Tutti Frutti (Fruits of the Spirit Intro)

Now do you get it? The jellybean from Wednesday's post was a Tutti Frutti jellybean! The reason I chose that was because we're starting a series on the fruits of the spirit this week. The fruits of the spirit are listed in Galatians 5:22-23 

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law." (NIV)

I've divided them up so that over the course of the next three weeks, we study three per week. The plan looks a little like this:

10/05/2012 (Week 1): Love, Joy, and Peace
10/12/2012 (Week 2): Forbearance, Kindness, and Goodness
10/19/2012 (Week 3): Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self Control

This week, I'm just introducing the lesson and prepping y'all for the coming weeks. I know that this message has been relatively short, but before we dive into the series, I want everyone to meditate on these principles. Try to see if you can identify some of the fruits that you are struggling with in your life. Mine would probably be self-control and patience. Take the quiz below in order to better identify which of the fruits is not so ripe in you:

T/F: I've been called a "doormat" because I'm always putting others' needs, emotions, and desires before my own.
If you answered 'False' then you might need to work on Kindness or Love. Now I'm not saying to completely neglect yourself in order to tend to others, but always remember the correct order in which to place your priorities. J.O.Y (Jesus, Others, Yourself).
T/F: I tend to have days when I'm stressed and weary.On those days, it seems impossible to smile.
If you answered 'True' then you need to Peace out, cheer up and be more Joyful! If you're having trouble with this, try taking a moment and looking around at all of the wonderful blessings that God has placed in your life! I can name one of them for you right off the bat: life itself!
T/F: When I see someone sitting alone in the cafeteria, I go and sit with them.
If you answered 'False' then it might be good for you to work on Kindness and Goodness. Goodness, to me, is a bit of an enigma when first seen in this passage. I dug a little deeper and found out that the general idea of Goodness in this passage is a Christ-like lifestyle and attitude.
T/F: I complain loudly and obnoxiously when I am waiting in a long line.
If you answered 'True' then you need more Patience and Self-Control. I was often scolded in middle school for having a bit of a lack of Self-Control and I was constantly told to think before I speak. It took me a while to become mature enough to do it, but now I try to think before I speak and I get in a lot less trouble because of that. 
T/F: If I can't see it, I refuse to believe it.
If you answered 'True' then you need to have a little Faith! I'll use an example taken from a college student's response to a skeptical professor in order to get you thinking about Faith. Do you have a brain? You can't see it, but you know it's there, right? It has to be there in order for you to be alive. Same with God. You can't physically see Him, but you know He's there because you're alive, right?
T/F: If my dog acts up, I give him a whack with the old newspaper.
If you answered 'True' then you need to be more Gentle. That puppy that you beat with the newspaper is a precious creation of God, treat it how you would want to be treated. 

Hopefully these quizzes have indicated to you which fruits aren't exactly ripe yet. Look at your results and try to work on living out whichever fruit you're struggling with this week. 
Have a blessed week!
- Lindsey :)

Wednespiration 9/26/12

So for this week's Wednespiration, I'm giving you all a hint of what the series that we'll be starting on Friday.

Ready? Here's the hint!

Yes, that is a Jelly Belly jellybean. It is also your only hint as to what we'll be studying starting on Friday.

Too vague? Can't quite figure it out?

Okay, I'll give y'all another hint. But only because you said "please"...or at least I hope you did.

Hint No. 2: We are not studying Jelly Bellies. As delicious as they are, Jelly Bellies have almost nothing to do with the bible.

Oh wow, I think that's a contradiction considering that the picture is of a jellybean. 

It'll make sense Friday when y'all see the message, okay? 

Life or Death

We've all heard the term "life or death situation" used to describe a very critical situation or emergency. We don't hear the term too often because there aren't too many instances in typical, everyday life that could be classified as these (..well, unless you're like, a firefighter, paramedic, doctor, or police officer). We often get a little uncomfortable and scared in the situations because of their magnitude and importance.

What if I told you that every day is a life or death situation?

Deuteronomy 30:19 says "This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live"

Now, I have a feeling I know what you're thinking (and if it's not what you're thinking, then you're suspicions that I am not psychic have just been confirmed, yay!)

How do I choose life?

That's what you were thinking, right? 
...I knew it!

You can choose life by choosing to follow Jesus. In Luke 9:23-24 Jesus says "Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it." Isn't it ironic how we have to die to ourselves daily in order to gain life? Well, despite the irony, it's true. By dying to old selves, we become new, more beautiful creations in Jesus Christ. Instead of being burdened with our old sins and failures, our new self is free and alive and radiant with the joy of Jesus Christ. Everday you have to make this choice, will I die to myself and choose life or will I serve myself and give in to the temporary pleasures of a lost and dying world? The choice is yours, and it is my prayer that you will all make the right one even if it means stepping outside of your comfort zone or saying "no" to temptation when it can be so hard not to.  Another great passage that explains this is Ephesians 2:1-10, which says: "As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." I recently studied this verse in a devotional called "Becoming God's True Woman While I Still Have A Curfew" and the book suggested replacing the second-person pronouns (you's and the like) with first person pronouns (I's and me's). If you have trouble really understanding this message on the intimate and personal level at which it was written, then try using that strategy. Then, maybe, you can better grasp the fact that it was YOU who was dead in your sin, it's YOU whom God showed mercy, grace, and amazing love to, it's YOU to whom God offers the opportunity that if you will take up your cross and die to your old, burdened self, then He will make you alive and a new creation who is free of all of their sins, troubles, and burdens because He will take them from you. God is offering this to anyone who will believe and have the faith to turn their life over to Him, the question is, are you willing to sacrifice your old life in order to become the new creation that God is ready to transform you into?

Wednespiration 9/19/12

"I wanna lose myself, lose myself to find you

I don't care how it sounds

Burn it all to the ground

Consume me with your fire

I wanna lose myself, lose myself to find

To find you"

- From "Lose Myself" by TobyMac

"I am a new creation
I have been born again
And I am a new creation
I have been born again"
- From "New Creation" by Leeland

"So long

Farewell to my old self 

Good-bye to the lie that I can't be someone else

Cause who I was ain't who I am

I know that I've been born again

Those stains of my history are gone, gone, gone

 So long"

- From "So Long" by Natalie Grant

A Quick Update

Hi everyone!
Just wanted to make a few quick announcements to let you all know what's going on....

First of all, I made a Pinterest page to go with this blog and to attract more visitors. If you're on here right now because you saw the Pinterest account, then awesome! It worked! If you would like to view the Pinterest page, the address is http://pinterest.com/four412twelve/. Please go check it out! 

Also, I'm in the process of creating a logo because I know that it's kind of weird having no profile pic. I'll try to have that up as soon as I can.

Finally, Wednespiration starts this Wednesday along with a message this Friday. I'm excited to share them with y'all, I think it's a pretty good one!

That's all for now! Have a blessed day everyone!

- Lindsey :)

Welcome to 4:12

Hi! Welcome to 4:12. I'm Lindsey, the founder of this blog. I am really excited about starting this blog and I'm really praying that it turns out to be an effective tool in ministering and getting to connect with teens like me who have a passionate love for Jesus Christ. For now, I am the only blogger on 4:12, but I intend for that to change. I'd like for this to be a blog where there are multiple authors so if you would like to post a message, testimony, writing, or just an encouraging/ inspiring thought, feel free to e-mail it to me at four412twelve@gmail.com. I'll post it under my account, but I'll give you full credit in the post. As for messages, I intend to post a new message on here every week. (Probably on Fridays). If there is anything that is on your heart that you would like me to write a message about, e-mail me and let me know and I'll see what I can come up with. Also feel free to e-mail me if you have prayer requests, comments, questions, concerns, feedback,  suggestions, or ideas. I would love to hear from y'all! Aside from posting messages on the blog, I'll do Wednespiration (Get it? It's like a cross between the words "Wednesday" and "inspiration"!)  Wednespiration will be a thing where I put some inspirational/ spiritual material that I find in the vast realms of the Internet on here every Wednesday. The material posted on Wednespiration will give y'all a hint as to what the message will be about on Friday. Wednespirations and messages will be the main features of the blog, but I also might put some other cool, Christ related things on here from time to time as well as anything that y'all submit (as long as it's site-appropriate!).

Also, a quick disclaimer. All images on Wednespiration are from sources found on Google images. All quotes will probably be cited specifically.

Hope y'all enjoy the blog!
- Lindsey :)