Challenge

This week, I'm going to try to pray 10+ minutes everyday.

Can you do it?

If you're like me, your excuse in the morning is that if you close your eyes after having just woken up, you'll fall back asleep. Or there's breakfast to eat and class to walk to.

or your excuse in the afternoon is that there's homework to do, people to talk to, facebook to check, food to eat, errands to run.

your excuse once you're done with all that is that you "need" rest. you need to take a mental break and just hang out. just do nothing. you deserve it, right?

then, your excuse late at night is that you're tired. there's no way you can pray right before heading to bed, and taking 10 minutes away from our 6+ hours of sleep is just too much.

You silently promise that you'll spend time with God tomorrow.

You do this everyday.

Tomorrow passes.

The week passes.

The month passes and you say you believe and you're in a relationship with God

But He hasn't heard from you recently...

10 min = 1/6 of an hour

1 hour=1/24 of a day

1 day=1/7 of a week

Can you do it?

Journal Entry from Monday, January 17, 2011

To Do:

-mail out LMU recording

-mail out Pepperdine supplement

-Prepare for Pepperdine, Chapman, CSUF, CSULB auditions

-study for theory diagnostics

fear of...

judgement

rejection

inadequacy

comparison

failure

forgetfulness

sinfulness

not knowing

disappointment

Today, it's crazy to see how God has provided for all of these things. He always knew I'd feel things things on the even of college, and He knew what type of a community would help strengthen my confidence and point my wandering eyes in the right direction. After 11 or so years of competitive music, competitions, chair tests, comparisons, and pride, God has placed me in a conservatory that instills a system of experience, peer evaluation, and self-development. Chapman's music conservatory isn't about getting ahead of others, but about becoming better and falling in love. I'M SO EXCITEDDDDDDDDDDDD.

"Loneliness is something that happens to us, but I think it is something we can move ourselves out of. I think a person who is lonely should dig into a community, give himself to a community, humble himself before his friends, initiate community, teacher people to care for each other, love each other. Jesus does not want us floating through space or sitting in front of our televisions. Jesus wants us interacting, eating together, laughing together, praying together. Loneliness is something that came with the fall.

If loving other people is a bit of heaven, then certainly isolation is a bit of hell, and to that degree, here on earth, we decide in which state we would like to live"-Donald Miller

God is Able

God is able
He will never fail
He is almighty God
Greater than all we seek
Greater than all we ask
He has done great things

Lifted up
He defeated the grave
Raised to life
Our God is able
In His name
We overcome
For the Lord
Our God is able


God is with us
God is on our side
He will make a way
Far above all we know
Far above all we hope
He has done great things

God is with us
He will go before
He will never leave us
He will never leave us
God is for us
He has open arms
He will never fail us
He will never fail us

Spark

God is up to something big, you guys.

Maybe when you step back a little and think about that, you'll say,"Duh, Alayne."

But have you ever felt that God wasn't doing much for a period of your life? Or, more so, that you forgot God moves and lives and changes and blesses?

I admit. I forgot about that this summer. I forgot about Him. I was consumed with the small things. Tiny things!! Packing list for college. Financial aid. What color to paint my toenails. I was consumed with thoughtless, brainless things...I could somehow spend a WHOLE day browsing facebook, youtube, and blogs. I could talk to my friends until night became morning. I met with God at church and I preached that a relationship with Him was key to growth and knowing the God we say we believe in. And then, I came home, prayed for more spiritual discipline that week, and returned to my computer.

Being here at Chapman is such a huge blessing. Yeah, the faculty, the student-teacher ratio, the dorm life, the socal weather, the freedom, the new friends-they're all immense blessings. But the difference is that God decided He would spark my hunger for Him. He knew that in this moment, I would desire to be filled with more knowledge of Him so that my will could be aligned with His, rather than diverging towards a lifestyle of worldly desires.

Take my word. I'm not just trying to make up a cool story about how God is going to do something good. I'm truthfully saying that there's a stirring of conversations, a long list of situations and relationships, and a changing/convicting of hearts here on campus that PROVE that God is at work. For those He has put on our hearts to minister to, He has given Christian roommates and close friends. For those with whom we want to share our faith, He has given time and space in very busy days. There's curiosity, openness, and countless opportunities to share with people who really want to hear what we believe to be the Truth. In fact, they want to come and SEE it. To church!! GOD IS PLANTING THE DESIRE TO DISCOVER HIM IN PEOPLE THAT DON'T EVEN KNOW HIM!

And do you know what else I think?

I think this is happening on the Peninsula campus, too.

I think this is happening on your college campus.

I think this is happening around the world.

It has been happening, and this rude, convicting, difficult, shame-filled awakening has helped me to see.