Have Courage and Be Kind

Growing up, I was a child that legitimately liked everything. I liked every type of toy, and believed that they all needed to be played with because, well, toy equality. Since my dad was a huge Star Wars and superhero nerd, I grew up playing with Star Wars action figures (my favorite were the Ewoks) and X-Men figurines while rocking my Spiderman pajamas and C3-PO slippers. Now while I was a total tomboy in some aspects, I was still a little girl, which meant one thing: princesses, princesses everywhere. More specifically, Disney princesses. So as a twenty-year-old woman, you have to understand my joy with all of the new live-action Disney princess movies. While I'm anxiously awaiting Beauty and the Beast (commence girlish giggling), for this blogpost I want to focus on two things: the newest Cinderella movie and our current political state as a country. But before we do that, I want to give a disclaimer: I do not approve of either Trump or Hillary when it comes to their character quality. I did not vote for either of them. This being said, I am not going to write from a perspective that supports one or both of them. This is going to come from a neutral perspective, so don't panic and stay tuned.

The main line or "phrase" in the new, live-action Cinderella move is this:

"Have courage and be kind."

Now go on, read it again:

"Have courage and be kind."

I love that line, don't you? It's plain, it's simple, and it's straight forward. Above all, I believe its exactly what we as people - whether we are young or old, male or female, Christian or non-Christian, Democrat or Republican or even unlabeled - need to focus on. We need to have courage. We need to be kind. But lately, what with Trump being elected as our next president, I have not seen much courage, and I have not seen much kindness. In fact, I have seen the opposite. I have seen fear, anxiety and worry, and cruelty, meanness and viciousness. I go onto social media and am immediately disheartened; we do not have courage and we are not being kind.

One of my favorite things to tell my boyfriend (God bless his patient soul) is that I do not believe the opposite of love is hate. I believe that the opposite of love, is in fact, fear. The opposite of love is fear. Now we can switch this around by saying that the opposite of fear is then therefore, love. 1 John 4:18 says, "Therefore there is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love." How can we have courage and love and kindness, if all we show is fear?

I have watched our country dramatically change within the last few years. I have watched us choose to love people regardless of their pasts, their religion, the color of their skin, their sexual orientation, their mistakes, their personal views and so much more. We were united. We were courageous, loving and kind. Our kindness was a priority, and so was our courage to stand up for one another. And suddenly, over the last 72 hours, I watched us completely fall apart. In a couple of hours, I watched our country shed our courage, kindness and love and instead replace it with fear, anger and cruelty. How did we allow ourselves, regardless of our views, to fall apart and become so vicious? We had come so far, only to lose it at the sight of one person plastered across our TV and cellphone screens. Why are we losing our courage and kindness so fast?

I have been on social media since the election and I have seen such a lack of courage and kindness, and I have watched us revert back as a country. In such a short time frame I watched us take one step forward and nine steps back. What was making our country so great was our courage, our kindness, and our love, but we are losing that. And it is breaking my heart because we are so much greater than that, and because we are called to greater things than this.

Psalm 31:24 says, "Be strong, and let your heart take courage, all you who wait for the Lord." Did you know that the Bible says "fear not" and phrases similar to that 365 times? Every single day we could read a verse about fear, and yet, here we are, focusing more on fear than on love, and we are driving wedges between each other. Our battle is not with each other, nor is it with Trump. Our battle is with our lack of love and our lack of kindness and courage. Our battle is with our overwhelming sense of fear that Satan wants us to reside in. By acting out of fear and anger and lack of love, we are becoming the very thing we detest. We are becoming the opposite of what we want to be, of what we have striven to become.

Ephesians 4:31-32 says, "Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you." As Christians we are called to be kind. As human beings in general, we should continually choose kindness. When we decide to go against kindness, we gain nothing. When we block, unfriend, and create arguments among one another, whether online or in person, we allow anger and hate to blossom. Those are not Christian characteristics, and those are not traits of Americans.

I urge you, have courage and be kind. Do not become the very thing you hate. We are the UNITED States of America! We are supposed to be united, not divided. No matter who our president is, or what we would have chosen for our country, we still need to be kind, have courage and show love. That is where our power is. That is where our wisdom is. And that is where our voice will be heard.

"Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins." - 1 Peter 4:8

Why I Don't Want To Be The Strong One, But Why I Have To Be

 

 

I am the first person to tell you that I am not a fan of relationships, especially when they're talked about in books or movies or articles regarding godly relationships. To be honest, it kind of majorly drives me up the wall. When I go to the bookstore, all I want to find is a cool Theology or Apologetics book for the millennial generation (my generation). But what I find instead, is a plethora of never ending dating and marriage books. Don't get me wrong, I think we need books on marriage and dating with a Christian perspective to help us navigate relationships and how we can honor God in these said relationships. But I am completely and totally exhausted with seeing only dating books every which way that I turn. And there are many reasons why.

I haven't had a boyfriend for the last four years. Some people call me picky and say my standards are too high for any guy to ever amount to. Others say dating is just something fun to do and it doesn't need to be taken seriously, and that I should lighten up. Others say I just haven't put myself out there because I'm being too snobbish. What they don't know, is that they are all wrong. I haven't had a boyfriend because I'm picky, take dating too seriously, or am a snob. I haven't had a boyfriend in four years because my mind and soul and heart doesn't physically have the strength to battle the Enemy and fight for my purity and the man I'm with. I have already fought too many battles, and I am wounded; weakened; exhausted; discouraged. I have had a grand total of four boyfriends, and a lot of almost but not quite boyfriends. I'm not telling you this so you can laugh or be shocked or surprised; I'm telling you so you can understand where I'm coming from. So you can understand that the battles are hard to win and easy to give in to, and leave you feeling bruised, broken and depressed. Because in every relationship I've ever been in, no matter how good the guy is, I have always had to be the strong one. I have had to fight my own battles, as well as try to shield him from his own demons.

I have to be the strong one, but I don't want to be. 

Winston Churchill once wrote, "The price of greatness is responsibility." Boy was he ever right. To be great, to have a great relationship and find a great guy and be successful, you have to first be responsible. I have to be responsible. But I don't want to be. I have to be because I have to protect myself. I put on the full armor of Christ, but I can't just defend myself. Suddenly I have to protect myself, but also protect him, because his strength isn't strong enough, and this leaves him weak, and exposed. And I have to be the bridge between his sins and desires and the Lord's unending love and grace.

I don't want to be the strong one, but I have to be.

Because now my purity and his purity rests on my shoulders, and I hold the ability to make or break our relationship and thirty seconds of bad behavior can change our lives forever. And for what? Sexual tension and a damaged conscience? So statistically we can break up and go sleep with about five other people before we're married to other people and settle down? 

I don't want to be the strong one, but I have to be.

Because I am Sam, and he is Frodo, and I have to carry him up Mount Doom and help him battle his own demons and desires and throw the ring into the fire. Because I can't take the ring up myself, but I have to carry him so that we don't fail and lose ourselves for momentary fun and a lifetime of pain and regret. I don't want to be the strong one, but I have to be. I have to be the warrior and battle the Enemy and cry out to Jesus to give me strength and courage and readiness to fight this battle for the both of us. And I am beaten down and bruised and broken and afraid because with every day that goes on, all I can do is wonder if tomorrow will be the day that the battle beats me.

I am exhausted. Delusional. Tired and distraught and fearful of what will happen next. So I wrap myself in a cocoon of God's perfect love and strength and hide under His arms, preparing once again when the time comes for me to fight this battle of impurity once more. Because if I am America and that was World War I, then I have more wars to fight down the road. So I need to rest and draw strength from the Lord, so that I may pick up my sword and shield again and again and fight for purity and righteousness for both myself and the boy I'm with.

"From the ashes a fire shall be woken," - Tolkien. I am a pile of ashes, but God will light a fire within me, because my time for battle will once again approach, and I have to be ready. I will rise like a phoenix and be reborn again, renewed with strength and courage and tenacity to once again battle for our souls, using the Father as my sword and shield.

 

"The LORD is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts, and I am helped; my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to him. The LORD is the strength of his people; he is the saving refuge of his anointed."  - Psalm 28:7-8

I don't want to be the strong one, but I have to be. Because in this moment, with me, my future boyfriend most likely doesn't have the strength to put the brakes on when we're caught up in the moment. It's up to me. I'm weary. I am burdened with both mine and his purity. Because as much as I am tired of being the strong one and wish someone else would have the job of keeping our purity safe, I know I must do what needs to be done.

Realistically, the man I marry will have already slept with another girl before me; maybe even more than one girl. And I will sit, as his girlfriend or wife, and wish the girls he had been with before had had the strength to guard both her purity and his. So whether boyfriend number five becomes a spouse or not, either I will thank myself and God for keeping me strong, or his wife will thank me down the road. I may never meet her. I may never even know her name. But I would rather be one less notch on a belt of sexuality than a new notch before she settles him down.

If you're reading this and you're a girl, please, just stop. Put the brakes on. Say no. Keep yourself but also him safe from sin. Because unfortunately you're Batman in a sea of Jokers, and he's Gotham, and it's your job to protect him, whether or not you marry him. It's not your job to steal what should be another girl's.

If you're reading this and you're a guy, please, just calm your face. Look at yourself in the mirror, and tell yourself to calm the hell down. Because as much as you want to be with her, she is trying her hardest to save you and save herself from further hardship. So don't ask her for more. Don't let your hands slip. Keep your mind focused. Because she is worth more than a mistake in a string of boyfriends and you need to respect that. Don't push the envelope, because that's not your job. Your job is to protect her. As much as she is trying to protect you, you need to see her as courageous, brave, and self-sacrificing. Because she's risking her own heart and feelings to keep the both of you pure. So if you're a dude and reading this, please don't make her fight this battle alone. Luna Lovegood said, "Because if it's just you alone you're not as much of a threat." She is fighting by herself, but it takes two to tango. It takes a set of partners to catch a bad guy. So instead of aiding the Enemy, aid her. Risk your own wants and needs and do what God desires of you. Respect her. Keep her safe. Aid her in this battle, because two is better than one, and she would do anything for your help.

I don't want to be the strong one, but I have to be. And that's okay. It's hard. It's a long fight, and it's one of those battles where the Enemy keeps trying to chip away at you. But it's not impossible. We are survivors. We are strong, empowered by the bravery and sacrifice of the Lord.

A Letter to Men

It is with a heavy heart and a burdened spirit and a fragile mind that I write this blogpost. It is a topic that has been weighing down upon me, causing me great turmoil and fear. Not a day goes by that I don't think about it and how it has affected so many, many lives. I try to aim my blogposts to both men and women alike; young and old. But for this post I am aiming it specifically at men, no matter the age. Men who are old. Men who are young. Boys who have yet to become men. Brothers and husbands and fathers and uncles. This is my letter.

Dear Men,

Every little girl dreams of getting married. I work at a daycare and half the time my little girls are playing "marriage" or "house". Every one of them talks about being married to their husbands one day and having sweet babies and being mommies. While they aren't old enough to fully comprehend the responsibility of such things, it is still something they desire, from a very small age. I was one of those little girls. 

For years I have prayed for the man that God has set aside for me. I have prayed he comes quickly. I have prayed he seeks the Lord and loves little ones and loves me. I pray that he knows how to lead me. But as of late, I have begun to become discouraged by such things. Days go by. Months. Years. And as I have gotten older I have been forced to recognize the utter ugliness of the world I dwell in. Pornography and sexual temptations haunt young men around every corner. When you're young you don't realize it, but then something happens and suddenly it seems so much closer and so much more real than it did before. Porn used to be an ugly word, followed by shame and lust and sin. Nowadays, it is thrown around freely. As if it is just a part of life. As if it is okay. As if we should just expect it to always be around. As if it is perfectly normal for every young man to have seen it and struggle with it.

The average age for a male to view pornography is by the age of 9. Nine. 9. 9. As I stated previously, I work at a daycare. The kids I work with are as old as six. It both startles and scares me to think that by the time my young boys are 12, most, if not all of them, will have viewed pornography. By the age of 16 many of them will struggle with porn addictions. 10 years and the little boys I once knew will be forever tainted. It breaks my heart into a thousand pieces to think upon such things. Because they are so innocent and so sweet and one day they will have wives and girlfriends, who will never be able to compete with something this graphic.

I have seen women struggle over the fact that their boyfriends or guy friends or husbands struggle with porn or a sexual desire that cannot be quenched. I myself have been a victim of a young man who decided to choose porn and temptation and lust over me. Perhaps you don't know it...perhaps nobody has ever told you what it feels like when someone chooses a computer or an iPhone screen over you. 

 I knew a young man who was addicted to porn by the age of 16; he started viewing it when he was 10. Josh Duggar recently admitted he was cheating on his wife and struggling with porn as well. Strippers and pornography and graphic movies and unfortunate sexual interactions have forever changed the world. They have forever changed the world for so many young women who are put up to compete with things that are horrifically violent and devastating and painful and ultimately unreal. And nowadays I wonder...is there even a young man who hasn't looked at porn? Because now I expect that every man, every young man and boy has viewed such things. The movie/book "50 Shades of Grey" is celebrated and now more and more women are told that they should be able to take on mental, physical, sexual and verbal abuse in order to maintain a man. But where in the Bible does it say that men are supposed to abuse and hurt their wives and significant others? I have yet to find such a thing. In fact, I believe the Bible says otherwise. Colossians 3:19 says, "Husbands, love your wives, and do not be harsh with them." Ephesians 5:25 says, "Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her". 1 Peter 3:7 says, "Likewise, husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way, showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel, since they are heirs with you of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered." I have looked. So far I don't see anything about God telling men to view pornography and hurt their loved ones.






I am 19 years old. I used to be excited about getting married. Now...now I'm not so sure. I am fearful. Because I have already been left behind for a girl on a computer screen. And I know, like I know many other women have felt, like I could never compete with that. She is perfect. And photo shopped. And told how to act. She does whatever a directer tells her to do, even if it physically destroys her. How could I ever hold a candlestick to a girl that's so flawless? She does things I am too afraid to do. And if I'm not willing to do it, a trip to the strip club or elsewhere will fix that right up. Or will it? I never thought I would be so worried about getting married. I want to be married. I want to have kids and a happy home. But I do not want to be betrayed. Or abandoned. Or have something so fake be put above me. I am already hurt by the possibility because chances of meeting someone who has saved himself or not viewed pornography are so slim they are little to none. I am not saying they are impossible, for all things are possible with Christ. But sometimes it feels like my odds aren't very high.

This letter is a plea. A plea to men. To the men who have wives - I have given you evidence to not view pornography. You have a wonderful wife that God gave you - why would you treat her such? There is a big chance she gave you her everything...and now it is time your body is hers, and only hers. To young men who have yet to have wives but perhaps have girlfriends or are struggling - please turn away from temptation. Pull a Joseph and flee! Flee from sin and run into the arms of God. You will save your future wife/girlfriend so much grief if you choose not to act upon your sinful desires. To fathers - encourage your sons. Please, oh please fathers, encourage your sons. Encourage your sons in the way of the Lord. Encourage your sons to save their minds and their bodies for their future wives. Some of you fathers have daughters. How would you feel if you find out your little girl couldn't stand a chance against a glowing screen? How would you feel if your daughter felt forced to sexually exploit herself because the world tells her that is the only way she can keep him around?

William M. Struthers writes, "Pornography thus enslaves the viewer to an image, hijacking the biological response intended to bond a man to his wife and therefore inevitably loosening that bond." Bonds are broken. Relationships are torn to shreds or put under strain because of something the devil is trying to use to fight against us and fight against God. But I encourage you! Take up your shield and raise your prayers and the Bible up and fight off such temptations! For the Lord is strong and he will fight for you (see Exodus 14:14). 

1 John 4:8 says, "Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love." We are called to love one another, men and women alike. And when we choose to give into sexual temptation and let satan run ramped we are choosing not to love. Not to love wives. Not to love one another. Not to love girlfriends or someone's daughter. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 13:4-7, "Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things." Men love your women. Love your wives. Your girlfriends. Your future wives. Your future girlfriends. Love them enough that it prevents you from allowing temptation and struggle to enter into your life.

This is a call to arms. A call to fathers and sons and uncles and husbands and boyfriends. A call to young men and boys and old men who have walked the earth for many years. A call to defend the Lord's word and yourselves from satan's desperate attempt to tear our world limb from limb. Kick satan's butt. Scream at him and tell him you know love and will not fall into his ways! Resist. Flee. Run from temptation, take up your cross and follow the Lord desperately.

Signed,
The Girl Who Was Chosen By A Man 2000 Years Ago



"Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you." - James 4:7

The Yoga Pants Epidemic

I go to a Christian college currently, and for some reason, one of the most talked about topics is yoga pants or leggings. Should girls wear them? Should they not? Should they be banned? Are they...appropriate? These questions seem to follow me everywhere, so it's forced me to sit and think about this whole "yoga pants" or "leggings" epidemic. Apparently, this is a big topic we should all be concerned with, since it is making such a huge impact upon our planet (insert sarcasm here). Here at my school, half the school is pro-yoga pants and the other half is anti-yoga pants; there are even young men on this campus that tell the girls that if they are going to wear yoga pants over to the boys' dorm, to just not come at all because it's "too much of a struggle". Like I said - it's constant. And while this is continually a topic, I can't help but want to slap someone in the face every time it comes up, mostly because those conversations are absolutely ridiculous. Now don't get me wrong, I am all about modesty. I think a woman's body should be treasured and looked upon with beauty and not lust, but I don't believe that we should suddenly try and hide a woman's body just because it can be a struggle not to look at it. And deep down, I think most men generally know that it doesn't matter what a girl is wearing - they are still going to look. But here is what really aggravates me about this topic...it's not in the Bible. Yoga pants are not mentioned anywhere in the Bible.

I went on a missions trip to Haiti last February, and I got to see what life was like in a third world country. And just last night I watched a film titled the Boys of Baraka, all about boys in Baltimore, Maryland that had the chance to go to Africa for a boarding school to help them get into high school. An estimated 44 children every hour die in Haiti, and 1 in 10 children in Haiti will die before the age of 5. In Baltimore, Maryland, a group of about twenty or thirty boys attended a school meeting and were asked if they had ever been suspended - everyone raised their hand. One young man said he had been suspended 8 times - that year. One of the parents in the movie Boys of Baraka said: "When you send your kid to a Baltimore school, you send them to jail." They basically think that jail is the kids' only option because that's how bad their situation is. When the kids in Baltimore see a fire happening down the street or there is a huge group of cops gathered around people, they don't bat an eye. "Oh, it's normal to see a person's house being burned to the ground." "Oh last week we saw a 17 year old kid get shot in front of our apartment." "My dad shot my mom in the leg so he can't take care of me because he's got 13 years in jail." "My mom is addicted to cocaine." In Haiti there are swollen bellies from lack of food, moms crying because their babies are dead, children dying of starvation and diseases. In Baltimore, Maryland kids are getting shot and getting into drugs early and most of them may not even make it out of middle school - for the majority, high school is unlikely.

And here we are, discussing yoga pants.

Is yoga pants biblical, or is it biblical to be taking care of widows and orphans? To be taking care of the people I have just described above?

And yet, here we are, discussing yoga pants.

Because suddenly, yoga pants and modesty is a bigger issue then dying kids and struggling parents.

James 2:14-17 says, "What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone? Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing, and you say, “Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well”—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do? So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless." This is a call to action - do not sit idly by and discuss yoga pants, when you could be doing something that actually changes the world - something that could change a person's life forever.

Matthew 5:42 says, "Give to those who ask, and don't turn away from those who want to borrow." We are asked constantly by our churches and the people around us to help the poor and needy, but we turn our noses up and say we "don't have time". Except we do have time; we just choose to not use it wisely. Your "time" could save someone's life if you allowed it to.

Romans 15:1 says, "We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak and not to please ourselves." We need to come alongside the people that surround us, the people like the Haitians I encountered and the young people in Baltimore, Maryland. There are people everywhere in need; there are orphans and widows wherever we turn; there are struggling families and starvation no matter where we are.

And yet, here we are, talking about yoga pants.

So my proposition for you is next time you are debating yoga pants or leggings, perhaps it's time to put off that conversation and deal with more biblical issues. 

The Disobedience of a Child

For part of my junior year and all of my senior year of high school, I had the opportunity to help out in a second through fourth grade classroom (shout out to the amazing Mrs. Teachout). There were eighteen loud, joyful, crazy, sweet and loving children that I got the pleasure of meeting and spending time with. Each one was unique and special in their own perfect way. I loved every second I got to spend with those kids, and it will always be something I treasure deeply. Though as much as I adored the kids, there were some times when things would go south. I remember once I had to scold a second grader for using a swear word; another time I had to spend half an hour trying to coax a child out of the bathroom...they had decided they wouldn't come out until it was time for lunch - cheeky monkey! Another time a little girl called her younger brother stupid; I remember asking him if that hurt his feelings. His reply? "Nahh...she's stupid too." I love kids, and I love working with them, but I can't help but face this fact: they can sometimes be disobedient.

As I sit here thinking about the disobedience of a child, I have to wonder...are we, God's kids, disobedient little children too? We are called to care for the poor and the widowed, to look after and love others and praise the Lord and spread the Gospel, but how often do we actually do that?

This past week at my school, it has been World Outreach Week, and we have had missionaries from all over the world, from small villages in Africa, to China and Europe and the States. God was working everywhere, and it was brilliant to see. But during that time, I remember a missionary sitting down with me and discussing missions. During the time I was listening to him, he offended two people, cussed a few times and he had probably the coolest mustache ever - I liked him instantly, because he was honest. He looked at my friends and I and said: "This stuff about 'God's call' is silly. God presents you with an opportunity, and you take it. And maybe you don't want to, or maybe you do. But you do it anyway, because we are called to obey the Lord." He then proceeded to tell us that as we walked through our lives, we were either doing one of two things: leading people to Christ, or leading them away from Him.

Did you hear that? Did you read what I said? We are supposed to obey the Lord. Our greatest purpose on this earth is to spread the Gospel to anyone and everyone and to praise God. I feel like so many times we get caught up in other things about "Christianity" and "religion" and certain acts, like how passionately we worship or if we have any spiritual gifts and if we are being "good" people. News flash... None of that matters. Is worship your life? Has worship or going to church or being apart of a religious group become such an idol that we forget our true purpose in life? Have we become so distracted by  wanting to have spiritual gifts or do something great or be apart of something or be a "good" person so badly that we let it get in the way of the Holy Spirit working in the lives of others? We are either leading people to Christ or dragging them away based on what we do and how we react and how we decide to spend our time. So why do we get ourselves so caught up in other things instead of doing what God has ultimately called us to do? Yeah, I think those things can be important, but I've noticed that we can become so obsessed about that stuff that we forget about that Jesus guy and his pretty sweet Father that chose us over everything else. How disobedient little children we are... How very disobedient that we would worship the resources The Lord has given us rather than Him.

There's a passage in Matthew that says:

"They do all their deeds to be seen by others. For they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long, and they love the place of honor at feasts and the best seats in the synagogues and greetings in the marketplaces and being called rabbi by others. But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all brothers. And call no man your father on earth, for you have one Father, who is in heaven." Matthew 23:5-10

We get so caught up in these things and wanting to be noticed, that we forget why we were put on this Earth and what God has actually called us to do. We aren't supposed to want recognition, because in that we are disobeying the Lord and saying: "No, God, we can worry about them later. But right now I just want to feel happy and good and nice - and besides, I'm doing it all for you anyway." We let ourselves and our own feelings get in the way of the Holy Spirit and that breaks me up inside and hurts every bone in my being. Who are we to tell God that we're cool worshiping Him because it makes us, selfishly, feel good about ourselves but that's more "important" than spreading the Gospel and saving people and praising the Lord unselfishly? We become so distracted and enraptured by the flashy, that we forget spreading the Good News isn't supposed to be flashy, but humbling.

We are such disobedient little children, so much so that we use things the Lord has given us as excuses and distractions from bringing people to Him. We kid ourselves into thinking that we're all doing these things for God, when really doing those things and being blinded by them for our own selfish reasons is causing us to be disobedient and forget that we should be bringing people to the Father.

So stop being arrogant about all these tools God has given you. Stop getting distracted. Get your head on straight and recognize that we have great things to do for The Lord to glorify and obey Him, and we should joyously be doing those things in abundance. We are supposed to be harvesters, not lazy employees that just sit around shouting encouragements and feeling good about ourselves until every once and a while we decide: "hey maybe I should spread the gospel today!" Be a harvester - reap the field, and do the work you were created to do! Don't ignore it and forget your purpose here. If you are the one standing in the way of a person coming to Jesus, that puts you in the Lord's way as well, and we should be fighting with Him, not pushing against Him.

Matthew 28:19-20 says:

"Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."

So go and make disciples and praise the Lord.

A Letter of Love

I am a sinner. It's not a question; it's not an idea; it's a fact. I am a sinner. I'm a sinner and I don't deserve Jesus dying on the cross for me. I don't deserve the Lord of all creation choosing me and pulling me out of this wretched darkness. I look at myself and realize that I am not a "good" person. By wordly standards, I may appear to be. I've been to Tijuana, Mexico, spent the summer of my sophomore year living with a missionary family (shout out to the amazing Ward family) in a small town only a couple of hours from La Paz, Mexico, traveled to Haiti to spend a couple of weeks in the mountains to help the people there, worked as a VBS and middle school leader; I don't drink or do drugs; so does that really make me a good person?

Some of you may be nodding your heads yes, but I am swiftly shaking my head no. No, I'm not actually a good person. R.C. Sproul said: "Why do bad things happen to good people? That only happened once and He volunteered." The only "good" person to ever walk the face of the earth died 2000 years ago on a cross for people who did not deserve it. I am not a good person...I am a sinner. But. But I was chosen.

One day, the Lord sent His only son to Mother Earth, and so it was that true and perfect love was born in a stable, in the form of a sweet, precious baby that was destined to die for you and I - the picture of unworthiness. And so I was chosen. You were chosen.

And suddenly, an epic pursuit began.

No longer are we alone, being pursued by nothing but people, who come and go as they please and stop pursuing after they get tired or bored or settled. So He chases desperately after us, until we finally turn around and allow Him to slam into us so hard that His love echoes throughout our every cell and we can't help but be enraptured by it. Every bad thing, every debt, every mistake, every terrible late night decision, every rude word, every feeling of self-loathing, every moment of weakness, is wiped away by God's letter of love: "I have sent my one and only Son to die for you; to take away your sins. I have sent my one and only Son to die so that we could have no barriers between us. I have sent my one and only Son because I love you so much that I would give up anything to be with you. I have sent my one and only Son in a relentless pursuit of you."

Psalm 23:6 says: "Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the house of the Lord forever."

God loves you. God found you. God pursued you. And God will never stop pursuing you. How's that for true love?

UN-thankful

Ahhhhh November...fall leaves blowing about the road, Winter whispering of it's slow return, turkeys, football, blustering winds and gorgeous colors. I love November; it's easily one of my most favorite months, that is, if somebody could have a favorite month. Despite my list depicting November, I left one thing out of it: thankfulness. November is the month of thankfulness. Seeing as Thanksgiving is during late November, some genius person decided to make the entire month about being thankful. Hence, November is now the month of thankfulness. I like this idea a lot - an entire month dedicated to being thankful about things; talk about brilliant! While we can probably all agree that we like the "thankful month" and like talking about what we're grateful for, how come we are so positively un-thankful?

I love looking on Facebook and seeing everybody posting what they're thankful for on each day of November. I think it's a really sweet idea and it helps people realize all the great things they have in life. Except, when it comes to the rest of the year, how come things that we're thankful for are never talked about? Not only that, but how come (during the rest of the year and even during November) almost 100% of our time isn't spent rejoicing and being glad for what we have, but whining and complaining about what we don't have?

For example, I am thankful for getting to scoop dog poop. Now, don't take this the wrong way and think I'm thankful for dog poop...no, that's not what I mean! I'm thankful for getting to scoop dog poop because it means that I have the dog I truly love. Or, I'm thankful for slow drivers. Not because they're plain slow (because let me tell you, I can be super impatient sometimes!), but because they remind me to slow down and take a breather. Or another great example, I'm thankful for chewed shoes; not because they were chewed, but because I had a sweet Bernese to chew them. Things that seem like they should be complained about, can actually be rejoiced about!

Now take a look at your life. You say: "My husband never does this or that and he's just not contributing to our relationship" or vice versa. Or maybe you say: "I just don't feel like going to work today...I hate my job". Or perhaps (and here's a common one): "I hate school". Or even, "My kids just never listen to me". Those are all classic "whines" that we, as people, use on a regular basis. Now, I'm not going to deny that I never say these things, because I can assure you, I'm just as sinful as the next gal. Those are some of my favorite whines! But, they're wrong to whine about. You complain about your husband and after ten, fifteen years of marriage and you want a divorce because you have spent too much time being un-thankful for what you have. Maybe it's time to think about how nice it is that you even have a spouse to help you raise your kids and provide for you. Did you know that throughout the world, hundreds of children are being raised by single, poor mothers that would love to have a husband to help them? Crazy to think that you may be kicking your husband out, when another woman is desperately trying to get a husband. Same things go for husbands that think their wives aren't contributing. Or you say you hate your job, but hundreds upon thousands of people don't have jobs and can't provide for themselves or the ones they love. Who are we (me included) to complain about work when others don't even get the opportunity to fill out a job application? And then we sit and complain about school, but at least we get to go to school. If you go onto World Vision and search through the children to support, nearly every one will say that the child is currently not in school. Why? Because they don't get that opportunity like we do. And we complain and complain and complain about how our kids aren't listening to us when perhaps just across the street from you a woman just found out she will never be able to have children of her own. Since when did we become so selfishly ungrateful? What if you woke up today with only the things you thanked God for yesterday? Then what would life look like for you?

God didn't die on the cross so we could whine and complain and be un-thankful. Nope, definitely not! We have so many opportunities here on Earth, yet we decide to spend tons and tons of time complaining about the things we have. Paul was thankful for a jail cell and suffering...but we can't even be thankful for a comfy bed and a roof over our heads. Little children in Africa are thankful for a single pair of shoes or a deflated soccer ball, and we can't be thankful for fifty pairs of shoes or ten autographed, perfect soccer balls. God didn't create us to be whiners, but thankers! November shouldn't be the only month that we're thankful in...we should be thankful all the time, any time, about anything!

The Bible says: Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus. - 1 Thessalonians 5:18

That text right there commands us to be thankful in all circumstances, because this is God's will. This means that no matter what is going on, and what we want to whine about, that we should be thankful anyways. If we started counting our blessings instead of our "don't haves", don't you think we'd be a lot happier? Every time I get in a funk and start to feel depressed, my mom always sits be down and makes me say (out loud) what I'm thankful for. In a matter of minutes - sometimes seconds - both of us are smiling and laughing and I am feeling perfectly fine. So don't just post on Facebook in the month of November about what you're thankful for - shout to the heavens everyday of your life what you're thankful for.

So what are you thankful for?