Dear Jesus Experiment Group,
I feel alot like the author Bill Perkins as he writes on page 3, week one from "The Jesus Experiment":
"Part of the reason the Jesus Experiment concerned me is that I knew it would quickly expose how unlike Jesus I am. Though I desire to be more like Christ, my human tendency to remain stuck is strong. Like everyone else, I'm comfortable with the status quo. I have attitudes, habits, and ways of speaking and acting that give me pleasure and calm my nerves---almost like pacifiers---
and I don't want to let them go. My fear of rejection and shame prevents me from going into more detail here, and it's this tendency to cover up that reminds me, even as I write these words, that I am still very much unlike Jesus. But that does'nt mean The Jesus Experiment won't work,...If you're feeling similarly apprehensive, I understand; but don't let that hold you back,...it all starts with a simple desire to become more like Jesus and the willingness to live the experiment."
To my Brothers and Sisters in Christ: I am so excited to have you in my life and share this journey together!!! The Jesus Experiment is going to be life changing! I have read the first chapter and what stayed with me the most was asking yourself "What would Jesus think, feel,say and do", in different real life situations. If we could become aware and make a conscious effort to stop before reacting and ask ourselves what Jesus would think,feel,say and do and then try and handle the situation the way He would, we would then be becoming more like our Lord Jesus!!! I'm in!!! After all is'nt that our goal at the end of the day,...to become more like Jesus?
ReplyDeleteJust remember as your day goes by,..."With God We Can". Love to you all, Shelley
Hey Guys,
ReplyDeleteIf you are having trouble posting just contact me and I will walk you through it. shelleyjwallace@gmail.com
Your Sister in Christ,
Shelley
I'm in!! I have often asked myself, how can I be more like Jesus, I think this is the way that can help me become more Christ like. However, I think in order to become like Jesus, means you have fulfilled your destiny so you should be heading home soon. I hope I learn alot, and by doing so will be closer to finally going home! God Bless Shelley!
ReplyDeleteLibbie, I could not have said it any better if I had thought about it for hours. You took the words right out of my mouth when it comes to how I feel about changing. I feel like I am generally a good person, but this will honestly be an immense struggle for me.
ReplyDeleteShelley, I like your idea of stopping to think about what you're saying before you say it, and asking yourself, WWJD? I have often found myself giving no thought to how things come out of my mouth and sound to someone else. I even take "pride" in this attribute of my personality. I have had many conversations with people who want an honest opinion because they know I will give it to them blunt and to the point. Only recently have I realized that not everyone is asking for my opinion on everything, nor do they necessarily want to hear it. I have also found that I have a tendency, when a friend talks to me, to compare whatever they are going through with something that I have gone through. Perhaps I am making them feel as though I am saying "Ah, that's nothing, I can one up you with my story", when I really am just trying to relate somehow. I think maybe I don't listen long enough before I start in with my way to relate to what they are telling me. I need to try to find a different way, I think. I have found that after a while, people who I think are my "good friends" tend to slowly back away, and then they are all but gone. I would like honest feedback from those I may get to know along this journey, please, please, I ask you to let me know if there is something in the way I am relating to you or to the group that is perhaps coming off in a way that is prone to pushing people away rather than allowing me to be a more empathetic person and helping me get to know some really great people. This is the first time I am admitting this, ever, and I am asking for your help, people who don't know me yet, who will be getting to know me over the next weeks and months. I ask you to have the courage to say something to me rather than take the road most others have, and to withdraw without reason. I know I'm asking you to do something that may be uncomfortable and that we don't normally do with other individuals, but I want to look at myself through someone else's eyes to learn how to make better friends. I am getting ready to move and will have all new opportunities to make friends differently. This makes me nervous and excited, and I don't want to make the same mistakes I have made in the past. Life can get really lonely at times when there is no one to call and you find yourself needing someone to talk to. Thanks for giving me a platform to speak out here.
I love that you posted this. I don't know you yet, but hopefully we'll get to know each other on this blog. I, for one, am proud of you for your honesty and your reaching out. I think we're all gonna learn a LOT about each other, but more importantly, I think we're gonna learn a LOT about Jesus..
DeleteHanging crown molding, hmmm a carpenter....hmmm Jesus was a carpenter, I am getting a work life Jesus Experience...what do you think his work life as a carpenter was like? I am working with nothing square, bowed out walls and ceilings and triming with crown to forgive the imperfections and make a more beautiful home...hmmm, just a thought this morning. I need crown too!
ReplyDeleteHappy Friday Everyone,
ReplyDeleteI saw this on facebook today and just had to share it with you all!!!
It pleases God to give you the desires of your heart! He wants to see you happy, whole, strong and enjoying His blessing. Think about how you feel toward your children. You wouldn't hold back from them if you had the resources to give them their desires and it didn’t oppose your good will for their life, right? When you make God your number one priority He promises to give you the desires of your heart.
Psalm 37:4 tells us again that if we delight ourselves in Him that He will give us the desires of our hearts. As we allow Him to shape and mold our character, as we yield ourselves to Him, our thoughts become His thoughts, our words become His Words, and our desires become His desires.
Don’t allow the distractions and/or frustrations of everyday life to keep you from spending time with Him. Abide in Him and let Him abide in you because He has the will and ability to give you the desires of your heart! Have a great weekend
Your Sister in Christ,
Shelley
Read the first chapter - love it. I'm struck by how Jesus would respond quite differently than "religion" usually does! His problem was never the sinners - it was the religious people who knew rules inside out but had no clue about HIM and His heart.
ReplyDeleteI love the little video thingy!! How did the group go last night??
ReplyDeleteSo, my thought for today....I'm reading a lot of posts on Facebook about a commercial that has everyone outraged and about a radio station here in Mobile that has gone off the air. I see a LOT of Christians blasting both things and ranting about how ungodly things are, how glad they are that a Christian station took over the station that got sold, about how angry they are over the state of things, etc.
ReplyDeleteMy daughter and I were talking about it this morning and the reasons we protest the things we do. I began telling her about this study and the way we're stopping to think about how Jesus would feel, think, act and what He would do. God suddenly reminded me of the story of Jesus turning over the tables in the temple and I thought, "Well, Jesus did get angry at that and reacted in a very outward, volatile fashion" - then I remembered the setting. In the temple, where the "religious" people were, and He was reacting because they were making a mockery of what was supposed to be going on. The temple was supposed to be a house of prayer, not a big flea market where you could buy what you needed for "sacrifices".....
When Jesus encountered the sinners, the prostitutes, the tax collectors, the scorned of His day, He always seemed to be loving them, laughing with them, dining with them, BEING with them. It is the kindness of God that brings us to repentance. Wow - what a paradigm shift.