Thirsty

Has life left you thirsty? I have been left thirsty many times in my life, but i've never felt so satisfied as I have the past year. Since September 2010 I have made minor changes in my everyday life that have created MAJOR chnages to me. I gave up trying to solve my problems- I gave it all to God. I have never felt so relieved and overall happy and satisfied in my life as I have this past year. I've had some major issues come up and not that I always do what's right or handle situations properly, but God has been there and carried me through. I've lost a baby this pregnancy and have been astranged from family and through it all i haven't felt thirsty, i've felt quenched. 

I feel confident in my choices that have led me to where I am today. I have a supportive group of friends and family, I have found a new way to look at love in my life. I can love my husband and daughter with more than I ever thought I could. I still deal with depression and anxiety but not to the extent I did over a year ago. When I am harassed and picked apart I don't react with the anger and violence that once controlled my emotions. Through trusting God, he has made a new me, a better me. I know my struggles aer not over, and I know that I will continue to fall short and screw up, but I have confidence that the more I trust God to lead me I can continue to be overall satisfied, quenched. I may not be thristy, but I hope I always have the thirst I need to crave God. To crave the good.

Psalm 23:6   Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

Loving and leaving

When is it okay to give up? Or is it really giving up at all? When you are put in situations that are out of control or over controlled when is it okay to back out? We are all given families. Our families are made up of biological parents and grandparents, adoptive or step parents and siblings, or sometimes the families we are given don't stick around and our families are made up of friends or even complete strangers. Ultimately we are supposed to love and respect our families, take care of and be taken care of.

In my life I'm in a rough, stressful spot. Whether to leave and love them or stay and fight. It seems the less contact I have, the more I can appreciate and love them. When I am forced into a relationship so unsteady, an emotional rollercoaster for everyone involved and around, it's easier to back out. When the truth is being ignored and twisted to fit, there's no use arguing. When someone argues complete facts, whether they are blind or just choose to ignore to fit what they want to be, it's impossible. Nor can you argue with someone that continues to place all the blame on one person and completely ignores any others involvement in a situation or problem. They can believe or think whatever they want- it's very true to them, but not always true to life and what really happened. It may make them feel better about the way they are acting and reacting to the situation.

When someone continues to persue you and use God against you, listen to God. Not always what the person throws at you but what you read. Responding never helps- arguing your point never works. Rest assured God has laid out many-a scripture for you to take refuge in.

Proverbs (10.19) when words are many, sin is not absent, but he who holds his tongue is wise. (12.15) the way of a fool seems right to him, but a wise man listens to advice.

Just because they are saying God wants you to love and respect your family it doesn't mean you have to sit back and take harassment and lies or put yourself back into the unstable relationship that continues to cause sooo many problems. If you can make peace with your decisions in your heart and with God, then let go. It still hurts to read and hear the nasty rumors and lies that they want people to belive, but as long as you live your life on the right path it will show to the people that matter. Judgments on my actions by people cannot hurt me unless I let them. God will judge me, and since I have a close personal relationship with God he knows exactly how I feel, what I feel, and when I cry out to him for the right answers he helps guide me. I make my own decisions with God's help. Take comfort in that. The devil can use people around you to break- think about it, the emotions and reactions you feel- are they from God or are they devil-driven?? God allows you to be tested, but he wants you to pass, resist the devil- in whatever form he may have.

adventures in mothering- MOPS book quotes

I read a MOPS book this summer and I picked out a few quotes that really stuck out to me. I'll have to get the book out so people can read it, it was amazing, and it made me feel a little bit normal when it came to some of the emotions we run into mothering, or parenting in general.


**Enjoy your kids while they are at home, they are the best years of your life

**A change in perspective can turn your thinking around

** As moms we crave control and rarely have it

**Mothering is an adventure, an ongoing process of growing

**Showing our kids Jesus through our actions

**As your children change- your mothering habits must as well

** We all want to be balanced, better moms

**We all get angry, tired and fed up

**We depend too much on undependable things- God is dependable and trustworthy- Depend on Him

The book talked alot about the many roles we have daily; mothers, daughters, wives, friends, etc and how we can stay in touch with ourselves, the person we are, instead of leaving ourselves behind to be "just moms". I know I've done it and for way too long- I have put Bella first; above me, above my husband, and above God, now im working everyday to find that "balance". Bella needs me, so does my husband, and Lord knows I need some time for myself, and most of all, I need God.

LOVE matters MOST

Here are some sayings about LOVE:

***Life is all about LOVE

***Learn to LOVE unselfishly

***God wants his family to be known for its LOVE more than anything

***LOVE God
LOVE people

***LOVE leaves a legacy

***You can give without loving, but you cannot LOVE without giving

***Whenever you give your time, you are making a sacrifice, and sacrifice is the essence of LOVE

***LOVE
-top priority
-primary objective
-greatest ambition
-driving force

***The essence of LOVE is not what we think or do or provide for others, but how much we give of ourselves

How to bring Glory to God

There's a new song on the Joy FM saying in all you do you can bring glory to God. So what are some ways to bring Him the glory??

*Worshipping Him
      - motivated by LOVE, Thanksgiving and Delight (NOT DUTY)
      - worship is a lifestyle

*Loving other believers
       -learn to LOVE as God does

*Becoming like Christ
      -develop CHRISTlike character

*Serving others with our gifts
      - our gifts are for the benefit of others

*Telling others about HIM
       -introducing others to Jesus, help them discover purpose, preparing them for eternal destiny

Do Good.

"Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, for as long as you can." -John Wesley

If only this were a motto that all people lived by. Can you imagine everyone being good, doing good, all the time? Jesus did. He spent his life in ministry loving people, loving everyone. He did good, in every way he could, in all the places he could, at every time he could, for all the people he could, for as long as he could. *Which happens to be forever, He gave his life to save us. The ultimate gift, He did good for all the people who do bad.* His goodness should flow out of us like rays of SON. Reaching out wherever you, Do Good. Random acts of kindness could be the only "God" people see. This doesn't always mean using your mouth to speak of Jesus, actions can speak louder than words. It's the GOOD deeds they see and can't understand. It's the kind words they may not deserve that make them think. It's the LOVE you show for everyone that they want more of. Do Good.

But he who has been forgiven little loves little

Luke 7: 36-50
47) Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven- for she loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little.

This won't have the best wording but, a very wise person once said:
      When you realize how big of a sinner you are, and how much sin plays a part in your life- the bigger Jesus can be in your life.

He reaches out to the sick and broken, weak and lost. When you come to the realization that you are a sinner and the ways of the world aren't working, when you're looking for more Jesus is there reaching to you. He looks past those who are self righteous and toward the humble. When we realize that we need his forgiveness we can humble ourselves. There is nothing we can do to earn it. It is a free gift. Accept it now.

Dinner for Schmucks

So Dinner for Schmucks is definitely not a must-see movie, it actually kinda sucked. I think Paul Rudd and Steve Carrel are both really funny, but this was not their best movie. Regardless of the bad story line and trying-too hard to be funny feel, we can get a message from it. Let me first explain to you the basic story line. 

Tim (Rudd) wants this big promotion because he thinks his girlfriend will marry him if he gets it. In order to get this promotion, he has to attend a dinner party at his employer's house. The dinner party attendees are supposed to bring "idiots" as guests. At the end of the dinner whoever brought the biggest idiot gets the job, and the "idiot" gets a trophy. Tim isn't so sure if he's going to the dinner or wants to go because he realizes that's its a sleazy thing to do. After bumping into Barry (Carrel) he thinks it is a sign that he should bring him.After weird and crazy fights, break-ins and a crazy stalker, that all seemed to be Barry's fault. He goes to the dinner with Barry, (during the dinner he tells Barry about the competition), Barry wins biggest "idiot" and because of his goofy, not-so-there character, he is glad he won. Tim stands up to his boss and let's them know how ridiculous this tradition is. (At the end Barry has a dinner party and he calls it  "The Breakfast of Champions" I thought it was pretty funny). 

So you are probably wondering what we can take out of this, well after watching it I immediately thought of this; Maybe God puts people in our paths not for us to change but for them to change us. In life we find people we think we can change, or we want to change. Whether it be there clothes, personality, hobbies, we want them to seem more "mainstream" or "normal". We want people to be more "acceptable" so we can be seen in public with them or so we won't be embarrassed when people find out you know them. It is really a fault on our part. Who are we to decide that person needs change? Aren't we supposed to accept and love everyone not for what they have or wear but what kind of person they are?

"Do not judge others, or you too will be judged." Matthew 7:1

"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear." Matthew 6:25

"Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?" Luke 12:25

This is not only meant for us, but others. Why worry about what they wear or how they act? Does it change the content of their character?  We should be encouraging to one another, weird hobbies and all.

These people that are put in our lives can change us; Barry makes Tim a more caring person. He cares not about what his boss thinks and if he'll get the promotion, but he cares more about people. He realizes that Barry, although strange and klutzy, that he's a good person. Tim cares less about Barry's mouse-taxidermy hobby and more about Barry the person. Tim was changed in the end. He stopped lying to fix situations, he started being honest and open. Barry changed Tim for the better. Let those people in your life change you.

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. Ephesians 4:29

some weird poetry type rambling...

When hearts are black, the skies are grey
we walk about them everyday.
These people talk their hearts are cold,
they'll never see those streets of gold.
Casting crowns upon the heads,
of the worried, sick or dead.
Those people walk, wide strides, big steps,
how will they feel when taking those last reps?
Will they care they never knew, the King of Kings,
the King of Jews?

John 14 Jesus leaves the Disciples

"I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing." Jesus in John 14:12

I have been over this hundreds of times in my head and I do not understand why it takes so many of us so long to grasp this; We believe in God. We believe he is the creator and God our father. We believe the only way to him is through his son Jesus Christ our Lord. I see many people, and I have done it too, we believe in our heads but it still doesn't change the way we live. Do we really believe?

This is a silly illustration but what the heck! During the presidential election, you probably looked into the different candidates, learned their past and what they want to accomplish in office, their morals, religious beliefs, etc. You then pick your candidate you will vote for and you will try to get your friends and family to believe he (or she) is the best choice and you should put your faith in them. We proactively act as tools in their campaign to bring people to them.

So why if we believe in Jesus Christ do we  just lay there. We act like doormats. We are not fully putting our faith in Christ. I know I'll have people jump on my back for this, like they have before, I get the argument "well all you need is faith in Christ and you will be saved," and I hate when people argue, "its not about getting other people to Christ, it's about growing in your walk with him."  How can we say it's just about us? If it were just about us why would we be called to serve others? To act as disciples of Christ to lead others to Him. ...."...will do what I have been doing." What had Jesus been doing? Miracles- okay so we can't really expect do perform the miracles Jesus did, but he treated people with unconditional love. He taught the word of God so that people could be saved through him. If we weren't meant to spread the word of God and reach out to people, it would have been pointless for Jesus to come. It would have been pointless for him to die. He came, He loved and He died. 


We are to do as Jesus did. We are to live as Jesus lived. We are to love as Jesus loved. 

John 14:21 "Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me."
John 14:23 "If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching." 

Jesus taught us to witness. It may be through prayer, through our actions, words or plainly the way we treat people. So make sure everyday you are living as a disciple of Christ. It's not always easy. There will always be good days and bad days, but what we have to look forward to is a life of unconditional love. An overflow of satisfaction. Grace and Mercy.

 




Do as Jesus did. We are to live as Jesus lived. We are to love as Jesus loved.

Friend > noun.

Friend > noun.

-a person attached to another by feelings of affection or personal regard.

-a person who gives assistance; patron; supporter
-a person who is on good terms with another; a person who is not hostile
-a member of the same nation, party, etc
-a member of the Religious Society of friends; a Quaker.  

If you look up the definition of 'friend' online those are the definitions you find. And if we are calling ourselves friends or others friends, shouldn't this be what we mean? Im finding more and more, especially with girls, we call people friends who don't deserve it. We, at times, can all be bad friends. We turn our "supporting" role into many other things it shouldn't be. 

I am not a perfect friend. I have talked about other friends, listened to gossip about other friends. I tend to get very jealous of friends and I have not upheld the title of supporter when they might have needed me the most. But why continue this trend? Who says its too late to turn things around? To be a better friend. 

It seems like sometimes we treat complete strangers with more kindness than we would our best friend. We use our friends. We use them to vent to, to borrow their stuff, to use their toys, how can we be sure that we are always there for them? If we are acting selfishly you are not being a friend. It's like being in a relationship, whether it be boyfriend/girlfriend, or husband/wife, we have to act with the others feelings and well being in our mind. If we only use our friends to gossip to or to keep our secrets or to lie for us, we are not being a friend. A friend would not use a friend to lie for them. If you really cared about someone why would you selfishly out them in a position that could hurt them or your friendship? 
                                  Jealousy
If we love our friends and care about their well being why do we get so jealous? Everyone has something in their life to be happy for or to look forward to, so why do we dwell on what they have that we don't? I am super jealous at times. I love my friends, but it's really not fair to them if I'm always mopey because I want what they have. I have a husband that loves me and a beautiful daughter that I adore, I have a house and food and 2 paid off cars, I have a relationship with my savior Jesus Christ, so why do I get so down and out? I am constantly on a day to day basis trying to just be happy for my friends. Happy for their life, their accomplishments, everything. I need to be joyful that they are happy. 
                                Bragging
Friends brag. And it sucks. It's one thing to be excited about a new pet, car, outfit, whatever it is, but c'mon, hos nasty is it when you brag? I've bragged and I have friends that brag. Are we so unhappy/unsatisfied with life that we have to make our friends jealous, or make them sin. Ya, sin. It's one of the ten commandments.
10 “You shall not covet your neighbor's house; you shall not covet your neighbor's wife, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor's.”
Okay, so jealous friend and bragging friend are both sinning. Friend: don't make your friend feel like they need something more to compete with you and other friend: be happy with what you have, supprt your friend, be happy for them when they are happy.
                                 Gossip 
Okay, so this can get better with age, especially when you are not in school anymore. But really, we were all nasty in middle school and high school. Just stop! Stop and think when you are hearing it or stop when you are saying it. We always think about it too late. "We really shouldn't have said that." But then again, stop telling your secrets! I cannot tell you this enough. Keep private matters to yourself. Sex talk first off shouldn't be in school nor is it something to discuss with your friends. It's like this thing in the back of our minds, we never really think about though, we assume, subconsciously, if a someone tells you a secret, then it's something to be talked about, whether with that person or any persons. We tend to hear and repeat. ANYTHING YOU DO NOT WANT EVERYONE TO KNOW, KEEP TO YOURSELF. We really should be able to have one friend that we can confide in, but in all seriousness how many of us have more than one bff? (I have 2) I really like being able to share things with them. I wish all three of us could be completely open 100% of the time. But sometimes we pick one friend to confide in, it's so hard when you think we are all friends, I'm sure they wouldn't mind if I told the other. We have to stop with this mindset. 
I like knowing what's going on with people from high school and if they put it on facebook it must be okay if you know.But when it gets to the point of you telling someone in private and it makes it to facebook or whether you are trying to find something out about them without letting them know, it's rude, it sucks, you would hate it if they did that to you.  Just stop. Why do we care. If it's private, it's private. If they wanted you to know they would have told you. If you're not their friend I'm not saying it's not okay to care, but you cant gossip and pry into their lives. 
 _____________________________________________________
most importantly friends do not judge. they are not selfish, they truly care for one another.
they want whats best for the other and will do everything in their power to make it happen. friends appreciate each other. make time in you busy lives with your busy schedules and have a date with your friend. they help make life worth living.
_____________________________________________________

I wrote this a couple blogs ago;
In Matthew 22 a pharisee asked Jesus, what is the greatest commandment? In verse 37, Jesus replied, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and Prophets hang on these two commandments.
________________________________________________________
 
Noun>  used to name or identify a person, place, thing, quality, or action
_________________________________________________________
Let you friendship be an action, not just a word to describe your relationship. Be an ACTIVE FRIEND> love and be loved. respect and be respected, care and be cared for!

Respect your friends. Love them as yourself. If you find that you cannot trust a friend be honest. I cannot trust you. Break the ties that bond you, take a break, if you both come back together and STOP acting selfishly, build a better friendship.

Building a better friendship starts with YOU. YOU need to be the better friend first!

Finding Time to Calm the Storm

So working in customer service, I have found, is far from the right job for me. And while I may be here until I finish school I am slowly learning some things I'm good at, and quite a few things I'm not. I'm an "emphasizer" I almost immediately feel someone's sadness, anger or joy and a tone of voice can either get you what you want or put you further away from it. I guess I'm not a people person. I thought I was. Thought wrong. I get phone calls 5 days a week, questions I cannot answer, people I cannot understand and voices that make me cry. When you are asking a question or asking for something, do you demand it? Or do you ask politely? People assume if they cannot get on the internet right away there's a tower down or it's out problem, FIX IT. I'm finding it very challenging to stay calm and treat these people with the respectful tone I'm supposed to keep. I don't believe the policy 'customer is always right', because they're not, they can be wrong, VERY WRONG> so how can I politely calm the storm? How can I be upfront and honest without being nasty? This balance is hard for me. I want to please people. I want everyone to be happy all the time, no problems, and I expect when there are problems, that people should understand. Stuff happens. Accidents are made, technology fails. We put so much dependence on computers, internet and phones, there will be times when they fail. When they don't work, or when WE can't work them.

We tend to get so wrapped up in the storm of life. It's pushing and pulling us in all directions. With greed and selfishness always in our minds it's hard to take the time to empathize, to apologize, and to understand. We can't always have what we want, when we want. I have found that is the way our society is these days. I can remember a time when we didn't have internet, or a computer for that matter. How did we communicate?! Dare I say phone or travel? Is it so much more convenient to be demanding? Treating the people, who may be taking your order or answering the phone, with disrespect and anger? Why can't we take the time to listen, understand and empathize in the situation. We jump to conclusions because we want answers and we want them now. You cannot always assume it's someone else's fault. Blame yourself first, others last. Take the time to see whats happening and why. This blog is directed to the people who make my day miserable. The people who cannot take the time to see if they are wrong, they jump on the phone and then at me. Please please please take the time to calm the storm. Whether you start it or your just in it.

Business is not just business. You have to have morals. Both parties have to be morally and ethically responsible in every situation. You cannot expect to always be right. Treat others with kindness. When I was a waitress a man that went to my church would come in with his family on Sundays. He did not recognize me, but I sure knew him. Inside the church he was polite, kind, talked to anyone. On Sundays at Beefs he was rude. Condescending. I always felt inferior to him. Like he knew he was better than me. Once he realized he knew me from church his attitude changed. But my view of him never will. He came into my place of business wanted my full attention, respect and service, but refused to treat me with common decency. I guess all y rambling comes down to this: I want to fully be able to serve others, I want to give them my respect and obedience, but when you demand things and treat others poorly you will have to wait. Jesus calls us to be kind all the time, just think of your waiting as time for us to cool down so we can treat you with kindness.Treat others how you want to be treated.


Proverbs 21: 23 He who guards his mouth and his tongue keeps himself from calamity. 10 Drive out a mocker, and out goes strife; quarrels and insults are ended. 11 A fool gives full vent to his anger, but a wise man keeps himself under control. 
17:14 Starting a quarrel is like breaching a dam; so drop the matter before a dispute breaks out.
18:2 A fool finds no pleasure in understanding but delights is airing his own opinions.

What Would Jesus Do? Love!

What Would Jesus Do? In any situation or circumstance Jesus would Love. 

In Matthew 22 a pharisee asked Jesus, what is the greatest commandment? In verse 37, Jesus replied, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and Prophets hang on these two commandments.
1 Corinthians 13:13 And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is Love.
Love Your Enemies:
Matthew 5:44 But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, (46) If you love those who love you, what reward will you get?


Luke 6:35 But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend them without expecting to get anything back.

Love:
Romans 12:9 Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. (10) Be devoted to one another in brotherly love.
Romans 13:10 Love does no harm to it's neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.

1 Corinthians 13:3 If I give all I poses to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing. (4) Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. (5) It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no records of wrongs. (6) Love dose not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. (7) It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always preserves.(8) Love never fails.
Why Do We Love?
We love because Jesus clearly stated that it is the first and greatest commandment, we love because we are made with the need to love and be loved.
But 1 John 4:19 says it best: We love because he first loved us.
1 John 3:1 How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be children of God!

1 John 3:14 We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love our brothers. Anyone who does not love remains in death.
1 John 4:10 This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an anointing sacrifice for our sins.
1 John 4:8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. (12) No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.



How Do We Love?
1 John 3:16 This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. (18) Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions in truth.
1 John 5:3 This is love for God: to obey his commands.
 


The Bible teaches us what love is, what it does, and how we should love. Loving isn't always our first instinct or reaction, but it's the most important one we can have; whoever does not love his neighbor does not love God. Let us love God by loving him. Obey his greatest command to LOVE> EVERYONE!

Faith and Good Works

James- "Real Christian faith is shown by one's good works" -Know Your Bible- James clarifies that good works will follow true faith.

Listening and Doing. Faith and Deeds.

When I spoke at the youth group some odd weeks ago I tried to emphasize this; you are saved through faith. Works aren't necessary, but when you truly believe and have Jesus in you heart there will be a change. "Good works will follow true faith." I am so glad I found a book with that clearly stated!

James 2:14 What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds?
2:17 faith itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.

James 2:18-19 But someone will say, "I have faith, I have deeds." Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do. You believe there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that-and shudder.

James 2:24 You see that a person alone is justified by what he does and not by faith alone.
2:26 As the body without spirit is dead, so is faith without deeds is dead. 


This is a silly illustration but it may help:

When you have a favorite movie (this is your "faith") you tell people, post it on facebook, bring it up in conversations, etc(these are your deeds). But what good is it to have a favorite movie that you don't share it? Is it really your favorite> if it was you would be excited to share it, learn about it, get other people to watch it.

We should be like this with our faith. Share it. Spread it. Get excited about it! If you don't share it, get excited about it>do you really believe it? 

Knowing What You Believe

I cannot stress how important it is to know what you believe. It's kinda like saying Blink 182 is your favorite band, yet you do not know the titles or words to their songs;you don't know they're names or past. When I say I have a favorite band I try to learn everything I can about them, why don't we do that with our religion? Is it more important to know the words to Adam's song than the words of a verse from the Bible? Your religion can define you as a person. It can make you a better person,, if you let it, or it can make you seem like a crazy. Well I went to church and they said it's okay to drink wine, so I believe what they believe. Really? You are willing to SAY you believe everything, even though you don't take the time to really read into it? What if that same church believed we should kill anyone who doesn't believe what we believe? Do you really believe?

It's become apparent to me that not everyone knows what they believe. Being a Christian the most important thing to believe in is that Jesus Christ died for our sins. You are saved by faith through grace alone. But any church can tell you that's what they believe. But if you believe in Jesus Christ you must believe that the Bible is the complete word of God. Everything in it is good and true. If you are saying you believe what this church says and they aren't telling you everything they believe things can get weird, fast. You would be shocked to find out what some religions hide, so they can seem "mainstream". They want numbers in their church and if they have to withhold some facts of their beliefs it's okay to them. It's not okay for me. I want to know if I'm joining a church/religion/cult, I want to know everything,. It's a big step joining a church. You are saying this is part of who I am. I believe what they teach, I believe what they believe. Wouldn't you want to know if you joined a church that said they believed this, but really they only believe it if it's written like this, or we kinda believe it, but this is really how we see it.

I read the Bible. I can't say I always read it daily, but I sure try to put as much time as my lazy self will allow me, I believe that what the Bible says is truth. I may not understand everything in it, but I look it up, ask questions, go to church, I dive into what I cannot comprehend, what I don't understand, so that I know when I say, "I believe in Christianity. I believe it all." That i really do believe it. I don't add or take away things to fit my life, to fit what I wish was or could be. If I believe in the WORD OF GOD> I BELIEVE IT COMPLETELY.  Read up on what your religion teaches and what they believe, make sure you believe. Read around and ask questions.


2 Timothy 3:16-17
All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

Psalm 119:160
All your words are true;
all your laws are eternal

Bob Marley and the Bible

 Okay, so Bob Marley and the Bible. Not 2 things that you would normally put together. Maybe Bob Marley and dreads, but not the Bible, he was a Rastafarian, right? But looking into his life and legacy, he was a man of peace and love. He wanted all people to be equals. We are going to look at some of his famous quotes and how they can relate to what is in the Bible and also we are going to briefly look into Rastafarian"ism".

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 Bob Marley once said, "Don't gain the world and loose your soul, wisdom is better the silver or gold".The first thing I thought of was TobyMac's song: "I don't wanna gain the world just to loose my soul" then I was quickly reminded that it's a verse in the Bible. Was Bob Marley quoting Matthew 16: 25-26  For whoever wants to save his life will loose it, but whoever looses his life for me will find it. What good will it be for a man if he gains the world, yet forfeits his soul? Sounds pretty similar to me.

Another quote he has said is. "When one door is closed, don't you know that many more are open" There's no Bible verse I have found the come out and says it like this, but it is similar to Revelation 3:8 I know your deeds. See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut. This thought is taught over and over again in Sunday school. God doesn't shut one door without opening a window, or two! He tries to lead us in the direction he wants us to go. That one closed door wasn't meant for us.

"The greatness of a man is not in how much wealth he acquires, but in his integrity and his ability to affect those around him positively" Bob Marley sums up a few verses in this phrase,
Proverbs 10:2 Ill gotten treasures are of no value, but righteousness delivers from death.  Hebrews 13:16 And do not forget to do good and to share with others. 

 

Our God is love, Jesus is love. Bob Marley says, "Love would never leave us alone" and "There will never be no love at all" He's right!  He loves us unconditionally, he will never leave us or forsake us; Hebrews 13:5 Never will I leave you, never will I forsake you. Deuteronomy 31:6...for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.Therefore, if God is with us always, love would never leave us, and God will always be.Psalm 90: 2 Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God. He was there in the beginning, here is here now and he will always be.

 

 "Overcome the devils with a thing called love" Bob Marley. When he says "devils", he's talking about our struggles, our sins. What the devil uses to get in the way of our relationship with God. The only way to defeat our "devils", is to grow deeper in our relationship with Christ. He alone can defeat our sins. He became sin on the cross when he died. His love for us and our love in return for him is the only way to stop Satan. Satan hates any good, happiness, love. When we love God we obey his commands, we resist temptation and turn from evil. Love is the only way to defeat our "devils".

 

 Another great quote from Bob Marley is "Live for yourself and you will live in vain; live for others, and you will live again". You will find that this is a common message in the Bible. Jesus taught to serve your neighbors, don't be proud or greedy. Jesus called his disciples to leave everything they had to follow him. If we are following Jesus he wants us to serve him by serving others. 

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 So we've just looked at how alot of the things Bob Marley believed in was closely reacted to the Bible, but was Bob Marley a Christian? No. Sadly not. Even though I love his music and (some) of his beliefs, he was a Rastafarian. When I first looked it up I had no idea it was an actual religion, well it is. It has similarities to Christianity and Judaism, though. 

Rastafari--it is a religion and way of life.

*they speak out against poverty, oppression, inequality (religious and global).

It was founded in Jamaica in the 20's and 30's by Marcus Garvey (they think if him as the second John the Baptist). The date generally said to be November 2, 1930, but based off a movement in the 1920's. 1930 was the year that Haile Selassie I was crowned emperor of Ethiopia. 

 

 Rastafarians believe in the Judeo-Christian God, they call him Jah. They believe Jah was manifested on earth as Jesus, who Rastas believe was black. They refer to Haile Selassie as His Imperial Majesty, or H.I.M. They worship him as divine.

Haile Selassie- previous name Ras Tafari Makonnen (he was a devout Christian and rejected

 

TEXTS: Holy Piby- the "Black Man's Bible (a version of the Christian Bible that has been altered to remove all the deliberate distortions that are believed to have been made by white leaders during it's translation into English. The Ethiopian national epic, Kebra Negast, is also respected but less than the Bible.

What do they believe? They honor Old Testament prophets. They do not believe in an afterlife, they call Africa ZION (heaven on earth). They believe they are immortal, physically and spiritually (everliving). Babylon- white power structure of Europe and the Americas. They seek to resist Babylon, they believe it is the white political power structure that has been holding the black race down for centuries. Rasta sees that the shackles of slavery held down blacks physically; now they feel they are being held down through poverty, illiteracy, inequality and trickery by the white man.

Practices/Symbols: probably best known for their use of marijuana. They use it during their Rastafari rituals, they think they have found scriptural support, found in Psalm 104:14, Genesis 3:18, Exodus 10:12 and Proverbs 15:17, that proves that God made "grass" for man. They also use it for medicinal purposes. Wearing their hair in Dreadlocks- symbolizes to them; the biblical command not to cut ones hair (Lev 21:5) the appearance of the lion's mane, rep. strength and the Lion of Judah. Naturalness and simplicity and Rastas roots in Africa. Common colors affiliated with Rasta are red, gold and green. The Lion of Judah represents Haile Selassie as the King of Kings, Africa and strength. Most of them are vegetarians or vegans, they follow a dietary law called Ital. The food is completely natural and eaten as raw as possible. And they reject the use of alcohol.

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 Was Bob Marley a Christian? No. He was a Rastafari, they have some similar beliefs like Christians, they believe in God/Jesus, they believe all people are equal, they want to live according to the rules in the Old Testament. He was a man of peace and love. The kinda that only comes from God. He may have believed in some "questionable" things, but I still believe that God could have used him. But I would not go into the slums of Jamaica; they are holding a grudge that "whites" are holding them down, they probably would not accept us in their home. We could probably follow some of their eating guidelines, they are probably very healthy, no canned items, no bleached sugars, flours, breads. I've never smoked the ganja before so I can't really have an opinion on that. Alot of people say it brings you closer to God. Prayer brings me closer, and pot can get us into too much trouble since it's illegal, so I don't know if it's worth it.

 

In the word's of Bob Marley:

 

*I don't stand for the black man's side, I don' t stand for the white man's side. I stand for God's side.
*My  future is righteousness.
*Open your eyes, look within. Are you satisfied with the life you're living?
*You ain't gonna miss your water until your well runs dry

Do People Believe in Hell?

I believe in Hell, this will be yet another blog about everybody else, of course this is a blog that I am writing so you will get to hear what I think, as well as what I get straight from my Bible, and what my friends, families and co-workers!

I believe if you truly repent then someone as perfect as Jesus will accept. He's not tied by the errors of humanity.

                I think that in some way or another everyone will either have the chance to hear about Jesus and accept him, or Jesus will look at his heart. Its scary, I want to believe there's not a hell, but i cant pick and choose what i believe out of the Bible, so I'm kinda obligated to believe in hell. I just hope everybody gets a fair chance.

So when i put this question on facebook these are the responses I got:

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 Ya its in the Bible there's most definitely a Hell. I actually read a book once I believe called Divine Visions of Hell where God actually had someone experience it to warn ppl about the terrors of Hell. Some of the things he said was your ...always burning. Your skin and such will burn off and you feel every last bit of it and then it would all come back just to burn off again. And demons would terrorize you continuously. 

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I do believe in hell. Jesus talked about hell and I think He described it pretty well and I know I don't want to go there. Sinners are going to hell...but for the grace of God, that would be me. But He sent His Son to make a way for me to have eternal life with Him even though I sin. 

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personally i view hell as a place tats goin to b diff for everyone. i think we'll all go to same place but every individual will experience somethin diff. everyone might not necessary burn iternity by fire like its widely believed but inste...ad burn by fear r a burning agony of somethin they consider to b the worst thing to happen to them. for example if lets call it a 'livin hell' to someone would b fear of drowning they might feel a iternity of drownin same if someone worst fear was bein buried alive they might go through an iternity of bein buried alive. hell to me is a place of ur worst fear so as another example if i went i might go through iternity of drowning.

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I don't think that death is a finish line after which God closes the door on us forever. If there is a hell, I believe that the door OUT of hell is always open ~ and outside that door God waits with love and open arms for ALL of us ALL the time FOREVER :)

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I as a person - do not believe in hell. The idea of hell is the most wicked people go there and non-believers. While - I agree wicked people should have a punishment - eternal damnation is too much and doesn't fit in with concept of a loving and caring super deity. People are products of their environment and their genes. However, I believe in the good of people and given the right tools people can be moral. Maybe not given in the constraints of our society and laws but moral nonetheless.

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The way I look at it. I don't deserve heaven, and neither does any sinner, but the fact that God would even consider giving sinners a way into heaven is something that all of mankind should be grateful for. Its like giving a friend a ticket, and that friend throws the ticket away and still wants to get in. Its unfortunate that good people go to hell, but in the grand scheme of things... every good person I know is still a sinner.

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So as you can see, most people think there is a hell, the beliefs they have about differ somewhat though. I cannot be the one to magically change your mind or open your eyes to the truth, you have to find that through God. We can ultimately read the Bible to find the predictions Jesus made about hell. 

I'm actually supposed to be speaking to the youth of my church sometime this month and this was my topic I chose; Sheep and Goats. We talk about unbelievers going to hell, what the Bible says hell will be like and how can we be saved from hell?

People argue saying "if God is so loving why would he send people to hell?" The answer: BECAUSE WE DESERVE IT. We have free will and we choose over and over again to sin and do wrong in the eyes of the God. God has the power to change our minds, to take away our free will. But he lets us choose. He is the master, the creator, not the puppeteer. Though he can and will use those of us who let him, he will use us for his will. He will use us to save his people, to love the unlovable. 

So what does the Bible say?

If you read in Matthew 25 ( verses 31-46) He explains how, on judgment day, we will be separated like sheep and goats. (The sheep are believers, the goats non-believers or those with superficial faith). The sheep will go to the right *to eternal life* and the goats will go to the left *eternal fire*. In verse 46 Jesus clarifies that hell was not meant for us but for Satan and his fallen angels. 

So is there really a hell?

According to the Bible, and Jesus,  yes, there is. It specifies it more as being condemned, or eternal damnation, a second death, eternal punishment.  2 Peter 2:4 For God did not spare the angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell, putting them into gloomy dungeons. In Revelation 21, hell is described as being a fiery lake of burning sulfur, the second death.

Will Jesus accept someone if they repent on judgment day? 

I don't know. I haven't found anything to support or dismiss this question. I think Jesus knows the heart and he will look at our hearts, but when we have such a close and personal relationship with him he knows us better. I don't want to risk spending eternity in hell with gnashing of teeth, I want to do what I can today and tomorrow letting Jesus know that I'm his, he's my savior, I know I'm not worthy of heaven. My advice, find him today, live for him today! Don't be the test-dummy! 

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Hell is the absence of God. God is good. If there is no good, there's no God. Hell is a place without any good. 

Our Coming Judgment

Those of you who were lucky/unlucky enough to hear me talk tonight (im not sure what everyone thinks, but i hope it's nothing too bad) anyways, I had a meltdown. I am so passionate about Jesus' love for us, I couldn't help but to cry. He is so much to us, and he should be the biggest part of our lives, I just wanted to stress that to everyone. He IS our reason for being. But this is the outline of what my talk was supposed to be about;

Do we live with today in mind? Or tomorrow?

Do we live for eternal gratification?  Or instant satisfaction? 

Are we living like sheep? Or goats?

2 Undeniable truths: one day we will die and one day we will be judged

Matthew 25:31-33, 41,46   Sheep and Goats

When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.....Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels'.....Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.

Sheep (on the right) are going to heaven- these are true believers, people who have a personal relationship with Christ, the sheep are forgiven, therefore they are saved.

Goats (on the left) are going to eternal punishment. Hell. They are those who mocked, ridiculed, reject Jesus, and those who have superficial faith.

We will be judged based on if we are forgiven or not. If we are forgiven we should be living like sheep. Following the shepherd.

Who will be the judge on judgment day?

2 John 5:22

Moreover, the Father judges no one, but has entrusted all judgment to the Son,

This verse tells us that God has appointed Jesus to be the judge. How perfect, he gets to choose who will live forever. When Jesus Christ died for our sins, he suffered through hell. (He descended into hell- its in the apostles creed.) I think he knows who should go there. We all deserve it because we are sinners, but that's why a relationship with him is so important.

Will all the goats go to hell?

1 Peter 4:18

If it is hard for the righteous to be saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?

Without Christ, the Bible says no one can be truly saved from the punishment for his sins, hell. With man's own efforts salvation is impossible, but with God everything is possible.

With God- Possible          Without God- Impossible

If you're not living FOR God today, why would he want you to live WITH him tomorrow?

What does the Bible say hell will look like?

(2 Peter refers to hell as a gloomy dungeon.)

Matthew 8:12

But the subjects of the kingdom will be thrown outside, into the darkness, where there will be  weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Revelation- the lake of fire, fiery lake of burning sulfur

Also, in Revelations it talks about the lake of fire being the “second death”

            Revelation 21:8

 

After we physically die (our first death) our hell would be a spiritual place since our bodies are not physically thee.

            The lake of fire is the future hell. It is the second death that will come after our judgment; after we are separated like the goats and sheep in Matthew 25. This hell will be a physical hell.

1^st death – spiritual hell  

2^nd death- physical and spiritual hell, for eternity

How do we go from a spiritual hell to a physical hell?

            John 5:28-30

Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice and come out- those who have done good will rise to live, and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned.

 

Jesus will rise everyone’s physical bodies up from the grave- everyone, forgiven or not, will be given a resurrected body. From there we are judged. The forgiven (sheep) will live and the goats will be condemned.

Rev. Tom Brown puts this hell into perspective for us: “today hell is like a jail (spiritual only). In the future, the jail will be thrown into security prison- the lake of fire (spiritual and physical).

Can we, or how can we, be saved from hell?

            Luke 23:42-43 (One of the criminals being crucified next to Jesus)

Then he said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom." Jesus answered him, "I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise."

 

Jesus thought anyone who truly repented could be saved. So the only way to eternal life is through the blood of Jesus Christ that was spilled through his physical death when he was crucified. We are to repent for our sins and ask his forgiveness.

Ephesians 2:1.8.13.18

As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins....For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith....But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ....For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.

We are spiritually dead from our sins and are condemned to death, but in Jesus we have life again.

            Look back at Matthew 25:41:

Hell was not meant for us. He chose us to be with him, and He gives us the free will to choose him back. 

We call ourselves Christians, we claim to have Jesus in our hearts; then why don’t we take his word more seriously?

He has threatened us with hell as punishment if we reject him. Why do we reject him? Do we think he will back down on his word? God follows through with his promises! If we lift him up he wont let us down!

-          Internal and external change (when you accept Jesus)

Make sure if you’ve been calling yourself a Christian; make sure you share those changes with others. We are called to be servants to our neighbors. We should be reaching out to save everyone. Hell is a place that was not meant for us, let’s make sure we don’t go there.

Some non-believers think they will have to give up so much to get so little, or they will have to work too hard at it. They are so wrong.

If you accept a life with Jesus he will do the changing. And it’s a changing for the better.

What a Life with Christ looks like or means for us?

            When we have a life in Christ we are looking at persecution for our beliefs and trials to make us strong, but we also have faith and a life of meaning. We have faith knowing that Christ will always have our backs. We have faith knowing that our lives are not meaningless. We have a creator that loves us. He can give us a life of gratification. When we fall into our temptations we only get instant satisfaction, we will always be looking to the next thing we can get. It’s a sad, lonely, meaningless life.

         Psalm 18:46-50   -----look up

            Psalm 37:27-28   -----look up

No one said being a Christian was easy, or that it made life easy. You still have problems, you still go through rough patches, but it lets face it; without God you have nothing. Nothing to look forward to, no one to lean on. With God, you know that there is a bigger picture that we cannot see; you know that he is always with you.

If being a Christian made life perfect, everyone would be a Christian, because everyone wants the easy way out.

He is a God of promises and he stands by those promises. He is our shield, our savior, our guiding light.

Remember: if you live for today, you’re living for instant satisfaction, if you live for tomorrow, you’re living for eternal gratification.

Stay Strong, Be Courageous

The Lord commands Joshua   (and so he commands us)

I was reading in Joshua last night, in between dancing and filling up juice cups with Bella, and thinking, "why in the world did i want to talk at youth? what am i thinking?" The truth is, is that I'm scared. I feel like I have so much to say and so much passion about Jesus and I'm scared I will go up there and be boring. I stutter when I'm nervous and reading out loud, and I know what I have to say I don't want to be so scared that I have to read my notes. I do have to use them as a guideline, I get off topic easily or loose my train of thought. Anyways, here I go again!

After Moses had died the Lord went to Joshua (Moses' aid's son) and told him he was to lead God's people across the Jordan River to take over the land that God had promised them. God tells Joshua that he will be with him like he was with Moses. Everything he promised Moses he will also promise him.

Joshua 1:7 Be strong and courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave to you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go.

9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go."

God will give us everything he promises, all we need to do is obey. Go and do his will. We will be living a a life of purpose and meaning. We can only have true strength when we have God. We can't be strong on our own. We have emotions that complicate our life's situations and we so easily fall into temptation.

Don't think that the Lord stopped commanding or promising with Joshua. He has made promises to us and we can only receive what he has promised when we obey him, when we obey the Commandments. We are not forced into believing in Christ and accepting him as our savior, but if we don't, we loose everything God has promised to us!


So Wednesday night here I come. I have been commanded not to be afraid, but to look to God. I will be strong and I will be courageous; because I know that wherever I go, there you are.





(If you haven't read the book of Joshua, the people wanted what God promised, but O so quickly they fell off his path. They disobeyed, they had to be put back on the path. But don't just take my word for it, read it yourself, it makes a huge difference in the way you believe!)

Do all roads lead to God??

Do all roads lead to God??

If a friend gives you a map to their house and the map tells you turn right on this street, through two lights, then you're second left at the third light,  straight for two blocks then right again on this street. Who will try to find another way?

Why don't people follow the path mapped out for us? God gave us clear instructions how to get to Him, why try another way?

Maybe there is, maybe there isn't another way to God, I don't want to be the one to test it out.

Choosing to LOVE---the Love Dare

So my husband and I started to do the Love Dare book, and although we got lazy and kinda stopped, at least we started and we will finish, but I'm going to go ahead teach what the book taught. It's really an amazing book with alot of good points I really didn't think about! (and for the record; the book helped us alot).

Love is built on 2 pillars:   Patience and Kindness
(All other characteristics are extensions of these two attributes)
                Patience
"Love should make you a patient person, when you are patient you respond in a positive way to a negative situation. Patience brings an internal calm during an external storm." When you have patience you allow your spouse to be human.
                Kindness
Something I never knew was the kindness is an action. Patience and kindness are both acts. Patience is how love reACTS to minimize a negative situation, kindness is how love ACTS to maximize a positive situation.
The book says, "Patience avoids a problem; kindness creates a blessing. One is preventive, the other proactive. Love makes you kind. And kindness makes you likable."
*the breakdown of kindness:  1 gentleness    2 helpfulness    3 willingness    4 initiative


The word Love is the opposite of Selfishness. We are all selfish. "Almost every sinful act action ever committed can be traced back to a selfish motive. It is a trait we hate in other people yet justify in ourselves." The only way we can  satisfy love to to act UN selfishly. You cannot love and be selfish at the same time.
*Do I truly want what's best for my husband or wife?
*Do I want them to feel loved by me?
*Do I believe I have their best interest in mind?
*Do they see me as looking out for myself first?

How many times to we do what we want and put the needs of our loved one behind us? I'm bad about this, I do this alot. I want a tattoo, Kyle hates them, I got 2 anyways. I didn't want to give up what I wanted to make him happy. It's been hard for being a young mom, first I had to give up the things I wanted for Bella, now I'm being told to give up my needs for Kyle. But really, being generous can make me even happier when I give it a chance.

Philippians 2:3 Do nothing from selfish or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves"

Love is not Rude.
*How does your spouse feel about the way you speak and act around them?
*How does your behavior affect your mate's sense of worth and self-esteem?
*Would your husband or wife say you're a blessing , or that you're condescending and embarassing?

I am pretty bad about this. I come home and gripe and complain about how bad my work day was, how much weight I've gained, etc. When I complain I'm being rude to Kyle. He doesn't want to hear how bad my day was, or how bad my life is, it just brings him down, puts everybody in a bad mood. "are you as considerate to your spouse as you are to strangers? co-workers?"  
two main reasons people are rude: selfishness and ignorance.

"The only way love can last a lifetime is if it's unconditional. The truth is: love is not determined by one being loved but rather by one CHOOSING to love. The Bible refers to this kind of love by using the Greek word agape."

3 Types of Love:
*Phileo (friendship)         - phileo and eros are responsive and can fluctuate depending on feelings
*Eros (sexual love)
*Agape                          - only true love- Unconditional love.
God's love is a choice. We don't deserve his love. We receive it from him and share it with others.
"We love because he first loved us" 1 John 4:19
*Do we base our love on circumstances or feelings or on commitment?
When you have agape love you will not say any more, "I love you because," rather "I love you, period."

Note: This is just a sample of this book, it really takes you on an amazing journey, discovering yourself with your spouse.Check it out! It's called The Love Dare.

Arguing for Christ: how to convince unbelievers?

(DAY 1) I can't say that I can give you a totally convincing argument for Christ, because it is what it is. It's faith. I have faith. I know I cannot, nor will I ever completely understand everything; some people just have the drive and desire for knowledge and if they cannot comprehend it, it must not be. I am in the middle of a "debate" if you will, with someone I graduated with. He is very intelligent, and seems to have no faith. From what I've seen, people that are exceptionally smart miss out on Jesus, they cannot understand it. If evolution and science is what you base your life on, what about the people who accept Jesus and change? Is there any scientific proof that there is a change in their heart? I don't understand science, maybe that's why I can have faith. Today I start my journey; science vs Jesus.

I believe that we were created by God, he created us with free will. We were tempted and we fell, hard. He allows us to have free will. We create sin because people are greedy, needy, nasty, jealous, rebellious, sexually immoral, etc. He sent his son Jesus Christ to die for our sins. He was sinless. He endured the punishment we all deserve. When we ask him for forgiveness he will save us. We will not be perfect. We will still sin, but if we truly want to be forgiven he will change us, it will change our lives and hopefully the lives around us. Judgment day will be a sad day. I would rather live my life knowing Jesus is the Christ, he will be the one to judge us, than to live as if there is no God and find out in the end there is.  (this is what I wrote).

http://www.parentcompany.com/csrc/basics.htm

 

(DAY2)  Okay, so I spent 3 hours in a discussion, (we both decided we wouldn't have a nasty debate). I'm getting frustrated because I'm so passionate about Jesus and what the Bible says and it hurts when someone says I have blind faith. Faith isn't blind.

 OPPOSITION:

I don't really care. I figure my actions speak louder than words. Don't shove it down my throat about God and I won't shove science down their throat, Buddhism, Wiccan, Hinduism, Druidism, hell, even that Scientology. Everyone's entitled to their opinion - oppressing others well that where you get problems. Do good and get good. Simple and easy. If any religion is right and has a benevolent, caring deity - that superpower would probably give more weight to those that better society - not those who cause problems.

I'm starting to believe some people just don't want to believe. They will listen to history and science and take it all in as truth but won't stop to think there are things we just can't understand. That miracles exist, we cannot control everything nor can we create everything. I don't think they will be ever to completely create a human, they may clone one, but they cannot take nothing and create such a complex system. God created Adam out of dirt, what can we make?

 OPPOSITION:

Is it not true that different denominations have different books in their bible? How does it stand to argue for the Bible when there's different ones? I believe the Catholic one has 77. 

The different denominations may have some different beliefs, but the Bible's message is clearly the same. The Catholic Church and Protestant Church do have different Bibles. But between Baptists, Methodists, Presbyterians, Lutherans, you can use a King James or NIV Bible and it will be the same.  (check out tbm.org  under Bible answers read "Why do Catholics and Protestants have different Bibles?) 

OPPOSITION:

Evolutions can be seen in embryos. Look at conception through birth. You'll notice initially a lot of creatures appear similar through the stages until it divides up into whatever they end up 

In the end they are still birds, right? Evolution and adaptation are two very different things. Evolution thinks we came from apes, adaptation is like a mutation, it helps a species adapt to their changing environment. That's why we have different colored skin, eyes, hair, that's why our bodies are different, it's more now due to people mixing races. But we started out one way, then our bodies changed to fit our climate.


OPPOSITION:
Birds - yes. However, it shows evolution on a small scale. There were no dogs many years ago. Some wolves slowly changed into dogs from human interaction. They're part of the same family but they're different like humans and apes and other hominids. Things take time to change. You can argue that birds are still birds and that we're just hominids.

I'm pretty sure there were pictures of cats and Italian greyhounds (a type of dog) in the Egyptian pyramids. We might not have had all these different types of species we have today, but that's because we like to play God and we interbreed to try and create a more desirable breed.   

Some people think that people who have faith or are part of a religion are weak, they use it as a crutch, I'm here to say "it's my wheel chair" without a "divine being" we are nothing! God created us in his image, he gave us free will. It's up to us to choose him, he chose us already.
"To each their own. I'm not going to argue that it may be comfort for some... but personally, had it been comfort for me, I would have given up my faith a long time ago. "

I can't seem to have the right words at the right time. If I don't completely understand science and philosophy, how can I argue it's wrong?