“Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you are disqualified.” 2 Corinthians 13:5

peirazo (πειαζω, 3985), “to tempt, try,” is rendered “examine” in 2 Cor. 13:5, KJV

When I was in college, I blogged quite a bit, mostly about girls, trucks, and beer. When I became a Christian the things that used to matter to me dimmed in comparison to the new things that God was showing me in my life. Similar to Jesus’ and Moses’ 40 day stints in the wilderness at the beginning of their ministries, I fell off the face of the earth as far as my old friends and pasttimes were concerned.

Since then, God’s taken me halfway across the world and through a rollercoaster of experiences. And thankfully, he’s helped me re-establish those lost ties and old friendships.

Seasons of growth and hardship, as well as devastation have left “stones of remembrance” that thankfully remain etched in my mind. I look back at a life mixed with pain and rejoicing, and in the midst of it, I see God’s hand crafting every moment, every second, every feeling and emotion. While I can’t go back and recount every single experience here, my hope is that as I start this new venture of documenting God’s work in my life, that you, the reader, will be encouraged, strengthened, and most importantly see the evidence that God is real, that he loves you, and all he wants is a relationship with you.

If you are a Christian today, I encourage you to daily examine yourself. If you were accused of being a Christian, would there be enough evidence in your life to prove it?

If you are not a Christian, I hope that you’ll stick around. My goal is not to condemn you or try to be the ever-annoying Ned Flanders trying to convert you. I’ve done my share of that years ago and it did nothing but leave a bad taste in people’s mouth of what Christianity is not.

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” John 3:16

Here’s the part that many condemning Christians seemingly fail to read. Interesting, considering it’s only one extra sentence.

“For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.” John 3:17