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?

Happy Birthday Baby Jesus!

So this Christmas season went well. Christmas Eve we spent with my sisters and my dad and his fiance and ate alot of delicious foods! We had a great lunch with my in-laws and a great dinner with my mom and step-dad. Bella was in overload with all the new toys she got! She kept calling it a birthday party, so we told her it was a birthday party for Baby Jesus, so it's so cute now she talks about baby Jesus and his birthday. She's still too young to quite understand the Jesus-died-for-us concept. But at least she's acknowledging there IS a Jesus. I can be happy with that. Of course she loved everything she got and she told everybody thank you, but it's a struggle trying to find the balance between giving her what she needs and wants. I don't ever want her to be without. She will never be without. But I want her to grow up and understand that it's not about the gifts, the stuff she wants. It's all about Jesus. Our whole life. Our purpose here is to please him, to live for him. We are so consumed with stuff. I know I've been writing about this for a while but it's so important. Stuff won't make us happy. It won't save our souls. It won't get us into heaven. Stuff gets in the way with our walk with Jesus.

Anything and everything can be stuff; our jobs, cars, relationships, toys, food. We are so greedy and it makes us blind to whats important. New cars are a big thing. Everyone wants to have a nice car, top of the line, most expensive, leather interior. It's nice. It makes us happy. But does it really? How long will that car make you happy? You save up and make payments then gripe about how great the newer model is. My mom had nice cars, acuras, hondas, nice cars. We kept them for a short time, then got new ones. My first car was an Acura Mdx. A very nice car. I loved it, but I couldn't wait until I could get a black one. A newer one. I have been through my share of cars, my newest car is an old minivan. We bought it $6,000 cash. No payments.Its great! I love my old beat up minivan- I don't have a cd player and sometimes my windows won't roll up, but I love it. I don't need anything else. I have more than I need. A car that holds a big family, it runs, I have no payments, and best if all it's mine! I still have my wants in other areas, I love to shop and buy new clothes, but not-wanting something is so freeing. I'm not worrying about making payments, I'm not worried about what anybody thinks of it. I love my minivan. And it's one less thing I let get in my way of Jesus. We spend so much of our time trying to get the best, GIMME GIMME GIMME.

I'm hoping I can find that balance for Bella. Help to to be grateful for what she gets, while being able to provide her with more than what she needs. I see alot of service projects in our future! I am happy to say I've made it through another Christmas without being disappointed. I have what I need and want. *We are here to serve God by serving his children in need.*    So again: Happy Birthday Jesus- you have given me everything I need and given me people who graciously have given me everything I want! 

CHRISTmas to those in need

It is getting close to CHRISTmas, only 4 more long days to go then we will be laying our heads down and waiting for Santa! Wait, Santa? Is Santa really the reason for the season*? For kids maybe, but they'll grow up and know better, right? Maybe not. If we force feed Santa and gifts into their heads that is what they'll know- I'm thinking about ruining Santa for Bella early just so she will know what CHRISTmas is about. Give her a head start in learning about Jesus and what he's done for us. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE presents, but I'm not going to base my happiness of CHRISTmas day on what I get or how much I get. I want to see my family together, I want to see happy healthy hearts for Christ. We are so fortunate to have so much to look forward to on CHRISTmas day. We have our ham, turkey, presents, pies, family. Some people have nothing. They will drink the same dirty water, from the same dirty river, they will be hungry, with nothing to satisfy their need. If they are lucky they will get a pair of shoes, too small or to big, that will be theirs and that's all that will matter. As I explained how much we have to be grateful for and how little people actually had, it struck me how ignorant people can be, he told me that there were no people like that around us!! Really? There's nobody in need in Highlands County? At my Church we used to deliver food and presents to needy families in our area, there's alot! He blew off everything I said like that kind of stuff only happens in other countries, and it wasn't our problem! That Idea is so WRONG. Are we not all God's people? He calls us to give everything we have to the poor. And while nowa-days it seems crazy to be without our essentials; cell phone, computer, wii, ipad, we really place too much value on these things. Some people get excited to have one pair of knock-off brand tennis shoes that may not fit properly, or that are not in style. It really makes me question how I have spent my time and I'm lucky to come to all these realizations soon rather than later so I can make a change in my life. In my families life. IN OTHERS LIVES. I may not have an extraordinary amount of income, but I was sure to fill shoe boxes to be sent to kids who usually don't get anything. And while we should help out everyone, why not help out those in our own neighborhoods, schools, etc with their everyday needs?!

Be a Santa* to the needy- but let them, through you actions, see the face of Christ.

Being Selfish

Selfishness is self-destruction. I put this on my facebook this morning and got a couple of "likes". It really got to me last night while we were eating dinner, you see my sister-in-law is in college out of town. She doesn't get to come home much, she's busy with work and school, friends, normal college-kid things. She will not be here for Christmas and she refuses to stop by and her grandmother and grandfather. They have asked to see her before she leaves and it will only be 10 min out of her way, but really. What is more important than family? (Especially during the Holidays) She claims to be "more mature" than the average 19 yr old but she really isn't. She goes out to clubs and bars to "hang out". How is that any different than any other college student? When you are so obsessed with self satisfaction and greed it ruins your life. Temporary happiness. Happy for a minute and quickly realizes that you need something else, and so consumed with yourself that you deserve it. Everyone likes getting presents, it makes you feel valued, good.  But when you flat out are nasty that you "better get this". It's disgusting. As kids and teens we all can have selfish moments, then we grow up. My sister-in-law is not the only selfish person out there. But it really makes me step back and look at my parenting. I give Bella whatever she wants (almost, I do say No) and though she's only two I still have time to instill value in her life, to teach her about giving not getting. But I would feel like a total failure as a parent, and totally disgusted if I saw her act the way I have seen people act in the past few months. You don't deserve anything. In life you work for what you want. *The only gift we need is Jesus and He's the only gift we don't have to work for.*  So step back, is it really mature to be selfish? No. It's childish. Makeup and clothes don't make the adult. Heart and character make the adult. But don't worry selfish teens of the world, you still have time.


A stingy man is eager to get rich and is unaware that poverty awaits him. Proverbs 28:22

Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income. This too is meaningless. Ecclesiastes 5:10





* Sorry if this blog sounds like venting- IT IS. I am so disgusted with the way people act over STUFF. Everybody wants STUFF> its great to have STUFF- this stuff won't get you to heaven. Remember what this life is about.

The Rich Young Man

Matthew 19: 16-30

A rich man came to Jesus and asked him what good things he must do to earn eternal life, Jesus explains that there is only one who is good and we must obey his commandments. Which ones? Jesus lists a few and the man says he has kept all these.

Jesus answered, "If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me." 

Then the man went away sad. 

Then Jesus said to his disciples, "I tell you the truth, it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." 

 Does Jesus mean that anyone with money will not go to heaven? I don't think so. But he was emphasizing that we do not need to hold onto money, we tend to use money as an idol, that's what we put first, that's what we work so hard for. So why if money cannot get us into heaven do we store it up, being greedy? Jesus calls us to give it to the poor. Use your wealth for the benefit of showing God's love and grace. It's all about using your gifts. If having money is your gift, use it! Give it away. I can relate to having no money and I still like to give it away. I'm pretty good at spending so when Christmas time comes around and their are kids who need presents, just say the word God, my money is your money. It's something that we should do year round, not just holidays though. Give fully and freely from your heart. Work for Jesus, because He is the only way to eternal life. Let go of money, show good faith and he will provide. Anything you give, give with an open heart and open mind.

So those of you with great wealth and those with no wealth, don't use money as an idol. Tithe and give to the poor. Shine with the light of grace, let them feel the hope. Give it all away.