Creature of Habits

I think it is time to question the good and bad habits in our lives. 

Are we making the most out of our day? I believe habits are a state of mind. Habits are the way you think and how you respond mentally. For example, lazy people are not tired people because don't have energy but rather mentally unwilling or careless. Lazy people don't care if their home is dirty or if the trash is overflowing, or dishes are overflowing because they are unwilling to care. This is a state of mind. Proverbs 10:4 - A lazy hand will make a man poor but diligent hands will bring wealth. 

Sometimes we don't realize how much bad habits can rob us or even hurt us. First thing first, we need to renew the way we think. It's time to start looking at things in our lives differently and not set conclusions. 

Changing our habits starts in a few practical ways:

1. Your attitude

Phil. 2:5 - The best attitude you can have is Jesus'. Jesus' attitude was the attitude of a servant. He did not come to be served but to serve. That attitude is mature and responsible. We need to check our attitudes. Stop complaining, stop whining like a child, stop being unwilling, stop being careless and start acting like Jesus. 

2. Start something with the mindset that you are going to finish it!

Have some dignity in yourself and strive to be the best at what you are pursuing in life. I don't mean be prideful (being arrogant, or having an "I am better than the whole world" attitude) but believe that God has started a work in you and He intends to finish what He started in you so we should do the same. Secondly, be committed. Stop being known as a flake or the person who bails, or the person who is undependable. (If you are dating a person who doesn't finish what they start, GET OUT OF THAT RELATIONSHIP!) Never married a procrastinator. You marriage will always live in a bucket full of wishes. 

3. Stop making your bad habits bigger than you

So many people exaggerate their problems and sometimes compete their problems with their neighbor. Stop making your problems bigger then God. There isn't anything that God can't help you with. God wants to help you, God wants to change you, God wants to bless you. Start focusing on what God is capable of doing and acknowledging for who He is and what He has done. Instead of empowering your problems, submit your problems to the cross.

4. Know your true Identity 

As believers of Jesus Christ and picking up our cross daily, it is a journey of discovering God's love in our lives. So many people think they know who they are and say things like "I am a football player," " I am a model," "I am a calm person," "I am a pizza boy." Seriously stop labeling yourself and start discovering yourself in Jesus. Ask what Jesus thinks of you everyday and you might not be able to keep up with all He has planned for you.  Just stop predicting your life and acting like your weakness is normal; because weakness are meant to be strengthen not settled. 

Bottom line, our habits start with our state of mind. If you want to see changes in your life you have to learn to admit that you are powerless, and start confessing up that you need the help of Jesus to change your habits. Start believing Jesus will be faithful to you daily. It is often said that habits are changed by "willpower" But the only thing about willpower it is limited and not infinite. However, Jesus, He is infinite. You need an infinite savior to change you.

Read Ephesians 4:17-24.

Shalom.

  

Unexpected Connections

They say hanging out with the right crowd will have a better influence in your life and help you get where you're going. This might be so true.

I remember going to my outreach meeting for Cuba in the summer of 02 at "Christ for the Nations Bible College." I was walking with a good friend of mine name Gabiel (Bibi) from San Diego. As we were walking I heard a whisper in my ear saying "Costa Rica." I told Bibi and said "I think Costa Rica is going to be my next step after finishing school." Bibi told me right there and then, "Aaron, lets pray that God will lead to you to Costa Rica according to His will." Bibi was the one who consistently encouraged me to do a missions trip. It was Bibi that God used to lead me to a road that would change my life for good.

In my second semester of college another friend of mine, Ron from Hawaii, one day told me that his pastor was going to be the guest speaker for the week and he said that my life was going to change. (He was right.)

Ron's Pastor's name was Loren Cunningham, The founder of Youth with A Mission. Me and my other friends all met Loren and we had a great time talking to him. Then there was this Holy Spirit moment when Pastor Loren looked at me with eyes that wasn't him asking a question. He said, "Aaron Ortega, where are you going after Christ for the Nations?" I replied "Costa Rica Sir!" The next thing he told me was the conformation of a lifetime. "Aaron, I have a base in Costa Rica, I'll send you a referral to the base director there."

I finished CFNI in December of 2003 and then started Youth with a Mission in the next month in January. Now before I tell you anything else I have to say something about all this build up to Costa Rica.

I've learned something about God's will and this subject about has always been something hard for me personally to get ahold of. And I want to share a few things about God's will.

1. It always starts with a selfless desire, a desire that out of your own character. For example, I didn't even know where Costa Rica was at the time when me and Bibi were praying, but I knew in my heart that it was a significant place for me. The desire will grab your heart. Trust me, these desires are obvious godly desires because it's not you desiring these things but Christ in you that does.

2. God's will isn't just a feeling but mindful. You can't stop thinking about it because you know it the right move and step in your life and you know in your mind you have to do it. Sometimes we need dreams and visions to confirm our mind. God can speak through dreams and visions just like he did with Joseph in the bible.

 3. God's will will always lead you to the right people to connect you to your destination. There will be people who will believe with you and not only that but help you to get there. Bibi prayed with me and believed God would reveal the next steps, open doors in my life. Ron was a valuable person too and this was because he was my personal friend that lead me to the right guy (Loren) and he was the person who had the answer to "where in Costa Rica?" (YWAM).

Amazing with what little we all have can help someone (Me) go to a place where his life would be changed forever.

I am sharing this to point out that God's will was leading me to meet the most unexpected person that would change my life.  Sarah Faith Godfrey..... That will be my next blog about Costa Rica.

I really seen that having godly friends really connected me and grounded me with God's will.
I couldn't have made it to Costa Rica with people who were not connected to God themselves, people who were connecting daily with God and becoming people who love their neighbors. I can tell you I have neighbors that loved me and helped me.

What a birthday might have in common with a funeral

Someone shared something on their facebook status.

"Birthdays should be like funerals, a day where all your friends come together to celebrate your life and remember all the good stuff about you and bring you flowers.... Sad that we don't tell people how much we care till its too late." 


This is interesting because in a lot of ways funerals have a different dynamic than a birthday party does. Birthday parties are more about presents, food and having a good time but you may not take the time to reflect on why you are thankful for that person or even tell them why you appreciate them. At a funeral it's different. It's a time when you remember the fun times you had together, remembering their accomplishments, and appreciating the person for who they were. Isn't that what celebration is really about?  This also got me thinking about how much we value each other. How much do I appreciate my loved ones? I think we all need to self examine these questions and reflect on our attitudes and appreciations for the people God placed in our lives.

Questions to reflect about your loved ones:

How often do you offer help?

When was the last time you told someone they are doing a great job at what they are working hard at?

When was the last time you treated someone for a meal?

What could be the most thoughtful thing you can do?

How have you been treating your love ones?

All of these questions should align us to be improving our attitudes to love and services. Because sometimes we can take advantage and not appreciate the people God has placed in our lives.

Self Discipline

To really achieve goals and dreams you would think it would take money, power, connections, or even fame. But what we really need is self  discipline. Don't get me wrong, all those things I listed above are great but self discipline is one of the essential keys to accomplishments. Here are a few things I want to point out.

#1. Self discipline is an absolute pursuit towards a goal and it will abandon all temptations and distractions. It does not compromise the tasks in front of us.

#2. Self discipline makes order by organizing the priorities in our lives. A person with no order will live a life with no direction that has no destination in life. Sadly to say a lot of people in this generation does not know what order means or know how to live with order.

#3. Self discipline is not a GIFT it is a fruit that must be labored and worked for. We have to yield to self discipline because it will not yield to us. People will always make excuses why they do not have discipline. The number one excuse is time and I have to say, this excuse is baloney. Everyone has time, they just don't want to sacrifice their habits such as TV, video games, sports, movies, computer... Are these things bad? NOT AT ALL but they are not meant to pull you away from what needs to be done in order to accomplish what needs to be done)

#4. Self discipline requires accountability to another person. You can not just define discipline on your own. The Bible says "Every man thinks he pure in his own sight" Proverbs 30:12. Pray for someone who lives a disciplined life and has fruit to show for it and yield to that person to help you and correct you.

#5. Self discipline makes the most of your time. You can always tell who is wasting time and who is making their time productive. Being busy isn't the same as productive. Being busy is just being occupied with something, being productive is creating or harvesting something.  Stop being busy and start living productively.

Some final thoughts...

Jesus' prayer life was centered on self discipline, it was a lifestyle he chose. Jesus' ministry was an absolute mission that was fulfilled. In fact, Jesus died empty which means he did everything he was supposed to do. He didn't hang on the cross and thought to himself "Shoot I should have ________" Nope, there wasn't a "Should have" or a "Would have" or even a "Could have". Why? Because he was disciplined and FOCUSED on what needed to be done.
Sure you can ask God to give you strength for discipline but at the end of the day, it up to you do live it and that's what I called FREE WILL. You have the ability to choose what you want to spend your time on. Either you'll waste time or make the most of your time by disciplining yourself with priorities that have a future.

What are the odds?

It was after my fourth or fifth surgery and I was 8 or 9 years old and I had already lost track of all these surgeries. I remember waking up and having these bandages wrapped around my head and having to wear them for a month or even more. I wasn't allowed to take them off and that was the worst part.

Every time after surgery, the moment I woke up I would spend the next hour throwing up. It was a miserable time. Why me? Why do I have to be born with "Microtia"? (Deformed ears with no canals). I would feel so much guilt as a child being a burden to my family and even to the hospital. Sometimes I would say under my breath to my parents, "Sorry"..... It was those moments when i didn't realize how much God was present in my life.

It took two pieces of my ribs and a lot of my own skins graphs and a total of 9 surgeries to complete this task in my life. Growing up mostly in the hospital, it really affected my social skills. Why me?I had all these questions like what am I going to do when I when grow up? Who's going to want marry me looking like this? I'm never going to be popular in school or play sports. I hate my life. Who am I but a nobody?

When I thought all odds were keeping me from discovering life and actually living it instead of complaining about it, my fifth grade teacher, Mrs. Pergrin my told me something that I actually believed. "Aaron, everything we do in life is a choice and we can do anything that is possible but leave the impossible to Jesus, you understand me Aaron Ortega?" and that moment a seed was placed inside of me that grew in faith.

It was time to face the odds, here's how I dealt with my conditions in life;

Accept yourself - This isn't easy because sometimes it means having to accept something you don't like but it's necessary to become whole with yourself. A lot of times people who are angry with themselves or uncomfortable with themselves begin to project on people around them.

Change the way you think about your flaws - Start believing flaws can change for better. When you see flaws, always have in mind the word "Improvement" because it's possible for weaknesses to improve to become stronger.

For every new accomplishment learn a new song- Songs are the best way to learn to express your excitement. I know this might sound like a waste of time, but worship has became more personal to me because in my greatest moment I sang to God and not to myself. For whatever reason the awards in life can blind us from true glory and that is to God..... If you want to learn how to give glory...... sing.

Lastly, what I really learned was, Change the way you talk - If you constantly talk negative you're going to be negative. If you are tearing down dreams, hopes and changes remember that these dreams, hopes and plans, are not the problem, YOU ARE. Stop talking like the villain and start talking like Christ. Also, stop hanging with negative speakers and get around the people who will lift you up and believe with you.

Of course there are a lot more but these were the essentials in my life. But here's the funny thing, God chose to assign the odds against me and the obvious question here is why would God place trials in our lives? Because the Father in heaven looks down on his kids and keeps whispering, "I believe in you I wouldn't have made you if I didn't."

And for some reason I believe it.

Fasting

Often times I get people asking me about fasting and what it is.
Fasting is one of the greatest disciplines I am learning. It can be difficult and yet rewarding.
According to the Bible, fasting is one of the most sacred acts toward God. Here are a few things to know about fasting.

Fasting must be secret.
A secret is not something you make known to just anyone. When you fast don't announce it to the world and let everyone know. In Matthew, Jesus says that if you do things just so others can see them you have received your reward in full. Fasting in the secret is personal between you and God only.

Fasting is sacrificing distractions.
It is a time to sacrifice what we do daily and we stop and abstain for a time to concentrate on God and be mentally and spiritually focused on God. It is possible to fast and not be focusing on what God is telling you or having a quality time with God. The fact that Jesus says "Go into your room and close the door behind you" is really saying 'go to a place with no distractions.' Fasting lets us be fully present with God.

Fasting isn't a genie bottle method.
You don't fast to get what you want but to discover God's will. It is a time to seek direction, peace and transformation and to become more Christ like and not more world like. God's will never increases the flesh but increases the Spirit. Flesh is the flaw of man and the Spirit is the flawlessness of God. (Galatians 5:19-24)

I met discipline and he told me to tell you hello!
If we are serious about bringing ourselves into submission with God then we have to train ourselves to be consistent. Stop thinking that discipline comes in a package somewhere at a mall because it doesn't. It starts with commitment and not with excuses.

Adventures

Growing up, I've always desired to live beyond my imagination. There were a lot of times I thought it was just day dreaming but my heart knew that what I dreamed of could be done. So to every person I met in all my travels doing missionary work, I am pleased to say this blog is for those who believed and helped and more importantly loved me.

I've always told my story in summary but never spoke about the doubts, victories, pains, hurts, fearful moments, or the greatest moments I've experiences. Donald Miller once said "Your story is worth telling". And I believed it for whatever reason. So this blog is my story.

A few lessons I've learned in this adventure of life:

1- The friends you start with might not make it with you to the end for good or bad reasons. But there is always more people you'll meet as you move forward. The new friends might not be the same old friends but you learn to love differently as you do life with them.

2- There are times you are going to face a lot of people who will look at your life and doubt that you'll become anything in this lifetime. But we're called to live in a manner of living with all our minds, heart, strength, not the mind, heart and strength of other people. People will fail us no matter who it is but keep focused on what is ahead (Christ)

3- The biggest threat and doubter is going to be yourself in this adventure of life. It is not you that changes the world but a great God changes the world.

4- The moment you settle is the moment you believe you are at the end of your journey. DON'T SETTLE FOR LESS!

5- People will talk about you and live off on your failures. Jesus says; Take off anything that entangles you and run the race and fix your eyes on Jesus not on your failures or mistakes and start running forward.

6- Always remember to think like a rich man and live like the poor man but never ever accept a poverty mindset in your life.
A rich man thinks he "able to do so" on whatever it is and the poor man is focused on living with the simplest lifestyle, but the poverty mindset doesn't believe in quality.

7- Lastly, Always remember when you are doing what God tells you. You have to remember that your destination is going to be a priceless moment that money can't buy or all the pleasures in the world isn't worth the trade because it God's will is like an adventure that you find an original mystery that no one could possibly understand unless they've been with you. That when I say you've found a piece of yourself.