safely with my belongings. Nothing was stolen.

          Until I got home.

          We got back to the States at about 10 am on a Friday morning. After we drove back and had lunch with our family, it was about 1 or 2 pm and we didn’t want to make jet lag worse by sleeping the afternoon away and being awake all night. So my sister and I decided to take a nap for a couple hours and then go up to our church for our inner city children’s ministry which would be exhausting and go late into the night. That way, we would be awake until night.

          I left my clutch purse in a not-very-smart place, but I’d left it there for the past like two years and nothing ever happened.

          At the end of the night, I went back to get it and it was gone. I searched and searched for hours, but it didn’t turn up.

          It turned into a huge fiasco, and you could imagine how exhausted I was by that time. 

          Let me tell you, it is a strange feeling to not have a phone, wallet, purse, or money anywhere. Plus, I couldn’t drive now because my license was in my purse.

          Long story short, we miraculously were able to recover the phone, but nothing else was ever found. The 6^th grader who stole my phone claimed she never saw the purse.

          However, I went about two days without my phone.

          Okay, pause. Read that again.

          I went two days without my phone.

          And I’m not dead.

          Like, seriously.

         I survived.

          Yes, I’m being facetious. But when your phone is gone, the thoughts are flying through your head, “It’s gone. I’m dead. How will I text my friends?? How will I be able to keep track of how many steps I walk every day?? What about my Bible memory app? What about my Africa pictures??? What about Instagram??? Life isn’t possible without my phone!”

          I believe that we should not cling to our phones, but it happened to me when I wasn’t paying attention. Then my phone was gone, and with it a sense of security.

          Which is very, very silly.

          The other day I was gone all afternoon and forgot my phone at home. It was a weird feeling, but I kept having to remind myself, “I don’t NEED my phone. I can live without my phone for a few hours.”

          Throughout the mess with my stolen phone, I learned several things.

1. It’s just a thing. 

I can’t take my phone to heaven. Which means it’s probably not the most important thing ever. It’s just an item. Like a shoe. Or a pillow. Or a chair. You can get another one. Then again, you may not even need one.

2. There was a time that people lived without phones.

It is possible. You can live without your phone. People did it for thousands of years.

3. It could be a lot worse.

During that hectic weekend, the truths in the book The Insanity of God kept coming to mind. I had to be constantly reminding myself, “You know what? If a stolen phone and wallet is my worst problem, I am very blessed!” I want that to constantly be my perspective. People are being killed around the world for their faith. I can live without my phone.

4. It’s not about what happens to you, but how you respond to it.

Big and little things will come up in your day to day life. It’s not about what happens, it’s about your response. God is molding you and shaping you to be more like Him. He will use big and little trials. Pain and suffering will come. So don’t be surprised. Be prepared. It’s not about what happens, but how you handle it.

Do you feel like you are too attached to your phone? What are some indicators that you might cling to it too much? What are some possible remedies for that?

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3 Things I Learned From the Prophet Jeremiah

-Noami Hamstra

          I have been studying the book of Jeremiah recently, and today I wanted to share with you three things that I’ve learned from the prophet Jeremiah. Jeremiah was a prophet of God who prophesied during the reign of king Josiah, Jehoahaz, Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin, and Zedekiah. He prophesied to the northern kingdom of Israel and to the southern kingdom of Judah.

1. God is faithful
         

First, I learned so much about the faithfulness of God! Jeremiah was commanded to prophesy to the people of Israel and Judah. Both nations were rebellious and sinful. They worshiped the false gods of other nations. They rejected the Word of the Lord and did not obey God’s commandments. 
          God had made a covenant with the people of Israel and Judah: “And I will make my covenant between me and thee, and will multiply thee exceedingly”(Genesis 17:2). The Lord was faithful in His covenant with His people, but His people broke their side of the covenant which was a serious offense. 
          God continually pleaded with His people to obey His Word. After the Lord punished His people through captivity and slavery, the Lord gathered them back to Himself, so that they would be His people and He would be their God. 
          I love how the Lord is continually faithful with His people even when they sin. We are just as faithless as Israel. But when we repent, the Lord faithfully leads us in the way of His righteousness.

2.  I must be obedient

          Secondly, I learned from Jeremiah to be obedient to God and confident in Christ. God commanded Jeremiah to be a prophet to the rebellious people. He said, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations…But the Lord said to me, ‘Do not say, ‘I am only a youth; for to all to whom I send you, you shall go, and whatever I command you, you shall speak. Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you, declares the Lord.” Jeremiah 1:5-8 
          Jeremiah did not believe what the Lord told him would be the best for him, and he did not think he was equipped to do it. The Lord responded by saying He knew before Jeremiah was born that he would be a prophet. 
          Whatever the Lord tells us to do, we must do! We do not have to be afraid, because the Lord is with us and He knows us. He created us to serve and glorify Him in the way He ordains for us, and because of this, we can have confidence in Him.

3. I must be satisfied in Christ        

          The third thing I learned from the prophet Jeremiah is satisfaction in Christ. When the Lord brought His people back to Himself there was much rejoicing and thankfulness. They rejoiced with thankful hearts because they were in the Lord and did not need anything else! Jeremiah 30:17 says, “I will feast the soul of the priests with abundance, and my people shall be satisfied with my goodness, declares the Lord.” 
          The Lord is good to His people, and the Lord says we can be satisfied in Him. When I think about how good the Lord is to me, I become even more grateful for what I have and for what He has done for me. When we know the Lord and have the gift of salvation, we have the best thing on this earth and for all eternity.

          When I first started reading and studying Jeremiah, I did not expect to learn as much as I did. I love how I can see the faithfulness and goodness of the Lord through Jeremiah’s life. The Lord is always faithful to His people. 
          I close with this verse from Psalm 13: “But I have trusted in your steadfast love; my heart shall rejoice in your salvation.” This verse sums up the book of Jeremiah very well. 
          Being a prophet was not easy, but Jeremiah had to trust in the steadfast love of God, and when he did, he was able to rejoice in the salvation of the Lord. This is how I want to live, and I encourage you to trust in God’s steadfast love and rejoice in the gift of salvation He has given to you if you are in Christ.  

Have you read Jeremiah? What are your thoughts? Which of these points convicted you the most?

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3 Practical Tips to Save Your First Kiss for Your Wedding Day

          I was recently featured on PhyliciaDelta.com with the post, 3 Practical Tips to Save Your First Kiss for Your Wedding Day. I hope you will take the time to hop over and read it! 

          I decided to save my first kiss for my wedding day long before I started dating. Some will applaud this decision. Others will scoff and roll their eyes. Others will pity me for being a product of my conservative Christian upbringing.
          My conviction was shaped through many years of attending weddings my dad, a pastor, was officiating. Some couples had saved their first kiss, some had not. Some weddings deeply moved me in their Christ-centered simplicity. 

          The pure, strong love I saw some couples share in Christ made a deep impression on me.

          I wanted to save my first kiss for several reasons. I knew that opening physical door to physical intimacy in a relationship could lead one or both of us into sin. Many people, I understand, are fine with it. Somehow, I knew it would be a bigger struggle for me. I also wanted to avoid the “how far can I go?” mindset in my relationship.
          At first, I was hesitant about having my first kiss in front of a church full of people. What if it’s awkward?
          I had seen an awkward first kiss at the alter before, and boy, it was awkward. But I had also seen more normal first kisses at the alter.
          That’s kind of a private and intimate moment. Why share it with so many people?
          For me, it came down to shame. Where should I feel more shame—sneaking a kiss before marriage and wondering if I sinned in some way, or a first and potentially awkward kiss in front of a bunch of people celebrating our union?
          Nowhere in the Bible does it talk about shame in purity, because there is no shame in giving away your first kiss on your wedding day. Plus, there will be plenty of private kisses. If you want to know some more of my reasons, check out my blog post. In it, I also link to Phylicia’s excellent post, 5 Myths About Saving Your First Kiss for the Wedding Day.
          I do not know where you are today. I don’t know where you stand before God, what your relationship status is, or how you are striving to honor Him in your relationship.  If you are trying to save your first kiss, or anything else, these tips are for you. These three basic tips apply to any fight for purity, whether you decide to kiss before marriage or not.
          Read the rest of the post at PhyliciaDelta.com!

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