I finally couldnt take the cabin fever anymore and ventured out for a Zumba class this afternoon. Made it there safely and am SO glad I went. I just started Zumba last week but am already hooked! I'm hoping along with my other crazy workouts, this will help me get to my final goal. Have any of you ever taken Zumba, and if so, what were your results?
One bonus of being stuck indoors was being able to catch up on some movie watching and getting some extra reading done. Have any of you seen "Burried" w/ Ryan Reynolds? WOW. Some kind of crazy but I definitely recommend it....even despite the fact that I have an (so I've been told) irrational fear of being burried alive.
I also saw "The Social Network" for the first time and was highly impressed. What a crazy story behind the conception of Facebook. Not only did I learn new things about Facebook and Napster, but also about Victoria's Secret. The screen play was great and the acting was actually legit. (And...P.s. Justin Timberlake is in it... and, well, I got to have a girly crushing moment lol) I highly recommend this one!
So on top of movie watching, fire having, game playing, puzzle solving, and DVR'ing, I also got in not 1 but 2 chapters of Crazy Love. I know I normally go into long descript over each chapter but for chapter 6 I have chosen just to interact with a few quotes and ask for your feedback on your reaction to the book thus far.
Chapter 6 is entitled "When You're In Love" and basically compares our actions in human love with our actions in spiritual love toward God. How do you act when you're in love? Do those same actions transcend to your relationship with God? Do you think about Him, talk about Him, and want to be with Him all the time? You should. And if you don't? Don't force it... here's why:
- " It does no good to muster up more love for God, to will yourself to love Him more. When loving Him becomes an obligation , one of many things we have to do, we end up focusing more on ourselves."
At no point in time did God ever demand that we love Him or oblige us to do so. We have free will for a reason. He created us with it and certainly hopes we will use it to love Him but He does not force our hands. When our love comes from a heart motive of obligation then guess what, it's no good to Him. Who wants someone to love them because the object of their affection feels forced to do so? Not me. "I only love you because I have to", "I'm only with you because I'm afraid to be alone", "I'm only spending time with you because (so and so) told me I had to". Doesnt feel so great does it? Do we somehow think that God is exempt to feeling hurt at our forced time with Him and feigned love for Him? If we're created in His image, including our ability to experience emotions, then yes, God feels the same hurts that we do and our inability to love Him with our full hearts hurts the heart of God. Think about that.
The great thing is, we're not condemned in our inability to love correctly. We're are flawed beings who are incapable of doing anything perfectly, including loving anyone. But, Mr. Chan points this out " The fact is, I need God to help me love God." He IS love, so who better to help us give love than the author of it. There's no shame in asking God to make us better lovers of Him. He wants us to love Him and I believe, that if we come to Him with humble and expectant hearts, that He will reveal to us the ways in which we can love Him better. There's hope!
Chan points out that our pursuit of loving God is directly opposed to our pursuit of sin. If we are intensely invested in our pursuit of loving God, our focus will be on that and not on giving into the sins of the flesh. Makes sense right? It's all a matter of focus, perspective, and desire. If your focus is the world, the world will drive you. If you perceive that all you have to live for is you, yourself, and you, you will dwell in a self centered existence. If you desire to attain the love of those who are earth bound, and give no thought to loving the Divine, you will inevitably live in a state of constent dissapointment. But focus on Christ and His desires will drive you. Perceive that we are only visitors here on earth, and you will live as each day is your last to spread the message of the gospel. Desire to, with His help, love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind and your inate human desire to live in sin with be derailed. Got that?
To conclude:
I think this really sums it all up.... I want to fall in love with YOU.
Blessings,
Ash
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