Challenge Accepted!

Good question! 

A few weeks ago my sweet friend Nikki shared this website with me as we chatted over delicious fro-yo (yumm) & discipling time.  She was so psyched about this idea, and she totally inspired me to try it out! 

But my curiosity went a bit deeper & I began to think about the idea of being happy. 

The website states that 71% of people who attempt this challenge, fail! So this joy thing must be harder than it seems!

And it makes sense, right? I mean, come on, think about it... Being positive or happy doesn't come naturally in this world. And truthfully, this world has nothing of true value or pure  joy to offer. That, my friends, is something you can count on. As I thought about this, Jesus' words in John 6:33 resounded in my mind. He puts it simply:  In this world you will have trouble. Trouble and discouragement is something you can count on. But what about joy??


I went ahead and did a simple search on Bible Gateway (click to see the search results) and found that the word rejoice appears in the bible 154 times. (NIV version)  & joy appears 242 times. I'm sure some of those scriptures may over-lap, but... yikes! It seems like God has a lot to say about JOY... and something tells me its very important to him.

Here's a peek of what I found: 

Joy (happiness) on the other hand... well those are things that you have to FIGHT for. We must fight for joy. Not just for the sake of being joyful ... but as I dug deep in the bible, I saw that being joyful is actually a command from God! 

The 1st time it appears (according to Bible Gateway) is in Leviticus where God clearly and specifically commands his people to be joyful for a determined period of time. 

Leviticus 23:40

On the first day you are to take branches from luxuriant trees—from palms, willows and other leafy trees—and rejoice before the Lord your God for seven days. 

As I looked deeper in the verses, I began to see God's heart. He wants to rejoice over me. (Isaiah 65:2) He delights in my joy. (Isaiah 65:19) He's happy when I'm happy. In fact, he will shower me with amazingness to bring me joy! (Jeremiah 32:41) But what he loves the most is when I rejoice in HIM. (Philippians 4:4) As Jesus said in John 6, this world cannot offer me joy. My circumstances cannot offer me true joy. Even the people that  love me back cannot complete my joy. I loved reading what Jesus had to say going a bit further in John 15: 9-12

9 “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. 10 If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. 11 I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. 

How will I  be able to successfully complete this challege? How will my joy be made complete? Simply by remaining in His love. By obeying his commands to the best of my abilities (and being open when I stumble). 

And two of the commands that I have been focusing on for the last year tie right into it all... 

Philippians 4:4-7 

 4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding,will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus

AND

1 Thessalonians 4:16-18  

Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is the will for you in Christ Jesus.

Needless to say, I am so looking forward to this challenge. Not just to be a part of a trend, but to really focus my mind and spirit on the amazing things that God does every single day! My hope is that through seeing those things, my heart can rejoice and praise Him 100 days and beyond!

XOXO
- Mariana 

P.S. Here's my 1st post! #100happydayson Instagram!

My Heart on the Line

So its February. The New Year doesn't seem as *new* anymore... but in my heart there are soooo many hopes and dreams! One of my dreams for 2014 includes stepping out in faith and putting my art out there with the intention to raise money for my Special Missions Contribution in June. At that time my wonderful church family and I pledge to give 10 times our weekly contribution. The money collected goes to many churches in other countries (to help them continue to advance the gospel), to our church (in order to hire interns and ministry staff members to serve our congregation), another part of the funds collected go to HOPEworldwide (an organization that is serving and ministering to people all over the world). Its such a privilege to be able to give. 

Lately I have been thinking about the Parable of the Talents found in Matthew 25:14-30. I have been reflecting on the talents that God has graciously given me and how I can use them to serve my master. One of those talents I believe is my creativity, and in this case my "artistic" creativity. As I type this and reflect on this parable, I feel so much like the last servant. In verse 24, when the master comes back and is demanding an account for the talent he entrusted to him, the servant replies: 

24 ‘Master,’ he said, ‘I knew that you are a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed.25 So I was afraid and went out and hid your gold in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.’

Up to this point, I have been using my art as a therapeutic and relaxing way to connect to God. I have enjoyed water coloring and scripture doodling throughout my quiet times and also as a way to meditate on scripture. I have heard from others (many times) that I should sell my art... and I have thought about it. A lot. But every time I think about it fear grips my heart. I begin to think, and think, and think, and think... 

       Is my stuff really that good??
                          What if people don't really like it?!?? 
                                              What if they don't buy it?!? 
                                                           What if I can't do it?!? 
                                                                       What if I fall flat on my face? 
                                                                                              Will I have time to do it????

I am afraid. I am afraid of not succeeding. I am afraid of putting myself out there and being rejected and my dream being crushed. I am afraid of getting the dreaded answers to those questions. 

I am so scared, that I'd rather hide this talent he has entrusted with me in the ground.
Upon this realization, the Master's response  to the servants lack of action due to his paralyzing fear, resonates in my heart and mind. 

26 “His master replied, ‘You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed? 27 Well then, you should have put my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned I would have received it back with interest.

God was not pleased. (to say the least) I see here that He just expects me to do something... anything, really. He doesn't want me to let my fear rule over me. He wants me to step out in faith and trust him. So... trust him I will. I'm not 100% sure as to how I will do this. But I do know that I will do something. I'm looking into different websites that offer selling platforms... Etsy and storenvy seem like great places. I have also seen some cases where people sell their products through social media websites such as Instagram. 

I am nervous. I am still a bit afraid. But, I am excited! I cannot wait to get started and see God's hand move. Even if all I raise is $1... or half of that, I know in my heart that God will be pleased.  

Please keep me in your prayers!!!

XOXO
- Mariana